She unfastened the buttons of his shirt. “I’ve researched.”
“Of course you have,” he said, warmth filling him. “And what have you discovered, professor?”
She dragged her fingernails over the exposed strip of his chest. “No special rules. Except one.”
He tilted his head, loving the feel of her hands on him, his body growing hard and ready at the simple touch. “What’s that?”
She let his shirt fall open and licked her lips. “I want it to be just you and me. No more condoms.” She gave him a sly look. “I mean, it’s not like you can get me pregnant.”
“Ha.”
She ran her fingertips over his abdomen, sending tendrils of sensation downward. “I want to feel all of you. Your skin. Your heat. No more barriers.”
His blood went hot at the words. No more barriers. But more than that. No more walls. No more secrets. Naked in all the most important ways. “I can do that.” He tugged off his shirt and tossed it somewhere behind him. “I hope this thing has insulated walls because I plan to make this road trip of yours worth it.”
Her expression turned wicked. “You better. Houston traffic is a nightmare.”
He laughed.
She dropped her hands to the waistband of his jeans. “Let’s scandalize the park.”
He reached over and cracked the window just enough so they could hear the crashing waves out on the beach. “Let’s drown out that ocean.”
He lay beside her and undressed her, taking his time and revealing each delectable inch of smooth, warm skin. He couldn’t believe how lucky he’d gotten, finding this woman. He was fascinated by every inch of her—how her belly fluttered as her breaths quickened, the way her nipples tightened in anticipation of his touch, the way she kept licking her lips—but most of all, he loved how she looked at him. Like he meant something to her. The love and desire were drugs he could get used to.
He took his time stripping her bare and got rid of his own clothes. Then he pressed every part of him against her—skin to skin, heartbeat to heartbeat, soft against hard—taking her mouth in a kiss and letting all the worries and stress of the last fourteen days dissolve in the space between them. He’d made it to the other side of what he’d thought was an endless bridge. This was a new journey, and he couldn’t wait to start.
* * *
Taryn sighed as Shaw’s warmth and weight pressed against her, his cock hard and heavy already and his touch lighting her on fire. She could feel the difference in him. She’d thought she’d seen all of him, but this was new. There was an abandon in him, a laid-bare vulnerability. It took her a moment to realize what it was. Trust. He was trusting her to see him defenseless, his heart pinned on his proverbial sleeve, a core of sweetness and yearning he’d never let her see before.
He loved her, and he was showing her the full depth of his feeling. He kissed her as though she was his air, and she breathed him in, letting all that this meant wash over her. He was hers. She finally got the distinction between sex and making love. She’d always thought the latter would be significantly less hot, but she’d been so very wrong. This was the sexiest she’d ever felt in her life.
She let her hands travel down his back, feeling his muscles roll and flex with tension as he rubbed against her, lighting her nerve endings up with all the most delicious sensations. Her hands reached his backside and she gripped, loving the thick muscle and the feel of him hot in her hands. Mine.
She’d been so afraid driving down here, not knowing what to expect, preparing herself in case he still wanted to leave, but now she could let that fear go and simply enjoy him. There were still a lot of things they’d have to deal with when they got back home. But she felt confident in her decision.
She’d chosen the truth over living a lie. It was the right thing to do, not just for Shaw but for herself. She?
?d denied herself a lot of things in her life in the name of her research and fighting for her family. She didn’t regret giving up singing or her dreams of living somewhere else. She was proud of the things she’d accomplished. But she would’ve regretted giving up the chance to love and be loved. She deserved happiness—even if there was so much loss and sadness in her past. She would’ve said that before if someone had asked, but she’d lived her life not really believing it, never making room for it, always putting her own needs on the back burner.
Sitting at Nia’s grave had confirmed what was the right thing to do. Her sister would want her to fight and to keep fighting. Nia would want her to take care of their parents. But ultimately, Nia wouldn’t want Taryn to give up her life to do it. Her sister would want her to be happy.
So Taryn was here, taking that leap. She was happy. And she would not feel guilty about it.
Shaw pulled back from the kiss and smiled. “Still with me, beautiful?”
“Always.”
His smile made her insides melt. “Then let’s get loud, baby.”
“Hell yes.”
Shaw worked his way down her body, kissing her breasts and teasing her with his tongue, marking a path down her sternum and her belly, and then he found her center, kissing her there with soft lips, a hot tongue, and the skill of a lover who’d paid attention and learned her favorite parts.
He was her favorite part.
His touch made everything inside her soar. She arched as he licked over her sweet spot and teased her with his fingers. Slowly, skillfully, and with the reverence of a guy who loved going down on a woman and making her moan. It hadn’t been but a few weeks since she’d last been with him, but her body felt starved for him. She rocked against his mouth, shamelessly gripping his hair and murmuring nonsense. He was in full worship mode, and her body tightened so fast that she thought she might snap into pieces. She called his name in warning, but then he sucked her clit between his lips, and colors exploded behind her eyelids. Her orgasm rushed up like a rocket, taking her breath and then making her cry out. She made needy sounds she’d probably regret later, but right now, she didn’t care who heard.