by Sheila Kell
With a slow smile on his face, Matt raised a hand to her cheek and rubbed her jawbone with his thumb. “We’ll work it out. I promise.”
How could he promise such a thing? He wasn’t in control of her body and mind. “But what if I—”
His finger on her lip silenced her. “Shh. We’ll worry about it later. Now”—he raised an eyebrow—“did you say you wanted to be with me right now?”
She nodded slowly since his finger still sat on her lips. Then the finger began tracing her lips and her pulse shot out of control. The things he did with his touch. Did he realize he turned her to mush so easily? With his confidence, she guessed she may have told him that at some point when they were together. Maybe he’d just learned her body.
“If I do this, you have to look at me, and you have to tell me if you can’t handle it.” Once her eyes landed on his, he asked, “Promise?”
Caitlyn took a deep breath, released it, and nodded. “Promise.”
“Good.” He leaned down and touched his lips to hers, lightly, soft and sweet.
A tingling left her mouth and rode down her body like it was chased by the devil leaving an urgent need behind. When it reached her core, she wanted to cheer. She also wanted more. Burying her fingers in his short, unruly dark hair, she clutched his head, trying to get him to deepen the kiss, but he kept his lips gentle on hers. Without considering the consequences, Caitlyn nipped his lower lip to gain his attention. When he opened his mouth and eyes in surprise, she took control and moaned in pleasure. With an intense need, she took charge and surged her tongue forward, devouring his mouth in a searing lock of their lips.
After his apparent shock had worn off, he tried to regain control over the kiss, but she wouldn’t allow it, and he must’ve realized she had to be in command, because he followed the movements of her tongue as they explored each other’s mouths and tangled like wildfire. At his submission, she shivered with a surge of power and control. The power to bring a man as big as Matt to follow her lead. To be able to explore and taste this sexy male specimen’s mouth on her terms.
Oh, how she loved his taste. Like a scent he carried, it was masculine. Not like the sickening taste of—
Abruptly she pulled back from the kiss and looked at Matt to clear her mind. So she didn’t look as frazzled as she felt, she tried to play off her breaking the kiss. She would not allow thoughts of that night to intrude and ruin what she’d decided would be the best night of her life. “Do you want to go to my bedroom?” she offered.
He searched her eyes for what seemed like forever, before he smiled and nodded.
Butterflies bounced around in her tummy. His smile was one of the most attractive things about him. It brightened up his face, and his eyes glittered with something that made one feel like that smile was special—just for them.
Scooting off his lap, she grabbed the TV remote and turned off the television and satellite box before going to her bedroom with Matt hot on her heels. An eager excitement built inside her bones. They were going to make love.
Inside her bedroom, Matt’s presence made the room seem so much smaller. He had a bigger-than-life feel about him. When he locked the door, a small tremor of unwelcome fear slid through her.
I can do this, she told herself. Purging the fear, she called upon her fortitude and moved to Matt. Reaching for his shirt and pulling it from his jeans, she didn’t look at him—only focused on her task. When he stood stock still, she finally looked up into his eyes. Those eyes burned with desire. It pushed her to an almost recklessness to be near him… be a part of him… be with him.
She tossed her arms around his neck and pulled herself up on her tiptoes. “Kiss me,” she whispered her demand.
That was all it took. His arms wound around her and pulled her snug against him. His mouth crashed down on hers in a hungry, demanding kiss. One that reset the fires that burned deep inside her. The fire that flashed to her core. A place only Matt had ever brought to life.
Before Matt, she’d never been with a man. Of course, since it had only been her father and her growing up, she’d not really understood exactly what to expect during sex. It hadn’t been like she could check out instructional books at the school library. It’d been before she went into college that Aunt Liz had explained the birds and the bees in depth to her. Matt had been her first lover after that, and he’d far exceeded her aunt’s explanation of the pleasure that could be had with an inexperienced college boy.
Matt broke the kiss. “Are you sure?”
