He collapsed on her almost simultaneously and she hugged him to her, wanting to keep him as close to her as possible.
She regretted when he rolled off her though he kept his body beside her. He took her hand in his to kiss it before laying their clasped hands on his chest.
Their encounter had been far from brief and yet she felt it was far too short. She wanted more, much more, and the thought concerned her, though for now she chose not to think about it.
“Damn, woman, but you’re a great lover,” he said with bated breath.
She smiled. “You’re not bad yourself.”
“We’re a match then.” He kissed her hand again.
A thunderclap startled her, and she jumped.
Burke turned and took her in his arms. “No need to worry. I’ll keep you safe and warm, since, of course, you’ll be staying the night.”
“I’m not going anywhere until dawn.”
He grinned. “That’s good because I planned on holding you hostage if you had thought otherwise.”
She laughed. “You think you could have held me prisoner?”
Burke shook his head, his grin wide. “Oh, sweetheart, I know exactly how to keep you prisoner.”
She giggled and snuggled against him. “You’ll have to show me how.”
“All night. I’ll show you all night.”
They laughed and kissed and teased until once again, their passion flared and they were lost in a haze of lovemaking. It continued all night, and when dawn finally peeked over the horizon, Storm fell soundly asleep in Burke’s loving arms.
Storm was the first to stir, then Burke, and they greeted each other with smiles.
“What a lovely night, with a lovely woman,” Burke said.
“Such romantic words,” Storm said, trying to keep reality away for just a while longer.
“You haven’t seen anything yet.”
She laughed softly and knew that she’d be wise to leave his bed right away, but she foolishly lingered.
He traced her breast with his finger and nuzzled her neck. “I love the feel and taste of you.
Thank God he kept his nibbles to her neck, or else she’d be lost. As it was she was on the verge of attacking him, and that she couldn’t do. She had surrendered to one night of passion; there could be no more, or else she would be in danger of losing her heart.
The thought jolted some sense into her and she bolted up in bed. “There’s things I must see to.”
Burke tried to coax her back into his arms. “Nothing is as important as us at this moment.”
Storm threw the covers off her and hopped out of bed, grabbing her nightgown from the floor and slipping it on hastily. It tangled around her, being she had it on backward, and the next thing she knew, Burke was helping to untangle her.
His hands were gentle, smoothing the gown down and lingering in just the right places that sparked her passion with each intentional touch.
Storm backed away. “I need to go.”
“Can’t you spare a few more minutes?”
Storm kept her eyes on his face, if not she probably would have surrendered to her passion and his obviously growing passion.
“Now,” she said with the shake of her head. “I must go now.”
His outstretched arm stopped her when she tried to pass, and he shook his head. “I don’t think so.” He hoisted her up and had her on the bed in a split second, and in another, he had her nightgown up and him inside her.
It was a fast and furious mating that she thoroughly enjoyed. There was no preamble, no fussing, no playfulness, just fast, hard lovemaking that felt wonderfully delicious.
When it was over and their breathing returned to normal, he helped her off the bed and walked her to the door. “Now you can leave, but be warned, I’ll be looking for you tonight.”
Storm scurried out the door and didn’t take a breath until she was safely in her quarters. It was to be one night, no more. If she continued to make love with him, she was bound to fall in love with him. Besides, she already had feelings for the American.
She couldn’t exactly define them, or perhaps she didn’t want to. She made haste to dress, trying without success to avoid thoughts of the American. However, did she expect not to think about him after having made love with him?
She smiled and sighed, thinking how wonderful it had been and feeling a little guilty that she had enjoyed it so very much. Her climaxes had gone on forever with a little help from Burke. It was something she had not experienced with her husband, but then they had been young and inexperienced.
She finished dressing and warned herself to keep her distance from the American. It would do no good to get deeply involved with him.
But wasn’t she already?
She wanted to free Burke’s brother just as badly as he did. Cullen needed to learn he had a brother, and Burke needed to finally meet his brother. It was necessary for both parties, necessary for family to be reunited.