Taking You (6 page)

“Why aren’t you out of those clothes, yet?” she asked in a soft voice, electricity jolting through her as Nick made quick work of his clothes, the assured, sensual way he disposed of each article enough to make her nipples pebble in the cool air.

“Are you sure you don’t want more romance than this?” Nick asked, thumbs hooked into the top of his boxer briefs, pausing on his way to being completely bare to her.

“What’s more romantic than an old boat house after a beautiful proposal and nearly drowning in a rowboat?” Melody asked, reaching for him and curling her own fingers around his waistband. “Now, hurry up. I want to see you.”

Without another word, Nick tugged his boxer briefs over his hips and let them slide to his ankles before stepping free. Melody let out a sigh of approval.

Stunning. There was no other word for him. From his broad shoulders to the muscled planes of his stomach, to the little indentions on the sides of his hips that dipped in before his abdomen became something more intimate, to the dusting of dark hair that surrounded where he was so perfectly aroused—not too big, not too small, and lilting rather adorably to the left—he was so delicious Melody couldn’t quite believe he was hers.

“Your turn,” he said, the hunger in his voice making her shiver for reasons that had nothing to do with the cold.

A moment later, her panties were added to the pile of damp clothes on the floor and Melody was settling down on top. She felt a button digging into her back as she lay down, but then Nick was lengthening himself on top of her, and she lost awareness of anything but his skin soft against hers, his mouth hot on her own, and his hands running over her body, touching her in all the places she’d been dying for him to touch.

After a few breathless kisses that left Melody’s head spinning, Nick pulled away, dropping his head to kiss the top of her breasts even as his palm slid down her stomach to curve over her thatch of blond hair, his finger sliding into where she was already swollen and wet with wanting him.

Melody arched into his touch with a moan that became a gasp as his tongue found her nipple, teasing her tight tip before he pulled her inside his mouth with just the perfect amount of suction. She reached down, kneading his strong shoulder muscles with her hands before smoothing her hands down the front of his chest, catching his small, flat nipples in her fingers and teasing him until he tightened beneath her touch and pulled back with a swiftly indrawn breath.

“Where did you learn that?” he asked, staring down at her with dark eyes as she continued to tug gently at his nipples.

“From you,” she said, wiggling her hips as she spread her legs a little wider, aching for more than a finger inside of her. “I figured if it felt that good when you did it to me…”

Nick shook his head as he pulled his hand from between her legs. “No girl has ever done that before. I had no idea it would feel like that.”

“Good?” Melody asked.

“Too good,” he said, pulling her hands away from his chest and drawing them up above her head before pinning her wrists gently to the floor. “If you keep doing things like that, I’m going to move too fast.”

“What if I want you to move fast?” she asked, lifting her hips, bringing her center into such intimate contact with his erection that Nick shuddered in response.

“Melody…”

“Now, Nick,” she said softly. “I’m tired of waiting. There will be time for slow later, right now I just want you inside me.”

With a groan of surrender, Nick dropped one hand between them, spreading her in such an intimate way that for a moment Melody almost felt embarrassed, but then the hot, blunt head of him was at her entrance and he was pushing slowly inside. He held her eyes as he moved, easing forward centimeter by cautious centimeter, obviously worried about the pain she might feel this first time.

“I’m fine,” she whispered, cradling his face. “It’s stings a little, but I don’t care. It’s not bad, and I’m so, so happy to finally feel you like this. I love you so much.”

“I love you so much, too, baby,” Nick said, emotion thick in his voice as he kissed her, his tongue stroking hers as he dropped his hips, burying himself with one final thrust.

The stinging became a sharper feeling and Melody tensed, but then Nick’s hands were teasing at her nipples again, building that warm needy feeling in the pit of her belly until the sting became an ache, and then a longing for more. She shifted her hips, letting him know she was ready; he picked up on the silent cue immediately, drawing his hips back and sliding back in with a languid thrust that made Melody’s breath catch with the beauty of it.

“You are a wickedly sexy man,” she said, voice shaking as she reached around, digging her fingernails into the strong muscles of his backside as he continued to move in and out, and her body relaxed further and further into pleasure.

