Lost and Found

by Tamara Larson

  “I know. I could hear your stomach from the kitchen,” Duncan said with a grin, leaning down to take a bite of her sandwich. Around his mouthful, he said, “Hey that’s actually edible. I made some soup too, but I forgot about it and all the noodles got burned to the bottom. I can try again if you want.”

  Jessie chuckled. “No, that’s okay. This is perfect. Where’s Theresa?”

  Duncan rolled his eyes. “Theresa was content to stay here for a while, but when she found out the only television is in here, she started to get cabin fever.” He gestured toward the elaborate entertainment system on the wall opposite them. “She went shopping.”

  Jessie nearly choked on her second sandwich. She stared at him incredulously. “She went shopping? What about Diego?”

  “Well, however much I’d like to tie her to my side until he’s safely tucked away in a cell with a serial killer as a bunkmate, I can’t do that. She’s gone to a nice, safe, crowded mall and I’ve made her promise to only visit stores that are teeming with customers. She doesn’t know this, but she’s also got a plain-clothed police escort. Poor guy. She’ll be back in a few hours.” He rubbed her thigh soothingly through the blanket. “Oh, and Clay called. He said to tell you he’s got everything under control. And you’re supposed to call your sister immediately.”

  Jessie sagged against the pillows in relief that Theresa was safe and that the store was in good hands. She really didn’t relish the thought of talking to Jamie right now, but she took the phone Duncan handed her anyway. No matter how much she’d prefer to avoid the ‘I told you so’ speech, she knew her sister would be worried until she actually heard from her. Jamie had always insisted that it was dangerous for her to work alone, even if it was only from ten in the morning until one in the afternoon. She talked briefly to Jamie, reassured her sister that she was fine and then turned back to Duncan where he was watching her closely. “Has there been any word from the police? Have they found him?” She asked, trying to distract him from her delicate condition.

  “No, no sign of that little bastard. But we’ll find him, Jess. I promise. If he’s still in town, we’ll get him.” Duncan’s voice was bitter and harsh, his eyes blazing with purpose.

  Jessie felt a tremble of unease go through her at Duncan’s tone. He sounded like he wanted to kill the man. She almost felt sorry for Diego if Duncan got near him. Almost, she thought, rubbing at her sore neck. She pushed away her empty plate, one hunger satisfied, but another one beginning to surface. Here she was, alone in Duncan’s bed. Theresa was safe and gone for a while. It seemed like the perfect opportunity for seduction.

  Jessie reached out and ran her thumb over his eyebrow. The one with the scar. “How did you get this?” She asked, tracing its jagged shape.

  “Hockey stick. When I was twelve. Nearly lost my eye. My friend, Kevin, was making an illegal slap shot and my face got in the way.” He smiled at the memory. “There was blood everywhere. He still gets drunk occasionally and apologizes for it.”

  “Sounds like a good friend,” Jessie said with a smile as she moved her fingers across his other eyebrow and down his cheekbone. She could faintly detect a cool spicy scent emanating from him. Aftershave. He’d shaved recently and his skin felt as smooth as her own satiny cheek.

  He closed his eyes when she reached his lips. She rubbed her thumb along the top bow and then the full bottom lip and his mouth parted slightly. He grabbed her wrist when she dipped her thumb inside the edge of his mouth. “Jessie,” he said huskily, his eyes opening slowly. “I don’t think this is a good idea. You’ve been through a lot today.”

  Jessie removed the tray from the bed and shifted closer to him so she could reach the back of his neck. She tangled one of her hands in the silky hair brushing his collar and the other she placed on his thigh. “You’re right. I have been through a lot today. Don’t make rejection part of that, okay?” She asked, looking up at him beseechingly.

  “You’re killing me, you know,” he said with a half-smile. “I’m trying to do the decent thing and you’re killing me.”

  “C’mon, Duncan. I don’t want to think about today anymore. I want to think about you. How good it would feel to finally be in your arms. Don’t you want me?”

