Up In Flames

by Lori Foster

“But somewhere along the way,” he continued, “I started wanting you, not the material things you had. I’d stopped being mean by the time we were thirteen, Mel, but you didn’t notice. You still avoided me.” With a smile, he said, “You could get that pretty little nose so high in the air, I could have thrown myself at your feet and you wouldn’t have seen me.”

  He was so wrong, but how could she explain all the various things he’d made her feel over the years? Yes, she’d often been angry at him, but she’d also felt alive whenever he was near. Adam never ignored her like the rest of the town did. He didn’t give her only distant politeness. And he didn’t hide what he felt behind proper manners, as her parents were wont to do. Her mother and father loved her, she’d never doubted that. But they considered an excess of emotion uncouth. They’d always been careful in how they expressed their feelings.

  Not Adam. No, he teased and harassed and provoked—and she’d always responded to him, whether he knew it or not. In many ways, she’d equally dreaded and looked forward to her daily confrontations with him.

  Twining her fingers in his chest hair, she said, “I was never...indifferent to you, Adam.”

  He gave her a crooked smile. “No, most times you hated me. And all I could think about was getting you out of your dainty little pants. Hell, there were days I’d get hard just seeing you in town or in school. You had a way of walking, like a queen, that drove me crazy. Even when I thought you were skinny—”

  “I am skinny.”

  He shook his head. “No. You’re thin, but you’ve got all the right curves in all the right places. If I’d known what you were hiding under those schoolgirl jumpers, I’d never have survived puberty.”

  She felt her cheeks heat, and Adam hugged her closer. His gaze was hot, probing. “I wanted you so bad, Mel, it’s a wonder I survived. But I always knew you were out of bounds.”

  Daringly, she slipped her hand down his side to his hip. Hard muscle and bone moved as he shifted from her touch. “I’m not out of bounds now.” His eyes closed; his breathing came faster. Melanie leaned forward and kissed his chin. “Now, there’s just you and me—and I want you.”

  He gripped her buttocks even tighter and rocked her against the long length of his erection. “I need to be inside you, sweetheart.”

  She wasn’t experienced and couldn’t tease as well as he. Already she wanted him again and felt no shame in admitting it. “Yes, please.”

  He laughed on a shaky breath. “You always were so damn proper.”

  “What we’re doing now is far from proper, Adam Stone, and you know it.”

  His hands shifted, stroking her thighs. “All right, not proper. But you have to admit it feels damn right.”

  Nothing had ever felt more right in her entire life. Being with Adam seemed totally natural, because Adam was so natural. Loving him would be so easy. But nothing for the future had changed, and she doubted it ever would, not with the way Adam resented her background. But for right now, it just didn’t matter.

  Quickly rolling her onto her back, Adam sat up and reached for his bag. He lifted out a small foil pack and hastily tore it open with his teeth.

  Melanie watched him in fascination. “Are you really such a hound dog that you carry condoms everywhere?”

  Sitting by her side, he placed one hand on her belly and stroked. “Mel...I travel a lot, honey. And I avoid commitments like the plague.”

  Her eyes closed, both from the pain of his admission and the gentle stroking of his rough palm.

  “I’m a man,” he continued. His control seemed tightly leashed, but ready to break at any moment. “I enjoy sex, I won’t lie about that. But as a rule, I don’t believe in one-night stands.”

  She shifted, not really wanting details, unable to imagine him with someone else in just this way.

  “Melanie, look at me.”

  She did, surprised by the use of her full name.

  “I quit prowling after high school, sweetheart. But I am human, so I carry protection whether I plan on doing anything or not. I guess I’m old-fashioned enough to think if you make a baby, you should be a father, and I’m not ready to take a chance on that yet.”

  Melanie turned her face away. He couldn’t have been more blunt, and while his words hurt, she understood. Adam had been given very little in life, and his attitude was actually commendable.

  If only her heart weren’t already involved.

  “Mel?”

  Choking back the hurt, she looked at him and smiled. “You talk too damn much, Stone, you know that?”

