She let her eyes linger over his obvious erection then looked up at him. His eyes penetrated hers and she nearly gave in to the urge to caress his cheek. He was being all male in wanting to rescue her again, but damn he heated the blood in her veins.
He traced her lips with a finger and she wished it’d been his tongue. “Give me a try, and if you like, we can spend the weekend together. If you don’t, you don’t need to see me again.” She took a deep breath and let it ease out when he traced her jaw line. “I’ll use a condom the first time. Consider it a test run.”
“I need some space.” His eyes narrowed as she contemplated his offer. She wanted the man who wrote those tantalizing emails. But, he wasn’t here and Allen was. Kiss me, she silently begged. Take me now and be damned with the rest. But she couldn’t bring herself to verbalize the request.
“I’ll get you some ibuprofen and a shirt to sleep in,” he said as he got up.
“Allen, I can’t stay here.”
“You shouldn’t use the foot tonight.”
“I don’t have plans to go dancing. I’ll be perfectly content to lounge in bed.” And sulk while contemplating the trip home with another failed attempt to conceive.
“Stay and I’ll change the dressing in the morning before I take you back to your hotel,” he told her while gathering up the things he’d used.
“Aside from the fact I don’t spend the night with guys, I’m sure your neighbors saw you carry me in. And, if your community is like mine, tongues are wagging. So, if I don’t leave until morning, they’ll have you hooked up with a woman they won’t see again.
He turned from the doorway, nearly sloshing the water over the side onto the carpet. “I don’t care about the neighbors.”
“I’m not staying.” She sat up and watched him shake his head as he walked through the doorway. Nice ass and probably better without the slacks. She fanned herself with a hand while looking around for her sandals. Damn, where are they?
“Tell you what,” he said, coming back into the room. “I’ll take you back to your room and if you don’t hear from him, you can call me, or not.” At the foot of the bed, he handed her a glass of water along with a couple pills. “These will help knock back the throb—in the foot.”
She took them. “Thank you.”
“Lie back and give them a few minutes to get into your system. I’ll go out and clean the seat up.”
She lay back, wishing the pills would take care of more than the throb in her foot. The unfamiliar fire needed doused, but how? If she took him up on his offer, what would he think of her tomorrow? And yeah, it mattered. It shouldn’t, but it did. She closed her eyes and willed the pain to ease.
Chapter 3
Allen returned and stood in the doorway with his arms folded. He knew there hadn’t been enough time for the meds to kick in yet, so he really didn’t want to move her yet. Her knee rocked back and forth. He smiled. It took no effort to picture her petite frame moving beneath him, moving against him and with him. He adjusted his erection as she squirmed. Hell, she was so aroused, he didn’t need to touch her to know how wet she was. When she pinched the corners of her eyes, he moved into the room and leaned over the foot of the bed. “How’re you doing?” Her breasts rose and fell rapidly.
“All right.” She sat up. “I can’t find my sandals.”
“They’re in the car.”
She sat up and reached for her purse then used the bedpost for support as she stood before he realized her intention. “Oh, God!” She fell back on the bed when she found she couldn’t put weight on the foot. “I think I’m going to need your help,” she said as he rounded the bed.
“In more ways than one, I think.” Her head shot up and the innocent expression tugged at him. He had an overwhelming urge to kiss the look away.
He double-checked his pocket to make sure he had enough bandages and ointment for a couple of changes in case the hotel didn’t have ample supplies. “Which hotel are you staying at?” he asked as he scooped her up.
“This isn’t necessary. I can walk with a little help.”
“Humor me. Where are you staying?”
“Radisson Bay Harbor.”
“Why didn’t you say you were staying right there?”
“I said the hotel was nearby.”
“Reach out and flip the light off,” he said as they neared the doorway. She flipped the switch and relaxed against him.
She was definitely a contradiction of the bundle of coldness he’d been chatting with. He brushed his lips across the top of her head and felt her surprise in the way she stiffened. He grinned, hoping she was considering his offer.
Cheri opened the front door and he turned to let her pull it shut behind them. “Hey, we’re good together already,” he commented when he turned toward the car.
