by Kristi Gold
After they turned onto the main highway, Gavin punched the accelerator and flipped on the red-and-white lights, although he thought it best to forgo the siren. The lights usually required an emergency, but as far as he was concerned, this situation was an emergency.
They rode in silence, Val’s head tipped against his shoulder, his hand on her leg beneath the blanket, hers wrapped around his arm. Every now and then he took his eyes from the road long enough to kiss her briefly. She slid her fingertips up and down his arm, and even through his down jacket he could feel every stroke, as though she was touching him somewhere a little lower. The tension was as thick as the snowdrifts lining the road, and through sheer will alone Gavin resisted the urge to pull over and forget the fact he was in an official vehicle.
As soon as they arrived in the drive, Gavin braked hard, grabbed the bag from the backseat and told her, “Let’s go.”
He rounded the hood and took Val’s hand, practically dragging her up the walkway, until he cautioned himself to slow down. Now only a door, an alarm system and a short trip down the hall to his bedroom stood between him and his plans to make love to her all night. And if he didn’t get the door open soon, he’d damn sure break it down.
Seven
The sound of the front door hitting the wall startled Valerie so much she actually gasped. Gavin muttered an apology when he kicked it closed, locked it and then swept her up into his arms. She’d never been carried away by a man, in either the literal or figurative sense, until she’d crossed over Gavin O’Neal’s threshold. She’d never been totally robbed of breath from anticipation of what would happen next. And she’d never been so close to making what could be the biggest mistake of her life—losing herself to him completely before he knew the truth. But she would pretend to be the woman he believed her to be and carry this experience with her long after tonight.
Gavin opened his bedroom door with less force than when they’d come into the house and, once inside, flipped on the light and slid her down the length of his body. He simply stared at her for a long moment while she stood there clutching the front of his jacket. He removed her hands and kissed each palm, then left her to turn off the light, as if he sensed her self-consciousness. The part in the curtains provided some illumination, compliments of a three-quarter moon that made the snow look like blue glitter. The scene could be classic Rockwell, but the one now standing before her was definitely da Vinci. Gavin had removed his coat and shirt, revealing his body now cast in shadows—his work-of-art chest with the splash of hair in the center that traveled down the hard surface of his abdomen in a thin band.
Valerie inclined her head, studying all the details as if he happened to be on exhibit in a museum, not a bedroom. To think that she would soon have him closer to her than he’d ever been before, without any barriers, gave her cause to shiver, which she did.
Without speaking, he approached her slowly, pushed her coat off her shoulders and tossed it onto a nearby chair. She was very aware that the end of the bed was behind her where he backed her up, then turned her around and took his place in front of her. He dropped down on the edge of the mattress and pulled her between his parted legs.
“Take off your shoes,” he told her, his voice impossibly deep.
Shoes seemed like a good place to start, so she used his shoulders for support as she toed out of her sneakers.
He reached up beneath her skirt and worked both her hose and her panties down her legs. After he dropped them on the floor, he slid his palms up her bare legs, then over her bottom. “We’re going to take this slow,” he said.
Val wasn’t sure she wanted slow. Right then she craved fast and hard, but she could do nothing more than bend to his will, especially when he loosened the belt at her waist and released each button down the front of her dress. He worked the uniform off her shoulders, and once he’d completed that task, with one tug the dress dropped to the floor at her feet in a pool of polyester. Then he removed her bra without the least bit of hesitation.
Following a long visual once-over down her body, Gavin tugged her closer and placed an openmouthed kiss between her breasts before catching her gaze again. “You’re so damn gorgeous, Val.”
She smoothed her hands over his brown hair. “So are you.”
“Come here.” He brought her down on the bed beside him and kissed her again before coming to his feet.
Valerie recognized what was next on the agenda—Gavin O’Neal in all his glory. Her pulse picked up steam and so did her respiration when she considered the inevitable leap to complete intimacy was about to arrive. And she planned to actively participate in the sheriff’s full disclosure.
“Let me,” she said when his hand went to his fly.
“Gladly.” Despite the darkness, she could see that he was smiling, could hear it in his voice. She so wanted to do this right, but her hands shook as she slipped open the button on his jeans. The zipper was even more problematic, and he laid his hand on hers to still it, allowing her to slide the tab down. Then he guided her palms to his waistband, urging her with his dark gaze as she pulled the denim down his narrow hips. He removed his briefs a little more quickly than any other clothing to this point—probably driven by impatience, Valerie decided. She was feeling a little bit impatient, too, her only explanation for the very bold, very precise visual exploration.
She might as well face it—he had it all. And he knew it, apparent when he just stood there and let her look her fill. But he wasn’t exactly arrogant, just overtly confident. Every move he made shouted self-assurance, in his talk and unquestionably in his walk as he left her to rifle through the plastic sack, then approached the side of the bed and tossed several condoms on the nightstand. Definitely confident.
He centered his gaze on her while he turned down the bed, pulling the covers all the way to the end where she now sat, her arms folded across her bare breasts. He held out his hand and she took it without wavering, allowing him to haul her up into his arms, his bare flesh contacting hers.
