The Right Choice(33)
Author: Carly Phillips

He winked and she tossed a paper napkin at him. “Chicken,” he teased.

“Maybe.” She shrugged and began clearing the table. With his help, Carly collected the plates and extra food and carried everything into the kitchen. She looked at the pile of dishes in the sink and sighed. “The perils of eating in.”

“Now that everything’s inside, can cleanup wait?” he asked.

“I guess so. Why?”

“You up for a walk on the beach?” Mike extended one hand, silently asking her to meet him halfway. They might take that stroll on the beach, but he wanted much more. He had little doubt she knew exactly how much.

Her brown eyes narrowed. He hoped she was searching her heart.

“As long as I don’t end up rolling in sand again.” Her full lips turned upward in a provocative grin. “It took me forever to get the sand out of my shorts.”

“Okay. I promise you won’t roll around in the sand.” He met her gentle gaze. “But I can’t promise you won’t be rolling around somewhere… more comfortable.”

He scanned her face for some positive sign. She smiled and placed her hand in his.

“I always had doubts about that beach scene in From Here to Eternity.” She gave an exaggerated shudder. “All that sand and water. Hard to imagine how they maneuvered.” She wrapped her fingers around his. “I’ll bet there are plenty of rooms in this house that can accommodate us.”

“Are you sure?” he asked.

She nodded. “I’m sure.” From the hungry look in her eyes, he knew the walk on the beach would have to wait.

EIGHT

With her nerves stretched to the breaking point, Carly followed him into the bedroom in the back of the house. She gazed at the king-sized water bed in awe and trepidation. “This is incredible.”

“Next best thing to the beach.” Mike released her hand long enough to shut the bedside lamp.

With the shades open and the sun still in the process of setting, the room was cast into a dusky glow. Her gaze took in the unfamiliar space. Suddenly she was all too aware of the large bed.

“Did I give you too much time to think?” he asked, approaching her from behind. His hands brushed her hair off her shoulders as he placed a soft kiss on her neck.

She trembled and closed her eyes, heightening the pleasurable sensation. “Maybe.”

The sound of his retreating footsteps was followed by the crush of leather as he sunk into the beanbag chair in the corner. Silence surrounded them, but she wasn’t inclined to break it, not yet. She needed these precious minutes and he seemed to understand. She pushed back the hair from her face.

If she hadn’t slept with her fiancé, why would she contemplate making love with Mike? She thought of his laugh, his smile, and the way he knew how to listen, then retreat without saying too much. He seemed to respect her feelings, even if he didn’t comprehend the reasons behind them.

In the ensuing silence, she forced her mind to function, and the conclusions she reached were staggering. If she wasn’t in love with him, she was well on her way. She knew the damage emotional involvement could cause, had avoided it this long. Especially with a man like him. So what now?

She swallowed hard and turned. In the shadows, she made out his masculine form reclining on the floor. A seagull screeched in the distance. Mike reached one hand toward her and waited.

She padded across the hardwood floor and stopped in front of him.

“I want you to know what you’re getting into,” he said.

Somewhere during the past few minutes her decision had been made. “I do,” she whispered. They’d been moving toward this moment from the beginning. The outcome was as inevitable as the changing tide. She only hoped they didn’t destroy each other in the process.

“I can’t make any prom…”

She covered his lips with one finger. “I know.”

Looking into her dark eyes, Mike believed her. The knowledge should have lifted an otherwise heavy burden. It didn’t. What did he want from her? he wondered. Better yet, what could she expect from him? He hoped it wasn’t more than he could give.

“Carly?”

She wet her lips. “Have you ever made love on a water bed before?” she asked in a husky voice.

Her velvety words wrapped themselves around him. She had apparently made peace with herself, leaving her reservations along with her inhibitions behind.

He shook his head in response.

“A first for both of us, then.” She smiled and placed her hand in his. “I’m glad.” After shifting her skirt, she knelt beside him and pulled him up from his seat on the floor.

He allowed himself to be led, only until he’d reached a standing position. Then he backed her toward the large bed that beckoned to them. When her calves reached the platform, he stopped and encircled her waist with his hands.

She smiled and lifted his shirt, her soft hands linking behind his back. He dipped his head toward her, but she caught him off guard. In one smooth motion she wrapped one leg around his and pulled him toward her so they tumbled backward onto the bed together. The mattress rocked beneath them in undulating waves. Carly landed beneath him, laughing with delight.

The tinkling sound and the light in her eyes removed whatever reservations had remained in his mind. “Think you’re so clever?” he asked, brushing his lips over hers.

“Nope. I know I am.” She smiled and laughed some more.

He kissed her again, letting her unique scent fill the empty spaces inside him. To keep from crushing her, he rolled to his side and propped himself up on one elbow. Sealing his mouth over hers, he entwined his tongue and feasted until he could barely breath.

They’d never done much more than this, yet each kiss contained more power than the last. He marveled at her ability to reach inside him with nothing more than a touch. What would happen when they came together? The conflagration would probably consume them both.

He wondered if that was the source of her fear, but before he could analyze further, her hand came between them and caressed his arousal through the rough denim of his jeans. His body jerked involuntarily at her touch and the bed swirled beneath them.

“When did you get so bold?” he asked.

“Only with you.” Her hand cupped him tighter.

“Not yet.” He removed her hand and grasped her fingers with his own. “Not if you want this to last.”

“I want,” she murmured. From beneath heavy lids, her eyes fastened on his face. He removed a strand of blond hair from her cheek and kissed her lips.