by Amy Fetzer
"Chase," she moaned weakly, and he tipped her head, taking her mouth in a deep kiss as he brushed the robe open, enfolding her breasts. She sagged back against him, covering his hands as he caressed her nipples.
He broke the kiss, looking in the mirror, a strange smile curving his mouth, and Tessa forced her gaze to the glass. His hands were a dark and rugged contrast against her skin, bronze to pale cream as they moved over her breasts, her belly.
Tessa saw the look in his eyes, in his expression. Fascination. Desire.
"You are so beautiful," he whispered in her ear, watching his hands as they moved below his child, slid to her thighs, molding them, then his fingers brushed the warmth of her womanhood. "Look at you, angel."
She was bare to his eyes and Chase drank his fill of her plush body, trim but for the roundness of life in her. Her skin was flawless, golden and creamy. He cradled the dark curls between her thighs, and stroked her lightly, loving her eager thrusts for his touch. She dampened for him and his fingers slid deeper. Her breath went ragged. His mouth trailed over her bare shoulder, her back, a grinding path down the delicate curve of her spine. Gripping her hips, he closed his eyes and tasted the softness of her buttocks, the backs of her thighs, worshipping her skin, the taste of her. She closed her hands over his and held on. Then he turned her to face him, looking up, and their eyes met and held as his rough cheek brushed softly against her belly, the curving side. Slowly he straightened, kissing her mouth before ducking his head to take her taut nipple between his lips.
She inhaled sharply, gripping his shoulders as he laved and suckled, then tasted its mate, her bosom swelling and aching for more. He drew her to the bed, sitting on the edge and pulling her to his lap. Draping her over his arm, Chase kissed her, feeling her body soften, curl toward him. He knew she was scared, knew she was uncomfortable about him seeing her like this, but Chase realized he loved her. Loved the woman she was, with or without their child inside her. He wanted to make her feel as beautiful as he saw her and he let his hand glide from her hip to the arch of her dainty foot, slow and methodical. He palmed her breast, shaping its weight. Then he tasted its lushness again.
His touch pierced her skin like blunt daggers, the sensation hot and heavy, and Tessa thought she'd melt into the mattress when he took her nipple deeper into the hot suck of his mouth. He rolled it on his tongue, and she felt it burn with a heat that seared around her waist and drove an ache deep between her thighs. She wanted him more.
"You'll tell me if I hurt you," he said huskily. And she could only nod.
"Again Chase, taste me, please." And he did, his mouth devouring her as he laid her gently on the bed, his body nestled tightly to her side. He draped her thigh over his, spreading her. His hand skimmed her thigh to the dark cleft between and he rested his hand there. He rubbed. He felt her need quicken, in her kiss, in her fingers digging into his shoulders, and when Chase pushed two fingers inside her, she gasped softly, her hips rising to the motion, her lip caught between her teeth. And Chase had never seen anything so elegant as Tessa's passion.
She felt like spun glass in his arms, shimmering as his thumb brushed the tight bead of her sex. She clung to him. Her body pulsed heavily, sensations pulling her from all edges and wrapping her tightly to the hand moving within her body.
"Show it to me again, angel. Show me." She opened her eyes and cupped his face in her palms, and Chase's fingers pushed and withdrew until he watched the explosion unfold in her eyes, mirrored through her body.
"Oh, Chase," she choked almost desperately, stunned as the waves of pleasure slid over her like the pour of liquid silver, again and again. He stroked deeply and she convulsed, her breath a fractured rush of pleasure against his lips. He held her tightly, slowing his movements till the last of her desire was spent.
Her tongue moistened her lips and she looked into his eyes.
He smiled softly, enormously pleased. "Will you explode like that with me inside you, angel?" He dipped his head, teasing her nipple with his tongue. Air rushed into her lungs. "So beautiful," he murmured and paid homage to her breast.
Her fingers sank into his hair, her eyes drifting closed.
