Sweet Promise (17 page)

They walked in silence, their deceptively lazy steps marking off the sluggardly passing of time. A heady tension crackled in the air around them like invisible heat lightning.

The shadows at the stern enveloped them, and they stopped by the rail to look out at the sea. With no wind stirring it was calm as glass, except for the phosphorescent froth of the wake that trailed behind the ship. Joanna stared at it, waiting, the trembling expectancy growing to a tormenting, delicious agony.

Beside her Sean turned, and she sensed his gaze drifting over her profile.

"Joanna." He uttered her name in a low voice that wasn't much more than a whisper, a sigh, yet the sound was filled with longing and entreaty.

With her heart kicking against her ribs, Joanna turned slowly and looked up at him. In the shadows Sean's face was barely discernible, but she could sense the intense emotion that gripped him. It mirrored her own.

Never taking his eyes from her, Sean lifted the hand he still held and pressed her palm to his mouth. With the tip of his tongue he traced a wet circle on the tender flesh. The contact sent a bolt of fire zinging through her, straight to the heart of her femininity, making it pulse and liquefy. "Oh, Joanna, what have you done to me?"

he asked in a rasping whisper, moistening her skin even more with the dew of his warm breath.

"I... What do you mean?"

"I've never felt this way before. Never been this obsessed with a woman before." Back and forth, he rubbed his lips against her palm. "I haven't been able to think of anything but you since we left Florida."

"I have the same problem," she said throatily, shivering.

"Do you? Do you have any idea how much I want to hold you? Love you? It was all I could think about all day while we were ashore. And tonight during dinner." He grimaced, his face twisting in remembered frustration. "And that show. Lord! I thought it would never end."

Beyond speech, Joanna could only nod her understanding, then close her eyes helplessly as his teeth nipped the soft pads at the base of her fingers.

Sean's gaze roamed over her rapt face. The most delicate lids he had ever seen shuttered her hazel eyes, sweeping the lavish fringe of lashes across her cheeks like dark fans. Unable to resist, he laid her hand against his chest and bent forward, placing a feathery kiss on each one.

As though weighted with lead, Joanna's lids lifted slumberously. She gazed up at him with all that she was feeling plainly visible in her face, in her eyes. Even in the shadows Sean could see the emotion swimming in their hazel depths. Lord, he thought a bit desperately. She looks so fragile, so vulnerable, so very lovely.

Once again Sean experienced a pang of guilt, but he pushed it aside. It was far too late to be noble; he no longer had the strength to walk away. He wanted to kiss her senseless, to pull her to the deck and ravage that sweet mouth and body, but even more, he didn't want to frighten her. Controlling his raging impulses, Sean brought her other hand to his chest, slipped his arms around her and tenderly gathered her to him.

With an urgent little sigh, Joanna pressed closer and slid her hands up over his shoulders, burying her fingers in the silky hair at his nape. The tiny evening bag that hung from her wrist bumped gently against his back. As the soft globes of her breasts flattened against Sean's chest a moan of animal pleasure rumbled from him, and his head descended.

"Dear Lord, you're lovely," he whispered achingly against her lips. "So very lovely."

Sean kissed her with a depth of emotion that surprised even him. Hungrily, a bit desperately, he rocked his lips over hers. He wanted to devour her, absorb her, until they were one in mind', body and soul.

Joanna's instant, ardent response made his heart leap. Any lingering doubts Sean had about her maturity vanished as she kissed him back with a woman's passion, a woman's needs.

Desire flamed between them, and the kiss became hotter, more intense. Sean's tongue plumbed the sweet depths of her mouth. His hands roamed her slender curves. Joanna groaned and burrowed closer, her fingers clutching his hair in a desperate grip.

With an effort of will, Sean tore his mouth from hers and buried his face in the fragrant hair at the side of her neck. "Oh, God, Joanna. If we don't stop now I'm not going to be able to," he gasped.

Joanna made a strangled little sound, and he straightened and clutched her tightly against his chest. Tilting his head, Sean rested his cheek against her crown and rocked her back and forth. He was afire. Burning.

He wanted Joanna more than he had ever wanted any woman in his life, but he knew it wasn't just physical. He hungered desperately for something more. It was a deep, gut-wrenching need he'd never experienced before. It clawed at his soul and made him tremble.

Shakily, he held Joanna away from him and stared down at her with feverish eyes. He knew, just as surely as he knew that tomorrow would come, this would not be a casual fling he could enjoy for a while, and then walk away from. And, to his surprise, he found that he was glad. "I want you, Joanna," he said in a voice roughened by passion. "I need you." His fingers tightened on her shoulders and he looked at her intently. "Will you come back to my room with me?"

Joanna's heart stopped for a millisecond before it took off at a gallop. Joy exploded inside her, creating such pressure in her chest she could barely breathe. Her body yearned for his touch, and her heart urged her to say yes, but even so, she could not shut out the niggling doubts. He could hurt her badly. The pain she had suffered after that ill-considered little affair in college would be nothing in comparison. And yet...

Joanna hesitated, hope and fear, longing and wariness warring within her as her emotions told her one thing, her common sense another. But it took only a moment for her to realize that there was really no choice to make. She loved Sean. It was as simple as that.