  “How can you doubt that?” He asked earnestly. “I want you so much, I can hardly think about anything else.” He looked down at her hand on his thigh. Her hands were so fine and elegant next to his brutish paws. He touched her knuckles with his index finger gently and glanced up at her, catching her dark gaze with his own. “Don’t you remember last night when I practically dragged you into the Ladies Room when I was supposed to be watching for my sister? That’s how much I want you. Nothing else matters when you’re around.” He dragged her forward and kissed her mouth hungrily before she could reply.

  Jessie whimpered against his lips and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, quite prepared to never let go. Today didn’t matter. His ignoring her the evening before didn’t matter. As long as he was kissing her, nothing mattered. Urgently, she kissed him back, thrusting her tongue into his mouth aggressively and pressing her sensitive breasts against his chest.

  Duncan pulled back long enough to strip the afghan from the lower half of her body. Jessie reached for him. Any space between them was too far away. She began pulling urgently on his T-shirt where it stretched across his taunt abdomen. It came loose and she yanked it up his chest as he raised his arms over his head to help her. She pulled it off in one fast smooth movement, and reached for the waistband of his jeans.

  Duncan put his hands over hers. “Whoa.” He said, chuckling at her frenzied movements. “What’s the hurry? Are we in a race?”

  Jessie paused long enough to give him a frustrated look. “I’m afraid you’ll change your mind if I give you too much time to think about this. You’re a bit of a tease, you know,” she said accusingly.

  “I’m a tease. I like that.” Duncan said, smiling as he undid his jeans himself. “Who was screaming their head off in the bathroom last night, huh? Not me, that’s for sure. I was the one with the giant pup-tent in my jeans, so it couldn’t have been me.”

  “Listen, Bub. That wasn’t my idea.” Jessie poked him in the bare chest with a finger, admiring the way the muscles there moved as he ran his hand up her calf. “You seem to have selective memory. You’re the one that keeps insisting on being a gentleman.” She said the word with contempt and reached up with both hands to remove the pins from her hair.

  The motion raised her breasts and Duncan stared at them. Her nipples were peaked and he couldn’t continue this conversation with them straining toward him. “I’m so done being a gentleman,” he said hoarsely, as her mass of hair fell down around her shoulders.

  “It’s about time,” she said with a smile. Duncan stood up long enough to shimmy out of his jeans. Suddenly, he was standing in front of her completely naked with the late afternoon sun bathing his bronzed body in golden light. He was incredible--so tall and muscular and aroused. Jessie got up on her knees on the bed and ran her hands over his chest and shoulders. His skin was so soft over the hard flesh beneath. She explored further, wrapping the fingers of her right hand around the base of his shaft as she leaned forward to taste one of the brown discs of his nipples.

  Duncan groaned at the sensation, too overcome to move. When she began rubbing her closed fist up and down his phallus like he’d shown her, he growled and reached for her white sweater, pulling it up her body until she was forced to stop touching him long enough to allow him to yank her shirt off, careful of her sore neck as he did so. Her hand immediately returned to his engorged flesh. “You like that, don’t you?” She asked, rubbing the sensitive head with her thumb.

  “Very much,” he said quietly, mesmerized by the sight of her on her knees, on his bed, in just her skirt, her hair, and a white cotton bra.

  “It’s fascinating. It seems to be getting even bigger,” she said, leaning forward to place a chaste kiss on the tip. “Is that alright?” She asked, genui
nely concerned that he wouldn’t let her continue like last time.

  “More than alright,” he said as she shifted forward to sit on the edge of the bed. He stood unsteadily before her as she touched her lips to his cock, this time allowing her tongue to graze the tip as she ran both hands down to the base and back. “Oh, God, Jessie. That’s good. Don’t stop,” he rasped, wrapping his hands in her long curly hair.

  Jessie wasn’t about to stop. It was heady to hear him say her name in that guttural tone. She wanted to hear it again so she slid her tongue around him, exploring him more fully. He tasted salty, but pleasant, so she wrapped her lips around him so she could take him inside her mouth. She was rewarded with another groan. She looked up and his head was thrown back, the veins sticking out in his neck.

