Susan Mallery - Surrender in Silk

His breath was hot through the thin cotton. One of his arms wrapped around her thighs, and one hand traveled the length of her legs as if rediscovering something once familiar. He found a scar about the size of a half dollar.

“This is new,” he said.

“Bullet wound.”

“I thought I taught you to be more careful than that.”

“You did. I was just-Ah!”

His mouth closed over her most feminine place. Through the fabric of her panties, he bit down gently, raising her level of arousal to an unbearable pitch. He worked his teeth back and forth, grating deliciously, forcing her to focus all her attention on staying upright.

“Zach, I can’t stand much more of this.”

He stopped, and she had to hold back a whimper.

He stood up, then reached for the first button on her shirt. His large fingers worked quickly, as if a woman’s clothing wasn’t a mystery to him. It probably wasn’t, but she didn’t want to think about that. And when he pulled off her shirt and stared at her breasts, she found she didn’t really care.

Her bra was as sensible as her panties. White cotton, underwire. Her breasts were average. Nice, but not her best feature. She wasn’t sure she had a best feature. Zach apparently didn’t agree.

He touched her gently, through her bra, cupping her breasts as if they were magical and precious. Lean fingers supported the curves while his thumb moved back and forth over her already erect nipples. The pleasure was too exquisite to be borne.

He dropped his hands to her behind and drew her hard against him. His arousal pressed into her belly. She ground her hips, trying to get closer still. They were both breathing heavily.

“Zach, please,” she murmured.

“Yes,” he said, his voice hoarse. “But not here.”

He cupped her behind. She gave a little jump and wrapped her legs around his hips. In his weakened condition, she was probably too heavy for him, but he didn’t seem to notice. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held on tight. She clutched his neck.

Their mouths met in a kiss that drove the air from their lungs and filled every cell with the need to make love. She was shaking and ready to be with him, under him. She needed his body to join with hers. She needed him to be a part of her.

He moved slowly into the larger bedroom, then settled on the edge of the king-size mattress. She spread her legs so she straddled him. Their gazes locked. She brought her fingers up to touch his face. Stubble rasped against her skin. Her mouth parted, and she traced the outline of his lips. A shudder ripped through him.

Every part of their joining felt right. This was where she belonged. With Zach.

Always with Zach.

Jamie dropped her hands to Zach’s shoulders, then tugged on his sweatshirt. “Let’s see what you’ve got, sailor.”

“You’ve seen it before.”

“I know. That’s why I want to see it again.”

He grinned briefly, then pulled the sweatshirt over his head and tossed it on the floor. He stretched back on the bed, placing his hands on her hips and adjusting her so the apex of her thighs covered him. She shifted, teasing them both with a shimmer of pleasure, then turned her attention to his chest.

He was as beautiful as she remembered. Thinner, but still strong. She leaned over him and placed her hands on his shoulders. His skin was naturally darker than hers, a dusky color that tanned instantly. A pattern of hair, wide at the top, then narrowing to his waistband, emphasized the rippling outline of his muscles.

She traced a line down the center of his chest, then paused. Something wasn’t right. Something had changed from the last time she’d seen him undressed. It took her a moment to figure it out, and when she did, once again she had to fight back the tears.

Dark smudges coiled across his chest and belly like snakes on the move. She touched one and frowned. What on earth had caused this?

He placed his hand over hers and squeezed her fingers. “The bruises,” he said simply.

Realization dawned. The bruises from the chains went so deep, it had taken weeks for them to fade. Even now they weren’t completely gone. She leaned forward and pressed her mouth against a mark just below his left nipple. His skin was hot and sweet. She found another bruise and kissed it, then another, as if her touch were enough to erase the hurt he’d endured.

He reached for her, slipping his fingers through her hair and bringing her face to his. Their lips brushed together. She opened for him, and he ravished her, plunging in as if he’d been lost a lifetime and she was his only way back. The intimate caress shot need and desire through her body. She clung to him to keep her sanity.

