It's in His Touch (24 page)

“Well, my partnership is gone for one, and I’m not sure I’ll have a job there anymore.”

Blake sighed against her temple. “Stay here. With me.” That would make him happy, he just wasn’t sure if she could be happy here in a tiny little town. But he really wished she would at least give it a try.

“It may not end with me losing my job and partnership.” Her grip tightened around him. “Gabriel’s accusing me of some pretty bad stuff. If the partners take his side—”

“Which they likely will, I assume?”

She shook her head. “I just don’t know. I can’t imagine how they’d pin it on me, but I seem to be the easiest target. It could go either way.”

“So we’ll deal with it together. And I wouldn’t mind being a part of your family, even if Nona is a little frightening.”

Angelique pushed back to look at him. Her forehead creased, and new tears filled her eyes. “You don’t want to be with me, Blake. I know you want a family, so don’t deny it. I don’t want to have kids. I’m scared I’ll pass my toxic genetics down to them, and I couldn’t live with that.”

With a finger under her chin, he tipped her head up and angled it just right. Brushing a kiss across her plump lips, he tasted her sweetness, a sweetness she didn’t even know she possessed, and then he deepened the kiss. Slow and sensual, he drank in her heat until a small sound of her pleasure escaped and he absorbed it, letting it reverberate through him. He smiled against her lips when she moaned, and pulled her trembling body flush against the firmness of his.

The contrast of her curves molding against his hardness drove him crazy with want. Her kiss became a little more aggressive. Raw need singed him everywhere she touched, as her hands did a dance all over him. Exploring. Touching. Massaging. She grabbed for the hem of his shirt and found his bare flesh. His muscles bunched when her cold fingers flexed against him, heat coursing through his chest and gathering below his belt. This time
he
moaned. He broke the kiss.

“Come on,” he whispered urgently against her lips. “Let’s go to my place.”

She started to protest, but he cut her off with another demanding kiss. Because really it seemed the only way to win with her. Either kissing her senseless or blackmailing her with her own panties.

Speaking of . . .

His hand sank way south of the border, then eased around to stroke the soft stretchy material between her legs. She shimmied against him with a groan.
Perfect.

“What color are they?” he murmured against her throat, rubbing between her legs. Her fevered desire heated his fingers. That should keep her mind occupied with something other than disagreeing with him.

“Wh . . .” She swallowed hard, her breath hitching. “What?”

“Your panties?” He increased the pressure of his strokes until she went a little weak in the knees, and he snaked an arm around her waist for support. “Tell me.”

“I don’t remember,” she whispered, her head falling back, giving him more access to her creamy neck. Her hands clutched at his arms and shoulders.

“Liar,” he said against her ear, sending another wave of shivers through her. He released her waist, inched his fingers under the soft fabric of her sweatshirt, and found the sensitive spot over her ribcage that turned her on so much. Her skin pebbled, but heated at the same time. As he caressed with just enough friction, a moan slipped from between her pliant lips.

“My . . .” she gasped. “My parents are inside.”

He stroked the delicate skin down to her waist then up over her slender ribcage again, her body warming to his touch more with each pass. “Precisely why we’re going to my cabin. Otherwise, I’d undress you right here and make love to you on the grass.” His thumb moved in a circular motion between her legs, and her breaths turned ragged. Urgent. Evidence of her growing need moistened his fingertips. “What color?”

She swallowed again, falling against him. “I’m not wearing any.”

Fuck’s sake
. He was already aroused, but that caused a surge of lust to bowl him over like a wave hitting a sandcastle on the beach. He gritted his teeth, and without a word—because he couldn’t speak without losing it right there—he pulled her across the bridge and into his cabin.

Angelique grabbed for the bottom of Blake’s shirt as they stumbled through Blake’s back door, him kicking it shut with a thud. Biting threads of pleasure coiled inside of her, begging for release. She lifted the hem of his thermal pullover, and he peeled it off so fast it was like ripping the wrapper off a piece of yummy candy. Candy she’d like to taste with slow, savoring licks and bites.

He let her go long enough to lock the door. When he turned back to her, her eyes took a nice vacation down the hard planes of his chest and ripped abs. The dark line of hair that disappeared under faded Levi’s that hung so low on his hips the V at his groin made her mouth water.

She ate him up with her stare.

He advanced on her with the stealth of a lion and a stare so hungry it made her coil even tighter, like a spring at its breaking point. Her breath caught as he came to a stop so close to her, his breath warmed her cheeks. He didn’t touch her, didn’t reach out for her. He just stood there looking down at her with a sultry look that communicated his desire to have her, each of his ragged, hot breaths washing over her prickling skin.

“Your room’s over there?” She nodded toward a door to the left of the fireplace.

“Uh-huh,” he said, as she backed toward it, him following her step for step.

She backed through the door and turned to look at the room. Not much there besides a bed with a handmade quilt over it in deep red and brown hues and an old dresser. Not surprising for a single guy, but now the place was his to keep for as long as he wanted to live here. He could transform his rustic bachelor pad into a real home, and that thought caused an incredible warmth to sweep through her.

She never imaged losing would feel so good. “The bed looks comfortable,” she said, as he came up behind her and put his hands on her waist and his mouth on her neck.

“It is. Brand new.” His wet kiss, coupled with a nip of his teeth, sent a tremble through her. “Now you,” he said, his voice gone all husky with lust as he pulled at her sweatshirt.

Not a good idea.
This wasn’t a good idea. Okay, so it felt good. Really, really good at the moment, and it would probably feel much better in another minute or two. But still not smart.

