It was a relief when Lucas curved his large hands possessively around her shoulders and murmured, ‘It’s time you changed, we have to leave in a few minutes.’
‘Leave. What for?’ Amber queried. She glanced up and saw the amusement gleaming in his black eyes, and she simply stared rather helplessly back at him.
Lucas chuckled. ‘Because the honeymoon is the best part of the wedding, my sweet.’
Julie burst out laughing. ‘Come on, Amber, I’ll help you change.’ Before Amber knew it she was back in the bedroom of the suite.
Amber removed her bridal gown, and with Julie’s help managed to remove the rosebuds from her hair. Five minutes later her hair was brushed, but a little on the wild side because of the curls. Julie was holding an elegant cream trouser suit up for her inspection.
‘A present from your husband. Put it on.’
A silk and linen mix—the designer label told Amber it was incredibly expensive. The tiny silk camisole that left her midriff bare prevented her from wearing a bra, but with the jacked fastened it looked great. Chic casual and Amber wondered again where they were going. Two hours later she knew…
‘So. What do you think?’ Lucas demanded, his black eyes alight with pleasure. ‘Isn’t she beautiful? I only bought her a few months ago, and I have not really had the time to try her out.’ The pride and admiration in his voice were unmistakable.
Amber stood on the wooden deck and looked around. They had driven to a marina along the coast, and Lucas had just finished showing her around his latest toy—a thirty-foot motor cruiser.
‘The joy of this is…’ Lucas continued, his handsome face animated ‘…it does not need a crew, I can handle it myself, and the two of us will have no problem. Everyone sails around the islands, but I thought we could explore the mainland coastline, stopping off to see the places of interest, of course. It will be fun.’
He was wearing cream cotton trousers and a short-sleeved blue checked shirt. His legs were planted slightly apart on the deck. He looked so sexy, the sheer size and virile strength of him hit her like a punch in the stomach. Amber hadn’t the heart to tell him she’d never been to sea before, other than on a ferry. For all she knew, she might get seasick.
‘It sounds very nice, but I don’t know much about boats,’ she managed to say, suddenly realising just what kind of intimacy she was inviting if she agreed. She had seen the galley was small and compact, the saloon was beautifully furnished, and comfortable, but not huge. There was one large cabin with a very big bed, a shower and toilet. One small cabin with a couple of bunks and a lot of computer equipment.
‘You don’t need to.’ Lucas caught both of her hands and cradled them in his own. ‘I will teach you everything; you will love it, I promise.’
Standing barefoot on the deck, Lucas had insisted she remove her shoes, declaring they were unsuitable for the wood deck, and, with the warmth of his hands enfolding hers, she felt totally out of her depth in more ways than one. ‘Yes, well…’
Lucas drew her into his arms, pulling her close so the top of her head tucked under his chin. ‘Great. I had intended taking you to a very exclusive holiday island in the Bahamas, but yesterday when I saw your suitcase and you said you only needed a few clothes because you intended to bum around and do nothing, I thought of this.’
‘I missed out on the Bahamas!’ Amber exclaimed, flashing a mock protesting glance up at him, only to chuckle when she saw his teasing expression.
‘I will take you another time,’ Lucas countered, his dark eyes suddenly serious. ‘I am going to do everything in my power to make sure you never miss out on anything life has to offer ever again.’ He gathered her in even closer, and Amber was utterly transfixed by the burning desire in his eyes. A desire Lucas was doing nothing to hide.
She gasped, a soft sound, her lips parting as awareness shivered though her. Lucas lowered his mouth down to hers, and stole the breath from her body.
The kiss didn’t last long, but when he drew away and said gruffly, ‘Let’s go below,’ with a nod of her head Amber mutely agreed.
Lucas wanted her, and, dear God, she wanted him. She wanted to feel that sensuous mouth on her own again, those elegant hands on her naked flesh, feel once more the exquisite pleasure only Lucas could provide. There was no point in denying it.
He didn’t give her time to change her mind. Clasping her hand, he led her quickly down into the living quarters. His steps were urgent as he hurried her through the salon and into the bedroom.
Kicking the door shut behind him, he let go of her hand and reached for her, quickly opening the buttons of her jacket, and he slid it down her shoulders to drop unnoticed on the floor.
Amber gasped, her breathing was fractured, her pulse was racing, her breasts swelling against the silk camisole. His smouldering eyes burned a path down her body, taking in the bare midriff; at the same time his fingers deftly dealt with the fastening of her trousers. His dark head bent towards her and her lips parted in anticipation of his kiss, but instead he moved lower, his mouth closing over the tip of her silk-encased breast, sucking on it, then biting and nibbling, and her spine arched on a fierce shock of sensual pleasure.
He dropped to his knees, taking her trousers and briefs with him while his mouth slid from her breast to lick down over her bare midriff, and circle her navel, and lower.
‘No, Lucas,’ she tried to protest at the ultimate intimacy, even as a low erotic moan escaped her. His head jerked up, his black eyes smouldered. Standing up, he whipped the camisole over her head, and tumbled her naked body backwards onto the bed.
Lucas looked down at her, his passionate gaze roaming over every inch of her body as he swiftly stripped naked. ‘You’re perfect,’ he growled, falling down to join her on the bed.
‘So are you,’ Amber murmured throatily, the sight of his big tanned body, hugely aroused, sending shivers of pleasurable anticipation arching though her.
He leant over her, his mouth capturing hers in a savagely hungry kiss that she welcomed like a sex-starved slave, her tongue tangling with his, relishing the devouring need that had always been between them. His hand slid down over her breast and stomach, along her slender thigh, parting her long legs. He touched her, and she shuddered, her body responding with a wanton life all of its own. She grasped his broad shoulders, her slender hands tracing down his long back, feeling the satin-smooth skin burning beneath her fingertips. She wanted him, wanted him now with a fierce, primitive need.
He broke the kiss. They fought for breath, his dark eyes holding hers asking the question and he saw the answer in her luminous golden gaze. With a low growl he lowered his head and sucked one rigid nipple into his mouth. Her back arched off the bed, and she was lost in the fiery sensations flooding through her. She never heard her own little whimpering cries of pleasure, as with hands and mouth Lucas ravished every inch of her body.
‘You want me.’ Lucas shifted his weight between her thighs, his arms straining either side of her pulsing body.