| |
He could have dinner ready in half an hour. Two hours was nonsense. He’d never spent two hours in a kitchen a day in his life-not cooking, anyway. It was highly doubtful he could cook anything it took that long to prepare.
Two hours was an excuse. He’d hoped once Nica settled in after the tour, they could continue their conversation before he started the meal. She was a brilliant conversationalist. Prin was right about that brain of hers.
Her conversation skills were only part of what had him hooked. He’d already acknowledged that she had the face and body of a goddess. With that body of hers in his hands just now...it was all he could do to retreat even one step away from her. Nica Sloane’s body was the stuff of the most explicit dreams and he craved it.
She was dangerous. For him, she was a helluva danger. He prided himself on restraint-a necessity in his line of work. Her ability to ignite his basest instincts as a man, made his valued restraint look like a joke.
He knew she had to be confused by the way he had bolted earlier. He owed her an explanation for that, didn’t he? Sure, one might argue he was using that as an excuse to return to her room. So what if he was? She was the most singular thing that had ever come his way. How much time could he share with her before she returned to her world? He was damn well going to take as much as she’d let him. It would sure beat walking his halls, hands shoved in his pockets like some degenerate unsure of what to do with himself.
He took the corridor leading to her room. He’d left her alone for over half an hour already and wouldn’t blame her for being pissed and insisting he take her back to Ashland.
He braced himself for the confrontation he’d foolishly set himself up for. He knocked lightly on her door at first and then used more grit when there was no answer. Twisting the knob, he took a chance that the door was open. It was.
“Nica?” he called once the door was open a sliver. Almond brown eyes narrowing, Gib surveyed the room which was already dim given its position partly facing the thick woods behind the house. As a result of that dimness, the soft, festive lighting from the miniature tree glowed more radiantly.
He could see that Nica was in bed apparently getting in that nap he’d suggested. The sight of her there gave him pause. For a moment, he fantasized about what it might be like to find her there everyday.
Idiot, he silently scolded himself. He didn’t know much about Nica, but he was damn near certain she’d never fantasized about a life with a small town sheriff.
“Wake up Taylor,” he muttered and yet continued his slow foray into the room. “Nica?” he kept his voice soft, so as not to startle her or rudely jolt her awake.
When she didn’t react to his call, he reached out to nudge her shoulder. It was then, he realized she was beneath the bedcovers. Moreover, she was naked beneath the bedcovers.
Get out of here, immediately he retreated to obey his silent order.
“Gib?”
“Hey,” his retreating steps slowed and then halted, “didn’t realize you were sleeping so hard- didn’t mean to wake you.”
“It’s okay,” she pushed up on the bed, “something wrong?”
“Yeah, um,” quietly he cleared his throat while working up the nerve to continue, “do you know how many times I’ve asked you to stop apologizing to me over the last few days?”
Nica wasn’t sure she could summon a tally.
“Now it’s my turn to apologize,” he told her.
She eased up a bit more in the bed and Gib saw the comforter dip. More bare shoulder was exposed along with a hint of bosom before she pressed the comforter back into place across her incredible chest.
“What could you have to apologize to me for?”
Gib had to grin over her bewildered tone. “I said you’d be safe with me.”
“Yes? And I am.”
“Right,” her certainty seemed to distress him further.
“Why don’t you sit down?”
She patted the edge of the bed and his distress mounted. A muscle danced sinfully along his jawline as a spark of temper labored to ignite inside him.
“You really shouldn’t take me at my word so easily. I’m no gentleman, Nica.”
“I’m no lady, Gib.”
He stifled his aggravation over the jab she had so easily given herself. “I think we can both recognize the greater threat,” he told her instead.
“Please sit,” she tugged his wrist. “You’re not a threat to me.”
“Honey,” he joined her on the bed then. “I’ve got you out here in the middle of nowhere. This is my town, not yours. I’m the Sheriff-free to do pretty much what I damn well choose.”
“Well Sheriff, I think you’re forgetting I know your cousin and aunt.”
Smiling over the threat, he nodded. “True, but their grizzly wrath would come later. Right about now, I may not care too much about facing it.”
“Stop please,” she squeezed his wrist. “You’re not that kind of guy-the kind of weak coward who’d take a woman against her will.”
“No,” he grimaced, warm deep eyes fixed on the comforter at her chest. “No, I’m not, but I’m no saint either, Nica. I’ve done my fair share of seducing over the years and I’ve done it well. Thankfully, the cop inside helps me keep it all in check.”
Nica let her eyes roam the striking breadth of him. “All in check? All the time?” She was trying very hard then not to lose herself in imagining what it would feel like to be beneath him, being driven into the mattress while he- Nica!
