Chapter 26
26
Zara’s eyes flew open when she heard footsteps walking on the pier. Since she was outside on the porch, she wouldn’t have heard the buzzer alerting her that someone had gained access to Pelican Bay. After going for a swim, she’d stretched out in one of the chaise lounges to take a nap. The way the cottage was built, you had a good view of the bay and the pier regardless of whether you were on the front porch or the back.
Trying to focus with her sleepy eyes, her heart rate kicked up a notch when she saw the man walking across the pier was Saint. They had talked that morning and he’d mentioned he would see her later. However, later for him usually meant after eight since he was helping his father repair a boat dock after work.
She checked her watch. It wasn’t even two o’clock yet. Was he taking a late lunch? Pulling herself up to a sitting position she couldn’t help but smile as he got closer. As usual, she saw just how handsome he was.
When he reached the porch, he took the steps and came over to her, leaned down and gave her what she thought was a kiss that could fill a woman’s mind with all kinds of salacious thoughts. He might be called Saint but when it came to kissing and lovemaking, there wasn’t a single saintlike thing about him. Some of the things he’d introduced her to in the bedroom bordered on sinful, but so dang pleasurable.
She had barely released a purr when he broke off the kiss. She couldn’t help licking her lips, wanting more of his taste. “You’ve been swimming?” he asked.
“Yes, I decided to take a swim and then I fell asleep.” No need to tell him he had occupied her dreams during that time. To wake up and see him crossing the pier had been like a dream come true. “Your visit this time of day is a surprise.”
“I couldn’t get much work done for thinking about you. So here I am,” he said.
His words made her feel good inside. “You came here for lunch? You should have called me. I would have whipped you up a mean sandwich.”
He was amused. “How mean?”
“Peanut butter and jelly mean.”
He leaned in and swiped a kiss across her lips. “Thanks, but I had something to eat already. We had a two-hour meeting and Vaughn ordered in lunch.”
“That was kind of him.”
“We all thought so. Since I finished with all my appointments for today, I decided to leave work early. So here I am.”
The thought that he came to Pelican Bay after leaving work swelled her heart. “And I’m glad to see you.”
He sat in the chaise lounge across from her. “How did the surprise bridal brunch go?”
She’d mentioned to him yesterday that Donna Elloran was hosting the event for Velvet. “Velvet was surprised, and the brunch was only attended by her closest friends here in the cove. It was nice. She had pictures of her wedding dress. It’s beautiful and I can’t wait to see her in it.”
“I bet Jaye can’t wait to see her in it, too.”
Zara smiled, knowing that was true. “So, Mr. Toussaint. Why were you thinking of me today?”
“I always think about you, Zara.”
Her heart pounded in her chest, while thinking he was definitely laying on the kindness rather thick. But then, that was Saint for you. Another thing she was noticing was how he kept looking at the bathing suit she was wearing. It was a little more daring than the ones she’d worn before when they’d gone swimming together. It was a two-piece, but it was one of those barely there thong styles. Definitely not something she’d wear out in public, but she had no problem wearing it privately for Saint. And from the way he was looking at her, he obviously liked what he saw.
“Have I ever told you how much I like your tattoo?”
She grinned. “You’ve told me a number of times.” No need to remind him of the times he’d kissed and licked it. That pelican above her navel had gotten a lot of attention from Saint.
“I’ve been thinking about you a lot, too,” she admitted truthfully.
“You have?”
Zara thought he actually sounded surprised. “Yes, I have. In fact, I have something to tell you.”
“What?”
She pulled up into a sitting position. “I took your advice, Saint.”
He tilted his head. “My advice about what?”
“That vacant building in town. I bought it.”
Zara’s words had Saint inhaling deeply. It wasn’t just the thought that she’d taken his advice that was affecting him, but the implications of her doing so. However, he might be assuming those implications. The last thing he needed was to get his hopes up about anything.
