Her abdomen quivered.
Not from fear—a nice change—but anticipation. She didn’t doubt Zane would follow her to bed, but the wait for him heightened her senses.
Movement in the window’s reflection caught her attention, and she turned to face him.
“I’ll ask only once.” His dulcet voice blended with the fragrance and insistent breeze. “Are you sure?”
The complete answer was too complicated.
The imprint of his kiss on her lips, not complicated at all.
Feminine desire consumed her. She needed to experience his passion as much as she needed air and art.
“Yes.”
He shed his shorts and underwear all at once and tossed them aside.
Her breath sealed in her chest.
Much as she adored his handsome face, couldn’t get enough of his deep dimples or his true-blue eyes, enjoyed his insatiable intellect, the first glimpse of his naked body nearly floored her. Well-hewn muscles flexed and rippled as he approached. The man moved as if created solely for her pleasure.
Moisture and heat flowed into her sex. For the first time in years, arousal subjugated her rational thoughts. The overwhelming need to kiss and touch and stroke consumed her.
Had she ever wanted someone as much as she desired Zane at this very moment?
She rushed toward him.
Like a predator capturing easy prey, he snagged her around the waist and pulled her in. One hand on her back, the other cupping an ass cheek, he molded her against his hard body.
Equally as needy, she jammed her fingers into his soft hair and clutched the back of his head.
Breasts to chest, belly to erection, thighs to thighs.
Zane squeezed her ass, and she tilted her head back to accept his kiss.
For an instant, he let her gaze lock onto his, let her see his unleashed lust.
With the urgency of a bomb primed to detonate, he sealed his full mouth over hers in a hard, demanding kiss.
The last vestiges of second-guessing, of trepidation, of out-and-out fear, burned off like it never existed. She fisted his hair and pulled his face against hers until she could barely draw breath against his cheek.
He raked his lips over hers. The tease of his tongue stroked her bottom lip. Deliberately tantalizing. Insistent she give more.
More in charge, more confident, more engaged than any soft city boy she dated in the past, Cowboy gave and accepted pleasure.
She angled her head, dragging her mouth over his, and parted her lips.
Zane took immediate advantage. He plunged his tongue inside her mouth. Smooth and teasing.
His hand holding her at the small of her back slid around her waist and pulled her up tighter. The angle forced her into the crook of his arm. The hand he placed on her butt drifted lower. He pressed the heel of his hand firmly where her cheek met her thigh and subtly fondled between her legs with his long fingers. Fluttery as butterfly wings, his touch avoided direct contact with her sex.
Flesh aflame, primal urges she never experienced before engulfed her.
Delphine let go of his hair. She slammed both hands down on his shoulders and dug her fingertips into firm skin until she met with steely resistance. Clinging to him, she lifted and then undulated her hips, grinding her body against his erection.
His moan filled her mouth and vibrated down her throat, the sensation erotic and satisfying. The pressure around her waist released, and she felt the calloused pads of his hands skim over her ass.
All the while, she rocked against him. Kissed him. Squeezed him.
He hooked his thumbs under the elastic of her thong and slid across her skin until his hands met at the top of her cheeks. Once his fingers curled into a loose fist, she realized his intent.
Snap. Rip.
Lips still planted on his, she smiled.
He broke their kiss. Mouth grazing hers, he spoke in his sexiest, country-boy voice. “I’ve wanted to do that forever.”
“Forever? As in the past three minutes?”
“Yeah.” Another section of elastic snapped in his grasp. Gingerly, he tugged on the remnants of her panties.
The satin patch glided over her sex. Thrilling and erotic, she shuddered.
“Shame I have nothing to remove from you.” She outlined his muscular chest with her fingers while kissing his jaw, his neck, his shoulder.
The delicate hairs on his body stood at attention, almost as stiff as his manhood crushed between them.
She dug the fingers of her left hand into his hip and smoothed her right hand over the head of his erection. “Or maybe it’s not such a shame after all?”
