Back to the Heart

by Sky Corgan

  And now she was about to give him her body too.

  “The fair was a lot of fun.” Ryan’s hands were already around her waist, his eyes bearing down on her with tempered heat. He was postponing the moment that the spark between them ignited and caught the whole barn on fire, fighting the urge to rip her dress off. She could see it. It was only a matter of time before the walls came down.

  “It was,” she murmured, blushing. Ana’s mind was far removed from the fair, set on peeling Ryan’s clothes off and seeing him in his full glory.

  “Would you like to go inside? I’m not that great at baking, but I think I could probably put together a cake for us to celebrate over.”

  He was giving her a chance to escape, a chance to back out. The sentiment was sweet, but a cake wasn’t what she was hungry for.

  “I had a different type of celebrating in mind.” She rested her forehead against his, splaying her fingers out across his chest to feel the strong muscle beneath, her voice breathy and needy.

  “I told you we’d wait until I got back from my business trip. I don’t want you to have any doubts while I’m away.”

  “No more waiting.” If Ana had to wait another moment to have him inside of her, she might die. Nothing would complete the day she’d had better than being with him like this. There would be no regrets. She knew that. “I want you to make love to me, right here, right now. I know that you’re leaving tomorrow, but I truly believe you’ll come back to me. That’s why I want this. But not the only reason. In a short few days, you’ve managed to steal my heart completely. Even if you didn’t come back . . .” She swallowed hard, feeling pain from the very words. “I would forever regret it if we didn’t do this now. So please, don’t deny me.”

  He brushed the back of his fingers across her cheek, staring into her eyes with an intensity that aroused her to the very core. “I’ve been able to resist a lot of things in my life, but I can’t resist you. How could I possibly say no?”

  He held her there, caressing her, like he was afraid that if he touched her, he’d break her. She took his hand in hers and drew it up to her lips for a gentle kiss. That was when she noticed he was trembling ever so slightly.

  “Are you all right?”

  “Just a little nervous,” he confessed.

  The idea of Ryan Black being nervous about anything made no sense to Ana. All she had ever seen him as was strong and sure.

  “It’s not like you to be nervous.”

  “You deserve better than sex in a barn.”

  “I don’t care where we have sex, as long as I’m with you.”

  “I just want it to be perfect.”

  “Life can’t always be perfect, Ryan,” she told him, adoring the fact that he was caught up in making sure the experience was the best it could be for her. He was so worried, in fact, that he wasn’t even thinking about what she wanted. It didn’t matter to her if they did it in the barn, or in his truck, or in the middle of the county fair. Sure, it would be more comfortable in the house, but her mother wouldn’t give them a chance. Molly had no qualms about going up into her daughters’ bedrooms. For some reason, though, Molly wouldn’t come out to the barn. This was the best place. “If what you say is true, that you’ll come back to me, then we’ll have plenty of time to do it in lots of other places.”

  “You’re right, I suppose.” He relaxed a bit. “But I want you to remember this like it was your first time ever.”

  “I’ve never had sex in a barn before.” She played with one of the buttons on his collar.

  “I promise it won’t always be like this.”

  “Don’t say that. I want every time to be exactly like this, for my body to react to your touch like this, for my heart to flutter whenever I’m near you. I’ve never wanted to make love to someone more in my entire life. If I feel like that every time, then—”

  He cut her words off with a kiss so hot that it felt like fireworks had exploded all around them. Ryan’s fingers slid up the nape of Ana’s neck, fisting into her hair, and she grabbed desperately at the bottom of his shirt. Almost as soon as it had begun, the kiss was over. He was drawing away from her lips, and she chased him on tiptoe until she could no longer reach him. The heat in his eyes was unmistakable, and it made her feel small and vulnerable in a very good way, like he was a predator about to devour her completely.

