by Anne Rainey
He brought her hand to his mouth and caressed the back of it with his lips. “You’re beautiful and delicious, and I can’t stop thinking about you, but I don’t think you’re crazy.”
Her heart stuttered. “Do you have to be back at the diner right away?”
His grin was pure wickedness. “Nope.”
Shayla couldn’t think straight when Vance looked at her like that. “Oh, uh, that’s good. Would you like dessert, then? I-I made some chocolate chip cookies.”
“Definitely dessert,” he replied in a deeper tone, “but I’m not really in the mood for cookies.”
She watched him stand, and her body revved to life. “You aren’t?”
He shook his head as he tugged her out of the chair. “The only thing I want to taste is you, honey.”
“Oh, God,” she moaned, her legs turning to rubber as he brought her up against his body. The solid wall of his chest snagged all her attention, and she was loath to look away. No one would blame her if she stared, though, considering Vance had a body that would surely make women of all ages pant. Why should she be an exception?
“Take off your clothes for me,” he murmured. “I need to see you.”
Shayla’s face heated. “Here?” In the bright light of day?
“Yes, here.” He paused, then, a little softer, he added, “You aren’t bashful, are you?”
She clenched her eyes closed tight. “It’s been so long. A lot has changed. I’ve changed.”
She felt a fist beneath her chin, and she opened her eyes to see Vance staring down at her with such a gentle expression it made her heart ache. “You think I won’t like what I see,” he murmured. “Is that it?”
“I might have been brave enough to seek you out after twelve years apart, and I won’t deny I’ve gained a great deal of confidence in myself in recent years, but stripping in my kitchen in the middle of the afternoon is a bit much. I…I just can’t.”
He kissed the tip of her nose. “You have a soft inner core that makes me feel fiercely protective of you, do you know that? It’s always been that way with you.”
That surprised her. “I do? It has?”
“Mm, and it’s just me, honey. There isn’t a single inch of you that could possibly disappoint me.”
“But—”
“I promise,” he reiterated.
Shayla took a deep breath and grabbed hold of the hem of her sweater. As she dragged it up her body, Vance stepped back and watched her every move. It turned her on, made her feel bolder. Her stomach clenched, and her nipples hardened to stiff peaks as Shayla became acutely aware of Vance’s gaze on her. When she removed the soft cashmere and placed it over the back of a nearby chair, she heard Vance let loose a low growl.
“Fuck, you’re pretty as a picture.”
A sense of pride took hold at Vance’s roughly spoken words. She removed her white, satin bra next. Her pussy throbbed as she noticed the way Vance kept his hands balled into fists at his side, as if he had to work extra hard to keep from reaching for her. Shayla slid her hands up and cupped her breasts in her palms, then squeezed. God, she wanted Vance’s hands on her, his mouth suckling her. She looked down the length of his body and noticed the bulge in his jeans had grown bigger. Her mouth watered for a taste of him. She ached to run her tongue up and down his shaft. Her mouth all but craved the taste of his precome.
When she plucked the hard tips with her fingertips, Vance groaned. “You’re killing me here. Strip, honey, show me the rest before I die.”
Shayla had no intention of denying him. Within seconds, she stood before her soon-to-be lover totally nude. She trembled when Vance descended on her.
Chapter Eight
“All I want is you,” Vance murmured as he pressed his mouth to hers. He pried her lips open with his tongue, too eager to wait a minute longer to taste her sweet flavor. He needed her, ached for her like no other. She opened willingly, her body pliant under his seeking hands. Her slender arms wrapped around his neck, and his strong hands clutched on to her waist. He lifted her easily, cradling her against his chest while his tongue dueled with hers, sucking and savoring her sweetness. He pulled back long enough to ask, “Where’s your bedroom?”
“Stairs,” she breathlessly replied. “First door on the left.”
Vance strode out of the room, carrying her in his arms. When he reached the stairs, she wiggled. “Be still, honey,” he gently ordered.
“I can walk,” she said as she pushed against his chest.
