His hands lingered at her breasts, his palms rubbing the tips in a circular motion that made them swell and throb. He pulled away and she felt the warm night air caress her body for several breathless moments before something cool and juicy touched one ripe peak. Her nostrils flared and the scent of pineapple filled her head and saturated her senses.
She felt a dribble of sticky sweetness glide down her breast a split second before Rance caught the wetness with the hot flick of his tongue.
“You taste sweet,” he murmured.
“I thought this workshop focused on touch.”
“It does, but there’s nothing wrong with a little taste now and then.”
He pressed the piece of pineapple against her bottom lip and she opened her mouth. She expected him to slide the piece of lush fruit past her lips. Instead, his breath brushed her mouth a heartbeat before he caught her bottom lip between his teeth and suckled.
She felt a pull in her nipples and a steady throb started between her legs.
“I thought I was getting the taste?” she breathed, marveling at how sexy her voice sounded. How natural.
“That doesn’t come until Taste 101. Now, the only thing you need to worry about is feeling. Leave the tasting to me.”
He touched the pineapple chunk to her lips again before sliding it down her neck. Her breasts tingled and tightened in anticipation of where he would go next. He circled each nipple with the succulent fruit before moving lower. She felt the cool wetness glide down her stomach, over the top of one thigh, the inside of her knee before moving north again along her inner thigh. The fruit barely grazed her hot folds before finding the inside of her other thigh and starting the same trek down.
She braced herself to feel the soft, lush wetness against her sex, but when it came this time, there was no fleeting zap of electricity. Instead, Rance traced her hot slit up and down with the chunk of pineapple before parting her and nudging the fruit into her opening. Electricity sizzled across her nerve endings and her body went taut at the sudden pressure between her legs.
He nudged the fruit just a fraction more into her and then…Nothing.
He’d pulled away and the only sound was that of her heart pounding in her ears.
“Christ, you’re beautiful,” he murmured, the words so raw and husky that she almost didn’t hear them. But with her vision gone, her other senses had, indeed, heightened. “So damned beautiful.”
A strange warmth unfolded in her chest and she had the sudden urge to reach for him, to kiss him, to love him.
Just as the disturbing thought struck, he captured her mouth in a deep, wet kiss and her brain scrambled. His tongue pushed inside to stroke and coax for a long moment that left her breathless and panting when he finally dragged his mouth away and followed the path he’d taken with the pineapple.
He licked and nibbled his way down her neck, between her breasts. His tongue flicked out and lapped at one nipple before drawing it deep into his mouth. He suckled her, drawing hard on the sensitive tip for a long moment before sliding his lips over to deliver the same torture to her other breast.
The darkness didn’t seem so dark anymore. Tiny pinpoints of light danced in front of her. Her breaths came short and shallow. Her knees trembled and her tummy tingled and her body clenched around the pineapple he’d wedged inside of her.
Her hands came up and threaded in his soft, silky hair as his mouth proceeded downward again. He lapped at her belly button before following the same path he’d taken with the pineapple. Down one leg to her knee, back up the inside of her thigh. Down the other leg and back up and…Yes!
His lips grazed her clitoris and desire jolted through her. Her back arched and she would have come up off the table if he hadn’t slid his hands beneath her buttocks and pulled her to the edge. She heard the heavy thud as he dropped to his knees and then his mouth was on her again. His tongue parted her folds and he lapped at the fruit nestled inside the opening of her slick passage. And then he sucked. At the same time, her body tightened around the lush fruit.
His mouth played tug-of-war with her for several pulse-pounding moments. She felt the pressure and gasped as he sucked harder and longer.
The pinpoints of light danced and spun until they all seemed to collide into one brilliant flash. Rance drew on her so hard and so perfectly that the pineapple slid into his mouth just as every muscle in her body went rigid. Her climax hit her hard and fast and she exploded with a pleasure so intense that it frightened her.
Or maybe it was the look in Rance’s eyes when he whipped off the blindfold and stared at her, into her, that scared the bejeesus out of her. While she trembled and shook with the force of the best orgasm of her entire life, raw hunger brightened his gaze, along with a fierce, possessive light she’d never seen before.
As if he’d just realized that she was his and he never meant to let her go.
Not tomorrow.
Not ever.
Not likely.
The entire time they’d been growing up, he’d never once considered that she might be The One. He certainly wasn’t going to reconsider in a few hours. Deanie knew his sudden attraction had nothing to do with newly discovered feelings and everything to do with her makeover.
He wanted her, all right, but not in a forever kind of way. And even if he did—we’re talking a big if—it wasn’t really Deanie, herself, that drew him. It was the sexy, ultra-femme version she was trying her damndest to be.
She tamped down her disappointment. Sex, she reminded herself. Keep it short—sixteen hours left and counting—and keep it simple. No falling in love again.
The trouble was, Deanie was starting to realize that she’d never fallen out of love in the first place. And the more time she spent with him, the harder it was to keep from peeling off her clothes and making the same offer—the same mistake—all over again.
Hard, but not impossible.
Not yet.
