Poised above her as he was, Rush’s mouth dipped to capture hers.
“I can’t believe we’re finally here,” he whispered, his mouth scant inches above hers.
“I can’t believe we’re actually married.”
“Believe it, Lindy.” The moist tip of his tongue outlined her bottom lip.
“I’m going to be a good wife to you,” she whispered fervently, planting her hands on either side of his face and guiding his mouth to hers, taking his tongue in her mouth. “You won’t regret marrying me…. I promise.”
“I have no regrets. Dear God, Lindy, how could I?” Again and again his mouth claimed her until she lost count.
“Lindy, Lindy,” he whispered against her neck. “I don’t think I can wait much longer…. I wanted to do this slow and easy, but already I feel like I’m going to explode, I want you so much.”
They kissed again tempestuously, their mouths grinding hard, their tongues meeting. The kissing sparked the coals of their desire with an urgency that left Lindy trembling in its wake.
Reluctantly, his breath coming in uneven gasps, Rush moved away from her enough to start unbuttoning his jacket. Lindy noted that his movements were abrupt, impatient.
With trembling, uncooperative fingers, she reached for the zipper at the back of her gown, letting the satin and lace knee-length dress fall to the floor.
She was about to slip the pale pink camisole over her head when Rush stopped her.
“Let me,” he murmured, his eyes consuming her with a need he couldn’t disguise.
She nodded and let her hands fall slack at her sides.
He stood before her—so tall, so solemn, so intent. Lindy could feel the spiraling desire wrap itself around them both, binding them to each other as effectively as any cord. His hands reached for the garment’s hem and she raised her arms to better aid him. The silky material whispered against her skin as he drew it over her torso, and Lindy heard Rush’s soft gasp as her breasts sprang free.
To her surprise, his hands came up to caress her neck and not her breasts. His touch was unbelievably light, as though he feared the slender thread of his control would snap. His hands gently stroked the sloping curve of her neck and then traveled down to her shoulders, his fingertips grazing her soft, smooth skin. Lindy’s eyes grew heavy under the magic he wove around her and her body felt warm and restless. The fresh, clean scent of him filled her and her head rolled to one side. She was caught so completely in the spell he was weaving around her that she feared she might faint with her need for him.
With the softest of touches his hands found her breasts, fitting to their underswell, lifting them, weighing them as though on a delicate balance. The thumb on each hand grazed an already erect nipple. Lindy must have moaned or emitted some kind of sound, because he whispered, “I know, honey, I know.”
Something like a flame began to warm the pit of her stomach—Lindy could think of no other way to describe it. The sensation grew more heated and more intense with every passing flick of his thumbs, until her nipples became throbbing velvet pebbles beneath his fingertips. When Lindy was convinced she could endure no more of this sweet torture, Rush lowered his mouth to hers. Gently, moistly, he kissed her lower lip, tugging at it with his teeth. Then he repeated the process and feasted feverishly on the upper.
Rush broke away from her long enough to finish undressing, then lowered himself to the mattress, propped beside her and slightly over her. The hand he slipped beneath her back felt cool and smooth against her heated flesh. He used it to arch her toward him, and she gasped when his hot mouth closed over a breast, feasting on one and then the other in turn.
The fire that had started in her stomach spread its flickering flames through her until Lindy felt she was about to be consumed by the heat Rush had generated.
If he didn’t take her soon, she was convinced she’d melt with her need. Everything in her seemed to be pulsating. Her breasts throbbed and the apex of her womanhood beat its own pagan rhythm until Lindy tossed her head back and forth, trapped in a delirium of sexual tension.
Rush kissed and caressed her endlessly, his mouth exploring her breasts, her soft belly, her long legs until Lindy thought she’d go mad. Every nerve in her body was shouting with need. Once he had reduced her to quivering helplessness, Rush changed positions so that he was poised directly above her.
His knee parted her thighs and she willingly opened to him. Rush guided himself into position so that the tip of his engorged manhood was pressed against her moist opening.
“Lindy,” he whispered hoarsely, “I…love…you.” With each word his pulsating warmth plunged deeper and deeper into her, until he was so far inside her, so firmly locked within her, she was sure he had reached her soul.
Slowly, gradually he began to move, and his swollen heat created the most delicious, most pleasing friction against the most intimate of her surfaces.
Lindy’s hands clutched at his broad back, wanting him closer, needing him. She was filled with a tautness, and indescribable demand that became more intolerable with every heart-stopping stroke until she was sure she would scream.
As she struggled to catch her breath, Rush’s hands caressed her once more, finding her tingling breasts and then the flat of her stomach.
“Rush…oh Rush….” She tossed her head from side to side, completely lost in the pleasure.
“Kiss me,” he pleaded. “Give me your tongue.” He put a hand under her head, lifting her mouth to his. Gingerly she explored the hollow of his mouth, running her tongue over his smooth, even teeth. His lower lip was full and when she nipped at it the effect on him was electric. He drove into her again and again, gaining momentum with each thrust until there was only the insistent friction and the sweet, sweet pangs of an all-consuming pleasure. When he climaxed, Lindy felt him throbbing in the innermost recesses of her body and smiled, depleted and utterly content.
