Lifting her up, he pushed the flannel from her shoulders and watched as it slid gracefully off her slender arms. Her fingers shook with nervous energy as she untucked his shirt and started to work on the buttons. Finding a white undershirt beneath the flannel, she ran her hand underneath the thinner material. His chest was strong and smooth and she tested her fingers along the hot contours of his muscles. His heart beat in a solid rhythm—confident and sure. She lifted the shirt to pull it over his head.
The motion disheveled his hair and she ran her fingers up into the disarray. She pulled his mouth once again to hers and felt his muscles stretch as he leaned her back. His hand slid underneath her sweats onto her buttocks. She gave a slight moan as he squeezed the tender globes. Her center jolted to throbbing heat, growing moist. She gasped in open-mouthed pants.
His body was new and familiar at the same time. She touched his perfect form in a massaging caress. There was not an ounce of fat on the muscular frame. Strong arms led to a virile chest that tapered to a narrow waist. Drawing her hands over every crevice, Chloe thrust her hips up, needing to feel him against her in raw urgency. She had felt him a million times in a dream and now that her fantasy was flesh she quivered before the fire of passion.
He pulled the drawstring of her sweats and ran his hand up to slip off her tank. He smiled devilishly, as he found the pink lacy bra she wore. He could see her budding nipples as they reached for him through the sheer fabric. Leaning down he licked her breast, just above the curve of the bra. Chloe gasped in pleasure. Never had she felt like this with a man. With every soft entreaty of her mouth, his lips became more insistent, pushing his tongue under the lace to taste the stiffened peaks.
Everest slowly moved his touches down her side and into her sweatpants. With a confident tug, he pulled the soft material down over her smooth hips. To his delight, he discovered a matching pair of feminine panties awaiting him. He smiled again as he moved down her length, pulling the sweats off her stocking feet. He ran his hands up and over her inner calf and then her outer thigh.
Chloe felt the soft warm fur beneath her and the heat of the scorching fire above her, a fire that had nothing to do with the blazing fireplace. Everest stopped on his way up to kiss over her hip, as he had her chest, in a long hot stroke of his tongue. She jerked in response, drawing an assured chuckle from him. The soft glow of orange light softened his hard features as his lips lowered to press a kiss on her flat stomach.
Caressing his way over her navel to her breasts, he gazed deeply into her eyes. With a playful glint radiating from his face, he gave her a slow half smile. He licked his firm lips and flicked the strap of her bra off of her shoulder. Chloe could not help but return his impish grin as he moved a finger lightly over her neck to the valley of her breasts.
She kicked off her socks. Pulling him to her, her thighs fell open. He settled more firmly against her. His sexy smile was driving her mad with its confidence. She could see he wanted her, but he held back to tease her mercilessly. He stroked and kindled her body with his firm touch until she thought she might explode. Her legs rubbed restlessly against the stiff material of his blue jeans. Hooking her feet around his waist, she pulled his hips toward her hot center. She let loose a shivering moan of ecstasy. His belt scraped against her delicate skin, its metal as hard as the rest of him. She wanted to feel him inside of her. She wanted to taste his fervent skin.
Their ragged breaths mingled. She glided her hands to his waist, feverishly undoing his belt buckle. She gazed up into his soft hazel-green eyes and the stern intensity of them pierced into the depths of her soul. Unasked questions filtered across the hazy orbs. His lips dipped to claim her mouth. Chloe trembled, panted, moaned.
Everest groaned as she lifted her legs to push his jeans off with her toes. She felt the hard, hot length of his manhood spring free of the denim to press heavily against her thigh. The hair on his legs tickled her feet. He wore cotton boxers that hugged his member like a second skin.
Everest became savage in his craving for her. He jerked roughly at her panties until he slid them off her long legs. Pulling his manhood free, just enough to enter her, he tugged her bra strap down over her shoulder to fully expose a ripe breast. The nipple peaked, yearning for his regard.
