“What’s the point?” she said in a conscious mimic of his earlier words. “We’re both already there.”
“Thank God you said that.” Knox stood to shove off his shorts. Whipped his shirt over his head—because why waste time dealing with buttons? His deck shoes went flying. One splashed all the way into the reflecting pool. Madison used the break to shimmy out of her clothes. Well, the top layer anyway. She left on the underwear. Knox had begged to see them. He at least deserved one long look before they ended up in a grass-stained pile.
The darkness kept her from taking in as many details as she’d like. Sure, the nearly full moon helped. But it was more of a halo behind Knox, sculpting his muscles into even sharper definition. It blurred together the light mat of dark hair on his chest that she remembered scraping against her skin.
She could see the whiteness of his teeth flash as he ripped open the condom wrapper. When he finally looked back at her, he froze. In profile. The shadow he cast across the steps was truly epic.
“You’re beautiful, Madison.”
“I thought we agreed on no foreplay. Flirting counts as foreplay.”
Knox straddled her, and rubbed his palms in light circles over her already taut nipples. “It’s an accurate assessment of reality. Engineers like me get off on that. Deal with it.”
“Okay, then. Your penis is amazing. There’s a fact for you.”
“Better than average, certainly. The amazing part, however, is what I do with it.”
Madison wanted to roll her eyes. She wanted to sass him back for his smugness. But just then, he took that penis in his hand and gently smacked her clitoris with it. The first tap made her jump. The second one made her sink her nails into Knox’s forearms. The third made her scream.
“I won’t be gentle. Not with you so alluring, spread out on the grass in your white lace. I won’t be able to hold back. I’ve got to have you now, Madison.”
“ ’Bout time,” was all she could manage.
He had her panties at her ankles before she could blink. Sank one long finger inside her, but pulled it back out before she finished writhing. Then, keeping the dark pools of his eyes fixed on her, Knox slid the same finger into his mouth. “Sweetest taste I’ve had all week.”
“You’re flirting again.”
“Nope. Just stating the facts. Again.” Knox moved to cover her. Spread-eagled her arms and intertwined their fingers, pinning her to the ground. Anchoring them, really, against the upside-down incline. “Come to think of it, you’re the sweetest morsel I’ve had between my lips in as long as I can remember.”
The flattery caught Madison off guard. It also made her wetter. Good thing, too, because a moment later he was inside her. Inch by inch, so slowly that she didn’t think it would ever end. His hands squeezed, once. “Ready?”
“Yes.”
Then it was exactly what she’d hoped for. Fast and hard, a seamless in and out that spiraled her out of control, out of her body even, before long. Knox’s breath rasped in her ear, a jagged panting that matched her own. Her hips rose to meet his. The slap of their skin seemed to bounce off the columns and echo back across the park. That made her even hotter, too.
Madison crossed her ankles behind his pistoning hips. It angled Knox even deeper, and they both groaned at the sensation. The grass was cool beneath her, if a little rougher than anticipated. The hill gave him leverage, the downward slant a new and exciting twist.
“You ready?” he asked.
“Yes.”
Knox began an absolute barrage of strokes, hips grinding, balls bouncing against her ass, and the thick fullness of him rubbing against every nerve ending inside her slick channel. “Come with me. Now,” he demanded, taking her in a bruising kiss.
An explosion deep within Madison detonated at his words. Wave after wave shot out from where they were locked together in primal passion. Knox jerked and grunted while still thrusting his tongue against hers until with a guttural sigh he collapsed on top of her.
At the canted angle, Madison could see the tops of the columns, as well as the first few stars blinking into the sky. Or…closing her eyes brought the focus back to the more than six feet of sexy muscles lined up along her body. Yep. That was the way to go. She’d been too eyes-on-the-prize earlier, thanks to his talented tongue and hands, to properly appreciate the sweat-slick skin stretched over a body that did not come about by just exercising his brain on a regular basis. Knox had real muscles. Everywhere. And she loved how he brought them into play during sex. Loved that his obvious strength made her feel oh so light and delicate and desirable.