Silk over steel, she fondled the luscious skin covering his manhood.
Zane’s breathing hitched.
A trickle of moisture seeped onto her fingers. She adjusted her stance and bent one knee between his before starting a slow glide down his chest.
He hissed a breath and grasped her by the shoulders, but he didn’t stop her descent. She stroked his thighs, delighting in the shape of his toned muscles. She gently caressed the softer flesh between his legs and fondled the delicate sack at the apex of his thighs, and then began kissing up the length of his hardened manhood. The girth alone both intimidated and excited her. A promise of complete satisfaction.
When she sucked the head between her lips, he cursed and stepped back. His erection left her mouth with a juicy pop.
Confused, she leaned back on her heels and gazed up at him. “What’s wrong?” Her heart lurched with dread. For some reason, Zane changed his mind.
He reached down and grabbed her by the wrists, pulling her to her feet. “I don’t have condoms.” His voice husky and his eyes bleary with desire, Zane still found the willpower to think responsibly.
“Are you sure?” Her heat demanded to be fed; she didn’t want to stop now for any reason.
“Of course. I hide out here. Alone.”
Not good news. “So much for living in the moment. Hate to tell you, but I’m not on birth control. If we continue, I’m taking a chance.”
“We’re taking a chance, or rather, we’re not taking a chance.” He dropped her wrists and snaked his arms around her waist. Grinding into her pelvis, he nuzzled against her ear with his lips. “There are other ways to satisfy each other.”
“You mean like the way I was about to torture you with my lips?”
“Yeah.” He spoke against her ear. “Like that. Or Like this.” He leaned down, clasped both of his arms around her upper thighs, and lifted.
As natural as walking, Delphine wrapped her legs around his waist. The pressure of her sex against his belly, his long fingers secured so close to where she longed to be touched—perfect torture. She slid her arms over his taut shoulders. From her forearms to the tips of her fingers, she cradled his head, pressing her cheek to his mass of freshly laundered hair. A spicy-scented shampoo drifted up her nose, blending with the outdoors blowing in through the window. The air teemed with everything that represented Zane. She felt as if she stole bits of his essence with every breath. Bits she would hold inside and treasure forever.
He walked the few steps to the bed and kneeled on the foot of the mattress. Strong and fluid, he knee-walked them to the center of the big bed. With controlled strength, he lowered her onto her back. The pillows and bedcovers sighed, puffing around her like a soft, shallow cloud.
Zane anchored a hand on either side of her and used his firm lips to plant gentle kisses across her cheeks, her forehead, the lids of her closed eyes.
She lifted her hips to undulate against him.
“I’m getting to that, Cutoffs.” He used his weight to press her into the mattress, their hips aligned more for dancing than intercourse.
Her untouched sex throbbed. “Get to it sooner, Cowboy.”
He kissed her long and deep, their tongues swirling while her body ached for touch and friction. She tore her mouth from his and sucked in a sharp breath. Her body trembled with unsatisfied need.
&nb
sp; She didn’t doubt he noted the tremor of her flesh. Cowboy noticed details. Remembered nuances others ignored. His ingrained fascination wouldn’t stop at the bedroom door.
He brushed his palms over her nipples. A current of need raced a fiery course from her breasts to the sweet spot between her legs.
“More,” she whispered.
He responded without a word. Using his fingertips, he fondled her nipples while kissing down her neck. By the time his lips captured one hard tip, her sex stirred with the first intense waves of pleasure.
“Zane.” She strung out his name, her plea obvious if unspoken.
“I want you delirious with desire.” He molded a hand around each breast and massaged, grazing a nipple with his teeth.
“Mission accomplished.”
“Not yet.” Hands on her breasts and elbows digging into the mattress on either side of her, he glided down. The weight of his manhood slid off her stomach, and he licked around her belly button, using just the tip of his tongue.
A shudder rocked her body and she all but purred, anticipating his next move.
