Temptation Ridge (Virgin River #6)(47)

He ran a hand over her hip and down, slipping it under her dress. Then he pulled the dress down and she lifted her hips to help. It went down over her knees and she kicked it off into a pile of golden silk on the floor. There was just the tiniest pair of panties underneath and he placed a gentle hand over her soft mound. “I want to get past these panties. Tell me it’s okay,” he said, his voice raspy.

“Yes,” she whispered.

He slipped his hand inside the fabric. “You’ve been hurting for a while, haven’t you, baby?” he asked.

“Don’t spoil this.”

“Let’s talk about what I can do to help,” he said, tugging off her panties and parting her legs with his hand. His long, gentle fingers reached until he found the place that was dark and wet and it made him groan softly, deeply. He slipped lower. He found the hard, sensitive knot with his fingers and she gasped; he covered her opened mouth with his and went to work on that vulnerable little spot. Instant response—he loved it. He pulled her tongue into his mouth as he slid a finger inside her, letting his thumb make slow circles around her clitoris. “God,” she said, pushing against his hand.

“You’re perfect,” he whispered against her lips. “Go ahead, sweetheart. Take it—it’s free. Feel better.”

Her hips began to rock against his hand and he sank his finger deeper while his thumb pressed harder against her. He moved over that tender little knot and in no time at all her hips rose, her breath caught and her entire bottom clenched, bathing his hand in the most wonderful spasms. Instant orgasm. And a powerful one that held her in its possession for a long, shuddering moment until she fell back into his embrace. He stilled his hand, but didn’t remove it. He just kissed her little gasping lips, soft and sweet and slow, sensuously sucking on them while she caught her breath. And finally, as her breathing normalized, he slowly pulled his hand away.

“I think you needed that,” he said.

“Ohhhh,” she answered.

He chuckled. “Better?”

“You have no idea.”

“Oh, I have a pretty good idea,” he said with a soft laugh.

“Why’d you do that?” she asked him.

“That was what you needed. Anything more has to be what you want. I’m not going to take advantage of you.”

“You haven’t,” she said.

“You about ready to let me out of my pants?”

She ran her hands down his chest to his belly. Her hands went to his belt, unbuckled it, undid the button on his pants and slid down the zipper.

“God bless you,” he said in a grateful breath. She took him in her hand and he trembled involuntarily, it felt so good. “Brandy, I have to get protection for us. Give me a second.” He went quickly for the shaving kit, kicking off his shoes as he returned. He grabbed a condom out of the box, let his shirt fall from his shoulders and dropped his pants, getting rid of them. Sheathed and ready, he knelt on the bed. He leaned over to press his lips against hers and said, “Anything you want. Any way you say. It’s still your turn.”

She answered by opening up to him. He knelt between her legs and gently filled her with his aching erection, pushing inside slowly. She moved with him, arching against him, and he groaned with the effort it took to hold back. It had been a very long time for him, which had the disadvantage of making him a less than astonishing lover. He struggled, and welcomed the struggle. Making this a night of no regrets for her was all that mattered. He was in some kind of trance, amazed by how pure and right she felt, how familiar, like he’d been in this place before. The way she met him, thrust for thrust, was natural and felt as though they’d practiced this coupling for years.

He couldn’t remember feeling like this before and he wondered if he’d just lost his mind. Then he thought, is it possible there really is one true mate for every man? For every woman? Do you search for years and then stumble onto the right one? The one who smells, tastes and feels perfect?

He pushed deeply, moving in long slow strokes, listening to the little purrs and sighs that told him he was on the right spot. Her hips began to move in rhythm with his and then as her pace picked up, he pushed harder, faster, deeper. He was hanging on for dear life, giving her a chance to grab on to another orgasm before he’d let himself cash in. It didn’t take her long; she was sexually charged. She lifted her hips against him, her breath caught and he felt her close around him, pulsing. “Oh, yeah,” he whispered. With a shudder, he let go, joining her in a thundering climax.

As she collapsed beneath him, he held her, running his hands over her soft body in a tender caress while she recovered. He was reluctant to let go of her, reluctant to leave her body. He stayed there for a long time, holding his weight off her slender frame, and finally he slipped out, but he kept his arms around her for a while longer.

“You okay, honey?” he asked.

“Hmm. Okay.”

“How’d I score on number one?” he asked her.

She chuckled softly in spite of herself. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s a mistake to praise a man’s performance in bed.”

“You were wonderful,” he said. “Phenomenal. Like a furnace, a blast furnace. Hot and strong. God. I thought I was going to faint,” he said.

She laughed. “You weren’t too bad.”