"I stand corrected."

His eyes narrowed on her. "You wouldn't be so foolish as to try humoring me, would you, little Tanya?"

"Absolutely not. "

"Wise of you, because I wouldn't like that."

"I knew that."

His eyes narrowed even more, but her expression, wavering before him between a total blur and crystal clarity, was damned inscrutable. So he kept his suspicions to himself. Besides, he didn't particularly want to begin a fight with her now, when his exhaustion was catching up with him. Proof of that was the difficulty he was having just removing his coat. He ended up turning a full circle while trying to get the damned thing off.

"Do you need some help, Stefan?"

It took him a moment to find her on the bed again. Help? From her? He must have misunderstood.

"It's that damn whiskey," he explained to her, just in case he had heard her correctly. "I believe it sneaks up on you. "

"That's a fact," she agreed.

"You — ah — weren't actually offering to help me undress, were you, Tanya?"

"No, but I thought you might need a little assistance in finding your bed tonight."

His disappointment in that answer was acute — and enough to prick his temper. "I will have you know there is not a single thing wrong with my eyes."

"That's a matter of opinion," she mumbled.

"What's that?"

"I said, that was my opinion."

He wasn't mollified. Arrogantly he continued, "Besides which, a blind man couldn't miss that bed." He marched to it and sat down to prove his point. "You see?"

"But, Stefan—"

"You are determined to annoy me, aren't you?"

"Absolutely not," she assured him. "But are you aware that you don't sleep here?"

"Don't try to confuse me," he said as he leaned over to remove his shoes and nearly tumbled off the bed. But with one hand braced on the floor while he tugged on shoes that didn't want to come off, he added, "I know damn well I have been sharing this cabin with you. It is driving me crazy, so I ought to know it."

"Why is it driving you crazy?"

He scowled at his foot. "Don't change the subject, Tanya. We were discussing this cabin."

"You're right, of course. The cabin and sharing it. I sleep in the bed and you sleep on the floor. Have I got that right?"

She just had to rub it in, didn't she? Wasn't it enough that he had given up the bed for her and hadn't once tried to join her in it?

"You don't have that right at all, Princess." One shoe finally came off and flew out of his hands to hit the far wall. "I might lie on the floor, but if I have managed to sleep there, I don't remember it."

"Is that why you're taking the bed tonight?"

Stefan straightened up so fast, he nearly blacked out. He dropped back on the bed the rest of the way as pain streaked through his head. And he was unaware that he was holding his other shoe when he brought his hands up to press them against his temples once more. However, the shoe was swiftly extracted from his fingers.

"Lord help me, what next?" she exclaimed. "You shouldn't have moved so quickly, Stefan."

He would have laughed if it wouldn't have hurt. And he refrained from saying, "No kidding," because it was finally occurring to him what all this nonsense was about. The damned woman had been humoring him. She should have told him to get the hell out of her bed when he'd mistaken it for his own. But no, that wasn't the way to handle a drunk. Just what had she thought he would do if she hadn't agreed with him? But he knew the answer to that, too. The same thing he had done before when his anger got out of control.

For a moment he wondered how far she would go to keep him a happy drunk. Wasn't she fortunate that he was too tired and too drunk to explore that thought fully? But he wasn't asleep yet.

He opened his eyes to see her staring down at him. She stiffened then, making him realize that her thigh was the soft pillow cushioning his head, and that he had surprised her by not being passed out, as she had likely assumed from his prolonged silence.

"As long as you're already here, Stefan, there is no reason for you to stir yourself. I can sleep on the floor for one night. "

"That's generous of you, but speaking of no reasons, I can't think of a single one to prevent us from sharing the bed instead — only for one night."

"I can think of several—"

"Don't. "

"I'll just—"

"Be still, Tanya! My head has just stopped aching, so don't make any sudden movements to start it up again. "

He wasn't sure, but she seemed to be grinding her teeth together before she suggested, "Don't you think you would be more comfortable if you put your feet up on the bed and stretched out properly?"

