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“I thought you were just shy.”
“Well, that too.”
She released his hand and continued eating while she gave her options some serious thought. J. Lyle had been so damn smooth. They were married before she’d realized there was nothing beneath his glossy veneer except another thick layer of gloss. It was her own emotions she doubted, not Jeremy’s, and that realization made everything clear.
“Maybe the danger is in being too cautious,” she announced suddenly. “Maybe we ought to just jump right in.”
Jeremy nearly choked, but caught himself before launching into an uncontrollable coughing fit. “Wait a minute, are you suggesting what I think you’re suggesting?”
Christy Joy felt her loose curls brush her shoulders as she nodded. “I sure am. I bet you’d look twice as good out of that uniform as in it, and you needn’t worry, I bought a box of condoms at the market.”
Jeremy nearly lost it right there. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Then he thought he might be the first in his family to be institutionalized that very night, but with Christy Joy so unexpectedly inviting him into her bed, he just couldn’t get his thoughts to run in any coherent direction.
“Wait a minute,” he finally begged. “Could we at least finish this wonderful dinner first?”
“Of course, you’ll need your strength.”
She looked so incredibly sweet, but now Jeremy suspected that she’d be a tiger in bed. He couldn’t even hold on to his fork with that possibility rolling around inside his head. He tossed his napkin on the table and shoved back his chair.
“Oh hell, come here.”
Christy Joy rose and moved to his lap. She looped her arms around his neck and then bent her head to suck his earlobe. “You see why I don’t dare drink wine?”
He didn’t care if she never drank anything other than milk when she made such enticing suggestions cold sober. He framed her face with his hands and kissed her long and hard. “You’re absolutely right,” he breathed out against her lips. “We’ve waited too long as it is.”
She reached for the shiny brass buttons on his jacket and thought of all the lonely tourists who had gone back to their staterooms alone. When he shrugged off the coat, she yanked his undershirt off over his head. His tan reached to his waist, and his chest was covered with thick, blond curls. She leaned down to lick a leathery nipple, and he stood with her still in his arms.
“That’s it, lady. Where’s your bed?”
She waved him toward the rear of the apartment, and he quickly strode past Twink’s toy-filled bedroom to hers. The walls were the pale pink of dawn, and the bed was covered with a white crocheted spread dotted with ruffled pink roses. There were matching pillow shams topped with more ruffled pillows in pastel prints. It was a feminine bonanza, and he couldn’t wait to climb in.
“Did you make the spread?” he asked.
“Sure did. It took me almost a year, but it’s pretty, isn’t it?”
“Yes, but not nearly as pretty as you.” He set her down, then tried to figure out how best to remove her dress.
“Wait a minute,” she urged. “Let’s fix the bed first.” She grabbed for the pillows, flung them aside and peeled the crocheted spread down to the foot of the bed. With another quick yank, she pulled back the pink blanket to reveal white ruffled sheets adorned with tiny pink roses.
Jeremy was afraid he’d fallen into a fantasy she might end long before he was ready, but she came back to him and reached for his belt buckle. He slid his hands over hers. “Wait a second. I’ve done this before, and my shoes have to come off first.”
“Good idea.” She kicked off hers then raised her brows.
Jeremy sat on the side of the bed to untie his shoes. He was suddenly so clumsy his fingers felt the size of bananas, but he finally freed his feet and ripped off his socks. He’d expected to take her out to dinner on Saturday nights, to hold her hand in the movies and spend weeks getting to know her before she would let him anywhere near her bedroom. Now he wondered if anything he’d ever imagined about her was true.
When he stood, Christy Joy slid her fingers through the crisp curls on his chest. “You have a really nice build, and I’ll bet it doesn’t come from workouts at the gym.”
“Never joined one,” Jeremy mumbled before wrapping his arms around her tight. He kissed her hungrily and lifted her clear off the floor.
That he could have kept so much passion under wraps all the months he had done little more than wave to her amazed her now. She ran her hands over his broad back, then slyly went to work again on his belt buckle. “I sure hope you’re not wearing Sponge Bob Square Pants boxers,” she teased.
He grabbed her wrists. “And if I am?”
“I’m going to keep them to sleep in.”
He rubbed his forehead against hers. “I’ll buy some tomorrow.”
“What makes you think I’ll let you leave here tomorrow?” Christy Joy had him out of his pants and boxers before he could think of a reply, and then she shoved him back on the bed. She removed the box of condoms from the nightstand, tore it open, then set it back down where he could reach it.
