Arrested Pleasure (13 page)

Gabe wanted Cassie as much as she did him.

At the same time, the idea scared her. No man ever made her pulse race out of control. For "always in charge" Cassie, it was a new thing.

"I can undress myself," she told him, her voice barely discernable in the room, the sounds of traffic in the distance mingling with the falling rain.

His touch lingered on her waist, watching her. "I like taking care of you. Let me do this, Cassie." She didn't know what to say, so she nodded. She'd let him do whatever he wanted, because she couldn't stop the blood pumping furiously inside her.

Slowly, Gabe lifted the shirt, his gaze flickering hotly downward. She had worn a lilac colored push-up bra, never dreaming this morning she'd be where she was right now—in Gabe's arms, letting him make love to her. Her shirt gone, he guided her backward onto the bed, her hair flowing onto the pillows.

Gabe fingered the nearly sheer bra. "Pretty. I hope it's for me."

She stared up at him, unable to respond. Her belly clenched with need. Had she secretly hoped he'd show up today? How could Cassie have known Gabe would choose today? Maybe she furtively willed him to come.

He ran his finger around the lace edges. "Maybe our minds were intertwined today." Gabe's eyes met hers. "I made a last minute decision to come by and hoped you'd be in." He smiled, sending tingles spiraling down her body. His voice seduced her as much as his hands did.

"I'm"—Cassie swallowed her moan—"glad you decided to stop by."

"Me too." He leaned down and kissed her where the lace met skin. She shivered in anticipation. She started to hook her arms around his, but he pulled back.

"No. You still have too many clothes on." He dropped to his knees and began to remove her shoes. She enjoyed the sensation of his undressing her and closed her eyes.

Her mood and his actions threatened to overwhelm her. She suspected they were going to be here a long time, and she needed to catch her breath.

Then Gabe switched his attentions to her waist. Once again he lingered, and though she didn't open her eyes, she sensed Gabe studied her. She was afraid if she opened her eyes, he'd see the uncontrolled desire she couldn't hide.

She quivered when he found the tab to her pants and slowly moved the zipper down. It was mostly bare beneath, and his finger slid along her exquisitely sensitive skin.

"Damn," he muttered. She opened her eyes to find him staring down at her body.

He looked up. "You're wearing a sexy thong."

She smiled, pleased he apparently enjoyed her sexy secret passion—thongs.

He pulled her jeans down the rest of the way with some assistance from her.

Now clad only in her bra and a matching lilac thong, Gabe appraised her in silence for a moment, while the look in his eyes spoke of shimmering desire.

"I hope to hell this was for me."

Pleased with his reaction, she smiled. "Of course. And now who's overdressed?"

She pointed to his briefs, with its interesting fullness tenting the front. Her mouth watered at the anticipation of the evening ahead. It'd been too long since she'd made love.

"I'd say we're even." A grimace then crossed his face, and he glanced around the room. "Condoms. Please tell me you have some. My pants are downstairs—"

"In the bathroom in the medicine cabinet." She started to get up, but he shook his head, rising to his feet.

He disappeared into the bathroom, and she heard the cabinet door open and then shut. He returned with a satisfied grin on his face. "These should get us started."

He held three condoms in his hand.

"Started? You . . . uh . . . plan a long night?"

"Of course. All night long, babe." He smirked as he tossed them onto the night table and slid onto the bed beside her. "Get ready for the best ride you've ever had," he told her, leaning over and planting a light kiss on the mouth.

Her insides quivered as he continued to kiss her, his mouth and tongue marking a trail down her neck and to her shoulder.

"The day I laid eyes on you, I knew I had to have you." He toyed with the strap of her bra, not looking at her. "You're definitely someone not to forget." The strap slid further down her arm.

His words were a like a mambo dance for her sexual desire as it coursed through her veins. "Oh, Gabe," she whispered. "I wanted you . . ." She sucked in her breath when he dropped a kiss on her upper breasts where lace met skin. "I wanted you so bad it hurt and . . . and . . . my reaction scared me."

Gabe lifted his head at her words. "Scared? Is that why you ran off that day before we were able to exchange names?" Regret tinged his expression. "I'm sorry we didn't know each other better before we did the slam bam like we did."

