Chapter 3
Chapter Three
“ R elationship?” Julia stammered.
Ross realized he’d made a grievous error. Julia was terrified of anything even resembling love or a serious relationship.
“Jules, honey,” he said, adopting a carefree tone, “I’m horny as hell for you. You’ve become an itch I’m dying to scratch. Can you honestly tell me you haven’t wondered how it would be—between us?” Desperate to end the conversation, Ross slowly let his hands wander back down to her hot pussy, prodding gently at her wet opening.
Julia’s eyes went wide as she struggled to continue their argument. The words died as he turned up the heat by leaning down to press his lips softly to hers. She moaned as his mouth skated over her lips and he continued his assault.
Breaking the kiss, he studied her until he was sure all her damned overanalyzing thoughts were swept away by the pressure of his hands on her body.
At a loss as to how to convince his shy angel to take a chance on him without feeling threatened, Ross took the coward’s way out. Rather than speaking, he let his hands do the talking.
Julia’s main problem in forming lasting relationships was her fear of losing someone she loved. Her parents’ untimely deaths had wrecked her emotionally. Without any other family or friends around her at the time, she’d had no anchor to cling to and so she had escaped into her own false reality.
Hiding behind her writing exacerbated the problem as she allowed the lives and romances of her characters to satisfy her socially. Pretending to be the heroine in her novels, she could flee the dangers a true liaison would involve. In her mind, love equated loss and after so many years alone, she seemed unwilling to take that risk again.
Of course, the cat dying hadn’t helped his cause either. The fresh loss of the beloved creature only served to magnify the pain of losing a loved one again.
The only way Ross could see himself forming a lasting relationship with her was by tricking her into it. If she thought he was only having sex with her to help her with her new book, she would be more willing to take the chance. And once he had her addicted to his touch and attention, it would be only a small step to getting her exactly where he wanted her—in his bed, home and life.
Permanently.
At least that was what he hoped.
When he felt her reaching the peak once again, he asked, “Haven’t you ever dreamed about this? About us?”
“You’ll laugh at me if I tell you about my dreams,” she replied breathlessly.
“Am I in them?”
Her sudden blush answered his question.
“Ah ha. Why the hell would I laugh at you? For fantasizing about me? Brown Eyes, that’s a compliment, not a joke.”
“Ross, I’m not exactly, you know.” She waved her damned hands around again as if that action should explain everything.
“No, I don’t know.”
“I’m not beautiful,” she said quickly, in her too-forthright fashion, unleashing all her fears on him at once. “My boobs are too big, my ass is lumpy, I’m carrying at least twenty pounds too many and I have no idea how to have an orgasm. What on earth could you possibly find desirable about any of that?”
Smiling, Ross bent down to kiss her adorable nose. “Your tits are gorgeous, your ass absolutely grabbable, I hate thin women, and I can teach you how to have an orgasm in about a minute and a half. Any other questions?”
“Is grabbable a word?” Some of her previous tension disappeared as she graced him with a shy smile.
“In regards to your delectable rear end, it should be. I’ll put in a call to Webster’s as soon as we get back to the city and make sure they include it in the next edition of the dictionary.”
“You really want me?” she asked again, clearly unable to believe his words.
“More than anything. Willing to give it a try?” His hands gripped her waist in a manner he was certain betrayed his need.
“Well, I suppose, in the interest of research, I could be persuaded. I have this unbelievably demanding editor who is insisting on an erotic novel.”
“Man sounds like a slave driver,” Ross joked, thrilled to be teasing a half-naked Jules in bed.
She laughed. “Well, with any luck he is.”
Ross’s cock rose another three inches. “Talk about tugging on the tiger’s tail. Are we finished talking now?”
“Yes, we’re finished talking.” She snuggled closer to him.
“There’s this saying that comes to mind.” Ross lifted Julia and placed her on her back in the center of the bed.
“What saying?” Julia asked breathlessly.
