“It’s okay, Dex. I have enough love for the both of us right now.” She reached out her hand to him. Dex gazed at her outstretched hand. His hand was unsteady as he took it into his, their fingers joining. He gently pulled her to him.
Standing on tiptoes, she wrapped her arms around his neck. Her smile was soft and sensual. “Thanks for bringing me home, Dex.”
He cupped her face and lowered his head. He had meant for his kiss to be gentle, soft, tender. But it was none of those things. It was hard, fierce, aggressive. It unleashed all the passion and desire that had been dormant the past four years. Those emotions had been untouched and unconquered by any other woman. Caitlin had a patent on them. They were hers and hers alone.
He reached out and gathered her into his arms and placed her on the bed, kissing her uncontrollably. His tongue stroked hers over and over again. She brazenly returned the kiss, igniting his passion and feeding his fire.
He reached out and touched her, letting his fingers follow the path of his heated gaze. “I want you so much.” He braced himself on his elbow to stare down into her eyes. Memories filled his mind of how things had been for them the first time they had made love. He wanted their coming together now to be as special as it had been then. Already he was burning for her with a need that went beyond anything he’d ever known. All he wanted to do was to feel her beneath him as he’d fantasized this past week. But first there was something he had to do; something he wanted to do.
Dex stood and walked over to the dresser and opened the top drawer. Coming back to the bed, he placed a velvet box in Caitlin’s hand.
A lump caught in her throat. Without opening the box she knew what was inside. Her wedding ring. Nervously, she lifted the lid to gaze down at the beautiful gold band embedded in white velvet.
“It was hard for me to remove this ring from my finger,” she said softly. Shadows of pain and regret haunted her eyes.
Dex removed the ring from the box and placed the wedding band on her finger. “And it was just as hard for me when I got it back.” He gazed into her eyes as he lifted her hand to his lips. “Now it’s back where it belongs.”
He straightened, slowly removing his towel. The hungry look in his eyes told Caitlin just how much he wanted her. His aroused body showed just how much he desired her. Her eyes took in the magnificent build of him. She watched him through passion-glazed eyes as he slowly came to her.
“My memories didn’t quite do you justice,” he said slowly removing her gown. “You’re more beautiful than I remembered.” An arousing glow lit his gaze as it fell upon her naked body. He wanted her desperately.
“There’s something you should know, before you go any further,” Caitlin said breathlessly, encircling his neck with her arms.
“What should I know, sweetheart?” he asked, leaning down. His lips placed small kisses on her neck and the side of her mouth, while his fingers stroked lightly along her inner thigh.
She met his gaze. “I’m not protected.”
Deep emotions shone in Dex’s eyes. “Neither am I, Caitlin. I’ve been unprotected since the moment I first laid eyes on you.”
Caitlin’s heart swelled with love for him. They were referring to two totally different things. He was admitting that with her, he was vulnerable, unguarded.
“Love me, Dex. Please make love to me.”
“I will, baby.” He kissed a path down her neck, moving lower. Her skin felt soft and smooth, and he wanted to taste every inch of her.
Her nails dug into his shoulder blades as he sweetly tormented her. It seemed every fiber in her body was responding to him. The molten ache he had created inside of her was almost unbearable. She let out a little cry; his name escaped her lips; her sensual pleas begged for fulfillment.
He whispered soft words in her ear as he continued to build the fire between them. She clung to him, quivering with a turbulent need as he continued to touch her. His hands moved over her body, stroking her, gently kneading her, and making her breast swell even more fully in his palms.
Dex’s stomach muscles tightened with anticipation. He was going through sheer torture and couldn’t deny their heated desires any longer. Positioning himself between the dark, soft thighs, he pulled her tightly to him. He slipped his hands beneath her, lifting her hips to receive him and entering her in one smooth thrust. Planted deep within her, he filled her completely. Her tightness encompassed him, and he could tell no other man had made love to her since him. That realization almost made him lose control.
