by Cathryn Fox
She crinkled her nose at Kyle and giggled. “I’m going to have a tea party when we’re done. Uncle Kyle, will you have a tea party with me and Lindsay?”
“A tea party. I thought we were going to drink beer and read super hero comic books.”
She rolled her eyes. “I don’t drink beer, silly.”
Rachel’s heart crashed against her chest as she listened to Kyle tease Ava, then when Kyle looked at her, she asked, “Are you sure?”
“Positive.” He held his hand out for Ava to fist punch it but she looked at him in confusion. He reached for her hand and showed her how, then winked at Rachel. “I’ll make a tomboy out of her yet.”
God, she loved watching the two of them ham it up. Everything about them together was picture perfect. “You have your work cut out for you,” she said with a laugh. But seriously, having him stay here at the house for the duration of his time home fit into her plan perfectly. If she were going to show Kyle how much they belonged together, then having him under the same roof would make it so much easier.
Ava took off to her room to play as they cleared the dishes together, she washed and Kyle dried. The normalcy in it all made her ache with a sense of longing and wanting exactly what Ava had so blatantly laid out earlier.
After the kitchen was cleaned, Kyle put the dish towel over his shoulder and turned to her. With only inches separating them, she could feel the heat of his body, the sexual tension arching between them. Need nipped at her stomach as she exhaled a shuddery breath.
“I’m going to head out to Sky Bar.” He jerked his thumb toward the door. “Catch up with the guys.”
“Okay, I’m going to give Ava a bath and tuck her in. Maybe we can dig out one of our favorite movies later. I still have When Strangers Meet.”
He scoffed, and jabbed his thumb in to his chest. “My favorite movie. Yeah right. I only watched it six hundred times with you because…” His words fell off and a muscle in his jaw twitched as he whipped the tea towel off his shoulder and draped it around the stove handle.
“Because why?”
Her glance dropped to his backside and the way his jeans hugged his body so nicely. Her insides buzzed to life, and a quiver traveled from the top of her head right down to her toes. He turned but she was slow to react and when she lifted her gaze, he was staring at her.
He angled his head, opened his mouth, then closed it. When he finally spoke, he said, “Because James wouldn’t.” At the mention of his brother tension returned to his body. He twisted, grabbed his keys off the counter and walked to the screen door. “Don’t wait up for me. I’m going to be late.”
“Oh, okay.” Disappointment moved through her and he must have sensed it.
He spun back around, and his shoulder dropped. “Rach,” he whispered, taking a small step closer.
“Yeah.” He reached out to her, and one strong hand closed around her shoulder. Heat reverberated through her blood as the rough pad of his thumb brushed over her collarbone. A gentle caress that said how much he needed her. She knew the feeling well.
Her heart sped up, the pull between them undeniable. But he was fighting it and somehow got it into his head that he was the one responsible for everything happening between them, the one taking advantage of her. She needed to show him that that wasn’t the case at all. She could tell him, of course. Tell him they were both in this together, that she wanted this as much as he did, but he likely wouldn’t believe her.
What if she made the first move…?
His gaze dropped to her mouth, and she caught the hungry gleam in his eyes. Anticipation moved through her as she listened to his throat work. Was he going to kiss her again, to finally let himself love? His Adam’s apple bobbed, as if going down for the third count.
“Kyle?”
“I’m going to take off,” he said. “I’ll see you later.”
He exited through the back door, like he couldn’t get away quick enough. His truck revved to life as Ava came running in to the kitchen.
“Where is Uncle Kyle going?”
She sucked in a quick breath to pull herself together. Plastering on a smile, she turned to her daughter. “To visit friends, and that gives us some quiet time together.” She scooped Ava up. “So come on. Bath time.” She tapped a squirming Ava on the nose. “Then, we can read.” She carried her little girl to the foot of the stairs then set her down on the floor with an exaggerated breath. “You’re getting too big for me to carry.”
