Her First Vacation (17 page)

“Tell me you’re not a virgin.”

She blushed, but kept her gaze locked on his as she shook
her head slightly. “I’m not a virgin. I had a...relationship in college.” He
saw pain flash in her eyes. “It didn’t work out.”

There was more to it than that, and he felt an instant
flash of hatred for the bastard who’d hurt her. He slid his hand from her neck
to her shoulder and down her arm, then back again.

“His loss, I’d say.”

He leaned forward and kissed her lips lightly,
then
he worked his way down her jaw to her throat. She
leaned her head back, offering him easier access. He ran his tongue along her
collarbone,
then
lifted his head so he could look into
her eyes once more.

“I’m going to touch you in ways and places that I’d be
willing to bet he never did. And you’re going to let me because once I
do,
you aren’t going to want me to stop. If you’re going to
change your mind about this, now’s the time.”

She shook her head. “I’m not going to change my mind.”

Her voice was barely above a whisper, but it was enough. He
pressed against her shoulder lightly and she obediently fell back against the
bed. He propped himself on his elbow beside her and let his gaze drop to her
breasts. He brought his hand to her belly and she flinched, but said nothing.
He slowly let it glide across her skin until he was just below her breasts. He
trailed one finger between the mounds,
then
slowly
circled one with a light touch. The nipple was already hard, but it tightened
even more in anticipation of his touch. It wasn’t the only thing that was
tight, though. She was lying there with every muscle in her body clenched, and
he realized that she expected it to be uncomfortable. He lifted his gaze to
hers while his finger continued to make lazy circles around her breasts.

“Was he rough with you?”

She shook her head. “He never hurt me. I thought I wanted
him to-
“ she
broke off, clearly unable to put it into
words. She just shook her head again instead. “It was...uncomfortable.”

Colin’s hatred of the nameless, faceless man climbed a
notch higher. The bastard had been too focused on his own gratification to care
about taking care of hers. He’d probably groped at her for a few minutes while
he got her out of her clothes,
then
humped her like a
grunting pig. No wonder she was so tense. He brought his hand up to grasp her
chin, forcing her face to turn toward him as he spoke.

“I’m not going to hurt you, Claire. I’m going to teach you
how to enjoy your body and mine.” He leaned down and kissed her, deeply and
with an intimacy that startled even him. When he pulled back he could see the
hunger in her eyes. “Trust me. I swear you won’t regret it.”

He could have kicked himself for making that promise,
especially when he knew it was an outright lie. She was going to regret ever
meeting him before this was all over. But at that moment, he couldn’t make
himself keep anything back from her. So he told her what he wished was the
truth, and she believed him. She nodded, and he felt her body begin to relax.
He put his focus back on her breasts then, because he couldn’t stand to see the
trust in her eyes.

He brought his finger to her nipple and traced the dark
circle around it a couple of times before finally touching the hard peak. She
groaned at that first brush, and he tightened his jaw for a moment as the sound
sent a shockwave through his body that ended in a tug at his groin. He stroked
the bud,
then
repeated the move on the other breast.
He moved his hand back to the first one as he bent his head and blew gently on
the peak nearest him. She shivered in response. Then he finally gave in to the
need clawing at him and put his mouth on her. He ran his tongue over her,
then
grazed her with his teeth lightly before closing his
mouth over her fully so he could suck at her. She moaned and arched off the
bed. He continued pulling at that nipple while he used his hand to pluck at the
other one. He threw one leg over her and felt his erection slide along the
smooth skin of her thigh. She felt it too because she moved instinctively, just
enough to make him think that he might not make it through to the end without
embarrassing himself. He decided it would be better to shift his position than
to risk that kind of adolescent behavior. He rose over her, moving his mouth to
the other breast to give it equal attention before he slowly began to work his
way down her body, finally he reached the upper edge of the lace panties, and
he lifted his head so he could look at her.