Looking up at him with her heart in her eyes, she drew a deep breath and smiled tremulously. "Yes. Yes, I'll go with you."

Something hot and wild flared in Sean's eyes. "You won't be sorry. I promise," he vowed in a rough whisper. He bent and kissed her hard, then tucked her against his side and started back the way they had come.

Every nerve in Joanna's body quivered like a plucked string. Sedately, their arms around each other, they strolled across the deck, down the stairs and along the passageway, all without speaking. They stopped at Sean's door, and he smiled warmly into her eyes while fishing in his pocket for the key without relinquishing his hold on her. As he fumbled to fit it into the lock with his left hand Joanna stared at his intent profile, her heart thumping as doubts of a different kind assailed her.

She was so inexperienced. What if she didn't please him? Sean had known many women. Beautiful, glamorous women. Women like Gloria. Joanna thought about her own plain brown hair, her slender, girlish body, her small breasts. Would he be disappointed? What if...

The door opened and Sean's encircling arm urged her into the cabin. When he turned to hang out the Do Not Disturb sign she stepped away and stood in the middle of the floor, her body rigid with apprehension.

It was a small cabin, not even as big as the bedroom in her suite. The room steward had already removed the spread and turned down the covers on the double bed that sat flush with one wall. As she stared at it, Joanna felt a quivering in the pit of her stomach and quickly looked away.

Next to the bed a low chest of drawers sat beneath the porthole. On the opposite wall were two doors, which she presumed led to the bathroom and closet. The only other furnishings were an upholstered chair, a tiny table and a tv.

Sean moved away from the door, and she turned to him with a determined smile. But some of her anxiety must have shown on her face, for when he stopped just inches from her, his expression was infinitely tender. His hands settled lightly on her forearms and glided upward to cup the rounded curves of her shoulders, the feathery touch leaving a trail of goose bumps on her skin.

"Oh, love," he whispered, pulling her closer. "There's no reason to be nervous. It's going to be wonderful. You'll see." His dark eyes glowed with sensual promise, and his slow smile made her heart thrum. His gaze roamed her face, lingering lovingly on each feature. When it stopped at her mouth, his lids dropped halfway and his voice became even huskier. "I've never felt this way about a woman in my life, Joanna. Never. Something this special just has to be right."

Joanna drew in her breath as, like magic, his words swept away all her misgivings, all her fears. She had needed so desperately to know that she was more than just another in the long list of women who had fleetingly held Sean's interest. She stared at him with wide, luminous eyes, hope unfurling inside her with all the fragile tenacity of a flower blooming in the desert. He hadn't said he loved her, and maybe he didn't yet, but surely, surely, given time, he would. Emotion clogged her throat and her shining eyes brimmed with tears. As they trickled over and streamed down her cheeks, she smiled tremulously.

"Oh, Sean." His name came out in a broken whisper, a soft sigh of adoration that told him all he needed to know.

Lovingly, Sean enfolded her in his arms and covered her mouth with his. The kiss was a tender ravishment that set her soul aflame. She quivered within the embrace, her heart overflowing with love as his lips moved against hers with a slow, heated fervency. Giving. Savoring. Sweetly devouring.

Joanna's mouth flowered open, and Sean's tongue dipped into it repeatedly, drinking from her sweetness like a man dying of thirst. "Lord, you taste heavenly," he said, as he rubbed his mouth back and forth over hers. "I'll never get enough of you. Never."

Joanna's tiny purse dropped to the floor with a soft plop. She clung to him, her hands clutching at the lapels of his dinner jacket while his worked their drugging magic, smoothing over her bare shoulders, her waist, the rounded curves of her bottom. When he lowered the zipper at the back of her dress and brushed the thin spaghetti straps from her shoulders she obediently lowered her arms. The garment slid down her body and fluttered to the floor in a billowing cloud of silk chiffon.

The fully lined dress required no slip, and when he eased her away she stood before him in only a wispy triangle of lilac silk and a wickedly sinful ecru lace garter belt and stockings. Sean looked at her, his black eyes glittering hotly, his chest heaving. His handsome face, distorted by desire, was rigid and flushed.

His gaze drifted hungrily down over her belly and silk covered legs, then returned to stare at her pert, uptilted breasts. As though mesmerized, he slowly circled one dusky pink nipple with his index finger, and something flared in his eyes as it tightened into a hard bud. He cupped the soft globe in his palm. "Your skin is like satin," he murmured hoarsely. "So smooth and warm." He raised his eyes to hers. "I can feel your heart beating."

Joanna quivered under that hot look. Her breasts felt heavy and feverish, and when he bent and touched his tongue to the aching tips she gasped and clutched at his shoulders. "Oh, Sean! Sean!"

Just as her knees started to buckle he groaned and snatched her back into his arms, burying his face in the silky curls at the side of her neck. "Oh, God, sweetheart! You're so beautiful. Just the sight of you drives me wild."

"I... I..." Coherent speech was beyond Joanna.

