His tongue resumed its decadent path over her, and then she was lost, the sensations too strong, too fast.
“Daeg—” His name shot out of her mouth, a fierce demand.
Her thighs trembled, and Daeg’s addictive kisses sent her over the edge. For a long moment, she was
aware of nothing but him as she rode out her orgasm in a wave of breathless satisfaction.
“Hoorah,” she said weakly. Oh, yes. He was good.
And he wasn’t done yet. Thankfully, he wasn’t done.
“Wrong branch, honey.”
She felt his warm laugh against her skin as he eagerly lifted her into his arms.
11
“BED. IT’S DEFINITELY time to try the bed.” Daeg stood and carried Dani toward the four-poster.
“The night’s not over yet.”
He held her close, savoring the feel of her, bare and relaxed, her hair tumbling over his arm. Her arms locked around his neck, hanging on for the short trip. He wouldn’t drop her. Never that.
When he reached the bed, he tossed back the covers and set her down. “Be right with you.”
She smiled and did a full-body stretch. He still couldn’t quite believe that they were here together after all this time.
He snagged a condom from his wallet and tore the packet open. Hotfooting it to the bed, he grinned
when Dani’s fingers helped him roll the latex down his shaft. He loved the sexy look of concentration on her face as she adjusted the fit and ran a finger along his hard length. She drove him crazy.
When he dropped onto the bed, she said, “Gotcha.”
In one smooth move, she was seated face-to-face with him on his lap, one thigh on either side of his.
Her heat pressed against him was a happy torment. He couldn’t wait much longer. Leaning forward, she ran her fingers down his chest and mischief flashed across her face.
“I’ve got an idea.” She rose up onto her knees so that the tip of him brushed her intimately. Yeah. He
liked this idea of hers.
“You up for a ride, cowboy?”
His fingers steadied her hips as she teased his hard length mercilessly.
“Dani—” he groaned, having reached the end of his patience.
“Ten years,” she whispered. “You made me wait ten years for this, Daeg. You owe me at least ten
minutes.”
Maybe that was true. She slowly lowered herself over his erection until he was buried deep inside her,
their bodies one.
Still kneeling, she pushed up and then came back down. She repeated the motion over and over, riding
him, delighting him. He got his hands underneath her to help her.
“Let me.” The words sounded like a hoarse plea.
“Yes.” She relaxed into his hold and he took over, pressing up into her as his fingertips stroked her intimately. As he felt their control slipping, the first heady rush of mind-numbing satisfaction overtook them. He heard his own answering cry as he climaxed and wrapped his arms around her.
Tight.
No way he’d let go now.
HE DIDN’T ROLL over and fall asleep.
He didn’t hop out of bed, shower and make a quick exit.
Of course, the raging storm probably had something to do with that, but Daeg still had an arm around
her and pulled her close after they’d finished making the bed shake. He was gloriously, spectacularly naked, his legs tangled up with hers, and he seemed in no rush at all.
“You,” he said, his fingers exploring a sensitive spot on her neck, “are amazing.”
She held her tongue because asking for an itemized list of what had worked for him probably would
kill the moment. Okay. Scratch that. Would definitely kill the moment. Instead, she settled for lying there, enjoying the afterglow. Enjoying Daeg.
“You’re quiet.” His teeth nipped at her earlobe, his big hands loosely around her waist.
“Thanks for the compliment.” Maybe he wouldn’t notice her awkwardness? “You, too.”
The storm lent her its own version of a cover-up—a loud boom, followed by a lengthy screech.
Something huge must have been blowing around and had landed nearby.
His arms tightened. That was nice.
There was now an eerie silence. What was happening outside? “Should we investigate?”
She liked the way he took time to think over his answer. He didn’t rush to fill the silence with what he thought she wanted to hear.
“Seems fine now. If the cabin becomes damaged, we’ll have to act. But so long as it’s in good standing, we’re safe where we are.”
“All right.” She stroked a hand over the strong forearm draped over her middle. “I can live with that.”
“Good.” Amusement filled his voice. “Because I don’t have a direct line to the storm this instant,
otherwise, I’d pass your feedback along.”