Ava darted up the stairs ahead of her and she watched her go. She wished she could give the child everything she wanted, especially a sibling. As an only child herself, she’d been lonely growing up and wanted her daughter to have what the Nelson boys had. With only eighteen months between them the two had been so close, the bond between them strong. Ava was four already, and was going to miss out on creating such a connection. Unless of course, she could help Kyle let go of the past and accept everything he had in front of him, everything she and Ava had to offer. Then again, he hadn’t wanted to drink the water. Maybe he didn’t want this. One thing she knew for certain though, was she had to try. If she did nothing, and let him just walk out of her life again, she’d spend the rest of her days regretting it.
She followed Ava up the steps and ran the bath. Ava stripped off and started talking about Cuddles and babies as Rachel filled the tub with bubbles and helped her in. Rachel gave her a bath, then bandaged her finger after drying her off. She tucked Ava in bed and grabbed her favorite bedtime story from the bookshelf.
In minutes Ava was fast asleep. No doubt from the busy day with Kyle. Feeling a little too keyed up to go to bed herself, Rachel picked up her favorite romance novel and read as she took a long soak in a hot bubble bath. Darkness had fallen over the city by the time she climbed out, wrapped herself in a towel, and walked to her bedroom. She pulled open her dresser and looked over her nightclothes. The slip of silk material that one could barely call a nightgown drew her attention. She’d bought it on Sara’s insistence last year when it was on sale but had no reason to wear something so pretty and slinky to bed alone. A nightgown like this was worn for one reason and one reason only. To be removed by hands other than her own.
She glanced at herself in the mirror over her makeup table. She turned sideways, taking in her curves and the way the soft material fell over her body. Would Kyle like it? Would it have the effect she was hoping for? Nervousness moved into her stomach as she wandered through the house. Why did it suddenly seem so empty without Kyle in it? Needing something to occupy her hands, she picked up Ava’s toys and tidied up. When all was clean she made her way to her bed, and reached for the novel she’d been reading.
As the minutes ticked by the words before her blurred, and she found herself reading the same passage numerous times. It was hard to focus when she had a seduction planned. It was more than a seduction really. She needed Kyle to let go, to come undone, because only then could she help put him back together again and see things for what they were.
She glanced at the clock and sat up straighter at the sound of his truck pulling into the driveway. Easing the covers off, she listened for his footsteps on the staircase. They creaked beneath his feet and when she heard him on the landing, she drew a breath, and inched open her door to see him slip in to the bathroom. The shower turned on and she paced her room, waiting to make her move. Doubt crept into her thoughts. What if he turned her away and bolted?
What if he didn’t?
The bathroom door opened and when she heard him hurry to his room, she stepped into the hall, stopping to grab the aloe from the bathroom.
Shuffling sounds could be heard in his room, and when the bedframe squeaked, she knocked softly. At first he didn’t respond. Was he going to ignore her? Not wanting to wake Ava, she knocked again, a little harder this time, and called out to him.
“Kyle,” she whispered.
His feet shuffled on the floor, and his door opened. Looking rugged and sexy, she found him standing before her in noth
ing but a towel. Unable to help herself, her glance left his face and traveled down his body, taking pleasure in his tanned skin stretched tight over muscles carved to perfection. She ached to caress him again, to lose herself in the warmth of his touch. He cleared his throat and her gaze returned to his.
“Hey,” she murmured.
“Hey,” he returned, his voice sounding strained as his heated gaze swept across her. There was a new intensity about him that made her nerves jump. “What’s up?”
“I forgot to give you the aloe vera.” He continued to stare at her, like he had no idea what she was talking about. “You know, for the burn.” She held the bottle up for him to see and took in the hard angles of his face, his suntanned skin, and strong jaw. And then there was his mouth. Soft, sensual, capable of giving so much pleasure. Heat curled through her and her cheeks flushed hotly. There was something undeniably primal about this rough and rugged soldier that teased and tortured the woman in her. She let out a fluttery breath and pointed to his broad chest and six pack. “I was just checking out your burn.”
