The welcome weight of him against me was heaven. The way my whole body tensed around his thick penetration. The heat that rolled over me in waves.

He brought his lips to mine. Hungry and rough, like the way he was making love to me.

Because this wasn't just sex. Not now, at least not for me. This man was under my skin.

I held him to me. His muscles, damp with sweat, flexed with every motion. I slid my hands lower, gripping his ass as he pumped.

His teeth met my skin, and he bit gently. I sucked in a breath and tightened around him.

We climbed higher. He went deep, withdrawing fully and shoving harder with each stroke, again and again. I felt everything. No one had filled me this way, made me so aware of the act.

"Darren...you're so deep."

"I can be deeper."

He caught me by the knee and pushed my thigh up against my chest, hitting me deeper and harder. I gasped and held his muscled shoulders as he took me over and over. No one had ever been this deep. As badly as I didn't want this moment to end, I couldn't stop the climax rapidly taking over.

"That's it. Come apart for me, Vanessa. I need to feel it, baby."

The words and the husky way he said them hurtled me straight over the edge. I bowed against him, flying toward the phenomenal feeling. Everything seemed to spin. Time suspended as the orgasm took over like a storm, thick and sweet and heavy in my veins. I shattered against him.

He hauled me against him tightly, sheathing his cock with one last powerful thrust. The cry that tore from his throat mimicked my own.

Seconds passed, only the sound of our ragged breath in the air. No words but an echo of those we'd spoken in the heat of the moment.

"That was incredible." He exhaled a shaky breath. "You're incredible."

He brought his lips down to mine with a kiss so soft my heart ached from the tenderness of it. I swore in that moment something passed between us. Something I'd never felt before. Something I didn't want to let go of...

"I have to take care of this condom," he said quietly.

"Okay."

He shifted off me and sat at the edge of bed. "Don't leave." He reached over and touched my hand.

I laughed lightly. "I won't."

Truth was, I was too boneless and wiped out to leave this time, even if I'd wanted to. And I didn't want to. I could drown every day in this kind of bliss and never come up for air. I melted into the sheets, warm and sated, the memory of Darren still pulsing inside my tender flesh. Heaven, indeed.

A few minutes later, he was curled up behind me, nuzzling my neck. I smiled in the dark, taking his arm and hugging it around my chest.

DARREN.

I drank from a bottle of water and watched her sleep across the room. She was lying on her side, the sheet spilling off at her hips.

Last night had been...exceptional. No, she was exceptional. I'd replayed the night in my head a half dozen times since waking up to her. I was half-hard already but forced myself to let her rest.

I hadn't let anyone sleep over in a while. Of course, this wasn't home. Even if it were, I could picture her in my bed, tangled up in my sheets. Making everything smell like her.

The clock on the desk read ten o'clock. Sunshine streamed in through the cracks between the curtains. I stood and opened them a little wider.

I plucked a flower from the vase on the bedside table. The bed dipped under my weight. I ran my nose against her soft skin, still warm from sleep. I trailed the flower's silky orange petals across her shoulder and down to the small of her back.

She moaned and turned, giving me a glorious view her perfect breasts. Soft nipples that I wanted to suck until they were firm under my tongue. I licked my lips.

"Good morning, red." I continued to take her in, making no effort to disguise my lascivious appraisal of her.

"Good morning," she murmured. Smiling, she reached for the flower. She brought it up to her nose and sniffed. "Mmm, I love these."

"What are they? I see them everywhere."

"Plumeria. One of my favorites."

"I'll have to remember that. I've started a mental list of your favorite things."

"I think last night makes the list."

I moaned softly, remembering how good she'd felt under me. "Last night might have been at the top of mine."

She brought the sheet over her chest and rolled to her side. Had a woman ever looked more gorgeous straight from sleep?

I could have ravaged her again, but as addicted as I was to her body, I was more and more intrigued by the woman underneath. Her heart, her past, her quirks. I wanted to know what made her tick, as if somehow collecting all of those little things could make her a little more mine. Vanessa had given me another chance last night. I wasn't sure I deserved it, but I wasn't going to make the mistake of letting her slip away again.

I took the flower and inhaled its sweet fragrance. "I want to know more of your favorites. Dirty martinis, plumerias, me, of course."

She laughed, a musical sound that filled the room and made me smile. "Of course."

"Let's see. What else? Favorite food."

She hummed. "I love comfort food. Chicken and biscuits for me."

"I keep forgetting you're a Southern girl. Which begs the question, where is your accent? Sometimes I hear a hint of it."

"I think I lost it in my travels. Only comes out when I've had a few drinks."

"Okay. Favorite song."

"Impossible question. Far too many to pick just one." She took the flower and traced it down my chest. "Enough about me. Tell me about you. What's the best thing about being a firefighter? I'll admit I'm fascinated that you run toward danger when everyone else is going the other direction."

"That's part of the appeal. Every day is different. I never know what to expect. Bringing people back to life is pretty great too."

