She bit her lip and continued her work even though he became fully aroused before her eyes.
“You’re not afraid of a naked man, are you?” he asked.
“No comment.”
When she finished covering his scrapes with the ointment, she glanced up at his face. Their gazes locked and awareness pulsed between them.
Bursting into more tears, she threw her arms around him, careful of his wounds. “I was so scared that I’d lost you.” She pulled a little out of his embrace and swiped at her eyes. “Don’t ever do that to me again.”
His eyebrows drew together in a frown and he lifted her chin with his knuckle. “Don’t cry, love.”
She lay her hand against his cheek. “You could’ve been killed.”
“But I’m all right.” He bent and brushed her lips with his. Her fingers crept up his arms.
His tongue flicked over her lips––teasing at first. When her lips parted, he thrust his tongue into her mouth with fierce urgency. Sensations rocked her.
He groaned and threaded his fingers through her hair and pressed closer for a deeper kiss . . . as if he couldn’t get enough. Passion ignited in her soul.
When he slid his hand under the edge of her shirt, and beneath her bathing suit top, she caught her breath. His palm lingered upon her breast and caressed. Her nipples hardened and her breathing became labored. Her knees sagged and she leaned toward him.
“Kelly?” he murmured in a savage groan against her lips. His erection pressed into her belly. “If you don’t want this—”
“Don’t stop.” She entwined her arms around his neck.
* * *
After expelling a ragged breath along her cheek, Alex untied the top of her bikini. His heart pounded in a racing rhythm. He’d never wanted a woman more than Kelly. Looking him directly in the eyes, she pushed her bathing suit bottom down her legs. He bent and slipped the bikini off her feet. His breathing quickened at the sight of her bared to his view.
He led her to a grassy spot by the waterfall and spread out the towel on the grass. He pulled her down beside him on the ground, then cupped and molded her rose-tipped breasts in his hands. He lowered his head to her breasts and took a nipple into his mouth. She gasped, then relaxed, and allowed him access to her body.
Her breathing came in little rasps, causing waves of excitement to course through him. Groaning, he returned his lips to hers and kissed her with all the pent-up passion he’d suppressed since their first meeting. He ran his hands over her silky body, down to her most sensitive spot. Slipping his hand between her satin-smooth thighs, he parted her with his fingers and found her wet and ready.
She moved against his hand. “Alex.” His name drifted across her lips in a plea. “I want you. Please—”
He stopped her words with a searing kiss. The urge to be inside her engulfed him like a flame, and he fitted himself to her entrance. He joined her body, but she was so tight. He pushed and drove into her. A barrier broke.
She stifled a cry against his lips.
Tearing his mouth from hers, he gazed into her flushed face, now understanding her earlier skittishness. “Bloody hell, Kelly. I thought something bad had happened to you, to make you fearful, but . . . you’re a virgin.”
She clamped her eyes shut. “Was. I hoped you wouldn’t notice.”
“Notice?” Her tight body clenched him and erased all rational discussion after that. An extraordinary chemistry existed between them, but he’d been unprepared for how good it would feel to be inside her. While he’d thrust into her, driven by need, but trying to seek pleasure for both of them, she’d lain motionless beneath him. In the back of his mind, he feared he’d hurt her and vowed to make this up to her.
“Kelly, I’m. . .oh damn. . .” He shot off like a rocket and exploded into a thousand pieces, and shattered into a million more. Grasping her hips, he convulsed deeply inside her.
Spent, he collapsed and slumped, panting in her arms. The parrots squawked in the trees above but everything else was silent. Finally, he drifted back to reality. They lay partially on the towel with grass beneath her back and his hand. He closed his eyes, drained of energy. They were the perfect match. He’d reacted like a bloody schoolboy, not a man of considerable experience. He groaned—and she’d been a virgin.
And though now wasn’t the time to mention it, he should have withdrawn at the last minute for birth control purposes. How reckless he’d been, but with her, his feelings had never been under control.
