This Kiss (Made In Montana Book 12) (15 page)

He pulled off his boots and unsnapped his shirt. Normally he’d wait and shave in the morning, but he wouldn’t do that to Sophie. He opened the door and saw her sitting on the bed, talking on her cell.

She looked up in surprise but then smiled at him, her gaze slowly lowering to his open shirt. The way she moistened her lips was so damn sexy he had to force himself to keep moving to the closet. His shaving kit sat on top of his bag.

“I heard you,” she said into the phone. “Call me tomorrow as soon as you find out, okay? The earlier the better. Yes, I do.”

Just as he was about to close the bathroom door, he heard her say, “Thanks, Craig. I owe you.”

15

“I
HAVE
A
QUESTION
,”
Sophie said after she’d had her shower and was crawling into bed with Ethan.

“Why do you have clothes on?”

“It’s just a T-shirt.”

Ethan was sitting up, pillow behind his back, the sheets at his waist, showing off a chest of the gods while looking at her with the frown of a ten-year-old. “It hides everything.”

“Well, duh.” She laughed until he pointed the remote at the TV and turned it off. “Okay,” she said, and pulled the shirt over her head.

His hands were covering her breasts before she could even ditch the tee.

“Impatient, aren’t we?” Already she was shivering from his touch. So much for them having a talk first.

“Damn right.” He dragged his gaze away from the nipple he was circling with his thumb and looked at her mouth. “Kiss me now,” he said in a dramatically low voice.

“Oh no, were you watching cartoons again?”

Before she knew it, he’d pulled her against his chest and claimed her mouth. She readily opened for him. He tasted minty and achingly familiar. Which was such a crazy thought she could hardly stand it. No, this wasn’t a young girl’s fantasy, but it wasn’t her real life, either. They were two people attracted to each other and using sex to deal with a stressful situation.

His hand moved to her face and he stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers. She liked the smooth feel of his jaw against her chin and cheeks. But she also liked it when he had a day or two’s worth of stubble. His tongue stroked hers, gently, seductively, taking nothing for granted. She might be a sure thing, but Ethan wanted her to be present, eager to take this journey with him because she was helpless to do anything but.

If she slid the hand she had pressed to his chest lower, she’d find him hard and ready. It would be easy to get lost in the many ways he could make her feel so good, so content, put her in a state of temporary euphoria. She was an addict, after all.

Oh yes, she had no doubt he could make her forget the things she had to tell him. The difficult question she had to ask, if only to ease her own mind. And hopefully his.

His mouth moved to her throat, leaving a trail of kisses and light nips down to her collarbone. She quickly drew in air and then leaned back, breaking contact with his mouth.

He looked up with a lazy smile. “Where do you think you’re going?” he murmured, and wrapped an arm around her.

Constantly amazed at the gentleness of his large hands and strong arms, she tried to remain firm and not give in to his seeking mouth. “I’m not going anywhere,” she said. “Actually I wanted to talk.” She saw his expression fall, and with a laugh she cupped his jaw. “It’s nothing horrible.” She lowered her hand. “At least I hope not.”

He sat back against the pillow and leveled his intense gaze with her eyes. She took a moment to arrange her own pillow, quickly compose herself and pull the sheet up to her breasts. He very obviously didn’t care for that.

“When I said—” She cleared her throat. “The other night, when I made a crack about getting you out of my system...I swear I didn’t mean anything by it.”

Ethan snorted, shrugged a shoulder. “I know that.”

She shook her head. “I hurt you. And I’m so sorry.”

“You think you hurt me?” He lifted his eyebrows and gave her a look that bordered on patronizing.

Sophie didn’t just think, she knew. She’d seen the same wounded expression in his eyes with Cara. Fleeting but unmistakable.

“All right, I mentioned it earlier, so I get why you think it upset me, but you’re wrong. So don’t worry about it.”

“It was a thoughtless line directed more at myself than at you.” She sighed at his stony reaction. “I had a huge crush on you after that day in school. It was so bad I couldn’t even concentrate on studying.”

His features softened. “Huh. For what it’s worth, I couldn’t tell. And I’d checked you out plenty.”

“Liar.”

“I did,” he said with an odd laugh that told her he might be telling the truth. “But I was a lot more careful so Ashley wouldn’t go nuts again.”

“Wow, high school really sucked.”