“Are these
part
of your makeover?”

She shook her head. “I bought them last year.”

He let his gaze drop to the lace and to what he could see
beneath it. He slid off the bed and lifted one of her legs so he could remove
the shoe on that foot. He got rid of the other one as well,
then
bent to grip the panties. He peeled them off her,
then
sank to his knees on the floor beside the bed. Her legs still hung off the edge
of the mattress and he put his hands on her knees, but didn’t try to force them
open. Instead, he spoke softly to her.

“Open for me, Claire. Let me see you.”

She didn’t move at first, and he wondered if he was asking
too much of her. Then she took a shuddering breath and slowly parted her legs.
He felt his erection harden even more as he slid his hands up her thighs. He
didn’t have to touch her to know she was wet enough to take him. Every male
instinct he possessed was screaming at him to climb on top of her and bury
himself as deep into her wet heat as he could. But he’d already sworn to her
and himself that he wasn’t going to hurt her, and rushing into it now would
certainly hurt her.
If not physically, then emotionally.
She’d already endured enough of that. So he forced himself to go slow as he
brought his hands to her. He started by barely brushing the dark curls between
her legs, then he gently stroked the moist folds of her flesh. She was already
trembling but the moment he found her clit and ran his finger over it she
jerked and began to shake in earnest. He brushed it twice,
then
slid his finger to her opening and slowly inside. He had to close his eyes for
a moment as he felt how tight she was. She was going to kill him when he
entered her. He pulled his finger out, then slipped it back inside and used his
thumb to massage her clitoris again. He heard the whimper she made and had to
open his eyes to watch as she arched her back off the bed. He stroked and
rubbed until she was gasping, then pulled his hand away and put his mouth in
its place.

Claire thought she would go insane with need. Her entire
body felt hot and tight and hungry for something she couldn’t begin to explain.
She knew, logically, that she was on the threshold of having an orgasm. She’d
read all about it, but never felt anything like the sensations that were coursing
through her body at this moment. She could hear herself whimpering but couldn’t
make the desperate little cries cease. She felt her legs parting as far as they
could as she silently begged Colin not to stop. She ought to be embarrassed by
this. She’d never been touched like this, never thought she wanted to be. But
she couldn’t make herself feel anything but the driving need to find
completion. So she rocked her hips unconsciously and gripped handfuls of the
sheets as Colin’s tongue and teeth pushed her ever closer to that goal.

Colin felt the first contraction of her muscles and ran his
tongue over her one final time. She sucked in a sharp breath,
then
cried out as the orgasm took her. He slid his finger
inside her and felt her clench around him over and over as her body shuddered
with the release. He couldn’t stand it. He had to feel her squeezing around his
erection. He slowly stroked her with one hand as he turned to find his pants.
He pulled out the supply of condoms he’d been carrying around since he’d come
on board the ship. He hadn’t planned on actually having sex with anyone, but he
knew that if push came to shove, he might not have a choice if he wanted to
maintain his cover. So he was always prepared. He ripped open a packet and
quickly sheathed himself. Then he rose and put one knee on the bed. Claire’s
eyes were closed. She was still shuddering every few seconds as the aftershocks
rippled through her body. He put his hand on her waist.

“Scoot up some.”

She opened her eyes and met his gaze, then obeyed. He slid
his hand from her waist to her hip as he gave her an apologetic look.

“I didn’t want to move this fast, but if I don’t get inside
you right now I’m going to explode.” He put his hand on her knee and gently
pushed her leg aside. “I’ll be gentle, Claire. I swear.”

Claire felt a tiny thread of dread as she watched him move
between her legs. She didn’t dare give it voice or even let it show on her
face, though. Colin had given her the first orgasm she’d ever experienced. It
was only fair that she let him find the same release. So she parted her legs
for him and even managed to give him a tremulous smile as she felt him lowering
toward her. Then he was touching her, the tip of his erection grazed her, and
she felt him reach down between their bodies to guide
himself
into her. She expected him to drive his hips down and sink into her hard and
fast. Instead, he went incredibly
slow
. So slow that
within a few seconds she was shocked to feel herself lifting her hips to hurry
the process along.