She was staring at him expectantly, and he suddenly realized he hadn’t commented on what she’d said. She had to be wondering why. “I didn’t think you would do it, Zara. Congratulations.”
She shrugged those sexy shoulders he loved touching and licking all over. “Thanks. I wasn’t going to but the more I thought about it, the more I knew that you were right. Buying it would be a great opportunity.”
“Will it be modeled as the shop in your painting?”
He saw the excitement in her eyes when she said, “Yes. Eventually.”
Now for the real question he needed her to answer. “That means you’ll be coming back to Catalina Cove more often, right?”
Instead of answering she tilted her head and held his gaze for a moment. She asked, “Does the thought of that bother you, Saint?”
“Why would it?” he asked, knowing, however, it probably would. She would be yet another woman he’d fallen in love with who would never want to settle down into marriage.
“I would think you’d have gotten on with your life, and my appearance might throw our affair and subsequent breakup back into the spotlight. You know how some people like to stir things up anew,” she said.
Yes, he did know. Wasn’t it just a few days ago that he’d appreciated his mother for not bringing Mia’s name up? He’d reacted too soon. She had mentioned her that very morning. Letting him know that job Mia had taken in Florida three years ago had recently been the casualty of bankruptcy...as if he cared one iota.
Again, he noted Zara was waiting for him to respond, so he said, “Let them stir things up all they want. I can handle it.”
He would leave it at that. There was no way he would say what he normally would say regarding his thoughts about jumping back into a serious relationship with a woman. That it wouldn’t be happening because he wasn’t interested. He now knew he would be interested if the woman was Zara. He would entertain a serious relationship with her at any time. He loved her.
He knew he couldn’t tell her that. She’d told him how she’d felt about commitment countless times. She wasn’t interested. If nothing else, Mia had taught him to take a woman at her word about what she would and would not do.
Deciding this topic of conversation was over, he let his gaze roam all over her. “I like your swimsuit. It’s a good thing you’re on a private island and not at the beach.”
She glanced down at herself. “You think this is a little too much for the beach?”
“No. I think it’s a lot too less for the beach. However, it looks great on you.” He thought that was an understatement. She looked gorgeous in all the bathing suits he’d seen her in.
“Thanks. You want to go swimming?”
Since he spent a lot of time at the cottage, he kept a pair of swim trunks here. “Swimming sounds nice, but I’d rather do something else.”
He knew she had an idea just what that something else was. “So, what do you think about that, Zara Miller?”
Getting up from the chaise lounge, she walked over to him. He stood as well and snaked his arms around her waist. She tilted her head back to look up at him, and at that moment he knew letting her leave would be the hardest thing he ever had to do.
Leaning down he captured her lips with his. There was nothing gentle about this kiss, deliberately so. He wanted her to feel the same degree of heat that was simmering through him. He wanted her heart to pound and accelerate like his was doing. He wanted desire to take control of her mind and senses like it was with his. But more than anything, he hoped like hell she felt something other than passion in this kiss. He wanted her to feel all the love he was trying to keep under wraps because he knew to unleash it would mean nothing but another heartbreak. He wasn’t ready for another woman to tell him she wasn’t ready to accept the love he had to offer her.
By the time he finally broke off the kiss, her arms were wrapped around his neck and her body was plastered to his. “Saint...”
“Hmm?” he asked, using the tip of his tongue to lick around her mouth.
“I... I...”
He lifted his head to gaze deep into the captivating hazel color of her eyes. “Yes, sweetheart? You what?”
“I want you.”
He smiled at her. “And I want you, too.” Then he swept her into his arms and carried her into the house.
The moment Zara’s back touched the bed Saint kissed her again. Instinctively, her mouth began mating greedily with his. His kiss was unapologetic and provocative, with a wildness in his taste that made her head reel. He deepened the pressure with those strong, hard, sexy lips, exploring her mouth for all it was worth. Not only did she groan, she also began shuddering from head to toe. He didn’t merely kiss her, he made love to her mouth with toe-curling determination and deep possessiveness.
