Naked Edge (38 page)

"Easy, honey." His voice was a deep purr.

They drew down his zipper together. He wasn't wearing underwear, his erection springing free, his hands guiding hers beneath the skin-warmed denim, over his narrow hips, and over the muscled roundness of his buttocks, as he shucked his jeans and tossed them aside. And then they were both naked, male and female, the perfection of the moment striking Kat deep in her soul.

Gabe let his gaze rake over her again, hungry for the sight of her. The scent of warm honey rose from her damp skin, one taut nipple peeking out from between strands of dark hair, her breasts rising with each rapid breath. He hadn't thought it was possible to want a woman this badly, to truly want her, to want to please her. Somehow it heightened his need for her, but it also left him feeling something he hadn't felt for a long time--bona fide nerves.

Got a case of performance anxiety, buddy?

Hell, yeah, he did. He'd never had sex with a virgin, and he didn't want to disappoint her or, worse, hurt her. And yet he was pretty sure she would feel at least some pain. If he hadn't been fairly certain it was sacrilegious, he'd have asked the Patron Saint of Men Who Fuck Virgins to help him do this right.

Shit!

"Come here." Heart hammering in his chest, he caught a finger beneath her chin, ducked down, brushed his lips over hers, gratified by the little shivers that passed through her. He would take this slowly, giving her body and her mind all the time she needed to adjust and truly enjoy it. And then ...

He fought back the desire to kiss her, instead letting her anticipation build as his mouth wandered. He tasted the honey-sweet skin of her throat, sucked her earlobe, teased the whorl of her ear with his tongue. Only when she was shaking in his arms did he bring his lips back to hers, kissing the corners of her mouth, nipping her lower lip, tracing the outline of her lips with his tongue. Then, at last, he kissed her, inhaling her whimper, his mouth filling with the taste of mint as their tongues met.

She seemed to melt in his arms, every soft, sweet inch of her pressed against him, the feminine feel of her making his body tense, a bolt of heat shearing through his gut. But if he'd thought he was in control of this kiss he was wrong. She kissed him back with all the fire in her soul, matching him stroke for stroke, her erotic exploration of his mouth blowing whatever was left of his mind. He was lost in her, lost in the scent and feel of her, need for her thrumming in his veins.

He dragged his mouth from hers and scooped her into his arms, carrying her the few short steps to the bed and stretching out beside her, his mouth retaking hers the moment her head touched the pillow. Tongues invaded, sparred, ravished, hers as much as his, teeth scraping skin, biting, nipping. But he wanted more.

He lifted his head, pinned her arms above her head with one hand, then reached down with the other to cup her breasts, teasing her petal-soft nipples into tight buds, tugging them with his fingers, flicking them with his thumb.

She gasped, then moaned, a sound of unmistakable female arousal.

"God, I love your breasts." Natural and soft, they yielded to his hand as he cupped and plumped them, their tips so sensitive that the merest flick of his thumb made her shiver. When he couldn't wait another second, he ducked down, greeted each puckered peak with an eager flick of his tongue, then closed his mouth over her right nipple and sucked.

She cried out, whimpered, arching her back, offering herself to him, her arms still pinned above her head. "Oh, Gabe, ayor
anosh'ni!"

He didn't speak Navajo, but the urgency in her voice got at least some of her message across. Driven by her pleas and his own desperate hunger, he tugged on her nipple with his lips, flicked it with his tongue, suckled it, cupping her other breast with his free hand, his thumb tracing circles on the sensitive underside.

God, she was responsive! Her breathing came in shudders, her body trembling, her eyes squeezed shut, a look of torment on her sweet face. Brain buzzing with lust, he shifted his mouth to her other nipple, grazing her with the edge of his teeth, then sucking hard. He wanted to please her, wanted so goddamned bad to please her, wanted to make her burn for him the way he burned for her.

"Gabe, please!" She squirmed against him, her hips lifting off the bed, seeking relief.

