Tearing her gaze from him, Lanier scooted across the mattress and opened the nightstand’s top drawer. Pulling out a strip of condoms, she tore one away. Her eyes reconnected with Dallas’s, boldly, soulfully.
Slowly, carefully, Lanier rolled a condom onto his rock-hard organ. She looked down, intently watching the movements of her own hands. Now that the latex was snugly in place, she sighed deeply. “The rest is up to you.”
Wrapping Lanier tightly in his arms, Dallas kissed her face, neck and ears. “Why leave the rest to me? I love you being in control. Don’t stop now.”
Using her thumb, Lanier smoothed each of his brows. She had to smile. “Want me in control? I’m there.”
Pushing Dallas back on the bed, Lanier mounted him, lowering herself down onto his hardened length. As her core vacuum sealed his erection, she clenched her inner muscles tighter, throwing back her head. The ecstasy steamrolling through her body was hard to bear. “Dallas,” she whispered, “I’m in control…and loving it.”
Dallas managed a moan. With Lanier seared onto his manhood, there was nothing he could do. Being inside her was heaven. As she moved atop him, bucking and jerking with wild abandon, he felt intense heat from inside her. Moisture rapidly pooled around his erection. Placing both hands on her hips, he thrust upward, burying his sex deeper.
Starting to lose it, he quickly flipped her on her back. Cupping her face with his hands, he tenderly plunged his tongue in and out the warm recesses of her mouth. “You make me crazy, Lanier.” As much as he liked her in control, he didn’t want to go off prematurely. He’d last a lot longer on top.
Drawing her closer and closer, he made sure their bodies stayed perfectly aligned. Looking into her eyes, he couldn’t help thinking of how much he loved her. This woman was unique, and he wanted her in every possible way. No one had ever captured his heart.
Austin was married and Houston was engaged. Dallas wanted what his brothers had. His desire for Lanier to totally surrender to their love kept him hoping for a miracle. If only she’d find enough courage to trust her fragile heart to him, Dallas knew he’d never break it.
Shutting off his mind, Dallas turned his full attention back to Lanier. Desiring to put all his energy into pleasing the woman lying beneath him, he captured her lips and kissed her ravenously.
Lanier’s eyes sparkled with lust. “Give me everything you have.”
“I don’t want to deny you anything.” He nipped at her lower lip with his teeth, kissing her deeply.
Lifting Lanier’s buttocks, Dallas plunged deeper into her moistness. He gasped with pleasure as she clenched her inner muscles. Inch by inch, slowly and tenderly, he drove deeper into her.
Lanier did everything in her power to keep from digging her nails into Dallas’s back. The man knew how to please her, and she was already at the brink of release. As Dallas’s manhood executed another deep thrust, her eyes rolled back. Fighting hard to stay with him, desperately trying to keep up the frenzied pace, she lost herself to the heat waves.
“You feel so good inside me, Dallas.” She moaned, arching into him. “I’m running out of time,” she whispered shakily. “I’m about to explode.”
Dallas was close to an explosion but unready to surrender. The end of the road loomed dead ahead and he sighed. “Ready to sail over the rainbow?”
“Please take me there…” Hoarsely, she screamed his name, salty tears cascading.
In the throes of an intense climax, Lanier’s body shook tumultuously. Totally lost in a delicious euphoria, too worn out to try to prolong it, she let go and her body shook forcefully. Dallas joined her at the same time, experiencing the most body-jolting climax he’d ever had.
Rolling over and turning up on his side, Dallas looked down at Lanier. He expected her to jump up and run into the bathroom, telling him she had to shower and leave—a finale he wasn’t fond of. Plumping his pillow, Dallas laid it close to Lanier and lowered his head and closed his eyes. As her breath fanned his cheek, he sighed.
It took Dallas several minutes to realize Lanier was fast asleep. Although he knew she’d want to be woken, he decided to let her rest. Looking at her beautiful face had him wanting to make love all over again. She was beautiful awake and in her sleep. He tried not to think about how disappointed he’d feel once she left.
