Undeniable

by Maya Banks

It was as though she was being wound tighter and tighter. Tension coiled in her belly. Low. Humming through her pelvis. She wasn’t ignorant of orgasms, but this was nothing like she’d ever experienced before. It was powerful. Relentless. Nearly frightening in its intensity.

  His fingers left her and he carefully parted her legs. His hand glided soothingly up the inside of her thigh and then he stroked her intimately again as he positioned himself above her.

  His mouth left her breasts and she moaned her protest. He covered her lips once more with his own and then whispered softly to her.

  “Hold on to me, love. Touch me. I’m going to go inside you now. I’ll be gentle. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

  She trembled from head to toe. Not in fear or trepidation. She was so close to release that she feared the moment he pushed inside her the barest inch that she’d go over the edge, and she wanted it to last. She wanted to enjoy every single moment of what was to come.

  “Wait,” she choked out.

  He went still, the tip of his erection just touching the mouth of her opening. Strain was evident in his face as he stared down at her, but he held himself in check.

  “Are you all right? Did I frighten you?” he asked urgently.

  She shook her head. “No. No, I’m fine. I just needed a second. I’m so close. Just need to catch up.”

  He smiled then, his eyes gleaming with a predatory light. “Tell me when.”

  She reached up once more, feathering her hands over his shoulders and to the bunched muscles of his back. Her gaze met his and she drowned in those beautiful amber eyes. “When.”

  He swallowed hard and his lips tightened into a harsh line. Then he closed his eyes and flexed his hips, pushing into her inch by delicious inch.

  At one point he stopped and she stirred restlessly, a protest forming.

  “Shh,” he murmured as he kissed the corner of her mouth. “Give me just a moment. I don’t want to hurt you. Better to have done with it quickly.”

  She nodded her agreement just as he surged forward, burying himself to the hilt.

  Her eyes widened and a strangled sound escaped her throat as she sought to process the sudden wash of conflicting sensations that bombarded her from every angle.

  He was deep. Impossibly deep. She surrounded him. He surrounded her. Their hips were flush against each other. His body covered hers possessively. There was a burning ache deep inside her, and she couldn’t discern whether it was pleasure or pain.

  She just knew she wanted—needed—more.

  She whimpered lightly and struggled, not against him, not in protest. She wanted something she couldn’t name. She wanted…him. All of him.

  “Easy,” he soothed.

  He kissed her, stroked his tongue over hers and then deepened the kiss just as he began to move inside her. Gently. He was so gentle and reverent. He lifted his body off of her and arched his hips, pushing deep then retreating.

  Then he levered himself down, resting on his forearms, never breaking away from her eyes.

  “Okay?”

  She smiled. “Very okay.”

  “You’re beautiful, Ash. So very beautiful. So innocent and perfect and mine.”

  His. The possessive growl in his voice thrilled her and sent another cascade of pleasure through her body.

  “Yes, yours,” she whispered.

  “Tell me how close you are. I want to make sure you’re with me. I can’t hold off much longer.”

  “Then don’t.” Her voice shook. She was nearly beyond the ability to think much less speak. Her body was taut. Her senses were shattered and she was so very close to losing all control. Just one touch. One more touch.

  He gathered her close and thrust again. And then again. He forced her thighs farther apart, plunged deeper and she lost all sense of herself.

  She cried out his name. Heard him murmur close to her ear. Soothing. Comforting. Telling her beautiful things she could barely make sense of. She was spiraling at a dizzying speed, faster and faster until she closed her eyes.

  It was the single most beautiful, spectacular sensation she could imagine. She’d wanted wonderful, but this far surpassed even her most erotic fantasies.

  When she regained at least a modicum of sanity, she was firmly wrapped in Devon’s embrace and his mouth was moving lightly over her neck. For that matter she was on top of him. Her hair was flung to one side while he nuzzled at the curve of her shoulder, moving up and down to just below her ear and back to her shoulder.

