Now she loved it, loved the judge, loved Louella Adams, loved life, and oh, how she loved Jake! She was not sure how long she lay in his solid arms before she finally fell asleep, or how much time passed before she was awakened by his soft caress. By the pale lamplight he had untied the front of her gown and pushed it away from one breast. He touched the breast gently, his thumb stirring the nipple to life.
Miranda knew this was a delicate moment for him. She wanted to react with wild abandon. It had been so long, and she had dreamed of this moment every night for four years; but she knew she must let Jake move at his own pace. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, allowing him his pleasure. His mouth came over her breast, and he groaned lightly, sucking at her hungrily as though to take nourishment.
He moved a hand under her gown, along her thigh, and she was glad she had deliberately left off her underwear. When his hand found her bare bottom, his need and passion seemed to intensify. His lips left her breast, and he whispered her name as he licked at her neck, met her mouth in a penetrating kiss, his tongue pushing deep while at the same time his fingers stroked between her bottom, moved to her love nest.
“God, Randy,” he groaned, leaving her mouth, trailing down to her breast again as he pushed up on her gown. “I need to touch you, taste you,” he whispered, moving his lips down to kiss at her belly. She gasped and shivered in ecstasy when he moved to taste and explore that most intimate part of her that she had given only to this man. Mack had never done this to her. He had never brought out such wanton boldness in her or made her want to give every inch of herself to him this way.
She cried out his name when he worked his magic, fed her neglected needs until her breath came in deep gasps, her climax almost painful from the sheer euphoria of the moment.
Quickly he was on top of her. She tasted her own sweetness on his lips as he explored her mouth again while he surged inside of her almost violently from his pent-up needs. His release was quick, coming in hard, surging pulses, but his kisses did not let up and his body did not relax. “Stay there, just stay there,” he groaned, kissing at her neck. “I’m sorry, Randy.” He kissed her eyes. “I wasn’t very gentle. I want to be.”
“It’s all right.” She returned his kisses with equal passion. “I don’t want you to be gentle tonight,” she said softly. “The harder you take me, the better I know this is real, Jake.”
Already the life was returning. He began moving inside her again, pushing hard and deep. He rose up to his knees, grasping her hips and pulling her to him, moving in circular motions that made her feel alive and brazen and all woman again. She grasped his strong forearms, so thankful he had survived prison, the pneumonia, the awful beating. Now he had overcome the ugly accusations and was free. Free! Jake was free! There would be no more running and worrying. Her man was here in her bed, making love to her. Yes, he was older now. The strain of the past four years showed in his face, but he was still her handsome Jake, still strong and getting stronger. She knew that once he found Lloyd, if he could win back his son’s love, he would be like a new man. For now there was no doubt he was still virile, still her Jake.
He came closer again, resting on his elbows, licking teasingly at her lips as again she felt his life surging into her. He kissed her eyes, and she reached up to stroke his hair, wet with perspiration now. She worried a little that he would overtire himself after the pneumonia, but she did not want to interrupt this very important moment. He could sleep tomorrow.
He lay down beside her, took her hand, and kissed the palm. “I don’t think I’ll sleep much tonight,” he said softly. “I just want to keep touching you, be inside you.”
“I need that just as much as you do, Jake.”
He moved on top of her again, studying her eyes intently. “Tell me true,” he whispered. “Tell me you never did this with Jess.”
She was surprised at the remark. Did he think she had lied to him while he was in prison just to save him the torture of visualizing her with Jess? Her eyes teared, and she touched his face. “Oh, Jake, you must know I couldn’t have. No, my darling, I never did this with Jess. That’s the God’s truth. If I can’t have you, I don’t want anyone.”
She saw the tears in his eyes. “You don’t know what it was like, lying in that cell day after day, week after week, knowing you had needs, thinking maybe…” He kissed her eyes. “I told you it was all right, and I meant it, but the torture of thinking it could really happen—”
“It didn’t happen, Jake. You know I’m no liar. You’d know by my eyes if I wasn’t telling the truth. There was one moment when Jess held me while I had a good cry. I let him kiss me, and for just a moment I thought how nice it would be to let a man hold me through the night.” She ran her fingers through his hair. “But I couldn’t go through with it. He wasn’t you.”