"Listen," she said in a husky rasp, "you took the edge off, and as much as I appreciate it, I still feel like a bottle rocket about to go off. If you're just going to stand there, I might have to go see what the guy in room 311 is doing."

"Like hell," he said with a growl. Tossing the condom onto the bedspread, he applied himself to his belt. "I hope hard and fast is still okay with you 'cause I don't think I'm gonna last much longer."

She shot him a sexy smile that shaved away a few more seconds of whatever time he had left before he exploded. "Hard and fast sounds perfect."

He stripped off his pants and boxers in one swift movement. Unmistakable appreciation gleamed in her eyes as her gaze riveted on his straining erection. He started to reach for the condom, but halted when she crawled to the edge of the bed, like a sleek cat stalking toward a bowl of cream, then rose to her knees in front of him.

She reached out and stroked her fingers down his aroused length, causing him to suck in a sharp breath. His fingers roamed up and down her back while he watched her slide her hands over him, gently cupping and squeezing him. He withstood the sweet torture of her caresses as long as he could, then, with his vision glazed with need, he gently grasped her wrist. "Can't take any more," he rasped, reaching for the condom.

After sheathing himself, he leaned over her, pressing her back into the mattress. Their mouths met in a wild mating of lips and tongues as he sank into her velvety, wet heat. White-hot need pounded through his every nerve ending, stripping him of all semblance of control. His world narrowed to the heated place where his body was intimately joined with hers, stroking, thrusting, at an ever maddening pace. He gritted his teeth and tried to hold off his rapidly approaching orgasm, but when she moaned, "Matt…" against his mouth, the battle was lost. Burying his face against her silky, smooth neck, a long groan rattled in his throat and his release shuddered through him.

He wasn't certain how long he remained still buried in her snug heat, breathing in her delicate scent, his heart rapping against his ribs, his mind fogged over, before she nudge him gently with her hip.

"Can't take a deep breath," she whispered.

He pushed up his torso, propping his weight on his palms, and looked down into her flushed face. Their gazes met. Damn, she looked as blown away as he felt. Two words reverberated through the brain this woman had just turned to mush: Man Overboard!

Brushing a damp curl from her smooth cheek, he said, "I want you to know that I, uh, usually have a little more finesse than that."

"No complaints here," she assured him. A smile tugged up one corner of her delicious mouth and she stretched beneath him like a contented cat. "Although I look forward to you proving that. And thanks for the compliment. Nice to know that I made you lose control."

"Sweetheart, you made me lose my mind." He lowered his head and ran his tongue over her plump lower lip. "Definitely the next time you've gone nine months, three weeks and nineteen days without sex and you're needing a little pick-me-up, I hope you'll call me."

"Well, it's been about five minutes…"

He chuckled. "’Fraid I'm going to need a bit longer to recover."

She tickled her fingers down his back and over his buttocks. "Unless you keep doing that," he amended, nipping and kissing along her jawline. "That will definitely speed up the recovery period."

"Hmmmm," she murmured, continuing her stroking. "Speeding up the recovery period sounds good to me. I have a lot of time to make up for, and now that I know how… enthusiastic you are, I really would hate to have to seek out the guy in room 311."

Matt stilled as an unpleasant sensation that felt distinctly like jealousy washed over him. She was kidding, of course, but the mere thought of another man touching her just flat-out pissed him off. Yo, Matt, buddy, that's not good. 'Cause after this weekend, other guys are gonna be touching her-and you won't be.

He inwardly scowled at his inner voice. Yeah, well, she was his for the rest of the weekend, and he fully intended to make the most of it.

"Now that we've explored the benefits of hard and fast," he said, studying her eyes, "I suggest we move on to slow and easy."

"Put me in, coach. What did you have in mind?"

"You. Me. A shower. Then maybe you'd like a massage?"

"Depends on who's giving the massage-you, or some muscle-bound guy named Sven at the resort's spa?"

He cocked a brow. "Who would you prefer?"

"You," she said without hesitation.

"Then come with me."

She smiled. "That's the best offer I've had in nine months, three weeks and nineteen days."


* * *

Jilly stood in the shower, warm water sluicing over her, and locked her knees to keep her legs from collapsing like overcooked noodles.

