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Sleep fogged Xanthe’s brain, as her mind floated on a wave of exhaustion. He looked glorious, standing before her in the half-light—the epitome of all the erotic dreams which had chased her through too many nights of disturbed sleep. Strong and unyielding... The raw, rugged beauty of his tanned skin, his muscular shoulders, the dark heat in his pure blue eyes, blazed a trail down to tighten her nipples into aching points.
She shivered, awareness shuddering through her.
She heard a strained curse, then the bed dipped and her T-shirt was dragged over her head. The damp shorts and underwear followed. Her limbs were lethargic, her skin tingling as calloused fingers rasped over sensitive flesh with exquisite tenderness, beckoning her further into the erotic dream and making her throat close.
‘Red, you’re freezing...let’s warm you up.’
She found herself back in strong arms, her body weightless. But she didn’t feel cold. She felt blissfully warm and languid, with hunger flaring all over her tired body as she stood on shaky legs.
Hot jets of water rained down on her head as strong fingers massaged her scalp. She breathed in the scented steam—cedarwood and lemon—her body alive with sensation as a fluffy towel cocooned her in warmth, making her feel clean and fresh, the vigorous rubbing igniting more of that ravishing heat.
Back on the bed, she looked into that rugged face watching her in the darkness, its expression tight with a longing that matched her own.
Struggling up onto her elbows, she traced a finger through the hair on his chest, naked now, down the happy trail through the rigid muscles of his abdomen to his belly button.
She heard him suck in a staggered breath, and the sound was both warning and provocation. Emotion washed through her as she stroked the heavy ridge in his pants and felt the huge erection thicken against her fingertips.
A hand gripped her wrist and gently pulled her away. ‘Red, you’re killing me,’ he murmured, his low voice raw with agony.
She lifted her head, saw the harsh need that pierced her abdomen reflected in Dane’s deep blue eyes. Drifting in a sensual haze, she let the uncensored swell of emotion fill up all the places in her heart that had been empty for so long.
‘Stay with me.’
The words came out on a husk of breath, almost unrecognisable. Was that her voice? So sure, so uninhibited, so determined?
‘I need you.’
> A tiny whisper in her head told her it was wrong to ask, wrong to need him this much. But this was just a dream, a dream from long ago, and nothing mattered now but satisfying the yearning which had begun to cut off her air supply and stab into her abdomen like a knife.
‘There’s never been anyone else,’ she said. ‘Only you. Don’t make me beg.’
Moisture stung her eyes—tears of pain and sadness for all those dreams that had been forced to die inside her, along with the life they’d once made together. If she could just feel that glorious oblivion once more all would be well.
Only he could fix this.
‘Shh... Shh, Red...’ Rough palms framed her face, swiping away the salty tears seeping from her eyes. ‘I’ve got this. Lie down and I’ll give you what you need.’
She flopped back on the bed, then bowed up, racked with pleasure as his tongue circled her nipples, firm lips tugging at the tender tips. Desire arrowed down. Sharp and brutal. Obliterating every emotion but want.
Moisture flooded between her thighs as blunt fingers found the swollen folds of her sex. Her breath sawed out, her lungs squeezing tight as the agony of loss was swept away by the fierce tide of ecstasy.
She bucked, cried out, as those sure, seeking lips trailed across her ribs, delved into her belly button, then found the swollen bundle of nerves at last. Sensation shot through her, drawing tight, clutching at her heart and firing through her nerve-endings, making everything disappear but the agonising need to feel him filling her again.
Large fingers pressed inside her and her clitoris burned and pulsed under the sensual torment. The wave of ecstasy crested, throwing her into the hot, dark oblivion she sought. She screamed his name, the cry of joy dying on her lips as she tasted her own pleasure in a hard, fleeting kiss.
‘Now, go to sleep.’
She registered the gruff command, making her feel safe and cherished.
His hand cradled her face and she pressed into his palm, the gentle touch making new tears spill over her lids as she closed her eyes. A blanket fell over her and she snuggled into a ball, drifting on an enervating wave of afterglow.
And then she dived into a deep, dreamless sleep.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
‘IS THAT NASSAU?’ Xanthe called out to Dane, hoping the flush on her face wasn’t as bright as the lights she could see across the bay, which had to be the commercial and cultural capital of the Bahamas.
