I Cross My Heart Read online

Ah, he was good, this guy. He knew his lines, and she had a feeling he’d know the right moves, too. Shoving open the pocket door, she led him through the kitchen. Fortunately she’d turned out the light so it was dim in there.

  Her bedroom and bath were off the kitchen. She only had a twin bed, and the room’s color scheme was as pink as the bathroom and included ruffles. She didn’t think he’d care, though, especially if she didn’t turn on the light and he wasn’t faced with all the girlie frills from the get-go. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I have condoms.”

  “You do?” He sounded amused. “Since when?”

  “Since I went shopping today. And I told myself I wasn’t going to have sex with you, but then I thought, What if he seduces me but forgot the condoms?”

  “Good thought.”

  “I like covering my options.” Once they were inside her bedroom, she turned and moved into his arms. “Were you going to seduce me?”

  “No. Or I would have brought condoms.” He cupped her chin and turned her face up to his. “But I’m perfectly willing to be seduced.”

  “Oh, good.” With a sigh, she nestled against him. “Except I’m not so good at seduction. Not a lot of practice.”

  He laughed. “Then I’ll take it from here.”

  “Sure. That would be great.” Once he started kissing her again, she knew she’d made the right decision. This cowboy knew his way around a seduction. She was in the hands of a master.

  And what hands they were, too—large and strong, hands that could gentle a horse or excite a woman with equal skill. Because she’d bolted straight to city life after high school, she’d never been loved by a man who worked with his hands. Serious omission on her part.

  With the kind of dexterity that could repair a broken bridle or braid a rope, he unfastened the buttons down the front of her sleeveless blouse. And he did it while kissing the living daylights out of her. His tongue did things to her mouth that, if employed elsewhere on her body, would be illegal in some states. She hoped he was into breaking a law or two.

  The man also knew how to get a woman out of her bra, and once he did, he demonstrated how much he understood the sensitivity of breasts in general and nipples in particular. Oh, dear God. She trembled on the edge of an orgasm, and he’d only stroked her breasts.

  He lifted his mouth from hers. “You feel incredible.”

  “You, too.”

  Laughter rippled through his response. “You haven’t touched me yet.”

  Oh. She’d meant that his hands on her breasts felt incredible, but in her dazed state of pure pleasure, she’d abandoned her side of the deal. “Sorry.”

  His breath was warm as he nuzzled the spot behind her ear. “You don’t have a thing to be sorry about. You invited me into your bedroom and you have condoms. But I’d appreciate it if you’d unzip my jeans.”

  “Glad to.” She eased back and slid her hand down to reach for his zipper, where she discovered that the denim covering his crotch was stretched to the breaking point. Tugging down his zipper wouldn’t be easy, but once she did, she was in for a treat.

  She found the zipper tab, but the physics of the situation worked against her. She made no progress whatsoever.

  “Unfasten my belt buckle and the top snap, first.”

  She was amazed that he could even talk, considering the fact that he’d already unbuttoned and unzipped her capris and was presently working them down over her hips. That was enough to make her speechless, but not him, apparently. She turned her attention to his belt buckle.

  When she got it undone and managed to unhook the metal button, too, his breath caught. She drew the metal zipper down and he quivered. Until that point, she’d thought the power was all on his side, but not so. She shoved his briefs down along with his jeans, and he gasped.

  Or maybe she’d sucked in a breath. Didn’t matter. She had a grip on him now, and once she’d wrapped her hands around the amazing length and breadth of what had been constrained inside those briefs, she was awed...and grateful. If not for a burning recliner and a bottle of wine later on, she might never have held such a treasure, or anticipated the joy that treasure might bring.

  She started to sink to her knees.

  “No, wait.” He grasped her by her elbows and drew her back up. “Let’s get rid of the rest of our clothes. Once you start doing that, I won’t want to stop for anything, and I can’t maneuver when we’re still dressed.”

  “You bet.” While he pulled off his boots, she nudged off her sandals and stepped out of her panties and capris. The soft light of the sunset filtered through her pink sheer curtains and gave the room a rosy glow. She’d never brought a man, or even a teenage boy, here before. She was glad the place held no memories of other guys. That made tonight unique.

  “There.” Tossing the last of his things to the floor, he stood before her in all his aroused glory. The evening shadows made him seem slightly mysterious, a phantom man come to claim her. “Where were we?”

  In the semidarkness, she grew bold. “I think we left off here.” She flattened her palms against his sculpted chest. Leaning forward, she pressed her mouth against his breastbone. His skin was hot, and his heart throbbed against her hand.

  He tasted like heaven and sin all wrapped up in the musky aroma of pure male. Slowly she made her way down his torso, hands stroking, mouth nibbling, until she reached her goal and dropped to her knees. As she curled her fingers around his generous endowment, he groaned.

  “I thought you weren’t any good at this.” He sounded hoarse and not nearly as in control as he had been moments ago.

  “I’m not.” She placed a soft kiss on the head of his penis.

  He sucked in a breath. “I beg to differ.”

  “Maybe you inspire me.” He might never realize how much. Obviously she’d never abandoned the fantasy of a cowboy lover—strong and daring, yet tender and kind—but she’d never indulged that fantasy. Tonight she would.

