Colette’s heart was thumping so hard it felt like it would beat right out of her chest. She had misjudged Tavis in a big way. The man knew exactly what was happening. Of course he did. He was intelligent and sharp. She had no idea why she’d thought she could keep the intimate details from him. It had been a losing battle from the start.
“We should get some sleep,” he muttered, still cupping her face.
What? Was he serious? Yeah, the conversation had been heavy, but it had also been mixed with sexual inuendo.
Actually, most of their discussion with regard to sex hadn’t been inuendo at all. He’d been perfectly frank with her. She’d had her mouth around his erection just a few minutes ago. He’d talked of making her scream before he slid into her. Now he wanted to get some sleep?
She twisted away from him and slid off the side of the bed. After padding to the bathroom, she flipped on the light and looked at herself in the mirror. Her eyes were puffy and red. Dried tear tracks lay pale against her cheeks. She splashed water on her face and patted it dry.
When she turned around to reenter the bedroom, she made a decision. Head held high, renewed purpose in her steps, she came to her side of the bed, stripped off the T-shirt, and wiggled free of her panties.
Tavis watched her every move in the faint light coming from the moon. He rose onto one elbow, facing her as she slid back under the covers.
It had been risky, this decision to put herself out there like this, but it paid off. He didn’t hesitate to drag her against his side and lean over to take her lips.
She melted into him in a heartbeat. That’s the way it always was when he kissed her. The world ceased to exist around them. It was just the two of them. They had a connection that was undeniable.
He deepened the kiss, angling his head to one side as he slipped his tongue into her mouth. His hand smoothed down to her arm and then her ribcage and finally up to cup her breast.
She moaned, arching into his touch, wordlessly pleading for more.
He licked the seam of her lips and stared at her as his fingers found her nipple. “Is this okay? I know your breasts are tender.”
She nodded. “It feels so good. You don’t have to be gentle.”
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You won’t. A little pain won’t kill me.”
He smirked. “A little pain? You say that like you’d actually appreciate a bit of discomfort.” He followed that up with a pinch to her nipple.
She moaned and arched farther. “Yes,” she murmured.
He kissed her again but didn’t linger. Instead, he nibbled a path down her chin to her chest and kept going until he reached her nipple. Gently, reverently, he flicked his tongue over the tip.
Holy mother.
She grabbed his biceps to steady herself and keep the room from spinning, but when he scraped his teeth over the sensitive tip, she cried out.
“Mmm,” he muttered. “You like that.” He still held the globe gently, reverently. She didn’t know how he read her so well, but she appreciated that he did.
Wetness pooled between her legs, and she restlessly shifted against him.
Tavis released her breast and moved his palm down her body. “Open for me, hon.”
She spread her knees wider, shaking. She’d needed this for weeks. The release he was about to give her. It had always been on the table, but she hadn’t taken it because she’d been too stubborn. The memory of the one amazing orgasm he’d given her weeks ago before the ceiling fell in on them had taunted her mercilessly. Finally, the waiting was over.
Tavis held her gaze as he dragged his fingers through her slit and then found her clit.
She dug her fingertips into his biceps. He was lucky she didn’t keep her nails long or he’d have halfmoon crests on his skin.
Finally, he pushed two fingers slowly into her.
She moaned long and drawn out as he entered her.
“You’re so fucking sexy, Colette. You take my breath away.”
“Please stop teasing me. I need you inside me,” she begged.
He flicked her clit and added a third finger, making her dig her heels into the mattress and lift her ass clear off the bed. “You sure you’re ready?” he teased. Damn infuriating man.
“I’ve been ready for weeks,” she gritted out.
He removed his fingers and rolled partly away from her. A second later, he was back, tearing a condom open with his teeth before sheathing himself in seconds.
She obviously couldn’t get pregnant, but that didn’t mean she hadn’t picked up anything else from her one-night stand. And she and Tavis hadn’t discussed his history either. This was the responsible thing to do. If they were going to move into a new phase in their relationship though, she wanted to see a doctor and get checked out so they could lose the condoms.
She expected him to climb between her legs, but he rarely did the expected. Instead, he leaned forward and kissed her nipple again. “So restless,” he murmured.
“Tavis…” She tried to make her voice sound forceful, but she suspected she’d failed and just sounded desperate.
Apparently, pregnancy was not affecting her libido. She’d known that of course because she’d been restless and needy every time he’d touched her or held her. But it was blatantly obvious now.
He took his sweet time kissing her nipples back and forth until they were stiff points and she couldn’t lie still. Finally, he lifted a knee and nestled it between hers. She held her breath, willing him to shift the rest of his body between her thighs. She even opened them wider to encourage or invite him.
