“Mackenna and I broke up the summer before I started medical school, and that summer she went to stay with her sister, Beth, in Virginia. Beth and I went to school together. Mackenna’s younger, Nate’s age. I met her through my friendship with Beth. Anyway, a month after arriving in Virginia, Beth found out that Mackenna was sleeping with her fiancé.”
Holy crap. “Oh, that poor girl. Beth must have been devastated. Her own sister’s fiancé? I don’t want to disparage your ex, but…that takes a certain type of person.”
“Yes. I feel like I dodged a bullet, so if I seem harsh toward her, please understand that it’s not just because we once dated. Beth confided in me about what happened, but as far as I know, she never told anyone else. She didn’t want to become the talk of Peaceful Harbor, so I never told my family, either. They really don’t know why we broke up, and they don’t know about what happened afterward. I told them that it just didn’t work out, and they respected that. Although they’re curious about the specifics.”
“But if that’s the case, then I don’t understand why she’s trying so hard to get you back,” she said honestly. “I would never try to get back together with a man who knew that I’d done something like that.”
His smile returned. “Like I said, Mackenna wants what she can’t have. I’m sure that was the appeal of her sister’s fiancé. And honestly, I’m not sure if Mackenna knows that I’m aware of what happened in Virginia. We haven’t spoken since we broke up. And now when I see her, the frustration I feel is no longer for myself. It’s not the fact that she threw me away to sleep with other men. My ego isn’t that big.” A soft laugh escaped his lips. “It’s because of what she did to Beth. If family means that little to her, then she’s not the right woman for me by a long stretch. I would give my life for my family, and I know they’d do the same for me.”
His sense of loyalty spoke directly to her heart. She’d never longed for her mother, partially because she and her father had been so close, and so happy, that she hadn’t felt like she was missing out on anything. And also because her mother had shown the unkindest hand of all. She’d walked away from her family and never looked back.
Leesa gazed into Cole’s soulful eyes, feeling like she’d found someone who understood who she was at her core, with the same beliefs, the same ethics and morals, as she’d learned from her father. Someone who could live anywhere on earth but chose to build a life around the small town where he’d grown up and still made time for his family. A man who understood himself as well as she understood herself, and taught her that she’d been missing something after all. She simply hadn’t known it until she met him.
***
COLE’S FINGERS DRIFTED over Leesa’s warm skin. Goose bumps rose to meet his touch. Between the gentle rocking of the boat and the moonlight reflecting in her eyes, Cole felt himself moving closer to her. His body was drawn to her, so close their lips nearly touched.
“I would have done anything for my father,” she whispered.
He brushed her hair from her shoulder, holding her gaze. “I could tell that about you when you first told me about him.”
“In the days after I lost him, everything felt foreign and different. I live in the house I grew up in, and even that felt different.”
“I can only imagine.” He tucked her hair behind her ear, caressing her soft cheek with the back of his hand and feeling his emotions grow with every word she said.
“It was strange, trying to find my way without his silent strength behind me. I really miss him.” She dropped her gaze.
“I can hear it in your voice. I’m so sorry.” He pressed his lips to hers.
“I think that’s one reason it’s so hard for me to just pick up and move here. I feel like I’d be leaving part of him behind. But in so many ways it makes sense to start over, like Tegan wants me to.”
“Like I want you to.” Cole hadn’t planned on admitting what was whirling around in his mind, but once the words were out, the truth of them thickened between them.
“You…?” She lifted her eyes to his, and he couldn’t tell if she was surprised or hopeful.
“I do.” He couldn’t resist her a second longer. “Leesa, if there’s anything else you want to know about me, I’ll share the good, the bad, and the ugly. I’m no saint, no matter how much my siblings tease me about it. There’s always bad with the good, but right this moment, I want—I need—to be closer to you.”
He slid his hand to the nape of her neck and brushed his thumb over her heated skin. “Tell me if you want me to back off. I know you’ve been through a lot, and I don’t want to rush you.”
