Forrest, Dawn - Sweet Water Wedding: Sharing Shannon (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (25 page)

She couldn’t help the involuntary clench between her legs. She loved the way he verbally and physically expressed his possessive sexual dominance. On occasion she topped him, but this wasn’t going to be one of those sessions.

He laughed softly. “You sure do like dirty talk, but we already know that, don’t we?”

“Yes, I think we’ve established that many times over,” she quipped

“Ah Rachael,” he sighed, “still giving pithy replies even with your bare ass and wet pussy so temptingly and shamelessly on display. Well, I have something that should keep you quiet for a bit.”

Snagging a coil of rope from the wall he prowled toward her.

Oh, my
¾

Chapter 16

“What’s wrong with Scrabble? Don’t you know how to play?” James asked cheerily.

He knew full well that Shannon had expected him to go Caveman Cowboy on her and cart her off to his den, but he was playing for keeps. He wanted her to
want
to want him, to feel good about it, not guilty. Doing the unexpected would keep her guessing and make her reassess her ideas about things, about him and a possible life together with Luke. Doing ordinary stuff was just as important as creating heat between the sheets.

“Yeah, sure I do,” she smiled up at him, visibly relaxing, “but no using Greek letters of the alphabet as a word, even though they are in the dictionary, that’s cheating.”

“Okay, and we can use both Anglo-English and American-English spelling.”

They chatted as they began to play, just light conversation about travel, work and so forth. She seemed to be enjoying his company. As the game progressed a pattern emerged to his play.

“Are you trying to distract me with rude words? You really don’t need to because I’m distracted enough by what might be going on in that barn. Look, how lame is that?” She indicated to her word ‘egg’ which she had made using the ‘e’ in his word ‘sexy’.

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” he denied, while at the same time using and connecting letters from several other words to form a long and complicated looking arrangement. When he revealed it she looked both amused and impressed.

“Cunnilingus?” She chuckled.

“Yeah, it’s one of my favorite words, because it’s such a tongue twister.” He licked his lips suggestively.

“You’re too good. How do you do it?” She laughed.

“Do what? Scrabble or cunnilingus?” He affected confusion. “I suppose I could show you,” he said with an exaggerated, weary sigh.

She threw a cushion at him. “You know full well what I mean, but I bet I already know the answer to both—intelligence and a lot of practice, you slut you.”

He jerked back as if she’d slapped him in the face.

“Oh, God, James, I didn’t mean it nastily, it was a joke. But it obviously wasn’t that funny.” She looked worried. “I don’t care how many lovers you’ve had, it doesn’t bother me.” She paused for a moment. “I guess I may feel a little intimidated, I mean you and Luke have a lot of experience and women to compare me to. I feel a little self-conscious about it, but that’s my problem, I don’t think any less of you for it.”

He didn’t want the ghosts of past sexual encounters to get in the way of their budding relationship, and he needed to make her understand how he felt about her.

“I don’t even think of the others when I’m with you and I hope that there will never be anyone one else.”

“Oh...okay.” Her voice sounded small and uncertain. Then she drew herself up and became more resolute. “Look, I’m really sorry, it was meant as a joke, so please don’t be upset and huffy about it. We have to face the fact that we are going to be running into a lot of your exes and you know what James, it doesn’t bother me much because the past is the past, it’s happened, no regrets. I don’t want to have to walk on eggshells around the issue, afraid of upsetting you. Just stop being so bloody touchy!”

She sounded and looked a little pissed off now, probably because if anyone should be upset about his philandering past it was her, not him. He hadn’t given much consideration to the double standards that apply to men and women who have had a lot of lovers. Being called a slut had shocked him, even though it had been in jest. He guessed that if he had been a woman he probably would have heard it long before now, yet another reason to be thankful for his meat and two veg. He lightened up and smiled because she was right, if it didn’t bother her that’s all that mattered to him.

“Okay, dear,” he intoned in the placating way of countless husbands and partners throughout history and the world.

She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at him, “And don’t be bloody cheeky either.”

He laughed. “Come here and give me my kiss.”

“What kiss?”

“My makeup kiss. That was our first little tiff.”

Laughing, she launched herself at him, bowling him backwards on the sofa, snuggling into his chest and neck.

“I really like you.” She kissed him lightly on the neck. “I like your character.” She kissed his cheek. “I think that we could be good friends.” She kissed his forehead.

“Well that’s great, honey, but I was kinda hoping for a bit more. At least we are now horizontal, that’s progress.”

She swatted his head and chuckled. “I meant that I like you over and above this attraction thing, which I’ll admit is way beyond anything I’ve ever experienced until this week and meeting you and Luke. Everything I’ve learnt about relationships says that it’s wrong to feel so strongly about two men at the same time, yet it doesn’t feel wrong at all, it actually feels sort of natural. Are you really okay with that?” She looked deep into his eyes and a wash of pleasure surged through him like a balm of happiness to his soul.

He pulled her face down to his and kissed her gently yet firmly on the lips. “I like you, too, sweetheart, and I’m over the moon by the fact that you feel a strong attraction to both me and Luke.”

His hand roamed over her back and butt while the other tangled in her hair as he took possession of her mouth again. Responding instinctively, matching his passion, she kissed him back, synchronizing her lips to his, their tongues caught up in an oral ballet.

