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The heat of Brax’s gaze made Jenny squirm.

“Touch me,” she begged.

“Patience. I’m getting there.”

“Well, get there faster.”

He looked back up into her eyes. “We’re still taking this slow. I want to make sure we do this right, Jenny. You’re too important to me to get this wrong.”

“The only way you can get this wrong is by not touching me. I’m dying here.” And she was. She’d never been so turned on in her life. Hell, she didn’t know it was possible to be this turned on. Yeah, she’d watched sexy movies, and some of the books she’d read were romantic and hot, but this was a whole other universe.

“Jenny, I’ve lost you. Where’d you go?”

“Brax, being with you is like being in a world where only sensation exists. The heat of your gaze, the feel of your hands on my hips, the rasp of your beard on my cheeks, every little thing has me turned inside out. I was made for this moment with you.”

Jenny watched as his eyes dilated.

“I don’t know what to say.” His voice was the wash of sand over velvet, raspy and heartfelt.

“Don’t say anything. Just know that there isn’t anything that we could do tonight that wouldn’t be beautiful and divine. I have never known anyone like you. Your honor shines through everything you do. I love how every word and touch you give me makes me feel adored.”

Brax rested his forehead on hers. “I’m glad,” he whispered. “It’s true. I do adore you, Jenny.”

“Please know, I want to be here for you, just like you’ve been here for me. I want to be your equal in this and in all things. I want you to know you’re adored. Do you?” Jenny couldn’t help the quiver in her voice.

He looked at her. Really looked at her, and she knew that he saw just how big of a leap she was taking.

“I love you, Jenny,” he said, then he kissed her forehead.

“Then please make love to me.”

“Gladly.”

Her words unlocked feelings that had been trapped deep inside him for decades. Feelings Brax hadn’t even known were a missing part of him. It was as if Jenny had found the way to the center of his heart and enclosed it with love and light. No longer did he feel like someone would leave him on a whim. Instead he found someone who would stay and fight the good fight with him. He knew this woman. He knew she had her demons that she still hadn’t told him about, but Jenny was still willing to unite with him going forward. He knew her strength. She would keep her promise, and for the first time in decades, Brax felt whole.

He stood up and gazed down at Jenny as the soft lamplight painted her skin in gold. She smiled up at him. Soon he was carrying her to his bed. He pushed back the covers and laid her down.

He had to ask one more time. “Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.” Jenny’s arms beckoned him, but he ignored them. Instead, he pulled her sleep shorts off her body and grinned.

“We might even get to fifth gear tonight,” he teased.

“Well, you are a SEAL.”

“I’m glad you understand.”

Slowly he readjusted her position so that her legs fell off the bed and he was able to kneel between them.

“Oh my God. Brax,” she wailed. “This is so much more than fifth gear. Couldn’t we dial it back?”

“Just lie back and think of England or something. Isn’t that what they did in the olden days?” Brax could see the glimmering dew on the lips of her sex, but he wanted to make sure she was a lot more ready before they made love. Jenny had only talked about her college boyfriend and that had been a long time ago.

Then there was the added pleasure of tasting this beautiful woman. Watching her tremble with her release. Yes, this was something he was looking forward to on so many different levels. Brax traced the seam of her sex and Jenny bucked up. His woman was sensitive.

He did it again, and again, and again.

“Brax.” Her whisper was so soft he barely heard it. But he did.

They had a long way to go. A whisper was nowhere good enough. He smiled to himself. He parted her sex with his thumbs and admired the pink beauty within. Her clitoris peeked out, almost ready. He swiped his tongue to catch the silky essence of her desire.

“Brax.” Her whisper, louder.

He could hear both disquiet and pleasure in her voice, and now he had a goal. Soon she would only feel pleasure. He continued to softly lick and listen to her breathless cries, and when one hand grasped his short hair and pushed down, triumph rushed through him. He circled her engorged clit with his tongue.

“It’s too much,” Jenny cried out.

It wasn’t nearly enough.

He continued with his torture until he sucked the little morsel into his mouth, reveling in the incoherent cries coming from his lover. He pierced her entrance with a finger, and she welcomed him with a tight, warm grasp and a high shriek of pleasure as she crashed into the peak of orgasm.

Brax got up and moved her so that they could lie side by side on the bed. He needed to hold his woman. Jenny cuddled closer. In his eagerness to pull her tight, he almost forgot about her injured ribs, but he stopped himself in time.