Still not sure if she should wake her, Dallas’s eyes continued roving her relaxed body. “Lanier, Lanier,” he whispered, “I’m so in love with you. You have no idea how much you mean to me.”
Lanier stirred and Dallas laid his head back on the pillow.
Leaning over Dallas, Lanier kissed him softly on the mouth. She laid her head on his chest and looked up at him, her fingernail tracing his bottom lip. She loved to see him so relaxed. He had to be dead tired from the ball game. Splaying her fingers over his chest, she closed her eyes. “I love you. Good night.”
Waiting for her to get up and take flight, Dallas drew in a sharp intake of breath. He’d do just about anything to take her mind off leaving in the middle of the night.
Then Dallas heard Lanier’s even breathing, surprised but pleased she’d fallen back to sleep. He smiled and wrapped her up in his arms.
Lifting her arms, Lanier stretched them and rolled her neck around to loosen the muscles. She couldn’t remember the last time she had felt so completely rested. She had slept like the dead last night. Dallas’s custom mattress must’ve been designed in heaven.
Usually she was so ridden with anxiety when she slept at Dallas’s that she had trouble falling asleep. She normally went over the entire evening in her mind, trying to recall if she’d done everything right or if she might’ve said or done something stupid. This time had been different, and she’d relaxed enough to fall right off to sleep.
Lifting Dallas’s pillow, Lanier inhaled his familiar scent. The clean and woodsy cologne smell clung to the linens. She could hear noises coming from somewhere in the house.
The only thing Lanier wore was a big smile on her mahogany face. As she swung her legs out of bed, Dallas strolled into the room. “There you are. I was coming to look for you. Have you been up long?”
Dallas came over to the bed and dropped down. He pulled Lanier onto his lap and looked into her eyes. He tenderly dragged his thumb over her bottom lip and then kissed her forehead and neck. “I haven’t been up long. I had to make a couple of phone calls, so I went into my office to keep from disturbing you.”
Lanier chuckled under her breath. “Hmm, my sleeping pill worked that good?”
Dallas grinned, tenderly kissing her lips. “Babe, you have no idea how well it worked. I have to start eating Wheaties again so I can keep up with you. You were fierce last night!”
She turned down her mouth. “Aren’t I fierce all the time?”
Dallas chuckled. “You are. I love exercising your very full lips. There are women out there who pay thousands of dollars for a mouth you inherited naturally.”
“There are a few physical attributes I’d pay for, too, if I had the means.”
Dallas drew his head back sharply, surprised. “Like what?”
Lanier shrugged. “My nose is a tad too big, and I’d have my ears pinned back.”
Dallas couldn’t keep from laughing. “We definitely don’t want to tamper with your nose. Girl, you have the nose of an African queen. As for your ears, who can see them with all the silky hair you have? Besides, pinned back or not, your ears hear me every time I say I love you, even when I whisper. Your nose and ears are fine. Everything about you is exactly how it should be.”
Smiling, Lanier blushed. “You’re the only one who says the most beautiful and meaningful things to me…and makes me believe them.”
Dallas smiled and nodded. “There is a saying and a song that applies perfectly to me. Fools rush in. I love rushing into everything
to do with you and me. I didn’t intend to rush love. I had no choice. Love rushed me. And I’m glad you stopped running away.”
Lanier’s heart filled with love for Dallas. “I’ll leave my features alone, then. Thanks for loving me as I am.” No one but Dallas had ever made her feel so beautiful. Her expression suddenly grew somber and she nervously chewed on her lower lip. “About the song you just mentioned—it had a ring of truth. Sometimes I feel like a fool rushing in. It feels like we’re rushing commitment. Do you ever get that feeling?”
Dallas’s eyes widened. Her comment had stung him. “I don’t like the sound of that. If you feel like a fool, why do you stay in this relationship?”
His tone bothered her. Upsetting him hadn’t been her intent. “You’re twisting my words.”
