He felt her stiffen and heard her words. He looked into her flushed face and tormented eyes and he took a deep breath to steady himself. “I’m sorry, Rachel, but I just can’t seem to resist you. I’ve never met a woman like you. Stars above, I wish you weren’t taken!”
In a ragged voice, she confessed, “I’ve never met a man like you, Daniel Slade. I’ve never felt this way before, and it scares me.”
“Not even with Phillip?”
She lowered her lashes as if ashamed to admit the truth. “No, and that troubles me. We must fight this attraction for each other, at least for the present.”
“We’ve been trying hard to do that, Rachel, but it’s there. We both felt this pull between us the first time we met and it gets stronger each day.”
“I know, I shouldn’t have brought you on this trip with me.”
His hand lifted her chin to lock their revealing gazes. “That wouldn’t have changed our feelings. You needed me here. You wanted me here.”
“Yes, but it isn’t right. Not now, not yet. Soon, when things are different, we can test these feelings and decide what to do about them.”
“This might be the only time we have together, Rachel, but I would never force myself on you or beguile you into surrender.”
She craved him so much that she panicked. “It’s too late for us, Dan.” He wouldn’t believe her or trust her again after her impending exposures.
“It’s too hard to resist you, woman, and impossible to reject you.”
“Give us more time, until everything’s settled after our return.”
“What if it isn’t settled like we want it to be? We have a serious decision to make. I want you, if only once before we’re forced to part.”
Her heart fluttered in suspense and she wondered, What decision?
“I know it’s wrong and cruel to pursue another man’s wife, especially when that man is so close to me. But our relationship is real and it’s right. No two people are more suited to each other than we are. Phillip will have to understand and accept that reality, accept your loss. We didn’t set out for this to happen, but it has. You feel the same way about me, don’t you?”
To Rachel, it sounded as if he was referring to more than a casual relationship, to more than enjoying stolen moments for a short time. There was only one reason why Phillip would have to accept her loss, and that was so he could win her. With courage and boldness, she replied, “Yes, Dan, I need you. But I don’t want to make a mistake and get hurt again. After everything is revealed, you might not want me anymore.”
He did not probe her hint on purpose, not tonight. “I will never betray you or desert you, Rachel, no matter what. I’ll accept as much or as little of you as I can have, for as long as I can. Is that being selfish?”
Lost in the swirling depths of his ocean-blue gaze, she murmured, “No, Dan, it isn’t; and I feel the same way.”
As Dan’s mouth covered Rachel’s, each knew it was too late to prevent what must and would happen between them tonight.
Chapter 11
Dan doused all lamps except one, which he lowered to a soft glow. He flung aside the covers of the bed, removed his boots, then his shirt. He looked at Rachel, who hadn’t moved or spoken during his actions. He studied the luminous eyes demurely glued to his bare chest. She appeared unsure of herself, as if she weren’t familiar with an intimate situation. She had been married three times, so she couldn’t be a nervous virgin. She looked so delicate, so graceful, so enchanting. He was mesmerized by her potent allure.
He admitted that Rachel McCandless had stolen his mind, his heart. She moved him in strange and powerful ways. He neither totally distrusted or believed her. He knew he should resist her, but wanted to surrender to her. He yearned to comfort and protect her, but feared he must punish her. He longed for her to be innocent, but wasn’t convinced she was. The contradiction of emotions and thoughts was eating at him. He felt in control of his ruse, but out of control of himself. If circumstances were different, he would be wooing her. He had never met a woman who intrigued and bewitched him like she did.
Rachel watched Dan’s movements with panic. Love and desire—what did she really know about such emotions? No man had ever made her feel warm and tingly and helpless inside. She had never lost herself in the smoldering depths of any manly eyes or experienced the overwhelming urge to boldly fondle a virile chest or to surrender wantonly to any man. Surely love and passion were unique and all-consuming, and she did love and desire Daniel Slade beyond reason or will to resist.