“Start as you intend to finish.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means, get ready, Brown Eyes, because I’ve had ten years to think of all the ways I want to take you and I intend to try every one of them before we leave this cabin.”
“Oh my,” she answered breathlessly as Ross leaned over to claim her lips again in his possessive kiss.
Nipping lightly on her lower lip, he pushed his tongue into her mouth forcefully, showing her in no uncertain means how he intended to have her.
Fast and hard.
He paused briefly to lift her T-shirt over her head and watched Julia blush all the way up from her toes. She looked sexy as hell, lying beneath him, totally naked while he was still fully dressed.
“No bra?” he asked, his fingers skimming the tops of her breasts.
“I wasn’t expecting company.” Her breath caught on the words as Ross bent and took one nipple into his mouth.
“I like knowing you’re naked underneath your clothes. Ready for me.” He lightly bit the sensitive bud and was pleased by the moan that escaped her lips.
“Oh my God,” Julia muttered again as Ross laughed.
“I think I’d prefer ‘Oh my master’, but whatever works for you,” he teased, pulling away to kneel beside her.
Julia flushed once again at his close scrutiny. She lifted her arms slightly to cover her body with her hands before apparently changing her mind and lowering them again. He loved all of her many facets—innocence wrapped in a sexy package, shyness mixed with just enough minx, and curiosity overwhelmed by full-blown desire. Her brown eyes asked questions his body couldn’t wait to answer.
Suddenly the intensity of the moment seemed to catch up to her and he watched as she attempted to stifle a giggle.
Grinning, Ross asked, “What’s so funny?” as laughter shook her body.
“I’m sorry,” Julia said after a few moments, gasping for breath as her laughter became even more unrestrained. “I can’t believe we’re actually doing this.”
“Why not?” Ross was pleased to see her so happy. He loved Julia’s sense of fun and having her laughing in his arms, nude in his bed, was probably as close to heaven as he’d ever been.
“It just seems so strange. I mean, it’s us.”
“Us?”
“You and me, us ,” she answered as if her explanation made perfect sense. “I mean, I’m lying naked in bed with you. You’re my editor, for God’s sake. My best friend and self-appointed big brother. We’ve known each other forever and a day and, I don’t know—” she stumbled, struggling to find the right words, “—I suppose I never really thought we’d do something like this.”
“Never?” Ross asked suspiciously. He’d caught his shy little writer casting glances at him before when she thought his back was turned. He refused to believe this attraction of his was totally one-sided.
“Well,” Julia began, a fresh blush staining her lovely cheeks, “I mean, I wondered what it would be like.”
“Just wondered?” Ross teased. “What about those hot fantasies?”
“Ross.” Julia playfully slugged him on the shoulder. “You’re my editor. That would hardly be professional.”
“Oh, Jules, I can assure you nothing I plan to do to you tonight is going to be professional. It’s going to be hot and raw, rough and passionate—and extremely unprofessional.”
Squirming at his heated words, Julia reached up to pull him to her for a kiss, but Ross resisted.
“Not yet, Brown Eyes.” Rising from the bed, and without breaking eye contact, he slowly pulled his T-shirt over his head. His erection grew as Julia licked her lips. He couldn’t wait to wrap his arms around her, claim her as his own. She glanced down at her own body, then her hand stole out to the blanket at the foot of the bed, no doubt to cover herself.
Sensing her worries, Ross leaned over the bed, drawing his hand down her side, gripping her hip lightly. “You’re beautiful,” he murmured. Her eyes lit up at his words—and he saw her begin to accept the sincerity of his feelings. “I’ve never seen a lovelier woman.”
Rising again, he quickly shed his sweatpants, revealing the fact he was also lacking undergarments. The erection Julia had studied so intently by the fire, no longer concealed by thin boxer shorts, stood erect from a mass of springy curls.
Worry lines creased her forehead as he bent to kiss her again.
