Passion's Tide (19 page)

“I wasn’t planning on it, no
.
But even if I was, I’m afraid there isn’t any left.”

He stared into her face as she nursed his shoulder, noticing for the first time her flushed cheeks and easy smile
.
“Good god Amber, you’re drunk, aren’t you?”

“What a preposterous presumption,” she giggled. “Now sit still while I pul
l this
out,” Gritting his teeth, he complied until every last splinter had been removed
.
She leaned back to admire her handiwork, then stood and walked over to the
washbasin
.

“Amber?”

“Yes?”

“Tell me the truth
.
Are you, or are you not intoxicated?”

“D
o
es it matter?”

He groaned and dropped his head into his hands
.
“I’d say it’s pretty damn important, seeing as how you were just extracting the hull of a ship from my body.”

“Oh, stop exaggerating, it was just a few splinters
.
Now don’t move.” His head shot up as he felt warm water trickle down his chest
.

“What are you doing now?”

“Cleaning your cuts,” she replied, concentrating on the task
.
Logan watched her as she ran the cloth over his shoulders, his broad chest, his firm stomach.

He closed his eyes
and relaxed under her careful ministrations, her touch both soothing and intensely arousing
.
The tension in his muscles dissipated as she washed away the dirt, sweat, and blood that covered his skin
.
He didn’t notice as her hand slowed, or even when it stopped
.
When it dropped to her side, however, he inexplicably mourned the loss of her touch.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, his voice gruffer than he had intended.

“Oh, nothing
.
I’m just…curious,” she mused.

“Curious about what?”

She leaned forward and caught him off guard by brushing her mouth against his
.
Then just as quickly she pulled away
.
Logan stared at her in shock.

“Nothing…” she murmured to herself, her brows drawn together in deliberation.

“What the hell do you mean, nothing?”

She
looked up, startled. “I mean that I felt nothing like I did when you kissed me outside.”

He was taken by surprise, and his voice lost its angry edge as he spoke again
.
“What did you feel, Amber?”

She blushed
.
“I felt warm, and protected
.
Safe
.
And at the same time I felt like I was in danger of something, I don’t know what
.
But…”

“What else?” he urged.

“I think,” she said, taking a deep breath and meeting his stormy gaze, “that whatever it was, I wanted it to happen.” H
e watched her for a long moment, his intense gaze unsettling
.

She
attempted a
casual shrug
.
“It’s not important anyway
.
It didn’t happen again, and it most likely never will.” She started to turn away, but Logan reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her back so that she stood between his legs, their faces almost level.

“The hell it won’t,” he growled, his eyes intense and bright, “you’re just doing it wrong.” Then he slid his arm around her neck and drew her against
him, his lips crushing hers
.

Amber
steadied herself by grabbing his shoulders, her squeak of protest barely heard as he cupped her chin and continued his assault on her senses
.

He tried to deepen the kiss, but her mouth was closed beneath his, so he pulled her bottom lip into his mouth and nibbled
.
Not hard enough to hurt, but enough to shock her
.
Her gasp of surprise was more than enough, and he took the opportunity to slip his tongue between her parted lips
.

Unlike last time, her tongue darted forward to intertwine with his almost in
stantly, any ounce of hesitation she may have felt
gone
.
It had disappeared the moment he slid an arm around her waist and clutched her
to
him
.
He explored her mouth with finesse, Amber meeting each kiss
with
ardor
and taking advantage of the situation to learn and explore his body
.

Her fingertips roamed over the wide expanse of bare chest, tangled in the dark coarse hair, reveled in the feel of his rippling muscles
.
Suddenly he pulled back, leaving her gasping and at a loss for why their kiss had ended with such abruptness
.

“Take down your hair,” he commanded in a coarse whisper
.
Without answering, she nodded and pulled the ribbon from the bottom of her braid, then loosened her curls until they hung free about her back
.
Logan lifted a lock and felt the weight of it, and letting the silky strand fall through his fingers he drew her in for another kiss that left her breathless
.

His lips traveled from her mouth to her neck, her head falling back to allow him easier access to her soft skin
.
His fingers plunged into her hair and he kissed a trail to her ear
.

“Do you feel it now, Amber?”

“Yes,” she replied, her voice husky with desire.

“What do you feel?”

She struggled to turn her muddled thoughts into a coherent sentence
.
“Warm
.
Hot, like I’m on fire
.
I want…I want you to touch me.”

Logan stood with a crooked
smile
and pushed Amber back onto the bed, where she lifted herself onto her elbows and watche
d as he removed his boots and tossed them aside
.
Then he joined her, sliding his body up so that it lay alongside hers.

