Authors: Stolen Ecstasy
Hannah Howell (35 page)
It was the talk of the cold that pushed Leanne to a decision. She might not know much about babies, but she did know what an enemy the cold was to them. She had seen it back east as well as at home. The cold always took the very old and the very young.
“All right, I suppose it would be a good idea.” She looked to Hunter for confirmation.
“I will admit to wanting to get home to Texas.”
“Fine. We’ll start out first thing in the morning.”
“So fast?” Leanne gasped.
Grant shrugged. “If we want to get out before winter sets in . . .”
“Then we’d better get out,” she finished for him and pushed away from the table. “And I’d better not sit here just thinking about all I need to do to get ready, but do it.”
The preparations took less time than she had anticipated. She did not have all that much to pack, nor did Hunter. While she had simply not wanted to take much when she had left because everything she had had at the Walshes’ he had bought for her, Hunter had not anticipated a long stay. What took most of her time was packing away the food. She had time to leisurely nurse Michael David and bed him down before Hunter came to bed.
Lying in bed, she watched Hunter undress and hastily wash up, thinking idly that it was an enjoyable and oddly comforting ritual. When he scrambled into bed at her side, she laughed, then squeaked as he curled his chilled body around her. There, she mused, was the proof of what her father had said. Snug as the cabin was, the cold seeped in even here.
His good-night kiss left them both breathless and aching for more. She laughed softly at his groan of frustration, even though she felt the same. Such proof that he still wanted her, however, compensated a great deal for the discomfort of denial.
Hunter nuzzled her hair and closed his eyes. As she grew more healthy, her recovery from the birth of their son almost complete, he grew more hungry for her. Sleep became more elusive with each passing night. The fact that they had been apart for so long before she had had the child only added to his need for her. So did the obvious signs that she returned that need in full measure.
He was pleased to be leaving for several reasons. Cold was not his favorite temperature. With eight of them in the cabin, it was a little too crowded for comfort at times, and the winter weather that held one indoors would certainly aggravate that. He also simply wanted to get home to assure himself that things were fine there and, he admitted with an inner smile, to show off his son.
Although he felt a little guilty about it, he admitted that he also wanted to get Leanne away from her father and family. They had had a lot of time together, time to overcome their difficulties. He could see that that had been accomplished. Now he wanted his turn. Now, he thought as he felt sleep stroke his mind, he wanted her all to himself for a while so he could let her know how he felt and get her to believe it and to return those feelings.
Leanne felt his body grow heavy with sleep, hoping she could soon join him. Sleep was too often elusive. Lying in bed at night gave her too much time for thought.
Sometimes it was almost painful not to tell Hunter how she felt, but she was afraid. She feared how she would feel if he did not respond in kind. Telling herself how much she did have did not really soothe the need to openly show her love and have it fully returned. The thought of marking off the years holding all she felt close and secret made her shiver. Somehow she was going to have to find the courage to be honest with him, to push aside pride and take that first step. If she was very lucky, she thought with a half-smile, it might just be enough to pull at least a little of what she needed from his heart.
Chapter Nineteen
S
MILING FAINTLY
, L
EANNE WALKED AWAY
from Laurie and Molly cooing somewhat inanely at a gurgling Michael David. Although there was always someone willing to watch the boy for a while, compliance had seemed astoundingly quick today. In fact, she had the distinct feeling that Laurie and Molly had been about to offer even as she asked. She decided not to worry about it and to find her husband just as she had planned to.
MILING FAINTLY
, L
EANNE WALKED AWAY
from Laurie and Molly cooing somewhat inanely at a gurgling Michael David. Although there was always someone willing to watch the boy for a while, compliance had seemed astoundingly quick today. In fact, she had the distinct feeling that Laurie and Molly had been about to offer even as she asked. She decided not to worry about it and to find her husband just as she had planned to.
Yesterday she had been officially declared healed from the birth and ‘capable of resuming marital relations,’ as the doctor had put it. Unfortunately, after the long trip into town, then back again she had not felt very ‘capable’ at all. Since it had looked like rain, they had decided not to take the baby. She had fed him before leaving but after a full, exceptionally long day away from him, she had been uncomfortable to the point of pain. When the rain they had worried about descended upon them when they were still an hour from home, she had also gotten soaked. She had fed Michael David, had a hot bath, and gone to bed to fall immediately and deeply asleep.
Now, she thought, her eyes narrowing as she stepped out onto the veranda, she was well rested. It might be more ladylike, more refined, to wait for the night when they retired to their bed. However, she was not feeling ladylike or refined. There were four hours before she had to feed the baby again. She intended to find Hunter, drag him off somewhere private, and be very unrefined for every minute of those four hours. If he was really good, she thought with an inner chuckle, it might be even longer, for she could easily feed the baby and then return.
