by Bonnie Pega
“No time like the present to start, is there? After all,” Caitlin added smugly, “you said you owe me.”
“Will this make you happy?”
“Ecstatic.”
“Okay, then.” Max stood and moved his hands to his belt buckle, his eyes watching Caitlin for her reaction. To his delight, she sat down in the chair, leaning back and crossing her legs, a smile curving her lips. If she was going to watch, he’d give her a show worth watching. His movements became slow and seductive as he slipped his belt free of the loops.
He walked over to her and dropped the belt in her lap, then picked up her hands and moved them to the button at the waistband of his trousers. “Unfasten it,” he commanded huskily, and she did. He stepped away and slowly slid the zipper down, an inch at a time as Caitlin’s tongue slipped out to moisten her lips.
Turning his back to her, he deliberately lowered his trousers just a little, then a little more, finally pulling them down completely and stepping out of them. He turned back, his eyes going straight to her. She had leaned forward in the chair, her chin propped on her hands and a dreamy smile on her face.
Clad in nothing but his white briefs, he picked up the denims. He then went to Caitlin’s chair, perched on the arm, and pulled the jeans up over his legs. Standing, he turned back to her. “Fasten these,” he said, his eyes liquid with desire.
“Later,” she murmured back, standing up next to him, her eyes soft and warm. She reached out a hand and ran it over his chest, tangling in the soft brown curls. Her fingers brushed lightly over the rash. “Does it itch?”
“Oh, yes,” he breathed. “And aches unbearably.” He wasn’t talking about chicken pox.
“Well, you mustn’t scratch.” Her voice was a husky whisper and a fingertip lightly stroked over his taut nipple.
He drew in his breath. “Oh, Caitie, I can’t think of anything else but.”
“Gee.” Her fingers plucked at the other nipple. “I’ll just have to think of some way to distract you.” She dropped a hand then, brushing it over the bulge outlined so clearly by the unzipped jeans.
“Oh, yes,” he groaned. “Distract me, Caitie. For heaven’s sake, distract me.”
“Maybe this will help.” With one lithe movement she grasped the bottom of her green T-shirt, pulled it over her head, and rubbed the soft cotton over his chest. “Did that distract you?”
His eyes sparked fire as he looked at her. “It helps,” he said huskily. “Distract me some more.”
She reached around and unhooked her lacy bra, drawing it down her arms and baring her breasts to his avid, hungry gaze. “Is this distracting enough?”
“Almost.” His hands lovingly encircled her breasts, his thumbs moving to stroke the rosy tips to diamond hardness.
“Well, then,” she said, a catch in her breath. She took his hands from her breasts and moved them to the front of her cutoff jeans. “Unfasten these.”
When he did, she slid them off. “How about now? Are you distracted now?”
“Oh, God, I’m so distracted, it’s killing me. And I want you so much, I’m on fire with it.”
“Then take me by the hand, sweet Max, and lead me to bed.”
They never made it to bed, only as far as the sofa.
Sometime later Caitlin raised her head up from Max’s chest and smiled at him, a smile so sunny, he felt as if he couldn’t breathe. He had to keep that smile for the rest of his life. “So, sweetheart, are you going to make an honest man out of me, or what?”
“Guess I’ll have to,” she said. “I certainly couldn’t let a sneaky little devil like you loose on an unsuspecting public.”
His arms tightened around her and his heart filled with so much love, he didn’t know if he could hold it all. “Say it, Caitie. Please, say it.”
“I love you, Max. Will you many me?”
“You bet. Hey, where’re you going?” he said as Caitlin scrambled off the sofa.
“Just hold your horses a minute,” she said, presenting an enticing view as she bent to rummage in the shopping bag she’d set by the door. She pulled out the satin gown and put it on. “What do you think?”
Max’s gaze roamed over the slinky satin, seeing the embroidered dragon curling around her breasts. “I can see I need to fight a few dragons. Now, come here, woman.” He held out his hand, his eyes glowing.
Why hadn’t she seen it before? Caitlin asked herself as she slipped her hand in his. A clear summer sky. His eyes were the blue of a clear summer sky.
Thanks to Carolyn, Chris, Cynthia, Janet, and Lydia for their support, and to Leanne for the pennies in my jar
Love to Christopher and Scott
And to my husband Bill—happy birthday
The Editor’s Corner
May marks the halfway point between the first day of spring and the summer solstice—I don’t know about you, but I’m definitely ready for the warmth of spring and the heat of Loveswept romances! And you can always count on Loveswept to have the perfect gift for you and your mom this Mother’s Day.
Let’s see what’s on sale this month:
Small-town romance is first on the list with Laugh—Mary Ann Rivers continues her Burnside family series as two people try to share their hearts without losing their cool. Outlaws and daredevils are up next when the Justiss Alliance returns in Tina Wainscott’s Wild Ways, and the search for a missing woman forces two brave souls to tap into their wild sides. And in her Loveswept debut Against the Cage, Sidney Halston turns up the heat as a sexy cage fighter shows a former bookworm how delicious a few rounds between the sheets can be.
Moms everywhere will certainly enjoy Loveswept’s Classics, beginning with Bonnie Pega’s back-to-back releases: Wild Thing, Then Comes Marriage, The Rebel and His Bride, Only You, and Animal Magnetism. Then Jean Stone weaves together an emotionally charged story of friendship and betrayal, forgiveness and love, in Places by the Sea. And, in #1 New York Times bestselling author Iris Johansen’s electrifying Blue Skies and Shining Promises, two hearts are thrown together by fate and united by irresistible desire—don’t miss it!
~Happy Romance!
Gina Wachtel
Associate Publisher
Love stories you’ll never forget
by authors you’ll always remember
eOriginal Romance from Random House
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