He bunched her T-shirt in his fists and broke the kiss to pull it over her head. The shirt fell from his fingers and she stood before him wearing a white satin bra that pushed her breasts together. It had been so long since he'd seen breasts that he was afraid to move. Afraid it would all fade away-like a fantasy.

Kate pulled back just far enough to look into his face. Her heart pounded in her chest and she fought for breath. The light from the corner lit up the little scar on Rob's chin. She didn't need to see his eyes clearly to know they burned with desire. She didn't need to feel the long hard length of his erection pressed against her to know the depth of his need for her. It surrounded them both in hot waves. Pressing in and taking over. Making her ache for his touch. She'd never felt anything like the weight of it. It was like Rob himself. Big. Forceful. Dominating. And this was one of those times when she didn't mind being dominated by something stronger than herself.

She ran her hands up his chest, and she felt a shudder deep within him. She pressed her open mouth to the hollow of his throat just below his Adam's apple. He moaned and she tasted the warm muskiness of him on her tongue. She unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it from the waistband of his pants. Once she had it open, she touched his hard chest and ran her fingers through the hair she found there. The thick, coarse hair of a man on testosterone overload.

The small lightbulb lit up slices of her and pieces of him. Disjointed. Fragments and shadows, and none of it seemed quite real.

In the dark, he stared at her. So intense she could feel his hot gaze, and she raised her hands to cover herself.

He grabbed her wrists and stopped her. "No. Don't. Let me see you." He finally touched her, running his fingers along one edge of her bra, between her cleavage, and up the other side. He unhooked the center, and the cups parted. He pushed the straps down her arms, then his big, masculine hands covered her. His warm palms pressed against her tight nipples and the ache between her legs constricted into a painful knot that only he could satisfy.

"Kate," he said, his voice a low gravel. "You're better than anything I could dream up."

In that instant she knew there was no turning back. She leaned forward and kissed his neck. His hands slid to her back and he pressed her breasts against his hot, naked chest. He grabbed her waist and lifted her to sit in the produce bin behind her. Oranges toppled and landed on the floor, and he reached for the can of whipped cream. Light from the weak corner bulb shone on her breasts as he covered each of her nipples with perfect white triangles. He was a little too practiced, and she wondered how many times he'd done this before, then his hot mouth was on her and she didn't care. Her hands grasped the oranges beside her and she arched her back. He sucked and licked her clean, then he reached for the can and started all over again.

Before she lost all reason and gave up caring along with everything else, Kate said, "I don't have a condom. Do you?"

He lifted his head and looked at her. "Shit." Then he said a few more swear words she didn't quite catch. "Wait. This is a store. Where's the damn condom aisle?"

"Five."

He grabbed her waist and set her on her feet on the floor. Then he took her hand in his and pulled her along behind him. Several boxes of condoms hit the floor and suddenly everything turned hotter, more intense. A blur. A rush. A throbbing urgency. She tore at his clothes, and he pushed her pants and panties down her legs. She stepped out of them and reached for him. In the dark aisle, he was naked, and she took his penis in her hand, huge and hot, his pulse pounding against her palm.

He groaned long, as if he were in pain, and then he sank to the floor, taking her with him. He kissed her and touched her and somehow she ended up on her hands and knees. He knelt behind her and slid his hand across her bare behind and between her legs. He parted her and touched her. She bit her lip to keep from moaning and rested her forehead on her forearm. "You're wet." The hot head of his penis replaced his fingers, touching her where she craved it most.

"Kate," he said over the tearing of the condom wrapper and snap of latex. "I want you more than I want anything." Then he shoved into her, huge and thick. A dark, primal groan was ripped from his chest as he pushed deeper, the head of his penis pressed against her cervix, stretching and filling her.

She'd known he was big, and she cried out. He wrapped his right arm around her waist. "I'm sorry, Kate." His body covered hers and he supported himself on his left elbow and forearm. He spoke close to her ear, his breathing fast and hot through her hair. "I would never hurt you. Never." His grasp tightened and his arm trembled. "Do you want me to stop?"

A moan slipped past her lips. A moan that would have embarrassed her in the light of day. She pressed her behind against his groin. "No," she answered in a voice that sounded desperate even to her own ears. "Make love to me, Rob," she said into the darkness, where nothing mattered and nothing was quite real. "Please, don't stop."