“Don’t worry,” he whispered against her cheek. “We’ll go slow the first time. I know it’s been a long time for you. I won’t hurt you.”
“Ross,” Julia started, her voice thick with desire, but before she could say more, Ross swallowed her words with his own lips upon hers. His hands worshipped her in time with the movement of his mouth, caressing her everywhere. No part of her body was safe from his exploration.
“I want you,” he growled, as he took her bottom lip between his teeth. “Open your legs, Jules. Show me how much you want me.”
Parting her legs, she gasped as Ross firmly gripped her knees, separating them even farther. Moving his hands up her inner thighs, he circled her swollen bud once more, slowly increasing the pressure.
Each time he brought her to the precipice, he’d pull back, leaving her begging for something more, something he knew she couldn’t understand or anticipate, something she’d never experienced before. Ross felt his alpha male come to the forefront as he relished the thought of giving her her first orgasm. He intended to make it one she would never forget.
Each time he sensed her imminent explosion, he backed off, denying her her release. He continued to torment her until she pounded her fists on his chest.
“Now!” She yelled the word at him and Ross could see in her face she would not be refused again. “Now, damn you!”
In response to her demand, Ross plunged two fingers into her pussy while his thumb increased the pressure on her clit. The extra stimulation did the trick and Julia fell over the cliff, her scream music to his ears.
Gasping for breath, he watched as she slowly came back to herself on the bed, her gaze drowsy and relaxed when it finally landed on him lying fully beside her. Never before had he felt such closeness to a woman and he hadn’t even found his own release yet.
Julia was a gem, a priceless treasure to be cherished and adored.
“That was longer than a minute and a half.” Her words were spoken with a breathless chuckle.
“Complaining? Because I could make you suffer even longer next time, Jules. In fact, I plan to.”
“No! You nearly killed me.”
“Ah,” he replied, “but what a way to go.”
Reaching up, she bestowed such a gentle, sweet kiss on his lips that Ross felt tears well in his eyes.
“I like being your first,” he whispered, his lips making their way down her throat, toward her breasts. “So many firsts,” he mumbled, sucking her nipple fully into his mouth. “So many things to teach you.” Increasing the pressure of his lips, he slowly slid his hand back between her legs.
“Ross,” she said breathlessly, “I want you so much.”
“Soon, Brown Eyes,” he replied. “Very soon.”
His fingers found their destination, circling the entrance to her body. Finding her wet heat, he groaned with pleasure against her breast. Sliding two fingers into her, he was aware that the intensity of his touch was driving her ever closer to yet another orgasm.
“Now,” she repeated and Ross grinned to himself. His sweet little innocent was turning into a serious wildcat in bed. He relished her demands and found himself caught up in the heat of the moment as well.
Adding another finger to the first two, Ross concentrated on stretching her. She was tight as a virgin and it was bound to be a bit painful for her in spite of his attempts to ease her. She arched her back as his fingers moved in and out of her with increasing speed. He relished the feeling of her body pushing toward his movements.
“More.” She tugged at his wrist, apparently desperate to feel his cock inside her and not just his fingers. “Please, I need you. Now.”
“Dammit, Jules. You’re too tight. We have to take this slow.”
“No. I can’t wait anymore,” she cried. “Now. Ross, now!”
“Damn you.” Crawling over her, he placed his erection at her opening. He’d entered only a fraction of an inch before freezing.
“Condom,” he muttered, amazed at how close he was to entering her without protection. He’d never lost his head so completely. He’d also never had sex without a rubber.
“Now,” she cried. “God, Ross, please. It’s okay.”
Her answer caught him off guard. There was nothing he wanted so much as to take her right then, skin to skin. However, one of them needed to keep a level head.
Indecision kept him still, the head of his cock just inside her, the desire to slam into her so overpowering he felt light-headed. Passion was clearly winning, overriding common sense.
Gritting his teeth, he started to pull out, but Julia quickly wrapped her legs around his waist, tight as a vise.
