touched her tongue, and it danced with his.
She wound her arms around his chest, her fingers pressed against his back.
He couldn’t stop himself. He groaned, kissing her harder, his lips demanding, hers yielding. His mind forgot everything but Cassie—sweet, beautiful Cassie.
Unbuttoning her blouse, he let the fabric fall open, exposing the swell of her breast, her creamy white skin mounding gently over the white lace of her bra. Beneath the sculpted lace, her nipple was dusky and taut, poking out enticingly.
The fire in Colton’s loins burned hotter, and without a thought to time or space, he slid a silky strap from her shoulder with one hand, while pressing against the small of her back with the other. Her breast spilled over the lace, full and ripe, her tiny veins visible beneath the creamy skin.
Colton wound his legs around hers as he took her nipple in his mouth and pulled gently with tongue and teeth.
“Oh, Lord,” she murmured as he suckled and nuzzled, her sweet, sure femininity enveloping him in a seductive cloud of passion and promise.
His hands shook as he lifted the gentle white swell and licked the dark button to hardness. Cassie’s head lolled back, her throat arched, her hips fit snug against his.
Colton could barely stand as he turned his attention to the other lace-ensnared nipple, and he fanned his breath across the flimsy fabric. Her fingers twined in his hair, Cassie guided his mouth to the sweet, dark bud, and he took her breast, lace and all, into his mouth, leaving the other to be cooled by the chill spring breeze.
He could no longer stand on unsteady legs, and he dragged Cassie to the ground. Oblivious to the grass, he caressed her body, found her lips again and kissed her with an intensity that numbed his brain. “Stay with me,” he whispered against her ear, feeling her tremble beneath him.
“I-I can’t.”
“Sure you can.”
“Oh, Colton . . .” Knowing she was courting disaster, Cassie felt herself giving in. She’d simply have to find some way to explain her absence to her father ... and she was old enough to make her own decisions.
Colton moved his hands seductively against her skin, and her mind spun in crazy, delicious circles. A liquid warmth deep in her center swept through her blood, carrying her away on a moon-kissed cloud of passion.
The cool night air touched her bare breast, then Colton’s hot lips followed, dipping lower to her abdomen, his fingers finding the waistband of her skirt.
“Make love to me, Cassie,” he rasped, his voice sounding far away. “Make love to me and never stop. Don’t stop.”
Where had she heard those words before? she wondered vaguely. Then, with searing clarity she remembered that it had been she who had pleaded with him to make love to her, to take away her virginity, to love her.
She froze, and the desire burning so bright only moments before cooled. “I—I think I’d better leave,” she said, squirming under his insistent caress.
Colton lifted his head, and her heart constricted. His features, washed in the pale moon glow, seemed more clearly defined and angular than usual. His eyes, as silver as the moon-washed land, burned with passion. “Why?” he asked, his voice so low she could barely hear it.
“I’m not ready to make the same mistake twice.”
“This is not a mistake.”
“Then it’ll wait,” she said, swallowing back the urge to tell him she loved him. She sat up then to adjust her bra and, afterward, forced her hands to her sides when all she wanted was to place her palms against his cheeks and kiss him.
“What happened, Cass?”
“A severe case of déjà vu.” Straightening her blouse, she was glad for the shadows in the night, thankful he couldn’t see the blush burning her neck and staining her cheeks.
Colton pulled himself into a sitting position and jammed his fingers through his hair. “We’re not kids anymore.”
“Then maybe we’d better stop acting like them!”
His eyes blazed. “All right. Let’s start again—more mature this time. I want you to stay with me, Cassie,” he said, his gaze piercing hers with an intensity so powerful, she couldn’t look away. “Stay here. In my bed. Spend the night with me.”
Oh, God. The temptation was almost too much. Alone with Colton—for an entire night! “Sorry,” she replied, hoping to sound sophisticated, though her voice was strangled. “I’m not into one-night stands . . . Ooh!”
As quickly as a cat, Colton shoved her back onto the ground, pinning her shoulders against the earth. “I