Cassie met his gaze, her heart thumping wildly. "I thought I was going crazy letting a stranger become intimate with me."

He shook his head. "Oh, damn. I wish we could go back and redo everything. I took one look at you and thought how sexy you were. I just lost control."

"Same here." She brushed a finger down his cheek. "Usually I'm in control of my emotions, but when we kissed . . . ."

"Let's forget about what happened and concentrate on now." Gabe leaned over and deposited another kiss on her mouth, caressing her face before the kiss deepened.

She wound her arms around his neck and drew him closer.

"Oh, Gabe," she murmured as his mouth moved down to her neck. Moisture pooled between her legs. Her body on fire, she couldn't get enough of him.

His knee forced her thighs to slide open, allowing him to settle in between her legs. Kisses grew deeper and hotter. "You taste good, sweetheart. I love the flavor of you. Almost like—"

She smiled. "Peaches. I used peach body lotion this morning."

"Perfect. Fruity and delicious." His tongue delved between the shadowy cleft of her breasts. "Peaches and cream," he murmured, licking his way across the top of her bra.

Her insides clenched at the sensation of his touch. Yet she was going crazy because he was too slow. "Please," she begged. "Please make love to me."

Gabe lifted his head to grin at her. "Darling, that's what I'm trying to do."

She swallowed a gasp at his statement. "Damn you, Gabe Banks. I want you now." Then she pulled his head down and gave him a full-mouthed kiss.

That seemed to kick him into gear, because he returned the favor, pressing her body into the soft bed. Her pulse quickened as he used his tongue to explore the recesses of her mouth, while his hand molded her body.

"Yes. Yes . . . Yes!" she moaned against his mouth.

Her bra slid away, leaving her only clad in her tiny thong. She wiggled her ass, trying to get a hand down between them to rid herself of the last piece of clothing, but he wouldn't budge.

She gasped as his lips found the hardened tip of one breast. Gabe licked at the aureole as if he was eating an ice cream cone. Cassie's body shuddered as sensation after sensation thrummed throughout.

"Like that?" His question penetrated her foggy, sex-is-almost-there brain.

She could only nod, the words caught in her throat. He had her body in a puddle of explosive need. She only hoped he didn't plan to drag out the foreplay too long or she'd die from wanting.

Gabe shifted his body so he was at eye level with her breasts. "Perfect," he murmured, tracing a finger across the tip of one. Cassie bit back a moan and a sudden urge to snake her hand between her thighs and pleasure herself. Damn him, he needed to move faster.

Yet, as she stared into his face, she knew he had to be the one to bring her to completion.

He lowered his head again and took one nipple into his mouth. She tried to move, but he held her in place. He nipped and sucked, driving her crazy with each touch of his tongue. She tossed her head back, gasping at sensation after sensation hit her at warp speed.

"Oh, Gabe," she moaned, her hands trying to grasp him somehow. "Oh, my God, please.
Yes.
Please. I need you now
." Her body was wound tighter than a ball of string. If she didn't get relief—soon—she'd come in a flash of fire within moments.

He ignored her pleas, instead shifting lower. Opening her eyes, her head prone on the bed, she gazed at him. What was he doing now? Surely he wasn't planning to leave?

He caught her expression and shook his head. He fingered her thong. "So pretty, and I hate to remove this." With one finger, he traced the edge of her lacy thong until he reached the center. His eyes locked with hers. "Are you ready for me?" he asked. Then, he dipped a finger underneath the edge and found her wet, hot center.

Her body jerked in response at the invasion. She moaned loudly, the sounds of rain mixing erotically with her pleasure. White hot flashes sparked in her vision. She enjoyed sex, but no man had ever made her act as wanton as Gabe did at this moment.

His head lowered, he continued to swirl the wetness around her labia as his fingers explored her womanhood, tantalizing her senses.

"Hot. Wet . . . for me." He slid deeper into her, continuing to explore her.

"Oh . . . yes . . . ." Her legs thrashed, but he held her in place.

"Easy does it," he murmured. "Look at me, Cassie."

She slowly opened her eyes and watched as he pulled out his hand and placed a digit dripping with her juices into his mouth, with his eyes never leaving hers. He savored it as one would a Popsicle.