  She raised her head to stare down at him, still feeling a little fuzzy around the edges. “How did I get here?”

  He smiled and slid his hands over her naked body. They stopped at her behind and he squeezed affectionately. “I put you here. I like you covering me. I could get used to it.”

  “Oh.”

  He raised one eyebrow. “Speechless? You?”

  She sent him a disgruntled look but was too wasted to follow up with any sort of admonishment. Okay, so obviously she was speechless.

  He chuckled and pulled her down against him. She settled over him with a sigh and he rubbed his palm over her back, stroking and caressing as she lay draped over him like a wet noodle.

  “Did I hurt you?”

  She smiled at the concern in his voice. “No. It was perfect, Dev. So perfect I can’t even find the words to describe it. Thank you.”

  He lifted a strand of hair and lazily twined his fingers around it. “Thank you? I don’t think I’ve ever been thanked by a woman after sex.”

  “You made my first time special,” she said quietly. “It was perfect. You were perfect.”

  He kissed the top of her head. “I’m glad.”

  She yawned against his chest and cuddled deeper into his hold.

  “Go to sleep,” he murmured. “I want you to sleep here tonight.”

  Her eyes were incredibly heavy, and she was already drifting off when his directive registered in her consciousness.

  “Want to sleep here, too,” she mumbled.

  His fingers stilled in her hair and then his hands wandered down her body, bold and possessive. “That’s good, Ash, because from now on, you’ll sleep every night in my bed.”

  CHAPTER 3

  Devon woke to the odd sensation of a female body wrapped around him. Not just wrapped but completely and utterly surrounding him.

  Ashley was draped across him, her legs tangled with his, her breasts flattened against his chest, her arm thrown across his body and her face burrowed into his neck.

  He…liked it.

  He lay there a long while watching the soft rise and fall of her body as she slept soundly across him. She was really quite beautiful in an unsophisticated, effervescent way. She lit up a room when she walked in. You could always pick her out of a crowd. She was extremely…natural. Perhaps a bit too exuberant and unrestrained but in time with the proper guidance, she’d be an excellent wife and mother.

  He ran the tips of his finger lightly up her arm. She was pale. Not so pale she looked unhealthy, but it was obvious she wasn’t a sun bunny, nor did she indulge in salon tanning. Perhaps what he liked most about her was that she looked the same no matter when he saw her. Though she wore makeup, she didn’t wear so much that she was transformed into someone completely different when they went out.

  Glossy lips and a touch of coal to already long, lush lashes seemed to be all she did, but then he was hardly an expert on women’s gunk.

  But she didn’t seem fake. At least not that he could tell. Yet. Who knew what the future would bring. He liked to think she wasn’t an accomplice in this ridiculous plan of her father’s even when he knew it was best for all parties involved to know the entire story from the start.

  The selfish bastard in him liked the idea that she felt affection for him, free of machinations. If her words from the night before weren’t merely a result of being overwhelmed in the moment, affection was perhaps the wrong term. She’d said she loved him.

  It both complicated the matter an
d gave him a certain amount of satisfaction.

  While he might approach the marriage as a matter of necessity, convenience and a chance at a successful business venture, the idea that she would be coming into the marriage for the same reasons bothered him immensely.

  It made him a flaming hypocrite but he was happy for her to want him because she desired him and yes, even loved him.

  First, however, he had to get the preliminaries out of the way. One of which was making their upcoming nuptials official. She didn’t know it yet, but she would become Mrs. Devon Carter.

  He carefully extricated himself from the tangle of arms and legs, but he needn’t have worried because she slept soundly, only wrinkling her nose and mumbling something in her sleep when he slipped away completely.

  He pulled on his robe and glanced back at the bed. For a moment he was transfixed by the image she presented. The sun streamed through the window across the room and bathed her in its warm glow.

  Her blond hair was tousled and spread out over his pillow. One arm shielded most of her breasts from view, but there, just below her elbow, one nipple peeked out. The sheet slid to just over her buttocks but bared the dimple just below the small of her back.

