He grimaced. “Taryn, I didn’t—”
“No, why wouldn’t you think that? I’m the do-gooder, like you said. The mission first, always. At all costs.”
“That’s not a bug, though. That’s a feature. It’s an amazing thing about you, your dedication,” he said gently. “That’s not something to be ashamed of.”
She propped herself up on his chest to look at him. “I’m not ashamed. I’m just, I don’t know, mad.”
His brows lifted. “Mad?”
“Yes. Mad that I’ve let my life become so narrow. Mad that I shrieked so loudly out there because…” She glanced away.
He put a finger below her chin and drew her gaze back to him. “Because why?”
She rubbed her lips together. “Because I’ve been with so few guys that I didn’t even know it could feel like that, not just physically, but that I could want and be wanted that way. That I could feel that level of desire. I thought that just happened in books or movies. I shouldn’t be thirty-one and not have felt those things.”
He pushed her hair away from her face. “You’re right. That is a travesty.” And it was. He couldn’t imagine a woman with this much passion never having let it run free. “But that’s not your fault. You can’t help it if those other guys weren’t as awesome in bed as I am.”
She snort-laughed and he smiled, happy to see his joke take away the melancholy look on her face. She shook her head. “You’re ridiculous.”
“I know. But seriously, don’t be so hard on yourself. You’re still young. You’ve got time to do all those things you want. Launching your program. Changing the world. Getting really, really hot sex and loud orgasms with me. And I bet I can even last at least three minutes now.”
She laughed again, and he wanted to bottle the sound and keep it in his closet for when she was gone and he had bad days. “You better not be making promises you can’t keep, mister.”
He pulled her all the way on top of him. “Well, you’re a researcher, so you must know there’s only one way to find out.”
Her lips curved as she straddled him, T-shirt bunched up around her hips. “Of course. Run lots and lots of trials.”
Shaw stared up at her, the lamplight making the edges of her hair glow like a halo. In that moment, he could believe it really was one. This woman had earned her wings, but he could hear it in her words and see it on her face. The do-gooder warrior needed a damn break from her life. She needed to be selfish, to feel good, to have fun. He couldn’t give her much, but he could give her that.
In fact, he’d never wanted to give anyone anything more.
He reached for her T-shirt and lifted it up and off, taking his fill of the view. Lush curves and a sexy smile. He’d never seen anyone more beautiful in his life. He let his fingertips track over her body, watching the goose bumps rise on her skin in his wake, her nipples going tight, her breath quickening. She was so very hungry—like him. Starved for touch. Starved for pleasure. Starved for a few moments where they didn’t have to be anything but in their own skin. He wanted to feed them both, gorge on everything they were offering each other tonight.
He moved his hands down her body, his thumb finding the swollen, slick nub between her thighs. He’d grown hard the moment she’d straddled him, but at the sound she made, his body revved like he hadn’t just had an orgasm a little while ago. “Those other guys must’ve had no clue what they were doing. You’re so sensitive and responsive. It’s beyond hot.”
She splayed her hands on his chest, leaning forward and smiling. “Those other guys weren’t you.”
The words hit him in a way that took his breath for a second. She’d probably meant that she was simply more physically attracted to him, but something inside him unfurled. She wanted him. He wasn’t sure he’d ever had that. In college, girls wanted the popular, on-his-way-to-the-Olympics athlete. After Long Acre, Deidra, his girlfriend, had liked the drama and infamy of his background, how the press still followed him. That seemed exciting to her—until it didn’t anymore. But Taryn had no angle. If anything, she should want nothing to do with him. Still, she hadn’t been able to stay away, even knowing it was the best thing. She wanted him badly enough to be with him despite their shared horrible history. She knew him and was still here.
She doesn’t know everything.
Taryn draped her body over him. “Ready for trial number one?”
He pushed the ugly thought away and smiled up at the woman above him. “I’m ready for you.”
* * *
I’m ready for you.
The words wound around Taryn, wrapping her up in a blanket of contentment. She’d found herself heading into a melancholy zone, lying there with him, thinking of all the things she’d missed along the way in her life. But Shaw had a knack for bringing her back, for making her laugh, and for taking her mind right back to where it needed to be. Enjoying this moment. Enjoying him. All her worries and stress could wait outside tonight.
She leaned down to kiss him, and Shaw rolled them over, putting him above her. He braced his arms beside her as she tugged down his pants. His erection sprang free, landing heavy and hot against her thigh, making tingly heat spread up her belly. So much of her wanted to just part her legs and feel him inside her, no barrier, just skin to skin, heat on heat. But she wasn’t on any backup birth-control method and couldn’t take the risk.
She gazed up at Shaw. “Don’t like a woman on top, huh?”
His grin went sly. “Baby, I could look up at that view all damn night. Just thinking about your hips rocking and your breasts bouncing as you rode me makes me want to roll you right back over.”
She wet her lips, his talk making her flush all over.