by J. K Harper
As he swirled his fingertips across her nipples, she arched into him, craving the pressure, the intensity of his touch. He slid lower. When his palm grazed her belly, she shivered in anticipation. A spark of arousal raced down to spiral around her clit. She raised her hips slightly, encouraging him to go even lower.
The teasing graze of his hand over her pussy incited a hunger that couldn’t be suppressed by anything less than his fingers. As he curved one finger across the top of her sex, she groaned. He slipped one skillful finger in to spread slick heat across her lips. Her thighs dropped as she opened for him. The slow advance and retreat had her trembling with unchecked desire.
When a second finger joined the first, she bit the inside of her cheek. She whimpered and squirmed against his chest.
“More,” she begged.
“Shh,” he whispered. “We have all the time in the world.”
She writhed in protest, pushing against him, drawing him deeper, urging him to move faster. He responded by cupping her pussy. With his fingers still buried inside, he leaned over to kiss her with gentle, feathery kisses that left her tingling. His mouth moved to the edge of her chin, the side of her neck, and down to her throat. The path continued lower until his teeth grazed one taut nipple. He closed over it, sucking it between his lips, nibbling the sensitive flesh around it.
She ached to explore every inch of his body, but she had to settle for what she could reach. His firm chest heaved as she brushed a palm over it. She scraped her nails across one nipple before flattening her palm over his heart. The thud of his pulse raced in time with hers.
When he reclaimed her with his fingers, she leaned up to bite his shoulder. He growled and covered her completely with his body. As he pushed her legs apart with his thighs, his rigid cock pressed against her. She undulated her hips against his, offering herself to him while silently pleading with him to take her.
But he didn’t.
Instead, he knelt between her legs and slid his hands under her thighs. Then he lay down and brushed his cheek against the inside of her thigh. She took the opportunity to memorize the way his choppy blond hair fell over his eyes when he leaned forward, the way his shoulder muscles rippled with strength as he propped up on his forearms. Each time they’d made love, she’d wondered if it would be the last time, so she’d done everything she could to burn the memories in her heart.
During the last week, she’d gradually fallen into his world. His carefree attitude translated into everything he did. Even now with his mouth drifting up her thigh, he took his time. He never rushed anything. She’d never met a man who could be so singularly focused on one thing at a time. He was so unlike her. Where she was scattered and frenzied, he was calm and collected. They were opposites in so many ways, but they complemented each other.
When the wet heat from his tongue met her molten core, her thoughts dissolved into sheer sensation. He licked her with probing strokes before lingering just outside her entrance. As he alternated between tasting her and swirling his tongue around her clit, she laced her fingers in his hair. She clung to him, as if she’d ever be able to keep him. She couldn’t tame him. She had no hope of ever knowing what it would be like to build a life with him, but she refused to accept the loss. He wasn’t gone yet.
In the depths of her soul, a cataclysmic event put a stranglehold on her heart. She was falling for him—hard. And she couldn’t do a damn thing to stop it.
“Jack,” she whispered.
“I’m busy,” he mumbled before flashing a rakish smile.
“I just…”
“Mm,” he hummed against her.
“Oh God.”
She dropped her head back against the bed as a surge of pressure coiled in her pussy. Every lap of his tantalizing tongue pushed her one step closer to the edge. She struggled to breathe as he coaxed her to the absolute brink.
And then he stopped.
“What … why did you stop?” She propped herself up on her forearms and blinked.
“I just wanted to see you when it happened.”
As he lowered his mouth to her, his gaze locked with hers. She’d never been so exposed, so vulnerable. She was spread wide and teetering on the precipice of ecstasy—and then she plummeted over the brink.
Long, undulating waves of pleasure rolled through her like thunder. She gasped, unable to squeak out even the faintest sound. The room faded. All she could see was him. His dreamy eyes, his self-satisfied smile. For as long as she lived, she’d never forget the expression of blissful satisfaction on his face. And she’d barely even touched him.
As she crashed back to earth, he crawled up to kiss her. The tangy sweetness of her juices mingled with his delectable masculine taste as their tongues melded against each other.
He nestled himself between her thighs, but she wanted something first. She pushed him onto his back and pinned his arms overhead.
“Now it’s my turn,” she murmured.
While she spread damp kisses across his mouth, her fingers walked across his chest, stroked the rippling muscles along his abs, then sifted through the coarse thatch of hair over his cock. When she wrapped her fingers around him, he sucked in a breath.
“God, woman. You’re going to kill me,” he whispered through clenched teeth.
“Maybe,” she murmured. “But you’ll enjoy it.”
He moaned and reached for her, but she pressed his hands back against the bed.
“Don’t move,” she whispered.
“Yes, ma’am.”
Her lips followed the trail set by her hands. When she reached his cock, she bypassed it to kiss the insides of his thighs.
“Oh now you’re just being a tease,” he groaned.
“You’re so impatient.”
“Only when it comes to you.”
She inhaled his earthy scent. The salty taste of his skin was intoxicating. She lingered over him. With the edges of her nails, she traced lines from the tops of his thighs to his knees. When he shivered, she dipped to kiss the tip of his cock.