He released her mouth and slid out of bed to begin undressing. She couldn’t help but give him an appreciative smile because she loved it when he stripped for her. He removed each garment slowly and seductively, and she licked her lips and watched him.
Zara knew he got turned on knowing she was getting an eyeful of everything. While watching her watch him, he removed his shirt and his chest expanded as his breathing grew just as erratic as hers.
It still mystified her just how strong the sexual chemistry between them continued to be. Everything about him could turn her on. His look, his touch and even the sound of his voice. Whenever she was with him, she felt pure raw desire that both aroused her body sexually and stirred her mind. And now it mesmerized her heart. She’d even come close to confessing her love for him a short while ago on the porch. That slipup meant she needed to have more control of her emotions.
Which was easier said than done. When he stood before her completely naked, she felt a hypnotic pull to him and stood up from the bed. Now it was his time to watch her undress. It wouldn’t take long since she was in her two-piece swimsuit. However, she felt naughty and decided to make it worth his while.
She knew how much he liked her breasts, so she took her time undoing the top. The deep look of desire in his eyes was beginning to affect her nerve endings. Especially those connected to her nipples. It didn’t take much to remember the way he would lick them, like they were the tastiest treat he’d ever had. From the way he was looking at her exposed breasts, she had a feeling he was thinking the same thing now.
Tossing the top aside, she adjusted her body to slide the bottom portion of the swimsuit down her legs. There was nothing to it and she tossed it aside to join the top. Saint barely gave her time to readjust her body on the bed when he swooped his mouth down on hers like a starving man. Like all his kisses, she felt his wants and desires. More than anything, she wished, oh, how she wished, she could feel his love. But he’d told her more than once that love no longer had a place in his heart. She had felt the same way, but he had changed her mind. What was the chance of her changing his? Could she?
All thoughts were vanquished from her mind when he broke off the kiss to trace a path of kisses from her neck and down her chest toward her breasts. Her nipples hardened in response and the second he slid one between his lips, she heard him emit a deep guttural sound from his throat.
She figured that he intended to drive her over the edge when his hand lowered between her legs and a finger eased inside her. She groaned from the stroking and massaging that finger was doing to her, filling her with wants and needs that matched his own. He suddenly lifted his head to stare at her and the intensity in the depths of his gaze immobilized her. She saw passion in his eyes, but there was something else there, too. A look she’d never seen before.
Before she could figure out if she was actually seeing something or imagining it, he lifted her legs to wrap them around his neck and buried his head between her thighs.
“Saint...”
It flashed across her mind that maybe she should start calling him Sinner. What he was doing to her, and the way he was making her feel, had to be bad. But then she decided it felt too good to be bad. His tongue, she decided, should be outlawed.
A jolt of something sensual shot through her when the tip of his tongue began making wiggly motions with incredible intensity that made her scream out her pleasure. He ignored her scream and continued his assault.
“Saint!”
She screamed again when another orgasm struck. Only from this man could she receive maximum pleasure and be consumed with so much desire. When he finished, he moved up her body and latched his mouth to hers. She could taste herself on his tongue. That made her come again.
“Saint...please.” And she was still moaning for more.
“I intend to give you everything you want, baby,” he whispered as he spread her legs apart and positioned himself between them.
Before she could draw her next breath, he slid inside her and began thrusting deeply. Gripping his shoulders, she held on tight, knowing he intended to give her the ride of her life. They mated with an intensity that had her groaning and him growling. It was as if this connection was meant to last forever, and neither could get enough.
He pumped harder and she grinded against him, refusing to miss a beat. She needed this. She wanted it and she loved him. When she left Catalina Cove, the memories were all she would have, and she intended to store up as many of them as she could.
As her body continued to experience the most potent and powerful ecstasy imaginable, she knew giving him up when she returned to Boston would be the hardest thing she’d ever have to do.