She tilted her head so that he could kiss her again, his skilled fingers drawing lazy circles on her overheated skin
.
She shivered, and he brought his hand to the gentle curve of her hip, then drew it across her stomach
.

Her body twitched under him, and she broke the kiss
.
“More,” she gasped, her eyes closed
.
Logan slipped his hand beneath the large white shirt, brushing his fingers over her soft stomach while he watched her face
.
She bit her lip and moaned, the sound reverberating through Logan’s defense
.
“So hot…”

His self-restraint crumbled, and he gripped the hem of her shirt and pulled it up and over her head, ripping it in the process, then threw it onto the floor
.

Amber’s eyes shot open as cool air breezed across her chest
.
Logan was leaning over her, his breath caught in his throat as he stared at full breasts, the dusky rose centers that budded under his heated gaze
.

She squirmed again
.
“Logan, please!”

And then he was cupping her breast,
and all thoughts vanished as her back arched off the bed, pushing herself up into his large hand.

Logan fought off the simultaneous urge to groan and smile at h
er impassioned reaction, but instead lowered his mouth to her neck again
.
Her hands tangled in the quilt, her toes curling as he rolled her nipple between his fingers, causing the fire to spread further through her body
.
She was lost in a sea of desire, drowning.

Suddenly, Logan’s mouth was on her breast, and she gasped with need as heat pulsed between her thighs, liquid warmth seeping from her very core
.
His tongue laved her smooth skin with finesse even as he rested a hand on her stomach to keep her body from thrashing.

It was too much for her to handle
.
“Logan, I need…oh god…” Her voice trailed off in a whimper as she gasped for breath
.
For control
.
For release.

“Shh, love
.
I know what you need,” he whispered as his hand strayed to the tight breeches that had caught his attention and stirred something primal within him earlier that night, the same
need that coursed through him now, making his own breeches damn
ed
uncomfortable
.
He tried to ignore the erection that throbbed against the co
a
rse fabric of his pants, a feat that was near impossible as he slid hers off
.

Again, he was struck by her intense beauty
.
Her legs, which until now had always been hidden beneath layers of skirts, were shapely and smooth, the creamy skin glowing under the flickering candlelight
.
His grey eyes clouded with desire as his gaze was drawn upwards to the red triangle of curls that nestled at the apex of her legs
.
His hands expertly massaged her thighs until they fell apart, allowing his fingers to roam further
.

Amber’s body went rigid as she felt him part the folds of her sex and brush across her damp opening
.
He waited what seemed like hours until she relaxed and her muscles lost their tension before he moved his thumb to circle her sensitive bud, an action that caused her to suck in a breath
.
“Logan?”

He lifted his head and met her eyes, thrilled to see pure, sensual energy shining in them
.
“Make love to me, please?” His hand stalled
.

She whimpered, never tearing her gaze from his
.
“Please Logan, I need…”

“I know, sweetheart.” His thumb began teasing her again
.
She tried to push his hand away, but he resisted
.
She tried to pull him towards her, but he wouldn’t budge
.

After that, she was lost to the intense pleasure-pain that he was causing, her hips bucking upwards in sweet agony, aching for something, anything
.
And then he was inside of her.

Through glassy eyes, she saw that he hadn’t actually penetrated her
.
He hadn’t moved from his position lying beside her, and his breeches were still in place, however straining at the front
.
It was his fingers, then, that were causing her to moan and tremble
.

Then he slid another finger inside her slick heat, and Amber cried out in helpless abandon as her body shook, the fire that had spread through her veins igniting in a scorching inferno and blinding her momentarily as Logan’s name tumbled from her swollen lips
.

Logan eased his fingers from her even as she fell back against the pillows, her breathing heavy and uneven
.
She forced her eyes open and stared at him, suddenly embarrassed and demure
.
“What…” she stopped as he gave her a smile and pulled the blanket from under her, then covered her with it
.

“Get some sleep, we’ll talk in the morning.”

She shook her head and tried to fight off the drowsiness that swept over her
.
He stood and removed his belt, then slipped beneath the blankets and pulled her against him
.
The last thing she remembered was his soothing hands stroking her back, and then she surrendered to the blessed darkness that overwhelmed her.

The following morning, Amber was pulled from her somnolent state by a persistent feeling that something was amiss
.
She was woozy as she blinked against the harsh daylight, wishing she could return to the pleasant dream she had been having before she woke up
.
Her eyelids drooped as she began to slip back into sleep, the gentle sway of the ship rocking her like a baby in a cradle
.