Then her body leaned, twisted, contorted, and all of a sudden, he was the one off balance, falling to the ground.
But two could play at that game--he held on.
His body hit the snow hard, crashing through the thin hard crust and into the feather-soft drifts beneath it.
Courtney wiggled, trying to free herself as he lost balance and tumbled, but he was ready for that. The shocked look on her face when she fell on top of him was worth any price.
"I thought you planned something a bit more, uh, undressed, when you promised me a surprise," Tyler whispered into her ear.
"I don't like to be predictable."
He couldn't help laughing. Predictable? Courtney? She was anything but that.
"I guess you finally caught me," Courtney said. "So what are you going to do about it?"
The fire in his groin warred with the chill in his body as snow melted against him. The warring sensations of heat and cold heightened his senses, let him feel more completely than he could ever remember doing before.
A part of him wanted to stay here, to make love to Courtney in the snow, generating heat through their lovemaking that would overwhelm any chill mere nature could throw their way.
Then Harvey whined and pulled Tyler back to reality. Courtney deserved more than a roll in the back yard. She deserved a lovemaking as thorough and well presented as one of Andre's meals. And he intended to give it to her.
Soon. Very soon. But not right then--and not with the dog watching.
He kissed her.
* * * *
Tyler didn't play fair.
She couldn't think about clever things, like shoving handfuls of snow down his shirt, when he kissed her. The touch of his lips, his tongue, worked to disrupt her mind, sucking away every thought that had to do with anything other than the friction of Tyler's body against her own, the way his erection pressed through his pants to rub against the fire in her womb, and the gentle way his arms pressed around her as he stood, holding her securely like a precious jewel protected from the elements.
Tyler wasn't fair, and she couldn't even get a good mad up about it.
He pulled back from his kiss just long enough to whisper in her ear. "I think Harvey has been outside long enough. And I know that it's time for us to go someplace warm, someplace where we don't have to worry about snow getting down our backs--or more sensitive areas."
"What if I want it outside?"
The slightest hitch in his step was the only sign she'd surprised him. "If I have my way," he said, "we will make love outside, among other places. But now I want you in my bed.
She thought about reminding him that she wasn't there to do what he wanted, that she was her own person. She discarded the thought almost as quickly. Because she wanted to be in his bed too. And she didn't want to wait.
Harvey headed straight for his crate, and Tyler headed for his bedroom.
"I've got to get my nightgown," Courtney said. "And brush my hair and--"
"Nope."
"No?"
"We've waited long enough. Way too long."
He set her on his bed, unzipped the down parka she'd found on one of his coat-racks, and then froze, just looking at her.
"What?" His intense gaze was unnerving but sexy. In her entire life, no person had ever given her the focused, undiluted attention that Tyler showered on her.
"Another surprise?"
"I didn't have time to get dressed."
* * * *
Melted snow pressed his formal shirt to his body and the strong muscles of his arms swelled as he tugged off the jacket and unfastened the bra she wore directly beneath it.
Her jeans followed almost as quickly.
"I wondered if you were wearing anything under your dress."
"That been bothering you all night?"
He nodded mutely.
"You could have asked."
"Would you have told me?"
She shook her head. "I would have lied and told you I was naked underneath, of course."
Tyler laughed. "I would have had a heart attack." He paused. "Maybe next time, you should be naked underneath."
Next time. That sounded promising. Like Tyler considered that they were a couple, would do things together. Not just making love, although if Tyler didn't get on with the lovemaking, she was going to scream. But Courtney wanted more than sex with Tyler. She wanted--well, she wasn't quite ready to put a name on what she wanted, but it was more. More than she'd thought he could afford to give. More than she thought she'd ever be able to accept or even deserve. But now she wondered. Could she have it all? Was it possible?
Then he kissed her again and she became incapable of complex thoughts.
"Let's get you naked," she said when he turned his attention from her lips, trailing kisses down her jaw, her neck, into the valley between her breasts.
"Naked is good."
He had no idea how good.
Tyler started unbuttoning his shirt from the top, so she started from the bottom. The cold fabric resisted at first, but yielded in the face of determination and the shirt hit the floor, gold cufflinks thudding against the deep plush of Persian carpets.
She traced her hands down his arms, savoring their hard muscles, then brought her lips to the inverted 'v' at the base of his ribs.
His stomach contracted, demonstrating impressive 'six-pack' abs when she ran her tongue down toward where his pants lay low on his lean hips.
Courtney knew Tyler thought she would stop when she reached that demarcation line between skin and clothing, but she was ready. She unfastened his belt and zipper while he was still distracted by the touch of her lips against the sensitive skin of his abdomen. And then he was helpless, completely under her power as she grasped his swollen fullness and squeezed it in both hands.
"I did have another surprise," she purred. Then she took his shaft into her mouth.
Tyler hissed his surprise and pleasure. It took him a moment, several strokes, in fact, before he regained his ability to talk. "A wonderful surprise, too."
She laughed, still holding him in her mouth, letting the vibration of her laughter tease at his arousal. Then, slowly, she withdrew. "That isn't the surprise. The surprise is even better."
