Her laughter bubbled up from deep inside of her. “First door on the left.”
He opened it with his hip and closed it with his foot, but surprised her when he gently laid her out on the bed. She’d almost expected him to toss her on it. The sweet edge to his passion was her undoing. She was a grown woman with needs she’d been ignoring for way too long.
Dan had been the one to unlock the torrent of passion raging inside of her, and he would be the one she would share it with. She lifted her arms to him, and he paused to unbutton his shirt. The raw beauty of the man standing at the side of her bed had every ounce of moisture in her body coming to the surface. She’d reason out the whys later. Life was too short—it was time she indulged her passionate side.
Instead of stripping out of his jeans, he crawled up the bed until she was beneath him, looking up into the depths of his stormy gray eyes. She confessed, “Your eyes were one of the first things I noticed.”
He pressed his lips to the end of her nose. “Really?” He braced himself on one elbow and tilted her chin up with his free hand.
“Yes,” she breathed out the word, and every other thought evaporated as his lips touched hers and his tongue swirled along the rim of her mouth. Her body ached to feel him skin-to-skin; her core wept for him.
“I want to feel you touching me,” she rasped.
He lifted himself off of her but froze in place above her at the broken sound she made. “Did I hurt you?”
A sweetness filled her. He cared whether or not he pleased her or hurt her. For tonight it would be enough. “Not unless you decide you’re finished,” she teased. It was freeing to confess what was in her heart.
“Brace yourself, Megan,” he promised. “I won’t be finished until daylight.”
He knelt on the bed, unbuttoned her jeans, and tugged them off, but left her panties on. “You’re so delicate.”
She disagreed. “I’m strong from years of working with my hands,” she told him. “Why don’t you let me show you?”
The look in his eyes told her he was tempted to let her. “Not just yet. I’m not finished warming you up.”
“I’m not cold.”
He laughed, a rich sound that reverberated from deep within his broad chest. “Think of it as priming the pump.”
She felt her cheeks filling with heat, but she ignored it. She could be embarrassed later; right now she had a devastatingly sexy man in her bed, wanting to make love with her. Who was she to quibble?
“That flicking thing you did with your tongue before had all of my cylinders firing.”
“God, I love a woman who can talk cars.”
He bent his head and kissed her until her toes curled. “Dan, I—” She wanted to tell him that she didn’t do this sort of thing with just any man, but the words got lost in her mind as callused hands swept up her sides and began to knead her breasts. Her thoughts scattered like dandelion seeds on the wind.
He was watching her intently, and she knew from the way he was touching her that he would find the places that hadn’t been caressed in more years than she’d admit to. “Do you like that?” he asked as he cupped and stroked her breasts before smoothing his hands up and over her shoulders.
He was relaxing her and exciting her at the same time—talented man.
“Mmmm.”
“Then you’re going to love this.” His mouth replaced his hands and she gasped for air.
“Daniel—I—don’t make me wait!” She moaned as his tongue flicked in the hollow at the base of her throat. Who knew that her neck would be so sensitive to his touch?
“You’re like fire in my arms.” He nestled his face against her breasts and held her for one achingly sweet moment. When he lifted his head, he was grinning. “Let me see if you’re really ready.”
His hand swept down her belly and tested the moisture that had been building inside of her with each flick of his tongue, each press of his lips, and brush of his fingertips. He rested his forehead against hers. “God you’re so wet!”
“What are you waiting for?” she urged.
He eased up off of her and the bed, and shucked his jeans. She should have been afraid by the sheer size of him. Clothed, Dan was impressive; naked and fully aroused, he stole her breath. Taking her silence for agreement, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a foil three-pack. Gripping it with his teeth, he ripped the first one open and slipped it on.
Settling between her thighs, he captured her lips and gently slid into her welcoming warmth. “I don’t share, Meg.”
She lifted her gaze to meet his. The emotion swirling beneath the dark and desperate desire he was controlling for her sake reached out and grabbed her by the heart. It wasn’t a promise of forever, but it was close enough for right now.
She lifted her hips and took him deep inside of her. “I won’t either.”
His groan echoed in the room around them as he plunged into her again and again. Spreading her legs to draw him in closer, Meg felt her body taking over and her mind stepping back to let it. It had been so long since she’d made love that she wasn’t prepared for the heart-stopping orgasm that whipped through her, bringing tears of sheer joy to her eyes.
“Meg,” he growled. “Tell me I haven’t hurt you.”
She couldn’t speak. The sensation of falling, only to be pinned beneath the formidable strength of the man connected to her physically, opened her heart to the possibility that this was the man she wanted in her bed and in her life for more than one night. Without words, she lifted her hips and urged him to make love to her faster… deeper.
He bent down and took her breast in his mouth. The swirl of his tongue and thrust of his body sent her up and over the edge, free falling into the madness that embraced her and took her under.
***
She woke when he shifted and his erection throbbed beneath her backside. “Mmmm.” She turned over so they were face-to-face. “I’ve never…” She didn’t know what to say that wouldn’t make her sound pathetic.
