Tall Dark and Hungry(35)

Bastien smiled at the polite words and lifted a hand to brush the hair from her face. "I wasn't too rough, then?»

Terri shook her head, aware that a blush was making its way up her face. It was rather dismaying to have to actually discuss what they'd just done. Which was silly, she supposed. They had just performed the most intimate act known to man, and she found it embarrassing to talk about it?

Bastien lifted his head slightly and pressed a kiss to her lips, then drew her head down on his chest and continued to simply hold her. His hand rubbed soothingly over her back, caressing the soft skin. She felt her eyes droop closed; then he murmured, "Thank you.»

Terri blinked her eyes open and raised her head to peer at him. "What for?»

"For this,"he said simply. "For giving me the greatest pleasure I've experienced in my life.»

She uttered a wry, almost embarrassed chuckle. "I didn't do much. You did all the work. I should be-Thank you,"Terri ended lamely.

Bastien smiled and ruffled her hair, then tugged her upward until their lips met.

Much to her embarrassment, the moment his tongue swept her mouth, Terri felt the tingling begin in her body again. There was no way to stop the moan that rose from deep in her throat. Her embarrassment died the moment she felt Bastien begin to harden again beneath her thigh, which lay draped over his hips. It seemed she wasn't the only one who still had a little more fire left.

Beneath her, Bastien felt his need for the woman in his arms stir again, and he almost groaned. He couldn't be ready again already. But he was. Just the way Terri gasped and shifted against him stirred his passion to life once more, making him immediately hard. He didn't recall ever wanting anyone this much, or ever being this hungry for a woman. Even Josephine hadn't fanned the flames of his desire like Terri could with a mere murmur of pleasure. The way she had moved against him earlier-the way she'd moaned, and cried out, and clawed at him-had all conspired to elevate his excitement to unbearable levels. Now it was happening again; his body coming alive like never before.

Catching her by the waist, Bastien shifted Terri over him so that they rested hip to hip. He kissed her, his mouth demanding what she was offering. Then he caught her by the backs of her thighs and urged her legs apart so that she half straddled him. He wanted to enter her now, let her warm wetness close tight around him and down his length, but he worried that it was too soon. It was clear from the things she'd said that Terri hadn't had a lover since her husband's death, and Bastien didn't want to leave her sore and aching from too much too quickly. Unfortunately, his body wasn't as reasonable, and his hips shifted of their own accord, pushing upward and grinding against her.

Terri immediately moaned into his mouth and ground back. She slid across his sex where it swelled between their bodies. Aware that she was as excited as he, Bastien decided it would be cruel to stop. He'd just avoid making love to her this time. He'd pleasure them both without actually entering her; and his hands found her breasts and began to gently knead.

Gasping into his mouth, Terri placed her palms on his chest. She levered herself upward so that she sat atop him. Once she had her balance, her hands covered his and she intertwined their fingers, urging him to caress her more firmly as she slid along his shaft again. Her eyes were closed, her head tilted slightly upward so that her long chestnut hair trailed down her back, and Bastien in fascination watched the play of emotions glide over her face. Pleasure, need, desperation-all crossed her features as she writhed back and forth over him. Then her eyes popped open and she speared him with a look he recognized at once. Bastien had seen it before. He'd been watching her face as he pleasured her with his mouth, and that same uncertainty and fear had claimed her just before she found release against his tongue.

"Please."It was one word with a wealth of meaning: Please pleasure me. Please keep me safe. Please take me where my body wants to go. Perhaps even: Please love me.

"Please,"she repeated, then added with a sort of helpless frustration, "I can't…»

Unable to restrain himself anymore, Bastien rose up on the couch and shifted them so that he was seated properly, with her astride him. Then, despite his earlier intentions, he reached between them and guided himself inside her.

A small sigh of relief slid from her lips as Terri eased onto him, her arms slipping around his shoulders. Bastien caught that sigh in a kiss, and grasped her hips and began to urge her to move, controlling the rhythm as their bodies slid together, working toward the release they both wanted and needed.

Terri suddenly broke the kiss and pressed her cheek to his, gasping in his ear, "Bastien. Please.»