Entering the neat little cabin where Molly said she thought Hunter had gone, she scowled when she did not immediately see him. If she had to search the ranch for him, she would end up wasting a great deal of her precious four hours. Then she heard the door shut firmly behind her. She turned in time to see Hunter slip the bolt, locking her in. For a moment, she considered telling him that was totally unnecessary, then decided she would allow him his fun.
All her grand ideas about seduction fled her mind. She met his dark gaze, read the hunger there, and felt her knees weaken. He took a step toward her. She took a step toward him. Then she was in his arms without fully knowing how she got there. When he lifted her up as he greedily kissed her she wrapped her legs around his lean hips. The last thing she was aware of, besides a blinding need demanding immediate gratification, was him roughly tugging the pins from her hair and letting them scatter to the floor as he walked somewhat unsteadily to the bed.
Leanne lifted her head from the pillow slightly to look down at their entwined bodies. “You didn’t take your boots off.”
Softly laughing as he eased out of her arms, Hunter drawled, “Didn’t take much else off either.”
“That’s true.” Her eyes narrowing as she tugged her skirts down, she suddenly realized something that should have been very obvious from the beginning. “You were waiting for me.”
“Yup.” He sat down on the edge of the bed and tugged his boots off.
“And here I thought I was being so clever by getting Molly and Laurie to watch Michael David so I could hunt you down. Molly even said she only thought you would be here. She knew very well all along that you would be.”
“You were hunting me, were you?” He started to smile.
“Yes. I had some thoughts concerning a few leisurely hours of unrefined activity. Can you have leisurely activity?”
He didn’t bother to answer that. “Sounds interesting. When do we start?”
“I think perhaps we already started.”
Standing up, he finished removing his shirt and tossed it towards a chair in the corner. “How much time do we have?”
“Well, I started out with four hours.” She crossed her arms behind her head and watched him undress. “I think we may still have a great deal of that left.”
“Then we better not waste any time.”
“I didn’t think we had.” Smiling faintly as he shed the last of his clothes, she wondered if he had any idea of how good he looked.
“That was just an appetizer.” He sat on the bed and began to remove her shoes. “I plan to indulge in a banquet.”
“A banquet, huh?” When one foot was bared she began to slowly move it over his chest. “Sounds a little too refined.”
“You’d prefer pigs at a trough?”
“Well, I am feeling a little hoggish.”
“Are you now.” Tossing aside her stocking, he nibbled at the toes of her small feet, smiling when she giggled.
She purred with delight when he slowly ran his hands up her legs, then squeaked with surprise when he abruptly yanked off her pantaloons and flung them across the room. “How very untidy of you. You’ll ruin them.”
“They’re already ruined. I ripped them, remember?” He did the same with her petticoats.
Watching as her petticoats settled on the bureau, she murmured, “So you did. Impatient man.”
“If I recall correctly, I wasn’t the only impatient one.” He finished undoing her bodice, removed it, and tossed it on top of the petticoats.
“Perhaps I was feeling a little inclined towards haste.” She smiled faintly as her lacy chemise floated down onto the back of the chair.
Slowly, savoring the gradual full exposure of her lithe body, he eased her skirt off then hurled it over his shoulder. Desperation had made her bold. He intended to enjoy that to its fullest. He eased his body down onto hers, murmuring his pleasure when their flesh met.
“I hope you’re feeling inclined to indulge in a little less haste now.”
“I could be persuaded,” she murmured as she rubbed her feet along his calves. Looking at the clothes scattered around the room, she laughed softly. “That looks very decadent.”
His gaze fixed upon the hard tip of her breast, he whispered, “And this looks very tempting.” He flicked his tongue over it. “These are all mine for four hours.”
She laughed, then held him close as he almost idly lathed and suckled her sensitive breasts. Although she had just fed their greedy child, Hunter’s attentions brought forth a trickle of milk. Embarrassed, she tried to pull back, but he did not allow her to retreat.
“Tastes good,” he mumbled as he slowly kissed his way to her throat. “Now I’m even more jealous of the little devil.”
Smiling slightly, she kept her eyes open, watching him as he teased her mouth with quick, soft kisses. “He’s going to be dark like you,” she said. “Dark and dangerous.”
He gave a startled laugh and looked at her. She was beautiful. He suspected he would think so when she was eighty. Elusive too, he thought with an inner sigh. At times he caught a certain look in her eyes that raised his hopes, but then it was gone. Sometimes, when they lay in each other’s arms still trembling from the ecstasy they had shared, he felt like a thief, as if he had broken into her heart as he had that bank in Clayville and taken something she had not really wanted to give him. He told himself that love was making him a fanciful idiot.
“Dangerous, am I?”
“Mmmm, especially when you take your clothes off. I have developed a perfectly scandalous liking for watching you take your clothes off.”
She saw his eyes grow nearly black. He clearly liked to hear her say such things. She recalled the way she always felt when he spoke to her in such a bold manner. The things he said made her blush. They also made her ache. She wondered idly if she could do the same to him. Slipping her hands down his back, she felt his taut backside.
“I especially like this. I think you have the finest looking backside I have ever seen on a man.”
