“The shoes fit fine. It’s just been years since I’ve worn anything other than sneakers. I think my feet are in shock.”
“Then take them off. We’ll just walk along the path. If you stumble, it’ll give me an opportunity to carry you.”
Her heart turned over as another body part throbbed in anticipation. After everything she’d gone through with Damon, never had she thought to feel desire. But with Lucas it was a whole new day, a whole different way of looking at life. He made her feel like a beautiful, desirable woman. And he made her feel normal. When was the last time she’d felt even the slightest bit normal?
Slipping off her shoes, she took the hand Lucas held out for her. Instead of moving away, he stayed still and McKenna found herself within inches of him. His expression revealed admiration, desire, and affection. All the things she felt herself. Afraid she’d blurt out her thoughts, McKenna leaned into him and wrapped her arms around him. He took it as the invitation she meant it to be. Lowering his head slowly, his lips touched hers and the world disappeared.
She allowed him to devour her mouth. When she opened to him, he plunged inside; McKenna moaned at his taste, groaned at the desire throbbing for release. Lucas pressed his hands on her hips, pushing her against his erection. His desire should have scared her; it didn’t. She wanted him as a woman wants a man, in every way, in every form. Her body didn’t care that they had no future together. Her heart didn’t listen to her warnings, either. She was in love with Lucas Kane, forever. And despite the knowledge that forever couldn’t be in her vocabulary with this man, she ignored those warnings and let nature takes its course.
Lucas lifted his mouth slightly and whispered, “I want you, McKenna.”
Emotions coursed through her: pride, gratitude, desire, and an incredible, life-altering need to know this man in every way possible.
“I want you, too, Lucas.”
Letting her go, he took her hand and led her inside the house.
Lucas fully acknowledged he’d never been more scared in his life. He’d lost his virginity at the age of sixteen and had had more women throw themselves at him than he liked to remember. Without ego, Lucas knew he was attractive and because of his wealth was sometimes considered even more so.
None of that mattered right now. He was about to make love to McKenna for the first time. Once again, he felt like that sixteen-year-old virgin who’d almost exploded at the first touch of soft, supple skin under his hands.
“You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”
Hell, for a man who had trained in hiding every thought from others, she had read his hesitancy. Except she’d read it all wrong. It wasn’t that he didn’t want her…he wanted her too much.
“You won’t laugh if I tell you something?”
“I don’t laugh at people and I especially would never laugh at you.”
His chest tightened at the sheer sweetness and honesty of that statement.
Nudging her up the stairs, he led her to his bedroom. He had never had a woman in this room before and was glad. Whenever he slept with someone, he usually slept at the woman’s apartment, or if she stayed here, he went to her room. The fact that he was leading McKenna to his bedroom was of great significance. One she wouldn’t know, but he certainly did. McKenna was special.
Closing the door behind him, he said, “I’m nervous.”
“Why?”
How did he tell her that her experiences of sex made him nervous because he wanted to take away those memories? He wanted to imbue only good things in her head when she thought about lovemaking in the future. What Damon had done to her, what she had felt forced to do while on a job, those didn’t matter. Only tonight mattered.
She was still waiting for an answer, an expression of nervousness on her expressive face. The perfect answer came to him, one that he wasn’t so sure wasn’t true. “I’ve never made love to a woman who could kick my ass.”
She burst out laughing, as he had hoped she would. “If I promise to be gentle with you, will that make you feel better?”
Drawing her close, he whispered, “Yes,” and then forgot all trepidation as his mouth closed over hers.
McKenna groaned into his mouth. If he was nervous, she was terrified. Suddenly hands that had always been gentle and tender were caressing her, filling her with a need she barely recognized as her own. Panting, she pulled back. “I think I’m more scared than you are.”
A tender smile lifted his mouth. “Let’s be scared together, shall we?”
“Yes.”
His eyes watched as she pulled the dress over her head. Standing in a nude-colored bra and bikini panties, she would have shivered, but heat infused every particle of her body, blazing like an inferno.
With a tenderness she had only ever seen in this man, he unclasped the front closure of her bra, and she let him look at her. Nipples tightened as his eyes roamed over her with so much want she almost cried out in need.
Lowering his head, he licked lightly at her nipple; electricity blended with the fire and McKenna thought she might explode from the pleasure.
His mouth still on her breast, his hands glided down her body and hooked his fingers at her panties, drawing them down her. In seconds she was completely naked.
McKenna shuddered and he pulled back to ask, “Still scared?”
“No.”
Another smile, sexy and hot. “Me neither.”
Suddenly his eyes went serious and grave as he gently touched the scars on her stomach and her breasts. Some were scars from fights she’d had, close calls during rescues. Most had come from Damon’s hands, but under Lucas’s tender hands, they seemed to disappear. Despite those marks, he treated her as if he was touching something precious, something special.
Going to his knees before her, he looked up at her. “From the moment I met you, I’ve thought about tasting you, loving you. Will you let me?”
She nodded, unable to deny him. No man had ever behaved this way with her. Each time with Damon had been a violent rape. A few times when she’d been on a job, she had endured a quick screw to gain trust or ferret out information for a rescue. She was so glad no man had ever touched her like this, made love to her. At least in this she was a virgin.
