“Incredible,” I said quietly in her ear.
“You’re right. It is.”
Sunshine rained down on vibrant palm trees and sparkling ocean. But that was not what had caught my eye. “I was talking about you.” I swept the hair from her shoulder and placed my lips at the base of her neck. Merely the slight tilt of her head, giving me access and showing me she was mine, flooded me with desire. Her hand went to the back of my head, validating my actions. I grasped her hips and pulled her closer. A moan-filled sigh came from her as her head fell back against my shoulder.
“God, Daniel, what you do to me.” She turned her face to the side, calling my lips to meet hers.
For a moment, they hypnotized me—full and parted and calling me. I touched my mouth to hers, swept over her soft lips with mine. Our warm breaths mingled between us before she nipped at my bottom lip, luring me back in and rendering me hypnotized by her spell. Heat flooded me, and my heart thundered in my chest. An animalistic urge to claim her took over. My hands slid from her hips down to her thighs. I pushed her skirt up and pressed myself against her. The heat generating between us accelerated to a frantic pace. I had no inclination to slow it down. I released her, raced to unbutton my pants and shove them down.
Gray made no move to reposition, which told me she had the same thing in mind I did—having her right there up against the glass window, a symbol in our relationship. She slid her panties down just as I relieved myself of my boxers. I reached one hand around, up under her blouse, which was still on. I cupped her breast, eliciting a low groan from her before her hands landed flat on the glass. She arched her beautiful back and pressed her hips out to call me.
I curved my body to hers, molded against her. “You’re insanely gorgeous like this.” I kissed the back of her shoulder. My protective instincts finally kicked in for a moment of awareness, and I began, slow and gentle and careful.
She turned her head and breathed a hot and heady tune. “I’m ready, Daniel.”
Hearing those words sent my pulse racing; hot blood shot to every part of my body. I crashed into her, and we both cried out in exquisite pleasure. I followed with a frantic pace, guided by her pants and moans. Faster and harder until her body pressed almost flush against the glass.
“God, Daniel. Yes!” A moment later, she breathed out my name again as she surrendered everything to me and I to her.
Our slick bodies continued in a slow, rhythmic tempo. Then I slipped my arm around her stomach and pulled her away from the glass and into me. “My God, Gray,” I said as I eased us back onto the bed.
I welcomed the hotel air blowing across our heated skin, immediately cooling me. Gray’s skin turned to gooseflesh under my touch. I grabbed the side of the comforter and flung it across us. She turned to nuzzle in the crook of my shoulder without saying a word; the urge to ponder her thoughts needled its way to my consciousness. Surprisingly, though, it was my own actions I wanted to dissect…or justify, and so the words came out before I could stop them.
“Gray, I…” I rested my lips against her lavender-scented, soft head of hair. “I don’t know what—”
She lifted her head swiftly to make eye contact. “Please, tell me it’s not an apology you’re trying to get at.” She stared at me intently. The balance of power seemed to make an invisible transfer from me to her.
“No…I just…the way I practically pounced on you...”
Her mouth curled up into a satisfied grin.
“I don’t want you to think this is the reason I brought you here.”
“It damn well better be one of the reasons.” She fell back into me and kissed the top of my chest. “Daniel, I wanted that just as much as you. Don’t ever apologize for wanting me.”
“When you put it that way, it does sound ridiculous. I’ll admit, I might have been unprepared for being with you in public.”
“What does that mean?”
“You had every man’s attention.”
“Oh my gosh, you were jealous?”
“I don’t know if I’d call it jealousy, exactly. It’s just…they were all staring at you, and you’re so beautiful.”
She shifted her body, placed her hands on my chest, and then rested her chin on her hands. Her body, so small and delicate, made an appealing contrast to her prevailing personality.
“I see exactly now.” The confidence in her voice made me want to take her again right then, but I decided to let her have her moment. “What we have here is a power struggle. Your male ego took over, and you needed to claim your woman.” The narrowing of her eyes confused me. She was either insulted or screwing with me.