“And you are…everything,” he said, the emotion in his eyes catching Melody off guard.

“And you’re everything to me,” she said, breath coming faster as Nick moved his hand between them, finding the top of her entrance and circling the bundle of nerves there, waiting until Melody began to arch into the caress before increasing the tempo of his thrusts.

She pulled him closer, until his forehead met hers, but she didn’t kiss him, she simply stared into his eyes, looking straight into the very heart of him as the tension coiling inside her built and built, until she knew she was going to fall over the edge with him right behind her.

“Yes,” she cried out, forcing her eyes to stay open as her most intimate muscles clenched down around him in sharp waves, the release more powerful than anything she’d felt before. This was how an orgasm was supposed to feel, a sensation of bliss so profound, satisfaction so deep, that your soul was barely clinging to your body as your lover lost himself inside you.

“Melody, god, Melody,” Nick mumbled as his rhythm faltered and he stilled with a final thrust of his hips.

Melody gasped, surprised that she could actually feel him pulse inside her as he came, feel the warm rush as the fluid shot from his body. It was the most intimate, primal, wonderful thing she’d ever felt, and for a long, long moment afterward she couldn’t utter a word. She could only wrap her arms around Nick, treasuring the feel of his heavy weight relaxed on top of her, praying she would remember every second of their first time together for the rest of her life.

“That was perfect,” she finally said. The light in the room had gone murky, and she knew they should probably be heading back before someone in the family got worried and came looking for them, but she didn’t make a move, just sighed and ran her fingers idly up and down Nick’s bare back.

He lifted his head, propping up on one arm to look her in the face. “That was…”

“What?” she whispered, loving him even more than she did ten minutes ago, though she wouldn’t have thought it was possible.

“It blew my mind a little.”

Melody narrowed her eyes. “You don’t have to flatter me. It was my first time. I know I have a lot to learn.”

Nook shook his head. “No you don’t. You’re amazing.” He paused, dropping his eyes to her chin before meeting her gaze once more. “That was my first time, too, you know. In a way. I mean, I’ve had lots of sex, but tonight is the first time I’ve made love to anyone. I mean, I thought I had before, I guess, but…I was wrong.”

“Aw.” The backs of Melody’s eyes stung a little as she smiled. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “It didn’t hurt?”

“Just a little. And I’m sore, but not bad,” she said, making a soft sound of protest as he shifted and slid from her body. “That didn’t mean I wanted you to leave.”

Nick laughed. “I didn’t want to leave, but I should probably get dressed and go get that blanket for you. It’s getting late.”

“I know, but I need five more minutes,” Melody said, reaching for him and pulling him back to the ground beside her. She rolled over, resting her head on his shoulder as she hitched her leg over his hips, sighing with contentment. “I wish we never had to put clothes on. I love being naked with you.”

“And I love being naked with—”

“Hello? Who’s there?”

Melody recognized her Nana’s voice a second before the door handle rattled. There wasn’t time to even grab for a damp piece of clothing to throw over her and Nick before the door swung open.

“We saw the boat and— My Goodness Gracious!” Nana’s shout when she saw Melody and Nick sprawled on the floor was loud enough to shake the thin walls of the boathouse. “Melody Anne March have you been attacked?”

“Oh, my god, no, Nana, please close the door,” Melody cried, snatching her dress and pulling it out from underneath her, doing her best to cover her bare bottom as she curled her upper body into Nick’s chest.

“I am appalled, young lady,” Nana said, making no move to exit the doorway.

“Nana, please close the door and let us get dressed, I’m so embarrassed,” Melody begged, her shame so intense her face felt like she was trapped in a lava flow.

“If you’d waited until you were married and in a locked bedroom with the lights off like good Christian people then you wouldn’t have to be embarrassed,” Nana said, pressing her thin lips together as she finally reached for the door. “Think on that the next time you feel the urge to get busy in a public place. I’ll be up at the restaurant. The two of you had better be there in ten minutes or I’m sending Melody’s daddy looking for her.”

With that parting shot, she slammed the door, leaving Nick and Melody alone in the buzzing silence.

