She had thought the same thing but to hear him say it out loud made goose b.u.mps appear on her arms. "Too bad there's no way we can find out."

"I don't want to know," he said, taking a sip of his wine.

She lifted a brow. "Why?"

He met her gaze over the gla.s.s. "If you knew you were pregnant already then you wouldn't need for us to stay the remainder of the week. Just think of all the fun we'd miss out on."

She was thinking. But then she knew that eventually all good things came to an end. "So tell me," she encouraged. "What kind of child were you? Spoiled I bet."

A small smile touched his lips. "I guess there was a little of that since I was the only child, but I knew just how far to go in riling my parents. I didn't have any siblings or a bunch of cousins like you have, but I had Matt."

"Matt?"

"Yes, Matt Caulder. He's my attorney and best friend. Our mothers were childhood friends, and in a way Matt and I were raised together. Then his mother died of breast cancer. It was our final year of high school. That was a difficult time for him."

"I can imagine," she said, thinking of the time she had lost her father while in high school, as well. "I know how he felt. I lost Dad while in high school, too. He died of lung cancer."

"Was he a smoker?"

"Yes, of the worst kind. We tried to get him to quit and never could." She was silent for a few minutes. "So tell me about Matt. Is he married?" she asked curiously.

Dominic shook his head. "Divorced. Unfortunately things didn't work out. But he'll be quick to tell you the best thing to come from his marriage was Dee-short for Deena. She's his two-year-old daughter and was named after his mother. I'm her G.o.dfather. I've got pictures. You want to see?"

"Sure."

Taylor watched as Dominic put aside his plate to pull out his wallet. He would make a wonderful father, she thought, and a sense of pride touched her in knowing his child would be hers.

She took the photograph he handed to her. Dee was definitely a pretty little girl. "She's blessed to have both you and her father in her life," Taylor said as she continued looking at the picture. "It's important for little girls, as well as little boys, to have strong male role models."

"Yes, it is," he agreed.

Taylor handed him back the photograph and their hands touched. The sensation that hit the both of them, simultaneously, made their breaths catch. Her eyes flew to his face. "Sorry about that," she said apologetically.

"It's not your fault," he said, intentionally not looking at her while placing Dee's picture back in his wallet.

No, and neither was it his, she thought. It seemed they were two irresistible forces that attracted, even when they weren't trying to. They couldn't help it. Weren't strong enough to stop it. Even now there was a s.e.xually charged awareness between the two of them. The very air they were breathing seemed electrified, sensually combustible.

For the next few moments they ate in silence. That gave her a chance to look around and check out the sailboat. It was a beauty with nice accommodations. While he had been busy getting ready to sail, she had gone below to check out things. There were a number of screened ports as well as multiple overhead hatches intended to circulate fresh air. What had caught her eye was the queen-size berth in the aft stateroom, as well as the built-in lounge seat and hanging lockers. The bathroom was small but contained a shower with hot and cold water, a sink and vanity. Also below was a highly styled gourmet galley with a beautifully detailed teak interior.

When they had boarded, Dominic had said something about it being large enough to sleep six people and that the size of the boat eliminated a lot of rocking. She had to agree since so far it had been smooth sailing. He was the captain and she smiled, remembering that he had made her his mate. After bringing the boat into the wind, he had asked her to hold the wheel while he lowered the sail. She had enjoyed doing that. It had made her feel useful and a part of what he was doing.

She tilted her face up toward the sun, thinking there was a nice breeze in the air and all she could see for miles around was ocean. They had left any semblance of land behind hours ago. It seemed they were the only two people at that moment under a glorious blue sky.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Dominic move and she turned her head and watched him. He was standing up and looking out at the sea. Before leaving the resort, he had swapped his jeans for a pair of denim shorts, and as he stood there with his legs braced apart, his shoulders bracketed against the wind and his hands jammed into the pockets of his shorts it was obvious that he was definitely a gorgeous specimen of a man. And with the sun and ocean in the background surrounding him, he looked totally at ease. Even from where she sat she could feel the s.e.xual tension within him and it was having an effect on her. It was stirring things within her. The need she felt for him was poignant, keen and cutting sharp. It was weakening her with desire.