I decided to play it out. “Is that your professional opinion, Dr. Donovan?”
“Yes, it is.” She placed a tender kiss onto my chest. “But as your girlfriend…I can tell you that you don’t need to claim me.”
I ran my hand down to the small of her back.
Her voice transformed into a soft husk. “I’ve been yours for a long time now, Daniel.”
“You couldn’t have said anything better.” I pulled her into a tighter embrace, debating whether I should ignore the reinvigorated feeling traveling back down my abdomen. My hand went from her lower back and smoothed over the top of her tight cheeks.
“Besides,” she said as I caressed her, “you’re the one I said ‘I do’ to.”
My hand froze; Gray chuckled. “Yeah, about that.”
“Don’t get all serious on me now, Daniel. We had a deal, remember?”
“Right. No analyzing your brain.”
“That’s right. I know that freaked you out a little, but I swear I was just messing around. I didn’t want to disappoint the poor girl. I mean, did you see the cheeks on that smile of hers?”
“Yes, very cute, and no, I was not freaked out…just a little surprised.”
“Well, rest assured that little fib doesn’t mean a thing, and I’m not racing to get married.”
An uncomfortable ache stabbing my chest took me by surprise. Not that I was ready to run down the aisle, either, but the stereotypical male in me expected her to be ahead of me on that one. “All right. It seems you have everything under control, and that we’re both on the same page.”
“You’re not racing to get married either?”
I pushed against the mattress with my foot and rolled on top of her. “Actually, I was talking about the other thing you said.”
Her wide smile lit the small space between us, but she didn’t say a word.
“You have been mine for a long time now…and I have been yours.” My lips fell down to hers, and I spent the rest of the afternoon proving it to her.
CHAPTER 12
--------------------------
Gray
I opened my eyes to one of the most beautiful sights I’d ever seen: Daniel lay on his stomach next to me, the sheets covering his lower half. His head faced the opposite wall, and his arms were drawn up under the pillow, causing a noticeable bulge on his bicep. I watched him breathe for a few moments, letting myself ponder how far things had come for us. The surreal moment caused my hand to reach out and touch the back of his dark hair, confirming this man was not a mirage. How had someone like me been so lucky to find someone like Daniel to be loved by? To me, his place had been high above on some grand pedestal. A shot of fear swept through me at that thought. If luck played a part in Daniel being in my life, could the opposite happen? My irrationality proved to me that I still had so many anxieties and insecurities. My instincts kept me from sharing those with Daniel. Obviously, he’d known how imperfect I was, but the thought of disappointing him further made my heart ache.
I smoothed my hand from his hair down to his neck and then to his back. Images of the previous night flooded my brain. I scooted up behind him, melded into his body heat. I’d never been the type to sleep in the nude, but we fell asleep after who knows how many exquisite encounters of discovering each other’s bodies. And at that moment of connection, my body started humming for him again.
I ran my hand around his waist, and he stirred. He turned to the opposite side, and his fingers found mine. We breathed to the same rhythm, so peaceful and free I almost dozed off, letting my desire dissipate into blissful content.
His body twisted back so he faced me, our faces inches apart. “Good morning, gorgeous.”
“Good morning, handsome.”
We both giggled and stared like wide-eyed idiots. “So, what are we going to do today?” I asked.
A devilish grin lit his face before he went for my neck. “I have a few ideas,” he whispered. He pulled back and waited for my response.
“That does sound intriguing, but are we ever going to leave this hotel?”
He gave me a casual shrug. “Why would we want to leave? Everything we need and want is right here. And I don’t have to worry about men leering at you.”
My jaw fell open. “Oh…I guess—”
“Gray…” He slid his fingers into my hair. “I’m kidding. In fact, we need to get moving so we’re not late.”
“Late?” Excitement filled my insides, evidence of my trust in Daniel. Typically, a surprise like that would have had me nervous. “What are we doing?”