  His voice was strained. “Bethany...”

  “I’m here.” With that, she took him into her mouth and felt the power of making a man her slave.

  Nash gripped her head with both hands and his big body shook. She was no expert at this, but a girl only had to use her imagination. She already knew that this significant body part was extremely sensitive, and she assumed that the swirl of her tongue and the suction of her mouth would register high on his personal Richter scale.

  That assumption proved true. As she paid exceptionally close attention to his penis, his breathing changed dramatically. Soft moans turned into gasps and heartfelt groans of approval.

  Even better, his excitement fueled hers. She was really getting into the project when he pressed his fingertips into her scalp. “Stop.”

  Temporarily pulling back, she gazed up at him. “Something wrong, cowboy?” She’d always wanted to address a man as cowboy, and now she had the real deal right in front of her.

  “I...” He cleared his throat. “I’m too close.”

  “Need a breather?”

  “No.” He gulped in air. “I need...a condom. Please.”

  She could read between the lines. He was a considerate lover who wanted to make sure he took care of his lady before he came. Chalk up one more point for Nash Bledsoe.

  “I’ll get the box.” She rose to her feet and discovered she was pretty darned shaky, too.

  “Hurry.”

  “They’re in the bathroom.” She went into her attached bath accompanied by the sound of pillows hitting the floor and linens being yanked back with a decisive swoosh. He was obviously making good use of his time to prepare the bed for sex.

  She grabbed the box from under the counter and turned to find him right there, hand out.

  “I’ll open it.” His voice was low and urgent as he stepped aside. “Go lie down.”


  If she hadn’t been half crazed with lust, she would have laughed at his abrupt command. But light from the setting sun revealed the lines of strain on his face. He was holding back with great effort, and losing control would break his personal code of sexual conduct.

  He ripped open the cardboard box. “Sorry. Please go lie down.”

  “Glad to.” Walking into her bedroom, she noticed that her twin bed had been stripped down to the bottom sheet. Her comforter and all the pillows, both the practical and decorative ones, had been tossed to the floor.

  Nash seemed to be ready for streamlined action, and she was only too happy to oblige. Good thing she’d packed away her stuffed animals the last time she’d been home. How embarrassing if he’d had to move teddy bears to clear the way for wild jungle sex.

  As per his terse instructions, she stretched out on the pink sheet, although it didn’t seem so pink in this light. The sheet had been softened by many launderings. Years ago she used to lie on this bed and imagine that someone like Nash, sometimes even Nash himself, was about to ravish her. Her heart pounded with anticipation. Fiction was about to become fact.

  Tearing open a foil packet and muttering a curse under his breath, he strode back into the room. “I’m not usually like this.”

  “Naked?”

  “Desperate.” He glanced up as he approached the bed. As his gaze focused on her, he stopped in his tracks. “Good God, Bethany. You’re magnificent.”

  The dim light hid her flush, and she was glad for that, because she wanted to seem at least a little bit sophisticated. “I wouldn’t say I’m—”

  “I’m the guy looking at you, and I say you are magnificent.” He tossed the half-open condom packet on the nightstand. “And I’d be a fool to rush this.”

  “Maybe I want you to.” As she surveyed his impressive package, she ached with a fierceness that made her suck in a breath. “You’re pretty magnificent yourself.”

  “I’m standard-issue.” He put a knee on the bed and braced a hand on either side of her shoulders. “You, however, are a masterpiece and deserve to be treated accordingly.” His massive chest heaved. “Instead of being assaulted by some lust-crazed maniac.”

  His penis jutted proudly, and she couldn’t resist reaching for it. “Being assaulted by you has a certain appeal.”

  He circled her wrist with strong fingers. “Not the first time. Let go of me, Bethany.”

  “Why should I?” She rather liked having a handle on him, so to speak.

  “Because now that I see you stretched out on this bed, I have a plan.”

  Her heartbeat thundered in her ears. “Which is?”

  “To turn you inside out.”

  Now there was a showstopper of a promise. She had trouble dragging in enough air to ask the question. “How?”

  “If you let go of me, you’ll find out. If you keep squeezing me like that, you’ll never know, because I’m seconds away from coming.”

  She released him. What woman, given those choices, wouldn’t? Even in the fading light, his eyes glittered with purpose, and she wanted to find out how Nash Bledsoe approached the task of turning a woman inside out. “This bed’s kind of small.”

  “It’s big enough for my purposes. But if you need more room to flail around as I make you come, then we can move to the floor.”

  “I don’t flail.”

  His smile was slow and filled with masculine confidence. “We’ll see about that.”

  She’d never understood the concept of swooning over a guy. Gazing up at Nash she finally got it. He was the first swoon-worthy man she’d ever had sex with, and the concept made perfect sense to her now.

  She would enjoy the hell out of having him in her bed. She moistened her dry lips. “Challenge accepted. Bring it.”

  “Oh, I intend to, Bethany. I intend to.”

  5

  AS NASH UTTERED THOSE words, which were either brave or foolish depending on how this episode ended, he hoped that he’d be able to cool himself off a little. Somehow he had to hold back the climax that had threatened to overwhelm him ever since her mouth had made contact with his cock.