“Jules,” he panted, grasping at one last attempt at sanity.
“Now,” she whispered, her legs holding him locked in place. “I want to feel you. Only you.”
The battle lost, Ross gave in, his craving to feel her without the obstruction of a condom obliterating his own willpower.
In spite of her desperate pleas and the tightening of her thighs about him, Ross reined in his need enough to slow his entrance. Every nerve in his body demanded release and it was all he could do not to pound into her tight, hot body in one hard thrust.
Each inch he penetrated was pure torture—heaven and hell combined. Her strained, panting breaths didn’t penetrate his consciousness until he finally filled her completely. Sweat dripped from his brow onto her cheek as he hissed, “Does it hurt?”
“Yes,” she cried, through clenched teeth. “Move. I need more.”
Ross felt the demons he’d kept at bay until now released full force. With only a short retreat, he returned to fully impale her to the hilt. He stopped at the sound of her screams, worried he’d harmed her before realizing she was coming again with a strength he’d never thought possible. The power of her orgasm drove him over the edge, milking the come from his cock with an almost-painful grip.
“Jesus,” he groaned, amazed by his sudden loss of control.
He prided himself on being a man who could ride a woman all night, but his brown-eyed girl had driven him to orgasm with just one thrust. Something that hadn’t happened to him since he was a damned teenager.
Then another truth hit him like a brick to the head, reality plummeting him to earth. He’d intended to pull out before he came.
“Oh hell, angel,” he muttered. “No condom. Jules, please tell me you’re on the Pill.”
When she didn’t reply right away, he continued, “I’m so sorry. I’ve never had unprotected sex before, Jules. Christ, I can’t believe I didn’t use a condom. I’ll take care of you, sweetheart. I swear it. No matter what happens I will always take care of you.”
“Ross,” she said, interrupting his self-deprecation, “it’s okay. I’m on the Pill.”
“You are?”
“Yes,” she answered, clearly embarrassed by the conversation. “My, um, periods are pretty painful—cramps and all that. My doctor suggested birth-control pills. She said they would help and, well, they have.” Just when Ross thought she couldn’t flush any deeper, she proved him wrong. After what they’d just experienced together, he was floored by the fact she could still turn deep red by simply saying the word “period” to him.
“Christ, Brown Eyes, you’re killing me.”
“I am?” she asked quietly, still unable to meet his eyes.
“Look at me.” He tilted her face up to his. “I’m glad you’re on the Pill, but I still owe you an apology. I’m the more experienced partner here and I put you at risk. I swear to you I’m clean.”
“Ross,” Julia interrupted, “it’s not like I gave you much choice.”
“Still, I’ve never been so careless…or so quick. I haven’t come that fast since I was fifteen,” he added, shaking his head in disbelief.
Julia laughed. “Must be me,” she teased. “I’m so irresistible, you know.”
“Is that right? You should have warned me.” He tickled her as she giggled uncontrollably. “All right, woman,” he said, “it’s time to get serious. We have research to do.”
“Research,” she repeated with mock seriousness. “How could I forget? What did you have in mind?” Her deep brown eyes sparkled in the firelight.
With the sheet pulled loosely around her and her long hair in disarray on the pillow, Ross could only stare—stunned speechless, taken aback by her tousled, well-loved look. His best friend had never looked so beautiful or so eager.
“What?” she asked coyly.
“You really are irresistible,” he said, the words escaping his lips without a thought.
She rolled her eyes, but her genuine smile betrayed her pleasure at his words. “I was kidding, Ross.”
Shaking his head, Ross reached for her, unable to resist her girlish delight at his simple praise. She was obviously starved for appreciation and attention and he fully intended to rectify that oversight, starting tonight.
However, his unintentional slips were going to give him away before he was ready to reveal his true feelings. He needed to carefully guard his intentions. Julia needed time. Time to become accustomed to having him in her bed as a lover as well as in her life as a friend.
