Mabe's Burden (15 page)

She stabbed the cheesecake with her
fork. “You’re on.”

Chapter Twelve

Aaron thanked Hope and paid her for the
meal. It had surpassed his wildest expectations. He was pretty sure
his date had really enjoyed herself. He leaned against the
doorframe. Mabe sat on the sofa in the Inn’s living room, twirling
her finger in her wine. How could that be sexy? Maybe he’d had a
little too much wine as well, because he was extremely aroused. The
combination of the short black dress, those killer long legs
stretched out on the sofa, and the hot pink cast did him
in.

He approached her. He sat down on the
end of the couch, pulling her bare feet onto his lap. He grasped
one slender foot in both hands massaging from ankle to
toe.

Her head lolled back against the arm of
the sofa. “Oh man, that feels like heaven. I’ve been on my feet all
day.”

“
You have the most beautiful
feet.” He rubbed her sole with one hand and stroked her calf with
the other.

Mabe snorted. “You have got to be
kidding me. Are you one of those weirdos with a foot
fetish?”

“
What if I am?”

“
Then as long as you keep
doing what you’re doing, I don’t care.”

He continued his ministrations enjoying
the expression on her face. Her flaming red hair fanned out along
the sofa arm and long reddish-brown lashes rested on her creamy
porcelain skin, spattered lightly with freckles. How cute was she?
Her full, crimson lips were curved in a slight smile, betraying the
fact she was slightly drunk. Oh, how he wanted to kiss her mouth.
The kiss they’d shared in the back office earlier was still fresh
on his mind. He wanted to experience it again.

“
I think you’re drunk,” he
said.

“
Mmm…maybe a little,” she
responded. “I haven’t felt this relaxed in a very long time. What a
fabulous meal. If she wouldn’t be competition, I’d recommend Hope
open a restaurant of her own.”

“
She does have a flair for
it.” He continued massaging her feet. “Mabe?”

“
Hmm?”

“
Would you come upstairs
with me?”

She slowly opened her eyes, peering at
him from under her lashes. She lowered her feet to the floor and
sat up, her nose merely millimeters from his. She smelled like
fresh flowers after a warm summer rain. Desire tingled through his
veins. He wanted her so badly that he knew he’d be in physical pain
if she turned him down.

She swayed slightly, leaning in for the
kiss. Her lips were warm and soft on his. He strove to be gentle,
but oh how he’d craved her mouth—more than the luscious dinner he’d
just consumed.

He took possession of those lips, his
tongue slipping between them. To his surprise, she deepened the
kiss, sliding an arm around his neck. Aaron pulled her onto his
lap, running a hand up her thigh stopping at the hem of her short
skirt. He took what he wanted while desire coursed through him. Her
body relaxed under him and she pulled him closer. When they finally
broke apart, each one drew in a long breath.

Mabe pushed a strand of hair away from
her face. “Wow!”

Aaron offered a deep-throated chuckle.
“We’d better take this upstairs. I’d hate for our hostess to want a
glass of warm milk only to find us hard at it on her living room
sofa.”

She nodded, trying to stand but fell
back onto his lap. “Oops!” She giggled.

“
Let me help.” He scooped
her into his arms and carried her toward his room. She swung her
feet, nuzzling her face into his neck. The innocence of the gesture
melted Aaron’s heart. He wished right then, even before he had her
in his bed, that he could freeze time. He held her in his arms,
breathing in the soft scent of her hair along with the light floral
fragrance she wore.
Oh Lord, please just
let the clock stop
. But a fresh wave of
desire struck him, so he set her on her feet, propping her up while
he unlocked his door.

Mabe stumbled across the threshold, but
he grabbed her, pulling her close, and trapping her lips with his.
Starting at her throat, he cupped her face, diving into the kiss.
She moaned and clung to him with her one good arm. From her neck,
he traced both hands down her shoulders. Careful not to disturb her
sling, he slipped his arms around her waist. Tugging, he allowed
her to feel just how much he wanted her.

