Mac pulled his truck up the driveway of the cottage and cut the engine. It was pretty dark out here with the barest hint of a moon—he’d left in such a rush that he’d forgotten to leave the outside lights on—and it took a bit for his eyes to adjust.
He turned to Lily. Her hands were clasped in her lap, the long elegant fingers working each other—a nervous gesture. He got that.
Hell, he was more worked up—and maybe more nervous—than when he’d lost his virginity to Dawn Marcoux in the tenth grade after the annual homecoming football game. She was two years older than him and she’d dragged his ass into the boathouse out at the Edwards twins’ after-party. She’d taken off all her clothes—it had been the first time he’d seen a woman naked—and she’d proceeded to teach him things he’d only read about in his older brother’s Penthouse Forums.
Since that first time, he’d been with a lot of women. It wasn’t something he boasted about; it just was. He’d been blessed with the Draper good looks and charm, and like bees to honey, once the girls started hanging around, they’d never left. They’d made it almost too easy for him, and he was used to getting what he wanted, whenever he wanted.
He was always in control.
But with Lily he didn’t feel in control. Not one bit. Christ, his body felt like it was on fire, and like an animal, his only thought was to rip her clothes off and possess her. He didn’t want tonight to be like that, like New Year’s Eve. There hadn’t been much room for talking or tasting and touching that night. It had been about connecting on a physical level. It had been about release.
And now, if he didn’t slow things down, he was going to blow early and there was no way he was going to let that happen.
Not with Boston.
Not tonight.
Mac took a moment to get his shit together because he wasn’t entirely sure that he could speak. His body was coiled so tightly that he was afraid every damn muscle he owned was frozen, including his vocal chords.
“Hey,” he managed to say.
Her head jerked up, and when her eyes met his, he felt as if he’d just been knocked on his ass. Maybe he should have taken that as a warning because no one had ever affected him like that with a look.
But he didn’t.
“Hey,” she answered softly.
Christ, even the sound of her voice was doing all kinds of weird things to him.
“I’m not going to lie, Lily, if I could take you right here in the truck, I would.”
She swallowed. Hard. And his eyes moved down to where her breasts strained against the top of her dress. Those delectable nipples pushed against her top and he fought the urge to open his mouth and taste them.
Jesus, but she was perfect.
“There’s enough room in here,” he whispered. “I could make it work. I could position us against the window. I could push up your dress. I could slide inside you, and I’m guessing it would be hot as hell.”
Her chest rose and fell rapidly, and he loved that she was as affected by all of this as he was.
Mac slowly undid his seat belt and moved across the seat until he was so close to her, that even in the dim light from the dashboard, he could count the freckles across the bridge of her nose.
They looked like little bits of pale gold.
He bent forward and licked them, feeling like he was going to come apart when he heard her gasp.
His mouth hovered above hers, hands slowly slipping into the back of her hair, working the knot that laid against her shoulder until he was able to free the silky strands.
She strained against him, and it took everything that he had to hold still as she moaned and reached for him. Mac let her slide her mouth across his. He let her put her tongue inside his mouth.
Hell, he even let her tug on his bottom lip and press against him—though he paid the price with a sharp tug between his legs. Already he ached with need and his dick was hard. He was going to have to slow this down because he wanted tonight to last.
Every. Single. Minute.
That thought alone had fueled him and got him through the week.
She made this noise at the back of her throat that damn near did him in, and he had no idea how he was able to resist her—but he did.
He nipped at the valley between her breasts and then, eyes locked to hers, slowly reached across her chest and opened the truck door. His knuckles brushed over her nipples as he did so, and she inhaled sharply, her eyes widening, her lips parting.
“Get out,” he said.
She licked her lips and exhaled. “What if I don’t want to? What if I want to do it—”
“It?” he interrupted. He couldn’t help himself and swooped in for a tug at her lips. He breathed against her. “Do you mean sex?”
Lily squirmed against him and nodded. Her hands were on his shoulders, and she pulled herself toward him. “Yes. Right here. Right now.”
“I’m not going to screw you in a truck, Boston.” He paused. “Not tonight anyway.”
Her eyes darkened as she swiped that hot tongue over her lips.
Mac groaned and leaned away from her, because he knew that if he didn’t get his ass out of this truck, he was going to lose his shit completely.
“Out,” he growled like an animal.
He didn’t give her a chance to refuse or to beg or to put her mouth on him again—because he knew he’d cave. He’d collapse like a goddamn row of dominoes. Mackenzie rolled back toward his own door and slid out of the truck, a little weak in the knees, but considering what was going on between his legs, it was no surprise. He had a monster hard-on.
No shit. He glanced down. Godzilla was in his pants.
