All They Need(77)

“Great presentation. Pass my compliments to the chef,” he said.

She swallowed a laugh as he tucked a finger into the waistband and pulled her panties down. He studied her, admiring the paleness of her skin, the taut muscles of her thighs, the dark silk of her hair.

“So beautiful, Mel…”

He swept a hand from her hip to her knee before pushing her thighs wide. He moved lower, settling himself between her thighs. She caught her breath as he pressed a kiss to her inner thigh, following it with an exploratory lick. A shudder racked her body.

“Don’t forget to breathe,” he murmured.

She dropped against the pillows as he started to tease her with his fingers and tongue and mouth. Stroking her inside and out, he drove her higher and higher until she was mindless with need. She fisted a hand in his hair and pushed her hips toward him, unashamedly demanding everything he had to give. When she came, she cried out, her back arching off the floor, her body as taut as a bow.

She collapsed onto the carpet, as loose as a rag doll. He was so hard it was a wonder he hadn’t exploded. He kicked his suit pants to one side and rolled a condom on before laying his body over hers and drawing one rosy pink nipple into his mouth. His erection nudged against her slick folds and she gave a low, needy moan and tilted her hips to accept him. He slid home to the hilt and started to move inside her. She gripped his ass, hips lifting to meet his thrusts.

“Yes. Please, Flynn, you feel so good…?.”

He whispered in her ear, dirty, sexy words of praise, telling her how she made him feel, how much he loved her body. She shuddered as she came, his name on her lips. A few seconds later he followed her, his cheek pressed against hers.

After laying lax and spent in the flickering light of the fire for endless minutes, they made the bed and drifted into sleep beneath his new down duvet.

He woke with a start to find Mel sitting upright in the bed beside him, the covers pooled around her waist.

“Hey,” he said sleepily, reaching out to lay a hand on her naked back. “You okay?”

She was tense and her skin was clammy with sweat.

“Sorry. I think I must have been too hot or something.”

She slipped out of the bed before he could respond. Her pale figure was like a ghost in the darkened room as she headed for the door.

“Mel. It’s freezing,” he said.

“I’ll be fine,” she said as she walked out the door.

Flynn threw back the covers and walked across to flick on the light. The fire had burned down to embers and he threw some more kindling on before scooping up Mel’s T-shirt from the floor. He grabbed a T-shirt for himself from his overnight bag and shrugged into it as he went in search of Mel. He found her in the bathroom, washing her face with big handfuls of water. The room was freezing and she was shivering and covered with gooseflesh.

“You’ll catch a cold. Here,” he said, handing her the T-shirt.

“Thanks.”

She dried her face on a towel before slipping the T-shirt over her head. “Come here.”

He pulled her into his arms, smoothing his hands over her back to try to warm her. It took a moment for her body to relax into his embrace.

“What’s going on?” he asked quietly.

“Just a bad dream. Nothing important.”

He hesitated a moment. “Anything you want to talk about?”

“No. It was mostly gobbledygook. Bits and pieces of lots of stuff.”

She turned her head and pressed a kiss to his throat.

“Your house is very cold.” Her hands slid to his backside and she cupped his butt cheeks. “Lucky you’re so hot.”

She kissed his neck again, opening her mouth this time. His body stirred to life instantly but he was very aware of the fact that Mel was using sex to distract him. She lifted a leg and ran her foot along his calf, pressing her hips against his. He pulled back from her a little so he could see her face.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

She returned his regard, her gray eyes unreadable.

“I’m fine. Really.”

She kissed him, urging him close again with her hands on his hips. This time he didn’t resist, even though he knew he wasn’t getting the full picture, even though he suspected that Mel wasn’t fine. She clearly didn’t want to talk about it, and she clearly also wanted to make love again. He was prepared to follow her lead. For now, anyway.

They returned to the living room and made slow love, firelight flickering over their bodies. Afterward, Mel tucked her body against his back and rested her cheek on his shoulder. A few minutes later she was asleep. He lay awake, watching the fire, thinking.