Gatlinburg Getaway (Destination: Desire) (21 page)

The sting only increased his own need, and his cock throbbed. He shoved down the demands of his body—this time was about her. He sank a finger deep inside her, then a second and third, stretching her channel. He withdrew and pressed forward, setting a quick pace meant to drive her wild as quickly as possible. He’d learned many things about what turned her on this week and he put that knowledge to good use.

“Oh my God.” Her breathing sped to rapid panting, her hips moving to the rhythm he set.

The sounds she made told him just how close she was to orgasm, and he wanted to send her flying. He ground the heel of his palm against her clit, and her thighs quivered and she rose up on tiptoe. Her nails bit into his shoulders hard for one long moment, and then her inner muscles squeezed around his fingers in rhythmic pulses. Her gaze lost focus, and her cheeks burned so bright they almost matched her hair. Pleasure stamped across her lovely features, the look a woman wore only after she’d climaxed.

Her legs gave out, and he caught her against his chest, easing her onto the mattress. He found the tie at her waist and unwrapped her from her dress with the eagerness of a boy on Christmas morning. The rich red fabric contrasted with the paleness of her skin, and he took a moment to enjoy the picture she made.

“I want you inside me.” She pushed up on her palms, and the dress slid down her arms. “But you’re wearing too many clothes.”

She slipped free of her dress, lifting up to tug it away. Then she reached behind her to unfasten her bra. The scrap of lace went flying across the room, and she was naked, her nipples tight and all but begging him to suck them.

He rose and quickly stripped, pulled a condom out of his wallet, and dropped it on the nightstand, then left his clothes in a heap on the floor and rejoined her in bed. He bent his head and took one of her beaded nipples into his mouth, swirling his tongue around the tip before shoving it against the roof of his mouth. She bucked against him, grabbing his arms tight.

“Inside me,” she demanded. “Inside me now.”

“Yes.” He scrambled for the condom, donning it as fast as he could. He came down on top of her and she wrapped her arms around him, pushing her heels against the mattress to lift her hips into him. The head of his cock slid into place, and he sank deep in a single thrust.

“Dalton!” She smiled up at him, wicked joy gleaming in her gaze.

I love you.
The thought burned through his mind, but he clamped his lips shut before the words escaped. He had no idea if she’d welcome the sentiment. If not, nothing would kill the moment faster. He would hate to ruin what might be their last time together.

So he put everything he felt but couldn’t say into the way he touched her, stroked her, kissed her.

I love you.
He sank deep, palmed her breasts and sucked each nipple in turn, while she writhed and moaned beneath him. He smoothed his palms over every inch of her he could reach. She was so precious to him, so perfect, despite her scars. Her moans kissed his ears, and he adored how he could make her lose control. He let the tight crest pop free, and then he pumped into her in earnest, giving in to both of their desires. Bracing his palms on either side of her shoulders, he lifted away and used the extra space to gain leverage, hammering into her again and again.

She stayed with him every step of the way, whispering encouragement, moaning her pleasure, matching him move for move. It was so fucking perfect, so damn right, that his body took over and every thought wiped from his mind. He drove forward, grinding his pelvis into her, pushing them both to the edge of sanity.

“I’m going to—” Her voice broke and she sobbed. She arched beneath him, her sex fisted around him, and it was more than enough to make him explode.

Come jetted from him, every ounce of his control shredding as he pounded out his orgasm into her willing body. He shuddered and groaned, the words he’d tried to hold back ripping out of his mouth as climax stripped him down to one simple truth. “I love you, Camille. I love you so much.”

He collapsed into her arms, but not before he saw her eyes go wide with shock. Burying his face in her neck, he waited for his heart to slow and his wits to return so he could find the right thing to say now.

“I love you too,” she whispered. When he pulled back to look at her, tears filled her eyes, and she pulled his head down for a soul-searing kiss. “Love me tonight?”

“Always.” There was no other answer he could give, but even as joy and hope flooded him at her words, he also couldn’t help but notice this settled nothing about the future.

He pushed that thought aside and focused on Camille. They had the long drive to the airport to hash out where to go from here. Tonight was about the now, about celebrating their newfound love, about wanting and needing, about giving and taking.

The future could wait.

Chapter Nine

It was his curse to love people who walked out of his life. He’d been telling himself at least with Camille, he’d known it was coming all along, but that was cold comfort to an aching heart. After last night, he had reason to hope, but he had no clue if those hopes would be dashed. He could so easily see her being reasonable, pointing out all the same concerns he had about how a relationship would work, and turning him down.

But he had to know if there was even a sliver of a chance. It occurred to him that now would normally be the time he’d run like hell, afraid he’d feel the same sting of rejection and abandonment that his father and ex-wife had doled out so generously. Camille was worth facing his fears. A future with her was worth risking his heart and his pride.

He glanced over at her while she watched the passing scenery. They were halfway to Knoxville and he hadn’t managed to broach the subject of them yet. It was now or never. He took in a fortifying breath and braced himself for whatever she might say. “Camille…”

She turned her head to look at him. “Yeah?”

Might as well just put it out there. He had no subtle way to bring this up. “I’m going to suggest something insane, but hear me out.”

Her eyebrows rose and an impish glint entered her gaze. “You want to pull over to the side of the road and have a quickie in the backseat?”

He snorted, some of his tension easing. That was one of the reasons he loved her so much—she made him laugh. “No, it’s nothing that involves public indecency.”

“Damn.” She snapped her fingers.

“This is serious.” Though he struggled not to smile.

She pressed a hand to her breast, assuming an earnest demeanor. “A quickie in the backseat of a Jeep would involve some serious maneuvering. Don’t underestimate the skill it takes.”

“Camille!”

