Blackstone's Bride (35 page)

“You’re not going to talk me out of leaving, Jarrod.”

“Talking wasn’t what I had in mind,” he said with a wry smile.

“I knew it!” She pointed at him. “You deliberately sent the children off with Gib so you could—So that—To try and—”

“Have my way with you? Seduce you? Love you? Give you a dream to replace the one you lost?” he asked, lowering his voice intimately. “Guilty as charged. And not a bit sorry.”

She shook her head and started backing up the stairs. “Don’t come near me, Jarrod,” she warned.

“Why?” He smiled, and saw the pulse in her throat beat faster. “Because you don’t trust yourself?”

“I don’t trust you.”

“If you tell me no, I’ll stop. I’d never hurt you.”

They were at the top of the stairs and she was still backing away from him down the hallway.

“Then I’m telling you no. Stop. Right now,” she added when he kept moving toward her.

“I haven’t started anything yet.” That was a lie. The
moment the children were out of sight, he had begun stalking her with every intention of making her his.

“Don’t you lay a hand on me, Jarrod. Not one finger.”

He moved quickly, before she could sidestep him, and backed her against the wall just outside his bedroom. This time when he took her in there he would make sure they finished what he started.

Putting his hands on the wall, he trapped her without actually touching her.

“I’m warning you, Jarrod.”

“I haven’t laid a finger on you. But I have very specific plans for my mouth—and yours,” he said, grinning at her gasp of outrage.

Before she could duck away, he pressed his lips to hers. Her body tensed, but she didn’t move to escape. With his tongue, he gently nudged her lips apart. She allowed him into the sweet recesses of her mouth. He caressed her until she reluctantly relaxed and then sighed with pleasure.

He continued his assault. Her defenses were crumbling and he couldn’t give her an opportunity to shore up her resistance. He gently kissed the corner of her mouth, her delicate jaw, then took her earlobe into his mouth and bit lightly. When she groaned and squirmed restlessly, he lowered his mouth to the spot below her ear that he knew would make her surrender.

She drew air in between her teeth, and the small, feminine noises she made sorely tested his own restraint. His breathing grew ragged. The waiting for her had seemed like a lifetime. Now that it was over, he was afraid he would disappoint her.

Her skin was silky and smooth to his touch. Her full, soft lips slightly parted in unknowing invitation, shiny from his moist, tormenting kisses. Yearning, as elemental and desperate as the need to draw another breath, took hold of Jarrod and tore him wide open. He was fully aroused, aching from the need for release. But the pain of losing her would be far greater. Instinct told him she shared his desire. But if he was wrong, if she didn’t want him as much as he
wanted her, he would respect her wishes and back off. Although it would be the hardest thing he’d ever do.

Abby stared into the intensity of Jarrod’s gray gaze, took in the way his eyes darkened when his mouth moved over hers. Her body had betrayed her, as she’d known it would if he touched her. She could hardly catch her next breath, but the sensations running through her had nothing to do with survival and everything to do with being a woman.

She saw the uncertainty in his eyes. He was giving her the opportunity to walk away. She had to choose: a lifetime of loneliness, or perfect happiness in his arms. In the end, the choice was easy.

She had already lost her heart to Jarrod. She would lose her soul if she didn’t love him now.

Abby lifted his hand from the wall beside her cheek and pressed a kiss into his palm. He closed his eyes as a groan tore from deep in his throat.

She laced her fingers through his and drew him into the room with her. Starting to close the door, she laughed nervously. “We’re alone. I forgot.”

“I didn’t.” He took her face in his hands and stared deeply into her eyes. “Are you sure about this, Abby? Really sure? I don’t want you to feel I pushed you—”

She stopped him with two fingers on his lips. “You did push, make no mistake about that, Jarrod. But I’m glad. I want this and I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”

He smiled. “I’m going to take you at your word because, frankly, I don’t think I could stop now.”

The room was cool and an afternoon breeze slipped past crisscrossed lace curtains and out the windows on the other side. The sun shone on the front of the house, leaving this side shadowed.