Still joined to her, and trembling with the aftermath of lovemaking, he raised up on his forearms. “Kelly, you should’ve told me.”
“What difference does it make?” Her gaze dared him to make a big deal about her virginity.
Narrowing his eyes, he studied her as she lay beneath him, her glorious red hair fanned around her as he’d fantasized for weeks. Never had he dreamed that as beautiful as she was, and engaged to a man like Robert Hillyard, she would be untouched. Now, things were considerably more complicated and everything had changed.
With a sigh, he traced his finger along her cheek. She shivered, her eyes widening. How badly had he hurt her?
Smiling faintly, he flicked her chin. “If you’d told me, somehow I would have gone slower and avoided hurting you so much.” He brushed his thumb over her swollen lips. She looked well kissed, the way he wanted her to look from now on.
He withdrew from her, shuddering at those intense sensations. He rolled over onto his back on the grass. With a relaxed sigh, he flung his arm over his head. “You’re full of surprises, aren’t you, love?”
She crossed her arms, shielding her breasts. “I’m going to bathe.”
Frowning, he sat up beside her. “No, not yet.” He tugged her arms away from her breasts. Her wide-eyed gaze met his. “Please don’t hide from me. I realize things went too fast. I was out of control after wanting you for so long.” He raised her hand to his lips. “I’m sorry if I hurt you. I’m not so selfish. I’ll make it good for you. I swear it.”
* * *
As Kelly sat with Alex on the towel in this beautiful tropical setting, with the waterfall splashing near them, she found his smile disarming. She wanted to believe him and more than anything she wanted to be his lover. “I always thought I’d hate sex, and I’d been right.”
“No, Kelly, no.” He ran his hands over her shoulders and breasts.
She closed her eyes. “I do love it when you touch me.”
“It was your first time. You know you’re beautiful, Kelly.” When he lowered his mouth to her breasts, warm sensations spread through her. Although the stubble of his face scratched her skin, made tender by their previous lovemaking, desire leaped again like a flame.
“Do you like this?” he asked, his lips against her skin.
“Yes.” Despite the pain she had experienced, she wanted him to love her.
“Put your hands on me, Kelly.”
She placed her palms on his chest, and did what she’d secretly longed to do. She ran her hands along the ripple of his muscles and his smooth skin, mindful of the cuts and bruises. With a mind of their own, her fingertips traced his nipples. Small and flat, they stiffened like hers.
She trailed her fingers lightly around the cut on his ribs and lifted a shy gaze to his face. “Does your wound hurt too much?”
“What wound?” he asked with heavy-lidded eyes.
“All right, Mr. Tough Guy.” She returned her hand to his chest and explored the feel of him. “Hmmmm, I must say, I like this part. Did you know your eyes change to a darker blue?”
He shook his head. “Now, let me touch you.”
He smoothed his hand over her breasts, caressed her flat stomach, and down to the juncture of her thighs. She swallowed to relieve her dry throat, engulfed with exquisite feelings as he parted her.
He inserted one finger and then another within her. “I’m hard again. I promise you that this time I’ll go slower, love.”
He settled on top of her. Kelly glanced do
wn to see him positioned between her bare thighs. She tensed, waiting for the pain. He eased inside. The initial stretching and burning disappeared when he thrust within her. She clasped her arms around him tightly, caught his rhythm, and let the pleasure carry her away.
His breath warmed her cheek. “It feels incredibly good to be inside you.”
“Kiss me.” She grasped his head and brought his mouth to hers, his lips intoxicating.
With a moan, she climbed toward something out of reach. When intense pleasure engulfed her, she gasped in surprise as strong sensations overtook her, and she contracted beneath him.
“Kelly.” His eyes flared as he gave himself up to his own simultaneous release. When he collapsed on top of her, seeming all tired and happy, she smiled and raked her nails along his back. Now, she understood the satisfaction their bodies could give each other.