“Up,” he ordered, pointing toward the bathroom. “Time for another first.”
“Oh?”
“That is unless you’ve already been skinny-dipping in a Jacuzzi with an editor with a gigantic hard-on.”
Tapping her lips with one finger, Julia looked as if she were trying to recollect such an event. “Hmm.” Ticking off the list on her fingers, she asked, “Skinny-dipping, Jacuzzi and horny editor—all of them together, not separate, right?”
“Let me put it this way, Brown Eyes,” Ross said, hands on his hips as he glared down at her from the side of the bed. “I find I enjoy being your first in all things, editorially and sexually, so maybe you shouldn’t try too hard to remember.”
“Oh.” Julia giggled. “So I should let you play caveman while I pretend to be a chaste virgin and let you do all sorts of unspeakable things to me?”
“Now you’re getting it.” Reaching down, he picked her up.
“Ross,” she cried, swatting at him, “put me down. You’ll hurt yourself.”
“Jules,” Ross berated, “if you make one more ridiculous comment about your weight, I’ll turn you over my knee again. I bench press more than you’ll ever weigh at the gym every day.”
“But—”
“No buts,” he interrupted, carrying her across the room to the bathroom. “Time for a nice hot soak. You must be sore.”
“Not really.” She squirmed slightly. He sensed she was still uncomfortable with her nudity in his presence. He also suspected she was feeling painful twinges in unfamiliar places. A long, hot bath was just what she needed.
As he set her down, she reached for a towel, only to have him lightly swat her hand away.
“No,” he said firmly. “No hiding. Not from me, not here. I like looking at you.”
“I like looking at you too.”
At her words, his already-rejuvenating erection rose to nearly full mast. Once the tub was filled, Ross added some soaking salts and turned on the jets before lifting Julia over the rim to place her on one of the benches.
“Ah,” she breathed, sliding down deeper in the hot water, “this is heavenly.”
Joining her, Ross had to agree.
After years of friendship, the two were able to sit in companionable silence without feeling uncomfortable.
Ross watched as Julia’s peaceful face lost some of its relaxed bliss. Her eyebrows lowered and the crease that often came between them when she was tense or worried made an appearance.
That didn’t take long.
He had expected her to begin to question the wisdom of their actions long before now. He forced himself to let her form her questions and concerns. He was ready to set her mind at ease. He’d plotted for weeks about this adventure and he was determined to have his own way.
Ross was going to overcome her fear of loss to conquer her heart and claim it as his own.
This was the battle of his life.
Ross had no intention of surrendering or retreating. Before they left this cabin, it was her white flag he expected to see on the horizon.
Trying to appear relaxed, Ross closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the edge of the tub. He didn’t have long to wait.
“What happens when we leave here?” she asked.
Ross opened his eyes, but didn’t lift his head. “Here?”
“The cabin.”
“What do you want to happen?” he asked, throwing the ball back into her court.
“I—I don’t know,” she stuttered. No doubt she was shocked he was leaving it up to her. He rarely gave a woman the upper hand in his liasons and Julia knew it.
“I mean, I can’t live without you as my editor or my friend,” she continued. “If what we’re doing here is going to jeopardize that, I want to stop right now.”
“I will always be your friend, I promise you that, but I have every intention of riding this train to the end. There will be no stopping along the way for cold feet.”
“Ross, we’re both adults. You know as well as I do sex changes things, complicates them. I know the relationships you’ve had, especially lately, are fairly casual, but even you have to admit, when they ended, everything ended. You don’t see any of your ex-girlfriends, period—not as friends, not even as acquaintances. I don’t want this to continue if we can’t go back to the way things were. I would hate not having you in my life anymore.”
“What we do here isn’t going to affect our friendship. I’m not sure when you started seeing me as such a heartless prick, but you must know after all these years I’d rather cut off my left arm than hurt you. Besides, there is one major difference between you and the other women in my past that you seem to keep forgetting.”
