Lisa Plumley (12 page)

Writhing beneath him now, Violet panted with eagerness. “I
never
imagined lovemaking could be like this!” she blurted. “I feel so...oh, Cade! I feel as though there must be more—”

“There is
definitely
more.” Another, deeper kiss.

“And yet I don’t know if I can stand it.” She wriggled anew, pressing together her thighs to stop the ache that had been bedeviling her for what felt like hours now. Gasping, she delved her fingers in Cade’s hair as he kissed her breast. By now, her chemise had been cast aside, yet she didn’t feel at all awkward or exposed. All she felt was needful...especially when Cade’s tongue slowly swirled over her newly exposed nipple. That only made the ache intensify. “Isn’t there something I can do?”

“You’ve already driven me mad with wanting.” Cade grinned, his sapphire-eyed gaze meeting hers with a new, heady sense of closeness. “I can’t imagine what else you’d want to do.”

“Me neither,” Violet confessed, “but there must be something!”

“There is.” Soothingly, Cade kissed her. Gently, he pushed back her hair, then gazed longingly into her face. “Enjoy this. That’s all you have to do. I’ll take care of the rest.”

“Oh, but then I won’t be doing my share. Surely there’s—”

Mmm
. The feel of Cade’s mouth between her breasts stopped her words. Caught up in that novel sensation, Violet tensed as he kissed her again—this time on her belly. She squealed, unable to hold back another yelp as he slid lower still. His fingertips brushed across the reddish curls at the juncture of her thighs.

“So wet,” he murmured. “So sweet. So perfect.”

Tossing her head against the pillows, Violet knew she should have thanked him for that—at the very least, because his statement had sounded wholly approving, especially when voiced in that throaty, manful tone of his—but she simply couldn’t do so. All she could do was writhe and pant and
yearn
. For what, she didn’t know. But Cade seemed to. That’s all that mattered.

“Mmm. I love this,” he said, but she knew that he meant he loved
her
. At least that’s the way it felt to Violet. “I never imagined it could be this way, with you.” Lovingly, he caressed her. “Are you sure you want more? Because if you don’t—”

“Yes. Yes!” Violet clenched her fists in the bed linens. Why was he torturing her this way? Already her whole body moved toward him all on its own, her hips thrusting toward his hand, her legs opening wantonly... “Please, Cade—”

“Yes, Violet?”

“I want...” Panting, she tried to conjure up words. “You.”

“That’s all I needed to know.” With a confusing mixture of vulnerability and bravado, Cade looked at her. He stroked her. Helplessly, Violet arched higher. “You feel
so
good,” he said.

Good
didn’t begin to do justice to these sensations. Caught up amid exquisite sensitivity and urgent need, Violet moaned. She simply couldn’t help it. Cade’s hands felt so skillful. His mouth felt so soft. So good. His mouth felt...as though it was
between her thighs
now. It was! Shocked to feel his lips
there
, of all places, Violet hesitated. Surely this was sinful.

Surely this was...it was... Oh, but it was
bliss
.

These kisses, like Cade’s other kisses, were magical. They were gentle and sure and entirely erotic, and as he continued kissing her in places Violet had certainly never expected to be kissed, she discovered very quickly that she needed this new kind of kissing. In fact, if Cade stopped, she would die. That was all there was to it. Eagerly, she raised herself toward him. His tongue swirled and teased in response; his lips pressed and kissed and awakened sensations she’d never even known existed.

By the time he began caressing her with slow, deliberate strokes of his hand, obviously savoring the slick wetness she’d so recently become aware of, Violet knew she could stand no more. Pleading, she cried out to Cade for...something. She didn’t know what. But he seemed to. As a new torrent of sensation burst over her, she knew she’d never forget the dexterous, loving,
protective
way Cade held her as the world fell apart...then reassembled itself again. Pulsing, breathless, damp with sweat, Violet looked up. She blinked. Cade smiled.

Then, unbelievably, he said, “There’s more.”

She exhaled, feeling replete and limp and somehow exhilarated. Her ears were ringing. “I don’t believe it.”

“I’ll show you.” Then, sweetly, Cade did. He guided her hand lower, then lower still, all the way to that rigid, heavy part of him. He closed her fingers around him. “Mmm.
Yes
.”