  “And you’re just a bit demanding.” He pulled her on top of him again and situated her until she sat astride his hips. “I like it.” Automatically, Melanie braced her hands on his chest and tightened her thighs. Slowly, he entered her.

  She groaned at the incredible tightness.

  “Mel?” His voice was strained, filled with disbelief.

  “Not now, Adam.” Later, when she could catch her breath, she’d explain to him why she’d waited so long to experience sex. But now the experiencing was at hand, and she didn’t want to be distracted for a single moment.

  Adam’s chest rose and fell with his labored breaths. He pressed deeper. “Damn, you’re snug.” Every muscle in his arms and shoulders pulled taut with restraint.

  She tipped her head back and concentrated on relaxing, on accepting him.

  “Yeah. All the way, honey,” he urged. “All the way...”

  The natural resistance of her body gave way, and he buried himself completely inside her.

  Mel dropped forward against his chest, overwhelmed with his size and strength. His fingers bit into her buttocks, holding her and his control tightly. Then he broke.

  “I’m sorry,” he growled through clenched teeth, even as he rolled her to her back. He thrust smoothly, deeply, lifting her hips high into the rhythm of his. Heat poured off his body.

  Stunned, Melanie felt the pressure building again and she held on tight. His sudden fierceness fired her own. The friction was exquisite, the weight of his body on hers, his scent. As she started to climax, Adam pressed his face into the side of her neck and groaned out his own release.

  Afterward they lay limp, both overheated, their limbs tangled. Melanie thought it was the most wondrous experience imaginable. Finally, as if the effort cost him, Adam shifted to her side, then tucked her close again. “Sleep.”

  She didn’t need to be told twice. There in the tranquillity of the island, the moon shadows of palm leaves dancing over the white sand, the salty breeze from the ocean touching her skin, she felt more peace than she’d felt in all her life. Sleeping there with Adam was the easiest thing she’d ever done.

  Loving, and leaving him, would be the hardest.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Adam opened his eyes, not certain what had awakened him, and squinted against the rising sunshine. He noticed several things at once. Melanie was no longer at his side, the day was hazy, promising rain, and a huge, smelly pelican stood over him, its expression rapt, staring at his naked body.

  Adam quickly scrambled back, scraping his bare butt on the fine sand. The pelican boldly scrambled after him, keeping pace. Jumping to his feet, Adam tried to intimidate the bird by making shooing motions with his arms and yelling, “Scat!” The bird lifted its enormous wings and opened its baggy beak in a silent but alarming threat.

  Adam froze. Where the hell was Melanie? Watching the bird with one eye, he called, “Mel!”

  She stuck her head out of the empty shack. “You’re awake!”

  He didn’t dare look away from the pelican. “I’m being attacked, damn it.”

  Dividing his glances between Mel and the bird, Adam caught the way Melanie stared, perusing his body in minute detail. A lesser man might have blushed, her look was so thorough. Of course, most men wouldn’t have been preoccupied defending themselves against a curious bird.

  Adam watched Mel leap nimbly out of the doorway and start toward them at an angle. She wore her halter and
the silky tap pants and she was the sexiest thing he’d ever seen in his entire life.

  His palms began to sweat.

  “I think he might want food. I tossed some coconut and strawberries to him earlier, but he wouldn’t go away.”

  Adam inched closer to her, intending to protect her with his body if need be. “I think they only eat fish.”

  The pelican didn’t like him moving around and fanned his wings as a warning. Adam halted. He turned slightly to Mel, but she had her gaze directed on lower parts, which caused something of an immediate reaction in his body.

  “Sweetheart, there’s not a damn thing I’d like more this morning than to indulge your interest, but I don’t want my eyes—or more important body parts—plucked at by our feathered guest while I’m distracted by you.”

  “Oh.” She forced her attention to the bird. “He’s kind of cute, isn’t he?”

  “You must be kidding.”

  The bird took a small, mean leap at Adam and he yelped, stumbling back. Being naked, he felt even more graceless than otherwise.

  “Be still, Adam. You’re frightening him.”