He coasted his hands over her hot skin, the feel of his rough pads masculine and erotic. Gripping her hips, he lifted his gaze to watch her watch him.
“I pegged you for a Boy Scout, but you hide a wicked side, Cowboy.”
“How am I wicked?” He grinned and drifted farther between her legs.
Before she could reply, he nestled his lips on her sex. Wet and firm, he kissed her as no one had before.
She closed her eyes and felt nothing but raw sexuality consume her. Her breaths shortened and her muscles tensed. Never had she progressed toward climax so quickly. So powerfully.
Using a finger, he stroked into her wetness. Her muscles clamped around him, her incessant ache ready to be released. His tongue connected with her sweet spot, swirling.
Delphine gripped the sheets in her fist as the wave swelled.
Cowboy deepened and slowed his wicked kiss.
Her orgasm crested, and she let go in a body-rocking torrent. “Zane.” She gasped his name as heat and pleasure and joy pumped through her veins. Through her heart. Even through her very soul.
“Zane. Zane.” She murmured his name over and over while her body quaked with delicious aftershocks.
In response, he glided up her body. “So am I wicked or a Boy Scout?”
“Both,” she said on a rush of breath. “Your turn, Cowboy.”
Tremulous for only a moment, Delphine wrapped her legs around his waist and rolled him onto his back. Of course, he willingly fell into the roll.
“Show me what you got.” He grinned and attached his hands to her breasts, teasing her nipples to sensitive pebbles.
Straddling his waist, she considered giving him everything he craved. Considered taking a huge risk.
She longed to complete their union. To connect intimately.
But common sense prevailed.
She leaned on his chest and matched his hot gaze. Reaching between them, she rubbed her palm along the length of his shaft.
He moaned and his baby blues turned hazy.
“Shame your forward thinking parents didn’t think to drop off condoms with the provisions. I would—”
His strong hands clamped down on her waist, and in a second, she was on her back again.
“What are you doing?”
No answer. A second later he was off her, taking away his heat.
Zane bounded to the edge of the bed and jacked open the top drawer of the nightstand. “Well, what do you know?” A foil strip of condoms flew over his shoulder and landed beside her on the rumpled comforter.
She propped up on an elbow and grinned.. “You didn’t check before?”
“Before, you didn’t want me.” Zane lunged and landed on her, pinning her beneath him and nudged her legs apart with his knees. Course hair gently scratched her inner thighs.
He captured a nipple with his lips and bit the delicate skin.
“Very little coaxing needed, Cowboy.” She placed her hands on his face and lifted to look him in the eye. “I’m ready. Unless you want me to finish what I started?”
In reply, he picked up the foil package and ripped the top corner with his teeth. He removed the condom without separating the three packets and then reared back on his knees.
She scooted and sat upright. “Let me.”
He raised an eyebrow and handed her the protection. “By all means.”
Delphine unrolled it over his erection slowly, enjoying his moans of pleasure as her hands worked down to the base.
“Nicely done.” He leaned forward and kissed her, guiding her onto her back.
Light-headed and needy, she trembled beneath his steady body.
Zane broke their kiss.
“Regrets?” he asked, searching her gaze for a lie. He wouldn’t find one.
“Never.” She skidded her heels over his hips and latched both hands onto his shoulders. “Take it slow. We only have two more, and God knows how long we’ll be trapped here.”
“Oh, I intend to take it slow, but so you know, that drawer is damn near full of condoms.”
More freedom. Maybe her luck was changing.
She smiled against his lips. “Then not too slow.”
“You’re the boss.”
He rotated his hips, skimming his erection over her sex.
“Stop teasing,” she said on the intake of a quick breath.
“You don’t mean that,” he said and joined with her in one long stroke.
Her breath caught in her throat and she arched her neck. Never had she felt so connected with a man. Never had she experienced such intense heat. Never had she wanted to finish quickly and start again. “I do.” Thighs tight against his sides, she rocked her pelvis forward to grind against him and clutched his biceps. “Take me with you. Now.”
