Truth and Humility

by J. A. Dennam

  How could she want to leave this? What was wrong with her?

  Plunk

  What the... A fish? Frog? Water bug? Holy crap, her kne size="+0" face="Times New Roman">brother throwing rocks at her again? The mere thought made her draw up and sink to hide her nakedness until she could rule out that possibility. Scanning the shore, she sucked in clear water, blew it back out. It was so dark...hard to see.

  She caught a movement and her gaze darted to the spot just as another small projectile splashed inches from her face. She flinched, wiped her eyes clear. “Dammit, Derek, I’m naked in here!”

  “Good to know.”

  The blood left her face. That wasn’t Derek. Blinking rapidly to clear the blur, Danny focused on a shape by the flat rock. Not that she needed visual confirmation. The voice alone was enough to stir her juices.

  Austin stood up and was still for a moment, his black shape silhouetted against the lighter, steeper rock behind him. She dared not breathe let alone make a noise. Her arms swirled in hidden circles beneath the water. His shape moved again.

  Plunk

  And she’d been looking right at him. “You can stop throwing rocks at me.”

  “They aren’t rocks.”

  Ah. Acorns. Funny. “You do realize, if my family catches you here they’ll hang you from that very tree.”

  He sighed, rattled the remaining acorns in his closed palm. “Some risks are just worth taking, I guess.”

  “Since when?” she shot out with attitude.

  She was mad. He was amused, but not for long. Leaving his shoes and socks by the rock, Austin walked the bank and stood where she’d entered the water. His stance indicated he wasn’t leaving until she came out.

  Exasperated, Danny kicked and floated further away. Her heart was producing a million beats per second. “You’re crazy if you think I’m getting out like this.”

  He shrugged. “Nothing I haven’t seen before.”

  Oh, and he was so unfazed by that, huh? What the hell was he doing here anyway? “You know...you can’t just trespass on Bennett land whenever you feel the urge to mess with me.”

  So, she really wasn’t coming out. Okay, then. “It’s your fault I’m here,” he replied, stripping off his navy T-shirt.

  It was dark. But damned if she couldn’t see every bit of that broad chest. “How is that possible?” Going for a snarky tone, she swallowed, wondered if she was convincing. “We haven’t communicated since I left.”

  His laugh was clipped, tortured as he stepped out of his jeans. “You communicated plenty before youNew of hi left. Christ, woman, do you have any idea what you did to me with that parting shot?”

  “What... You aren’t seriously getting in with –”

  “Boy, that was a good one. Messed me up just like you wanted. All I’ve thought about over the last three days is you getting naked with some other guy.”

  “Austin, you stay on that bank!”

  He could feel her eyes on him. All of him. His dick was already hard from watching her strip down and climb into the water, and now it was at full attention under the heat of her gaze. “You come out, then.”

  Water sputtered out of her mouth. Why should she be nervous? It was obvious what he wanted, but she was under no obligation to give it to him. “Jeez, Cahill. If you want to risk your life for a quick lay, you could have done that with the slut in the red dress.” Damn, he was coming in. She waded toward the rock shelf.

  “I don’t want the slut in the red dress, and if you think you’re climbing out now, you can think again.”

  Oh yeah? Well, there was no way he’d catch up to her before she reached the rock. Not worried, she closed the distance with graceful forward strokes. Her hands gripped the edge and she hoisted herself out of the water, set a knee beneath her.

  A large hand clamped around her ankle before she could get both feet up. Gasping in surprise, her foot was tugged so forcefully, she squawked on her way back into the water. They surfaced together, her coughing and sputtering. Austin shook the water from his hair and grinned.

  “State record in Freestyle.”

  Outrage made her push at him hard. But he was immoveable and all she did was push herself back, rap her head painfully against the rock at her back.

  Austin watched her rage blossom over that one and his brows creased with a helpless laugh. Didn’t help, but he took her wrists and yanked her against him. Her steady stream of insults was abruptly cut off when his mouth opened over hers.

