When Jason released her nipples then clamped down on them again, she arched into his hands, reveling in the way he cradled her in his grip. Pleasure clouded her thoughts, as if she’d consumed a whole bottle of wine. Tomorrow she would care that she’d given in too easily. Tomorrow she might even resent him for being so able to unravel her restraint.
Tonight, she just didn’t care.
He buried his nose in her neck and inhaled. “God, I’ve missed your smell. For a month after we left Vegas, I sniffed the nightgown you wore on our wedding night. It made me hard and hungry to fuck you every damn time. Just like I am right now.”
“You’re trying to seduce me.” She couldn’t seem to make her voice sound accusing.
“I don’t have any plans to stop at trying. You’re my wife, at least until the twenty-fourth. That’s how I intend to treat you. I’m going to strip you, bind you, penetrate and possess you every chance I get.”
She didn’t doubt him. Jason might be motivated by revenge or a need to work through whatever residual emotions he had, and he might want to be indifferent to her in every way except sexually, but she sensed he wasn’t.
“Stand.” He grabbed a towel from the nearby rack.
As she complied with a shiver, he wrapped the warm terrycloth around her, tucking it between her breasts. Dizzy and off balance, Gia swayed closer. Her chest met his. As Jason wrapped his arms around her, she grasped his shoulders and eased her head back. She couldn’t help but stare into his eyes. They didn’t look crystal cold now, but a hot, dark blue. His jaw clenched. His nostrils flared. Desire tightened his face.
It might be the stupidest thing she’d ever done, but Gia lifted her face, stood on her tiptoes, and brought her mouth toward his. Jason met her halfway, his lips crashing over hers.
He held her tight and sank deep, as if he could inhale her all at once. The inexplicable need to be close to him, along with a sense of rightness, stunned her.
Gia opened herself to him and took the aggression of his kiss. It had been such a long time, and she wanted him, craved the sense of safety and care he inevitably gave her. She’d done far too much damage to their relationship to expect much more than lust in return, and she should probably use this time to work Jason from her system, in case he was doing the same. Problem was, she didn’t want that at all.
The last year had proven that she didn’t always get what she wanted.
Shoving the confusing tangle of her thoughts aside, Gia drowned in his scent, his taste. He made her body ache—and her heart yearn. Lost in him, she gave herself over.
Suddenly, Jason tore away, drew in a breath, repositioned to get deeper, fisted her towel, and devoured her once again. Gia couldn’t stop herself. Desperate for more, she stumbled over the rim of the tub and pressed her body to his.
Her husband lurched back against the bathroom counter, and she finally felt every inch of his hardness—chest, abs, thighs, as well as that cock she remembered filling her so perfectly. Gia whimpered as she curled her tongue around his, begging because she couldn’t bother to part from him long enough to speak the words.
With a growl, Jason yanked back, panting. He scanned her expression for a long second with a curse before he lifted her and turned, plopping her on the counter. He ripped the corner of the towel from between her breasts. The terrycloth fell away, exposing her entirely. He remained fully clothed, and she felt so vulnerable under his hot stare. Determination stamped itself all over his face. He meant to have her now.
Gia’s nipples peaked. Her stomach knotted with excitement as her blood fired hot and her pussy clenched. If he walked away from her again, she swore she’d shrivel up or go insane, so she did the one thing she knew would inflame him.
She lowered her gaze, noticing the big bulge beneath his fly, and spread her legs for him. “Take me.”
* * * *
Jason clenched his teeth. It would be so easy to do that.
But instinct told him that he had to decide whether he merely wanted his pound of flesh…or to keep his wife by his side forever.
If he let Gia into his life again, he would have to remove feeling from their arrangement or risk her hurting him once more. But if he took her to bed now only to watch her slip through his fingers again later, then what?
At the thought, Jason was torn between leaving the room once more until he could be rational or fucking her absolutely senseless.
“Damn it,” he muttered.
How had she crawled under his skin again so quickly? Or had he ever truly stopped caring? Jason knew the answer. It wasn’t a comfort.
So he had to find some way to induce her to stay, figure out what she wanted and give it to her, no matter the cost.
His entire life, he had wondered why his father had been stupid enough to marry Samantha, knowing she cared about his money far more than him. Sadly, Jason understood now.
“Spell it out for me,” he insisted, clasping her face in his hands and spearing her gaze with his own. “Who am I and what do you want from me? Exactly. I won’t have any more miscommunication between us.”
“I want you inside me, Mr. Denning.” Gia’s voice trembled.
She gave a shit about what happened here. If nothing but nerves caused her shaky tones, she wouldn’t have sounded so damn steady when they’d argued earlier.
“We’re not sceneing right now. Try again.”
“J-Jason…”
He shook his head. “Who am I to you? Just some guy you want to fuck?”
She recoiled, shock raising her brows and dropping her jaw. “No. We might not have had an ideal first year or even a honeymoon, but legally we’re still married.”
“But I’ve never had the chance to truly be your husband, so where does that leave us?”
Gia tried to back away. “I thought you wanted sex.”
Jason held firm. “I didn’t ask what you thought I wanted. You’re avoiding my question.”
Her expression looked a bit guilty. “You’re my husband.”
“That’s right. And…?”
The way Gia squirmed in his grasp told him that she wasn’t ready to admit any feelings she might be having for him. Oh, she was willing to cede her body. Jason meant to use it to bind her to him. Once he’d managed that, he would work like hell to capture at least a corner of her heart. If that didn’t work…well, he had more money.
“Spit it out. What do you want from me? Does tonight mean anything or do you just have a fire that needs putting out?”
“No,” she insisted. “Why are you making everything between us sound so ugly?”