He could feel the hot wetness of her core beckoning him inside. He entered her hard, not bothering to fully remove his boxers. Chloe gasped at the suddenness of his thrust. His throbbing arousal stretched the velvety boundary of her center. The vastness of him filled her completely. He squeezed her exposed breast as he consumed her mouth with his own.
Tearing her lips away from his, she took a deep breath and let out a cry of passion. She felt him moving seductively hard within her. He withdrew from her with agonizing slowness only to thrust in long even strokes. Everest gritted his teeth in pleasure. Leaning up on his hands to gain better leverage, his buttocks flexed and tensed as he delved within her.
Unable to endure the slow, torturous rhythm he had started, she pushed him backwards, keeping him hard inside of her. She maneuvered onto his lap as she urged his manhood deeper still. She let out a loud cry of wanton pleasure.
Everest leaned back, enjoying her greedy passion. He let her control the movements of their joining, liking the way she commanded his body into submission. Her golden locks curled around her face, framing the beautiful roundness of her blue eyes. Chloe screamed, knowing no one could hear her. Everest’s throaty groan joined hers as she rode the fiery length of his eager body. His head fell back as her rhythm grew more intense. She stroked the full length of his arousal within her moist velvet, pushing him to thrust deep and fast until his frenzied pace matched her own.
Chloe felt her body climb toward an unimaginable destination. Her loins racked and trembled until she thought she could take no more. Finally she reached her traumatic climax with a victorious yell. Everest was amazed at the passion with which she peaked. He grunted an almost painful release, spilling his seed deep within her.
Chloe felt as if the world was pulled out from underneath her. She held onto Everest, afraid that she would fall into the deep void if she let go. She rested her head against his steady shoulder as the last of the tremors racked her body.
Everest held her to him, not wanting to let go of her. He was afraid she wasn’t real. His member stayed embedded deep within her. Her body sucked all the energy from him leaving him drained and immensely satisfied.
Chloe slowly came about to reality. As the earth righted itself, so did her sanity. And with her sanity came her embarrassment. She had always had so much control over her emotions when it came to sex. Never had she been moved to the kind of madness that Everest’s sweet embrace invoked within her.
She took a deep breath, not knowing if she could lift her head from his shoulder. She was afraid of what she might see in his eyes. In her mind she saw him looking at her like a whore, like she did this kind of wanton thing all the time. In truth, she had only known a few men. She had always been too busy with her career for serious relationships. And somewhere in her life she had grown better at creating the fiction in her books than tending to the reality that was her existence.
Everest was puzzled by her sudden stillness and pushed her head up with his shoulder. An easy smile found his features. He felt her shift and move uncomfortably against him. She refused to look at him, which concerned him greatly.
“Chloe?” he whispered. Silently, he willed her not to regret what they had done.
“Ah, yeah.” Chloe’s voice trembled as she pushed off of him. She felt his member leave her. She declined to turn her face to him as she grabbed the flannel behind her. She slipped the shirt over her body, tugging the edges together to hide her nakedness.
Everest, sensing that something was not quite right, moved to his knees and grabbed her before she could move away. Pulling her around to face him, he uttered, “Wait. Look at me.”
Chloe turned her nervous expression to him, unable to deny his command. Her mouth became sudden
ly dry. Her eyes grew round with unshed tears.
Everest saw the uncertainty in her countenance and frowned. “What’s the matter?”
“I don’t want you to think that I do that kind of thing often,” Chloe stammered. Her cheeks blushed.
Everest smiled at her feminine insecurity. She always seemed so strong and yet here she was seeking his approval with the vulnerable tenderness of her eyes. Lightly, he ran his hand into her hair. He pulled her to his chest and kissed her gently on the lips. He felt his manhood stir as her lips parted to accept him. Chuckling in amazement, he willed his naughty member to lower.
