of her body soft and warm around him, beneath him. Her delicate arms around his back drew him closer, urging him with a longing that shone clearly in her passion- darkened eyes.
She lay still beneath him, connected to his motionless body, perfectly filled with him, fearful of the fire that raged inside her as her body and her soul opened and opened to him.
Finally he moved, pressing deeper into her arched, panting body. A ragged groan escaped his lips as he withdrew, then pushed into her again and again, filling her completely, only to withdraw again.
It was a violent, tender thing, their lovemaking. She clung to him, her body responding to his mounting fervor. His fierce strength and unbearable gentleness sent her spinning toward an infinite abyss as he thrust into her, slowly at first, the tempo building to a shattering climax.
Chapter Eleven
A warm hand covered her naked breast. The heat of a man's body pressed against her back, as she lay enfolded in his large, sinewy form. A long, muscled leg lay over hers, his thigh wrapped intimately around her hips, his supple sex resting against her buttocks. The sound of his rhythmic breathing sent currents of sweet contentment through her languid body.
A sense of peace washed over her as she lay there, cradled against her husband's strong body. She closed her eyes, and the memory of their lovemaking filled her senses and turned her blood thick. He'd been passionate and tender, loving her with a fervor she'd never known.
The fact that women considered sex an unpleasant duty bewildered her. With Wade she had found the act not unpleasant, if a bit monotonous. But Jason was not Wade, not by any means. Making love with Jason was like opening a dam and allowing a torrent of floodwaters through, riding the crest until the powerful tide ebbed.
He hadn't told her he loved her, but he wanted her to stay. That was a start. And before long, he would confide everything about his past, everything that kept him awake at night. Once he faced the ghosts, they would leave him, and the two of them would be able to have a normal, wonderful life together. Think of it—a lifetime of Jason. Truly she must be the luckiest woman in the world.
She moved slightly, her body unfurling, and the flesh against her buttocks responded before his hand tightened on her breast. Desire coiled inside her, her heart thundering in sweet anticipation as the bed shifted under his weight. Groaning low in his throat, he moved to place a kiss on the sensitive place behind her ear.
How had he known? How did he find out that she hadn't gotten on the mail boat? The questions leaped unbidden to her mind and she quieted them immediately. It didn't matter, not now, not while she could feel his ardor building like storm clouds before a hurricane.
Caroline shivered with pleasure, a smile curving her lips as she imagined waking up next to Jason every morning for the rest of her life. If only he loved her as much as he desired her. It would come in time, she told herself, giving herself over to sensation, surrendering her body and her will to him.
Kneading her breast softly, he nuzzled her neck, his lips trailing down to the hollow that connected her neck to her collarbone. His hand slid underneath her breast and down her ribcage, and she gasped at the fiery sensations evoked by his touch.
Those hands possessed so much strength, yet he caressed her with such gentleness. Gentle yet demanding. Always demanding. Always urgent.
How had she ever thought him inelegant or unrefined? The elegance of his touch took her breath away, and at the moment, she didn't give a whit for refinement.
A low animal growl rumbled up from deep in his chest, vibrating where his lips touched her shoulder, his teeth gently grazing her flesh, sending threads of desire pulsing through her pliant body. Her breathing turned shallow, her heart hammering erratically as his hand moved beyond her ribcage, over the slope of her hip, downward into the nest of curls between her thighs.
Her body convulsed beneath his burning caress. The heat of his loins against her backside, the terrible agony of passion evoked by his hands, the sensation of being surrounded, devoured by masculine strength, pushed her beyond reason, beyond anything she'd ever experienced.
He controlled her body, there was no denying it. Her powerlessness frightened her, exhilarated her. His strong, gentle hands molded her into