It was a long, contented moment before he left the bed and she scooted to the center, watching him kick off his shoes, strip his socks. His fingers hovered at the band of his pants, his gaze on her as he shoved down the zipper and peeled off his briefs and jeans. Tessa absorbed the naked sight of him, his flat stomach, his muscular thighs. He was in fabulous shape, and she caught a glimpse of his taut behind in the mirror. Then her gaze lowered to his arousal, thick and proud. She swallowed, drawing the robe over her breasts.
He knelt on the bed, catching her hands in either of his. "Don't hide from me, Tessa," he said, drawing her to her knees. "Just to look at you is a turn-on. That you hold our baby inside you makes loving you more precious."
She wanted desperately to believe him, needed to believe that he wanted her for more than their child, and she pushed aside her doubts as he came closer, sliding to his back and drawing her over him. She spread her thighs, his arousal high and pulsing between them, a breath away, and she felt his incredible heat, saw his hunger.
Half propped on mounds of pillows, he watched his hands move over her breasts, her belly.
And he trembled.
Tessa knew he was restraining himself, felt it in every kiss and touch. He quaked with it. She wanted that energy, that fire they breathed into each other. He was afraid he'd hurt her, and Tessa wanted to show Chase she wasn't so fragile. She leaned over him, her tongue outlining his lips, a slow, silky motion that drove a dark burning through his bloodstream.
"Come to me, Chase," she whispered into his wet mouth. He sat up, jerking her knees around his hips, drawing her closer. And his eagerness made her laugh. She tortured him, rocking, her womanhood sliding wetly across his arousal, and he thrust against the invitation, throbbing for her. She never ceased kissing him, her mouth moving over his face, her teeth lightly scoring the curve of his jaw.
"Tessa, ah, angel." His hands dipped over her hair, her shoulders, to grip her waist.
Her tongue circled his ear and boldly she told him, "I want you inside me." She pressed tighter to him, bodies meshing, dampening. He was hot and hard, and just to be this close, naked and eager for each other, aroused her with a fierceness that scared her. Yet he wasn't hungry enough, hot enough, she thought with satisfaction and she wrapped her hand around him, enveloping him in sensations, and he slammed his eyes shut, falling back, his head digging into the pillows.
"Oh, Tessa."
Her fingers slicked over the smooth tip, drawing more moisture, and he came unglued, twisting beneath her. His hands on her thighs tightened and flexed. A groan close to pain rumbled in his wide chest. She stroked him again, mercilessly, and Chase knew if he allowed her to continue, he'd be useless any second. He pried her hand from him.
"Now you're teasing me," he murmured, burying his face in the curve of her throat, his hand riding her spine. He chuckled shakily. "Don't stop."
"I can't wait, Chase. Now, now." She rose slightly, guiding him inside her.
"Careful," he warned, looking into her soft green eyes, but she could tell he wanted nothing more than to toss her on her back and ravish her. The thought made her skin sizzle.
He laced his fingers with hers, his arms braced back against the mattress, and he gave her balance and power.
He was tight within her and she lifted, then slid downward, encasing him slowly, her body adjusting and squeezing him.
"You're like a rock," she gasped on a laugh, and a tiny smile curved his mouth. Chase thrust his hips gently to greet her. Sweat dampened their bodies, her hips catching cadence and taking him with her as he sat up and filled her deeper.
His breathing labored, he caressed her breasts, her belly tight with the pull of desire, then clasped her hips, riding the motion. She held his gaze, her fingers digging into his shoulders, her breath rasping into his mouth. She was liqui
d passion, her body slick and sliding, and Chase let her have total control. She pushed, faster, harder, curling into him, and he felt her release, experienced the pinpricking sensation shooting through her and into him.
"Chase, Chase!"
He arched, his arousal throbbing, his strong hands grinding her tightly to his groin as he erupted inside her. Her muscles flexed and gripped and Chase felt every tiny quiver as he held her snugly, raining kisses over her face and hair till the last tremor faded.
His hand trembled as he brushed damp tresses back to look into her eyes. "I'm in love with you, Tessa Lightfoot."
Something broke inside Tessa then and her eyes burned. "I know." She flung her arms around his neck, burying her face in the curve of his throat. "I know."
