TALL DARK AND HUNGRY Page 0,71

The tri¬fle really had tasted better on her than off the cold, hard spoon. It tasted better still in her mouth.

After several reassuring minutes spent kissing and rebuilding their passion, Bastien eased his mouth from hers and made a quick foray across her cheek to her ear. From there, he trailed his lips down her throat to her chest. He paused briefly in the dark warm dip between her breasts, laving until she shifted beneath him, arching and sighing in pleasure. Then he moved off the couch and settled on his knees between hers, urging her legs further apart to allow him to lean in to more comfortably reach her stomach and the sweetness that waited there.

The custard and cream were soothing to his tongue, and Bastien rasped it off of her--first licking the dessert away, then running his tongue in wider and wider circles. He was aware of the way Terri's stomach muscles jumped, and how her breathing sped up, corning in little panting breaths. He smiled against her skin, eyes closing with enjoyment at the little murmurs and groans as she arched farther, un¬consciously urging him to follow the trail of food farther downward.

She was very responsive to his attention, and that natural responsiveness fanned his pleasure in what he was doing. He continued to follow the cherry path to her belly button. There, Bastien quickly dipped his tongue in and out of the small orifice -- once, then twice -- before continuing down to run it along the waistband of her jeans.

"Ohhh," Terri moaned, and Bastien opened his eyes to peer up the length of her twisting body. She was incredibly sexy to him, despite the fact that she still wore all of her clothes. Her top was open and gaping, but her breasts were still decently covered by her scrap of lace bra. Bastien decided it was time for that to change. She was ready. They both were.

Rising up, he moved back onto the couch and pulled her into his arms to kiss her again. He enjoyed the way she scraped her nails through his hair and clutched him closer as her mouth opened to both welcome and de¬vour his. Then he set to work on the task he'd set him¬self; he slid his hands inside her blouse and around to her back to find and work the snaps of her bra. He found it difficult to concentrate on the task, and was re¬lieved when first one, then the second snap, slid free.

Continuing to kiss Terri, he brought his hands around to her front, and slipped them up to push the white blouse she wore off her shoulders. Terri gave a murmur of protest when he forced her arms down to quickly slide the soft top off. For a moment, he feared the reaction might mean she was going to stop him, but when she shook the sleeves off her hands and quickly returned them to holding and touching him, he realized the protest had been at the interference with what she was doing, not at his undressing her.

Relieved, Bastien returned his attention to the lace bra. Rather than distract her again, he didn't try to slip the straps off her shoulders, but simply reached under her breasts to grab the bra's soft cups by their bottom hems. Bastien urged the lace material for¬ward until her breasts dropped into his hands like ripe fruit falling from a tree. He closed his eyes in pleasure at their warmth and softness, and at the way Terri moaned deep in her throat. Her fingers clenched in his hair, tugging almost painfully as she arched into the caress, but Bastien didn't mind. He was having this affect on her. He was making her tremble and shudder and moan and cry out. He wanted to cause more of that.

Ignoring her groan of disappointment, he let go of her breasts and grabbed the straps of her bra to tug it off. He had to break their kiss to do so, and once the scrap of material was off, he tossed it carelessly aside and stared at what he had revealed. Her breasts were round and full, with cinnamon nipples that were now erect and begging for attention. Rather than return to kissing her, Bastien answered their call. He bent his head to catch one hard nub in his mouth.

His mind was filling with all the things he wished to do to her, and this was just the beginning.

Chapter Twelve

Terri moaned as