His mouth caught hers in a deep kiss that fired their passions into glorious splendor. He began moving against her, taking her with slow, deep and gentle thrusts.
Caitlin arched against him, caressing his strong body, reacquainting herself with him as he moved inside her. Her nails bit into his back and shoulder as he drove deeper and deeper. She wrapped her legs around him, stroking him with her hips as the slow, erotic rhythm he’d set earlier increased. Dex began moving more rapidly, more urgently. His thrusts became harder, stronger. Her breath came in short gasps and her body was strung to its maximal cord.
“You’re mine, Caitlin. You’ve always been mine. You’ll always be mine,” he whispered hoarsely.
She knew Dex’s words of possession were the closest to anything endearing he would give her. He kissed her then, long and hard. The rhythmic mating of their tongues matched his every thrust as his hips drove repeatedly into her, flooding her with intense pleasure. She clung to him as powerful rapturous waves increased and touched her body. She shuddered, clinging to him, moaning his name again and again as he filled her completely.
With one final thrust, Dex cried out her name in his own shattering release, exploding inside of her. They continued to shudder together uncontrollably. He pulled her closer, and Caitlin automatically locked her legs around him drawing him, even further into herself.
Ever so slowly, the stormy reuniting of their bodies left them both weak with passion spent, but at the same time, overwhelmed, consumed and pleasurably satisfied.
In each other’s arms, they were home.
The glitter of sunlight filtered through the room and cast its radiant beam upon the man sleeping peacefully in the bed. Caitlin lay propped up on her elbow, totally absorbed in watching Dex sleep. How had she turned her back on such a gorgeous brother? How could she have given up a man who was filled with so much passion? Even in sleep his entire being called out to her, making her ache for him, making her blood burst into flames. If only he loved her as much as she loved him. If only he trusted her as much as she trusted him. If only he would have as much faith in her as she had in him.
Leaning over, she planted small kisses on the sweeping lashes that fanned his cheeks, on his firm cheekbone and the angular jaw covered with a bit of morning stubble. She then leaned down and kissed his chest. It had been so long since she had felt so alive, so contented and so tired.
Their hunger had been profound. It had mounted and demanded release over and over again. All through the night and early morning Dex had made love to her. Their lovemaking had been unlimited. It had been deeply passionate, and it had been wonderful. His musky, masculine scent still clung to her body.
Caitlin gently eased from the bed. When she got to her feet she winced at the unexpected soreness, proof of the intensity of their lovemaking. She took a deep breath and headed for the bathroom knowing the soreness would remain for a day or two. But its presence would be a welcome reminder of a night spent making love to her husband.
As she began to dress after her shower she knew they had crossed one hurdle, but there were still more to overcome. Her love for him would give her the strength to endure the days ahead.
Dex was awakened by the sound of his daughter’s laughter floating lazily through his hazy mind. Shifting his head on the pillow, he remembered his dream. It was strange how dreams could almost seem real.
Suddenly the reality of last night struck him. He came wide awake. It had not been a dream. The intimacy he an
d Caitlin had shared had been real. The heat wave of passion totally consuming them had been mind shattering and earthmoving. He had kissed her senseless, and she’d encouraged him with her groans of pleasure and her shivers of delight.
Dex closed his eyes, remembering her beneath him. Her silken thighs wrapped firmly around his waist in a tight grip while he stroked the fire within her. Each time he’d entered her, she’d arched against him, pulling him deeper and deeper inside of her. He had tried being gentle. He had tried being tender. But his control had faltered. She had returned his tempestuous, intense and moving passion, making him burn for her. It was as if she had deliberately tried stealing his soul, his mind and…his heart.
Never had he felt such stirring, inspiring and stimulating surrender. He felt completely drained yet totally renewed. As he lay there, he knew the project he’d lost with Remington Oil wasn’t important. What was important to him was Caitlin. She was the only thing that mattered.
