She responded with action, not words, and undid his zipper. He shimmed his hips as she pulled his jeans down his legs. When they hung on his boots, he dragged her across the room, then sat on the edge of her bed and held up one foot. She stared at his boot, then took hold of it. yanked it off, and followed up with the other. Jed kicked off his socks and removed his jeans. When he stood, he wore nothing but a pair of low-riding navy blue briefs. Grace stared at him, her gaze focused on his bulging sex pulsating beneath the scrap of material.
Jed quickly removed her pajama bottoms. Now, she thought, now he's going to make love to me. But she was wrong. He pulled her into his arms and began dancing again. His hairy legs rubbed against her smoother legs, the friction unbearably erotic. Her aching breasts flattened against his hard chest. Without any barriers separating their sexes, they practically made love as they danced.
Grace didn't know how much more of this she could endure. She was already wild for him, wanting him more than she could remember ever wanting a man. Such overwhelming passion was new to her, this raging hunger so powerful it frightened her. And for a man who was little more than a stranger to her. How was it possible?
He knew he was prolonging her agony, was doing it on purpose. She could tell by the way he watched her, the way he studied her. He was waiting until she was begging him for it.
Jed nuzzled her ear, then whispered, "I want you hotter than you've ever been. I want you hurting so bad for release that you'll do anything for it." He slipped his hand between her thighs and fondled her mound.
She gasped for air. "Can't you tell I'm already at that point."
He eased his fingers between her feminine lips and rubbed back and forth, touching just the right spot. She undulated against his fingers.
"Tell me," Jed said. "Tell me what you want."
"I… I want you to take me. Now. Please… please…"
He inserted his finger inside her. Moisture gushed around his hand. "You're wet… and hot. Very hot."
She grabbed his forearms and tried to pull him with her toward her bed. "Now, Jed."
He scooped her up in his arms, carried her across the room and laid her on her bed, then gently spread her legs apart. She held her breath, crazy with anticipation.
And then he did the unexpected. He kissed the inside of each thigh. Suddenly she realized his intent. Yes, yes, yes, her body screamed. Do it. Give me relief.
His mouth came down over her as he held her legs apart. He kissed, then sucked, then licked, his tongue working magic. She thrust her hips forward, exposing herself completely as he continued putting pressure on her most sensitive spot. When she complied without reservation, spearing her fingers through his hair to hold his head in place, he reached up to her breasts. The moment he pinched her nipples, she moaned. She was on the verge, so very close. Tension wound tighter and tighter inside her. And then with one final stroke of his talented tongue, Jed sent her over the edge, into complete and utter fulfillment. Her climax splintered her into a million shards of pure pleasure.
Before she could cry out, he came up and over her and covered her mouth with his. It was several minutes later that she realized he still wore his briefs. She tugged on them as she spread kisses all over his face. He grabbed and stilled her hand.
"I don't have any condoms," he told her.
"Oh, Jed… no…"
"I never anticipated this happening between us."
"No, I don't suppose you did." She knew what she wanted to do, what she intended to do if he'd let her. "Let me do for you what you did for me."
He shook his head. "You don't have to."
"I want to."
"Are you sure?"
"Very sure," she told him.
He removed his briefs, tossed them on the floor, then scooted into the middle of her bed. "I'm all yours, Blondie."
She positioned herself between his legs and studied his impressive sex. Renewed arousal rippled through her at the thought of touching him, tasting him, giving him release. First she stroked him with her fingertips, then she lowered her head and licked him as if he were a lollipop. He groaned. She opened her mouth and surrounded him, taking him as deep as she could. He groaned again. Harder. Louder. And when she used her tongue to add just a bit of pressure, he gripped the back of her neck and urged her into action.
Within minutes he came apart, release hitting him hard. The salty, musky taste assailed her senses as she removed her mouth and licked her lips. He grabbed her and hauled her up to his side, then kissed her with lingering passion, each tasting the other on their lips.
"Thank you," he said quietly.
"No, thank you," she replied. "I needed sex. I needed sex with you."
"Did I help you stop thinking?"
Yes, he had stopped her from thinking, but he'd made her feel far more than she'd intended. Of course she couldn't admit that to him. "I didn't think about anything, not the past, not my present problems… nothing. I simply felt alive for the first time in years."
Jed glanced around the room. "Want me to stay all night or should I dress and go back to my room?"
She hesitated before replying. "Stay. Please."
"All right." He ran his hand down her neck and across her shoulder. "How about a shower together before we hit the sack?"
"I'd prefer a bubble bath," she told him. "Are you interested?"
"Yeah, Blondie, I'm interested. Very interested."
"I'll scrub your back and you can scrub mine."
He jumped out of bed, grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet. "What are we waiting for?"
She laughed. Amazing, she realized, she was laughing, having fun… with a man. And not just any man… with Jed, who had pleasured her and whom she had pleasured in return.
Oh, dear God, please , she thought suddenly, don't let me care too much for him. Don't let me fall in love.
Chapter 12
Jed had gotten out of bed over thirty minutes ago, slipped on his jeans and gathered up his clothes and boots; then he sat in a chair across the room and watched Grace while she slept. The beauty and elegance of her bedroom paled in comparison to the naked woman. The covers rested midway down, just enough to reveal her naked shoulder blades. With her back to him, she continued sleeping. During the night he had become acquainted with every inch of her body. He remembered the location of every mole, every freckle and the faint scars left from the car wreck that had almost killed her. He had caressed and kissed and licked those long, luscious legs and those slender arms. Every touch had elicited a reaction from her and prompted her to reciprocate, giving as well as taking. He had wanted to make love to her in every sense of the word, but he wasn't in the habit of keeping condoms in his wallet while he was on assignments like this one, where bodyguard duties were required. He planned to rectify that today. If he couldn't find a way to pick up some himself, he would-albeit reluctantly-ask Dom or Rafe to do it for him. The next time Grace invited him into her bed, he would be prepared.
How do you know there will be a next time? he asked himself. Grace had needed sex last night. She'd been hurting in a bad way. She hadn't been with anyone in nearly four years. She was sated now, brought to climax half a dozen times during the night. So maybe that's all she needed, all she'd want. God, he hoped not, because he wanted more. He wanted her again right this minute. Despite how good it had been between them, nothing would fully satisfy him until he'd buried himself deep inside her. And there had been a couple of times when Grace had been so consumed with passion that he could have taken her completely and she wouldn't have protested. It hadn't been easy for him to hold back when what he'd wanted more than anything was to delve hard and deep inside her.