by Tawny Taylor
She thanked the driver and bent over to duck inside. “Wow.” She’d once been in a limo, years ago. Prom night. She didn’t remember that limo looking as gorgeous as this one. It was absolutely stunning—for a car. She sat. Nice. Soft cushions. It smelled good, too, as soft music played from hidden speakers all around her. “I could get used to this. Can he come back tomorrow and take me to work? I might not mind getting caught in morning rush hour if he did.”
Josh chuckled. “You’re cute.” He pushed a button. “Rayford, Miss Wilde would like a ride tomorrow—”
She clapped a hand over his mouth. “I was kidding! Oh my God, what would the girls in the office say if they saw me come out of this thing…?” Actually, that might be fun. “Okay. Carry on. I’d love a ride. But only this once.”
Josh smiled and finished with Rayford. Then he took out the champagne and glasses. “Do you still need that drink?”
“You bet I do.” She accepted a tall flute full of clear bubbly champagne. “What are we toasting to?”
“To a lifetime of happiness.” He lifted his glass and she touched hers against it.
Guess he meant that whole marriage thing.
“Oh.” He smiled wickedly. She’d come to appreciate that expression. “And a huge brood of children.”
“Brood of children?” What exactly did that mean? “Is a brood like a gaggle, or a pair?”
“A lot.”
“Like how many?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe ten? Twelve?”
Her head started spinning. Did he actually say ten kids? “Are you trying to kill me? Holy shit! Can women produce that many babies and live?”
He smiled over his glass and sipped. “Of course they can. Wouldn’t you like to have my children?”
“Of course I would. I’d be proud to—” She would? Had she just said that? She’d always vowed she’d never have kids. “But-but ten? No one has ten kids anymore. I mean, except for farmers who need cheap labor.”
He motioned toward her glass. “Aren’t you going to drink to our toast?”
She sipped. Yum! Cold, bubbly, crisp. That champagne was very tasty, and she was not normally a fan of champagne.
“I’m willing to compromise, then, if you’re overwhelmed with ten. How about eight?”
“Two,” she countered.
“Seven?”
“Three.”
“Six?”
“Five. And that’s my final offer.”
“Done!” The most amazing smile spread over his face, and she wondered what she’d just gotten herself into. “I’m going to be a daddy. Can we start tonight?” He waggled his eyebrows.
Five kids? Am I nuts? She laughed. He was so playful and funny. A big hunk of a boy, in some respects, yet commanding and protective, and sexy. Perfect. “You forgot one thing. We aren’t married yet.”
“That’s no biggie. We can take care of that with a quick trip to the courthouse tomorrow—”
“No way! I’ve been dreaming about my wedding day since I played house with Jimmy next door. My first one wasn’t exactly the one of my dreams.”
“Lucky guy!”
She giggled and gave him a playful smack on the shoulder. “We were five. And I’m not getting hitched again at the ratty old courthouse.” Wait! What was she saying? Was she really going to marry Josh? Just like that? She’d always criticized people who rushed into marriage, and there she was contemplating marrying a man she’d known for only a couple of weeks. She was nuts. Pure and simple. Time to visit a shrink and get some good drugs.
“You’d be nuts to turn me down.”
“My, aren’t we full of ourselves?”
“I’m everything you’ve ever dreamed of.”
He was right, but she wasn’t about to admit it. “How would you know that?”
He leaned forward until his mouth was a fraction of an inch from hers. “Because I know you. I know your most secret desires and fantasies. I know your dreams.”
Her eyelids drooped until they closed out the world. She waited, breathless, for his kiss. He knew her dreams? He sure seemed to.
“Like now. I know you want me to kiss you, but I’m not going to. Not yet.” His hand rested on her breast, and she arched her back into his touch. A fingertip teased her nipple through her snug knit top. “And I know you want me to fuck you. But I won’t. Not yet.” His first hand still taunting her breast, his other dropped to the hem of her skirt and slid under it, brushing over her mound and tickling the point where it met her thighs.