  The transition was immediate. Though she kept her forearms between them, everything else touched below the water while he held her close. The contact rendered her mute and she sank into the devastating kiss. He was devouring her again, sampling her mouth in a way that dominated. It wasn’t fair that he had the power to do this to her.

  Austin was thinking the very same thing. Danny was everything he wanted in a woman and whether she knew it or not, she held great power over him. It scared him to death, yet was satisfying to the core.

  “I have to know,” he said, wrapping his hands around her head as he locked eyes with her. “Have you been with anyone else but me?”

  What was the point in lying? She shook her head, closed her eyes and opened them again. “No.” She watched in fascination as something in hsom48">

  He backed her against the rock and splayed his hands out against it to cushion her head. “Good. Because you’re mine, Bennett. I had you first. And if anyone teaches you anything about your body, it’s going to be me. Got it?”

  The meaning behind those richly spoken words effected her like a powerful drug. “Will you always be this bossy?” His lips were on her neck and they felt oh so good.

  “When I need to be,” he answered huskily, licking droplets from the hollow of her throat.

  Heat was building inside her to an unbearable degree. This was definitely not how she expec

  ted to spend her evening...but plans changed. The easy acceptance of it was what made life so interesting.

  Her head fell back against his hand when his other reached down, cupped her between her legs. Breath became ragged, pulse picked up to a staggering rhythm. Her fingers dug into his shoulders and she let out a lustful moan.

  And he hadn’t even begun yet. “Danny,” he whispered, watching her intently. With his middle finger, he parted her lips, stroked once, twice. Then he slowly slipped inside her tight warmth and her eyes popped open. “What do you want?”

  Did he need to hear it? He drew his finger out, inserted two and thrust deep. Her entire torso imploded with pleasure. “I want you to make love to me.”

  “You won’t ever have to ask twice,” he promised the instant the words left her mouth. With surprising agility, he put his hands beneath her armpits and lifted her out of the water, set her on the flat rock surface.

  Chapter 18

  How he did it without a foothold, she’ll never know, as there was nothing beneath the shelf. But his own body followed her up, water cascading down to caress the virile shape of him. With his arms supporting him and effectively boxing her in, he leaned forward, retook possession of her mouth. His sheer beauty was something out of a movie, she thought, slow to recover from the image. The force of his desire pushed her back and she fell with him. He finished the climb by bringing his knees up beside her hips so that her legs were spread wide at his sides. With little effort, he scooped her up and shoved her back to give them more room.

  The rock was hard beneath her back, but her body accepted it as a part of the erotic fantasy he was creating for her. Big, rough hands flatted over her collarbone and moved down, over her breasts, around her middle, to the strip of curls at the apex of her thighs. Then followed the same path upward again. Her mouth opened in a silent “O” as her mind reeled from the sensation.

  Austin gauged the intensity of hean> klent “r body’s reaction by her eyes. They were floating in her head as if focused on nothing. And he was pleased. “Stay with me, honey. You’re going to need some backbone for this.�
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  The promise in those words made her shudder with anticipation. “I’m with you, Cahill,” she verified with an impish smile, reached down to close her hand around his erection. He moved fast to stop her and she laughed triumphantly. Who was weaker than whom?

  Noting her challenge, Austin fixed her with an authoritative look. “You know damned well that is off limits...at least until I make you come first.”

  Ah, yes. Orgasm. Before she could respond to that, he had her wide open, exposing her most private parts for the closest scrutiny. It was interesting, feeling the humid air between her gaping thighs as he devoured her with his eyes.

  So sweet, he thought. So ready. Her lips were swollen, the small nub beneath her curls very visible. If he touched her there ever so slightly, what would she do? How sensitive would she be? He flatted a thumb over the spot, moved it just so and her entire body jumped.