He led her to the bed and pressed lightly on her shoulders until she sat on the mattress. The bedclothes were neatly folded at the foot. She smiled. He had certainly planned ahead,
and
been awfully sure of himself. She sighed, not finding it in her to care. She wanted him. How could she be angry at him for feeling the same way?

Jarrod slowly slipped off Abby’s shoes and stockings. Her heartbeat increased as he took lovely liberties while he performed the task. Then he took her hands in his and tugged her to a standing position as he unbuttoned her split skirt and let it fall to her feet. Soon she stood before him in chemise and pantalettes.

He reached out and touched the tip of her breast with one finger. Her nipple puckered and hardened. Her breath caught in her throat as that one light touch created a powerful hunger that swept through her.

Emboldened by the approval she saw in his face, she released the ribbons at the front of the garment. With both hands, Jarrod parted the sides and slid the material off her shoulders. He brought her hands to his mouth and kissed each in turn. “You are more beautiful than I imagined. And believe me, I’ve been imagining a lot lately.”

She reached for the buttons on his shirt and began unfastening them. “I want to see you.”

When he shrugged the shirt off, she pressed her palms to the mat of hair covering his chest, loving the way it tickled. Even better was the way her bare breasts tingled against his skin when he drew her against him. She could feel every beat of her heart. The closeness was so exquisite, a tingling sensation rose all the way from her toes.

“I want to see all of you,” he said, slipping his hand between them to release the tie of her pantalettes. When they were removed, she stood before him without a stitch of clothing.

His hands—big, warm, rough—swallowed hers and held them in a loose grip. “You’re perfect,” he whispered. “I’m glad you think so.” She shivered. “Are you cold?”

She shook her head. How could she tell him that it was the way he looked at her? His gaze was like a warm current that spread through her body in waves. The feelings were so powerful, she couldn’t keep them inside.

Jarrod lifted Abby, placed her on the mattress, and pulled the sheet over her. Then he removed the rest of his clothes.
As he stood before her, her heart lurched wildly. Wide shoulders and powerful chest tapered to a flat midsection. The mat of hair narrowed on his abdomen and dipped lower, nestling his aroused manhood.

“You’re perfect too,” she said, her voice husky.

He grinned. “I’m glad you think so,” he answered, echoing her own words. He slipped into bed and pulled her into his arms. “You’re so small, so fragile. You make me feel awkward, and afraid.”

“Of what?” she asked, surprised. She was the one who’d never done this before.

“I don’t want to hurt you.” His voice, warm and sweet, touched her everywhere.

“I know.”

“I’ve never felt this way before. You bring out new feelings in me—the need to protect, the desire to please.”

“You do please me.”

That was when she felt her heart slip out of her grasp and her last traces of control shattered. The tenderness was more than she could bear. The force of her love pushed her to him and spun her like a leaf in a twister. No words could express what she was feeling. She could only show him.

Her hand slipped around him, exploring his tough body. The muscles rippling over his back moved beneath her fingers as he cradled her against his strength. So strong, yet so gentle.

Her breathing quickened as he trailed little kisses over her neck, shoulder, and lower. When he took the tip of her breast between his lips, she arched her back, offering herself more fully to him. At the same time, his hand slipped over her abdomen and between her thighs. He performed an exploration of his own, until his thumb stroked the bud of her femininity. She gasped as tremors of pure pleasure shook her and her hips arched against his hand. Her body melted into his and she couldn’t tell where hers left off and his began.

He stroked her. Each touch fueled the fire inside her, making it burn hotter. Heat surged through her; passion
branded her. A throbbing began between her legs, sending ribbons of sensation through her stomach. As he continued to take her higher, a frantic, frenzied, desperate need for liberation built within her. Finally, she gave a strained cry as her body clenched and surged wildly and release rolled through her in wave after wave of pleasure.

Limp and gasping for breath, she looked up at him. She curved her hand to his jaw, wanting to know what it would be like to cradle him within her body, to feel his strength inside her, to give him the same pleasure he’d given her.

He smiled and nodded when he read the look in her eyes.

“You’re my bride, no question about that,” he said hoarsely. “Now it’s time to make you my wife.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll try not to hurt you, honey.”

She kissed him. “I’m not made of glass. I won’t shatter.”