Her body was a lump of aching, tingling need in two breaths. “Oh, Sweet Jesus!” Had he said he wouldn’t fuck her? Teasing bastard!
Kneeling on the floor before her, he used two hands on her knees to part her legs. “You love it when I take command in bed. You love to lose control. Open to me.”
Her skirt hitched high up on her hips, sliding out from under her ass as her legs spread. She felt the cool air on her soaking lace panties.
“Very nice. You’re wet and ready for me, aren’t you?” He lifted her ankles, setting them on his shoulders. The feeling of exposure, of being so open to him only made her hotter and wetter. If only he’d fuck her!
“Please.”
“Please what, love?” He rimmed her pussy with a teasing fingertip, running up and down each side while avoiding the one place that ached for his touch.
“Fuck me.”
“No, no. I told you. I won’t do that yet.” He kissed the inside of her thigh, and she squirmed. He tickled the back of her knee, and she giggled, struggling to pull her ankle out of his grasp. He ran his tongue up her leg then down the other, and she moaned in breathless agony.
“You’re driving me crazy!” She struggled to suck in a breath, knowing her brain was becoming oxygen-deprived. The world spun and tipped, and she grasped for something to steady it.
“Crazy, eh? That’s exactly what I’m trying to do.” His free hand lifted to slide under her top and pinch her nipple, and when he pulled, she arched her back, pushing her breast into his hand. “Do you like that?”
“Oh, yes! Very much.” As a reward, she received a firm squeeze.
Setting her feet on the floor, he pulled her nipple into his mouth and suckled. “And this? How does this feel?”
“Oh…” She couldn’t think of words to describe it. His voice alone hummed through her body like some kind of strange energy, lighting mini-blazes everywhere. “More.”
“And what about this?” He nipped the inside of her thigh then blew a current of cool air on her hot pussy.
“Oh…” She sighed. But the brief relief wasn’t enough. In fact, it only stirred added heat. “More!” Blind with desperation, she clawed at everything within reach. Every muscle in her body coiled tight like a viper preparing to attack. Shit! She craved relief, needing it more than her next breath. Her body thrummed with need, climbing steadily toward orgasm, despite the fact that he hadn’t touched her pussy yet. “I’m going to do something rash if you don’t fuck me. Now!”
“No, you don’t want to do that.”
“Why not?”
He didn’t answer. Instead, he slipped a shoe off her foot and tickled the sole of her foot.
It was the strangest sensation. She felt a buzzing, zapping electricity shoot up her leg and settle over her pussy. Like the buzz of a vibrator. It hummed through her body, loud in her ears, stealing her breath, making her pussy throb and clench as if he held a vibrator on her clit.
Without warning, she jetted over the edge, her body convulsing with a powerful orgasm that left her gasping for air and dizzy. “Oh my God!”
As soon as she was able, she opened her eyes.
He still held her foot in his hands, and he was smiling. “Did you like?”
“What did you do?”
He held up his hands, palms facing her. “Everyone has energy in their bodies. If they learn how to channel it, they can use it.”
“I have never felt anything like that.” It was real. She’d felt it
. She’d come. Hell, her pussy was still tingling. From a touch to her foot. Why her foot?
“There are nerve pathways in your body. And the one that leads to your sexual organs is here.” He touched the same spot on the center of her foot. Immediately she felt that tingle again. “I believe acupressure and acupuncture use the same principle.”
“I’ve never had those. Hell, I’ve never had an orgasm from someone touching my foot, either.” She found her glass, which she assumed she’d set down, she couldn’t remember, and took a big gulp.
“I’m hoping that will be one of many firsts we share together.”
“I’ll toast to that.” She raised her almost empty glass and touched it to his then she downed the rest.
The car stopped.
She glanced out the tinted windows and pulled her skirt back down over her rear end. She slipped her feet into her shoes. “The beach? We’re at the beach?”
