All In (11 page)

“Isn’t it good?” Mick pulled her closer, their bare
feet skidding through the damp, gritty sand. Their hips hit. Mingled breaths
wafted between them.

****

Blond strands of hair blew across her face and neck,
lifting in the sea breeze. Her sweet brown eyes watered in the wind, blinking at
him. Tonight was the night. It had to be. Everything was coming together, and
so were they. Mick was not waiting any longer.

Lee, the hero from her book, was crowding his brain.
Mick could be as good as fiction. He’d read and researched. Mick was sure he
knew what Cara wanted. Now all he needed to do was make it happen for her. He,
Mick
Terrel
, wanted to be her fantasy, not some
conjured-up guy within the pages of a book.

He boldly snaked his hand around her neck, guiding
her lips to his. He kept moving. Mick wanted no hesitation. He angled his face
and shut his eyes, hearing her breath hitch.

Her mouth was loose and pliable. Mick tasted her,
his senses on overload. Heat raced up his legs, settling in his groin and he
squirmed, feeling his boxers fill, all manly parts on alert.

When Mick felt the warmth of her silky tongue touch
his, he moaned into her throat, unable to contain himself.

His other hand slowly slid up and over her ribs,
resting below the swell of her breast. Her mouth pressed a bit more against
his, an urgent firmness that appeared to match his. Internal elation made him
bold. Mick inched further with his exploration.

Salty sea wind whirled around them. Mick painted her
teeth with his tongue, relishing every drop of her. Deciding to err on the side
of caution, he slowly stepped back, cupping her face.

A pair of sleepy eyes opened, her
mouth
still
a loose pucker. The sea spoke around them, an oscillating infinity
that mirrored every thought and idea Mick had ever had of her.

“Thank you,” he whispered.

Cara’s eyes narrowed against the balmy gusts of
wind. She raised a hand, the tip of her finger stroking his cheek. His body
ached, wishing and wanting for so much more of her.

“I’m hungry,” she said, shrugging through a nervous laughter.

So am
I!

“I think a pizza’s in the budget,” Mick said, taking
her hand in his.

“Sounds great.”

Chapter
Twenty-One

Awareness
moved around them. It was hard for Cara to ignore and difficult to dodge,
following their second close encounter. Her limbs were shaky and unable to
support her. Any questions she’d had were now multiplied, overcrowding an
already active mind.

Later, after dinner, she decided to do some laundry,
needing to keep busy. Mick lay on the bed, tracking her as Cara moved about the
room.

Once she had their clothes stuffed inside a
pillowcase, she stood idly at the door.

“Going somewhere?” he asked, sounding somewhat
shrewd. He laced his fingers behind his neck, his feet crossed at the ankles.

“Laundry… I thought I’d do some,” she told him,
trying to keep the edge out of her voice.

Mick waved at her from his bed.

“Okay … see
ya
,” he said,
smiling.

What’s
so funny?

Okay.” She turned. “I’ll be back.” Cara rushed out
the door, her heart palpitating into a throat that’d run dry since they left
the beach.

As she walked toward the laundry area, Cara
speculated whether he was laughing at their kiss or laughing at her. Something
was different this time. Was Mick amused with himself? Cara didn’t think this
was at all funny. Something smoldered between them. It would eventually have to
be dealt with and discussed.

She placed the quarters in the machine, dumping a
small box of powder into the basket. She pulled the clothes out of the
pillowcase, feeling her frustration mount. Once the wash cycle started, Cara
leaned against the machine, wishing she could’ve brought her book. There was no
way she was going to go sifting through her pack to retrieve it. Erin and Tim,
as hot as they were, were once again frozen in time.

The nagging reality that she’d tried to deny kept
knocking on the door of her thoughts. It was relentless. Cara silently
confessed that she did want Mick. He had crawled into her heart and her mind.
He’d made his statement. Cara read him loud and clear, translating his actions.

She couldn’t take the tension. It was time, time to engage
this womanly body in some sexual activity. After all, it was healthy, right? At
the rate she was going, by the time she got started, she’d be old and washed
up.

Cara needed to purge James out of her system. Her only
experience did nothing but taint her future. The spell needed to be broken,
though Mick was already working on that. Cara smiled.

Mick obviously wanted her. Was it just because she
was the only one there?
A convenience?
How come this
never happened back home? Once they were settled somewhere permanently, would
he find someone else?

“Everything all right down here?”
Mick
asked. The lights went out, closing her vision like a curtain. Her heart leapt
out of her chest. The deep voice that she’d known her entire life oozed through
the dark laundry room.

“I’ll ask again, you doing okay
down here?” His tone lowered into a rough whisper. His scorching breaths hit
the back of her neck as his fingers brushed her hair to one side.

Cara gripped the edge of the
washing machine. Its steady hum penetrated into her pelvis when Mick pressed
his body against hers from behind.

His hands began to wander, petting and stroking her,
learning about her in the dark. Mick’s hips thrust into her. Cara felt him, his
need and wants evident, pressing into her tailbone.

“Well?” Mick asked. Cold steel cooled her palms. The
washer started to spin, taking her mind with it.

“Fine … fine,” Cara said, her words breaking.

“Good.” Mick spoke in her ear, his breath hot. “You’re
so beautiful. You know that?”

When his lips slowly nipped at the back of her neck,
Cara’s eyes closed. He was plucking the cords of every muscle fiber in her
body, making her twitch and vibrate. Her breasts tingled, sprouting beneath her
shirt, calling out for a warm mouth and soft palm. His declaration had the
outside world as she knew it evaporating into thin air.

