Oklahoma kiss (43 page)

      
His tongue pressed between her lips and teased the silky, wet lining. Blair moaned ecstatically and raised her arms to encircle his neck. Passion flared like leaping fingers of fire, and he voraciously pressed his tongue deeper—deeper, as she answered his demands with her own darting tongue.

      
Their bodies trembled as a special magical spell ignited and passed breathlessly between them. Together, they eased onto the mattress.

      
The muted light of the lamp was soft and delicate enough to cast a golden glow over her creamy skin, yet, not bright enough to break the magical spell which seemed to envelop them. Hopelessly enchanted by her loveliness, Adam could not take his eyes off her. He brushed her luxurious black hair aside and gazed at her breasts, and the shadowed cleft beckoned his lips. It was smooth and velvety soft against the ravishment of his tongue.

      
Blair felt the erotic scratch of his unshaven face as one masterful hand encircled her breast, and the scalding, wet vise captured her nipple. His mouth was hot and fervent as it tugged and tasted in a rhythm that drove her wild with desire.

      
His heart thudded loudly in his chest as a new surge of blood swelled through his manhood and he grew hard. He breathed against her nipple and the dusky areola surrounding it expanded like a flower opening in bloom.

      
Caught up in a swirling vortex of rapture, her hands caressed the rippling muscles of his back as tantalizing kisses deliciously tormented her lips, face, neck, and ears. Exhilarating nips and nibbles attacked the satiny skin along her shoulders.

      
There was a poignant cry from the depths of his being, and it reached out to touch her heart with fiery bursts of flame. He could hear her soft gasping moans and each one made his pulse race even higher, hardened his masculinity even more.

      
Adam gently caressed the bare hip that strained against him, then his hand touched the satiny flesh between her thighs, and he gently stroked and tugged at the silken strands that grew there. Finding her moist and ready, Adam positioned himself between that mystical valley and thought for a moment that he had entered Paradise when he lowered himself into her.

      
His eyes closed, his breath released, and he held himself motionless as he savored the feel of her surrounding him. Then, slowly, his body began moving with masterly expertise in a cadence that was as old as mankind.

      
The muscles in Adam's neck and arms corded and grew taut as his passion intensified. He could feel the very essence of his soul being pulled from him. His body guided Blair in a slow, circular motion, then their buttocks moved together in a sensual, rhythmic tempo.

      
Blair cried out in pleasure. She could hear Adam's heart thudding loudly, or was it hers? Everything seemed to be happening in swirling mists as it engulfed them, caressed them, and consumed them completely.

      
Over and over he plunged into her; his manhood stroking the velvet softness of her, pillaging her womanhood, shattering her to the very depths of her soul.

      
Their burning release came simultaneously, tumultuously, as the heady rush of ecstasy and rapture washed through them like a storm's onslaught, lifting, swirling, soaring, until they reached the lofty heights of infinity.

      
Blair lay in contented silence with her head resting in the nook of Adam's arm while he smoked a cheroot and lightly fingered a tendril of her raven colored hair.

      
"Oh, Adam, if only it could always be like this," she said softly. "I feel as though I'm floating on a cloud a million miles from earth."

      
Suddenly, an inner voice taunted her.
But what if the cloud suddenly disappears and you plummet back to reality? You know how easily that could happen. You are merely deluding yourself if you think anything has been settled between you and Adam. So many problems still exist. You must not let yourself be so susceptible to his masculine charms. You will live to regret it if you do.

      
Icy shivers instantly swept over her.

      
"Cold?" he asked.

      
"No. . . ." Not wanting to tell him her morose thoughts, she quickly offered an excuse. "I suppose someone just walked on my grave."

      
"What?" He looked at her curiously.

      
"That's just a silly superstition or perhaps even an old saying . . . I'm really not sure which. But it is supposed to explain why a person has a sudden shiver. Don't tell me you haven't heard it before?"

      
"I haven't . . . and I don't like the subject of graves, especially after what we just shared," he stated a bit too harshly. What Blair said had not really perturbed him all that much, instead, he was annoyed by all of the uncertainties still surrounding their relationship. And that also bothered him because he had allowed his thoughts to wander immediately after their incredibly satisfying lovemaking.

      
Realizing he would have no peace of mind until the questions nagging at him were answered, Adam bluntly proclaimed, "Blair, we need to talk. There are some things I have to know."

      
"You sound so serious," she murmured, snuggling deeper into his arm, trying to recapture her previous feelings of euphoric bliss.

      
"I am serious."

      
Suddenly apprehensive by the tone of his voice, Blair sat up, clutching the sheet to her breasts. She was almost afraid to ask, "W-what do we need to discuss?"

      
"I realize you've asked no questions about the women in my past, but I will tell you now: I’ve never loved a woman until I met you."

      
"Y-you love me?" she mouthed incredulously. A dim flush raced like a fever across her beautiful face.

      
He blinked in surprise, not expecting that sort of response from her. "Of course I do. . . . Did you think differently?"

      
Blair's heart hammered wildly against her chest. Her hand trembled as she reached out and gently touched his cheek. "I didn't know what to imagine. You never told me how you felt! And, Adam, I have been so miserable not knowing whether you cared!" Then her eyes widened with dismay and she gasped, "It just occurred to me that I've never told you I loved you until a short while ago."

      
Adam slowly massaged his brow, then he rubbed his hand over his face, a definite sign of vexation, but when he spoke, there was a gentle softness in his voice, "And I thought it was because you were still in love with that man back east."