Josh sat next to her and grinned. The door opened, and she stepped out onto the sidewalk. Josh followed her. “I hope you don’t mind. I thought a picnic would be nice.”
She looked up and down. It was a beautiful stretch of land. A driveway led up to the sandy beach, turned back on itself and headed out to the main road somewhere out of sight. A copse of trees skirted both sides of the drive. “What is this place?”
“A private beach.”
“Where’s the house?”
“There isn’t one. Just sand and surf.” He took her hand, and she followed him, enjoying the soft sound of water lapping the shore and the smell of salt in the air. In awe, she turned around completely, enjoying every sight, smell and sound. Gulls shrieked overhead, dipping and soaring over the water, and the sun hung low over the horizon kept company by pink and purple clouds.
It reminded her of that first time, the sensations she’d felt when they’d made love.
“This is breathtaking.”
He led her to a dining canopy set up on the sand, just shy of the tide. Lanterns fringing the underside of the tent lit the interior, and the rich smells of food drifted to her nose on the breeze, making her mouth water.
She sat in a chair, the kind cushy you’d never expect to find on a beach, before a magnificent polished wood dining table and waited for Josh to sit. “I don’t know what to say. This is amazing.”
“I’m glad you like it.”
“I can’t believe you went to all this trouble for me.”
“Why not?” He took her hand and dropped a kiss on the back. “You’re worth it.”
“It’s so romantic. I didn’t think guys knew how to be romantic.” She watched the waves roll toward them. “Although the water’s a little scary.”
“It’s out there. We’re here. It can’t hurt you.”
“I know.” She smiled as a thought dawned. “Oh my God! I get it. You didn’t do this to be romantic. You’re still trying to make me comfortable around water. You sneaky son of a…”
“Is that a crime? Your fear has frozen you for far too long. Isn’t it time to conquer it for good?”
“Don’t tell me you’re going to drag me in there.” She pointed at the ocean, panicking. Her heart shifted into double-time.
“No.” He leveled his gaze at her. “Trust me. I won’t force you. You will only do what you’re ready to do. Besides, our food is getting cold. Let’s eat.”
She nodded and watched as he lifted the silver covers off the dishes, revealing a wide variety of seafood—gee, what a surprise—vegetables, and—thank God!—pasta. She watched in awe as Josh packed in a truckload of food and forced herself to eat a few bites.
“How do you do that?” she asked, mentally weighing the volume of food he had just consumed. It had to be somewhere near a ton.
“Do what?”
“Eat so much? I’ve never seen anyone eat like that.”
He shrugged. “I have a healthy appetite…for many things.” He grinned.
That was one expression she couldn’t miss. Her body responded, warming from head to toe.
“How about we go for a walk?” He stood and took her hand, pulling her up to him.
“All right. Just don’t take me any closer—”
“How about we just walk along the water’s edge. It’s warm tonight.”
Oh boy! He wasn’t going to give up easily. “How about we walk over there?” She pointed in the opposite direction.
“In the swamp?”
“Swamp? I thought it was woods.”
“It’s much nicer here, don’t you think?”
“Not exactly.” The water slid up the sand and licked at her ankles, and she jumped.
“Look at me.”
She couldn’t help raising her eyes to his face.
“You can do this. You are strong, capable, and have made great strides in swim class. Water is not dangerous. It’s a beautiful, essential element. It heals and protects.”
His voice resonated through her whole body, easing her panic and relaxing her knotted muscles. “Yes.”
“Now, follow me. We’re going into the water. Together.” Walking into the sea, he pulled her.
She slipped off her shoes and tossed them onto the beach before following him deeper into the ocean. The water that had been ankle deep pulled at her calves then her knees. Yet she remained calm. The water felt cool and invigorating, and Josh’s hand around hers was reassuring. She took several more steps until the water pushed at her thighs and looked out over the wide expanse of shimmering water. Her wet skirt clung to her legs. “It’s quite pretty, isn’t it?”
