The Pleasure Series: Complete Box Set (48 page)

He withdrew slowly and my eyelids fluttered. I waited for the next thrust to be hard, but he didn't oblige. Instead, he kept his strokes steady, moving at a pace that soon had me begging and writhing. Even as his stomach pressed against mine, I felt the tension as he fought to keep himself from taking me hard.

“What do you want, love?” he asked. “Tell me.”

“You,” I said. “I want you.”

He leaned down and nipped at my breast through my teddy. I let out something that sounded very much like a whine. He ground his hips down, rubbing against my clit.

“Come for me,” he said. “Come for me and I'll take you hard. Is that what you want?”

I nodded, every inch of me tense. He continued that delicious pressure even as he continued to use his teeth on my nipple. When he bit down, I cried out and came. Pleasure washed over me and then everything exploded as he began to move with short, rapid thrusts. He pounded into me, driving me higher and higher. His fingers dug into my wrists, his teeth around my nipple and my world was pleasure and pain all mingling together until tears streamed down my cheeks and all that came out of my mouth was a soundless wail.

His body stiffened as he buried himself inside me, a long, drawn-out groan falling from his lips as his cock pulsed. He let go of my hands as his head fell onto my chest. I brought my arms down, ignoring the pins and needles. I combed my fingers through his sweaty hair.

“I love you,” I said softly. “I love you so much.” I ran my fingers down across his cheekbone and then across his lips.

“Did I do it?” he asked, his voice sleepy.

“Do what?” I asked, confused.

“Did I make it up to you?”

I smiled and smoothed back his hair. “Yes, Rylan. You more than made up for it.”

“Good,” he said, his words fuzzy. “I want to start the new year right.”

I looked down at him, felt the afterglow buzzing in my body. For the first time in my life, I was actually looking forward to the new year. With him.

Chapter 14

At some point during the night, I got up to use the bathroom and changed out of the lingerie. It was sexy, but not what I preferred to sleep in. Instead of digging out pajamas, however, I picked Rylan's shirt up off the floor and pulled it on. It smelled like him and, as I snuggled back under the sheets, his scent surrounded me and lulled me to sleep again.

When I woke back up, I half-expected Rylan to be gone, out and about doing something. I rolled over and he was there, on his back, one arm thrown behind his head, the other across his bare stomach. The sheets and blankets were down around his waist, one side low enough that I could see the smooth expanse of his hip.

My fingers itched to reach out and touch him, to explore the firm muscles of his chest and stomach, to slip beneath the covers and find soft curls and even softer skin. I didn't though. I folded my arms under my head as I rested on my stomach, enjoying the sight of him. The steady rise and fall of his chest. The faint morning stubble across his cheeks. His lips, parted ever so slightly. His hair falling across his forehead.

He made a sound, a soft sigh that curled its way into my heart. He shifted, his head rolling towards me as his eyes slowly opened. I smiled as they focused on me and his lips curved.

“Were you watching me sleep?” he asked, his voice still thick with sleep.

“I was,” I admitted. “Does it bother you?”

He shook his head and reached for me. I cuddled up against his side, resting my cheek on his chest as he kissed the top of my head. “I like waking up next to you,” he said.

“I like it too.” I slid my arm across his stomach, reaching for the hand resting there. I laced my fingers between his.

“You know what else I like?” he asked, then continued without waiting for my answer. “Seeing you in my shirt. Maybe it's old-fashioned or chauvinistic or something, but I like it when you wear my clothes.”

I chuckled. “Well then, maybe I should wear your clothes and you wear mine.” He laughed, the sound rumbling up through his chest. “Or,” I added. “You could wear nothing at all.”

“I think that's the one thing I like better than my clothes on you.” His tone was teasing, but there was heat to it.

“Oh really?” I teased back, raising my head to look at him. “Then I suppose you're not interested in the other special garments I brought with me?”

His eyes darkened. “I think I need to get in the shower right now or we’ll never get out of this bed.”

“Would that be a bad thing?” I asked.

