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A few minutes later, he crests the dune behind me, navigating the steep descent to join me on the sand with his usual grace, making me wonder, “It’s hard to believe you’re a bad dancer,” I say, as he falls in beside me. “You’re so naturally graceful. Like a panther who’s been classically trained in ballet.”
“I’m nothing like a panther who’s been classically trained in ballet,” he deadpans before adding with a shrug, “And I’m not a bad dancer. I just don’t enjoy it. Not in public anyway.”
I grin, teasing, “So, you’ll dance with me in private? Spin me around your fancy apartment on the Upper West Side and show me all your panther ballet moves?”
His lips quirk the slightest bit. “Is that something you want added to the contract before you sign?”
“No, that’s okay,” I say. “I’ll take you at your word.” I fight a smile as I add, “I’ll have to, since I signed the docu-sign your lawyer sent to my email before the ceremony. It should be in your inbox now.”
The flash of pleasure in his gaze makes me feel warm all over. “I’m very glad to hear that.”
“Yeah, me too,” I murmur. “And Kira, my part-time holiday baking helper, is going to take over for me in the kitchen and sublet my apartment until I get back. She loves cats as much as I do and has been looking for a full-time gig. Her cousin is going tohelp up front, starting tomorrow, and I have my vet tech friend coming by once a week so that Kira won’t have to deal with transport if the babies need anything. Everything has fallen into place beautifully.”
He shifts his focus fully my way. “You saw your doctor?”
I nod. “I did. And she said I’m good to start trying as soon as I get my IUD taken out. No waiting period or worries.”
“That’s what I read online, but good to have it confirmed by a professional. And you’re otherwise in good health?” His gaze sweeps up and down my frame, making me very aware of the deep V at the front of my dress.
And very glad I chose this dress instead of the more modest blue silk…
I like it when he looks at me like he’s dying to devour me, too.
“Fantastic health,” I say, as we reach the abandoned lifeguard shelter at the end of the beach. I start up the steps, pausing as I add over my shoulder, “Dr. Saunders did say that I could probably use some more cardio in my life, but I go dancing at least a few times a month. That’s enough cardio.”
“It’s not,” he says, so close behind me now that his heat warms my back, my ass. “But I’m sure you’ll be getting more cardio in soon.” His hands settle possessively on my waist, making the ache between my thighs even more insistent.
“Oh yeah?” I turn just enough for his breath to warm my cheek as I lean back against him, my hormones celebrating the feel of his erection, long and thick, as it presses against my backside. “Wedotend to get pretty athletic, don’t we?”
“We do,” he agrees. “I’ve had a hard time thinking of anything but getting athletic with you since Sunday night.”
I sigh, shivering as his hands smooth up my stomach to linger just below my breasts. “Me, too. Why do you think I lured you out to an abandoned lifeguard station for a quickie? I can’twait until after the wedding. I need you to dick me down hard right now.”
“I’ll dick you down so hard you won’t remember your own name until tomorrow morning,” he rumbles in my ear as one wicked hand wraps around my throat, drawing me back against him. “But not until we’re ready to fuck with a purpose. I don’t want to waste a single drop of come I could be using to put a baby inside you.”
His other hand splays across the softly rounded flesh between my hips, making me burn. And whimper. And my poor, frustrated pussy clench around her wretched emptiness.
Who knew that hearing him talk about knocking me up would be so hot?
Who? Why I did, of course.
Which is why I’m prepared for just such a moment as this…
I pull away from his grasp, climbing the last two steps to the entrance to the small hut before turning back to him. “I totally agree with that sentiment,” I say, my voice husky with desire. I slowly lift the hem of my dress, revealing the lace edge of my silky black thigh-highs. “Which is why I asked Dr. Saunders to take my IUD out today. So, I would be all prepped and ready for you to come inside me.”
The look in his eyes is so intense, so focused and hungry, that it might have been scary if I didn’t feel the same wild, ravenous need.
I lean back against the railing, drawing my dress even higher. “Do you want to do that, Mr. Mendelssohn? Do you want to come inside me?”
The look he gives me as he sweeps me into his arms promises I’m about to get everything I’ve been burning for.
And then some.
six
HUNTER
The scentof her perfume fills my head as I slam the hut’s door behind us, vanilla and spice mixing with salt air until I’m drunk on the combination. We kiss like we’re starving, dying, desperate for each other as she pulls me down onto towels she must have spread on the floor earlier.