Vance wasn’t about to let her go. “I’m aware.”
Damn it, he wished they were in his house. He wanted her in his bed. Later for that. For now, he just needed Shayla. Vance took the steps two at a time. When he reached the upstairs landing, he took her to the room she’d indicated.
“You know,” she said, “if I were at all coherent, I’d be awed at how strong you are.”
The mischief in her voice had him looking down. The prettiest woman in all of Blackwater stared up at him. Her smooth curves tucked up against his body had his cock feeling strangled in his jeans.
“You’ll have plenty of time later to think,” he whispered as he spied a large bed covered in a red satin comforter. “For now, the only thing I want you to do is feel.”
Vance had driven himself crazy all day picturing them together in just this way. From the moment she’d shown up on his doorstep, he’d wanted her with a desperation that scared him. His sweet Shayla.
When he set her back on her feet, she stared at him with a mixture of passion and nervous tension. “Relax, honey,” he softly urged.
“It’s been so long, Vance.”
He quirked a brow at that small confession. “Since you’ve been with a man, you mean?”
She shrugged. “Well, yes, but that’s not what has me worried.”
“Then what is it?” he asked as he attempted to keep himself from throwing her onto the bed and shoving his cock deep. The thought of other men touching any part of Shayla’s body made him angry enough to bit back an ugly curse. No way in hell. Her tantalizing body was for him alone. Jesus, Vance had never felt such a powerful need to stake a claim as he did with her.
Shayla crossed her arms over her chest as if to cover the bountiful swells. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been with you.”
Good answer, he thought, as a ridiculous amount of possessiveness sped through his bloodstream. While their gazes locked, Vance drifted his finger over the smooth column of her neck, tracing the few freckles that ran in a tempting line down to her collarbone, and lower to the smooth V between her breasts. “I’ve missed your freckles, Shay.”
She shuddered. “It feels so good when you touch me.”
“Are you turned on, honey?”
She covered her eyes with one hand. “Yes. Oh, God, yes.”
“Look at me,” he gently ordered. When her gaze once again connected with his, he whispered, “I’m eager as hell to feel your hot, little pussy wrapped snug around my cock right now, but first things first.” His gaze never left hers when his finger skated along her skin. When he flicked a nipple with his index finger, she jolted. “I bet you taste like sweet cream, huh?” He didn’t wait for a response as his head descended, taking one turgid bit of flesh into his mouth and sucking.
Shayla grabbed on to his head and moaned his name. Never in Vance’s life had anything tasted so good or felt so right. She pleaded, and his cock hardened further. When her fingers delved into his hair, clutching on to him as if he’d disappear into a puff of smoke, Vance knew she was as far gone as he was.
He rose back up and looked at her half-closed eyes, her face flushed with arousal. “Pretty as a picture and every bit as sweet,” he praised her as he took hold of her waist and walked her backward until they reached the edge of the bed. He pushed her gently down, then let her watch as he quickly did away with his clothes.
“You’re so strong.” Her gaze took in his entire body from head to toe. She eyed his cock, and he watched her lick her lips
. Damn, as if he needed more provocation. “And so wonderfully hard all over,” she said, not taking her gaze away from his dick.
He smiled. “Glad you approve.”
She lifted to a sitting position and reached out. She smoothed her hand down over his chest to his abs. Her fingers followed the trail of hair, but when she reached his cock, she pulled back.
“Shy?”
She bit her lip. “A little.”
“Are you wet for me, Shay?”
Her head bobbed. “Oh yes,” she murmured.
He reached out and took hold of her wrist. “Touch me, honey,” he said as he brought Shayla’s hand to his swollen cock. “Feel how much I want you. I’m dying for you.”
Her small fingers wrapped around his length and squeezed. “Hell, yeah, like that.”
She brought her other hand up and cupped his balls, squeezing and testing their weight and size. When her soft palm stroked him in a slow, torturous rhythm, Vance groaned. “No more. I’m only human, honey.”