How did she get so lucky to have Matt back in her life? He cared about her. He loved her. She didn’t know how it could get better. Sex excluded. “Yes,” she breathed.
“Remember that you can call a stop at any time.”
“I remember. Now, make love to me.”
With a lopsided grin, he slowly reached to slide Caitlyn’s shirt over her head. Without hesitating, she raised her arms, allowing him to pull off her top. Then eagerly, she grabbed his and did the same. Her hands came against his hard chest, and she moaned at the comforting heat she felt touching him.
He reached for her bra and stopped. “Are you still okay? Still ready for this?”
“Yes, now quit stalling.” She laughed.
“This won’t be the last time I check. It’s important I not take over and move too fast. I love and respect you too much.”
“I love you.” When he didn’t move, she reassured him, “Yes, I want more.”
With uncanny skill, he easily unclasped her bra and slid it down her shoulders. When the cool air hit her bare breasts, her immediate reaction was to cover them—hide them with her hands. It was that small voice that screamed at her to throw her arms around herself and hide her body from him, but she squashed it and stood proudly. She wouldn’t hide from Matt. So she stood before him bare-chested, and a driving need to be with him flooded out the noise of that screaming voice. As for her figure, granted she could be bigger up top, but Matt had never seemed to be displeased before. A sudden wariness crept into her thoughts. Had he changed what he liked? It had been a long time since they’d been intimate.
“God, you’re beautiful.” The rasp in his voice beat the wariness away. When his hands touched her aching breasts, she arched her back in pleasure.
“So are you,” she replied in a hushed whisper. She couldn’t get anything else out because he’d began to massage her breasts, as if weighing them for something important or… remembering them in his hands. When his thumbs touched her puckered nipples, she whimpered. Her nipples had always been sensitive and him teasing both at the same time had her core flaming hot, the flames being fanned until that old erotic feeling she’d thought she’d lost had ignited deep within her.
“I want to taste you, Caitlyn.”
“Okay,” she breathed.
“Do you want to undress the rest of the way or may I?”
A pang of nervousness hit her again, and she swatted it away, tired of allowing it to interfere. She knew it’d never go away—her past couldn’t as much as she’d like it to do so—but she could allow herself this pleasure. “How about we undress ourselves the rest of the way? That way, you can get your pants over….” She didn’t want to imply he had a problem, but she didn’t want to catch his pants on his artificial leg.
When she’d half expected him to rebut her comment, he just nodded and went for the button on his jeans. Shrugging, she did the same and that pang of anxiety returned as nervous excitement this time. She liked that feeling much better.
They scrambled out of the rest of their clothing, as they rushed to unfasten buttons and zippers before disposing of underwear. By the time they were both naked, Caitlyn’s need for him rocketed to desperate. She burned hot and needed his touch.
Naked, they stared at each other, as if one touch would bring an end to the fiery passion they shared. Breaking the tension, Matt crawled on the bed and moved to his side. He patted the space next to him. “Come here. I need to lick and kiss every inch of your luscious bo
dy. Be ready for pleasure, but know I still remember your ticklish spots.”
With a chuckle and a smile, she scooted up next to him. He didn’t even kiss her. He did exactly what he said, and his mouth went straight to a breast. She sucked in all of the air around her in bliss. As he suckled her nipple, goose bumps spread over her body. When his tongue flicked her stiff bud, she nearly came off the bed in ecstasy. The man was trying to kill her and they’d only just started.
In an effort to turn the tables, she moved so her breast was free from his sensual ministrations, and scooted down until she could kiss him on a level field. He was faster than she was and took her mouth, devouring it with his lips and tongue, showing her how much he wanted her to be his.
Breaking the kiss, she fought to catch her breath. Both panted as they gazed into each other’s eyes.
“I’ve missed you, Caitlyn. I need to taste all of you,” Matt rasped. “Like you got to taste me.”
She wasn’t stopping this. She wanted him to taste her. Braving it, she rolled to her back in open invitation.
