Then he moved to the other breast, and she could feel his erection hard against her lower belly. Sensations of pleasure almost sent her over the edge. Dear Lord, she could never remember being so affected by the touch of a man before. Never had passion overridden everything else. She wanted him so much, she could feel it inside her chest and deep in her bones.
After that everything happened fast. Desire quickly reached the boiling point between them and bubbled over.
With only a pause between breaths, he lifted her by her waist and opened her legs with his own, then eased her over his thickened length, melding their two bodies into one. She wasn’t sure which one of them cried out first—maybe both—but one thrust led to another and everything within her started to break free. She abandoned herself around him, feeling him thrust one more time, stiffen and come inside her.
For long moments Cassandra buried her face in his neck while she continued to pulse in rhythm with him. There was a feeling of completeness here she hadn’t expected. She and Dominic had become one in the physical sense. And that was more fulfilling than she could ever believe possible.
Something deep in his cells rippled through Dominic as Cassandra’s body quieted around him. One minute he’d been dreaming about her; the next he was fully awake and lowering her onto him. He hadn’t even taken the time to kiss every inch of her delicious body like he’d imagined he’d do their first time together.
Together.
She stirred above him, lifting her head up from the crook of his neck where she’d collapsed. Moonlight fell across her face at the exact moment she opened her eyes before his, and he saw the pleasure she couldn’t hide.
“I was dreaming about you,” he murmured, reaching out to brush strands of blond hair off her beautiful face.
She took a breath. “I know.” She hesitated. “You called out my name.” Had he?
Yet he wasn’t embarrassed. He was proud for her to know he had wanted her so badly.
Still did.
She probably didn’t need any further evidence of that, he mused, growing hard inside her again. Her eyes widened, filling him with renewed anticipation and making him acutely aware of her wet, silky warmth surrounding him. He groaned, unable to stop his body from giving a brief thrust.
“I’ve wanted you like this for some time,” he managed to say, feeling little clenches of her body, which he knew she couldn’t stop.
Her eyes flickered. “Er…you have?”
She was too tempting.
“And you’ve wanted me,” he pointed out, needing to hear her admit what he’d always suspected.
She held his gaze for the longest second, then whispered, “Yes,” and lowered her head to his chest, hiding her eyes as if self-conscious.
It sent adrenaline shooting through him, yet at the same time something felt odd. She was showing a sexual vulnerability that didn’t tally with what he knew about her. It was like she was only just awakening to passion, and that didn’t make sense. She’d had no compunction in having an affair during her marriage to Liam, so why pretend she wasn’t experienced?
And then he realized.
Was this just an act? Was it the way she got to a man—making him think he was the only one to tap into hidden sexual depths deep inside her? If it was, then she was very good.
And if it wasn’t?
He shook off his thoughts. “Lift your head. Look at me.”
“I…don’t have the strength.”
There it was again.
He rolled them over and reversed their positions. “Now look at me.”
A heartbeat paused.
She lifted her eyelids.
She was bewitching.
He throbbed with need again and gave another thrust, and all at once she lifted her body to meet him. Triumph raced through him, and he began to move, plunging deeper, thrusting harder. It was incredible that he wanted her again so soon. He’d never known anything like it before.
They came together.
Then his heartbeat slowed, and he eased back to look down on her. She was staring at him with wonder, her eyes telling him she couldn’t believe she had cli**xed again so soon. He knew the feeling, even as he still wondered about her. For the moment he would take what she offered, give as good as he could get. As long as he remained aware she might be manipulating him, she wouldn’t get away with too much.
Then her eyes lowered to his chest, looking away from him again. “We haven’t used any protection,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
His heart lurched in his chest. She wasn’t telling him something that hadn’t already occurred to him. “It’s too late tonight. We’ll discuss it tomorrow.” He scooped her up in his arms.
“Where are we going?”
“To take a shower together,” he said, striding into the bathroom. Standing her on her feet, he reached over and turned on the hot water. “And after that—” he lowered his head for a long kiss and when it had finished, steam was swirling around them “—we’re going to start all over again.”
Five
Cassandra stretched herself awake to the sound of native bird life, then realized where she was.
In Dominic’s bed.
And Dominic was no longer next to her.
She sat up and looked around, blushing when she saw her silk nightgown draped over a chair. The last time she’d seen it, he’d been lifting it over her head.
Oh, my.
The temptation to stay there and relive the night was strong, but she needed to check on Nicole. Peeling herself from under the bedclothes, she grabbed the nightgown to hold in front of her as she crossed the hallway to her bedroom.
