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“Maybe later.”
“Was it anything like mine?”
“No.”
She sat in the truck as the silence grew more and more intense between them. The air-conditioning was off, but the outside heat hadn’t penetrated the cab yet. The warmth she felt was all coming from inside her, and she was ready to do something about it, but she didn’t know whether she should make a move or let Mac be the first one. From the corner of her eye, she could see him sitting there, staring into space. He seemed hypnotized. At last she decided to say something. “What next?”
“Give me a minute. Then we’ll take the blanket in the back.”
She peered at him. “Are you feeling sick or something?”
“No, I’m feeling aroused.”
“You are?” She glanced down at his jeans but it had become too dark to see much. “Cool. Was it my dream that turned you on?”
“Sure was. But then you probably knew that would happen, after all your reading about fantasies.”
“No, I didn’t.” She felt thrilled with herself. “I wondered if you’d laugh.”
He groaned. “I guess you don’t know me as well as you think you do, then.”
“Then you…really want me right now?”
He looked over at her. “Yeah. I really do. What a surprise, huh?”
“Oh, Mac.” She put a hand against her racing heart. “That makes me feel so good.”
He gave her a slow smile. “I guess this isn’t going to be as difficult as we thought.”
She smiled back. “I guess not. Want me to put the blanket in the back and wait for you?”
He took a deep breath. “I’m okay now.”
“Are you ever going to tell me your dream?”
He took off his hat and laid it on the dash. “Not right now. It’s a little more graphic than yours.”
“And you said you didn’t remember!”
“I’ve tried my damnedest to forget all about it. I thought I had, until you started talking about dreams.” He opened his door. “Stay there. I’ll come around and help you out. I don’t want you stepping on a snake in those sandals.”
“I’ve lived here all my life, Mac.” She picked up the blanket from the floor. “I certainly know enough to check for snakes before I get out of a vehicle after dark in the middle of nowhere.” She opened her door.
“Hey.” He turned back to her. “Could you pretend that you’re a timid female for a few minutes and give a guy a chance to be a big brave he-man? It’s good for the ego.”
“Oh.” She grinned and pulled her door shut again. “All right, but I think it’s stupid.”
He shook his head. “Maybe this will be exactly as difficult as we thought.”
Tess sat obediently while Mac rounded the truck and opened her door, although waiting for him to take care of things wasn’t her style. But if that made him feel more romantic, then she was all for it.
He held out his hand. “I’ll take the blanket first and then come back for you.”
“I can take the blanket.”
“Tess.”
“Oh, okay, here’s the blanket, Mr. He-man, but this is dumb. We could make it in one trip.”
“Yeah, if we’re going for efficiency. I was after a different effect.” He walked around to the back of the truck, pulled down the tailgate and climbed in.
She listened to him arranging the blanket. A couple of years ago, he’d installed an all-weather cushioned pad in the bed of his truck. At the time she’d wondered if it had anything to do with his love life, but she’d decided not to ask. Now she was pretty sure she knew the answer.
He hopped down from the truck and came back to where she was waiting.
“Can I put my dainty foot on the ground yet?” she asked.
“Not yet.” He gazed up at her. “Have you ever been lifted down from a pickup?”
“Not since I was six years old. Once I could manage by myself, it seemed silly when I was perfectly capable of—whoa!” She gasped as he took her by the waist and lifted her out of the truck. Instinctively she put her arms on his shoulders, which was a good move because her feet still dangled in midair.
Balancing her against his chest and looking into her eyes, he let her slide down in a slow, sensuous movement. Warmth rushed through her as the friction of his body against hers gave her a complete and thoroughly arousing caress. At last her feet rested on the ground, and she let out her breath.
He held her close and gazed down at her. “Did that seem silly?”
Completely absorbed in the experience of being tucked so intimately against him, she shook her head.
“Think you’re ready for a kiss?”
Oh. She gulped. “I…don’t know.”
“Let’s try it.” Holding her close with one arm, he reached up with his free hand and gently combed her hair back from her face.
She’d seen this tender side of him, usually when he was working around animals, or the times when she’d hurt herself and he’d been the one to doctor her up. But now she wasn’t hurt, and his sensitive touch was meant to excite, not soothe her. He was succeeding admirably. She was trembling so much she wondered if she’d be able to stay upright.
“You’re nervous.”
“Yes.”
“Me, too.” He continued to comb her hair back, lightly massaging her scalp with his fingers.
“I can’t tell.” His touch felt awesome.
“Macho guys learn to hide their nerves. I’m hoping you like this.”
“So am I.”
He chuckled. “Do you remember the bubble-gum kiss?”
“Yes,” she murmured. The more he stroked her hair, the less capable she felt of standing on her own.
“Did you like it?”
She took a shaky breath. “So much it scared me. So I started goofing around.”
He began tracing the contours of her face with the tip of his finger, ending with her mouth, which he outlined slowly and with great care. “I still remember how your mouth felt that day.”
She held as still as she could, considering the fine quiver that seemed to have taken over her body. She focused on his touch, wanting to record every subtle variation in pressure.
He brushed her lower lip with his thumb. “Your mouth is still as soft as it was then.”
