World Enough and Time (16 page)

And in his eyes, that look.

Goose bumps prickled my skin and electricity radiated from my clit and up my spine, nearly making me shiver. I had to be imagining the way he looked at me. Or else I’d imagined the way he’d been looking at me since the moment he’d arrived.

I smiled and cocked my head. “What?”

The corners of his mouth rose a little higher. “Nothing.” But still he didn’t take his eyes off me.

I laughed self-consciously, brushing a few loose strands of hair out of my face. “Connor, you’re looking at me like that.”

He tilted his head slightly, just enough to add mischievousness to his expression. “Looking at you like what?”

“Like that.” I swallowed. “Like you’re thinking about things that should wait until I look a bit less like hell.” I gestured at my sweaty, disheveled self.

“On the contrary.” He pushed himself off the doorframe and started toward me. “It’s the way you look right now that’s doing this to me.” A heartbeat later, his lips were against mine and I knew he was telling the truth. I couldn’t fathom how or why, but I also couldn’t argue with his passionate, breathless kiss.

When he broke the kiss, he just looked at me, breathing hard and moistening his lips. He tucked a few unruly strands of hair behind my ear and his hand kept going, sliding around the back of my neck and pulling me to him again.

His lips brushing mine, he whispered, “If you only knew what you do to me, Dani.”

“Looking like this?” I said. “But—”

“The minute I saw you like this…” He trailed off as he watched his hands run down my sides and over my hips. “Jesus, Dani, ever since I got here I’ve been going out of my mind because I couldn’t touch you.”

“But I’m—” I shook my head. “I look like—”

“You look like a woman I want to fuck until I can’t move.”

My breath caught. “Connor…”

“I can’t explain it,” he said. “I just, I can’t. But… my God, Dani…” He trailed off and pulled me into another kiss, pressing his hips against mine. It shouldn’t have surprised me that his cock was that hard, but knowing it was and feeling it against me were two different things. I shivered.

He dipped his head and kissed my neck, sliding his hand over my shirt and gently cupping my breast. “I want you so bad right now,” he said against my jaw. “If there was no one else around and I could get away with it, I would fuck you right here and now.”

He lifted his head and when our eyes met, I understood all the looks he’d given me since he showed up. Or rather, the looks he
hadn’t
given me. The lust in his eyes explained it all: he was struggling to stay in control. His distance wasn’t coldness or anger, it was restraint.

Restraint that, judging by the look on his face now, was suspended by a very, very thin thread.

I pushed my hips against him, biting my lip when he closed his eyes and groaned. When I reached between us and squeezed him gently, that thread frayed just a little more.

“Dani,” he whispered, trailing trembling fingers down the side of my face and neck. “I want you. That’s all there is to it. I want you.
Now
.”

I could barely comprehend that I had this kind of power over him, that I could reduce him to single syllables and shaking hands. That I had the same effect on him that he had on me every. Damned. Time.

In fact, I could barely comprehend anything right then except the fact that I didn’t just want him.

I
needed
him.

“Wait.” I gently pushed him away. He looked at me with panic in his eyes, silently begging me not to put a stop to this.

“Dani—”

I sidestepped him and went to the door. I paused, listening over my thundering heartbeat. Aside from the usual noises of the horses in their stalls, the barn was silent. Empty. We were alone. Just to be on the safe side, I shut the tack room door and latched it.

When I turned around, we stared at each other for a second, letting the stillness set in around us.

The thread snapped.

We came together in a frantic, violent kiss, grasping clothing, hair, anything that might keep the other from pulling away. Our trembling hands found their way to each other’s belts and zippers, and in between panting breaths and desperate kisses, we both cursed at our uncooperative clothing. When all the fasteners finally conceded, Connor pushed my breeches over my hips and turned me around. He bent me over a saddle, and I’d barely grabbed onto the hard leather when he thrust inside me. He met some resistance, but it didn’t slow him down and I didn’t protest. The hint of friction only emphasized how desperately we needed each other; he always made sure I was wet and ready for him, but this time, we just couldn’t wait.

My arms trembled with the power of my building orgasm, and every time he slammed into me, they threatened to buckle. I lowered myself onto my forearms, resting them across the seat of the saddle, and the leather creaked and groaned as Connor fucked me harder, harder, harder.