Dan wondered how she had the power to make him ignore all else except his yearning for her. “Come to me, love,” he murmured. He did not have to ask twice or rush to her side to guilefully seduce her.
Rachel obeyed his husky enticement. He gently grasped her chin and pulled it toward his to seal their lips in a heady kiss. He was too near and too compelling to refuse. There could be so little time left to explore their feelings and to strengthen their bond. Her heart rebelled against the possible loss of him. His embrace was strong and comforting. His mouth left hers to nuzzle his chin against her hair. His lips claimed hers with hunger and possessiveness; they burned those sweet and forbidden messages across her unsteady senses and hazy brain.
A dizzying sense of power and unruly desire coursed through Dan’s body and mind. His passions soared at her touch. She was warm, willing, and bewitching. Her allure was too powerful to resist. His mouth sought hers in an exploratory kiss. He was trapped in a world of fiery need and didn’t want to seek freedom, not now, not ever.
Yet Dan perceived a tension and uncertainty in her. He leaned back and gazed into her beckoning eyes of melting honey. He observed the ever-changing emotions which flickered in them. A tug of tenderness suffused his taut body. He saw that she was afraid and doubtful.
Rachel’s gaze traveled each line of Dan’s handsome face. He was the most striking man she had ever seen. She had never imagined any male could be so devastatingly magnificent, so overpoweringly attractive. His kisses were so insistent, so demanding, so persuasive, so wit-stealing. It alarmed her to be like soft clay in his hands, ready and willing to be molded into any shape he wanted.
Dan pushed a lock of darkest brown from her face. His eyes roamed the olive surface of satiny smoothness. He worried when she lowered her head and gaze. Something told him she was a rare gem ready to be cut into a valuable and precious stone by the right craftsman. He savored the heady task before him. “Don’t be afraid of me, Rachel, I would never hurt you. Look at me, love.”
All of Rachel but her eyes responded to his tender and coaxing voice. She fretted that she wouldn’t know how to respond correctly, how to pleasure him, how not to disappoint him. What if the act wasn’t like the blissful preludes? What if she froze up as with Phillip? What if it hurt or became rough as with Craig?
When she married Craig Newman, she hadn’t even considered the conjugal bed. Lordy, how naive and innocent she had been! He had taken her without gentleness or romantic inducements. When he discovered she was a virgin, he had joked about William Barlow denying himself of her treats. After that horrible first night, he had taken her only three more times during their four months of wedlock. Each had been swift and rough, as if he was trying to hurt her.
With Phillip, it had been different. He had shown her sex didn’t have to hurt or humiliate, and had been furious with Craig for ravishing her so uncaringly. Even so, she hadn’t been able to relax and enjoy the act as Phillip urged her. Because he knew she didn’t care for the physical intimacy, he had initiated it only a few times during their eight months of marriage, while hoping it would change one day.
Now she was facing a new challenge. The difference this time was that she wanted this man. She met his gaze.
Dan read her anxiety, and dreaded a last-minute withdrawal. “Relax, love,” he coaxed, “This isn’t an unpleasant chore to be done quickly and gotten over with. Yield completely to the waves of ecstasy,” he entreated hoarsely. He knew he m
ust use all his talents to rekindle the heated response she had felt earlier. His head lowered once more and his tongue deftly plundered her mouth. His masterful lips seemed to brand her mouth, cheeks, and throat—every inch of her face and neck. All restraint left her as he guided her toward total submission. Flames of passion leapt and burned rampantly within her. She wanted and needed this to happen, and tonight.
Dan trailed his tongue over her parted lips, nibbled at them with his teeth, then tasted the sweetness of her mouth again. His hands untied the sash at her waist. He eased the robe from her shoulders and let it fall to the floor. His lips trekked over the flesh he had bared. His fingers quivered as they moved under the straps of her red gown and slipped it off her shoulders. The material flowed down her shapely body to expose skin that was even silkier than the garment. With leisure and delight, his hands caressed and fondled and stroked the areas he had exposed to them. He set out to tantalize, stimulate, and pleasure her.
