A Sure Thing?

other hand slowly caressed between her thighs. 'Did you know that your eyes have little green flecks in them?' he asked. 'And that they turn this incredible smoky color when you're aroused?'

'I knew about the green flecks, but not about the smokiness.' A pleasure-filled moan escaped her. 'Guess that means they're smoky right now, huh?'

'Yeah. You ready for slow and easy?'

'Actually, I'm not sure how much more slow and easy I can stand, but bring it on.'

'My pleasure.' Lowering her leg, he kissed and nuzzled his way with excruciating, maddening leisure down her body. Pressing her palms against the tiles, Jilly simply gave herself over to his slow, deliberate seduction, succumbing to the feel of his strong hands and gentle mouth skimming over her. He sank to his knees, his sorcerer's fingers massaging first one leg, then the other, while his lips and tongue glided over her belly.

Long moans purred in her throat when he replaced his hands with his mouth and slowly licked and kissed his way up her leg, awakening every inch of her skin. Forcing her heavy eyelids open, her avid gaze riveted on the erotic sight of Matt on his knees before her, his dark head between her legs, his tongue tracing a trail up her inner thigh.

At the first touch of his tongue to her feminine folds, she gasped. He slipped his hands beneath her buttocks, urging her closer, his lips and tongue tasting, licking, kissing, making love to her with his mouth until she was mindless with need. Grasping his shoulders, the dam of tension he'd built in her burst, and her orgasm throbbed through her.

Her eyes slid shut, and she pressed back against the tiles in an effort to remain upright, quivering with pleasure, feeling like a bowl of warm, melted chocolate. Her mind registered the familiar sound of a condom wrapper tearing open. Deciding this warranted further investigation, she forced her eyelids open just in time to see Matt slip on a condom. With the warm water bouncing off his broad shoulders, he grasped her hips and lifted her. Clinging to his shoulders, she wrapped her legs around his hips, and with his compelling gaze intent upon hers, he slipped into her body in a single stroke.

'Oh, my,' she breathed.

Tangling her hands in his wet hair, she pulled his face to hers for a deep kiss. The taste of her feminine musk, mixed with his own delicious taste, inundated her senses.

He caressed her with long, leisurely, deep strokes, withdrawing nearly all the way from her body, then slowly filling her again. She absorbed every thrust, every exquisite sensation washing through her. The tension coiled within her once again, and her body tightened, a reaction he clearly felt for he whispered against her lips, 'Ready for more?'

She arched against him. 'Yes. More.'

His strokes lengthened, quickened. Harder, faster. Deeper. 'Now,' he rasped. 'Come with me, now.'

Her eyes slid shut, and a growl of pure pleasure poured from her lips as her body throbbed in unison with his.

When the tremors finally subsided, a sensation of utter languor stole through her, loosening her limbs.

He gently released her, then after a quick rinse under the soothing, warm spray, he turned off the faucet. Slipping a thick, fluffy white towel from the chrome rack just outside the shower, he dried her with the soft terry cloth, then gently blotted the water from her hair. After scooping her up in his arms-a good thing since someone had stolen the bones from her body-he carried her to the bed where he set her down, then settled himself on his side next to her. Replete, sated, and more relaxed than she could ever before recall feeling, she turned toward him, slipped her leg between his, and snuggled against his chest, experiencing the same delightful cocoon of warmth as she had last night during those brief seconds before she'd fully wakened. His rapid heartbeat thumped intimately against her cheek. She inhaled, and the musky scent they'd created together filled her head.

'You're really good at that,' she murmured, her lips brushing against his broad chest.

'Thank you, and right back atcha.' He brushed a kiss over her hair. 'But here's a little hint for future reference- that compliment would be so much more complimentary if you didn't sound so shocked when you said it.'

She chuckled at his use of her earlier words to him. 'Not shocked. Actually not even surprised.' Yet, no sooner had she said the words, than she realized she had been surprised-though not about Matt's skills in bed. There'd been little doubt in her mind that making love with Matt would be good. But she hadn't expected it to be like… this. So intense. Mind blowing. Hadn't anticipated it making her feel so vulnerable. Hadn't counted on him being so generous. So tender. Hadn't considered that sharing their bodies would result in her feeling anything more than physical release. But the warm fuzzies tapping on her heart made it clear that she should have considered that.

His fingers touched under her chin, and she lifted her face. Their eyes met, and her breath caught at his serious expression. Her common sense demanded that she toss out a flip comment, a lighthearted quip, but no words formed in her mind.

'Do you know how beautiful you are?' he asked softly.

The husky timbre of his voice, the compelling way he was looking at her, the gentle brush of his fingertips against her skin as he tucked a stray curl behind her ear, all conspired to render her speechless.

'The way you look,' he continued, his fingers tracing hypnotically over her face, 'your scent, the way you taste… all beautiful.'

'Th-thank you.' Whew. Good thing she was already lying down or she would have slithered to the floor. Forcing a light note into her voice, she said, 'You're not so bad yourself.'

His serious expression cleared, and he smiled. 'I have a confession to make. I'm hungry.'

'Already? That was quick.'

He laughed. 'I mean for food… first. I need some sustenance to refuel before we begin round three.'

'Are you thinking room service?'

'Not exactly.'

His innocent expression instantly raised her suspicions. She narrowed her eyes at him. 'You're angling to get some of my chocolate-covered marshmallows.'

She had to press her lips together to contain her amusement at his exaggerated look of shock.

'Moi?' he asked, eyes wide. 'I would never stoop so low as to angle. Of course, if you were to offer one-so I shouldn't expire from sex-induced hunger-I probably wouldn't refuse.'

'Uh-huh.' She tapped her finger against the center of his chest. 'You know what I think? I think my chocolate- covered marshmallows are all you're after.'

'Wrong. I'm after your chocolate-covered marshmallows and your body.' A speculative gleam sparkled in his eyes, and he trailed his index finger slowly down her body, igniting tiny bonfires on her skin. 'And if we actually placed the chocolate-covered marshmallows on your body, in a connect-the-dots sort of way… well, no telling what might happen then. Whaddaya say?'

'I say you've got yourself a snack.'

Chapter 8

Matt awoke to a shaft of early-morning light gilding the room. His senses all engaged simultaneously, all of them registering the same thing: Jilly.

Jilly's warm body sprawled across his as he lay on his back. The feel of Jilly's hand resting on his chest, directly over the spot where his heart beat. The soft curve of Jilly's hip beneath his palm. The sensation of Jilly's shapely thigh hooked over his legs. Jilly's unique scent, spiced with the heady musk of their spent passion. Jilly's round, coral-tipped breasts pressed against his side. Jilly's warm breath blowing gently over his ribs. Jilly's shiny tangle of hair spread across his torso.

He rubbed one of those midnight curls between his thumb and forefinger, instantly recalling an image of his hands tunneled through those lustrous strands, his erection buried deep in her body, his name sighing from her lips as they shared another round of heart-stopping lovemaking.

Heart stopping. That's exactly what it had been. Intense. Incredible. In a way he couldn't describe, because it