many years ago in Cairo. In that one look her insides turned to Jell-O. Just liquefied, right there where she sat.
“I never got over you,” he whispered. “You’re the only woman I want. The only one I’ve ever wanted—”
She didn’t let him finish. Through a rush of tears she kissed him hard, then nearly burst when his hands ran down her back to close around her. The kiss was so electric, her bones had no choice but to follow her insides and turn to butter. Had it not been for his arms wrapped tight around her, she was sure she’d have disintegrated into a puddle right there at his feet.
“You’re not leaving this apartment tonight,” he said against her mouth. “You’re not getting out of my sight until I know you’re safe. I can’t go through what I did six years ago.”
Her heart turned over at his words, at the vulnerability she heard in his voice. She lifted her hands to his face and kissed him long and deep, sliding her tongue into his mouth until she tasted his sweetness deep inside her.
“I want to stay with you tonight, Kat. No more running. Tell me you want that, too. Tell me—”
She nodded quickly. “Yes. Yes. I do. Oh, Pete. That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”
Whatever restraint he’d been exercising before broke with her words, and a low growl of victory erupted in his throat as his arms crushed her tight against him and his mouth closed over hers with stunning force. She felt the strong, steady beat of his heart against her own, the slightest tremble in his body when he kissed her. And when he shifted there was no mistaking the arousal stabbing into her hip that proved just how much he did want her.
He rolled her to her back, never once breaking their kiss or loosening his hold on her. Her hands raced to the buttons on his shirt, fumbled. When she couldn’t get to him fast enough, she gave up trying and tore the shirttails from his slacks instead. As her fingers made quick work of his belt, she was oddly aware that tonight she’d gone from being in the throes of despair, to heartbroken and betrayed, to so damn happy she could barely breathe. But the how or why or when they’d gotten to this point wasn’t important. Not anymore.
She found the button at his waistband and pulled him free of his slacks. He groaned into her mouth as her hands slipped over his back, ran lower to pull him into her.
“God, Kit-Kat. You have no idea what you do to me.”
“Yes, I do,” she whispered. “Because I ache inside from it.”
He moved out of her grasp so fast she barely had time to react, leaned back on his knees and lifted her torso off the bed to tear the T-shirt from her body. She gasped at the rush of cool air, at the force with which he ripped her bra from her skin. Seconds later her jeans joined her shirt on the floor and his mouth was back on hers, kissing her hard as he lost his clothes and climbed back over her in all his naked glory.
This was so much better than the last time. Because now she knew how he felt. And it warmed the coldest spaces of her heart. She wrapped her arms around him as he moved up her body. Shuddered as his fingers delved between them and found her wetness. Groaning at the slightest touch, she let her head fall back against the mattress as he stirred and stroked and she held on for dear life.
He slid one finger deep inside, used his thumb to circle and swirl. Electricity shot through every neuron in her body until she felt like she’d come out of her skin.
“You’re so tight,” he said against her throat. His teeth found her ear, scraped across her lobe as he added a second finger and drove her to new heights. “That’s it. Squeeze me. I love the way you feel.”
“Pete.” He was quickly pushing her toward the edge. She groaned again, lifted her hips to his incredibly talented fingers.
“That’s it. Keep saying my name, Kit-Kat.” He shifted, kissed his way south, slowly, inch by inch until she felt his tongue sliding over her most sensitive flesh.
Ooooh. She groaned. Arched as his fingers stroked deeper and flames ignited deep inside her.
But it wasn’t enough. She loved what he was doing, but she wanted more. She wanted him. “Pete,