He still looked worried as he positioned his body over hers. Gently, he eased into her. He filled her near to bursting, yet she welcomed him. She felt a tearing sensation and one quick, sharp pain. He held himself still for a few moments as he watched her carefully. When she drew him down for a soft kiss, he looked relieved. Then he began to move within her, slowly at first.

Ripples of almost painful delight spiraled from her abdomen outward. Jarrod’s face grew intense with concentration. The sensuous sounds of their bodies coming together mingled with his ragged breathing and her own soft sighs of pleasure.

As tension built within her again, she knew she’d been wrong before. She just might shatter into a million pieces.

Then Jarrod went still for a moment, his eyes closed. He gave a harsh cry, a rough sound that burst from his throat as he thrust into her. One last lunge, then he shuddered.

Jarrod lowered himself into her, rolled onto his side, and gathered Abby against him. His face turned toward her and his warm breath stirred her hair. They lay like that, spent and content, for a long time. His breathing grew even, telling her he’d fallen asleep.

Abby sighed, brushing the hair from his forehead. Loving Jarrod had been even more wonderful than she’d thought. And more terrible. Now that she knew the ecstasy of being with him, how could she go back to the desolation of being alone?

But she knew she had to. He hadn’t said he loved her, and she couldn’t settle for less. That’s what had destroyed her own family. She wouldn’t do it to herself, and especially not to Jarrod.

Abby looked up from the bowl of eggs she’d been stirring when Jarrod entered the doorway to the kitchen. He was wearing nothing but denims. The sight of his bare chest covered with a dusting of hair made her catch her breath. He had loved her thoroughly all afternoon, until the shadows of twilight had crept into the house. Then he’d dozed again and she had come downstairs to think.

“What are you doing?” His voice sounded uncertain, but with a note of anger.

She understood his uncertainty. She felt the same thing. As well as sad and wistful. If only things could have been different. But she didn’t know how to go back. “I’m hungry.” That wasn’t a lie. “Aren’t you?”

“I suppose.”

“What’s wrong, Jarrod?”

“I woke up and you were gone. I was afraid you’d left for good.”

She looked down at the eggs she had broken into the bowl and sighed. “You were right when you said I was being a coward with the children. I can’t leave without telling them good-bye. They deserve to know what’s going on.”

Even though that meant the pain of staying on alone with Jarrod until they returned from their trip.

He laughed, but there was no humor in it. “I don’t know what’s going on. How can I explain it to them?”

“I can’t say what’s going on with you, but for myself, I’ll tell you one thing—I’m finished running away.” Before she left him, she wanted to make sure he knew one thing. “I love
you, Jarrod Blackstone. You’ve never said how you feel. And I’m not asking for anything. I just needed to say it once.”

A surprised expression crossed his face before he shook his head. He moved forward and caught her in his arms. “You’re my wife. Stay with me, Abby. The family you’ve always wanted is right here. All you have to do is reach out and take it.”

“You said you wanted me to stay for you and the children. But you haven’t once said how you feel about me.”

“I thought I just showed you how I feel.”

“I’m not in the mood for teasing.” She tried to pull away, but he tightened his grip.

“Neither am I. Don’t let your pride tear us apart. Don’t leave me, Abby.” His expression was anything but playful. “I love you.”

“Why didn’t you tell me before?”

“I was waiting for the right time. So much has happened. I almost lost you when you were sick. Whether I said the words or not, the love was there. I should have told you. I won’t make that mistake again. I’ll say it, and go on saying it while we grow old together. I love you, Abby.”

She released the breath she’d been holding. She studied his face for several moments. His eyes were full of intensity. She believed him.

“All right, then.” She pulled away from him and started stirring the eggs again. “Do you want biscuits and bacon with your eggs?”

“Abby?” Puzzled, Jarrod scratched his chin. “What does that mean, ‘All right, then’?”

“It means that was all I needed to hear. If you’d told me that yesterday, you’d have slept better last night and saved yourself and Gib a lot of trouble.” She shook her head and tsk-tsked him. “Scheming, and plotting to get rid of the children. All you had to do was tell me you loved me.”