He finished securing the curtain rod. “No, it’s better to drill a hole, then screw the brackets in place.”
“Gotcha. No nailing, drill, then screw,” she said, and stared at the bulge straining underneath his jeans.
When she lifted her eyes, and darted her tongue along her lower lip, he lost all sense of control. He jumped from the ladder until he stood inches from her tempting body, then tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear with a gentleness that challenged the hunger coursing though his body. Trailing his fingers along her jaw, loving the soft, silky smooth contrast of her skin beneath his calloused fingers, loving everything about her, he bent his head.
“If a guy knows what he’s doing and has had enough experience, nailing and pounding, can be quite…effective.”
She took a step back and nodded. Her pulse beat at the base of her throat. “Right, nailing…pounding, effective.”
He took another step forward, stalking her, hunting her, starving for a taste. She’d unleashed something inside of him. Something carnal he’d never experienced with any woman.
“Very effective. But someone who really knows how to handle his rod doesn’t just nail and pound.” He gripped the hem of her shorts. With a hard, quick tug, they dropped to the floor. He ignored her gasp, and moved his hand up her thigh until he reached her panties. “Someone with experience would make sure he’s found the right spot,” he said and swept the tip of his finger between her thighs. “The perfect place to hold him secure. Then he’d take his time, slowly drilling and screwing until the rod’s braced hard and in place, the fit tight.”
“Luke,” she countered with a nervous edge to her voice, and took another step back.
He’d called her bluff, allowed her to actually see the deep desire, the love and lust he’d kept hidden, and she was running again.
Instead of moving after her like he wanted, he stared at her long legs, the black lace between her thighs. Let his eyes wander to the rise and fall of her chest, until he met her gaze.
The trepidation in her eyes made him pause. Question what he was doing. Didn’t she want this? She sure as hell had acted like it last night, and only a few moments ago. Tired of living in sexual purgatory, of baring his feelings without reciprocation, and whatever game she was playing, he shoved his conscience aside and moved forward.
She tried to step back, but the edge of the bed halted her retreat. Taking advantage, he slid his palms over her hips, taking the t-shirt with him. Over her smooth, flat stomach, until he reached her breasts.
The t-shirt sagged over his hands as he cupped her breasts, stroked his thumbs over her hard nipples. The sexual desire and confusion clashing in her eyes had him wondering if he was wrong. Maybe her casual look, the way she’d tried to do a reverse from last night, had been her way of telling him something.
She captured her lower lip with her teeth, and kept her eyes on his. They’d dilated a striking blend of liquid gold with flecks of bronze, a combination that had his cock standing at attention and his mind alert. She wanted him, yet he could sense a strong measure of anger coursing through her body. He didn’t care. If he was going to call her bluff, he’d go all the way.
With more force than he’d meant, he pulled the shirt over her head, then wrapped an arm around her waist. She gasped. He gripped her chin, then brushed his lips against hers. “Tell me you want this.” He ran his palm over her tailbone, then slipped his hand beneath her panties. “Tell me,” he said and squeezed her rear.
“Yes,” she hissed, then gripped his head and smashed her mouth against his.
Giving her soft, round ass a final possessive squeeze, he shoved his knee between her legs. Stripped the black panties off of her, then pressed her against the mattress.
Breaking the kiss, he whipped his shirt over his head. In seconds, he had his fly undone, and his jeans and underwear around his ankles. Not bothering with his boots, he leaned over her, then braced his palms against the mattress. “Spread your legs for me,” he said, then bent his head and nipped one lace covered nipple.
She released a soft moan, and gripped his shoulders.
“Now,” he ordered and shoved both of the bra straps down, revealing her full breasts and hard nipples. Unable to resist, he latched his mouth onto one taut peak, then sucked.
Groaning, she spread her legs and speared her hands through his hair. Trailing his mouth to her other nipple, he reached under her knees, pulled her to the edge of the bed, then tossed her legs over his shoulders.
