Her tongue snaked out and touched his lips. That was all the invitation Brody needed. He was pretty sure Elisa wouldn’t change her mind, but he didn’t want to take this slow. They’d do slow later, when they had all night.

In the meantime, Elisa settled back on the bed and pulled him down with her. She stretched beneath him, all long, silky limbs tangling with his. Their lips maintained contact, massaging each other until their tongues took over. Brody slid his tongue inside her mouth, imagining his dick doing the same thing to her body, pumping again and again until he couldn’t remember his own name. Elisa made a sweet sound, half moan, half whimper, when he ground the cotton of his boxers against her core. He’d almost forgotten about the damn things. Well, he’d have to fix that.

Brody broke away from her lips and made fast work of his underwear. Elisa helped him, giggling with delight, as their hands fumbled around each other to grab the elastic waistband.

“God damn boxers,” Brody cursed when the things became hung up around his ankles. He knew he should have taken them off before getting back into the bed. Being with Elisa made his brain cease to function.

“Let me.” Elisa pushed him onto his back and straddled his hips. She braced her hands on his chest, assumed the optimal position of arching her back. “Oh God, Brody,” she moaned when his dick rubbed the slick entrance of her body.

“Wait,” he said in a strained voice. Shit, he almost allowed himself to go in without double the protection. This woman had him tied up in too many knots.

She gazed down at him out of heavy-lidded eyes. “No condom this time, Brody. Please,” she pleaded as though sensing his thoughts.

His back teeth ground together and he shook his head. “No, I can’t—”

“Brody.” She placed a soft hand on his jaw and forced him to look at her. “I told you I’m on the pill. We don’t need a condom. And I would rather feel all of you.”

Well, shit, when she put it like that… And how could he refuse when he was right there? Ready to take that deep plunge?

She was so hot and moist that his eyes almost rolled back into his head. The tips of his fingers gripped the soft flesh of her thighs, so he could brace himself for her to seat herself. Then she did. Sweet mother in Heaven, she sat down on his penis so he was firmly lodged inside her slippery tunnel. Pleasure like he’d never known before consumed him in a mind-numbing haze. His whole body was on fire and itched like he needed to come out of his skin. He tried to adjust his legs, to cradle Elisa more comfortably. But the fucking boxers were still trapped around his ankles like a pair of handcuffs.

“Elisa, wait.” But his demand turned into a groan when she lifted herself with excruciating slowness, then sank back down.

Her eyelids dropped closed and her head fell back. She looked like a goddess, sitting on top of him and riding his hips like he were some wild horse.

“What’s the matter?” she finally asked. Her normally bright brown eyes were glazed over as though she were high on some drug.

“These damn boxers are killing me. I need you to take them off.” How in the world he managed to string words together was anybody’s guess.

Her movements ceased and she muttered something in Portuguese—probably cursing him. Hell, he was cursing himself. With the skill of an acrobat, Elisa leaned behind her, arching her back and jutting her breasts out. The movement had her inner muscles clenching around his dick even tighter. A single bead of sweat accumulated at his temple. Every single muscle in his body was coiled tight like steel, ready to flip Elisa onto her back and pound out his release.

Finally, she freed his feet of their restraints and Brody was able to spread his legs. Just when he had her in the position he wanted, he grabbed her waist and flipped her onto her back in one swift move. He did it so quickly that he was able to stay wedged inside her.

She narrowed her eyes in accusation. “You did that on purpose.”

He offered her a grin and nudged her thighs farther apart with his knees. “Hell, yeah.”

SEVENTEEN

SO THIS IS WHAT IT feels like to be thoroughly ravaged by a man.

She and Brody lay in silence, when just a few moments ago they’d both been groaning and screaming out their release. Elisa hadn’t known sex could be like that, so incredibly personal and all-consuming. In the past, she’d never made a habit of having indiscriminate sex. Nevertheless, she’d never been able to feel a partner’s presence like he’d imprinted himself on her soul. None had ever stared down at her with such intensity like Brody had. The feeling was so new and foreign that she knew without a doubt she was deeply in love with him. Her love for him was automatic, like breathing. She didn’t have any choice in the matter.

