by Jaci Burton
“Sometimes it does.”
The lake was beautiful tonight. The moon cast its silvery glow over the lake, the water so still Jane was sure she could walk on it. The night was peaceful, just the two of them wandering around there. And because she trusted Will to keep her safe, she was content to walk along the path at the edge of the lake with him. He led her to a picnic bench near the water, then set her on top of it, climbing over the seat so he could nestle his body against hers.
The only sounds were the crickets and the occasional locust. Otherwise, it was so quiet she could hear the wild slam of her heart beating double-time against her chest. Having Will close to her like this sent her breathing off-kilter. And when he threaded his fingers through her hair and brushed his lips against hers, she remembered just how long it had been since she’d felt this sense of anticipation, this wild abandon and sharp desire that threatened to steal her breath away.
Too damn long. She lightly raked her nails up and down his forearms, rewarded with his responding groan. He moved in between her legs and deepened the kiss, pulling her against him, wrapping an arm around her to drag her closer so their bodies fit together. Not exactly the most modest of positions since she had a skirt on, but frankly she didn’t much care. She craved the contact of his body against hers, his tongue sliding inside to lick against hers. She heard a soft moan—hers, as his hand roamed down her back and settled against her butt. She wished they weren’t in such a public place, because the closer he got, the more she realized that he was hard and she was damp, and if they had been at her place, she could get him naked and they could be having sex.
They drew apart, and she was decidedly happy that he was dragging in ragged breaths. “This—was a really bad idea.”
Confused, she looked up at him. “Which part?”
“The taking you to the lake part. I have a raging hard-on and I really want to lay you out on this picnic table, get you naked, and kiss you all over. And that would get me arrested.”
She couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah. I’m not real fond of being naked in public. Let’s go to my place and get naked in private.”
He scooped her off the table in record time and set her on her feet, then grabbed her hand. The walk back to the car was not the leisurely stroll they’d taken before, though Will did grab her several times and plant seriously hot, deep kisses on her that left her dizzy and so turned on she was beginning to rethink the whole naked in the park thing.
They finally made it back to his car, both of them out of breath. She buckled her seat belt, then looked over at Will, and at his very noticeable erection straining against his jeans.
“Maybe we should just do it in the car,” she said.
He gripped the steering wheel, then looked over at her, pinning her with a look of pure animal hunger that seared her. “Don’t tease me like that because I just might take you up on that suggestion.”
She swallowed, her throat so dry it felt like sand had settled permanently in it. “Drive fast. Okay, not so fast that you’re breaking any speed limits and your friend Luke has to pull you over and delay things. But let’s get to my place in kind of a hurry, okay?”
“Yeah. Gotcha.” He started the car and pulled out, screeching the tires just a bit as he roared out of the park. He kept it just above the legal limit, his hands tense on the steering wheel the entire time.
She figured by the time they got back to her house, common sense would have prevailed and she’d have cooled down a bit.
Not so much. She’d clutched the armrest the entire time, and it wasn’t because of Will’s driving. He pulled into her driveway and she tried to be calm and rational, but she threw open the car door, her fingers fumbling in her purse for the keys. Will grabbed them from her as they hurried to the front door. With fingers more deft than hers, he unlocked the door and she stepped inside. Before she could find the light switch, he closed the door and had her in his arms, his mouth on hers.
She dropped her purse to the floor, her hand coming up to twine around his neck. She had to stand on her toes to get there, but she needed to touch him. He made it easier on her by grasping her butt and lifting her, pressing her against the door and pinning her there with his body.
Good Lord, the man was strong, holding on to her, kissing her, devouring her with his lips and tongue. His fingers dug into the flesh of her thighs and it felt gloriously, deliciously decadent. She wasn’t sure she’d ever been wanted in this kind of desperate fashion, and she gave it back in kind, tangling her fingers in his hair as she kissed him with breathless abandon.
“Bedroom,” he said, dragging his mouth from hers and talking to her while his lips mapped a trail across her jaw and fixed onto her neck.
She gasped out a moan. “I don’t know. That way somewhere.”
“We’ll figure it out.”
He flipped her around and started walking—in the dark, no less.
“Straight,” she guided him, her mouth on his neck, that spot she’d been fixated on. She licked him and he bumped into something, letting out a curse.
“Sorry. There’s an ottoman there. Take a quick turn around that and go straight past the dining room and down the hall. My bedroom’s the last one.”
“Got it.” He stopped midway down the hall to push her against the wall and suck on that sensitive spot between her neck and shoulder. Would she have a hickey tomorrow? She didn’t care because chills coursed down her spine as shivery sensation rippled through her.
He found the bedroom and held on to her with one hand while he opened the door. He made her feel light and delicate as he proceeded to the bed, making her so glad she’d changed the sheets and made the bed today—just in case.
He deposited her on the bed and came down on top of her, that delicious weight of his rocking against her as he moved his lips over her neck and lower. And when he palmed her stomach, his fingers inching the material of her top over her belly, she fluttered with awareness and need.
She toed her shoes off and he pushed her farther onto the bed, lifting her skirt.
