Page 63 of A Taste of Trouble

“Jake!” She braced herself against the gray tile, her hands flattening against the cool surface as Jake feasted on her.

So much for her action plan. It seemed sex had taken precedence over business. He'd won.

“Almost there, gorgeous?”

“Don't take your mouth away,” she blurted, in fear of him not following through with his task. “Put it…yes!”

Jake brought Liv to the edge of climax, and with one final stroke of his tongue, she exploded.

“Jake!” Her screams echoed within the walls of the shower. She shivered and convulsed, the spray of the water beating hard against her neck and back.

She stared down at her lover with more emotion than she could handle. When her eyes welled up, she looked away quickly, unwilling to give any more of her feelings away. She grabbed at his shoulders and pulled him up, bringing their mouths together. As their tongues danced, she melted into his body.

He lifted her, backing them into the cold gray tile away from the spray. Her nipples hardened at the sudden change in temperature. She wrapped her legs around his waist. Still holding his face in her hands, she broke their lip lock. Looking in his eyes, she could see his desire, and she felt sexy, worthy.

Between heavy breaths, she said, “I want you inside me.”

He rested his head on her shoulder. “No condom.”

“I'm clean and on the pill,” she panted. “It's okay.”

He raised his head and spoke with sincerity. “I never—”

Liv placed a finger on his lips. She didn't need an explanation. “I trust you.”

Within seconds, he plunged into her, pumping fast and furious, giving her everything he had. The steam from the hot water enveloped them. Their slick bodies rubbed against one another. The coarse ripple in the tile scratched the smooth skin of her back.

“Liv.” He lowered her against the wall, changing their angle. “Liv.”

She could feel the pressure building, building, building. “Oh, yes.” Liv broke into a million pieces. White starbursts filled the darkness behind her eyelids.

“Liv.” Jake convulsed against her.

They held each other for a minute, basking in the tingly sensation. But just as soon as he released her from his grip, silence fell between them.

Emotions weighed heavily inside the shower stall. Words replayed in her mind. Words she could never take back. They huddled under the spray and washed, stealing quick glances at one another.

But the fog in Liv's brain had nothing to do with the steam from the shower. This thing with Jake, this relationship, was taking its toll. She wanted him to take her body in ways no man ever had. She wanted him to leave his mark on her, but he took more than just her pleasure. In the midst of passion, she crossed an invisible line and somehow, someway, he branded more than her body.

He had branded her heart.

…

Jake felt the distance between them even though they were standing only a foot apart. Her muscles tensed and clenched as she rinsed under the spray, the water slicing across her skin. Her face wore the same tension. Because she had opened up.

You make me feel unglued. Her words echoed in his head. For the first time, she had been honest about her feelings, but it wasn't the feeling he had hoped for. Despite the weekend they'd just spent together, she was still trying to convince herself they were only in it for the sex. Bitterness stung, leaving him in the exact spot that he had feared.

“Jake? Are you okay?” She had turned off the water and was wrapped in a towel, holding one out for him.

“Fine.” He cleared his throat. “Just thinking about a couple of things I have to do today.”

“Me, too. I've got to get a move on.” She lifted onto her toes and kissed his cheek before she raced out of the bathroom as if fleeing the scene of a crime.

When he entered her bedroom, she rummaged through her drawers for clothing. The creamy skin of her shoulders glistened with droplets of water. His desire mounted inside him again, but his stupidity squashed any feelings of want that simmered below the surface. He let her slide right under his skin and set up camp, tugging at all of his feelings of lust and desire, love and longing. She was worth it, wasn't she? It was time he found out.

“I guess it's finally time for me to leave.”

“I guess so.” She stopped and turned to face him, pulling back her shoulders as she spoke. “I had a really great time.”

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