My Heart's Desire (Barrett 1)

Panting, Alex tore her mouth from his, pushing herself up and away from him. She saw the question in his darkened eyes and answered it.

“I want to love you, too,” she whispered. Before he could answer, she lowered her mouth to the hollow at the base of his throat, tasting the salt of his sweat, then defined his magnificent body inch by inch with her seeking mouth. She lapped lightly at each male nipple and heard him gasp with pleasure. Slowly, gracefully, she moved down, nipping gently at the taut planes of his abdomen, the powerful muscles of his thighs. She raised her head.

Drake was watching her, his breathing suspended for the seconds that passed before she acted. Then, with a siren’s smile she lowered her head and ran her tongue slowly, lingeringly, over his throbbing manhood. Drake called out her name, his whole body heightened to the very brink of sensation.

Alex was fascinated by his maleness, by his very size and potency. She wrapped her small hand around him, caressed him tenderly, then lowered her head again to explore the very essence of his masculinity. He was rock hard, yet satin smooth, and so very hot to the touch. Lightly she stroked her tongue up to the velvety tip, licking off the droplet of fluid that she found there. In one savage motion Drake reached down and pulled her off him, rolling her to her back.

Alex stared up at him, startled and unsure. “Drake?”

He parted her legs with his knees, desperately, frantically. “I’ve got to have you now,” he gasped. “This minute … right now.” He entered her in one violent thrust. Alex arched her hips, bringing him deeper, feeling the wildness take over as he filled her, stretched her delicate flesh to take all of him. Drake slid his hands beneath her, lifting her to meet the frenzied pounding of his body, claiming her enveloping softness again and again.

“Alex … oh, Alex.” He couldn’t seem to stop saying her name. He found her mouth with his, kissed her urgently, the primitive motions of his tongue matching those of his body. She met his tongue, his body, thrust for thrust, whimpering his name as he went even deeper, took her higher than she’d ever gone before. She lifted her legs, wrapped them around his waist, and clung to him as they moved toward the pulsing release that hovered just a split second away.

And then it was upon her, unbearable in its intensity. Alex tore her mouth from Drake’s and cried out, skyrockets of sensation bursting through the very core of her being. And the words were torn from her, along with her heart and her soul, and she could no more have stopped them from being said than she could have stopped herself from feeling them.

“Drake … I love you!” she gasped. “I love you!”

She felt him reach a pinnacle of sensation. His body jolted as he poured himself into her in bursts of release that tore through him and flowed to her in a moment that seemed to hold them captive forever.

She never knew if he had heard her declaration of love, for that night there were no more words, only the union of husband and wife, as Drake conveyed to Alex again and again with his body what he felt in his heart.

Chapter 19

ALEX STIRRED, THE FAMILIAR sound of twittering birds rousing her from sleep. She was locked in Drake’s arms, just the way she had fallen asleep.

How many times had he made love to her? She had lost count, but each time their bodies joined, the unnamed emotion that was between them seemed to grow more powerful, more meaningful.

He had never said he loved her. Somehow Alex had known not to expect the words. But she knew she had reached him, touched something inside him, despite whatever emotional scars he bore that kept him from her. It was a start … a fragile, wonderful beginning.

She squirmed out of his embrace and ran into the morning sunshine. Happily, she stretched her arms over her head and inhaled the sweet air. Another day in paradise.

First she would search for their breakfast. Then she would help Drake work on the raft until she became restless. By midday she would be off exploring the numerous gifts that nature offered on their island. In truth, she hoped it would take Drake years to complete the makeshift boat that would enable them to make their way to the Canadian shore. Civilization seemed less and less appealing as the days went on.

She donned her newly washed chemise and headed for the water. She approached cautiously after assuring herself that no American ships were in the vicinity. The river was quiet, with just a few small boats cruising past, and she sighed with relief. Ofttimes it was different. She and Drake would conceal themselves, holding their breath, as an American ship passed by. At times like this they were grateful for their island’s somewhat secluded location, which helped to ensure their safety.

Alex stepped gingerly into the river, finding the water frigid, yet somehow exhilarating. She waded in up to her thighs, then cupped her hands and splashed water on her face, as part of what had become her morning ritual since she had gotten well.

She was just about to return to the shore and begin berry-picking when she spied a sudden movement. Curious, she paused, shielding her eyes from the sun with one hand and searching for the source of the motion. In less than a minute she found it.

Clinging to a large piece of driftwood, looking soggy and pathetic and adorable, was a puppy. With a gasp of surprise, Alex waded farther out toward the log that served as the pup’s lifeboat, He was just out of her reach, being carried further away by the current. Without thinking, Alex lunged forward, wrapping her hand around the shaking pup just as she lost her footing and plunged full-length into the icy depths of the river.

Drake had just awakened when he heard her scream. He was on his feet, pulling on his breeches, and heading toward the shore all at once.

“Alex!” he shouted, gripped with fear as he saw her thrashing about in the river. “I’m coming, love!”

He took off at a dead run, his heart pounding, and prepared to dive in after her. He came to a grinding halt as his dripping wife reached the sand, laughing and clutching a squirming brown object in her arms.

“Drake, look!” she laughed, oblivious to the stark terror on his face that was rapidly turning into blinding rage. “A puppy!”

“Do you have any idea how frightened I just was?” he thundered back at her. “I thought you were drowning again!”

Alex looked startled, then giggled. “Of course not! I really am quite a good swimmer when I’m not suffering from a concussion, you know.”

Drake wanted to throttle her, but she looked so damned appealing standing there like a wet sea nymph clutching the bewildered puppy, that he gave it up. He was just going to have to get used to living with an unpredictable tornado.

He grinned in spite of himself as he walked over to her, reaching out to scratch the dog’s ears. “Rather sad looking, is he not?”

“He was close to drowning!” Alex defended. “I found him clinging to a piece of driftwood!”