A deep shiver shook her frame. A couple of days ago, she’d been perfectly happy to be alone.
Since she’d met T-Rex, everything had changed.
Chapter Eleven
After the hearty dinner of beef stew Liv provided, Ghost gave T-Rex and Sierra a ride back to Grizzly Pass and dropped them at T-Rex’s truck at the fairgrounds. From there, T-Rex drove Sierra back to the bed-and-breakfast.
He used his key to open the front entrance. Low lights were left on in the hallway and the front living space for those guests returning late or wanting to relax in front of the dying embers in the fireplace.
Sierra passed the living area and climbed the stairs slowly, trailing her hand along the banister. She had to be bone tired after the stress of the afternoon. How many women held up so well after surviving a helicopter crash landing, being shot at and attacked by a man intent on killing her?
T-Rex was surprised and proud of how well she’d handled herself. He chuckled every time he remembered the image of her standing over that bad guy with a big rock in her hand. The woman had gumption.
When they reached her room, she paused and turned toward him. “Thanks again for saving me today.”
“I think you have that backward. I should be thanking you.”
She smiled. “I guess we could call it even.”
He cupped her cheek in his hand. “You are an amazing woman.”
She leaned into his palm and closed her eyes. “No, I’m an ordinary woman who did what she had to do in the face of adversity.”
“You have your opinion, and I have mine.” He brushed his thumb across her lips. “And right now, I want to kiss you so badly I can’t resist. Tell me no and I’ll leave you alone.”
Sierra opened her eyes and stared up into his. “I’m not saying no.” Her voice came out in a breathy whisper. She laid her hand on his chest and leaned up on her toes, lifting her chin.
T-Rex had no choice but to kiss those full, luscious lips. He couldn’t have resisted had he tried.
His mouth crashed down on hers, and he brought his hands to her hips, pulling her close.
She parted her lips and met his tongue as he thrust inside her mouth.
T-Rex had never felt such an intense need to take this woman, to touch every part of her body and bury himself inside her. He caressed her tongue with his, twisting, sliding and loving the lingering taste of hot cocoa.
Her hands slid up his chest and around the back of his neck. Her calf circled his, and she pressed her sex against his thigh.
T-Rex groaned and ran his fingers up her back, buried them in her hair and tugged gently, pulling her head back. Then he left her mouth to trail kisses down the long, smooth line of her throat. Sweet beauty, her skin was so soft.
When he reached the rise of her collarbone, he paused and lifted his head to breathe and slow his pulse. That little pause allowed his brain to catch up and remind him who he was and who she was.
He was a marine, destined to return to his unit and deploy.
Sierra was a beautiful, desirable woman who’d been abused by her ex-husband. She deserved a man who would be there for her every day. A man who would shower her with the tender, loving care she so desperately deserved.
He wasn’t that man.
He dropped his hands to his side and stepped away. “I can’t do this.”
She blinked her eyes open and stared up at him. “Did I do something wrong?”
He shook his head, every instinct telling him to take her into his arms and make sweet love to her through the rest of the night. But his brain couldn’t allow it. “I’m not the right guy for you, darlin’. You deserve so much better.”
“I don’t want better,” she said, closing the gap he’d put between them. “I want you.” When she raised her hands to touch him, he grabbed them and held them away.
“I can only take so much. If we continue along this path, I won’t be able to stop.”
She smiled and shook her head. “I don’t want you to stop.”
“I could be gone tomorrow,” he reminded her.
“Either one of us could have been gone today.” She inhaled deeply and let it out. “Look, if it makes you feel better, I’m not looking for commitment. It’s just that I don’t want to spend the night alone. Not after all that happened today. You’ve been with me all day. Please.” She held out her hand. “Don’t leave me now.”
He stared at her face and then down at her hand, and felt the walls of his resistance crumbling around him.
Finally, he took her hand. “I don’t want you to regret what could happen between us tonight.”