  “When I get done with you, it will be as if I’m the only man you’ve ever had,” he promised. “There will only be me. And you’ll never want another man again.”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  It had taken all of Ryan’s restraint to get to this point. More than anything, he wanted this to be right for her. She had been betrayed before, and the fact that he would be leaving her tomorrow had to make her at least the smallest bit uncertain of what they were about to do. But if she still felt that way, she didn’t show it. The only thing blazing in Ana’s eyes was desire the likes of which Ryan had never seen before.

  His entire body urged him to claim her. To conquer her. To consume her. But he knew he had to take things slow. He had to show Ana that he was capable of making love to her the way she needed him to, even though every carnal urge inside of him wanted to rip that pretty dress right off her shoulders and force his way between her legs.

  That was part of why he was trembling.

  “Do you know how hard it is for me right now?” he whispered against her ear, his fingertips playing beneath the straps of her dress. “Everything in me wants to . . .” He bit back vulgar language. “I’ve been waiting for this moment since the first time I set eyes on you.”

  “The feeling is mutual,” she purred back, pressing her body against him. Just having her this close was almost enough to send him over the edge, smelling the intoxicating scent of her perfume, feeling her soft skin beneath his fingers.

  “I want this to be perfect for you, Ana.” His mouth found her earlobe, and he kissed it, wrapping his arms around her as he began to kiss a path down her throat. She craned her neck for him, letting out the sweetest moan. Moving slow was going to be difficult. Oh so difficult. “I want to savor you. To taste every part of you. To touch you like no man ever has.”

  “You’re a horrible tease,” she whispered, her voice heady with lust. Already, her body was coming alive for him. Her breasts heaved against him. Below the dress, her nipples were growing hard. She readjusted herself so that her leg hooked around his hip and ground her body against his, making his sex ache with want.

  “Says the horrible tease.” He grinned as he slowly forced the sleeves of her dress over her shoulders, better exposing the swell of her breasts, which he leaned in to kiss. Ana wrapped her hands around Ryan’s head, drawing him to her, sliding her fingers into his hair and holding him like she’d never let him go. “This is going to have to come off,” he decided when he realized that the dress wouldn’t slip over her shapely hips if he pulled it down farther.

  “So take it off.” She grinned at him as she took a step back and held up her arms.

  A lecherous smirk crossed his face as he grabbed the bottom of the dress and pulled it over her head. What was beneath took his breath away. Ryan tossed the dress aside and closed the distance between them, running his thumb down the strap of the sheer white cami she was wearing. It laced in the front, and the tight bust accentuated her breasts, which only made him want to kiss them more.

  “You like?” she asked, looking suddenly shy.

  He wove his fingers into her hair and drew her to him, then kissed her mouth fervently, pouring all of his passion into her, tasting her tongue and savoring the sweetness of her lips until her breath was ragged and her eyelids were heavy.

  “Why, Miss White, I believe you’re trying to seduce me.” He nipped at her bottom lip.

  “Is it working?”

  “You tell me.” Ryan took Ana’s hand and placed it on the bulge in his jeans, showing her how much he desired her.

  “Good. I was worried.”

  “You have nothing to wor
ry about. You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. I hope I make you feel that way.”

  “You make me feel a lot of things,” she quipped. “And there are things I still want to feel.” Her hand squeezed him, drawing a moan from his lips.

  “I can’t control myself much longer,” he warned as he pulled on the lace ribbon at the front of her cami, unwrapping her like a present. There was still a slight trembling in his hands as his fingers worked to unclasp the front of her top, freeing her breasts.

  When her breasts spilled free, his hands moved to cup them, and he bent to take one of her nipples between his lips, causing her back to arch and a moan to leave her throat. Nothing had ever been as sensual before as Ana was right now. The way her body moved practically begged him to draw out her pleasure. It was almost more than he could endure.

  She caressed the back of his head as he nibbled and sucked and lavished attention on her soft skin.