With a gentle hand Gavin brushed her hair aside. “I have a couple of questions. First, are you still sure about this?”
So sure it scared her. “Yes.”
“This isn’t your first time, is it?”
Valerie could understand why he might think that, considering her nervous state. “No. But I’ve only been with—”
He halted her declaration with a quick kiss. “I don’t need to know about your former lovers. In fact, I don’t want to know about them.”
Not that much to tell, Valerie thought. Only one other man whom she’d believed had loved her. A man who hadn’t been able to accept her, despite the fact she had a college degree and a camaraderie with kids. A hard lesson learned about acceptance—or the lack thereof. As far as she was concerned, he no longer existed. Nothing existed except the desire in Gavin’s dark eyes as he eased her onto the bed onto her back.
He took the place beside her, lifting up on one elbow to face her. “You have a great body, Val.”
Funny, she’d always seen herself as more tomboy than temptress. Some had even described her as scrappy. Yet with the wave of a hand over her curves and the heat in his eyes, Gavin had somehow convinced her she was a voluptuous woman, deserving of his praise.
He bent his head to her breast and laved his tongue in slow circles around her nipple before drawing it into the warmth of his mouth. She closed her eyes, absorbed the wonderful sensations, her hands filtering through his hair. He paid close attention to her other breast, lingering there, sufficiently setting her senses on fire as he brushed his knuckles down her belly, then fitted his palm between her thighs. He knew how to touch her with a gentle caress that awakened long-neglected desire, just as he had that morning.
In a matter of moments she would leave reality behind and let undeniable need take over. As if Gavin sensed that, he took his hand away and reached toward the nightstand.
When he came back with the condom, Valerie discarded all her inhibitions and said, “I�
��ll do it.”
He handed her the condom and fell back onto the pillow. “Be my guest.”
Valerie rolled to her side and touched him first, finally exploring him the way he had explored her. She heard the catch of his breath, felt a slight jerk of his hips and knew that he was as affected by her touch as she was by touching him. Although her hands slightly shook, she managed the condom without any real difficulty. Considering Gavin would soon be putting it to use made the simple process of thinking very difficult.
After nudging her onto her back, Gavin bent and parted her knees, then moved between them. Once again his hand idled over her flesh, sufficiently bringing her to the border of release. When he leaned forward, she expected him to slip into her gently. Instead he entered her with a hard thrust, then another, sending her completely into the grip of a powerful climax. She tipped her head back and experienced every pulsation that seemed timed with the beat of her heart.
Gavin stretched out on top of her, still joined to her body, and brought his warm lips to her ear. “Works every time.”
Valerie wanted to scold him for his prideful tone, but she was too focused on his movements that had become much more tempered, at least for the time being.
He cradled her face in his palms and searched her eyes. “You feel incredible.” Then he stopped moving altogether.
“What’s wrong?” Valerie hated the note of panic in her voice, but she started imagining all sorts of things, the first of which was a broken condom. The second, he’d changed his mind.
His harsh sigh echoed in the silent room. “Nothing’s wrong, and that’s the problem. I’ve waited so long for you, and now it’s almost too good. It’s going to be over too soon.”
“Gavin, it doesn’t matter. We can always do it again in a while.”
His sultry smile crept in. “Yeah, we sure can.”
Apparently satisfied with that suggestion, Gavin moved in a steady rhythm while Valerie ran her palms down his back and on to the curve of his fantastic butt to experience each and every move of his hips. He drove harder, drove deeper, all the while keeping his gaze centered on hers. She saw a slight sheen of perspiration on his forehead, saw his determination to contain his passion. Then saw the transformation when he couldn’t hold on any longer, when his eyes grew heavy-lidded and his jaw went taut.
His whole body tensed against her and he shuddered as his eyes drifted closed. A long breath hissed out of his mouth, followed by a low groan and the sound of her name drifting from his lips before he collapsed against her.
Valerie listened to the sound of his ragged breathing, felt his heartbeat pound against her breasts as he laid his lips against her neck, cherishing every sweet moment. Having him so close felt so right, and again that brought on the remorse. She decided to push aside any negative thoughts to keep from destroying this little piece of paradise.
“It’s all your fault, you know,” he whispered after a time.
She framed his face in her palms and yanked his head up.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You’ve been taunting me for months now, and that’s why it didn’t last any longer than it did.”
“I haven’t been taunting you.” She looked away. “Okay, maybe verbally taunting you, but that didn’t have a thing to do with sex at the time.”
“Maybe that’s not how you meant it, but I’ve been up many a night thinking about us like this. I’m just glad we finally got to it and it turned out so well, even if it didn’t last long enough.”
Val kissed the cleft in his chin. “It turned out very well.” When he started to shift away from her, she asked, “Where are you going?”
“I’m heavy, sweetheart. I need to move off you before I flatten you like a pancake.”
For the first time in a long time Valerie experienced a total lightness of being and giddiness. “Nature’s already taken care of that, Sheriff, so you don’t have to leave on my account.”