“You smell good,” he said, burying his face in her neck.
His hands were everywhere. One on her thigh, inching toward her hip, the other lifting her blouse and palming her breast. It was all happening so fast, she couldn’t keep up with the sensations blasting her from all directions. And when he lifted her top over her head, all she could do was lie back and let him have his way, because she’d fantasized about this, wanted this—and oh, God, she needed this.
Right up to the point when he reached over and switched on her bedside lamp.
She lifted up on her elbows. “What are you doing?”
“I want to see you.”
“Oh. Uh.” Desire tamped down. “Could we maybe do this in the dark?”
Will cocked a brow, then grinned at her and pushed her shoulders down. “Not a chance in hell, Jane. You’re gorgeous and I want to see all of you.”
She lifted back up on her elbows. “Will. You do realize I’ve given birth to two children, right?”
He loomed over her, his hands planted on either side of her. “I think you’re beautiful, Jane. And yes, I realize you’re not twenty anymore. Neither am I.”
“Yeah, but you don’t have stretch marks from childbirth.”
He laughed, then pushed her back down on the bed. “No, I don’t. Now relax and let me make love to you.”
She looked up at the ceiling, her earlier excitement replaced with trepidation. His face appeared over hers, and suddenly he was kissing her again. Deep, soulful kisses that made her forget to be conscious of her body and its imperfections. She reached for him, slid her fingers into the soft silkiness of his hair. He laid a hand on her stomach, then over her hip, gradually pulling down her skirt. She helped him, lifting her hips until the skirt slid down her legs, leaving her in only her bra and panties.
He kissed her neck again, evoking chills, then moved his lips over her collarbone and the swell of her breasts. Jane kept her eyes tigh
tly shut, not wanting Will to be disappointed in her. But when he removed her bra and put his mouth over her nipples, she forgot all about everything except the way he pleasured her, teasing her nipple by sucking it. Her eyes flew open and she had to watch his cheeks hollow as he took her nipple into his mouth, then flicked his tongue over the sensitive bud until she thought she might die from the pleasure. And while he plumped and pleasured her breast, he moved his hand over her rib cage and down her belly, making her breath catch as he cupped her sex, drawing out her low moan as he slipped his hand into her panties to tease and torment her.
Her back bowed as she met his questing fingers. He expertly knew right where to touch her, using his fingers to dip inside her, moistening them, and then circling her center of pleasure until she thought she might just die right there.
Taut with tension, she rocked against his hand until he brought her right to the edge.
“Come on, baby,” he whispered. “Let go for me.”
His words, so evocative, so dark and rich with promise, were her undoing. She burst with an orgasm she felt she’d been holding in for years, crying out against him as she thrashed in his arms. He held her as she moaned through it, using his fingers to expertly coax her right to the very edge again. And then he pulled her to the edge of the bed, removed her panties, and put his mouth on her, teasing her with his lips and tongue.
She’d been in a drought for so very long, the heat and wetness was her undoing. She came again, so quickly this time it was almost embarrassing. But Will didn’t seem to think so. As she floated back down he smiled up at her, then stood, and she realized he still had all his clothes on.
She sat up. “That doesn’t seem fair.”
“What’s that?” he asked.
“I’m naked. You’re not.”
“I’m about to fix that.”
He pulled off his shirt, then undid the button on his jeans. She couldn’t help but be fixated on that very prominent bulge that pressed against his zipper. And when he dropped his jeans and shucked his boxer briefs, she could only say, “Oh, my.”
Will grinned, and she took a moment to appreciate the fine specimen of man he was. Here was someone who took care of his body. She’d seen him plenty at the gym, and he worked hard to keep his body in shape. It showed. He had strength.
Now she’d have to test his stamina, because it had been a long dry spell for her and she intended to make this night last.
She opened her arms to him and he came to her, kissing her deeply. Lord, but the man knew how to kiss a woman senseless. And to have his hard body against hers—finally—now that was definitely a dream come true. She ran her hands over his shoulders and chest, and down his belly.
“I like touching you,” she said.
“Feel free to explore,” he said, brushing his lips across hers.
She did, getting to know every part of him. His stomach was flat, with very fine hairs there, so soft to the touch. The only place he was soft, of course. The rest of him was covered in hard muscle.
She reached down to take his shaft in hand, rewarded with his harsh intake of breath. She began to stroke him, but he pulled her hand away.
“Too much of that and it’s going to be all over with in a hurry.”
“We’ll save some of that exploring for round two, then.”
He smiled. “I like the way you think.”
He reached down to the floor and pulled a condom packet from his jeans.
“Not that I thought this was gonna happen, but I do like to be prepared.”
Now it was her turn to smile. “And I like the way you think.”
He put the condom on, and slid between her legs. He looked down at her, and she heated at the way his gaze roamed over her. And when he cupped her sex, readying her with his fingers, taking his time to smooth his hand over her, she arched her hips, pulsing and near the brink again.
It had been a while, and as he nestled between her legs, he took his time fitting his body to hers. When he was seated fully inside her, his cock pulsing, she shuddered at the unexpected emotions coursing through her.
