Hearing that—that he’d ruined for her other men—almost sent him straight over the edge but, just to be sure, he kept a tight leash on his control and made her whimper his name a couple more times before he surrendered and gave her what she wanted. What they both wanted.
Sliding into her uncovered, just flesh against flesh, was by far the most amazing feeling Kevin had ever experienced. So amazing, in fact, he had to stop moving and just hover over her, his weight rested on his forearms.
Unfortunately, he must have teased Beth too much because she wasn’t messing around. Digging her fingers into his hips, she tried to force them to move. He resisted, determined to get himself under control before sliding another fraction of an inch into her.
He saw Beth smile a second before she raised her own hips, taking all of him, and that was all she wrote. A few hard thrusts. A few seconds of hot, unfettered friction and he was a goner, and he took her with him.
Gasping for air, he took pity on his trembling muscles and collapsed, sliding slightly to one side so his weight didn’t crush her stomach. “Holy…wow.”
“Mmm.”
“Good cake?”
“Mmm-hmm.”
He rolled onto his side and she spooned against him, both of them still trying to catch their breath. There was more he wanted to say, but she was so soft and pliant against him, he didn’t dare open his mouth for fear all of his feelings would come falling out and she’d run screaming.
For now it was enough just to hold her.
***
Beth spooned against Kevin’s warm and naked body, determined not to let the first pangs of regret ruin the oh yeah, I needed that afterglow.
And when he draped his arm across her waist so he could rest his hand on the small bump of baby, she closed her eyes and smiled. Whether they should have gotten naked together or not—and it was definitely a not, even if her willpower had evaporated the second she opened the door—she was going to let herself enjoy this moment.
He nuzzled her hair. “If I go snowmobiling tomorrow, can we do this again tomorrow night?”
She didn’t want to talk about tomorrow night—or any other night—because her arguments against their sleeping together were still valid, if temporarily forgotten. Making a noncommittal noise, she avoided answering the question.
He was quiet long enough she would have thought he was asleep if not for the fact she already knew he snored. And he was lightly stroking her belly, too, in a distracted way that made her think he was lost in thought. Maybe thinking about the baby or maybe about the fact they’d just had sex despite her best intentions to stay out of his bed. Or her bed.
“I can practically hear the wheels turning in your head,” he mumbled against her hair. “How long do I have before you throw me out?”
“A few minutes.” She rolled under his arm until she was facing him. “I’m trying to enjoy the moment before I remind you—and myself—of all the reasons we can’t do this.”
He looked too serious, which could lead to the same old discussion she didn’t want to have yet, so she ran her finger down the bump in his nose. He smiled and said, “Go ahead. Ask me how I broke it.”
“I’m sure it was some kind of fun Kowalski family activity.”
“Family, yes. Fun…not so much. Joe used to have a pretty bad drinking problem and one day I caught him trying to go for a joyride in his car, drunk off his ass. He busted my nose, but he didn’t get his keys back.”
“I can’t imagine Joe acting like that. He seems so…not like that.” She knew they could get boisterous, but that was serious stuff. Not playing. “Must have taken you a while to get past that.”
“Not really. That was the rock-bottom moment that made him quit drinking, so it was worth it. Plus, it adds that ruggedly handsome element that keeps me from being too pretty.”
As close as his family was, she imagined it had been a lot more painful than he let on, but she let it go. “Heaven forbid you should be too pretty. Imagine all the napkins the bar would go through, then.”
“There’s only one napkin I want. The one with your lips imprinted on it and a message asking me to do unbelievably naughty things to you.”
She laughed and pushed at his shoulder. “I told you, it’s never gonna happen.”
“A man can hope.”
She was about to reiterate how futile that hope was when the baby kicked. Not just the little flutter that was more of a fleeting tickle, but a real kick. Without thinking, she grabbed Kevin’s hand and laid it flat over the spot, pressing down gently.
He froze and a few long moments later, she saw the amazement light up Kevin’s face at the same time she felt the baby kick again. Sporadic and faint, there were several more jabs before the baby seemed to settle in.
Kevin smiled and kissed her forehead. “He’s feeling feisty tonight.”
“She sure is.”
They were quiet for a few more minutes and she was content to lay with her head on his arm and her face against his chest as his hand rested on her stomach. But then she felt his muscles start relaxing as his breathing slowed and she pulled out of his embrace. No matter how much she wanted to, they couldn’t fall asleep like that.