His fingers tangled in her hair as she slid her tongue down the length of him. And when she nipped at the tip, he gasped. She swirled her tongue across the head before moving to slide him deep into her mouth. As she enslaved him with her lips, she sighed. She wanted to wring every last drop of pleasure from him so he’d never forget her.
After sucking and licking every inch of him, she found him staring at her with a look of wonder. She smiled and drew him into her mouth again, knowing she’d accomplished her mission. Good luck trying to forget me now.
“I need you,” he whispered.
She crawled up to straddle him. More than ready, she eased onto him. He surged into her while capturing her hips with his hands. As she rode him slowly, he glided his hands up her ribs.
“You’re stunning,” he murmured. “Perfect.”
“You’re not so bad yourself.”
“You’re making this so hard for me,” he said.
“I know.”
“No.” He shook his head. “You don’t.”
She leaned forward and kissed him. She didn’t want to talk, not now. She didn’t want him making any promises that he had no intention of keeping. He wouldn’t know what he was saying and she couldn’t take the disappointment later. Her breath caught as a heavy weight bore down on her chest. She had to stop thinking about the future.
“Where are you?” he asked.
“Right here.”
“You’re doing it again,” he said.
“What?”
“Overthinking things.”
“I can’t help it,” she said.
“Just be in the moment with me. Just feel.”
He swirled his hips, blasting away her dark thoughts. She surrendered to him. Even if she was destined for heartbreak, she couldn’t stop the connection between them—it was too intense.
Pleasure rushed through her body. The intensity was too much. It overwhelmed her, sucked her into his world, a world of freedom and possi
bility and sheer ecstasy. She wrapped her arms and legs around him and held on as she plummeted into a state of total rapture. Something inside her broke. The rush of orgasm hit her harder than a bolt of lightning. She screamed as she shattered around him.
After one last rapid thrust, he exploded with her. His hips jerked as he filled her with his essence. His own strangled cries mingled with hers until she fell forward to smother him with her breasts. She tried to sit back, but her trembling arms failed her.
He gently guided her off of him and cradled her against him. As they lay panting, a sharp pain scarred her heart. She would lose this. She would lose him.
For a while they lay side by side until she finally broke the silence.
“I don’t want to lose you,” she whispered.
He rolled onto his side and gazed into her eyes. “You’re the most beautiful, most interesting, most erotic woman I’ve ever met in my life. This week … it’s been the best week of my life.”
“But you’re leaving.”
“I’m supposed to leave,” he said. “But I don’t know if I can.”
“Really?”
A flicker of hope blossomed in her heart.
“My bear thinks you’re our mate,” he said softly.
“He does?”
“Yeah.” He traced her cheek with his thumb. “My bear’s never had this kind of reaction before.”
“Mine hasn’t either.”
“You know this is ruining my travel plans, don’t you,” he joked.
“You’re staying?” She sat up and swallowed back her nervousness.
“At least for the Halloween dance,” he said. “But maybe longer.”
The coy expression on his face unnerved her. Was he just toying with her, or was he serious about staying?
“Do you have a date to the dance yet?” he asked.
“No. I wasn’t planning on going. Madison mentioned it when I registered for the trip, so I brought an outfit, but…”
“I’d like you to be my date,” he said.
“Okay.”
She wasn’t sure what was going on at this point, but she decided to just follow his lead. It seemed silly to go on a date after she’d already bared everything to him, but if it brought her one step closer to him, then she was willing to take the risk of looking like a fool.
* * *
As Jack stood at the bottom of the stairs, he fidgeted with the scratchy collar of his Dracula cape. He hadn’t tried it on. It was a cape, of course it would fit. He just didn’t expect it to be starched. Who the hell would do that to a Halloween costume?
He paced back and forth before stopping to check his watch. She was five minutes late. Not much, but every passing minute only served to increase the tension in his spine. Sure, they were dynamite in bed. They had great conversations, but what was he doing?
The moment he spotted her at the top of the stairs, he froze. Dressed in a sexy Alice in Wonderland costume, she floated down the stairs like a queen. He instantly wanted to take her back upstairs and peel the white thigh-highs off her legs. He wanted to flip that skirt up and tear off her panties with his teeth. Every red-blooded instinct in his body screamed at him to throw her over his shoulder.
“You look handsome,” she said.
He pulled her into his arms and dipped her back into a kiss that left them both gasping for breath.
“Let’s skip the party and go upstairs,” he growled.
“No way.” Her bright blue eyes sparked with challenge. “You said you’d take me on a proper date, so I’m holding you to it.”
“I did, didn’t I?” He ran his palm over his face. “Okay. We’ll make an appearance and then it’s back to bed with you.”
She laughed and laced her arm through his. He pulled her tight against his side as they left the B&B. He turned toward one of the other brother’s homes. Madison had told him the party would be in their barn. It had been built recently and had plenty of space.