“You pack a lethal punch, Megan Mulcahy.” He pressed his lips to her forehead and settled her against him. “I think I should warn you that I’m keeping you.”
She chuckled. “Shouldn’t you ask me first? It’s not like I followed you home.”
It was his turn to laugh. “True,” he said. “But I thought you should know to give you time to decide if beginning a relationship with me would be worth the gossip it’s sure to cause.”
She pushed against his shoulder and he rolled onto his back. She sighed as she stacked her hands on his chest and rested her chin on them. “What makes you think we’d be gossip-worthy?”
“I may not have been living in Apple Grove long, but long enough to know that if Mrs. Winter’s cat crossed the road, it would be gossip worthy.”
Dan’s eyes crinkled at the corners and she lost a little piece of her heart just then. Unsure if she should let any more of it go, she shifted away from him.
“Having second thoughts?” he asked, watching her closely.
“No.” And she wasn’t; she just didn’t know what to do now. She didn’t have much experience with what to do after making love with the man who’d just turned her ordered existence upside down.
“Good,” he said. “Me either.” She still hadn’t moved back into his arms, so he asked, “Are you kicking me out already?”
She shook her head. “Of course not.” The devil in her prompted her to add, “I haven’t made your tea yet.”
Dan didn’t wait for her to come back to him; he reached out, snagged her arm, and pulled her beneath him. “Ah,” he groaned. “Much better.”
When he pulsed against her, her gaze flew up to meet his. “You aren’t seriously ready to make love to me again? Are you?”
His eyes were thundercloud gray as he reached for the second foil
packet, covered himself from tip to base, and rolled her onto her back. “Ready or not,” he rasped as he filled her to the core.
She lifted her hips and joyfully let him fill her—all the way to her heart. “Ready.”
***
Meg woke to the sound of rhythmic snoring. She had a man in her bed… she, Megan Maureen Mulcahy, had a to die for, sexy as all get out man in her bed… and they’d just made love not once, but twice!
She’d never experienced multiple orgasms before. Daniel Eagan had changed all of that in a few magical hours. She reached out to trace the strong line of his jaw, the cleft in his chin, and fullness of his bottom lip. He shifted onto his back, freeing her from his embrace.
She scooted off the bed and reached for his shirt. Buttoning it up, she tiptoed out of her bedroom and into the kitchen. She was ravenous and planned to cook a late-night breakfast to go with the promised cup of tea.
“Here you are.” He walked into her kitchen, looking all rumpled and manly with his jeans barely zipped, like he’d just pulled them on and zipped them high enough so they wouldn’t fall off. He was staring at her as if he expected her to vanish into thin air.
“Are you all right?” she asked. “Were you dreaming about what happened earlier today?”
He shook his head. “Not yet, but I probably will later,” he admitted. “I got cold and was beginning to wonder if I’d dreamed you into existence.” He slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her back against him.
“You’re real,” he breathed against her neck before he brushed his lips to the sensitive skin there.
“Very,” she said, twisting in his arms until she could wrap her arms around his neck. “I don’t know what’s going to happen next, Dan.”
He grinned. “I’m going to kiss you, Meg.”
They were both laughing when their lips met, but their laughter died as he kissed the breath out of her.
When she had it back, she looked up at him and confessed, “Seriously. I don’t get out much and have a relationship that is hard to explain.”
“You said you didn’t have a husband or boyfriend.”
“I don’t—except for a few days a year when…”
“Van Orden comes back to town… I heard.” Dan paused for a moment then asked, “Does he have a girlfriend in the city?”
Meg felt deflated. “Probably—yes—maybe one or two. You see, I don’t want to live in the city, and he doesn’t want to live here.”
“So you’re what to him?”
She shook her head. “I have no idea… convenient?”
He nodded as if he understood.
She busied herself with frying the bacon. After making love with Dan, she had something to compare what she and Jimmy shared to… and what they had had paled in comparison to the lush tastes, textures, and emotions Dan had shared with her all in one night!
He sighed and wrapped himself around her again and she set the fork down. “I’m feeling out of my element here and to be honest, I don’t want to mess up the most amazing night of my life. This was a huge step for me.”
He laid his cheek on the top of her head. “I’m getting that, Meg.”
His lips met hers as he backed her toward the stove, deepening the kiss, reaching behind her, and shutting off the burner. “I have this great idea.” He slipped his hands beneath her backside and lifted her up. “Wrap your legs around me.” When she did, he walked toward the sink and set her down next to it. “Open wide, Meg.”
She opened her mouth and he cracked up. “Are you always this literal?”
She tried to hang on to being mad at him but couldn’t quite pull it off as what he said and how she reacted began to sink in. “Maybe,” she admitted.
“OK. Now that I know that, let me rephrase the question.” He nibbled on her earlobe and rasped, “Open your legs wide, Meg.”
When she did, he stepped between them and reached into his back pocket.
“What have got in there, Dan?”
