A Weekend Temptation (6 page)

It wasn’t like she was virgin. It had just been a while…on purpose. Her first lover had been on prom night. Talk about uncomfortable. Then she’d dated her second lover, Jason, in college, for six months before becoming intimate. She’d thought their relationship had a future. Their lovemaking had been pleasurable but obviously not pleasurable enough for him. He left her for a woman who was more passionate in bed. Afterward she’d felt lacking and frigid.

That was part of the reason she wanted Joel as a lover. She knew he was experienced, and when he kissed her, she forgot to worry if she was enough. What she felt in his arms drove away fears and doubts.

What if she told him her dismal sexual past and he didn’t want her anymore? She should keep quiet. She’d come all this way, and she didn’t want to go home without being his lover.

“Caffeine withdrawal,” she lied.

“Among other things?” he asked, his deep voice going lower, smoother, until her stomach dipped. “Has it been a while since you’ve taken a lover?”

She nodded and bit her lip.

“I’m honored you chose to come then. We’ll go slowly. Sometimes slow is the most satisfying.” His dark eyes sank into hers and held on.

When his gaze inched down her face, she couldn’t breathe. When it zeroed in on her lower lip, her muscles tightened. She’d never felt desire’s pull or a man’s compelling magnetism like this before. She was aware of his every movement, and the background faded away.

This dynamic man was all that mattered. If she was an artist, he would be the one she’d want to capture on a canvas, wearing his aqua blue swim trunks and nothing else. His bare chest was dark, lightly sprinkled with hair and rippled with hard, defined muscle. She itched to explore him.

Before she could move an inch, his foot found hers under the table and tickled over her skin, making her jump as he sent powerful sensation rocketing up her bare leg.

A sea gull cried and circled above them. The pelican flapped his wings in warning. But it was hard to concentrate on the everyday occurrences with Joel stroking her and making her nerves turn to fire.

Joel wasn’t watching their sea neighbors either or the perfect powdery beach, the crystal clean, aqua water, or his loaded plate. Instead he gazed at her mouth and stroked her leg, like this was all he wanted to do, all day long.

Like she was more than enough for him.

The air around them flared with volts of penetrating electricity. Why was she worried about going to bed with this man? He would make it perfect for her.

His toe inched closer to the
V
between her legs, and her mouth dried. She tingled as she waited for his next move, his next touch. She swallowed, forcing herself to chew the bite she’d taken, not tasting it.

After she clanked her fork to her plate, she decided she wasn’t hungry, but food seemed a safe distraction. “Does the food really taste this good, or is it eating outside?”

“I’ve never been so hungry.”

His gaze speared into her skin, fiery hot. No doubt about it. He wasn’t talking about food. She licked her bottom lip. No man had ever watched her like that or sent her pulse pounding with his wandering foot.

Joel took her hand in his, brought it to his mouth, and gently nipped her palm until Ava bit back a moan. She forgot her fear as heavy desire replaced it, demanding she surrender.

As he continued to nibble her palm, she sighed out his name, glad she came. Her attraction to him had grown. Now it felt alive, like a force of nature.

“You’re not eating your breakfast.” He smiled a knowing smile that went straight to her head like a glass of wine. “How about we snorkel after…”

She knew what he asked, without asking. Her heart pounded, her body trembled. She felt too hot and out of control. She’d never felt this way with any man. Dangerous. Primal. On edge.

She needed more air. More space and room to get used to such a demanding lust.

What if her sister was wrong? What if this was more than just lust? What if she’d never felt this way because she was falling in love?

That thought dumped ice water over her heated body.

Why had no other man been able to make her feel like this? She reeled at how he’d been able to drug her so completely. Such power over her. She’d never felt such an inferno of passion exploding within her.

That was it. Of course, what she felt was brand new, and she needed time to desensitize her body. Because feeling so much passion was like running her hand over an open flame. Maybe the more they touched, the easier it would be. Or maybe she’d be incinerated, and all that would be left of her would be soot and ashes.

“Snorkeling first,” she choked out, her throat tight.

“What?”

She cleared her throat and tried her best to offer a soft smile. “Can we snorkel first?”

