by Mari Carr
No longer mindful of the fantasy, Ross pounded into her accepting body as if his only salvation lay at the end. Julia, delirious with passion, began to climax almost immediately, but Ross merely continued to lay siege to her body.
Giving her no reprieve, he continued his sweet assault until Julia’s orgasms began to hit her one after another, without cease, without mercy, until finally Ross let her take him overboard with her.
Several minutes passed before either of them came back to earth. Ross grimaced when he realized he’d collapsed on top of his tiny love.
“Sorry,” he muttered, moving over to lie beside her. Reaching up, he released the ties holding her hands, gently massaging her sore shoulders.
No sooner had he released her than Julia threw her arms around his neck, kissing him as if he’d given her all the gold in Fort Knox.
“Ross,” she sighed, still breathless. “That was incredible. Amazing. I’ve never, I mean, I never knew—”
She struggled for the right words, but Ross stopped her by simply saying, “Me either.”
“Can we do it again?” she asked, looking so much like a child begging for a puppy that Ross burst into laughter.
“Right now?” he asked with a shake of his head. “Jesus, Jules, it’ll take me a year to build up enough strength to leave this bed, let alone love you like that again.”
Julia grinned. “I wouldn’t mind spending a year in this bed with you.”
“You,” he said, lightly kissing her nose, “will most definitely be the death of me. Go to sleep, angel.”
Snuggling into his arms, Julia didn’t need to be told twice. Ross suspected she was asleep before her head hit his shoulder. Gathering her tightly against him, he too succumbed to the deep slumber of a man well and truly satisfied.
Chapter Five
The smell of bacon frying permeated the air, waking Julia from a sound sleep. Breathing deeply, she slowly opened her eyes, shocked, yet delighted by the image she saw.
Ross was completely naked, except for an apron, cooking her breakfast. She had a perfect view of his bare buttocks and muscular back and she took advantage of it, admiring the scenery.
Faint scratch marks decorated both and she blushed, recalling how they got there. She never would have guessed sex could be so exciting, so amazing. She’d dreamed of sleeping with Ross a million times, but no fantasy could come close to the reality of last night. Now all she had to do was figure out where to go from here.
I had sex with Ross.
The thought was too preposterous to be believed. Her memories of the night flashed from remembered bliss to embarrassment to downright remorse.
“Shit,” she muttered.
Without turning, Ross said, “Forget about backing out. It’s too late.”
“What?”
Loading two plates with food, he didn’t bother looking at her. “You’re trying to figure out how to salvage a friendship that’s not in danger. I can hear the gears in your mind churning from here.”
Glancing over his shoulder, he gave her a drop-dead-gorgeous grin. “I told you last night. We’re doing serious research and I haven’t even begun to do all the things I plan to do to you, so get your sweet ass outta that bed and come eat. You’re going to need your strength later.”
Julia caught her jaw before it fell completely open. Looking around the bed, she attempted to keep herself covered with the sheet while trying to locate her robe. It was gone.
“Uh-uh.” Ross shook his head as he watched her attempt at modesty. “No more clothes.”
“What?” Julia cried. “If you think I’m going to parade around this freezing cabin without anything on, you’re crazy.”
“It’s not freezing.” Ross gestured to his own state of near undress. “I’ve cranked the heat on high and built up the fire. If it gets much hotter in here, we’re going to have to open a window. Come on, Brown Eyes, I saw it all last night and the food’s getting cold.” With that, he removed the apron and took his own place at the table, acting as if it were perfectly normal to be eating bacon and eggs in the nude.
Julia’s rumbling stomach won the battle against her modesty as she slowly lowered the quilt and climbed off the huge bed. She kept her eyes averted as she made her way to the table, nearly stumbling over the chair in her efforts to rapidly sit and cover her lap with a napkin.
Ross’s deep chuckle raised her gaze and her temper at the same time.
“I want my robe,” she demanded.
“I want you,” he answered easily, seemingly immune to her anger.
