Chapter 107

She met him touch for touch. Her tongue rubbing against his even as her hands clutched at his clothes. She pulled his shirt free from his pants just as he slid a hand under the hem of her tank top. The heat of her skin under his palm was in sharp contrast to the breeze. Her own hands were cool but greedy as they brushed his nipples, stroked his shoulders, clung to his arms.

Her touch—her neediness—stirred his hunger like nothing else ever had. Desire was hot in his veins, pressing hard against the last of his restraint. Still he tried to pull back from her, to tug her toward the house. Because they were outside, for Christ’s sake. She deserved better than this. Deserved more than fast sex on the beach. More than the uncertainty of coupling their bodies when so much still stood between them. Unresolved. Unspoken.

But when he tried to pull away from her, she held tight to his arms. “No,” she said.

No gentle pleading for her—it was more of an order. A demand.

“Candace,” he murmured, but still she shook her head.

Wrapping her hand around the back of his head, she held his gaze. Steady, hot, unwavering. “Stop treating me like you think I should be treated and just give me what I want.”

And with that, she shoved his shirt off his shoulders and reached for his belt buckle. Candace didn’t want to let Nolan go for the simple reason that she feared if she did, she’d never get him back again.

Nolan had a way of doing that. Autocratically deciding what was best for her and then refusing to be swayed. It was undoubtedly why they hadn’t had sex the other night. Because he was too damn noble for his own good. And far too noble for hers, either.

Just for tonight she wanted to shove aside all the other things in their lives. She wanted to forget all the things standing between them. She wanted to pretend it didn’t matter that they had no future together. She didn't care or want a bed this time.

And so she lost herself in his touch. In the feeling of his mouth moving over hers. Of his skin, smooth and hot, under her palms. Of his hands on her breasts, unhooking her bra. Desire coiled through her, heating her body like a primitive chant. More. More. Now.

She shrugged out of the sweater he’d draped over her shoulders, only vaguely aware of it hitting the ground at her feet. It was the first item of clothing to hit the ground, but not the last. Her tank top followed. Then his belt. His shoes. Her pants.

With each article of clothing, they worked their way up the beach, to drier land, moving in tiny steps, until they were both naked, panting. Desperation made her greedy. She dropped to her knees before him, eager to explore his body. She cupped the length of him in her hand, running her thumb over the tip of his erection before circling the head with her tongue. She felt a shudder go through his body as she sucked his penis into her mouth. A surge of pure feminine pride crashed through her as elemental as the storm blowing through around them. She was strong. Powerful. She swallowed just once before he pulled himself from her mouth.

Before she could protest, he knelt before her, holding her body tight to his. He kissed her hard before pulling back just far enough to meet her gaze as he said, “You don’t get to control everything.”

She bucked her hips against his as she bit down on her lip. “Says who?”

His smile was gentle and teasing, despite the hunger in his gaze. “It’s not nice not to share.”

He pulled her onto his lap so she was straddling him, his chest still pressed against hers. His penis was pressed intimately against her, and with every rock of her hips, it rubbed her clitoris. The pressure mounted inside of her. With his mouth on hers and his hands massaging her breasts, her climax built steadily until it came crashing down around her.

Her body was still twitching and needy when he gently set her off of his lap.

She began to protest. “What the—” But then she saw him reaching for his jeans, fumbling with his wallet. To her everlasting relief, he withdrew a condom.

A second later he was back with her, spreading the sweater on the ground, lowering her to it and himself to her. By the time his body finally plunged into hers, she felt as though she’d waited a lifetime to feel him inside of her. Like she’d been wanting him, needing him, endlessly, forever.

And then he was touching the deepest part of her. Pounding into her, relentless, unending, eternal, like the waves crashing onto the beach, like the heavy drops of rain finally falling to the ground. As dark and heavy as the storm clouds. As primitive as the wind and the elements. At last he was hers again.

___________

She woke in the bed she’d shared with Nolan, but without him by her side.

Though she missed him, she didn’t feel bereft because he’d been beside her all night long. After they made love the first time, he’d carried her and their clothes back to the house. He’d brought her to her bedroom where he’d lavished her body with attention. Made luxuriant, voluptuous love to her in that netted concoction of a bed. Then they’d slept, with their bodies pressed together all night long.

He’d been there every time she’d awoken in the night. Their bodies moving as one, cradling, cupping, spooning. More intimate than anything else she’d ever experienced. It had been amazing. Not just the sex, but the familiarity of it. The closeness she’d never had with another person.

She rolled over in bed now, pulling his pillow to her and burying her face in it, inhaling the scent of him. Then she kicked off the sheet and thumped her feet against the bed, relishing the tingly, just-loved feel of her skin. The air was still thick with humidity, but a shaft of sunlight played across the hardwood floor, proof that the storm had passed. From the kitchen, she heard the rattling of pans and dishes, caught the faint whiff of coffee brewing.