Winter's Heat (6 page)

He found himself wanting to take things between them to a level he’d never been before and seeing where things led them. He admitted that the uncharted territory he was in was disconcerting, but he knew that he didn’t want to risk losing Winter.

With that thought in mind, he finished off his coffee and went back into the house.

****

Finally reaching the bedroom, he stopped in the doorway when he saw her sitting on the edge of the bed talking on her cell phone. She hadn’t seen him yet because her back was turned to him. It gave him another chance of look his fill of the luscious curves she currently halfway covered with a sheet.

The picture of her sitting there looked so right that the thought crossed his mind to have her move in with him and be right where she was all the time. Sharing his life with her…making love to her every night and holding her in his arms. Suddenly those things were vital to him.

He knew he would have to make some bold moves in order for that to happen. And based on her response to his every touch, he knew that he at least had a fighting chance at convincing her. Smiling at that thought, he moved further into the room to alert her to his presence. Before he could do so, he heard Winter speak softly into the phone.

“I know…I love you too.” Hearing the softly spoken words directed towards whoever she was speaking to on the phone gave him pause.

The thought of her saying those words to someone else savagely twisted something inside him. Before Eric knew it he felt a wave of jealous outrage mixed with a stinging hurt move all through him.

What the hell?
He angrily thought.

He’d be damned if he’d let her profess her love to another man while sitting on his bed. The same bed she’d just given herself to him in. He stood there feeling foolish and unreasonably cheated.

Winter was so engrossed in her conversation, that she still didn’t realize he was now standing right behind her. He quickly controlled the surge of anger moving through him and reached for a familiar aloofness while denying the crushing disappointment he felt.

“
Am I bothering you?” The sharp authority that snapped from Eric’s deep voice made Winter gasp and jump off the bed to face him while clutching the phone to her ample sheet covered breasts.

“
Eric…” She floundered as she took in his obviously angry face. Before she could gather her scattered thoughts, he continued on.

“
Talk to your boyfriend on your own time Winter, not mine.” Even as he said the words, he knew them to be untrue. The way she had given herself to him last night had proven that, but he just couldn’t seem to stop the flow of the harsh spewing forth.

“
Eric, it’s my sister Charlene. Something’s happened to my auntie…” At her quietly spoken words his anger quickly fled to be replaced with remorse and concern.

“
I’m sorry sweetheart, is everything okay?” Eric asked immediately calming down. He was silently kicking himself for jumping to the wrong conclusions and letting his temper get the best of him.

“
Charlene says Aunt Sophie is in the hospital because she fell and broke her leg.” She explained.

“
I’m so sorry to hear that.” Seeing how visibly upset Winter was, Eric gently pulled her in his arms and softly brushed his lips against her brow to comfort her.

A muffled voice coming from the phone had her shifting in his arms to put the phone back to her ear. “Yes, I’m here Charlene…” Everything else was forgotten as Winter listened to Charlene fill her in on what was going on back home. She stood there locking her concerned eyes to Eric’s over the next few minutes as she listened.

“
Did you find out anything else?” Eric asked when Winter got off the phone.

“
Charlene said they’re waiting to see just how bad it was. I just hope she’s okay.” Just even saying the words made her worry double because she knew her aunt’s health was fragile as it was.

“
I know sweetheart. I’m sure your sister Charlene would tell you if there is any change in your aunt’s condition.” He said soothingly rubbing her back to try to put her mind at ease.

“
If something bad happens to my Aunt Sophie, I would never forgive myself if I wasn’t there to be with her. She’s done so much for me and it just sucks that I can’t do anything right now.” She said feeling the weight of worry press down on her.

Watching the look of helpless frustration settle on Winter’s face, Eric knew what he had to do. And it gave him pleasure to do so. Especially if it meant helping out the woman he cared so much for.

“
Sweetheart, I want you to take some time off and go back home and be with your aunt.” He said smoothing the worry from her brow with his fingertips.

“
Really?” Winter asked not sure she had heard him right.

“
Sweetheart, you can put your mind to rest. I’ll arrange for my company jet to take you home so you can be with your aunt.” His generous offer took her by surprise.

“
Eric, I can’t let you do that.” She started to protest. “Besides, I can’t afford to just leave for two weeks straight. What about everything here?” As she listed all her points, he calmly listened while mentally solving each one. And when she finally ran out of steam, he kissed her softly on the lips.

“
Sweetheart, your Aunt Sophie needs you and I’m sure I can survive without you for a couple of weeks. As for everything else, there’s nothing that can’t be put on hold until you get back.” He continued his sweet torture by placing a series of nibbling kisses over her upturned face to silence any further protests that seemed to want to bubble up.

“
Everything is gonna be okay.” He said thankful when he finally felt a reluctant smile curve her soft lips.

“
Baby…” The one word was all she could get out as her eyes lovingly caressed his handsome face. Winter felt her indecision turning into acceptance of his generous offer and she had to bite her tongue to keep from blurting out right then and there how much she loved him. Instead she wrapped her arms around his strong shoulders and poured it all into her kiss.

****

Instant raw emotion went tearing through Eric as the tender endearment branded him right to the very heart of him. The simple word became sensual fuel to the fire inside of him turning him on like nothing else ever had. She was like a drug in his bloodstream slowly chipping away all his self-control and he willingly gave in.

