He was so used to being the one in control…this was going to be fun.
She rose up and started with a long, deep kiss on the lips. At the base of his neck, she paused to inhale his scent. Combined with the vanilla-scented body wash in the shower was his unique musky scent she would never get enough of.
“Mmm.” She let the sound vibrate against his skin and felt his pulse respond beneath her lips.
Moving on, she explored the hard planes and angles of his chest with her hands, then followed with little kisses, licks and nibbles. She hadn’t told him to be quiet, and each guttural moan she wrung from him brought a smile. His stomach muscles clenched tight beneath her lips and his whole body jerked as her hand closed around his steel-velvet length.
No more than her breath caressed the tip, and he startled her with a flurry of movement that landed her on her back with him poised over her.
“Hey,” she protested.
“You’ve got me ready to frickin’ explode, woman.”
“Sorry.”
“No you’re not.”
She was becoming a grinning fool. “You’re right, I’m not.”
He dropped his head to her chest in mock despair, but then became distracted by her breasts. His mouth closed over the tip of one while his hand massaged the other. Just like that, he was back in command.
This time when she reached the point of begging, he rolled on a condom and she opened for his possession. The feeling of him sliding inside her was so intense, her chest swelled with emotions she couldn’t voice.
She opened her eyes to find him watching her. The heat in his eyes nearly stopped her heart beating. Could he—
He bent his head to capture her lips in a slow, bone-melting kiss and slid his tongue against hers in time with each thrust of his hips. As tension built again, she moved with him and hung on for the wild ride. He dragged his mouth from hers, his ragged breath hot in her ear.
Sweat slicked their skin by the time they catapulted over the edge together.
As they caught their breath, his body pressed hers into the mattress, but she held him tight to her chest, relishing the feel of his solid weight.
Right then, in his arms, she had no thoughts past that moment, their coming together and the complete and utter peace he’d given her.
* * *
She woke to the unfamiliar sensation of being naked beneath the sheets. Delicious memory rushed back, and she rolled her head to the side, squinting her eyes against the bright sunlight to see if Joel was awake.
Her clothes were draped across the pillow where his head should’ve been. The faint aroma of coffee registered on her senses—not freshly brewed, but as if it’d been made by someone who’d slipped out of bed hours ago. A slight lift of her head confirmed Joel fully dressed and back at work amidst the files spread across the table.
She dropped back to the pillow, eyes squeezed shut against the sudden crush of disappointment that constricted her chest.
What had she expected? That he’d cuddle beside her? Wait for her to wake up so they could start the morning in each other’s arms?
That maybe, just maybe, he loved her, too?
Of course not. What she’d imagined in his eyes last night was nothing more than a fantasy her love-sick heart had cooked up to fool her head. She knew he was a bachelor. He’d warned her from the start he’d take whatever she gave, and when the time came, he’d move on to his next job.
And isn’t that exactly what you decided last night? You’d take what you could and damn the consequences?
True. But in the light of day, it was much harder to damn those consequences, especially when so much was riding on them. She’d lost her heart and now realized she did want to wake up in his arms. Every morning. And not just for a week or a month from now, but ten, twenty, even fifty years down the road.
You knew the score. Deal with it. And don’t make him feel bad for it.
She drew in a deep breath and let it back out as reality settled without sympathy. The one night was over, and it was tomorrow. Joel was already hard at work while she lay in bed. Time to deal with so much more than her aching heart.
She levered herself up on her elbows and forces a smile when Joel glanced up. “Good morning. What time is it?”
“Almost ten.”