She leaned away from him because she needed to catch her breath. His hands dropped to her waist. With an ease and strength that caught her by surprise, he turned her so she now faced him, her legs on the outside of his thighs in a kneeling position.
He offered a beguiling smile and placed his hands on either side of her neck. “Comfy?” he murmured.
Before she could wrap her tongue around a sensible reply, he ran his tongue across the seam of her lips and, helpless to resist his touch, she opened her mouth to his possession and exploration.
Rachel lost the ability to think. She could only feel…and she was feeling things she’d never experienced. His lips and tongue seared her with their heat and she wanted more. She pressed against him, her breasts crushed against his chest, returning his kiss with a great deal more enthusiasm than expertise.
He didn’t appear to mind.
When their lips finally parted, their heavy breathing filled the silence of the room. He pressed her hips closer to him, reminding her—as if she needed the reminder!—of his engorged condition.
When he touched her between her thighs, his fingers brushing backward and forward against her, she pushed down, causing his fingers to enter her. Oh yes, the relief of having him inside exhilarated her. He moved his fingers slowly and she came up on her knees and back down rapidly, signaling her need for more.
He brushed her mouth with his before trailing a line of kisses across her cheek. “I need to ask you something,” he finally whispered against her ear.
She felt drugged, unable to concentrate on more than one thing at a time. At the moment her mind was fully focused on what his agile fingers were doing to her. Please don’t stop, she thought. Whatever you do or say, please…don’t…stop!
“Umm?” she managed to reply.
“Have you ever been with a man before?”
The question made no sense. Why would he ask about other men at a time when she—when they—
She opened her eyes and stared at him in disbelief. “Why do you ask?”
“Because I don’t want to hurt you in any way. If this is your first time, I need to know about it. Now.” His breathing sounded labored, as though he were in pain.
“Will it upset you to know that I haven’t? I thought it was obvious that I don’t know what to do next…”
He slipped his arms beneath her and with a mighty surge of waves stood dripping in the tub, holding her firmly against him.
“Don’t worry about it, honey, because I do.”
Chapter Nine
Rachel held on to his neck as he stepped out of the tub. He paused by one of the towel racks and said, “Grab us a towel, please.”
She wrapped one arm tightly around his neck, probably cutting off his breathing. With the other, she filled her hand with a large towel and pulled it close to her.
When they reached the side of the bed, he eased her onto scented sheets. Sometime while he’d been gone, he’d removed the comforter and turned down the sheet.
He placed his knee on the side of the bed, took the towel and began to dry her off in a most sensuous way. He was teasing her past bearing. She reached for him, wanting to pull him down to her, but he evaded her move and rolled her onto her stomach.
She received another lesson in the power of touch before he straightened, rapidly drying himself off. When he stretched out beside her, she wanted to grab his shoulders and shake him. “Stop teasing me,” she wanted to say, but couldn’t think clearly enough to form the words, even though the feeling was close to overwhelming her.
He turned on his side and pulled her flush against him. She calmed a little when she realized he was as aroused as she. He was teasing them both. She didn’t understand why, but she knew next to nothing about the act of making love. She knew the mechanics, which didn’t begin to describe the emotions he evoked in her.
Brad kissed her gently on the forehead and her eyes fluttered closed. He kissed each eyelid before moving to her mouth. She surrendered to his tenderness, allowing him to set the pace.
He explored her with his mouth and hands, caressing her skin while he nibbled a trail down her throat. He shifted so that he was now above her, his knees between hers. Before she could draw breath, he leaned over her and caught one of her nipples between his teeth. The tension within her began to build.
He pulled the tip of her breast into his mouth and she arched off the bed in response. From her breasts he began a trail of kisses down the center of her body, his tongue sweeping lazily into her belly button before continuing its path. She stiffened when his lips reached the thatch of curls at the top of her thighs.
She reached for his arms, wanting to stop him, wanting him to relieve her of this terrible tension that had taken over.
He ignored her reaching hands and began the same movements she’d experienced earlier, this time with his tongue.
“No!” she cried out, unable to bring her knees together because he was between them.
“Shhh,” he murmured, placing his hand on her stomach and slowly massaging her while he continued to torment her beyond all reason. She could no longer hold on. She was going to explode and it would be his fault. If only…
She cried out as her release shook her body. Something within her exploded into thousands of particles, releasing a rapturous feeling that went on and on in rippling waves of pleasure.
Brad shifted and opened a foil package lying nearby, quickly covering himself before he eased into her. She tensed automatically at the unfamiliar sensation. He paused, and she forced herself to relax. This is Brad. He would never hurt me.
She slid her arms around his neck and lifted her hips, encouraging him to continue. She clung to him, wanting to express her love, wanting more without knowing exactly what she was seeking.
His movements felt controlled as he gently rocked above her. Instead of being soothed by his slow movement, tension started to build within her once again. She reached for him, wrapping her arms tightly around his shoulders.
