Free One Daring Night by Mari Carr Page A

letting it fall to the ground. He kissed the side of her neck, tracing a line along the top of her bra with his tongue. Joni’s throaty mews of approval kept him going. He flicked the hooks of her bra open and removed the lace, enjoying the view.
    Though they’d only been apart a couple of hours this afternoon, parting after sharing a cab to the restaurant to retrieve their cars, Eric had thought of nothing but this moment. Getting her here, naked, in his arms, in his bed.
    They took their time undressing each other. Kissing, caressing, exploring. When Joni gripped his cock, he had to close his eyes and count to twenty. He hadn’t exaggerated about his desire for her. It was taking all the strength in his body not to toss her on the mattress and take her hard.
    But he’d done that this morning. And again this afternoon.
    This time, he was determined to woo her, to show her he wasn’t some wild animal.
    Of course as Joni tightened her grip, then dragged the nails of her other hand down his chest, he wondered if she would mind the more aggressive route.
    She started to go to her knees, but he caught her quickly. “Joni, I swear to God if you so much as breathe near my cock right now, I’ll explode.”
    “But I never got to finish this morning, I want—”
    “I know what you want. I want it too. But not this time. Just, Jesus, just give me a couple of years to get beyond this clawing need to fuck your brains out every time we get naked and then we can move on to the other fun stuff.”
    She licked her lips. “You only need a couple of years? Something tells me it’ll be longer than that for me.”
    He narrowed his eyes as he studied her face. She wasn’t lying. She was in the same excruciatingly pained state he was. Her cheeks were flushed, her breathing rapid.
    “I was trying for foreplay.”
    She nodded. “I like foreplay. It’s good, but it sounds like we need some sort of plan going forward. Maybe fast, hard sex the first time, then if we go in for seconds, we can incorporate some finesse.”
    “I like that. It’s solid.” Those were all the words his blood-deprived brain could form before he pressed her down on the bed and climbed over her.
    She opened her legs in invitation.
    Eric had thrust inside her twice before he remembered what he’d forgotten. He reared back, rising off the bed. “Condom.”
    “Oh.” From her tone, it was clear Joni had forgotten too.
    He reached into the nightstand and grabbed one as he apologized. “I’m sorry, Joni.”
    She shrugged. “I’m on the Pill. It wouldn’t have been the end of the world.”
    “That felt amazing.” His awed tone must have given him away as he pulled on the condom.
    “You’ve never had sex without one? Really?”
    He shook his head. “I told you. I’ve never ventured very far into committed relationship land.”
    She reached out for him and Eric crawled back onto the bed, resuming his previous position. He had only pressed a couple of inches in when Joni whispered, “We’ll have to try it without sometime.”
    Eric paused and let her words soak in. She’d just offered him something more wonderful than her body. She was giving him her trust.
    He leaned down to kiss her. Eric had thought there was nothing he’d wanted more than sex, but that fell to the wayside as he felt the need to show her how much her words meant to him.
    Love at first sight had always felt like a joke to him. A myth. An impossibility. Now he knew for sure he was experiencing it himself.
    Joni’s fingers stroked his hair, but like him, she no longer seemed interested in that mad dash to the end. She opened her mouth, her tongue finding his. Her taste matched his, wine mingled with the coffee and chocolate flavors from their dessert. Her kisses were more delicious than the food.
    After several minutes, he pulled away and pressed his forehead to hers.
    “Eric,” she whispered. “Will you make love to me?”
    He nodded, unable to speak. There was nothing he wanted