She was going to drive him right of his mind, he decided. “Just how many have you seen?”
“Quite a lot actually. They do seem to be everywhere one looks. Not naked, of course.”
“I should damn well hope not.” Even as her soft, husky flattery was stirring his desire, he frowned at the thought of her eyeing the backsides of other men, disliking it as intensely as he liked to hear her claim his as the best.
Although that touch of jealousy was worth pursuing, Leanne decided she would have to ignore it this time. She had made the decision to drive him into a frenzy and she would not allow herself to be diverted. When she got him into that state, she was going to say those three little words she so ached to say. It was cowardly, because there was a good chance he would not hear her. However, it would serve as good practice. Perhaps if she said it aloud enough times she would gain the courage to look him straight in the eye, say it and suffer the consequences.
“Do you know what I think about sometimes when I’m just watching you move around, even doing the most ordinary things?”
“No. What do you think about?” His voice was husky with desire.
“I think about all the things I should like to do to you if I was bold enough. Shall I tell you?”
“I can be a little slow to understand sometimes. Maybe you’d better show me too.”
Laughing softly she nudged him, and he rolled onto his back. She straddled his hips and looked at him.
“Having you in this supplicant position did figure large in my idle musings.”
“Consider me your slave.” He was not sure he wanted her to know just how close to the truth that was.
“Oh my, that does offer up some very interesting possibilities. Now, first of course, I would kiss you.”
She slowly lowered her mouth to his, kissing him deeply. Then she began making idle patterns with her tongue and brushing gentle kisses over his taut warm skin.
Gritting his teeth, he fought to lie still as her soft warm mouth moved over his lower abdomen, then groaned when she abruptly turned her attention to his thighs. “You thought about torturing me, did you?”
Nipping the inside of his thighs, then soothing that light sting with prolonged strokes of her tongue, she chuckled. “This is torture, is it?”
“Sweet torture.”
“And what is this then?” she murmured.
He groaned with pleasure as she turned her full attention to his aching groin. “Heaven. Pure heaven.” He burrowed his fingers in her thick, silken hair. “Not sure how long I can savor it.”
“Shall we make this a test of your endurance, then?”
“What an intriguing idea.”
She did her best to make it last, to hold off that final crescendo for as long as she could. It was not easy, for she found that being the leader in this intimate dance was one of the most exciting things she had ever indulged in. The moment the finale could be delayed no longer, she slowly, tantalizingly, united their bodies. It was the last purposefully languid movement she made. When they were mutually flung over passion’s precipice, she clung to Hunter and spoke her heart.
Hunter stared up at the ceiling as he held a somnolent Leanne. He could hear those husky words in his head, but was suffering a crippling attack of doubt. There was always the chance that he had imagined it. When a person wanted something as bad as he wanted to hear those words from Leanne, imagining them was a real possibility.
“I heard you.” He wondered if she would know what he referred to, if he was right in thinking that she had not really intended him to hear her avowal.
Drowsy from their lovemaking, Leanne was not sure at first what he said. “Hmmm?”
“I heard you.” He felt her tense.
Suddenly Leanne felt wide awake. She was not sure if she should consider this a catastrophe or not. She briefly considered denying she had said anything. But that was not only cowardly, it was perhaps just a little childish as well. What was done was done. Perhaps it was even for the best. Hiding what she felt took some of the joy out of it. She just hoped being honest would not end up hurting her too much.
“You weren’t supposed to, you know,” she murmured, not brave enough to look at him as they talked. “I tried to plan it so you wouldn’t.”
Hunter felt his heart skip. That remark was nearly as good as an admission. It was an effort not to demand she say it again, make his own declaration, then end it by making fierce love to her. Instinct told him he could lose a lot if he moved too quickly, that if he probed just a little, his elusive Leanne might reveal a great deal. It was, he decided, far past time for them to have a talk that would ease any doubts they held, clear up any continuing misconceptions and, on the whole, strengthen their relationship and their marriage. He would be a fool, he told himself, not to try for that.
“I wasn’t supposed to hear?” He slowly combed the fingers of one hand through her thick golden hair.
“Nope. I thought I’d planned it perfectly. You were supposed to be in a—er, frenzy.”
“Oh I was that. Yup, I reckon you could call it a frenzy.”
“Then how did you hear me?”
“I’m supposed to be deaf when I’m in a frenzy, is that it?”
“Well, I certainly seem to be. Deaf and blind. A marching band could probably go through the room and I wouldn’t notice.” She smiled crookedly when she felt his chest move with silent laughter.
Other books
All Change: Cazalet Chronicles by Elizabeth Jane Howard
Beckon by Tom Pawlik
Imperfect Rebel by Patricia Rice
Management Skills by January Rowe
Tempting Taine by Kate Silver
Marauder Aegus by Aya Morningstar
The Rancher and His Unexpected Daughter by Sherryl Woods
The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie
Only the Gallant by Kerry Newcomb
If by Nina G. Jones