Page 75 of Turn the Tide
A zing speared her belly.Yes, yes, yes.
Lowering on his stomach, he put her legs over his shoulders. He drew his stubble across her inner thighs, prickling her skin lightly. She quivered with happy anticipation.
A shuddering sigh left her at the soft pressure of his mouth and the promise of what was to come. He kissed her, followed by a slow tasting—sucking and lapping at her as he hummed his satisfaction. There was no doubt in her mind this was the opposite of a chore for him. No man had taken such care with so much passion. Her body melted even as the tension building in her core wound so tight she was scared something inside might snap.
An aching need clawed through her, driving her to the edge of a release that was neither sweet nor tame. It had never been like this. Not ever with anyone. He latched onto her tender bundle of nerves, swirling his tongue and sucking hard until she came undone.
Sensation thrilled through her beyond any defense, like a dam giving under pressure. The wild response of her body was startling. She fought to catch her breath, and speaking was impossible. All her self-control had been stripped away by the wrenching spasms that took her captive, had her mewling and writhing.
He kissed his way up her body slowly. As soon as she had the strength, she flipped him onto his back and straddled him, taking him inside once more.
She worked her hips, welcomed his hands cupping her breasts. His gaze was fierce, feasting on the sight of her. His shaky groans and expression of ecstasy did no harm to her ego. Planting her palms on his rock-hard chest, she gloried in the play of his muscles beneath her fingertips. She stared in his haunted eyes. One brown. One cloudy and partially closed.
Both she loved.
Sitting up, he kissed her hard. He was all over her, his hands, his skin, his breath slipping into her lungs. With his predatory agility, he rotated and pinned her under him. He slammed deeper inside her, consumed her senses, had her losing hold with each rough thrust. Her thoughts unraveled in the urgent way they went at each other. The rhythm they set was rabid.
Primal.
She shut her eyes, basking in the reality of this exquisite moment with Logan. This was about more than chasing sexual relief. They needed the comfort they’d denied themselves before, the connection filling the emptiness.
He interlaced their fingers and with the angle of his hips, he hit that hot little button of nerves again. Potent pleasure rocketed to the surface. She strained for him as if she couldn’t draw him deep enough, her breath coming faster. Their gazes met and held. It was as if they’d done this before, knew the intimate landscape of the other’s body, had always loved each other.
Emotion tightened in her throat. With one last hard thrust, they shattered together.
He collapsed beside her. She was limp, exhausted.
They clung to each other, their limbs locked tight, as though they feared the aftermath would tear them apart. Or, worse, that keepingthiswould cost them all they had.
A sense of dread floated up inside her, but she tamped it down.
Lying on the right side of his body, she trailed her fingers through his dark, curly chest hair set against olive-toned skin, taking a slow, stroking tour of his torso, exploring every ridge and valley. He had muscles everywhere, but his physique was long and lean, defined—sculpted from hard work outside a gym. A tapered waist created a sexy V. So male.
She kissed his injured ear and along his neck. The rough, leathery texture of his scars was a balm to her lips. The imperfection strangely made him perfect. For her.
Five years she’d craved his affection. Every moment shared—the laughter, secrets, stolen glances, the thrill and risk of high-stakes ops, the flirtation that had been anything but casual—condensed to this ethereal connection. She inhaled him, drew the scent of him into her soul.
“Why now, Ash? And not before?” His arm tightened around her waist, and she slipped her leg between his thighs. “Why did you push me away when I kissed you all those years ago?”
She nuzzled below his ear with her nose, tangled in his warmth, and whispered, “I was so in love with you, I was scared you’d break my heart.”
He rose on his forearm and peered down at her. The moonlight defined his roughhewn features, the lean, honed strength of his body, and with his savage grin, he looked like a Greek god who’d been to war and captured her heart.
“That was my bad ear. You know I didn’t hear a word.” He tickled her cruelly.
She laughed, squirming under his torture. “Okay, I’ll tell you.” She nestled against him, unable to meet his eyes. “You weren’t ready. You were sleeping with every pretty woman who crossed your path. I didn’t want to be a notch on your belt. I don’t think I could’ve handled that.”
“You really do think I’m an idiot.” He ran his fingers through her damp hair and cupped her skull. “When I made my move, I had it all planned. How to woo you. Where to take you on our first date. How to impress you on our second. For our sixth date, I was going to surprise you with a getaway to the Salamander Resort.”
“Gosh, I’d forgotten how insanely cocky you were.” He was changed, humbled—finally within her reach. “As if you would’ve made it to the sixth date.” Smiling, she poked him in the ribs and pressed her lips to his throat.
Logan wasn’t a romantic, but she wondered.
“I’m not joking,” he said, as if reading her mind. “I knew I’d have to show you that I was serious. Prove to you from our first kiss that you weren’t just anothernotch on my belt.”
His statement dropped like a rock in the pit of her stomach and made her reevaluate what he was saying. Had he been interested in a relationship the first time he’d kissed her? Enough that he’d even gone to the effort of planning their dates? How would he know about the Salamander unless he’d done research on romantic local getaways? And from what she’d heard, it was a prime spot forromance. Maybe she was the bigger fool of the two of them.
“Ash, I understand if this”—he waved a hand between their bodies—“is a reaction to needing my help. I don’t expect you to saddle yourself with me in return. I know I’m a ruined disaster.”