She told herself to bolt. To walk away while she could still salvage some remnant of her heart. A few minutes ago when she’d told him she didn’t want kids, he didn’t respond. And if he couldn’t face that now, then he certainly wouldn’t be able to deal with it in the future. But her hands didn’t obey, and she turned, splaying her fingers against his chest. Her palms slid over the hard muscles that were encased with smooth, masculine skin. When they brushed over his nipples, the skin tightened and his pecs flexed.

Lowering her head, her mouth closed over one of the buds, and his breath hissed out. She smiled against his chest. Rolling her tongue over the nub, she gently pulled on it with her teeth, and his hands sank into her hair. So she paid the other side due attention, earning her another hiss accompanied by a moan.

“Take your shirt off,” he said, fisting a hand in her hair and gently pulling her mouth up to his. “You’re so beautiful, I want to see you.”

With a quick lift and toss, her college sweatshirt sailed across the room, and his greedy stare licked over her black lace bra. He started at her ear, nipping and teasing down her neck until his hot, wet kisses reached the lace strap. With gentle fingers, he pulled the strap off her shoulder, exposing the tender skin to his very thorough mouth. A shudder rushed over her, pebbling her wet skin. Her bra fell loose with a twitch of his fingers, and he cupped both breasts.

“Your body is beautiful, Angelique. I love touching you,” he said as he pulled her bra off and tossed it aside.

His mouth found hers, soft and warm and loving. When a sigh escaped through her parted lips, his tongue slipped in and it was like a little slice of heaven on earth. He pulled her hips against his, and the hardness that pressed into her belly almost made her weak in the knees. Well, actually it
did
make her knees go weak. She swayed right into him, in fact, molding around him like melted chocolate over a strawberry. One of his hands wandered south and found its way home, eliciting another shudder from her.

His talented fingers had her workout pants pushed down just past her waist, when he froze. Pulling away so that their noses nearly grazed, he looked into her eyes.

“You lied.”

Wait.
“What?” she said, trying to think through the foggy lust that had settled over her.

“You said you weren’t wearing panties.” His fingers snapped the elastic band at the top, and a sweet sting coursed through her bottom. “You lied.”

“Well, you were playing dirty by touching my . . .”

When she hesitated his lips turned up, and wickedness winked in his blue eyes. “Yeah?” he teased her to finish the sentence.

Of course she didn’t give him the satisfaction. “. . . by the
way
you were touching me.”

He chuckled. “You didn’t seem to mind.”

“No, but that’s not the point.”

“I’ve got a point for you.” He gently eased her back toward the bed. “Lie down and I’ll show you.”

She ignored him. “The way you touched me gave you an unfair advantage, so I had to do
something
.”

His eyes glinted. “Ah, always looking for a strategy to gain the upper hand.” He nipped at her bottom lip, and more arousal speared through her. “Trust me, when we’re done here, you’ll feel like the winner. I’ll make sure of it.”

She laughed. “Okay, but you first.” With quick fingers she had his jeans and boxer briefs sinking over that lovely ass all the way to the hardwood floors.
Mmm. Hard wood.
This may not be such a bad idea after all. At least for now.

Before he knew what she was doing, she pulled him to the bed and pushed him down onto his back. Kicking the rest of her clothes off, she climbed up his body one slow inch at a time, her tongue taking a playful journey all the way to his mouth. After a hot, sensual kiss, she started to descend again, until she reached the intended destination and took him home with slow, sultry strokes of her tongue.

His breathing became labored, and his fingers threaded into her hair as he rode the wave of bliss that she tried so lovingly to provide for him.

When she was done, he pulled her up to lie against him. The cool morning air chilled her skin, and a little shiver raced over her. He pulled the quilt over them and wrapped her in his arms. His chest rose and fell, and she traced the sculpted angles of his chest with the tip of one finger, her legs and feet entwined with his.

“Will you stay?” One hand caressed her hair, the other trailed down her spine, with light, gentle flicks and back up again.

She wanted to. Loving Blake was so different than it’d been with Gabriel. More passionate, more emotional, more give and take, more . . . more of everything.

It took her a second to open her eyes and give him a sobering look. She shook her head. “Blake, I know you want a family. I couldn’t ask you to settle for less.”

“I don’t care about any of that.” He tried to nip at her bottom lip, but she pushed him away.

“When we were at the free clinic and then when Ella’s baby was born, I heard you say you wanted kids.”

He pulled in an exasperated breath. “Angelique, I’m supposed to say nice things to my patients. I
do
want kids, but I want you more.”

“You say that now, but later on you might change your mind.” Her stomach knotted. “I couldn’t live through another man that I love pushing me away because of how cancer has changed my life.”

His hands stilled against her, and the entire length of his body went rigid. “Maybe you should give me some credit and stop comparing me to the shallow prick who broke your heart.” His tone was sharp and stabbed at her heart. “Or is that the problem? Are you sure you’re not still in love with him?”

Gabriel Schmabriel. She loved Blake. “I’m positive.”

“You just said another man you love. Does that mean you love me?”

Yes.
She hesitated.

“Because I love you, Angelique.”

Her heart soared, and her eyes filled.
Good Lord, what’s wrong with me?
She had never let herself cry in front of anyone. Not even during her illness, not when dealing with the aftershock of losing her real breasts, and certainly not when she caught Gabriel with the Cheerleader. She’d kept it to herself, dealt with it privately, refusing to let anyone else see her weakness.

“God help me, I’ve tried not to love you because I don’t know if I can make you happy.” He rubbed his eyes with a thumb and index finger. “I’m not sure
you
know what will make you happy. But I do love you.”

“I love you, too.” Her voice was a whisper.

And with a smooth movement that made her breath hitch, he rolled her onto her back and moved over her. When his impressive erection settled between her legs, she let out a small gasp of anticipation, which he swallowed with a hot kiss. Her need spiked again, and it churned and lapped inside her, begging for him. All of him.