Coming Home (23 page)

Ashton left the stables and took a long walk in the woods, circling back around to Jill’s place more than an hour later. Not wanting to disturb her when she was working, he let himself in, took off his coat and was heading for the sofa when she appeared in the doorway to the kitchen.
 

“Oh hey, you’re back. I thought you might’ve left.” She looked pale and tired, which made him mad. She’d been so relaxed in California.

He went to her, put his hands on her shoulders and massaged away some of the tension. “I told you I’d wait for you.”

“Still… You must have something you’d rather be doing than waiting around for me.”

He shook his head.

“Oh.”

“You’re cute when you’re caught off guard.”

“Then I must be very cute, because you catch me off guard all the time.”

“You’re very,
very
cute, and I like to keep you on your toes.” His hands moved from her shoulders to her face, and for the longest time, he just looked at her, drinking her in like the hungry, needy fool he became in her presence.
 

She licked her lips nervously, drawing his attention to her full bottom lip.

“Why are you staring at me?”

Still zeroed in on her enticing mouth, he said, “Because I can.”

“What does that mean?”

He smiled and kissed her forehead, her nose and then her lips. “It means that for so long I had to subsist between meetings, hoping to catch a glimpse of you here or there. Now I get to look to my heart’s content.”

Her face heated, which pleased him no end. Knowing he got to her, that he affected her the way she affected him… His thought process was derailed by the feel of her soft hands slipping under his shirt to make contact with his back. He went from hungry and needy to desperate the second her skin brushed against his.

“Did you get everything done?” he forced himself to ask.

“Not everything, but I made some good progress. I got a couple of interviews booked for Kate that should help to put the story into her own words. Now if she would only return my calls.”

This was said with a hint of aggravation.

“She will. When she’s ready.”

“I hope she’s ready soon. I need her to get her ass back here and deal with this.”

He nuzzled her fragrant, silky hair, captivated by her scent and the way she fit so perfectly in his arms.

“Ashton?”

“Hmm?”

“What’re you doing?”

“Holding you.” Was it his imagination, or did she snuggle closer to him? “Do you want to go out to dinner?”

He felt her shake her head against his chest.

“What do you want to do?” he asked, hoping with every fiber of his being that she wanted the same thing he did.

She ran her hand down his arm and curled her fingers around his. “This,” she said, tugging him toward a hallway that he prayed led to her bedroom.
 

Thank you, Jesus.

Her room was practical yet feminine with frilly curtains and a patchwork quilt on the bed. Ashton didn’t waste much time taking in the décor, especially after she tugged her shirt up and over her head. Standing before him in a peach silk bra over pale, creamy skin, and her dark hair loose around her shoulders she looked like a goddess. His hands curled into fists at his side as he held himself back from grabbing her and taking her with the force of the desire that pounded through him. She tugged at the button to her jeans, and he was frozen, utterly unable to move as he watched her.

A small, sexy smile curved her mouth. She knew exactly what she was doing to him, undressing slowly in front of him. She shimmied out of the jeans to reveal a peach silk thong that matched the bra. He’d been with her when she bought the set in California, but he hadn’t appreciated then how glorious it would look on her. He certainly appreciated it now.

When she reached behind her to release the bra, he finally found his voice. “Wait.” The single word came out much harsher than he’d intended.

Her hands fell to her sides, and a hint of uncertainty appeared in her expression.

“Let me.”

He started at her hips, his hands sliding over her ribs and up to cup her breasts through the bra. He watched, transfixed, as her nipples pebbled, and bent to suck one of them between his teeth, which made her gasp. Her fingers combed through his hair, pulling him closer.

Ashton didn’t have to be asked twice. He tugged her in tight against him, releasing the bra with the snap of two fingers behind her. Nudging it off her shoulders, he kissed and licked and suckled her smooth skin. He was addicted to her scent, her taste, her smoothness.

He’d intended to take her slowly, to draw out the suspense for both of them, but the instant her breasts sprang free of the bra and pressed against his chest, all his finesse abandoned him, and the need took over. It had been hours and hours and
hours
since he’d last held her and kissed her. Thinking of the way she’d bent over him and taken his erection into her mouth on the plane sent a surge of desire to his already hard penis as he devoured her in a series of kisses that left him dying for more.

From the first instant she walked into his office, he’d known she was going to change his life. He could admit that now that he had her pliant in his arms, straining against him, using her body to tell him what she wanted. Before he’d had the opportunity to be with her like this, he’d been afraid to own up to the effect she’d had on him that first day.

He used to wonder how he’d survive if he never got the chance to show her what she did to him just by walking into a conference room, full of purpose and intent, endlessly efficient. He’d suspected all along that underneath the cool veneer was a hot, sexy woman. Now he held living proof of just how hot and sexy she really was in his hands, and he was filled with relief and excitement—and overwhelming desire.

“What’re you thinking?” she asked as he lowered her to the bed and hovered over her. “Right in this second, what are you thinking?”

“That I can’t believe I get to hold you and kiss you and touch you and make love with you after thinking about doing all of that—and more—for so long.”

Her arms curled around his neck, and her eyes went soft with affection as she looked up at him. “You could’ve said something sooner.”

He shook his head. “I was afraid to.”

“Why?”

“I’m not exactly your sister’s best friend. I figured she’d poisoned you against me, and I had no chance with you.”

“I know you think she hates you, but she doesn’t. It’s more that she thinks you hate her.”

“I don’t.”

“Sometimes you act like you do.”