Strong arms encircled her shoulders. He shifted, and she rolled onto her back. They sprawled width-wise across the bed. One of his thighs nestled intimately between her legs, and a hand lay on her belly between her panties and her bra. His mouth continued to tease her. She inhaled the scent of him, savored the taste. She didn’t want this moment to stop, even though she knew the truth.

There was a better-than-even chance Zach was doing this because he felt sorry for her. She’d claimed not to know how to be female, so he was fixing the problem the only way he knew how. By proving she was a desirable woman. The sweet gesture made her love him more. Perhaps she should question his motivation, but for now it was enough to be in his arms again.

He slipped one hand under her back and unfastened her bra. She pulled the undergarment down her arms and let it fall off the side of the bed. He gazed at her breasts for a few seconds, then lowered his head and took a nipple in his mouth.

Jamie forgot to worry about why Zach was doing this. She forgot to think, even to breathe. She could only feel.

He drew the tight point in deeper. The moist heat and the flicking of his tongue made her want to scream. She writhed against him, rotating her hips, clutching at his arms. Pleasure raced through her, ricocheting down to her thighs, to her feet and hands, making every part of her tingle.

He reached up and cupped her other breast, holding it delicately, tracing the soft skin. Long fingers stroked the underside, then moved to the taut peak and rubbed it between his thumb and forefinger.

The combination of sensations was more than she could stand. She was forced to gasp for air. Every part of her was on fire. She couldn’t imagine wanting him to ever stop. Better for them to stay this way always-she would die in ultimate pleasure.

A soft giggle escaped her lips.

He raised his head. “And here I thought I was doing it right.” His eyes were dark with passion, his mouth moist from their kisses.

She brushed the backs of her fingers against the side of his face. “I was thinking that I don’t want you to stop, ever. In a hundred years, they’ll find our bones on this bed. Whatever will the archaeologists think?”

“That it’s not a bad way to go. If they find your picture, they’ll be jealous as hell.”

Her throat closed with emotion. Just when she least expected it, he said the perfect thing. She tried to give him a smile, but her lips trembled too much. He kissed her briefly, then returned his attention to her breasts, shifting slightly so he could switch sides. Heat began to spiral inside her. If only they could spend the rest of their lives like this. No questions or decisions, only bringing each other pleasure.

He suckled on her breast until everything else was forgotten, then he moved lower, nibbling a damp path to her belly button. Once there, he pushed down her panties and drew them off her legs.

He knelt between her thighs and stared at her body. “You’re incredible.” He ran his palms up her thighs, kneading the muscles there. “Did you really carry me the two miles to the jeep?”

“No. I carried you a mile and a half. Rick met me and carried you the rest of the way.”

“I was deadweight and I outweighed you by about twenty pounds.”

She shrugged, feeling a little self-conscious. “There really wasn’t any alternative. I figured if I tried to steal one of their jeeps, they would notice. If it makes you feel any better, I cursed you the whole way.”

“I’ll just bet you did. What did you say?”

It was hard to concentrate on his words when his hands continued to move up and down her legs. On the upstroke, his thumbs swept tantalizingly close to the place that would bring her pleasure. She wanted to part her thighs and beg him to take her. But she was enjoying their conversation too much.

Their lovemaking was different this time. More relaxed and playful. Was it age that had mellowed them, or the familiarity of the rite? She decided it didn’t matter. This was the Zach she loved, and she wanted to spend as much time with him as possible.

“I reminded you that if you’d had your way, I wouldn’t have ever been in the agency and then no one would have come after you to save your sorry hide,” she said.

His hands stilled. His fingers rested on her knees. “You’re right. And then when I saw you for the first time, I didn’t even have the courtesy to thank you, did I?”

She shook her head. “You told me to get the hell out of your hospital room.”

His mouth twisted down. “Sometimes I can be a jerk.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Thank you for believing that I was still alive and for coming back to get me.”

At that moment, with her lying naked to his gaze and their bodies about to join in the most intimate way possible, she wanted to tell him that she loved him.

She didn’t.

Regardless of their physical intimacy, he wouldn’t want to be burdened with the workings of her heart. Instead, she chose a safer route.