  She was indeed beautiful. And now she was his.

  He dug into the pocket of the jacket he’d discarded the night before to retrieve the box with the ring in it and then quietly left the room. When she awoke, he’d put into place the next part of his carefully orchestrated plan.

  * * *

  Ashley stirred and stretched lazily, blinking when the sun momentarily blinded her. She kept her eyes shut for a moment, simply enjoying the warmth and comfort of the sumptuous bed. Devon’s bed.

  She sighed in contentment. As virginal deflowering went, that had to top the list of all-time most awesome. How could it possibly have been any better? A wonderful night. Romantic dinner for two. Devon staring at her with those gorgeous eyes and murmuring that she would now be his. Oh, yeah, perfect.

  Then she realized that he was no longer in bed with her and she opened her eyes with a frown. Only to see him standing just across the room. Staring at her.

  He was clad in a robe, though it dangled loosely, open just enough that she could see his bare chest. He was leaning against the doorway to the bathroom and he was simply watching her. For some reason that sent a giddy thrill up her spine.

  Then a flash of color caught her eye and she glanced downward to see a lush red rose lying on the sheet next to her. But it was the tiny card propped next to a dazzling, truly spectacular diamond ring that took her breath away.

  Blood rushed to her head and she stared openmouthed at the items before her. She pushed to her elbow and reached for the ring, hands shaking so badly that she was clumsy, nearly dropping the small velvet box where the ring rested.

  Then she glanced at the note again, sure she’d misunderstood. But no, there it was. In his neat, distinctive scrawl.

  Will you marry me?

  “Oh, God,” she croaked out.

  She looked at the ring, looked at the note and then back up to him, almost afraid that he’d be gone and that she’d imagined this whole thing.

  But he was still there, an indulgent smile carving those handsome features.

  “Really?” she whispered.

  He nodded and smiled more broadly. “Really.”

  She dropped the rose, the ring, the note—everything—and flew out of bed, across the room, and launched herself into his arms.

  He stepped back and laughed as she kissed his face, his brow, his cheek and then his lips. “Yes, oh, yes! Oh, my God, Devon, yes!”

  He made a grab for her behind before she could slide down him and land on the floor. Then he hoisted her up so they were eye level. “You know it’s customary to actually put the ring on.”

  She glanced down at her hand and then over her shoulder to the bed. “Oh, my God! Where is it?” Shaking his head, he carried her over to the bed then set her on the edge while he reached behind her.

  A moment later, he took her hand and slid the diamond onto her ring finger. She sucked in her breath as the sun caught the stone and it sparkled brilliantly in the light.

  “Oh, Dev, it’s beautiful,” she breathed.

  She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. “I love you so much. I can’t believe you planned all this.”

  He gently pulled her arms down and then collected her hands in her lap as he stared into her eyes. “I don’t want a long engagement.”

  Was this supposed to worry her? She beamed back at him. “Neither do I.”

  “In fact, I’d prefer to get married right away,” he added, watching her all the while.

  She frowned and chewed at her bottom lip. “I wouldn’t mind. I mean if it was just me, but I don’t know how my family would take that. Mama will want to plan a big wedding. I’m her only daughter. It’s not that I care about a big fuss—I don’t. But it would hurt her if she wasn’t able to give us a big wedding.”

  He touched her cheek. “Leave your family to me. I assure you, they’ll be on board with my plans. You and I will have the best wedding—one that your mother will be more than satisfied with. I think you’ll find they won’t object to our plans at all.”

  Excitement hurtled through her veins until it was nearly impossible to sit still. “I can’t wait to tell everyone! Won’t this just be amazing? Everyone will be so thrilled for me. I know Daddy despaired of me ever finding a suitable man and settling down. He always says I’m too unsettled, but really, I’m still young.”

  He gave her an amused smile. “Are you saying you don’t want to get married?”

  She stared at him in shock. “No! That’s not at all what I was saying. I was merely going to say that I was waiting for the right man. In this case, you.”