On the passenger side of the car, he set her down and opened the car door then helped her in. His fingers grazed over her toes as he settled her foot on a clean pillow. In a pretense of checking for blood or if the tape had come loose, he gave her foot a gentle rub and saw the muscles tighten in her leg. He let his eyes move up her legs and over her breasts before meeting glazed, confused eyes. Yeah, there might be hope. “Comfortable?”
“My foot is fine.” Intentionally, he caressed the bottom of her foot, lingering over her toes. “I can set you up with an ice pack when I get you settled in bed.” There, the eyebrow shot up and he grinned. He backed out of the car and shut the door.
They were half-way to the hotel when he looked at her in the rearview mirror. She sat with her head back and eyes closed. Her wrinkled forehead and the quick rise and fall of her breasts reminded him of Erin. The pain and discomfort she’d been in the night he’d taken her to the hospital. The hours he spent holding her hand as she slipped into unconsciousness, and then died. He never wanted to love and lose like that again. But he sensed something in Cheri’s one word responses to his probing of her personal life and new she’d been hurt. She was scared of the same thing he was. Scared he might not survive a second broken heart. He swallowed the lump that began to form. “How’re you doing, Cheri?” She opened her eyes and met his in the mirror then turned away. He didn’t miss the pure hunger in them. He grinned.
“I’m doing fine.”
“Has the medication kicked in?” He knew the only medication she really needed hinged on her saying yes.
“It’s fine.”
He kept an eye on her as he drove. When she ran her fingers through her blond hair and blew out, he bit back a chuckle. He’d love nothing better than to pull over and ease the misery for her. With his hand, he adjusted his crotch. “Are you cool enough? Should I crank up the air?”
“No, I’m fine.”
He smiled at her constant insistence that things were fine. “I’m sorry your weekend isn’t the one you hoped for. It’s obvious you were primed for a hot night of sex.” It may be cruel for both of them to egg her on, but he wanted her. If that meant keeping her on the path of rising desire until her need burst, he’d give it his best shot.
“I had high hopes of conceiving this weekend, then return to giving my full concentration to my job and my life.”
“What do you do for a living?”
“I manage a restaurant.”
“That requires a lot of hours. How would you have time for a baby?” Careful, bud, don’t want to repeat the net conversation.
“How does a doctor or a lawyer handle it?” she asked.
He hit a nerve. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to question your decision.”
“I hear it quite a bit.”
“We’re almost there. Is there anything you need before we go to your room?” She narrowed her eyes, piercing his via the mirror. “Well, hon, you can’t exactly walk.”
“Not well, anyway.”
He slowed as they approached Tampa and turned toward the hotel.
* * * *
Cheri’s face heated with embarrassment when Allen carried her into the hotel lobby, drawing stares
. “We should have considered crutches.”
“And miss having my name linked with helping a woman in distress?”
“I’m not in distress.”
“You’re in serious distress, sweetheart.” He smiled at her.
The young woman manning the desk looked up at them. “Oh, my, what happened, Doctor Allen?”
“A slight mishap on the beach. She’ll be fine, Tawny.”
Cheri reached out and hit the up button when they approached the elevator. “Doctor Allen? Why didn’t you tell me you were a doctor?”
He looked down at her. “I would have if we’d gone the ER route.”
“You look too young to be a doctor.”
“Twenty-nine, and I worked hard.” When the elevator doors opened, he stepped inside. “What floor?”
“Fourth.” She hit the button and let her head fall against his shoulder. Twenty-nine to her thirty-six. Damn! I’ve never dated a man more than a year younger than I am, and now, I’m totally turned on by a kid. His fingertips caressed her hip through the fabric of her skirt. A deep breath meant to relax her intensified the throb in her pussy instead. Scents of a man never affected her like this before, but here, in the confined area of the elevator, the combination of it and his touch drove her crazy with desire. She nuzzled his neck.
“Hey, careful, the doors could open before we reach your floor.”