Her gaze flickered up to mine. "You like to live on the edge."

I shrugged. She wasn't wrong. "You can probably tell by now I'm a little impulsive."

"I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing." Her voice was playful and light.

"No?"

She smirked. "No. I haven't decided just yet."

"Maybe I can make up your mind for you."

"I have my own mind." She lifted her chin.

I warmed at the challenge, that little spark of fire that drew me to her. "You do. But I think I know a thing or two about your body."

I tugged the sheet down, baring her breasts to me again. Her eyelids lowered, and she made no effort to cover her nakedness. I swept in, taking her nipple in my mouth and sucking until it was hard. I grabbed her other with my hand and squeezed firmly.

She gasped as her body shifted under the sheet.

Goddamn. My willpower shattered.

I'd asked for one night and taken two. Still, it wasn't enough. I wasn't nearly satisfied, and I wasn't certain when I would be.

I shook my head slightly, terrified and completely intoxicated by the way being in her presence made me feel. How could one person take control of me that quickly, without even meaning to?

I skated my palms down her torso like I was claiming my domain, taking away the sheet to clear my path. Down her thigh, over the handful of freckles on her knee, down her calf to her manicured little toes. I pushed her knees apart, and she relaxed, giving me the best view on the island. Her smooth pink pussy.

I brought myself closer, like a starving man desperate for a taste. Tugging at the little patch of auburn curls above her sex, I slid my tongue lightly over the slit that led to her opening. The taste of Vanessa. Apples and vanilla, sweet and addictive, just like her.

She gasped when I traced her slit with my fingertips. With her taste on my tongue, I inhaled her essence. My cock turned to stone, and every thought that didn't center on her went fuzzy. Fuck me, the things I wanted to do to this woman.

I grabbed her thighs, spreading her as far as she would go, preparing to lick her until she begged me to stop. I imagined diving in, fucking her with my tongue and then my cock. Making her cry out, over and over. All damn day straight into the night.

Then someone knocked on the door.

"Fuck." The curse came out with enough force that Vanessa jolted.

I stood, and she pulled the sheet back up, covering up her luscious body.

I wiped my mouth and tried to get my raging hard-on under control as I went to answer the door. I opened it a crack. Eli stood there, arms crossed.

"What?" Wasn't the most amiable greeting, but I had a beautiful woman in my bed and I wasn't thrilled to be pulled away.

"Is Vanessa in there?"

I frowned. "Who wants to know?"

"Well, half the wedding party will probably want to know when she doesn't show up for brunch. It starts in ten minutes."

"Oh, shit." Vanessa's voice rang out from inside the room.

I shut the door on Eli and turned. She was already up and scrambling to get her clothes on. I watched her, desire and disappointment swirling. My dick was still throbbing, and I wasn't ready to give up yet.

I stood between her and the door as she walked toward me dressed as she had been last night, but looking like she'd been thoroughly fucked since. I stretched my arms out, touching either side of the short hallway, blocking her exit.

"Don't run out yet."

She blinked up at me with tired thoughtful eyes. "I want to stay. Trust me."

"It's a brunch. What about me?"

She smirked. "What about you, Darren?"

I ran my tongue against my lower lip. "I'm trying to think of something clever to say, but the truth is I want to eat your pussy so fucking bad right now I can't think straight."

She made a breathy sound as I took a step closer to her.

"You know I want to say yes."

"Then say yes," I murmured softly, tucking back an untamed lock of hair.

"I'm going to be late as it is. I'm a mess."

"But I made you that way, and thinking about that is making me even harder."

The smudge of makeup around her eyes, the tangles in her hair, and the wrinkles in her dress were all satisfying reminders of night before.

"I can be quick," I lied. I pushed up the hem of her dress hopefully.

"But I don't want you to be. I like when you take your time with me." Her lips twisted into a coy smile.

I pulled her to me, looping my arm around her waist possessively. "Come right back."

She laughed and slapped my shoulder. "They're expecting you too. Get ready, and I'll see you there."

I groaned and nipped her earlobe. There was no denying it now. I was seriously addicted to this woman.

Chapter Eight.

VANESSA.

The last few days on the island flew by. Maya, Eli, and I wandered off to do a few excursions together. I couldn't remember when we'd had so much fun together laughing and goofing off.

Most days Darren found his way to me, at my side, a place where it seemed he'd always been. Our eyes spoke a language only we knew. Our hands found each other at the same time. Something invisible existed and grew between us that completed a dangerous fantasy...the fantasy that somehow this amazing connection between us could survive in the real world.

And when the night came, he didn't need to ask. I was there. Knocking on his door, falling into his arms, ready for everything he would give me for the short time we were going to be together.

When we were finally alone, we were desperate for each other. Tearing at our clothes, kissing hungrily, eager to be connected again. My body was tender from having him every night, but my hunger for him couldn't wane. He took me someplace else, and the faraway look in his eye when he followed me into sweet oblivion was one I'd never tire of giving him.