He loved her fast, soft breaths that tickled his chest hair. He stroked her pretty brown hair away from her face.

“Kiss me,” she murmured.

“I’ll taste like?—”

“I don’t care. I love us together. And anyway, I’m soon going to be tasting you,” she grinned.

Brax thought his cock might push through his zipper at the promise of Jenny’s pillow-soft lips sucking him to orgasm.

By the time they were done kissing, Jenny was squirming against him. She wrenched her head away from his, and her hand cupped his crotch. “Please tell me you have condoms.”

“I have condoms.”

“Thank God.”

He was done questioning this beautiful woman. Jenny knew what she wanted, and he damn sure knew what he wanted. He got up and went to the bathroom to grab protection, then he came back to find Jenny propped up on her elbows, watching him.

“Well?”

“I’ve got them.” He held up the packets, then tossed them on the nightstand.

“That’s not what I meant. When are you going to show me the goods, Sailor?”

Brax threw back his head and laughed. “Curious much?”

“Yep. Now strip.”

He was still chuckling when he shucked his jeans. He stood up straight and waited for her assessment. He didn’t have to wait long.

“And all along you call me beautiful? You’ve got it all wrong, Brax.”

Am I blushing?

He put one knee on the bed and both hands on either side of her head, trapping her. “We’re done with talking,” he said softly.

“I understand why you don’t want to talk. With so much of your blood supporting your erection, how can you possibly carry on a conversation?” Her eyes twinkled.

He dipped down and softly bit her bottom lip.

She grabbed at his head when he reared back.

“I want more kisses,” Jenny protested.

“And you’ll get some. First, I think your breasts need some attention.”

Brax tried to go slow. He did. He really did. But the moonlight gave her breasts a silver hue. First it had been gold, now silver. His woman was truly magical. He plumped up her right breast, then covered the swollen flesh with his mouth and sucked.

“Brax,” Jenny moaned.

He knew she was thrashing her head, because he could feel her hair hitting the arm that was still supporting him. He kept up with his torture, then added the scrape of his teeth. Soft. Gentle. Then a little rough.

Jenny screamed. “More.”

Brax was glad to provide.

What seemed like either a second or an eternity, he had to end their play. He needed more. When he looked up, he saw green eyes that mirrored his hunger and greed.

“Please say now. I can’t wait anymore,” Jenny begged.

He reached between her legs. She was drenched. She was ready.

“Now, beautiful. I promise, now.”

Brax tore open the condom and sheathed himself, conscious of Jenny’s avid gaze. As he positioned himself against her tender flesh he started to sweat.

Slow.

Slow.

She’d been so tight. He knew that this could be painful for her, no matter what she might have said.

“Stop fooling around,” she growled.

Damn. This woman. Is there any wonder that he adored her?

He watched her face as he pressed inward. All he saw was want. He pushed in farther and his whole body began to tingle as her tight warmth squeezed him. But no matter what, he had to keep his head, this was all about Jenny. He could see her gaze turn inward as she concentrated on the sensations happening inside her body.

“Okay?” he gritted out the question.

She nodded her head. “More.”

He pressed in another inch.

“I said more.” Her words had a definite bite to them.

He delved deeper, then her nails bit into his back, and her legs encircled his waist, and he knew that she was right there with him.

“This is so good, Braxton. So good.”

“It’s about to get better,” he promised.

He started a slow rhythm, still watching every expression that passed over her face. When she started to moan and tremble, he went faster…deeper…harder.

Jenny shouted out his name. “Brax, help me.”

“I’ve got you.”

“So close.”

And she was. He worked his hand between their bodies and brushed his thumb over her clit. She cried out. It wasn’t good enough. He needed relief, and so did she. Yeah, there was still a tiny bit of his brain able to concentrate on Jenny and her needs, but her beauty, want, and greed were like nothing he had ever experienced before. He knew that when he let go, he would never be the same.

“Brax,” she whimpered.

“I’ve got you,” he said again.

He pinched the slippery knot of nerves, and her arms, legs, and sheath clenched around him. He was lost. He drove deep and let out a shout that became her name. Over and over again his release pulsed, making him dizzy, scrambling his brain. It was only by sheer force of will that he stopped himself from falling on top of her. Instead, he rolled them so that he wouldn’t injure her ribs, as his empty head hit the pillows.

He didn’t know how long he stayed like that. His world distilled down to one thing. Jenny.

When the fog began to lift, he knew he needed a plan, because there was no way he was going to go through the rest of his life without her by his side.