“You’ll see…just make sure you wear jeans.” He sat up, threw the covers off him, and then pulled on a pair of boxer shorts. “You want to shower first?”
I sat up, lifted my brows, and waited.
He smiled at my suggestive gesture. “Obviously, I’d love to join you in some water conservation, but I don’t trust myself with you soaking wet.”
“All right.”
I let the sheet fall from me; Daniel’s eyes fell, too, and sufficiently widened.
“You’re not making this easy,” he said.
I walked to the bathroom with nothing on except the smile that I hid from him.
The hot water blanketed me as my mind wandered and wondered what Daniel had in store for me. So unlike me, I hadn’t even asked a question about it. I lathered up my hair, satisfaction taking me higher. Maybe the new Gray I’d slowly been transforming into would be someone my mother would have been proud of. Someone Noah would have looked up to like Alyssa did. A small sting pierced my eyes. Even happy memories could bring a bit of sadness when you’d lost someone.
The water and steam continued to surround my thoughts and me as I rinsed my hair. Then I grabbed for my face wash and froze. Had I already washed my face? I’d been so lost in reflection I couldn’t remember. I looked down at the tub, and a few inches of water had come up to my ankles. Something must have been clogging the drain. I became aware of my heartbeat, like a faraway record of it played somewhere in my head. Panic shot through me; I swiped my head from side to side, praying I wouldn’t see Noah. My visions hadn’t typically started this way, but the same sense of dread loomed over me.
My head felt light. I grabbed the metal bar on the shower wall. Then, like a flash of lightning, I fought to stay afloat in Mrs. Watson’s pool, gasping for what I’d thought was my last breath. The metal bar at the steps blurred in front of my eyes as water flooded into my mouth, and the most wretched horror paralyzed my body. Oh, God, no. Why was this happening, especially now?
The shower curtain flew open, and I inhaled.
Daniel stood in front of me with a frantic expression on his face. “Are you all right?”
His words took a moment to reach me as I attempted to calm my breathing.
“Fine,” I said quietly.
“I heard you yell.” He reached out, touched my arms, concern on his face. He ignored the spray catching his hand and wrist.
His tenderness leaped straight to my heart, and I used it for strength. “I’m sorry. I think I just got a little light-headed with the steam and then slipped.” I glanced to my hand still on the metal bar, silently praying the flashback would not resurface, scared to death that it would happen again. A few times over the last few weeks I’d woken with memories of Noah at the forefront of my brain. Memories I’d never remembered before.
“Let’s get you out of there.” He snagged a towel from the counter and wrapped it around me, pulling me into him. For some reason, my mind went back to when we’d first met. He’d reminded me of Superman that day, and though I fought so hard to be my own hero, the security coming from his capable arms proved just what I needed. He walked me to the bed and sat down next to me. “Sure you’re okay?”
I nodded with the slightest of grins. “I really am. Take your shower so we can go to my surprise.”
***
The drive over proved to be a surprise itself. I watched, fascinated, as Daniel’s head bobbed and sang to tunes from Aerosmith, Lenny Kravitz, and even Pink. Little by little he shed his doctor image before my eyes and showed me another dimension of the man I’d fallen hard for.
We pulled from the main highway, entering a series of winding roads that led to a picturesque farming community. When we turned onto the dirt path, Daniel glanced over at me with an inquisitive smile. He looked away out the window, and I followed his gaze. Off in the distance, people on horses trailed up a mountain path. A day chafing my thighs was not what I’d expected, but the romance element had an appeal to it. I’d tried horseback riding once when I was twelve. Oddly, I hadn’t thought about that or even remembered until that very moment of seeing the horses. I shook the memory away, choosing to focus on our day and my thoughtful surprise. “Wow, not what I expected.”
“Is that good or bad?” He quickly recovered from a wince.
“It’s great. I’m excited to give it another try.”
He pulled into a space and stopped the car. “You’ve been?”
