In the time and space defined by her bedroom, his onlypurpose was to drive her to carnal insanity so he could hear the sweet sound ofhis name falling from her lips again and again and know she loved him.
When her moaning cries crescendoedinto an urgent plea, he lay back and pulled her astride him, running his handsalong her smooth sides and over her breasts. With feline grace, she liftedherself and sank down, taking him in an inch at a time, driving him to ahead-spinning edge where he couldn’t breathe, where he was about to lose it. Ordie.
He clamped down on her hips to keep her from rocking untilhis lungs could inflate and his heart could start pumping again. She droppedher head back, giving him a breathtaking view of glowing golden skin, pale throat,sharp collar bones, maple-sugar-tipped breasts trembling with ragged breaths,triangle of dark hair impaled on him, and long tawny legs. She was perfection,and he feasted his eyes until he couldn’t hold back.
He started moving inside her. “Tell me again,” he demanded.
She leaned over him and cradled his face in her hands. Warmwhiskey eyes pierced his as she rode him. “I love you, T.J.”
Holding her gaze, he murmured, “Good, because I love you,Natalie Amber Eyes.”
She came hard, hot, and fast all over him, and he followedwith his own spine-melting climax.
He held her to him while they descended from the cloudstogether, his mind wandering to how this woman had turned his heart. From themoment he first saw her, he wanted to fuck her forever. But this wasn’tfucking. They were making love. And that he wanted to do forever too.
.~* * * ~.
Later that afternoon, he sprawled onNatalie’s couch, watching NHL Network while she worked in her home office. Ashis mind lingered on how he’d gotten here, on how he’d let her in and given herthe strings to his heart, the image on the screen snapped him out of hisreverie.
A sports reporter stood in front of a popular restaurant.Below her, the words “Kevin May Retiring” were superimposed. T.J. sat forward,cranking up the volume on the remote.
“We caught up with Kevin May last night, and here’s what hehad to say.”
The mic and camera swung to Maystanding close to a woman. A sharp pain crashed through T.J., like abone-crushing check to the solar plexus. Breath whooshed from him.
What. The. Actual. Fuck?
Right before the camera narrowed in on May’s face, T.J.glimpsed Natalie at his side. He hit the remote’s rewind button, hoping hiseyes had reported bad information to his brain. They hadn’t. Recognitioninverted his stomach and sent his blood into a pressure-cooker boil. He leaptto his feet.
May was talking, but the words were a loud buzz in T.J.’shead. A multitude of emotions whirlpooled insidehim—crushing betrayal, anger, hurt—and they funneled into one searing whiteblast that surged through him. He was a powder keg ready to detonate.
Hands fisting and unfisting at hissides, pulling in a lungful of air, he told himself not to blow. “Nat!”
The tone of his voice must’ve jarred her because she cameflying out of her office, eyes wide. “What is it?” Ford padded over and parkedhis butt in front of her, eyes on T.J.
T.J. stared at her, stuck in a place where reason wasleaking fast from the hole in his soul.
Worry etched her features. She tried stepping forward, butFord thwarted her. “Are you all right?”
“No, I’m not,” he gritted out. “I just saw you on TV. WithMay.”
Guilt flickered through her eyes.
Fury and dread snaked a cold trail up his back. “You haddinner with him last night when you told me you were working. You fucking liedto me.”
Her brows drew together. “I didn’t lie. I never said I wasworking. As for Kevin, yes, I was with him, but not the way you think. I wasgoing to tell you today, but I hadn’t found the right time yet.”
“Oh, that’s fucking rich! After all the shit you gave meabout Ford—”
“That’s different.”
T.J.’s cheeks flamed. “Really? Why don’t you enlighten me?Shit! Forget it.” He flapped a dismissive hand at her. “You’re just likeMelissa. Fucking someone else and leading me on.”
Her expression darkened, reminding him of gathering stormclouds. “I admit I called him. I wanted to be honest and let him know about us.He suggested dinner. Fucking wasn’t part of the conversation. Ever.”
T.J.’s pulse was a runaway train, and his chest was rapid-firing with ragged breaths. “So you wanted to behonest with him but not me?”
“No! You’re putting words in my mouth.”
His hands flew to his hair, and he tugged. Hard. “Jesus!” Hewas about to lose it, and he took a few steps backward. “I’m out.”
Amber eyes flashed. “Out? What does that mean?”
“It means I’ve been a complete idiot, playing house,” heyelled, waving his hand, “pretending this was all going to work. Outmeans I’m done.”
Her mouth swung opened. “Over this?”
Wordlessly, he strode past her to her bedroom, collectingthe possessions that actually registered in his brain. In that moment, verylittle registered except the need to get the hell out of there.
Behind him, he was vaguely aware of her standing in the door frame, Ford at her side. When she spoke, her voicequavered with—what? Hurt? Outrage? Didn’t matter. “I don’t believe this! CouldI have handled it better? Yes. But one strike, and I’m out with no chance toexplain. Just like that,” she snapped her fingers, “you walk.”
He threw a few things on the bed, then dropped to his kneesand checked underneath.
“Telling Kevin felt like the right thing to do,” shecontinued, her voice steadier. “I also thought … I thought if I talked tohim, he might consider dropping the lawsuit.”
Upright again, he wheeled and faced her. “What? Wherethe fuck do you get off fighting my battles for me?” Yeah, he was in full-ondick mode.
She straightened and folded her arms over her chest. “It’swhat people who care about each other do. They have their backs.”
He ignored her. His eyes scoured the room, but a red fogkept him from seeing.
“Wow. I see.” Her voice was