Her naughty smile as she stroked him once more nearly brought him to his knees.
He brought her hand to his lips and kissed the palm. “Little tease,” he growled as he pushed her backward until she was sprawled out on the bed. He lowered his body on top of hers, bracing himself on his elbows beside her body. Vance took in the sight of her beneath him. “This is what I’ve missed, Shayla.” He cupped one large breast in his hand and licked the tip. One more swipe of his tongue, then he gave in and sucked on her. With deep pulls of his mouth, Vance laved and nibbled on her satiny flesh.
She squirmed under him. “Please, yes. Lick me, Vance.”
“Like this?” he moved to the other breast and continued his assault, licking and suckling as if she were his last meal.
She moaned and arched her back. The action mashed her breasts against his face. Vance cupped both her tits and nuzzled his face into her cleavage. Her legs came around his waist and held him tight, and her fingers dug into his back. Vance groaned.
He released her breasts and went on an exploration of her ribs and stomach. “Your skin is like satin,” he whispered as he wrapped his hands around her hips and held her firm, then dipped his tongue into her belly button. When he skimmed his fingers over her hips and touched the springy curls between her thighs, Vance felt Shayla freeze up.
“Vance,” she said, her voice a barely there thread of sound in the room.
Her soft voice was the only thing that could stop him in that instant. “We’ve been here before, honey. You trust me, remember?”
“But where will we go from here? What happens tomorrow?”
“I told you before, I’m not looking for a quickie here.” He danced his fingers over her pussy lips and asked, “Do you like my touch?” When she nodded and relaxed, he continued his erotic discovery. Vance rubbed his thumb across her swollen clitoris, enjoying the way her eyes slowly drifted closed and her breaths began to come in short gasps.
As he thrust his middle finger into her tight opening, her mouth opened, but no sound came out. Vance began sliding his finger in and out, slow at first, then faster, deeper. The feel of her inner muscles clenching and unclenching around the single digit was a sweet kind of torture to him.
She was warm and wet and inviting. He slipped a second finger in and felt her body stretching to accommodate. Shayla began to thrust upward, and the action forced his fingers deeper. When he glided his thumb over her little nub, rubbing back and forth and pumping her tight passage with his fingers at the same time, Shayla moaned his name. Caught up in the fire building inside her body, Shayla undulated against his hand and threw her head from side to side, pleading and begging as her body flew out of control. Her screams as she orgasmed around his fingers sent his control scattering.
He slowly pulled his fingers free, relishing the way her body clasped around them, and levered himself on top of her. Vance positioned his cock at her opening and waited. “Are you protected?”
Shayla blinked a few times, then seemed to grasp what he said and nodded. “I’m on birth control, and I’ve had a clean bill of health.”
“Same here, but if you’d rather I used a condom, it’s no problem.”
She shook her head and wrapped her arms around his neck. “No. I only want to feel you, Van,” she murmured.
He stiffened. “You called me Van. No one has ever done that but you.”
She cringed. “Do you hate it?”
“No, I don’t hate it.” He bent his head and crushed her mouth beneath his. The kiss was rough and demanding, but he was beyond being easy. When he lifted, they were both panting. One slow torturous inch at a time, Vance slid his dick deep. She cried his name as her body molded around him. While he moved in and out, Vance trailed little kisses on her cheeks and temples. He spied a few freckles on the delicate slope of her chin and kissed each one with tender care. He tucked his hand between their bodies and began stoking her passion to new heights. Vance watched her expressive face as desire turned to red-hot passion. Shayla’s quickened breathing amplified his need a thousand times. Her arms tightened around his neck, and her legs quivered as they clutched on to his waist.
With her entire body draped around him, enfolding him in her little web of sensuality, Vance felt something inside him give way, as if a barricade had been torn down. He emitted a low growl of possession and pushed harder, faster, into her inviting wetness, continually toying with her swollen clit. She arched upward, mashing her breasts against his chest as she soared over the precipice once more.
