what he was doing. But it was fun to see him with the kids. It was like all of the heaviness he carries around fell away during that short game.
He exits his car, and I don’t miss the covert glance he sends my way. That one look sends fire sizzling through my body like the fuse on a stick of dynamite. The blistering heat races through me and settles low in my belly. The taste of him lingers, honey warm and sweet on my lips. I’m already in deep, after only one kiss.
The breath stutters in my chest when I realize that my physical reaction to him may have gone past the point of no return, and if I’m honest, so have my emotions. My heart’s danced around my feelings for this man since he stormed into Wayland Estate.
I exit my car, and the blast of cool air hits my face, cooling my overheated skin. Another clap of thunder draws my attention heavenward. The clouds are big and expectant with rain like a mama ready to give birth. “Looks bad, huh?”
He glances at the sky. “Yeah, we better get inside before we get drenched.”
“I know.”
He moves toward the house. Does he mean together or alone? I can’t tell. Damn my inexperienced self. I’m sure another woman would know just what to do in this situation. But I’m rooted to the spot in indecision.
A boom of thunder shakes the world, followed closely by a jagged streak of lightning. The sky opens, and buckets of rain fall from the sky. He breaks into a jog.
Panic begins in my toes and builds until it forces my feet to move and his name from my lips. “Cash.”
He turns just in time to catch me, as I launch myself into his arms. A deluge falls around us, and he holds me so that my face is above his. My fingers burrow into his wet hair and I lay my lips on his. There’s not a moment’s hesitation. When his tongue sweeps inside my mouth, a primal and desperate groan rips from my chest. This kiss is hotter, wetter, and dirtier than our earlier kiss. There’s only one place a kiss like this is headed.
We break apart and it physically hurts. The question of how much farther we’re both willing to go hangs between us. He searches my face through the rain. “Are you sure?”
I want all of him. Every beautiful, complicated inch. “Yes.” My nails score his scalp, and I tighten my legs around his hips. As soon as my center meets where he’s hard as stone, nothing else matters. He takes my mouth in another possessing kiss. How have I lived this long without knowing this kind of passion? It’s like I’ve never kissed another man. Like he’s the first, and there will never be another. That thought should scare me, but in this moment with him I’m fearless.
With my legs anchoring him, he takes my face in his hands. He worships my mouth with slow fevered licks, and I’m living all the fantasies that have haunted my dreams longer than they should have.
The rain pounds down on us, thunder rolls low and deep like a Teddy Pendergrass song, and the lightning mimics what’s happening in every cell of my body.
He begins marching us to the pool house, still holding me.
“Your shoulder.”
“Shut up.”
“But—”
“I said, shut up.” We enter the house, and he kicks the door closed behind us.
He turns us until my back hits the wall. I nip at his lower lip. “Make me.”
“I’d rather make you scream.” White teeth flash behind the lips that promise to devour every inch of me. He’s the Big Bad Wolf and I’m his willing prey. His velvety tongue licks from the base of my throat to my ear. “Would you like that, Tiger? Would you like me to make you scream?”
Amber eyes glow in the dim light and the hunger there is bottomless. I want to dive in and never come up for air. I rest my head against the hard surface behind me, while he grinds against the spot that I’m convinced is made for him. I roll my head to the side, giving him better access to my throat. “Yes, yes, yes.” The words fall like a prayer from my lips as he worships my neck with the single-minded focus that marks me as his whether he knows it or not.
His mouth connects with mine and seals this deal with a possessive kiss that’s more