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He lifted one shoulder into a shrug. “I like snorkeling.”
“Why can’t you take a compliment?” She made an adorable huffing noise.
“Being a soft touch isn’t a compliment.” It wasn’t how he was raised. But more than that, the fact Marianna could see past his gruff exterior and call this vulnerable, less harsh part of him out into the open was a red flag. There was only one other person who’d been able to do that…
“Sure it is.” She sauntered over to him, kicking her heels off and discarding her shawl and bag as she went. “No woman wants a man whose heart is made of stone. No woman wants a guy who doesn’t know how to feel.”
He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her in. The insistent press of her curvy body had him hard as stone in an instant. He’d wrangled the feeling under control during the drive to the doctor’s office, but now it was back. Desire burned, slower than before. Slower than he’d ever been used to. But that was exactly what it was like with Marianna. She was a little flame that one might dismiss as inconsequential, but while he’d turned a blind eye she’d consumed him, spreading and building until smoke clogged his lungs and flames licked at his skin. Until he was already burned beyond repair.
“Feeling things has never been an issue,” he growled, letting his hands feast on her ass again.
“That’s not what I was talking about.” She lowered her eyes, a faint flush coloring her cheeks and neck.
“This isn’t the time to be embarrassed.” His lips were at her hairline, at her temple. And he was working so damn hard not to shove her down to the floor and take her right then and there. He couldn’t be too rough, although the doctor had told them it was perfectly okay to have sex while Marianna was pregnant. Not that either one of them had asked. “We crossed that line some time ago.”
“We did, didn’t we?” A smile curved on her lips, her eyes fluttering shut as he sucked on her neck. “I have a feeling we’re doing this all backward.”
“We could start again,” he said. “Figure out what steps we skipped along the way.”
“So long as you don’t have a three-date rule.” She writhed against him. “Because if you make me wait now I think I’m going to explode.”
“Three-date rule?”
“Yeah, where you don’t have sex until date number three.” She bit down on her lip. “I saw it in a movie once.”
“We’ll make up our own rules.” He backed her through the house, tangling his fingers in her hair and pulling out the elastic band that held it in place. The dark, silken strands tumbled down her back, and he fisted the lengths in his hands. “Because if we don’t deal with this now…”
He picked Marianna up and carried her over the threshold the way he should have done on their wedding day. His room was dark, and when she pressed her lips to his, her kiss was hungry and demanding.
“I want you,” she whispered. “It’s stupid, but I wanted you the day I set foot in this house, even with everything going on.”
He sank to his knees on the bed, placing her down carefully. “You haunted me. Every night I slept in here trying to convince myself not to touch you.”
Buttons lined the length of her dress, from her bust to the edge of her skirt. He took his time opening them, kissing her skin as he removed the fabric from her. She squirmed beneath him, sensitive and needy. Her nipples pressed against her bra, demanding his attention, and when he sucked one into his mouth she almost launched off the bed.
His hands worked faster, sloppily pushing the buttons open until he had her mostly bare. A pair of simple cotton panties covered her sex, and when he pressed the heel of his palm between her legs, rubbing her in slow circles, they were already soaked.
“I…” Her breath stuttered. “Not like that.”
“How do you want to come, Marianna?” He covered her body with his, nudging her legs apart. “Not with my hand?”
“No.” She shook her head. “There’s so much I haven’t tried and…I want to try it all. With you.”
The words slayed him. Knowing he would get to show her all the beauty sex had to offer—doing everything for the first time, helping her learn what she liked and what she didn’t—was enough to make him want to blow right there.
“How?” he growled, and she sucked in a breath, her chest rising and falling. Her skin tantalized him; it glowed in the light of the heavy moon outside his bedroom window. She was a goddess come to life. A vision. “How?”
“With your mouth.” She shrank away from him as she made her request. Her eyes shuttered, and her hands curled up against her chest, like she’d done something bad.
“Never be ashamed for wanting to try things.” He pressed a kiss to each hand as he drew them gently away from her body. “Look at me.”
Her eyes opened.
“I will never judge you for taking charge of your pleasure. Whether you ask me to do something, or you want to try it yourself, I am here to say yes to you. Feeling good is not a sinful thing.”