After a long, miserable second, Nick said, “We didn’t just get caught by your grandmother. She didn’t just use the phrase ‘get busy.’ That was just a horrible hallucination from drinking too much wine, right?”

Melody let out a shaky breath as she got to her feet. “It might be best if we pretend that it was, but we should also get dressed. I’m pretty sure that hallucination wasn’t kidding about sending my daddy down here.”

Nick scrambled to his feet and started stuffing his legs into his boxer briefs with a speed that left no doubt how very little he wanted to encounter Bob March while he was naked with the man’s youngest daughter.

“I’ll run and grab the blanket as fast as I can,” Nick said.

“Don’t bother.” Melody hauled her dress over her arms and turned to clear the table. “I’ll use the tablecloth. Zip me up, would you?”

Nick finished buttoning his pants and zipped her up, his fingers hesitating at the sensitive skin at the center of her back. “Someday we’re going to laugh about this, right?”

Melody glanced over her shoulder with a doubtful smile. “Maybe. Someday. Someday far, far away.” She tugged the tablecloth around her shoulders and took Nick’s hand. “Come on. Let’s go show everyone the engagement ring. Maybe it will keep my daddy from killing you if Nana decides to tell everyone how ‘busy’ we were down here.”

“At least if I die, I’ll go a happy man,” Nick said, dropping a swift kiss to her cheek. “Thank you for a beautiful last night on Earth.”

“And thank you for a beautiful first time,” she said, smiling as she led him to the door, not even being caught naked and all but in-the-act by her nana enough to ruin her first time.

She would always cherish the memory of tonight, and her first time with her one and only love.

Harris chuckled. “Well, that was a surprising way to end a walk.”

“That girl… I don’t know what I’m going to do with her,” Gretchen said, shaking her head. “And she used to be the tame one, believe it or not.”

Harris laughed again, gazing down at Gretchen’s profile in the fading light. She had a strong profile and a stubborn little chin and reminded him so much of the girl he’d known in school. He had been eight when he’d first vowed to go on a date with Gretchen someday, even if he was ten years younger and every one of his friends had laughed at him and said Gretchen Maryanne Perkins was out of his league.

She was still out of his league, and every bit as beautiful as she used to be. She was older, true, but age hadn’t changed her that much. Those killer brown eyes were still the same—sadder than they had been when she was young, but wiser, too, and as curious and full of mischief as always.

“Now I just have to decide how long to make my granddaughter suffer before I promise not to tell her daddy what I had the misfortune to see tonight,” Gretchen said with a thoughtful clucking of her tongue.

“You’re terrible,” Harris said, nudging her with his hip as they made their way up the path to the restaurant.

Gretchen looked up at him with a surprised expression. “I am not.”

“Yes, you are,” he insisted. “And I think you enjoyed tormenting those kids back there.”

Her lips twitched. “That’s a terrible thing to say, Harris Nelson. I would never take pleasure in the suffering of others…unless they are my blood relatives and I’ve caught them mid hanky-panky. Then all bets are off.”

“I knew that wasn’t surprise making your reflexes slow,” he said. “You kept the door open that long on purpose.”

“I absolutely did,” she confirmed. “The fear on that boy’s face was too enjoyable not to soak it in for a few minutes.”

Harris laughed and kept laughing until his sides were heaving so hard he had to stop and catch his breath.

“Remind me never to get on your bad side,” he said, when he finally pulled himself together.

“I doubt you’ll be able to help it,” Gretchen said, chuckling. “You’re a mess, Harris. Always have been, always will be, and I am not going to hesitate to call you on your monkeyshine. You’d better walk the straight and narrow while you’re with me, or face the consequences.”

“As long as you promise I get to be naked when you’re yelling at me, too.”

“Harris Nelson.” She gasped and swatted his arm playfully.

“A scary thought?” he asked in a teasing voice.

She tipped her chin up, the look in her eye making Harris think she was seriously considering the question. Finally she said, “I don’t know. Honestly, at my age, I’m not scared of much. Though I prefer not to be yelling when I’m naked with a man.”