His mellow tone whispered soft and stirring words into her ears. She trembled within his grasp. His embrace was blissful, and his romantic onslaught was captivating. A curious mingling of lanquor and tension surged through her. Her mind was rapturously dazed by a fierce longing for him and she never wanted those breathtaking sensations to halt.
Dan lifted her naked body and placed her on the bed. Quickly he discarded the remainder of his garments, as he didn’t want any of those flames he had lit and fanned to go out or burn low. He joined her and pulled her into his arms. His mouth covered hers.
Rachel cast her inhibitions and doubts aside. She stroked the virile body touching hers. Its strength and beauty titillated her senses. His hands, calloused from hard and steady labor, did not hurt her. They were strong and skilled hands, gentle ones. From his sable hair to his firm middle to his warm feet, Daniel Slade was appealing. His actions were slow and deliberate, as if he were memorizing every inch of her body and attempting to enflame every part of it. Never had her breasts been sensitive to a man’s touch, pleading to be caressed and kissed. Her body and mind throbbed with need.
Dan groaned as his own desires burned wildly with the urge to consume her. She was like a drug, powerful and addictive.
As Dan’s head drifted down her throat and his lips worked at her breasts, Rachel watched him in the glow of the lamplight. Her tension was heavily laced with anticipation, but she wasn’t sure of what. She was eager to explore the mysteries of love and sensuality with him. Her hands played in his midnight hair and stroked his bronzed body. She enjoyed the way his muscles moved beneath her fingers. When Dan’s face returned to hers, she murmured, “I don’t know what to do, so you’ll have to tell me or show me.”
That confession—honest from her golden brown gaze—surprised and confused him. “Are you sure you want to do this, love?”
Her voice was constricted by desire as she replied, “Yes.”
His fingers caressed her flushed cheek. “All you have to do tonight is relax and enjoy yourself,” he told her. “Do whatever seems natural or pleasing. There’s plenty of time to teach you anything you don’t know.”
Without shame or reservation, Rachel beseeched, “Teach me all, Dan, tonight; I want to experience every sensation and emotion with you.”
That plea captivated and thrilled him. Confident in his prowess, he vowed, “You will, Rachel, tonight and forever. There’s no need to rush. We belong together.” Dan was perceptive to her desires and insecurities. As his mouth roved hers, his fingers drifted into her dark hair and played in its silky fullness.
Their tongues touched, teased, and savored. Their hands caressed, stimulated, and enticed. Their bodies demanded closer and more intimate contact. Tonight, there was no turning back. They would delve into the magic that enchanted and united them. They would be anchored together in heart and flesh.
Rachel was nervous about her lack of skill, but Dan was being patient and gentle and stirring. His broad shoulders were followed by a flat waist and narrow hips that extended into long and supple legs to form a splendid physique and she responded to and devoured every kiss and caress, every unspoken promise of what was yet to come. Her hands roamed his neck and shoulders. Her fingers played in the black curls on his muscled chest, then traveled his hard back of rippling hills and satiny planes. The bud of her womanhood came alive and tingled with previously unknown pleasure as he stroked it. Her pulse raced and her breathing labored. Every spot he touched was responsive. She knew why she had never felt this way before. Love made the difference; she loved and desired Captain Daniel Slade!
Dan had difficulty breathing, thinking, and mastering his cravings. He felt as heavy as a rock, but as light as a feather. The range of emotions he experienced astonished him. When his lips and hands aroused her to writhing and coaxings, he parted her thighs and entered her as he murmured, “Ride with me, my love. Capture me and hold me tightly. Be mine, now and forever.” As she did as he entreated, her exotic scent called out to him even more than that of seaspray. She intoxicated him more than strong whiskey could, a thousand barrels of it.
Rachel tensed, inhaled, and panicked for a moment when his manhood slipped within her, but she instinctively arched to meet him. As he entered and withdrew many times, she was astounded by how wonderful it felt. The hair on his chest stimulated the peaks on her breasts. His mouth held hers captive. A curious tension built within her, slowly at first, then rapidly. She clung to him and responded in the ways he whispered into her ear. She was being fed a delicious meal yet her hunger increased and her tension mounted, and she didn’t know why.