Taken aback by the intense desire she saw in his eyes, Julia bit off her next remark and slowly picked up her fork.
Smiling at her acquiescence, Ross started to devour the huge pile of eggs on his plate like a starving man. The two of them ate in relative silence, although Julia could sense Ross’s gaze on her through most of the meal.
She wasn’t used to being with such a virile man—one who made no bones about his desires and who wasn’t afraid to take what he wanted. The men in her past had been gentle as lambs, often letting her dictate how the relationship progressed.
She felt out of her element with Ross, a man clearly used to being in charge. Quite frankly, she was surprised by how much she enjoyed his controlling presence. She’d always considered herself a modern, independent woman who had no use for a man in her life.
Who could have guessed she’d actually enjoy being ordered around in the bedroom?
The only problem she could see was facing what would happen when they left this cabin. The fact was she was an independent woman, one who refused to let herself be swept away in an ill-fated romance, especially to a player like Ross, who was a bad bet.
The last ten years as his best friend had proven he was unable to commit to any woman—and if she was being completely honest with herself, she was an even worse bet.
She didn’t want a relationship. Her heart couldn’t take losing someone she loved again. It had taken her years to recover from the loss of her parents. Even the mere thought of Duke’s death still tore her apart and he had been only a cat.
What would happen if she gave her heart to Ross and if, in his typical fashion, he broke it?
“Oh no,” he said lightly, as he finished the last piece of toast on his plate.
“Is something wrong?” Her own plate was still full of food.
“You’re thinking again. Jules. What do I have to say to make you understand this is okay? You and I—together like this. Hell, woman, it’s more than okay. It’s about damn time. Enough of this second-guessing and worrying. Trust me. Please.”
His voice was so earnest and his eyes so consoling, Julia felt her fears slipping away as easily as her clothing had last night. She trusted Ross completely and she wanted very much to continue “researching” with him. Time to put her fears and worries aside and live for the moment.
Taking a deep breath, she smiled for the first time since waking up, relinquishing the reins to Ross. Truth be told, she couldn’t wait to see what he had planned next.
“Okay, Mr. Phillips,” she teased. “You win. Big surprise there. Have you ever lost?”
Grinning, Ross stood and walked around the table.
“Nothing that really mattered,” he answered, kneeling beside her. “Now, how about actually eating that food, rather than pushing it around the plate?” He winked at her. “I wasn’t joking about needing sustenance for later.”
Picking up her fork, he fed her nearly everything on the plate until she finally pushed the dish away. “Enough or I won’t be able to get up from the table. Hey,” she said, sudden realization dawning, “I didn’t know you could cook.”
“Just breakfast—bacon and scrambled eggs. And, sadly, I didn’t bring enough of that for every meal. Looks like we’re going to have to stumble our way through the rest of the meals.”
“I don’t suppose anyone delivers pizza all the way up here.”
“No. Not that anyone could get a car up here in
that blizzard if they did.” He gestured toward the window as she stood.
“Oh no.” She squinted against the brightness of the thick blanket of snow covering the ground. “We’re going to be stuck up here for days.” Glancing up at the cloud-covered sky, she groaned. The snow was still falling in fat flakes, burying the porch of the cabin in deep drifts. “Maybe even weeks.”
Strong arms engulfed her as Ross’s lips grazed her ear. “I can think of worse things.”
“But won’t you get in trouble if you aren’t back at work?” Her heart raced as his hands left her waist to loosely cup her breasts.
“I own the company. I can come and go as I please. I told Max where I was going and that I might be gone for a while. He can hold down the fort until I return.” As he spoke, his fingers toyed with her nipples until they were both pebbled hard and incredibly sensitive. Each time he brushed the tips, the moisture between her legs increased until she squirmed to catch wayward drops that started sliding down her inner thigh.
“Ross,” she whispered, half protest, half plea.
“Ross, what?” His lips grazed the sensitive area at the nape of her neck as his fingers continued their magic on her breasts. Julia quivered at the sensations he aroused, until she surprised herself by responding to his question.
