She wasn’t quite sure how to interpret that sound, but she had no trouble deciphering the look in his eyes when he moved closer and placed his hands on her hips.
“Actually,” he murmured, “I have something besides chocolate cake in mind for dessert.”
Suddenly breathless, she rested her hands on his chest, feeling his heart beginning to pound beneath her palms. “Do you?”
“Mmm.” He bent his head to give her earlobe a teasing nip. “All of a sudden, I’m ravenous.”
As was she. She melted into his arms, parting her lips in invitation as he pressed his mouth to hers. His tongue plunged eagerly, tangling with hers in a dance of desire.
“Annie,” he muttered, lifting his mouth a fraction of an inch. “I’ve missed you. I hated the way we left things between us before Christmas.”
“So did I,” she admitted, remembering their quarrel with a sharp pang. She’d returned to Arkansas convinced that their unlikely marriage was coming to an end, which had made it very difficult for her to enjoy the holidays. She knew her family had attributed her unseasonable somberness to worries about her studies, but it had been Liam who’d been on her mind when she’d torn the wrappings from her gifts.
They’d talked since, of course. Neither of them had mentioned that painful argument, though she suspected it had been on his mind as much as it had her own.
His hands slipped beneath her top to explore the sensitive skin beneath. Ripples of pleasure seemed to trail from his fingertips as he caressed her throat, her breasts, her stomach—then lower. She moaned when her knees gave way.
Liam held her closer, and there was no mistaking he was as aroused as she. “Can you take just a little more time away from your books?” he asked, his voice hoarse.
At that moment, she would have gladly thrown her books over a cliff. Whatever he was there to tell her, whatever the future held for them, she didn’t want to waste one moment of their time together.
Drawing his head to hers again, she murmured against his lips, “I’ll start early in the morning.”
He swept her into his arms and headed back toward the bedroom.
Anne lay against the pillows, waiting for her heartbeat to return to normal—as if th
at were possible with Liam sprawled in the bed beside her. He lay on his back and his eyes were closed, letting her see faint lines of weariness on his handsome face. He’d probably had a long day of traveling to get to her, though he hadn’t let exhaustion affect his vigor, she thought with a sated smile.
She studied his profile, trying to get used to his new appearance. Trying to convince herself he was really there. Wondering why he had come.
Her smile faded when she remembered the last words they had spoken to each other when they’d parted in December. Telling her friends and family she needed a little time to herself to rest and study, she had slipped away during her winter break to meet Liam in Memphis a week before Christmas. It had been only the third time they had managed to see each other in the past year and a half.
They had spent a long weekend at the famed Peabody Hotel, locking themselves in their suite and hardly coming out except for the occasional meal. It had been glorious, but had ended with an argument that had rapidly escalated into anger. The emotions between them had always been volatile and very close to the surface.
They had apologized later, but had parted rather stiffly, the words still ringing between them even as they had kissed goodbye. They’d talked only a couple of brief times since when Liam had a chance to call from some distant place. Though they spoke cheerfully each time, she was often in tears after the calls ended. She hoped Liam didn’t know that.
His right hand lay limply on his perspiration-sheened chest. Her attention was drawn to his ring finger, on which he sported a simple band of twisted gold and silver. She had presented the ring to him during their wedding ceremony, the same time he’d given her the diamond and sapphire ring she never removed. Every time she’d seen him on TV or in photos since, she’d noticed the band on his right ring finger, making her believe he wore it as faithfully as she did hers.
Tearing her gaze from Liam, she glanced beyond him to the clock on the nightstand. It was almost 11:00 p.m. With a smothered sigh, she slid toward the edge of the bed, trying not to jostle the mattress.
She hadn’t realized Liam was awake until he spoke, his voice still huskier than usual. “Where are you going?”
She settled back against him. “I—Nowhere.”
She didn’t think he’d want to hear she’d been slipping from the bed to return to her studies. She could take another few minutes.
Opening his eyes, he turned on his side to face her, sliding a hand down her bare side from her shoulder to her hip. “You’ve lost weight.”
“And you have a new scar since I saw you before Christmas,” she commented, tracing a puckered line just beneath his rib cage on his left side. “Do I want to know how you got this?”
“Probably not.”
She looked at his face. He looked utterly relaxed, lazily content. His newly shorn dark hair was mussed into appealing spikes, showing hints of the curls he’d cut off. His clear, gray-blue eyes reflected his easy smile. Faint dimples creased his lean cheeks, bracketing the beautifully shaped mouth she so loved to kiss. She had always thought Liam was the most handsome man she’d ever met. That opinion had not changed with the passing years.
Propped on his elbow, he toyed with the ends of her hair, pushing it away from her face and arranging it around her bare shoulder. “I guess we can agree that we both need to take better care of ourselves.”
She conceded with a faint smile. “Probably.”