He just wrapped one powerful arm around her waist and then pulled her close to whisper in her ear, “I love you too.”

Wyatt kissed her ear before she could say something to ruin the moment. It was obvious he needed this too, and Tabitha was so glad they’d both made it real. They hadn’t been able to be together, and the reasons they’d been torn apart were terrible and unfair. There were deep, life-changing secrets looming between them that were a little too transparent now that she was back in his arms, but they still loved each other, and neither of them were going to do this without acknowledging it.

This was probably a mistake, but it certainly didn’t feel like it as Wyatt’s lips moved down her neck. He let out a low groan and his arm around her waist tightened as if he were afraid she would suddenly disappear.

She grabbed his strong thigh through his jeans, squeezing tightly to let him know this was real. Her voice was gone, trapped in her chest somewhere beneath the nostalgia and crazy rush of desire that surged through her bloodstream. It was like a breath of fresh air, washing out over a decade of fear and solitude.

Starved and more turned on than she thought imaginable before this moment, Tabitha turned in his arms. His beautiful eyes were wide and stunned, as if the tidal wave of lust had slammed into him the same time it knocked every thought out of her head except the throbbing need for more of her husband.

Wyatt reached up and fisted her hair as if losing the tight hold on his urges. He tugged her forward and claimed her lips without asking. His kiss was harsh and demanding, but Tabitha parted to him rather than freeze, allowing him to own what belonged to him.

When he used his bulk to push her back against the bed, she let him. They never broke the connection. If anything, it got more intense as he arched his hips against her, letting her feel the hard outline of his cock through his jeans. She just clutched at his shirt and savored the feel of his tongue pushing into her mouth and brushing against hers over and over, finding that she still liked being under him.

They kissed like wild, frantic teenagers, as if they were back in Wyatt’s room and hiding from the world. Everything was exactly how she remembered it, and it left her feeling like the person she once was before life burned her. Her towel fell open, and she would have been too far gone to notice if the brush of Wyatt’s cotton shirt against her nipples hadn’t forced her to arch into him. She was suddenly hypersensitive and wound tight. Her fingers were in his hair, and she clenched them tightly as a tremor of pleasure seized her.

Wyatt grunted in response and broke the kiss to study her face as both their chests heaved from the unexpected cataclysm of desire that exploded between them. After several breathless seconds, he looked down at her completely bare beneath him, making it obvious he’d noticed the towel falling to the wayside, probably before she had.

She didn’t feel fear or shame when he groaned and became blatant about studying her naked body, but she did feel the hot flush of desire that burned her neck and cheeks at the flare of possessiveness that shone in his eyes. Wyatt’s breathing was harsh as he lowered his gaze and stopped to stare hungrily at her breasts. Then he leaned down and sucked on one taut pink nipple as if it was too much a temptation to resist. It was all happening really fast, but it didn’t matter. She tossed her head back against the pillow at the lightning bolt of bliss and unexpectedly found her voice.

“God, Wyatt!” she shouted, because she’d forgotten how good it felt to have his mouth on her.

She pushed her fingers into his short hair once more. She was panting. Her body was already tense with the need for release, and every tug on her sensitive nipple sent a white-hot rush of pleasure straight to her center.

Nothing existed but the need for more of everything. For one day, Tabitha was free from what felt like a lifetime of post-traumatic stress, and she seized it like a woman starved. What made it even more amazing was Wyatt met her every step of the way. His hunger was palpable. His need was overwhelming and humbling. She couldn’t remember a time in her life when she felt more loved and feminine than she did as she watched Wyatt worship her small, pert breasts that were never anything to brag about.

Then he pulled up to tug at the neckline of his shirt, and Tabitha helped him get it off. She didn’t have a chance to admire his cut, muscular form before he fell over her, forcing the air out of her chest from the weight of his heavy body, but who needed to breathe? The warm press of his bare skin against hers had Tabitha clinging to him. She turned her head to the side as he kissed and licked at her neck once more.

“I need you,” he groaned into her ear. “I’m sorry. I can’t wait. It’s been too long, and—”

“I need it too.”

