“You’re taking a damned long time to answer.”
Keri rose on tiptoe and brushed a kiss over his tight lips. “If I didn’t trust you, I would have let Russ sic his dogs on you days ago.”
“But? There has to be more. I can see the wheels of your brain spinning.”
“Well, I’d be a fool not to realize everything changed when we came south. Now that you’re home safe and sound, you really don’t need me, do you?”
“Maybe not, but I sure as hell want you.” He rolled his hips, rubbing his erection against her belly. “Does that count for anything?”
“It’s pretty important to me.”
She felt as well as heard his sigh of relief. The gentle movement of his chest teased her nipples to tightness. Need spiraled through her.
“In that case, you’re welcome to wear one of my shirts after your shower. I’ll buy you new clothes tomorrow.”
She nibbled on his chin, enjoying the sexual teasing. “I have clean underwear in my tote. I always carry the basic necessities in case I get held over at work.”
“Remember, you’re on vacation,” he reminded quickly. “There’s no need to break out emergency gear tonight.”
“Just commando under the shirt?”
Lamanto groaned and set her aside. Keri laughed softly, feeling deliciously naughty and desirable for the first time in years. She let her fingers slide down his chest to the waistband of his jeans.
He quickly grasped her hand to waylay it. “You’re a wicked tease. I promised myself I wouldn’t jump your bones the minute I brought you into my home. No matter how much I’ve fantasized about it. Take a shower while I fix us some food. Then we can sip wine out of each other’s navels.”
Her pleasure dimmed a little at the image, but she tried not to let it show. For just a little while, she’d felt normal and sexy. She’d forgotten her disfiguration. No way would she let him get a close look at her scars. If they made love, it would be in the dark.
“Aye, aye, Captain. Where might I find a shirt?”
Lamanto pulled a soft green T-shirt from a drawer built into the bedframe. He showed her how everything worked in the miniature bathroom and explained the importance of securing things in cabinets.
“Otherwise, the rocking of the boat would toss your belongings all over the place?” she asked.
“Right you are, mate.”
Keri shook her head, and then slid the door closed, effectively cutting off his teasing.
“Make it quick. I’m starving,” he called to her.
Ten minutes later, she reentered the saloon and confronted him with her hands on her hips. “You neglected to mention the lack of hot water. I didn’t even manage lukewarm.”
Her stance pulled the thin fabric of his shirt tight across her otherwise bare breasts. He stared into her eyes for a long, pregnant minute then lifted his hands to cup the firm mounds and thumb her rigid nipples.
“Guilty,” he whispered hoarsely. “It takes awhile for the hot water tank to warm the water. But I can’t say I’m sorry since the result is so damned pleasing.”
Keri gasped at the sensual assault. She couldn’t find the will or words to stop him as he fondled her sensitive breasts, molding and caressing until her knees grew weak. His hot hands quickly dispelled the chill of her shower.
“See how well my arm is healing? I can use it without breaking a sweat,” he said, using his left as effectively as his right.
“Physical therapy is important,” she managed through a tight throat.
“I’m looking forward to a lot more,” he swore softly.
Heat continued to course through her until he abruptly dropped his hands. “I need a shower too, and I promised you dinner. I won’t take long.”
She nodded, will and words abandoning her as she tried to tamp down the desire raging through her body. He’d barely touched her, through clothing, and she’d nearly fainted at his feet. It didn’t bode well for maintaining control of the situation, she thought, crossing her arms over her chest protectively.
Get a grip, Merritt! You’re behaving like a sex-deprived wanton,
she admonished herself while studying Lamanto’s home. Soft, romantic music surrounded her, but she couldn’t find the source. Everything from photos to personal possessions had been secured for safety. Most of the surfaces were bare except for the supplies he’d put in the galley. She wondered if he kept the bulk of his belongings in drawers or if he didn’t keep much beyond necessities. Tempted to snoop, Keri refrained.
When Lamanto emerged from the shower a few minutes later, his dark hair glistened with moisture. He wore tight, faded cutoff jeans and a light blue, short-sleeved cotton shirt. He hadn’t buttoned the shirt. Dark, swirling hair on his chest sparkled with moisture too, and the sight of him had her breath hitching again.