Lucas’s golden head lowered as he pressed soft kisses to her mound. McKenna melted, her legs going weak. He took advantage of the loosening of her legs and pushed them apart. Then, when he had her in the position he wanted her in, he looked up at her again. “Thank you, McKenna.”
She didn’t know why he said that. She was the one who should be thanking him. And then she stopped thinking. Her mind, her very being, was focused on his tongue as he licked, then delved deep. Not thinking, only feeling, McKenna cupped his head in her hands and pressed him against her. When he groaned, the vibration on her clit had her growling his name. The throbbing between her legs increased, and apparently Lucas knew she was close. He groaned again, pulled her closer, and tongued her over and over, lapping, sucking, and licking. And with a wild flash of blinding light, McKenna screamed and came against his tongue.
Still panting at the incredible sensation she’d never felt before, she barely comprehended that Lucas came to his feet. When he began to rip at his clothes, she watched him in wonder. The coolly, controlled Lucas Kane was no more. He seemed feral, almost wild, yet nothing about his action frightened her. He wanted her and he intended to have her…that was the way it should be. What she had known and read about happening to others was happening to her. She was about to make love for the very first time.
When Lucas made a grab for her, McKenna held a hand out to stop him. Yes, she wanted him, but she also wanted to look at him. He had seen her, admired her despite her imperfections. And Lucas? He had none. She wanted to devour him with her eyes, and then with her hands and her mouth.
He was as beautiful as she had imagined him. Broad shoulders, smooth golden skin, the furring on his chest darker than the hair on his head. His taut belly looked as hard as a rock and his
erection jutted upward, almost reaching his navel. Her mind told her she should be scared. She had felt the violence, knew what pain that appendage could cause. But with Lucas, she knew he would never hurt her. His penis was a beautiful part of his body. She knew it would give her pleasure, and for the first time ever, McKenna wanted to give it pleasure. She went to her knees before him.
“McKenna, you don’t have to—”
She closed her mouth over him. Oh yes she did. She absolutely had to taste him, pleasure him, give him everything he had given her. This was what physical love between a man and a woman should be. No fear, no pain, no dread. Only pleasure.
She took him to her throat and groaned at his taste. With what sounded like a curse, Lucas jerked from her mouth and lifted her in his arms. Dropping her on the bed, he kneeled over her.
“But I was enjoying myself,” she murmured.
“As was I…way too much.”
“How can you enjoy yourself too much?”
His mouth whispered against hers, “Let me show you.”
McKenna loved how he kissed. As if she were a canvas and his mouth the paintbrush, his total concentration was on her pleasure, creating and building until she was almost crying with her need. His lips feathered softly, gently over hers. A hot flush of heat speared through her and then she moaned in protest when his mouth lifted from her.
Lucas’s heart, his entire body, felt as if they were about to explode as he looked down at the beautiful woman before him. Passion-swollen lips, nipples distended, begging for his hands, his mouth. He wanted to savor her and devour her at the same time. If he went too fast, he might frighten her; too slow and he would explode. His gaze went to her face again, and he knew that no matter how badly he wanted to explode, he wouldn’t. This was for McKenna…he would prolong her pleasure, give her everything she had been denied.
If it killed him, when she left this bedroom, she would know that what happened between a man and a woman could be beautiful and satisfying, with absolutely no pain involved.
“Lucas?”
“Easy, love…just enjoying the moment.”
Her smile nervous and sexy at the same time, she whispered, “Could you enjoy it down here with me?”
“Definitely.” Lowering his head, he whispered kisses all over her face and neck, then stopped at her breasts because he had to. They were small, lovely, infinitely kissable and suckable. He could spend hours enjoying them. Keeping his mouth closed over one nipple, he let his hands roam up and down her body, loving the way she writhed beneath him, her soft little pants and gasps firing his blood and burning through to his soul.
Unable to wait any longer, he grabbed a condom from the bedside table and slid it on. His jaw clenched for control, Lucas moved between her legs. Watching her face for any expression of fear or pain, he eased into her wet warmth and groaned at the tightness. When he heard the hitch in her breath he stopped. “Are you okay?”
She nodded. “Yes, you feel so good…it feels so right.”
His heart pounding, everything within him begging for release, wanting to pound inside her for satisfaction, he ground his teeth together as he eased further in and then buried himself deep.
“Oh.”
That one soft word was loaded with meaning. The expression of wonder and awe on her face stripped every bit of control away from him. Covering her mouth with his, Lucas began to move. And McKenna was right there with him. She wrapped her legs around his hips and met every movement, arching her body to drive him deeper within her.
Propping himself on his elbows, he watched her eyes glitter as he thrust and retreated. She was close. The look on her face, the tightness of her body, and the clenching of her channel told him she was within seconds of climax. Wanting to make it as spectacular as possible, Lucas pressed deep within her and held still, allowing her to reach for the pleasure she sought. Her eyes widened and a long, low wail left her mouth as she tightened and spasmed around him.
