More Than a Touch (Snowberry Creek #2) (18 page)

“Tease,” she complained as she attempted to tug his hands higher to where she wanted them to be.

“Yeah, but you like it.”

He held his position and tried out some different tactics. First, he leaned down to trace the shell of her ear with the tip of his tongue. When she cocked her head to the side with a soft sigh, he rewarded her by giving her breasts a gentle squeeze. She leaned forward into his palms, which had the added effect of pressing her backside right against his erection.

She shot him a smug smile back over her shoulder when he groaned. Okay, time for some payback. He flicked the front fastener on her bra open and pushed it aside. Rolling her nipple between his finger and thumb with one hand, Leif reached for the snap on her jeans with the other. He made quick work of it, but took his time lowering her zipper.

Zoe tried to spin around to face him, but he held her trapped against his chest with one arm. Then slowly, so slowly, he eased his fingertips beneath the elastic of her panties. Her breath caught in her throat as he tested her readiness for him with soft strokes.

He didn’t know how Zoe was faring, but he was driving himself crazy. “I think it’s time we get horizontal.”

Zoe immediately took his hand and led the way down the hall to her bedroom. “Wait here for a second.”

She left him standing at the door while she crossed the room to turn on a small lamp on her dresser. It was just bright enough to bathe her skin in a soft glow. He approved. After she pulled back the covers on her king-sized bed, she reached into a drawer and set a box of condoms on the top of the bedside table. Finally, she returned to stand in front of him.

“Now, where were we? Oh, yes, I was about to do this.”

She reached for the snap on his jeans, obviously aiming for a little payback herself as she took her own sweet time lowering the zipper. After tugging his pants down far enough to free his cock, she took him in hand and showed him the real meaning of teasing. He had to brace himself against the doorframe with both hands as he fought for control.

God, he loved that she gave as good as she got. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could take this. “About that bed.”

Then it was the race to strip off the last vestiges of their clothing and inhibitions.

•   •   •

When they finally tumbled onto her mattress, Zoe did her best to drag Leif on top of her.

Frustrating man that he was, he resisted her demands. “We’ll get there, honey, but not quite yet.”

In an obvious attempt to distract her, he kissed her hard and deep before moving down over her body, exploring and tasting each inch along the way. The wet heat of his mouth on her breast was amazing; it was as if she could feel each tug and lick everywhere at once. Her legs thrashed restlessly, needing his weight to help ground her in the moment.

He stopped long enough to put one of the condoms to use. But when he finally spread her thighs wide, he made no move to take her. Instead, he scooted farther down the mattress. What was he doing? Did he mean to . . . ? Yes, he did.

When he tasted her, she saw fireworks. She couldn’t take much more. She really couldn’t. But Leif didn’t seem to care. He held her in place as he slowly, deliberately pushed her higher and higher until she was panting his name and begging for release.

Then he stopped. Just like that. With her balancing on the sharp precipice between completion and insanity.

“Leif, please.”

“I will, but look at me. I want you right here with me.”

She forced her eyes to open, to see his handsome face. He was breathing hard, his skin covered in a slick sheen of sweat. Good. She didn’t want to be the only one who felt this desperation. “I’m right here with you, Leif.”

He nodded as he rose over her again, this time poised at the entrance of her body. Then, with his dark eyes staring into hers, he flexed his hips hard and fast to bury himself deep within her. It had been a long time since she’d been with a lover, and the sudden invasion burned. She didn’t care but couldn’t help but wince.

He froze. “Did I hurt you?”

She didn’t bother to deny it. “It’s been a while.”

“Do you need me to stop?”

Was he crazy? “No way. Not now.”

He must have believed her, because he made no attempt to withdraw. When he did move again, he took such care, going slowly, giving her every chance to adjust. Zoe let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding and relaxed. After raising her knees up higher on his hips, she dug her fingertips into his backside and held on.

“Now, Leif, please!”

He obliged her, driving deep and fast. She loved the flex and play of his muscles under her hands. He had the perfect warrior’s body, all lean power and strength. His life as a soldier had left its mark on him, but it only made him stronger in her eyes.