10
HE WASN’T GOING TO TOUCH HER.
Rance made that vow to himself as he walked Deanie back to her hotel room after dinner at The Falls. She was so close, keeping time beside him, a strange look on her face.As if she couldn’t quite believe what had just happened.
He didn’t blame her. His heart pounded and his chest hitched and it was all he could do to make his feet keep moving forward. Her ripe sweet taste lingered on his tongue and her musky scent filled his nostrils. The image of her naked and spread out on the table before him rooted in his mind. He could still feel her sex quivering against his lips. Her cries echoed in his head and made his blood pump faster and more furious through his body.
But it wasn’t the memory that shook his control and made him hard-pressed to keep his distance. Or hard, period. It was the desire for more. Hunger gnawed at his gut. He wanted to be inside of her and feel her hot, sweet body contract around his. He wanted to stare deep into her eyes and see the desire reflected in her gaze.
That meant no blindfolds to hide behind. No workshops to excuse the heat that burned between them. Nothing but the two of them kissing and touching and loving.
There was that word again, poking and prodding and making him think as he eyed Deanie who stood next to him on the elevator.
She nibbled on her bottom lip, her cheeks still flushed. Her eyes shone bright and blue with desire and desperation whenever she happened to glance at him. Which, he noted, was when she thought he wasn’t looking at her.
He looked at her now, openly studying her as he contemplated the notion of loving Deanie Codge. Could he really have fallen for her? Hard and fast and past the point of no return? Hell, no. That’s what reason told him. At the same time, he wanted her too much to explain away his feelings as lust. He wanted her to want him too much.
He needed it.
It’s your ego, buddy. Your pride.
That’s what he’d told himself in the beginning. But truthfully, he couldn’t give a shit about his pride now. Christ, he was this close to pushing her up against the elevator
and sliding fast and deep and sure inside of her, to hell with her admitting that she still had a crush on him.
He would have done just that if he hadn’t glimpsed the longing that flashed in her gaze every now and then, along with regret.
She was scared of him, plain and simple.
Not physically, but emotionally.
That’s why she’d let him touch her earlier by the pool. Because her back had been to him and she hadn’t had to look at him, to see her emotions reflected in his gaze. When they had been face-to-face and he’d been staring at her, into her, she’d been spooked, and so she’d tossed him into the water. Tonight, she’d had the blindfold to hide behind.
She wasn’t afraid of the explosive chemistry between them. Rather, she was scared of what she felt for him. The thing was, the chemistry was explosive because of what she felt. Because the feelings ran deeper than lust.
The elevator doors slid open and they stepped out onto her floor. Her arm brushed his as she moved past. Desire bolted through him and his balls tightened. Every muscle in his body flexed. His spine stiffened. He longed to reach out, pull her into his arms and kiss her until all the barriers crumbled and there was no denying what she felt. Not for his pride’s sake, mind you—he couldn’t give a shit if she admitted her feelings to him. Rather, he wanted her to admit them to herself.
Because, for the first time in his life, Rance wanted more from a woman than sex. He wanted her heart.
He wanted Deanie’s.
And?
And so he wasn’t going to touch her again. Or push. Or give her any reason to back away from him.
The next move was hers.
IF ONLY he would touch her again.
The desperate thought played through Deanie’s head as she tried to slide the key card into the slot. But Rance stood so close behind her, his body so hard and hot and there, that she had trouble thinking, much less functioning. The card went in, but the green light refused to come on.Pulling the blasted piece of plastic free, she tried to gather her determination. Her hands trembled as she shoved the key into the opening a second time.
“Whatever happened to regular old keys?” she grumbled when the red light continued to shine.
“These are safer,” Rance said. His hand came up to steady hers and guide the card toward the slot. The plastic went in and slid out, and the traitorous green light blinked. He reached around her and opened the door.
But where he’d lingered with the contact earlier that day, he didn’t press his lips to her temple or brush his mouth against her ear, or do anything even remotely suggestive.
Because he isn’t half as turned on as you are.
A wave of disappointment rolled through her. Her stomach hollowed out as she stepped into her hotel room and Rance made no move to follow.
She turned, one trembling hand on the doorknob. “Thanks for walking me back.” And giving me the most amazing orgasm of my life.
Her cheeks flamed at the memory. She licked her lips and he followed the action with his gaze. His eyes darkened to rich, golden pools so deep she could only imagine how far she would have to go to reach the bottom.
She knew then that while she might be close to losing control and forgetting all about her self-made promise, Rance was just as close.
Could she push him over the edge? She had to, otherwise she would be begging him and that wasn’t going to happen.
“I’ll see you later.” He started to turn.
“Wait,” she blurted. She leaned against the doorjamb and tried for a sexy, come-and-get-me pose. “I, um, really enjoyed dinner.” She went for a breathless, excited voice, but the words sounded more like she had a bad case of laryngitis. She cleared her throat. “I don’t think I’ve ever been any place quite that incredible.”
He raked a hand through his hair and glanced down the hallway as if sizing up his chances for a quick escape. “The place was pretty incredible, all right.” Another glance and Deanie grew even more determined.