“I was determined to keep my distance from any man, despite Tegan’s encouragement to get back into the dating pool.” She touched his cheek and smiled, and that simple touch made his pulse kick up. She inched closer and her dress crept up, exposing her inner thighs and making him even more aroused. “And then I met you, and for two days I’ve tried to fight the attraction that I felt from our very first glance. But it’s too strong. You waylay all my fears, and when we’re together—”
“Everything else disappears,” he answered for her.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and their mouths came together hard and fast in a kiss filled with the urgency of new lovers, giving him the approval he needed to set his desires free. He tangled one hand in her silky hair, angling her head and opening her mouth wider for him to take—and holy hell did he take. He kissed her with reckless abandon, tasting every dip and curve of her mouth, sucking on her lower lip, then crashing their lips together again in a deep, passionate kiss. Her hands slid into his hair, down his neck, and over his back, sending shocks of heat straight to his groin. His free hand blazed south, traveling over her bare leg, beneath her dress, to the curve of her hip. Lord, she felt good, soft and luscious and so damn tempting that he groaned with need as he lowered her to her back. She went with him willingly, pulling him down on top of her and arching up to meet his eager arousal.
“You feel so good,” he said between kisses.
The air left her lungs in a hot rush as he nibbled on her neck and sucked her earlobe into his mouth, earning him another needy moan. His hand slid up her sweet curves to her breast as he rained kisses over her shoulder.
His thumb brushed over her nipple, bringing it to a tantalizing peak. Her eyes were closed, her lips slightly parted, and her breasts heaved with each breath. She was stunning, lying beneath him in the moonlight.
“God you’re beautiful.”
“Kiss me,” she whispered, pressing her hands to his lower back.
He sealed his lips over hers and ground his hips against hers, letting her feel the effect she had on him. The night air sizzled around them as they took and gave with equal measure. Every touch of her fingers sent bolts of heat through him. She clutched his ass as he lowered the strap of her dress, exposing her breast, covered only by a delicate lace bra.
He touched his forehead to hers in an effort to regain control and breathed in her heavenly scent. “I have to see more of you, Leese, feel more of you.”
She tugged his shirt from his pants, and he leaned back, drinking in the hungry look in her eyes.
“Fair’s fair,” she said with a seductive grin.
Cole went up on his knees, making quick work of taking off his shirt. The second his chest was bare, her hands were on him, touching, groping, driving him out of his freaking mind. She rose off the bench and dragged her tongue over his nipple, tearing another groan from his lungs.
“Leese,” he warned as she reached for his zipper.
The air between them pulsed with a life of its own.
“You’re sure?” More than anything, he wanted to feel her naked beneath him, their bodies as close as two people could be, but they’d moved so fast that he needed her to slow down and think—hell, he should slow down and think, too, but he already knew what he wanted.
Her eyes darkened, and she spoke in a firm tone. “I’m twenty-seven years old, Cole. T
he rest of my life might be up in the air, but I know who I want, and I want you.” Her eyes shifted to the dock. “You said no one would come by here, right?”
“No one will come near us, angel, but we can go inside if you prefer.” He touched his lips to hers, and she closed her eyes with the tender kiss. “Or we can stop. I don’t want you to have any regrets.”
“I like the moonlight and the cool breeze on our skin.” A devilish grin curled her lips. “And unless you really suck at what we’re about to do, I can’t imagine regretting one single second with you.”
“Oh, I’ll suck all right. And lick, nip, bite—whatever you want, angel, and in all the best ways.”
Their mouths crashed together in a fiery kiss as they fought to strip away their clothing. Shoes clunked to the deck and clothing flew through the air, their lips parting long enough only to draw her dress over her head. Finally naked, both panting for air, Cole lowered her down to the cushion beneath him and took a moment to rake his eyes over every lush curve to the damp curls between her legs. She reached for him and he came down over her, feeling her thighs open to accommodate his hips and powerful thighs as he took her in another deep kiss. She rocked her hips, urging him on. He drew back and gazed into her eyes as he laced his fingers with hers and brought them to his lips, pressing a kiss to the back of each before placing them beside her.