He didn't mistake the hopelessness in her voice. He rubbed her back in soothing circles before he eased her down to the bed. She kissed him liquidly as he tossed a cover over her and she snuggled in his arms, drifting quickly into sleep.
But Chase couldn't rest. He stared at the canopy and felt electrified. He wanted to wake her and make love to her again. He'd never known anything like being with this woman, inside her, held by her. She was sexy and passionate and he wanted her to be his wife. But her reaction to his claim left him wounded and confused. It seemed, he thought, that it was going to take a lot more than words to convince Tessa that he loved her first.
* * *
Nine
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Tessa was having a delicious dream, her body awake and aroused, yet her mind lethargic. She reached for Chase, yet when she found the space beside her empty, she succumbed to the dream, enjoying the erotic sensations curling through her like smoke. Vaguely she felt a warmth against her thigh.
"Chase," she whispered, yet refused to open her eyes, afraid the dream would end. Between her thighs was damp and hot, and she tried to close them, to ease the ache, but couldn't. Suddenly she was fully awake and aware.
"What are you doing?"
"Tasting you," he said without hesitation.
Her face burned and she flung her arm over her eyes. "Oh please, don't stop now!"
He didn't, his tongue laving at the core of her. Instinctively she drew her leg up and Chase eased two fingers inside her.
"I'd rather have you," she whispered into the darkened room. He climbed onto the bed beside her, tucking her to the curve of his body, her back to his chest. Effortlessly, he entered her.
She moaned deliciously. "Are you always this insatiable?"
"Only with you, angel." He withdrew and surged deeply. "Devious of me, wasn't it?"
"Yes. Oh, heavens!" Tessa felt every glorious inch of him penetrate her and she clutched a pillow, biting it to keep from moaning like a banshee.
"I want to drive into you," he whispered in a husky voice, his arms wrapped around her as he withdrew and slid slowly home. "I want to make love with you every way imaginable and I never want to stop."
"Me, too," she whispered, then twisted a look at him. "Me, too."
His expression was pleased, strained and sharp with his fountaining need, and she touched his cheek.
"Chase," she gasped, feeling her release approach with the force of a flood, a flood she wanted him to join, and she leaned back into him, flinging one leg brazenly back over his muscled thigh.
And he touched where the air touched her body, stroking her tender bud and feeling her slide into heaven. The warmth of the room buffeted her cries, her straining whimpers as he pushed and pushed and she took him, squeezing the life from him, feminine muscles flexing and clenching with their power.
In a soft burst of needed air, they collapsed deeper into the down covers.
"They have names for men like you, Chase Madison," she muttered into her pillow, then glared at him.
He grinned, unashamed of his tactics. "I wanted to wake you an hour ago."
"Try to contain yourself for at least another two hours," she said, patting his thigh and snuggling into the cocoon of his warmth.
Chase watched her sleep, her breathing even, and he brushed a strand of black hair from her cheek. He pressed his lips there. "I love you, Tessa," he whispered on a shaky breath.
Tessa wasn't asleep and her heart jumped every time he said it, but logic and reason interfered, tainting the sweet proclamation. Did he really love her or was it his feeling for his child speaking? Tormented that she might never know the answer, she followed the disturbing thoughts into the arms of sleep.
Her body spooned with his, Chase slipped his arm around her, her breast filling his palm. She snuggled closer, a tangle of arms and legs and wrinkled sheets. Light crept across the mauve carpet when Chase finally found the peace of dreams, Tessa wrapped in his arms and his heart in her hands. Falling in love with her was dangerous, he realized, because now she had the power to destroy him with a few simple words.
Tessa woke slowly, her body sated, and she stretched languidly, reaching for the man beside her. Her hand met emptiness and she shifted to her side and smiled. Rose petals lay strewn over the depression his body had left. She scooped up a handful and inhaled their fragrance. A note slid off the pillow.
Get up, lazy. Be back at nine with breakfast.