Reminded suddenly of everything she still didn’t know about, Violet brightened. “
Yes!
I almost forgot about you.”

“I’ll never forget about you,” he vowed. His eyes closed, even as Violet daringly stroked him. “Never, Violet. Never.”

“I should hope not!” Feeling bewilderingly energetic now, Violet traced her fingers over him. Delightfully, he leaped in response to her touch. She loved that. So she did it again. “You know,” she mused aloud, aiming a speculative gaze beneath the coverlets where all Cade’s stimulating nudity lay, “I have all kinds of ideas now that I didn’t possess just an hour ago.”

“Then you’re not regretful? Not bashful or sorry?”

Violet gave a one-shouldered shrug. It was difficult to continue talking while exploring his anatomy this way. “I feel
wonderful
,” she told Cade truthfully. “How do you feel?”

He swallowed hard. His eyes opened, then focused on her face. “I feel that if I don’t have you soon, I’ll die.”

Unexpectedly, Violet felt quite protective then herself. Also, her body had begun that curious
throbbing
she’d noticed earlier, all over again. She reckoned Cade could cure that.

“I’m yours,” she said simply. “Now and always.”

“Ah, Violet.” Passionately, Cade kissed her. “I’m yours.”

She couldn’t help smiling at that—even as Cade chose that moment to pull her into his arms again, effectively ending her explorations of his intriguing manly endowments. An instant later, though, Violet didn’t mind as much. Because an instant later, Cade had covered her with kisses, situated himself masterfully atop her and settled himself between her legs.

“Is this the lovemaking part?” Violet asked, suddenly apprehensive. He’d promised it shouldn’t hurt much, but—

“With you,
everything
is the lovemaking part.” Cade kissed her, even as his body pressed insistently between her thighs. “From the moment I asked you to dance, I was lost. To you.”

She smiled. “And I, to you. You’re awfully charming.”

“And you’re chatty.” His grin mirrored hers, with a devilish undercurrent of lustiness. With pretend fierceness, he said, “From here on, all I want are moans and squeals and sighs of delight.”

“Yes, Mr. Foster,” Violet promised. “I’ll do my best.”

“You don’t have to do anything except be you,” Cade told her. “That’s the part I can’t resist—not even now.” Seeming newly aware of his own arousal, Cade wriggled teasingly. He kissed her, then gave her a look full of concern and care and passion. “We’re about to become one, Violet. Are you ready?”

“For you?” Assuredly, she nodded. “Beyond a doubt.”

At her response, Cade closed his eyes. Seeming inexplicably moved by the emotion of the moment, he went entirely still.

Violet thought then that
he
must have felt the same connection between them that she did. As if in proof that he did, Cade truly did make them one: he entered her in one sure stroke. He paused to be sure she was unhurt, then went on.

Having him inside her was...
remarkable
. Feeling filled and fulfilled in a way she never had before, Violet clutched Cade nearer, wide-eyed and astonished and enlightened.
This
was what she’d needed. This and everything that had passed between them until now. This was what she’d been made for...feeling this way.

With soft kisses and tender touches and more and more and
more
skillful thrusting, Cade made love to her in a way that felt unforgettable. His body fit perfectly to hers; his gaze melded seamlessly with hers; and even as he brought them both closer and closer to a new pinnacle of pleasure, Cade never let Violet forget one thing: she was beloved. She was treasured and needed and beautiful to him, and she was
his
. They were united.

“Oh, Violet.” With a mighty groan, Cade thrust harder. Beneath them, the mattress dipped and swayed. The bedclothes grew yet more tangled. The coming together of their bodies turned even more frenzied, and still Cade gazed only at her. “Yes,” he panted. “
Yes
. You feel
so
good. So right. So...
ah
.”

He went still. Then he shouted. With an utter lack of inhibition, Cade lost himself in her body. He moaned anew, wholly lustily. Then, with his hair tousled and his muscles slicked with sweat, he delivered her his most stunning grin yet.

“Does that mean you’re pleased?” Violet asked breathlessly.

He laughed. “I’m
beyond
pleased.” He cradled her close, hauling her atop his big, sprawled body while they panted for breath. “I’m exhilarated. Buoyant.” A hearty swearword. “I’ve never felt anything like that before.” Cade shook his head. He kissed the top of her head, then smoothed her hair. “It must be because of you. You make everything better, Violet. Everything.”

