by Unknown
“Where do you have your car keys hidden in this outfit?” He growled, leading her toward the exit with a firm hand on her elbow. He groaned when she dipped her fingers into the bodice and came up with a set of two keys. “I had to ask. I’ll follow you to your apartment,” Dylan bent his head when they reached her car, taking a quick, hard kiss before turning and going off in search of his vehicle.
Kate slammed the car door and hastily hooked the keys on the door upstairs, her feet sliding out of the slippers she’d found to go with the outfit. She found the lighter and lit a single candle on the dining table before taking the stairs two at a time. She dug out some candles and placed them safely around the room, lighting two of them for now. She shivered and knew it had nothing to do with the weather.
Breathing raggedly, Kate stopped herself at the bottom of the stairs, head back and a forced, slow breath drawn in. Then his tap came on the door and her heart began hammering again.
A smile and greeting were on her lips but before she realized his intent, his mouth was down on hers. Hard, demanding and very, very hungry. Desire raged through her veins. Taking a step back, Kate saw a small paper bag dropped on the table at the bottom of the stairs.
“What’s that?” She asked shakily, glad of the strong arm that came forward and steadied her against him.
“Something for later,” he told her vaguely, one hand up to set the locks before he paced very, very slowly forward.
“Oh…okay,” her hands drifted to the buttons on his shirt, beginning at his throat and opening them along his shoulder before moving down his side. Moving carefully, Kate turned him until he was backed to the sofa. She pressed her palms against his shoulders and followed to sit astride him. She had most of the buttons undone and let her hands move over the exposed flesh. So very warm, she thought.
Dylan felt his heart pounding when her mouth melted beneath his, only to return his passion with a tender nip over his lower lip before sending her tongue out to ravage and explore. Her hands felt so small and so very hot as she began a teasing caress over his chest. Hands that knew what they wanted were immediately on her hips, gliding heavily onto her behind and pulling her hard against his erection.
Kate liked the heat that was building between them. She could taste the bitter ale he had drunk hours ago. Her mouth was pulled roughly from his, her nose buried in the hair at the side of his head with a long, deep breath. She pushed her hips to the side and down, grinding against the male and moaning softly when their contact found that elusive sweet spot.
Kate felt a surge of power at the fierceness of his erection, her hips twisting and rotating with a feminine hunger that she’d never known before. She pressed her face into his neck breathing deeply and kissing her way along his throat. Long, slender fingers pressed against his chest, raking through his chest hair and shoving the shirt off his shoulders.
“You smell so good,” she breathed heavily, half closed lashes drinking in the blatant desire in his eyes.
“And you’re driving me mad,” he growled softly, large hands gripping her hips firmly and refusing to allow their movement.
“You wouldn’t deprive a girl a little fun, now would you, Dylan?” Kate whispered against his mouth, trailing kisses over his cheek and along the throbbing tendon of his throat. Before he could react, she slid to the floor between his knees.
Dark, sexy lashes were partially shielding her eyes as her hands finished undoing his shirt and tugging it from his pants. Kate cupped her palms and dragged them heavily over the front of his pants. Fingers went to the opening, releasing the zipper very slowly.
“Kate,” her named broke from his lips when she parted the sides of his pants. She drew one fingernail down the hard length of him still hidden by his boxers.
“Shhh…just relax, Dylan…”
“You’re making me insane, lady…relax is something impossible with you touching me,” he made to reach for her but her head shook slowly side to side.
Kate stood up and removed the sleeves from her outfit, and then slid the pants down her legs. Two fingers opened the buttons on her top and she dropped it behind her. She stood before him in nothing but her briefs a moment before leaning over, kissing him deeply and dropping between his knees.
“Think of it…as pressure release…taking the edge off,” Kate whispered huskily, her palms caressing the flat stomach. “So very warm…and so deliciously male,” she told him.
“Kate…this might not be a good idea right now…I don’t have the control of a kid at the moment,” a quick ragged breath was pulled from inside him, pale lashes closed at the exquisite feel of her lips in a most intimate kiss.
She ran her tongue hotly over him, feeling the silken softness that ran to the steel hardness. Kate tasted and stroked, enjoying the power he was allowing her; savoring the male sounds of pleasure when his fingers speared her hair, holding her tightly against him as the massive shudder carried him away. Sweet and savory, Kate drank in his release, dragging her tongue along his length as she rose to sit on his lap again, a soft, soft kiss touching his mouth.
“Lady…you are amazing,” he breathed against her mouth, hands quickly making short work of the pants and lifting her in his arms. “My turn to play,” he growled into the surprised face. “Reach for that bag,” he instructed, the crinkling of paper telling him she had it in her hand as he climbed the stairs and dropped her to the surface of the bed.