She groaned. Even if the words of another man started the fire raging within her, it was this man who fed the flames and drove her crazy with a wild and unfamiliar need. She ran her lips up his neck and whispered in his ear. “Stay with me for a while.”
“Are you sure?”
Surprised at her own request, she searched his eyes. “Yes.” Whether he came on his own, or it was solely by the urging of her hand, she wasn’t sure. But his lips touched hers and she sank into him.
The elevator dinged, and he pulled away, his eyes gazing into hers. “Where’s the key to your room?”
“Right here.” Cheri reached for her purse and pulled the key-card from the side pocket before gesturing toward the door off to the left of the elevator. When Allen stopped in front of her room, she slipped the card in and out—nothing happened. Damn it! Come on you stupid thing. She tried it again. “What’s wrong with this thing?”
“Try following the arrow.”
She held up the card. “I guess that would help.” She turned the card around and stuck it back in, turning the light from red to green. She turned the knob and pushed the door open.
He kicked the door shut behind them and headed straight for the bed where he lay with her. She groaned and pulled his mouth back to hers, relishing the feel of his erection against her thigh. Her body trembled with need. “What is that scent you’re wearing? It’s intoxicating.” she said against his mouth. Then she welcomed his tongue as she yanked his shirt from his slacks. His hands roamed and caressed through the fabric of her blouse. She slipped her hands up his back, kneading the muscles flexing with his movements. Nothing seemed more real than this moment. It was so unlike the men she faked interest with.
“I have to have you now.” The fire raged deep inside her and she found his belt, unbuckled it, yanked at the snap of his slacks and heard the zipper open. She pushed at them to get them down, off, she didn’t care. Panting, she grabbed the elastic band of his boxers and yanked them over the stiff cock tenting them. When she moved her leg over him, inching him toward her wet pussy, his tip bumped her clit. “Oh,” escaped into his mouth as she pressed her lips to his. His hand stopped her before his cock penetrated. “Please,” she begged, her voice uncharacteristically sultry.
“Not yet,” he said against her lips.
Despite the arousing shift in his voice, she pulled back. He couldn’t be serious. For once she wanted it and the guy was in no hurry to fuck her. Stunned, she bit her lip and forced her mind back to the purpose of this union. “I thought you understood why I’m doing this.”
“I do, but I want something out of it, too. I want the pleasure of enjoying your body.”
Huh? Then why prolong what we both want? Her body shuddered with an urgent need for something it knew he could give. But, did he know how to hit the special place she’d been promised would send her into a world of pleasure foreign to her? “Allen, please,” she begged when her pussy screamed for attention.
He caressed her face. “Relax and enjoy it, Cheri.”
She closed her eyes to shut out his penetrating eyes. “Kiss me,” she whimpered.
The tip of his tongue teased the corner of her mouth and she moaned in frustration. This wasn’t what she was used to. She didn’t know what to do. He skimmed her bottom lip and she opened to take him in the warm, wet recesses of her mouth, but he pulled just out of reach. Her tongue slipped out in search of his and he allowed the dance until she pulled his head down and thrust her tongue in and out of his mouth while his fingers worked the buttons of her blouse.
The heat of his touch had her flesh sizzling. Inch by inch, he eased the fabric from her shoulders. He moved and she thought now he would pop it in and she’d have his fluid and he’d be satisfied. But, he didn’t move his cock from her grasp. Rather, he moved his knee into the junction of her thighs, rubbing against her. She stiffened, unsure of his intent.
“Let yourself go,” he whispered. He spread kisses across her face as he reached down and removed her hand locked around his cock. Confused, she watched him bring her hand to his lips. He kissed her palm and ran his tongue along the lines.
Whoa! Her hips jerked toward him, straining with a powerful need. He adjusted his body, causing hers to jerk from the shock of the new sensations. She pushed at him to break contact. The unfamiliarity spooked her. She stared up at him wondering what was going on. The embers firing up into flames weren’t what she wanted. Sex isn’t supposed to be like this. It’s a means to appease a guy, nothing more.
“Easy. Relax. We’re going to take our time,” he said as he drew one of her fingers between his lips sucking it until her breath hitched and she pulled it from the wet warmth.