He relieved her of the sheet barring him from her body and let it drop to the floor between them. He thoroughly feasted his eyes on every inch that was revealed and couldn’t help letting his hands and mouth follow down the same sensual path.

Winter’s low needy moans were a symphony to his ears that called him to open his eyes to behold the picture she made as she stood before him. What he saw was just as breath-taking as the first time they’d made love, only better. This time there was a knowing, a claiming, a meshing of souls.

God, how he needed this woman
.

Needing to be within the warm welcoming heat of her tight sheath, he smoothly picked her up and deposited her on the edge of the bed to stand between her firm brown thighs. Pushing her backwards, he took her hands in his and placed them above her head and gave her a soul searing kiss. When he pulled back he settled solidly between her parted thighs and looked searchingly into her warm brown eyes.

“
I don’t want to let you go, but if I have to—I want you to take a piece of me with you…” His words were followed by action as his hard thick cock slid to the hilt into the place it now called home.

“
Baby, yes…” Her low breathy moan slipped helplessly from her parted lips as she was consumed with sensations. Both the physical and emotional combined to overtake her as she once again stretched to accommodate his large girth. Winter felt deliciously exposed as she maintained eye contact with Eric the whole time as she accepted him fully into her. She couldn’t help but arch up into him and wrap her legs around his lean waist while he pushed through her wet folds to settle to the hilt at her womb.

“
Baby, that feels so good…” Winter couldn’t help but voice her pleasure at the fullness she felt because somehow it was even better than the first time. All her inhibitions were gone and were replaced with a new boldness as she took in the concentrated passion masking his features and reflecting from his clear blue eyes.

“
Good. Because sweetheart it’s only gonna get better.” And he kept his word stroke by stroke fanning the flames of pleasure from a slow burn to an all out inferno. But if wasn’t enough. Eric wanted it all. The caveman in him had an unexplainable need to brand her and make her his for all time.

Reaching down between them, he masterfully caressed her clit in perfect time to his plundering cock. And when he felt the inner walls of her pussy spasm rhythmically around him, he knew that his actions had just backfired on him. He knew he was a goner and wouldn’t last one second longer.

“
Feel me…” He just barely growled those low sexy words when he felt his orgasm power through him to flood her pussy with jet after jet of his seed.

“
Oh God, Eric!” Winter screamed and ran her short nails down his well muscled back at the constant onslaught of pleasure he was giving her. And as she felt the warm slid of his semen splash deep within her womb she came apart and came again greedily soaking up each and every drop.

“
It’s okay baby, let it happen.” Eric pulled Winter closer to him and wrapped her more securely in his arms as he continued to smoothly stroke her through the aftershocks rocking through them both. He couldn’t resist rubbing his lips along her sweat soaked neck as a feeling of peace and contentment he had never known settled over him.

A few minutes ticked by before Eric could bring himself to move from the warmth of her snug slit and soft curves. Rolling to his side, he didn’t take long to tuck Winter comfortably into his side.

He knew that eventually he would have to get up and make the arrangements for her to go home, but he was not looking forward to being separated from her soft tempting body.

“
Baby, I can’t let you just do all this stuff and not pay you back some kind of way.” Winter said shifting in his arms to look up at him.

Rolling her over once again beneath him, Eric stared down into her concerned eyes and laid her worries to rest.

“
Sweetheart, I would never cheapen what we shared by trying to buy you. And as far as paying me back, don’t even think about it. We’re together now.” His words left no room for argument.

As he gazed down into her beautiful face, he knew the words that he’d just told her were only a tip of the iceberg.

All he wanted to do was enjoy what little time they had left before she went to Georgia. All his fantasies had paled in comparison to the reality he now knew and thanks to that knowledge he suspected that the next few weeks would be a bitch as a result.

****

Time stands still for no one and for that Winter was thankful. Two weeks later, she sat once again on Eric’s private jet headed back to Arizona. She was grateful that everything had turned out okay with her Aunt Sophie and that she had been there to be on some help. And now she could rest easy knowing that even though she going back to Arizona that Aunt Sophie would be well taken care of thanks to the private nurse Eric had been thoughtful enough to hire.

She couldn’t wait to see him again and feel his arms around her. They had spoken every chance they got while she was away, but it still hadn’t been enough to quench her thirst for his actual presence. And now thanks to an emergency with the Carlton case she would have to wait a little longer to see him.

As far as she knew, he would be in New York assisting Quinn for at least a few more days. Even knowing that, she still felt the flutter of anticipation in the pit of her stomach at the thought of seeing him when he did get back to Phoenix.

Trying to contain her excitement at the mere thought, she smoothed her hands down over the deep purple maxi dress she’d purchased while she was away. It was one of a few outfits she’d gotten to kick start her new look. The cool feel of the soft silk/cotton blend material hugging her curves gave her the extra confidence she needed as she sat looking out the plane window.

The happiness she felt had her feeling like she was floating on one of those very same clouds she was looking at right now. This time away made her realize how much she longed to express her love to him.

So the real question was; would she be bold enough to put herself on the line and reveal her feelings to him?

But what if he rejected her love?
She thought a panicked second later. Feeling her confidence take a slight nose dive at the doubt-laced thought, she closed her eyes and willed it away.

She’d talked herself out of too many things in her life and it was time to break that old habit for good. She deserved the things she saw other women her age had: a husband and children of her own. She deserved Eric.