“You’re so impatient,” he teased as he shifted the rest of his body into position and lined his cock up with her channel.
She’d never felt this level of arousal before. Not with anyone. Granted, she’d also never had this emotional connection with another man either. She’d simply had sex sometimes. It hadn’t caused the rafters to shake.
She glanced up at the literal rafters above them as if she might find them trembling from the sexual tension in the room.
Tavis kissed her again, consuming her, forcing her to shift all of her attention to his mouth and tongue.
She did, dueling with him, her hands on his waist now as she simultaneously tried to lift her hips upward.
Tavis released her mouth, met her gaze, and thrust forward. He gave her exactly what she craved, filling her completely all at once. No easing into her.
She moaned so loud she feared someone in another cabin might hear her. After all, there were no glass windows, just screens. She could only hope the cabins were far enough apart that no one would catch the sound of her voice.
“Don’t worry about the neighbors, hon. Focus on me.”
She jerked her gaze to his, realizing she’d been staring at the windows while she adjusted to his thick shaft. She was restless now. She needed him to move. And she wiggled her hips against his to make her point.
He held her gaze as he eased out and then thrust back in deeper, taking her breath away.
“Jesus, you’re gorgeous,” he whispered. “Do that again.” He pulled almost out and thrust in a third time, tilting his pelvis enough to make her eyes roll back.
Suddenly, he changed the pace, picking up speed. His hands slid under her to grip her shoulders from behind and keep her from slamming into the headboard.
Was it possible he might be able to make her come like this? From sex alone? She never would have believed it, but she was so close. The only friction she was getting against her clit was from the base of his cock with each pass, and still her arousal was climbing.
“Tavis,” she cried out.
“I’m right here, hon. Come for me.”
She tipped her head back, all of her focus on how damn good he made her feel. Her breasts were heavier than normal, her nipples hard as rocks and so sensitive every time his chest grazed over the tips. Maybe pregnancy made her hornier than usual.
Tavis released one shoulder to slide his hand down between them and find her clit. The moment his fingers rubbed the bundle of nerves, she dug her heels into the mattress and groaned.
Seconds later, she came, her channel gripping him tightly, pulsing hard around his shaft. Stars floated around the edges of her vision. Her body shuddered every few seconds, completely out of her control.
Tavis held steady for a moment and then pumped a few more times, growling out his own release before finally holding himself deeply embedded inside her and dropping his forehead to hers.
He was panting. So was she.
He was also smiling.
“Cocky, are we?” she asked.
“Yes. I’m two for two. For a woman who hasn’t ever had an orgasm with a man, I’d say I’m doing okay.”
She rolled her eyes and slid her hands around to squeeze his fine ass. “Okay is an understatement. I stand by what I said last time. I’m ruined for all other men.”
“And like I said last time you came for me, you’re mine anyway, so I’m glad you’re ruined for other men.”
She stared at him, beginning to believe him.
He shrugged. “I know you still doubt me, but I’ll prove myself to you. I have months to convince you. I bet if I make you come like that at least once or twice a day for the rest of our time in Uganda, you’ll find it hard to walk away from me.” His expression was soft, his eyes dancing.
She smoothed her hands up to his face and held his gaze. “Tavis, it was never going to be easy to walk away from you. Not from the first night when you picked me up. I knew I was in trouble when you carried my suitcase. I knew it when you lowered the mosquito net around my bed to keep me safe. I knew it when you spent the rest of the night researching my profession. No man has ever taken an interest in what I do. Never.”
His expression was serious. “Then don’t. Don’t walk away from me. Stop entertaining the idea.”
She licked her lips. “You say that now, but…”
He shook his head. “No buts. Just you and me. We can do this.”
“I want to believe you, but when you meet my father…”
“What? Have I ever given you the impression I would cower to anyone?”
“No.” He hadn’t. But he hadn’t faced off with Secretary Loughlin yet. She glanced away.
“Colette, here’s what I need you to know. I’m here for you until you tell me to get lost. If you can’t take the pressure from your parents and kick me to the curb, that’s when I’m gone. I’ll do everything in my power to be polite and courteous and respectful to your parents, except let them treat you badly. That’s where I draw the line. I don’t care what they think about me or how they talk to me or even if they dismiss me. That’s on them. What I care about is how they treat you and that you know you have me at your back.”
Her chest tightened. No one had ever been so fully on her side. No one had ever stood up for her or faced off with her parents for her. She had very little doubt now that Tavis could and would. Head high. Shoulders back. Gaze firm.
“You with me, Colette?”
“Yes.” She was. She wanted to be, so she was. She knew doubts would seep in from time to time over the coming months, but all she had to do was look him in the eyes and she would be reminded that he was on her team.