The Seduction of His Wife

by Janet Chapman

  “No,” she said. “I’ll be fine.”

  “Then I shall have a fresh towel waiting for madam when she’s done. Just give me a shout.”

  Sarah heard the door click shut. Holy smokes, how was she going to survive a night alone with Alex? He was nearly irresistible when he was so playful.

  Sarah slapped her good hand to her chest. Now she was on to him—they were on a date! He’d brought her here to get her alone, not to check out her camps. And she’d bet there was absolutely nothing wrong with the truck. It probably wasn’t even snowing anymore, either.

  Trapped, hah! The man was staging a seduction.

  So…was she going to let him? Could she go back out there and play his game, eat his three-course meal and drink his sparkling grape juice, and act innocently but pleasantly surprised when he made his move?

  Then she remembered Alex’s reaction when she had kissed him this morning. She had caught him completely off-guard with that kiss, and he’d run into his imaginary snowstorm like an overheated teenager.

  Why not turn the tables on him again and let him see what it was like to be on the other end of a well-orchestrated scheme? After all, how hard could it be to seduce a man who’d already admitted he wanted her and had worked so hard to set the stage for her?

  Images of their first night together suddenly ran through Sarah’s mind, making her shiver as she remembered the heat of Alex’s body covering hers, the exciting sensations that had sent her soaring to wondrous heights, the feel of him deep inside her. She’d been so close…so close…

  Why not just put them both out of their misery and simply go for it? She could no longer deny that she wanted Alex just as much as he wanted her. Sarah thought she might explode with repressed desire.

  And, by God, she would experience it this time, and finally become a fully realized, completely satisfied woman. Sarah lifted her bandaged hand and gave the fictional Rachel Foster a high-five just as she heard footsteps stop outside the door.

  “You okay in there?” Alex asked.

  “I’m just great! In fact, I’m feeling positively energized from all that napping.”

  There was a moment’s hesitation. “O-kay. Call me when you’re done,” he said just before she heard him walk away.

  Sarah stood up on her good leg and eased her weight onto both feet, discovering that her knee barely hurt anymore. She groped around and found the toilet, did her business, then threw back her shoulders as she smoothed down her clothes with a Cheshire Cat smile, wondering how Alex liked seducing a woman who was wearing ratty old jogging pants and an even older sweatshirt.

  She snorted. The guy was only interested in what was under the clothes. “Okay,” she muttered. “Let’s see if I can pull this off stone-cold sober.” Sarah groped for the doorknob and opened the door with an innocent smile plastered on her face. “I’m done, Alex.”

  She heard him walking over and was quite prepared when he swept her off her feet and settled her against his chest. She was not prepared, however, when he sat down with her still in his arms and carefully positioned her on his lap.

  “I don’t get my own chair?” she asked, figuring this meant their game must be on.

  “I’ve decided I should feed you,” he said. “I realized the menu was messy when I did a taste test.”

  “And my fresh towel?” she asked, holding out her hand.

  He leaned away momentarily, then set a warm, moist cloth in her upturned palm. “How’s your knee?” he asked, gently caressing it. “It seems like the swelling’s gone down.”

  “It has. I guess all that rest worked,” she said, awkwardly washing her good hand. She started washing her face next, but Alex took over.

  She hadn’t read all those romance novels without learning one or two things about men. She leaned into his hand, parting her lips when the cloth reached her mouth. “Mmnn, that feels wonderful,” she whispered, letting her tongue dart out just as his fingers went brushing by.

  The cloth suddenly disappeared, and she heard it plop into a bowl of water. Alex cleared his throat. “Our first course tonight is hot dogs,” he said, his voice a tad edgy.

  A warm hot dog was pressed against her mouth, and Sarah parted her lips again, touched the hot dog with the tip of her tongue, then slowly pulled it partway into her mouth with a moan—which was completely drowned out by the stifled rumble coming from the chest she was leaning against.