He adjusted himself and rounded the vehicle, catching Lily as she stumbled out of the truck, her long dress caught around her ankles. He scooped her into his arms and headed toward the beach, picking his way down the path with care. When he got there, he took a right and strode toward the dock.
Carefully, he let Lily slide down his body, though the little minx wiggled suggestively against his erection. He dropped a quick kiss onto her mouth and whispered, “Hold on.”
The boathouse was fairly new, and when Cain had stayed there a few summers back, he’d had the entire place wired for sound. Mac slipped inside the building and flipped on the lights, which he knew would give them a bit of illumination along the dock and water. Next he turned on the stereo system, chose the CD and song that he wanted, and, after tossing his necktie, joined Lily back on the dock.
She was barefoot and looked insanely hot with her pink toes peeking out from beneath the hem of that dress.
That dress that was coming off shortly, but first…
The gentle strains of an old Chris Isaak song fell over the night, a steel guitar that was all smoke and sex. It was hot summer nights, bittersweet longing, and sensual desire.
“World was on fire and no one could save me but you.”
Mac held his hand out, palm facing upward, and waited.
Lily took a hesitant step, and he knew that she was a little confused.
“I want a dance,” he said. “A woman who looks like you on a night like tonight should have at least one dance, don’t you think?”
Lily walked toward him and didn’t stop until she was pressed up against his chest. With no shoes, she tucked under his chin, and she rested her head on his shoulder. He couldn’t help himself and slid his hand down her back as they slowly began to move. He wanted to cup her butt—to hold her tight to his erection—but he didn’t. He splayed his fingers across the small of her back and, with his free hand, grabbed her other hand.
They moved slowly to the sounds of “Wicked Game,” a song that was sex and candy and seduction—perfect really. If Mackenzie was paying attention, he would have heard the sad lament of a broken heart. He’d have heard the warning.
But Mac wasn’t paying attention to anything other than how amazing the woman in his arms felt.
He breathed in her scent, a heady combination of summer—something exotic—and if it was possible for him to harden even more, he did.
There were no words as the two of them slowly moved along the dock, Mac leading as Lily melted into him, her steps following him as if they’d danced together before.
When the song ended, he stilled, his hands moving up until he cupped her chin and tipped her face toward him. Her long lashes threw spiky shadows across her cheeks, and that mouth was open, ready for him.
“You’re beautiful,” he whispered before lowering his head and claiming her lips in a soft, tease of a kiss. He brushed his mouth across hers once, twice, and then licked the corners before opening up and tasting what she offered so freely.
He kissed her in a slow, sensual way, and when he dragged his mouth from hers, she moaned, nearly sending him over the edge.
But it was too soon.
A wicked smile tugged on his mouth as he carefully pulled away from her. With Lily’s eyes on him, Mackenzie slowly undid the buttons of his dress shirt, tugging the hem out of his pants before slipping it off and tossing it onto the dock.
“What are you…?” She licked her lips nervously and glanced around.
Mac had his shoes and socks off and then went for his belt.
She licked her lips again.
The belt landed on top of his shoes.
She moved slightly. Maybe she moaned.
He stepped out of his pants.
When his hands went to the waistband of his boxers, she shook her head.
“Mackenzie, what the hell are you doing?”
He tugged on them. “What does it look like?”
“But—” She licked her lips again and damn if Godzilla didn’t tighten even more. “Anyone can see…”
Mac pinned her with a heated look. “Boston, there’s no one out here but us.” He yanked his boxers down and strode toward her, grinning wickedly as she gasped.
He loved the way her eyes rolled over his body, and he knew that she liked what she saw. He loved the way she swallowed hard, the way her breathing hitched at the back of her throat. Jesus, the way her nipples poked through the ice-blue dress and that damn sexy sound she made again.
He bent down and kissed her, a soft, gentle swirl of lips and tongue, before he moved to the pulse that beat erratically at the base of her neck. He suckled her there—hard—and held onto her as she swayed in his grasp.
When she began to squirm against him, he broke away and took a step backward.
“You coming in?”
“What?” She sounded breathless.
Mac turned and walked to the end of the dock and gazed at the lake. It was as smooth as glass with only a few ripples as it lapped up against the shore in gentle waves. In the distance, he saw a few lights from boats still on the water, but the shore was pretty much in darkness.
It felt as if they were the only two people in the world. He kinda liked that thought.
“Mackenzie! You’re crazy.”
He glanced over his shoulder. “Haven’t you ever gone skinny-dipping?”
She shook her head no.
“Well, darlin’, you don’t know what you’re missing.”
With one more hot look over his shoulder, he turned and dove into the water.