Someone cleared their throat loudly.

“Ahem. Get a room.” Rachael sounded amused.

Shannon stiffened but James just continued to kiss her, his resolve to play it cool evaporated like a summer rain on warm earth.

“I was just thinking the exact same thing. Just say yes,” he whispered softly into her ear, hoping with all his heart that she would.

“Maybe we should retire to my rooms and give them a bit more time?” Joshua said sounding hopeful.

“You are a greedy, insatiable man— lucky me— but I feel remiss enough in my friendship duties. Oi, O’Reilly, are you okay?”

Shannon slowly raised her head and swept aside the curtain of hair that had blocked their faces from prying eyes. She looked first a Rachael and then at James lying underneath her before pointedly saying, “Yes.”

It was enough for him. He stood up and tossed her over his shoulder again.

“We may be a little while,” he called back as he strode determinedly toward his wing of the house.

He felt Shannon try to shrug, which must have been a hard thing to do upside down, and as he looked over his other shoulder he saw her wave at a shocked but grinning Rachael. Her giggles faded away as they entered his bedroom and he locked shut the door. He patted her on the ass as he tipped her onto his bed like a sack of grain, with a satisfied, “There you go.”

She fell back onto the firm mattress in an unsophisticated sprawl but quickly scrambled back away from him as he stood at the end of the bed staring down at her. The shutters that lined the glazed gable end wall were half tilted and intermittent shafts of warm afternoon sunlight penetrated into the shaded interior. The occasional dust mote was rendered visible, swirling lazily in the gentle air current of the air conditioning. For a few moments they simply regarded each other, then Shannon arched an eyebrow and it was enough of an invitation for him. He deliberately undid the buttons on his shirt slowly, giving her time to fully understand his intentions.

“I was planning on waiting until we’re together with Luke tomorrow, but it seems the opportunity has presented itself, and, darlin’, you should know that I’m nothing if not a pragmatist.”

Since the interruption in his SUV a few nights ago he had thought of little else. He’d delayed their physical gratification long enough. Scrabble was fun and provided an opportunity for some mental stimulation, but he wanted sex now. He saw an opportunity to have her and he was going to take it.

“I think I should demonstrate a few of those words.”

* * * *

Shannon was compelled to watch male perfection revealed. She almost forgot to breathe as he shrugged off his shirt and placed it over the back of a chair. He stood before her, a potent cocktail of masculinity and desire served with...with what she could only describe as a loving smile.

Without taking her eyes off him, she reclined back against the pillows and undid the buttons on her blouse with trembling fingers. James watched as the fabric parted. He sucked in a breath sharply when he saw that she wasn’t wearing a bra. Raw desire etched his features. He took another deep breath, and undid his belt buckle. She watched him closely, her cheeks feeling warmer and no doubt taking on a rosy hue. Her nostrils flared and her breathing became irregular. She couldn’t remember being swamped by such a mass of desire before. When he unbuttoned his fly she swallowed nervously but she wasn’t going to say no. He pushed his jeans down and stepped out of them with the grace that came only with a maneuver well practiced. Standing before her in his tight Jockeys he slightly tilted his head to the side and waited.

Dear God, the man standing before her had the body of an archangel, or a horny devil judging by the bulging package so tantalizingly covered by straining cotton. Her eyes roamed over the clearly defined planes of muscle that folded around his frame. There was not a feminine curve to be seen. No, here was something different to her, a counterpart, and it called her primal female to join with it, unite in the act of creation. Her body wanted to chase it down. The beauty of his form was undeniable and breathtaking. Without any doubt that she wanted him, she pulled off her shoes and socks and wriggled out of her jeans.

They openly appraised each other, their eyes roaming but constantly returning to capture each other’s gaze and communicate a reassurance that they felt the same way. Her heart blossomed like wild spring flowers under the warm sun when he smiled. She wanted him to cover her, to feel his skin pressed close along hers, with nothing to break the contact. He was smoldering temptation and she wanted to fan the flames. Boldly she slipped off her black lace panties and shifted further down the bed, beckoning him to her with a little crook of her finger and a mischievous sexy grin. Her heart didn’t lie below her waist, but it was one of the ways to it.

He stripped the last piece of cloth off his body and his cock sprang forward eagerly like a prisoner joyfully escaping his cage. Her eyes widen when she saw his length and girth. He was very big.

“I can see your creaming cunt from here, all slick and ready for my cock to slide in. You want me don’t you, Shannon?”

“Yes I want you,” she confessed, shocked yet aroused by his rude words.

He smiled and crawled onto the bed with the grace and power of a big cat, his cock swaying like a thick tail, until he was over her. The heat of his body settled over her skin, and his very essence mingled and diffused into hers. She waited for the touch of his body upon her.

* * * *

He studied the delectable naked woman under him. She was all slender, soft curves, no hard angles but no signs of overindulgence either. Her firm breasts sat pertly on her chest, begging him to take a bite. Those very prominent nipples that jutted proudly up from pink peaks were surely designed to be pinched and suckled. He steadied himself, trying to find calm in the churning waters of his lust. Her skin was almost luminescent in its paleness but there were sporadic patches of freckles, like an exotic animal print. They would need to keep a close eye on it in the future in order to be aware of any sun damage that might occur; it wouldn’t be a chore.