Well. If this ended up being just an extended hookup, her future husband would have to live with being the second best sex of her life, because nothing could top this. Yet another check in the yes column for Knox being a potential keeper. Not that this was the time to whip out the scorecard.
Madison wanted to stay in the moment. In the spectacular moment. Since she was betting she’d never, ever manage to have mind-blowing sex in the National Arboretum ever again. Unless, of course, she could get Knox to consider a second round before they called it a night.
She wriggled a hand free to give a lingering caress to the work of art that was his ass. “I think we should eat,” she announced. No reason to waste a night this great on a post-sex nap. “Let’s get your energy levels back up.”
“Woman, that sounds like a thinly veiled insult. Which I object to, seeing as how your screams are still echoing off the dogwoods at the back of the Arboretum.”
“I didn’t know that someone with your sex-god standing would be thin-skinned. And it was the ultimate compliment. You were so good that I’m already planning ahead to how I can coerce you into going again.”
Knox propped himself up on one elbow. His hair was adorably mussed, and his eyes were only half-open. Bedroom eyes. Of course, everything about Knox was suited to a bedroom. “That’s easy. Don’t put your clothes back on.”
“Ever?”
“While we eat. Let me get my fill of ogling you. We won’t make it to dessert before I ravage you.”
Madison aimed a smug smile at him. “You’re right again, Knox.”
Chapter 7
“Don’t even think about it,” Knox said in a low, menacing voice. His gaze was fixed on her hand, hovering just above the single drumstick left at the bottom of the picnic basket.
The chicken had been terrific—and a diet splurge she never, ever made for herself. Having someone feed it to her made it guilt-free, surely. “Aren’t you supposed to be wooing me with food?”
“Aren’t you supposed to be letting me eat everything in sight so I can screw you senseless again tonight?”
Beaten by her very own suggestion. And she certainly wouldn’t change her mind on that front. Not since she’d slipped on her lingerie and convinced Knox to dine in his underwear, too. Madison dropped her hand with a sigh. “Go on, then. But I’ll expect some extra-fancy moves as payment for that last piece of chicken.”
“No problem.” Knox tapped his temple with the hand not wielding the chicken. “I’ve been prepping my game plan all through dinner. I’m sure you’ll approve.”
No doubt. She took a swig of her beer. Tried not to think about how it wasn’t at all fried or crispy. “Dinner was delicious, by the way. Not to mention surprising.”
Knox poked at the basket with one bare toe. “It’s a picnic. What’s so surprising about fried chicken, coleslaw, and potato salad?”
“The utter normalcy of it. The other meals we’ve shared were so fancy.” Everything had been tasty, but Madison hadn’t known what half of it was. Either the name or how to pronounce it. “I wasn’t expecting actual picnic food.”
“I’m a normal guy. My roommates and I grill burgers, make pizza, go out for steaks. A man can’t live on crab cakes and brie.”
“Good to know. Wait—you can make pizza?” That got him a check mark in the irresistible column of her scorecard. Both because she adored pizza, and because a
man being able to cook was nonnegotiable. This was the twenty-first century. Husbands were expected to pull their weight in the kitchen.
He shrugged and swallowed. “It’s faster than waiting for the delivery guy. Especially when you’re in an epic Xbox battle and need pizza at two in the morning.”
Madison traced the ripple of his washboard abs with the tip of her finger. This dining almost naked was something she’d need to insist on going into frequent rotation. “After seeing your physique, I’ll bet you don’t scarf down pizza too often.”
“I like to separate a sucker from their cash.” Knox kissed his way from her elbow to her palm, and then extended it flat. “Would you put five dollars on that?”
“Because you’re in such desperate need of walking-around money?” She snatched back her hand. A gajillionaire was the last person in the world she’d ever bet against. Not that Madison had ever had the spare money to throw away on gambling. “I think not.”
“It took me, well, longer than I hoped to hit my big growth spurt as a kid. I was your stereotypical gangly nerd. My mouse and joystick forearm was pretty built up, but that was it. It wasn’t healthy for my body or my mind. Or for being able to fight back when bullies stuffed me in lockers.”