At her request, Zane pumped his hips, slowly at first, allowing her to adjust.
Her body reacted with greater need, turning wetter and hungrier with each long stroke. “Faster. I want to feel you let go.”
Zane thrust, filling her, clouding her thoughts with happiness.
Much as she wanted to stare into his eyes, she squeezed hers shut, drawn into the pleasure he provided.
First the pulse of release, that singular sensation of involuntary convulsion followed by the rush of heat. Equally as powerful as her first orgasm. She pulsed harder than her heart could beat. Her body jerked in erotic convulsions.
At last she traded in the flood of colored lights behind her lids for the intense stare of her lover.
Sights on her, he raised up on both arms, locking his elbows. All the muscles in his face tensed and even his dimples deepened in the shadowed room. He bit into his lower lip and pounded into her.
She snaked an arm free, arched her back, and then reached between their legs until her fingers grazed his sack. Drawn up tight, he must have been close to exploding. Brazenly, she stroked with three fingers and then reached back to the delicate skin directly behind and pressed.
Cowboy groaned and swore.
Not out of pain.
Together they experienced his release as she applied more pressure to feel the throbbing behind his sack.
A moment later, he yanked her hand out from under him and collapsed before rolling to his side. His weight on her breast and hip felt right. Comfortable. Like he belonged in that very spot.
For a moment, she’d thought Zane Gideon had been left speechless or fell asleep.
“Nice move.” He panted onto the hollow of her throat. “Do it again later?” Lacing the fingers of one hand with hers, he curved his body so his head shared the pillow, and then he draped one leg over her thighs.
“Anytime you want,” she said closing her eyes.
And she meant it.
If only anytime meant sometime after they left his hideaway.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Accustomed to catching z’s whenever his work schedule permitted, Zane could have
slept through the rise of the sun.
But not through Delphine’s screams.
She kicked at the covers like she was running.
He pulled her close and spoke softly against her ear, mindful not to frighten her. “Baby, wake up.” Lucky for them both, he’d spooned her during the night, locking her against him hours before. No way she’d sleepwalk without waking him.
He took a kick to the shin, but she called out for him. Her plea reeked of desperation and panic.
Propped up on one elbow, he pinned her one free leg under his. “It’s a dream, Cutoffs. Wake up.” Of course, he knew damn well she experienced more than a dream. He captured her flailing arms and rolled her onto her back.
Eyes half open and glazed, she only appeared awake. “Zane.”
“I’m right here. I’ve got you. I’ve got you.”
No change. She breathed through her mouth, panting. At least she no longer churned her legs.
He patted her cheek. “Come back to me, baby. Wake up.”
“Get him. Get him.”
Could she mean Swift?
If there was a chance she’d located Swift, he couldn’t throw away the opportunity no matter how much he wanted to bring her out of it. No matter how much he felt like he was betraying her. Especially after last night.
He spoke calmly, as if in regular conversation.
“Who must I get? Tell me, Delphine.”
“He knows.”
The pulse in her neck became visible. Rapid. He couldn’t and wouldn’t leave her in the dream state for long. But he had to get something. She may not remember when she woke. If she couldn’t answer who, any information might give them some direction.
She spoke again, less urgent. “He knows. He’s waiting for us.” Her lashes flickered and her eyes closed.
“Knows what?” Even as he asked, he understood his connection to her dissolved.
Her muscles went slack. Most likely, she’d drifted back to sleep, preparing to come out of the vision.
The roar of a motor hit him as hard as her scream, and his heart lurched.
A boat? At his dock?
Too early for Seth.
The subsequent sputter and spurt indicated the motor had been cut. Could just be a fisherman. Or his dad checking in. Either way, no one needed to catch Delphine in a state of distress. Or undress.
Dream Breakers, Oath Takers Page 23