She didn’t shy away, but
instead molded her body to his, moving her hips tightly against
him. He broke the kiss long enough to catch his breath. Another
heat wave coursed over him. His hands cupped her behind. Squeezing
softly he placed small, light kisses at the base of her throat. The
one hand she had free ran through his hair, settling at the base of
his neck, where she played with a few strands. Her gaze locked on
his.
Whoa, a man could drown in those
emerald pools
. Every emotion Mabe felt was
surfacing through those beautiful eyes. What he saw there stunned
him a little. She trusted him. She might not want to sell her pub
to him, but she did trust him.

The thought of how pure her emotion was
nearly brought him to his knees. He’d only known her a few days,
yet in his soul he felt they’d been together forever. He admired
her grit and determination, her wonderful sarcastic sense of humor,
along with her love of family. If he wasn’t careful, he could
easily fall in love with the woman.

He searched her face for a reaction.
“Honey, are you sure about this? I don’t want to take advantage of
you when you’ve overindulged.”

“
I own a bar for God’s sake.
Do you honestly think all I need to get me drunk are a few glasses
of wine?”

He laughed softly, kissing her nose. “I
think you had more than a few.”

“
Okay, so I’m really
relaxed. I’m with a really sexy man who curls my toes when he
kisses me. I’m not about to pass up what might come
next.”

Concern along with protectiveness rose
in him. “What about your arm? I don’t want to hurt you.”

She flapped her cast. “This ole thing?
You’re not going to hurt me, but you might have a hell of a time
getting this dress off.”

“
I think I can manage,” he
uttered against her mouth just before he captured it with his own.
His hands were quick and nimble. Before he even broke away from the
kiss he had her dress unzipped. The soft black silk pooled at her
feet. It wasn’t nearly as difficult getting around her cast as
she’d suggested it would be. Glancing down, he gasped softly. She
was breathtaking. Creamy white skin balanced the sexy black lace of
her extremely low-cut, push-up bra. The sight of her barely there
panties nearly buckled his knees.

“
Wow,” he
breathed.

She offered him a sultry glance. Moving
with the grace of a jungle cat, she crawled onto the bed, glancing
back over her shoulder, curly red tresses covering half of her
face. Aaron thought he’d explode right then and there. Something
stirred in his heart as well as his loins. A renewed sense of
urgency rose in him—he needed to stop Toreni. Even if he had to pay
the man off in secret, he couldn’t let anything happen to this
woman or her family. Shit, he’d only known her less than a week,
and he was falling hard.

A purple, puffy bruise rose just above
the waist of her lacy panties. Guilt struck him anew. Even though
he knew their collision in the street hadn’t been totally his
fault, his upbringing made him feel responsible.

He gently caressed her with his
fingers. “I’m sorry.”

Mabe flipped over on her back. Pulling
him close, she purred, “Come here.”

He knelt on the side of the bed. He
tugged off his suit jacket, shirt, then swiftly unbuttoned his
slacks.

“
I’d really like to do that
for you, but we’ll just have to wait until I get out of this cast.
Kind of hard to undo buttons one-handed.”

“
It’s okay,” Aaron declared.
“Believe me, I’ve got this.” He ripped his fly open, shoving out of
his pants.

Her eyes widened. “Oh my.”

He’d gone commando but was still
wearing socks. He turned, bending slightly to pull them off. He
looked over his shoulder. She was staring at his butt. Flattered he
grinned. “You like?”

“
It’d be better without the
purple bruise. You were hurt more than you let on, weren’t
you?”

Slightly deflated it was the bruise
that caused her exclamation but not another part of his anatomy, he
answered, “Nah. It looks worse than it is.” He turned to face
her.

“
Oh
my!
”

Now, that made him grin.