His heart beat steady and sure beneath her ear. She hoped it beat for her like hers beat for him. Would now be a good time to bring that up again? Did she really want to risk this glorious postcoital bliss?

No, she didn’t. They could have the serious conversation later. Right now, all she wanted to do was continue to feel his naked skin against hers. It was sometime in the late afternoon, and Elisa didn’t see any reason to move until nightfall.

Listening to Brody tell his darkest secret had been gut-wrenching to say the least. So much more so than hearing Kelly tell it. Mostly because Elisa wasn’t in love with Kelly, and it had been harder for her to feel the woman’s pain. Brody had deliberately opened an old wound for her, exposing something he’d been deeply ashamed of. Elisa didn’t take that for granted. No, she wholeheartedly recognized the sacrifice he’d made. He’d risked pushing her away by confiding in her. But she’d already known the story, and she’d had no intention of leaving him.

Unfortunately, she was still unclear on where they stood. Was this thing they were doing a relationship? As much as she’d love that, Elisa wasn’t sure Brody could handle being in a serious relationship. He was too scarred. In fact, he was the most tortured soul Elisa had ever known. All those years of carrying self-inflicted blame and watching his son drift away had altered him. Granted, Elisa hadn’t known him before his divorce, but she’d bet he’d been lighter-hearted and had loved more freely.

But wasn’t this the Brody she fell in love with? The man who held her in his arms at this moment? For however scarred he was, this Brody was the one Elisa loved.

The most painful thing, even more painful than hearing him tell his story, was the inevitable end of their relationship. In a short while, she’d be gone. Who knew if she’d come back? But she owed it to herself to explore this possible new career. Plus, she’d already agreed to go, before her feelings for Brody had bloomed out of control. It would hardly be professional to back out now. No, she’d definitely have to go. The question was, did she come back? She wanted that more than anything, but she wasn’t sure she’d have anything to come back to.

He stirred slightly, his muscles subtly shifting beneath her. His thighs were thick with corded muscle and dusted with soft, dark hair. One leg moved, dragging one of hers with it. His body was so much bigger and harder than hers. Being near him made her feel very small and feminine. As if she could surround herself with him and get lost in all that muscle.

Ah, yes. She could definitely stay right here for the rest of the day.

“Tell me what you’re thinking,” he said. His deep voice rumbled in his chest beneath her ear.

“Nothing much,” she said with a sigh. Nothing much except how desperately in love I am with you.

Nope, not going to bring that up.

“Tell me what’s going on with Kelly’s mother,” she said.

For a moment he didn’t speak. The only sound that came from him was his deep breathing.

“You don’t have to talk about it, if you don’t want to,” she said when he still hadn’t responded to her.

“What exactly did Kelly tell you?” he finally asked.

“Just that you were being difficult.”

The snort that came out of him told Elisa that he disagreed with his ex-wife.

“You don’t see eye to eye on this,” she concluded.

“To say the least.” He paused for a moment, then spoke again. “We haven’t talked extensively about it yet. The one time we did talk, Kelly told me that her mother’s health isn’t good. She can’t walk on her own, she can’t bathe herself. Hell, she can’t even go to the bathroom. She lives by herself in Michigan, and Kelly’s an only child. Kelly and Colin are really all she has.”

Elisa propped up on one elbow. The pain in Brody’s normally hypnotic gray eyes pierced her heart. “You already said she wants to take Tyler and move. But how easy would it be for Colin to leave his chiropractic practice?”

Brody shook his head. “I’m not really sure about that part. But Kelly’s mother can’t live on her own. She needs to be in a nursing home, but Kelly doesn’t want to dump her mother there and abandon her.”

“I’d hardly call it ‘abandoning.’ Besides, hasn’t this woman been alone for several years? Because I remember once Kelly mentioning that her dad had passed on. How would being in a nursing home be any different?”

Brody stared up at the ceiling. “That’s a good question. I think Kelly and Colin are trying to absolve their own guilt.”

“That’s not fair. They can’t take Tyler away from you because they feel guilty.” She placed a hand on Brody’s chest. He was so wonderfully warm—and in pain. There had to be something she could do to ease his troubled mind. “What if they brought her out here? I bet there are a ton of nursing homes in Cheyenne or even Casper.”