to focus on the task at hand to keep from staring at her.
His hands felt too clumsy as he scrambled to deal with his jeans. The button seemed too damned big and if he wasn’t mistaken, somebody had gone and glued the damned zipper shut. But finally, finally, he managed to get rid of the damn jeans, remembering just in time to pull out one of the rubbers he’d tucked into his back pocket before he’d left home.
He had more packed away, but for now . . .
Keeping it tucked in his hand, he went to kneel on the bed and stilled.
Abby was staring at him, her breath coming in harsh little pants that had her chest rising and falling in the most interesting way imaginable. A flush started low on her chest, spreading up her neck and higher, higher, suffusing her entire body a pale, gentle shade of pink. Her eyes locked blindly with his and her voice was a little shaky as she said, “Damn it, Zach. When did you get to be so beautiful?”
Something hot and satisfied moved through him as he crawled across the bed and leaned over her, dipping his head to catch her mouth. “Hey, they weren’t trying to get me on the stupid Bachelor show for nothing,” he teased. He had his share of arrogance, he knew. But nothing equaled the rush of pride he felt right now.
The look of want in her eyes was almost enough to lay him low.
It almost rivaled what he had inside for her. Almost.
Her tongue slid against his as he kissed her and her hands curled around his shoulders, tugging him down. But he resisted. He had plans, things he needed to do now that this was finally happening.
And one fantasy . . .
Pulling back from the temptation that was her kiss, he settled on his knees next to her hips and waited until the fog cleared from her eyes. “You know, the other day, when you were wearing this skirt,” he muttered, stroking a hand down one of the panels. “I kept having this fantasy. Unwrapping you like a damned present. I get to unwrap you now. Unwrap . . . undo . . .”
“You’ve been undoing me for the past month.” She curled her fingers into the material of the comforter beneath her.
“A month?” He slowly started to peel it away, staring into her dark brown eyes. “That’s nothing. I’ve been waiting for this a lifetime.”
A gasp caught in her throat, but he didn’t keep watching her just then. He needed to remember he’d planned to proceed with caution and he seemed to be throwing caution out the window lately.
Smoothing the first panel out of the way, Zach stroked one hand down the curve of her hip and bent over her, pressing his lips to the point where her bone pressed against her flesh. A soft sigh escaped her and she stroked a hand over his hair. “Zach . . .”
He straightened back up and grinned at her. “I always did like to take my time with my presents.”
She just stared at him, the brown of her eyes darkened to near black. As he reached for the other panel of her skirt, a breath shuddered out of her, almost a sob. Spreading the material out next to her, he kept his gaze on her face as he shifted around, moving her legs so that he had the room to kneel between them. The blush on her cheeks brightened and she caught her lower lip between her teeth, worrying it a little before letting it go.
He rested his hands on her hips, holding her gaze for a long, silent moment. And then, as her lashes drifted down, he let himself look.
So beautiful. The red banner of her hair spread out around her, one lock curling around her shoulder, the end of it curving around her nipple. The swell of her breasts, the fragile span of her ribs, the indent of her waist, and the curve of her hips. So female. And so his.
Finally his.
For now, at least. And he planned on branding himself on her so that she never thought about going to another man.
The tangle of curls between her thighs was a few shades darker than her hair and glinting with moisture. His mouth watered, but his hands were shaking and his muscles were locked, screaming at him. Need battered at him, chewed angry holes through his will, and he knew he wasn’t going to