His Forever Texas Rose

by Stella Bagwell

  The urgency in her words was all the persuasion he needed to crush his mouth back onto hers, and as he gathered her into his arms, he realized he was also past the point of forgetting. All he wanted now was to let himself touch and feel and savor these moments of making love to her.

  When the kiss finally ended, she grabbed his hand and tugged him on down the hallway and through a partially open door on the right.

  Beyond the slightly opened blinds at the window, he could see the last bit of daylight rapidly disappearing. Shadows slanted across a queen-size four-poster bed and a nearby dresser, the top of which was scattered with perfume bottles and other feminine items. As she led him toward the bed, he noticed a dressing screen stretched across one corner of the room. A few garments were tossed over the top, while on the bed, a blue-and-white comforter was rumpled from where she’d sat on the edge of the mattress. Above it all, the scent of her perfume lingered faintly in the air and pushed his swirling senses to an even drunker state.

  By the time they reached a spot near the bedside, she began to unsnap his shirt. Trey could only wonder if she’d pulled him into some sort of exotic dream where he didn’t belong.

  Shaking his head with confusion, he said, “This is too nice. I’m not fit for this room—or for you.”

  “That’s crazy thinking,” she murmured.

  Each snap she pulled apart sent more muddling fog into Trey’s brain. “I, uh, don’t belong here.” The front pieces of his shirt parted, and as her fingertips brushed his skin, his breath lodged somewhere deep in his throat. “Maybe I—should go get in the shower. And give you—time to think.”

  Seeming to ignore his words, she pushed the garment off his shoulders and down his arms.

  “I don’t need time to analyze you or this. And you’re not about to go anywhere.” Leaning forward, she pressed her lips to his bare chest, then proceeded to scatter a row of kisses down his breastbone. Once she reached the bottom of it, she made a sharp turn and directed her attention to his left nipple. Using the tip of her tongue to circle the flat brown flesh, she whispered, “I want you just as you are. Salty and sexy and oh—so—good.”

  While she continued to slide her parted lips over his skin, Trey thrust fingers into her hair and held the tips against her scalp. She had to stop, he thought desperately. If she didn’t, he was going to break into a thousand useless pieces.

  “Sweet Nicci,” he said thickly. “Let me look at you—touch you—every inch of you.”

  His mouth dropped to her bare shoulder, and as he gently sunk his teeth into her soft skin, his fingers pulled down the zipper at the back of her dress. When the tiny straps slid off her shoulders, the rest of the garment followed, until the fabric pooled around her feet.

  Trey stepped back, and as his gaze took in the pink lace bra and tiny matching panties, she said, “I’m not much of a curvy girl. I hope you’re not disappointed.”

  Disappointed? Didn’t she realize that having her standing here like this, offering herself to him, was nearly as incredible as him reaching into the sky and touching a star?

  With a shake of his head, he wrapped his hands around the sides of her waist and marveled that his fingers very nearly spanned the distance.

  “Don’t you know how beautiful you are? How desirable?” His hands slipped up her back until they reached her hair. After fishing out the pins, the knot fell and the thick strawberry-blond curtain swung down around her face and onto her shoulders. He sniffed its lovely scent before sliding a thumb beneath her chin and lifting her mouth to his.

  This time he held the kiss to a slow, seductive search, but instead of tempering the fire that was growing between them, it grew to mammoth portions. Soon her tongue was thrusting boldly between his teeth, demanding he give her more.

  A tidal wave of desire washed over him, nearly drowning him with swirling heat. He felt his erection pushing at the fly of his jeans and heard a loud rush of blood in his ears. At the same time, he realized she was groaning and fumbling with his belt.

  Stepping back, he gently took hold of her hands and placed them at her sides. “It’s a tricky buckle,” he said thickly. “I’ll do it.”

  She sat down on the edge of the bed and waited while he rapidly dealt with his boots and jeans. When he was finally stripped down to nothing but a pair of black boxers, he joined her on the bed and, with his hands on her shoulders, gently eased her down onto the mattress.