His eyes frosted for a blink as he registered her rejection, then went impassive. Walls were back up. Had she imagined the brief flash of emotion? He composed himself so quickly, as if touching her wasn’t like stroking lighting.

Whereas she was the complete opposite when he touched her. She knew now, she would change once she surrendered her body. And to him she was just another lover in a line of many. A pleasure to sample on the road to making some other woman his wife.

“You want to snorkel first. We’ll snorkel first. Then I take you to my bed.” He nodded. “I know why you’re delaying our love making.”

Her heart squeezed, her stomach sank. Did he guess she was bad in bed from her kisses? Were they too tame?

“You do?” she asked.

“Yes, you want to delay until both of us can’t take it. You know it will be hotter, crazier, if we wait. You’re right, it will be.”

Her stomach clenched. She snapped her bacon in two. “No. We shouldn’t wait. No more waiting.” She gripped the edge of her chair with clammy palms. This could get stronger, more frenzied? As long as it didn’t lead to love.

Maybe she shouldn’t have come and settled for one of the harmless men her sister had set her up with. But she knew she’d never be able to give herself to one of them. She’d never have felt strong enough with her thoughts stuck on Joel.

Was she making this into a bigger deal than it was because of her limited experience? She had to trust her sister. Why would Bethany lead her in the wrong direction? She never had before.

“I’ll be back,” Joel said, and she watched him leave.

A few moments later, Joel came toward her. With the snorkel gear in one hand, he grabbed her by the waist and tugged her from the table into his arms. His mouth hovered over hers, his warm, sweet breath feathering over her lips.

His dark hair was glossy and wild this morning, making him look untamed and gorgeous. His cologne drugged her and drew her closer to his sensual mouth. Everything about him made her knees weak, starting with his hard, muscled body pressing into her as he drew closer, inviting her to throw away her fear and grab onto her passion.

“Joel, I think we should…
start
our vacation.”

He pulled away without kissing her, making her miss his hard flesh. She ached with want.

“Put your snorkel gear on,” he ordered.

“Joel, I’ve never—”

“Snorkeled? It’s easy. I’ll help you. I’m a good teacher.” Joel leaned forward and helped her adjust her mask.

When Ava’s mask was in place and the rest of her equipment, he pulled her back into his arms and carried her to the water. She held on to his steely body as he took her deeper. Her fingers dug into the slick, smooth skin of his shoulders. He held her as if she were feather-light. It felt good to have a man strong enough to carry her and made her feel sensual and feminine.

Together they dove into the clear water to find abundant marine life and healthy, living coral. When they popped up to the surface, he explained what was safe and what she should avoid. He kept her from swimming into jelly fish and helped her feed a school of parrot fish as tame as goldfish living in an aquarium.

Then it hit her. Joel was a man who protected those in his care. He would never allow anything to hurt her, not even himself. She could trust him. He’d be a great third lover. He would guide her in the right direction, taking her exactly where she needed to be, the way he guided her on this snorkeling trip.

She relaxed, her stomach settling. Before she’d been trying to
tell
herself he was the right sexual teacher but now she
felt
it. She was ready to begin her newest exploration.

Ava swam to the surface, and he caught her hands, placed them on his strong shoulders, and kicked them both back to shore, while she enjoyed the feel of the warm water against her sensitized skin and the feel of his strong back against her breasts.

Later they sat on the shore with aqua waves lapping at their toes, her hip against his, his arm around her shoulders. He kissed her temple, and she leaned into his body.

“Did you like that?” he asked.

Did he mean the kiss or the snorkeling? Didn’t matter. She liked everything. “I did, and I realized something.”

“That you want me to kiss you again.” It should have been a question but not with Joel. He was too arrogant to ask questions, but he was right. He lay back on the sand and pulled her on top of him.

It felt wonderful to be draped against his slick warm skin.

His eyes darkened and held a longing as deep as hers in their depths. His heart pounded against her cleavage. Her body blanketed his in a way that felt right. His crisp leg hair teased her smooth calves. His eyes continued to hold hers. Her nipples jutted into his chest, responding to his drugging potency.