He relaxed a bit. “Oh, right.”
“It’s still bad, you should put this on.” He reached for bottle but she pulled it away. “It’s okay, I can do it.”
He hissed air as she uncapped the lid and poured the lotion into her hand. Her glance moved over his chest again and as she reached out to place her palm on his body, he grabbed her wrist to stop her. His rough calluses scraped erotically against her skin as he held her still. She lifted her head, and the air crackled with sexual tension when his eyes met hers.
“Don’t,” he bit out, his nostrils flaring like he was in agony.
She blinked up at him. “What’s wrong?”
He shook his head, a nervous energy about him as the blue in his eyes deepened. “I can’t have you touching me like this again, Rach.”
“Why not?”
“Because the last time you put lotion on me…well…I took…”
“We took.” She planted her pelvis next to his, and the telltale hardness between his legs told her he wanted this—her—as much as she did. “We fell into that bed together.” Why couldn’t he see that they were both responsible for what happened? That he wasn’t taking advantage of some vulnerable girl, or betraying anyone.
His jaw clenched. “We’re not going to fall in to it again. We can’t.”
“Okay.” She captured his hand and gave a little tug.
“What are you doing?” he asked. She pulled him into her room. His entire body stiffened at the sound of her lock clicking into place. His glance went from her, to her unmade bed, back to her again. He opened his mouth to speak but no words came.
Taking the lead she said, “How about we fall into mine?” She lifted her chin, parted her lips and swiped her tongue over them in invitation.
Eyes, dark and needy, pulled away from hers and for a moment she thought she lost him. But then his breathing changed, became rough as he zeroed in on her mouth.
“Rach… Fuck… I…” He brushed his thumb over her cheek, his touch so caring and gentle it took her breath away.
“You what?” she asked.
“I…I need…I fucking need, okay.”
“Then take.”
Chapter Eight
“Take what you need, Kyle.” Her hand went to his chest, the soothing balm in her palm cool on his heated skin. His cock surged to life. “Take what you need and give me only what you can give.” She massaged gently, and he closed his eyes in distress as she rubbed the ointment over his body.
As need warred with loyalty, he strove to pull himself together, to get out of her room before he did something he knew he’d regret later. Feeling a little shaky, unstable, he called on every ounce of strength he possessed and made a move to go, but stopped dead in his tracks when she spoke.
“I want you,” she murmured, her voice soft, seductive. The way she looked at him with such need and desire, such honesty and openness complicated his mission to keep his distance. Jesus, he was weak, so fucking weak when it came to her. “I want you in my bed. I want you inside of me.”
His hand shook as he closed it over hers to stop her, but the heat from her fingers felt so goddamn good, all he wanted to do was sink to his knees and drag her down with him. He took in the creamy rise of her breasts and as her breathing changed, became irregular, it nearly shut down his brain. How the fuck could he be expected to stay strong when she had such perfect breasts, nipples? He grabbed a fistful of his hair and tugged as the air around them grew heavy, charged with sexual energy.
“Rach…”
His voice fell off when she stepped back, giving him an unhindered view of her see-through nightgown. As she moved, she dragged his focus with her, and the sight nearly took him to his knees. Unable to rein in his lust, he looked his fill, taking pleasure in her beautiful, pale nipples as they poked through the slip of material. He clenched down on his jaw hard enough to break bone as his mouth watered for a taste. Christ, the woman was whittling away what little control he had.
The towel around his waist tented and he angled his body, but there was no fucking way he could conceal his growing erection. Her gaze dropped, and the longer she stared at his bulging towel, the thicker he grew.
“Tell me you don’t want this,” she said softly, her gaze traveling back up to meet with his. Dark eyes locked on his, and for a moment he couldn’t breathe. “Tell me you don’t want it and I’ll walk away.”