It broke Madison’s heart to picture a skinny kid who couldn’t defend himself—or his love of knowledge. Being smart and passionate shouldn’t equal an automatic sentence of bullying for a child. But there was no trace of that child in the man before her with moonlight cutting across all his muscles. “What changed?”
He looked across the reflecting pool, as if figuring out how to answer. “I was forced, kicking and screaming, to join at least one team at my prep school as a condition of my scholarship. They’re big on the well-rounded student. Testosterone and that growth spurt finally kicked in, too.”
Madison had the distinct feeling that she hadn’t gotten the entire answer that she sought. If this turned into a full-fledged relationship, she’d definitely circle back around and dig for the rest of it eventually. For now, she just squeezed his rock-hard thigh. “This isn’t a souvenir from your high school glory days.”
“I still work out a lot. We all play a game of pickup soccer once a week. And I’ve got a treadmill desk.” As Madison’s jaw dropped open, Knox held up a hand. “Walking helps jog things loose in my brain.”
“Sure—like the brain cells that govern good sense. Don’t you ever get tired of standing up? Don’t you ever feel lazy?” There wasn’t a column on her scorecard for this lunacy, but it had to count for at least ten points in what she’d add as a write-in essay question reasons it would never, ever work out with this guy. “I…I just don’t know how to relate to someone who doesn’t enjoy sitting down.”
“I’ve got a regular desk, too. With an extremely well-padded leather chair. At home I’ve even got an entire couch that reclines. I like to sit as much as you do.” Knox leaned back, propped himself on his elbows, and crossed his ankles. Then he jerked his head in a Get over here motion. “Will that stop you from grabbing your clothes and fleeing from me in horror?”
For now. There were clearly a series of tests to be conducted as to just how willing he was to lie around and do nothing in sweats on a snowy day in their future. But she could put a pin in that issue and enjoy right now.
“I guess.” Madison rolled into his side. Rested her face on his chest and threw a leg over his. This was exactly the kind of relaxing she wanted him to be into. The ability to cuddle, like the ability to cook, was nonnegotiable in a potential husband.
They lay together, the sound of crickets and cicadas the only stirring in the air. Knox kept up a lazy caress from her butt up to the swell of her breast. “See how good I am at being horizontal?”
“Oh, your ability to win a gold medal with your horizontal abilities was never in question.”
His laugh was muffled as he kissed her hair. “I swear I like to kick back and relax. In fact, I’ll prove it to you. Let me take you someplace.”
Given how over-the-top their dates had been so far, she figured his offer was for something equally crazy. Like to force a furniture store to open so he could replace her government-issue desk chair with something padded and pink. “Where?” she asked with a healthy dose of suspicion.
“Anyplace.”
“Right. What are you going to offer next, that we go pet the giant pandas at the National Zoo?”
“No, I mean anyplace outside the city limits. Outside by a long shot. We could go to Paris, to do nothing but drink wine in cafés and gorge on cheese and bread. Italy, to sit in a vineyard all day and, well, gorge on cheese and pasta. Wherever you want to go and relax. Just name the place.”
Madison wasn’t just speechless. She literally forgot to breathe in her shock until the blood started to pound painfully behind her eyes. On a gasp, she said, “I can’t go to Paris. Or Italy.”
“No passport? No problem. We can do the U.S. Virgin Islands. Sit on the sand all day drinking mai tais out of coconut shells. Expose all your alabaster skin, as beautiful as it is, to a daily diet of sunshine. And sunscreen. Sex is no fun with a sunburn. I’m assuming in all this relaxing you’d still want sex on the itinerary?”
Did he really think her problem was with any of the amazing locations he’d offered? Geez, if she could go, how would it even be possible to choose? Madison took a long breath, unsure of where to start, but knowing his unbridled enthusiasm demanded an immediate response. “Knox, first of all, oh my gosh, thank you. Secondly, though, the lack of a passport is the least of my issues with this very generous offer.”
“I’m a problem solver extraordinaire. We’ll call that my unofficial minor in grad school. Hit me with your issues.”
She’d have to work up to it slowly. Knox would need time to absorb her response and not just steamroll over it. Another deep breath. Madison wondered if there was a paper bag in that picnic basket, because at this rate she’d hyperventilate any minute.