She glanced at the clock and scrambled off the bed and into a quick shower. Sitting on the couch, she was dressed and mildly awake when Chase came through the front door. His khaki slacks and blue polo shirt told her he'd stopped by his place. She flung the newspaper aside and drew her knees up, patting the space on the sofa beside her. Chase bent and kissed her forehead, then emptied the bag onto the table.
"Good God, Chase. Who did you invite?" There was enough food to feed a small country.
He sat. "I wasn't sure what you wanted, and I'm starved." He wiggled his brows suggestively, in case she forgot why.
"Nice to know I can work a man into starvation," she said, sinking back into the overstuffed cushions, sliding her feet behind him. "Now what did you bring for yourself?"
He chuckled, unwrapping food, and her gaze slipped over him, the shirt straining against his arms, his trim hips. She remembered last night, the long slope of his naked thighs between hers, counting the ridges in his stomach as he dozed, then watching him thicken with desire as she smoothed her hand over his taut body. He enjoyed her touch and that made her want to do it more, to feel him squirm and beg. It was a power she had never known before. In a heartbeat she knew she could make love with him again. Right here.
She let her bare foot slide over his waist, teasing his ribs, his back, and he turned, his look sly and aware of her intent.
Bracing his hand on the back of the sofa, he loomed over her, his face nearing. Her hands pressed to his chest, molding up across his strength before wrapping around his neck. His mouth was heavy on hers, his tongue pushing between her parted lips, sweeping lazily inside, and she was noticeably breathless and flushed when he drew back.
"Morning, angel."
She found her breath and swallowed. It really was unfair, the way he could make her all hot and bothered with just a kiss.
"Good morning." She pushed a lock of dark brown hair back off his forehead.
His frown was soft. "How do you feel?"
"Like a woman who's had really great sex."
He went very still. "Was that all it was?"
She traced the lines in his features, smoothing them out. "You know better than to ask that, Chase."
His throat bobbed. "Do I?"
Her brows knitted. She'd never seen him unsure. It made him more vulnerable, and Tessa's heart ached for him. "I love you, Chase."
He blinked. "Really? Ah, I mean … really?" The hope in his voice quivered through her, stealing her breath and bringing tears to her eyes.
"You're kind of hard not to love, handsome."
"Aha, found out," he said, bussing her lips, her cheeks, his heart thundering wildly. "I've spent my life trying to get every pregnant woman I see to love me." He swallowed thickly. "But you're the first to fall."
His voice trembled as he spoke, and Tessa pulled him to the sofa beside her.
"I love you, but I won't marry you." He tried to sit up, but she held him down, his head pillowed on her shoulder, his hand on her tummy. "I won't marry you because I can't escape the feelings I have that you're asking because you're our baby's father. No, please don't say anything yet," she asked when he tried to look at her. "Let me get this out. It's unfair to you, since you seem so sure of yourself, but I have to think of this child first, Chase. Is it best for her if we go into a marriage with misgivings and doubts that haunt—every minute?"
She stroked his hair lovingly and closed her eyes. She was hurting him and she hated herself for it. But she'd failed at marriage before with Ryan, because of a baby she never had. And with her child, their child connecting her and Chase before their feelings ever did, she was scared of making another mistake and ruining Chase's life just because it seemed the best thing to do for the child. She'd never know if it was her or his child he wanted. And watching her own mother suffer over the same situation made her think more than twice about whom they'd affect later on.
"I love you, Chase. So very much." She brushed her mouth over his soft, shiny hair, her words warm against his head. "But I don't trust either of us right now enough to make a decision that will alter all our lives forever." Her breath shuddered. "Please try to understand."
"I'm trying." But he wanted to shake her. His child moved restlessly inside her and Chase sympathized. He felt confined, playing by her rules, but as her tears wet his hair, he decided that he'd wait her out. And if she still refused, he'd bring in the big guns. But he was going to marry Tessa. He'd die without her.
Six weeks later Chase stood beside Tessa's design table, admiring the sketches, a wedding dress, a little girl's party outfit. But tucked in the corner of the wide table was a scrap torn from a magazine: a baby's room. He studied it, smiling. Even if she didn't want the stuff he'd given her in the baby's room, she knew what she wanted.
The doorbell sounded.