Speak to the Wind (15 page)

She led the way inside and poured them each a glass of the expensive Chardonnay.

They raised their glasses, clinking the
m together without words.
Clichéd
quotes seemed out of place now. They sipped
silently, dark eyes exchanging expressions of smoldering passion.

Joe examined her face for an answer to his unasked ques
tion as he tried to control the desire that raged through his body. Working with Maria today and being alone with her tonight had brought them closer. He knew more about her. Knew—more than ever—that he wanted her. And now thinking that they would soon sleep in separate beds drove him crazy.

"Maria, I—"

"Would you like to have a seat, Joe
?
"

"Not
what
I want—" He halted and lowered his voice. "Maria, you know what—"

"Would you like to stay awhile?"

He glared at her from across the room. He was serious. Why the hell was she smiling? "Yes. You might say that. I want you."

She turned away from his intense gaze, reading what was on his mind. It was on hers, too. "
Would you like to stay the night?
"

"And you, Maria? What do you want? I think we're of the same mind. Or am I misreading the signs?"

"No, Joe. You aren't misreading. I'm just... I need a little time."

"Not tonight, then?" he responded quickly. "Is that what you're saying?"

"I... didn't say that."

"Then what's wrong?"

"It's too fast."

"I have known... have felt this way since I first saw you, Maria. It's been weeks. That isn't fast."

"I've felt it, too. But I denied it until I saw you again. Until now."

Slowly he moved across the room. "Maria, I don't want thi
s to be one
sided. I'm sure about me, but I want you to be sure, too. And no regrets. Two volunteers. Both willing or not at all."

She faced him squarely, a little smile playing around her lips. "This is crazy. You know I want you, too."

“
Then why wait? Our time is limited, and it's slipping away."

She shrugged and laughed a little. "I can't think of any good reasons right now."

Joe closed the final space between them and took her in his arms. His fervent kiss was filled with promises of passion and tenderness, his body revealed the vitality of his desire. He raised his head and looked deep into her eyes. "Maria, we have each other. We're stranded on that island, alone... together. Just us two tonight. And for the next few weeks..."

Her arms crept around his shoulders, her fingers playing with the dark hair on the nape of his neck. "I volunteer..."

“
Two volunteers," he murmured, kissing her again. Then he lifted her in his arms and bent to nibble her earlobe and bury kisses in her tawny hair. "God, I want to love you, Maria. To love you until you can't catch your breath."

"Promise?" She already felt breathless, even before he whisked her to the bedroom and placed her on the bed.

Her blond hair spread fanlike over the pillow, and he reached for the golden tresses while he rained kisses over her entire face. "Oh, woman, what you do to me..."

She slid her hands across the width of his broad chest, feeling the warmth beneath his shirt. "Show me," she taunted bravely and tackled the
flat
pearl buttons keeping that shirt closed and his muscular chest from her touch. She felt desperate to see him undressed, to caress him intimately. Her slender fingers worked diligently until she reached his belt.

Abruptly she halted, suddenly aware that beneath his clothes Joe was hot and boldly aroused. Soon nothing would be hidden. And there would be no turning back.

"Don't stop," he encouraged and jerked the shirttail out of his waistband. With a flick of his wrist he unbuckled his belt and the waist of his slacks.

In another moment his shirt was gone and his broad, brown chest hovered over her.
H
e was beautiful. So smooth and tempting. Spreading her fingers against him, she explored his skin's texture. "You've been in my fantasies since we first met, Joe."

"I want to see you, too,
Maria. All of you. Then my fan
tasies can be completely acted out." He unbuttoned her blouse and helped her out of it. With feverish fingers he unsnapped the front closing of her bra and slowly released her breasts from their lace prison. Then he removed the rest of her clothes. His eyes flamed with dark fire as he looked at her, not touching but wanting to touch everything.

She lay back on the bed, smiling seductively. The hiss of his zipper told her what he was doing. Maria tried to keep her gaze trained on his but failed miserably. She was compelled to peruse his body, to address the awesomeness of his arousal, to look him over from broad, smooth chest to tight, brown hips. He was magnificent. And soon he would be hers to hold, to feel. Deep inside sh
e ached to fulfill that long
dormant sexual yearning. When she lifted her gaze back to his face, she saw he was watching her.

Maria grinned sheepishly, suddenly embarrassed that he'd caught her admiring him.

"Well?"

"Beautiful," she said softly.

He moved closer. "Maria, are you..."

"On the pill
?
No."

“
Then I'll take care of it." He scrambled for his discarded slacks, mumbling gruffly, "I know how this must look, but it's not what it seems.
I just want to be ready.
"

"You expected us to get together."

"I hoped." He turned and moved beside her, their bare bodies only inches apart. "Oh, God, I hoped, Maria." He kissed her again, hovering but not letting their bodies touch. She could feel the heat of him, and it nearly drove her crazy. With one hand he swept down her length, finge
rtips brush
ing her breasts, past her waist, pausing to stroke each thigh until her legs relaxed
open
. "Ahh, sexy," he murmured.

Smiling, she reached out to caress him softly. "I love the way you feel, Joe. So strong and wonderful..."