When he finally moved, he pressed a kiss on her lips, rolled to his back and nestled her into the crook of his arm. They slept.
A parrot squawked overhead. She lifted her gaze to the sunlit canopy of trees swaying in the breeze above them. She was tired and strangely happy. Alex’s arm was beneath her and his fingers possessively curved over her breast.
She twisted her head to see his face. His eyes closed, he looked relaxed and contented, his chest rising and falling with each breath. The sun’s dancing light made golden highlights in his dark blond hair.
Smiling, she reached to pull a blade of grass from his hair when reality struck. Her body turned cold. She had been carried away by desire. Now, the enormity and the consequences of what they’d done sank in.
* * *
He opened his eyes, woken by her attempts to untangle her hair from beneath his arm. “Where are you going, Kelly?”
She scrambled to her feet. “Into the water.” Her shapely body glistened in the sunlight as she headed for the lagoon.
“Wait.” He rose on his elbow. “We need to talk.”
Ankle-deep in the water, she turned to him, a cool expression in her eyes. “About what?”
“About what just happened here,” he said in exasperation.
“Do you mean what shouldn’t have happened here?”
He rose to his feet. “Kelly, it was inevitable. We’ve been attracted to each other since the day we met. Why didn’t you tell me you were a virgin?”
She threw her arms out. “When should I have told you? You know, I never planned for this to happen.”
“You could’ve told me when we began.”
Her shoulders sagged. “I wasn’t about to. At twenty-four, we virgins don’t like to broadcast the news. Actually, I thought you’d laugh at me.”
“I wouldn’t laugh, but I am surprised.”
“Is there something wrong with my being a virgin?”
“Having been,” he corrected. “No.” The type of women he dated were at the other end of the spectrum—experienced women who knew that with him the act was for the pure enjoyment of sex. “I thought that because you were engaged . . .” As he thought for the right words he realized he was extremely satisfied she’d never been with Hillyard.
“It’s a long story.”
“Doesn’t look like we’re going anywhere at the moment.” He stepped toward her. When she turned away, he placed his hand on her back. “Please, talk to me.”
With a sigh, she returned and sat on the towel. He sat beside her and put his arm around her shoulders.
Though she still looked proud, sadness tinged her voice. “A few years ago, I was engaged to someone else. I knew I had a problem because I would freeze and feel sick when he tried to touch me, even when I thought I loved him. Then I went to see a psychologist who said my father’s affairs had influenced me. My fiancé and I broke up soon afterwards. I cancelled my appointments and never finished therapy.”
He squeezed her hand. “Go on. Tell me why you think you felt like that.”
She shrugged. “I suppose the nights I spent hearing my mother cry, wondering who her cheating husband was with, affected me.” A melancholy frown drifted across her features. “Call me old-fashioned, but I wanted to be married when I had sex for the first time.”
She’d been saving herself for Hillyard.
That truth hit Alex like a crippling blow to his stomach. He had taken something special from her, something he could never give back.
He brushed his fingers along her collarbone. “I don’t want you to be sorry.”
She frowned creased her forehead. “I don’t know why this happened. I guess I was so frightened when you almost died.”
“You regret it already?” he asked, afraid to hear her answer. When she didn’t respond, he put an arm around her and nestled her head against his shoulder. “Well, I don’t regret anything. Who knows how long we’ll be here?”
“Are you justifying our actions?”
He stroked her hair, warring again with his own desire for her. “Don’t blame yourself. We’ve been lost for weeks. They probably think we’re dead.”
“I know. I’m going into the water.” She slipped from his embrace and waded into the lagoon. He made a move to join her, but she backed away. “Please, I need some time alone. And some space.”
* * *
Kelly strode away from the lagoon. She had to have time to think. To do so clearly, she needed to be away from Alex’s presence. With his charismatic influence over her, he could convince her the sky was purple. Fifteen minutes later, she reached the bottom of the steep cliff, where he had nearly fallen to his death. A shiver ran through her as she gazed up at the crest jutting against the blue sky. If not for the one tree still dangling by its roots, he would be dead.