  She bit off the end of the hot dog with a snap of her teeth and felt Alex shudder beneath her, the tiny quake empowering her to lick her lips and say in a drawn-out whisper, “Mmmnnnn, that tastes sooo good.”

  She heard the remains of the hot dog hit the floor. “Maybe I should start with the s’mores,” he said, the edge in his voice now decidedly pained.

  The gooey marshmallow and dripping chocolate cracker was pushed a bit more abruptly between her lips, and Sarah quickly took a bite, chewed, then turned her face toward him. “Do I have chocolate on my face?” she asked, running her tongue over her lips.

  It wasn’t a stifled groan she heard this time but an ominous growl, warning Sarah of his impending strike. His mouth completely covered hers, adding the taste of sparkling grape juice to the marshmallow and chocolate she had just swallowed.

  Holy smokes, she’d overplayed her hand! Sarah’s head swam in dizzying circles, and it wasn’t until she could breathe again and she felt her back press into the mattress that she realized what was happening.

  Alex landed heavily beside her, his mouth again covering hers just as one of his broad hands slid up under her shirt and closed over her breast, his other hand twined through her hair so he could deepen his kiss.

  But everything stopped, including time itself, it seemed, when he suddenly reared up, cursed softly, and pulled his hand from under her shirt. “I need to see your eyes,” he growled.

  Trembling with her own blossoming need, Sarah reached up and touched his clenched jaw. “No, you don’t. I’m wide awake, I promise. Make love to me, Alex,” she whispered. “For real this time.”

  That was all the encouragement he needed. He grabbed the hem of her shirt and worked it up over her breasts, lifting her with it as he carefully pulled it over her head. Sarah immediately began helping him pull his own shirt out of his pants and heard several buttons pop and clink to the floor when he yanked it off. Her breath caught in her throat when she reached up and felt his down-covered chest, which he used to press her back into the mattress as his mouth returned to hers, her thin lace bra little defense against his naked heat.

  Her own body was generating plenty of heat, too. Sarah’s pulse quickened as her fingers explored his powerful body, her sock-covered toes curling with the urge to run up the length of his legs and wrap around him. Her nerves crackled with high-tension energy as blood roared through her veins to pool in the pit of her stomach.

  So this was passion—this urgent need to feel, to taste, to become part of someone else. It was little wonder she felt as if she were being consumed. Sarah wanted to taste every inch of Alex. So she suckled his tongue and slid her feet up his pant-covered legs, all while her body continued to coil in anticipation. She flexed every one of her unbandaged fingers into his naked shoulders, arching her back to push her breasts into his heat.

  His mouth left hers so unexpectedly that Sarah cried out, her protest turning to a moan when his lips moved down her throat to find several sensitive places, sending shivers crashing through her like waves.

  Alex muttered something just as she felt the flimsy lace of her bra rip away to expose her breasts, and she gasped in surprise when his mouth closed over her nipple. He started to suckle, rocking her with pleasure, making her arch upward again.

  Except for an occasional curse when his wandering mouth got stopped by the drawstring on her pants, and intermittent growls when she would grab his hair and try to steer his salacious journey, Alex was proving to be a man of few words.

  There was a short wrestling match with her jogging pants, and when Sarah tried
to help, she realized she was actually working against him, and she uncurled her toes when he pulled off her pants and socks in one fluid motion.

  Her tachometer shot up past the redline when Alex settled between her thighs to nestle against her. He’d taken off his pants, and there was nothing—nothing—between them but solid, glorious heat.

  “Say you want me again,” he growled.

  “I want you.”

  “Say my name.”

  “Alex. I want you, Alex.”

  He reached down and touched her ever so intimately, his fingers sending a wave of even more focused, more intense pleasure rippling through her. “Hold my shoulders,” he ordered, moving firmly against her as his fingers continued to do magical things. “That’s it, Sunshine, relax and let me inside you.”

  Dammit, he was moving too slowly! Sarah shot him a beatific smile, gave it time to sink in, and said in a sultry voice, “I want you, Alex.” She lifted her hips. “Now,” she growled, pulling him closer to lick one of his nipples. “I want…oh, just do it!” she ordered.

