THE BENNETTS' CHRISTMAS (The Bennett Family and the Masters Family #6) - Brenda Jackson Page 0,50
He was not just kissing her, he was consuming her. She followed his lead, putting everything she had into the kiss as well. It was unlike anything she’d ever experienced. Landon wasn’t dominating the kiss. He was sharing it.
Monica was grateful for the privacy glass in the limo. Otherwise, they would have given the driver quite a show. She had never in her life been kissed this way. He had a sinful mouth, and he knew how to use it. And she was loving every tongue tangling minute of it.
The kiss lasted for several minutes. They’d come up for air, look at each other with need in their gazes, and then the kiss would start all over again. She moaned in protest when he lifted his head and whispered, “We’re back.”
Her mind was in a daze. “Back where?”
He smiled down at her. “The ship.”
The moment Monica eased off of Landon’s lap, she felt an immediate sense of loss. They said nothing when he took her hand and walked her up the plank to the ship. The elevator was crowded—they hadn’t been the only ones who’d hustled to make it back to the ship before the midnight hour. In a way, Landon wished he and Monica had been alone on the elevator but then again, maybe it was good that there were others around. It gave him time to think and to regain control of the situation.
It had been his intent tonight to get to know Monica better. And if things had gone according to plan, he would likely have let nature take its course, leading them to the bedroom sometime before the cruise was over. The sexual chemistry between them was too strong for them not to eventually get there. However, what she had told him at the club was a game changer. The thought that some man, or some men, had been inconsiderate asses in the bedroom, made his blood boil.
What type of guy would make love to a woman without making sure she enjoyed it? Then he recalled what she’d said to that Dusty guy that night in St. Paul. He’d been full of himself then and had probably been the same way in college. Was he surprised good old Dusty had been a dud in the sack? Not really. And who were the others?
It didn’t matter. He intended to right this massive wrong that had been done to her. He inwardly vowed that before daybreak, Monica Bennett would know how it felt to really be made love to. And she would enjoy every minute of it. He would see to it.
When they got off the elevator, still holding hands, he turned to her. “I know we haven’t known each other very long, Monica, but I hope you know that you can trust me.”
She lifted a brow. “Trust you about what?”
“I’ve been thinking about how I want to spend the rest of my time on the cruise. I think you’ve come to realize there’s a degree of sexual attraction between us that’s been there from the beginning.”
“Yes, I’m aware of it, Landon.”
“Have you considered doing something about it?”
She didn’t say anything for a minute, then shook her head. “I’m not like many of the women here, Landon. I don’t just jump into any man’s bed.”
Landon was glad she wasn’t. “But you have engaged in affairs before, right?”
“Yes, but only twice.” She slowed her pace and then asked, “Is that what you want? An affair with me?”
He could tell her point blank what he really wanted was her—physically and emotionally. All it had taken was a few days spent with her to know something was going on here. If he’d had any doubt before, he certainly didn’t have it now. There had to have been a reason their paths had crossed those two unlikely times. There had to have been a reason he was so attracted to her, in a way he hadn’t been with any other woman since losing Simone. And there had to have been a reason she had confided in him about the losers she’d slept with before—the two who had put their pleasures before hers.
It was totally obvious to him that Monica had been placed in his safekeeping for a reason and he planned to take very good care of her.
For the rest of his life...
He figured she wouldn’t be ready to hear that part, so there was no need trying to explain it to her now. But he would, when he thought she was