None of the injuries were serious, but she would most definitely be sore tomorrow—and she didn’t even want to think about what her legs would look like once all these bruises bloomed. She’d planned to wear a pretty spring dress for the wedding, but now she thought she’d choose a nice pants set, instead. And perhaps she would suggest the best man keep Grayson on a leash during the ceremony.
The thought of a long, hot bath crossed her mind, but she was too tired to wait for the tub to fill. Instead, she took a quick shower, lathering carefully around the cuts, scrubbing her face and hair while trying not to think about anything that had happened during the past twenty-four hours. She suspected her dreams would be haunted by visions of glittering blue eyes, roguish smiles, missing children and unnerving amorphous shapes in the trees. No need to dwell on any of those images any sooner than necessary.
She wrapped a soft green terry robe around her and towel-dried her hair, wondering if she had enough energy in reserve to make a cup of tea. She was still too wired to sleep, but she didn’t want to obsess about…things, either. Maybe she’d just slip into some comfy pj’s, turn on the TV and watch something fluffy and mindless.
Her doorbell rang just as she opened a drawer to pull out a cami and sleep shorts. She bit her lip. She wasn’t expecting anyone, but somehow she knew who was at her doorstep. After only a moment, she sighed and tightened the front of her robe.
Like her, Dan must have taken a quick shower. His thick, dark hair was still just a little damp around his face. An angry red scratch striped his right cheek, alarmingly close to his eye. He wore a clean gray T-shirt and a pair of faded jeans, which he’d obviously thrown on quickly with a pair of sneakers. He’d been in a hurry. His gaze swept her quickly and she was suddenly, keenly aware that she wore nothing but a thin terry robe.
His bright blue eyes rose, held hers captive. “Do you want me to leave?”
She knew she should send him away. Knew what a mistake it would be to invite him in, especially tonight when her emotions were so raw, so close
to the surface. Her legs ached, her raw palms stung, she was already feeling the throb of sore muscles…and yet, all she wanted to do was drag him inside and wrap herself around him.
Still looking at her, he took a step backward as she remained silent, obviously prepared to go. She felt her heart jump into her throat, and she spoke huskily around it, her voice little more than a whisper. “Stay.”
Two steps forward and he was inside, the door closing solidly behind him. One step more and she was in his arms, his mouth on hers, her arms around his neck. His tongue plunged hungrily into her mouth, fusing them together, stoking the heat inside her until she felt as though she would spontaneously combust against him. Every time they kissed her reactions to him grew stronger, more urgent. Maybe she could find the strength somehow to call a stop now, before this went any further—but she wasn’t sure she wanted to. Who knew when she would feel this way again, if ever?
His hand slipped between them, easing into the wrapped front of her robe, fingertips just brushing the swell of her breast. She moaned softly into his mouth, letting the last of her resistance slip away. A shift of her weight, and her breast was in his hand, his thumb slowly rubbing, circling, sending her pulse rate skyrocketing, her thoughts whirling.
Her robe fell open. His T-shirt was soft against her breasts, his jeans rough against her thighs. She could feel his heat through the fabric, feel his arousal pressing urgently against her abdomen. Her fingers clenched in his hair, holding his mouth against hers as their tongues tangled, sparred, caressed. He cupped her bottom in his hands and hauled her even closer, so that not a breath separated them.
His clothes were an annoyance now. She tugged impatiently at the neckline of his shirt, aching to feel him against her. Dan drew back from her just far enough to grab the hem of his shirt and sweep it over his head. Even as he tossed it aside, her hands and lips were on him, gliding over ridges and planes, tracing, touching, tasting. Savoring.
The rumble that sounded from deep in his chest reminded her for a moment of Ninja. She smiled against his flat, brown nipple, but her momentary amusement evaporated when he took her mouth again.
She was distantly aware of the aches and bruises when she led him to her bed. When she fell with him into the pillows. When she rolled with him on the soft sheets. The discomfort was immaterial, overpowered by the haze of passion he stoked in her with his skilled hands and lips. He was excruciatingly thorough in his exploration, lingering and delaying until they were both on the edge of madness.
He dug in the pocket of his discarded jeans just as she was about to reach for the drawer of her nightstand. Protection dealt with, they concentrated again on pleasure.
It was no surprise to her that Dan was a patient and generous lover. She was, however, astonished by the uninhibitedly passionate side of herself he uncovered. Some time after the echoes of their choked gasps and groans had faded into deep, slowly steadying breathing, she was still dazed by the raw power of the emotions that had exploded inside her.
* * *
Eventually, of course, the haze had to clear. Her besotted smile began to fade as doubt and misgiving crept back into her mind.
Reclining on one elbow beside her, Dan reached out to touch the light crease between her eyebrows. “And she’s back,” he murmured.
She tried to smile, but she wasn’t sure how successful she was with it.
He ran his thumb across her lower lip. He still smiled, but his eyes were serious when he asked, “Regrets?”
“No. No,” she repeated more firmly. “I’m just…tired.”
Scared, a tiny voice whispered inside her, but she ignored it.
She reached up to trace the scratch on his cheek with the tip of her forefinger. Though it wasn’t deep, it was a bit puckered, the edges slightly reddened. “That looks as though it would sting.”
“A bit. Not much.”
“You’re lucky it didn’t get in your eye.”
“Yeah. Just wasn’t paying attention to the branches around me.” He pushed himself upright on the bed, looking over her own scrapes and contusions. “You’re okay? I’m afraid I wasn’t very gentle earlier.”
She smiled faintly. “I didn’t want gentleness then.”
He stretched out beside her again and gathered her into his arms. “Would you take it now?”