“You were pretty incredible, yourself.” The statement earned his full attention. “I definitely think I’m learning a lot.” She drew a deep breath, letting the air fill her lungs and push her breasts up and out. The bodice of her dress tightened, outlining her ripe nipples.
Rance’s attention, however, didn’t leave her face. Instead, his gaze held hers, trying to understand her sudden boldness.
She ignored the fear that niggled at her gut. It wasn’t like she was tossing her pride out in favor of jumping his bones. She was merely using her newfound feminine wiles to tempt him into jumping her bones.
“So what’s next?” she asked him. “I’m free of my inhibitions. I know all about using my environment. And I’m well aware of the power of touching.”
“We do erogenous zones next.” His gaze dropped then, drinking in the display her nipples made as they pressed greedily beneath the dress.
“You mean here?” Deanie reached up and touched one achingly ripe peak. She traced the point it made beneath the fabric. Her breath caught and her heart seemed to stop. She’d done her fair share of masturbating over the years, and she’d stroked herself. But never with anyone watching her. Or wanting her as much as he did.
A muscle twitched in his jaw and a golden light fired in the center of his pupils.
She guided her fingertip to the other aching breast and touched the peak. “And here?”
“Yeah.” His voice was deep and husky and he looked ready to snatch her hand away and touch her himself.
If only.
“What about here?” Her hand dropped to—
He caught her fingers midair. Before she could blink, he pulled her flush against him. His lips captured hers, his tongue plunged deep, stroking and coaxing until her surprise fled and she joined him. Her tongue tangled and delved and tasted, and she gave as good as she got.
Her toes curled, her nerves came alive, and a sizzling heat swept through her, starting where his lips touched hers and spreading outward in a search and destroy mission and she all but melted in his arms.
Her hands snaked around his neck, pulling him closer. She leaned into him and fit her hips to his. His cock pressed rock-hard against her sex. Her aching breasts pushed against the soft material of her sundress, desperate to get free and feel the heat of the man in her arms.
And he burned so hot.
His skin seemed to fire to life beneath her touch.
Everywhere she stroked, caressed, she felt a prickling sensation, his body alive and humming. The sensation stirred her nerves and set them to spinning until she felt as charged, as vibrant as the man touching her.
He splayed one hand at the base of her spine, pressing her closer while his other bunched the hem of her sundress until the rough pads of his fingers grazed her thigh. He slid his hand around to cup her bottom and knead the soft flesh. He kissed and fondled her until she knew beyond a doubt that he did, indeed, want her as much as she wanted him.
That he meant to have her.
Finally.
Thankfully.
The knowledge sang through her and she broke the kiss long enough to slide her mouth down his chin, his neck, to his pulse beat. She licked the spot before moving down, through a forest of silky hair. She suckled a brown male nipple and explored the rippled expanse of his abdomen. He groaned long and low and deep and she had the sudden urge to drop to her knees in front of him and love him with her mouth the way he’d loved her. He was all hard muscle and hot skin and she wanted him so much.
More than she wanted her next breath.
The realization jerked Deanie back to reality just as her fingers grazed the bulge beneath his shorts. She froze and his hand covered hers. She expected him to urge her on. She wanted him to, to take the decision away from her. The responsibility. The regret.
He let his hand fall away from hers and he simply stared at her for several heart pounding moments. Fierce, golden eyes drilled into hers as he waited for her to make her choice, to act on it.
She
wanted to.
More than she wanted her next breath.
“It’s getting really late,” she blurted. Her hand fell away and she curled her fingers as she stepped back, despite her body, that urged her the other way. Back into his arms.
Her cell phone rang from the nightstand where she’d left it, the sound barely pushing past the thunder of her own heart. The pain of crying herself to sleep every night after he’d left and the fear that she would never, ever feel so strongly for someone again swirled together and fought against the desire that burned deep inside.
Her cell phone continued to ring.
“You should really go,” she told him.
“If that’s what you want.” His gaze held hers and he reached out, his hand touching her cheek. “Is that what you want, Deanie? What you really want?”
“Yes.” At that moment, it was what she really wanted. She needed him to leave before she lost her control and threw herself into his arms.
Before she lost herself.
“Okay.” But he didn’t sound the least bit okay. He sounded angry and disappointed and, oddly enough, hurt.
He leaned down, gave her a rough kiss, and then he walked away and left Deanie with her pride still intact.
The damnable thing was, she didn’t feel half as relieved as she should have.
Instead, she felt alone. Lonely.
She didn’t give herself a chance to dwell on the notion. She closed the door and went to retrieve her cell phone which had stopped ringing only to start again, as if the person on the other end hadn’t been the least bit content to leave a message.
Deanie glanced at the caller ID and worry, along with a hefty dose of surprise, rushed through her.
“Miss Eloise?”
“Deanie? Is that you, honey?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Praise be to Jesus! Why, I just knew you’d been snatched up by one of those cannibals and turned into someone’s lunch.”
Tall, Tanned & Texan Page 11