He raised his head, released her wrists, and felt her fingers clench in his hair. He flicked a nipple with his tongue, teasing her. "Please what? Please stop?"

She gave a frustrated moan. "Please don't stop!"

Only too happy to oblige her, he lowered his mouth to a wet nipple, sucking and nipping her as he nudged his hand between her thighs, lifted her right leg and draped it over his hip, spreading her wide. His hand sought the sensitive skin of her inner thighs, teasing her, working his way slowly upward.

Christ, he could feel her heat. It radiated from within her, her sultry, musky scent igniting every drop of testosterone in his blood. She whimpered his name, her nails digging into his scalp, her hips rising each time his hand drew near, then twisting in sexual frustration when he drew his hand away again. When he was certain he had her on the edge, he cupped her damp curls--and eased a finger inside her.

She gave a breathy moan, her hot, slick vagina gripping his finger tight.

He heard himself growl like some kind of damned animal, his hips flexing as if his cock were buried inside her instead of thrusting against her thigh.

Slow down, Rossiter.

He forced breath into his lungs, doing his best to relax. He stroked her, sliding a second finger inside her, stretching her. "In a few minutes, my cock is going to be inside you, stroking you just like this."

She shivered, tensed, and he knew she found the idea both arousing and a little frightening. And that was okay, because so did he. He did not want to hurt her, but damned if he could hold back much longer.

He gathered her body's own moisture, then withdrew his fingers and rubbed the silky wetness over her clit, the little pink bud swelling at his touch. Then he penetrated her again, sliding his fingers in and out, taking care to catch her clit with each deep stroke.

Her breath came in ragged pants as he kept up the rhythm, her faced turned against his chest, her eyes squeezed shut, her body wracked with tension that seemed to arc through her and into him, shooting straight to his groin.

"I want you, Kat." His words came out in urgent whispers as he flicked her nipples with his tongue, unable to keep his mouth off her, his cock so hard it ached. "I want to fuck you so bad it hurts."

Then she gasped, seeming to hold her breath as the tension inside her peaked--and shattered. She came with a shaky sigh, her inner muscles clenching around his fingers, a look of excruciating pleasure on her beautiful face. He rode through it with her, keeping his rhythm steady, trying to make her pleasure last, raining kisses on her breasts, her throat, her lips, as the quaking inside her slowly faded.

When her climax had passed, he held her, a bittersweet ache in his chest at the sight of her lying in his arms. Her eyes were closed, her lips slightly parted, her breathing soft and easy. Her hair lay in a tangle around her face, her lashes dark against her cheeks, her lips curved in the faintest of smiles.

And Gabe made up his mind. If she'd had enough, if she fell asleep, he wouldn't push her. They'd forget the whole "take my virginity" thing, and he'd just go wank in the bathroom like he'd been doing these past few days.

Noble of you, Rossiter. Stupid, but noble.

But she didn't fall asleep. Almost as soon as he'd finished arguing with himself, she opened her eyes, gave him a shy smile, then turned on her side to face him, her lips closing over his. His arms went around her, the two of them twisting and rolling on the bed in a tangle of limbs, hands exploring soft skin, seeking out new ways to give pleasure. And then she was beneath him, both of them breathless.

On fire for her, Gabe reached beneath a pillow and drew out the condom he'd stashed there, ripping off the wrapper with his teeth, his mouth filling with the taste of latex and spermicidal lubricant. He was about to slide it down the length of his erection, when her hands caught his, stopping him.

"No. No condom. Please! This first time, let it be what it's meant to be. Let me give all of myself to you. Let me have all of you." She looked at him through those big eyes of hers, and he knew she was serious.

His heart seemed to stop. "I've been tested, so I know I can't make you sick. But I never got the vasectomy, Kat. I can make you pregnant. Do you know what you're risking, what you're asking me to risk?"

"Yeah, I do." She nodded. "Just this once. Please."

"No condom" had always meant "no sex" as far as Gabe was concerned. He hadn't had sex without a condom since ... Well, he couldn't remember when. But the thought of being inside Kat, of truly feeling her, with no barriers between them ...