He was slippery to the touch as though he hadn’t toweled off. Even his hair felt damp. The rocking motion increased until she could feel him surging deeply into her body. Unable to stop herself, Rachel wrapped her legs around his waist, receiving a low murmur of approval from him.
He lifted her by her hips, allowing her to fall back against the pillows while he quickened his pace, burying himself within her until she cried out once again. This time he joined her, his body convulsing deep inside her, while her inner muscles seemed to pulsate around him.
He rolled as he lowered himself to the bed, careful not to crush her. Not that she would have noticed at the moment. She was concentrating too much on getting her breath, which she must have been holding.
His breathing sounded harsh in her ear. She placed her hand on his chest and wondered if it was healthy for a heart to beat so fast.
He didn’t seem concerned. He surprised her by leaving the bed and disappearing into the bathroom. She wondered if she should get dressed. They needed to eat. Perhaps after dinner they could—
Her thoughts were interrupted when he returned to bed, gathering her into his arms and holding her with a new possessiveness she found endearing.
She lay beside him, utterly content, her mind drifting to the strangest thoughts. How come no one had ever bothered to tell her about this transforming experience? she wondered. Now I understand why the women Brad’s dated didn’t want to accept that their relationship with him was over. What she had shared with him just now was definitely addictive. There was no question that she was hooked.
She deliberately forced her breathing to slow down.
Rachel thought that Brad had fallen asleep when he suddenly spoke, his voice sounding gruff. “Did I hurt you?”
She opened her eyes. “Hurt me?” she repeated, wishing she understood why he would ask such a question. Men were definitely strange creatures.
He shifted and laid his hand across her abdomen. “Was I too rough?”
“O
h! No. No, you weren’t. Not at all.”
He slipped his arm under her head and tugged her closer. She looked at him with concern. “Did I—uh—hurt you in any way?”
She felt his chuckle start in his chest before it broke. “No, honey, I’m just fine. Better than fine, as a matter of fact.” He lazily brushed his mouth against hers.
“I had no idea that I could feel this way,” she admitted. “I lost all control. What an exhilarating experience.”
He didn’t say anything for several minutes. When he did, she was at a loss as to how to respond. “I had no idea that I could feel this way, either,” he said.
What did he mean by that? she wondered. She knew very well that he had gained experience much sooner than most boys. Or at least she thought he had. How else would a man be so well versed in how to please a woman?
Well, she wasn’t going to ask any more dumb questions. She would keep her eyes open and learn about him and lovemaking as quickly as she could.
Several more minutes rolled by before she gained enough nerve to imitate some of the moves he had made on her. She started by kissing him on one of his nipples. He’d had his eyes closed until then and she must have startled him because his eyes sprang open and he caught his breath. However, he didn’t push her away, so she continued to replicate what he had done. She was pleased to see that not only were his eyes open, other parts of his body were waking up.
He kept catching his breath as she moved her lips down his body. Okay, she thought. We’ll give this a try. She slipped her mouth over him, which caused him to sit straight up in bed. She jerked away from him. “I’m sorry. Really, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
He grabbed her to him, hugging her tightly. “Oh, you didn’t. I’m just a little sensitive at the moment. I—uh—think maybe we should get something to eat. I have a hunch I’m going to need energy before the night is through.”
Brad opened his eyes the next morning to a room filled with sunlight. He’d forgotten to draw the drapes the night before. He looked down at Rachel, who lay across one of his arms and his leg.
He glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost noon. Not surprising, considering they hadn’t fallen asleep until dawn. He smiled when he thought about what they had done to fill those hours.
He’d discovered a whole new Rachel last night. He would never have dreamed that beneath her proper exterior lurked a sultry siren.
Who would have guessed?
She was an enthusiastic lover. He wasn’t certain he had the strength to help her move today. Not that it mattered. They had the weekend to sort out their separate lives and merge their belongings.
In any case, she would need to give a thirty-day notice on her apartment, so there was no rush. They would go over to her place some time today and pack up her clothes. They could deal with the rest of her things sometime in the coming weeks.
He rolled onto his side facing her and gathered her into his arms. She murmured something that sounded suspiciously like, “no more, please.” It was a good thing she felt that way, he thought, smoothing her hair back from her face. He’d already performed miracles during the past eighteen or so hours. He wasn’t at all sure he could continue that pace without killing himself.
His last waking thought was, “But what a way to go.”
Brad and Rachel arrived at the office Monday morning at their usual time, before any other employees. Following their routine, they went to their separate offices to deal with mounds of paperwork left over from last week.
The problem for Rachel was that she was having difficulty focusing on the facts and figures in various reports. Her mind kept reliving the weekend.
She was still pinching herself to make sure she hadn’t dreamed all of it. She couldn’t believe how happy she was and how happy Brad appeared to be with her. She seemed to amuse him for some reason. Every time she looked at him, he was watching her with a grin on his face.