Kate peeked into the paper sack and then handed it to Dylan, who dropped the contents onto the nightstand. She felt the heat from the slits of his silvery eyes even as her own gaze drank in the tall, naked man stretching like a graceful feline onto the bed beside her.
“So much for it working to take the edge off,” she murmured, supping in a quick breath when his palm stroked over the damp center of her panties.
“I just don’t see the ‘edge’ off for a while,” Dylan caressed his way along the flat plain of her stomach to capture the taut pink tip of one breast, following his fingers with the hot moisture of his mouth as he stretched out beside her. “Lately I’ve been wondering about my hormone level when I’m around you….or even if I spend too much time thinking about you…I feel like a teenager with no control.”
Kate lay back on the bed, soft mews breaking from her lips and lashes squeezed shut to hold the sweet pleasures radiating through her insides.
Dylan swallowed the sweet flavor that was Kate, his hand massaging and exploring the soft, tanned flesh. His fingertips felt the slight rise of a freckle next to her navel. The lace burned beneath his hand but it was cool compared to the heat from the damp spot between her thighs. Her fragrance singed his skin and roared through his senses when he brought his palm to his face with a long, deep breath.
“You are intoxicating,” he whispered softly, stretching out beside her and easing his fingers along the elastic band of her panties. Soft curls teased his fingers and he teased back by pressing his palm over and lower, cupping the damp center and drawing his fingers over the swollen bud. He absorbed the shudder that went through her, accepting the almost frantic kiss when her hands gripped his head and pulled his mouth to hers hungrily.
Her passion met his, kiss for kiss, and her thighs parted to admit his exploring, probing fingers. Rounded, feminine hips arched greedily when his finger probed the slick opening, her teeth nipping his lip and breaking off to draw in a breath.
“Dylan! Oh, my god…” dark lashes squeezed tightly when several things happened at once. His mouth moved to capture one of the swollen nipples, his thumb strummed heavily over the taut, gorged nub nestle between her thighs and two fingers glided heavily inside her, making her ready for him.
Dylan swore softly when the packet refused to open easily, his hands adjusting the condom as he peeled the da
mp panties down the long, tanned legs. She raised one knee, parting herself invitingly, arms above her head as he slid himself along the moisture excitement had drawn from her. He rolled to his back at the last minute, their bodies together and allowing her to complete the deep thrust inside.
Kate steadied herself against his chest, eyes wide at the hard male invasion. The threatened explosion that had been teetering at the very edge spilled out in a mass of fireworks when one of his hands moved between them, heavy fingers stroking and taunting. Kate’s body went stiff, unable to move, fingers clenching tightly at his waist, holding her body down hard on his, drinking in the masculine explosion that flowed when the very tense muscles of the woman milked and drained him. Soft feminine mews met a hoarse, masculine burst of nothing noise. Strong palms took hold of her hips, sending him surging over and over upward to a shuddering conclusion.
Kate felt herself melt, sliding onto the fresh sheen of sweat. She listened to both rapid heartbeats, trying to steady her breathing after a deep gulp of air. She tumbled to the side, arms spread and legs limp and motionless. As if to make the moment perfect, a rush of ocean scented air wafted through the window.
Dylan returned to the bed, amazed at the semi effort his body offered at the vision of dark hair spread across the bed and deliciously curving female. He was positive he could see heat waves rising off her. He slid beneath the rumpled quilts, tossing back the other side and urging her next to him.
“That was amazing,” Kate breathed reverently. “I hope it doesn’t bother your ego…but that has to be the best ever in the whole world…ever…” She curled onto her side, one hand out to caress over the cooling moisture of his chest. She opened her eyes, glad things were in focus once more.
“I think my ego can bear it,” Dylan assured her with a chuckle.
“I think we must have some darn good pheromones…”
“Or something…” Dylan stared at the ceiling, watching the candle light flicker and reform. “You haven’t had a lot of experience with this whole thing, have you?”
“I read a lot,” she said with a rich chuckle, pulling herself to the pillow and meeting the silver eyes when he rolled to his side. She was sure she almost purred when he stroked his palm over her head, moving strands of hair from her face. “No…no…just once a very long time ago…very long ago,” Kate confided quietly. “I have a lot of curiosity, though…and I think I’m pretty uninhibited…”
“Yeah, I noticed…”
“I have a wedding to go to tomorrow afternoon. Want to be my date?” Kate settled into the crook of his arm, sighing softly as she curled around his warmth.
“Hmm...a chance to dance close with you…no problem. I’ll go home and get some clothes in the morning,” Dylan let the warmth and quiet settle around him, the darkness enveloping them both seconds later.
Chapter Sixteen
Kate groaned into the pillow and then pulled it over her head. She could swear she had just got to sleep. But there was that middle of the night…toes curled and she was positive her female bits still hummed happily.
“What…is that?” Came the hoarse, low male voice.