His hunger took over when she screamed out his name. Vance pumped harder, driving her body into the mattress, oblivious to anything but the soft, inviting woman beneath him. He grabbed hold of her wrists and brought her arms above her head, extending her body so that she was an erotically submissive offering. He trapped both her small wrists beneath one of his hands and held her firm.
Vance continued to plunge into her, over and over, claiming her until he thought he’d die from the sheer ecstasy of it. He came in a frenzy of thrusts, splintering into a hundred pieces. Shayla’s arms went limp, and her legs fell away from his body. She let out a long sigh and whispered, “Vance,” and then she was out. Ah hell, had he been too rough? Taken her too hard? He lifted off her and lay down beside her, content to watch her sleep. Red marks marred her breasts and her neck where he’d kissed her. Even her waist and wrists bore the marks of his rough fingers.
He recalled what she’d said about her father ruling with an iron fist, and anger suffused Vance. The thought of any man putting his hands on Shayla in anger fired up his protective side. A father was supposed to be loving. The bastard should’ve been offering her security and kindness. Instead, Shayla had known only fear and pain at her father’s hands. It still bothered Vance that she’d kept that side of her life hidden from him. Even if she hadn’t told him, he should’ve known. Christ, the fact he hadn’t seen the signs was a testament to what a lousy boyfriend he’d been toward her.
“You’re staring,” she murmured with her eyes still closed.
He pushed the maudlin thoughts away, and his lips kicked up to one side. “Thought you were passed out cold there for a second.”
“Nope, just basking,” she said, still not looking at him. “A woman is allowed to bask.”
He took hold of her chin and nudged her to look at him. When her eyelids lifted, Vance asked, “I wasn’t too rough?”
A gentle smile teased the corners of her mouth. “You could never be too rough.”
He snorted. “You’ve got marks all over you, honey.” He massaged her breasts in an attempt to soothe her, but all it did was get him started again.
“I love that you wanted me so desperately. It makes me aware that I’m not the only one.”
“Good,” he said in a rough voice. “Because after you rest up a bit, I’m going to be desperate all over again.”
She cupped his cheek with her palm ad smoothed her thumb back and forth over his lower lip. “I thought you needed
to be at the diner. You were going to take me with you, remember?”
He wrapped his hand around her wrist and held her still while he sucked on her thumb. “Plenty of time for that.” He released her and stood. “Come on,” he urged as he tugged on her arm.
“Where are we going?” She began to scoot off the bed.
When she got to her feet, Vance moved behind her and cupped her ass. God, she had a lovely shaped ass. “To the shower,” he replied. “It’s not just for cleanliness anymore, you know?”
She laughed. “You’re impossible.”
“Yep,” he said as he watched her walk. Jesus, she was sexy. He’d always been half-crazed for Shayla. Apparently, some things didn’t change.
Chapter Nine
When Vance got out of the truck and jogged around to her side, Shayla held back. He frowned and opened her door. “What?”
“Are you sure about this? I mean, they might not be so keen on seeing me after all this time.”
He leaned down, placed a tender kiss to her lips and whispered, “It’s going to be fine. You’ll see.”
Shayla let out a long breath and unsnapped her seat belt. Vance helped her to the ground. “They’re not going to bite, honey,” he said as he slammed the truck door shut behind her.
“Why not? You did.”
He chuckled and took possession of her hand. “I’m allowed.”
With him so close, Shayla felt better, until they stepped into the diner and she came face-to-face with Sam Jennings. It was abundantly clear he and Vance were related because they had the same messy dark hair and hazel eyes. But Vance was bigger, more muscular. Unfortunately, Sam looked about as welcoming as a cougar. The cold look he gave her rivaled the frigid temperatures outside.
Vance nudged her forward and said, “You remember Sammy, don’t you?”
She didn’t know whether to hold out her hand for him to shake or not. His expression said not, so she merely stood there. “Hi, Sam, it’s good to see you again.” She smiled in an attempt to break the ice. It didn’t work.