Nodding, she pursed her lips, but they still quivered at the corners as if she fought a grin. “Okay, serious, but still insane. I’m listening.”

He sighed. “You’re not making this easy.”

“I’m listening.” She straightened in her seat. “Really.”

How to broach this? Hell, he didn’t know the best way. He knew what he wanted to ask, knew what he hoped her answer would be, but how to say it when his tongue wanted to twist into knots was a whole different story. Sweet Jesus, this was hard.

He swallowed and started with a statement of fact. “We said we loved each other last night.”

All lingering amusement fled her face, and she blanched beneath her freckles. “I know.”

“And that’s it? There’s nothing more to say?”

She let out a shaky breath. “I…don’t know what you want me to say.”

That you love me so much you’d never be one hundred percent happy without me.
Was that too much to ask? Probably. He clutched the steering wheel tighter, his palms going clammy. “Why don’t you just say whatever you’re thinking?”

She barked out a laugh, rubbing her forehead. “Who falls in love in a week? That’s nuts.”

His thoughts exactly. “It really is, but I can’t deny it happened. I’m clear on how I feel. What I’m not clear on is where we go from here.”

“Where
can
we go from here?” She threw her hands up and let them flop back on her lap. “That’s the part I’ve been wrestling with, and why I’d decided not to say anything about falling for you. What could come of it?”

“I was still undecided on whether or not to say anything. Last night’s confession wasn’t planned.” Just the opposite, in fact, though her response had made it worth the verbal incontinence. He glanced over at her, meeting her gaze for a moment before refocusing on the highway. “But it’s out there now, and I don’t want to pretend we didn’t say it, or it didn’t happen, or whatever it is we originally planned when we set an end date on this affair.”

“You live in Tennessee, I live in California.” She ran her fingers through her hair and sighed. “We both have lives, family, and businesses in those locations. So, what? We’d be long-distance forever? Is that the kind of relationship you want?”

No, he didn’t. But who knew if they’d even get that far before they decided to call it quits? The only thing he knew for certain was he didn’t want this to end now. He loved her, she loved him, and that deserved a fighting chance. “Maybe you’re thinking too far ahead.”

Her groan mixed with a laugh. “I’m a planner. That’s what I do. I’m the type to make New Year’s resolutions and stick to them. I have five-year goals. So, yes, if we’re talking about love and having more than a week-long shagfest, then my planner brain starts skipping ahead and making projections.”

The little diatribe was so classically
her
that he had to bite back a smile. Damn, he loved her and all her quirks.

“While that works in business, you can’t strategize a relationship,” he pointed out. “It’s an organic process.”

Her arms folded and her chin jutted stubbornly. “That sometimes sours, rots, and molds like an experiment gone bad.”

“True, but not always.”

“Maybe not,” she conceded. “But relationships are hard enough to keep afloat when you don’t have the added barrier of times zone differences.”

“You know, I said the same thing to my uncle when he told me not to give you up if I wanted to keep you. He said all relationships have challenges and you make them work if you want to.” He rubbed a hand over the back of his neck, trying to work the tautness from his muscles. Was he even making any headway with her? “I haven’t been able to get that out of my head since then. Because he’s right.”

“So two thousand miles is no big deal?”

The highway curved sharply before him, so he took a moment to navigate the turn before he spoke again. “I’m saying we try it and see if we can make it work. I’m saying we take things slowly—which we haven’t done so far—and only commit to giving it a real shot. It won’t be easy, but…I don’t fall in love easily or often. I’m not ready to throw something this great away without even trying. I’d regret it.”

“So would I.” She licked her lips. “I’m also not usually so quick to dive into emotional attachment or commitment of any kind. If I’d known this would happen, I’m not sure I would have jumped into this affair. I would have been too scared of all the complications we’re facing now. But it happened so fast, I didn’t have a chance to run.”

He reached over and took her hand. This was scary, but she wasn’t alone. He ran his thumb over her knuckles. “I’m glad then. I don’t want you to run away.”

“Away is inevitable. I’m about to get on an airplane.”

“And my favorite airline is having a sale this weekend.” He glanced over to see her reaction. “Say the word, and I’ll buy a ticket to come visit you the week after next.”

“Yes. Come see me.” No hesitation, just a confirmation. Her smile was crooked. “I can play tour guide and show you around my neck of the woods.”

His grip tightened on her fingers. “I’d like that.”

After a long moment of silence, she asked, “Is it bad that I’m more worried about what to do if this does work out than what to do if it doesn’t?”

“I’m glad you’re subconsciously leaning toward this working out. That’s a good sign, in my book.” More than a good sign. It told him exactly what he needed to know. She might be worried, but she wanted this, she believed in them. That was more than enough for him. In fact, it was perfect. He could handle anything else that was thrown at them, as long as she was willing to stick with him. “As for what we’ll do if this works out…we take that one day at a time. Maybe someday very far down the line, one or both of us will be in a position to relocate to the same city. Maybe someday very far down the line, we decide to get married and make babies. For today, we agree to call, text, or Skype as often as possible. For today, we agree to see each other whenever our schedules line up.”

In her wildest dreams, Camille would never have imagined these things would come out of his mouth. He said everything she needed to hear, and a few more things that made panic bolt through her. Her heart was pounding so fast she felt faint. Giddiness and terror threatened to overwhelm her, but she tried to hold it together. She took a deep breath. “Keep in touch, keep seeing each other, and keep developing what we started this week.”

“Exactly.” He squeezed her hand, and she was grateful for the steadiness of his grip.

“I can do that.” She was petrified, so
slow
was the pace she could handle. Falling in love had been the easy part. “The relocating, white picket fences, two-point-five kids, and happily ever after is a little too scary to think about yet.”