Page 53 of Dance the Tide


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“This is amazing,” he said.

She came to stand beside him. “I like having this view at night. It's peaceful most of the time, and there’s no better place to be when it’s thundering and lightning. I used to get nervous, but now I like it. And when the moon is full, it's very bright. My own personal nightlight.”

“My house is so far back from the water. The view isn’t the same.”

“I bet you’ve been thankful for that when the hurricanes and nor’easters hit.”

“True.”

He turned to her and suddenly felt the intimacy of standing in her bedroom, next to her bed, with the lights out. As he looked at her in the pale light, he thought back over the past forty-eight hours.

“I had a great weekend.”

She smiled. “Me too.”

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close, and she laid her head against his chest. After standing as such for a few moments, the air in the room seemed to thicken and change, and he became acutely aware of her body pressed to his.

They’d just talked yesterday about taking it slow and going at her pace, and here they were, embracing in her bedroom. He knew he needed to be the one to step away, but before he had the chance, she lifted her head and looked up at him.

“We should probably go back into the living room.”

He nodded. “Probably.”

But neither of them moved, and instead of walking out as he should have, he lightly grasped her shoulders and turned her toward the windows. He stood behind her and encircled her waist, and they stood that way for a while, admiring the view, even though a current of electricity buzzed around them.

Unable to resist, he pulled her hair to one side and lowered his mouth to the soft skin behind her ear. He heard her light gasp as he trailed damp kisses down her neck, his hands slowly traveling under her top, skimming across her bra and then beneath it. Her soft skin filled his hands, and he groaned at the feel of the perfect weight in his palms. She turned in his arms and pulled his head down to hers and they kissed passionately, her hands pushing under his shirt, stroking across his chest and down his stomach, then reaching around to caress his back.

He cupped her bottom and pulled her snugly against him, and her lips traveled along his jaw, biting and kissing. Her hands moved to his stomach again, and when they moved lower, her fingers sliding along the waistband of his jeans, and thenlower, over the bulge at his fly, he took a step back.

They stared at each other, and he took a deep breath, trying to get his body under regulation. She took a step toward him and held out her hand, but he took another step back, silently asking her to keep her distance. But her eyes…

Damn.

Pulling his gaze from hers, he focused on...the bed.Bad idea. He groaned and went to the bedroom door, opened it, and walked out into the living room.

He sat on the couch and took a couple of deep breaths, and when he saw her standing in the bedroom doorway, cheeks flushed and lips swollen…

Temptation personified.

“We can't do this,” he said roughly.

“What–what can’t we do?”

“That. What we just did, in there. I’m more than happy to go at your pace, but…we need boundaries, I think.”

He couldn't believe he was actually saying the words. What hereallywanted to do was carry her back into the bedroom, strip off her clothes, and…

He groaned. “Your bed was three feet away. Hell, the chair wastwofeet away. Even that crossed my mind.”

“I'm sorry,” she said quietly. “I’m the one who said I wanted to go slow, and I nearly attacked you in my bedroom.”

“Come here,” he said, and patted the cushion next to him. She walked over and sat down, and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

“You drive mecrazy. Everything about you...your eyes, your body, the smell of your skin, your big brain…” He smiled when she laughed. “You’re irresistible, and just kissing you makes me feel a little out of control. No one has ever made me feel that way.”

“Really?”

He nodded. “I will always stop when you say stop, but I think we need limits.”

She sighed. “Why do I feel like I should apologize again?”

“You shouldn't. I love that you make me feel that way. And it’s all so new, for both of us. We’re not in a rush, right? No jumping in over our heads?” She nodded. “Good. And I have no expectations. That being said…when the day comes that we decide to take things to the next level, I know it will be amazing.”

She looked at him with narrowed eyes. “You're sounding a little arrogant again. Though I have to admit, I kind of like it.”

He chuckled, and bent to whisper in her ear. “It's confidence, not arrogance. And I'm very confident—it will be amazing.”

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