He suddenly turned and met her gaze. The atmosphere seemed even more stimulated. Her breath caught when she felt it. It was like fire seeping through her veins. It p.r.i.c.kled her skin, sharpened her senses and created a relentless throb between her legs.

"I tried," he finally spoke and said grimly. But at the same time she heard an edge in his voice.

"And what have you tried?" she asked, thinking maybe it was better if she didn't know but desperately wanting to.

"I tried not to want you as much today."

She nodded then gave him a curious look. "And why not today?" she queried softly.

He gave her a tense look. "Because I had you too much yesterday."

He said it as if that should explain things. It didn't. "Considering the reason we're here, Dominic, there are no limitations. It's all you can get."

He smiled. "If that were true then I'd keep you on your back with only bathroom breaks."

The image of that flowed through her mind, made the throb between her legs intensify. "But it is true. We came to make a baby. Don't worry about wearing me out. I can handle it. This is one case where the means will justify the results."

She didn't say anything for a second and then she couldn't help but ask, "Why are you fighting it?

Taylor's words hung in the air, refusing to float away, Dominic thought. She had just asked him a loaded question. How could he explain that the reason he was fighting it was because he felt himself getting too emotionally attached? And that when he was making love to her, he felt things he hadn't felt with any woman. She was right. He was furiously trying to fight it and the sad part was that he couldn't. She had the ability to stir up things inside him. It was beginning to irritate the h.e.l.l out of him that she was becoming his weakness, something he didn't have time for. Weak men became vulnerable men. They became men who couldn't think straight. Men who let their guard down.

"Dominic?"

She was waiting on his response but there was no answer he could truthfully give her. Instead he said, "I'm not fighting it. I thought I was being a gentleman and trying not to give the impression that I'm a greedy a.s.s who enjoys being inside you 24-7."

"But I love having you inside me. Because I know the reason why you're there."

To make a baby, he contemplated roughly, wondering why he was getting upset at the thought that, as she said, he was just a means to an end. "Do you know what you're asking for?" he contemplated roughly, wondering why he was getting upset at the thought that, as she said, he was just a means to an end. "Do you know what you're asking for?"

"Yes. I knew it the moment I arrived on the island. Even before that. I also knew that because I hadn't been s.e.xually active in quite some time that the first couple of days wouldn't be easy for me, they would probably be uncomfortable. But my body is adjusting. I'm fine."

Dominic heard her words. He also saw how the sun was playing across the beauty of her features. His glance then moved slowly over her entire body and suddenly, he didn't want to talk anymore. He wanted to do what he'd been fighting all day.

There were no other boats around. It was as if they were in their own private world. There was no sh.o.r.eline in sight. It was just the two of them and the wide-open span of the Atlantic Ocean. More than anything he wanted to make love to her here, on the deck, under the sun. Right this minute. But then he thought of her comfort.

"Will you go down below with me?" he asked silkily, more than sure she knew the reason he was asking.

She didn't hesitate when she responded. "Yes."

Taylor's breath quickened at the way Dominic was looking at her. She knew why he wanted to take her below and the thought of making love with him on the open seas made hot blood rush through her veins.

Determined not to give him a chance or a reason to change his mind, she walked over to him. When she came to stand in front of him, she said, "I've never made love on a boat before."

The look he was giving her made her skin tingle. "Then your first time will be special. I'll make sure of that." He swung her up into his arms.

Somehow he managed to get the both of them below and placed her on the bed. Once her body touched the mattress, she didn't want them to waste any more time and began removing her clothes, beginning with her top.

"No, please let me."

She glanced up when Dominic moved closer to the bed and reached out his hand to pull her to him. Then his arms folded around her and he simply stood there for a second holding her in his warm embrace. His manly aroma teased her nostrils and her stomach began to quiver. Moments later, he leaned back and met her gaze and the look she saw in his eyes let her know there wouldn't be time for any small talk. The idea of that made her pulse leap, her heart beat fast and furious in her chest. Then he began removing the rest of her clothes, taking his time as a cooling breeze came through the screened porthole and touched her naked skin.