  Jessie felt a rush of heat rush through her own body at the sight of him so aroused. She wanted to explore this new way of pleasing him, but she also wanted to feel him inside her. “Can we make love now?” She asked, pressing a kiss against his hipbone while continuing to run her hands over his shaft.

  Without a word, Duncan placed his hands under both armpits and lifted her until she was standing on her feet. He made quick work of her skirt, cotton panties and bra, and then pushed her gently back on the bed. “Who’s in a hurry now?” She asked with a giggle as he lay down beside her on his side.

  “Me. I’m in a huge hurry,” he said, propping his head up and looking down at her lush, naked body. “You’re just the most gorgeous thing I’ve ever seen and I can’t wait anymore.” He touched one breast; cupping it in his hand and running his thumb over the crest, watching nipple grow even more erect. He leaned down and ran his tongue over it, listening for her gasp of response and then sucked it into his mouth, rubbing his front teeth over the tiny tight bud.

  Jessie arched her back and wrapped her fingers in his hair giving him her breast more fully. His mouth felt so wonderful. She thought of the way he’d kissed her between her legs last night and pressed her thighs together rhythmically, imitating the motion of his lips against her breasts. She shifted restlessly against the bed as he smoothed his hand down her flat stomach to the curls he’d explored so thoroughly last night.

  Instead of touching her intimately like he had last night, Duncan’s hand moved all the way down her thigh to the inside of her knee. He pressed there, and whispered against her breast, “Open for me, Jess.” The echo of his words from last night made her tremble in anticipation as he shifted his body until it rested between her thighs.

  Jessie felt his thick erection against the inside of her thigh. It seemed much too big for this, but she tried not to think about the logistics of it. She concentrated on the way the hair on his chest tickled her breasts and the feel of his lips on her neck. He was gently licking around the wounds that Diego had made that morning. “Do you want me, Jess?” He asked huskily, shifting up on his arms to look into her face.

  “Yes, I want you. I want to feel you inside me,” she said, all hesitation gone, she brought her legs up and braced her hands on his shoulders, urging him to finally finish what they’d started two days before.

  Duncan groaned and flexed his erection against the moist opening of her body. She was ready. He could feel how ready she was, but he still wasn’t sure if he should be doing this. His body wouldn’t let him stop at this point though. It had been in a constant state of readiness for the past two days. It just wouldn’t be denied anymore, no matter what his conscience was whispering.

  With Jessie’s fascinated gaze on him, he kneeled between her legs and slid on a condom from the bedside table. He paused for just a second, admiring her smooth, pale skin and heavy-lidded, desire-glazed eyes. She was watching him intently as he smoothed his hands down her body from her delicate collar-bone, to her large firm breasts with their tight, pale pink nipples. Her body was not like the tanned and corded figures of the women on the covers of fitness magazines. It was soft, and curvy, and voluptuous. More like the screen goddesses of the fifties than what was considered beautiful today. He stroked his hands down to her tiny waist and gently flaring hips, shaking his head in disbelief at his luck.

  “What’s wrong?” Jessie asked, her voice tremulous. Did he not like her body?

  “Absolutely nothing. I just can’t believe I’m here with you. I feel like I’ve just won the lottery or something.” He smiled down at her as he leaned forward again to press a kiss to her forehead.

  “I think lottery winners are usually much more eager to claim their prize,” Jessie said impatiently, pressing her hips upward to flex against his erection again.

  Duncan gasped at the sensation of her slippery flesh against his shaft, but held back. “Jess, tell me if I hurt you, okay?”

  Jessie whimpered and dug her nails into his shoulders. “Please, Duncan…”

  Jessie felt him trembling with restraint as he pressed the tip of his erection into her. Slowly, he eased in another inch and she started to feel her body stretch to accommodate him. It didn’t hurt in the slightest. In fact, it felt quite wonderful and she wanted him to hurry and fill her up completely. Her body had a strange emptiness that she’d never noticed before. She pressed her feet into the bed and used her leverage to push up against him to gain another inch.

  “Is it okay?” Duncan asked, his voice strained as he fought his instinct to plunge and thrust.