Ashton couldn’t deny that was probably true. “I don’t want to talk about her.” His lips found her throat and neck on his way to her earlobe, which he bit down on gently. “I want to talk about you and this tiny mole, right here.” His tongue dabbed at the crest of her breast, making her squirm beneath him. “I want to talk about this nipple. And this one. And your skin. God, it’s like silk. So soft and sexy.” Once again her fingers tightened in his hair, letting him know she liked what he was doing. “I can’t get enough.”

“Neither can I.” Her voice was husky and sexy. “Ashton…”

“What, honey?” He moved farther down the bed to press his lips to the damp patch of silk between her legs, inhaling her tantalizing scent.

Her hips surged.

He took advantage of the opportunity to slide his hands under her, cupping her supple cheeks and squeezing.

“I…I don’t know what I was going to say.”

Chuckling, he ran his tongue over her outer lips, using the silk of her underwear to stimulate her. After a few minutes of that, it wasn’t enough for him—or for her. He retreated only long enough to remove the scrap of fabric before returning to where he’d been, using his shoulders to part her legs. Not since he’d played football in high school had he been so thankful for extra-broad shoulders.

“So pretty,” he whispered as he bent his head to lick and suck and stroke her to a series of orgasms that had her screaming from the pleasure. He was like a man possessed. Giving her pleasure did more for him than taking it from any other woman ever had. His entire world was reduced to what was right in front of him, and nothing mattered more than taking care of her.

Carrying her essence on his lips and tongue, he kissed his way from her belly to the valley between her breasts to her lips. That was when he saw the streaks of tears on her cheeks. “What’s this?” he whispered, dabbing his tongue over the trails they’d left behind.

“I…I don’t know. I didn’t know I was crying.”

“Was it too much?”

She shook her head as she welcomed him into her embrace. “It was incredible.”
 

Ashton came to his senses the second before he would’ve slid into her equally welcoming sex. “Condom.”

Moaning, she released him.

He moved quickly to find his wallet and retrieve the strip of condoms he’d stashed in there before they left Malibu. As he returned to her, he rolled one on and was inside her two seconds later.

She gripped his ass and pulsated around him, stretching to accommodate him.

Afraid to hurt her by giving her too much too soon, he forced himself to stay still, to restrain the need that pounded through him, threatening to end this far too soon. “Jill,” he said through gritted teeth. “I need to move.”

“Wait.” She pressed tighter against him and held perfectly still, which triggered another release for her.

Ashton had never felt anything more erotic in his life.

When she relaxed her hold on him, he finally snapped, pounding into her with all hope of finesse abandoned in a flurry of passion unlike anything he’d ever experienced. He drove into her one last time, coming with a deep, guttural groan torn from his chest. That was when he discovered he’d wrapped an arm around her leg and pushed it into her chest so he could go deeper.
 

“Christ,” he muttered as he released the tight hold he had on her leg. “I’m sorry.” Mortified by his total loss of control, he was almost afraid to look at her.

“For what?”

He finally dared to meet her gaze. “I went at you like a prisoner who’s just been released after twenty years of hard time.”

That made her laugh, which made her muscles squeeze intimately around him. His penis surged with interest, as if he hadn’t just had the most explosive orgasm of his life.

“In case you didn’t notice the four orgasms, I rather enjoyed it.”

“I didn’t hurt you?”

She smoothed the hair from his sweaty forehead. “No.”

He stared down at her. “You make me crazy. I’ve never felt anything like this.”
 

“Neither have I.”

“What I said to you earlier—”

Her finger over his lips stopped him. “The phone rang before I was able to reply.”

“I noticed.”

Her smile was warm and sweet and loving. “Have you been twisting in the wind all this time, thinking it might be only you who feels that way?”

“Sorta.”

She wrapped her leg around his hip, and her arms tightened around his neck. “It’s not just you.”

Until she said those words, he hadn’t realized he’d been holding his breath since earlier in the day. Relief flooded through him, making his skin tingle. “I don’t think I’m falling anymore.”

He felt her stiffen beneath him. “You changed your mind?”

Raising his head, he met her gaze. “No.” He touched his lips to hers, lingering to revel in her sweetness. A thousand emotions passed through her eyes as she watched him, trying to gauge his meaning. “I’ve already landed.”
 

In the morning, Reid woke Kate with the news that an incoming storm would keep them on the island at least one more day. Since they had some extra time, he’d decided to go across to St. Kitts to deal with his belongings at the house and speak to his landlord. He leaned over the bed to kiss her before he left. “Rest, relax, and I’ll be back before you miss me.”

“No, you won’t.” She hooked her arm around his neck to bring him down for a better kiss. “You’ll be back before the storm comes?”

“Long before.”

As she watched him get dressed, she was struck by the memory of watching him dress for a weekend business meeting he’d wanted to skip so he could spend more time with her. “Remember the time you were going to a meeting in the city and I asked you for a ride?”

His eyes lit up with mirth. “As I recall, you made me hideously late.”

She enjoyed revisiting that long-ago morning until she recalled the rest of what happened. “That was the day my dad caught us.”

Returning to the bed, he sat next to her and took her hand. “Don’t think about that now. It’s all in the past. Think about the future. Think about what kind of wedding you want and where you want to have it. No negative thoughts. Got me?”

“I got you,” she said, tingling at the mention of their wedding. “Hurry back.”

“I won’t be gone for one minute longer than I have to.” He kissed her again. “Love you, darlin’.”