When she was completely naked, his gaze moved over her, taking its time and lingering on those marks of pa.s.sion that were still there. "I've branded you," he whispered as a satisfied smile curved his lips.

Taylor swallowed, thinking he had done a lot more than that. There was no way she would tell him how she felt at this very moment. What was between them was an agreement, one as personal as it could get; however, things were to have remained unemotional. But it seemed whenever they came together like this, things were as emotional as they could get.

"Now I want to undress you," she said softly, reaching out and lifting up Dominic's shirt over his head. When she had removed it, she tossed it aside and went to the snaps of his shorts. He was aroused, she noted when she eased down his zipper. His manhood was huge, she saw when he stepped away from the bed to remove his shoes. And when he eased his shorts and briefs together down his thighs, she saw that he was also extremely ready. The size of him no longer bothered her as it had that first night. Her body had been able to take him right in.

He came back to the bed. "I want to try something different," he stated huskily.

She tilted her head back and met his gaze. "What?"

"I want you to ride me."

He had thumbed through that book as many times as she had, and he knew that the "woman on top" position was the least effective to use to get her pregnant, due to the law of gravity. But it was a position that she knew gave the woman the most pleasure because it placed her in a dominating role. She understood what Dominic was doing. He wanted them to make love for the sheer enjoyment of doing so, not for the sole purpose of making a baby.

A part of her wasn't sure she was ready for what he was asking. It would add a piece to the equation that she hadn't counted on. Even doing what he asked only one time would still throw a monkey wrench into their week here. She had a tendency to let herself go when they made love and had convinced herself she was only doing so because each time they came together, there was a chance they were creating a life-a life they both wanted. What if she let herself go anyway? What if he still had the ability to rock her world although he was placing her in control?

She had to fight hard to retain her composure. Just being here with him, sitting naked in the middle of the bed, staring into the deep green of his eyes was rocking her world, slinging her into an arena of emotions and feelings she hadn't counted on, nor was prepared for. He was unshaven and the ma.s.s of hair on his head was tousled around his shoulders. Her gaze raked over his face and her breathing quickened when her eyes lowered to move across his manly chest and then down past his waist to his huge manhood that was fully erect in a bed of dark curly hair.

And she knew at that moment that yes, she would ride him. The need to do so had become an ache in her belly. There was no other position that could remove it and an abundance of rising excitement filled her entire being.

"Taylor?"

She moved her gaze back up to his face. She saw the intensity in the dark pupils staring straight at her. She felt the heat and the potent force of his s.e.xuality. It was dominant, overbearing and lethal, and it was reaching out to her, touching her in some of the most private places. Instead of giving him an answer, she eased toward him and reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck. She studied his lips and thought his mouth was temptation at its finest, and with a gentle pull he was tumbling down on the bed with her.

Their mouths connected immediately and she began drowning in his heat the moment their tongues connected. And knowing just where their kiss would lead kicked a response in her that went beyond anything she'd ever encountered before.

And then he was shifting their bodies to place her on top and she pulled back and stared down at him.

She wanted him.

Her arms grabbed hold of his shoulders and she felt his muscles tighten beneath her fingertips. She felt his manhood in the center of her legs and it was a struggle not to lower her body onto it. However, temptation made her lean down and take a swipe of his lips with her tongue. His sharp intake of breath made her smile.

"I think I'd better warn you that I took horseback riding as a child," she informed him softly.

He continued to look at her and lifted a brow. "And?"

She chuckled. "And I'm no novice. I like riding."

She saw the way his eyes darkened. She felt the way his hard length seemed to thicken beneath her. Then suddenly he gripped her hips and lifted them enough to position his shaft at the opening of her womanly core. She felt the tip of its head right there. "I like riding, too," he said in a strained voice, lowering her hips downward to inch inside her.

She felt the heat of him, big and thick, as it entered her, stretching her body again to accommodate its presence. He continued to lower her onto him and she could barely breathe at the feeling of him filling her so completely.

She felt the exact moment he lifted the lower part of his body off the bed to drive into her to the hilt. "Let's ride," he growled from deep in his throat.