He lifted his head as a look of uncertainty crossed over his handsome face. “I wasn’t kidding before. I haven’t done this since—”

“It’s okay.” She winced, finding that the tears were threatening despite the yearning. Her voice was choked as she admitted, “I haven’t either.”

“I guess we’ll just have to relearn together.” He gave her a hesitant smile. “Won’t be the first time, right?”

The tears spilled over without warning as she remembered what was once beautiful and perfect. “I’m so sorry.”

“Hey, don’t,” Wyatt pleaded, the tears sounding in his voice too. “I don’t wanna cry right now. Let me love you instead. We’ll take a rain check on the rest.”

She nodded silently as she fought the urge to come apart. Wyatt reached up and rubbed a thumb over her lips. She squeezed her eyes shut against the emotion, but she still felt his gaze on her. When he kissed her again, she tasted the salty tang of tears, but she wasn’t certain if they were hers or his.

She ran her hands over the thick ridges of his back muscles, savoring the feel of his warm skin. The sound of Wyatt reaching between their bodies to undo the button to his jeans and then pull his zipper down sent little darts of anticipation through her, and she found herself reaching down to help him push his pants off.

When there had been so much separating them for so very long, she needed to be skin to skin with Wyatt, stark, honest, with nothing between them. Once they got his jeans and underwear past his hips, she hooked her feet under the waistband and helped him kick them off.

They were still kissing, with Wyatt’s tongue pushing into her open mouth over and over again. Bare skin against bare skin, she could feel the hot slide of his thick cock against her thigh. She remembered that he was big, that’d it been a challenge at first, but now it was likely an issue once again when it’d been so very long.

“I’m gonna get you off first, okay?” Wyatt whispered when his lips broke away from hers. He placed a kiss against the curve of her neck as if having the same thoughts she was. “It’ll be easier if you’re really wet and relaxed, because I’m not sure how slow I’m gonna be able to go once we get started.”

“I’m really wet now.” Tabitha panted, hating the idea of Wyatt having to rein himself him. “I think it’ll be fine.”

Wyatt’s hand slipped between their straining bodies, because they couldn’t seem to stop moving. It was as if they were instinctively trying to come together. Tabitha kept shifting under him, alternating between spreading her thighs wide and then wrapping her legs around him, letting her feet trail down his strong thighs.

His touch was soft as he rested all his weight on his other hand and pushed up a little to give himself the room to maneuver. He traced the line of her wet folds, making her squeeze her eyes shut.

“You weren’t kidding.” Wyatt’s voice was a low rasp of need. “You really are wet.”

“I want you,” she admitted as he slipped one finger inside her. She arched into the feeling of it. “God, Wy.”

“Christ.” His groan was almost pained. “We’re definitely gonna have to get you off first. You’re way too tight.”

Tabitha wasn’t sure why he was such an expert when he just admitted to having exactly as much experience as she did, but then she remembered Wyatt always did seem to have a knack for these things. He found the spot inside her that had stars bursting behind her closed eyes, and she gasped from the feeling.

“You want my fingers or mouth?”

She moaned and tossed her head to the side when she remembered what it felt like to have Wyatt’s mouth on her. Just the memories were enough when all she could feel was his warm skin and his knowing touch. All she could smell was the blend of her shampoo and his aftershave. All she could hear was the sound of their low, labored breathing as he relearned her body.

“I think I’m gonna come,” she admitted with an embarrassed moan. “I’ve had a really hard week, and I haven’t had time to touch myself. It’s all pent up, and being with you again is making me—”

“Tab, shh, you don’t have to explain yourself.” His touch moved up to her clit, soft and featherlight, as if he knew too much stimulation would overwhelm her. “Better?”

Tabitha clutched at the sheets and arched her hips into his touch as a low, keening sound of pleasure burst out of her. Words were gone, obliterated completely as Wyatt rubbed her clit like it’d been thirteen hours instead of thirteen years since they’d last done this.

“Just let go.” Wyatt’s touch grew faster, a little firmer, making the need wind tighter. His voice was husky with a hunger Tabitha thought she’d never hear again as he groaned and said, “God, I used to love to watch you get off from my fingers. Seeing you get all flushed and sweaty and desperate while I touch you, it’s still one of my favorite fantasies to jerk off to.”