“Yes, in many ways it did.” He reached for her hand. “Is that it? That’s what you wanted to tell me?”

She held his gaze. “You haven’t asked me about what the lawyer I hired on your behalf had to say.”

“Craig?”

“Yes, Craig Langley.”

“Okay.” He released her hand. “I’m listening.”

Oh, brother. It wasn’t as if she’d done something behind his back. Ethan knew she was going to contact Craig. And yet the same brooding expression was on his face from a minute ago. “He’s contacting the sheriff’s office for a copy of the arrest report and Wendy’s statement. Then he’ll get back to us tomorrow first thing. He understands this is time-sensitive.” She absolutely had no idea what Ethan was thinking. He’d closed her off. “I know you don’t like talking about this, but—”

“I don’t like that you feel you owe the guy. Certainly not on my behalf. Hell, it’s not as if we’re asking him to represent me for free.”

Sophie relaxed a bit. “He’s super busy, so yeah, I do owe him. And I don’t care even a tiny bit. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Craig is your best shot at making this all go away.”

Ethan stared back a moment too long. “Why are you here, Sophie? Helping me like this. Do you feel you owe me?”

It was a fair question, she supposed. The answer, though, wasn’t an easy one. Not if she wanted to be truthful. She swallowed around the lump forming in her throat. “No,” she said. “I don’t feel like I do, which is kind of odd, actually.” She forced herself to keep her eyes even with his. “That stupid crush I told you about...I might still have a tiny itty-bitty piece of it left.”

Ethan’s mouth curved in a heart-stopping smile. “Good,” he said, gathering her in his arms. “I might have a crush on you, too.”

Before she could respond, he began kissing and biting her neck. She let out a shriek of laughter, then promptly covered her loud mouth.

“It’s okay,” he murmured, taking another nip. “The next two rooms are vacant.”

She shoved him away to look at him. “And you know this because...?”

“Yes, honey,” he said without apology, “I asked.”

Sophie gasped, embarrassed, flustered... And then she just laughed.

Mostly because he was tickling behind her ear with his tongue. His hands were busy rubbing a nipple and cupping her butt. She loved having the freedom to skim her palm over his pecs while watching his shoulder muscles ripple. He was so damn beautiful it almost wasn’t fair.

“Have you ever modeled for your sponsors?” she asked, and when he didn’t answer, she rephrased it. “Like for a magazine ad?”

He kissed her collarbone, paused. “Once. When I was younger,” he said, and continued blazing a path to her breast.

“Shirtless?”

When he didn’t answer, she grinned. How had she not found the ad in one of her many searches back in her obsessive years?

He flicked his tongue over a very hard, sensitive nipple. Just as she thought she couldn’t stand another second, he sucked it into his mouth and she arched slightly. The moment she relaxed he slid a hand between her thighs, then surprised her by going in the direction she hadn’t expected.

He cradled the back of her calf in his palm, lightly caressing the muscle as he moved toward her ankle. His mouth moved to her other nipple, lightly biting the tight bud, then licking and sucking it until fire had spread through her veins.

Sophie reached under the sheets and found her prize. He hissed at her touch. Groaned when she wrapped her hand tighter and stroked him to the base of his erection. She took her time learning his shape, the smooth texture of his fever-hot flesh. She wanted to feel everything before she got lost in all the sexy things he did to her.

Ethan murmured some indistinct words—it might’ve been a mild curse—and then he pulled the sheet back and stared down at her hand wrapped around him, stroking upward. She paused at the rim of the crown and kissed him there.

“Sophie,” he whispered, his breathless rasp so hot she felt it all the way to her swollen center.

He’d abandoned her leg, and she was sorry she interrupted him before seeing where he was going with that. But then he urged her thighs apart and slid a finger along the seam of her lips, and her mind went blank. Unconsciously she squeezed him tighter, and he dipped two fingertips inside her. Not far, just enough to tease her. To make her whimper.

He leaned forward at a slight angle so he could kiss her mouth. He kept his fingertips inside her and she hadn’t given up her hold on his erection.

“I want to try something,” he murmured against her mouth before leaning back to look at her.

“Okay,” she said, and released him. It briefly occurred to her she should probably be wary. Or at least ask what he had in mind, but gazing into his blue eyes, she knew he wouldn’t harm her.

He brought their faces close together and rested his forehead against hers. “It’s nothing kinky or weird,” he said. “I promise.”