She rose to her knees, wrapping a warm
arm around his neck. She drew him in for a soul-searing kiss.
Drawing her hand down his shoulder she guided one of his hands to
her breast. The other quickly followed suit. His thumbs caressed
her nipples to hard points beneath the lacy fabric. She pressed
against him, slipping a hand between them to cup his
erection.

He groaned and pressed her back against
the cool, cotton pillows. With a quick flick of his forefinger, he
unhooked her bra, freeing her breasts. He covered first one then
the other with his mouth, drawing in the fresh scent of her petal
soft skin. Working around her sling wasn’t easy, so Mabe slipped
her arm out of it, flung it across the room. It caught on the
corner of the fireplace mantle, hanging like a surrendered battle
flag. She wasn’t able to maneuver the cast much, but it was enough
for him to use his mouth on her. Within moments, she was arched
against him, urging him to move lower.

He’d never wanted a woman so much. His
blood practically boiled in his veins, not to mention other places.
She aroused a passion in him he’d never experienced. With each
touch of hands or mouth, electricity sparked between
them.

She ran her fingers through his hair,
her muscles tightening each time he drew on her breast. He trailed
down her belly a line of tiny kisses, which left her writhing
beneath him. When his thumb stroked her center, she arched off the
bed.

“
Oh God,” she gasped. “What
the hell are you doing down there?”

He growled in response, then
took her with his mouth. His tongue worked a magic he didn’t know
he possessed. He felt the first climax rip through her. He raised
his head to see her beautiful face, eyes closed, head twisting from
side to side.
God, she’s
amazing.

Her hand grasped at his elbow.
“Please…take me. Now,” she begged. “Please. I can’t wait any
longer.”

“
Just hold your horses, I’m
not done here.” He reached over her to the nightstand and grabbed a
condom. He ripped the package open, sheathed himself. Swiftly, he
returned..

“
Oh God,” she moaned, her
head pressed back into the pillow. “I-I can’t take any more….
Ahhhhhh!” She screamed, and he slid up her body covering her mouth
to silence her. Who knew she’d be a screamer? He hoped no one
complained, but it pleased him immensely to know he could get that
kind of reaction out of her.

Mabe slapped his butt, wriggling her
body beneath him. He found her easily, sliding inside just enough
to have her draw in a deep breath. Teasing, knowing the ribbed
condom would add to her pleasure, he pulled out again before he
released her mouth.

“
Look at me,” he whispered.
“I want to watch you make love with me.”

She gazed up at him through
half lowered lids, her lips curving in a sultry smile. This time,
she surprised him by lifting her hips to him, shoving him deep
inside. His eyes rolled back in his head as she rocked in a slow
rhythm. He matched her pace.
Heaven can’t
be as good as this.
He lowered his mouth to
her supple, warm lips. No reason running the risk of another
outburst.

Aaron rocketed to a height he’d never
imagined. She climaxed around him, her muscles contracting, nearly
grinding out his own shout of pleasure. He gritted his teeth,
pounding inside her, edging toward release. His senses overloaded.
The sound of his blood rushing through his veins filled his ears,
the tingle of his approaching climax rattled every nerve ending. He
inhaled the musky sweet scent of their lovemaking.

He flew over the edge,
observing Mabe come with him. Her gaze was soft, red lips slightly
parted and curved, her face flushed pink.
How did I ever get this luck
y?

Breathing hard, he rolled them so they
lay side by side on the bed. He was careful of her cast. “Oh, my
God.”

“
You can say that again, and
I wasn’t even half drunk. Whew.”

“
Wait.” He rose up on one
elbow. “You weren’t?”

She shook her head, offering him a
sultry grin. “Uh -uh.”

“
Why you...” Aaron tickled
her until they both lay gasping together. He stared at her in awe.
“Wow, I may not live through the next time.”

He pulled her next to him, holding her
gaze. “There will be a next time, won’t there?”

Her expression grew impish. “You bet.
After that? Wild horses couldn’t drag me away from you right
now.”