  “I love it when you touch me, Ryan,” she told him as she raked her fingers through his hair, never letting him up for a breath, not that he wanted to break free from her. The taste of her skin on his tongue, the firmness of her nipples beneath his lips, he lived for it.

  It wasn’t enough to just tease her here. He wanted more of her. All of her.

  Kissing a path between her breasts and down her stomach, he found his way to his knees. He hooked his fingers around the waist of her panties, and he pulled them slowly over her hips, savoring her nakedness. His mouth watered to taste more of her. His hands itched to be laid upon her.

  “You’re breathtaking.” He wrapped his hands around her hips, kissing the dip of her navel before continuing down to press tender kisses over her mound. Ana repositioned her legs for him, and Ryan couldn’t help but grin at how much she seemed to want it—to want him. One of his hands moved to touch the silky skin between her thighs, and the sheer heat of it was almost scalding. Again, his body surged with carnal need, and he knew it wouldn’t be much longer before he caved in.

  He kissed her mound a final time before standing up again and finding her lips. The way her mouth met his had his head spinning. Her body was alive with want, pressing against him, demanding his touch. There was no way he could keep it from her. And so his hands were everywhere at once, teasing her soft flesh as he deepened the kiss and drove her up to heights that had her gasping and calling out his name. One smooth slick circle over her core, and she was lost, falling into that beautiful space that he had been longing to take her.

  “Yes, Ana. Come for me. Just like that.” He pressed his lips against her forehead in a tender kiss as she panted for breath. “I wish I could give you a dozen orgasms tonight.”

  “A dozen,” she whispered with a grin. “We hardly have time for that.”

  “If only I could make time.”

  Ryan couldn’t afford a minute not spent pleasing her. He took her by the hand and led her over to his sleeping bag. It wasn’t the most romantic setting, but it would do to keep her back from being scraped by all the hay around them, not that he thought she would care. She was every bit as pent up as he was.

  Ana needed no direction. She knelt down, looking up at Ryan expectantly. Knowing how much she enjoyed seeing him without his shirt on, he crossed his arms to grab the bottom of his shirt, drawing it up over his head and tossing it to the ground. The pink that spread across her cheeks was good confirmation that she enjoyed the show, and the way that she grabbed at his belt told him she wanted to see a lot more of him.

  He raked his fingers through her hair as she undressed him the rest of the way, slipping him out of his pants and boxers. Then he knelt with her to take her into his arms again, pressing their naked bodies together, claiming her lips with a heat that burned through both of them. Nearing the moment of penetration only made Ryan more aggressive. Ana didn’t seem to mind at all. She matched his heavy kisses, sucking and biting on his bottom lip.

  When they broke free from the kiss, they were both breathless. Ana gave Ryan the most seductive look he had ever seen as she lay back on the sleeping bag, practically beckoning him on top of her. It was still a bit too early for that. There was more pleasure to be given. More pleasure to take from her.

  Ryan kissed the top of Ana’s foot, proceeding up her calf and thigh. The way she bowed her legs for him about drove him insane. She was wet and ready for him.

  When his mouth touched the sensitive flesh between her legs, her breath hitched and her back arched. Her hands fisted into his hair, and it took everything in him to hold on long enough to draw out her orgasm without causing his own. The tiny sounds she made, the way her breasts heaved and her toes curled, it was all so much for him to bear.

  He crawled up beside Ana, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her as she caught her breath. Feeling her soft skin was enough to keep him on edge, watching her in the throes of pleasure. Soon, he’d be inside of her, and he was certain nothing would ever feel as pleasurable.

  “You’re very good with your mouth, and your hands, and everything,” she said breathlessly, leaning back against him.

  “I haven’t shown you good yet,” he whispered into her hair, nuzzling and kissing her head.