  She had to be kidding. “Honey, find me a rock.”

  Appalled, Melanie turned on him and pointed a finger. “Don’t you dare!” The bird, startled by her command, turned to flee. But on his way, he snatched up her underpants, resting on a pile of palm leaves, and flew away with them.

  Melanie’s eyes were huge. “Now look what you’ve done!”

  “Me?” Adam did his best not to laugh. And he couldn’t very well hold a grudge against the bird. “You’re the one who shouted. And for your information, I had no intention of hitting the damn bird with a rock, I just wanted to scare it away.”

  The bird soared down the island, out of sight. Hands on her hips, Melanie stared after it. “I washed out our stuff and left it on the leaves to dry. Now what will we do?”

  “Our stuff?”

  “Our...respective underthings.”

  Adam, having resisted her as long as he could, drew her close in the circle of his arms. “Why’d you leave me this morning?”

  Mel toyed with the hair on his chest, avoiding his gaze. “I woke early so I decided to do some...stuff.”

  “What kind of stuff?” Already it was hard for him to carry on a conversation. She was soft and sweet and he knew her body well, knew how easily, how hotly, she responded to him. She’d combed her hair and made use of his toothpaste; he could smell the minty flavor on her breath. Her skin, sun-warmed and glowing, felt silky soft beneath his hands.

  “I washed out our clothes, like I said. And I tidied up the shack in case we need to go in. The air smells rainy to me.” She peeked at him, then away. “I also explored a little down the beach. A lot more of the same, except there’s a mango tree there that has—”

  Adam cut her off, his mood quickly changing when he thought of all the things that could have happened to her. “You took off down the beach without me?”

  She looked surprised by his accusing tone. “So?”

  Without even realizing it, he gripped her upper arms. “Mel, the sun’s just coming up.”

  “There was enough light for me to see.”

  He wanted to shake her. “What would you have done if you’d run into another snake? Or a swarm of those damn beetles? What if you’d fallen and hit your head, or stepped on something sharp?”

  She pulled away and stared at him. “I’m a big girl, Adam. I can take care of myself.”

  “Ha! Big girls don’t go running screaming down the beach because of a little cockroach—”

  “A swarm of huge cockroaches!”

  “—and they aren’t afraid to stick so much as a big toe in the ocean.” He no sooner said it and saw her face blanch than he felt disgust for himself. Her fear of the water was real, if exaggerated, and he’d found it endearing, not something to ridicule her over. But he could tell by her quivering lip and rigid stance that he’d crossed the line.

  He sighed. “Mel...”

  She bit her lip to still it, and her hands fisted. After two deep breaths she very calmly, very coldly, said, “I am a coward and I freely admit it. I’m afraid of the water, or rather, things lurking in the water. But I can damn well carry my own weight here. I’m not the pampered little girl you remember. I do all the things normal women do, like go to college, work—even break engagements!”

  “I didn’t mean—”

  That stubborn, adorable chin of hers lifted and she cut him off. “I cleaned out the shack so we can inhabit it, and yes, I did run into a few snakes. While I don’t like them, I am quite capable of shooing them off with a long stick.”

  “Honey...”

  “I also collected enough fruit for our breakfast and I got a dozen pricks on my fingers from my efforts.” She thrust her hands in front of his face, glaring.

  Smiling inside, Adam took her fingers and examined the small scratches. “Blackberry bushes?”

  “And some of that stupid grass. It’s as sharp as needles.”

  “You didn’t need to do all that, babe. And I’m sorry I said anything about the water.”

  She jerked her hands away in renewed pique. “The point is, if I choose to go exploring, I will. I don’t need your permission or your protection.” Then she sneered, “Or are you going to lie some more about wild boars?”

  “You read my Key to the Keys?”

  She thumped him on the chest with one small fist. “I’m not an idiot, damn it! I don’t need to read your dumb guidebook to know there aren’t any wild boars here.”