  Lying face-to-face, he rested his forehead against hers. “I didn’t know this was going to happen,” he said, then groaned as he realized how inane that sounded. “I mean—I thought it could—but I didn’t know. I was hoping—not planning. Hell, I’m not making sense!”

  She wrapped her arm around his waist and snugged the front of her body next to his. “You’re making perfect sense to me. I hadn’t planned on this happening tonight, either. But when we kissed—” Her sigh brushed against his cheek. “I’m glad it’s happening. You’d probably have a red face if I told you how long I’ve wanted this.”

  “I think I’m blushing all over,” he admitted. “And I’m going to quit asking myself why you want me. I’m just very, very glad that you do.”

  He didn’t wait for her to reply. Instead, he closed his lips over hers, and immediately her mouth opened beneath his. Her arm moved from around his waist to slip a tight circle around his neck.

  In a matter of seconds, the kiss turned into another fiery exchange, and the need to be inside her caused his loins to ache, his jaw to clench with what little restraint he had left.

  Eventually, the need to have her totally naked forced his head back from hers, and he turned his attention to removing the lacy lingerie. Once the bra was unhooked and tossed aside, he curved his forefingers over the waistband of the bikini panties and slid the scrap of lace down her silky legs until the fabric dangled off her toes and fell to the floor.

  With a hand cupping the weight of each little breast, he studied the pale pink nipples. “Perfect,” he whispered. “Everything about you is perfect.”

  Her eyelids fluttered open and she smiled up at him. “The room is full of shadows. You’re seeing a blurred version of me.”

  Odd that she should say that, Trey thought. For the first time in his life, he felt as though he was seeing her and his surroundings with absolute clarity. He didn’t belong here. He could see that, even if she couldn’t. But for now, it didn’t matter. Tomorrow and reality would arrive soon enough.

  “Wrong, sweet Nicci, I’m seeing all of you,” he murmured. “And I want everything I’m seeing.”

  “Then please don’t close your eyes, Trey. Because all of me is what I want to give you.”

  A hot lump suddenly filled his throat, and to hide the sudden onslaught of emotions, he dropped his head and buried his face between her breasts. Beneath his lips, her skin was like velvety smooth cream, tempting him to lick and taste. When he gently closed his teeth around one nipple, he felt her hand push its way past the waistband of his boxers, then on downward to his throbbing manhood.

  The delicate touch of her fingers very nearly sent him over the edge, and with a great groan of resistance, he brushed away her exploring hand and practically leaped off the bed.

  A confused frown on her face, she sat up. “What’s wrong?”

  The concern in her voice made him wonder if the last man she’d made love to had been some sort of superman with a will of iron. Or was she so innocent she didn’t realize she’d been about to end everything before it ever got started.

  Turning his back to her, he found his wallet and fished out a condom. “No! I just can’t handle wanting you this much! That’s all.”

  “Oh.”

  His fingers fumbled as he urgently attempted to roll on the protective sheath. When he finally managed to finish the task, he turned back to see she was watching him through half-closed eyes. The come-hither expression on her face was
like nothing he’d ever seen on a woman before, and the fire that was already burning inside him launched into a raging blaze.

  Holding out her arms to him, she murmured softly, “Come here.”

  He rejoined her on the bed and quickly positioned himself over her. As his knee slid between her thighs, she looked up at him and Trey thought he would drown in her gray eyes. Along with desire swimming in the luminous depths, he saw so much tenderness and caring that his boggled brain couldn’t take it all in.

  “Nicci—sweetheart. You’re incredible.”

  The words barely made it past his tight throat, but they weren’t so garbled that she didn’t hear him. One hand snared a hold on the back of his neck and drew his head down to hers. Then with his forehead resting against hers, he lowered his hips and entered her with one smooth thrust.

  * * *

  Before Trey connected their bodies, Nicole believed she was ready for him. She thought she knew exactly what to expect from him and herself. But she couldn’t have been more wrong.

