CHAPTER TEN
SARA STEPPED INTO the shower, and as the spray hit her body, the exhaustion of the day slipped away and she found herself looking forward to the dance tonight. To her never-ending surprise, she loved the small town, the people, and the way Rafe’s family had welcomed her as if she were an old friend. Most of all, she liked the way Rafe looked at her when he thought she wasn’t aware. His dark eyes feasted on her body, and she reveled in the attention.
She tipped her head up and let the shower spray run over her face, washing away the grime of the day. She barely registered when the bathroom door opened, but she definitely knew when Rafe pushed the shower curtain aside and stepped into the tub along with her.
“Well, hi there,” she said, wiping the water out of her eyes.
He grinned. “Hi, yourself.” Taking the wet washcloth from her hand, he knelt at her feet. With deliberate precision, he started with her toes, running the soapy cloth over her ankles, then her calves, taking his time. He let the soap accumulate and paused as the water washed it away. Slowly but surely he inched higher, teasing her as he rose ever closer to the juncture of her thighs.
She trembled at the sensual assault and closed her eyes as he continued. The washcloth, a mixture of soft and roughened material, glided up her thighs as high as possible, until his knuckles grazed her damp outer lips. She quivered and placed one hand against the tile wall for support.
Suddenly his thumb stroked her moist opening, and she nearly died from the sweetness of the feeling. As she leaned against the wall, he dropped the cloth and sealed his mouth over the place she needed him most. He worked magic with his hot tongue and gentle teeth.
She moaned and sank backward. The cold tile pressed against her skin while his tongue flickered back and forth, over and over, taking her higher and closer to a pulse-pounding orgasm that seemed just out of reach. She curled her fingers into her palms and thrust her pelvis toward him, seeking harder, deeper contact.
He understood and thrust one finger inside her.
“Yesss.” The word slipped out on a sharp hiss.
“I’ve got you,” he promised, his deep voice turning her on even more.
His long finger eased out, then in, out then in, until Sara got lost in the sensation. She could no longer tell which felt better, his thick finger inside her or the pressure he applied outside. And then he rubbed his thumb over her clit and stars exploded behind her eyes, every nerve ending coming together, sending her into erotic, perfect oblivion.
When her awareness came back, Rafe was standing, one hand braced on the wall beside her, a satisfied grin on his handsome face.
Water, somehow still hot, pelted over them.
“You look as pleased as I feel,” she said.
“Not quite,” he said over a strained laugh. He leaned close and kissed her hard, his mouth sealing over hers.
She tasted herself on his lips, and that fast she wanted him again, this time inside her.
He pulled her against him, his hard member pressing deliciously into her stomach, pulsing with desire. “I need to be inside you.” As always, Rafe seemed to read her mind.
She threaded her hands through his wet hair. “Then what are you waiting for?”
“Your knee, my chest,” he reminded her.
She winced at the reminder of her injury, something she’d managed to place at the furthest recesses of her mind while she was here.
He slammed the water shut and opened the curtain. Pulling a towel off a hook, he wrapped it around her, and somehow they made their way to the bed.
The towel fell to the floor. They dropped onto the bed. Rafe lay over her, his body covering hers, deliciously hot, sinfully sexy.
And then he paused to look into her eyes. The world fell away, and it was just the two of them. He brushed her hair off her face and kissed her lips, so softly and reverently, with a wealth of emotion she wasn’t ready to face. Would probably never be ready to deal with.
But she wanted him to know how much she desired him. She reached out and stroked his cheek. “Make love to me.”
A willing gleam flickered in his gaze. “I thought you’d never ask.”
He eased back, then slid in, his flesh hard yet velvety soft, tender yet demanding. Her entire body clenched tighter, and she felt him pulsing heavily inside her. She closed her eyes, memorizing his weight, the thickness of his member, the sheer perfection of their joining.
Rafe slid out of her body, then pushed back in, slowly out, harder in, faster and faster with each thrust, their bodies rocking together in unison. The friction grew, the tension increased and she climbed closer and closer to completion. Yet somehow her climax took her off guard as sparkling stars and immense pleasure washed over her in wave after wave of perfection until he’d wrung every last sensation from her body and Sara went limp beneath him.
Rafe rolled off her, gasping for air. “Wow,” he said through ragged breaths.
“I’ll say.” She turned her head to meet his gaze. Her cheeks were pink and flushed.
He grinned. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
She laughed. “Please do.”
He swallowed hard. She was so damn hot and sexy. They clicked in bed like they did everywhere else.
But there was something they’d both forgotten in the heat of the moment. “We didn’t use protection.”
“I’m on the pill. And we’re both tested at work. It’s all good,” she murmured.
He wasn’t worried, which ought to worry him more. His cell phone rang, interrupting his thoughts, and he rolled over to check the number. “It’s the captain.”
He sat upright in bed. “Hey, boss.”
The other man yelled so even Sara could hear. “I thought I told her to lie low. How the hell could the damned Bachelor Blog find her all the way in Hidden Hell?”
“Hidden Falls,” Rafe reminded him.
Sara started to chuckle before the reality and seriousness of the situation struck her.
“The whole world knows I’m here?” she asked, horrified.
“The blog said she came to stay there at a place called Angel’s,” the captain said.
Son of a— “She’s not there anymore. She’s staying with me. It’s a lot safer.”
“Well, tell her to be careful!” the captain bellowed.
“I’ll take care of her, boss,” Rafe promised, his gaze never leaving Sara’s.
Well, maybe it left her gaze so he could take in the sight of her naked body, gorgeous br**sts, large ni**les…
“And if I find out anything about Morley, I’ll let you know,” the captain said, breaking into Rafe’s fantasy. “But I’d suggest being extra careful. Just in case his men track her there.” The man muttered a curse and disconnected the call.