Embrace Me At Dawn (57 page)

Tyler took her face in his hands, cradling jaw in his big hands. His stare zeroed in on her mouth. He pressed the length of his body against hers. The thin T-shirt she wore did nothing to protect her from the blistering heat of his body. He notched his heavy, steely erection against her mound. Delaney’s heart stuttered.

And then his lips hovered right above hers, his head cocking to the side as his gaze ensnared her. He lowered his mouth so, so close. She curled her fingers into fists at her sides so that she didn’t wrap her arms around him, her legs around him, and beg for everything he could give her—safety, comfort . . . feverish desire, shattering pleasure.

He exhaled against her mouth, parted his lips. God, she couldn’t breathe. Already, she wanted him desperately. If he kissed her, it would only make everything ten times more difficult.

“
Don’t,” she whispered.

He hesitated, dropped his head near her ear. “
My
way, Del.”

Then Tyler nipped at her lobe with his teeth. A shiver wound through her, all the way to her toes.

She didn’t get in another breath before Tyler’s lips took hers, at first hungry but searching, as if testing his welcome. The past, his long list of conquests, the pain between them—all instantly obliterated in the comfort of his solid embrace. His aching familiarity. There was no way she could stop the acceptance bubbling inside her. Her lips turned pliant, seeking.

An instant later, Tyler groaned, bulldozing his way into her mouth. His heat crashed over her, inside her, surging low in her belly—then spearing deep between her thighs. The warmth of his breath as he seized her mouth and shoved her lips farther apart with his own burned her up. His arms twisted around her body, jacking her tight against the inferno of his taut muscles and steely cock.

She gasped into his mouth. He went deeper, even as his palm worked under her shirt, branding the suddenly feverish skin of her back, holding her against him without a breath of air between them.

Without conscious thought, she whimpered, her body melting into his, hands fisting his T-shirt, then clutching his shoulders to drag him closer. She opened wider for the hot thrust of his kiss. Needed it. Tyler gave it to her, then grabbed her thigh in one hand, slung it over his hip, and pressed harder against the needy spot throbbing between her legs. She moaned.

Then Del caught herself.

No, no, no
. . . Please let the response shimmering inside her be like a mirage on a hot highway, glimmering with promise. Not real.

Because if it was, she was in a whole world of trouble.

But it felt all too genuine, too intense. It had been so long since she’d experienced the tug and pull of attraction, that agonizing want making her sink against a man’s body.

Now wasn’t the time to be distracted. Her life—and her son’s—were on the line.

Delaney tore her lips from his and turned her head away. She’d love to push him aside and tell him that he didn’t affect her in the least. But her trembling and panting were dead giveaways, along with her heart galloping madly in her chest. Tyler wasn’t stupid or blind. His stare was all over her, weighty and scorching, cataloging her reactions. Her breath hitched at the thought. Her only consolation was that he was breathing hard, too.

Don’t let him kiss me again
. If he laid his lips on her now, she’d be toast.

Gently, he tucked a finger under her chin and forced her to look at him. “Del?”

What the hell did he want her to say? Was he looking for permission to continue?

She shook her head. “Don’t do that again.”

A muscle in his jaw ticced. “Why did you come to me? Honestly.”

“
I had nowhere else to turn. Please don’t make me regret it. Just . . . watch Seth for me. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

With that, she twisted out from beneath the solid warmth of his body and turned, yanking frantically at the door knob. Damn it, she had to get free before she did something with Tyler that she’d regret.

With a low curse, he stepped back and let her go. Then she was in the hall, running toward the guest room as if she was on fire.

Because she was, and Tyler had done that to her with a single kiss. And Del had no illusions; he’d let his bedroom her leave because he’d chosen to. If he ever decided to put his hands on her again, chances were he wouldn’t release her until they were both utterly sated—because she wouldn’t be able to find the strength to tell him to let her go.

MINE TO HOLD