Part 11 (1/2)

He stopped walking when they were almost to the car. He put his hands on her waist and looked into her eyes. ”Emma, I've been waiting for you to come back for sixteen years. I'm not going to run scared now, just because some insane a.s.shole did his best to leave you wounded. I told you-we can get through this.” He leaned toward her and gave her lips a sweet kiss. ”You don't have to warn me anymore. You didn't have to warn me in the first place. Now I'm going to take you home. And if there's a G.o.d, you're going to invite me in.”

”I worry about the concept of us,” she said. ”I don't want you to be collateral damage when the detritus of Richard's crimes sprinkles down on me.”

”I understand completely,” he said. ”Finished now?”

”Don't be a fool,” she said.

”I won't.”

All the way home from the restaurant, he talked to her softly of casual things, of the beauty of Napa, the way the cold drizzle of a Sonoma County winter had always made him crave soups and fires. She didn't have a fireplace of course, but he did. He was looking forward to showing off his house-it was over fifty years old in a quiet tree-lined neighborhood and he'd enjoyed renovating it. He'd done most of the work himself, tearing up old carpet and installing hardwood floors, texturing and painting walls. ”I focused on the four most important rooms-living room, kitchen, master and bath. The new kitchen is so beautiful it almost makes me want to cook.”

”Don't be hasty,” she said.

He was seducing her with ordinary things, as if he knew how starved she'd been for a reality she understood-soups and fires, rainy days in a home that hugged her, the love of a good man.

After their lunch they went to her house. He held her hand the entire drive and when she let him into her little bungalow, he glanced around and said, ”You've been busy.”

”Just a little settling in,” she said.

”Come here,” he said, locking her door behind them and pulling her into his arms.

His lips came down on hers with an urgency and hunger she hadn't been prepared for. After one brief moment of surprise, she matched his pa.s.sion with the surging need of her own. It wasn't just her need for intimacy because it had been so long but her need for it to be him.

Clothing was removed while they kissed. It seemed that it only took seconds for them to be in her bed, skin to skin, lips to lips. Emma hadn't felt the touch of loving hands in years. Adam's beautiful hands, his lips, his strong fingers, did the one thing she didn't think possible-took her away. Far away. She thought only of him, intoxicated by his scent, his taste, his body.

He was thoroughly beautiful. He had long, strong legs, muscled arms and shoulders, a smooth, hairless chest. With his thick brown hair, expressive brows, emerald-green eyes and strong jaw, he should probably be sculpted and put on display. For this moment in time he belonged only to her. And she to him.

She inhaled his breath, licked her way into his mouth, opened for him and welcomed him into her body. He was gentle and smooth, teasing her into a frenzy. He responded to her arousal with heat, finally taking her on a powerful ride that had her crying out his name as she came. And came. And came.

He joined her, softly whispering her name, his large frame shuddering, his mouth at her neck, his big hands in her hair. She trembled with the aftershock of o.r.g.a.s.m and he chuckled, a deep rumble. He kissed her eyes, her ears, her chin, her lips. Her calm returned so slowly; he didn't leave her body, pus.h.i.+ng into her softly, again and again. ”Still worried about the concept of us?” he whispered in her ear.

”You drugged me,” she accused.

He pushed into her again. ”A little bit. d.a.m.n, woman, I knew we'd be great together, but I didn't have enough imagination to know how great.”

They continued kissing, soft and deep and lovely. He moved inside her, filling her, rocking with her in a smooth, deep motion. It didn't take long before she was clutching at him, pus.h.i.+ng against him, begging for more.

”I can't say no to you,” he whispered. ”I have a feeling I'll never be able to say no to you. G.o.d, why would I even want to?”

”I didn't say no, either, did I?”

”More it is,” he whispered, pounding into her until they were both rising again, reaching for another mutual climax. The moment she started to clench and tremble around him, he went off like a rocket, a powerful blast that made her almost whimper in pleasure. And she finally collapsed under him.

Again he kissed her eyes, her cheeks, her lips, running his work-roughened hands all over her.

They were quiet for a while as their breathing evened and their bodies began to cool. He reached down to pull the duvet over them. Rolling onto his side, he brought her with him, gently holding her against him.

”Are you going to stay inside me forever?” she asked.

”Would that be inconvenient?” he asked. ”Because it really feels like exactly where I should be.”

”Funny,” she said. ”Feels that way to me, too.”

”Friends.h.i.+p with you has perks,” he said.

She was quiet for a moment. ”Good,” she finally said.

He laughed. ”I don't want to be friends, Emmie.”

”You don't?”

”Of course not. I don't share that with friends. There was nothing casual about that and you know it.”

”Oh?”

”Wasn't a friendly f.u.c.k for you, either,” he said. ”That was some of the finest love I've ever made. Might be the absolute best ever.”

”You think?”

”I know,” he said.

She smiled. ”I'm glad to hear that, even though it was probably not a good idea.”

He raised up, looking down at her. ”I think it was the best idea I ever had.”

She couldn't keep from touching him, tenderly running her fingertips over the planes of his face. ”I guess you're not going to come to your senses anytime soon...”

He shook his head. He gently brushed her hair back from her face. ”You know how I feel. I think you've always known. Do you think you can talk me out of it?”

”Well, I thought I could...”

”You can't...”

She bit her lip and just looked into those fierce green eyes. She sighed. ”Thank G.o.d,” she said.

He smiled at her.

”Could be problematic that I just slept with my new boss's brother...”

”None of Riley's business who I sleep with. None of her business who you sleep with, for that matter.”

”Do you think she'll agree with that?”

”Do you think I care?” he asked, raising a brow in question. ”Come on,” he said, pulling her closer so she was nuzzling into his chest. ”Enjoy the moment. You'll have plenty of time to worry later.”