  He went still. “I’m pretty sure I’ve been trying to do it for the last ten minutes.”

  Well, spit. Alex was all but inside her, for crying out loud, and she was blowing her great seduction by practically yelling at him to hurry up! She reached up and cupped his face, rubbing her thumb over his lips. “It’s just you, me, and our baby, Alex,” she whispered, placing his hand on her belly. “I’ve finally decided. You’re the only man I ever want to have a baby with.”

  Sarah felt his hand on her tummy tremble as he softly kneaded her sensitive skin. She arched up with a moan of pleasure and feathered a finger along his clenched jaw. “I want you, Alex. I ache to feel you inside me.”

  That, too, was what he needed to hear, apparently, because he lowered himself, setting his elbows on either side of her head as he covered her mouth with his. Sparks of pleasure returned with the swiftness of a summer squall, battering Sarah with a blazing heat that shot straight to her pelvis. He moved then—deliberately and maddeningly slowly—easing into her while gently kissing every inch of her face. Her own muscles tightened as Sarah stretched to take him inside. His weight lifted slightly, and his magical fingers started their erotic dance again, just as he began moving in a wonderfully gentle rhythm.

  Sarah buried her face in his neck to stifle her moan.

  “Don’t hold back, Sunshine. If I can’t see your eyes, then let me hear what you’re feeling,” he whispered raggedly.

  And Sarah finally let go. With his heated body reflecting her own raging desire, every nerve, every muscle, every cell in her body suddenly convulsed with violent pleasure, and Sarah’s long, keening scream rose to the rafters. Alex’s answering shout cannonaded like thunder as he drove into her, each commanding thrust carrying her beyond anything she could have ever imagined.

  It went on forever, this amazing melding of passion; she could feel, even taste, Alex’s pleasure, which only served to heighten her own. A succession of spiraling convulsions rocked her world, shattering her control and soundly shattering her safe little cocoon wide open.

  There was no sealing it back up, Sarah realized as her mind slowly tilted back into balance, but she didn’t care, lingering spasms of pleasure making her melt into the mattress with a deeply contented sigh. Trembling fingers brushed the hair off her face, and warm lips gently kissed her forehead between ragged breaths.

  Long after the last tremor of pleasure faded, Alex continued surrounding her with his heat, staying deep inside her. His weight felt wonderful; he was being so careful not to crush her.

  But she mustn’t let him get too pleased with himself. Not when she couldn’t stop blushing so hard. “Don’t think this means I’m moving to your bedroom,” she warned in a panting whisper. “Because we can’t ever do this when the kids are home. I screamed.”

  “I noticed,” he drawled, and kissed her forehead with a satisfied sigh. “It’s something we’ll have to work on, I guess.” He grinned briefly, then turned serious. “Will you marry me, Sarah?”

  “I already did.”

  “For real.”

  She hesitated. “I’ll have to give it some thought.”

  “You decided you’re glad you’re having my baby.”

  She tried shrugging, but his elbows were in the way. “One doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with the other.”

  He must have realized he wasn’t going to get the answer he wanted, so he simply asked another question, seemingly unaware that he was still inside her. “Was it better for you this time, sunshine? All that you’d hoped lovemaking could be?”

  Sarah heaved a huge sigh, forcing Alex to lift his chest enough to accommodate her before he lowered his weight again, pinning her in place. Oh, yeah, he was feeling much too smug—obviously overlooking the fact that she had seduced him and that she should be the one asking that question. Besides, wasn’t he supposed to roll onto his back now, take her with him, and they’d fall asleep cuddled in each other’s arms?

  She sighed. “It was wonderful,” she whispered, lazily patting his shoulder. “Even more than I’d imagined.”

  He suddenly but gently moved his hips forward and upward at that admission, then slightly withdrew before thrusting forward again. Sarah’s entire body shot awake, especially the sensitive spot he started kissing at the base of her ear. Holy smokes, he was ready to do it again?