Unable to stop, Lucas let go, pounding deeper, and then felt the quickening of his body as he came full force inside her. Several seconds later, his breath still rasping from his lungs, he shifted to move off of her. She clasped her arms around him and buried her face against his chest.
“McKenna?”
“I don’t want to let go yet. Okay?”
“I’m too heavy for you.”
Her face still hidden, she shook her head. “No, you’re fine.”
Knowing he had to be smothering her, he rolled over onto his back, keeping her as close as possible. Something told him he needed to stay quiet and just hold her. He didn’t think he’d hurt her; he’d watched her reaction every step of the way until the very end, when he’d lost his mind. Had he somehow hurt her then?
A soft sound that sounded like a sniffle pierced his heart like a dagger. “McKenna? Sweetheart?”
When she still wouldn’t look at him, he pulled away. He had to know the truth. Had he injured her somehow? He looked down at her face and his heart hurt even more. McKenna wasn’t a crier. The only time he’d seen her cry was when she’d told him about her past. Any other time, she faced things with sheer bravado and gritty determination.
“Did I hurt you?”
She shook her head but seemed unable to speak.
“What is it, then?”
A long breath shuddered through her. “I never knew how beautiful it could be or how good it would feel to have you inside me.”
Relief at her word mingled with sorrow at her previous experiences. “It was special for me, too.”
“Really?” She looked up at him with such hope, he was tempted to spill his guts. He couldn’t. She wasn’t ready to hear it, and he honestly didn’t know what he felt other than a myriad of emotions he could barely comprehend himself, much less explain.
“Yes, very special.”
Dammit, he sounded like an idiot, but she seemed happy with the words, so he let it go. If he started talking about commitment or anything remotely related to her staying, she’d be out of his bed and into a taxi before he could speak.
He kissed her softly and said again, “It was very special.”
A stomach growl was her response.
He looked down at her in mock horror. “No way.”
She giggled, and he delighted in the carefree sound.
Bounding from the bed, he held out his hand. “Let’s go.”
“Where are we going?”
“To raid the fridge, of course.”
She stood and looked around the room. “Where are my clothes?”
Pulling a sheet from the bed, he wrapped it around her slender frame and gave her the end of it to hold.
“What are you going to wear?”
Grabbing his underwear, he pulled it over his hips. “Let’s go.”
“What if Conrad gets up in the middle of the night?”
“Conrad has his own apartment on the other side of the estate. There aren’t any servants in the house.”
For some reason that statement seemed to delight her. She held the train of her sheet in her hand and said, “Let’s go clean out the kitchen.”
Feeling more lighthearted and happy than he could ever remember, Lucas led her down the stairs to the kitchen.
Lucas stood at the window of his office. He’d left McKenna sleeping deeply and had come into the city. Though his plans had been to work from home today, the urgent phone call he’d received from Phelps changed them.
The man was due in a few minutes and would expect some direction. He’d been furious at the news Phelps had given him and had been determined to give an earful to the editor of the news rag. Now he was rethinking those plans.
A knock at the door and then Myron stuck his head in. “Is it safe to come in?”
Lucas almost smiled. His initial reaction had been less than calm. “I’ve cooled down considerably.”
Myron strode in, placed a packet on Lucas’s desk, and dropped into a chair. “We only have a limited amount of time before it will b
e too late to stop them.”
Lucas picked up the packet and emptied it onto the desk. There were only five photographs. All taken the day she’d come to his estate, the pictures only showed two people staring into each other’s eyes, holding hands. In one photograph, Lucas had pushed a strand of hair behind her ear, a tender, affectionate gesture he’d never planned to share with the world. As celebrity photographs went, these were mild, even anemic displays of affection. But for Lucas Kane, who avoided as much publicity about his love life as possible, they might as well have been caught in a passionate kiss.
Dammit, he’d been so careful. Had even hired two extra security personnel to patrol the outer grounds, all in an effort to protect their privacy.
“Any reason why they’re just now surfacing? The photos were taken weeks ago.”
Phelps shrugged. “I don’t think anyone thought anything of them at first, but you’ve become more elusive than ever. You used to appear in public, at least occasionally, with some beauty hanging on your arm. That hasn’t happened in a while. Some enterprising reporter found the photographs filed away and decided there was more to them than what was first thought.”
Lucas stared down at them again. Only two of the photographs were clear enough to show their faces. He wasn’t so much disturbed as surprised by the expression on his face. Though Lucas had spent years learning to hide his thoughts, the photographer had somehow captured naked emotion as he gazed down at McKenna. And McKenna’s face was even more revealing, showing vulnerability and tenderness. Dammit, they’d been so busy gazing into each other’s eyes, they had let their guard down.
“What do you want me to do, Lucas? It’s going to cost some money, but I think we can buy them off or at least buy some time.”
Lucas didn’t respond to that. Money wasn’t even an issue. However, while he’d been waiting for Phelps to arrive, he’d had some time to think. What was done was done. Was this an opportunity he could use?
Uttering a silent prayer that he was making the right decision, Lucas said, “Delay them…but don’t stop them.”
Last Chance Page 16