“More,” she demanded.
“Lean forward.”
She remained motionless, unsure what he meant until his hands left her breasts, pushing gently at her back. Before she realized his intent, her hard nipples pressed against the ice-cold glass of the window.
Gasping, she attempted to break away from his firm but insistent grip.
“It’s freezing.”
“Think how good it will feel when I warm them up again,” he replied, not releasing her.
“Ross—”
“Beg me.”
“What?” she asked, uncertain she’d heard his terse order correctly.
“Beg me. Beg me for what you want.”
“But—”
Ross pushed her harder against the glass, no longer chilling her nipples, but her entire breasts.
“Tell me what you want, Brown Eyes.”
“Let me loose,” she pleaded, no longer able to control the demands her body was making. “Take me in your mouth. Suck me hard. Make me hot again.” Still Ross didn’t release her. “Please!”
Suddenly, his hand at her back was gone. Julia turned in his arms. Raising her hands to his shoulders and then to his hair, she pulled his mouth to hers for a kiss. A kiss she commanded and controlled, her lips hard against his as she insisted upon entry, her tongue finding its way into the heat of his mouth.
While Julia directed the kiss, Ross took possession of her body. Swiveling, he pushed her to the bed. As soon as the back of her thighs touched the high mattress, he pressed her down, spreading her legs to stand between them.
Bending over, Ross gave Julia everything she’d demanded and more as he took first one breast and then the other into his mouth. Laving them with his hot tongue, nipping them with his teeth, he warmed her to boiling in a matter of minutes.
Julia attempted to wrap her legs around his waist to pull him closer, but Ross, wise to that trick, refused to relinquish his control. Grabbing her ankles, he stepped away from the bed, looking down at her.
“Not yet,” he said tenderly. “I want you to do something for me first.”
Confused, Julia slowly rose up onto her elbows, shocked at how she no longer minded her nudity in Ross’s presence, her own body betraying her modesty in its clamor for release.
“What?”
“Sit in the center of the bed and prop yourself up on those pillows.” He walked to the bottom of the bed.
Intrigued, Julia did as he asked, taking note of the imperiousness of his command. His voice brought back memories of his pirate captain from the night before and she squirmed, uncomfortably aroused.
“Spread your legs,” he demanded harshly.
Julia started to protest his tone, but he stopped her. “You will not speak, Jules. Only do as I say.” Then to soften his words, he winked.
Smiling, Julia remembered his earlier words, “trust me”, and she slowly opened her legs, aware of the view she was giving him of her wet pussy.
“Last night was your first orgasm.” He shook his head, clearly disappointed for some reason. “Julia, I’m not always going to be around when you feel these sexual urges. I’m not sure how you’ve lived as long as you have, alone and unable to take care of your own needs. So, I’m going to show you how.”
Her jaw dropped open. Before she could even consider her response to his brazen suggestion, he continued, “I want you to do exactly what I tell you. No talking, Jules, only feeling. You’ll like this.” He saw her hands shaking slightly, so he added, “I promise.”
When she began to close her legs, his tone became demanding. “Keep your legs open.” When she failed to extend them far enough, he reached over the end of the bed and pulled her ankles until she was fully spread apart.
“Move your hands to your breasts,” he said. “You have the most amazing tits, so sensitive and full. Touch them like I was earlier, by the window. Cup them.” His voice was quiet now, almost hypnotic and despite her reservations, Julia responded to his directions.
“That’s it,” he continued. “Now pinch your nipples. Not too rough at first. Gradually build the pressure on them. Feel how hard they are. Roll them around a bit. Good girl.”
Julia felt trapped by his stare and enthralled by his words. He was enjoying her actions as much as she was. Her gaze fell to his erection. Noticing her look, Ross slowly took his hard cock in his hand, rubbing it from root to tip over and over, the movement mesmerizing her.
“Bend your head over a little,” he added hoarsely. “Use your tongue on that poor hard nipple. It wants more attention. That’s it. Now suck it into your mouth.”