Whenever she asked what was wrong, his answer was standard. “Not a thing, pretty lady, not a thing.”
She’d retrieved her car from the office garage where she’d left it last week. It was now tucked away in his garage. There had been no reason to bring both cars to the office.
There was a sense of security in being with Brad that was so wonderfully freeing she couldn’t quite believe it was real.
They’d spent a couple of hours at her apartment yesterday. She’d packed her clothes and toiletries, but left the rest of her belongings—her furniture and furnishings—there for the time being.
The rest of the weekend had flown by as they indulged themselves in passionate lovemaking. She had discovered so many new and fascinating moods to enjoy, shocking herself with her boldness.
She’d acted on her suddenly frantic need to strip off their clothes and impale herself on him even though they’d been in the middle of making lunch. She’d learned what it felt like to awaken in the morning and discover her husband making slow, sweet love to her, bringing her to a sudden climax before she was fully awake. Their lovemaking had been erotic…and fun…and breathtaking…and soul-satisfying.
She sighed. And they had only been married for three days.
Rachel forced herself to work and eventually she was back into the familiar rhythm of the office routine. As the week passed, there were small changes in that routine. It was understood they would have lunch together, which had caused Janelle to eye them speculatively.
Rachel made certain she never met Brad’s eyes while at work. She either kept them trained on her notes or focused on his ear. She’d already discovered that she had little self-control around him.
She thought she was the only one with the problem until Thursday of that week. After he’d been in her office to discuss a problem that needed to be resolved immediately, he’d walked out fully aroused.
She never looked him in the eye, it was true, but she had no problem gazing at the rest of his body.
Sometimes she fantasized about straddling his lap while he was busy with a phone call, or laying him out on the conference table and nibbling on him. She would have been mortified if anyone knew some of her more lascivious thoughts.
Rachel had turned into a total junkie where Brad was concerned.
Two weeks later Brad left home early and headed to the airport. He needed to check on a site in southeast Texas, but solemnly promised to be home early that night. He’d magnanimously offered his sports car for her to drive, but she refused. She had a very nice late-model car, herself. She hadn’t been on slave wages for several years now, she’d reminded him.
Their farewell kiss quickly escalated and they were a little later leaving the house than planned. Rachel sat at her desk that morning, already missing the fact that he wasn’t next door. She reminded herself that she’d often spent her day without seeing him. That had been before…before he’d taught her so much about what turned him on.
Her phone rang about eleven-thirty that Monday morning and she reached for it with a smile. Brad was probably calling to say hi. Just to be on the safe side, she answered in her professional voice.
“Rachel Wood.”
“How about having lunch with me?”
The male voice, sounding nothing like Brad’s, startled her. Then her brain kicked in, and she recognized Richard Harmon, the office manager.
“Hi, Rich. Is there a problem?”
There was a short silence before he said, “Maybe, but I’d prefer to discuss it away from the office. Let’s stop by the deli, pick up something and eat in the park. I think the summer heat has cooled off enough to be bearable.”
“Can you tell me what this is about?”
“I’d rather wait, if that’s okay with you.”
She mentally shrugged and said, “I’ll meet you in the office lobby at noon, then.”
“See ya,” he said and hung up.
Rachel wondered what Rich wanted to discuss. Most of his contact with management was with Brad. Maybe something had come up this morni
ng and he didn’t want to wait until Brad returned.
When she arrived in the reception area, Rich was already there. He’d been speaking to the receptionist and straightened as soon as Rachel walked in.
“Ready?” he asked with a slight smile.
“Yes,” she replied, continuing to the door.
They rode in a crowded elevator, stopping at each floor. Rich had a warm, outgoing personality, seemingly comfortable with everyone. Today he was more solemn than she’d ever seen him. Whatever was going on must be serious.
She waited until they had bought their sandwiches and drinks and had settled on a park bench before she said, “So. What’s up?”
Rich concentrated on unwrapping his sandwich, taking his time before he answered.
Rachel had taken her first bite when he said, “There’s a disturbing rumor going around the office, and I thought you should know.”
She swallowed and took a quick sip of her drink. “There are always rumors floating around the office, Rich. You know that.”
“I can deal with those. They come with the territory. This is different.”
“Then tell everyone that no, Brad isn’t selling the company, allowing a merger of the company or absconding with the employees’ retirement fund.”
He didn’t respond to her attempt to make light of whatever he had to say, so she continued to eat her sandwich and enjoy being outdoors. Now that the weather was finally getting cooler, she intended to spend more time in the garden. Three men came in daily to make certain the place stayed well-kept. She hoped they would allow her to watch as they planted the autumn bedding plants.
When she’d finished her sandwich, Rachel tipped her plastic cup to get the last liquid from it. That’s when Rich chose to say, “The rumors are about you, Rachel.”
But Not for Me (Silhouette Special Edition) Page 14
