Jill Shalvis: Back In The Bedroom

He whispered in her ear, low, raw, earthy suggestions, things no one had ever whispered to her before. Excited, aroused and her heart overflowing, she nodded. “Sounds like quite an opportunity.”

“Oh, yes,” he agreed and put her back into the car, this time on the passenger side. He got in behind the wheel. “In fact, there’s no need to wait, we can start-”

“Now?”

“Now.” He drove her to his house.

“But work-”

“Forget work. I gave Marge the day off to go do something special, something she’d never done before,” he said. “I told her I was going to do the same,” he said, smiling at her, a smile full of so much love she felt her eyes well up again.

And his quickly faded. “What’s the matter?”

“I always wanted to fall in love with a man who’d show me his feelings,” she said slowly. “A man who was warm and compassionate and soft-”

“Wait a minute.” He turned off the engine, then led her inside. Once there, he took her hand and led her to his bedroom. “Warm and compassionate, no problem. Or at least I can try… But that being soft thing-”

She laughed.

He pressed against her, so far from soft that her laugh turned into a little gasp.

“You think this condition is amusing?”

“Only because…” She paused and looked at his bed.

“Because…” he said helpfully, drawing her to his mattress, where he started in on her buttons.

“Because I know how to relieve the condition,” she said, assuring him and started on his buttons, too. “We’ve finally got it right. We’ve finally made it to a bed.”

“Finally.” He held her off, the playfulness gone. “Right place, right time, right woman. It’s all just right. You’re everything to me,” he said softly. “Everything.”

She reached for him, half-undressed, holding him close, so close that she could feel his heart beating against hers, could feel the two different patterns merge, become one. And she sighed as her world became complete.

Fifteen months later

THE GREEK ISLANDS were lovely this time of year. Tessa let out a languid sigh and figured she was the luckiest woman on earth.

She was in her bathing suit, lying on her back, staring up at an azure summer sky so amazing it took her breath away. Beneath her, the yacht rocked gently in the breeze, the water lapping at the sides with a pleasant, hypnotic sound.

“Mrs. Ledger?”

That brought a smile to her face, though she didn’t turn toward the male voice. “Yes?”

“I’ve brought you your sunscreen. Turn over and I’ll rub it on you.”

With a naughty smile, she turned onto her belly and wriggled a little to get comfortable on her towel-and to show off her backside.

She gasped when the tie of her bikini top was tugged free, then set to her sides. Then the cold lotion was squirted on the small of her back, making her gasp again.

“Mmm, nice,” he breathed into her ear. His hands touched her, slid over her muscles and warm skin in a way that made her moan, without the strap of her top across her back to encumber him in any way. Up and down, then to the backs of her legs, even dipping into her bikini bottoms enough to have her wriggling some more.

“Does your husband know what I do to you?” he whispered, his fingers getting quite wicked, making her lose her train of thought.

Hmm. To even the score, she flipped over and exposed her bare breasts. She looked up into Reilly’s face. “He knows,” she said, feeling smug at the glossy look in his eyes as he devoured the sight of her.

He cupped her breasts, gently stroking her nipples, and it was her turn to give him a glassy-eyed look. “Husband,” she managed to say. “I like that word.”

“Do you?” He leaned in and kissed her mouth softly, settling one big hand on her belly.

“You know what word I like even more?” she asked.

“What?” He gave her the indulgent smile of a man on his honeymoon, a man who knew he was about to get very lucky for the third time that day.

“Daddy,” she whispered. “I like the word daddy.” She watched as he went very still.

His eyes cut to the hand he held on her still-flat belly, his fingers tightening a little as his eyes went hot with that wild emotion called love.

“Remember on your desk last month?” she asked softly. “When the condom broke-”

“I remember.”

“Well, funny thing about broken condoms…”

His eyes cut to hers. “Are you saying-”

“Would you mind a whole lot?” she asked, holding her breath.

“Mind a whole lot?” he repeated and closed his eyes. When he opened them, they were bright and just a little damp. His voice broke, his breath hitched. “Minding isn’t quite the right word.”

Her own breath hitched, too. “What is?”

“Ecstatic,” he said fervently. “Blown away. Overcome.” He spread his fingers wide on her stomach, his expression pure love and protectiveness. Then he bent his head and kissed her right below her belly button. “Another generation…” He let out a breath.

“Terrified?”

“Only slightly,” he admitted, then scooped her up in his arms, against his chest. “I’m crazy in love with you, Tess.”

“I know.” Her joy complete, she sighed with pleasure. “Let’s go inside, back to our stateroom. You can show me just how much…”