“I never thought that,” he whispered against her mouth. He had to admit that he liked her like this, unsure. Her determined self-control was gone, as was her cool confidence. He felt as if he was seeing the real her for the first time. And he wanted to protect her. But even as he reveled in her emotions, he didn’t want her to feel like she had to hide from him. Everest knew he was beginning to lose his heart and didn’t like it. Nothing could come of it. The choice had been taken away from them and he was not about to burden her with his emotions.
“I know I’m being silly,” Chloe said at last. She pulled away from him, looking deep into his concerned eyes. “Just as I know nothing will ever come of us. I know that we have no future and I didn’t want you to think that I was taking this lightly, like I did it all the time.”
“I know all of that, Chloe.” Everest moved his head to nudge her. “I know that there can be no promises. Why don’t we just see what happens? And when it’s over, it’s over. There will be no lies between us. We both know what has to be and that we will have no future. It doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy each other’s company while you’re here.”
Chloe nodded her head. She knew that for him it was just going to be a brief, albeit incredibly passionate, affair with a friend. For her it was going to be much more. It would be an affair of the heart. It was unlikely she would find love with Paul. She had never held any thought of that. And, after meeting Everest, she doubted any other man could ever compare.
“Besides, technically we aren’t sinning. I mean we are married.” Everest put forth with a small laugh. He watched her for a smile that never came.
“Yes, I think you’re right.” Chloe rested her head against him. If that is all he had to offer, that is what she would gladly take. Mumbling, she reluctantly agreed, “When it’s over, it’s over. Why not enjoy what we have?”
“Right,” Everest asserted with a nod. His member began to stir again, waiting to be called into action. Chucking her under the chin, he asked, “Hungry?”
“Yeah, starved.” Chloe grinned at him as he stood. With a lopsided devil-may-care smile, he yanked his cotton boxers over his manhood and held his hand out to her. She stood with his help and then moved to button her shirt, not bothering to pull on her pants. As Everest turned from her to go to the kitchen, she smiled wantonly at the movements of his firm buttocks. With a painful bite to her lip, she groaned inwardly. Already, her body began to stir. She wanted him again.
Everest barely made it to the kitchen before her hands were on his buttocks grasping him from behind. And when he turned he was ready for her, stiff and at attention. With a primal yell, he pushed her to the table. Laying her gently over the hard wood, he took her from behind.
Chapter Twenty
“Paul, what are you hoping to find here?” asked Devon as they pulled into Miner’s Cove. In truth she was worried about her friend.
Devon wished she had convinced Chloe to contest her father’s will when she found out about what Richard Masters had done. Then she wouldn’t have engaged her best friend to a gold-digging aristocrat with a foul temper.
“I’m going to find a way to get her out of the mountains before her birthday. And you are going to help me.” Paul turned the car in front of a fifties-style diner.
“Are you sure you want to eat here?” Devon queried sharply. Wearily, she glanced at the tall peak of a mountain that rose up over the town. Her words dripped with sarcasm as she uttered, “I doubt it will be up to your standards.”
“It’ll be just fine,” Paul said in disdain. It was obvious he was dispirited by the town’s lack of convenience. “We’ll see what the locals have to say.”
“Fine.” Devon tried to stay calm. She hoped the locals didn’t blow her cover for her friend. She wasn’t sure what Paul was going to do when he found out Chloe had married the wrong man, was trapped in the mountains with him, and that she was not with her editor.
“Why would her editor choose to live here? It doesn’t make sense.” Paul grabbed a handkerchief and held it to his nose as he stepped toward the diner.
“I would think some people find it inspiring,” Devon sighed. Though truthfully, she agreed with him. Montana was a far cry from the city. “You know, beautiful countryside, fresh air.”
“Fresh air is overrated and if you want scenery I have some lovely paintings hanging in my home. One could stare at them all day.” Paul pushed open the diner’s door with the handkerchief.