  The moment he entered her, she felt the hair practically lift from her scalp. Her fingers curled into her palms and the air in her lungs whooshed past her lips with such a force it sounded like a balloon let loose to fly across the room.

  As he began to slowly and carefully move inside her, she wondered if he’d carried her off to an unworldly place where there was only soft, heated space and the sounds of their breathing.

  His skin felt as hot as a sunbaked rock and tasted as salty as the sea against her tongue. While her hands made a roaming search of his muscled body, her mouth nibbled its way across his wide chest, down the corded arms and back to the strong column of his neck. And all the while, their hips moved in unison, faster and deeper, until the bond between them was so complete she wasn’t sure where her body stopped and his began. She only knew that he was all she would ever want. Ever need.

  Time continued to tick on as the two of them made love in the darkening room, but Nicole didn’t have any idea of where the hands were on the bedside clock. She was aware only of Trey and the wild desire he was creating with each caress, each kiss, each plunge of his hips. If the night lasted forever, it wouldn’t be long enough.

  But nothing this good could last that long. The thought raced desperately through her mind and made her even more frantic to hold him close, to feel the rapid thump of his heart banging against her breast and have his hard-driving thrusts lift her higher and higher.

  Somewhere deep inside her, coiled pressure began to build until she was certain it was going to spring open and shatter her body into a million pieces. She fought to remain in control, but Trey wouldn’t allow it. His lips swallowed hers up, his hands clamped around the inner part of her thighs and lifted her lower body to an angle that left no space between them.

  His strained grunts drifted to her ears, and then she heard nothing but the sound of her own heart as it hammered out a euphoric crescendo.

  Suddenly she was crying his name and clutching his shoulders as she felt herself whirling, falling end over end into a vortex from which she never wanted to escape. At the same time, he buried his face in the curve of her neck while shudders of relief racked his body.

  * * *

  What was he doing here? How had this happened? Even before he rolled onto his side and opened his eyes to see Nicole’s face lying next to his, the questions were revolving around in Trey’s head. Now as he studied her soft features dampened with sweat, he was even more confused.

  From the moment he’d walked into Chandler’s office and laid eyes on her, he’d thought the most he could ever be to her was a co-worker. At best, a friend. The idea that they would wind up as lovers was like a page out of a fantasy book. This proved that dreams did come true. But did they last? That was the question that truly haunted him.

  He was trying to shut out what it all meant, trying not to think about tomorrow, when her eyes fluttered open and the corners of her mouth tilted upward.

  “My darling, Trey.”

  The whispered words were followed by the trace of her fingertips against his cheek. And because his heart was so full, he closed his eyes and brought the palm of her hand to his lips.

  “Nicci.”

  Her name was all he could manage to say, but she didn’t appear to expect more. Still smiling, she scooted closer and pillowed her head upon his shoulder.

  “Forgive me for being a terrible hostess. I’ve kept you from dinner when you must be starving.”

  Laughing, he said in a teasing voice, “Well, bringing me into your bed instead of giving me a plate of enchiladas was kind of rude. Am I supposed to exist on you and air alone?”

  “That is the idea.” She made a purring noise. “But I won’t let you starve. I’ll heat everything again.”

  Trey reached for the corner of the comforter and pulled the cover over both of them. “There’s no hurry.” He slipped a hand down her arm, then on to the curve of her hip. “And lying here next to you feels too good to move.”

  “Mmm. I’m not sure I can move.”

  He rested his cheek against the top of her head. “I don’t think you understand how you’ve made me feel.”

  She pressed a kiss on his chin. “Happy, I hope.”

  Happy wasn’t the word for it, Trey thought. Euphoric was a closer description, but even that seemed tame considering the wild trip his emotions had taken as he’d made love to her.

  Made love. He’d quit making love to a woman ever since Lacey had moved out of his life. No, that was hardly the truth, he thought. Because at some point during the past half hour he’d discovered that, before tonight, he’d never made love. For all these years, he’d only been performing the sex act. This thing with Nicole was entirely different. She’d caused an upheaval in his very heart and soul.