He sighed. “As much as I'd love it, I really want to show you around, teach you to ski.” He reached down and brushed the back of his hand across my cheek. “I want us to be about more than sex.” He caught my bottom lip between his thumb and forefinger. “You mean too much to me to let things go that way.”

He climbed out of bed before I could respond and I was treated to the sight of his tight ass flexing as he walked out of the room and across the hall to the bathroom. A moment later, I heard the shower turn on. I rolled onto my back and stared up at the ceiling. Rylan definitely had more self-control than I did. I wanted us to have a relationship, a real one that wasn't all about emotion and sex, but I didn't know how to do it. Giving up control by following Rylan's lead on this was, in some ways, harder than it was during sex. I so badly wanted things between us to work out that not being able to control the direction we were going made me nervous. I trusted him and that, I knew, was what I had to remember.

After I showered, I joined him in the kitchen for breakfast. Nothing elaborate, but the simplicity of cereal and toast made it seem less like a one-time special event and more like us settling into something deeper. Once we finished, Rylan insisted that we take a walk in the woods. After lunch, we'd go skiing. I still wasn't entirely sure that was a good idea since I had no clue what I was doing, but I went along with it anyway.

We didn't go deep into the woods since the trails were snowed over to the point it'd be easy to get lost, but we were so far from the nearest major road that even just standing a few yards away from the cabin made it seem like we were cut off from the rest of the world. With most of the animals hibernating, it was quiet. The rustle of a few creatures and the creaking of branches were the only sounds.

As we stood there, Rylan came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me. He rested his chin on my head. “It's so peaceful out here,” he said softly. “I know Fort Collins isn't like New York or Denver, but there's still that city energy.”

I put my hands over his, wishing there weren't gloves between us. “I know exactly what you mean.”

I leaned back against him and let myself enjoy the moment. No pressure for time, nowhere we had to be. We had plans, but there was no one holding us to them, no schedule we had to follow. Our time was our own. No interruptions, no outside obligations.

We headed back when we were hungry, then gathered our things for the ski runs. Getting me set up for my first lesson took longer than I suspected was necessary since Rylan's hands seemed to keep finding themselves in places that weren't exactly essential to putting on my skis or other equipment, a matter that seemed to increase in frequency as he showed me the proper way to move on the skis. By the time I was ready to try my first slope, I was hot and bothered in a way that had nothing to do with physical exertion.

As expected, I took a few falls, but the snow was soft and Rylan was always there to help me up. Each time, I'd see the concern on his face as he approached and it wouldn't leave until he knew I was okay. What I appreciated the most though was that he didn't try to coddle me, no matter how much he worried. He never tried to get me to quit or suggest that I take it easy. He encouraged me to keep going, to keep trying, and when I finally made it down the slope without falling, the kiss he gave me made me wish it wasn't so cold out.

It began to snow lightly as the sun headed towards the horizon and by the time we were ready to call it a day, the flakes were coming down in fat, thick balls that made me think that it was a good thing we'd done outside stuff today. We headed back to the cabin, cleaned up and ate, then fell into bed, too exhausted to do anything more than kiss each other good-night.

When I opened my eyes the next morning, every muscle in my body was sore. I left Rylan still sleeping and spent a long time letting the hot water pound into my aching muscles. I popped a couple ibuprofen before heading back into the room. Rylan was standing at the window, wearing only the flannel pants he'd worn to bed last night. I took a moment to admire his tattoo and then walked over to the dresser to find something to wear.

“Come here,” he spoke without turning away from the window.

I crossed to his side, curious about what had captured his attention. My eyes widened as I took in our now-white surroundings. There had been a good amount of snow yesterday, but this was so much more. The trees were loaded with snow and there were drifts at least four feet tall. And it was still snowing.

“I don't think we're going to be doing any skiing today,” Rylan said. He looked down at me and smiled. “Think you can handle being stuck inside with me or are you going to get cabin fever?”

I grinned at him and winked. “Oh, I think we can find plenty to do to keep from getting bored.” I turned back to look at the snow. “I'm thinking the first thing we need to do after breakfast is check out that hot tub.” Aside from the fact that it'd be nice for my sore body, I was looking forward to being able to ogle a wet Rylan in swim trunks.