The scrape of cloth against her sensitized nipples was almost painfully erotic. When Joanna began to fumble with the buttons on his shirt Sean went perfectly still, then eased back a fraction to allow her better access. In her haste, her movements were jerky and awkward, but she finally managed the task, then snatched the shirt free of his trousers. Frantically, she pushed wide the gaping front sections of the garment and burrowed close, making a soft sound, somewhere between a moan and a sigh, as her breast flattened against his furred chest.

A violent shudder rippled through Sean, and his arms tightened around her convulsively. He held her close for a moment, but when her soft hands tunneled beneath his dinner jacket and the loose shirt to move searchingly over the taut muscles in his back, his control snapped. With decisive quickness, he swept her into his arms and carried her the few steps to the bed. He placed her on the soft, fragrant linens, and Joanna's breath caught as his fiery gaze blazed over her.

Then, methodically, he set about removing her few remaining articles of clothing.

Two soft plops sounded, one after the other, as he slipped the high heeled sandals from her feet and dropped them to the floor. With shaking fingers, he unhooked her garters and peeled the sheer silk stockings from her legs. As though unable to help himself, he bent and kissed the strip of flesh between the top of her bikini panties and the lacy garter belt. His teeth nipped her satiny belly. His nimble tongue swirled a wet circle around her navel, then speared into the tiny cavity, withdrew, and plunged again. Her hands helplessly clutching the sheet on either side of her, Joanna moaned and writhed beneath the delicious torment.

Sean raised his head and smiled. "I'm going to love all of you. Every beautiful inch of you," he vowed in a raspy whisper.

He hooked his thumbs beneath the top of her panties, drew the lilac silk slowly down over her legs and tossed it to the floor. The wisp of ecru lace followed. His dark gaze sizzled over her again. "Oh, babe, I burn just looking at you."

Straightening, Sean stripped off his shirt and dinner jacket at one time, tossed them into the chair, and went to work on his trousers. Within moments he was naked, his discarded clothes strewn haphazardly over the chair and floor, and he was stretching out beside her, pulling her urgently against his heated flesh.

The kiss was a hungry outpouring of unleashed passion. His tongue delved into her mouth, stroking, probing, plundering sweetly.

With barely restrained urgency, his hand smoothed over her body, exploring the long, exquisite tine of thigh and hip, the inward curve of waist, the gentle flare of ribcage. In a feather-light touch, the back of Sean's knuckles grazed the underside of her breast. Then his large hand cupped around the warm fullness, and Joanna shuddered as his thumb swept back and forth over the rosy crest.

Sean rained kisses down Joanna's neck and shoulder, the underside of her jaw, her collarbone, down into the scented valley between her breasts. As his hand moved downward over her quivering belly, he drew the engorged nipple into the wet warmth of his mouth and drew on her with slow, rhythmic suction.

"Oh, God, Sean!" Joanna cried out in surprise, tangling her fingers in his hair and urging him closer as the tugging pressure set off little incendiary explosions within her body that sent liquid fire racing to the core of her femininity, making it tighten and throb.

Sean lavished the same loving attention on the other breast, and the delicious agony became almost unbearable. Joanna whimpered and writhed in restless passion, her nails digging into the taut muscles in his back.

The whimper became a low, long moan of pure ecstasy when Sean's hand slipped between her thighs and probed the delicate petals of her womanhood.

Sean lifted his head and looked at her. His handsome face was flushed, his eyes a burning black. Silently, he questioned, and just as silently she answered. Obeying the tugging of her hands and the urgent plea in her eyes, he moved into position between her thighs. Braced on his palms, he remained poised above her for a second, his intent gaze locked with hers. Then with a slow, sure stroke, he made them one.

He thrust deep, sheathing himself completely in her velvety warmth, a slight smile curling his mouth as he watched Joanna's eyes grow smoky with passion. Watching her still, he began the smooth, rocking movements of love, and a look of fierce satisfaction tightened his face as her rapture grew.

"You feel wonderful. You are wonderful," he murmured.

Joanna gazed up at him languorously, her eyes swimming with love and sensuous pleasure. With a soft, beguiling smile, she ran her hands up his arms and linked her fingers at his nape. "Come to me, my love," she urged in a breathy whisper. "Come to me."

"Oh, God, yes!" Sean cried as he lowered his chest over the soft globes of her breast and felt her long limbs enfold him.

The pressure built. Their pleasure grew to breathtaking proportions. It swelled within them, around them. It pushed the breath out of their lungs and filled their hearts to bursting. Bodies grew taut, straining, movements rapid. The sweet agony built and built until it became too much for mere mortals to bear.

Then the explosion came—a fiery conflagration that consumed them.

Long minutes after their hoarse cries of completion died away, they lay without moving, clinging to each other, utterly replete. As their labored breathing gradually slowed, Joanna stroked her hands over Sean's damp body and drifted on a sea of languor, savoring his closeness, his pressing weight, the musky scent of satisfied male.

At last, Sean stirred. Raising himself up on his forearms, he toyed absently with her silky hair spread out on the pillow and looked down at her, his expression serious, a bit uncertain. "You okay?"

"Yes. Yes, I'm fine." Smiling, she lifted a hand and
ran her finger over one heavy black brow, loving the wiry
satin texture of it.