  She was better at this than she knew, and she’d turned him into a wild man. But the picture she’d made stretched out on the bed had brought him up short and challenged him to slow down and savor the moment. A lush body such as hers didn’t show up all that often, and he was a man who’d always taken his time.

  He could do that again. Moving over her, he kept their bodies from touching, except for his lips against her skin. He began with her temples. “Close your eyes.” When she did, he feathered a kiss over each eyelid. “Now lie still, or as still as you can.”

  Her answering sigh was a quivering, tension-filled sound. He used his tongue to outline her mouth and she sighed again. “Relax,” he murmured. “You’re strung tight as a bow.”

  Her eyes opened again, and they gleamed in the twilight. “I can’t relax.” Her voice was low and throaty. “I want you too much.”

  “I’ll take that as a compliment.” He kept his tone light, but lust slammed into him. He tamped it down. He’d made a boast that he would turn her inside out. That would take more than a three-minute bout of frantically plunging into her.

  Yet that was exactly what his body was craving. Ignoring the ache in his groin, he lowered his mouth to the pulse in her throat and nipped her there. She moaned, igniting another flare of heat in his veins. God, how he wanted to pound into her.

  He’d blame abstinence for that. His divorce had left his ego battered, and he’d made a conscious decision to wait a while before getting involved with someone new. How ironic that he was breaking his sexual fast with Bethany Grace.

  And yet, how fitting, too. Her books, intentionally or not, had affected his self-confidence. Providing her with mind-blowing orgasms would do a lot to restore his faith in himself. He hadn’t planned for the evening to go this way, but if she wanted to lead him to temptation, he’d make her damned glad she had.

  Yes, driving Bethany Grace slowly insane was far more important than satisfying his urgent need to have her. She’d primly informed him that she didn’t flail. There would be some justice in being the guy who made her come completely undone.

  That goal helped him focus. Pushing aside his own need for release, he began a leisurely journey over her hot, silky skin. He paid special attention to her full breasts and her nipples as they puckered beneath his tongue.

  When she arched her back with a whimper of need, he applied gentle suction. He loved both the sensation of tugging on her nipple and her little gasp of pleasure. His cock loved those things, too, and it throbbed with impatience. The condom waited on the bedside table, taunting him.

  Instead of reaching for it, he moved on, licking his way down her rib cage as he eased lower on the mattress. He paused to explore her navel.

  She groaned and dug her fingers into his shoulders. “Nash...I want...”

  “You’ll get what you want,” he murmured. Balanced on his forearm, he used his free hand to loosen her hold. Then he brought her hand to his mouth and made passionate love to it. He sucked on each finger and dipped his tongue into each crevice. He traced every line in her palm.

  She began to tremble, and he wondered if she was responsive enough to come through suggestion alone. He had something else in mind, something he’d never tried before, but Bethany inspired him to be creative. He held on to her moist hand as he slid lower. The scent of her arousal made him long to taste her, but first...

  Grasping her wrist, he drew her hand down between her thighs. “Show me how you touch yourself. Is it like this?” He took hold of her finger and rubbed it back and forth over her sweet little clit.

  She groaned but didn’t pull away. She was obviously desperate for a climax.

  “Or like this?” He switched to
a circular movement.

  “Like...that.”

  “Keep doing it, Bethany. Let me watch.”

  She continued the caress he’d coaxed her into, and her breathing grew rough with excitement.

  “Don’t stop. I’m going to help.” His pulse raced as he slipped two fingers deep inside her. “You’re so wet, so incredibly wet.”

  “Because I want—”

  “I know. Come for me.” He matched his strokes to her rhythm, and as she rubbed faster and harder, he increased his speed. The liquid sound he created nearly made him come, too. He wouldn’t be able to play this game much longer.

  He felt her contractions a split second before she cried out and arched upward. Slipping his hand free, he slid his shoulders under her raised hips. Then he settled his mouth over the entrance to all things wonderful. She was still riding the crest of pleasure, and he intended to keep her up there.

  * * *

  BETHANY’S FIRST CLIMAX nearly turned her inside out as promised. She was still shuddering in reaction when Nash brought his mouth into play. She sensed he was about to make good on his boast. Gasping and uttering wild, inarticulate noises, she gave herself up to the most sensuous round of oral sex she’d ever experienced.

  He didn’t mess around, this cowboy. He was coming to get her, and the tension built so quickly in her womb that in seconds he’d hurled her over the precipice into another shattering orgasm. She was just beginning to gather herself together when he began his assault again.

  “I can’t!”

  He lifted his mouth long enough to say, “Sure you can,” before seeking her essence once again. He’d breached her defenses and taken all she possessed. Now he demanded total surrender.

  Heaven help her, she gave it—loudly, joyously, and yes, with much flailing around. A woman experiencing an orgasm this intense simply had to flail. When he finally lowered her hips and bestowed one parting kiss on her drenched curls, she sank to the bed in boneless ecstasy. He had, indeed, turned her inside out.

  The mattress shifted.

  “Please don’t leave,” she murmured.