And that’s when he finally stopped to look down upon her. The intensity in his eyes sang through her veins, making her very much aware of being not only a woman but the woman he wanted.
“Tonight you’re mine, Kia.”
Her throat went dry. She wanted to deny it, but how could she deny something so intrinsically right?
“Yes,” she whispered.
His hands went to his shirt and he quickly began to undress. It hit the carpet, followed by his trousers. It didn’t take long before he stood beside her all nak*d and in full glory.
Her breath caught in her throat. He was absolutely magnificent, with a beautifully proportioned body that shot her pulse right off the chart. His broad shoulders topped a powerful chest that fostered wisps of dark hair and tapered down to lean h*ps and long, muscular legs. And to a commanding erection that magnified his masculinity tenfold.
He joined her on the bed and she surrendered to the moment, to herself, to him. She gasped when his lips moved to her breast and enclosed a nipple, pleasuring her into a mindless state even as his hand brushed over her hip and dipped to the junction at her thighs. His fingers slid between her feminine folds and ran around the small, sensitive nub in circles. Sanity began to blur as her world shrank to that one caress of his finger, to the sweet tug of his mouth at her breast.
But then, just as she was about to go over the edge, he pulled away, making her cry out in intense disappointment. “Don’t stop!”
“Shh. This time we make love together,” he murmured, reaching for a foil packet on the bedside table.
He sheathed himself and poised at her thighs. She softened beneath him, ready to take him into her.
Needing him in her.
“Open yourself to me,” he said, nudging her legs farther apart, and she did willingly.
He entered her slowly, his eyes never leaving her face as her tightness confirmed what she had told him earlier. No man had ever filled her in this way before. Acknowledging this, his eyes bathed her with a tenderness that took her breath away. Then he filled her completely, gently, only stopping when he could fill her no more. His sensitivity made her heart roll over.
For one long moment they stayed still, each studying the other, connected in both body and spirit. It was the most profound moment Kia had ever experienced. She sensed it was the same for him.
As if in silent agreement, he took a deep breath and slowly began to withdraw. Then he moved forward and filled her again. He took another breath and withdrew as far as he could without separating their bodies. He kept repeating the motion, and she lifted her h*ps to take more of him into her, feeling something building, something so electric she had to close her eyes.
“Look at me,” he said hoarsely, and she moaned but she did what he told her, finding it incredibly erotic when he mesmerized her with his eyes and began to move once more. He picked up the pace, and that rush of heat turned into a whipcord of male muscle, stamping her with each thrust of his body, taking everything she had within her. She offered it up to the one man in the world worthy of everything she had to give.
“Brant!” she cried as he rasped out her name in a strangled tone that said he couldn’t hold on much longer either. He kissed her then. A deep, deep kiss that was followed by a final plummet of his body as she arched against him.
They reached their cli**x together, holding themselves as one, in total sync at this precious moment in time.
Kia spiraled down to a hazy aftermath with a series of lingering kisses before he rolled over and held her in his arms for a few moments.
Then she watched his long, lean length disappear, as he rose and headed toward the bathroom. She lay back and closed her eyes. She had to, otherwise when he came back he would see something that had just hit her.
She had fallen in love with him.
Shock ran through her. She went hot, then cold. She loved Brant Matthews. She would love him until the day she died, even knowing she would never be enough for him. Dear God, this couldn’t be…yet she knew it was, felt it in her heart.
The bed sank on one side and she scarcely dared to breathe. Brant was sitting beside her, waiting for her to look at him.
“Kia?” he murmured, tenderly pushing some strands of hair from her face.
She had no alternative but to look at him and pray that he didn’t see what was so obvious to her now.
How had she not seen this coming?
Her eyelids lifted, and her breath hitched in her throat at the look in his eyes. It was all-knowing. All male. Full of sexual satisfaction.
And he had no idea she loved him.
Thank God. She could breathe easier now and enjoy their time together. That’s all she’d let herself ask for. That’s all she’d let herself want. It would be over soon enough. And if he ran true to form—as her father did with his women friends—having gotten what he’d wanted from her, she wouldn’t be seeing much more of him after this anyway. She shivered. Already that thought cut through her heart.
“Did I hurt you?” he murmured.
“No.” But he would. When he dumped her.
His shoulders relaxed, his mouth curving with sheer sensuality. “Woman, that was the best sex I’ve ever had.”
Yes, that’s all it came down to with Brant. She tried not to show her hurt. “Me, too.”
“For all intents and purposes, you were a virgin.” He leaned forward and gave her a long, slow kiss, then looked into her eyes. “I’m honored I was the first man to sleep with you.” He kissed her again briefly, then leaned back, an odd look in his eyes. “Why?”
Her breath stopped and she realized he saw more than she’d thought. She licked her lips. “Because I…I mean, you…” She shrugged. “Well, what woman wouldn’t want to make love with you?”
His mouth twisted. “Flattery will get you everywhere,” he mocked, but she had the feeling he wasn’t happy with her answer.
But if he expected a declaration of love, he was going to be disappointed. Maybe that’s what his other women always provided, but she wasn’t about to copy them. She swallowed hard at the thought of all those other women who would come after her. She couldn’t bear to think about it. And she wasn’t going to wait around for him to throw her away like some piece of garbage that was past its use-by date either.
Panicking, she sat up, almost knocking him out of the way. He put his hands on her shoulders, stilling her.
“What’s the matter?” he said with a scowl.
“I’m going home.” She tried to push him away, but he kept his body firmly in front of her.
Surprise came and went in his eyes before they flared with anger. “I won’t let you run out on me, Kia.”
“You won’t let me?” she choked out. Did he think because he’d made her his own she would leave her brains at the door?
“I’ve already had one woman who mattered run out on me. I’m not going to let you do the same. Not yet, anyway.”
