“What do you want, Karly?” he asked as he continued to tease her.
“You. I...want you.”
“And I want you, sweetheart,” he said, leaning back to look at her. His brown gaze held hers as a slow smile curved his lips. “Let’s go back to the foreman’s cottage.”
Needing him more than she needed her next breath, Karly let him lead her through the mansion and out the front door to his truck. On the ride back to the foreman’s cottage, reality began to intrude and by the time Blake parked the truck at the side of the house, she had begun to question her sanity. She longed for him to make love to her—and, to her own surprise, she longed for him to love her again—but she needed him to understand the depth of the fears and insecurities that had held her back for the past eight months. Before they could move forward into a future together, she had to explain about her past.
When he got out and walked around to help her down from the passenger side of the truck, she had to let him know about her apprehension. She had to try to make him understand so he could forgive her for not believing in them. “Blake, we need to talk before we do anything impulsive.”
He stared at her for several long moments and the heated look in his dark brown eyes stole her breath. “Karly, do you want me?”
“Y-yes. B-but—”
“I give you my word that we’ll talk later,” he said, putting his arm around her waist and tucking her to his side as he walked them into the house. “But not now. I haven’t made love to my wife in over eight months and I’ve needed you every second of every day since we left Vegas.”
His words sent a fresh wave of longing from the top of her head to the soles of her feet. She hadn’t realized it before she came to Wyoming, before she’d spent this time on the land he loved so much, but she felt the same way.
She needed him with every fiber of her being. She didn’t know how she’d gone these long eight months without him. And after they made love they could discuss why she had refused to join him here, why she’d insisted a divorce was the right decision. They could figure out where they were headed in the future after they made love. Right now, she craved the magic of his touch and the overwhelming pleasure of being one with him.
She could hardly believe what she was about to say. But as she stared up at him, she knew that from the moment she’d decided to bring him the divorce papers in person, she’d never really had a choice.
“Blake, please take me upstairs and make me forget how long it’s been.”
Seven
When Blake opened the door to the room she’d been using since her arrival at the ranch, memories of the first time they’d made love caused Karly’s stomach to flutter with anticipation. It had been so long since he’d touched her and for the past eight months she’d lain in bed every night missing the feel of his skin pressed to hers, their bodies entwined in an embrace as old as time. A shiver slid up her spine and her heart skipped a beat at the thought.
When he closed the door behind them, he reached for her. Neither of them said a word as they stood with their arms around each other and simply enjoyed the moment.
As he drew back to look at her, he placed her hands on his shoulders for support before he removed her boots and socks, then pulled off his.
“Karly, I want you to know there hasn’t been anyone since we left Vegas,” he said, his brown eyes reflecting the truth in his words as he straightened to his full height and took her back into his arms. He brought his hand up to gently caress her cheek. “When we got married, I vowed that I would be faithful to you. And as far as I’m concerned, I’m still your husband until I receive papers telling me otherwise.”
She nodded. “That’s the way I felt about it, as well.”
Leaning forward, he brushed her lips with his. “I promised you we would talk about all that later, and I meant it. But right now, I intend to get reacquainted with my wife’s beautiful body.” Her pulse sped up when he reached for the hem of her T-shirt and slowly pulled it up and over her head.
“I can’t let you be the only one having all the fun,” she said, tugging his chambray shirt from the waistband of his jeans. She unfastened the top snap and slowly, methodically released the closures. She placed her hands beneath each side of his open shirt to brush it from his shoulders and her breath caught. She’d always found the hard ridges and valleys of his well-developed chest and abdomen fascinating. “Your body is perfect.”