More Than a Convenient Bride(9)

Tonight, the wind was blowing her in the direction of his bed.

Knowing Luc the way she did, she knew exactly how this would play out.  He would caress her as he slowly removed her clothes, taking his time.  Her pleasure would be his main priority because that's the kind of man  he was. Always putting the needs of others before his own. She would let  him take his time, and when they were both good and worked up, she  would take over. If this was going to be the only time they slept  together, she planned to give him a night that he would never forget.  And if they decided to do it again, well, that was okay, too.

That was her plan at least, but Luc was playing by a totally different  set of rules. He looked at her as if he were a hunter stalking its prey,  and then he lunged and went all caveman on her. One second her feet  were on the ground, and the next, she was hanging over his shoulder,  which was more than wide enough to accommodate her. She gasped and  clutched his back, dizzy with desire and a little disoriented as he  kicked the door closed and carried her across the room to his bed. And  there was nothing gentle about the way he tossed her down on the  comforter.

Who was this man and why was she just now meeting him? And how, after  all these years of friendship, could she have pegged him so wrong?

He knelt on the mattress beside her, his hand resting on her inner  thigh, and all she could think was more. He slid the hand up under the  hem of her dress. His fingertips grazed the crotch of her panties, no  more than a tickle. She sucked in a breath and her thighs parted,  straining against the skirt of her dress.

He pulled his hand away and her back arched, her body seeking out his touch. "Did I mention how sexy you look in this dress?"                       
       
           



       

"Thanks. I don't usually wear them," she said, the words coming out all  breathy and uneven. She couldn't seem to pull enough air into her  lungs. What happened to all the oxygen?

"I'm going to buy you a dozen more."

If this was the reaction she got when she wore a dress, maybe that  would be a bad idea. Or a good one. She wasn't sure. Suddenly everything  felt backward and upside down.

He was back under her dress, tugging her panties down. There was  nothing slow about the way he undressed her. Or gentle. Then he took his  pajama bottoms off...

Yikes. He wouldn't be the only one walking away satisfied. This was going to be fun.

She tried to push him onto his back but it was like trying to move a  brick wall. She wound up on her back instead, and when she reached out  to touch him, he pinned her arms over her head, a move that would  normally trigger a sense of panic. He wouldn't let her take control,  which both frustrated and aroused her. But she knew deep in her heart  that she was safe with him. She usually felt threatened by sexually  aggressive men, but she wanted him to dominate her. She trusted Luc, so  she did something she had never done before. She dropped her guard and  let go, let him be the one in charge.

It was as cathartic as it was exciting. And Luc held nothing back,  stroking here, kissing there. Licking and biting and flipping her around  until she felt like a pretzel, so he could explore every inch of her  body. He knew exactly what she liked, what she needed, without her  having to say a thing. Besides, she was too busy gasping and moaning to  form intelligible words. He teased her relentlessly. And every time she  thought she was getting the upper hand, he turned the tables on her  again. She'd orgasmed twice, and was headlong into number three when he  rolled her onto her back and settled over her.

He didn't ask her if she was ready, or if she was having second  thoughts. They were both too far gone for that. He parted her thighs  with his knee and thrust inside her. She savored the sweet stretch of  her body accepting him, his weight pressing her into the mattress as he  eased back, then thrust again. And again, picking up speed, but with  more hip action this time. Pretty much all she could do was wrap her  legs around his hips and hang on for the ride. Pleasure rippled through  her in hot waves, her body clenching down around him like a vise as  orgasm number three took hold.

After that things got very fuzzy. And rowdy. And a little loud. He  asked a lot of questions, too. "Do you like this?" "Does this feel  good?" He must have told her a dozen times that she was beautiful, that  she was the sexiest woman he'd ever seen. "By leaps and bounds," he  said. And he wasn't shy about telling her what he wanted, and exactly  how she should do it. "Touch me here, lick me there. Faster. Slower.  Just like that." She'd never been with a man so chatty during sex. Or  bossy. But the best part by far was watching him reach his peak, seeing  him completely let go, knowing that she was the one making him feel that  way.

When it was over, and they lay there in a sweaty tangle, she couldn't  seem to wipe the smile from her face, until she realized, with  considerable horror, that she hadn't given a single freaking thought to  birth control.

* * *

Luc lay with Julie, his leg resting between hers, one arm under her  neck, the other draped across her stomach. "I guess an annulment is out  of the question now," he joked, and without warning Julie shot up in  bed, nearly dumping him over the edge onto the floor-the hardwood  floor-and spewed a string of expletives.

Luc sat up beside her. He put a hand on her shoulder and she jumped, as  if she'd forgotten he was there. "It was a joke, Julie."

"Oh my God," she said, looking panicked, the color leaching from her  face. "I can't believe we did this. How could I be so stupid?"

But it had been some of the best sex he'd ever had, and she had seemed  to enjoy herself, too. "Don't you think it's a little late to be having  second thoughts?"

She looked puzzled, then said, "I'm not having second thoughts. At least, not in the way you think."

"In what way, then?"

"This is probably a dumb question under the circumstances, but did we just have unprotected sex?"

Is that what this was about? "Relax, you're not going to catch anything from me."

"I know that," she said. "But unless you're sterile, we could have bigger problems."

Whoa, wait a minute. "I thought you were on the Pill. You told me you were."                       
       
           



       

Her eyes went wide with indignation. "When did I say that? I never said that."

"A couple of years ago. You were complaining that it made you nauseous."

"Which is why I stopped taking it."

Aw, hell. He should have asked. He was a doctor, after all. He knew  better than to assume. Which is why he always kept condoms on hand. They  were in the drawer in his bedside table, not two feet away. "This is my  fault. I should have checked with you first."

"No, I'm just as much to blame. It never even crossed my mind." She  dropped her head in her hands. "How could I be so careless? I don't want  a baby. Definitely not now, maybe not ever."

"Before you get all panicked, stop and think about where you are in your cycle."

She took a deep breath, looking so tense she could have snapped like a  twig. It took her several seconds to collect herself, then she said,  "I'm due to start my period in a couple of days. A week tops."

"Then, we're probably fine. The odds are pretty slim that you would conceive so late in your cycle."

"Is that your official medical opinion?"

"It is." There was a sprinkle of optimism in his tone for good measure.  And on the bright side, it wouldn't be long before they knew for sure.

"You're right," she said, sounding a little less freaked out. She rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry I got so upset."

He put his arm around her shoulder, drawing her closer. "No apology required."

She was quiet for a moment, then said, "Just so you know, I don't  usually sleep with men on the first date. But since our first date was  our wedding, I thought I could make an exception."

"I understand."

She smiled up at him. "That was really good, by the way. The sex, I mean."

"Was?"

She looked confused.

"There is no 'was.'" He lay back and pulled her on top of him. "We're just getting started."





 Six

Julie woke slowly the next morning to the sound of water running. Her  first thought was that the leaky pipe under her bathroom sink had  finally burst. Eyes too heavy to open, she reached over to grab her  phone off the bedside table, but it was gone. Not just her phone, but  the table itself wasn't there. She pried her eyes open only to realize  that this was not her bedroom. Not even her apartment. She lived with  Luc now, and the sound of the running water was coming from his  bathroom. Then she recalled last night and a smile curled her lips.