He grabbed my ponytail in one hand, gripping it just tight enough that he pulled slightly with every thrust. I closed my eyes and whimpered, giving in to the electricity radiating from my G-spot with every stroke.

“Just like that,” I moaned, struggling to stay quiet. “Just… yes… that…”

The saddle squeaked furiously beneath us while Connor fucked me even harder.

“Oh God, you’re close, I can feel it,” he whispered, his voice shaking like he was on the verge of tears. “You feel so good, so damned good, so… oh… God…” He gasped, faltered, and when he released a ragged breath shaped like my name, I lost it.

As soon as I surrendered to my spine-melting orgasm, Connor released my hair and held my hips, slamming into me as hard as he could. He kept going through the peak of my orgasm, but with every stroke, his rhythm came apart a little more.

“Oh fuck,” he breathed. “Oh fuck, Dani, I can’t stop, I can’t, I’m…” With one deep, powerful thrust, he was all the way inside me and he shuddered against me, burying his face in my hair to muffle a throaty groan.

Then everything was still and silent, nothing moving except the air rushing in and out of our lungs and the muffled creak of leather beneath us. After a moment, he kissed the side of my neck and slowly pulled out. He stepped back to fix his clothes and I pushed myself up, the saddle issuing one last, loud protest.

“That was fucking amazing.” His voice still trembled, as did his hands as he buckled his belt. My hands weren’t much steadier.

“You’re telling me.”

He cupped the sides of my neck in both hands and kissed me gently. “And just think…” Another kiss. “After we go out tonight? We can do it all over again.”

Chapter Twenty

Murphy’s Law was in full effect that night. My last lesson of the day arrived late, so I left late. Just late enough, in fact, to hit the worst traffic on the bridges across Lake Washington. By the time I pulled into my apartment parking lot, I was an hour late.

Connor, of course, was there waiting for me. I’d called ahead to let him know, but he still beat me there. When I got out of my car, he stepped around the back of it and greeted me with a long kiss.

“Sorry I’m late,” I said.

“You’re here, I’m not complaining.”

I looked down at my clothes. “I do need to take a shower and change before we go.”

“Fine by me,” he said with a smile. “We have plenty of time.” He followed me across the parking lot and into my apartment building.

“I won’t be long,” I said over my shoulder. “But I’d like to look somewhat presentable.”

He chuckled. “I don’t know, I rather like the way you look right now.”

“I know you do, you dirty bastard,” I laughed.

“Yeah, I guess I gave myself away earlier, didn’t I?”

When I glanced back at him, he gave me that devilish grin and pulled his hand away, pretending he hadn’t been reaching up to cop a feel.

I gave him a playful glare. “You’re incorrigible.”

“It’s your fault,” he said matter-of-factly.

“Oh, is it now?” I eyed him, trying not to laugh.

“Well, you’re the one who looked like you needed to be bent over a saddle and given a good hard fuck.”

He caught me off guard and I tripped on the next step. He put a hand on my hip to steady me while I regained my footing, but he made no effort to pull it away once I had my feet under me again.

Continuing up the stairs, he slid his hand down over my rear and squeezed gently, then murmured in my ear, “Having trouble walking, are we?”

“Maybe,” I said. “And if I am, it’s your fault.”

He kissed my cheek. “Guilty as charged.” We stopped long enough for another kiss, one I knew he wanted to draw out, but I gently pulled away and tugged his arm.

“We’ll have time for that later,” I said.

“We have time for it now.”

“Not if we’re going to go out.” I smiled at him, laughing when he tried to look put out.

“You’re going to tease me all night now, aren’t you?” he asked, putting his hands on my hips and nuzzling my neck.

I fumbled with my house key. “I think you’re the one teasing me, Mr. Graham.”

“Am not,” he murmured. “Because all you have to do is say the word, and I’ll—”

“Come on, you.” I rolled my eyes and half-dragged him into the house.

He laughed and shut the door behind us. “Can I at least have a proper kiss, now that we’re away from prying eyes?”

“If I kiss you like that, we’ll never get out of here.”