  Okay, extremely sensitive. With great effort, he drew in some air, tamed his own arousal until the urge to take her too soon subsided to a tolerable level. He lowered his lips to hers, kissed her gently until she went soft. Then, ever so slowly, he worked his way down to her throat, between her breasts, over the firm skin of her abdomen. On his hands and knees, he settled between her legs, trailing his tongue along the groove beside her groin. Her sharp intake of breath was violent.

  Danny dared to look and caught him crouched there, his head dipped between two massive shoulders. The outline resembled a powerful cat, ready to pounce. “I don’t know if I’m going to survive this,” she admitted weakly, almost fearful of the unknown.

  “Just relax,” he said roughly, his attention on her sensitive skin.

  Sure. Like that was possible, especially when his tongue touched her there...and there... Her heart skipped a beat when his lips brushed a ticklish spot on her most inner thigh, then moved to the other. What he was doing was clear, and God it was working. Touching her everywhere but there, building her up so that when he finally did –

  “Oh...” Her high-pitched moan of surprise carried through the air. Jesus, how was a feeling like that possible? His tongue came out and stroked again, flat and thorough. She whimpered from the sweet torture, squirmed beneath him. His arms came around the base of her legs, held her still for him.

  Instead of a full-on assault, Austin took his time, letting her come down a little before tasting her again. He didn’t want her to come too soon, wanted her first orgasm to build slowly...end in a cataclysmic fashion that would follow her to the grave. He breathed in her musky scent, found heaven in her unique flavors. She was so damned sweet, so perfect...

  Just when Danny thought she couldn’t take anymore, he buried his tongue deep inside her and her back arched up, twisted in shock. Her sounds of pleasure echoed through the night and he made no move to silence them.

  Sensing she’d passed the point of no return, Austin moved his mouth artfully, slid two fingers deep into her canal. Her hips reared up and his tongue glided over her, fingers inside her, until her muscles clenched around him with incredible tightness.

  Letting out a choked scream, Danny rode the tidal wave of bliss that encompassed her womb. Eyes crossed, she writhed beneath him, jerking violently when the sensation became too much to bear. Suddenly in a panic, she begged him to stop. “God, Austin, that’s enough!”

  He lifted up, but kept his fingers inside her slick warmth. That look. God, he loved that look, after a woman comes so intensely she lay in limp, stupefied shock. It was what he’d gone for...and accomplished. “You still with me, Bennett?” he teased with a grin.

  There were no words. Her muscles gone noodley, she soaked it in for a second then sent him a weak thumbs-up. He laughed and moved over her. The woman was priceless.

  Still panting, Danny opened her eyes, fixed on his hovering form as he watched her. “Wow.” It was all she could come up with until the brain waves started functioning again.

  “Good, huh?” he asked, knowing the answer.

  “Incredible,” she breathed. The man had skills he probably wasn’t even aware of.

  She had a dreamy look on her face he couldn’t resist. Austin dipped, slowly lowered his mouth to hers. She could taste herself on him and it brought everything back. Just the thought of him mastering her body the way he had...

  In small degrees, she came alive again, moved beneath his deep kiss until she found the energy to match it. Her hands came up, blindly explored the parts of him that were within reach. But it wasn’t enough. The desire to learn every hollow, every hardened swell, every geographical detail of his body prodded her to act in a way she’d never thought to before.

  “I want to taste you, now,” she whispered silkily. Her tongue came out, grazed over the hooked scar by his brow. His body went rigid above hers.

  If he were a lesser man, he’d have lost it just from the way she spoke the words. The mere thought of her mouth on him was torture enough. At this point all he’d do was embarrass himself, so he redirected her thoughts...just for now. “Danny...” Oh, so tenderly he caressed the line of her jaw with his lips. “As tempting as that sounds, you’re going to lay here for me a while longer.”

  “You don’t want...”

  “Oh, yeah... I want.” He smiled against her skin. “But you may want to let me...relieve some of the pressure first.”

  Her eyes widened as his meaning sank in and, despite his command, she attempted to sit up. “You know that just makes me want to do it even more, don’t you?”

  Really? Austin groaned. The woman was every man’s fantasy. “You are such an insubordinate student, aren’t you?”