Once again he was pushing her toward the edge, her entire body tensing as he raised up to support himself at arm’s length, allowing his hips to swing freely. Again and again and again, he drove forward. She bowed beneath him, meeting his thrusts with her own.

“That’s it, Zoe—let go and fly.”

She did as he ordered, her entire body burning hot as she screamed out her release. Caught up in the grip of her own climax, she felt him plunge over the cliff with her. His powerful body shuddered in release deep within hers in a final burst of hard thrusts.

Gradually, reality returned. When the last of their desperation drained away, Leif gave her a crooked grin and kissed her on the nose.

“Corporal Brevik reporting in, ma’am. Mission accomplished.”

She lost it and gave in to a fit of the giggles as he rolled over and tucked her in at his side. Feeling better than she had in . . . well, in forever, she snuggled close and held on to the amazing man next to her.

Mission accomplished, indeed.

C
hapter 18

L
eif stared up at the ceiling, unable to sleep and torn about what he should do next. He had no real desire to leave Zoe’s bed. For one thing, he truly savored the skin-to-skin contact with the woman curled up next to him. Then there was the hope that they might stage a repeat performance of the mind-blowing sex that they’d shared earlier.

The trouble was that he’d told Austin he would be back home tonight. He figured he owed it to Callie to keep an eye on the kid now that he had free run of Spence’s house. After all, it was Leif who had told Austin he could stay there. The bottom line was that he couldn’t linger in Zoe’s bed until dawn.

With that in mind, he shifted to roll onto his side. Gently brushing Zoe’s hair back from her face, he studied her quiet beauty. There was such strength in her—which normally showed in her animated expression. But here in the dim moonlight seeping in past the blinds on the window, there was no missing the faint dark circles under her eyes, and her lips still looked a bit swollen from their kisses. He’d definitely left his mark on her body in other ways as well, starting with the love bite right at the juncture of her shoulder and the delicate skin of her neck. That was only fair because she’d left her mark on him as well, even if it didn’t show on the outside.

When Zoe finally stirred, she turned away from him, but kept her body pressed back against his. In the process, the covers slipped down to her waist, leaving her upper body exposed for his perusal. She made no move to cover herself; perhaps the combined warmth of their two bodies was enough to keep her comfortable. Regardless of the reason, he could only be grateful.

True, a better man might have tugged the blanket back up to afford her some modesty. He didn’t know what it said about him, but he couldn’t find the strength to deny himself a clear view of all those delicious parts of her that he’d already tasted and touched. He couldn’t wait to do it again.

No time like the present.

He palmed her breast and slowly kneaded it until her nipples came to attention, a clear sign that she was aware of him on some level. Next, when he traced small circles on her belly, she twitched a bit as if his touch tickled her skin. From there, he turned his attention to the curve of her fabulous ass, sliding his hand down and down to seek out the feminine secrets that were his ultimate goal.

Zoe moaned and stretched, keeping her back toward him but shifting enough to encourage him to continue his explorations. She reached back to grasp his erection and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“Better suit up, big guy, before we go any further with this.”

He hated to stop even for such a vital reason, but he did. While he sat up, Zoe remained right where she was, offering him an unobstructed view of the elegant lines of her back that practically had him drooling.

Hot damn, he wanted some of that. In fact, all of that. He rolled back onto the bed next to her. “I wanted to take it nice and slow this time, but I’m pretty sure that’s not going to happen. Consider that your fault.”

She offered him a siren’s smile. “How do you figure? As I recall, I was sound asleep when you started all this ruckus. That makes me the innocent one.”

“True enough. But, even asleep, there’s nothing innocent about the effect you have on me, lady.”

“And what would that effect be exactly?”

Although she knew. There was a wealth of feminine awareness in the heated look she gave him, and the teasing wiggle she gave her hips was definitely intended to incite trouble. Fine. If she didn’t want to own up to her wicked, wicked wiles, he’d have to let her feel the fire she’d unleashed.