Panting, Rush rolled over and pulled her on top of him. He was as breathless as if he’d run for miles, and Lindy’s own breathing was as labored as his. Exhausted, she closed her eyes and pressed her flushed face to his heaving chest, allowed herself to be transported, floating in the warm aftermath of his love.
* * *
Lindy slept in his arms and Rush watched her, astonished at the woman who was now his wife. Even though he would do nothing to change the deed, he knew deep in his heart that they should have waited before marrying. But he’d wanted her so desperately, and the thought of losing her had been more than he could bear. So he had sealed their future. It was what Lindy wanted—it was what he wanted.
These past weeks with Lindy had begun to fill the emptiness in his soul. His heart had found a home with her. She had wiped away years of cynicism with her smile, erased the bitterness from his memory with her tenderness, healed him and given him a reason to live.
A thin ribbon of sunlight peeked through the crack in the drapes but Rush dared not raise his wrist to check the time for fear of disturbing Lindy’s sleep. Lord, what a woman he’d found. Twice more during the night they had made love, and each time she had opened herself to him, holding back nothing. As their bodies had come together, their souls had merged as well. Their lovemaking was as Rush had always known it would be. He could hardly bear the thought of waiting six months to love her again. And they only had one night more.
* * *
“Rush.” She tossed his name over her shoulder. “I’ve got to push your things aside if I’m going to get all my stuff into your closet.”
“Then do it,” he said, delivering another armful of dresses and blouses to her.
They’d decided to transport her personal things into Rush’s bedroom; she could sleep in his room when he was away, which only made sense.
“I can’t believe you hauled all this to Seattle in that dinky Rabbit you drive.”
“I did.”
She was so intent on her task that she didn’t notice that Rush had moved behind her. He slipped his arms around her waist an
d hugged her, resting his chin on her shoulder, kissing her neck. Lindy finished pushing the hangers to one side before twisting around and shyly kissing him back.
“Is that everything?” she questioned, looping her arms around his neck.
“Just about. You know, there are better ways to spend a honeymoon.”
Her lashes fluttered down. “Yes, I know, but…but I thought you’d be exhausted by now. I mean…well, you know.”
Rush started unfastening the buttons of her blouse. “I find that you bring out the animal side of my nature.”
Already Lindy could feel her body starting to respond. “You seem to be doing the same thing to me.”
“We’ve got a million and one things to do,” he muttered, but his fingers were intent on only one task.
“I know,” Lindy returned, pulling his shirt free from his waistband.
He stripped the blouse from her shoulders and removed her bra. Her breasts stood out firm and round. He fondled each one, then kissed them in turn. “Did I ever tell you about the morning I walked in on you in the bathroom?”
“Yes,” she whispered hoarsely.
“I thought at the time your nipples were begging to be kissed.”
“They are now, too.”
Rush groaned. “Oh God, Lindy, I’m never going to get enough of you before I leave.”
“But not for any lack of trying,” she whispered back, threading her fingers through his hair. Tossing back her head, she whimpered softly as he sucked her breast with the hunger of a starving man. Already his hands were at the snap of her jeans, working that open and then tugging at the zipper. Lindy’s fingers were equally busy.
They could hardly make it to the bed fast enough. Wordlessly Rush spread her legs and lowered his body into hers. At his first thrust, Lindy felt an electric charge shoot through her and she cried out.
Their lovemaking was a hungry, wild mating that was both tender and fierce and left them so exhausted they fell into a deep, drained sleep.
A sharp sound broke into Lindy’s consciousness, but she resisted waking, not wanting to tear herself away from the warm, lethargic feeling of being held in Rush’s arms.
“What the hell?”
Lindy’s eyes shot open to discover her brother standing in the doorway of Rush’s bedroom. Before she could move or speak, Steve had tossed his seabag on the floor and stormed into the room. With one sweeping motion, he hauled Rush out of bed and slammed him against the wall.
“Just what the hell are you doing in bed with my sister?” he demanded, his fist poised in front of Rush’s face.
Chapter 10
“Steve!” Lindy screamed. “We’re married.” She bolted upright and clenched the blankets to her naked breasts with her right hand while holding out her left in proof.
“Married!” Steve exclaimed on a long, slow breath. Gradually he released his grip on Rush’s neck. “What the hell! But you hardly know each other. You can’t possibly…. You wouldn’t.”
“It happens that way sometimes,” Rush explained, and reached for his pants.
“I don’t believe this.” Steve shook his head as though the action would dissolve the image before him, then turned and stalked out of the room. He paused at the doorway and looked back. “We need to talk.”
Lindy wasn’t sure which of them Steve wanted to speak with. What was clear was that Lindy hardly recognized her own brother. His solid, sturdy good looks hadn’t changed in the time since she’d last seen him. He was still lean and handsome, the way she’d always remembered him, but his eyes had been so hard, so cruel, as though he would have relished an excuse to fight, even if it was with his best friend.
Rush sat on the edge of the mattress and Lindy moved behind him, looping her arms around his neck. “Are you all right?”
“It’s not exactly the way I cherish being woken.”
