Part 14 (1/2)

But all he'd managed to do was get himself more tightly trapped-like someone fighting against quicksand. The more he struggled, the deeper he sank.

He didn't care.

Not now.

Later, he'd care. Later there would be damage control and fences to urgently mend. Right now, there was only her, only this wild magical flame that burned far brighter than anything he'd ever experienced before.

Watching Teri out of the corner of his eye, he brought her up to a climax, not once, but several times, as if to prove to himself that he could. But this made him want her more.

Like the drugs he'd sworn he'd never touch, the drugs that destroyed his parents long before their deaths, one taste only made him want more. Need more. Crave more.

Controls disintegrated.

He could hear her breathing hard, trying to catch her breath.

Or was that him?

The sounds mingled, becoming one. He wanted to do the same. He couldn't hold himself back any longer. It was time.

Hawk pulled himself up over her body, brus.h.i.+ng along the length of her, his eyes fastened to hers. With his knee, he moved her legs apart.

His pulse went erratic as he felt her legs encircle his.

With a guttural cry escaping his lips, he drove himself into her, hard, fast. Teri tightened her arms around him, welcoming him. Making him want her even more and not knowing how the h.e.l.l that could be humanly possible.

The dance began. The wild, torrid dance destined to reach the stars that revolved in her head. She clung to him, to the ever-increasing tempo, to the ever-growing yearning for the final explosion.

And then it came.

The surprise, the wonder of the intensity made her cry out-she had no idea what. The euphoria came, wrapped up in exhaustion. Her heart felt as if it were going to burst through her chest.

She felt his weight slacken and then felt him slide from her body. She wanted to curl up against him. Was that weakness? She didn't know, didn't care.

Rather than a.n.a.lyze, than worry, she curled her body against his.

He hesitated for a moment, reason returning in slow dribbles and drabs. The first thought that echoed through his brain was This is wrong.

But even this thought was singed in the fire that still moved through his body, still smoldered, unwilling to be completely extinguished.

What the h.e.l.l had just happened here? He'd been all but castrated and he was grinning to himself. At least inwardly. The energy required to smile outwardly eluded him at the moment.

He couldn't resist the way she curled into him. He knew he should, for his own self-preservation, but he couldn't. He wasn't strong enough yet. So he slipped his arm around her and held her to him.

Teri rested her head against his chest. He could feel each breath she exhaled as it moved along his skin, a silent, unwitting invitation.

He could feel the remnants of desire glowing in the ashes that had once been his resolve.

d.a.m.n, he wanted her again. Barely recovered and he wanted her again.

He had to be losing his mind.

”Well, this is a first,” he murmured.

She raised her head to look at him just then, amus.e.m.e.nt playing along her lips. He had an urge to wipe the smile off her face with the only resource he had available. His own mouth.

”Don't tell me you're a virgin,” she teased. ”Because if you are, that's the best display of raw talent the world has ever encountered.”

Had she just told him that he'd rocked her world the way she had his? Or was she putting him on? He never knew how to read her.

Mischief danced in her eyes. Why hadn't he noticed how bright they were, how they could delve into him?

”No.” He s.h.i.+fted a strand of her hair through his fingers. ”But I've never slept with my partner before.”

”You still haven't.” She saw him look at her quizzically. ”As I recall, absolutely no sleeping took place.”

He laughed softly. No, no sleeping took place. ”You know what I mean.”

”No,” she said quite honestly. ”I don't know what anything means right now.” She sighed as if all the air was being drained out of her. ”Because up is down and black is white and the whole d.a.m.n world has just turned sideways on its axis.” She punctuated her statement by pressing a kiss to his chest.

She saw what looked like desire taking root in his eyes.

Hawk dove his fingers through her hair, cupping her head back just a fraction. His voice was low. ”It was pretty much that way for me, too.”

Something stirred within her she was really afraid to put a name to, negating all her silence a.s.surances to herself about what she was feeling. ”Oh, d.a.m.n, Hawk. Just when I think I've got you all figured out, you throw me a curve like this one.”

He smiled into her eyes, his hand trailing along the swell and dip of her body. Feeling stirred in his own. Desire galvanized him. ”How do you feel about catching another one?”

He saw the laughter in her eyes, coupled with surprise. Felt desire springing up in his loins. ”You ready to throw another one so soon?”

He pulled her closer to him still. ”Try me.”

His body was hard from wanting. Her own moistened in preparation. The real world with its regrets, with its consequences, was left behind. She didn't want to think now any more than she had before. She just wanted to feel as if she were on fire again.

”I have tried you.”

”And?”

Her eyes smiled into his. ”Please, sir, I want some more.”

He vaguely recognized it as a quote from Oliver Twist. It was the last thought to pa.s.s through his mind for quite some time.

More exhausted than she thought was humanly possible, Teri finally made the effort to move out of the circle of his arms.

It was time for her to go home.

She looked around. The good thing about his having a studio was that her clothes weren't difficult to locate. The sooner she got them on, the more prepared she would be for when the awkwardness descended over her.