They strolled arm in arm through the snow. Spooky Halloween music drifted across the field. Jack-o’-lanterns lit a path down to the barn. Fake spiderwebs covered the door. It cracked open and a woman dressed as a witch greeted them. He almost didn’t recognize Madison.
“What’s the password?” she asked.
“Um, jungle juice?”
Madison’s laugh transformed into a cackle as she opened the door to allow them to pass. In a normal voice, she told them where to find refreshments.
They passed partygoers dressed in everything from mouse costumes to the grim reaper. A pair of skeletons danced toward them. Jack recognized Drew and his wife Cindy.
“Hey,” Drew said. “I’m glad you guys made it.”
“I love your costumes,” Cindy added.
“Thanks,” Jack said. “This place is great.”
“Mack may have gone a little overboard with the fog machine,” Drew said as he swiped his hand through the haze. “But the food’s great and the company’s even better.”
“There are a ton of people here,” Sasha said. “Where did they all come from?”
“Most of them are from town. It think we had about sixty RSVPs. I’m not sure how many turned out,” Drew said.
“We were just headed to get drinks,” Cindy said. “Would you like to join us?”
“Sure.” Jack placed his hand on the small of Sasha’s back and guided her beside him.
The buffet table sat off to the side. Everything from sliced meats and cheeses to apple pie were spread across the table.
“Wow,” Jack said. “I don’t even know where to start.”
“You should grab some of Madison’s adult punch before it’s gone,” Cindy said with a wink.
“Sounds good to me.”
Jack ladled two clear plastic cups full of fruit punch and handed one to Sasha.
“Cheers,” he said.
Everyone clinked glasses. The first sip burned a trail of fire down his throat. When he gasped, Sasha chuckled.
“Lightweight,” she whispered.
“It burns less over time,” Drew said. “Oh, Hank’s signaling us to help him with the bobbing for apples station. We’ll see you guys later.”
After they’d left, Jack turned to Sasha. She’d already downed her entire glass.
“Whoa,” he said. “You might want to slow down.”
“I guess I’m just nervous,” she murmured.
“Why?”
“It’s our last night together.”
“I’ve been thinking about that,” he said.
“And have you come to any conclusions?”
“I canceled my flight to Bali.”
“You did?” Her eyes went wide. “When?”
“About an hour ago.”
“Why?” she asked.
“I was getting ready for the party and I realized something.” He paused. “Can we go outside? It’s really hot in here.”
“Sure.”
He led her behind the barn to the welding area. Light snowfall drifted down from the sky so he pulled her under the wooden structure that housed the finished art pieces.
“Did you finish your sculpture?” he asked.
“Yeah. It’s over here.”
He pulled his phone out of his back pocket and clicked on the flashlight app. Colored glaze reflected the light. The added tint of green, brown, and peach brought the scene to life.
“It’s beautiful,” he said.
“Thank you.”
He turned to her and took her hands in his.
“I decided that I couldn’t leave yet,” he said. “I want to see Yellowstone with you. I want to watch Old Faithful erupt and hike out to Fairy Falls. I want to have a picnic in the woods and make love to you under the pine trees.”
“Jack,” she whispered. “Are you sure? I don’t want you to change your plans for me.”
“I want to spend more time with you,” he said. “I want to see where it can go. Where we can go.”
“I don’t want to prolong things if you’re
not going to stay,” she said.
“This wouldn’t be like that,” he said. “I started packing my bags last night and I couldn’t do it. All I could think about was you.”
“How long would you be staying?”
“As long as it takes to find out what we have,” he said.
“You think … you think we have something?”
“I don’t know, but I want to find out. All I know for sure is that I’ve never wanted to stay in one place before, but I do now. I don’t want to promise you anything, but…I need more time with you,” he said.
“I don’t know,” she said.
“I don’t want to hurt you. That’s not my intention.” He clasped her hand in his. “But I think if I leave now, I’ll always wonder what could have been.”
His heart hammered in his chest. Maybe he’d waited too long. Too little, too late.
“Don’t make me fall in love with you if you’re going to leave me,” she whispered.
“Oh, honey.” He pulled her into his arms. “I would never do that.”
“You’re afraid I’ll domesticate you,” she said.
“Maybe.” He buried his face in her hair for a moment before asking, “Does it scare you that I’m not sure if I’m ready for that?”
“Yes. But at least you’re being honest.”
She leaned up to kiss him. The sweetness of her lips was his undoing. He groaned and crushed her against him. He couldn’t get enough of her. Not just because she was the sexiest woman alive, but also because she’d melted a part of his heart that had been frozen ever since the plane crash. For the first time in years, the restless feeling that had haunted him was gone. And it was all because of her.
He broke the kiss when he heard footsteps approaching.
“Hey you two,” Mack said. “Madison sent me out to make sure you didn’t get frostbite, but I see that’s not a problem.”
“Nope.” Sasha laughed. “We were just finishing up.”
“What time’s your flight tomorrow?” Mack asked.
“I canceled it,” Jack said.
“Oh?”
“I decided to stay a while longer,” Jack said. “I decided that I couldn’t leave without seeing Old Faithful go off at least once.”