Chapter 10
Courtney's surprise was chocolate.
Rich, dark, chocolate syrup, heated on an electric coffee cup warmer.
She drizzled a molten stream across his chest, then licked. When her teeth closed around one of his chocolate-drenched nipples, Tyler thought he would climax right there.
He gritted his teeth, called on all of his will power to sustain himself, then leaned back to savor what Courtney was doing to him.
For a moment. Until he couldn't wait any longer.
He waited until Courtney set the can of chocolate back on the warmer, then made his move. He rolling her over on her back, grabbed the chocolate himself, and turned the tails on her. A man can only take so much before he needs to give some back.
He looked down on her glorious body--her long dark hair, the soft swells of her breasts, the dark triangle between her legs, and the toned shape of her arms, legs, and abdomen. A man could get lost in a body like that.
He held the warm chocolate sauce over her stomach, tilting it slightly until it gathered at the lid on the verge of spilling. "Where to start is always the question."
"You know you wouldn't dare."
"Never dare an Atwood."
He poured.
Courtney had drizzled a little on strategic parts of his body and then licked. But Tyler's appetites were larger than Courtney's, and unlike him, she was probably worried about things like leaving a mess in someone else's house.
He poured a very generous serving.
"I'll be a disgusting mess." But she giggled as the stream of syrup tickled her.
"If there's any left, I'll wash you."
"Promise?"
"Definitely."
Chocolate á la Courtney was different, spicier, sweete
r than anything he could remember tasting. He nibbled her body, licking her breasts, the valley of her abdomen, the rounded muscles of her thighs, and the secret folds and shadows of her womanhood.
She moaned under his ministrations, tried to reciprocate. But she'd had her chance. Now it was Tyler's turn.
As he licked, nibbled, swallowed Courtney, Tyler sensed her body responding to him, readying itself, opening the barred passages for his entry. His body responded instantly to her changes, achieving levels of hardness that would have put a rock to shame.
"I'll do that." Courtney caught his hand as he reached for the drawer in his nightstand.
She rolled the condom over him, taking her time to stroke him, tease him to even further levels of anticipation.
"Now. Please." She wasn't begging him, exactly, but they both knew that the time for teasing and preparation was over.
He eased himself into her, felt her inner muscles clamp down on his arousal, then slowly relax enough to allow him further entry until he had plumbed the depths of her womanhood.
The squeeze of her tightness, the contented smile on her face as she accepted his full length, threatened him with too-quick completion but he clamped down and held himself back.
She moved beneath him, then wrapped her legs around his shoulders to allow him extra inches of access.
And he responded, withdrew just a little to begin stroking.
She arched her back, pushing against him as he descended, then together they sought and found the rhythm of stroke and counterstroke.
The aroma of chocolate blended with the warm scent of sex and he realized that he'd never be able to see a chocolate bar again without thinking of Courtney, without remembering the way they were on those December nights when they made love.
He bent and kissed her, licked another taste of chocolate from her generous breasts, then increased his pace.
* * * *
Every time Tyler pressed himself into her, waves of sensation coursed through Courtney's body. She felt like a child's balloon, filled and expanded until she was tight, glowing, and ready to explode.
When his teeth caught the sensitive peak of her nipple, Courtney braced herself for the nip of pain--but felt only more pleasure as he sucked, nibbled, and brushed the rough smoothness of his tongue against its swollen tip.
She knew she should be doing more: kissing him, using her fingers to caress sensitive areas on a man's body. But the lessons she'd studied in her magazines deserted her, left her armed with nothing but her body's native responses to the man who had claimed it, brought it to new discoveries, and who was now securing his victory.
The chocolate that Tyler had spread over her served as a lubricant, letting his body slip over hers, into hers, expanding their sex into a whole-body experience.
She floated on a cloud of sensation--super-sensitized to his touch, his movement, the way he thrust into her, the fierce concentration on his face. Her climax was coming, but it seemed a long way away, something she could delay indefinitely as she savored the way Tyler introduced her to new feelings, capabilities of her own body that she'd never dreamed existed.
Then, abruptly, her control vanished and the sensation rushed to her center, to where she clamped her muscles down around Tyler's swollen manhood.
She completed explosively, barely suppressing a scream as she dug her hands, her fingers and nails into his back, trying to press him even more deeply into her, trying and finally succeeding in finding that mystical moment where man and woman blended, where she couldn't sense the barriers between them and it seemed as if they had no boundaries, that each was fully a part of the other.
She heard Tyler's shout at his own completion and felt his body release itself from the pressure that was too much to bear. She couldn't hold back her smile.
"Yeah," she breathed. "That's how it is supposed to be."
Or maybe it was Tyler who said it because for her, the barriers were down and it didn't matter which of them spoke--each spoke for the other.
* * * *
True to his promise, Tyler gave her a shower--made love to her in the shower as warm water sluiced away the remnants of chocolate syrup and the slight soreness of muscles that she had called upon in ways that were still new.