Gib appeared to be considering his response to her questions. He shrugged, a beefy shoulder lifting slightly beneath the Negro Leagues T-shirt molding the divine expanse of his chest. “Never met a girl who made me want to test that...’til now,” he said.
Her grip on his wrist eased then. “Have I done something wrong?” she asked.
“No sugar, I did. I um...you felt so...” murmuring a curse, he bowed his head and shook it. “I only wanted you in my hands a little longer. I didn’t expect to touch...you. When I reached under your sweater, um...”
His discomfort was so endearing, she had to smile. “What did you expect to touch?” she asked.
“A bra,” he said.
Understanding and clearly embarrassed, Nica blinked and quietly cleared her throat. “Oh. I uh, I never wear them.”
Gib cursed again, the expletive voiced a little louder that time. “My compliments to your plastic surgeon.”
“I’ve never had one. These are all mine.”
Her confession made him bristle. The move caused him to appear even more massive to the woman observing him.
“Nica I have to tell you, this conversation isn’t doing a lot to help me keep the gentleman in check.”
“Do you feel that you have to?” Apprehension suddenly took shape in her light eyes. “I mean, um, if you’re...seeing someone-”
“No honey,” he denied without hesitation.
She frowned. “Then why?”
“Nica...look, I don’t want to treat you like that, alright? Like a one-night stand. What right do I have to upset your world that way?”
“Gib,” exasperation hugged her voice and she found his honor as wonderful as she did infuriating. “Why does it matter if we both want it?” A warning bell tripped in the back of her mind and signaled that her boldness could come back to haunt her. She’d fret over that later. She’d had about all she could stand of relying on herself to douse flames of sexual need that arrived to torment her at the most inopportune moments. Most nights, she used her fingers to fight those fires. This night there was the promise of more and she wanted it.
Gib’s dark and devastating face still reflected traces of uncertainty when he leaned close to Nica. Propping her chin on his fist, he used his thumb to outline the shape of her mouth.
“I don’t want to hurt you-” his words silenced when she moved suddenly.
Nica had pushed the comforter down to her waist. “Do I look so fragile to you, Sheriff?”
Gib lost the clear headedness not to mention the will to voice any further arguments. His desire for her backbuilt to a scorching ferocity. In moments, he was subjecting her to a crushing kiss.
Nica couldn’t decide whether she wanted to moan or gasp. His kiss stole her breath, leaving her with little ability to do either. He took her mouth with a potency that seemed capable of snapping her neck, but she had no cause to fear that happening.
Gib kept one hand at Nica’s nape, effectively supporting her there. Vaguely, she mused that he could encircle her entire neck in his palm. His hand was just that expansive. His strength wooed her like some aphrodisiac and she wanted all he intended to give her. She took pride in meeting his force in equal measure. In no mood to wait, she inched closer until she was nearly straddling his lap.
Gib closed their remaining distance. Hands smothering her hips, he settled Nica to his lap with very little effort.
The move sent a shiver along her spine. At an even 6 feet, she didn’t often meet a man who could make her feel dainty. Perhaps, she was betraying herself to admit she enjoyed the sensation. She didn’t care. Her chances of meeting another man like Gib Taylor were slim. His appeal went far beyond his very pretty face and formidable body and she planned to indulge every fantasy she could think of.
Locking her arms neatly around his neck, Nica devoured Gib’s mouth with her own hungry kiss. She moaned lavishly, delighting in the sensation of his tongue coaxing and caressing hers. Her heart flipped, elation heightened by his display of strength when he stood with her in his arms. The comforter drifted away like a memory and, for a time, Gib stood there kissing her senseless.
Nica reveled in her nudity, her femininity and in the fact that she didn’t care what was to come after their moment in that room. This night was all that mattered. He broke the kiss to drag his mouth down her throat. She bit down on her lip in reaction and threw back her head to give him more room to explore. His hands explored her hips, across round buttocks, cupping the full globes and squeezing to his content.
Nica reciprocated the attention he’d given her neck. She adored the powerful chords lining his throat with the same eager kisses he’d given her. She felt them lowering to the bed where their kiss reengaged for only a few moments. Soon, Gib was pushing up to strip off the T-shirt he sported. There was still enough of the late afternoon light streaming around the edges of the drapes. It meshed with the tree’s festive lights to assist Nica’s vision, allowing her to fully appreciate the sight of Gib’s bare chest.
What a chest it was. Toned and taut, it was all chiseled planes, sharp angles and encased in a shade of rich molasses. Nica luxuriated in its sight and texture. Her hands splayed tirelessly across his wide pecs and shoulders and then she moved on to outline the abs densely packed with muscle.