  Even so, he was too cowardly to admit the truth. The most he could do was nuzzle his nose against her hair and murmur, “Yes. Very happy.”

  She nestled her cheek in the middle of his chest and wrapped her arm across his waist. The tender reaction had Trey wondering if this was how a king felt with all his treasures laid out before him.

  “I guess by now you’re thinking you’ve been chased and cornered.”

  He grunted with amusement. “No woman has ever chased me, Nicci.”

  “Until me,” she said impishly. “I don’t care to admit it. I mean, maybe it wasn’t all-out chasing, but I wanted to make sure you understood that I liked you—a lot.”

  “That’s the mystery. What you’ve ever seen in me,” he said.

  “I’ve wondered the same thing about you. I’m not exactly a prize. But here you are with me anyway. And I’m so glad you are.”

  The hand at his side moved to his rib cage, and as she hugged him tightly, a weird pressure began to build in his chest and spread to his throat. He tried to swallow the feeling away before he took her chin between his thumb and forefinger and tilted her face up to his.

  “Do you understand how special you are? How beautiful?”

  Smiling wanly, she touched her fingertips to his cheek, and Trey couldn’t help but think this was how it must feel to have an angel in his arms.

  “There are plenty of beautiful women in the world,” she said pointedly.

  He stroked his fingers through the long hair lying against her back. “I haven’t seen that many around here.”

  She chuckled. “I don’t believe that. Fort Worth was full of them.”

  “Is that why you left? You didn’t want to be a little fish in a big ocean?”

  She playfully pinched a bit of flesh at the side of his waist. “Is that what you think? That I need to be the center of attention?”

  A chuckle rumbled out of him. “No. I was only teasing.” He rubbed his cheek against her temple as his thoughts quickly sobered. “But I would like to know the real reason why you left Texas. You must’ve had a nice
life there.”

  She let out a weighty sigh. “I did have a nice life there. I think I told you that Dad has always made plenty of money. And when it came to me and my brother, he and Mom never held back. We always had a nice home and most everything we wanted.”

  “Were you living with them when you moved here?”

  “Yes. But that’s a whole other story.”

  Her voice was full of regret and sadness, and Trey was suddenly remembering back to that first day he’d met her at the clinic and he’d walked into the break room to find her sniffing back tears. Had her distress been over her parents or letting go of the man who’d wanted to marry her?

  “Would it bother you to share it with me?” he asked, even though better judgment told him that the less he knew about her, the easier it would be for him whenever she dumped him. And she would dump him, he thought ruefully. There was no doubt in his mind about that.

  “It wouldn’t bother me. Maybe with someone else it would, but not with you. Because I think—” She reached up and traced a fingertip down the side of his neck. “Because you’re not judgmental like most folks are.”

  Trey suddenly felt like a snake, forked tongue and all. He’d already judged her as a woman who’d spend a bit of pleasurable time with him and then move on.

  “You have me confused with someone else,” he told her, then urged, “but tell me about your parents anyway.”

  Propping her head up with her hand, she studied his face. “They were married for twenty-six years when Dad went a little crazy and had an affair with a much younger woman. He thought he wanted a divorce so he’d be free to marry again. And even though it very nearly killed her, Mom gave him what he wanted and he moved away from Fort Worth.”

  He frowned. “Your parents divorced?”

  Nodding, she said, “That’s when everything went to hell. I wasn’t living with my parents at that time. I had moved out several years prior and was living in an apartment close to my job, and I had spent lots of hours and money furnishing it just the way I wanted. But my parents’ marital crisis forced me to give up my home and move in with Mom. You see, losing Dad caused her to have a mental breakdown. Angela—that’s my mom—was in such bad shape she couldn’t even take care of herself. I had to do most everything for her. And if I tried to leave for any length of time, she would fling hateful accusations at me like I didn’t care—that I was no more of a faithful daughter than Big Mike had been as a husband. For a while, I even had to take a hiatus from my job because her doctor feared she would harm herself.”