“Beautiful.”
“I see why you like it so much.”
“Love?”
“Oh yes. You love the sea.”
“No, I love you.”
She turned and looked into his eyes. “You love me?”
“Yes. With all my heart and soul. Be my wife.”
He loves me? He loves me! “I want to. I mean, I accepted the ring.” She glanced down at the gem that reminded her of a tropical sky. “But I thought we’d take some time to get to know each other better before—”
“This weekend. Marry me this coming weekend.”
“So soon?”
“I must have you.”
She saw the fierce need in his eyes, but she didn’t trust herself. Was she doing the right thing? Was she thinking straight? Wasn’t it insane to marry a man after only two weekends? “I…I want to.”
He hooted and swept her into his arms, kissing her with such passion, the world around her dropped away. His tongue traced her lips then plunged deep into her mouth to stroke and probe. She kissed him back with equal fervor, suckling his tongue as if it nourished her. Her body tingled, heating as if set ablaze…
And then it cooled.
She opened her eyes.
Water. Everywhere. She opened her mouth, but instead of air, water filled it.
She tried to scream.
Josh covered her mouth with his and filled her lungs with air. Then he palmed her face and forced her to meet his gaze. You are safe, as long as you are with me. Trust me.
He spoke directly in her head, his voice humming inside, bouncing around and zapping along nerve pathways. How the hell did he do that?
It’s a skill we all have.
We who?
My…family. You will meet them next week at our wedding.
Just tell me we’ll be married on dry land.
His chuckles bounced around in her stomach, tickling her insides. She felt herself relaxing.
Swim with me. We can explore. The ocean is a glorious, beautiful place.
We don’t have any gear. Don’t people use snorkels and flippers?
We don’t need them. We don’t need clothes, either. He lifted his shirt over his head, chest, stomach and arm muscles bunching and flexing. That was a glorious, beautiful sight. More beautiful than the ocean.
Next, he shed his pants and underwear. Then he helped her out of her clothes.
There was something very provocative, very se
xy and exhilarating about swimming in the buff. The water felt like silk against her skin, cool and soft. And watching Josh swim, watching every muscle on his body work, was enough to kick start her hormones.
That first erotic twinge shot from between her legs.
That’s it, love. He slid a hand down to cup her ass, and probed between her cheeks with a finger. She arched into his touch, willing him to explore deeper.
His other hand wrapped around her back as he pulled her up against his hard form. Her breasts flattened against his broad chest and her head dropped back as he bit and kissed her neck.
Damn! She was hot. She wrapped her legs around his waist, appreciating her weightlessness in water, and kissed him, drawing in another deep breath and filling her lungs, her whole being, with his essence. As he plunged his cock deep inside, she was complete, thoroughly filled.
Her pussy closed tight around him as he slid in and out, slowly, deliciously. Her eyelids dropped closed as she clung to him, digging her fingernails into his flesh. Her mouth sought his, drinking, tasting, breathing. Her muscles tensed, her legs spread farther apart as she soared closer to climax.
He pulled out just before she reached that magical crest and led her from the water. Dazed, she followed him, unable to think of anything but completing what they’d started deep below the shimmering water’s surface.
He led her to the dining tent and pulled the tablecloth off the table, and then led her to a flat rock. His hands and mouth teasing, nipping, pinching anything they came in contact with, he spread the cloth over the rock and eased her onto her back.
Her ass sat at the very edge, and she almost feared she’d fall. But as he pressed her thighs up and apart, all was lost to her but the feel of his mouth on her pussy.
His tongue lapped her folds, licking, delving into her slit, flickering over her tight bud and sending shards of light through her body. She was on fire! She needed the sea again.
He knelt in the sand and in one firm stroke buried his cock deep inside. The head struck her deepest regions, and she moaned. Teasing her pussy, he pulled out before filling her again.
Her legs opened wider as she sought to take him deeper.
“Touch yourself.” His words cut through the haze of pleasure.
