Private Pleasures

Moving off her, he gave a grimace as he stood, his aroused body screaming with frustration. He helped her up, adjusted her blouse so he wasn't tempted by her lush curves, and let her have the privacy of the bathroom first.

Ten minutes later, after they'd both changed and their earlier passion had time to cool, Mariah climbed into bed beside Grey and snuggled into his embrace. With a deep sigh that feathered across his chest, her arm draped over his waist, she drifted off to sleep.

Grey remained awake. Stroking Mariah's hair, he reveled in the contentment ribboning through him, a feeling unlike anything he'd ever experienced. One he'd only shared with Mariah.

One thing was for certain. He never wanted the warm, comforting feeling to end.

Chapter Seven

'What time are we leaving today?' Mariah asked Grey as he helped her make the bed the following morning. Sunshine streamed through the lace curtains framing the bedroom window, warming her as much as being wrapped in Grey's arms during the night had. She'd missed the intimacy of sleeping with Grey, the way he curled his body around hers from behind, and the possessive way his palm always seemed to find the curve of her breast.

Smoothing her hand over a wrinkle in the quilt, she smiled at the memory of his sweet, nuzzling, good-morning kiss against her neck and his admirable restraint. She'd awoken to the feel of his arousal pressing against her bottom. It would have been so easy for him to shimmy up the nightgown he'd bought her, ease her panties down and slide deep inside where she'd wanted him last night. Where she'd ached for him that morning still.

Sighing, she glanced up at him, wondering if he'd heard her question. He stood at the opposite side of the bed, wearing khaki shorts, a red polo shirt and a determined look. 'Grey?'

He picked up one of the throw pillows on the floor beside him and turned it over in his hands. 'I was thinking about staying up here a few more days.'

'A few more days?' she echoed, frowning. It was Sunday, and they both had businesses to run. Starting tomorrow morning.

His shoulders lifted in a casual shrug. 'Just until the end of the week.'

'The end of the week!' She came around the bed, unable to believe he'd suggest something so spontaneous and rash. To her way of thinking, a week constituted more than just 'a few days.' They'd shared a wonderful weekend together but they couldn't stay up in Arrowhead forever. 'Grey, I don't think that would be such a good idea.'

'I think it's a great idea. My best one yet.' He tossed the pillow against the headboard, and when his gaze met hers again, the depths were filled with a recklessness that made her distinctly uneasy. 'Mark said I could use the place as long as I need it, so why not make the most of things?'

She shook her head. It was unlike Grey to be so…reckless. 'Because I have appointments to keep, clients to see, contracts to go over and sign. A business to operate!'

'So do I, but it can all wait a week.' He braced his fists on his hips, his stance firm and unyielding. 'I'm willing to clear my entire schedule for you. For us.'

'I can't believe what you're saying!' She paced to the end of the bed, trying to reason with a man who'd once been so reasonable. 'You can't hold me hostage for a week-'

'Wanna bet?' A wicked grin curved his mouth as he slowly moved toward her. 'I kinda like the sound of you being my captive, at my mercy…'

She abruptly stopped, steeling herself against his words, his advance, that bone-melting, she'd-do- anything-ior-me smile, and held up her hand to ward him off. 'Then you stay and I'll go. Give me the keys to the Jeep,' she ordered.

'Search me for them,' he dared her, holding his arms wide to give her access to every inch of him. 'If you find them, we'll go.'

The only thing she would find was a body to die for, and a man who'd enjoyed every minute of the frisking. She sighed in frustration and dragged her hand through her hair. 'Why are you doing this?'

Quicker than she could anticipate, he reached out, slid his hand around her neck and brought her mouth to his. He summed up his answer in a deep, emotion-filled kiss that left her breathless, as soft as dew and clinging to him. A kiss so full of need and longing and a thousand other feelings that touched her heart and swept through her soul.

When he finally lifted his head, she stared up at him in a dazed fog, a willing prisoner-if it meant she might gain his love. Oh, Lord, was she wishing for the impossible?

'That's why I'm doing this,' he said fiercely, his eyes blazing with heat, arousal and something more. He framed her face in his hands, holding her immobile.

As if she planned on going anywhere.

'Maybe sharing is all that it's cracked up to be,' he said, a lopsided grin canting his mouth. 'Something within me shifted this weekend, Mariah. Something that feels wonderful and scares me half to death because I don't understand completely what it is.' He pulled in a deep breath, his gaze searching hers. 'But whatever it is, I want to explore it with you, without the craziness of work and everyday life interfering. I want more time alone. No interruptions, no outside influences.'

She pressed her hands to his chest. 'Grey, we can't hide away for another five days, ignore our work, our responsibilities.' This time her protest was weak. Anything that had to be done Jade was more than capable of handling. It was a matter of her sister cooperating enough to handle her absence.

'My mind is made up, Mariah.' He slid his hands down her back and clasped them at the base of her spine, holding her body, as well as her heart, close. 'I'm not giving you a choice.'

His caveman routine should have irritated her, but the truth was, she wanted this time alone as much as he did. He was willing to give up so much for her to make their relationship work. How could she refuse?

'We'll go into the village for more food, I'll call Jeanie at home and have her clear my schedule for the week, and you can do the same with Jade.'

'Do I have to?' Mariah groaned into his shoulder and squeezed her eyes shut. 'Jade is going to disown me.'

Grey chuckled, then grew serious. 'Jade will survive. What's between us is far more important.'

He was right. She, too, had felt something more over the past two days with Grey…hope for the future. Unable to deny him his wish, she slipped from his arms and said, 'Let's go make some phone calls.'

He swatted her bottom as she passed and grinned when she glared at him from over her shoulder. Then he had the audacity to wink.

'I knew you'd see things my way,' he said.

'Like you gave me a choice,' she muttered.

'Are you totally and completely out of your mind?' Jade's disapproving tone drifted through the phone lines to Mariah. 'Standing me up on Friday night and skipping town with Grey for the weekend is one thing, but an entire week?'

Mariah was in too good a mood to let her sister's interrogation put a damper on her newfound happiness. 'I'm staying, Jade.'

'The man has you brainwashed!'

Smiling, Mariah glanced toward the grocery store Grey had slipped into while she made her phone call in a nearby booth. The 'man' Jade was referring to had her hopelessly in love. 'Stand in for me on whatever appointments you can manage and reschedule the others for the following week,' she told Jade. 'There's nothing pressing on my desk or in the works, so everything else you can handle or it can wait until I get back.'

A long-suffering sigh reached Mariah. 'At least give me a number where I can reach you if something comes up.'

'If the cabin had a phone and I gave you the number, I'm sure I wouldn't get a moment's peace. But there isn't a phone, so I'm in luck.'

'How cozy,' Jade said, her tone bordering on peevish.