He didn’t respond. He was more interested in her response as he explored her thighs, the center of her, already slick and swollen with need. He spent a good deal of time there, bracing her hips as he suckled and lathed, not granting her any quarter until she cried out and her knees buckled. Then he kissed his way back up, turning her so he could press another line of kisses along the smooth skin of her back.
As soon as he was standing again, he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back into the curve of his body until her bottom was pressed firmly against his groin. “Still want that shower?”
Her head dropped back against his shoulder as he nipped at hers. “Touch me,” she whispered. Not waiting for him to respond, she grasped his wrist and guided him to the patch of glossy, red curls between her legs.
“Jesus, Elle,” he rasped, grinding his hips against hers. “I want to be inside you. Right. Now.”
She bent forward to turn off the water, the sight of her gorgeous, perfectly rounded bottom making him groan. In response, she sent a saucy look over her shoulder. “What are you waiting for?”
He gently grasped her hips, and they sank down together on their knees. She leaned forward, bracing her forearms on the edge of the bathtub as he positioned himself and slid easily into her from behind.
She moaned, pressing back against him, grinding against him, urging him on. He didn’t need to be asked twice. He moved with slow, measured strokes, wanting to draw out her pleasure for as long as possible.
“Oh God, yes,” she gasped. He could feel her muscles beginning to tighten, close to orgasm already, still sensitive and aroused.
When she pushed up from the bathtub, he sank back on his heels, bringing her back flush against his chest, one hand kneading her breast as the other fingered her clit. Her breath came in gasps as they moved together. When she came, her cry of release echoed in the bathroom, filling his ears and making everything male in him want to pound his chest with pride.
But then he was crying out along with her, his own orgasm uncoiling in one great release. They continued to move together, thrusting and withdrawing through the aftershocks that left them both panting until she finally collapsed back against him.
It was only then that he paused to get his shit together and realized he hadn’t bothered to withdraw before he came, hadn’t bothered to stop long enough to put on a condom. He was clean, had never had such a lapse in judgment with anyone else, but he’d let his dick get in the way of being responsible and respectful to her.
“Shit, Elle,” he spat as they drew apart. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been so stupid.”
She turned on the water and cast a glance at him over her shoulder. “It takes two to tango, Gabe. I could’ve stopped you. Should I be concerned?”
His eyes went wide. “Oh, God no! I’m good. Clean bill of health in all regards. I’m more worried about not being respectful to you. I love—” He bit off his words. Holy fucking hell. He’d almost said he loved her. He quickly amended, “I love being inside you. Love the feel of you. I’ve never been that intimate with any other woman. But…I’m just thinking of Joe and Sadie and the baby on the way.”
She gave him a nod, then pressed a kiss to his lips. “Truth? I’ve never been that intimate with anyone else either. But you’re right. We should probably be more careful. For now.”
*
Their shower together had been sensual but chaste aside from some very heated kisses as they lathered each other’s skin. Dried off and lying in Gabe’s bed now, wearing only one of his sheriff department T-shirts as she waited for him to join her, she mulled over their conversation. She hadn’t been lying when she’d told him that she’d never been as intimate with any other man. Heck, there were only a handful of men in her history to begin with.
Yet she was completely willing to throw caution to the wind where Gabe was concerned. What the hell was she thinking? So maybe her aunt Charlotte had been right. Maybe he went through women so quickly because he realized the relationship wasn’t going anywhere. She was willing to accept as truth what he’d said about his reputation being exaggerated.
So why had things been different this time around for both of them? She’d been infatuated with Gabe since high school, had been attracted to him, drawn to him in spite of every inclination to dislike him. The answer hovered at the edges of her mind, defying all logic and reason.
Fortunately, he sauntered into the bedroom, hot as hell as he moved toward the bed, that cocky self-confidence completely justified, she had to say. He slipped between the sheets and slid an arm beneath her, pulling her against him.
“Hey there, beautiful,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to her hair. “Feeling better?”
She curled into him, loving the way they fit together, how her head nestled perfectly in the hollow of his shoulder. And he smelled amazing, a heady mixture of soap and shaving cream and aftershave. She took a deep breath, drawing in the scent of him, letting it swamp her senses, then twined her fingers with his. “Much. How are you?”