Dances with Monsters(96)

After a moment of lightly touching her to bring her through her aftershocks, he slowly withdrew his hand, pulling her panties back into place and pulling the skirt of her dress back down, and returned his fingers to the skin of her thigh as his lips moved against her neck. His hand ran languidly up her abdomen, stopping at her sternum to press lightly there as his lips moved to the pulse in her neck. It was still beating fast and hard, but starting to slow as a deep, satisfied sleepiness settled over her. She could still feel his hardness pressing into the back of her thigh; if it was possible, it felt even harder than before. She wondered shyly if she should return the favor, wanting him to experience even a taste of the pleasure she'd just had. She met his eyes, and swallowed, biting down into her lip. His smoky eyes moved over her face and a little smirk tugged at one corner of his mouth, almost as though he knew what she was thinking. He tilted his head and pressed his mouth to hers firmly and sensuously, doing nothing to help slow the beating of her heart or extinguish the slow burn of desire between her legs.

He gave the tip of her tongue a little flick with his before chastely pressing his lips to her temple and wrapping his arms around her tightly, pulling her into his chest.

"Go to sleep," he murmured into her hair.

She wanted to protest, wanted to move her hands against him, wanted to taste his lips some more, but the shock of pleasure her body had just endured was melding into a warm, soft heat, a sleepy, friendly heat, pulling her down to relax in his arms and she was asleep before any other part of her could move.





Chapter Twenty-One


The little bundle of warmth that had spent all night pressed into Heath's chest was suddenly gone and he immediately opened his eyes in the darkness, reaching out automatically, seeking for it, when he felt a small hand grab his.

"Hey," a sweet voice whispered in the darkness. "Just stay there and sleep a little. I have to get ready to go into the café."

Years of military training had taught him to wake up instantly, so he was already fully awake. "It's like, four-thirty," he replied, his voice deep and gruff with sleep. "Come back here."

Her small form sat back down next to him and in the next moment he felt a pair of soft, pillowy lips press into his cheek and then his neck.

"I left early yesterday and I need to get there early this morning to make it up to Bunz," she whispered back. "I feel like I've been sneaking out early all the time lately. Otherwise I would still be laying with you, I promise." She trailed a finger down his cheek and along his jaw. "Just lay here for a little bit while I go get ready. It's too early for anyone sane to be up."

Heath lay quietly as she got up from the couch and disappeared into her bedroom. After a moment, he faintly heard the shower in her bathroom turn on. A small, lithe shadow leapt onto the couch beside him, a low purring noise accompanying it.

"Hey, man," Heath murmured to the cat, holding out his hand as Rocky luxuriously leaned his head into his palm. After a few moments of being scratched between the ears, Rocky jumped down and sauntered into the kitchen. A moment later Heath heard him lapping up water from his bowl.

Heath leaned back against the sofa cushion and shut his eyes but he knew he wouldn't go back to sleep. He thought about Drew in the shower and felt simultaneous arousal and also an ache deep in his groin from being unable to release himself the evening prior. Even so, he still felt satisfied that he'd brought Drew pleasure after what had undoubtedly been an agonizingly long time; he'd never intended for her to reciprocate and had she really tried, he wouldn't have allowed her to do so anyway. He knew he had to ease her back into intimacy and that in doing so he'd be doing most of the work, but as he thought about what that work might entail, he couldn't help a half-smile from tugging up one side of his mouth. He'd never known how pleasurable for him it could be to bring someone else pleasure, and he fully accepted and was just fine with the fact that as he got Drew comfortable with being physical, he'd be going "without" as it were. But as he recalled the amazing feeling of the wetness her body produced signifying her arousal for him, the way her body had tensed right before she'd exploded, the tremors that overtook her, the way her lips had parted and how she'd gasped out something that sounded like his name—all of that had been so satisfying for him and he sincerely could not recall another time in his life when he'd been so aroused.

Of course, he'd love to "take the plunge" with her as soon as possible; he was a man with needs, too, but something told him that taking it as slow as possible with Drew would reap delicious rewards for them later on. Moreover, he respected and liked her far too much to be so insensitive to her needs and boundaries. Drew was beginning to trust him, he could sense it, and he'd be damned if he did anything to destroy that trust, ever.