  Apparently! His mouth moved along the base of her throat, rekindling her passion, and his hips started rocking her world all over again. Mmm, she could easily get used to this….

  Chapter Twenty-two

  “H ow much will new engines cost?” Sarah asked, sitting in front of the crackling fire, eating God knew what for breakfast. She couldn’t tell by taste or smell whether Alex was trying to cure her or kill her.

  “We’re insured against vandalism, which this certainly is,” he said from someplace near the reception counter. “But it’ll probably cost more for the new engines than all our equipment is worth. Two of the skidders and the delimber are old, the harvester’s considered ancient, and insurance only covers their actual value.” She heard him walking across the room. “At least our newest skidder escaped the tainted fuel. It’s been in the shop waiting for a part to repair it.”

  “So how much will you have to pay out of pocket?”

  “All total? Probably sixty, seventy thousand dollars for the trucks, delimber, and skidders,” he said, this time from the woodstove. “And another two hundred and fifty thousand for a new harvester, since we might as well replace it instead of repairing it.”

  Sarah looked toward him even though she couldn’t see anything. “Do you have that kind of cash?”

  She heard his sigh all the way across the room. “Not if Grady cleaned out our account to make that down payment on Loon Cove Lumber. Our credit will also be tied up in that mill.”

  Holy smokes—they could be put out of business. Without stopping to think what she was doing, Sarah took a bite of her breakfast and immediately gagged. She spit her mouthful into her hand and scraped her tongue on her teeth. Alex might make love as if there was no tomorrow, but he couldn’t cook his way out of a wet paper bag.

  “Here’s some grape juice,” he offered, holding a bottle up to her lips.

  Sarah took a large swig, forgetting it was sparkling grape juice, and started choking so badly some of the juice bubbled out her nose. Her chin was suddenly lifted and…good God, he was using his sleeve to wipe her nose!

  “I need to go to the truck to call home,” he said, his thumb rubbing something off the corner of her mouth. “Do you think you can eat your breakfast without killing yourself if I leave for a few minutes?”

  “Probably not,” she muttered, tossing the remains of her sandwich down. Her hand was sticky, and she groped around until she found Alex’s chest and wiped her fingers on his shirt. “I’m not very hungry, anyway. Is it done snowing?”

  “The sun’s shining. We got two feet of new snow.”
/>   “So how are we going to get out of here if all the plow trucks won’t start?”

  “Maybe we’ll have to stay another night,” he suggested, his voice close. “That wouldn’t be so bad, would it? We can work on your lessons,” he said just before his mouth covered hers.

  They had worked on her lessons enough last night that she should pass all her tests with flying colors. Sarah sighed into his mouth and was just starting to kiss him back when she suddenly found herself kissing empty air.

  “Don’t do that,” he said from someplace above her. “Or I’ll keep you here until the spring thaw.”

  “You started it.”

  His face came close to hers again. “And I intend to finish it,” he whispered. “Just as soon as you give me your answer.”

  “My answer to what?” she asked, totally confused.

  “I believe I asked you to marry me last night.”

  “Oh.” She leaned away and nodded. “I’ll let you know just as soon as I decide.”

  The air in front of her was empty again, and Sarah heard footsteps heading for the door. “Stay put,” he ordered just as a waft of cold air blew across the room and the door shut with a bang.

  Sarah touched the wedding band on her left ring finger. She had discovered it there when she’d awakened this morning and decided Alex was making sure no one poached his proxy wife while she was deciding whether she wanted to become a permanent fixture in his life—and, of course, in his bed.

  If she had any conscience at all, she’d put him out of his misery and tell him what he wanted to hear. But then she’d be doomed to spend the next fifty years married to a man who thought he could get his way simply by seducing her with mind-blowing sex. That was not the foundation she wanted for their marriage, and it definitely wasn’t a good precedent to set. Alex couldn’t just cart her off and make the rafters shake with her screams whenever he wanted something. Though he would certainly try, she thought with a crooked smile, because the apple hadn’t fallen very far from its daddy’s scheming tree.