Grinning, Gavin palmed her breast, bringing Valerie’s senses back to the forefront. “I’ve already told you—and I meant it—you have a great body. I like every inch of it.”
And she liked having his hands on every inch of it. She started to tell him so, but her eyes began to water, her nose began to tickle and she turned away from Gavin to sneeze. “Sorry,” she muttered, and Gavin followed with, “Bless you.”
Then she sneezed again, two more times.
“Be right back.” Gavin climbed out of the bed and headed into the bathroom, leaving Valerie feeling completely alone, and that was odd. She’d spent her life in cold, empty beds before she’d met him.
He came back after a time clutching a handful of tissues and offered them to her. “Here you go.”
She took them and turned away to blow her nose, bringing about Gavin’s laughter and Val’s need to mutter another apology.
“I’ve seen you naked, Val. You can blow your nose in front of me.”
She glanced over her shoulder to find him seated on the edge of the mattress. “That would be just plain rude.”
He ran his fingers through her hair. “I hope you’re not catching a cold after traipsing around in the snow tonight.”
She rolled onto her back and grinned. “I always sneeze after sex and dusting.”
He frowned. “Seriously?”
This time she laughed. “Not about the sex part. The dusting part, yes.”
“Good. I’d hate to think you’re allergic to me.”
She wasn’t, but she should be. “Do you want me to go back to my bed just in case I am catching a cold?”
He climbed back in beside her. “I want you to stay right where you are until we have to get up in the morning.”
Valerie had never spent all night in bed with a man, but she had an inkling she was going to enjoy the experience with Gavin. “Okay, but I might be restless, especially if I keep sneezing.” That seemed like a possibility considering her itchy nose. “And just in case—” she turned on the side away from him “—I’ll stay over here.”
He pulled the covers up over them, molded himself against her back and draped an arm over her waist. “You know something?”
She glanced back at him. “You’re behind me again, and that usually spells trouble.”
“Well, yeah, I am, but I was going to say you have an incredibly high body temperature. Kind of like having my own personal heater in the bed with me.”
Val wriggled her bottom against him. She couldn’t help it. “And it looks like I have my own personal thermometer.”
Gavin nibbled on her ear. “And if you keep that up, it’s going to be rising real soon.”
She reached back and squeezed his bottom. “Now wouldn’t that be a shame?”
“Yeah, a real shame.” His hand drifted to her belly and below. “So let’s see just how hot you really are….”
Gavin’s skilled touch promised more pleasure for Valerie. Yes, she was going to like being in bed with the sheriff. A lot. But it was too much to ask to believe that she would be in his bed—or his life—for much longer.
The following morning Gavin awoke with empty arms and an empty space beside him. He sat up and looked out the window to see the first signs of dawn, but no Valerie. Most likely she was already up and about, getting ready for work, while all he could consider was getting his hands on her again. And again.
For a few minutes he entertained himself by staring at the ceiling. He couldn’t quite peg why he didn’t just roll over and go back to sleep for an hour or so. Okay, maybe he did know. Valerie Raines was keeping him up, in every way imaginable.
He liked having her in his bed beside him. He really liked being inside of her, something he’d discovered twice during the night. He could blame his overwhelming need for her on his recent span of celibacy, but sex was only part of the equation. He found everything about her fascinating, from the glimpses of her sense of humor to the way she always wrinkled her nose when she found something distasteful. He definitely liked her sharpshoo
ter mind, as well as her killer body. Unquestionably her body. And one of these days he planned to break through that invisible shield she used to guard her emotions. Right now he planned to find her.
First stop—the guest room. But when Gavin found the bed empty and still made, he walked to the bathroom door and knocked lightly. “Val, are you in there?”
When she didn’t answer, he headed for the kitchen. She could be making coffee or breakfast, but he didn’t detect any of the usual cooking smells. As he bypassed the great room, he saw something from the corner of his eye and stopped short.
There she was, curled up on the sofa, wrapped in a throw, with only her head exposed. Right away he noticed her pale skin, the glaze of perspiration on her forehead and the fact that she was shaking beneath the blanket.
Concern sent him straight to the couch and down beside her. He laid a hand on her forehead and his worry increased. “You’re burning up.”
“I’m freezing,” she said between chattering teeth. “I hope you don’t mind but I turned up the heat.”
“You need to go back to bed.”
She barked out a cough and stared at him with dull eyes. “I promised Manny I’d work today. I have to go in for the breakfast crowd.”
Gavin sent her a hard look. “You have the flu and you’re not going anywhere.”
Not waiting for further protests, he scooped Val into his arms, walked down the hallway and deposited her back in his bed. Strangely enough, she didn’t argue, but considering how ill she looked, he figured she was probably too weak. “Don’t get out of this bed. I’ll be right back. I need to make a phone call.”
At times like these, Gavin wished he could call his mother. She’d been good at taking care of him when he’d been sick as a child and she would know what to do. But she was gone, had been for a long time, so he’d have to call someone else who could give him solid advice.