He grinned and shrugged, taking a step toward me.

I put my hands on his chest. “We’ll be here all night, Connor.” I tried unsuccessfully to hide a smile. “Let me get a shower.”

“Maybe I should join you,” he said. “You know, make sure you don’t miss a spot.”

“Uh-huh,” I said. “I’m sure that’s exactly what you have in mind.”

He put his hands up. “I just want to help you get clean.”

“Please, Connor,” I laughed. “If you get in the shower with me, I’ll end up even dirtier than I am now.”

“So?”

I rolled my eyes. “Stay here. I’ll just be a few minutes.”

I should have known we wouldn’t get far.

When I stepped out of the bathroom, wrapped in nothing but a towel, he was there, resting his hip against my bed. And he had that look again.

“Connor.” I tried not to smile when he started toward me. “Wait until we get home.”

“We are home.” He put his hands on my hips.

“I know, but—”

He kissed me, sliding his tongue past my lips and melting my defenses. When he bent to kiss my neck, I put my hands on his chest to try to push him away, but my fingers sided with him and held onto his shirt.

“We’ve got a little bit of time.” He was freshly shaved, but his jaw was just rough enough to make me shiver.

“I should get dressed,” I said.

“That’s the last thing you should do,” he murmured.

“But we’ll never make it to the restaurant.”

He tugged at the towel, letting it slide to the floor and pool at my feet. Cupping my breast, he said, “We’ll order pizza.”

“But we—”

His thumb circled my nipple and all I could do was close my eyes and bite my lip.

“We could go out,” he said, kissing his way down my neck. “Go have a leisurely, quiet dinner down by the water.” He nipped my shoulder gently. “Maybe walk along the waterfront.” He flicked his tongue across the hollow of my throat. “Or, we could stay here”—his hands ran down my back and he pulled me closer to him“—and I could spend a leisurely evening making you come.”

When his tongue parted my lips, protesting any further was out of the question. My nipples tingled when his shirt brushed across them, and cool denim against my hips gave me goose bumps.

“I know what you want to do,” he whispered. The hand on the small of my back held me to him, pressing his hips against me so I could feel how hard he was. “I’ve been thinking about this afternoon all day long, and I hope you have too.” A shudder ran up my spine and a soft breath of laughter warmed the side of my neck. “Just say the word.”

“There’s just one problem,” I said. He raised an eyebrow. Grinning, I tugged at his shirt. “You have entirely too many clothes on.”

He looked down. “So I do.”

***

Lying on our sides, he played with my hair while I draped my arm over his waist. For a while, we didn’t speak, but then I couldn’t help but laugh when a thought crossed my mind.

“What?” he asked.

Snickering softly, I said, “You know, we still have yet to make it to that restaurant.”

He smiled. “You’re right, we haven’t.”

“Seems like every time we try to go there, we end up in bed.”

The smile turned to his mouthwatering devilish grin. “Maybe I should send them a thank-you card, then.”

“I wouldn’t put it past you,” I said.

“So do you want to go there tomorrow night?” he asked.

“Do you really want to go, or should we just cut right to the chase and meet here?”
He leaned forward and kissed me gently. “Let’s just meet here.” Pushing himself up on one arm, he kissed my neck. “Assuming we even make it out of this bed tonight and we’re not still here tomorrow night.”

“I don’t know what’s gotten into you today,” I said. “But I’m not going to object to it.”

He settled back onto his side. “What got into me,” he said, running his fingers through my hair, “is seeing you looking the way you did today.”

I furrowed my brow. “The way I looked? Connor, I was sweaty and dirty. I looked like hell.”

“I know. That’s what was hot.”

“What? How is that sexy?”

“Babe, look at it from my perspective,” he said. “I show up and see you disheveled and sweaty. What do you think is the first thing that crosses my mind?”

I shrugged. “A shower?”

“Maybe with you pinned against the wall with my cock inside you.”

I shivered. There was something deliciously sexy about Connor being so brazenly filthy.

He smiled. “You don’t believe me, do you?”

“I just can’t imagine being turned on by that,” I said.

“Let’s put it this way,” he said. “When I think back to the night we met, what do you think I think of?”