Except for backing away from her, he didn’t move. Maybe he hadn’t expected her to accept the offer of tea. Well, she’d given her answer and she wasn’t going to make it easy for him to shut the door on her or them. Taking her time, she hugged the robe to her breast and ignored his direction to change in the bathroom. She went to the room that was once their sexual domain.
* * *
Leo noticed that Fiona didn’t walk to the end of the hallway to the bathroom. Instead she stepped into his bedroom and closed the door. Her playful striptease skit was a thing of the past. No more peekaboo flashes of her breasts. No more sensual body waves as she poured honey down the valley of her breasts and over her abs. No more sexy hip wiggles as she slid her thong bikini down her legs. Damn, he was hard as hell.
Sex, and the memory of his good times with Fiona, had to wait. More important than anything was the issuance of his apology. Once he had the chance to repair the damage, then maybe, just maybe, he could do more than linger over memories. They could re-create what they’d enjoyed and make new memories. But he was jumping ahead of himself.
So Leo turned his thoughts from past temptations and walked into the kitchen. For the next few minutes, he busied himself with the tea preparations. Remembering a client’s gift, he opened the cabinet and pulled out a box of Scottish shortbread cookies.
“You don’t have to do all of that. Just being in the warmth has helped a lot.” Her voice softly touched him, as if a gentle stroke by her hand.
“It’s no problem. I want to do this.” Leo set the cup and plate of cookies on a serving tray. Once he was pleased with his presentation, he turned to address her. “Oh...” Thank goodness he didn’t have the tray in his hand. “Whoa.”
Fiona stood in the doorframe between the kitchen and dining area in her glorious natural nakedness.
While his mouth tripped up on monosyllabic words, every cell in his body roared to life. He felt like a once-sleeping giant awaking from a long slumber. Blood pumped through every vein. His arousal was no exception. He might have been coping before, but at this moment, he was alive.
Fiona’s face glowed as if a special light lit her features. It was the full-watt bright smile that had reached out and ensnared his heart from the beginning. And now it was the smile that spoke where words were unnecessary to let him know that they would be all right.
“I’m dry now.” She gave a short laugh. “Well, not all of me.” She bit her lip, a sexy habit that screwed with his self-control. “A special place is wet. Very wet for you. But otherwise, I’m warm and dry.” Her hands rested on her hips and his gaze gladly followed the curves of its journey.
“How am I supposed to talk to you when you’re like this?” His voice sounded thick and gravelly.
She sauntered over to him.
“Is this how we’re going to ratify a peace treaty?” He asked. Don’t look down at her breasts. This was supposed to be a serious conversation. Just one kiss below her belly button.
“How do you want to open negotiations?” She folded her hands over her breasts, but the gesture teased him with a peek at nipples like chocolate-dipped tips.
“I don’t want to do this anymore.” He uttered his protest with a growl. He took a few seconds to get his thoughts straight. Probably should have finessed that much better.
“But neither do I.”
“I don’t want to settle for drive-by sex.” Although he had no complaints with the delivery.
“Neither do I.”
“I’m not a casual acquaintance,” he clarified.
Desire oozed off her body. His body answered. He was hard and waiting for the green light. But he wasn’t going to back down from what he had to say. “Once, three years ago, I said that I loved you and you shut me down, then you shut me out. I’m going to take the risk again because this is who I am—a man in love. And I love you, Fiona Reed. I want you in my life, every day, every night. No platonic-partner BS.”
She didn’t respond with any ready quips. The seductive smile disappeared into a thoughtful countenance.
Leo tried to read the body signals and expressions. But she stood with such solemnity that he feared he’d pushed too hard. He’d failed.
“I came over tonight to tell you that I am not going to live my life hiding from the truth.”
He clasped her face with his hands and gently kissed her forehead.
“Although I’ve said this in my heart, in my private moments away from you, I have loved you from the beginning. I do really love you, Leo Starks.”
“We’re on the same footing,” he said with conviction.