She gazed up at him, trying to make out his expression in the shadowy twilight.
He cradled her cheek. “The last time I touched you like this, I was putting an ice pack over your eye, where you got hit by a baseball.”
She could barely see his smile in the darkness. “You didn’t touch me like this,” she murmured.
“Sure I did.” He slid his hand along her jaw and leaned closer.
“No. You were rougher.” Her heart thudded with anticipation. “You were mad at me.”
“I was mad at myself.” He tilted her head back ever so slightly. “I was the one who hit that ball.”
“And I’m the one who bobbled it.”
“Mmm. Your mouth looks sexy when you say bobbled.”
“You can’t even see my mouth.”
“Yes, I can. There’s a little bit of light left over. That’s why I tilted your head back, to catch that light. I wanted to see your mouth, to know I’m going to kiss it soon. Say the word again.”
Desire curled and stretched within her. “You’re crazy.”
“Yeah.” He drifted closer. “Say it for me, Tess.”
“Bobbled.”
“Again.”
She felt his warm breath on her mouth. “Bobble—”
His lips touched hers, and in that instant, she knew that the world as she’d known it had ceased to exist. For she was really, truly kissing Mac, and now nothing would ever be the same.
* * *
TESS HAS BEEN forbidden fruit for so long that when Mac placed his mouth on hers, he half-expected a lightning bolt to strike him dead. Instead, her velvet lips welcomed him so completely that he drew back, his heart racing. Damn, this was going to be good. Too good. A man could lose himself to a kiss like that. If he’d ever secretly wondered if she was a virgin because she wasn’t sensual, he’d been dead wrong. She was on fire.
“Mac?” she whispered. “Is something—”
With a groan he returned to her full mouth, committing himself to the kiss, to what would follow the kiss. To hell with what it might cost him. But he had a sinking feeling it would cost him more than he could ever guess.
For her mouth was a perfect fit for his. He didn’t have to think about kissing Tess—it happened as effortlessly as breathing. She opened to him as if they’d been doing this for years, and although his body pounded with excitement, her invitation to pleasure seemed natural, almost expected. And he accepted without hesitation—tasting her richness, probing her heat, shifting the angle so he could deepen his quest.
Joy surged within him as she responded, pressing closer, moaning softly as he made love to her mouth. He thought of all the wasted years when she’d been there, only a touch away. But she was here now, so alive and warm in his arms, so ready.
Very ready. As she molded herself to him, he could feel her nipples, tight and aroused, pressing against his chest. His erection strained against his jeans. If he didn’t slow down, he’d violate the terms of tonight’s agreement and make love to her out here in the desert. That couldn’t happen, first of all because he believed what he’d said about not rushing the process, and second because he had no birth control with him.
With great regret he drew back, breathing hard. The sun had gone down, and the stars didn’t allow him to see her expression very well. He wished he could, but maybe it was for the best. Tonight promised to be intense enough without being able to see desire written all over her face.
“I…liked that,” she said. Her breathing was about as ragged as his.
“Yeah.” He rubbed her back and took a deep breath as a chorus of crickets started up in the nearby sagebrush. “Me, too.”
She wound her arms around his neck and leaned back to look up at him, although she probably couldn’t see his expression, either. “You’re aroused again. I can tell by your voice.”
“Any guy would be aroused if you kissed him like that.”
“Was I too…uninhibited?” She sounded genuinely worried.
“God, no. You were great.”
“I wondered, because I don’t usually get so…” She paused. “Excited.”
Man, he loved hearing that. “Really?”
“Especially the first time I kiss someone. You’re, um, very good at this kissing business. I guess it’s all your practice that gives you such good technique.”
“That wasn’t technique.” He loved running his fingers through her hair. “That was… I don’t know. You inspired me, I guess.”
“Oh.” There was a world of self-satisfaction in that tiny syllable.
He began itching to kiss her again. And he had all the rest of the territory labeled as “making out” to enjoy. Even knowing he wouldn’t have the ultimate experience tonight didn’t dampen his enthusiasm for the next step. “Ready to climb in the back of the truck?”
“I’ve been thinking. Are you sure you should?”
He laughed. “I think we dispensed with that a while back. No, I probably shouldn’t, but I will anyway, because it’s still the best solution.”
“No, I mean, with the way you react when we kiss. I’ll bet you’re not used to just making out with a woman and not finishing the job. You’re liable to get awfully frustrated.”
He grinned down at her. “So are you. That’s the idea—to build up to the main event, so we’re really ready for it.”
“I can understand that strategy for me, because of my lack of experience, but I’m afraid I’ll be torturing you. I know from my reading that some men are able to draw out foreplay for a very long time, but I’m sure they extend that time gradually, so their bodies are used to delayed gratification. You wouldn’t be in that category.”
He sorted through that little speech until he thought he understood. “Are you saying you’re willing to sacrifice yourself for my benefit?”
“I…yes, I am. We don’t have to stop with just making out if you find that you’re too…uncomfortable.”
Oh, God. Heaven was within reach and he’d been caught unprepared. He took a deep breath. “Well, as willing as you are to make the supreme sacrifice for me tonight, it won’t be possible. I don’t have birth control with me.”