He shrugged. “How can that be? They were plain as day.”
“Maybe so, but you’re taking them out of context, Dallas.”
“Then you tell me what you meant. I don’t want to get it twisted.”
She picked up a pillow. “I don’t know what I meant. I shouldn’t have said it.”
“You said it because it’s how you feel, Lanier.”
“And it obviously offended you. Can we change the subject?”
Dallas was frustrated. Lanier’s take on things didn’t make sense to him. “No, it just made me wonder why you’d stay around if you feel rushed. It’s been three years. You feel rushed and I feel like our relationship is in a holding pattern. That’s what’s obvious to me.”
“Sorry you feel that way.” Ready to flee, Lanier stood. “Maybe we shouldn’t see each other until you’re clear on what it is you want from me?”
“I know what I want,” he yelled. “For starters, clarity would be nice!”
Lanier rushed past Dallas and ran into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.
Dallas wanted to slam his fist into the door, but he pulled back. It would serve no purpose and only cause destruction to his property. “You’re not going to be able to dodge bullets forever. At some point, you’ll have to open up and let everything come out.”
After such a beautiful evening, the morning wasn’t going very well. He knew this conversation on her feeling rushed into commitment was over. Lanier had a knack for clamming up when serious issues arose, especially the ones she didn’t want to deal with.
Dallas looked up as Lanier came back into the bedroom. He wasn’t completely over the earlier episode, but he may as well have been. Lanier would simply refuse to revisit the issue. “What about some breakfast? I can mix up a batch of my silver-dollar pancakes you love so much and grill us some sausages.”
Lanier’s palm went to her bare stomach. “Sounds divine, but I can’t help overeating the pancakes. A piece of toast and hot tea will do the trick.”
Dallas walked over to Lanier and kissed her. “Coming right up. Want to eat in here or in the kitchen?”
Lanier pointed at the French doors. “Let’s eat in here where we can see the pool area.”
Dallas nodded. “We’ll eat in here. Be back in a jiffy.”
Lanier sighed. As she tried to restore the peace she’d felt earlier, she looked around the room. Although she was happy that Dallas seemed as if he was over the disagreement, she knew there’d come a time he’d demand answers. He didn’t like confrontation, but there was a lot they had to get out in the open. She was sorry she’d voiced to him how she sometimes felt.
Dallas walked back into the bedroom and looked around for Lanier. After setting down the tray on the round table, he went into the bathroom. He watched how tenderly she touched her body in the shower. How she washed herself was provocative.
Smiling, Dallas backed quietly out of the room. He was happy she was comfortable enough to shower in his home. He saw it as a good sign because this was another first for her.
Since she only had the clothes she’d worn last evening, Dallas went into the massive walk-in closet to retrieve them. He removed her attire from hangers to take to her.
Lanier came into the bedroom at the same time Dallas exited the closet. He sucked in a deep breath. Beads of water clung to her baby-soft skin, and he had an overwhelming desire to dry off her fabulous body with his tongue. In an attempt at taking his eyes and mind off her nude body, he went into the bathroom linen closet and retrieved an oversize towel.
Dallas wrapped the towel around Lanier’s body. “How were you going to dry off if I hadn’t come back?”
Lanier shrugged. “I knew where the towels were. I came to get my clothes, but you already have them. You’re so thoughtful.” She looked adoringly at him. “Well, are you planning to dry me off or not? It is getting a little chilly.”
Dallas began drying her off. Although he wanted them to enjoy their breakfast—staring into her soulful eyes, staring into her—he also desperately desired an encore. Dallas had it bad for Lanier, and he wasn’t totally sure if it was good for him.
Chapter 4
Lanier looked out the kitchen window and thought of how summer was quietly slipping away. Fall was fast approaching. After pouring two mugs of French roast coffee, she carefully carried them over to the table and handed one to Ashleigh, and then sat down. “How did A.C. sleep last night?”
