From This Moment On (19 page)

But they both knew that it didn’t.

Suddenly feeling like she was on a boat that had lost its anchor and was drifting slowly but surely out into the middle of the ocean, she blurted the one question she hadn’t been able to figure out the answer to in the time they’d been together
.

“How did a gorgeous, successful, great guy like you get to thirty-six without a wife and kids?” Quickly realizing she’d come at it all wrong when he went stiff beside her, she added, “I mean, considering how good you are in bed, I would expect women in wedding gowns to be knocking on your door all the time.”

That earned her a small smile. “Exactly how good am I?”

“Now you’re just fishing for compliments.” She laughed, then added, “Really freaking good.”

The surf crashed bigger and higher than it had before and she made a move to run, but Marcus wouldn’t let her get away from the cold water that came up almost to her knees, bared in her short jean skirt.

“That’s cold!” she protested.

“I like seeing you all wet.”

“You have a dirty mind,” she told him, but the breathiness in her voice gave away the fact that she did, too.

“You’re right,” he said, that dark, hungry look pinning her where she stood in the sand, causing her breath to catch in her throat. “So here’s what my dirty mind wants, Nicola. Take off your clothes.”

She looked up and down the empty beach. “Are you crazy?”

“Only when I’m with you, kitten.” He raised an eyebrow. “I’m waiting.”

Oh God, she could hardly breathe at the thought of stripping down here for Marcus
.

“If someone comes—” she began, before realizing, “No one is going to come to this beach, are they?”

“No,” he confirmed. “It’s completely ours today.”

She had spent enough time with really wealthy people—worth a heck of a lot more than a pop star like her—to know keeping a huge stretch of coast completely private was entirely possible
.

She was about to reach for the hem of her tank top when she realized what he’d done. She’d asked him a personal question and instead of answering it, he’d thrown her off by using her own body—and the endless desire she had for him—against her
.

She smoothed her hands down on her hips. “I’ll make you a deal.”

“A deal
?"

She lifted her chin and said, “Yes,” glad to catch the hint of smile playing around the edges of his lips at her defiant response.

“You have a beautiful backside, Nicola. I’ve been looking forward to seeing it bent up over my knees.”

Shockingly, he wasn’t the only one.

Trying to push the senselessly erotic vision out of her head, she said, “Don’t keep changing the subject,” in her toughest voice.

She was rewarded with the sweet sound of his laughter. “Such a fierce little kitten.” He caught her fists before she could knock them into his chest. “Go ahead. Make me a deal
."

“I’ll take my clothes off if you’ll answer my question about why you’re not married yet, or even in a relationship.”

The laughter left his eyes so quickly she almost cried out at the loss. And yet, even though she knew this was supposed to be no-strings, even though she knew she shouldn’t be straying away from the safe zone where only their bodies were involved, she knew it was already too late.

Her heart was in. Way in.

She wanted to know more about Marcus. Needed to understand how he’d come to be the man he was.

“My girlfriend cheated on me. I caught her the same day I went to that club.”

She’d known things had gone badly with his ex from comments he’d made before, but couldn’t stop her eyes from widening
.

“
She
cheated on
you
?”

“I’ve never screwed around on a woman.”

“No,” she said quickly, “I know you would never do something like that. I just can’t understand what woman in her right mind would cheat on you. You must be so angry with her.”

“I was,” he admitted, “but then I realized that she actually did us both a big favor.”

“How?”

“We weren’t right for each other.”

Even though she knew the answer might kill her, she had to ask. “Did you love her?”

“I thought I did.”

Ouch. It shouldn’t have hurt to think of Marcus being in love with someone else, but it did. A lot. Which was why it took her longer than it should have to realize he hadn’t actually said he loved his ex
.

“Wait, you thought you did? So is that a yes or no?”

He frowned, shook his head. “No. I only loved the person I wanted her to be. But that wasn’t who she really was.”

“I know exactly how that is,” she said before she could catch herself
.

“You do?”

Six months fell away in the span of two simple words from the sweetest man she’d ever known, and she knew if she talked about Kenny she’d probably end up crying all over him and making a complete idiot of herself
.

“I do.”

He tipped his hand beneath her chin and made her face him. “Whoever he was, whatever he did to hurt you, he was the world’s biggest idiot.”

The tears she’d been hoping she wouldn’t cry spilled out. “I was the bigger idiot for believing his lies.”

“No, Nicola,” he said as he gently wiped away her tears with the pads of his thumbs. “You could never be anything but bright and beautiful and absolutely perfect just the way you are.”

His mouth covered hers a moment later and then he was making her forget everything but how good it felt to be in his arms...everything but the fact that she was so incredibly glad she’d been there at the night club to help him over his bad breakup, a little bit at least
.

“Help me take my clothes off,” she murmured against his lips.

His eyes glittered as he covered her hands with his and they pulled off her T-shirt together. Her bra came off next and he tossed both up onto the dry sand. Her jean skirt and panties came off just as quickly and then she was standing before him, completely naked.

And senselessly aroused.

Chapter Sixteen

“Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?”

The biggest, most trusting eyes in the world looked up at him. “Only when you’re looking at me like this.”

Marcus put his hands on her hips and pulled her against him as his mouth covered hers without any restraint at all. Nicola kissed him back just as passionately, her hands grasping at his clothes. Only breaking their kiss long enough to pull his shirt over his head, they were right back at it as they got his pants and boxers off
.