Maybe a bit of her tensed and Matt didn’t cover her body fully as he moved down her torso. Instead, he loved her body from the side, and it felt incredible. Each kiss along her chest and belly ignited a match to her burning desire. Lost in his red-hot kisses trailing her skin, Caitlyn hadn’t realized Matt had moved his full body between her thighs, his head level with her mound. She took a deep breath. Oh, the anticipation. Sweet Jesus.
“If you can’t do this, we won’t,” Matt told her gently.
Inside, a small part of her wanted to scream, “No. Leave me alone,” but she didn’t feel the need to do it. She just had to remember it was Matt, and that he wasn’t trying to overpower her. She could do this—with Matt. “No, I’m okay,” she said honestly.
And after the first flick of his tongue on her, she was okay. More than okay. His tongue ran the seam of her wet folds, and when his fingers split them so he could taste the core of her, she moaned so loudly she was sure the entire house heard her.
She grabbed the covers on the bed tightly when he flicked her hard, throbbing nub. Her body arched in invitation when he sucked on it. His mouth and tongue were magic.
Imitating what he planned to do with her in a few minutes with his erection, it was all she could do not to come right then and there. She wanted to come with him inside her.
As his thumb rubbed her clit in unison with the work his tongue was doing, the erotic sensations climbed inside her, fighting to get out with each movement he made.
“Matt.”
He didn’t respond except to double his efforts in pleasing her. And he was doing that. His fingers joined the mix, and two of them slid inside her, curling to find that magic spot while he sucked and licked on her clit.
She hadn’t felt this much desire, lust, and pleasure in a long time. Since Matt. It was mind-boggling that she’d finally feel it again—something she’d been sure would have been absent for the rest of her life—with Matt.
Her flesh felt afire and her core was the epicenter, ready to erupt. Her muscles tightened, and she bowed from the bed as her orgasm exploded, shooting rays of euphoria rapidly through her veins to leave her in a state of extreme, sated paradise.
As she lay there, limp as a pleasured woman, Matt slipped back up her side, not on top of her. She looked over and saw him stroke himself, and her lustfulness returned full force. “I want you now,” she said. Every nerve ending flared red-hot, making her frantic for more.
“You’re in control. I’m yours to command.”
Although what he’d said hadn’t been the entire case so far, ripples of anticipation built inside her. She didn’t want the chance to freeze, so, like he’d done, she wasn’t about to take the chance their position would do that. With a hand on his chest, she pushed him on his back. “I’m on top.”
A devilish grin spread across his handsome face, and she knew how much he loved this position. Although she didn’t do it to please him, she was glad it did. Besides, he’d just given her a monster orgasm. She wanted to do the same to him.
Seeing him lying on his back with his rigid cock ready for her, she steeled herself, gathering her courage to continue. Reaching for him, she wrapped her hand around his hard length and stroked him briefly. The man was more than ready for her, so she climbed up his body and positioned herself above his cock.
He stopped her movement. “Condom,” he growled. Then he pulled a packet from his wallet that he’d set on a bedside table and ripped it open, grasping the condom inside. He slid it down his erection, then motioned her to continue before lying flat for her pleasure.
With her hand on him, she took a deep breath and slowly slid him inside her. She didn’t freak out with him inside. Granted he wasn’t fully sheathed inside her yet.
It took a bit of movement, even though she was wet, because she was so tight. But when he was inside her, they both froze and stared at each other as if the mysteries of the universe were held in the other’s eyes. Realizing she’d stilled on purpose and not frozen up in fear, Caitlyn found out how perfect lovemaking had been. How perfect he felt inside her. How perfect he made her life.
She met his heavy-lidded, passion-filled eyes that smoldered with desire. “God, you feel so right for me,” he told her, mirroring her thoughts.
With his hands on her hips, he raised his eyebrows. “I’m ready when you are.”
Oh, she was ready. Nodding, she said, “I’m more than ready.”
She moved her hips, and he helped her achieve a rhythm that drove them with near ecstasy.