He stripped the sheets and replaced them with clean ones and then led her back to his bed.
Once there, he took his time, rubbing lotion on her, then combing out her long hair until she practically screamed from desire and delayed gratification. Contact that would have been pleasant under normal conditions merely served to increase her need, her frustration in not immediately making love to him once again.
Tyler had to sense her need, but he knew what he was doing and Courtney let him take the lead, reacquainting her body with his touch.
Finally, when she thought he would never finish his foreplay, he kissed her, and then made love to her a third time.
This time he was gentle, more patient, perhaps. Her completion swelled from her entire body, involving, heightening, deepening each of sense simultaneously.
When they had finished, Courtney rolled next to Tyler, sought to bring each inch of her body in contact with his. Her body needed time to recover, but she promised herself that she would have more, that this lovemaking with Tyler would be the beginning rather than the end.
As she fell asleep, she spooned against him, his manhood pressed against the softness of her bottom, his arms holding her tight, caressing her breasts, his chocolate-flavored breath barely tickling her ears.
Life, Courtney decided, could not be better.
* * * *
The sun peeked through his window, waking Tyler from a peculiarly erotic dream--a dream that became reality as he opened his eyes and saw that he still held Courtney in his arms.
The previous night had been a miracle, a gift. But it was something he intended to pursue. Other men in the Atwood Steel Company had long-term girlfriends and relationships. There was no reason in the world why Tyler couldn't as well. And there was certainly no reason why Courtney couldn't be the person he shared his private life with. His mother's concerns about social class notwithstanding, they lived in America. And if you couldn't pick your own girlfriend in America, it could hardly be called the land of freedom, could it?
He found a soft breast only millimeters away from his hand and took that for a sign. His body was recovered from the previous night, ready to perform again--not just ready, in fact, but in serious need.
He caressed Courtney's breast, smiled as she pressed herself even more closely to him, then stopped abruptly. A cool poke on his back rushed him back to reality.
Harvey's whine confirmed his deepest fears. The dog was getting in the way again. He needed to go outside and he wasn't going to wait politely while Tyler had his way with the beautiful woman in his arms.
"I know, Harvey. Time for you to go outside. And that reminds me, today's project is a nice doggy door and some repairs on the fence. Let's make this the last time you interrupt something so important."
Courtney grumbled as he untangled himself from her. He pulled on a set of sweats, warm socks, and his running shoes, and then snapped on Harvey's leash. "Be back in a bit, honey," he whispered. "Just hold that thought because I'm going to be ready when we get back."
Courtney rolled toward where he'd been. "Huh?"
"Taking out the dog."
"Oh. Okay."
The phone started ringing just as he reached the door.
"Want me to get it?" Courtney asked.
"Sure. Then go back to sleep. Harvey and I will be back in a few. Promise me you won't be up and dressed when I get back. I don't think I could stand the disappointment."
She reached for the phone, not saying anything. But her smile was as good as a promise. Courtney wanted him as much as he wanted her. It was a miracle that Tyler wasn't about to examine too closely.
He and Harvey set off on their normal three-mile run, moving at a record pace. Courtney's chocolate surprise had given
him a great idea for breakfast. He could hardly wait to try it out on Courtney.
* * * *
Courtney had a really good idea of what she wanted for breakfast. She wanted Tyler's hardness in her mouth. She wanted to bring him to climax, feel him explode, take him all and swallow him down. She wanted to pleasure him the way Tyler had pleasured her.
But in the meantime, she could take care of the call and catch a few more minutes of sleep.
She reached for the phone near the bed and grabbed a pen from the nightstand.
"Atwood residence."
"Yeah. Is Mr. Atwood in?" The voice sounded vaguely familiar but Courtney couldn't place it.
"I'm afraid he's stepped out for a few minutes. This is, uh, his girlfriend."
She was twenty-seven years old for goodness sake. Too old to be a girlfriend. But still, saying the word filled her with a strange elation. She wasn't a one-night stand. She and Tyler had spent whole days and nights together. Tyler had awakened next to her and his first thoughts had been on continuing their lovemaking rather than pushing her out of his bed and his home.
"Maybe I can take a message," she concluded.
"Yeah, sure. This is Billy Spudmer. I'm in charge of the painting crew he's got over at the Sunset Ridge Office Building. I told him painting this time of year was questionable, but today is ridiculous. The paint is freezing on the walls and then flaking off. He won't just have to redo everything, he'll have to sandblast the building first.
"It'll cost him money," Billy whined. "And worse, everyone will blame me. I'm a professional. I can't afford to have a botched job like this."
The blood froze in Courtney's veins. "Can you repeat the address of the building you're painting?"
"It's a crappy little two story office building just off of Bainbridge. You probably wouldn't know where that is."
"I have a pretty good idea. Send your crew home? I'll have Mr. Atwood give you a call so he can settle up with you."
"He insisted that we go ahead with the painting despite my warnings. I wouldn't want him to think we disregarded his instructions."
"Let me worry about that, Mr. Spudmer. I'll take full responsibility."
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