She got out of bed and shed her pajamas. Then, naked, she went down the hall and opened Ian’s door.
He was asleep.
For a minute she just looked at him, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. God, he was beautiful. Big and broad and strong and the sexiest man she’d ever known.
She went over to his bed and slid under the covers. She pressed her body to his, realizing immediately that he was naked, too.
He stirred and woke.
“Kate?” he said, his voice blurry with sleep. “Is this a dream?”
A sudden spasm of affection squeezed her heart.
“No,” she murmured, letting her hand trail down his body. “I just realized there’s something I didn’t get to do the last time you were here.”
She found his shaft and closed her fingers around it.
“Oh yeah?” he said hoarsely, his hands fisting in the sheets. “What’s that?”
“I want to make you come with my mouth.”
He hardened against her palm with a low moan. “Okay, now I know this is a dream.”
She smiled at him, and then she slid down the bed and swirled her tongue over his hot, hard, throbbing flesh.
Ian groaned.
Kate took her time, enjoying the feel and taste of him—and the intense pleasure of driving him crazy. Before long he was twisting his hips and pushing himself into her, growling out her name and sliding one hand into her hair. She rode the waves of his desire to culmination, swallowing down the essence that spilled into her mouth and licking him gently as he came down from his orgasm.
“Come here,” he said at the end of a long, satisfied sigh.
He spread his arms and she scooted up the bed, snuggling against his side as he stroked her hair.
“That was incredible,” he murmured. “What did I do to deserve it?”
She put her arm around him. “Nothing. I did that for me, not for you.”
He smiled. “I see. Well, then—I think the next thing we do should be for me.”
A shiver of anticipation went through her.
“What did you have in mind?”
He shifted onto his side. “The last time I was here, you told me you don’t let men go down on you. Is that still your policy?”
Her heart was pounding, but she just rolled onto her back and gazed up at the ceiling. “Well . . . I suppose it would only be fair to make an exception for you. After all, you’ve had a hard day. And you did let me go down on you.”
“Mmmm” was all he said.
Then he was between her legs.
She squeaked, and then she moaned.
The next several minutes passed in a haze of pleasure. When she came it seemed to go on forever, her nerve endings lighting up like the Fourth of July.
Ian kissed his way back up her body and lay beside her, putting an arm around her waist and holding her close. In a few minutes they were asleep.
They woke up in the middle of the night, making love. Kate wasn’t conscious of the transition; she knew only that one minute she was sleeping and the next she was on her back with Ian above her.
When he stroked his arousal against her heat, she gasped and threw her legs wide.
His eyes burned into hers. “You’re sure about the pill? You’re okay using just that?”
“Yes. And I’m clean. You?”
“Had a physical three months ago, and I haven’t been with anyone but you since.”
“Then for God’s sake—”
He kissed her hard as he thrust inside her.
They went slow this time, drawing it out. She was hungry for him to the point of desperation, but she didn’t want it to end, and Ian seemed to feel the same way.
His climax followed just after hers, and when the aftershocks subsided, Ian rolled to his side and pulled her against his chest.
God, she loved it there. Surrounded by Ian’s big, warm body, she’d never felt so safe and so wild at the same time.
It was a wonderful combination.
She closed her eyes, figuring they’d fall asleep again. But after a minute Ian pulled back, and when she opened her eyes he was looking at her very seriously.
“There’s something I have to tell you.”
“All right,” she said gently, knowing what was coming.
He was going to tell her that while tonight had been wonderful, he wasn’t ready for more. And then she’d tell him she felt the same way.
“Kate, I love you.”
For a moment the words didn’t register. When they did, she blinked.
Okay, not what she’d expected. But she still knew what to do.
She kissed him softly and took his face between her hands.
“That’s a very sweet thing to say, Ian. Really. But don’t worry . . . I won’t hold you to it in the morning.”
He frowned. “But I want you to hold me to it.”