He could tell her, but it would be a total fucking lie. Impatience thrummed through him, blood rushing to his cock as the situation escalated beyond his power to stop it. She put her hand on her throat, and let her fingers trail downward. He followed the sexy movement and in the span of a second his brain shut down as the woman he loved, the woman he couldn’t say no to, seduced him into her bed.
“Tell me, Kyle.” When his name rolled off her tongue, heat arced between them, and the last of his resolve melted away. He resisted the urge to wave as logic packed a bag and headed south.
As she cut the leash holding him back he took two measured steps to close the distance between them. “I want this.” Her breath shuddered as he moved into her personal space, standing so close the heat emanating off her body seeped under his skin and stirred all the things he felt for her.
He wrapped one arm around her waist and, ignoring the clanging bells in his head, he did the one thing he shouldn’t do—crushed her body to his. His actions weren’t rational, or smart, but fuck, when was the last time he made a good decision when it came to her?
Heat flooded him as his cock pressed against her stomach. Her dark lashes fluttered as she moved against him, rubbing his girth in a suggestive way. Fuck. He toyed with the thin strap on her nightgown, running his finger along it, under it, brushing her skin as he considered the buttons lining the front and how he’d like to disrobe her. One quick rip? Or slow and gentle? Tension grew in his body as he visualized the former.
“I want you so fucking much I can’t even think straight when I’m around you.” He laughed, but it came out sounding maniacal. “What the fuck am I talking about? I can’t think straight even when I’m not around you.”
“Take, Kyle.”
His lips crashed down on hers, and as soon as he tasted her sweetness he knew he was done for. Craving the feel of her against him, he drew her tongue into his mouth and kissed her hard. Starved for so much more than a quick hurried orgasm, and wanting to give her so much more in return, he swept his tongue against the side of her mouth, savoring every inch of her.
Sweet. So fucking sweet.
She reached out and untied his towel. It fell to the floor and her hands raced over him in aroused eagerness. Her fingers slid lower and she wrapped her warm palms around his throbbing cock. He broke the kiss and sucked in a breath as her throaty purr resonated through him. Her hands glided over the length of him and when his whole body trembled her lips turned up at the corner. Jesus Christ, she liked it when he came undone—liked doing this to
him.
He pulsed in her palms as she stroked him. So good. So fucking good. Pleasure forked through him and a low growl of longing sounded in his throat. He slid his fingers through her hair and cupped the back of her head as beads of moisture broke out on his flesh.
Her mouth moved to his neck, her soft lips like fire on his skin. She kissed a path downward, the heat of her tongue enough to drive any sane man mad as she explored his body.
“I want to taste you,” she whispered against his skin, her lashes tickling his flesh. “Everywhere.”
Fuck no. If she put that sweet mouth of hers around his cock, he’d go off like a damn cluster bomb. He couldn’t let that happen, because he needed tonight to last so he could explore her body and hope to get his fill of her once and for all.
He gripped her shoulders to stop her exploration, and when her eyes snapped up, he leaned forward and ran his tongue across her bottom lip. Heaven. There was no other word to describe her taste.
“Me first,” he said.
A little nudge set her into motion and he backed up until she was pressed against the wall. He grabbed her hands, removing them from his cock, and drew them over her head. He pinned them with one hand as he took full possession of her body with his mouth. His lips moved over her eyes, nose, jaw, and slid to her neck. He licked the sensitive spot that made her quiver.
“Kyle,” she murmured, her soft whisper falling over him as she writhed. He looked at her. Eyes full of urgent need stared back. She was so fucking beautiful. A bevy of emotions crashed against his chest no matter how hard he tried to keep them at bay.
He cleared his throat. “Keep your hands there,” he said, and inched away. He scrubbed his hand over his chin, the rasp of his whiskers cutting the quiet as his glance slid over her. His hands went to the buttons on her nightgown.
“Are you very fond of this?” He fingered the silky material.
