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Luke’s sense of relief and well-being melted away and trepidation coiled like a snake in his stomach. For a few seconds, words escaped him. The idea of her leaving him was unthinkable. Hell no…he wouldn’t let her go without him—plain and simple. Perhaps they had brought danger too close to Daniel and his family. With Travis and the boys here, though, Luke would bet on them coming out on top in anything short of a full-scale enemy attack. Surely Sally could see they were safer here.
Was she looking for an excuse to bail? He tried to clear the lump from his throat, but it still lodged there. “I see. So…you’re still mad at me.” His voice hardened slightly.
“No. I’m not mad at you, Luke.” She pulled away from his touch.
“Okay. Then tell me what I’ve done to deserve you running out on me. We’re relatively safe here. Travis, Coop and MacGyver have our backs. For someone in your position, it doesn’t get much better. So, let’s hear your reasoning. I deserve to know, don’t you think? Unless I’m right and you’re just plain-ass angry at me. Go ahead. Tell me. Yell if you have to.” Luke could see her distancing herself emotionally and physically. He was pushing her intentionally, hoping to break through the barriers she’d apparently erected around her heart.
Sally turned away; her stream of mumbled words went unheard.
“What did you say? Speak up, sunshine. Or didn’t you want me to hear your answer?” He bombarded her with questions.
She whipped around, her hands again fisted at her sides. “I. Don’t. Yell.” The words, issued at the decibel level of a rock and roll band in concert, echoed in the silence of the room. Sally covered her mouth as remorseful eyes locked on him. Tears rimmed her beautiful blues and overflowed down her cheeks.
Luke raised an eyebrow, then threw back his head and laughed. A watery smirk appeared on her lips fleetingly, chased away by a stuttering sob.
He caught her before she could turn away and wrapped her tightly against him. “I love you, sunshine. Did you forget? Regardless of what you might think, I would be a basket case if you and Jen walked away. You can get mad and yell at me as much as you need to—I still won’t let you go. Whether you know it yet or not,you don’t want to leave me.” His mouth came down on hers, not a soft, gentle kiss but one of deep need and hunger.
Finally, her body relaxed against his and her arms threaded around his neck. When he raised his head, she stayed put, a smile riding her lips that made his heart ache deep down inside. Without a word, Luke swept her into his arms and strode to the bed. His heart wasn’t the only thing aching. His arousal had swollen, hard and impatient, and now throbbed in time with his pulse. He placed her on her feet on the bed and pulled her jeans down to her ankles.
She squealed when he bent and jerked her feet out from under her, then ripped her pants the rest of the way off. The sexy woman sprawled on the bed wore no panties, which turned him on even more. He hastily got rid of his boots and pants and joined her amid the rumpled covers.
Luke locked his mouth on hers, plundering with lips and tongue. The soft mewls he swallowed said he must be doing something right, but it wasn’t enough. He straddled her stomach and pushed her shirt up to reveal firm, ripe breasts. The nipples were hard and pebbled, and his rough hands surrounding them, pulling and tweaking, made her writhe beneath him and cry his name.
He grinned when she reached for his manhood, standing sentinel between them. He caught her hand and stretched it over her head. “Not this time, sunshine. I’m just barely hanging on as it is.” Capturing her other hand, he joined her wrists on the pillow above her. Raining kisses over her face, neck and breasts, he smiled as she tried to pull her hands away. “In a minute. Don’t get impatient.”
He brought his hand to her mound, and she arched into him. His fingers split her folds once, twice, and then sunk deep inside. His thumb circled her sensitive core, coming closer and closer to her swollen nub, while he worked his fingers inside her. Damn, she was so wet and hot—and she was his…just like he was hers. She would know they belonged together before he was through.
His fingers found the spot that ripped a tortured moan from her lips, and he rolled her engorged center between thumb and forefinger. Sally reared off the bed with a cry and then came apart with a whimper beneath him. Her eyes were glazed and unfocused. She moaned, and her breath caught as he released her hands and sat back on his knees. Fumbling for a condom, he ripped open the package and had it seated in seconds.
Luke lowered himself between her silky thighs, his hard-on nestled in the warmth between her legs. She smiled lazily and brought his face to hers for a kiss. Raising up on his elbows, he studied her. “Tell me you’re staying with me. I need to hear you say it.”
Worry, or something worse, creased her brow. “Why haven’t you asked me about…my father? I should have told you.”
“Hell, if it’s one thing I can understand, it’s having family members you’d rather not claim. My old man is a perfect example. That the senator is my father is information I seldom volunteer.” Damn straight—she should have told him, and it stung, more than a little, that she hadn’t.
Her warm hands caressed his face. “I guess you’re stuck with us, then.”
Not exactly the commitment he’d wanted to hear, but he wouldn’t push her—not yet. He searched her face for any sign of doubt and found none. “I want you so bad, sunshine. I don’t know if I can be gentle.”
“I trust you, and I’m pretty sure I won’t break.” Her lips at the edge of his mouth encouraged him.
Luke rocked his hips back and penetrated her tight sheath. The sound of her sudden inhalation reached him, but he was lost in her heat and the way her muscles squeezed his throbbing member. With a groan, he wound his arms around her waist, binding her to him, and began a slow and steady rhythm. Suddenly, he rolled over, clutching her tightly and bringing her with him until she sat, straddling him, impaled on his rigid shaft.
Surprise lined her face, but a sultry smile slid into place on her lips. “You might warn a girl,” she whispered.
“I like keeping you off-balance. Always knowing what to expect is boring. Life with me won’t be boring, sunshine.” He held his breath when her brow furrowed for a heartbeat.
She hadn’t committed to life with him or anything close, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to plead his case every chance he got.
“Good to know.” Her faint smile returned.
Luke fastened his hands around her waist. “Are you ready?” He bucked upward and grinned when her eyes grew round. He was ready—that was for damn sure.
Her tender gaze, locked on his, was enough to help him find the gentleness within himself he’d been afraid he couldn’t harness. He moved with her until they found the rhythm he craved so badly, and as her release crashed over her again, Luke took satisfaction in how perfect they were together.
Holding her tightly, he rolled her beneath him and plunged deep until, a groan escaping him, he exploded into fiery bits of pleasure and lust that left him depleted. It was a long time before his lungs recovered and he could feel his legs. When he moved off her, she curled up next to him, her head resting against his heart. Contentment and hope curved his lips into a grin as he pulled a sheet over them and wrapped his arms around her.
Chapter Fifteen