He groaned, let the condom fall to the sheets, then stretched himself out above her, wrapping her left leg around his waist. "I don't want to hurt you."

She slid her hands up his chest, looked into his eyes. "I know."

His gaze locked with hers, he slowly nudged the tip of his cock into her slippery heat, her body resisting his intrusion, his access impeded by that thin ring of flesh. Then, with the slightest thrust of his hips, he broke through.

Her eyes flew wide, and she gasped, then squeezed her eyes shut, biting her bottom lip. And it struck him as unfair somehow that what felt so indescribably good to him caused her pain.

"Easy, honey." He held himself still inside her--no easy task. She was slick and impossibly tight, the head of his cock teased by sensations he would never have felt if he'd been wearing a condom--subtle textures, wetness, heat. Every instinct he had urged him to drive deeper, to bury himself in her snug warmth, the first stirrings of orgasm tugging at his belly. But this was about her, about pleasing her, about giving her everything he could give her, because what she'd given him-Jesus!-what she'd just given him was priceless, far beyond anything he deserved.

Kat tried to relax, the pain gradually subsiding, her nervousness giving way to a sense of exhilaration at the thought that Gabe was inside her.

"I'm sorry." He stroked her hair, raining kisses on her cheeks, her eyelids, her lips, her forehead, as if trying to kiss away her discomfort, the tenderness on his face almost breaking her heart.

"It's not bad, really." And it wasn't-not anymore.

Watching her face, he repeatedly withdrew, then nudged himself inside her again, going deeper each time, gradually stretching her past the pain until he filled her completely, the sensation both strange and pleasurable.

He moaned, whispered her name, his body shaking. "Oh, honey, you feel so ... Jesus Christ."

And then he began to move in deep, slow thrusts, stroking the hidden places inside her, the slippery friction making her ache. Oh, the sweetness of it! She was so glad she'd waited for this moment, for this man, for Gabe. No matter what happened tomorrow or next week or next month, this was beyond her dreams.

Unable to get enough of him, she slid her hands up the sweat-slick planes of his chest, over the hard curves of his shoulders, and down the tense muscles of his back. "Ayor
anosh'ni! Ayor anosh'ni!"
I love you! I love you!

The words spilled out of her in a breathless rush, carrying the spirit of her love to him, returning at least some of the love Jill had stolen, even if he couldn't understand what she was saying. And then Kat couldn't think, let alone speak, the ache inside her drawing together in a tight, shimmering knot, as he moved over her, against her, inside her, his breath hot on her face, his skin slick with sweat.

"Oh, Kat, honey-Christ!-I can't ... hold off ... much longer!"

An image of his penis thrusting in her closed fist flashed through her mind, and she realized that's exactly how he was moving inside her now, his hips thrusting hard, strong, fast. And in a moment, hot semen would shoot from him into her, just as it had shot over her fingers that night. The thought was so erotic, so deeply arousing, that Kat found herself on the brink of another climax.

But this was like nothing she'd felt before, the feel of him inside her carrying her higher than she'd ever been. Orgasm overtook her with the force of a flash flood, drowning her in pleasure, a riptide of bliss that threatened to carry her away. She heard a woman cry out, and realized it was she, her nails instinctively digging into his back as she fought to hold on, her teeth finding his shoulder, her inner muscles clenching around him.

He groaned, his pace quickening, as he answered her cries with whispers of encouragement. "That's right, honey! Come for me!"

She heard his breath catch, felt his control shatter, his body shuddering as he came apart in her arms, losing himself inside her with a deep groan.

GABE LOOKED DOWN at the woman who slept so deeply in his arms, her head resting on his chest, her sweet face completely relaxed, one silky leg tucked between his. He ought to hate himself. Instead he felt overwhelmed by a sense of ... peace.

The candles had long since burned themselves out, the fire burned to embers in the woodstove. Though he knew he should get up and add more wood, he didn't want to move. He didn't want to let go of her.