Cursed (23 page)

     She wiped the happy
tears from her eyes and smiled. “I don’t know if I can stand any more good news
or not.”

     “I think you can
stand this. I spoke to the couple I told you about, you remember the ones who
have been trying to have a baby? I told them about the baby whose mother had
been killed and the man who was acquitted. They’re very interested. I gave them
your number and asked them to contact your office.”

     She breathed in an
excited breath. “Oh, Nick, that’s wonderful. I can’t wait to meet them. I don’t
know how I can ever thank you.”

     He reached for the
belt of her robe and began loosening it. “I have an idea.”

     She smiled at him
and stood up. Slowly she slipped the robe from her shoulders. It fell to the
floor. Her full, glorious breasts filled his vision tempting him beyond reason.
“You said

you wanted me to model my underwear for you.”
Her silky voice whispered over his aroused nerve endings. “Still interested?”

     Nick grinned, lay
back on the bed and began taking off his clothes. “Definitely. Strut your
stuff.”

     With deliberate
steps and her hips moving sensuously from side to side, she backed away. By the
time she reached the center of the room, he was down to his briefs.

     Slowly, she swiveled
on her feet.

     He nearly swallowed
his tongue.

     Her curvy, luscious
ass, clad in a bright red thong, bared to his eyes, tempted him beyond reason.
She turned her head and looked at him with a taunting smile bowing her lips.
Desire gripped him in a vise as he rose from the bed and walked over to her.
Barely an inch separated them, his hard penis reaching out for her. Her body
heat drifted around him like a warm, voluptuous cloud.

     He moved closer and
slid his shaft between her legs.

She sighed with pleasure and ground her fanny
against his abdomen. Nick lifted his hands, rested them briefly on her hips
then glided his fingers over her abdomen to the crotch of her panties. He
shoved his hands beneath the silky material, tunneled his fingers through her
curls until he found her hot and wet.

     She sucked in a
sharp breath and moaned.

     Ruthlessly, he
rubbed her clitoris. The scent of her arousal mingling with her dusky perfume
consumed his senses.

Her body pushed and prodded against his
fingers as she came, spilling the essence of her body onto his skin. A ragged
cry of delight escaped her lips as her head fell back and rested on his
shoulder.

     He sucked her right
earlobe into his mouth, gently nipping it with his teeth. “Time for bed.” In a
moment, they tumbled to the bed in a tangle of limbs and arms, his mouth
seeking hers, his hands firm but gentle as he explored every inch of her body.
He thrust his tongue into her mouth, urgently tasting every hidden recess.

     Her tongue dueled
with his, inviting, coaxing, insisting. He traced a path of openmouthed kisses
over her cheeks and neck until he found her breasts. Sucking first one nipple
then the other into his mouth, he gloried in the taste and feel of them, laving
them almost violently with his tongue.

     He tore his mouth
from her breasts and kissed his way down her chest to her abdomen. Grasping the
back of her knees, he spread her legs wide, baring her beautiful femininity to
his gaze. With her musky scent filling his head, he caressed her eagerly with
his lips, his tongue, in a deep, fulfilling hunger.

     Her fingers kneaded
his shoulders. “Nick...please, I want you inside me.”

     Her plea made his
muscles tense with unfettered desire. He rose over her and moved his hands to
her ass. Gripping it snugly, he plunged to the hilt inside her. She gasped in
ecstasy, her hips pistoning in rhythm with his as he pumped in and out, his
penis slippery with the fluid of her body. His mind cleared of everything
except his body locked deep within Hope and his driving need to come. With
their breath panting and their skin slicked with sweat, she came in a demanding
orgasm, her inner muscles clutching him in a tight, wet hug. Swiftly, he
followed her over the edge.

* * *

     Tess stood facing
Cullinan in the middle of their twin berth cabin with only inches separating them.
Wanton desire wove a cocoon around them. Tess didn’t want to rush making love
because she wanted to savor every delicious moment. A light beside the bed cast
the room in a soft glow. As she stared into Cullinan’s loving eyes, she sucked
in a breath, reached up and brushed a strand of hair away from his forehead.