He eased back and stared down at her. She looked damned sexy, open and exposed. Her inner thighs glistened with a wetness he couldn’t wait to bury himself into.
Running a hand from her foot, over her toned calf, along her inner thigh, he reached between her legs, then rubbed his thumb against her clit. Loving the way she shuddered and gasped, he did it again, then again. Stroked his cock with his other hand and watched the ecstasy crossing her face.
When her toes curled against his cheek, when he caught her staring at his erection, lips parted, eyes dazed with desire, he dropped forward. Braced his hands on either side of her head and nudged the head of his cock against her opening.
She looked to where they should be joined and raised her hips. Pressed her heat and wetness against the head of his cock, then met his gaze.
His arms shook as he tried to reign in some semblance of control. He loved her. He wanted to make love to her until neither of them could remember their own names. She knew what was on his mind, knew what he wanted, the evidence in the way her eyes blazed with the same hunger moving through his veins. As much as he wanted to take her hard and fast, his conscience pounded at his temple. Told him to stop, that a quick lay would leave him filled with nothing but regret.
Jenna bunched her hand around one pec, then pressed her fingers into his skin and moved lower. The muscles in his abs contracted beneath her firm touch and his erection strained further when she used her free hand to cup her breast. When she fingered her nipple, rolled, then pinched the stiff peak, he lost control…of his nagging conscience, his body, and his heart.
With one quick jerk of his hips he sank into her, closed his eyes and arched his neck. Her muscles clamped around him, so tight, so hot and wet, he didn’t want to move, could stay like this forever.
She dug her fingers into his hip, scraped her nails along the side of his ass. As he swelled inside her, he looked down at her face. Eyes closed, lips parted, cheeks flushed. He moved his gaze lower. Breasts full, nipples hard, inner thighs trembling. When he looked to where they were joined, something primal snapped.
Taking her calves in his hands, he straightened her legs and pulled out, leaving the head of his erection kissing her opening.
She released a low breathy moan and ran her hands up his stomach. “I need you,” she said with a ragged whisper.
He needed her too, her body, her heart. Clenching his jaw he drove deep. Tight and slick, her inner muscles gripped him as he moved fast and furious, with nothing but thoughts of possessing her.
She arched her back and bunched the comforter in her hands. Her muscles milked his cock as he moved inside of her, and he knew. Even in the foggy recesses of his sex dazed mind, he knew that after Jenna, he’d never want another woman.
The thought pissed him off, infuriated something deep in his soul. Without Jenna, he’d never find this pleasure again. She’d ruined him for any other woman.
Letting her legs sag against his shoulders, he fell forward. Skin to skin, he braced his body with his forearms and quickened his pace. Sweat pooled along his spine as he pounded his emotions into her body.
He loved her, but if she didn’t return his love, he’d end things between them. Even as he pushed himself into her slick heat, into the refuge he’d waited a lifetime to discover, he knew leaving her would be the only option. But as she began to come apart beneath him, he questioned whether or not he’d be capable of walking away. She’d become everything to him.
His heart rate accele
rated as she wrapped her legs around his back and met each and every one of his frustrated thrusts. His stomach tightened with a mixture of dread and desire. Her body shuttered and convulsed. Whispering his name over and over, she came beneath him.
Clenching his jaw, he blew out a deep breath against her lips and released himself. His body jerked. His mind swam, with love and the realization that she wasn’t truly his. She’d never be until she gave all of herself to him. Not just her body. He wanted her heart and soul, he wanted it all.
Pissed, frustrated and totally disgusted with his lack of self-control, he jerked out of her. It killed him. Shoving away from her was the last thing he wanted to do. Never in his life did something feel so right — or wrong.
Turning his back on her he scooped up his underwear and jeans, raised them over his legs and hips, then reached for the beer she’d placed on the nightstand. With a few long chugs he drained half the bottle.
What just happened shouldn’t have. Instead of showing her how he felt, he’d fucked her like the bastard he was, and without a condom. Could he be more irresponsible? He ran a hand through his hair, hating himself for caving and wishing he could hate her for not loving him.
