Let Them Talk

Matthew liked the way she gazed up at him. He felt powerful. Important.

“I can’t keep my hands off you,” he confessed as he curled his hand around her waist. “I tried but it’s not working.”

Her smile widened. “Good.”

“Good?” His eyebrow went up. “What was it you said yesterday? Something about how this was a bad idea.”

“I remember saying something about that.” She looked away. “The details are fuzzy.”

Matthew cupped her cheek with his hand. “Sydney, I don’t want to hear any excuses about why we can’t be together.”

Her eyes narrowed. “They aren’t excuses. They’re—”

He bent his head and covered her mouth with his. He kissed with a slow gentleness but it didn’t hold back the hunger inside him. Matthew drew Sydney close to him. “I don’t want to wait anymore,” he confessed.

“Come inside.” She grabbed his wrists and pulled him toward the screen door.

“No, let’s stay out here.”

“Here?” Her eyes widened. Matthew noticed the naughty gleam in her eyes before she banked it. “Someone might see us.”

“I won’t let that happen,” he promised. “Trust me.” He remembered what she’d written in her notebook. Most of the scenes had been outdoors. He had gotten that right about her. She wanted to feel wild and free, bold and daring.

Sydney glanced around as her skin flushed. “O-okay.”

He kissed her and felt her hesitancy. She wanted this but she didn’t completely trust him. Trust that he would protect her. In her fantasies, she’d given him her absolute trust. What could he do to prove she could rely on him in reality?

He gathered her closer, enjoying how soft she felt against him, but she took a step back. Her lips parted as if she wanted to ask a question. She let her hands fall to her sides. Her fingers clenched into fists.

“If you want to go inside, I’m all for it,” he said. “Whatever makes you comfortable.”

“No, I want to do it here,” she replied, her voice high and tight. “Like this... With you.”

“I’ll be honest, I want whatever it takes to be the focus of your world,” he admitted. “I want you to rely on me, cling to me. Forget everything and let go. Feel and not think. Surrender completely.”

She flinched and for a moment Matthew believed he had pushed her too hard, too fast.

“I will do whatever it takes to earn your trust,” he said softly. “I want you to feel safe so you can lose all control around me.”

Her breath hitched in her throat. “I already do,” she whispered.

Triumph swept through him. That was what he’d needed to hear. No qualifications, no bargaining. He wanted her to accept him, no questions asked.

* * *

SHE COULDN’T BELIEVE she was doing this. Excitement clawed through her as her heart pounded. This was risky. Too risky. So why had she agreed to this?

She tilted her head as she listened. No one was around. She heard a slight wind tugging at the leaves on the tree and the chirping of a bird. They were in her fenced backyard; no one would see them. Why not indulge in one of her fantasies?

But this was insanity. How far could she trust Matthew? How far could she trust any man? She’d never really allowed a lover to take care of her. Never let them take charge. In journalism, she had to push, dig and go after a story. She was the same in her personal life. Now Matthew wanted her to follow instead of taking the lead.

She reached out and flattened her hands against the solid wall of his chest, noting how his heart beat under her palm. As she explored his lines and angles, Matthew gently cupped her jaw with both hands and kissed her. She shivered with anticipation and deepened the kiss. Soon she was clinging to Matthew. He bunched her dress in his hands and pulled it off her.

She stood before him in only a bra and panties. The look of wonder on Matthew’s face made her feel extraordinarily beautiful. She felt his hot gaze on her, and her breasts became full and heavy. It excited her but she wasn’t ready to give up all control. Sydney reached for the back clasp of her bra. Matthew covered her hands with his.

“Let me,” he whispered in her ear.

She reluctantly let go and was rewarded with a kiss just below her ear. Matthew trailed a series of kisses along her neck as he pulled the bra straps from her shoulders.

Matthew kissed her collarbone and continued down her chest as her bra fell away. He captured her tight nipple in his mouth. The pleasure was so exquisite that she grabbed his hair and drew him closer. She felt his knowing chuckle against her breast.

She wiggled her hips when his fingertips grazed her panties. Then she heard a car backfire in the distance and jerked away.

“Shh,” Matthew murmured against her bare skin. He rubbed his hand against the small of her back, bringing her into him again. “No one will see us.”

“But...” She knew it was true, but there was always that risk of discovery.

“I won’t let anyone find us.”

She believed him. He would do everything in his power to keep them hidden. Somehow she knew she didn’t have to worry. Matthew wasn’t going to let anyone interrupt or stumble upon them. He would take care of her. All she had to do was let go and focus on the pleasure.

Sydney forgot everything but Matthew’s mouth. He kissed a path from her ribs to her hip as he dragged her panties free. She kicked the scrap of silk free and stood before him naked.

His hands were everywhere, caressing, stroking and cupping. He knew just how to touch her, knew exactly what she liked. Sydney shook with desire as he pulled away to take off his flannel shirt before yanking the white cotton T-shirt over his head.

Sydney swallowed roughly as she stared at Matthew. His arms and torso were tanned and muscular. She wanted to drag her fingers through his chest hair and follow the path that dipped past his low-slung jeans.

He gathered her close, her body fully against his. “Hold on tight.”

Sydney wrapped her arms around his shoulders and suddenly her world dipped. Sydney held on tighter until her back rested on his soft flannel shirt. The scent of him mingled with the grass.

Sydney lay before him, her legs parted, her arms out wide. She felt brazen but unsure. Exposed but powerful.

She watched as Matthew knelt between her legs. His strong hands rubbed her thighs before sliding underneath her ass. Her heart galloped as she felt his breath against her sex before he plunged his tongue into her wet heat.

Sydney groaned and hooked her legs over his broad shoulders. She was tempted to grab him by the hair and drive him closer. Instead she kept her arms spread out wide as the flicks of his tongue made her hips buck wildly. Matthew moaned, his enjoyment obvious as he pleasured her.

Her hands drifted to her breasts. Her skin was tight and tingly. She played with her breasts, pinching her nipples. The scent of her sex filled the air. Her hips twitched as intense desire coiled inside her.

Matthew teased her clitoris with his mouth. The light pressure was all she needed. The white-hot orgasm ripped through her like a crashing wave. She arched her body, opened her mouth, but no words came out as the pleasure scorched her body.

She lay on the ground, limp and spent. Matthew was suddenly on top of her, blocking the sun. “We should go indoors,” he encouraged.

“Don’t stop now. I want you inside me,” Sydney murmured as she arched against him. “Deep inside.”

He hissed between his teeth. “If I do that, I—”

“I won’t let anyone find us,” Sydney promised before wrapping her arms around his shoulders. “Trust me.”