True to Matt’s old habit, he reached out and played with her breasts, and a blissful smile broke out on his face. She’d told Matt he was right for her, and that was the truth. The touches, the loving feelings, their strong connection all played into the rightness not only of them together but of the moment.
Without prompting, she leaned down and shifted her breast near his lips while she moved her pelvis in a teasing, circular motion. He growled and took her nipple in his mouth and shards of pleasure rocketed through her body.
“Oh, God, Matt. I think I’m going to come again.”
“Then do,” he said as he changed nipples, feeding her sensual need. The one that had come alive at his kiss… his touch… his love. He drove her cravings… her desires… her want of him and the lovemaking they were sharing.
Caitlyn changed the movement of her hips, and she felt that prelude to erotic bliss. The one she’d already made once. Could she really do it twice after so long of not having an orgasm? As the ecstasy in her system began to climb, she knew it would happen, so she didn’t even fight it before she cried out and fell into another cloud of immeasurable elation.
With a fog of realization, as soon as she climaxed, he flipped her onto her back. She didn’t freak. She didn’t stiffen. She enjoyed Matt as her lover and felt his shudder as he came.
He immediately rolled off of her, but left his head rested on her chest. Rubbing her hands through his damp hair, she smiled. Being in his arms, security and contentment flowed through her, followed swiftly by love. He rose from the bed, telling her that he had to dispose of the condom. She also knew he’d need to remove his leg to sleep.
She may not be completely healed, but she’d made another major breakthrough tonight and wanted to jump up and do a fist pump at the beauty of it. Luke Ripley may be after her now, but his brother’s time for ruining her life was over.
THEY WOKE ENTWINED in each other’s arms, and Matt smiled in pleasure. Even when he’d removed his prosthetic and shown Caitlyn his stub of a leg, things had gone well. She hadn’t cringed or looked away in disgust. She’d even helped him rub the soreness from it.
Of course, nothing could’ve gone as well as their sexual encounter had. He’d worried the entire time and had kicked himself when he’d realized he’d taken over and positioned himself on top of her. The last thing she’d wanted.
But it’d worked out fine. Thank the fuck. He hop
ed it meant it’d always be fine. Although, he’d probably never stop worrying, because he wouldn’t want to hurt or scare her. Having her back in his bed was too important, yet being able to keep her there wasn’t in the cards they held right now.
“Good morning,” he said and kissed her lightly on the neck and caught a whiff of the lotion she always wore. Sweet Pea, wasn’t it? He remembered the odd name from buying a large gift basket with it for her birthday one year. She’d been crazy about the gift. He couldn’t take credit for the creativity of the products in the metal washtub-looking base, but he had picked the scent, and she’d worn only it after that. Of course, she said he’d given her enough shower gel, body spray, and lotion to last a lifetime.
She smiled and snuggled closer into his arms. Her words, “Good morning,” tickled over his chest and a slight shiver of exhilaration rushed over him. Just watching her sleep had brought his dick to life, but he wouldn’t keep her in bed all morning. Or would he? If they hadn’t had men around and her employees, he’d probably do it. But with all of them, she’d surely be embarrassed that the others would know what the two of them had been doing. Plus, he had a feeling she might be a bit sore since it’d been so long for her, and he knew she wouldn’t tell him if that was the case.
“How about some breakfast?” he asked as he stroked her back. He was still in awe of her breakthrough. He wouldn’t lie to himself and say he hadn’t been worried it might not happen, but he’d been hopeful. Truthfully, it happened faster than he anticipated. He sent a silent prayer that there were no flashbacks later that intruded upon her sex life.
“That’s a good idea.” But she didn’t move from her position cuddled up to his side.
Maybe she wouldn’t mind another tumble. As soon as that thought flitted through his mind, she moved to get out of the bed. He just laid there watching her in all her glory. That pert body always turned him on and now was no exception. He groaned, and she looked at him and smiled at his growing erection tenting the covers.