Allen pulled her hand above her head and unclasped the white scrap that bound her firm breasts. With his hand, he cupped and caressed the softness before his tongue found a hard tip and teased it. “Mmm,” she moaned. His lips closed around the hard bud drawing into his mouth and she arched as he began to suckle. She buried her fingers in his hair and held his head closer, urging him to suck harder.
His suction went straight through her, melting her bones. “Oh!” she choked out in surprise. Her hips jerked as spasms overtook the inner walls of her pussy and spread to the outer swollen flesh. What the hell!
Scared of the feelings racing through her, she tried to fight them, tried to believe it’d be over any minute. He was just toying with her. Then his mouth moved down, lazily leaving kisses as he searched and found the zipper to her skirt. She met his eyes, silently begging him to hurry, but her breath caught in her throat. The lungs she depended on ceased to work. She’d never seen that look on a man’s face before. He had the same intense look of pure enjoyment her nephews wore when they played baseball. Her heart palpitated with the knowledge he didn’t simply want to get his rocks off. It was unheard of in her experience.
She watched him remove his clothes. The beat of her heart thudded, causing her lungs to expand. He sported a tan line from a skimpy pair of trunks. The well-toned abs were, as she suspected, well defined and her fingers ached to touch them. God, she wanted to run her tongue over the ridges. He spread her legs and her eyes lowered to his stiff erection. Hunger and a deep need had her closing her eyes with relief. She waited for penetration and knew within minutes he’d shoot his load and it’d be over. She’d have the sperm of this hunk and hopefully it’d take. That’s all she really wanted. Then she could hide from the rest.
Instead, she felt teeth grazing through the soft web covering the flesh she needed him to penetrate. Her eyes flew open. The erotic sight of his face between her thighs gave her an unex
pected excitement. A man had never buried his face in her pussy before. Of course, she’d heard about it. It wasn’t something she gave much thought to. The guys she fucked were only interested in personal satisfaction. She watched him, could feel his tongue moving over the slit, and strained to take it deeper.
“Oh, wow.” His tongue split the seam, teasing the burning flesh within. She reached out for support as she rose into him, needing deeper penetration. With each dip of his tongue, she needed more. He withdrew his tongue and swirled it around the insides of the swollen lips, causing her to momentarily lose her breath. When she regained it, she sat up, pulling away from him and brought his mouth to hers, devouring it as she forced him onto his back and straddled him, taking his cock with one movement. “Oh, yeah,” she whispered. “Oh, God! It feels so good.” She started moving and he grabbed her hips meeting her strokes.
“Cheri, look at me.”
She met his glassy eyes and saw her own need mirrored. She frowned. How could he possibly feel what I’m feeling?
Chapter 4
Allen caressed her waist as she wavered between desire and uncertainty. With feather light touches, he skimmed his way up to her breasts, circling and caressing.
“Your skin feels like satin,” he whispered. He molded and rubbed her hard nubs between his fingers until she drew in her breath and tremors flowed through her. Her breath hitched when he grabbed her and flipped them onto her back. His mouth clamped down on hers as his thrusts slowed, giving her a fuller and deep penetration, drawing quick breaths from her.
“Give me your tongue,” he told her.
Cheri ran her tongue over his lips and between them, searching for his. He sucked on it and she felt her inner muscles grip him. He adjusted her hips and somehow managed to hit her clit when they met.
He watched her from under lowered lashes. It made her feel vulnerable, but there was nothing she could do as the waves of need rushed over her. Completely under his spell, she had no idea what came next. His face became more flushed and his brows drew together before his eyes closed. An electric current sent inner warmth through her consuming, controlling her body. Her muscles latched onto his full cock. He thrust hard and fast into her and she met his urgent quest. Beneath her fingers, she felt him shudder and spasms surged through her. Her body quaked and shuddered as he grunted and shot his first load into her. She clung to him, not knowing what else to do. Her body reacted like it knew and strained against him, seeming to know what it needed and how to get it. He pulled away, leaving her hovering.
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