"Magic hands," she murmured, as his soapy palms slowly massaged their way down her back. "You have magic, sinful hands."

His arms came around her from behind, and he drew her gently back against him, nestling his erection against her buttocks. While his lips nuzzled the vulnerable spot behind her ear, his hands roamed slowly over her, drawing drugging circles around her nipples, then wandered lower, over her abdomen. When his fingers slid between her thighs and slicked over her sensitive feminine folds, a long, low purr vibrated in her throat.

"I have a confession to make," he whispered against her ear. "I wondered what you looked like under those prim, proper suits you wear."

A zing of feminine satisfaction raced through her. "And now that you know?"

He slipped a finger inside her while his other hand played over her hardened nipples, dragging another long moan from her. "I figured you'd be beautiful. But I hadn't guessed you'd be so… uninhibited."

"Is that a complaint?"

"God, no. I admire a woman who knows what she wants and isn't afraid to ask for it."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Well, that's very good news." She turned in his arms, sifted her fingers through his wet hair, and rubbed herself against his erection. "Because I want you to make love to me again. Slow and easy. Right now."

His eyes darkened. Guiding them both fully under the warm spray of water, he rinsed the soap from their bodies, then pressed her back against the tiles. The cool ceramic against her shoulders provided a stunning contrast to the heat coursing through her.

"I have a confession to make as well," she murmured as his hands meandered down her wet body. "This morning, when I saw you draped in a towel, my heart performed these crazy little flip-flops. But now-" she allowed her gaze to linger pointedly on his impressive erection "-my heart is about to call it quits. Seeing you naked definitely dispels the theory that all men are created equal."

He smiled and hooked one hand under her knee, raising her leg to settle over his hip, while the fingers of his other hand slowly caressed between her thighs. "Did you know that your eyes have little green flecks in them?" he asked. "And that they turn this incredible smoky color when you're aroused?"

"I knew about the green flecks, but not about the smokiness." A pleasure-filled moan escaped her. "Guess that means they're smoky right now, huh?"

"Yeah. You ready for slow and easy?"

"Actually, I'm not sure how much more slow and easy I can stand, but bring it on."

"My pleasure." Lowering her leg, he kissed and nuzzled his way with excruciating, maddening leisure down her body. Pressing her palms against the tiles, Jilly simply gave herself over to his slow, deliberate seduction, succumbing to the feel of his strong hands and gentle mouth skimming over her. He sank to his knees, his sorcerer's fingers massaging first one leg, then the other, while his lips and tongue glided over her belly.

Long moans purred in her throat when he replaced his hands with his mouth and slowly licked and kissed his way up her leg, awakening every inch of her skin. Forcing her heavy eyelids open, her avid gaze riveted on the erotic sight of Matt on his knees before her, his dark head between her legs, his tongue tracing a trail up her inner thigh.

At the first touch of his tongue to her feminine folds, she gasped. He slipped his hands beneath her buttocks, urging her closer, his lips and tongue tasting, licking, kissing, making love to her with his mouth until she was mindless with need. Grasping his shoulders, the dam of tension he'd built in her burst, and her orgasm throbbed through her.

Her eyes slid shut, and she pressed back against the tiles in an effort to remain upright, quivering with pleasure, feeling like a bowl of warm, melted chocolate. Her mind registered the familiar sound of a condom wrapper tearing open. Deciding this warranted further investigation, she forced her eyelids open just in time to see Matt slip on a condom. With the warm water bouncing off his broad shoulders, he grasped her hips and lifted her. Clinging to his shoulders, she wrapped her legs around his hips, and with his compelling gaze intent upon hers, he slipped into her body in a single stroke.

"Oh, my," she breathed.

Tangling her hands in his wet hair, she pulled his face to hers for a deep kiss. The taste of her feminine musk, mixed with his own delicious taste, inundated her senses.

He caressed her with long, leisurely, deep strokes, withdrawing nearly all the way from her body, then slowly filling her again. She absorbed every thrust, every exquisite sensation washing through her. The tension coiled within her once again, and her body tightened, a reaction he clearly felt for he whispered against her lips, "Ready for more?"