She gave a soft gasp. A woman who mattered had run out on him? And she was in the same category?
But what did he mean by mattered?
“Are you saying that I’m…that we…?” She tried to find the words to say it. “Is there something more between us than I think, Brant?”
He stood up, and she saw he had wrapped a white towel around his lower half. “You bet there’s something between us. And we’re going to see it through to the end.”
The end. She shouldn’t be surprised by his choice of words, yet she was. How could she love this devil of a man? Fate had certainly played a sick joke on her.
“Don’t tell me what to do, Brant.”
“If I told you everything I wanted you to do, you’d run for your life.”
She got to her feet, wrapping the sheet around her as she did. “I don’t need to run. I’m leaving anyway.”
“I don’t think so,” he warned ominously.
Her heart jumped in her chest. “You can’t stop me.”
Can’t I? his eyes said arrogantly. “Then you have nothing to lose by coming over here and kissing me like you mean it. Do that, and I’ll even hold the door open for you on the way out.”
She moistened her suddenly dry lips. “And if I don’t?”
“Then I’ll come over there and kiss you, and we’ll see where it leads.”
“What a choice,” she muttered.
She swallowed. One kiss. Could she kiss him this one time and get away with it? She knew she would melt in his arms again. She knew she would want more. But hadn’t she always prided herself on her strength of will?
Without stopping to think further, she pulled the sheet tighter and closed the distance between them. Then she went up on her toes and quickly kissed him on the mouth before turning away.
He grabbed her arm and spun her back toward him, his eyes holding a faint glint of humor. “Like you mean it, I said.”
Somehow she’d known he wouldn’t let her get away with that chaste peck. “Oh, but I did mean it like that,” she mocked, even as a thrill raced through her. This time she’d give him exactly what he wanted and more. Then she’d walk out that door, put everything back on a business level and hope to God she could cope with knowing she’d fallen in love with a man who thought woman was a synonym for sex.
Her heart beating at full speed, she moved back toward him. In the split second before she put her lips to his, she saw his eyes darken and she realized she’d never once instigated a kiss with him. The other two Christmas kisses had been him coming to her, not the other way around. She felt thrillingly provocative.
She placed her mouth to his and began a kiss that gave him all the love she had inside her. Her stomach quivered even as she let her tongue slide around his mouth, then briefly dip between his slightly parted lips. She heard his groan deep within his throat, so she repeated the action, this time her tongue sliding over the top of his, tasting him, loving him.
The clean male scent of him exuded an attraction she found difficult to deny, and her arms slid up around his neck and cupped the back of his head, holding him to her, deepening the kiss. The sheet slipped down between them, and she felt the muscles of his chest tighten against her bare br**sts. She rubbed herself against him, the feel of curly male hair teasing her n**ples.
Suddenly he broke off the kiss with a guttural sound that made her think he had almost reached his limit.
Then he swung her up in his arms and strode toward the bathroom.
“You’re heading the wrong way,” she murmured, not really caring right now that she was supposed to be leaving and not coming back.
“No, I’m not. I know exactly where we’re going.”
They made leisurely love in the spa surrounded by tropical plants that gave a dreamy quality to the setting. Kia responded to Brant’s instructions and sat on his lap facing him, with him inside her. It was an incredible experience. And the most brave. Face-to-face like that, she had to stop herself from crying out she loved him.
Then they made their way back to the bed, and she reveled in taking her time to explore his male body before he growled her name, rolled on top of her and made love to her all over again. Exhausted, they fell into a deep sleep.
The ringing of the telephone next to the bed woke them during the night. Kia groaned and pressed her cheek against Brant’s bare chest, wanting to hold on to the euphoria, hoping the noise would go away so she could go back to sleep.
Vaguely she was aware of Brant reaching out an arm to pick it up. She heard the deep rumble of his voice as he answered it. Then, the next thing she knew, he’d jerked into a sitting position, throwing her off him.
“What the hell?” she heard him say as she lay on her back and came fully awake. “My God! Julia?”
There was silence for a moment as the person on the other end of the phone responded. Then Brant’s gaze skidded to Kia and darkened. “Yes, I have company,” he answered in clipped tones. He listened.
“Now?” He looked at Kia again, then away. “Okay. Give me half an hour.” He hung up and turned back to her. “I’ve got to go out for a while. Something’s come up.”
Yes, and her name is Julia.
“Don’t worry, I understand. Totally.”
His face hardened as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. “I didn’t ask for your understanding.”
That hurt. “Aren’t you lucky I gave it anyway?” she snapped, throwing back the bedclothes.
“You don’t have to leave.”
Did he think she would wait for him to go to this woman, then come back to bed and make love to her?
“I don’t want to stay.”
A long moment crept by as she gathered her clothes from the floor.
“Then I’ll walk you down to your car.”
“Don’t bother.” She looked up and caught his eyes going hungrily over her nak*d body. A quiver surged through her veins and she wondered if she could stop him going to this Julia.
Then she realized what she was thinking and her lips tightened. Did she really want to compete with another woman? No, she’d had enough of watching her mother fight for her father’s love.
Brant pulled on his trousers. “Nevertheless, I insist. It’s late.”
Yes, far too late, she thought, glancing at the clock and seeing it was two in the morning. It had been a mistake to make love to him. A beautiful mistake at the time but a mistake nevertheless.
In a damning silence they finished dressing, then he walked down with her to the underground car park.
“Call me as soon as you get home,” he ordered, holding the car door open for her. “Use my cell phone number. I want to know you’re safe.”
She squashed the spark of warmth at his concern. He was only protecting what he thought was temporarily his. “I’ll be fine.”
“Call me,” he warned, his dark gaze holding hers. “If you don’t, I’ll call you.”