Minutes later Dex found himself whistling in the shower. Anxious to see his wife and daughter, he finished showering and hurried with his dressing. Slipping into a pair of jeans and a short-sleeved knit shirt, he walked briskly down the hall and stairs toward the kitchen where his daughter’s laughter could be heard.
The scene that awaited him took his breath away. Caitlin was sitting at the table with Jordan. Their heads were close together as they excitedly put together a puzzle.
Dex found himself staring at them. He released a long, deep sigh of both pleasure and satisfaction that caught his daughter’s attention.
“Daddy!” Jordan’s bright, cheery smile indicated she was very glad to see him. He would never get tired of seeing her happy. Dex walked over to her and picked her up. He gave her a gentle yet fierce hug and at the same time he placed a warm kiss on his wife’s lips.
“How’s Daddy’s princess today?” he asked Jordan who’d been so absorbed in giving her father a hug that she completely missed her parents’ kiss.
A dimple formed in Jordan’s chin. “Fine, Daddy. Mommy said I couldn’t wake you. She said you needed to sleep and you were tired.” She gazed up at him curiously. “Were you?”
Dex caught Caitlin’s eyes. “Yes, Jordan. Daddy was very tired.”
“Why?”
Dex cast Caitlin a deep smile. “I worked very hard yesterday, especially last night.”
“Oh,” Jordan replied. She then shifted positions in her father’s arms. “Daddy?”
“Yes, baby?”
“Will you build me a tree house just like this house?”
Dex smiled. “Yes, but I don’t think you’ll need one quite as big as this one.”
Jordan nodded. “Will Uncle Clayton help you?”
“Yes, I think he’ll help if we ask him.”
“Daddy?”
“Yes, sweetheart?”
“May I have a horse to keep in the backyard?”
Dex laughed. “I don’t know if our neighbors will like that very much, Jordan. But I’ll get you a horse, and since your uncle Justin’s yard is so much bigger than ours, and he doesn’t have any neighbors, I think we should let him keep it for us. How’s that?”
“Who’s Uncle Justin?”
“He’s your other uncle whom you haven’t met yet. He’s real nice and has a little boy name Vincent who has a horse, too. In fact Uncle Justin has a lot of horses at his ranch, and I’d bet he’ll be glad to take care of yours. I’ll take you to see him often so you can learn to ride.”
A smile covered Jordan’s face. She was completely satisfied with her father’s answer. “Daddy?”
“Yes, Jordan?”
“Can I have a baby sister or a baby brother?”
“Do you really want one?”
Dex chuckled as his daughter’s head eagerly bobbed up and down. He met Caitlin’s gaze again. The dark circles under her eyes reminded him of their night together and how little sleep she’d gotten. Her words that she was not on any type of birth control came back to him. “I think that’s possible one day, Jordan.”
“Do I have any more uncles, Daddy?”
“Yes, you do,” Dex answered, thinking of his two brothers-in-law. “Why do you ask?”
“Since Uncle Clayton is going to help build my tree house, and Uncle Justin is going to keep my horse for me, will my other uncles help you and Mommy get our new baby?”
Dex’s laughter filled the room. “No. That’s something Mommy and I can handle all by ourselves. We won’t need any help. No help at all.”
Chapter 15
Dex spent the following week in total awe of how wonderful Caitlin felt in his arms every night, and how right she felt in his life. They were taking each day one at a time, and so far, everything was going smoothly. She had turned his house into a home, and had made his infrequent smile a permanent fixture on his face.
The sensual attraction between them had not lessened any, nor was their lovemaking confined strictly to the bedroom. They thoroughly enjoyed the stolen moments they shared while Jordan napped or the long pleasurable hours wrapped in each other’s arms after their daughter had been tucked into bed for the night.
During the past week, they’d not had any company. Dex had asked his family to stay away to give him and Caitlin time to scale the barriers between them and to adjust to their life together. His family had understood and had honored his request, but he knew he couldn’t keep them at bay much longer. He stared down at the letter that had arrived that morning.