     His lips curved in a
soft smile. “God, you’re beautiful. I can’t believe this moment is finally
here. I wasn’t sure if we would ever be together again.” His voice lowered to
barely a murmur. “I dreamed about it, but I thought you hated me because I
never told you the truth about being a thief.”

     Surprised and
disturbed by his statement, she frowned. “I could never hate you. No matter
what you did.” Tess stroked the tips of her fingers over his cheek. “I love
you. I never stopped loving you though God knows I tried.”  Her gentle
sparring brought a twinkle to his eyes. “I loved Quinn, but a part of me could
never let go of you and the memory of the love we shared.” Saying the words
aloud filled her with contentment and joy as she realized they were true. She
had never stopped loving him.

     His masculine, clean
scent permeated the air soothing her soul and making her feel whole for the
first time since Quinn’s death. She sighed and studied his face. “How can we be
so lucky to have each other back again?”

     A wistful expression
stole over his face. He grazed the back of his fingers over her neck. “We were
meant to be. Are you ready?”

     He made her feel
cherished, like a precious gift. She nodded, took off her shoes and reached for
the top button on her blouse.

     “No, let me.”
Cullinan loosened the buttons, his gaze riveting her to the floor. “Put your
hands behind your back.”

     His words sent
shivers of desire into her body, making her feel incredibly sexy and
uninhibited. She did as he asked and waited impatiently for him to continue.
When he reached the last button and slipped it from the hole, his hands touched
her stomach. Tess inhaled a sharp breath at the intimate contact. With
agonizing slowness, he slid the blouse from her shoulders and down her arms.
His palms lightly caressed her skin and made awareness bloom in every secret
part of her body.

     The blouse fell in a
puddle of light green silk on the floor. He reached for the snap on her pants.
She stayed his hand. “No, it’s my turn.” She was pleased that her coquettish
tone elicited a gleam of desire and need in his eyes.

     He lowered his arms.
Tess reached for his polo shirt and tugged it free from the waistband of his
pants. As she pulled his shirt up slowly uncovering inch by delectable inch of
bare, male skin, she kissed and licked his chest lightly with her tongue.
Looking at his groin, she saw the rigid tent his arousal made inside his pants.
A spurt of female satisfaction zipped through her. Tess continued her sensuous
exploration of his chest until she reached his nipples. She toyed with them,
rubbing and coaxing them to hard points. His heart thudded in a fast rhythm
beneath the ministrations of her mouth. “Raise your arms.” Tess pulled the
shirt over his head and tossed it carelessly to the floor. She captured his
gaze with hers and licked her lips. “Take off your pants and I’ll take off
mine.”

     Watching him
closely, Tess discarded her slacks and kicked them to the side. Cullinan
stripped off his. Tess smiled. “I had forgotten you wear briefs.” She flicked
her gaze to his upper thigh where the pendant was taped to his skin. “Are you
going to remove that or do you plan on making love to me with a sacred stone
attached next to your...you know.”

     Cullinan looked at
her, pressed his lips together, and grimaced as he yanked the tape from his
leg. He held the pendant in his palm for a moment and glanced about the room.
His gaze settled on the mattress. In a few seconds, the pendant was safely
stored beneath the mattress. “There, no one will be the wiser.”

     Tess stepped closer,
dipping her fingers into the waistband of his underwear and jerked them down to
mid thigh. His erection sprang free, the tip glistening with evidence of his
desire for her. Lowering herself, she took him fully into her mouth. His cry of
pleasure made her smile inwardly. She’d never felt so daring or more in charge
in her life. Controlling Cullinan felt wonderful. Tess wasn’t sure if it was
the surge of feminine determination to turn Cullinan into a quivering mass of
need or the reawakening of the deep love she held for him. He tunneled his
fingers through her hair, holding her head gently in place. She kneaded his
shaft with her lips and tongue, tasting and nipping him. The salty taste of him
coated her tongue and she reveled in it. Pressing her lips around the head of
his penis, she sucked firmly before releasing him.