His mouth explored her heated skin from her lips to her jaw and down to the hollow of her neck, where he lingered with openmouthed kisses. He kissed the length of her collarbone to the center of her breastbone, then dragged his tongue between her breasts. She arched up to meet his mouth, and when she reached for him, he laced his fingers with hers again to hold them in place as he pressed his lips to the tip of her nipple.
“Oh God. Cole,” she said with a shaky breath, her hips rising against his eager erection.
He sucked on the taut peak, pressing the sensitive nub against the roof of his mouth. He released one of her hands and slid his palm down her waist, over her hip, holding her there against the cushions as he rubbed his erection against her, feeling her wetness on his balls and earning himself a symphony of sexy, wanton moans. Their laced fingers rested beside her head, her fingernails digging into the back of his hand.
“Cole, I need more,” she begged.
Her thighs pressed against his hips as he moved down her body, tasting every inch of heated flesh, laving the underside of each breast, kissing her ribs, her stomach, the sweet center of her navel, as she writhed and begged beneath him. He wasn’t about to hurry. Touching Leesa, hearing her sexy pleas, smelling her desire, was too intoxicating to rush. He kissed her inner thighs and teased her damp center as he brought his mouth to her. She gasped a breath, rocking her hips to meet every swipe of his tongue. She tasted sweet and hot and so damn good he wanted to bed down for the winter right there, giving her pleasure, feeling her body tremble against his touch.
“Oh…God.” Her hands clutched at his shoulders, her nails digging into his skin as her thighs tightened and she shattered against his mouth. “Cole—”
He stayed there, enjoying every last pulse, until the last of her climax shuddered through her. Only then did he move up and claim her with a possessive kiss. He held her until her breathing calmed and their kisses turned tender.
“Condom,” he whispered against her lips. He scanned the deck for his pants. Spotting them a few feet away, he groaned, not wanting to leave her for even a moment. The thought of what she’d been through and how recent the end of her last relationship was slipped into his mind. He didn’t want to rush her. Lord knew she was worth waiting for. “Leesa, are you sure you want to go further? We can wait.”
She pressed her hand to his cheek, her green eyes as warm as a caress. “I want this, Cole. I want you.”
He retrieved his pants, dug a condom out of his wallet, and tore it open with his teeth. She helped him roll it on, then lowered herself to the cushion, her hands reaching for him, knees widening as he perched above her, searching her eyes to make certain she was still on the same page.
She smiled up at him. “I’m okay. Promise.”
As their bodies joined, their mouths came together again. They moved slowly at first, finding their groove.
“So tight,” he said between kisses. “So good.”
The feel of her softness pressed against him, her legs wrapped around his waist, and her hot, eager mouth meeting every thrust of his tongue with an effort all her own was too much. He had to slow their rhythm to regain control. It had been too long since he’d been intimate with a woman. Between work and family, dating had fallen by the wayside, and now all he wanted was to pleasure Leesa over and over until she could barely move. He wanted this moment to last a lifetime. The thought startled him, but as they kissed and groped, their bodies slick with sweat, their hands roving over hot skin, memorizing, touching, clutching every inch they could reach, he knew it was true.
And when he gazed down at the woman beneath him, so trusting, so lost in him—in them—and her eyes finally came open, they were pools of emotion, just as he was sure his were, too. He angled his hips, driving in deeper and quickening his pace, needing to see her come apart for him again. She came hard, her hips bucking off the bench, her fingers digging into his skin, and his name sailing off her lips like a plea.
Her body shivered and shook as she gasped for air, and he sealed his lips over hers, breathing for her. The last of the climax rolled through her, and her body went soft. They kissed as cool air danced over their heated flesh. A sensation of oneness came over him, the line between them blurred.
“Feel that?” he whispered.