“Six-thirty wake up music,” came the muffled response.
“Reminder: your presence is required at one-thirty PM for Darla’s wedding at the Eastside Catholic Church.”
“And that?” Dylan rolled to his back and worked to clear the fog from his brain.
“The house is wired. It’s hooked into my computer calendar. It’s a sci-fi thing,” she said with a groan. “It’ll go away in a few minutes. I gotta go skate,” she burrowed deeper into the quilts.
“There is other aerobic exercises that…”
“Don’t even think about it. I have to skate. I have to shower. I have to do my hair and be ready to leave the house at noon. I have to be at the church in Bellevue by twelve-thirty,” she said firmly.
“You’re not moving.”
“I am in my mind.”
“I’m going to the car to get my gym bag,” Dylan left the bed with a deep chuckle at the same time she burst out from beneath the quilts. He returned from the bathroom with his pants on. She was on her knees in the middle of the bed, head back and taking in long slow breaths. “I am not supposed to think about sex while you sit there buck assed naked?”
“Concentrate. You can handle it,” One eye opened warningly. “And I did not mean handle it that way.”
“Where is this church?”
“Computer, distance from house to church on calendar.”
The computer responded almost instantly. Dylan arched an eyebrow.
Kate turned to the window. Fog. “Computer, weather for local.” She listened and swore softly. “Damn high pressure front,” she slid to the floor, and wandered to one of the bureaus, digging for a skating leotard and shorts.
“Hoping for rain or snow?” He asked with a chuckle, ducking below level as he went to get his bag from the car.
Kate was brushing her hair and pulling it into a high ponytail when he set his bag on the bed.
“That’s a pretty fancy wiring job you got on the house computer,” Dylan tossed the costume pants and shirt into his bag and dressed quickly in his running clothes.
“I got friends with talents…it’s modeled after the smart house on the sci-fi show.”
“Eureka?”
“Yes…I love that show…I’m a bit of a sci-fi fan. Oh and incase I got distracted…you made an excellent Dylan Hunt. The Commonwealth would be most impressed,” she confessed, watching him bend down and tie up his shoes. She stepped up to him, not at all surprised that his arms were around her in a comfortable hug. “It’s kind of nice having a skating partner.”
“Andromeda was a favorite of mine,” Dylan kissed her and backed away. “You’re not fooling me, Lady, you’re just after the free coffee.”
She was still chuckling as they walked out of the house, her skates handed to her at the bottom of the stairs. Kate sighed as they moved along the path. “I really love fall…but I miss the skating season.”
Kate passed on the coffee, leaning against the railing while Dylan sipped his morning drink. She watched him, his gaze taking in the light morning fog and the few early boat people beginning to populate the warming fall Saturday. They had things in common and things not in common. She remembered a song she loved, Easy Silence. It fit them, she thought with a quiet smile.
An hour later, Kate left the bathroom, rubbing a towel briskly over the long hair, her head shaking but the smile on her face one she couldn’t push aside.
“I will never look at my shower in quite the same light again, Dylan,” she sat on the large bench before the vanity she had restored, gazing at the woman in the mirror and seeing the same and yet not.
“Yeah…no kidding,” Dylan pulled his running pants on and went to the nightstand where he’d dropped his watch. He walked to her side, tipped her chin up with a proprietary gesture that neither questioned and kissed her softly. “I’ll be back in an hour or so. This isn’t an extra fancy wedding, is it?”
“Nope…suit tie…maybe a vest,” she shrugged, pulling the wide comb through the wet hair, smoothing it out for the braid.
“Right…later.”
Kate listened to the masculine weight of his footsteps on the stairs, her voice raised. “In the drawer by the stairs…get a key with an H on it.”
Dylan’s head popped around the curve in the stairs to the loft. “We’re not doing separate cars.” It was a very firm statement that brought a smile to her lips as she faced him, fingers not stopping the weaving of the braid.
“Nope…but if I’m somewhere else in the house when you get back…you can let
yourself in.”
He accepted that and disappeared again, the sound of the door chirping behind him.
Kate sat on the vanity bench ninety minutes later, fingers going over the bits of jewelry she’d collected through the years and selected a simple large oval opal on a gold chain, fingers up and fastening it when she heard the door chirps. She turned on the bench, blinking and drinking in the rising male figure. Longish, amber hair had a fresh shine, the vest was open and his hands were working the knot of the deep silver tie with very thin red lines. She rose and met him at the top, her fingers taking over and fluffing out the tie with a gentle pat.
“You clean up really nice,” she complimented, accepting the kiss. “Shoes!”
Dylan blinked and stepped back with a crooked grin. “I kiss you and you think of shoes?” There was a faint shimmer along her legs, the knee length navy dress had a hem bordered in raised embroidered flowers and a halter top that fit her nicely.