…Dex, the nineteenth of July is Lorren’s birthday and I’m giving her a birthday party here at Lorren Oaks. I would like the family to come prepared to stay the entire weekend. I think it would be a great time for the family to get reacquainted with Caitlin and for all of us to finally meet Jordan. I’ve spoken with Mom and Dad and they will be arriving here from their trip. There’s plenty of room for everyone. I sure hope all of you can make it.
Best Regards, Justin…
Dex left the kitchen and went looking for his wife. He found her as he knew he would, in his study bent over his computer system, entering data into it.
Caitlin had taken on the project of organizing his files. She’d declared with the two of them working on it during their free time they could have the task completed in a couple of days.
Dex had found himself less than enthused with the idea. Unlike her, fiddling around with a computer was not his favorite pastime. Her knowledge of them and her ability to work with them were amazing. He would watch in utter fascination as she effortlessly plowed through stacks and stacks of paperwork, entering them onto the system in a logical way for him to retain and have easy access to information about locations of various drilling sights and oil formations. Although her dedication had been appreciated, he had other ideas on how they could spend their free time.
Suddenly aware she was being watched, Caitlin swiveled the chair around just in time to see Dex enter the room and lock the door behind him. He leaned against the door with his arms folded across his chest, staring at her. His expression was gentle and warm. They continued to regard each other in silence for a minute. Then Dex spoke. “Are you having fun?”
Caitlin smiled. “Sure, I’m having a blast. However, if I remember correctly, this was supposed to be a team effort.”
Dex grinned. “You’re doing just fine without me.” He came farther into the room. “This arrived earlier.” He handed her the letter.
Caitlin read it. Her brows furrowed. “Why didn’t he just call?”
“I told my family not to bother us.”
“Why? I was wondering why none of them had dropped by. I know how close you all are.”
“I did it for purely selfish reasons. I wanted you and Jordan all to myself for a while. I’m not ready to share the two of you yet,” he said, pulling her up from the chair and into his embrace. “We needed time alone,” he murmured against her throat.
Caitlin arched her body to him when his arms urged her hips against his. “Where’s Jordan?” she asked breathl
essly.
“She’s taking a nap.”
Caitlin’s hand traced lightly upon the warm skin of Dex’s arm. Her pulse accelerated madly. “It’s time for me to take a break.”
Dex’s eyes darkened. “I totally agree.”
Caitlin placed her hand against Dex’s cheek, touching the lines of his brow and detecting deep concern there. “Dex, is anything wrong?”
He hesitated before replying. “How do you feel about seeing my family again, Caitlin?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “I can’t avoid them forever. I know because I’ve hurt you, I’m probably not their favorite person.”
“Don’t feel that way. Believe it or not, my family understood what you did.”
His words surprised her. “They did?”
Dex nodded. “They thought you were too young at the time to really know your own heart. They actually accused me of rushing you into a situation you weren’t quite ready for. According to my dad, if Christy had been in your place and had left for a summer job and returned less than a month later with a husband, especially one eleven years older, who had plans to take her out of the country, he would have been upset about it.”
He chuckled. “Justin and Clayton, on the other hand, would have been more than upset. I can see them taking the man apart piece by piece. They take their roles of big brothers seriously.” He reached out and took her hand in his. “I have to constantly remind myself you were barely twenty-one when we married. Compared to me, you were a mere child,” he teased.
“I was not,” Caitlin said as a grin spread across her face.
“Yes, you were. You’ve grown up a lot over the years in more ways than one. I left you a blushing bride and now you’re a very mature woman and a wonderful mother.”
Neither said anything else for a few minutes, then Caitlin spoke. “Thanks for your concern regarding your family, but I’ll be okay. Actually, I’m looking forward to seeing them again, and I’m especially looking forward to meeting Justin’s wife, Lorren.”
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