He brushed her hair from her face and kissed her, still unmoving. She knew what it cost him to be so still while her body adjusted to him. It drove her crazy, feeling him swelling inside her, her own body throbbing with need and desire.
“Will,” she whispered.
“Yeah?”
“You can move now.”
“You okay?”
“Definitely more than okay.”
When he finally began to thrust, it was as if her world exploded. She arched, meeting his thrusts, breaking out in a cold sweat as he rocked her world by pinning her with his body and grasping her hand to hold it above her head.
Then he showed her what she’d been missing for far too long, cupping her butt, tilting her pelvis and driving hard into her, grinding against her until she thought she might die from the sweetest pleasure she’d ever had. She squeezed his hand and cupped the back of his neck to draw him forward for a blistering kiss that was her undoing.
When she came, it was like lightning had struck her—a sudden explosion that caught her by surprise. Her eyes flew open and she met his gaze, giving him everything she had as she shuddered with the ecstasy that poured from her. He drove hard and fast into her, then growled out his own orgasm, taking her lips in a violent fury that catapulted her over the edge again, leaving her breathless and shaking.
One of them was trembling. Or maybe it was both of them. She couldn’t be sure. She smoothed her hand down Will’s sweat-soaked back, closing her eyes and committing every second of this to memory, because she wasn’t sure it would happen again, and she needed to remember it all. Fuel for her fantasies and all that.
He rolled over to his side and drew her against him. She finally opened her eyes. He was looking at her.
“So, it’s really like riding a bike, isn’t it?”
She frowned. “Huh?”
“You definitely didn’t forget how to do it.”
“Oh.” She laughed. “I guess not.”
“But just in case you do forget, we should probably practice five or six times tonight.”
Heat settled low in her belly, and she was shocked to find renewed desire quivering through her. One would think she’d be satiated after all that.
Apparently not.
“Yes, we probably should.”
“I’ll be right back,” he said. He rolled out of bed and went into the bathroom.
Her cell phone rang. She frowned, and looked over at the clock on her night table. It was after midnight. No one would call her that late except Chelsea, and Chelse knew she was on a date tonight, so she’d wait until Jane called her tomorrow to rehash her night with Will.
She slid out of bed and found her phone, buried in her purse which she’d left on the floor by the front door.
It was a missed call from her mom.
“Damn,” she whispered.
“Something wrong?” Will asked, coming out of the room. “I heard your phone ring.”
She turned to him. “Probably. I just missed a call from my mom. The kids are there.”
She punched the number, her heart pounding as she waited for it to ring. Her mother answered almost immediately.
“Jane?”
“What’s wrong, Mom?”
“I don’t want you to panic or anything, but Tabby got up to go to the bathroom and slipped on that rug by the kitchen and hit her head on the table.”
She tried for calm. “How bad is it?”
“There’s a lot of blood, but of course there would be because it’s her head. But she’s got a pretty good gash and I think she’s going to need some stitches.”
“I’ll be right there to get her.”
“I thought you would be. We’ll have her ready.”
“Thanks, Mom.” She hung up and headed toward the bedroom.
“What happened?” Will asked as he followed behind her.
“Tabitha slipped on the way
from the bathroom and hit her head on the kitchen table. My mom said she has a pretty good cut on her head that probably needs stitches.” She started to get dressed, grabbing underwear and bra, then a pair of jeans and a T-shirt.
Will got dressed, too. “I’ll drive you.”
She turned to him. “That’s not necessary.”
“Actually, it is. You had way more to drink tonight than I did. You’re likely panicked thinking about your daughter, which adds an adrenaline rush you don’t need while driving.”
“It’s not like I have a choice. Or I can have my dad drive.” Though her dad wasn’t good with night driving.
“Look, you can take care of Tabitha while I drive. Plus, I know all the folks at the ER, which late on a Saturday night will be crowded as hell. I can bypass some red tape for you so you don’t have to spend six hours in the waiting room.”
She shuddered in a breath, realizing he had a point. And despite her wanting to do this on her own, right now she could use all the help she could get. Tabitha was her number one priority. “Okay. Thanks.”
They climbed in his car and he drove her over to her parents’. The lights were blazing as she made her way to the front door. Her mom was already there. She didn’t even give Will a second look, just smiled at him and nodded. “I’m glad you’re here with Jane.”
“How’s Tabby?” Jane asked as they came through the door.
“Fine. Scared. She knows she’s going to have to get stitches, and you know how she feels about that.”
“I know.”
Tabby was in the kitchen sitting on Jane’s dad’s lap with a bloody towel on her head. Nausea rolled in Jane’s stomach. It was a weakness she hated to admit, but the sight of blood made her sick. She stomached it as well as she could, because she had kids and that’s what a mom had to do, but she didn’t deal with it well.
“Took a header into the table, did you?” Jane said, trying to look anywhere but at the head wound and all the blood soaking the towel her dad had pressed to Tabitha’s head.”
Tabby’s bottom lip wobbled and tears welled. Big fat drops slid down her daughter’s cheeks. “I fell, Mommy. My head hurts.”
