***
Hours earlier Will had been sprawled on the hardwood floor of their living room scrutinizing a stack of architectural plans for his former best friend Diego Navarro’s latest zillion dollar project. Frustrated that he couldn’t find the flaw he knew was there somewhere, he’d shoved the blueprints aside, uttered a string of curses, flipped onto his back and ran both of his hands through his shaggy dark brown hair.
Alex had been curled up in an overstuffed chair near the fireplace, reading a novel in the fading light of the late winter afternoon. She closed the book, a look of concern on her face. Will’s behavior worried her. For the past couple of weeks, he’d been unusually restless and woke often during the night, but she also knew that he wouldn’t tell her what was troubling him until he was damn good and ready. Stubborn man.
“Why don’t you take a break? I’ll start dinner, we can have some wine, and you can look at the plans again later,” Alex had suggested.
“Yeah, you’re right.” Will yawned as he stood, stretching his muscular arms toward the high ceiling. He threw his tall body into the down-stuffed cushion of his favorite chair, the mate to the one Alex had just vacated. Food, followed by sex, was just the distraction he needed. “I am kind of hungry,” he said with a grin.
“Me too,” Alex whispered. She hadn’t missed the twinkle in his eyes and guessed that his hunger didn’t just involve food. She paused beside his chair and ran the tip of her tongue up the side of his neck until he shivered. When he reached for her she darted away, but the smile and raised brows she directed at him spoke volumes.
He followed her to the kitchen, pressed his body against her back, and wrapped his arms around her waist. She leaned her head against his solid chest and sighed. “We’re not having dinner now, are we?”
“No, we’re not,” he assured her.
Will nudged her hair out of the way so that his lips could find the curve between her neck and her shoulder while his fingers slid under her sweater. His stroke was gentle, but insistent, and when his palms reached her nipples, they were already hard under the bit of lace still covering her skin. With one smooth motion he flicked the obstacle’s clasp open and she raised her arms to help him tug the sweater over her head. Alex wanted to feel his warm skin against hers and reached back to strip off his sweatshirt, but his firm grip held her where she was. She understood then that he was intent on taking the lead this time. She closed her eyes and willingly surrendered, eager for the journey.
Will dipped his fingers into the glass Alex had set on the counter. She flinched as he slowly ran a bitingly cold piece of ice around the center of each breast until he turned her toward him and lowered his mouth. The change in temperature as his tongue licked the moisture from her reddened nipples made her gasp, and her hands dug into his hair to keep him precisely where she wanted him to be. When he pulled away, she watched his eyes shimmer with lust as his gaze lingered on her body, now barely covered by low-slung jeans. Her fingers went toward her zipper, but he quickly covered her hand with his. “No. This is way sexier than being totally naked. Stay like this, at least for a while,” he murmured huskily. She reached for his crotch, but he took a step back. “We’ll get to that, but for now I want to look at you.”
“You’re torturing me. Let me touch you,” she moaned, her eyes focused on the noticeable bulge of his erection.
“Not yet,” he whispered as a lascivious grin lit his flushed face.
“Okay, if you’d rather be a voyeur…” she challenged as her hands rose to her breasts and she caressed herself. Her light green eyes never left his and a minute later his self-control shattered. He scooped her into his arms and headed for their bedroom.
Hours later, their sexual appetites more than satisfied, they’d napped. They woke just before midnight with a craving for something sweet and decadent and zeroed in on their favorite ice cream’s sticky sweet mix of chocolate, marshmallow and caramel. “Neither of us will be able to sleep if we don’t have a Ben & Jerry’s fix,” Will said. “You stay warm in our bed and I’ll go to the store. Don’t worry about me freezing my ass off in the middle of the night.“
“I feel no guilt, mon amour. You’re the best husband ever. What would I do without you?”
“You’d have to get your own freakin’ ice cream,” he tossed back and winked. Their lovemaking had relaxed him so well that he’d stopped thinking about the sense of dread that had become his companion. He would have to tell her about the strange feeling that he was being followed, but it could wait until tomorrow.
Alex leaned against the pillows and watched her husband stumble naked around a room that reeked of sex as he tried to find where he’d carelessly tossed his threadbare jeans. She lazily admired the body that she never tired of — broad shoulders, firm butt, long, muscular legs, and a chest sprinkled with silky dark curls that she loved to run her fingers through.
She considered whether she really wanted ice cream, or did she want him — again. Ice cream, definitely, ice cream and then him — again and again and again. Before he left, he’d cupped one of her breasts in his warm hand and left her breathless from a kiss that promised more.
“I’ll be back soon,” he’d whispered as he stuffed his wallet and keys into the front pocket of his faded jeans. “Don’t go to sleep. I want you naked and waiting for me. We’re not finished yet.” He turned to look at her one more time before he left the room. Alex focused on his beautiful eyes, their thick lashes framing gold-flecked irises tinged with blue and green. Those eyes, those eyes. From the moment they met, she knew she’d want to stay lost forever in those eyes.
***
Find LEGACY OF THE HIGHLANDS at:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/legacy-of-the-highlands-harriet-schultz/1108337176
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Lust and Honor Page 4