No, make that Nicole’s room now. Dominic would not let things go back to the way they were.
She had to admit she didn’t want that, either. Dare she believe that on another level something else might have changed, too? Could they now be as compatible outside the bedroom as they were inside it?
The crib was empty, and she assumed Dominic had taken Nicole to give her breakfast. And then she heard her daughter’s laughter coming from downstairs, and she relaxed. Interested in seeing how he would cope, she quickly took another shower—her stomach giving a little quiver at the memory of showering with Dominic during the night—and then she dressed in a tank top and a tiered skirt that swished about her legs. Hoop earrings made her feel a bit like a gypsy woman.
At the kitchen doorway, it was obvious by the slight mess that Dominic had already fed Nicole her cereal, and now the little girl was happily sitting in her high chair, playing with a selection of her small toys.
He looked up from pouring coffee, his hand stilling. The masculine appreciation in his eyes made her stomach flutter. And the sensuality in them made her tremble. He knew the secrets of her body now. She could not hide from him.
“Good morning,” he said huskily.
“Good morning.” To cover her blush, she walked toward Nicole, pretending he didn’t affect her. “Morning, sweetie,” she murmured, kissing the top of her daughter’s head, then took a step toward the cupboard to get a coffee mug. She would stay calm, she told herself. She would not panic that he knew how easily she had succumbed to him. Just because—
All at once he was in front of her, pulling her up against his already hard body, reminding her how aroused his dream had made him. Her breath quickened. She could think of nothing more sensual than this man fantasizing about her.
He lowered his head, his mouth closing over hers. She slid into the kiss like water into a pond. Everything seemed so right between them. So natural.
It couldn’t last.
Things never did.
She wasn’t sure how long before the kiss ended, but when it did, she quickly stepped around him and went to the cupboard.
“I see you’ve already fed Nicole,” she chatted, not wanting him to know her thoughts. “Thanks for doing that. She would have been hungry.”
There was a short silence. Then, “I thought it time Nicole and I got to know each other.”
Elation swept through her, the words so sweet.
But as she poured herself a coffee, she admitted that being “sweet” wasn’t exactly one of this man’s more notable traits. Dominic was renowned for being a shrewd judge of character, in business and out of it—except when it came to her, of course.
A moment later she found herself rethinking that. It wasn’t just her he’d pegged wrong. He hadn’t been able to see Liam’s true character. In a strange way, such a quality would be endearing if it didn’t affect her so much. It showed him to be a caring brother and a protector of his family and—
Unexpected clarity hit her. Last night he’d left his bedroom door ajar. Had that been for a reason? Despite the security alarm being turned on, had he been keeping his ears open in case they needed him? Had he been protecting them?
She grimaced inwardly. Well, protecting Nicole, anyway. He didn’t care enough about her to want to protect her. As far as he was concerned, she could look after herself. She wasn’t a true Roth. Not like her daughter was a true Roth.
And that brought her to the heart of the matter. What more could she ask than he protect her child? It didn’t matter that he thought less of her. She could take all he dished out as long as her child was happy and safe. Her daughter being protected at all costs was what mattered most. Dominic’s indifference toward her own safety wasn’t an issue. She could look after herself. She didn’t need his protection or—
She almost dropped the coffeepot as one thought rolled into another, reminding her of another type of protection. One between a man and a woman. One that hadn’t been on their minds last night until it was far too late. “Cassandra?”
She looked up at him and swallowed. “What if I’m pregnant?”
Their eyes collided.
A strange glitter flashed in his eyes before he looked away. “I don’t mind.”
“You don’t?”
His gaze came back at her. “Not yet, of course. But eventually I’d like a couple of children. If it happens now instead, then so be it.”
She didn’t want it to happen.
She didn’t.
Liar.
It was the strangest thing, but the thought of carrying his baby made her feel gooey inside.
And then she realized what that would mean. Having Dominic’s baby would tie her to him completely. She’d never be able to get away from him. Somehow with Nicole being his niece and not his own child, it allowed her to detach from him in some small way. She’d even thought that sometime in the future, she and Nicole might be able to make a life for themselves without Dominic. But if she became pregnant…if she had his child…the ties would be so much more binding. There would be no escape.
Suddenly, the slamming of a car door cut through the silence, followed by another car door closing. Her thoughts subsided as the world intruded.
Dominic frowned, then walked past her into the living room and glanced out the large windows. He swore.
She watched him from the kitchen doorway. “Who is it?”
“We’ve got visitors.”
“Visitors? The housekeeper, you mean?”
“My parents.”