“I’ll regret it more if we don’t have this one night together.” She lifted his hand to her cheek and gave him a soft, sexy smile that turned his knees to butter. “I need a shower. So do you.” She didn’t say more, just led him into the shared bathroom and closed the door behind them.
Once inside, she turned the handle on the shower faucet, tested the heat and then faced him. Her cheeks were pink, and she was chewing on her lip.
“I’ve never seduced a man before.” She ran her fingers down the front of his shirt, pushing the buttons loose as she went. “I haven’t been on a date since high school.”
T-Rex dragged in a shaky breath and let it out. “You must be doing something right because I’m so turned on right now I can barely see straight.”
She laughed softly and tugged his shirt loose from his waistband. “Seeing straight isn’t a requirement tonight. In fact, it might be a detractor.”
When she reached for the button on his jeans, he put his hand over hers, stopping her there.
Sierra glanced up, wide-eyed. “What?”
He squeezed her hands gently. “Wait.” He pulled his wallet from his back pocket and extracted two foil packets.
She smiled and shook her head. “I’m clean of any STDs and I can’t get pregnant. But you’re way ahead of me. I didn’t even think about protection.”
“For you more than for me. If there’s even a chance of getting you pregnant, I wouldn’t want to leave you to manage on your own.”
She muttered something that sounded like I’d take my chances.
“What did you say?” he asked.
“I was married for seven years and never got pregnant. It won’t happen now. But I’m all for protection.” She reached for his button again, worked it loose and then slid the zipper downward, taking her sweet time.
T-Rex gritted his teeth, ready to rip off his clothes and hers. But he didn’t want to frighten her. She’d been through enough with her ex-husband. Being a Neanderthal now would only reinforce all men were like Ellis. And he was nothing like her ex-husband. He cared enough about the women he had sex with to see to their satisfaction before his own.
But Sierra was testing his ability to hold back. When her knuckles brushed across his erection, he nearly came unglued. He captured her wrists in his and raised them above her head. Then he reached for the hem of her shirt, dragged it up over her head and tossed it on the counter.
She wore a lacy pink bra that framed her breasts beautifully. Unfortunately, it had to go in order for him to access the nipples beneath, puckering into tight little peaks.
Reaching behind her, he fumbled with the hooks. And fumbled some more. He couldn’t seem to get the hooks to release. “I’m sorry. I’m way out of practice.”
She laughed, tucked her arm up behind her back and slipped the hooks free. But she didn’t remove the garment. Instead she cocked her brow.
T-Rex took it from there and slipped the straps from her arm, freeing her breasts. They spilled out and bounced a little in the process.
T-Rex cupped the rounded orbs in his palms and lifted as if weighing them. “Beautiful.”
Sierra pressed her hands to the backs of his and inhaled, pushing deeper into his hold. “If we don’t hurry, the water will get cold before we get in.”
In seconds they were both naked and in the shower, laughing.
“Shh.” Sierra pressed a finger to T-Rex’s lips. He promptly sucked it into his mouth and bit down gently before releasing it.
“We can’t have our landlady coming up to check on all the commotion,” he said.
“No.” Sierra leaned up on her toes and pressed her lips to his. “We can’t,” she said into his mouth.
T-Rex’s laughter ended and his hunger built. He drew her body against his and stepped under the shower’s spray, letting it run over them both.
Sierra squirted body wash liquid into her hand and ran it over his shoulders and across his chest, rubbing until lather built and ran down his torso.
He returned the gesture, running his hands over the swells of her breasts, down to her narrow waist and across the flare of her hips. Then he bent to kiss one of her nipples, rolling the tip between his teeth.
Her back arched, pressing more of her into his mouth. He took it, sucking her breast, flicking the tip with his tongue until she moaned and dug her fingers into his hair and held him even closer.
When he’d had his fill of one side, he switched his attention to the other.
Sierra moaned and ran her leg up the back of his, rubbing her sex against his thigh.
“What did I do with those packets?” he asked, his voice as tight as his body.
She fished one out of the soap dish, tore it open and rolled it down over him, taking her time.