Her first great love had died in a motorcycle accident. When the other women insisted relationships led only to ruin, she spoke of her feelings in reverent tones. He had been her everything, tender and caring. From the way shedescribed him, it seemed like they’d experienced everything as one person.
Now I understood what she meant.
Tucker’s hand slid beneath the bottom of my shirt, and I sucked in a breath at the intensity of my reaction.
I wanted more of this. So much more. I pressed against him, urging him on. Now that we were here, Tucker was no longer tentative at all. His hand slid up my rib cage to cup the cotton bra.
When his thumb crossed over the flimsy fabric, a tiny unexpected sound came out of me. It was half groan, half sigh.
Pleasure splintered through me, cutting through everything I had tried to become. There was no negativity. No bitterness. No sharp edges. The stiff, angry person I had fashioned since learning Mother’s secret fell away like broken shells.
Tucker slipped his thumb beneath the elastic edge of the bra, coming in contact with new skin. I didn’t think these feelings could get any stronger, but they broke wide open. I gasped against his mouth. “Tucker!”
He stilled. “Is this okay?”
“Yes. Don’t stop.”
He smiled again. “You forgot that I already know what you like.”
He was right about that. His hand slowly slid over my bare skin, and I gasped again. My whole body felt on fire. The shelter women had steered me wrong on this. Nobody had talked about how incredible this was.
“Tucker?”
He shifted his mouth to my jaw, sending kisses along the way to my ear. “Yes, Ava?”
“Do you feel like I do? Like your body is on fire?”
His voice near my ear sent a shudder through my body. “More.”
He released me. I wanted to beg him to go back to where he’d been, but he grabbed the bottom of my shirt and pulled it over my head. Yes. This was better. I almost told him about my bra, but he’d already realized there was no latch in the back and tugged it away to fall with my shirt.
Being exposed to him was so hot. The need to keep going pulsed low in my body. I wanted to get there, but then I wanted this exploration to last forever, too.
Tucker took his time, giving every exposed part of me slow, easy attention. But when he bent down, replacing his hands with his mouth, I saw sparks in my vision.
There was no need for me to control any of this. Tucker knew exactly what he was doing. And he knew me. It was just like he said.
His hair tickled my neck. He pressed me down on the bed, not stopping what he was doing. As he made his way down to my belly. I could scarcely catch my breath.
He stood and slid my legs around so that I was lying fully on the bed. The snap of my jeans popped in the quiet, then the slide of the zipper.
My heart hammered hard. I watched him move in the half-light and tangled my fingers in his hair.
He glanced up at me with a grin, his eyes shining.
My jeans slid down my legs and landed on the floor.
I hadn’t planned for this, so my underwear was plain white cotton from Target. I didn’t look anything like the women in movies or TV shows, all tanned skin and lace.
But the moment Tucker started edging the panties down, my mind was erased of anything but his touch.
The world narrowed to this space. He lifted my hips toremove the last piece of my clothing. His thumb moved down there, and I sucked in a breath with the aching rush that overwhelmed all my other senses.
When he slid a finger more deeply inside, I gasped, my body arching. Whatever I felt before was nothing compared to the explosion of pleasure and emotion that burst through me.
Scenes flashed through my head, unbidden. Tucker smiling at me. Tucker with the daffodils. Tucker walking away, both sad and determined during the time I wouldn’t see him.
The hope in his face whenever I did talk to him.