How would she survive intimacy with a man so gorgeous and so sexy he made her head spin without even touching her? How could she be expected to eat with him so close?
Lamanto showed her amazing possibilities. He pulled her onto a bench behind a table and started feeding her bites of meat and cheese and yeasty dinner rolls. He followed the first course with fresh sweet grapes and succulent strawberries. She licked the juice off his fingers, and he licked it from her lips. He stole a kiss and then another and another, each one longer and deeper than the one before.
The only thing he allowed her to do for herself was lift a glass of wine to her lips. She drank thirstily as he pressed kisses along her jaw to her neck and the sensitive spot behind her ear. He sucked deeply, and she shuddered.
Her breasts swelled with arousal, her nipples begged for attention. He didn’t disappoint. Using both his hands, he clasped them tightly, rolling his palms hard against their turgid tips.
Keri moaned and he swallowed the sound with another deep, wet kiss that had their tongues dueling and dancing. She moaned again and the sound echoed from deep in his chest. She felt him shudder as she sucked his tongue deep into her mouth, adoring it with her lips and teeth and tongue.
When they came up for air, he stared into her eyes, his own glazed with passion. “Want anything else?”
“You, in me,” she whispered roughly.
His responding groan was guttural as he pressed her back against the cushions and slipped his hands under her shirt. Keri barely had the forethought to wiggle out of his reach.
“Bed,” she insisted, scrambling off the bench. Legs trembling, she headed for the shallow steps to the platform bed. “Lights out.”
“No way,” he insisted.
She turned to him. “Yes way!”
“Do you know how badly I want to see you naked?” came his hoarse reply.
Chapter Eleven
“You’ll have to settle for feeling me this time.”
Something in her tone convinced him not to argue anymore. He doused the light, leaving them bathed in shadows and the dim illumination from the port holes.
Relief washed through Keri as she climbed onto his bed and crawled forward to make room for him. Lamanto halted her progress by grasping her ankles. He flipped her onto her back. The low ceiling and limited overhead space didn’t give them much maneuvering room. It didn’t matter because she couldn’t bear having too much space between them.
She breathed in the scent of him from the cool sheets. He started a new assault on her senses by kissing her ankles and massaging her feet. Nurses had a special kinship with foot massage.
She sighed with pleasure that quickly escalated to humming desire as he kissed his way up her calves to her thighs. Not wanting him to explore the scarred flesh too much, she slid downward until they were face-to-face.
With their gazes locked, she slowly lifted the T-shirt and tossed it aside. He did the same with his shirt. She reached for the button of his cutoffs, but he clasped her hand and pulled it to his lips.
“As bad as I want to feel your hands on me, this might not be the best time,” he confessed gruffly.
“A little needy, are we?” she whispered, putting her hands to better use against his chest. She plucked at his nipples with her fingertips, and then dropping her head to gently lick and suck them.
“A lot needy,” he said in a graveled voice. “Dangerously, explosively needy.”
Pulling her hands above her head, he pressed them against the sheets in a silent request that she keep them there. He caressed her arms with gentle fingers and then cupped her breasts again. For a long few minutes, the only sounds they heard were the gentle lapping of water against the boat and her strangled gasps of pleasure.
Lamanto adored her breasts with biting little kisses and tongue-lashing gentleness. He plucked at her nipples until they were engorged with blood. He played with one while sucking the other deeply into his mouth. His tongue lashed and laved, making Keri twist and squirm impatiently. She dropped her hands to clutch at his hair. He pressed himself against her body, damp naked flesh against damp naked flesh.
When she tugged fiercely on his hair, he lifted his head for her kiss. It seared them both with hunger and need. She got lost in the heat and excitement he aroused as mouths greedily sucked tongues.
Then she felt his good hand sliding down her hips, dragging the tiny panties off her legs.
“You promised commando.”
She kicked the scrap of fabric aside, feeling totally wanton. “Suggested, not promised.”
He grunted but brought his hand back to the juncture of her thighs, searching and finding super-sensitized flesh. She arched against probing fingers, moaning and twisting as he slowly stroked her desire. Then he pushed her harder and higher until she thrashed wildly against the sheets. Whimpering and pleading without words, she begged him to make them one.
