A Contract for His Runaway Bride

CHAPTER TEN

ELODIESIGHEDANDrolled over in bed, opening her eyes to find Lincoln lying on his side, watching her in the moonlight. She ran a lazy hand over the dark stubble on his jaw. ‘You really are a dreadful insomniac these days, aren’t you?’

He gave a crooked smile that made something slip sideways in her stomach.

‘I like watching you sleep.’

She wriggled closer, her legs tangling with his beneath the bedcovers. ‘I’m not asleep now.’

‘So I see.’

Her hand drifted down to the proud rise of his erection. ‘What are you thinking about?’ she asked.

‘Right now?’ His tone was so dry it almost crackled, his eyes glittering darkly.

‘Right now.’

‘I’m a little cognitively impaired right at this very moment, with you touching me like that.’

‘Like this?’ Elodie ran her hand up and down the length of his shaft, her own arousal intensified by feeling the insistent throb of his.

He groaned and pulled her hand away, moving over her so she was beneath the weight of his body. He caged her in with his arms, his gaze holding hers in an erotic lock that sent tingles to her core. ‘I want you.’

The raw urgency in his voice matched the desire pounding through her body. ‘I want you too—just in case you hadn’t picked up on that vibe.’

‘You’re not exactly subtle.’

She gave him a twinkling smile. ‘Do you want me to be?’

‘God, no. I love it when you’re so forthright. It turns me on.’

He lowered his mouth to hers in a spine-tingling kiss that lifted each and every hair on her head. His tongue tangled with hers, darting and diving and duelling in a cat-and-mouse caper that thrilled her senses.

He lifted his mouth off hers to work his way down her body, leaving a hot pathway of kisses along her naked skin. He caressed her breasts with his lips and his tongue, sending waves of pleasure through her as strong as electrical pulses. He worked his way down her stomach, circling her belly button with the teasing touch of his tongue. She sucked in a breath as he went lower, his lips exploring her most intimate flesh of all.

She arched her back like a sinuous cat, giving herself up to the sensual attention of his mouth. He knew her body so well, so intimately, there was no question of her not responding. She did—powerfully, passionately, volubly. Her panting cries were almost primal, the thrashing of her body equally so. Her orgasm went on and on, carrying her along on a rushing tide that was almost frightening in its intensity.

She finally collapsed back against the pillows. ‘Oh, God, I can’t believe you did that. I thought it was never going to end.’

Lincoln gave her a smouldering look and leaned across her to access a condom. He slipped it on and came back to her, one of his hands brushing her wildly disordered hair off her face. ‘I love watching you come.’

Elodie scrunched up her face self-consciously. ‘Eek! I can only imagine how ugly I look.’

‘You couldn’t look ugly if you tried.’

She traced the strong line of his collarbone with her finger, her gaze lowered from his. ‘Beauty isn’t everything...and it fades eventually.’ She raised her eyes back to his. ‘Millions of people have seen me in sexy lingerie and swimwear, but I don’t think they actually see me...the real me...mostly because I haven’t wanted them to.’

‘But now?’

She chewed one side of her mouth. ‘I’ve played on my looks for as long as I can remember. I’ve used them to get where I wanted to go. Unlike Elspeth, who tried not to be noticed at all. But I want more now. I want to be noticed for my skills as a designer—not because I rock a skimpy bikini.’

‘I’m going to miss seeing you in those skimpy bikinis.’

She angled her head at him. ‘So you’ve been checking out some billboards and magazine spreads, have you? I noticed one in your office. Did you know I was in it or was that just a lucky purchase?’

‘Lucky purchase.’ His eyes shone like wet paint. ‘Although coming across you on a billboard almost caused me to run off the road a couple of times.’

‘No doubt because you were furious with me for having the audacity to use our breakup as a platform for my success.’

There was a small silence.

‘I was angry...livid, actually...’ His voice trailed away as if something had changed in his attitude towards her since then.

‘But not now?’

He brushed another strand of hair off her face, tucking it gently behind her ear. ‘It’s hard to be angry with you when you’re lying naked in my bed.’

Elodie stroked her hand down his flat abdomen, her smile teasing. ‘Do you want me to get dressed?’

His gaze glinted and he lowered his mouth to just above hers. ‘Not yet.’