From This Moment On - By Debbi Rawlins Page 0,55

her hand away while raising himself to a sitting position.

“I’m not done.”

Curling his fingers around her nape, he pulled her face toward his until he’d claimed her lips. The kiss wasn’t rough but neither was it anywhere close to gentle. It felt to Nikki as if a fair amount of restraint was required for him to keep himself in check.

With his other hand, he found her breast and toyed with the nipple. She was sensitive there, always had been, but Trace doing the touching made her tremble like a butterfly caught in a windstorm. He switched to her other breast, then kissed his way down from her chin to her collarbone to the nipple he’d abandoned. She watched him take the pearled tip into his mouth, sucking greedily for a few seconds, then lightly flicking it with his tongue.

She let her eyes drift closed and arched against him. “I want you inside me,” she whispered.

His fingers tightened on her neck, the slight pressure an amazing turn-on, even as his mouth stilled. She could feel his breath, though, warm and moist and seductive, skimming her hypersensitive flesh. He pressed a final kiss to her breast, released her neck and urged her to lie back.

He knelt beside her to tear open the packet, recoiling when she touched his erection. “Not a good idea.”

“Really?”

His laugh came out shaky. “Really.” He sheathed himself, then spread her legs farther apart.

She wanted to touch him so very badly but the desperate need to feel him hot and throbbing inside her won out. He positioned himself between her thighs, running his hands along the outside all the way to her calves, catching an ankle and bending her leg. He paused to kiss the tender skin just above her knee, and her impatience flared.

Yes, it felt good, but she wanted him pushing inside and filling her to the hilt. The need was so great it was crazy, completely irrational, igniting sparks of both longing and panic she didn’t understand.

He pulled her legs around his waist, and she lifted her hips and clutched two fistfuls of the wool blanket. The big bright moon was behind him so she couldn’t see his face. It didn’t seem fair that he could see hers.

“God, look at you,” he murmured, and teased her opening with his cock. He’d barely dipped inside when he leaned back again.

“Dammit, Trace.”

“Don’t you want this to last?”

“No. Later, yes.” She probably wasn’t making any sense. Too bad. “Now, no. Come on. Please.”

He moaned her name and plunged inside her. The force behind his entry shocked her even though it was exactly what she wanted. She couldn’t catch her breath. Couldn’t form the words to tell him to keep going when he slid partway out. But he knew and pushed back in, slower now, but just as deep. She tightened her legs around him, clenched his cock, daring him to withdraw.

Trace shuddered. “I can’t hold back.”

“I don’t want you to.”

He surprised her by pulling out. The next thrust nearly rocked her senseless. She let go of the blanket. It wouldn’t help her. Instead she clung to him, lifting her hips to meet each thrust, the fire raging inside her growing out of control.

“Open your eyes, Nikki,” he whispered, still gripping her hips, but the pressure of his fingertips easing.

She lifted her lashes. Even though his face was in shadow, she sensed he was staring into her eyes. The thrusts had subsided, too, but he was still moving inside her as he lowered his head and kissed her parted lips. At this new angle, his erection sent a jolt of sensation that shimmered through her entire body.

Trace stopped moving. The earthy cry that exploded from his throat raced along her nerve endings. It seemed impossible that she could be triggered by a sound, but the climax that washed over her was stunningly real. So was the hot openmouthed kiss consuming her.

It struck her as funny that he could be kissing her with this much hunger, as if she was the first woman he’d encountered after being celibate for a year. She knew that wasn’t true.

He lifted his head. “You’re laughing?”

“No. Uh-uh.” She bit her lip. “Just a little.”

After a long silence, he said, “I’m gonna need some serious therapy.”

“No, you don’t.” Nikki giggled and hugged him. “I’m not laughing at that part.”

Bracing himself on one elbow, he tenderly brushed aside the strands of hair that clung to her cheek. “Will I hate myself for asking?”

She heard the smile in his