  “Very okay.” Jessie said, looking up at him. “But I want to feel all of you. I can’t wait.” She reached up, pulled his mouth down to her and kissed him hard, thrusting her tongue into his mouth in an effort to communicate what she wanted from him.

  Duncan thrust forward with a groan at the exquisite tightness of her. There was a slight resistance, but nothing like the barrier he’d expected. Jessie stiffened beneath him for a moment, but continued kissing him savagely, so he flexed his hips until he was buried to the hilt inside her warm, wet body.

  Jessie gasped at the sensation of fullness. There had been a slight tinge of pain, but it was minimal compared to the pleasure of feeling him so large and hard inside of her. She wrapped her arms and legs around him, trying to keep him there, but he began to pull out. She was disappointed until she noticed how his movement sent sparks of sensation through her flesh.

  Gradually, Duncan eased himself out of her body until he was practically disengaged, then he plunged back in to the hilt in one smooth economical movement. Jessie wrapped her legs tighter around him and gasped against his smooth throat. It was incredible. He felt so good. Why had she waited so long to experience this? She asked herself, as he moved within her again.

  Duncan thrust and retreated slowly, pushing deeply within her flesh. He reached down and pulled her legs up higher around his waist so he could gain another sweet inch within her body. Her sheath was so hot and slippery. He could feel her tightening instinctively around him every time he drew back and the sensation was incredible. He wanted to make it last as long as possible, but he could feel his orgasm approaching quickly.

  His strokes became faster and more shallow. Jessie could feel a tension coiling in his body as he increased the pace of his thrusts. His breath was warm against her neck and she became aware of an answering tightness coiling within her own body. She raised her knees another few inches, until they were high up on his back and was rewarded when this new position provided even more exquisite friction. Jessie couldn’t help it, she felt like she was going to burst. “Don’t stop.” She whispered, digging her hands into Duncan’s strong shoulders. “Oh God, don’t stop.”

  Supporting himself with one hand, Duncan reached between them and brushed his fingers through the curls lowdown on her belly. He parted her gently and massaged a spot at the front of her sheath in time with the rhythmic thrusts of his hard shaft.

  Jessie felt something loosening within her body as Duncan pumped harder and faster. She was losing control. Every nerve ending in her body was on alert. She could feel the wiry hair of his legs brushing her sensitive inner thighs, his warm breath on her face, the faint ache
in her hips from the strain of being stretched so wide open to receive his body, but most of all she was aware of the slide and retreat of his massive erection. The way it filled her and made her squirm with pleasure.

  “Oh my God,” she gasped as a wave of heat and sparks spread through her body.

  Duncan groaned her name as his own climax overcame him. His hips jerked against her until finally he was still, resting heavily on top of her, his face buried in the bright cloud of her hair.

  Chapter 20

  “Wow,” Duncan said after a few minutes. His breathing was quieter now, but his entire body felt somewhat unsteady as he shifted to the side to avoid crushing Jessie and to dispose of the condom. She tightened her arms around him to prevent him from moving for a second, but let loose when she realized he was just easing away enough to let her breathe. One of his hands still rested on her hip and one leg was thrown across hers. He couldn’t seem to summon the energy or the desire to move any further away. He just rested on his side beside her with his dark head on the edge of her pillow, watching her.

  “Wow,” she echoed, turning on her side to look back at him with a shy smile. She should be embarrassed, lying here completely naked in the late afternoon light, but she wasn’t. It felt surprisingly right to be sharing this moment with Duncan, her first lover. Your last lover, a little voice said in her head, but she ignored it. Shaky and sated, she couldn’t help asking, “Is it always like that?”

  Duncan smiled and touched her nose with his. “Well, it’s been a while, but I don’t think so. I wouldn’t have been able to give it up without a thought if it was even close to being that good.” Duncan took his hand off her hip long enough to slide a tendril of hair off her face. The fiery strands were everywhere. Wrapped around both of them like a cocoon. He slid his hand through it, loving the silky, springy texture of it.

  “So, I was all right then?” She asked, not looking him in the eyes. “For a first time, I mean? I wasn’t awkward?”