Happily, she snuggled against him. “I guess I do!” Wearing a smug—and this time
authentically
sophisticated—smile, Violet stroked her palm over his bare chest. Now she was free to toy with his lovely muscles all she wished. “That’s because I love you,” she confessed, unable to hold back any longer. Brimful with the knowledge of it, she yearned to fling open the windows and yell it to the world. “I love you, Cade! And now, thanks to everything we’ve shared, I can tell you so.”

Still wearing his bliss-filled, endearingly enamored grin, Cade gazed at her. “Then I’m the luckiest man in the world right now,” he said. “I was right about you all along, Violet—you
are
my good-luck charm. And now you’re much more besides.”

“Much,
much
more,” she insisted giddily.

“Yes.” Just for an instant, Cade furrowed his brow. Pensively, he gazed at his hotel room’s ornate plaster ceiling medallion. He seemed lost in some remembrance—and this time, it appeared
not
to be a happy one. “You are more. Much more.” He paused almost ominously. “You’re more than I deserve.”

“What? Of course I’m not. You’re—”

“No one has ever loved me.” Cade went on staring at the ceiling, seeing...something she couldn’t guess. His bleak-sounding voice scared her. “There’s no reason you should be different.”

“There’s every reason,” Violet tried reassuring him. This new melancholic side of Cade confused her. “I love you! I—”

His gaze swerved to meet hers. “Saying it twice as often won’t make it doubly true.” He grinned. His usual exuberance returned with his smile, bringing with it a full measure of charm. It was as though Cade’s brief, brooding descent had never happened. “But making love twice as often
will
make you feel twice as good.” He gave her a provocative look. “I’ll show you.”

“Oh!” Suddenly diverted, Violet smiled, too. She knew she should address Cade’s conviction that he was incapable of being loved. The very notion broke her heart. But just at that moment, Cade was smiling at her and stroking her thighs and gazing at her as though she was the most delectable treat he’d ever encountered, and she simply couldn’t muster the mental acuity to cope with his erotic stimulation and his potentially devastating past, all at the same time. She felt too overcome.

“You’ll show me, hmm?” Touched and thrilled and aroused, Violet cradled Cade’s face. His beard stubble tickled her palm. She couldn’t help smiling. “I do hope you’re not bluffing.”

“With you? Never,” Cade swore. “Are you ready?”

His eyes glimmered with mischief, furthering the thought that she’d simply imagined his unhappiness earlier...and making Violet wonder at the abrupt change in him, too.

This
Cade—the one who currently charmed her with kisses and scandalous, huskily voiced erotic promises—was familiar to her.
This
Cade looked like a man who’d never entertained a sad thought in his life. He looked like a man who’d always been admired and adored and in complete control of himself and everything around him.

But Violet knew she’d glimpsed something important a moment ago. She’d glimpsed the truth in Cade’s face. She meant to explore that truth further. After all, wasn’t that what true love meant? Knowing the one you loved and helping him?

But first... “Am I ready for you? Always,” she promised.

But she wasn’t. Not entirely. Because as Cade surprised her by rolling them both over until
she
straddled him, Violet squealed. Her eyes widened. Her thighs quaked. Even as she splayed her hands atop Cade’s massive chest for balance, she realized that she would never be able to predict Cade’s next move.
He
was the gambler here, not her. All she could do was hold on and hope for the best. So that’s what she did.

“I love you, Cade,” Violet whispered as he loved her.

“I love you, too,” she would have sworn she heard him say in response. But a heartbeat later, they were both lost to the pleasure they’d found together. Words were beyond them both.

At least they were until later. Then, lolling in a tubful of hot bathwater, laughing as Cade helped her wash up, Violet remembered a few words she’d planned to give Cade herself.

“You really are a good man,” she began. “I always knew it.”

Cade merely lathered her shoulders, silently and adeptly. His soapy fingers dipped and slid divertingly over her wet skin.

“That’s why I’m going to help you,” Violet went on. “I’m going to help you live up to the terms of my father’s wager.”

Cade stopped. His fingers went still. “What wager?”