Colin groaned when Claire lifted her hips to meet him. He
meant to go slow for her, to make sure he didn’t hurt her in any way. But the
moment he sank into her he’d known that if he didn’t take his time he’d come
long before he was fully inside her. He held himself still and spoke quickly.

“Easy, honey. It’s taking everything I have to hold on
right now. Give me a minute, and I’ll pick up the pace a little.”

Claire was shocked by the flush of heat that suffused her
as she heard the strain in his voice. She suddenly knew that she wanted him to
lose control. She wanted him to soar to the same reckless heights he’d carried
her to only minutes before. But he was on top of her, and there wasn’t much she
could do to push him over that line. And then she remembered that there was
nothing keeping her from touching him. So far, he’d done all the touching, all
the exploring. Maybe it was time for her to do a little touching of her own.

Colin felt her hands come up to rest lightly on his sides.
When they began to tentatively slide over his skin he knew he was in deep
trouble. She’d finally worked up the nerve to take some initiative. He was
starting to lose count of the number of times she’d surprised him with her
courage. As her hands wandered further over him, he knew she was about to push
his self-control to the breaking point. He pushed himself the rest of the way
into her, then pulled back out once more. He started the rhythm slow, as much
for himself as for her, but she didn’t let him keep it slow for long. First, her
fingers found his nipples. He saw the amazement that filled her eyes as she
realized he liked being touched there as much as she did. Then, right about the
time he thought his control couldn’t be strained any further, she lifted her
legs and wrapped them around him. The change in angle made it possible for him
to bury himself even deeper inside her. She lifted herself to meet every thrust
of his hips, and just before he felt the unavoidable rush of release he slipped
a hand between them and found her clit. He’d barely touched her when she
clenched around him and cried out. He plunged into her one more time, groaning
long and loud as he pumped himself
dry
with her
contracting around him.

It was the hardest orgasms he’d ever had, and it took a
long while for it to end completely. By the time it did, he had collapsed onto
her and was panting in an effort to get his breath back. He was still inside
Claire, and he had to work hard to shake the feeling that he wanted to spend
the rest of his life in her bed and her arms. He knew he had to be crushing
her, but he needed a few moments to wipe the crazy thoughts in his head out of
his eyes. When he finally did lift himself off her and look into her face, he
felt his stomach clench as if he’d been kicked there.

There were tears rolling down her face. He didn’t need to
ask to know why. He cursed himself for a selfish prick as he shifted his weight
off her, reaching out to touch her cheek.

“Claire?”

She closed her eyes,
then
shook
her head. A moment later she was scrambling off the bed and running for the bathroom.
Colin collapsed onto the bed and cursed himself long and hard.

Claire knew that hiding in the bathroom wasn’t going to
work for long. It was a silly thing to do in the first place, but she hadn’t
known where else to go to get away from Colin. She couldn’t stop the tears, and
she didn’t want him to see them. So she sat on the closed lid of the toilet
while the tears ran silently down her face. No great wracking sobs, no sniffles,
just hot tears. Her body still trembled occasionally as the memory of their
lovemaking washed over her. And she knew it was lovemaking. He’d been
incredibly patient with her, so gentle and tender that in the aftermath she
couldn’t make herself stop crying for it. No one had ever touched her like he
did.
Physically, or emotionally.
Despite his
incredibly crude warnings about what he wanted from her, he’d taken her to the
bed and loved her thoroughly. It was the most beautiful thing she’d ever
experienced. She jumped when he knocked on the door.

“Claire, are you okay?”

She lifted a hand and brushed at the tears still gliding
down her cheeks as she forced herself to speak.

“I’m fine.”