When
they entered her apartment, she secured the deadbolt and chain as well as the
bottom lock. Took her time. Lingered with her back to him while she prayed that
she wouldn't blow it this time, her being the Queen of Self Sabotage tended to
undermine her resolve.
His
hands dropped to her shoulders, breath skimmed the back of her neck before he
kissed her there. She pressed her forehead against the back of the door. More
than anything, she wanted his love back, wanted to feel that kind of passion
once more.
His
hands moved down her arms until they curved over her hands that were pressed
against the door.
"I've
never loved anyone like I've loved you...that scares me," he whispered
against her skin.
"Scares
me, too." She turned within the circle of his arms and looked up at him.
"You asked me if I'd be all in this time around and I said yes. What about
you? Are you willing to accept me as is, here in Boston with all of my
not-so-polite baggage alive and well only an hour away? No more Simone...can
you do that?"
He
dropped his forehead against hers and squeezed his eyes closed without letting
her go. "I did some things that are unforgivable. Stupid things. Horrible
things."
She
curved her palm over his jawline. "None of it matters to me."
"It
will." When he opened his eyes, pain more intense than anything she'd ever
seen filled his gaze. "You'll hate me. "
"Tais-toi et embrasse-moi." Shut up and kiss me.
"I thought you hadn't learned French." He smiled.
"I only learned the important phrases."
"Baise-moi," he said.
"Fuck me," she repeated in French, her eyes widening at the
command. "Like I said, I learned all the important phrases."
She
kissed him, her body gravitating toward his as if by a magnetic pull. Sick of
confessions and regret, she poured all of her love into the kiss, hoping it
would break through his resistance and reach his heart.
He
matched her intensity. Tongues slid against one another. He lifted her up in
one scoop. She wrapped her legs around his hips as he carried her back to the
bedroom without breaking the kiss.
Her
body throbbed with need. It felt like her heartbeat had dropped between her
legs, the pulsating sensation causing her to squirm against him.
He
dropped her against the bed. While he
pulled on her sweatshirt, she yanked at his T-shirt. They couldn't get naked
fast enough to quell the raging desire pumping through their blood. They
laughed against each other's mouths as their hands fumbled with zippers.
She'd
never felt this kind of passion and freedom with any other man. She wanted him in every way imaginable.
When
he tore his mouth away to nibble her neck, she curled her fingers in his
hair. His tongue flicked over her
nipples as his hands squeezed her ass and his thighs slipped between hers.
"I
wanted to go slow this time," he whispered against her collarbone.
"Baise-moi," she answered with a grin.
"I love that you learned French for me."
"Just—"
"The important phrases, I know." He swirled his tongue over her
nipple with lazy indulgence, his breath hot on her skin.
She
slid her hands over the muscles of his shoulders and biceps, the touch of his
skin beneath her fingertips feeling familiar and foreign at the same time. She needed to taste him, indulge in having
him in her bed with the outside world locked out for now. She rolled him onto his back and pinned his
arms to the sides. For a minute, she simply absorbed the sight of him lying
beneath her, his hair falling over one eye, him smiling, dimples showing.
Grinning,
she slid her naked body against his before kissing his chest with slowness. His
hands were in her hair, gentle, as she kissed a path down his abdomen. Her
mouth found his erection. She needed to taste him, claim him as hers once
again. She ran her tongue over the tip of his penis. Teased. Tasted.
When
she heard him whispering in French, she knew she had driven him beyond the
point of no return. She took him fully in her mouth, hands moving over him,
staking out her territory. With every stroke of her tongue, she knew she
brought him closer to the brink.
Breaking
off contact, she glanced up at his face now flushed with passion, eyes half
closed as he watched her. She rose up and sank onto him, needing him inside
her. Deep. She rested her hands on his hard abdomen, gaze locked with his as
she rocked against him, faster and faster. The orgasm started deep inside her
and shuttered through her body like an intense electrical shock.
His
fingers sank into her flesh as his body quaked with release.
She
sank against him, mouth finding his in a long, slow kiss that solidified their
union. Words ached to be said, whispered against his mouth, but she feared
she'd ruin the moment with a declaration he might not yet believe.
He
pushed back her hair with one hand while the other held her firmly against his
chest. "No condom, I'm sorry. I should have—"
"Stop,
don't." Looking away from him, she buried her face into his shoulder. She didn't want to think about reality yet,
not when the fantasy felt so damn good.
She didn't want to think of him sharing his bed with Simone all these
years. Not yet and especially not now.
He
wrapped both arms around her shoulders and held her tight against him. Neither
said a word for a long time, just held each other in silence, limbs still
entangled together. All the raging emotions that had plagued her earlier poked
at the bubble of euphoria protecting them.
"Why
do I feel this is impossible?" he asked against the top of her head.
She
rose up on her elbows and studied his face. It would be easy to brush aside his
comments or feel hurt by them, but instead she felt an urge to shield
this—them—from anything that could bring them down.
"That's
not like you to say. You were always the champion of 'all things are
possible.'" She toyed with his hair that covered one of his eyes and grinned.
"All in, remember?"
His
embrace tightened around her waist. "I'm older and wiser..."
"You've
gotten more depressing over the years."
Jessica Moriarty appears to have it all—a
successful career as an architect, a loyal group of friends, a gorgeous
apartment, and an on-again-off-again affair with Boston's most eligible
bachelor. Behind this “perfect life” façade, Jessica hides the loss she feels
over giving up her dream career as an artist, copes with a destructive
relationship with her alcoholic mother, and struggles with heartbreak over a
lost love.
Jacques Sinclair only needs his cameras, a
backpack, and a good pair of walking shoes. A world-renowned photographer, he
is a man without boundaries. Despite fame and fortune, he still yearns for the
woman who shattered his heart when she vanished from his life five years ago.
A chance meeting brings Jacques and Jessica
back together. Reunions aren't always planned or welcomed, but chemistry has a
way of revealing what is denied. Ensnared in a web of sabotage and
conspiracy—carefully constructed by people who want to control their
lives—Jacques and Jessica struggle to trust each other, break free from the
status quo, reclaim their love, and build a life of extraordinary possibility.
4 stars via Avid Reader
"I
loved this story.
It
was refreshingly honest, brutally tragic, and at times lyrical in it's flow.
Their connection was so intense that as I read it, I was like this absolutely
cannot survive. Love this intense and in your face has a slow burn to it, and
will torch everything in i's path until it is stamped out...There was nothing
contrived about it. I felt like I was literally a fly on the wall and this was
happening in reality and not fiction land. I liked them both, probably one of
the best couples I have ever read."...read entire review http://goo.gl/R191Sa
5
stars via ChristophFischerBooks
"Conflicting
emotions and insurmountable chemistry cause both of them to reassess the past,
their current lives and priorities. Easton shows the magnetic and hypnotic
effect of physical and emotional attraction very well and the gradual crumbling
of outer facades and deep inner resolve. This is a romantic fantasy written in
a convincing and heart warming manner and with enough complications thrown in
to make for a very entertaining and gripping read."...read entire review http://goo.gl/R191Sa
5
stars via Sglas, Amazon reader review:
"Excitement,
intrigue, twists and turns! Dancing Barefoot has it all. Very hard to put down."
read entire review http://goo.gl/R191Sa
Link to the prequel, In Between: an
Italian love story, that is a permanent free read on the author blog (14
chapters total): http://goo.gl/T9XCOj
Buy links
Amazon: myBook.to/DB
Barnes and Noble: http://goo.gl/kyuEpk
|
All Romance eBooks: http://goo.gl/Hd8eTg
Smashwords: http://goo.gl/g56oj0
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