Turning his head, he caught her neck in his mouth and felt his teeth slide out. Her vein pulsed between his lips. He almost bit, almost sank his teeth into her tender flesh and drank from her. It was an automatic animal instinct, but he caught himself and tore his mouth away, forcing his fangs to retract.

"Please,"she groaned once more, and Bastien again claimed her lips, this time in a violent kiss. He'd had that same biting instinct the first time they'd made love, wanting to hold her in place with his teeth like a cat, but he'd fought it then as he fought it now, the struggle turning the kiss almost into a punishment. He knew by the way Terri responded that she, too, was almost frantic with need, desperate for release, teetering on the edge, but unable to find fulfillment.

Bastien could feel his own release creeping up on him, threatening to make its arrival whether she found hers first or not. Deciding he'd best move her along, and fast, else leave her disappointed, he reached between them and found the center of her excitement. Caressing her feverishly, he urged her toward the release that would free him to find his own.

Just when Bastien thought that he couldn't stand a moment more, Terri tore her mouth from his and tossed her head back on a cry of triumph. Her body clenched in spasms around him; squeezing and releasing, then squeezing again. Relieved, Bastien immediately allowed himself to let go. His own body stiffened as he drove upward one last time and poured himself into her.

Terri lay limp against Bastien's chest as he shifted her and eased to the edge of the couch. She'd collapsed against him after finding her pleasure, and now lay with her face nestled in the curve of his neck, sound asleep. Or unconscious, he thought wryly, considering how she wasn't even stirring. He'd sat for the longest time, just holding her in his arms, their bodies still joined. But she was showing no signs of waking up. If anything, her breathing was becoming deeper and more relaxed. The woman was dead to the world.

Smiling as she murmured sleepily and shifted against him, Bastien carefully stood, stepped out of his pants, which were bundled at his ankles, and scooped Terri into his arms. Even that didn't wake her. She merely cuddled against his chest and made lip-smacking sounds against his skin, as if she were either eating or kissing someone in her sleep. Hopefully she was kissing him if it was the latter option, he thought as he strode across the living room with her.

Bastien did consider how risky it was to be wandering naked around the apartment, with an equally naked Terri in his arms. But then, it had been even more risky to make love in the living room, where either Vincent or Chris could have come upon them at any time. Fortunately, they'd been lucky in that respect, and he could only hope his luck held out. Bastien was too exhausted to bother dressing himself, let alone her, and it didn't appear she was in any shape to dress herself. He had definitely worn the poor woman out with his demands, he thought with satisfaction, though she had been equally demanding.

He managed to make it all the way to the master suite without running across either Vinny or Chris. After setting Terri down in his bed, he made a quick trip back to the living room for their clothes. Bastien was aware that she would be terribly embarrassed should the others find that evidence scattered across the living room floor in the morning and guess what had happened. He wanted to spare her that.

Bastien heard knocking as he started back to his bedroom, and glanced up in alarm to find Chris standing at the end of the hall outside the master suite, rapping loudly. Afraid the noise might wake Terri, Bastien picked up speed to reach the man and stop him from knocking again. At the last moment, he remembered the clothes he carried and glanced down. He'd bundled them all together, not bothering to separate them. Spying Terri's lacy bra on top, he tucked the clothes quickly behind his back to hide this indicator of what they'd been up to.

"Chris!"he hissed as the fellow raised his hand to rap on the door again. "What are you doing up?»

"Oh, Bastien."The editor turned, opened his mouth to speak, then noticed his nakedness. He let his breath out on a vexed sigh. "What is it with you and your brother? Did you guys spend your summers at nudist camps while growing up or something? Don't you guys have any decorum at all? Sheesh.»

Bastien glanced down at himself, started to bring the clothes back around to cover his nudity, but at the first glimpse of white lace, quickly tucked them behind his back again.

"Never mind that,"he said with a scowl. "Why are you knocking at my door at»-he glanced at his watch, the only item he still wore-"at two o'clock in the morning?»

"Oh."Reminded of his purpose for being there, Chris sighed and absently rubbed his stomach. "I'm not feeling too well, and I wondered if you had anything like an antacid or something. I don't think that casserole I ate agreed with me.»