  “That’s what I like to hear,” he murmured.

  He leaned forward to kiss her brow. “How about you take a long bubble bath to recover from last night’s activities and then we’ll have breakfast together.”

  She flushed red. She had to be flaming. But she nodded, eager to discuss their future.

  Mrs. Devon Carter. It had such a nice ring to it… And speaking of rings. She glanced down, transfixed by the radiance of the diamond that adorned her finger. “Like it?” he asked in a teasing voice.

  She looked back up at him, suddenly serious. “I love it, Dev. It’s absolutely gorgeous. But you didn’t need to get me something so expensive. I would have loved anything you gave me.”

  He smiled. “I know you would. But I wanted something special.”

  Her heart did a little dance in her chest. “Thank you. It’s just perfect. Everything is perfect.”

  He kissed her again, long and leisurely. When he pulled away, his eyes were half-lidded and they were glowing with desire.

  “Go draw your bath before I forget all about breakfast and make love to you again.”

  “Breakfast?” she whispered. “Were we planning to eat?”

  He made a sound in his throat that was part growl, part resignation.

  “I don’t want to hurt you, Ash. As much as you tempt me, I’d rather wait until you’re fully healed from last night.”

  She pushed out her bottom lip.

  “As adorable as you are when you pout, it won’t move me this time. Now get your pretty behind out of bed and hit the bathroom. Breakfast will be served in forty-five minutes. Plenty of time for you to soak.”

  She sighed. “Okay, okay. I’m going.”

  She got up and walked toward the bathroom but just as she got to the doorway, something he’d said the night before came back to her. She paused and turned around, her head cocked to the side.

  “Dev, what did you mean last night when you said I’d be sleeping here with you every night from now on?” He rose and pulled his robe tighter around his waist. He stared back at her, his gaze intense and serious.

  “Exactly what I said. I’ll want you to move in as soon as possible. I’ll arrange to have
what you need transferred from your apartment. You’re mine, Ash. From now on, you’ll spend every night in my bed.”

  CHAPTER 4

  “Well, you finally took the leap,” Cameron Hollingsworth said as he stared across the room to where Ashley stood with a group of women.

  Devon took a sip of the wine, though the taste went unappreciated. He was too distracted. Still, he forced some of it down, hoping it would at least take the edge off.

  The official announcement would be made in a few moments. By Devon himself. Ashley’s father had wanted to do the honors, but Devon had preferred to do it himself. William Copeland had already orchestrated entirely too much of Devon’s relationship with Ashley. From now on, things would be done his way.

  Though everyone in attendance was well aware it was an engagement party they had been invited to, Ashley had insisted on waiting until all the guests had arrived before their engagement was announced.

  “Cold feet already?” Cam asked dryly. “You haven’t said two words since I got here.”

  Devon grimaced. “No. It’s done. No backing out now. Copeland has all but signed off on the deal. After the ceremony he’ll fax the final documents and we’ll move forward with the merger. I’ll want to meet with you, Ryan and Rafe as soon as I return from the honeymoon.”

  Cam arched an eyebrow. “Honeymoon? You’re actually going on one?”

  “Just because this marriage is part and parcel of a business deal doesn’t mean Ashley has to have any less of a marriage or honeymoon,” Devon murmured.

  Cam shrugged. “Good idea. Keep her happy. If she’s happy, Daddy’s happy. You know what they say about Daddy’s girls.”

  Devon frowned. “Don’t be an ass. She’s…”

  “She’s what?” Cam prompted.

  “Look, she has no idea what her father’s done. She thinks this is a wildly romantic courtship that culminated in an equally romantic marriage proposal. If I don’t take her on a honeymoon, it’s going to look strange.”

  Cam groaned. “This can’t end well. Mark my words. You’re screwed, my friend.”

  “Anyone ever tell you what a ball of joy you are?” Cam held his hands up in surrender. “Look, I’m just trying to warn you here. You should tell her the truth. No woman likes being made a fool of.”