“Don’t leave me. I know you get lost in that head of yours, but I want you here with me tonight. Stay with me.” His hand fisted in her hair, drawing it out of the loose bun she’d put it in and forcing her to look into his eyes. “Let it all go. There’s nothing but the here and now. You and me. Shut everything else out.”
The words came from his mouth in a low, sexy rumble.
Let go. She needed to let go and focus on him. Focus on how warm he was, how vital and alive he could make her feel.
He kissed her again, his tongue surging inside and sliding against hers in a silky dance. This was all that mattered, this moment and this man.
His lips moved across her cheek, making their way along her jawline and down to lave affection on her neck and shoulders. “I can’t think of anything but you. Since you drove into this town, you’ve invaded my every thought, every dream. All I’ve wanted to do is this—touch you, taste you, feel you.”
He pulled her close and she could feel the heat of his body, the thick hard length of his erection pressed against her. She wasn’t the only one who wanted this desperately. That erection was a revelation. He wanted her and badly . . . maybe as badly as she wanted him.
When his hands made it to the hem of her shirt, she allowed him to drag it over her head, tossing it away. Cool air hit her skin and she hadn’t realized how warm the room had gotten. She let her fingers go to the buttons of his khaki shirt, shaking as she started to undress him. She couldn’t quite get them undone.
He reached for her hands, putting them between both of his, and he brought them to his lips. “Let me.”
He dropped her hands and reached back, tugging his shirt and the T-shirt under it over his head and tossing them to the side. His chest was everything she’d dreamed of, masculine and warm, muscled, and yet the skin itself was soft. She knew because the minute he’d revealed his chest, she’d put her hands on it, unable to hold back. She wanted to explore him, to memorize every inch of his body.
His hands moved to her back and he proved he did not have the same problem she was having. With a single twist her bra came undone and she let it slip to the floor. Her nipples tightened as he stared down at her, his eyes on her breasts.
“You are so beautiful.”
She never felt that way. She was the woman who wanted to turn the lights off, but the look in his eyes told her he wasn’t lying. He thought she was lovely, and in that moment, she felt that way, too.
He gently turned her, drawing her back against his chest. His hands eased up to cup her breasts. She could feel how hard he was, but the man seemed determined to take his time.
“We should go to bed,” she suggested.
“Not yet. Not until you understand how much I want you, how much I want to give you. I want to play with you, explore you. Maybe when I’ve kissed every inch of this body I’ll take you to bed.”
He was going to kill her. “I’m ready right now, Armie.”
“But I’m not.” He nipped her earlobe, sending a shock of lust straight through her.
She wiggled against him, against that part of him that seemed perfectly ready. “I think you are.”
He was priming her in a way she’d never felt before. Her whole body had gone warm and soft and ready for him.
And he was being frustrating. His big hands held her still as he ran his tongue along her ear. A damn ear shouldn’t be an erogenous zone, but she shivered at every caress. His hands molded her breasts as he kissed her neck and shoulders again.
“Let go, Lila. Let me take care of you.”
Why was it hard to let him take control? He obviously knew more about this than she did, but it was right on the tip of her tongue to argue with him.
What would it feel like to give over to another person? To trust someone so much she could let her mind flow, knowing he would ground her, not let her get too far from herself? “I want to.”
His hand started to trail down to the waistband of her scrubs. “Then do it. Stop thinking. Let go. Tomorrow you can go back to work and you’ll kick the day’s ass, but tonight, you’re all mine.”
All his. His to protect and take care of. His to pleasure and lavish with affection.
She relaxed, her decision made.
His hand slid inside the waistband of her scrubs, inching closer and closer, but she wasn’t going to hurry him along. He wanted to indulge in her, and she wasn’t about to stop him. She would be patient with him and it would pay off in the end.