If she thought he would release her thigh when he moved, he would have to disappoint her. "Thank you for mentioning it," he said and rolled sideways, curving his legs to fit at the bottom of the bed and throwing an arm over her legs. His head remained on her thigh, and if it wasn't the most comfortable position, he would suffer it just to thwart her.

"Stefan," she choked out.

"Shh," he grumbled. "Don't start nagging now, when you have been so pleasantly agreeable — and I am almost asleep."

Her sigh was loud and clear as she dropped back onto her pillow. It would be a grand stroke of poetic justice if she didn't get any more sleep tonight herself, about as unjust as his finally having her in this position, but being in no condition to enjoy it. At the moment, he didn't even care.

Chapter 28

Tanya awoke to the feel of lips moving with tantalizing softness over hers. She didn't have to wonder who was kissing her. What she did wonder was if Stefan was awake and knew what he was doing, or if he was merely reacting in his sleep to the warm body he found next to him. And if he wasn't awake, or completely aware, did she want to risk changing that by abruptly stopping him?

Reasonable questions, surely, but they didn't take into account that she found being awakened like this very pleasant, so pleasant that she didn't want to be the one to end it. In fact, she began participating, carefully at first — to avoid waking him if he was still halfasleep — parting her lips, inviting the thrust of his tongue, which came instantly to duel in slow, sensual motion with hers.

But how quickly she forgot about being careful when the more she yielded, the more Stefan demanded. In no time at all, passion raged between them, hers fed by his. Her heartbeat had become violent. She had to gasp for each breath when she could get one. And the sensations that manifested and pulsed through her innards were more exciting than ever before.

She held him close, marveling that each time she ever had, the man had been so very hot to the touch. Now was no different, and she found herself wanting more than anything to know the feel of that heated skin against her own. But she still wore her dress. He still wore his shirt and trousers. Even the blanket was still half covering only her, though she had kicked one leg free of it when she had turned toward Stefan.

Then suddenly he was pushing the shoulders of her dress down and tugging on the bodice until her breasts spilled out. His hand caressed her while his kiss deepened even more, as if he were afraid this new intimacy might inspire a protest. The only thing inspired was a new sensation that amazed and delighted her as he palmed the hard kernel her nipple had become.

When his lips finally left hers, she tried to draw him back, but he was determined to explore a new path. He found it and she gasped, the moist heat of his mouth searing one breast, then the other, as if he couldn't make up his mind which one he found more tasty. But then he latched onto one nipple and began to suckle, and Tanya discovered the heretofore unknown connection between her breasts and her loins, how heat could shoot from one part of her body to another, firing an achy feeling of need for his touch in both places. She arched into him, demanding what she needed with her body. His hand slid up her bare calf, her thigh, finally answering her silent call with the most sensuous of caresses.

There was no doubt now that he was awake, and no doubt either that nothing was going to stop them this time. And Tanya responded to that, giving herself over completely to what he was making her feel, wanting so much now to know it all, feel it all, though she couldn't quite believe anything could be better than what she was experiencing right now. His nakedness, though, that might be better, all that heat hers to touch... hers? No, she wouldn't let doubts or negative thoughts intrude to spoil this. She wanted this man to make love to her. She wanted...

The insistent pounding on the door registered and provoked a groan of frustration from her. Stefan was more vocal, snarling, "I'll kill them," as he raised his head.

The pounding continued a moment more, then: "Stefan, if you don't answer, I'll think she's murdered you and break this damn door down!"

Tanya's eyes flew open, but it was difficult to see anything with only a thin crack of light coming in from under the door. But the door wasn't locked. Stefan had no more than slammed it closed last night.

He must have realized that at the same moment she did, for he got up with a curse, then groaned as the headache from his expected hangover caught up with him in a big way. But he still managed to reach the door, opened it partially just long enough for whoever was on the other side to see him, then closed it again, softly, in deference to his head.