“Only once. A long time ago. What about you?”
“My uncle had a small ranch we used to visit. I’m no cowboy, but I can handle a filly.”
I bet he could. “Is there anything you can’t do?” I almost called him Superman, but I’d never told him about that little fantasy.
We strolled through the dusty lot arm in arm against a strong wind that had just picked up. The midafternoon sun warmed our skin between the waves of cool air. I glanced to the sky to find a giant patch of clouds aimed at and floating toward my heat source.
Once we’d checked in to take care of the logistics, we were directed to a sort of staging area by Margie, a sweet, middle-aged woman with short dark hair. Her sons provided instructions, gave lessons for those who needed them, and led the guided tours. We passed on the lessons, but Cal, the eldest son, still delivered some initial instruction and introduction to the horses. I pretended not to notice that he looked like he’d just stepped off the cover of a western romance. He even made the mustache work in his favor.
Determined to avoid the helpless female label, I declined Daniel’s assistance to mount my horse.
After three attempts, Cal came up behind me. “I got ya, little lady.”
With his fist behind my knee, it only took a tiny nudge to boost me up and on top of Georgy, a gorgeous black Tennessee Walking Horse. Daniel waited for me, sitting on Kia, a chocolate brown, rescued quarter horse. Thankfully, he didn’t deliver a sarcastic comment about the fact that I actually did need help.
Cal hopped on a horse in one swift motion and led us to a back trail where we went on alone, Daniel leading the way. After a few moments, he turned back to me. “Are you sure we don’t need the capable Cal to guide us?”
“I knew that was coming.”
“Just trying to make sure the little lady is taken care of.” He slowed his horse so we were side by side.
“Little lady, my ass. I would have had it if he’d left me alone.”
He tipped his head down in an exaggerated nod. “Whatever you say, darlin’.”
“Don’t push your luck, Little Joe, or I might ride right back to the ranch and round up Cowboy Cal.” I narrowed my eyes in a feisty scowl.
Daniel turned his horse in front of mine at a diagonal to stop us both. He maneuvered in next to me and reached over to my thigh. “I’d fight every last one of these cowhands for you, Gray.�
�� He leaned toward me; I met him halfway. He kissed my cheek then nuzzled over to my neck. He whispered near my mouth, “Besides, I’d catch you before you got halfway there.” He pulled away slightly, aiming those midnight blue eyes at me. “Now, see if you can keep up.” Then he drew his horse away and took off up the path. I barely kicked my foot in, and my horse followed on a trot.
The top of the mountain provided a breathtaking view of not only the valley but also the ocean below. When I caught up to Daniel, his face lit like a child seeing a shooting star for the first time.
“This is so gorgeous. Thank you for bringing me here,” I said.
He smiled but didn’t respond. Our horses were amazingly still, most likely because they were well-trained. I preferred to think they were as awed as we were by the sight in front of us. The wind tossed back my hair and my eyes watered as I lost myself in thought. After a few minutes, I turned and noticed Daniel doing the same.
“What are you thinking about?” I asked.
“Rita wants to have another baby.”
“Wow, that’s exciting news. How do you feel about that?”
“When she first told me, I was happy for her and excited.” Daniel glanced out to the ocean. The sound of the breaking waves was loud enough to reach us at the top of the mountain.
“And now?”
He kept his sight forward. “Now I’m a little nervous, I have to admit. Seems crazy to say this out loud, but it’s such a big decision, and because I was so close with Jessica, this feels like it would greatly affect me.”
“Of course, it would. You were a father figure to her, so it’s only natural to think that could happen again.”
He turned back to me, his smile faded, squinting from the setting sun. “Except this time Elliot will be almost through his last tour.”
“So, you’re afraid they won’t need you as much?”
He shrugged. “Makes sense. It’s not something to worry about now, though.” A new smile emerged on his face, but I saw the difference in it. He turned his horse so he faced the other way to return.
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