Then Rainer let out a delicious sigh that made my fingers flex. I was the one with the power, no matter my diminutive height. Suddenly, the kiss caught fire. He was the one succumbing; I had the upper hand.
"No." I pushed to let go of his arms but stayed on tip toe.
"This is different," Rainer repeated on a ragged breath.
Rainer had been different all day. Or had I just seen a different side of him? I wanted to believe that under his smooth exterior, Rainer was really different. I drew my hands up to his collar and slipped open the next button.
This was different, I realized. It felt inevitable. Ever since he stumbled into me at the office holiday party, I had known I wanted this, and there was no turning back now. If I was going to be a rumor, then I at least wanted to enjoy what everyone would assume.
I opened another button then pressed my lips to his warm throat. Rainer's pulse was galloping, but his hands were slow. He gently tugged my blouse loose, unbuttoning the top of my jeans as he worked his way around my waist. When Rainer's hands slipped under my blouse and brushed against my bare skin, I lifted my lips from his throat.
"Tasha," he whispered. He teased me with two kisses then tugged my blouse up and over my head.
I stepped back, suddenly self-conscious. I had seen the other women at the office he had been with. Then I saw his eyes. Rainer didn't blink as his eyes dropped from my lips to the white lace of my bra. The delicate and revealing lingerie seemed to captivate him. He reached out both hands, palms up.
I shook my head and reached for his shirt. "Fair is fair."
I lost myself in the next kiss, the touch of his skin against mine, and only surfaced long enough to help him slip my jeans down over my hips. Rainer fell back onto my couch and pulled me down onto his lap. I resisted, not wanting to lose the friction of my thin lace against his dark chest hair. I sat down astride him, reveling in his approving moan. I pressed smiling lips against his mouth until his hands pulled me closer.
Rainer clasped me, and our bodies rubbed together, the tantalizing friction so acute between my legs that I moaned out loud. In response, he popped the clasp on my bra and peeled it out from between us. Again, I moaned as he pressed me up against him and released me. I flowed against him like a wave.
When I felt the exquisite strokes bringing me higher than words, Rainer wrapped his arms around me and shifted me down onto my back on the couch. My hands helped his as he tugged off my white lace panties and then reached for his own waistline. We fumbled, and he laughed, bemused by his own clumsiness.
I wanted that smile, wanted to feel it, and ran my hands up his arms to grasp his shoulders. Rainer's smile gave way to a hungry growl, and he lowered himself into my arms. We both moved slowly, his weight coming over me slowly as my feet drifted up his legs to wrap around his waist. Then our lips touched, and Rainer devoured me with a kiss.
I arched up, feeling him hard against me, then he shifted, and we suddenly fitted together. So deep, so tight, his breath panting against my wet sigh of pleasure. I rocked upward, just a slight pull with my legs, and we both groaned in ecstasy.
Rainer's lips never left mine even as our rhythm sped and slowed. He teased me, and himself, as he withdrew and went deeper. I felt his muscles shudder, contract, concentrating until the pressure pushed everything out of my mind. There was nothing but a bright burst that radiated through every inch of me. The wild waves of it caught Rainer, and he dropped his head to my shoulder with a long, emptying sigh.
We waited, my hands drifting up and down his back, his lips drawing a trail from my ear to my shoulder and back again, until the waves subsided. Then Rainer looked at me, the electricity back in his blue eyes, and I remembered the inevitable is rarely a good thing.
What had I done?
Chapter Ten
Rainer
The city lights of her view glowed. Tasha's small condo was lit from it, and the effect was a magical semi-darkness. In it, her skin was honey. God, if I kept thinking like that, I would have to devour her all over again.
I eased up, immediately missing the warmth of Tasha's body. "How about I light a fire?" I asked.
Tasha nodded quickly, but there was a small, glowing smile still on her face. She sat up when I turned away to the fireplace. She tossed my boxer shorts over my shoulder, and I could hear her slipping back into her clothes. When the kindling was blazing, I turned around to find her blouse and jeans all tidy. At least her hair was still loose and tousled.
"I'll grab our plates," I said, pulling on my pants as I jumped up.
"Thanks," Tasha said. She eyed my bare chest as I brought our full plates to the coffee table.
I handed her her wine and wished there was more I could do for her. Tasha was quiet, too quiet. I wanted her praise, but I didn't need it; I knew what I had felt extended through both of us. I just wanted her to say something, anything.
My fork stopped mid-air and a pile of jasmine rice spilled back onto my plate. I wanted Tasha to ask me to stay. I wouldn't, I mean, I couldn't. I wasn't the kind of man who stayed all night and cuddled, but there it was, the urge to pull her close and hold her until the flames burned down to embers.
"I can't get over your view," I said.
"Me neither." Tasha eyed my bare chest again.
I laughed and held out a forkful of curry for her to try. Tasha shook her head. "Am I seeing a blush on your cheeks?" I asked.
Tasha almost spilled her wine. "I think we're a little past blushing, don't you?"