Moisture pooled at her core and she gasped, knowing the reaction was inspired by the sight of him alone. Gib covered her again, his beautifully crafted mouth paying close attention to her earlobe. There, he nibbled and sucked while his hands resumed their cradle around her bottom.
Gib moved on until he was greeted by the voluptuous rise of Nica’s breasts. He cupped one and moaned at the way she felt in his hands. He wouldn’t think about how he would miss her when she was gone. He squeezed and weighed her breasts while burying his face in the deep valley between.
The caramel colored orbs smelled as sweet as they looked. The taste...the taste even made his gray sweats feel uncomfortable-he was just that hard for her. There were so many of her attributes he wanted to sample before he reveled in the ultimate treat of taking her.
Nica’s back arched sharply as she was eager to fill Gib’s hand with her breast and the nipple that hungered for stimulation. He gave her what she craved-at first circling a thumb around one puckered bud. The other received the delight of a scintillating tongue kiss.
Nica turned her face into the nearest pillow and bit into the plum colored fabric of one of the cases. She arched once more, then released a throaty sob when he alternated between giving the nipple a hard suck and using his tongue to bathe it with sensuously infectious strokes.
The dual attention he paid to the firm cups-kissing one, stroking the nipple of the other-nearly drove Nica out of her mind. Moisture continued to build between her thighs and she fought against the orgasm that promised to consume her at any moment. She was ensnared in a cocoon of brilliant stimulation. Having a man like Gib Taylor feasting on her like she was his favorite treat, was like nothing she’d ever experienced. His hands were everywhere-commanding, possessing, marking her as his. Nica could think of nothing she wanted more. She wanted all that he had to give. Yet, when his thick, strong fingers stroked the silken folds of her sex, before plumbing the awaiting treasure, she moaned in dismay as well as arousal.
“Gib...no, no please,” her voice shook, “not-not this way. Don’t make me come this way...”
Her words...at the sound of them, Gib knew his restraint had taken a flight that was long overdue. He accepted that the extended session of foreplay he’d planned would have to wait. Now, he could barely think for the fog clouding his brain. The only antidote? What his hormones clamored for. He returned to her breasts, feverishly intermittently yet expertly sucking and licking. He favored one and then the other while shoving off what remained of his clothes.
Nica yearned to watch him strip, wanting to see if he looked as unbelievable as he felt. Her eyes felt too weighted, too passion-drugged for any close observation. Her core throbbed uncomfortably with the need to be properly tended.
“Gib,” she shuddered into a nearby pillow. She was still pleading when he covered her with his considerable weight and took her with one filling thrust that caused her eyes to flare. Her cry of elation hit the air, followed by soft, feminine sounds of approval. Those sounds melded with Gib’s rougher ones. As the wide, lengthy proof of his sex drove deep, his guttural groans laced the atmosphere with a primal flavor.
For a long while, Nica could only languish in the missed reality of letting herself be taken. Her hands lay weakly above her head until Gib took possession of them as well. Linking his fingers with hers, he practically pounded into her then. Nica debated over locking her legs around his toned waistline or leaving them spread so as not to hinder the mesmerizing pleasure of his penetration. She had little time to ponder the thought. Gib rose above her, exchanging his hold on her hands for her thighs. He kept her limbs spread to accommodate his vast frame as he claimed her.
The steady advance and retreat of his erection had Nica settled into a substantial pool of her own need within minutes. On the heels of that occurrence, were the waves of orgasm thundering in to take her as a willing captive. She was climaxing seconds later without Gib ever ceasing his ruthless strokes. She climaxed twice more amid the same conditions and marveled at the Sheriff’s stamina.
He pushed her to her stomach and took her from behind which drove her to climax a fourth time. By then, Nica was capable of doing little more than infrequently weaving together senseless words amid her gasps. Gib was similarly affected, unable to think for the incomparable satisfaction she brought him. He thought about relieving her of his stifling weight, but she reached around to grip his ass and keep him where he was. He recalled her boast about being fragile and the reminder released a tether from his restraint that he didn’t even realize he was holding.
He took her with alluring savagery then, perfect teeth biting softly into her shoulder. His long fingers massaged the velvety folds of her sex, while he clutched her upper thigh.
Nica shuddered her approval into the pillow cradling her cheek. Those shudders elevated into throaty cries when Gib climaxed at last. His need erupted torrentially against her sensitive, intimate walls.
It was Gib’s turn to shudder then. He winced sharply against the pleasure that mercilessly electrified his hormones.
Aftershocks lingered, refusing to subside. Nica had little time to steady her breath. A quivering moan escaped her when she sensed Gib’s steely length taking shape inside her once more. Their night was far from over.