“Me, either.” Her teeth nibbled his earlobe, and she rubbed her bare breasts against his back, loving the tingly feeling the action provoked. She grinned with satisfaction as she felt Rush’s shoulders tighten and knew he’d experienced the same kind of delicious pleasure.
“Lindy, for God’s sake, stop. I’ve got to go out there and talk to your brother.”
The regret in his voice was enough to raise her blood pressure and she sighed, wishing her brother had chosen another time and day to make his appearance.
“I’m coming with you,” Lindy said when Rush had finished buttoning his shirt.
“Honey, listen,” Rush said, his voice low and thoughtful. “I think it might be better if Steve and I had a few minutes alone first.”
“Why?”
“I want to tell Steve how things went between us,” Rush explained. “If he’s going to be angry, then I’d rather he was upset with me.”
“Hey, Rush, come on. We’re in this together.” She reached for her clothes and was dressing as quickly as her fingers would allow. “It isn’t as if you seduced me, you know. In fact it was more the other way around. You’ve been a perfect gentleman from the minute we met…. Well, other than that first night—but that’s understandable when you think about it…. I think we should both talk to Steve. He is my brother and…”
Rush moved around to her side of the bed and stood in front of her.
Lindy was prepared to argue with her husband if he was determined to be obstinate, but when she glanced up his eyes were filled with such love and tenderness that all her determination to stand at his side and face her brother evaporated.
“Ten minutes,” he said, taking her by the shoulders. “That’s all I ask.”
Denying Rush anything in that moment would have been impossible, and she nodded.
Her husband-of-a-day rewarded her with a quick but infinitely thorough kiss, his tongue darting into her mouth and shooting ripples of pleasure down the full length of her body. When he released her Lindy sank back onto the corner of the bed, her legs too weak to support her.
Rush left the bedroom and closed the door. Lindy stared at it helplessly, unable to move. Almost immediately the raised, angry voice of her brother followed as he demanded to know what the hell Rush thought he was doing marrying his little sister. Lindy didn’t hear her husband’s reply, but whatever he said apparently didn’t appease Steve, because shortly afterward Steve started in again. Lindy grimaced at some of the language, impatient to speak to her brother herself. She was an adult and certainly capable of choosing her own husband.
She gave Rush the ten minutes she’d promised, but it was difficult. As the endless seconds ticked past, Lindy tried to remember the last time she’d seen Steve. Before he’d divorced Carol, Lindy realized. That was what?—one and a half years ago now. Steve had been happy then, excited, full of life. Could it really have been only eighteen months ago? She hardly recognized Steve as the same man. He looked so much older than his thirty-three years, and she wondered if the divorce was responsible for the changes in him. From what her parents had told her, Steve and Carol had broken up shortly after their visit to Minneapolis, and the divorce had been final for over a year. No one knew any of the details. Steve hadn’t explained a thing, and Lindy hadn’t asked. What went on between her brother and Carol was their business, not hers.
When Lindy couldn’t stand it any longer, she stood and walked out of the bedroom. Both men stopped and turned around to face her. Anger flashed from their eyes, and it looked as if they were about to resort to physical violence. Lindy knew she’d timed her entrance perfectly.
“It’s good to see you again, Steve,” she said with a soft smile, walking to her husband’s side and slipping her arm around his waist.
Her brother grumbled something in reply.
“Aren’t you going to congratulate Rush and me?”
Steve’s eyes hardened as they clashed with Rush’s. “I’m not sure.”
“Why not?” Lindy feigned a calmness she was far from feeling and smiled up at Rush, letting her warm gaze speak for her.
“Lindy, just what in the hell
do you think you’re doing?” Steve demanded, looking more upset by the minute. “You’ve been in Seattle how long? Three, four weeks?”
“Are you saying Rush will make me a terrible husband and that I’ve made a dreadful mistake? Obviously you know something about him that I don’t.”
“That’s not what I mean and you know it,” Steve shouted. He paused long enough to rake his fingers through his hair, mussing the well-groomed effect. “What about Paul Abrams?”
Lindy met her brother’s gaze without emotion. “What about him?”
“You loved him…or so you said. Hell, the last time I heard from you, your heart was broken and you didn’t know if you wanted to go on living. Remember?”
“Of course I remember.”
“And that’s all changed?” His voice carried a harsh sound of reprimand. “It didn’t take you very long to forget him, did it? So much for undying love and devotion. Well, little sister, did you ever stop to think what could follow next? If your affections can change overnight, what’s going to happen when Rush has sea duty? Are you going to divorce him once he’s out of sight because you find yourself attracted to another man?”
Lindy felt her husband tense at her side. She wasn’t pleased with Steve’s insinuation, either, but she was willing to let it pass. “As you recall, Paul was the one who conveniently forgot about me. Thank God he did, otherwise I would never have met Rush.”
“You’re saying that now. God, what a mess.” Steve abruptly turned away and marched to the other side of the room. Just as sharply, he turned back to face them. “Of all the people in the world, I thought you were the one I could trust the most.”
His comment was directed at Rush.
“She’s just a kid.” The look Steve tossed his friend suggested Rush had resorted to robbing a day-care center.