But it was the same exact phrase she’d uttered when she entered the tent. I had been so overwhelmed with the need to have her that I’d grabbed her and hadn’t let her say anything else.
Part of me is doubtful, wondering if she’s just saying these things now because of what just happened between us. Like she’s telling me what she thinks I want to hear. That possibility does not make me happy.
But when I turn to look at her, my eyes catch hers and our gazes tangle together, as if connected by fishing lines that are knotted and twisted round each other. And the more I look into her eyes, the deeper I go. It’s like looking into her soul. Now I want to see it all.
After a few minutes, she blinks and draws back, but I put my hand to her head, preventing her from withdrawing from me. “Jenna…you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met. And I’m not just talking about the outside. That’s what I noticed first, of course, but I’ve seen beautiful women before. And many of them end up not being good people inside. But you...” My voice dies out, so I clear my throat and continue. “You’re beautiful in every way…how you act, how you think, how you comprehend the feelings of others, how you help them.”
Her eyes become inexplicably round and her lip trembles. She bites it to keep it still. When she says nothing, I continue. “You once said nothing in your life is permanent—that everything becomes temporary. I couldn’t stop thinking about those words because of how unfair that is. You deserve permanence, and I want to be the man who gives it to you.”
She turns to kiss my shoulder. “I want you to be that man, too.”
My heart surges into my throat, buoyed by hope.
“So are you going to get that wander-thing—”
“Wanderlust.”
“—and just pack your bags and leave like…like with your other boyfriends?”
She studies my face. Placing a palm along my cheek, she smoothes her fingers over my prickly whiskers. I’m suddenly sorry I didn’t have a chance to shave before I kissed her all over her face, her neck, her chest. Maybe it didn’t feel pleasant for her, but she didn’t want to tell me…
Her lids droop and she leans forward, placing her forehead against mine and looking into my eyes. This time, however, I’m finding it difficult to return her gaze. I’m afraid she’s going to see my doubt there.
“Something’s different this time, Wil. I never felt for any of them the way I do for you. Is that enough? Can you trust me?”
I slip my arms around her waist and pull her fast against me. She closes her eyes and trembles. A strange feeling comes over me, threatening to smother me like a quilt. It’s confusing and thrilling and frightening all at the same time.
“Are you cold?” I ask, already knowing that she isn’t.
“No,” she whispers. “I’m just…affected.”
“By what?”
“By you.”
I bury my mouth and nose in her hair, inhaling deeply, savoring her smell. Savoring the feel of her skin pressed to mine. I want to touch and taste, her soft, curvy body again as soon as possible. Even as I’m thinking this, I’m getting hard for her once more. I run my hand down the supple skin between her shoulder blades to the base of her spine and back.
“Jenna, I need to ask you something very important…”
She tilts her head back, pulling that heavenly smell away from my nose. “Yes? What is it?”
“How long should we wait before having sex again?”
Her face breaks into a brilliant smile. “Not another minute longer.”
She moves her face to mine, kissing me from above, and as we kiss, she’s moving to straddle me again. But that’s not how I want it this time.
I grasp her shoulder with one hand, her waist with the other, and roll us completely over so that now I’m on top of her.
Chapter 31
Jenna
It didn’t take long to discover that William was a quick learner. Sex was no different. So when he rolled me over and pressed his desperate kisses onto my mouth, I was delighted.
While his tongue tasted liberally, his scruffy jaw was scratching me everywhere—my neck, my chest, my breasts. Though the previous time had been no chore, it felt good to be able to lie back and let him steer this ship. I was anxious to see where he would take us.
And despite the fact that we’d had sex just a half hour before, William was just as driven and deliberate this time. No inch of skin was left uncovered by his hot mouth, no surface left uncaressed by those rough hands. He spent a lot of time lavishing my breasts with special attention—likely having been so desperate the first time to get inside me. As desperate as I had been to have him there.