But he couldn’t. He could never hate Jenna, and only had himself to blame for the mess they could potentially face. If she ended up pregnant, he’d do the right thing. He set the bottle back on the nightstand. He didn’t want to look at her, to see the disgust or displeasure in her eyes over his Neanderthal sex tactics. Keeping his back to her, he shoved off the bed.
With more strength than he thought her capable of, she pressed her hands on his shoulders, and forced him to stay seated. Brushing his back with her naked breasts, she surprised him by placing a kiss at the base of his neck. “Who’s running now?”
He was protecting himself, and her, not running. “I have to leave. I’ll take care of the other curtain rod later.” She let her hands slip away as he pushed off the bed. Immediately missing the warm skin to skin contact, he turned to her.
She knelt on the center of the mattress, naked except for the black bra bunching around her ribcage. Breasts thrust forward, nipples still hard, her hair had slipped out of the slack ponytail and now streamed across her shoulders. With her cheeks flushed, lips parted, and eyes blazing gold and bronze, she looked sexy as hell…and seriously pissed.
“I don’t think so,” she said with vehemence, puffed her bangs, then propped her hands on her hips. “Duct tape’s a handy thing.” He followed her narrowed gaze to the roll of tape lying in the corner. “In a pinch, I bet it’ll work just as well as handcuffs.”
Chapter 7
Jenna eyed the duct tape, then Luke. Never once had she considered using tape for sexual bondage. Maybe she’d missed that episode of MacGyver — if there ever was one — or maybe the thrill of having Luke, half-naked and brooding in her bedroom, was what had her thoughts drifting to the licentious. Especially after the wild sex she’d just experienced.
Although mind-blowing and orgasmic, what he’d done to her went beyond that. Primal came to mind, along with possessive, and she’d loved every hot second. He’d lost control. Let his feelings take over his body.
As a psychologist, she knew the emotions shifting through his heart were messing with his head. Last night, he’d laid out an ultimatum. No sex until she exposed her true feelings for him. Today, he’d gone against his own edict. Threw his principles aside and had taken her with raw passion, showing her his feelings with his body just as she’d attempted to do last night. She almost felt sorry for him.
Almost.
He had shown her his true passion, his true emotions, and now he thought he’d walk out on her? She straightened her shoulders, and faced him.
“Jenna,” he said, and ran a hand through his hair.
“Luke,” she mimicked his deep tone.
The corner of his mouth tilted in a half smile. “Seriously, I think I should go.”
“Nope, don’t think so.”
He reached for his t-shirt. “I’m serious.”
She hopped off the bed and stopped him. “So am I.”
“Let go of my shirt,” he said, his tone rough and demanding, as he tugged.
She tugged back. “No. Not until you tell me why.”
“Why what?” Irritation, desire and confusion played across his face. Absolutely priceless considering she’d bet anything this was exactly how she’d appeared to him last night.
“Don’t be obtuse.”
“Obtuse? Are you calling me stupid?”
“If the shoe fits…”
“Screw this,” he said, and pulled on the t-shirt.
“Sure, why not? You’ve already screwed me. Now you might as well do what you do best…run.”
His eyes narrowed into fine slits. With a strong yank, he had her and the tug-of-war t-shirt to his bare chest. “Low blow, Jenna, I expected better from you.”
Her earlier confidence fled. The anger and disappointment in his eyes made her want to release the shirt and let him walk out of her life. But she couldn’t let him, not until she had her say.
“You didn’t last night,” she said.
“That’s bullshit, and you know it.”
She cupped his hardened jaw. “Do I? What happened between then and now? I’m not complaining, in the least, but you went from no-sex to hot sex and I —”
He jerked his head. “You seduced me.”
Wanting to laugh and at the same time wanting to cry, she let go of the shirt, and stepped away. All she’d cared about had been making him understand and understanding him in the process. “I seduced you? How is that? What exactly didIdo?”