“Nick, please!”
“Ah, now it’s Nick,” he taunted huskily. “I like the sound of you begging.” He brushed a kiss across her mouth. “I like the sound of my name on your lips and all the other sounds of arousal. Tell me how much you want me.”
Already sheathed and straining, he shifted fully over her. She parted her thighs in primitive welcome, but he waited for the words.
Panting, barely able to articulate her needs, Keri did as he asked. “I want you very, very much.”
“More than you’ve ever wanted anybody in your life?” he demanded hoarsely.
She scolded him. “That’s blackmail, Detective.”
“I want you more than I’ve ever wanted any woman,” he amazed her by confessing. “More than I want my next breath.” With that, he slowly joined their bodies and they both gasped at the intimate pleasure.
Nick pressed his forehead to hers. “
Cristo, mia l’angelo
, you feel good. So wet and tight, I’m afraid to move.”
Keri solved the problem by grinding herself against him with all her strength. She bucked her hips and kept bucking until satisfaction exploded through her body, drawing a low, keening scream from her throat. Nick slammed his mouth onto hers, absorbing the sound and then thrusting into her until they shared another shout of satisfaction.
For long minutes afterward, they lay panting and sweating. He shifted his weight off her and collapsed onto his back, his arms thrown over his head. She gulped in deep breaths of air, trying to regulate her breathing and slow her racing heart.
“Wow,” he finally managed.
“Wow,” she reiterated.
A few minutes later, he turned on his side, facing her. Resting his weight on his good arm, he draped his other one across her waist. The dim light allowed them to see each other’s expressions. The turbulent emotion on his handsome features awed her.
“I wasn’t lying earlier and I wasn’t using any standard line on you,” he swore softly. “I can’t remember ever wanting a woman as desperately as I wanted—want—you.”
She knew he wanted her to admit the same. She felt the same, but she couldn’t formulate the words. A long-term relationship with him didn’t stand a chance, and she couldn’t bear to commit her heart at the risk of losing it.
“That’s pretty scary territory,” she whispered.
He searched her face for a long, tension-filled moment, and then shifted off the bed. “Tell me about it,” he mumbled before excusing himself to hit the head.
Keri listened to him moving around the saloon but couldn’t find the energy to move. She couldn’t remember ever feeling so comfortable with her sexuality or so completely sated. She didn’t even worry about covering her nudity.
Nick caught her attention when he started back up the steps to the bed platform. Totally naked, partially aroused and sheathed with a fresh condom, he carried two glasses of wine and literally stole her breath with his pagan beauty. Handing her a glass, he plumped some pillows at the head of the bed and patted them in invitation. She scooted up beside him.
He’d turned on a night light in the galley, so it wasn’t quite as dark as she’d like. Grabbing the corner of a sheet, she tugged it across her waist.
“Scars?” he queried with unerring insight.
“Lots of ugly, puckered scars,” she declared grimly. “The surgeons assured me they’d look less horrible in a few years, but I don’t really believe it.”
Nick downed his wine in one long gulp. “And you think I’m so shallow I can’t be trusted to see them?”
Keri downed her wine thirstily too, setting her glass on the headboard. “I don’t think you’re shallow. It’s not so much about you as it is my own self-consciousness.”
He took a while to consider that angle. “So how do we get past the sensitivity?”
“We did just fine a few minutes ago,” she said lightly. The wine and the man both went to her head. Turning to him, she put a hand on his chest and began tangling her fingers in the tight, silky curls.
“If we only make love in the dark, how am I ever going to see your breasts? I want to see their fullness and watch your nipples go all hard and tight,” he told her, his tone dropping an octave.
She felt the heat of his hand as he cupped her breast, absently teasing the nipple with his thumb until she felt the pull deep in her womb.
“I have a solution,” he declared gruffly. Before she realized what he intended, he’d slid down the bed and tugged the sheet off her stomach. He poured the remaining drops of his wine in her navel. She gasped a little at the sensation.
“Maybe you’d better explain your solution,” she whispered.