Dan moved with caution and gentleness, but he didn’t know how much longer he could keep control. He had delivered women into the throes of passion before, but none had ever responded this way or ever affected him like this. His rhythmic strokes were sending her along an upward spiral, but he was climbing just as fast as she was. He took her with an intensity and hunger that were new and stirring, with tantalizing leisure that erupted into a turbulent fervor. He scaled heights he had never reached before. He couldn’t understand why she knew so little about the act of love, yet he sensed that was true. She caught his pattern and tried to match it, but it was an instinctive reaction.
Rachel was swept away in a flood of ecstasy. She inhaled sharply several times and stiffened and clung to him. She moaned as her first climax seized her and carried her away. “O-o-o-oh, my, what’s… ha-penning? O-o-o-oh…O-o-o-oh…Oh, Dan…This is wonderful. I never… knew—” Her breath caught in her throat as the powerful sensations assailed her body and stole it.
Control deserted Dan as she moaned, writhed, and clung to him; and the truth of the thrilling matter reached his mind. Wave after wave crashed over his fiery body. He allowed the raging storm to carry him away with her. As overwhelming spasms conquered the woman beneath him, his molten juices mingled with hers. His release spilled forth joyously. He plundered her mouth and womanhood until every ounce of need was sated. The release was powerful and stunning; he trembled from the force of it. Unknown satisfaction and unfamiliar contentment engulfed him.
A golden aftermath seemed to glow in the room and within them. She lay in his arms, as breathless and tranquil as he.
As Dan trailed kisses and strokes over her flushed face and body, Rachel was calmed by the tenderness and gentleness of them. Surely he wanted her as much as she did him. Surely everything would be all right when he discovered the truth. Surely nothing this powerful and special could be destroyed. “I’ve never felt anything like that before.”
“I know, love, and I’m glad you found it first with me.”
“Is that how it’s always supposed to be?”
“Yes, but it only happens between certain people.”
“People who… desire each other as much as we do?”
“Yes, Rachel.” He sensed a vulnerability in her. He cuddled her. Maybe he had found the missing piece to the puzzle of Rachel McCandless: no man had ever captured her heart or won her surrender. She had not given herself to
any of the three men she had wed, and buried. That meant she must feel differently about him. If that was so, she surely wouldn’t try to murder him after he tricked her into marriage. If he had won her heart and changed her, though, he might never learn the truth…If she did suffer from a form of mental disease and she couldn’t help herself….
“I never expected anyone like you to come into my life, Captain Daniel Slade. I hope you don’t sail out of it for a very long time.”
He knew why she was worried and afraid, and he was, too. He didn’t know if his reply was the truth. “I won’t, Rachel,” he said. “I swear.”
She closed her eyes and prayed it was true. Monday would tell her if it was or wasn’t. Even if it was, it might not make a difference when…
Rachel and Dan left Athens on the Georgia Railroad train. They did not peek into the company warehouse so the man watching them would have good news to report to Harrison Clements. They surmised the crates would be replaced as soon as they departed.
They sat side by side, but played their kinship roles with perfection to fool a possible spy Harry had put on the train. It was wonderful being together, even if they couldn’t touch and had to battle with their eyes to keep their gazes off each other. After the passionate and blissful night they had shared, each felt more confident about the other’s feelings. Each knew what was facing them soon, but they ignored that problem for now.
The train halted at Union Point for a lengthy stop, and they had lunch there again and another peaceful stroll. It continued on to Augusta, following those same numerous stops in small towns and at water tanks.
They dined and spent the night at the Planter’s Hotel, but did so in separate rooms in case anyone was spying on them and because people there knew them as cousins. If Harry and George were in cahoots, George could be having them watched at this point. Or one of the travelers who had gotten off the train and registered here could be Harry’s hireling. It was best not to let either partner discover how close they were, not yet.
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