Page 44 of Landing Love

“No. I’m a bit tender from nursing is all. The skin is very sensitive.”

“Would you like me to stop?” It might kill him, but if she needed him to, he would.

“Please don’t.” There was a hungry rasp in her voice that dissolved the last of his control. He’d been so good for so long, and now he had an invitation from the woman he loved. There was no need to wait any longer.

He pressed himself against her as he explored her lovely chest with lips and hands, and moaned as she wrapped a leg around his hip, welcoming his friction. They danced together, unable to get enough.

She reached up and began unbuttoning his union suit. Her delicate hands caressed his bare chest as she pushed it off his shoulders, stripping him to the waist. He couldn’t remember ever feeling anything as intoxicating as her hands on his skin, tracing every curve and contour. As she kissed and nipped at the newly exposed flesh, he thought he might die on the spot.

He responded by pulling down the unbuttoned top of her nightgown, sliding her arms free so that the garment gathered around her waist. Taking a moment to look at her in the silver moonlight, he whispered, “Oh, Ann.” Then he cupped her cheek and kissed her lips, pulling her close. Her hardened nipples pressed against his chest.

“I’ve dreamed of this for so long,” he whispered in her ear.

“You have?”

Did she truly doubt it? “Practically every night since we met, which is why I need you to promise me something.”

“Yes?”

“I need you to swear that if you change your mind or have the least bit of doubt about any of this, you’ll say so. Just say the word, and I will stop.” Even if it killed him, he needed to know that this was her choice every step of the way.

She kissed him softly on the lips. “That’s very sweet of you, Bill. The truth is I have a thousand doubts, but none of them are about you. Every last one of them is about me. You, I am sure of. I don’t know if I’m ready for this, but I do know I want it.” She tugged gently on his hand and placed it between her legs. Dear God, she was so warm and wet. “I want you. To help me forget. To help me lose myself. Take me flying. Please.”

She pressed his fingers between moist folds of flesh, guiding him, showing him what she liked. He let her take the lead. He wanted to do this right. It was so rare that women spoke up for what they wanted in bed, in his experience. It was a pleasant surprise that she was so willing to show him what she wanted.

“Yes, just like this.” She guided his finger in slow circles around her bud. Her whole body shuddered against him. “Oh, yes,” she sighed. “Do it more.”

As he teased and tantalized her, she rocked and trembled. He was mesmerized. The sight and sensation of her reaction made him stiffen even further, which he hadn’t thought possible. He wanted more, so much more. Everything in him demanded to sink into her heat and lose himself inside her. But he didn’t dare risk it unless he was one hundred percent certain she wanted it too. Until then, he was determined to follow her lead.

Her body convulsed against him, shaking and arching, and she let out a little moan. He almost came in his union suit at the sight of her climax, but he had to keep himself in check. This might have been all she wanted. As her trembling subsided, she stopped his hand.

“How do you feel?” He moved his hand to her shoulder, trying to ignore the pulsing urgency in his groin.

“Like I want more.”

Thank Christ. It was next to impossible to hold himself back, but still, he kept his focus on her pleasure. Her saying she wanted more didn’t necessarily mean what he wanted it to mean. She might simply have wanted him to make her come again, and he was more than happy to oblige.

He was about to continue his ministrations when she touched him through his union suit, and he gasped.

“Your turn.” She peeled back his union suit even farther so that she could take his bare flesh in hand. His brain melted, and he was completely at her command. Stroking him expertly, she turned on her back and guided him to settle between her legs. Wrapping her legs around him, she guided him to her entrance. “Are you ready?”

All he could say was “Unh.” She rubbed him up and down between her folds, slicking him with her dew, then guided him inside. He let her steer his hips, rocking back and forth, as he entered her. The sensation obliterated all conscious thought, and he was reduced to instinct. As soon as he was fully seated, he had to move. He began to thrust as she arched beneath him, whispering his name.

They rocked together in a slow and gentle rhythm, a new burst of sensation overtaking him with each movement. This couldn’t be real. The euphoria addled his brain while a deep hunger drove him on. He needed to feel all of her, merge with her, dissolve in her embrace. He needed to show her all his love, all the tenderness he felt. Her body arched and trembled beneath him, and he recognized the signs of her approaching peak. He could feel it too, a rhythmic pulsation squeezing him and drawing him farther into her. The last strand of consciousness snapped, and he was pure sensation as he exploded within her, nearly passing out with the force of it.

He collapsed beside her, and she curled into his embrace. He buried his face in her hair and breathed deep her scent of apples and soap. Tenderness overwhelmed him as he held her close. Fighting to stay awake, he whispered, “Thank you.”

“Thank you for comforting me,” she whispered back. “I needed that release.”

“I love you, Ann,” he murmured and then slipped into oblivion.

17

She wasn’t sure when she decided she was going to consummate the marriage. Maybe she hadn’t decided but simply assumed. No, that wasn’t true. He gave her the option not to, even seemed reluctant initially, despite his obvious desire.

When she woke up to feed Junior in the middle of the night and felt his arousal still strong against her back, she knew she would give in. Somehow it was easier to contemplate in the middle of the night in the dark.

She didn’t bother to cover up as she breastfed Junior and wasn’t particularly surprised to catch Bill peeking. He’d done so much for her, and it was his wedding night too. He deserved better than stolen glances and a night of frustration. After all, she was his wife, and he had every right to want more.