His skin rippled beneath her petting, and he groaned, forcing himself to be still and let her explore him with her feathery fingers. Joe's instincts commanded him to take her— and hurry—but he knew she needed time. And he also knew he should take it easy with her unless he wanted this time to be the last.

And he definitely didn't.

He turned to her, pulling her hands from him and placing them above her head. She
gazed up at him, nude and want
ing and willing. There was
nothing to stop them now. Noth
ing to slow them down. They could go at their own pace.

At long last they came together, smooth and hard, thrust
ing and accepting. His kisses trailed from her neck
, over
her
breast
s; her hands caressed every muscle.

He nuzzled her breasts, his tongue stroking their rise and slope, circling their hardening peaks. He planted moist kisses along the heated valley of her
cleavage, then laved each pink-
crowned nipple with his tongue until it was a swollen pebble. As passion
overpower
ed
her, she thrust her breasts up
ward, and he sucked each one until she moaned softly.

Maria had forgotten what such driving desire for a man was li
ke. She writhed with the almost
unbearable pleasure of his love
making
. She wanted him, urged him to come to her by arching her back, reaching up for him
with her body
.

But he held her at the brink as long as he could stand it, skimming his large hand over her smoothness, the slight roundness of her tummy, her golden mound of pleasure. Fingertips feathered her inner thighs, then pressed them open. He could wait no longer!

Maria felt the weight of his large body sliding over her, between her legs. She responded to the pressure of his arousal and experienced joy as he
entered her slowly, surely, com
pletely.

They lay very still for a few moments, both relishing the sensations. Her hands stroked his back, trailed along his sp
ine, cupped his buttocks, urged
him farther into her.

Then he could be still no longer, and the rhythm he set was fast and furious. She met his thrusts with a force of her own, gripping his back muscles, digging her fingers into his skin for leverage. Spirals of unco
ntrolled zeal creating unimagin
able pleasure swirled them to the highest peaks, enlivening their senses, sending them into a realm of their own.

"Joe
, Joe!
" she cried out again and again.

“I’
m with you, baby. Every move." His resp
onse was a breathless moan. "Oh
God
, Maria!" Then all was quiet ex
cept for their labored panting. They stayed like that, with arms and legs entwined, clinging to the rapture as long as possible.

When their breathing finally returned to normal and heartbeats slowed to a regular pace, he kissed her tenderly
and rolled from atop her. After a quick trip to the bathroom he curled her to his body, hooking his arm around her waist.

Maria hadn't felt so content and fulfilled as a woman since she'd lost Wayne. With Joe the newness and exploring had been exciting. One of the wonderful things about Joe, she thought as she drifted into that hazy state before sleep, was his honesty. Even in his lovemaking. He had admitted his passion and acted on it. And she could no longer deny a woman's natural urge for a man's fulfillment.

During the night he held her securely in his arms, held her lovingly while they both slept. Content. Fulfilled. Loving.

When morning came, the sun made a pattern on the Mexican tile. Joe sprawled, reaching for her with one arm. But her side of the bed was empty. He launched from the bed and quickly swept through the rooms, calling her name. Maria was gone. "What gives?" he muttered aloud. "Where the heck is she?"

Cursing, he thrust his legs into his discarded slacks, not bothering with underwear or his belt. On his way out the door he grabbed his shirt.

"I thought I’d find
you here."

“
It's so peaceful. Just the water and the s
and
. And the sky." She sat on a jutting point of lava rock where the waves crashed high and sprayed the air with misty saltwater. They were a good mile from the casitas.

"Been thinking
, Maria
?"

"Yes."

"About what? Or should I say who
?
Me?"

"Mmm-hmm. You and me."

"Want to talk?"

She stared into the distance over the water. "This was the first time since... since my husband."

Joe crawled across the uneven rocks and sat beside her. He took her hand and sandwiched it between both of his. Hers felt cold, and he wanted to wrap her up in his arms. "I was afraid of something like this.
It seems unfair because it's be
yond my power."

"Mine too. I'm sorry. I couldn't help leaving. I needed to think. Please understand it's nothing against you, Joe. The problem's within me."

"I just happen to be the one here?"

"There could have been n
o other, Joe. Not the way I feel!
"

"How do you feel?" Joe's sigh was heavy and audible. "Are you ready to let go of him,
Maria
?
"

"I don't know."

"I won't compete with him. I'm selfish. I want you all to myself." His voice was low and strained with emotion. He didn't want to lose her now, especially because of something beyond his co
ntrol. "But I can tell you exactl
y how I feel. I've never been so attracted
, so absolutely drawn
to anyone as I have to you. I've never felt so sure about a relationship. And after last night
,
”
he paused to
kiss her palm,
“
I'm even more sure than ever."

"I appreciate what you're saying. And I'm grateful you feel this way because I do, too. Oh, Joe, it isn't you. It's me. I just..."

"Feel guilty."

"Yes."

"Don't do that to yourself. You're young, Maria. You can't stop living because your husband did."

"I know."

"You can't stop loving, either."

Love
? Or lust? She didn't dare ask
out loud
, but her expressive eyes revealed her doubts.

His response was low. "Maria, I only know that when I hold you, it's right. And last night was wonderful. No,
more than that. Word
s
are
inadequate."