“Exactly,” she agreed. “You’re crazy, and I must be, too.”
His hands cupped her bottom, drew her close against his hard frame, his face buried in the hollow of her shoulder as he savored the moment. He would never forget how he felt, how she looked, so wild and beautiful in the storm, and her complete acceptance of him with his shattered mind and leashed demons. “This will never go away, Shea, what we feel for one another. It never goes away. It gets stronger with each century. You never have to worry about losing this intensity.”
He felt her smile against his bare skin, the small kiss she pressed into his chest. “I might not survive. I’m not sure I can stand up on my own.”
“I can help you with that.” There was a teasing, insinuating note in his voice, and she felt him press her closer, felt him thicken and harden against her stomach.
“You really are crazy. I hate to be a wet blanket, but it’s raining all over us.” She was laughing as she protested, her body moving subtly against his, unable to believe they could possibly do more than cling to one another after such a wild encounter.
He turned her so that she was against the tree, his large frame shielding her from the driving rain. Jacques’ palms cupped her face, and he bent his head to hers, his mouth tender, loving, as he kissed her slightly swollen mouth. “I will never get enough of you, not if we live centuries.” His palms moved over her breasts possessively down her flat stomach to rest there, fingers splayed wide. “I cannot wait to feel our child growing within you.” His eyes darkened to black ice. “I never thought I could share you with anyone, but the thought of our child makes me want you even more.”
“Slow down, wild man, I think we need to get to know one another better first. We’re a couple of emotional cripples, and that doesn’t make for great parenting.”
He laughed softly against her mouth before he kissed her again. “I know what is in your mind and heart, little one. It is not so scary for me anymore. Once you make up your mind, you stick to it like glue. It is what makes you such a good researcher.”
“Don’t think you’re going to get around me with sex. Just as you were in my mind, I was in yours. Don’t think I didn’t notice your tendency to want to dominate.”
His hands were delving into shadows and hollows, finding all kinds of secret, sensitive places. His mouth slid down her throat, a bunting trail as he lapped up the water until he came to her breasts. “You do not think sex is a good idea in these situations?” His tongue swirled over her nipple; his teeth scraped lovingly along the contour of the creamy swell, followed it into the valley over her heart. “But you taste so good.” His hand cupped springy curls, pushed against moist heat before his fingers tested the fire in her waiting sheath. “And you feel so good.”
“You are so crazy,” She couldn’t help but laugh, pushing against his hand, using her own to stroke and caress and arouse him further. “I swear, Jacques, neither of us is going to be able to stand.” She should have felt the cold, but the rain only added to the erotic moment, feeding the intensity of the flames growing between them.
Laughing, happy, Jacques backed her toward a fallen log, turning her around so that she faced away from him. Placing her hands on the moss-covered log for stability, he bent her forward so that he could place a kiss at the base of her spine. The light brush sent a shiver of excitement spiraling through her, a shudder of pleasure as his fingers assured him she was ready for him.
Catching her slender hips in his large hands, Jacques paused for a moment, marveling at the perfection of a woman’s body, Shea’s body. Her bottom was round and firm, well-muscled and inviting. “You are so beautiful, Shea, unbelievably beautiful.” He pushed against her, prolonging the moment of entrance, watching the rain slide down her pale satin skin to meet the hard length of him.