AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She imagined the structure would be glorious in the daylight, when the waves crashed against the rocks, framing its magnificent view over the ocean, but at night it looked dramatic and daring.
Her heartbeat bumped into her throat, and her breathing turned into staggered pants as they reached an arched doorway. Sheltering her with his body, Luke tapped out a code on a security panel. The rain dripped off his brow and soaked into his shirt to reveal the shadow of chest hair and the bulge of muscle and sinew beneath.
The steel entrance door slid open. He dragged her in behind him and flicked a switch. A series of low lights revealed the cathedral-like drama of the living area—two storeys high and fronted by a wall of glass—at the end of the short redwood entrance hall. Cassie glimpsed sunken sofas surrounding a granite firepit, a state-of-the-art kitchen area and an open staircase leading up to a mezzanine.
Luke Broussard’s home made a statement, like the man himself. Both were unique and bold and breathtaking.
The entrance door slid closed, shutting out the roar of the storm, and all she could focus on was the distant rattle of water cascading down glass and the staggered sound of her own breathing. And his.
Luke tugged her round to face him. Her gaze became fixated on the magnificent contours of his
torso revealed by the translucent shirt.
‘You good?’ he asked, as his thumb wiped the water from her lips.
‘Yes.’ The vicious shudder which racked her body had nothing to do with the clammy feel of her soaked clothing, and everything to do with the fire his touch ignited. ‘You have an incredible home,’ she added, dislodging his hand, desperate to fill the charged silence.
‘Glad you approve,’ he said, his wry tone turning the shudder of need into something absolutely terrifying.
What on earth was she doing here? She didn’t know the first thing about having epic sex. Or even about having one-night stands. She’d never even made love with anyone before, and certainly not with a man as overwhelming as this man.
Had she set herself up to fail? Spectacularly?
What if she disappointed him? What if she disappointed herself?
Seriously, Cassie, what the heck were you thinking? You’re not a free spirit. Or a sexual adventurer. You’re a boring workaholic who doesn’t know the first thing about satisfying herself, let alone satisfying a man like Luke Broussard.
‘Hey.’ Grasping her chin between his thumb and forefinger, he brought her gaze back to his. ‘I can see you overthinking again.’
A laugh escaped. ‘It’s what I do best,’ she said.
His hand slid down to capture her neck. He nudged her back against the wooden wall of the entrance hall. She could smell him, heat and arousal and pine soap, above the scent of wood resin and fresh rain. Her hands settled on his waist, absorbing the tension in his abs and sending a shock of longing straight to her sex.
His mouth lowered to hers. She stared at his face, the yearning as intense as the fear now.
‘Close your eyes, Cassandra,’ he demanded, and she obeyed.
Then his lips were on hers at last. She let out a small sob, welcoming him in instinctively. He cupped her cheeks and angled her head so he could delve deeper.
And as he devoured her, every thought, every feeling blasted out of her head bar one.
I want this. I want him. It doesn’t matter if I muck it up.
The liberating thought loosened her tongue to tangle with his. Fire spiked in her sex and at every point where their bodies touched as she gave herself permission to fail, for the first time in her life.
He dragged his sodden jacket off her shoulders and dropped it on the hall floor. Grasping her waist, he lifted her, his mouth leaving hers to growl, ‘Wrap your legs around me.’
Again she did as she was told, clinging to his broad shoulders as he marched them both across the living area and up the open staircase.
The rain pounded the glass in undulating waves, like the tsunami of sensation battering her body. Hunger surged as they reached the mezzanine level.
A flash of lightning outside revealed a staggering view of the inlet below them and the storm-tossed forest. The trees bowed and buckled against the wind. The turbulent weather and the magnificent sight of nature reaching its nadir was almost as dramatic as the clatter of her heartbeat.
She usually hated the dark. A silly lay-over from childhood which had always embarrassed her. But the usual anxiety failed to materialise now, as her excitement spiked.
He barged backwards into a room off the landing and shouted. ‘Lights on!’
The sudden glare illuminated a stunning if sparsely furnished room, dominated by a view of the ocean and the distant sprinkle of lights along the Oregon shoreline miles away. Then Cassie caught sight of her reflection in the dark glass. She buried her face against his neck to hide her burning blush. With her clothes and hair drenched, she was a total mess.
