By the time he trailed his hand down her belly, she parted her thighs without the slightest hesitation. She trembled with arousal, aching to join with him. But instead of a quick prod to determine her readiness, he began a gentle exploration, using her body’s shameful reaction to ease his way as he slid one finger, and then two, into her teeming wetness.
His thumb circled the hardened nub of sensation at the apex of her thighs while he continued to tease her breasts. She moaned, tossing her head in growing unease. She’d never felt this way before—as though she were on the verge of something terrifying and wonderful.
“Let yourself go,” he whispered, releasing her nipple and kissing his way down her belly. “Come for me, darlin’.”
When she realized what he planned to do, she tried to stop him, but he ignored her struggles and pressed his mouth to the spot where his thumb had just been, lashing her with his tongue until brilliant light exploded behind her eyelids, and she shattered in wordless ecstasy as a wave of unimaginable pleasure washed through her—over her.
She sank back against the blanket, trying to catch her breath, her limbs heavy with sated bliss. So,thatwas what all the fuss was about. Until this very moment, she had never understood.
“Oh, Zach,” she whispered when she regained her equilibrium. “That was so... wonderful.”
He slid back up her body, staring down at her with stunning intensity. “Just wait until it happens when I’m deep inside you.”
Before she had time to even imagine the possibilities, he reached between them and rubbed the tip of his hard shaft against her, making her sigh in pleasure. Holding her gaze, he thrust deep, seating himself to the hilt.
“Ah, darlin’. You feel so good. So damn good.” Lowering his head, he kissed her again, a slow sweep of his tongue he mirrored with a thrust of his hips.
Wrapping her legs around his lean waist, she pulled him even deeper, and lost herself in the magic of the moment.
His shadowed past, her aching wound, the blizzard howling outside—all of it disappeared beneath the reality of his hard body thrusting within hers. He whispered soft endearments as the pleasure built to an overwhelming peak. The shattering explosion of bliss broke over her, even more spectacular than last time.
Before her tremors faded, he gave a harsh, shuddering cry, cresting over her with a beautiful intensity she’d come to love so much. And as she held him close in the aftermath, she knew she’d been wrong. She’d never get enough of him, not in one night. Not even in a thousand.
* * * * *
Zach knew he must be crushing Bethany, but he couldn’t bring himself to move. The last hour had been the most erotic, beautiful experience of his life. He kept expecting to wake up in a cell back in Texas and find out it had all been a dream.
But even his dreams had never been this good.
He’d loved Hannah, but she’d never enjoyed lovemaking. She’d always lain there with a long-suffering look on her face, as though wishing he’d get it over with. After Jeremiah’s birth, he’d found himself relegated to once a month, if he was lucky.
But Bethany… She’d been pure sweet fire in his arms. With every soft word and sigh, she’d let him know she’d taken as much pleasure in the act as he had. Given her unconcealed surprise and praise, he gathered her husband had never appreciated the bounty he’d been given.
If she were his…
He ruthlessly squashed the thought. Best not to even contemplate such impossibilities. How could he have forgotten, even for a moment, that he had no future and nothing to offer her?
Christ, he was such a selfish son of a bitch.
Sighing, he forced himself to roll off her, though he kept her at his side, unwilling to let her go, even if it made him the biggest bastard who ever lived. It had been wrong to take advantage of her vulnerability, but he couldn’t be sorry. He’d needed her softness, needed to feel wanted more than he’d realized.
Though now he was even more aware of the barren wasteland his life had become.
“Are you all right?” he asked. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
She gave a breathy laugh. “It was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever known. Thank you so much. I never knew it could be like that.”
He hugged her tight. “I’m the one who should be thanking you. I don’t deserve you. I should’ve been stronger.”
“I wanted you,” she assured him. “I’ve been living for someone else my entire life. This is the first time I’ve ever done something just for me.”
“I’m glad,” he whispered. “I’m so glad you don’t regret it.”
She brushed her lips against his shoulder. “Getting in that wreck was the best thing to ever happen to me.”
Her words were like a cool rain in the parched desert of his soul. He doubted she’d carry these feelings for him for long, but he was determined to soak them up while he could. Morning fast approached and, with it, the end of this idyllic interlude.
“I wish things were different.” The dangerous thought spilled from his lips before he could stop it. “I wish I didn’t have to leave you.”
She looked up at him, her big green eyes welling with tears. “I could wait for you.”
“Ah, darlin’. Don’t say that. You’d be waiting forever. If they catch me, I’ll never get out. And I won’t take you with me on the run.”
“But—”
He pressed his fingertip to her lips, silencing any further protests. “Let’s just enjoy this for a few hours more. Don’t ruin it with ‘what ifs.’”
A troubled frown wrinkled her beautiful brow, but she remained silent, curling into his arms and resting her cheek against his chest. Sighing, wishing for things that could never be, he pressed his lips against her silky hair and stared into the fire, trying to enjoy his last few hours of paradise.