"Mm . . ." he murmured, never dropping his gaze. No man had ever done that before. "You taste good."

A smile flickered on her lips. "Like a peach?" she asked him.

"Better," he said quietly before returning to her hips and slowly lowering the thong down her hips. She loved watching the expression on his face as her body was exposed inch by inch. She'd never forget the way he looked at her, as if this was the first time he'd ever seen a woman's naked body.

The thong slid down her legs, and he pushed it off her feet. Now totally exposed to his eyes, he explored every inch of her body. Cassie shivered at the passion revealed in his gaze.

He must have sensed her shiver. "Are you cold?"

She shook her head. "No. The way you're looking at me—"

"It made you aware of how much I can't wait to make you mine?"

She stared at him, surprised at the intensity she saw there. Yes, she couldn't wait either, because she wanted him inside her now.

Gabe leaned closer, their lips a mere inch apart. "I want to make love to you all night long. Can you deny a man who confesses his inner, deepest thoughts?" He didn't wait for an answer, but instead lowered his head and kissed her.

Unlike the fervid kiss earlier, this one was lighter, yet there was something more.

The passion seemed more intense than a simple touch of his lips.

He moved his body to lay partially on her, careful not to squash her. With his hands, he caressed every inch of her. His hands roved down her arms, breasts, stomach—and lower. He nibbled and nipped love bites across her shoulder, and she gasped at the pain—and the pleasure—he created inside her.

He ran his fingers down her hip to the inside of her thighs and plunged a finger into her slit, finding her wetness once again. He stroked, his touch electrifying. Need ratcheted upward. She arched as he nipped at her neck, a twinge of sensations spiraling deep inside her.

"Oh . . . my . . . God . . . ." She moaned, her legs opening wider. He found her clit and rubbed the swollen nub between his fingers. Her body jerked in reaction.

She thrashed against his wicked fingers, faintly aware she was spinning out of control. She bit the side of her mouth, trying to hold onto sanity, not quite realizing she bit too hard until she tasted blood.

"
Please. . . .
" She needed release. A groan escaped her throat as the first wave of a climax began. She reached out for him when his warm body suddenly left hers.

Opening her eyes, she saw him with a condom in his hand, ripping the foil packet open.

She only had a brief glimpse of his penis before he covered her body once more. He spread and lifted her legs, then settled in between them.

He guided the head of his cock until he breached her entrance. Glancing up, he met her glazed eyes. "I can't hold back, sweetheart."

She could only shake her head, unable to respond. She wanted him too much to care right now.

Pressing harder, he used his fingers to spread her labia. She watched in sensual haze as he pushed his cock into her wet, hot channel. Her flesh swallowed him like a boa constrictor.

With a grunt, he slid firmly into her. She gasped at the suddenness of his penetration. He was big and hard, but damn, oh-so-good. Cassie's head lolled back on the pillows, and she stared up at him hungrily, wanting more.
More.

Gabe smiled tenderly before dropping down to cover her lips with his. He pulled out once before pushing back in, repeating the action several times until he was seated to the hilt inside her.

He paused, and they stared at each other, as time stood still. The fullness of him inside her felt good.

But she needed more. "Please"—she moaned—"make me come."

Gabe didn't reply, but instead began to move inside her. First gentle, then harder.

A sheen of perspiration began to form on his skin, and without thinking she touched her fingers to his forehead. He glanced at her and smiled.

He continued to thrust, harder and more intense. "Come on, sweetheart, come.

You're the most fucking beautiful thing I've ever seen. I want you to blow apart when you come for me."

The words were a catalyst for Cassie as the quivers of an orgasm soon spread through her like a shooting star.

"
Yes . . . .
" She gasped and moaned the words, her body quaking. She closed her eyes and white-hot sparks glowed behind her lids. As her head collapsed on the bed, she heard him shout as he, too, came.

As she laid on the bed recovering and the last shivers of her orgasm racked her body, he lifted his head to place a light kiss on her shoulder.

"Are you okay?"

Without opening her eyes, she smiled, unable to form a coherent response. Her body seemed different—out of this world—and all she wanted to do right now was experience the sensation again.