What Happens In Vegas...: His Wedding-Night Wager

He closed his eyes, inhaling the scent of Shelby, letting the feel of her in his arms totally overwhelm him. He needed her like the air that he breathed and he followed that desire the way he’d always allowed all his cravings to rule his life.

Her wet hair snaked over her shoulders, falling onto his. He liked that feeling, and pulled her closer. He wanted them so deeply intertwined, she’d forget everything except being with him.

Grasping her waist, he lifted her slightly and lowered his mouth to her breast. He traced her nipple with his tongue, lapping at it gently until her nails dug into his shoulders. Carefully he scraped his teeth over her and heard her cry his name. They both sank beneath the water and he realized they needed to get out of the lake right now.

He needed more. He needed it now. And so did she. Holding her carefully with one arm, he swam them both back to the boat and lifted her up onto the platform at the back.

When she would have stood, he stopped her with a hand on her thigh. “Not yet.”

Six

Hayden pushed himself out of the water using only his arms. His erection was large and fierce looking.

He scooped her up and stepped over the railing onto the deck of the boat. The remains of their dinner and their clothing still lay where they’d been left.

Shelby was a little embarrassed at her abandon, but there was a sense of rightness about being in his arms that made her realize that they belonged together. A kind of confirmation that she’d made the right decision to come to Vegas to resolve the past and cement the future. She and Hayden weren’t finished. Their story was still continuing and she was glad about that.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and shoulders as he strode across the deck of his yacht. His heart beat strongly under her cheek and she closed her eyes, pretending that it beat just for her.

He set her on her feet next to the king-size bed in the stateroom. She was dripping on the carpet but she knew that Hayden didn’t mind. He watched her with eyes that seemed to be on fire for her.

“Don’t move.”

He liked to give orders and she wasn’t about to fall into the trap that had plagued their first whirlwind relationship. She followed him into the bathroom area. He bent over to retrieve two thick navy blue towels.

Shelby pinched his backside, then ran her fingers down to cup him.

He glanced up at her. “I thought I told you to stay put.”

“I don’t take orders well,” she said. But she realized that she needed this to be about something more than power. She needed to not get swept away in Hayden but to have both of them get swept away in each other.

“We’ll see about that,” he said, pushing to his feet.

“Yes, we will see.”

She took one of the towels from him. “Stand up and I’ll dry you off.”

He rose, towering over her. There was a look in his eyes that she scarcely trusted. “I like that idea.”

She reached out with the towel but he stopped her with an iron grip on her wrist. “Use your tongue.”

She swallowed. Hayden was a dominant lover and she freely admitted that he appealed to her as no other man did. Two could play at this game. He liked to give orders but she knew he wasn’t immune to her.

“Close your eyes,” she said, softly tracing her finger down the line of hair at the center of his body. The hair tapered down to his erection. She caressed him, coming closer and closer to his erection but making sure she did nothing more than brush it.

She licked the drops of water that still clung to his chest, while he dried her with long, languid strokes of the other towel. She dropped to her knees in front of him, following the trail of water down his strong thighs.

She really wanted to push him beyond boundaries, to push herself further than she’d ever gone before. She lowered her head, letting her breath wash over his erection first. His hands came to her head, rubbing her hair but not holding her or pulling her closer.

She tipped her head back and looked up at him. His skin was flushed with arousal. His breaths were rapid and his pupils dilated.

“Hayden, can I…?”

“Only if you want to.”

She definitely wanted to. He felt like satin under her fingers. She lowered her head and ran her tongue up and down his length. Taking her time, she tasted him and discovered the different nuances of him. Reaching between his legs, she cupped his sac, massaging it in the palm of her hand as she took him fully into her mouth.

She sucked him deeper in her mouth, felt his body tighten as she worked up and down his length.

She tasted a salty bit of his essence before he pulled her away and lifted her to her feet.

He carried her into the bedroom, cradled in his big arms, then slowly lowered her to her feet. She loved the feel of his solid frame against her. He wrapped his arms around her, anchoring her to him with his hands on her back.

He lowered his head slowly and she was consumed by the fire that he effortlessly brought to life inside her. She rose on tiptoe to meet his mouth. She loved the way he kissed her, as if he had all day and wouldn’t stop until he’d explored every one of her secrets. She wanted to know him the same way. Reaching up, she took his jaw in her hands and held him still.

She traced the seam of his lips with her tongue, tasting him with small delicate darts. His hands on her back tightened but she didn’t hurry. He always seemed so in control. What would it take to rattle him? she wondered.

Slipping her tongue past his lips, she ran it over his. She stroked her way into his mouth before retreating and coming back again.

He groaned and his erection pulsed between them. She felt him growing even harder against her belly and reached between them to enfold him in her grasp.

Not about to be outdone, Hayden placed her on the center of the bed. His hands made long strokes down the center of her body, lingering over her full breasts. He circled her nipples with the tip of his finger. She arched her shoulders, wanting to feel his mouth on her.

“Hayden, kiss me there.”

“Yes, baby.” He lowered his head and took her nipple in his mouth, suckling at her strongly as she cupped the back of his head, holding him to her.

He rubbed small circles around her belly button before delving lower. His fingers separated her. As he slipped one finger into her creamy warmth, her legs moved restlessly on the bed.

He slid a second finger inside her and brought his thumb down to rub her with a small up-and-down movement that made her want to scream; it felt so good. His fingers thrust in and out of her body and she was arching into him, needing more.

Everything in her body focused on his hand between her thighs and his mouth on her breast. He thrust slowly, driving her up toward a pitch until everything in her body tightened and she knew she was going to come.

Suddenly her entire body clenched and she called out his name long and low. She smiled up at him and she felt a sense of rightness. She wrapped her arms around his head and held him to her.

Hayden waited until Shelby’s body stilled before he pushed himself up on his elbows to stare down at her. She smiled at him. Her lips were swollen and still wet from his kisses. Her nipples poked into his chest and though he’d satisfied her, he knew she wanted more.

He needed more as well. Once was never enough for Shelby and him. He freely admitted that only when he was lying between her legs, buried deep inside her body, did he really feel as though he was seeing the real woman. She had no chance to put up barriers then.

He set about arousing her again. Sweeping his hands down her body. Using his mouth to trace the same path. Slowly building her once again to fever pitch.

She didn’t lie passively under him but caressed his back and buttocks. Skimmed her hands over him and then scraped her nails in patterns everywhere she could reach. When he could wait no longer, he kissed his way up her body, lingering at the base of her neck. He sucked against her sweet flesh and bit softly until she was moaning his name.

“Open your legs.”

His voice was gruff, guttural even. She’d pushed him past his boundaries. When she did as he asked, he settled his weight over her. Taking her hands in his, he stretched them up over her head, forcing her fingers to curl under the headboard mounted on the wall.

“Don’t let go.”