She felt his hot mouth on her shoulder and the sharp edges of his teeth. He pulled out and plunged even deeper. "You're good, Kate. So good." He started slow, pumping his hips in a smooth rhythm. "More?"

"Yes."

And he gave her more, hitting just the right place deep inside her.

"Kate," he whispered into her ear. "I'm going to fuck you hard now."

"Yes."

He raised, and his hands gripped her waist. If he hadn't been holding on to her, the first deep plunge would have knocked her flat. He drove into her faster harder deeper. Stroking her g-spot with the thick head of his penis and hard shaft. Over and over until she felt the first hard tug of orgasm. It started deep inside and radiated outward. She cried out again, this time at the intense pleasure that swept across her flesh, from the soles of her bare feet to the top of her head. Her ears rang and her body shook as her vaginal walls convulsed around him. She heard his deep groan, followed by a string of curse words she couldn't hear clearly. Something about Mary and Jesus and holy shit.

Then it was over and all that was left was the sound of harsh breathing and the realization that she was naked with her behind in the air.

Fourteen

The mountain was out when Rob's flight landed at SEA-TAC. He rented a Lexus and called Louisa on his cell to let her know he was on his way to pick up Amelia. He tuned in a radio station and headed for Interstate 5.

He slid his Maui Jims on the bridge of his nose and adjusted the sun visor. The polarized lenses cut the glare of the morning sun, and Rob merged onto the interstate, only to get stuck in stop-and-go traffic headed into Seattle. He hadn't slept a whole lot the night before, and he'd downed a boatload of coffee on the flight. His brain was fuzzy, but he could recall with absolute clarity how the light in the grocery store had cut across Kate's naked breasts. Her breasts were firm and white with small pink nipples balanced perfectly in the center, like tight raspberries. He remembered how hard they'd been against his palms and tongue, and they'd tasted so good covered in whipped cream that he'd gone back for a second helping.

He recalled every detail of the night before. The touch of her soft skin beneath his hands and his struggle for control. He'd wanted to go slow, draw out the pleasure, while at the same time, he'd fought a battle within himself to just throw her down and get on with it.

In the end, he'd lost the fight. He'd grabbed her up, pushed her to the floor, and gone for it. He'd come so hard that he'd thought he was going to black out, but even as he'd felt every ripple and pulse of her orgasm, he'd known she deserved more from him. More than a quick one on the floor.

Rob flipped on his blinker and eased the Lexus in between a delivery van and a silver Canary. Pushing Kate to the floor hadn't been one of his better moves, but it might have been forgivable if he hadn't followed it by a bigger mistake. One that had kept him up last night feeding himself his own lunch. One that he wished he didn't recall with the same clarity with which he recalled everything else about the previous evening.

Without saying much more than a mumbled "I'll be right back," he'd gathered up his clothes and made his way to the bathroom. He'd dressed, and as he'd stood in front of the toilet, watching the condom swirl around and get sucked down the bowl, he'd freaked. Not because of the usual past issues, like what lie he was going to tell or how to get out of the room without a scene. No, he'd freaked because there had been a point in the evening when he hadn't given a damn about anything but getting Kate naked. It wasn't that he'd forgotten his past mistakes or the trouble it had caused. It was more that Kate made him not care. While he'd been with her, eating whipped cream from her breasts and thrusting deep inside where she was slick and tight around his cock, he hadn't given a damn. He'd wanted Kate, and nothing else had mattered. But after the fever had passed, his disregard for the consequences had freaked him out and he'd run like hell. But not before he'd kissed her on the forehead and committed the most spectacular fuck-up of the night.

He'd looked into her brown eyes and told her "thanks" like she'd just passed him the salt. Then he'd bolted out the back door.

Rob glanced at his watch and turned off the freeway at the Denny exit. It was ten o'clock in Gospel. If he called the M &S, he could catch Kate and try to explain or apologize or something. He reached for the cell phone hooked to his belt but returned his hand to the wheel. He'd deal with that problem when he got home-in person. Hell, maybe he hadn't even messed up. Maybe she wasn't all that upset. Maybe he'd imagined the look on her face when he'd told her thanks and kissed her head.