“She was absolutely right,” Sarah declared. “I had a bit of a headache before, but now it’s gone.”
“Good,” he murmured. Her silky hair slid repeatedly through his fingertips, refusing to be tamed. “I’m out of practice. It’s been a long time.” His mother had died when he was fourteen, and he’d never gotten over it. She’d been the one to encourage his artistic pursuits. Once she was gone, his father had done everything he could to beat such sissified ideas out of his head.
She lifted her hands, brushing his away and braiding the entire length of her hair in mere moments. She handed him a ribbon to bind the end, then turned around, bracing her palms on his thighs as she stared up at him. “Thank you. This has been a wonderful evening.”
His gaze drifted to the sweet curve of her mouth, then back up to her eyes. She went so still he wondered if she’d stopped breathing.
“I want to kiss you again.” He covered her hands with his own, gently imprisoning her in the lee of his thighs. “Will you let me?”
She let her gaze slip to his chest, heat rising in her cheeks. Then she nodded and a tremor swept her slim body as he leaned forward, brushing her mouth with his.
It was a chaste, tentative taste, and it wasn’t nearly enough. He slid his hands up her arms and then cupped her face, tracing her fine-boned features with near reverence. Her skin was satiny soft, and the scent of roses made him dizzy with longing.
He lowered his lips to hers again. This time the kiss was longer, deeper. She opened for him with a little gentle urging, and then he was drowning in the hot, heady taste of her.
Sarah put her hands on his shoulders, as though to steady herself, but a moment later she began molding the contours of his upper chest. He shuddered, releasing her mouth to explore the tender shell of her ear with his tongue and his teeth.
She trailed her fingertips across his bare stomach, and then lower, fingering the loose waistband of his trousers. “You’ve been so distant the last few days. I was afraid you didn’t want me anymore.”
He pulled away a bit to gaze down into her troubled eyes. “I want you, sweetheart. Never doubt it.”
His answer chased away the shadows that had been building in Sarah for days. Impossible to believe she hadn’t even known this man a week ago. How had he come to mean so much to her so quickly? All she wanted to do was hold him, please him, love away his obvious pain.
Then he slid to his knees on the floor in front of her. Burying his hands in her hair, he kissed her deeply, releasing the braid as his tongue danced with hers.
Fanning her damp hair across her shoulders, he fumbled with the tiny buttons of her nightgown. Impatient, she brushed his hands away and shed the heavy fabric. Maybe this was wrong, perhaps she was foolish to allow him such liberties without benefit of marriage, but she couldn’t deny her desire for him any longer. Her life had taught her time and again that tomorrow was not guaranteed, and tonight she just wanted to feel alive, if only for a little while.
He broke the kiss and guided her down to the soft carpet, bracing himself on one elbow as his other hand made a slow sweep down her body. He skimmed her breasts, belly, and thighs, gazing at her with appreciation.
She closed her eyes when he parted her thighs, content to let herself feel. She was already soaking wet for him; his pleasure had aroused her to an unbearable level. He parted her damp curls and slid two fingers inside her, flicking her most sensitive flesh with his thumb.
She moaned and thrust against his hand. He gave a soft laugh and leaned forward, circling her nipple with his tongue while his fingers continued to work their magic.
God, the feel of his mouth at her breast was incredible. She buried her hands in his silky hair, wantonly offering herself. He turned his attention to her other breast, teasing it to rigid attention with his lips before lashing it with his tongue.
When he moved lower, pressing light kisses across the sensitive plain of her belly, she wanted to protest the loss. But then she realized where he was heading.
Moaning in mingled shock and dismay, she pushed up on her elbows. Chest heaving, she watched as he knelt between her thighs, spreading her wide.
“So pretty,” he whispered. “I want to drown in you, Sarah.”
Then he pressed his mouth to her core, the sensation ripping through her very soul. She cried out, arching against him as he plunged his fingers deep inside her, thrusting in rhythm to the hot lash of his tongue.
It was too much. The tension built within her, cresting in waves until it burst, shattering her entire world. Ecstasy streaked through her, leaving her weak and trembling in its wake.
Before she had time to regain her senses, Luke moved back over her, rubbing himself against her wet heat, then burying himself to the hilt in one swift, deep plunge.
She wrapped her legs around his lean hips as he began to pump deep within her, his lack of control sexier than anything she’d ever known. Within moments, she was coming again, crying out in sheer bliss as he moved faster and harder, the slap of skin echoing her sobbing disintegration.
And then he shuddered, every muscle in his body standing out in sharp relief as he spilled his seed and joined her in heaven.
* * * * *
LUKE PROPPED HIMSELFon one elbow, watching Sarah in the candlelight. After their earth-shattering lovemaking, she’d fallen asleep in his arms. He’d held her for a long time, still drifting in the pleasant aftermath.
But after a while, he’d grown restless, and a burning need to capture the moment had sparked within him. This time, he knew he could draw her. He slipped away and grabbed a sketchpad and some charcoal out of the desk on the other side of the room.
Within moments, he’d sketched her likeness, from the unselfish purity of her sleeping face to the perfection of her lush, welcoming body. She lay on her side, one hand folded beneath her cheek, the other reaching for him even in sleep.
He couldn’t look at her sweet mouth without getting hard. God. He’d never had such a giving, generous lover. Never known a woman so unafraid to show her passion.
He didn’t ever want to let her go. Sighing, he decided he needed to get away from her. He needed to get some perspective.
Leaning down, he pressed his lips to her temple then left his small sketch where she’d be sure to find it. He only wished he could give her more.
