Page 80 of Shallow Remains

She gasped, jumped a little when the smooth warmth of his tongue glided up her folds. The muscles in her belly quivered, the sweet ache at the top of her sex sharpening when he caressed it. Slow and careful and with single-minded intent.

Her hand flew to his head, her fingers knotting in his hair. She lifted her hips, pulled his tongue to the exact spot that sent fireworks along her nerve endings.

Lachlan made a low sound and firmed his grip on her thighs as he zeroed in with his tongue. The lovely sensation intensified, obliterating any lingering traces of self-consciousness.

He dipped his head lower. She inhaled as the slick warmth of his tongue slid into her, then he moved back up to refocus on her sweet spot. She moved her legs restlessly, testing the strength of his grip as he held her there. He slid a finger part way inside her.

Maddy moaned, instinctively rocking her hips. The combination of his tongue and finger was incredible. She could feel the release starting to build, the pressure rising with every decadent caress. It was like she was floating. Safe in a warm sea while Lachlan anchored her, pushing her to the edge of bliss.

He released her thigh to unwind her hand from his hair and pull it between her thighs. “Keep going,” he ordered.

She heard a quiet tearing sound as he shifted to sit back on his heels. She felt a fleeting moment’s shyness at touching herself intimately in front of him, but the intensity on his face and the promise of more pleasure made her comply.

Her fingers slid over her aching clit. The pleasure was still there, but more distant somehow. Then Lachlan moved back between her legs, one arm under her hips as he lowered himself on top of her. Stared into her eyes as he settled the solid head of his erection against her opening.

She felt pressure as he eased inside her. Braced for a sting, but there was only the heat of him and a slow, delicious stretching sensation as he pushed deeper, the muscles along his spine bunching beneath her clutching fingers. No pain at all.

Watching his face, she slid her fingers over the slick knot of her clit. Closed her eyes and moaned deep in her throat when he eased his hips back and thrust forward again, the feeling of fullness and the incredible friction augmenting what her fingers were doing.

Oh my God. It felt like magic. The closest thing to magic a person could ever experience.

“Maddy,” he breathed above her, the way he said her name making it sound like a prayer.

She dug her fingers into his back, belatedly remembered his bruises when he sucked in a sharp breath. Shifted her grip to his shoulder, desperate for him to keep going, the beautiful friction of him moving inside her blending with the stroke of her fingers along her clit. Waking millions of tiny, hidden nerve endings and making them all shiver uncontrollably.

He didn’t stop, but within seconds the steady tempo wasn’t enough. She needed more.

Her body made the decision for her and took over, thighs locking around his hips as she rocked with his measured thrusts. Urging him to go faster. Harder, while the sensation built. Higher. Deeper. More intense with every surge of his hips.

She cried out his name when the orgasm finally swept through her. Wave after beautiful wave of bone-melting pleasure.

Lachlan groaned deep in his throat, planted both forearms on either side of her head and rode her harder. Then his big body went rigid, every muscle bunching. He shuddered, a low, raw groan of ecstasy filling the air.

He sagged on his elbows as it faded, breathing hard, and buried his face in the side of her neck. “Damn, Maddy…”

Not knowing what to say in response, she drew him down into her embrace and held him close. Cradled the back of his head with one hand as she absorbed his weight, the heat of his body.

No matter what happened between them after this, she would always treasure this memory. That he had been her first.

Her heart was so full it hurt, the intense closeness and trust she felt between them eclipsing anything she’d imagined. The thought of ever being parted from him pierced her.

Was this what it felt like to fall in love?

The logical part of her brain told her it was way too soon for that. That she needed to be careful.

But her heart already told her that’s exactly what was happening.

Even as it warned her that it was going to break her when the time came to leave him and this island.

FORTY-ONE

The short, imposed deadline I’d been given had come and gone. Yet the burner phone remained silent on the kitchen table as I worked.

There had been no contact from my handler since his last call. I wasn’t complaining. My plan was in the final hours. I had to move quickly now. Maddy knew there was a threat. I had to act before she got spooked enough to run.

I lowered the soldering iron and touched the tip to the end of the piece of solder wire I had placed over the connection. The hot tip melted it into a liquid drop of silver that adhered to the flux and flowed across the joint of the circuitry I’d built.

This was the second device I’d made. It was better than the first. More compact, but still packing a punch. Perfect for tucking into a small hiding place. Say…the cabin of a boat.