Time to rebuild. Time to step up, claim his heritage, and be the man his father always wanted. If he found someone to love within the marriage, his life could be complete. If not, he’d do his duty, but he’d crave his soul mate for the rest of his life.

He finished his beer and headed back to the harbor.

An image of half parted lips and sleepy dark eyes haunted him. He fought the impulse to hunt and bury his aching cock inside her.

There would be no sleep tonight.

* * *

Julianna pushed the covers back and climbed out of bed. Her nightgown stuck to her body, damp with sweat from her dream. The walls of the Cliff House closed around her, pulsing like in the Haunting of Hell House and drove her through the doors.

She stood on the pathway. A sliver of moon peeked behind the drifting clouds, and lights sprinkled down the walkway, past the ocean’s cliff illuminating a dim beacon that allowed her to pick her way along the cobblestone path. Instinct pushed her to follow the familiar route and avoid the sharp drops and hidden cracks until she perched by the heavy rocks.

Julianna gazed out at the night, her body burning as if fevered. Her nightgown twisted around her bare legs and the cool breeze rushed between her thighs, inciting more heat. She swallowed a sob and cursed the man who’d dragged her sexual needs into the light of day.

She wanted him. Right or wrong, he was the first man who’d declared he wanted to claim her and bring pleasure. Her experiences were few and far between. She’d lost her virginity on a second date in a car. A few fumbling attempts and one thrust completed the experience. He’d never spoken to her again and she hadn’t cared. A brief affair with a man her parents hoped she’d marry had given her no gratification. He’d been proper in public and messy in private. Again, she’d been left cold and unsatisfied as he lay sated beside her. Her masturbation attempts were more satisfactory, but they left her burning for more fulfillment, her fingers never quite able to soothe the wild beast inside.

The years caring for her parents finally took its toll and slowly stripped away her sexuality. She’d wrestled those messy emotions into a cold, dark corner and the yearning finally receded.

Until Jack.

The waves screamed and the moon gleamed. Safe in the darkness, she cried out in frustration as her blood heated for a man’s hands on her body. She ripped the pins from her hair and let the wild waves blow in the breeze. Her hands cupped her breasts, massaging them through the thin cotton material, and with an animal moan she ripped down her bodice.

Her nipples ached and pebbled in the cool air. She pinched them and arched back, reveling in her brief nakedness. The crash of the waves against the rocks drove her on and she yanked up her gown, parted her legs, and slid her fingers inside her panties.

She was swollen and aching for something she couldn’t have. Her lips cursed his name as she parted her slick folds and rubbed the swollen nub, back and forth, the steady rhythm tightening the tension inch by inch until her orgasm rushed forth. Her cry echoed over the cliffs as she climaxed. Tears leaked down her cheeks at the release, even as she recognized the empty ache inside her pussy could only be filled by a man. She lay on the rocks for a while, legs splayed, and waited for the control to seep back into her body. Finally she pushed her nightgown back down and rose, a bit unsteady. With a determined breath, she picked her way back to the pathway.

Then froze.

He stood before her, a dark looming figure silhouetted against the rise of the cliff. Julianna sucked in her breath as waves of sexual energy hit her full force. He kept completely still, every muscle locked tight, yet there was a predatory aura in his stillness that tempted her to run. As if he sensed her impulse, he closed the distance between them and the moonlight lifted the shadow from his face.

“No.” The word broke from her lips in her last attempt to deny what he wanted to claim. She knew it was useless—knew in that moment she’d give herself to him and whatever he wanted from her. Her starved body took control and her brief denial drifted uselessly on the ocean breeze to disappear forever.

Lion eyes glowed hot and bright as his gaze took in her wrinkled nightgown, the gaping bodice that revealed one naked breast, and her trembling lips. He reached out and gripped her hand. Slowly, he lifted her hand and breathed in her spicy scent, still damp from pleasuring herself. A growl rose from his throat and he pulled her hard against his chest, locking her against him with an easy masculine power that shook her to the core.

“I came for you tonight, Julianna.” His voice beckoned and hypnotized, hot and creamy and slow as it dripped over her ears and naked skin. “I watched you touch yourself, but it’s not enough, is it? You need me. Need me to slake the burn.”

