Then, with little more than shoving his jeans over his hips, he entered her.
Fast.
Hard.
Perfect.
She gasped as he filled every bit of her, even the part of her heart she swore had emptied itself out forever that horrible day back in February.
Then he moved ever so slowly, and she gripped his shoulders, the solid feel of him beneath her fingers keeping her from floating away. It was the stuff of fantasies, the way things felt when you closed your eyes and imagined. Only, this was real.
He was real.
“I think…I think…” What was she thinking? Oh God, she couldn’t think at all. “I need to be on top.” She wanted to stretch her arms over her head and ride him.
“I need you there too.” He rolled with her, and they fell off the bed onto the floor, laughing.
But even laughing with him was sexy, and soon her eyes were closing as he found just the right spot inside.
“God, yes,” he growled, “you feel good.”
Every touch, every kiss, every taste and lick, everything they did was completely delicious. His fingers only made it better as he yanked off her shirt and bra and splayed his hands over her breasts, shooting jolts of pleasure straight down to her center.
She closed her eyes as she gathered her hair in her hands and curled her arms over her head, her body quivering with every slip-slide over that wonderful spot inside her.
“Look at you.” She heard the reverence in his voice. “Look at us.”
She opened her eyes to find him watching the movement of her body as he filled her on every downstroke and revealed his majesty as she climbed up.
Nothing had ever been more beautiful. Nothing had ever felt so sweet. So good. So right.
He moved his hand between her thighs, and she gave herself over to sensation. To Daniel. Her breath hitched, her legs quaked, and everything inside her started to shake, contract.
She felt the build, the rush of sensation to her center, and then finally, the explosion. She cried out, and his hands moved to her hips, helping, grinding her against him—stealing her breath and her heart and her soul as together they shot straight to the sky, to the stars, to heaven.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“Come back with me.”
Daniel and Tasha lay curled around each other on her bed. She felt so warm and sweet against him that he couldn’t keep the request inside a moment longer.
“Come back with you?” She blinked at him as though he’d just escaped from the nuthouse.
It was too soon, and he was adding one more layer of complication to her life, but he couldn’t stand the thought of leaving her behind. “I want to spend more time with you, and my next trip to Tahoe is way too long to wait.” He stroked her arm, to calm her…and himself. “You can stay with me, if you want. Or you can get a hotel room, stay with a friend, even find an apartment. I just want you close. I want to see you every day like we do now. I want you to meet the guys’ wives and girlfriends, brothers, sisters, mothers.” He paused, wondering how hard to push. But he was already pushing so hard that he might as well go for broke. “I know my parents would love to meet you.”
The silence beat against his eardrums, her body so still he didn’t think she was even breathing.
Then finally, she said in a soft voice, “I want to say yes.” His heart leaped with joy, practically doing a jig around the room. “But I don’t know exactly where I’m going to be for a while.”
“Why?” The mere thought of losing her killed him. “Aren’t you planning to stay here in the cabin?”
“I was, but after I told you about my family, I realized I need to find my brother and father. I have to confront them. I have to know their criminal career is truly over. I want to believe my father learned something from this final scam—that losing me hurt enough to make him stop. But I won’t know for sure until I see him. Until I talk with him again—this time without the shock of realizing my perfect family life had been a big fat lie. Does that make sense?”
“Of course it does.” He was so proud of her for taking such a difficult step.
She breathed in deeply, then let it go on a long sigh. “I should have looked for them before now. You must think I’m a coward, hiding up here in the mountains for so long, and only putting out the first feelers online a couple of days ago.”
He cupped her face, rubbing his nose against hers, offering all his comfort. “You’re sexy and funny and smart and desirable and capable and honorable and the greatest thing since sliced bread. But never a coward. It was only natural to take some time to process how your family betrayed you. You can’t beat yourself up for needing that, Tasha.”