“I didn’t think it would be.”

Ethan smiled as he drew back. His fingers were still inside her. He pushed in a little deeper, his nostrils flaring, his expression strained, as if he might be rethinking his plan. Finally he pulled out.

He threw the covers to the foot of the bed. Grabbed a condom off the nightstand. Pushed the pillows out of the way so there was a clear spot in the middle of the mattress. He shifted until he was sitting close to the center, his legs crossed loosely at the ankles.

She tried not to stare at his erection, but that was asking too much of herself. She figured out what he wanted to do, and her heart was already racing toward the finish line.

“I want you to sit on me,” he said as he rolled on the condom. “As if you were going to wrap your legs around my waist. You’ll be sort of sitting on my thighs at first. We’ll find a fit to accommodate our height difference.”

She nodded, and Ethan put his hands on her waist to help guide her as she climbed on board.

“Making the adjustments should be fun,” she said.

Ethan’s laugh turned into a groan as she sank down on him.

Maybe that was why he didn’t notice that it was still an awkward arrangement. If her legs were a tad longer, it would be easier. She wiggled into a better position and ignored his tormented groans.

He reached behind and cupped her butt with both hands. He lifted her a tiny bit to the right and an inch closer against him. The angle of his erection covered a lot of territory...

Her breath caught at the base of her throat. No air was going in or out. He lifted his hips in the slightest thrust and he filled her utterly and completely to the max. A small cry escaped her lips when she felt her body stretch for him. How could he keep filling her?

She hoped this was good for him.

For her it was like hitting the jackpot.

One hand stayed on her butt, and the other slipped between them and found her clit. His thumb circled and rubbed with varying pressure.

Sensations bombarded her from both sides. They came down from the top and up from the bottom. Everywhere. They shimmered around her, ruled over her. Awareness of her surroundings slipped in and out. She knew she was with Ethan, though. He was doing all of these miraculous things to her.

His body was warm and solid. Her hands rested on his shoulders, her fingers curling into his flesh and muscle.

“Open your eyes, Sophie,” he whispered softly. “Come on, look at me.”

She forced them open.

He was right there, his face inches from her face. His darkened eyes looking deeply into hers. And his smile... God, his smile melted anything that might’ve been left of her.

Holding his gaze, she rocked gently against him. He was still rubbing her, but she moved his hand away. It felt amazing, but she wanted to wait. She wanted to stay in this moment with him for as long as they could bear it.

Each of their movements was so tiny, so overwhelming. Neither of them had blinked. She was too afraid of missing something in his gorgeous blue eyes. He was trembling, his whole body straining to hold back. Sophie couldn’t decide if that was what she really wanted.

Freezing this particular snapshot in time was amazing, but watching this incredible man shatter...for her... She had a feeling that would keep her heart warm forever.

She moved her face closer to his, wanting to kiss him without losing eye contact.

It didn’t work.

Ethan’s smile widened a little. He knew what she was doing. “Guess you have to make a choice,” he said, his voice sounding weak from the strain of his tight control.

“Why?” She barely got the word out.

“Can’t have both.” He ran his fingers through her hair and it felt so great she almost closed her eyes.

“I think I might die,” she said. “Right here. In whatever town this is. Cause of death...sensation overload.”

“Then I’d better hurry up and come.”

She laughed and the forward motion had him hissing through his teeth. It affected her, too. She could’ve sworn he’d rubbed her, but he didn’t have a hand down there.

“I made a decision,” she said.

“Good.” His eyes were completely black. “I don’t think I’m gonna last.”

Sophie smiled. “Ready to rock and roll?”

In answer Ethan lifted his hips and her.

“Dammit. You made me blink.”

Still watching her face, he smiled. And thrust again, only deeper.

She had to hang on to him.

He used both hands to anchor her hips, holding her steady to receive his thrusts. Semi-controlled at first, consistent, precise, but then that disappeared along with the eye contact.

She wound her arms tightly around his neck, her breasts cradled by his chest, the friction caused by his thrusts driving her crazy. Their whimpers and moans permeated the room.

Again, the pressure began building inside her, expanding and stretching, accelerating beyond her limit. And the heat. God, the heat rolled over them in shimmering waves of otherworldly pleasure, seducing them into the fire, fooling them into thinking they were warm and safe. Suspended here in the eye of the storm.