“He had us up until the wee hours of the morning.” Ashleigh laughed. “Fortunately for us, he wasn’t sick. He’s just an absolute chatterbox.”
“He’s a good baby,” Lanier remarked. “Remember how the girls used to want to stay up all night to tell us lots of bedtime stories? But they were always careful not to give away one another’s secrets.”
“Yeah, they were excellent at keeping secrets. We still haven’t found out the name of the guy Tina had a crush on…and it’s been months since we learned she had a crush.”
Ashleigh took a sip of her coffee. “We know it wasn’t her prom date. She says he’s only a good friend.”
“It’s definitely not him.” Lanier drummed her fingers on the table. “With all the guys she’s met lately, we may never find out who she had her eye on.”
“You’re probably right.” Ashleigh smiled. “What did you and big D get into after the game last week? Or maybe I should ask what you two came out of, unless it’s a secret.”
Lanier grinned. “Girl, you need to stop. I’m not a secret keeper. I learned the hard way how dangerous secrets can be. I’ve heard it said that we’re only as sick as our secrets. If I hadn’t kept quiet about what went on in our home, my parents may’ve gotten help a lot sooner.”
Ashleigh hated hearing Lanier still blame herself for her parents’ issues. “You were only a child then. You kept it a secret because you thought they’d go to jail. I thought you’d finally gotten past it all.”
Lanier blinked repeatedly. “Let me get back to your original question. We had a magnificent evening after the game. I fell asleep on him and actually spent the whole night. I wish I’d been able to see the look on his face when I didn’t get up and run home.”
“Dallas knows how you feel about staying out all night. We’re both guilty of acting like the girls are still here, but next month they’ll leave for college. We’ll get new kids, but it was smart of us to take time off before the upcoming school year. By the way, what have you decided about the town house?”
Lanier wrinkled her nose. “The decision is more about buying versus leasing. I’ve already filled out the loan application just in case, and I have a copy of the lease agreement if I go that way.”
“I can understand that. But don’t you think you’d need the same amount of credit whether you lease or purchase?”
Lanier stood. “Probably so, but let me worry about it. I don’t want you to stress over anything involving me.”
“Okay, but you know I’m always here to help,” said Ashleigh.
Lanier nodde
d. “Thanks.”
“Now that we’ve settled the town house issue,” Ashleigh said, “let’s tackle our monthly expenses for the business. We also need to discuss plans for taking in new kids.”
Lanier nodded. “Let’s get started. It’s your turn to write checks.”
Ashleigh laughed. “I don’t know anyone who hates writing checks as much as you. You know, our finances are in great shape. We don’t have to worry about money like we used to.”
“Thanks for the reminder.” Lanier smiled.
Dallas unsealed a note-size envelope, finding it odd that there was no return address. But it had been postmarked in Houston. His address was written in a beautifully hand-printed calligraphy.
As he removed a small sheet of pink linen stationery, a heavenly scent gently tickled his nostrils. He put the paper up to his nose and inhaled to get a stronger whiff. Unable to identify the scent, he began perusing the note.
Dear D.C.:
Just a short note to let you know that I’m a secret admirer and that I plan to reveal my identity in the near future. I know you have millions of female fans, but no one can give you what I have to offer. If you liked the smell of the scented paper, you may like it better on me. To tell you a little about myself, I’m into fulfilling fantasies, role-playing and hot men like you. I have many wonderful attributes, but I want you to discover them on your own. I hope this note intrigues you as much as I’m captivated by you. And be on the lookout for my next correspondence. It’ll be sent within the next few days.
In each note you’ll be given some juicy tidbit to make you look forward to receiving the next one. I know you’re seeing someone, but you’ll forget about her. I hope you enjoy this sexy game of intrigue. It has only just begun.
Ciao!
Dallas reread the note three times before inserting it back into the envelope. He wondered how the mystery writer had gotten hold of his home address. All types of letters and gifts were received at the postal boxes that the team management provided for fan mail. This was the first personal note that had been delivered to his home.
Tempted by a Carrington Page 5