Treasure on Lilac Lane (Jewell Cove 2)

Only then did he kiss her, taking her lips with an assurance that set her pulse skipping. He took his time, letting the kiss draw out until she felt herself melting against him, her arms sliding up over his shoulders as their bodies pressed together.

She reached for the buttons of his shirt, undoing them one by one and sliding her hands over the warm expanse of his chest before pushing the cotton over his shoulders. All she wanted right now was to feel the heat of his skin against hers. But when she gripped the hem of her sweater, Rick stepped back. “Wait,” he said, his voice husky in the darkness.

He went to the window and she realized with a little embarrassment that the blinds were open and the wide windows facing the street would reveal them to anyone who bothered to look up. Rick tensed, staring outside for a few moments before gripping the cord on the roman blinds and releasing the folds, enclosing them in privacy.

“Are you all right?” His jaw was set at a hard, tense angle and his eyes seemed extra intense in the shadowy light.

He didn’t answer, but came straight to her, pulled her body flush against his, and kissed her with an intensity that was at once frightening and thrilling. She let out a little squeak as he swept her up into his arms and carried her to her bedroom.

Tonight would be all-out, no-holds-barred, baring-of-souls lovemaking. Jess trembled, standing on the precipice of taking this gigantic leap. It wasn’t about being the first time since Mike or a new step … She touched Rick’s face, met his gaze, and knew, deep down, that she’d tumbled down the slippery slope of falling in love with him.

She loved Rick Sullivan. She probably always had.

They left the lights off but the glow of the streetlamps cast enough shadows that Jess was able to see all of Rick’s features as they undressed in the dark. The glow in his eyes, the outline of his lips, the hard line of his jaw, the broad dips and curls of his shoulders and arms. The moment he slid inside her she cried out. Nothing she’d ever experienced had ever felt as right as this moment, and they held there, letting the impact settle over them.

Each movement, each pulse and beat was a tattoo on her heart. When things got too intense they slowed it down, determined to make it last as long as they could stand it. Sweat slicked their skin and Jess straddled his hips, her hair cascading down her back as she rocked against him and his hands gripped the flesh just below her waist. It wasn’t until he reached down to the spot where they were joined that she lost control, trembling and shuddering around him, calling out his name in the darkness.

The tremors were subsiding only a little when he swore, his fingers digging into her hips as he thrust upward, her still-sensitive skin throbbing as he reached his own orgasm.

Then there was only the sound of harsh breathing in her bedroom as they recovered.

Something had changed tonight. Something important and big and amazing. Rather than ruin the moment by speaking, Jess curled up against his side, still naked, and rested her head on his chest.

I love you, she thought to herself, wondering if it was too soon to say the words. But they had already been spoken in her heart. If Rick wasn’t there yet it was okay. The way they’d come together tonight had not been one-sided. Rick would say the words when he was ready. The lack of them didn’t take anything away from the connection they shared. It went deeper than anything she’d ever experienced.

I love you, she thought again, as her eyes drifted closed.

* * *

Rick made sure she was completely asleep before sliding out from beneath her embrace and reaching for his jeans.

He left his shirt off and walked quietly out to the living room, lifting the blind and staring out into the darkness.

The car was gone. The face was gone. But Rick knew. When they’d first returned, when Rick had moved to shut the blinds, Mike had been standing across the street looking in.

Rick took his cell from his pocket and dialed Josh.

“It’s after midnight. What do you want?”

“Hello to you, too,” Rick said quietly.

“If this is a call to come pick you up somewhere…” Josh sounded supremely irritated. “I have early appointments tomorrow.”

“Shut up for a minute and listen.”

“I can’t hear you very well. Speak up, will ya?”

Rick pressed two fingers to the bridge of his nose, deliberating. “I can’t. Jess is asleep.”

Silence hummed along the line, but Rick heard the quiet condemnation anyway. So much for discreet. Every time he turned around, his relationship with Jess was a little bit more public.

“I’m at her place,” Rick finally said. “And when we got home, Mike was waiting across the street. I wanted you to know.”

“Shit.” Josh left off the you’re sleeping with my sister attitude momentarily and let out a big breath. “You’re sure?”

“I’m sure. I don’t like her left alone. I’ll be hanging around a lot. I don’t trust that guy as far as I can throw him.”

“Me neither.”