She didn’t. Not a bit. At least, not with the obvious muscles.
A moment later, he took a deep breath, turned both of them to their sides until he could reach the bedside table. His weight was just getting to be too much for her when he rolled them back to their original position.
Then he sat up, unapologetically knocking her legs away. Annie held back a laugh, then watched him get ready. Goodness, he certainly looked impatient. But then so was she.
Once the condom was on, he leaned down again, and this time, he brought her legs up toward her chest. “Next time, I swear…” He stopped to kiss the inside of her ankle. “We’ll have so much foreplay we’ll both be wrecks.”
“Sounds wonderful. Now what are you waiting for?”
He smiled and pushed inside her, one straight shot that had her arching her back and holding on for dear life.
It wasn’t the most elegant sex she’d ever had, but it was exactly what she’d needed. She touched him wherever she could reach, hoped like hell the walls were thick or the room next door was empty, because she was not quiet.
The kisses that started out hot and deep ended up pants against each other’s mouths, and it turned out that was about as sexy as anything she’d ever felt.
By the time he let Her right leg go, and found her clit with his thumb, she was shaking and straining so hard she thought her heart would burst. Her orgasm crested before she had a chance to warn him. All she could do was hang on, muffle her scream with his shoulder and ride the wave.
When he pushed her whole body up the bed with the force of his thrust, she pulled her head back, opened her eyes. She watched him come, the intensity in his face breathtaking. When he could relax again, he smiled down at her, then pressed a soft kiss to her shoulder.
“Hell of an appetizer,” he murmured.
Which made her stomach growl so loudly they laughed even as they collapsed in exhaustion.
TUCKER ONLY OPENED his menu after Annie caught his attention. She gave him the look that meant he’d better stop staring at her. Yes, that happened a lot, but this was different. She’d been studying Louie’s deli menu as if it were the Rosetta Stone, and all her questions had been answered.
“A Reuben,” she whispered, in a voice that was half awe, half hunger.
“Sauerkraut have some special meaning in your life?”
She looked again at the menu, then up at him. “The highlight of my month is eating in Marge’s diner. Not that Marge’s isn’t swell—the food is great—but I think they missed the memo on what rye bread should taste like. And I’m not going to discuss their corned beef.” She looked down again. “New York cheesecake. Please let that be true. Please.”
Tucker had to grin, enjoying her excitement. But it also saddened him that he wanted to use her joy over New York food to press her about her old life. See if he couldn’t find out something more, anything that would allow him to help her.
He couldn’t think of a way to tell her what had brought him to Safe Haven without screwing everything up. Trying to convince her that he believed she was innocent and he was on her side wouldn’t be enough. She’d be furious and frightened and would probably never trust him again.
That wasn’t part of the plan. Even if he explained his about-face, she’d still know he’d lied to her. If their situations were reversed, he wouldn’t believe anything that came out of her mouth.
All she was doing was trying to protect herself. And she’d done it by being a selfless defender to those that couldn’t defend themselves. So what the hell should he do? Damn. If Christian had told the truth, and the mob was involved, Tucker’s choices had narrowed considerably. His first priority was to keep her safe. Even if it meant she’d hate him forever.
“What’s the matter? Are you okay?”
Pasting on a quick grin that became genuine as soon as he saw the concern in her eyes, he nodded. “I’m fine. Too many things look good. Like the Parmesan chicken sandwich. And the Bronx Bomber.”
“That’s the Philly cheese steak, right?”
He nodded. “So tell me. Carnegie Deli or Katz’s?”
“That’s a trick question. The pickles at Carnegie and the pastrami at Katz’s. And how does a cowboy from Dallas know about Katz’s, anyway?”
He shrugged. “Well, shucks, ma’am. I’m not rightly sure. But I think I hopped on that there subway train from Midtown to the Lower East Side, and there she was.”
She ducked her head and looked at him through her lashes. “God, you’re adorable.”
“It’s a burden, but one I’ve grown to accept.”
The waitress came by to take their hefty order, but Annie still made the time to ball up her straw wrapper and throw it at his head. She had damn good aim, too.
The best part of the meal was hearing her make the sounds he hoped to duplicate when they got back to the room.
The other great thing was her laughter. She seemed like a different person, sitting across the booth from him. No wonder. This was probably her first break in years, and it had been a revelation. Seeing her shed the burden of her responsibilities gave new light to her eyes, and when she smiled…
She made him forget, for long moments at a time, that he was unsure how to help both her and his brother, that his mother was walking on thin ice, that he had grown so used to being alone he’d learned to ignore the loneliness.
“Think we could stop here tomorrow before we head back home?”
“Sure.” He wanted to sit here for hours, just staring, thinking about how her eyes matched the blue of the sky. “To eat here or carry out?”
She sighed, leaning back in the booth. “I’m taking home as much food as will fit into my fridge.”
“That would be what, half a sandwich?”
She glowered. “There’s another fridge in the stable, you know. A big one.”
“I don’t think you’re supposed to put the cheesecake on the same shelf as the pergolide.”
“Where there’s a will…as they say.”
“I’d be delighted to help you improve your stash. Frozen burritos? That’s just not right.”
Annie leaned forward. “Guess what? You do what you have to. Money’s tight. And you know as well as I do that horses are accidents waiting to happen. Not to mention goats. I swear, they should have first-aid competitions at rodeos. I can wrap a blown kneecap in under a minute when necessary. And that includes any injections.”
How was it possible to become even more impressed with this woman? And how quickly could he get her back to his hotel room?
“LET ME HELP YOU WITH THAT,” Tucker said, walking toward Annie with a wicked smile.
“You’re so thoughtful.” She had already taken off her boots and socks and left them in the main room. The bath was filling quickly, the scent of lilacs hinted at summer gardens and would be forever imprinted with Tucker in her memory.
Unlike the first rush to push aside anything standing in the way of sex, he took his time unbuttoning her shirt. Would she have to get rid of these clothes once he left? Hide them in coffee cans so they wouldn’t torment her?
She closed her eyes, forcing herself to be present, right here, right now. Why was it so difficult to stay in the moment with him? To experience every second as it was