move this into the bedroom."
"Are you sure?" Ron asked.
"Very sure," Kathryn replied. "I think I knew when I agreed to come on this trip. I just hadn't admitted it to myself. I was probably afraid it would make me too vulnerable to a man I was certain couldn't be part of my future."
"And now?"
"I'm still not certain you'll be part of my future, but if that's what both of us really want, I think we have a chance."
Ron stood and extended his hand. Kathryn took it and let him help her up from the couch. They walked to the bedroom together. Kathryn kicked off her shoes and climbed on the bed. She patted the spot next to her. "Lie next to me and tell me why you're certain I'll make some man a wonderful wife." Ron removed his shoes before getting on the bed.
"Do I get equal time?"
"Only if you do a bad job. Otherwise, I'll be too besotted with you to care."
"What a choice, to bewitch you or have you tell me how wonderful I am."
Kathryn leaned back against a mound of pillows. "I vote for bewitched."
"I'll see what I can do." Ron lay down next to her and took her hands into his. "Do you know that I've been dreaming of doing this for at least two weeks?"
"How could I? You didn't tell me."
"I didn't want to scare you off."
"You might have. You're a famous man."
Ron made a semirude noise. "I'm a man like any other man. The fact that a few people know my name doesn't affect that."
"Well, I think you're special."
He kissed her fingertips. "I hoped you would. Do you mind if we skip the compliments and get right to the kissing part? I really like kissing you."
"It's a great sacrifice, but if you really want - "
Ron leaned over, scooped her up in his arms, and gave her a kiss that was a twin of the one they'd shared moments earlier. By the time he released her, Kathryn was certain she wouldn't have a coherent thought for at least a week.
"I really like the kissing part, too," she managed to say.
"Then let's not waste time with compliments."
Proving that he was a man of action rather than words, Ron readjusted his hold on her, and set to work once more reducing her brain to mush.
None of the men Kathryn had dated had been as forceful as Ron. She had screened them carefully to make certain of that, so she was surprised when she found she didn't mind being overwhelmed by his physical strength as well as the intensity of his lovemaking. For the first time in years she wasn't in control, and she was pleased to find she wasn't the least bit frightened. Whatever happened, she trusted Ron. She felt he would be as concerned about her feelings and emotions as he was about her body.
Deciding she enjoyed her newfound feeling too much to waste time thinking about it, Kathryn threw herself into the kiss determined to equal Ron's in every way. It had been years since she had truly enjoyed kissing a man. It seemed she had become less enchanted with them as the years went by, but Ron made up for all the uninspired kisses she'd endured.
Kathryn couldn't recall that she'd ever felt quite so alive, couldn't recall when her body had been so sensitive to the feel of her clothes they almost irritated her. The day spent with Ron had heightened all her senses. Each time he had touched her, whether helping her into a car or up steps or simply holding her hand as they walked together, seemed to increase the sensitivity of her nerve endings. Her awareness of his physical presence had increased so much she didn't have to see him to know he was near. Each hour, each minute, built on an invisible connection between them.
She had become part of him, he part of her.
That feeling frightened her and excited her at the same time. She was losing some of herself while she gained some of him. This had never happened and she didn't really understand or trust it, but it seemed to be happening on its own without any permission from her.
"Did anybody ever tell you that you have very kissable lips?" Ron asked.
"Nobody has ever made me enjoy being kissed as much as you," she replied.
"Not what I asked, but it'll do," Ron said as he nuzzled her neck. "I don't know what it is about a woman's