The Doctor's Christmas Bride (Lakeside Mountain Rescue 1)

‘Bryony—’

It was the first time she could ever remember him calling her by her name and she stared into his eyes, overwhelmed by emotion and sensation, every part of her body feeling every part of his. And then he started to move slowly and with every measured thrust he seemed to move deeper inside her, closer to her heart. She felt his strength and his power and was consumed by a rush of pleasure so agonisingly intense that she sobbed against the sleek muscle of his shoulder. She clung to him, fevered and breathless, totally out of control and not even caring. Every time her eyes drifted shut he muttered, ‘Open your eyes.’ And so she did, and finally she couldn’t look away as he drove her higher and higher until finally she felt the world explode and her whole body convulse in an ecstasy so powerful that it pushed him over the edge and she felt the hot, hard pulse of his own climax.

It was so powerful that for several minutes neither of them spoke. They just held each other, breathing unsteadily, their gazes still locked, sharing a depth of emotion that neither of them had felt before.

And then finally he gave a small, disbelieving shake of his head and rolled onto his back, taking her with him.

Bryony lay against him and allowed her eyes to drift shut, so utterly swamped with happiness that she started to smile.

Jack loved her.

She’d seen it in his eyes when he’d stared down at her. And she’d felt it in the way he’d made love to her.

Jack definitely loved her.

CHAPTER NINE

SHE awoke feeling warm and safe, wrapped tightly in his arms.

Bryony’s body ached in unfamiliar places and she smiled as she remembered every tiny detail of the night before. She snuggled closer to him and kissed him gently on the mouth, watching as he woke up.

‘I love you, Jack.’

Finally she could say the words she’d been longing to say for almost all her life.

And she sensed his immediate withdrawal. Physically he didn’t move, but she saw something flicker in his eyes and felt his lack of response with every fibre of her being. Her insides lurched.

‘Listen, Blondie.’ His voice cracked slightly and he cursed under his breath and released her, rolling onto his back and staring up at the ceiling. His eyes were shut and a tiny muscle worked in his rough jaw. ‘About last night…’

‘Don’t call me Blondie,’ she said, her voice shaking as she lifted herself on one elbow and looked at him. She wasn’t going to let him do this. She wasn’t going to let him pretend that what they’d shared hadn’t been special. ‘Do you realise that last night you called me Bryony for the first time in your life? That was when you were making love to me, Jack.’

His eyes stayed closed. ‘I thought we agreed that last night was a mistake.’

‘It wasn’t a mistake for me.’ She knew she was taking a huge risk but there was no turning back now. ‘I love you, Jack.’

His eyes flew open and he stared at her for a moment. Then he sucked in a breath and sprang out of bed so quickly that she blinked in amazement.

‘Blond— Sorry, Bryony,’ he corrected himself quickly as he reached for his clothes. ‘You do not love me, all right? You just think you love me because last night we had sex and women think soppy thoughts after sex.’

She watched, thinking that she’d never seen anyone dress so quickly in her whole life. Trousers, shirt, jumper—in seconds he was fully clothed, his expression desperate as he searched for his boots.

‘Why are you panicking, Jack?’

‘I’m not panicking.’ He found his boots and dragged them on without untying the laces. ‘I just think we need to get going.’

‘You are panicking. You’re panicking because I told you that I love you.’

He scowled at her and ran both hands through his already tousled dark hair. ‘I’m not panicking about that, because I know it isn’t true.’

‘It is true.’ She took a deep breath. ‘And I know you love me, too.’

He went completely still, his eyes fixed on her as if she were a dangerous animal that could attack at any moment. Then he swore under his breath and gave a sigh.

‘Bryony.’ He said her name firmly. ‘We spent the night together, sweetheart. We had good—’ He broke off with a frown ‘—well, amazing, actually…’ He cleared his throat. ‘We had amazing sex. It doesn’t mean we’re in love.’

‘Of course it doesn’t.’ She sat up in the bed, deriving considerable satisfaction from the way that his eyes lingered hungrily on her breasts before she tucked the duvet under her arms. ‘But we were in love before we had sex. The sex was amazing because we’re in love. You felt it, too, Jack. I know you did. I saw it in your eyes. I felt it, Jack.’

‘What do you mean—we were in love before we had sex?’ He licked dry lips and his eyes flicked towards the door. ‘We’ve been friends for twenty-two years, Blondie. We love each other, of course we do, but not like that.’