I couldn't think of a better way to end the year.

Chapter 15

The hot tub wasn't the only thing heating us up as the day progressed. Rylan gave me a tour of the entire house and shared stories of family time here, but the tension between us continued to grow. While he made dinner, I excused myself to freshen up and change into one of the panty and bra sets I bought before Christmas. I pulled my jeans and sweater back on over the lingerie, but with it on, I knew where I wanted things to go tonight, no matter how sore my muscles were. There was only one thing I wanted to do when the year changed from old to new.

When I walked back into the living room, Rylan was there waiting. He'd stoked up the fire, lit a couple candles and brought dinner out to the coffee table. He'd also poured us both glasses of wine. I took the one he offered and sat on the couch. He sat next to me. The meal was simple but delicious. Strips of tender steak and vegetables, eaten with our fingers, were way more sensual than I'd thought possible. Then there were the freshly sliced apples with cinnamon sprinkled on them for dessert.

“You know,” Rylan said. “I'd always enjoyed New Year's Eve parties, but I remember always thinking that one day, it might be nice to ring in the new year quietly.” He looked down at me. “With someone special.” He wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

“So you don’t miss being with your friends tonight?” I asked the question casually, purposefully not giving a specific name.

“I don't want to be anywhere else but here,” he said, kissing my temple.

The sound of the fire crackling filled the room, but we didn't need to talk. We were warm and comfortable. The world outside was so far away that it didn't matter. My stomach was full of good food and I was safe.

As the night wore on, Rylan's fingers began to make small circles on my shoulder and he pulled me closer. I brought my legs up, stifling a grimace as I tucked my feet under me. I didn't want him knowing I was too sore. He'd probably insist that I go to bed and I wasn't about to ruin the night. His hand dropped from my shoulder to my waist and his fingers slipped under the hem of my shirt. I shifted to give him enough room to move and he quickly obliged.

His hand slid across my stomach, leaving fire burning across my skin. When his hand cupped my breast, I moaned. I closed my eyes and let myself enjoy the sensations as his fingers explored my bra.

“Something new?” he asked softly.

I nodded and sat up. “Want to see?”

Even in the dim light, I could see his eyes darken to that near-purple color I loved so much. I pulled off my sweater and then stood. I heard his sharp intake of breath as I leaned down to take off my jeans. The muscles in my leg protested the stretch, but I ignored it.

“Damn, Jenna,” he murmured as he looked over me.

I'd chosen this set because I'd loved the way the deep red looked against my skin. They were sheer lace, hiding nothing. The bra was barely enough to cover my nipples and the panties hardly more than inch-wide in the front and less than that in the back.

For a moment, I wondered if things would've looked even better with my natural hair color. Then Rylan grabbed my hand and pulled me down on his lap. He flipped us even as I fell, rolling me under him so that we were stretched out on the couch, his body lying along mine.

His hands ran over me as his lips slanted over mine. His tongue traced my bottom lip far more gently than I'd expected from the heat I'd seen in his eyes. I opened my mouth and darted my tongue out to meet his. I moaned as he deepened the kiss, exploring my mouth slowly, as if he had forgotten it. He buried his hands in my hair, holding my head in place as I gripped his waist, pulling him closer. I slid my hands under the back of his shirt, fingers teasing across the top of his ass even as my thumbs made circles at the base of his spine.

His mouth moved away from my lips and down my neck. I tilted my head back as he kissed his way down my throat, then made a pained sound as the muscles in my neck and across my shoulders tightened.

“Jenna?” Rylan pushed himself up off of me so fast I could barely process it. “Did I hurt you?” He knelt next to the couch. “Love, I'm so sorry.”

I shook my head, wincing as the movement pulled things. “No, that's not it.” I sat up. “I'm sore from yesterday. I'm in good shape, but skiing took a whole different set of muscles and I didn't stretch...”

His expression relaxed. “Wait right here.”

He stood and walked quickly down the hall. I watched him go as I slowly rolled my neck and stretched my arms out. I'd stayed in the same position for far too long. If I would've moved around, I wouldn’t have been so stiff.