He whipped out the last of his three-pack of condoms and opened it. She tugged on his zipper and freed him. Once he was sheathed, he reached for her. “Hang on, baby, this ride’s about to get wild.”
She took him at his word and wrapped her arms and legs tightly around him. It wasn’t easy to hang on once he entered her and began to move in and out of her. Her hands were slipping, so he grabbed her butt cheeks and held on to her as he plunged deep and slid free.
“Oh God,” she screamed as she came apart in his arms.
Dan thrust in so far she felt him touching her womb, but when he exploded in her arms, she lost all track of time, space, and reality, giving in to the wonder of Dan’s lovemaking.
“I can’t feel my legs.”
He grabbed a hold of her ankles and asked, “Can you feel them now?”
She giggled and buried her head against his neck. “Mmmm.”
He slid his hands from her ankles to the backs of her knees. “How about now?”
“Oh…” she breathed.
Then he slipped his hands from her knees to the tops of her thighs and cupped her backside and squeezed. “Now?”
“Ahhh,” she rasped. “I was wrong,” she admitted, pressing her lips to his jaw. “I felt it all.”
When Dan tilted her head up, their gazes locked and he admitted, “So did I.”
“Are you hungry?” she asked, when he set her back on her feet.
“I’m out of protection.”
“I was thinking of your stomach, not your, um—”
“Cat got your tongue?”
“No.” She swatted at him. “Maybe I’m just not used to talking about body parts.”
“Any body parts in particular?” he teased, brushing the hair out of her eyes.
“Yes,” she giggled. “Yours.”
“I can see we have a lot of work to do if we’re going to be able to communicate effectively.”
“Oh, I think you’ve got communication down pat.”
He grinned. “Maybe so, but you need a little work.” Dan held her in a hug that warmed her heart. “I could eat,” he admitted.
“Give me a few minutes to scramble some eggs.”
“I’ll pour the tea.”
Sitting across the bistro-sized table from Dan, she couldn’t help but wonder how her life had changed so drastically, from semi-spinster to lover. Could she have stopped the attraction once it started—should she have thought to?
“A penny for your thoughts.”
“I was thinking about things.”
He grumbled, bit into a slice of buttered toast, chewed, and swallowed. “Which things?”
“The you and me kind.”
“Ah,” he said, lifting a forkful of eggs to his lips.
She watched while he chewed. “Do you do everything with such gusto?”
He set his fork down. “Is it a problem?”
She reached out to take hold of his hand. “Not from where I’m sitting. I just wondered.”
“Is this where I’m supposed to tell you about my past lovers?” He winced when he asked.
She shook her head. “Nope. And for the record, I’m not going to either.”
He shrugged. “OK.”
Meg stared at him until he lifted his head and looked at her… really looked at her. When she had his undivided attention, she smiled and agreed, “OK.”
He smiled and she couldn’t help but smile with him. “I didn’t intend to invite you up tonight for more than a cup of tea.”
“Then we’d better start drinking in case anyone asks what we were doing together tonight.”
She laughed and nearly spilled her cup. “Do you think anyone suspects that we’re not just drinking tea?”
“Besides anyone in town with half a
brain?”
“That many?” she asked, setting her cup down. “Was I that obvious?”
“No,” he told her. “I was.”
“Not to me; I thought you were hung up on somebody else.”
He shook his head at her. “You’d be wrong about that.”
“Good thing,” she told him, “because I’m definitely the jealous type.”
He watched her as he lifted his cup to his lips and sipped. “I wouldn’t have thought that about you.”
She shrugged. “I don’t have to have sex with someone to be jealous of the attention he’s paying someone other than me.”
“That’s so convoluted, I’m not even going to try to figure out what you meant by that.”
“Let me explain,” she began.
He silenced her with the tips of his fingers pressed to her lips. “I need to talk about something serious, Meg.”
She folded her hands in front of her. “The bridge?”
“Yeah,” he said. “It’s going to keep me up nights if I don’t.”
“So tell me all about it, and then I’ll keep you up for the rest of the night.” She knew he needed to purge his mind; he’d already purged the pent-up adrenaline from his system. She hoped now that the edge was off he’d still want to be with her. She wasn’t sure her heart could take the fall if he didn’t.
“But I don’t have any more protection with me—”
The imp in her asked, “How about at your house?”
Their gazes locked and he nodded. “How fast can you get dressed?”
She laughed. “Faster than you.”
He stood up and looked down at his jeans. “I’m half dressed already.”
She laughed harder. “I’m dressed all the way.”
“Are you wearing any underwear?”
She threw her arms around his neck and whispered, “A gentleman would never ask such a question.”
His grin was positively wicked as he pulled her into his arms and slid his hands to the curve of her backside. “Who said I was a gentleman?”
She melted against him and sighed. “I hear being a gentleman is highly overrated.”
He slipped his hands higher on her back and then swept around to cup her breasts, teasing her nipples with the flick of his fingers. “I prefer being a man.”
A Wedding in Apple Grove Page 13