He reached around and twisted his fingers in her hair, then tugged hard.

Julianna gazed up at his face filled with determination and erotic promise. She surrendered.

“Yes.”

His grip on her tightened in pure triumph. “I’m going to give you what you want. What we both want.” He leaned over her and his breath struck her lips. “Say my name. Say it now.”

“Jack.”

His mouth crushed hers. She clung to him as he plundered her mouth like a primitive warrior intent on crashing down her defenses. His tongue thrust, his teeth bit hard into her lower lip and made her cry out. He bent her backward over his arm and held her off balance while he ravished her mouth with no mercy and little gentleness.

A flame flared to life and burned bright, pushing her to meet him halfway. She gave it all back to him with an animal wildness that exploded. Her nails dug hard into his shoulders and her tongue tangled and battled until she gasped for breath and felt as if her very sanity slipped away.

He ripped his mouth from hers, bent down, and lifted her over his shoulder. With long, easy strides he walked back to the house, down the hallway, and into her bedroom. He shut the door with a quick kick and dropped her on the bed.

“Take off your nightgown.”

She blinked. Her initial shyness faded under the hard glitter in his eyes that commanded her to do it and do it quickly. Her heart pounded as she pulled the gown over her head and tossed it on the floor.

“Now the panties.”

Wetness pooled and dripped between her legs. Her fingers shook and she paused.

“Do it.”

Julianna swallowed hard and slid them down her legs, lying completely naked on the bed. The abandon of letting a man see her vulnerable made excitement race her heart and heat her blood. Her nipples hardened and her breath came hard as she waited.

“Jesus, you’re gorgeous. Now, lie back and spread your legs.”

She blinked at him, torn between years of restraint and her need to give him everything he asked for. As if he knew the inner battle that waged, he took a step toward the bed and loomed over her.

“Let yourself go, love. I’m not going to hurt you. Now, do what I say or I’ll punish you later.”

A primal thrill speared her belly at his threat. She sensed the erotic dominance and ached to surrender. Julianna lay back on the pillows and spread her legs wide. He murmured his approval and took off his clothes. She felt his dark, hungry gaze probe every inch of her naked body, and then he was lying on the bed next to her.

“Very nice.” His approval flushed her skin a dark red as she let him drink his fill. He fanned her long dark hair out on the pillow, then coasted his hands lightly down her body. She flinched as her nipples pushed against the gentle touch for more, but he kept moving downward, caressing her soft belly, thighs, under her knees, all the way to the soles of her feet. Then back up his fingers glided, to rest on her inner thighs. She tightened with need and anticipation, but he only pushed her legs apart wider, so her pussy opened. Julianna moaned and felt her juices drip. Her clit throbbed for attention.

“You have a beautiful pussy,” he whispered darkly, taking one finger to part the folds of her lips to reveal her clit. “Pink and wet, perfect for my tongue to massage. But you didn’t wait for me tonight, did you, Julianna? You took your own fingers and pleasured yourself, so you have to be punished first. You’re going to have a long time to wait before I give you satisfaction.”

“Jack—”

“Shhh, no talking. Do what I say and I’ll let you come. Now, let me suck on these gorgeous breasts.”

Keeping her legs wide open but avoiding her center completely, he eased to the side and gave her tits full attention. His breath teased one crown while his fingers massaged the other one. Julianna sank deeper and deeper into a pit of hellfire, every inch of her body sensitized and waiting for his touch. He used one thumb to flick her nipple back and forth while his tongue circled and played gently with the other. She arched upward, desperate to feel her pussy against his hard thigh for some relief, but he used one muscled leg to lock her in place. Still, he played with her breasts, taking the tight tips into his mouth to suck hard, scrape his teeth, and then soothe with his tongue.

“Oh, please, Jack, please—”

With a low laugh of pleasure, he shifted his weight and moved downward. “Oh, I will please, baby. You taste like vanilla ice cream. I’m going to lick every last inch of you, but not your pussy. You’ll have to wait.”

Sanity began to fade as he tasted the sensitive curve of her neck, dipped his tongue into her navel, nibbled on her public bone. Still, he kept her legs splayed and gave her no relief, only his hot breath stirring her swollen flesh as he explored her thighs and ran his tongue close to her aching heat.