      
"What man?" All of this was becoming so confusing, it was getting more and more difficult to understand.

      
"That man . . . your fiance."

      
"Adam, I've never had a fiance."

      
"But Warren mentioned a man, and you even said something about him one day on the porch. Then, the other night at the dance, that kid — Bobby—or whatever you call him, confirmed there was. . . ."

      
Blair placed her fingertip across Adam's mouth to silence him. "There was a man I thought I cared for, but any feelings I had for him quickly disappeared when I learned he only wanted to add another conquest to his list. And I explained at the dance why I told that pester-pot Bobby what I did." She frowned, trying to remember. "For the life of me though, I don’t recall telling you I had a beau. Nevertheless, apparently I did, and it had to have been because I was reluctant to admit that he had played me for a fool."

      
He shrugged and sheepishly admitted, "I suppose an innocent remark could have allowed my imagination to run wild. I’m very jealous and it makes my blood boil to even think you might have feelings for another man."

      
Rising to her knees, she seductively placed both her arms across Adam's shoulders. "Now that we have that settled, my love, do you want to kiss me?"

      
"Yes," he murmured huskily, "but if I kiss you now, I might not be able to tell you what else I need to say."

      
"And what is that?"

      
His tone of voice became somber, "For one thing, I want you to stay away from Tom Bastrop."

      
The ghost of a smile that had been tugging at Blair's lips instantly disappeared. Jealousy was a natural emotion that everybody experienced at one time or another, yet it could be carried much too far. She loved Adam with all her heart but would not tolerate his being too domineering — that had been the major conflict between her and Warren, and it had made her life miserable.

      
"There is nothing between me and Tom," she replied stiffly.

      
"You misunderstood, sweetheart. I am jealous, but I don't think I'm unreasonable. I want you to
      
stay away from him because I seriously doubt if he is the upstanding citizen he claims to be. He's also an extremely dangerous man. He has brought in professional gunmen and there could be a confrontation with his camp later. If this happens, I don't want you caught in the crossfire."

      
"Another gunfight?" she asked worriedly.

      
"No, I didn't necessarily mean it literally. I believe he would use any means available to further his cause. Since I personally don't like him, I've tried to give the man every benefit of the doubt. Yet, I cannot ignore my gut-feeling. To be perfectly honest: I think he is the one behind all of the trouble that's been taking place—I just don't have the evidence to prove it. If my suspicions prove to be correct, Matthew and I are the only ones standing in his way, and it is possible he might try to use you to get to me."

      
His description of Tom did not sound like the man she knew. Yet, if Adam felt so strongly about his convictions, she would comply with his wishes. "All right, I'll do as you ask."

      
Adam's gray eyes kindled with growing desire as they lingered on Blair's silken nakedness. "You don't know how much better that makes me feel," he murmured, gathering her to him, his arms tightening about her pliant curves.

      
The world outside ceased to exist and they sat for a while in contented silence. Resting her head against his shoulder, Blair was confident there was nothing now that could shatter what they had finally found.

      
"There is just one more issue we need to discuss."

      
"Do we have to?" she softly complained, lightly teasing the edge of his chest with her lips.

      
He shrugged and said offhandedly, "No, I suppose not. I guess I can propose next week . . . next month. . . . "

      
"Propose? " she breathlessly repeated.

      
"Yes, although, if I remember correctly, this is the third time I've asked," he replied in a feigned pouting tone.

      
"You mean . . . those times you offered to make an honest woman out of me were sincere proposals?"

      
"Of course they were. After all, since I had stolen your innocence and made you a fallen woman, I felt I had to marry you to soothe my conscience."

      
She pressed her soft curves into the contours of his lean body as they eased backward onto the mattress. She smothered his Ups with kisses. "Of course I’ll marry you!"

      
Frowning, he asked warily, "You do understand that we'll have to wait until this trouble is over? I figure, one—two—three months at the most."

      
"That sounds reasonable, but let mc warn you, it is much too late to back out on your proposal now . . . but if it will appease your conscience any, I wanted to make love those times just as much as you did."

      
He pressed closer to her so that she could feel his rising ardor, and answered with a soft, vibrant chuckle, "You wouldn't want to burden your conscience by making love once more tonight . . . would you?"

      
"I might consider it," she murmured huskily, running her hands through his hair, "if you will allow me to make a confession."

      
"In my line of work, I am an expert at extracting confessions, although I doubt if I've ever had such a willing subject." He trailed kisses across her temple and his breath feathered her hair.

      
Blair gently pushed Adam onto his back and rested her elbows lightly against his chest. "Do you recall that first day we met when . . . ?"

      
"How could I forget?"

      
"Hush and let me finish." She giggled impishly. ". . . When I shot at you and the bullet passed between your knees?"

      
He chuckled. "As I said, how could I forget?"

      
"Well, I was telling the truth when I said I was an excellent marksman. The sight had to have been off on the rifle because I aimed between your feet."

      
"And ... the bullet passed between my knees," he mumbled slowly as the full implication of what she told him soaked into his brain. If she had aimed between his knees the bullet would have. . . . Suddenly he began to laugh. "Sweetheart, all I have to say is, see what you nearly missed out on?"

      
"I know, I’ll probably have nightmares about it for the rest of my life," she teasingly bantered.

      
Blair's naked breasts pressed so close to his chest had the desired effect on Adam that she hoped for.

      
"Blair—sweetheart, touch me," he urged in a ragged voice.