She nodded. “I think we’re talking too much now. Don’t you?” Her smile invited, drew him like a starving man to sustenance. “Kiss me.”
“No problem.” He offered the solution that his body craved. His mouth lowered and reclaimed the softness of her mouth.
Their fusion sparked energy, bold and hot.
The tray of food remained abandoned on the counter. He lifted her, cupping her behind, and effortlessly carried her to the bedroom. Her legs wound around his hips to seal their bodies together.
Leo couldn’t stop kissing her. The plumpness of her lips seduced him, taunting his tongue with their fullness. Gently, he lowered her to the bed, where she stretched out into a graceful curve with her arms overhead. His appreciative gaze bathed the length of her body as he put on the condom.
Her naked body, brown skin and all, was natural and beautiful. She twisted her torso, teasing him with poses. Her hand beckoned him to come to her, over her. “What are you thinking about?” she asked with a dreamy smile.
“How lucky I am.” He straddled her legs, deliberately lowering himself to brush against the moist slit of her sex.
She wiggled under him, rubbing her hips against his hardness. “Then let’s celebrate.”
Leo didn’t need to be told another time. His hands grasped her behind to raise her hips like a sexy gift for his arousal.
Taking his time, he entered her wetness. The sensation rendered him speechless. His eyes squeezed shut as he pumped slowly. His grunts mixed with Fiona’s hissing every time he pushed in. Their enjoyment was in sync.
Her legs locked him into place. He didn’t want to be anywhere but firmly between her legs. She ran her fingernails against the sides of his thighs, driving him crazy. Her hips bucked against him, setting the pace for their act. They rose and fell together, alternating between the hard, frenetic grind and a slow, languorous slide in and out of her sex.
Sweat slicked their bodies. And his chest scoured her breasts. Her nipples beaded and pressed against his sensitive skin. Every part of him was aroused in equal response to her body’s reaction.
Her body quivered its call.
He answered with his thrusts.
Their harmony was sealed in the tangled sheets, fueled by their sweat and fused in their passions. Every tremor of her desire welling along his shaft, sending its message, was a private invitation for his arousal.
She moaned.
He grunted.
His hand cupped her breast, fingers tweaking her nipples. He loved stirring the gasps and soft grunts that escaped from her mouth. Then he covered her responses with his mouth, letting them sink and settle into him. They gave him energy.
Their sensual, erotic beat shifted into higher gear.
The point of no return. He wanted to send her to the stratosphere.
Leo eased out of her, then placed his mouth where he’d just filled her. In one quick swoop, he bathed her with his tongue, tasting her sweetness. Flicking her clit with the tip of his tongue, he teased her into a frenzy. Her sex was swollen and wet. The lips were tender to the lashes of his tongue. He blew at the clit before stroking it with long laps. She was on the edge. The same point where he already stood, poised for their leap togethe
r.
“Baby, are you ready...?” Sheer ecstasy ramped up, on a fierce boil, ready to tip over for a full release.
“Anytime...for you...baby.” She snapped him between her thighs.
The fuse was lit. The fire increased, blazing to a sensual inferno. Together they ran, soared, flying out to nowhere, and yet it felt like they were all-powerful and everywhere.
Their guttural cries mixed and mingled to the cadence of their writhing limbs. He could feel her climax, his arousal stroked by her quivering walls.
Leo swore as his body released like a powerful jet.
“I don’t want to float back down,” Fiona whispered in his ear.
“We can lift off again.”
“Soon. I hope.”
“I might have a heart attack, but I’m ready—” Leo could barely talk.
“And I’m willing.”
They shared a gentle kiss before settling, clasped in each other’s arms. Their journey had been a long one, sometimes difficult, sometimes unpredictable, but every bit had been worth it.
He had his woman.
She had his heart.
They would be together forever.
* * * * *
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We hope you enjoyed this Harlequin Kimani Romance.
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ISBN-13: 9781488003660
One to Win
Copyright © 2016 by Michelle Monkou
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
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One to Win Page 18