  “Oh!” With a laugh, she shoved hard and the man went over on his back. “Is that what I am?” Now the hard rock surface was below her knees as she straddled him playfully. “Let’s just say I like to go for the extra credit.”

  I’m a dead man. Austin covered her breasts with his hands, stroked her nipples with his thumbs in wide circular sweeps. If the woman thought she could overpower him...well, there was nothing wrong with letting her.

  “This is definitely not how I thought I’d end my day,” Danny said wistfully over another bite of cold beef Lombardi.

  “This is exactly how I thought I’d end mine,” Austin came back quickly. They faced each other cross-legged on the bed in her tree house, naked over the Tupperware dish. The blanket had been tossed to the floor, sheets in wild disarray from hours of frantic, exploratory lovemaking.

  All of the shutters had been propped open to let in as much of the balmy night air as possible. Lights were off to avoid notice from anyone who might take the driveway this time of night. It was a fair distance, but Danny was cautious. Derek hadn’t come home from Melanie’s before she’d left the house.

  Danny lifted a brow. “Now who’s the cocky one?” He winked and shoved in another bite. Hmm. More than cocky. “What made you so sure I wouldn’t raise the alarm? Have my Pop run you off with his shotgun?”

  “If you tried it, I was prepared to throw a gunny sack over your head and abscond with you back to Cahill territory.”

  “Really?” He’d wanted her that bad? The thought warmed her soul. “Just like Jenny Bennett. How very nineteenth-century of you.”

  “Aha.” A valid argument. “Rumor has it Jenny Bennett lived a long happy life with Tucker Cahill.”

  “According to Cahill lore, you mean.” She met his narrow look. “The Bennetts never bought that story.”

  Of course, as was tradition. Austin regarded her as he chewed. “You could come back on your own, you know. I’m not the only one who misses you.”

  Danny thought of Mac and shook her head regretfully. “Nah, that’s impossible now. Pop is just starting to thaw toward me.” His silence questioned and she explained. “Tomorrow I get my own crew back. I get to bark orders again instead of take them from the likes of you. Of course, I don’t know how much of an impression I’ll make if I can’t walk.” How many times could a man and woman come nd of ttogether in one night? She had no clue, but t
hey were off to an interesting start.

  His back straightened. “I don’t know whether to be offended or proud.”

  Her gaze lowered suggestively to the bold display of his genitals. Her lips still tingled from what she’d done to him by the pond, her throat still raw from the use of stagnant muscles. Never before had she understood the fascination with oral sex. Until now. “Oh, you have a lot to be proud of, Cahill.”

  Though his penis jumped from her audacious reminder, his eyes rolled. “I mean, I’m proud of you. You’re every bit my equal, yet you took my shit for over a week without murdering me in my sleep.”

  She shrugged. “I can’t deny the thought crossed my mind.” A laugh escaped when he gave her forehead a playful shove.

  “I’ll remember to sleep with one eye open when I get you back in my bed.”

  Thinking about that, Danny picked at the casserole with her fork. At what capacity would she see the old Bennett/Cahill homestead again? Certainly not as an employee, but as a...a girlfriend? Lover? The same as Derek and Mel? The thought rendered an ambiguous emotion she couldn’t quite decipher. Austin’s crew would have a field day with that.

  Austin noticed her subtle shift in mood, put down his fork when she smiled a bit. His ravenous hunger for food had been sated. His hunger for her...never. “What are you thinking?”

  Danny put down her own fork, moved the near-empty dish to the floor. “I guess...” she answered with a sigh, “how strange it all is. How this whole thing started and now...here we are.”

  “You mean, how things started with us?”

  She moved a shoulder. “Sure. Not just a couple of weeks ago, but...you know, back when I first laid eyes on you. Swimming in the pond with my brother.”

  He linked his hands behind his neck and stretched, leery of where she was headed.

  “I hated you back then,” she went on, “more for ruining my plans than for being a Cahill.”