He drew imaginary circles over her shoulder and seemed in no hurry to bolt. "I really want to hear this."

"I moved out of my parents' house when I was nineteen. It was such a freeing experience for me, because before then there was my parents and Mick and Gavin."

His lips quirked. "A lot of supervision, huh?"

She sat up and scooted back against the pillows. "Like you wouldn't believe. I was taking college cla.s.ses, so I spent the first semester at the dorms. Hated that. The girls were all b.i.t.c.hes, into their social worlds and clubs and partying all the time. It didn't take me long to figure out college life was not for me. The partying was too heavy and too loud and too all the d.a.m.n time. I was one of those rare freshmen who was interested in getting an actual education. I couldn't study, so I moved back home. Huge mistake."

"Because once you're out, you can't go back?"

She laughed. "Yes. That was it exactly. I couldn't live with rules and people breathing down my neck anymore. Not that I was out there being wild or crazy or anything. Not then, anyway. I just needed my own s.p.a.ce. So I got an apartment and lived alone for the first time in my life."

"That must have been fun."

"It was."

"And then did you party?"

She laughed again. "Hard. Nothing like that taste of freedom with no restrictions. So much for me ragging on the hard partiers at the dorm. I was such a hypocrite when I ended up doing the same thing as soon as I got my own place."

"Yeah. Been there. But eventually you have to grow up and be responsible."

"True. And it didn't take long for my grades to slip and for me to realize that college life wasn't for me."

"Is that how you ended up at the bar?"

"More or less. I dropped out of college after my second year, took a year off to travel and clear my head."

"Where did you go?"

"Went up to Canada with some friends, then over to Paris, Germany, and then London. More wild and crazy times."

He rubbed her wrist, then trailed his finger up her arm to where her banded tribal tattoo circled her biceps. "Is that where all the tattoos came from?"

She shivered at his touch. "Here and there."

He sat up and swept his index finger over her shoulder, across her neck, and behind her ear, fingering the piercings in her ear. "And what about these?"

"It was a whim."

"I like them. They're s.e.xy."

She liked him touching her ear. She liked him touching her anywhere.

"And the tats? Were those whims, too?"

"They all mean something to me." She held out her arm. "The sun, moon, and stars remind me that no matter where I am, my family is always looking at the same sun, the same moon, and the same stars. It comforted me when I set out on my own and when I traveled all those years. Despite wanting my freedom and this big sense of adventure I had, eventually I got homesick. That's when I got the tattoo."

He circled her upper arm. "This one?"

"The tribal band on my arm was a bonding experience with friends in England."

"Now tell me about the dragon."

She smiled. "He's my protector. I had a really good friend who was a tattoo artist. I'd known him since high school, and I loved his art. He drew it for me and I fell in love with Edgar at that moment, knew I'd have to have him on me."

Tyler arched a brow. "Edgar?"

Her lips lifted. "That's his name."

"You named your dragon Edgar?"

"Shut up."

"Roll over onto your stomach and let me look at him."

She frowned. "You're not going to make fun of me, are you? Edgar is special to me."

He cupped her chin and kissed her. "Jenna, I'd never make fun of something that means so much to you."

Her stomach clenched again. d.a.m.n this man for getting to her.

She was still kicking him to the curb after tonight. He wasn't the right guy for her.

"Now get on your stomach so I can see it. Him."

She smiled. "Okay."

TYLER SWALLOWED. WITH JENNA'S HAIR SHORT, THIS tattoo had always teased him. Without getting close to her, he could only catch glimpses of color and parts of a shape here and there, but he never knew what it was, only that it was green and wrapped partially around her neck. It was like a tease, because she often wore jewelry that hid the tat, which only made him want to see more.

And now that he could, now that he had her naked...

Of course now that he had her naked, he could think of a hundred other things he wanted to do to her body, but he still wanted to see the tattoo.

The tail wrapped around the nape of her neck, the tip ending at the side of her throat. It grew slightly thicker below her neck and weaved around the b.u.mps of her spine.

Whoever had done the art was d.a.m.n good, because it looked like it was moving. He traced it with his fingers, the color and drawing so realistic he expected to feel the dragon's scales.

There were even talons and wings.

The d.a.m.n thing was beautiful. Of course it should be, since it graced the back of such a beautiful woman.

He swept his hand over her back, touching the dragon, but mostly loving the feeling of her muscles flex and relax under his hand.

Making love to her had been nothing short of everything he had imagined it would be...and more.

Jenna loved s.e.x, was unashamed about her body, and he wanted to do it with her over and over again. She was slender and beautiful and responsive, and his d.i.c.k got hard just thinking about being inside her again, tasting her again, touching her like this.

But he already knew he was going to have to put on the brakes because for Jenna, this was a one-time deal.

He wanted more than one time with this woman.

The dragon's talons dug into her left hip. It was nearly three-dimensional.

"This tattoo is amazing."

"Thank you."

"How long did it take from start to finish?"

"Three months."

"Wow. That's dedication, on your part and the artist's."

He ma.s.saged her back, keeping his touch light and making sure he swept his hands all the way down to her lower back, letting his fingertips linger right at the top of her b.u.t.t.

He pressed a kiss to her shoulder and turned her to face him.

Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s were small ripe peaches, her nipples round and tight. And sensitive as h.e.l.l, which he really liked. He ma.s.saged them with his hands, then swiped his tongue over one nipple, watching it tighten. Her breath caught as he dragged his tongue over the bud, then squeezed her b.r.e.a.s.t.s together so he could roll his tongue over one, then the other, teasing and tugging her nipples with his lips and teeth.

Her waist was slender, her hips the same, and her legs were a knockout, clearly her best feature. He touched her all over, keeping his ma.s.sage light and easy, heightening the sensation for her minute by minute until she was writhing under his hands.

Smoothing his hands down her ribs and over her belly made her breath catch and her hips rise up.

She wanted more, and he wanted to give it to her. He could play with her body all night.

And when he smoothed his hand over the top of her s.e.x, teasing his fingers just above her c.l.i.t, her eyes darkened.

"Touch me."

Her whispered words made his d.i.c.k throb. He slid his hand down over her s.e.x, cupping her. She was hot, wet, and when she lifted against him, he coated his fingers with her moisture and rubbed it over her c.l.i.t, concentrating his movements around the piercing. Her lips parted and she gasped when he touched her there. He petted and caressed her c.l.i.t, then dipped lower and tucked his fingers inside her while rubbing the center of her universe with the heel of his hand, making sure to give her pleasure in both spots.

She grasped his wrist and pumped his fingers inside her, then raised her legs, planting her feet flat on the bed so she could lift her hips and drive her p.u.s.s.y against his hand.

Oh, yeah. He leaned over to kiss her, and she grabbed his hair, obviously deep in pa.s.sion now as he f.u.c.ked her with his fingers and drove her over the edge. Her cries and moans undid him, and he pulled his fingers out, flipped her over on her stomach, and grabbed a condom.

He wrapped his arm around her middle and lifted her onto her knees, climbed between her legs, and thrust inside her.

Her p.u.s.s.y was tight, still spasming from her o.r.g.a.s.m. He paused to give Jenna a minute to catch her breath.

But that's not what she wanted because she pushed back against him, filling her p.u.s.s.y with his c.o.c.k.

Oh, yeah, that was good. He grabbed her hips and shoved forward, burying himself deep.

"Yes," she said, dropping her head down and pushing against him again.

She had a sweet a.s.s, and watching her in this position showed him everything. The way her p.u.s.s.y gripped him and pulled him in, the way she rolled against him as he pushed forward, giving her everything he had, and the way she rose up and threw her head back when he pounded against her.

She gripped the pillows in her hand and held on when he thrust hard enough his b.a.l.l.s slapped against her, a fine sheen of sweat dampening her skin.

Yeah, it was hot in here, a fire blazing inside him as his b.a.l.l.s tightened with every stroke. He leaned forward so he could touch her, tease her c.l.i.t while he f.u.c.ked her.

"That's going to make me come," she said, her voice tight with strain. "f.u.c.k me harder."

He did, pressing his hips against her and rubbing her c.l.i.t. Her p.u.s.s.y contracted around his c.o.c.k and he knew she was going to go off.

So was he, but he wanted her to come first.

"Ty."

The way she said his name, the low, gravelly tone of her voice, stripped him bare and made him want to power inside her and let go.

And when she arched her back and shuddered, her climax gripping him with a force that shook him, he let his own o.r.g.a.s.m rip free, lifting up to grip her hips and shove hard one last time, then held, just feeling the sensations as he came with a hard groan.

She collapsed onto the bed and he disposed of the condom, then rolled her over onto her side so he could tug her against him.

She reached behind her to cup his neck, half turning so she could kiss him.

He met her lips in a kiss. He liked her mouth, wanted to feel it surrounding his d.i.c.k, but her eyes were half slits and he knew she was done for. He swept his hands over her arm and hip, content to listen to the sound of her breathing until her eyes closed.

She was asleep in minutes. He followed her a minute later.

NINE.

JENNA BLINKED, OPENED HER EYES, AND FELT AN UN-familiar heaviness pinning her to the mattress. She pulled against the warm sensation.

Then heard a groan.

Oh.

Ty. That's right.

A smile tugged at her lips.

Last night had been...amazing. More than amazing. She rolled over onto her back and looked at him. He was on his side facing her, still asleep. The hazy light of early dawn seeped into the room, enough that she could see him.

True to his word about doing it three times, he'd woken her in the middle of the night, his c.o.c.k hard and sliding between her thighs. He'd put on a condom and slid into her from behind, f.u.c.king her with slow, languid thrusts while caressing her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. She wasn't sure she'd ever come fully awake, just enjoyed the hazy pleasure while he'd held on to her hips and thrust inside her with easy, leisurely strokes until she'd felt the pleasure intensify. And when she'd come, it had made her shake all over, her body tensing with the sweetest pleasure. He'd pushed his c.o.c.k into her with a deep, hard thrust, then groaned and climaxed.

They'd both fallen back asleep right after that. It had been breathtaking.

She felt no regrets as she woke up next to him. How could she after the best s.e.x of her life last night?

A day's growth of beard stubbled his jaw, his hair was sleep and s.e.x messy, and all she wanted to do was climb on him and have more of him. Her belly tumbled with renewed desire.