His mouth still on hers, he lifted her into his arms again and walked into the surf.

A wave crashed up onto them and Nicola gasped at the cold. “Are you crazy?”

“When you’re with me like this,” he answered, “I think I must be.”

She attacked him with her lips, planting kisses all over his face, his neck, his shoulders. He’d never been with someone so unrestrained, so ready to give in to her joy...and so willing to share it with him. The hours he’d spent with Nicola had been happier than any he could remember before her.

Yes, he’d been telling her the truth when he said he didn’t regret any of the tradeoffs he’d had to make on his family’s behalf. But he was glad he didn’t have to make any of those tradeoffs now so that he could put Nicola—and his feelings for her—first these past few days.

“I want so badly to make love to you out here,” she told him as she licked at his earlobe, “but we don’t have any protection.”

Marcus had to forcefully push aside the urge to be inside of her without anything between them. If this were more than a long weekend together they could get tested and—

No. He needed to stay focused on here and now, on the fact that Nicola had already given him more pleasure in three days than any man should rightfully expect to have in one lifetime. She’d made it clear to him that she didn’t want a relationship.

Just as clear as he’d made it to her, in fact.

That was when he showed her what he was holding. “I planned ahead.”

She shook her head on a surprised laugh. “How the heck did you get this out of your pocket and unwrapped without my noticing?” Without waiting for his answer, she grabbed the condom from him. “Never mind. Just put me down so that I can do the honors.”

Not sure he’d survive having her hot little hands on him, he warned her, “Don’t even think about teasing me, kitten,” as he put her back on her feet in the surf.

She blinked at him, all sexy innocence and pure wicked intent. “How else am I going to know if you’re ever going to make good on all those spanking threats?”

“Oh, I’ll make good on them, all right,” he told her, tempted to take care of her sweet round ass right then and there, but then her tongue was coming out to lick at her upper lip as she focused her attention on his cock.

“You’re the beautiful one,” she murmured as she dropped to her knees before he saw it coming and put her mouth over him, so hot and wet and perfect that he nearly shot into her mouth
.

Jesus, he couldn’t believe he was out in the ocean with the most beautiful woman on the planet sucking his dick in the swirling surf. This wasn’t him, wasn’t what his life was like, wasn’t any part of his plans.

Fuck his plans, he thought as he slid his hands into her hair and decided to take what she was so happily giving him. He tightened his hold on her hair as she suctioned him with her cheeks and tongue. All the while, even as the pleasure of her mouth nearly took him over the edge, he watched her carefully to make sure he wasn’t hurting her. Fortunately, he could tell from the sexy little sounds she was making that she loved giving up her sensual control to him.

Waiting until his balls tightened, drawing up tight to his body, a split second from losing it, he dragged himself out of her mouth
.

“Put the condom on me, Nicola.”

Her gaze was fuzzy as she blinked up at him, but she obeyed him with shaking hands.

Gritting his teeth against the sweet tug of her hands on his rock-hard shaft, he marveled at the way she completely gave up her body to him when they were making love. He wanted to be as good as the trust she gave him, wanted her to know she’d made the right decision in trusting him
.

“Come here.” He waited for her to take his hands and stand up before he said, “Wrap yourself around me.” She jumped up to wrap her toned limbs tightly around him and he couldn’t hold back his confession. “I love holding you like this.”

“You can’t possibly love it as much as I do,” she said against his lips as he started walking deeper into the cold water
.

“Oh God,” she gasped as the surf pushed over her bottom, “that’s really cold.” Her big eyes flicked up to his. “You’re going to have to work really hard to keep me warm.”

“That’s the plan,” he said, and then after tucking the head of his cock against her slick folds, “How’s this working?”

“Mmm, pretty good. But,” she held out one arm, “I still have goose bumps.” He pressed first one kiss, and then half a dozen, up her arm. “You’re only making me shiver more,” she said in a husky voice and he lifted his mouth from her soft skin
.

“Maybe this, then?”

Their eyes held as he took her in one hard stroke.

“Oh.” Her eyelids fluttered at the pleasure of coming together. “Yes. Just like th—” Her words broke off on a gasp of pleasure as he angled his hips to stroke over the most sensitive parts inside her.

Being with Nicola like this was as natural, as unstoppable as the tides. There was no ebb and flow to his desire for her, only a constant crashing of need and want that kept dragging him deeper under her spell.

Her eyes glittered with emotion as she looked up at him and he could feel the dangerous pull of more than just bodies coming together in that moment as she held onto him, the sun illuminating her stunning beauty, the golden hue of her smooth skin.

For all his sensual demands, Marcus knew damn well who was really in charge. Nicola had owned him from that first moment in the club when she’d looked into his eyes and claimed him.

She’d had his body from the first, but he’d been so sure his heart—his soul—were safe. That no woman could possibly touch him.

So then, why did being with her like this touch him as nothing ever had before?

And when, he had to helplessly wonder as their bodies took more pleasure from each other than he’d ever known, had hot sex with his beautiful pop star turned into making love, even out on a beach beneath a sun that felt like it was shining just for them?

Chapter Seventeen

Laughing together as they put on their clothes over wet skin, they walked hand in hand up the beach to sit on the soft sand and plunder the contents of the bag Marcus had put together at the small Point Reyes corner store
.