“You —”
She waved a hand, then propped it on her hip. “How dare you put the blame on me,” she shouted.
“Jenna, I —”
“Let me finish,” she said in a quieter voice. “You’re right, last night I was bent on seducing you. But today…” She threw her arms in the air. “I did my best to look plain and boring, hoping to avoid…to assure you that I’d understood everything you’d said last night.”
He raked his gaze across her breasts. “No matter how hard you try, you’ll never be plain or boring.”
Her cheeks heated. Damn, she’d forgotten about her nudity.
“And I don’t want you changing who you are for me. Ever,” he finished, then pulled the t-shirt over his head. “I have to go.”
She watched him zip, then button his fly, and wondered if he’d realized the contradiction of his words. He didn’t want her showing her emotions with her body, but he also didn’t want her changing for him.
An awkward awareness settled in the pit of her stomach and made her want to cover her nakedness. She’d tried too hard. Tried to be a different person for Luke, hide her past, let him only see the confident psychologist, not the insecure, emotionally inept young girl still lurking below the surface.
She stared at him, admired his strong back and broad shoulders as he knelt on the rug and packed his tool box. He’d been patient with her, but for some reason, that patience had snapped today, and she knew it had everything to do with her.
Drawing in a deep breath, she forced her shaky legs to move until she stood inches from him. She realized it was time to let him see the real her. Tell him how she truly felt, about them, about her past.
Instead of acknowledging her though, he kept his head bent and continued to gather his tools. Ignored the fact she stood naked in front of him, the apex of her thighs level to his head. More vulnerable than ever, she considered grabbing a sheet to cover herself, then running for the door. But she had to tell him.
“I love you,” she blurted and touched his hair with the tips of her fingers.
He whipped his head up, his hot breath dampened her skin, puffed the curls between her thighs. “I…I…” he stuttered, then lifted his gaze to hers.
“I love you,” she repeated, then sucked in a breath when he placed his warm palms on her legs. Skimmed them over her rear, s
ettled them on her hips, then eased her down until the soft carpet cushioned her knees.
Expecting empathy, possibly lust, considering she was naked and they’d just had sex, she was unprepared for the depths of emotions in his eyes. Taking another deep, steadying breath, she held his hopeful, tender gaze. “I…I’ve never been very good at admitting my feelings.” Shaking her head she looked away, searching for the right words, then decided being honest was the only way. “What you’d said about showing how I feel with my heart rather than my body —”
He ran the back of his knuckles along her cheek. “Baby, you don’t have to do this.”
Gripping the back of his hand, she smiled. “I do. I love you, and I’ve never told that to anyone. I’ve never been in love, or in a committed relationship, or have even bothered to tell another man that I cared about him. I’m not cold-hearted, I’ve cared, just not enough to…expose that side of me, to say the words. Sex had always seemed like an easier way to express myself.”
He didn’t flinch or turn away from her like she’d expected. Instead, he held her gaze, without judgment, or disapproval. “You’ve…done this before?”
She nodded.
The corner of his mouth lifted in a wry smile as he brought her hand to his lips. “Me too.”
“What?” she asked, a little confused by his admission.
“I understand. And I’ve been there before.It’s hard to tell someone how you feel. I’ve never been in love, either. But I’ve cared, just not enough to say the words…until now.” He drew her face closer to his. “I love you, Jenna. I have for a long time. What happened earlier…I put the blame on you when it was reallyon me. I’ve wanted you for so long. And —”
A heavy weight lifted from her heart as she slipped her tongue between his parted lips and kissed him with all of the love bursting inside her.
He matched her need and hunger. Not with the rough, possessiveness he’d unleashed earlier, but with a heated passion, and unmistakable tenderness that comforted her heart and soul. Although he hadn’t allowed her the time to reveal the entire truth behind her past, with the way he held her, kissed her, it appeared her history didn’t matter to him. He accepted her, faults and all. And she loved him even more for that.
Kiss Me Page 9