  She was so adorable in her anger, and he was naked and hard. It was difficult to take part in the conversation when all he really wanted to do was lay her down and slide into her body again. Last night he’d tried to make her see how different she was from any other woman he’d been with. Sheer physical gratification couldn’t compare with the deep, primal possessiveness he felt with her. But he knew by the look on her face she hadn’t understood. She thought she was just one more woman in a long line of conquests. And this morning, being in a saner frame of mind, he wasn’t about to tell her no other woman had mattered, not when he always pretended they were her. That was a little too heavy to lay on a woman after only one night.

  “Mel, I don’t want you wandering off alone because it isn’t safe, boar or no boar. I have no idea what kinds of snakes are on the island, if they’re poisonous or not. The shack looks ready to collapse, so until we can decide if it’s safe enough to be in, I don’t want either of us wandering off alone. Okay?”

  His cajoling tone and apologetic expression must have gotten to her. “You’re expressing yourself much better this time around, Stone.”

  He grinned. She obviously didn’t know how badly it scared him to think of her getting hurt. “I’m naked, horny as hell, and you’re running around in this sexy little outfit, looking good enough to be breakfast. How do you expect me to act?”

  Her mouth opened and closed twice, then she looked down and started toying with his chest hair again. He liked her like this, all sweet and innocent and shy. His hands slid over her hips, appreciating the feel of her firm softness beneath the slippery material.

  “I looked at you this morning.”

  Adam froze while kissing her neck. “Is that right?”

  She nodded, bumping his chin. “You’re very...sexy, too.”

  Grinning from ear to ear, he put one finger beneath her chin and lifted her face so he could see her eyes. “Am I hearing this right? You took advantage of my exhaustion to sate your curiosity on my poor body?”

  A blush exploded on her cheeks and her long lashes drifted down to hide her expression, but she smiled. “Yes. And I enjoyed myself, too. You...affect me, Adam. Once I woke up and saw you, it was impossible to go back to sleep. I had to find something to do so I wouldn’t attack you, but I knew you needed your rest after hurting your head.”

  “My head is fine, feeling better by the second.” He kissed her long and deep, his tongue tasting
her, enticing her. “You should have wakened me,” he growled between nibbling on her lips.

  “You’re awake now.”

  “And you’re overdressed.” One small tug, and her halter dropped to her waist.

  This time was no less frantic than the night before, and afterward, as they both lay sated and hot and damp from their exertions and the rising humidity, Adam frowned. He couldn’t quite reconcile the way she made him feel, complete but still hungry, at peace but still turbulent. He’d always known there was something there, an irresistible chemistry that drew him in, but he’d thought it all one-sided. Now, seeing her naked beside him, panting for breath, her scream of pleasure at the time of her climax still ringing in his ears, he realized how wrong he’d been. She’d moved with him, kept pace with him, every step of the way.

  Yet she’d been a virgin.

  Laying a hand on her damp belly, relishing the fact that she still trembled, he said, “Tell me about yourself, Mel. What you’ve been up to.”

  She cocked one pale blue eye open to peer at him, and groaned. “I think you’ve killed me.”

  He laughed. “With pleasure.” Leaning down to kiss her, he added, “You’re one demanding little lady.”

  “You’d make me blush if I had the strength.”

  “You want me to show you exactly how much strength you still have?” He drifted his fingers down her belly.

  Melanie caught his wrist and moaned. “No, I’ll talk.”

  “Good. Start with this idiot fiancé of yours.”

  “He’s not my fiancé, not anymore, and he’s also not an idiot. In fact, he’s very intelligent, successful—pretty special, really.” She sighed, then tilted her head to the side to smile at him. “Jerry Marshall is actually considered quite a catch. He’s not as tall as you, but he’s handsome. Hair as black as my own, great teeth.”

  Adam made a sound of disgust. “I don’t give a damn about his teeth. Why the hell haven’t you slept with him?”

  There was that seductive blush again, making his muscles twitch and his heart pound. When would her potent effect on him diminish? Never? He couldn’t accept that prospect and determinedly pushed the problem from his mind. They were still eons apart, and he had a hell of a lot yet to accomplish before he could even begin to think of settling down, especially with a woman like Melanie Tucker.