  “Is that how this works?” She rolled over to face him. “Are you the one doing all the showing?” Her fingertips teased down the front of his chest, and then her lips followed the path. For as much as Ryan wanted to grab Ana and claim her mouth, he decided to give over control for a little while, lying back and allowing her to pleasure him. This was what she wanted, after all. She lavished attention on every inch of his hard flesh, her hands exploring all the places her mouth was destined to go. Down. Down. Down to where he wasn’t sure that he would be able to contain himself.

  “Ana,” he gasped as her lips wrapped around him. “Slow down.”

  She acquiesced, but not without a pout. “But I want to make you feel as good as you make me feel.”

  “Just being with you like this is better than anything I’ve ever felt before.”

  “Really?” Her face brightened, and Ryan couldn’t resist drawing her back up to him. She got her answer in a torrent of heated kisses, each one deeper than the last. They loved each other’s mouths, consumed in the bliss of being together.

  Ana was determined, though. Instead of pleasuring him with her mouth, her hand felt the heat of his sex, stroking it slowly so as not to overwhelm him. Ryan wasn’t about to let her teasing go unanswered.

  He urged her back down onto the floor and then slipped a finger between her legs, pushing into her body.

  “Ryan, no more,” she begged. “I need you inside of me.”

  “I can’t have a dozen orgasms out of you tonight, but at least I can have a few.” He pressed into her relentlessly, and to his surprise, she pushed right back, surrendering to his desires and grinding down on his hand in a way that made all sense abandon him. Ana was so in tune with her body, so willing to give way to her need. It enthralled Ryan.

  He slipped another finger inside and listened to her ragged breathing as they searched for the point of oblivion together. Watching wasn’t enough. Ryan needed to taste her lips, so he stole what breath remained, feeling even more of her heat as she wrapped her hand around the back of his head and curled her fingers into his hair until it hurt.

  She crashed against him, her breath hitching, her back arching off the floor. He could feel the small contractions rolling through her as he thumbed her pleasure button, drawing out the rest of her climax.

  “God, Ryan, no more. I need you inside of me now. I can’t wait any longer.”

  The desperation with which she clung to him, the way her body writhed, Ryan couldn’t take it anymore. He needed to be inside of her just as much as she was begging for it.

  “Are you sure this is what you want?” he asked, giving her a final chance.

  “I’ve never wanted anything more in my entire life.”

  Ryan sat up and reached for his duffle bag, rummaging through it for a condom. Ana watched him wi
th a confused look on her face until he pulled the small foil packet out. Then her lips broke into a grin.

  “I don’t think you can get me any more pregnant than I already am.”

  It wasn’t a matter of whether he could get her pregnant. Ryan wanted to show Ana that he was careful. The thought that she trusted him enough not to use protection was endearing, but he wanted her to be certain.

  “I know that you’re clean, and I’m clean, but it’s always a good idea.” He waved the packet back and forth in his hand.

  To his surprise, Ana snatched it from him and tossed it across the barn. “I want to feel you inside of me. After the baby, we can worry about using protection. For now, there’s no harm in it.”

  Ryan wasn’t going to argue. He was way too aroused to waste any more time talking. And the thought of being inside of Ana . . . it was like heaven on earth for him. How could he resist?

  He crawled between her legs, and she parted them, wiggling in anticipation. Ryan grinned as he gazed down at her, thinking about how beautiful she looked with her hair tousled, her cheeks pink, her eyes peeking up at him through heavy lashes. He would cherish this moment until the day he died.

  A gasp escaped her lips as he entered her slowly. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, clutching him as he pressed all the way inside. The feel of her soft body surrounding him was almost enough to make him lose it. It felt better than he could have ever imagined, knowing that she was finally his.

  “Ryan. Oh God, it feels so good,” she whispered, her nails digging into his back as he began thrusting.

  He wanted to say the same thing, but he was so lost, so drunk with the moment, that words couldn’t reach his lips. They kissed as their bodies moved in rhythm, her legs draped over his hips while he glided in and out of her. Now more than ever he was convinced that his entire life had led up to this moment. Nothing had ever been so right.