“What’s that?” Julia asked, attempting to move away from him on the bench.
Ross halted her escape by wrapping his arm around her shoulder and pulling her toward him.
He grinned as he recalled her earlier comments. “What did you call them?” he asked. “Oh yeah, the Miss America brigade.”
She rolled her eyes.
“I wasn’t best friends with any of them. Hell, I wasn’t even friends with them.”
“That doesn’t seem like something to brag about.”
Her dry words were so familiar, Ross laughed.
“Besides, you’re forgetting something important.”
“What’s that?” she asked.
“We’ve already done the deed, Brown Eyes, and there’s no taking it back.”
Sighing, she leaned against his arm and he felt some of the tension leave her.
Testing the water, he added, “Are you saying you would want to see this evolve into a real relationship?”
His answer was painfully apparent as Julia blanched.
“R-real relationship?” She glanced away from him. “Don’t be silly.”
Well, he couldn’t blame her for not wanting to rush into a relationship with a confirmed bachelor such as himself.
Clearly, he had a lot of work to do to convince Julia he was sincere. While he considered their long-term friendship a blessing, he’d be a fool not to realize it was a detriment as well. Julia knew him better than anyone in the world—his parents included.
Which meant she knew that nowadays he never stayed with the same woman for more than a month. His last long-term relationship had been with Bridget and that ended over four years ago.
“Relax, Jules,” he said quickly. “I know how you feel about relationships. That’s not what I’m pushing for.” The lie tasted bitter on his tongue and his temper flared briefly at her obvious relief.
“So, we’ll just go back to being friends after this,” she said without question, as if trying to picture the end of this brief romantic interlude in a few days when the snow began to melt.
Unwilling to risk putting a deadline on the most incredible sex of his life, Ross shook his head. “Sweetheart, the barn door is open and the cow’s not coming back. You can’t expect to give me only a sample of all the sweetness you have to offer and then not allow me to gorge myself at the feast.”
“Good God.” Julia laughed. “I have no idea what you just said.”
Ross joined in her laughter. “I’m not finished fucking you yet.”
Julia winced at his crude comment. “So that’s what this is? Fucking?”
Reaching out, Ross pulled her over to him, positioning her legs on either side of his hips until she was straddling him. Placing his erection at her opening, he gently prodded before adding enigmatically, “Researching.”
With that, he placed his lips over hers, indulging in the most sensuous kiss of his life. With his lips and tongue, he gave her everything he had to give, slowly sliding into her tight, hot pussy until he reached the hilt. With firm hands on her hips, he lightly lifted her up, and then pulled her back down, setting a slow, easy pace.
“Ride me, Brown Eyes,” he whispered against her moist cheek, the heat of their joining combining with the strong jets of water powerfully enough to create a tidal wave of passion.
Increasing the speed, Julia amazed him as she took control of the trip, clinging tightly to him with her knees on his hips and her arms on his shoulders. Frantic to reach her peak, she set a grueling pace that left Ross desperate to hang on.
Julia’s passionate nature was constantly astounding him, taking him unaware and leaving him reeling in the wake.
“Ross,” she cried, her orgasm fast approaching. Leaning over, she kissed him, nipping his bottom lip, drawing blood, as her climax shook her entire body. “Oh God.”
Losing himself in the strength of her powerful convulsions, Ross gave himself up to his second climax in an hour.
How had he spent ten years in this woman’s presence and failed to notice the tigress caged beneath the surface?
Julia placed her head on his shoulder and Ross felt her slipping into sleep. Tucking her more tightly against him, he lifted her from the water. He reached for a towel, then carried her back to the bed and placed her in the middle to gently dry her off.
Exhausted from her exertions, Julia never stirred. Once she was dry, he climbed in beside her, wrapping her up in the soft blanket and his arms.
“Sleep well, Brown Eyes,” he whispered as sleep came to claim him as well.