     His gaze bore into
hers, a fierce, primal expression that demanded she allow him to take all of
her. Quickly, he removed his underwear and reached for her.

     Tess shook her head
and made a tsking sound. “Not yet.” Every cell in her body prompted her to leap
into his arms but she wanted to draw out their coupling as along as possible.
When they did join their bodies once again, she wanted it to be a moment they
would never forget. Tess unsnapped the clasp on the front of her bra to reveal
her breasts to him.

     Cullinan stepped
closer until his erection touched her stomach. He loved her with his eyes
studying her light pink nipples. Her skin grew hotter and tighter beneath his
seductive inspection. He leaned over, laid his mouth on hers and sampled her
lips, gently rubbing back and forth before he laved them with his tongue. He
lowered his right hand to her breast, his palm warm and callused against her
skin. With his thumb, he rubbed her nipple until it hardened. In answer to his
invitation, she opened her mouth to let him in. He plunged his tongue into her
mouth. She groaned. Oh God, he tasted exactly as she remembered, slightly spicy
mixed with his own unique flavor. He prodded her mouth with his tongue
mimicking what his penis would do to her femininity. She grew wet and felt her
own essence dribble down her thighs.

     Sweeping her hands
up over his arms and shoulders, she fisted her fingers in his hair and greedily
kissed him back. Unable to wait another moment, Tess yanked down her panties to
mid thigh. She grasped his fanny and pulled his lower body against hers. His
erection nudged her soft opening.

     Cullinan parted her
curls and found her clit. He massaged it savagely until she felt her sensuous
fluid stream over his fingers. He brought her to peak but wouldn’t fling her over.
She moaned in frustration as he kissed his way over her face and down her neck
to her breasts where he worshipped them with his lips and tongue.

     Between one breath
and the next, he reached her mound and with his free hand, he took off her
panties. Swiftly, he tumbled them both to the cool, white sheets of one of the
beds. Lifting her legs, he parted her so she lay bare and vulnerable before
him. Lowering his head, he sucked her into his mouth in one mind-bending
movement. His tongue immediately followed, teasing and tormenting her clit
until desire built with saturating warmth.

     Just as her orgasm
threatened to engulf her, he rose over her and held her head between his hands.
“Look at me. I want to see your eyes.” His husky voice demanded her compliance.
Cullinan’s eyes looked like burnished copper heated by the fire of his passion.
“I want to see your reaction when I slide inside you.” With a ragged breath, he
shoved his lower body forward thrusting deep and hard until his swollen tip
nudged her womb. He pumped into her several times but didn’t allow her to come.
Tess cried out in protest.

     “Easy...” He kissed
her fast and hard. “I have an even better idea. Roll over and get on your knees
for me.”

     Sweat dampened her
skin and the room smelled of heat and loving. She swallowed and tried to muster
a smile even as her mind refused to accept the denial of pleasure. “If I don’t
come soon I’m going to die.” Her voice sounded foreign and lust-filled, like a
woman seeking immediate satisfaction. Tess rolled to her stomach then rose to
her knees. She grasped the top edge of the mattress.

     Cullinan clasped her
hips in his hands and invaded her gloriously once again. With each thrust, he
slammed against her fanny. The room filled with the soft slap of flesh on
flesh, their rapid breathing and moans of pleasure.

     Tess opened her legs
wider, allowing him even deeper access to her body. She’d never felt more
desired or more like a woman.

Tess moved her hips, milking his penis, her
body grasping it, loving it thoroughly. When the orgasm hit her, her breath
stalled and the world tilted on its axis as a wave of ecstasy pounded through
her. She felt Cullinan’s muscles bunch with tension as he came right after her.
With his penis still embedded inside her, she lowered her body to the bed. He
slumped on top of her. Their bodies were slick with sweat from their heated
lovemaking and the breath heaved from their lungs.