He had told her to ride him, not to kill him, Dominic thought as Taylor's body slammed down on his once more, pressing her knees into his sides, holding firm to his shoulders. Her head was thrown back and she was giving the bed one h.e.l.l of a workout while at the same time driving his body over the edge, time and time again. Dominic thought as Taylor's body slammed down on his once more, pressing her knees into his sides, holding firm to his shoulders. Her head was thrown back and she was giving the bed one h.e.l.l of a workout while at the same time driving his body over the edge, time and time again.

He'd come twice already and so had she, but she wouldn't let up and he couldn't seem to go down. She was doing more than just rocking the bed. She was also rocking his senses, tilting his world, filling him with more pleasure than he could have imagined possible. He'd heard of women who were experts when it came to riding, but until now he'd never encountered one. The sheer impact of how she was making him feel simply overwhelmed him. And the scent of s.e.x along with the fragrance of her perfume wasn't helping matters when he inhaled it into his nostrils. It only made him that much more aware of what they were doing and how they were doing it. And the knowledge that they were out in the middle of the ocean only added to the allure, the deep throb in his veins and the degree of his arousal that wouldn't go away.

She kept going and going and going, as if working up to that one big explosion that would be the granddaddy of them all. So each time she came down on him, he was there to thrust up into her, grind his body, going as deep inside her as he could, and the more he did so, the more vigorously she bucked and pumped into him, going at it wild and untamed.

He felt another climax ready to hit him at the same moment he felt her inner body clench his muscles and felt this release would be too good to waste, so he quickly shifted positions and brought her beneath him the moment her body jerked. She let out one hair-raising scream when she exploded. He followed her and flooded her insides with the very essence of him, and held her, refusing to let her move, wanting her to feel what he'd done. Take it all in. Keep it.

Her response didn't help and when she wrapped her legs around him, locking him in, he continued to kiss her-harder-while slipping his hands into her hair to grip the silkiness of it and to hold her mouth in place. She was being held hostage, under his intense desire.

He knew that he was being held hostage under hers, as well.

Chapter 8.

Taylor felt Dominic's touch when he slid his hand between her legs, gently stroking her there. He was lying beside her, facing her, and when her lips parted with a soft purr he leaned forward and took advantage, letting his tongue begin an intimate dance inside her mouth that only he had the skill to perform. Feeling like putty in his hands, under his lips, she clung to his mouth in a kiss of possession that she felt all the way to her toes.

Moments later, he released her mouth and whispered softly against her moist lips. "You okay?"

She was also too absorbed in the sensual spell he had placed her in to speak. She felt totally drained in a way that still had parts of her body quivering. Even now there was a heated pulse between her legs in the area where he was stroking.

"Yes, I'm fine," she whispered back, filled with an emotional need she didn't want, but was too weak to resist. Each time she made love with him she felt herself being pulled in toward something she wasn't sure had a name, but was certain didn't have a place in her life. She didn't like things getting complicated. The only thing she wanted from Dominic was the one thing she believed he would give her this week-a baby.

"It's getting late. We need to head back," he said softly.

She heard his words. "I'm ready when you are," she said quietly, hoping she sounded more excited that she actually felt. In truth, she could stay here like this with him forever.

Forever.

She suddenly felt a shiver of apprehension slide down her spine. Why in the world would she think something like that? She'd never thought of forever when it came to any man and didn't intend to start now.

"You have beautiful b.r.e.a.s.t.s."

She watched his hand stroke her nipples as he spoke, using the same fingers he'd used to stroke between her legs earlier. His fingers were moist as he spread her very wetness over the hardened peaks of both b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Another shiver, this one of pleasure, ran up her spine. What on earth was he doing to her?

"Dominic..."

"Just close your eyes and feel, Taylor."

She did what he asked and the moment her eyelids fused shut she felt his tongue snaking out and capturing a bud, flickering over it, tasting her before closing in and taking it fully into his mouth. Desire, the kind she only knew with him, consumed her insides as she felt his mouth on her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, tasting, taunting and tampering with her in a way that was simply his. He feasted on one and then the other, almost sapping her of her senses, her sanity and her self-control.