OUT OF THE DARKNESS (THE PRESCOTT SERIES) (22 page)

“Mm.
You taste good,” he said, then released her to sway in her own hot turmoil of desire.

He c
almly sat down to eat and acted in complete control when she shook from the force of the desire that his kisses churned to life inside her.

She
wanted to hit him. She wasn’t as experienced in these matters as Jason, but she was acquainted with the phrase, ‘turnabout is fair play’. Maybe, it was time for her to tantalize Jason until he fell in love with her and put this ‘marriage of convenience’ behind them.

If breakfast was an assault on Jade’s senses,
supper proved to be an enlightenment for Jason’s self-imposed self-control. If Jade’s dress was any tighter in the bosom, the buttons would pop off, and he waited in breathless anticipation for the first button to fly loose. Her freshly washed hair hang in red ringlets down her back making him long to tangle his hands in the mass of curls.

Cookie had prepared the meal in the cookhouse and brought it over for Jade to reheat. Nicky slept peacefully in her bed
, and Emma appeared engrossed with eating one pea at a time with her fingers.

“More potatoes or vegetable,” Jade
asked in a low and sultry voice.

Jason stared at her as the husky pitch flowed over him like warm honey.
“Potatoes, please.”

She picked up the bowl of whipped potatoes and i
nstead of passing the bowl, she slid from her chair, sashayed close to him, and spooned a helping into his plate. Her breast gently grazed his arm. Accident? Purposely? His heart stuttered as her essence surrounded him, drew him deeper into an incredible fervor of carnal desire. His breath hissed through his teeth as he fought for control.

How could a woman
, so soon from childbirth, move with such sensuality?

He
fought the impulse to drag her onto his lap and kiss her until they both succumbed to the desire chasing hot on his heels. But, it was too soon for Jade after having the baby. He would continue the erotic play on her senses until she reached out to him in love. That is unless temptation didn’t tip him over the edge into insanity.

After
lunch, he escaped temptation by going to the barn. The pitchfork’s sharp tines buried deep into the hay pile. Lifting the heavy mass, he tossed it into the trough for the corralled horses. His gaze drifted toward the house and wondered how Jade spent her time.

Eac
h day had become a sexual contest Jason eagerly anticipated. With his hand under her arm, and his thumb gently caressing the side of her breast, he’d kiss her. Taunting, teasing, yet never filling his palm with its lush fullness. Did her breasts ache, long for the full pressure of his hand? He hoped so, because he sure as hell ached for hours afterwards.

He stabbed the tines into the hard ground, covered the ends of the handle with his folded hands, and propped his chin on them.

Last night, Jade had leaned over his shoulder as he read. Her full breast touched his shoulder. Her gapping bodice gave him a splendid view of her voluptuous display. His loins had grown tight with unfulfilled desire. Draping his book discreetly over his lap was his only concealment for his lust-filled body.

This morning when he’d help
ed her in the kitchen, he had stood behind her and leaned forward to grasp something just out of her reach. At her quick indrawn breath, he knew the heat of his body and the strength of his arms affected her. That knowledge had played havoc with his self-control ever since.

He hung the pitchfork on its hook and started for the house. He savored the thought that perhaps Jade played a waiting game of her own. Perhaps she was
as eager as he was to consummate their marriage. How many more weeks before she healed? Nicky was nearly five weeks old. He scrubbed his fingers through his wind-blown hair. How was he going to be able to tolerate the tension building with each tantalizing touch, each heated glance, or each unspoken thought?

Greeted with the sight of
Jade leaned over to pull bread from the oven, Jason watched in fascination as her hips swayed from side to side as she shifted from one foot to the other. He wondered if she did it on purpose, just to tease him. If she did, it was working.

“Something smells good.”

“Oh, Jason! I didn’t realize you were there.” She flashed him a captivating smile and set supper on the table.

He pushed his plate away and rubbed his full stomach.

“I better put Emma down for a nap before she falls asleep in her chair.”

He glanced at his daughter. Eyes half-closed,
her head bobbed back and forth.

“
You shouldn’t lift her. I’ll put her to bed while you clean the dishes.”

A few swipe
s at Emma’s face and hands with a damp cloth, and he tucked her under the covers in her bed. Nicky made the soft noise she always did just before she let loose at the top of her lungs. He snatched her up and cradled her before her screams woke Emma.

Jade dried her hands and laughed. “You’ve learned that, too.”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll take her
, she’s hungry.” She extended her arms.

The back of Jason’s hand
rubbed against Jade’s breast as he placed Nicky into her arms. He gazed into her green eyes and studied the play of emotion created by his not-so-accidental-touch.

Dark lashes blinked and when she looked at him again, she had hidden whatever passion she’d experienced.
Turning on her heel, she went to her room, denying him the pleasure-pain of watching her feed Nicky.

The door closed
, and his heart hammered against his ribs. Why did he torture himself? Jade wouldn’t heal for at least another week, and he didn’t think he could stand another week of such sweet agony. He’d withdraw for now and reconsider his strategy until she healed completely. Satisfied with this new ploy, he headed for the barn to finish his chores.

When he returned to the house for supper and didn’t kiss Jade, an expression of confusion crossed her face. For a moment, his gaze lingered on her pouty, little mouth before he turned his back and washed for supper. They ate in silence
. Tension built between them.

Emma sat on a blanket and played with her toys while Jade cleaned the kitchen. Nicky
began to stir. He picked her up and rocked her until Jade was free to feed her. If Nickolas came to claim Jade and Nicky, these memories would be all he’d have left.