His lips raised as hers lowered. An electric shot zapped through her as he captured her mouth. His lips were firm and possessive as he claimed her. With a sigh, she opened, letting his probing tongue explore, savoring the feel of him. He tasted like a combination of maple syrup, power, and excitement. He suckled her bottom lip until she sighed. Her fingers dug into his arms.

The pleasure of his kiss was so intense her eyes drifted closed. She focused on his hard body under hers, while his tongue made her crazed with passion.

When he broke their kiss, they were both gasping for air.

“Wow,” she whispered against his cheek. The man could kiss. She inhaled his sandalwood scent, and her mouth dried. One kiss and he’d ignited her body like a convection oven. She couldn’t breathe. Her oxygen-starved lungs screamed for air. She didn’t care. Fear of rejection disappeared.

He flipped her onto her back, his legs trapping hers, and he sandwiched her body, making it sink into the warm, powdery sand. His hot breath teased as his mouth moved to her neck, just above her shoulder, in a tender, responsive place. Her body quivered. She arched and surrendered more.

Joel’s expression darkened at her eager response, and he descended on her mouth again with a groan. She couldn’t get enough of his taste or the way his hands roamed over her body as they kissed. Her fingers threaded in his hair and yanked him closer. Her center ached, moistened with a heated longing. Her hips rose, pushing into his groin. His hard erection pierced into her, just where she needed him. Making her come alive.

“Ava,” he moaned her name.

Her heart pounded. Every muscle in her body tightened, ready for him. She traced his jawbone. Then she followed with her lips. His stubble was a welcome rasp against her sensitive mouth.

Just when she thought it couldn’t get more intense, he cupped her breast, kneading it, then tracing her sensitive nipple. His erection continued to rub against her center as she lifted her hips for him. Desire zinged through her. Her toes curled, digging into the sand. So hot and crazed. If she didn’t have him… she’d…

“I want you, Ava. In my bed. Now.” He knew she was his. But he still asked her, in his own way.

She swallowed, so she could speak. “Yes. Oh yes.” Wherever he wanted her, whatever he wanted to do to her, she was his. She burned for him to take her.

Chapter Six

Joel dragged Ava behind him through the powdery sand on the path to his island retreat. She raced to keep up, and smiled.

This was the right time. She hungered for him, and he was as honest as she needed him to be. She knew what he wanted from the relationship, to give her pleasure, that’s all. Her doubts and fears floated away.

He opened the manor’s heavy oak door with a resounding bang, then knelt in the foyer. His warm fingers dusted sand off her legs and feet. Shivers raced up her bare skin. His gentle touch made her nerve endings zap, and her thighs quiver.

After removing sand from his own body, he lifted her into his arms and carried her through the vast space toward the regal bedroom, depositing her on the bed’s feather comforter.

He slid next to her, watching her like this was the most important moment of his life. He lowered his head as she lifted hers to meet his kiss. Her arms snaked around his neck, and her fingers dug into his hair. With a sigh, she opened for him, and his tongue filled her. His warm, moist mouth tasted like heaven.

As his kiss deepened, he traced the outline of her bare hip then caressed her flesh, making sexy circles, until her head spun. Her fingers moved to his chest, reveling in the texture of his skin, the crispness of his lightly, sprinkled chest hair, the softness of his nipple. She encircled and teased those nipples, making them hard, until he groaned into her mouth. Her warm hand felt icy against the inferno of his steel body.

A breath later, he kissed his way down to her neck, finding the most sensitive spot, the place where her pulse leapt, his tongue searing her. Her toes curled at the sensual onslaught. She forgot her exploration of his chest.

He cupped one breast. Her nipples tightened underneath the smooth lycra of the bikini top. When he untied the strings, the fabric fell, and the cool island air brushed across her bare breasts. Then he kneaded her aching flesh until she arched into his touch.

“Ava,” he whispered. His breath and tongue swirled over her nipple.

“Oh God!” she cried.

He took her breast into his mouth and suckled her. Her head fell back, her eyes drifted closed as she absorbed the shivery pleasure.