“I am sure they could,” muttered Devon under her breath with a sad shake of her head. She followed him inside.
Chapter Twenty-One
“So you met Betsy. Did she ask you to take her with you?” Everest laughed heartily, making his chest rumble with the sound. “I don’t know why she just doesn’t leave by herself. No one has taken her up on her offer yet.”
“Poor child,” Chloe sighed. They were lying in front of the fireplace on the rug underneath a blanket. Chloe stretched out by his feet and looked at his smiling face. He was playing with her toes. “Do you all have to make fun of her?”
The last two days had been the best of her life. During the day they parted to work on their separate projects, or at least they tried. Occasionally one would find an excuse to interrupt the other, drawing from their duties to come together in the oddest places. At night they joined by the fire to make love and talk until the fell asleep in each other’s arms. Everest’s passion was insatiable, melting Chloe instantly each time. Chloe felt it was as if they had built a dream world around themselves and neither one of them wanted to destroy it. So as if by unspoken truce, they never mentioned her father again.
“Betsy has talked about leaving town since she was born. I don’t think she’ll ever go.” Everest laughed harder as she poked her toe into his chest. Lifting it to his mouth, he kissed it.
“So you never wanted to leave?” Chloe laid her head down and stared thoughtfully up at the ceiling.
“My parents traveled a lot. They used to take me with them. So, after a while, I wanted to come back home and stay here. I waited until I was old enough to be on my own and moved back. I went to a trade school, learned carpentry and stayed with Grandpa. About seven years ago this property went up for sale. I spent the next several years building this house.” Everest felt her move up beside him.
“So you actually built this house on your own?” asked Chloe in amazement. “I mean Grandpa had said that you built this house, but I thought that he meant you had it built.”
“After I drew up the blueprints, I did have some help,” he admitted as he moved his arm so she could lie on it. “I oversaw the progress and did some of the carpentry. I still need to finish the upstairs and build a staircase.”
Chloe thought about that for a moment. “You know what this place needs is some decorations. Like curtains and a few pictures. I think red curtains in here and pale yellow in the kitchen. Maybe I should get you some. It would liven the place up.”
Chloe was so taken with her enthusiasm she didn’t feel him stiffen beside her. Everest sat up. Part of him liked her decorating his home. It was a part he didn’t want to admit to. She was talking as if she was going to be there forever. He listened a moment longer to her plans, before interrupting, “Don’t do that.”
“Why?” Chloe sat up, suddenly realizing what she had been saying. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I was just talking. I love your home how it is.
I didn’t mean anything by it.”
Chloe ignored the hurt in her chest when she thought of how harshly he had taken her ideas. It felt as if he didn’t want her to leave any mark that she had been here. She realized then that their affair was probably something for him to pass the time with. He didn’t feel as seriously about it as she did. The sudden insight hurt her deeply.
Everest stood up and pulled on his pants. “It’s fine.”
“Everest?” Chloe pulled the blanket around her shoulders and moved to touch his arm.
“Chloe, it’s fine. Leave it.” He pulled away from her. “I’ve got to go out and check on the generators. It feels like it’s getting colder in here.”
Chloe watched him leave, trying not to let tears overwhelm her. She had tried to get too intimate. This was a temporary fling for both of them. Apparently Everest wanted it to be nothing more.
Chloe moved a trembling fist to cover her mouth as a swift pain consumed her chest. She felt the sting of tears make their way down her face. There was no chance of his loving her and her heart was breaking because of it. He hadn’t given her any reason to hope and yet she had. She was in love with her husband and there was nothing she could do about it.
Chapter Twenty-Two
After the initial shock of his abrupt departure from her wore off, Chloe was left feeling numb. He had been justified in his anger, but that didn’t mean she had to like it. Everest had gone straight to his own bed after checking on the generators without a single word to her and when she woke up the next morning alone on the fur she found that he was already hard at work.
“Well,” Chloe thought, “two can play this game.”
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