Julia moaned slightly at the feeling of her own breast in her mouth, her tongue teasing the nipple until she thought she would explode from the pressure.
“God, you have no idea how hot that looks. Not all women are large enough to do that,” Ross praised. “Don’t forget the other one. It’s lonely too.”
Moving her lips to her other nipple, Julia squirmed again, desperate for Ross to come inside her. She was ready to beg him when he asked, “You need more, don’t you?”
Groaning with relief, Julia nodded, expecting him to crawl onto the bed. However, he kept speaking. “Move your right hand down, over your stomach. Run your fingers through the soft hair down there and play with that sweet little nub.”
“Ross,” Julia cried, the touch of her fingers on her clit driving her wild.
“That’s right.” He leaned closer to where her fingers were moving. “Pretend it’s me. Imagine it’s my fingers playing with you. Your hot cunt is mine from now on. Only mine. What do you want my fingers to do now, Jules?”
“In-inside me,” she panted.
“Then put them inside.” He moved slightly closer, until Julia imagined she could feel his breath on her wet pussy.
Slowly, she dragged her fingers down over her clit, inching them even closer to her own soaking entry.
“So wet,” he purred. “So hot and wet. Can you feel that, Jules? You’re on fire, aren’t you?”
“Y-yes.”
“You aren’t pretending, Jules,” he said tightly. “Remember it’s my hand inside you and I would never touch you so lightly. You’re a wildcat. You like it rough. Move your hand, Jules.” His voice rose. “Faster. Harder. Put in another finger. And another one. Dammit, Jules, use your thumb, rub your clit. More! Now, come.”
At his last shouted order, she felt herself shatter into a million tiny pieces. The room went dark as she silently screamed his name.
Ross watched in amazement as his gorgeous writer writhed in delight and ecstasy. He knew how powerful words were in her mind, but to see her succumb so totally to his commands overwhelmed his senses and the last of his control
slipped completely away.
She had only begun to come down from her orgasm when Ross crawled onto the bed and entered her fully with one deep push. The power, the dominance of the motion sent Julia immediately over the edge and she screamed louder as another orgasm took her. The tight convulsions of her pussy grabbed Ross like a fist, provoking his own explosive climax in just three thrusts.
They came back down to earth together. Ross realized he had collapsed on top of her once again. Julia was struggling for breath and laughing as they parted, Ross falling to his side, pulling her with him. He silently rejoiced when he felt her curl into his chest, her soft hair, damp with perspiration, covering him like a blanket.
“How did I do?” she asked softly, after a few moments.
“Do?” His brain was a jumble after the most incredible climax of his life.
“With my masturbation lesson?” She giggled lightly. “That was the next phase of the research, wasn’t it?”
Damn the research.
Did she seriously think this was just a game? He was coming like an untried schoolboy every time he got inside her. Every time he left her body, he felt an unceasing yearning to get right back in. How the hell could she honestly believe this was simply a snowy afternoon’s entertainment?
Shaking himself, he looked over her head to see the snow still falling. He had time. By the looks of the weather, lots of it. He’d keep to the plan. If she wanted to continue calling it research, that’s what they’d do. Soon, he’d have her so ensnared in his web of desire and passion, she’d never want to leave.
God—he hoped so, anyway. He no longer had any doubt that Jules was his soul mate.
“Yeah, it was, and you did great, Brown Eyes. Just great.”
Chapter Six
Ross awoke several hours later to the sound of fingers tapping a keyboard at a frantic pace.
Glancing over, he saw Julia, just as he’d seen her a thousand times in the past, one leg bent beneath her as the images in her mind flew through her fingers and onto the computer. The only difference was this time, rather than wearing her usual fleece pants and long-sleeved T-shirt, she was draped in only a blanket. A blanket that, fortunately for him, had been forgotten as it lay around her waist, leaving her breasts bare. A glass of iced tea sat untouched beside her as she focused on the pages.