“I feel everything,” she said.
He sealed his lips over hers again, unable to hold back for another moment. He drove in hard, burying himself deep time and time again as he took her up, up, up, and higher still. When her eyes slammed shut and her body tightened like a vise around his hard length, he didn’t just follow her over the edge—he leaped, hard and fast and with every ounce of his heart.
Chapter Ten
THEY LAY IN the moonlight for a long time, their bodies wrapped around each other, talking about everything and nothing—until Leesa’s stomach growled so loud she curled up against him in embarrassment.
“I think that’s a sign,” he said as he retrieved a blanket from beneath one of the benches and draped it over her. “I’m going to uh…” He eyed the condom lying on the deck.
“Okay.”
He kissed her sweetly before disappearing inside the boat. She wasn’t sure if they had lain together for ten minutes or a hundred, but in that time she never once felt embarrassed or uncomfortable, and regret wasn’t even on her emotional radar. If anything, she was surprised by how relaxed she felt with him. Even with Chris she had always jumped up after sex to wash up and put on clothes. But the way Cole had worshipped her body, he’d made her feel beautiful and desired.
He’d seemed equally comfortable with her, but then again, guys were usually much more comfortable naked than women were, weren’t they? She could count the number of men she’d slept with on one hand, but it was enough to realize that none of them seemed to worry about being seen naked.
She shifted on the cushion, knowing she’d be the best kind of sore tomorrow. She was surprised at how much she’d wanted to make love with him. Sex had never felt as good as it did with Cole. With Chris she’d never even had an orgasm without helping herself out. She smiled to herself and closed her eyes. If she concentrated, she could still feel the weight of Cole on her, hear his seductive murmurings in her ears. Surely this couldn’t be real. Men like Cole Braden didn’t exist and remain single, did they? In a quiet little town like Peaceful Harbor? She felt like she’d been plunked down in Handsome Town, USA, where Bradens were hot and loyalty ran deep.
“That’s one hell of a wicked smile you have going on there.”
Her eyes flew open and she swallowed a laugh. If you only knew.
Cole stood shirtless, in a
pair of jeans. More than six feet of hard muscle, with big hands, a talented mouth, and she didn’t dare think of the thick rod between his legs and the pleasures it had brought her. And those eyes. She’d never met a man with more expressive eyes. They were always focused and alert. Even midorgasm his gaze was penetrating and intense, and somehow full of warmth, too.
He reached for her hand and drew her against him. His body was warm and hard, and his embrace felt safe. He kissed her, and she’d already come to anticipate the slant of his lips, the slide of his hand beneath her hair, and that sexy half-moan, half-groan thing he did that was so darn masculine it made her body prickle with desire from head to toe.
When he drew back, she went up on her toes and pressed her lips to his again.
“You need to patent your mouth,” she said.
He laughed and tugged her impossibly closer. “Yeah?”
“Oh yeah,” she said. “Insure it, too. I’ve never tasted such mind-blowing lips, and we won’t even get into the torment of that tongue of yours.”
He kissed her again. “I like you, Annalise Avalon. A whole hell of a lot.”
“That’s a good thing, considering you just got to know every inch of me quite intimately.”
“Speaking of which. We should get cleaned up. I heard your belly growl before you took advantage of me, and I’d hate for you to think you could use me just for sex.”
“Oh, you would, would you?” She laughed at his tease and followed him down a few steps inside the boat. Her breath caught at the elegant finishes. The floor looked like it was made of fine wood, the couches were off-white, with navy and tan accent pillows complementing the decor. There were photographs of Cole’s family on the wall, a small dining table, and a complete kitchen off to her left.
“This is like an apartment,” she said, mystified. “I had no idea it was so luxurious.”
“It’s just an illusion.” He held her hand and led her to a bedroom, with a wide, inviting bed and a bathroom that looked fancy enough to be in a hotel, even if a little tight.
Surrender My Love (Love in Bloom: The Bradens): Cole Braden Page 10