“Brace yourself, honey. This is going to be a hard ride.”

Zoe went willingly when he gently tugged her hips into the perfect position for him to take her from behind. As he slowly pressed forward, she dropped her head down to rest on her arms and moaned in approval. When he stopped to savor the moment, she looked back over her shoulder.

“Bring it on, soldier. Give it your best shot.”

He had every intention of doing just that, but he’d forgotten to take one thing into consideration: his injured leg. For one delicious moment, they proceeded as planned with nothing but pure pleasure pounding through his body, and his entire focus was on satisfying the amazing woman in front of him. Damned if she wasn’t the most unselfish lover he’d ever had.

Then without warning something snapped, crackled, and popped in his left calf. Leif’s lungs forgot how to work, as agonizing pain sliced through his leg. He tasted blood as he bit down on his lip to keep from screaming, collapsed to the side, and begged the universe for mercy.

•   •   •

The fact she was naked didn’t matter. Zoe’s training automatically kicked in to assess the situation. It didn’t take a genius to identify Leif’s injured leg as the source of his agony. Figuring out how to treat it was a whole different issue. Before she could do anything constructive, she needed to know exactly what had happened. Right now Leif was too caught up in the pain to focus on anything else. They needed to get past that if she was going to be of any help to him.

More light would be a good start. She clambered off the bed long enough to turn on the ceiling light. On the way back, she tried calling his name in a soft voice in hopes that the soothing sound would help draw him out of his daze.

No luck. Leif remained curled up in the fetal position, his hands holding on to his left leg so tightly that his knuckles were bone white. Trying not to jar him unnecessarily, she knelt beside him on the bed and captured his face with her hands.

“Corporal, look at me.”

His eyes fluttered as if he were trying to open them. She kept talking. “That’s it, breathe through it, Leif. Tell me what’s wrong. Do I need to call an ambulance?”

“NO!”

After another ragged breath, he managed to shake his head as he growled through gritted teeth, “Cramping. Burns like hell. Should pass.”

He said it, but he didn’t believe it. She’d bet her last nickel on it. Maybe she could help that along. Grabbing a bottle of lotion off the bedside table, she positioned herself by his leg. If he was right about the problem, massage would help ease the pain. If he wasn’t, she still needed to get her hands on his leg to make the right diagnosis.

“Leif, let go of your leg so I can look at it.”

His pain-racked eyes locked onto hers. He gave a sharp nod and then jerked his hands back out of her way and laced his fingers behind his head. His big body thrummed with tension as she poked and prodded his calf muscle. He cursed a blue streak under his breath as she felt her way from his ankle all the way up to his thigh and back down.

“I think you’re right that it’s a cramp, but I can’t be sure. The prudent thing would be for me to take you to the hospital and have an orthopedics doc take a look at it.”

Leif was already shaking his head. No surprise there. “Had enough of them.”

“Okay, then let’s see if we can’t get it to ease up for you. If this doesn’t work, though . . .”

She left the rest unsaid. After pouring some of the lotion in her hand, she smeared it on his leg and then started the slow process of working out the knots. Judging by the grim expression on Leif’s face, it had to hurt like hell, but he didn’t utter a single complaint.

Her hands were aching and tired by the time the last of the tension faded away and his muscles smoothed out. Leif offered her a small smile and slowly stretched his leg out completely. They both held their breath until it was clear that the crisis had passed, at least for the moment.

Leif took her hand in his and tugged her down beside him. He kissed her palm. “Zoe, you definitely have magic hands. Thank you.”

She wanted to rail at him. He needed to be more careful with his leg unless he wanted to risk further damage or at the very least a major setback in his recovery. But considering that she’d been actively encouraging him, she couldn’t assign all the blame to him. They’d both been too caught up in the moment.

Leif stroked her back as he kept talking. The rough note in his voice sounded different now, as if it had been stripped of the pain, leaving only the intensity behind. “So, Zoe, where did we leave off?”

She couldn’t believe her ears. “Are you crazy? I don’t want to hurt you.”

