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“Don’t think,” he persuaded, but she ignored the husky invitation in his voice.
“Why couldn’t you wait?”
“I had to see you again.”
She released his finger, and a smile crept slowly across the smooth contours of her face. Shadowy moonlight lingered in her gaze as she looked up at him. “It doesn’t matter,” she whispered, kissing bis hand. “The only important thing is that you’re here,now.” Her fingers curved around the back of his neck, ruffling his coffee-colored hair and pulling his head down to meet hers in a kiss of naked longing. She willingly parted her lips, inviting him to touch her most intimate reaches.
“Oh, Sheila,” he groaned, damning himself inwardly for his deception. How could he make love to her without telling her everything he knew about her, her father, the fire? A bothersome guilt nagged at him like a broken vow, and yet he pushed it savagely aside. “Some other time,” he promised himself.
“What?” Her hand stopped caressing his head. “What are you talking about?”
His grip on her tightened. “Nothing, my darling . . . nothing that can’t wait.”
His lips came to hers in a kiss that dismissed her fears. She was conscious of the hot breeze singing through the trees as it carried the sweet scent of pine and honeysuckle to her. She could taste the salty masculinity that passed from his lips to hers and she felt the protective strength of his hands as they quickly unbuttoned the remaining buttons of her blouse. The fabric parted, letting her breasts caress the night air. Noah pushed the blouse off her shoulders and never took his eyes from hers as he unclasped the filmy bra and tossed it recklessly to the ground.
Sheila’s breasts, unbound by clothing, glistening with a dewy film of sweat, were swollen from the flames of passion Noah had aroused within her. They stood out in the darkness as two white globes, small and firm, perfectly proportioned to her petite body. Noah held first one and then the other in his caressing hands. At his softly insistent touch, the dark nipples hardened.
Sheila sighed when he took one of the moonlit mounds of feminine flesh into his mouth. His fingers gripped the soft skin of her back, drawing her closer to him, letting him devour more of her. She felt the tip of his tongue and the ridges of his teeth against her sensitive skin, and she had the sensation of melting deep within her being. His fingers kneaded her back, persuading her muscles to respond to his intimate touch.
“You’re gorgeous,” he sighed, taking his head away from her breast long enough to capture her passion-drugged gaze with his knowing blue eyes. His hand took one of hers and guided it to the button above the zipper of his cords. “Undress me,” he commanded, “and let me make love to you until the sun comes up.”
“I want to,” she admitted, removing her hand.
Once again he pulled her fingers against him, lifting the edge of his sweater and letting her hand touch the taut muscles of his abdomen. “Trust me,” he whispered into her hair. “Come on, love, take my clothes off. Show me that you want me.”
“Noah—”
“I’ll help.” In one quick movement he pulled the sweater over his head and discarded it against the trunk of a tree. Blue fire flamed in his eyes. She let her gaze travel slowly down his chest, taking in the ripple of each muscle, the mat of dark hair, his tanned skin, darker because of the night “Now it’s your turn,” he coaxed with a wicked smile.
She raised her hand and placed it on his chest. Her fingers tentatively stroked the rock-hard muscles, tracing the outline of his male nipples. He groaned in pleasure and she let her finger slide down his torso to rest on his belt. She told herself she was being wanton, but she didn’t believe it, not for a moment. Her love for this man stole all of the guilt from her mind.
The heat in his loins ached with restraint. The fires within him burned with a savage flame, and he had to use all of his willpower to control himself and the urge to rip off the remaining clothes that kept him from taking her. He wanted this night to be as important for her as it was for him. He wanted to love her as she had never before been loved. He wanted to take the time to draw out every feminine urge in her body and satisfy it. Beads of perspiration collected on his forehead and the back of his neck from the frustration of his self-imposed restraint.
“Take them off,” Noah pleaded as her fingers hesitated at his belt buckle. Obediently she withdrew his belt and tossed it into the air. It landed silently on the sweater. Her fingers touched the button of his pants—it slid through the hole noiselessly. Every muscle in Noah’s body strained with nearly forgotten control.
The zipper tab dropped easily and Noah let out a groan. “Dear God, woman, do you enjoy tormenting me?” He opened his eyes to search hers and saw the reckless gleam of pleasure in her eyes. “You’re going to regret this,” he warned, and a wicked smile of seduction curved his lips.
Picking up the pieces of his shattered self-control, he began extracting the same sweet agony from her as she did from him. Slowly, with barely concealed deliberation, he lowered her jeans inch by inch over her hips. He let his fingers graze the warm flesh of her inner thighs only to withdraw them. He again took her breast in his mouth and rekindled the passion that had earlier driven her mad with longing.
She arched against him, moaning into the night. Her fingers traced the contours of the lean muscles in his back, pulling him closer to her, letting him know without speaking how much she needed him, how deep the ache within her was. “Please, Noah,” she cried into the night, her desire for him chasing away all other thoughts.
Her desperate cry ended the agony. With a groan he settled upon her, letting his weight fall against her, making her feel that the need in him was as great as hers. His lips caressed her and his breath warmed her skin. He threw off the last thin piece of his self-control and found her, became one with her and joined her in the exquisite union of body and soul. His body fused with hers completely, and his rhythm was as demanding as the ceaseless pounding of waves upon the shore. The tempo increased, pushing her to higher crests of rapture as they blended together in a rush of naked passion.
She shuddered beneath him, a quake ripping through her body as the final wave crashed her wildly in sublime surrender. His answering explosion sealed their union, and he let his weight fall gratefully against her body, flattening her breasts. Their arms entwined, the rapid breathing slowed, and they clung together, hoping to capture forever the moment when the two became one.
Words of love, honest thoughts that needed to be shared, came unbidden to her lips. “Noah . . . I . . .”
“Shhh, darling. Just listen to the sounds of the night,” he whispered against her hair.
Chapter Nine
“Tell me about yourself,” Noah coaxed, whispering into Sheila’s ear. They had managed to get dressed and were sitting together, propped by a pine tree. Noah’s arms were wrapped protectively around her as she leaned against him, and his chin rested on her head.
“There’s not much to tell.” She snuggled deeper into his arms while she watched ghostly clouds move across the moon. It was a still night, with a mere hint of a breeze. The soft drone of insects and the occasional cry of an owl were the only sounds she could hear, aside from Noah’s steady breathing and the rhythmic beating of his heart.
“Why don’t you start by telling me why you want to stay on at the winery?” He felt her body become rigid.
“I think it’s obvious.”