“Well, no, I don’t happen to have a passport. I’m also only one week into a brand-new job. I’m not even allowed vacation time for sixty days.”
“A long weekend, then. You can sneak out early on Friday and I’ll have you back by lunch on Monday. Nobody will notice if you time it right.”
Sure, Knox worked for a living. But he owned his own company. That had evidently given him a skewed viewpoint of what the regular workers who reported to several levels of supervisors had to prove.
Before she could point out the holes in his argument, he tucked her in closer. Cradled the side of her face in his wide palm and looked her deep in the eyes. “I’m serious, Madison. I want to go away with you. We’re having too much fun together to ration it to evenings, when we’re both exhausted from work. Let’s ride this thing out.”
Another shocker. She’d never expected him to pull out the big guns of tender romance. Against which she had practically zero armament. No, this was good. It meant he’d be more amenable to hearing her out.
And…Madison closed her eyes for a second to savor the unexpected. Knox wasn’t treating this as a date-by-date phenomenon. No doubt he wasn’t thinking as long term as her extreme approach, but it provided a stronger than anticipated dose of hope this early in the plan.
“Did I say thank you already?” It wasn’t stalling. It was good manners.
“You did.” His thumb moved down to cover her lips in a brief tap. “Don’t say it again until we’re on board a jet with bags packed.”
“Knox, I can’t go with you.” To forestall the reassurances she could practically see bubbling over his lips, Madison hurried to clarify. “Well, to be more specific, I won’t. I won’t go anywhere with a man without a ring on my finger.”
“Very funny.”
“I’m serious.”
An expressionless mask slid across his features. “Uh, this is only our third date. Not even the ultra-religious types expect a proposal after nine days and three dates.”
“I don’t expect a proposal tonight,
” she said in the most soothing, reassuring tone she could muster. Because she could feel his heart rate zooming up into triple digits beneath her ear. “I do require one before I go on a trip with a man, though. I’m on a serious quest to find a husband. I can’t waste time running off on romantic vacations until I find the right man.”
To his credit, Knox didn’t yank on his pants and run for the exit. But he did sit up. Abruptly enough that she sort of toppled off of his chest and to the ground. “You’re on a husband hunt? Since when?”
“Since as long as I can remember. No, that’s not true. I can tell you exactly when I set it as a goal.” Madison sat up, too, and curled her legs beneath her. “I was seven. Mom had to leave me home alone when she went to treat a patient with pneumonia. I had chicken pox. It was too risky to take me along. She left me two kinds of sandwiches, some cookies a patient had used as payment for a finger splint, and the promise that she’d be back in an hour.”
“What happened?”
Madison could look back on it now and laugh. Sort of. A smile that felt more like a bitter smirk ghosted along her mouth. “Alaska happened. A storm blew in, as it often does without warning. I was snowed in, all alone.”
Knox’s eyes bugged wide. “At seven? That’s some serious neglect.”
“I could take care of myself. You learn to early on in the bush. I had lots of books to keep me company. At least the power kept running. But I kept thinking that if I had a dad, I wouldn’t be alone. We’d only lived in that village for a few days. We didn’t know anyone. I didn’t have any friends to call. So I promised myself that I’d be sure to get married when I grew up.”
Knox circled his arms loosely around his knees. “Madison, I get that it was an awful experience for a kid. But deciding to get married before having children isn’t the same thing as actively husband hunting.”
“It really is. Because it’s what I’ve always wanted. A home, a real home, of my own. A circle that depends on me and I depend on them right back.” She licked her suddenly dry lips. “Mom dragged us from town to town. I never had friends. Or if I did, I had to leave them behind after just a few months. Nobody ever asked my opinion at school—if there was a school—on their clothes, or makeup, because my opinion didn’t matter. I was an outsider. A nobody.” To this day, just thinking about it brought the emptiness, the loneliness rushing back. “All I want is to belong. To be needed. To never be alone again. To find a man who needs me to make his life complete and who loves me to pieces. Then we’ll make a nest, a family of friends, and then a family of our own.”
Wanting It All: A Naked Men Novel Page 9