“Thank you, God, for sparing his life,” she whispered.
With a half-hearted effort, she scrambled over the heap of rocks and dirt at the foot of the hill. After searching unsuccessfully for her engagement ring, she dusted off her hands. The expensive ring was trivial, except to return it to Robert. What was important to her was that Alex lived, and she wasn’t alone.
She left the site to stroll the sandy beach. Her body attested to their lovemaking. She was sore in places she never knew she could be. Ever since they’d met, Alex had wanted to have sex with her. And even if her mind had never condoned it, her body certainly had triumphed and won the battle.
He gave her an emotional jolt she’d never dreamed of feeling. However, unless they were stuck here forever, nothing would be permanent with him. That truth hurt.
Inhaling the fresh salt air, she plopped on the sand. The ocean spread in gentle waves across the beach. The loud cries of the seagulls filled the air. Tiny birds on stilted legs foraged for food in the surf.
Despite the warmth of the day, she shivered when she considered the isolation of the island. Alex was right. They didn’t know when they would be rescued.
When the sky turned into pink and red hues, she made her way back to camp. A fire crackled in the pit and dinner lay on the makeshift table.
Alex sat staring into the fire. He jumped to his feet when he saw her and limped toward her, a muscle flexing in his jaw and his hands clenched at his side. “It’s dark. Where have you been? I’ve been worried about you.”
She shrank back from the simmering angst in his eyes. He looked so much like a concerned husband she wanted to laugh. “Where could I go?” she asked softly.
“You could’ve been hurt.”
“I went for a walk. Did I tell you earlier I lost my ring over the cliff when I was throwing the vines to you?”
“No,” he said through clenched teeth.
“I had to search for it.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “Did you find it?”
“No.”
“You can’t manage to hang onto that ring,” he muttered. “Maybe there’s a meaning behind the fact.”
“I guess it’s just as well. How can I go back to Robert after this?”
He stepped closer. “Still chastising yourself for being bloody human? What happened bet
ween us was not your fault.”
“I despised my dad’s meaningless affairs and the way he cheated on my mother.”
Alex’s eyebrows rose in an affronted frown. “You think what happened between us was meaningless? I care for you, and I think you feel the same way about me.” He clasped her shoulders. “Besides, I don’t think civilization’s rules mean a bloody lot out here. We need each other.” He tenderly moved a strand of her hair from her face.
“But I know how you feel about a relationship. Don’t you understand this goes against all my morals?” Even knowing this, her knees grew weak at his touch.
He sighed. “We might not want to talk about it, but we’ve been here for over a month. We could be here another five years or fifty.”
“But if we’re rescued?” she asked, already knowing the answer. She lifted her chin. “You want an affair with me while on the island with no later obligations?”
He expelled an exasperated breath. “I care about you, but don’t fall in love with me. I can’t give you that in return.”
She bit her lip. Falling in love with him would be a sure way to a broken heart. She wrenched away from him. “Then don’t expect anything more from me. You’ll have to hold out until we’re rescued.” He clasped her elbow, but she jerked her arm away. “Don’t touch me.”
“Kelly, I don’t want to hurt you. Can’t you see that’s the last thing I want to do? That’s why I’m being completely honest with you.”
Ignoring him, she paced back and forth across the camp, the crackling fire casting her long shadow. Finally, she halted and crossed her arms over her chest. “Perhaps you should move to the other side of the island.”
His expression revealed that he knew she couldn’t live here alone and that irked her. “We need each other to survive.”
“And I’m the only girl available.”
“That’s not true, Kelly,” he said, shaking his head emphatically. “I asked you to have dinner with me on the cruise. I wanted you then, and I do care about you now.”
Dangerous Paradise Page 14