and as sharp as a rifle shot. But at the moment all he could see was Sophie, and all he could feel was the sharp pain of his need for herâuncontrollable, unreasonable. He had to have her. Now.
Grabbing her by the waist, he rolled her beneath him and thrust into her immediately. She was so tight, so hot. He wanted to go slowly and savor, but he couldnât. Drawing out, he drove himself in harder. Again and again.
She began to move with him then, holding him to her with arms and legs, matching his rhythm as if they were one. As the last shred of his control slipped away, he found the strength to say, âCome with me, Sophie. Come with me now.â
And she did, faster and faster, as he drove both of them higher and higher. He felt her close even more tightly around him as the convulsions began to move through her. His climax hit him then, moving throughhim, carrying him higher and higher until he felt himself shatter.
Sanity returned slowly. He couldnât seem to catch his breath. He couldnât even find the strength at first to move. Then guilt pierced him in one sharp stab and he raised his head to look down at her. He had to have hurt her. He couldnât recall ever taking a woman so violently. Thereâd been something about the way sheâd looked at him when sheâd told him to make love to her. He framed her face with his hands. âSophie, are you all right?â
Her eyes opened then, but it wasnât pain he saw. Her lips curved. âIâm wonderful, except for another batch of dead brain cells. How about you?â
âI didnât hurt you?â
âNo. You couldnât.â
Reassured somewhat, he levered himself off of her. To his surprise, she immediately rolled over and snuggled next to him, resting her cheek on his chest. The sweetness of the gesture moved through him, pushing away the guilt and fear that remained, and he tightened his arm around her. He had to think. Heâd been right the night before. He never should have opened the door to her bedroom. One look at her and his entire plan to protect her had blown up in his face.
Well, it wasnât as though heâd never had to switch to plan B before. The invalid with food poisoning was out and the lover was in. It was hard to regret it, and he was good at improvising. But it was difficult to clear his mind enough to think when she was wrapped around him, clouding his thoughts, filling his senses with her scent, her warmth. The longer he lay thereholding her, the harder it was going to be not to roll her on her back and take her again. And again.
A swift surge of panic had him easing away from her. Coffee. Caffeine and a deep gulp of air that wasnât scented with her and heâd be able to think more clearly. He managed to swing his feet off the bed before a hand clamped over his wrist.
âStop right there. Youâre not going anywhere.â
5
âI âM NOT GOING ANYWHERE ,â Tracker said.
âYouâve got that right,â she said, keeping a tight grip on his wrist. âYouâre not going to set foot out of this apartment until we talk.â
Tracker frowned. âWhat makes you think Iâd leave?â
âBecause thatâs what you always do. You slip back into those shadows you like so much. And Iâm not having it. This is not going to be a one-night standâ¦or one-morning stand. I donât do them. And I meant to explain that to you before. I think there should be some ground rules.â
Tracker struggled to clear his mind. âOkay. Youâre a little ahead of me here.â And that was the problem. She frequently got a little ahead of him. âYou want more than a one-night stand.â
âI want an affair.â
Thoughts tumbled through his mind, and he tried to separate them, evaluate them. As her lover, he could remain close to her twenty-fourâseven to protect her. But if they continued as lovers, he might not be
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