“I want you … want to taste you and touch you,” he
said, his voice raspy, riding on an exhausted sigh. “I want to be inside you,
feeling you, skin to skin.”

“So help me, God,” she whined.

His hands skirted underneath her shirt, drawing
lines of fire over her flesh. His hands found her, cupping her breasts and
gently fondling them. His hips undulated into her again, his cock a hard
reminder.

The pitch of the washing machine’s hum changed,
downshifting into a slow stop. His body pulled back. Mick’s hands steered her
to the side.

“Let’s get these clothes in the dryer. Then, I’ve
got other plans.”

Cara caught his gleaming eyes, flashing like fiery
coals in the dark confines of the laundry room. Mick quickly lifted the lid and
began tossing the clothes into the dryer. Riffling through his pocket, he
inserted the change.

The zipper of her hoodie clanked as the dryer
revolved. Mick took her hand and lifted it to his mouth. Wet warmth slithered
through her fingers as his tongue drew lines up and down each finger.

Childlike moans spilled from her throat as Mick
pulled her finger deep into his mouth, suckling,
his
actions an erotic innuendo. His mouth left her, lowering her hand to his
clothed cock.

“Feel me,” he said hoarsely. “You’ve had me strung
out for years … please.”

Words she’d heard in her mind these last few weeks wouldn’t
come. They were stuck on her tongue.
Strung
out for years?
His need was maddening, something Cara had never seen or
felt from another. She took his hand and took two steps back toward the door.

Mick’s eyes blazed his reply in a string of
expressions. His roughened voice finally croaked out around them.

“Oh, Cara,” Mick murmured, shaking his head. His breath
expelled between them. “You have no idea.”

Chapter
Twenty-Two

As soon as they reached their room, Mick engaged the
lock, leaving the room saturated in darkness. A thin strip of glimmering light
crept into the room, sneaking in below the hem of the curtains, illuminating
the expressive features of Mick’s face. Cara wet her lips, her insides clenched
with anticipation.

Mick’s hands landed on her shoulders, directing
their steps toward the bed behind her. He sat her down,
then
knelt at her knees, yanking his shirt over his head. His hands then took her
face. His mouth crushed hers, hard and needy. His desire was mounting, rising
out of him, fanning her internal flame.

Mick’s tongue swept through her mouth, bathing her
with his moisture. His hands fumbled, lifting the hem of her shirt. Their
mouths parted long enough for him to remove Cara’s shirt. He cleverly released
the clasp of her bra, whisking it down her arms, tossing it behind him, his
lips taking hers again.

Cara grabbed his head, turning her face slightly,
gasping.
“Mick.”

He squeezed her breasts together. His head lowered,
nuzzling into her. Mick nipped at both nipples before warming them with his
tongue.

Balmy breaths huffed against her chest. His mouth
enveloped one breast, gorging on her flesh. Mick groaned, wrestling with the
button on her jeans. He rose to his feet, the air moving around them like a
storm that could no longer be contained.

“Scoot back,” he
said,
his
tone thick.

Cara’s eyes went wide, trying to decipher him
through the hazy shadows. Her sneakers were yanked from her feet, hitting the
floor behind her with a dull thud.

Mick’s hands worked fast and urgently. There was no
time to think of what to say. He was taking off her clothes. The line had been
crossed.

He peeled the heavy denim off her legs in one swift motion.
Mick’s weight dipped the mattress. The lines of his strong body rose over her,
a physical power she would now experience.

Cara gripped his arms, pressing into mounds of
corded muscle. Cara shivered, now lying below him in her panties. He’d crawled
inside her head, and so quickly.

“These are coming off. I’m going to touch you where
I’ve never touched you before. I can’t wait to feel the soft skin of your
pussy,” Mick said. His voice hardened. It sliced through her, his words tight, spoken
through gritted teeth.

“Oh God,” Cara shuddered. “Mick…” Her voice died. Waves
of heat burned through her body.

Mick pulled at the thin elastic, pushing her panties
down her legs. Cara squealed as he bent her knee, spreading her legs wider. Air
moved into hot, closed-off places that were now open and fully exposed.

When his fingers combed through the creases of her
pussy, Cara stilled, her breath catching. His hand shook, as if rearing back
the urge, yet wanting to be tender.

“Christ, you’re so wet … perfect, just like I knew
you would be,” he said huskily. Anguished moans sounded from his chest. His
breaths grew rapid.
“Stunning.”
He smiled down at her.
The bed shifted below them as Mick fought to undo his jeans.

Cara reached for him, assisting him with the
cumbersome denim. “I want to feel you,” she whispered.

“I
want you to.” He laughed half-heartedly. “Help me.”

His nakedness joined hers, his flesh scalding. Cara
raked her fingers down his chest, his nipples like buttons.

“That’s it. Touch me,” Mick told her, his breaths
coming faster. The musk of his body settled in her nose, altering the scent of
every breath she took. His mouth descended onto hers. Their heads changed
angles, their noses rubbing. One chest pushed against the other, their need now
a rushing frenzy that knew no bounds.

Tongues thirsted, reaching and striving for one
another’s taste. Mick abruptly pulled back. His cock poked into her hip bone,
his moisture now on her skin, sticky and hot.

“Should I be sheathing up for this?” A wry grin
curled his lips. Her ribs ached, taking in all the air they could until they
were consummated, their bodies knitted as one.

Cara shook her head, searching to touch him.

“I’m protected.
Medical reasons.
Are you— Have you?”

Mick nodded. “I’ve always
protected myself. This’ll be a first.

I just want to be as close to you as I can be,” he
said softly. “Touch me. Feel how much I want you.” He placed her hand on him. Mick’s
neck arched back, his groans a rumbling chorus.