She laughed and they dozed companionably for a short while.
Her question wouldn’t let her sleep, however, and eventually she gave up. “Daeg?”
“Yeah?” He sounded alert, so maybe her soldier didn’t plan on sleeping much tonight.
The question was out of her mouth before she could consider its implications. “It was okay for you?”
SLEEPY VULNERABILITY LACED Dani’s voice.
Daeg had only planned on resting, not sleeping, just in case the storm picked up again. He pulled the
cover over Dani’s shoulder while he thought about how to answer her.
Her question bothered him.
Who had made her doubt how sexy she was in bed? Slow anger built as he considered possibilities.
He’d lay money on her ex, seeing how she was fresh out of a long-term relationship.
Perfect.
If she hadn’t figured out how much she turned him on from what they’d just done, he hadn’t done
something right. And now he’d have to cobble together the words to tell her how good she’d been.
How good they’d been together.
Sex, he could do. Emotions? Not so much. However, this was important.
“You were perfect,” he finally said. “What happened here was far more than okay. You got that?”
Her sleepy mumble said maybe she did, or maybe he’d accidentally hit on the right combination of
words. He hoped he had. He really did, because Dani was someone special and she deserved to know that.
He tucked her against his chest and stared at the ceiling. The fire was dying down now and the wind was picking up again.
It was going to be a long night.
12
QUIET.
Daeg couldn’t hear any wind crashing into the cabin. And there was no rain slapping against the roof.
Yesterday’s storm had passed and right on schedule. For a few minutes, before he opened his eyes, Daeg
assessed the situation. Listened first for sounds then judged the approximate time. Ignoring the bigger problem.
He looked down. Yeah. He hadn’t dreamed it. He’d had the hottest sex of his life with Dani Andrews.
He’d trained for many things, many outcomes. What he hadn’t trained for were the feelings that came at him now.
Or the memories. The chemistry between them had been explosive. He’d known the sex would be good
—they’d reconnected instantly on the beach—and nothing about last night had disappointed. She’d set him on fire with her kisses, and one touch had led to another, and...yeah. It had been good.
Unforgettably good.
She’d been open, vulnerable, charming, holding nothing back. Had her expectations for them changed
since the deed had been done? He had to admit that now that it was morning, he didn’t know what he
wanted and that scared him even more.
She’d said no strings and he’d agreed. He’d made his short-term status perfectly clear. Still, what if
she’d changed her mind? He didn’t kid himself that he’d been so amazingly talented in bed that she’d wake up and decide to drag him off to Vegas for a quickie wedding, but maybe she’d be clingy. Or needy.
Ready for more action, if he was lucky.
Focus, soldier.
He sat up, carefully shifting her off his arm. When she grumbled sleepily, he arranged the duvet over
her and she drifted back to sleep. Her halo of tangled curls made her seem angelic. Her lips parted and she let out a tiny sound, more snort than snore. He smiled. She definitely looked safe. Mission accomplished.
So he could get a move on. Job done. Time to go.
He ignored the pull of desire that demanded he stay in bed with her and grabbed the flashlight, flicking it on.
An inch of water covered the cabin’s floor.
Relief filled him as he shoved out of the bed, because it was only an inch and he knew how to lead an
evac. He didn’t know how to handle a morning after wrapped up in the arms of Dani. He grabbed a towel and covered himself. There was rustling from the bed as he worked the lock on the front door. Didn’t
matter now that they had water; they’d have to go, so there would be no more sleeping for her.
Or anything else.
“Daeg?” His name was a muffled question.
“We need to leave.”
He swung the door open and stepped out onto the porch to survey the scene. The worst of the storm
was over. A quick glance at his wrist said six o’clock. The sky was overcast, but there was more than
enough light to see the water lapping over the cabin’s porch and the damage littering Sweet Moon’s parking lot. Plenty of mess, but again, nothing he couldn’t drive over or around. He eyed the Jeep and decided the vehicle was still operational since the water was only halfway up the wheel well.
Dani sat up when he stepped back inside, a sleepy smile on her face as he sloshed toward her. She’d