His eyes flashed hot with temper. “Screw that, Zoe. Let me worry about me. I’m fine and have every intention of finishing what we started. Unless you’ve changed your mind.”

He guided her hand down his body to give testament to the power of his determination. One touch and a slow burn started deep inside her. How was she supposed to set him straight on the subject when her own body betrayed her? She also recognized muleheaded stubbornness when she saw it.

No way was she going to let him abuse his leg again. Not on her watch. Not in her bed. In a quick move, she straddled his hips and leaned down to kiss his mouth, starting off soft and gentle.

Growing bolder, she planted one hand on his chest while she grasped his erection with the other. Rising up, she guided him to the entrance of her body, and sank back down, taking him deep and taking her time to enjoy the ride. Leif’s head kicked back on the pillow, his dark eyes mere slits as he watched her slowly roll her hips.

For his part, Leif palmed her breasts, squeezing them to just the right side of pain. She smiled in approval. “Oh, yeah, just like that.”

She wanted more. Faster. Harder. As if sensing her growing frustration, Leif grasped her hips with his big hands and guided them both into a virtual frenzy. He drove his hips up to meet hers on the downward stroke. Someone yelled. It might have been her. She wasn’t sure and didn’t care. All that mattered was that they kept going, kept driving hard, kept this amazing connection running hot between them.

His mouth curved in a wicked smile as he touched her in just the right place with just the right force. That was all it took. She broke apart in a million pieces, completely shattered and then remade whole again. He followed right after her, shuddering in release as he held her firmly in place and thrust upward.

When he collapsed on the mattress, she joined him in a boneless heap, remaining on top of him with her head tucked up by his chin. As much as she was enjoying the moment, the nurse in her still had concerns.

“How is your leg?”

The warmth in his dark eyes disappeared, the flame extinguished by the blunt question. She couldn’t help but worry, but no doubt her timing could have been better.

“I told you once already. It’s fine.”

Maybe it was, but she suspected he would’ve given her the same answer even if it was a flat-out lie. She had no choice but to take him at his word for now. At least he kept his arms wrapped around her and made no move to put any physical distance between them. Emotional distance might be a different matter, but all she could do was play the cards she’d been dealt.

A few minutes later, Leif sighed and rested his forearm over his eyes, never a good sign. She braced herself for whatever he had to say. “Leif, just tell me.”

“I should leave.” He traced her lower lip with his thumb. “I don’t want to.”

At least the regret sounded honest, so she tried her best to ignore the stab of pain his words caused her. “Why do you need to go?”

Although, in all honesty, his leaving would save them both that awkward morning-after stress. It had been years since she’d had the kind of relationship that included sharing breakfast with a lover.

Leif’s arm tightened around her as if he was worried that she was about to bolt from her own bed. His voice was a deep rumble when he finally answered.

“You already know that I’m living at Spence’s old place. What you might not know is that we had a break-in at the house a short time ago. The perp turned out to be Spence’s cousin, Austin. Since it was his first arrest, the judge offered the kid a second chance if he promised to make restitution. As it turns out, one of the requirements the judge mandated was that Austin had to have a job waiting for him. Unfortunately, he lost his old one because of his arrest.”

Leif sat up far enough to rest on his elbows as he kept talking. “Callie offered to hire him to work on the house with me and Nick, and I ended up giving him a ride when he got released from jail. When I took him back to his apartment, we found out the landlord had thrown all of Austin’s stuff out in the trash, figuring he wouldn’t be back. The bastard hocked anything worth having.

“Long story short, I sort of invited Austin to move into the house with Nick and me, telling him room and board were part of the bennies that came with the job. Now Austin is out at the house all alone and up to who knows what. It’s too soon to think we can trust him. The thing is, I also need him to trust me. I told him I’d be back tonight, so I think I should be there.”

What a relief that his reasons for leaving had nothing to do with her and what had happened with his leg. No, they had everything to do with the kind of man he was. The kind who took things like duty and honor seriously, putting them ahead of his own needs. Feeling a little happier about the situation, she rose up high enough to smile down at him.