by Sandra Brown
He pressed his mouth down on hers. Swiftly their lips parted and tongues touched. Jake groaned deep in his chest. His arms went around her, lifting her until her bare toes stood on the tips of his boots. Her arms locked around his neck and she ground her middle against his.
When he raised his head from their lengthy kiss, he gazed down into her eyes where the moon was reflected. "For years I pretended to be real tough. I was bitter about everything, having to grow up so fast, Luke's death, everything. It showed. I guess some men respected me for being a good cowboy and handy with a deck of cards and a gun but no one saw the real me. Only you did, Banner."
"Yes, I did. I saw the man behind those cold, blue eyes." She kissed his throat. "Your temper didn't scare me a bit."
He chuckled, smoothing his hands over her derriere. "You're a fine one to mention tempers. I've enjoyed our fights."
"So have I."
"I was so lonely before you. God, I don't ever want to be like that again." He burrowed his face in her neck.
"You wouldn't let anyone get close to you. But now you'll have me and the baby."
"I guess I'll have to start enlarging the house." He slanted her away so he could look down at her body with loving eyes. "I still can't believe it."
"I can. My body's changing."
"Oh, yeah?" He slid his hands over her breasts. "I think you're right," he said, winking.
Their lips met for another kiss. When they pulled apart, Banner laid her head on his chest and moaned, "Jake, I'm so randy."
With his thumb beneath her chin, he snapped her head up and peered down into her smoky eyes. "You know what that means?"
"Sure. I heard it from—"
"I know, I know. Kiss me again before you say something else dirty."
She complied, inching her body up his until she could press his hardness between her thighs. Having abstained these past two weeks, he throbbed with the need for release. He eased his lips free of hers. "Banner, sweetheart, if we don't stop, I'm going to have to take you standing up against this fence."
Her eyes sparkled and she smiled with delight. "Can we?"
He swatted her bottom. "Shameless hussy. Not on a moonlit night like tonight."
"Some other time?"
His wicked grin shone in the darkness. "Yeah, but for now, come on. I have a better idea."
He lifted her in his arms and carried her across the yard. When she realized that their destination was the barn, she buried her head bashfully in his collar.
"What did you really think of me that night?"
"At first I thought you were a hurt little girl looking for sympathy. Then I thought you were a witch sent by the devil to tempt me, or maybe an angel God was using for the same purpose. In any event, I was giving some serious thought to the unthinkable."
He pushed the barn door closed behind them and found an empty moonlit stall filled with fresh, fragrant hay. He set her down but kept his arms around her.
"And afterward?" she whispered against his mouth.
His tongue flirted with the corners of her lips. "Afterward I thought surely I had imagined it. Because it was the best thing that ever happened to me." He clasped her tighter. "Love me, Banner." He whispered the urgent plea into her hair.
Together, they fell on to the hay. Their mouths fused. The buttons of her nightgown fell away beneath his fingers. He slipped his hand inside the fabric to cup her breast. Its center was swollen with passion even before his mouth moved over it. Soft and wet, his tongue caressed until Banner thought she would die of the pleasure.
He pulled the nightgown over her head and drank in her nakedness.
Standing quickly, he removed his clothes. When he finally moved to cover her, he found her a creamy, tight sheath that gloved him perfectly.
"I love you, I love you," he whispered as he gave himself to her. She echoed the words fervently.
The fulfillment was swift and tumultuous.
Later he made a pallet of their discarded clothes. They slept naked and close. And in the morning, just as the new sun was peeking over the horizon, Jake reached for his sleep-flushed wife again. This time they made love without the thunder... softly, sweetly, in celebration of the dawn that would last the rest of their lives.
* * * THE END * * *