Dishes clinked as Jade put the last plate away. Nicky began to
fuss.

“I’ll take her.”

Jade’s small hand slid up his thigh as she scooped Nicky from his lap, stopping short of the intimate touch he craved. His breath caught in his throat. His lungs deflated leaving him unable to inhale his next breath.

He caught a glimpse of sexual hunger in her eyes before she left the room
, Nicky cradled in her arms. For weeks they had played upon each other’s desire, found the others weakness. Fanning the flames of lust higher with each touch, each penetrating glance, until he trembled with awakened desire and unfulfilled sexual hunger. Each sexual maneuver, each tactical retreat, generated its own personal battlefield. Their unusual mating ritual was bringing him to an explosion of emotion.

Whether it would
erupt in anger or in passion was the question.

With a nauseating sinking despair,
Jade dressed for bed. Eyes closed, her heart fill with pain. She couldn’t spend one more night alone in this room. With the return of her memory, nightmares no longer plagued her, but she missed Jason’s warmth next to her. Nicky was five weeks old and Jason had not invited her into his room. After the way she had teased and tantalized him in the last few weeks, she felt he would have wanted to put an end to their ‘marriage of convenience.’

She hadn’t told him all she had experienced:
the death, the fear and the darkness, or that she had been married. He must not care enough to be interested. A warm tear trickled down her cheek and she brushed it aside. He never asked about her past, nor did he appear curious about Nicholas.

He
appeared fond of Nicky, so, she must not be the problem. With her bright red hair, small features, and freckles across her nose, she had faced the fact that she wasn’t pretty a long time ago. But surely,
any
woman was better than
no
woman at all. She wanted more than a ‘marriage of convenience.’

Come spring, if Jason couldn’t bring himself to care for her, she and Nicky would leave.
Without him, she faced a lightless future. He’d been her anchor when she felt lost in the darkness, the light that drew her back from the brink of insanity. But, she loved him too much to stay without him loving her in return.

He
’d find someone else to care for Emma until she was older. It would break her heart to leave the little girl. But, it would be best to leave before Emma became more attached to her. First, she must tell Jason her story.

~~~

Lying in the dark, Jason could hear every movement Jade made in the room next to his. It was a cold night and the girls were asleep by the fireplace where it was warm. Yet, that was not the warmth he longed for. Jade, was the warmth he craved. He had missed her in his bed these last few weeks.

He wanted to
tell her that he loved her more than life itself. However, he was not going to break the promise he made her the day they married. If she wanted more, he would welcome her with open arms. But, the decision had to be hers. He rolled to his side to get more comfortable in the bed that felt too large without Jade.

He blinked as his eyes adjusted to the dim light.
She stood in the doorway, the light from the fireplace making her nightgown-made-for lovers transparent. He could see her slim hips, the dip of her waist. Even after having a baby, her figure was something that set his heart to pounding. The dark shadow of hair at the apex of her legs was clearly visible. Her milk-laden breasts swayed slightly as she walked toward the bed.

Jason turned back the covers.
Jade silently crawled in beside him as she had so many nights before. He gathered her into his arms and drew her against his bare chest. Eyes closed, nostrils flared, he took in her scent. She felt so good against him. He pulled her tighter.

“Jason, I want
to tell you why I was beside the wagon trail that day.”

“
Ssh, let me hold you,” he whispered, his words husky with desire. “It’s been so long.”

She placed her hand on his chest,
tangled her fingers in the short, springy hairs, and grazed her thumb across his flat male nipple. It hardened. He trembled.

Blood coursed through
his body and pooled in the center of his groin. Air suspended in his lungs. He forgot to breathe. His muscles convulsed with tension.

She tilted her head up
and her lips parted to form words that he never allowed her to speak. His head descended. His mouth devoured hers in a kiss meant to bring a response. He was not disappointed.

M
onths of denial finally swept through him with a burning intensity he’d never experienced. Somehow, he remove Jade’s gown and tossed it into a shimmering, translucent heap on the floor. Her smooth, warm, silky skin touched him everywhere. And it was heaven.

He
trailed hot kisses down her neck to the hollow of her throat. He remembered the first time he yearned to kiss this delicate spot, to sip the liquid that had spilled there. His lips found the rapid beating pulse and savored the quickening of her breath as passion consumed her. Instinctively his tongue lavished her neck as he filled his hands with her luscious breasts.

His fingers blazed a trail of tender caresses down her back to perfectly rounded hips.
Exploring, tantalizing, touching forbidden places. Her hands moved over him as fast as his were on her. Captivated by her hesitant exploration of his body, he struggled not to release his passion before she was ready to accept his body’s invasion.

Passion
rode him hard. Her small lithe body urged him to continue. Wanting to discover if she was prepared for him, he slid his hand between her legs. When she stiffened in response, he patiently demonstrated with his tongue in her warm, wet mouth what he wanted to do with his fingers.

He ran his tongue around the edge of her lips, slipped passed her tongue into the deep
recesses of her mouth. Slowly he removed his tongue only to delve back inside, again and again.

The moment she relaxed, he dipped his fingers
into her tight crevice. She convulsed so hard her body lifted off the mattress as she cried out her release. At her cry, Jason rose above her and found what he had always dreamed of: the all-consuming love between a man and his woman.

Easing his body from
hers, he lay to the side, tucked her half underneath him as he stroked her, slowly bringing her down from the waves of ecstasy still quaking through her body.