escalating through his entire body.
Growling deep in his throat, he dragged his mouth away to breathe in a gust of air that included her lush scent. He used the tip of his tongue to lick the side of her face, needing her taste. Drawing in more breath, he met her gaze. “I want you, Joy.” He figured there was no way she couldn’t know that with his hard erection poking into her.
“And I want you, too, Stonewall.”
Sensations ripped through him with her words. Knowing all this desire was being shared made him lower his head and claim her lips again. He enjoyed kissing her, applying his strong, hard lips to her soft ones. A part of him knew the purpose of making love to her mouth this way. He was setting the tone of just how intense he planned to make love to her body. Continuing with that strategy, he kissed her with a relentless hunger that wouldn’t let up. Their tongues were mating as if today was all they had and tomorrow was a dream they couldn’t bank on. They would take all they could now, and the memories would be savored later during those days when he was off somewhere protecting Dak and she was back here solving her criminal cases. He intended this to be a night they would not only remember, but one that would keep the flame burning until the next time...and he was determined to make sure there was a next time.
* * *
WHEN STONEWALL SUDDENLY broke off their kiss, he gathered her into his arms, took the couple of steps toward the sofa and laid her on it. He then began practically tearing off his clothes. First he tossed the tux jacket aside, followed by the bow tie and shirt. Cuff links were placed on the table as he kicked off his shoes.
Joy watched him through desired-glazed eyes. Never had any man kissed her with such intensity and hunger. She had actually felt his need and his desire for her with every stroke of his tongue.
Tonight he’d put to rest the myth that if you’d had one kiss you’d had them all. Mainly because the ones Stonewall had delivered were in a class all by themselves. He could take your mouth and gobble it up with toe-curling greed one minute and ply it with a tenderness that made you feel as if your mouth was a treasure to be cherished the next.
He lowered his pants down in his legs and his briefs quickly followed. She moaned when he stood before her totally naked, giving her a full-frontal view of the most magnificent male body she’d ever seen. His physique was the kind that would make a woman drool ten times over.
Her gaze took him in, moving down his too-handsome face to a pair of wide shoulders, a broad, hairy chest, a tight stomach and perfect abs. He had a tattoo of a bald eagle in flight on his chest. However, it was the area below his waist that had her leaning up to get a better view. Nestled between a pair of taut, masculine thighs and surrounded by a thatch of thick, curly hair, his manhood stood as erect as any she’d ever seen. It was gigantic, and she wondered how he’d kept all his junk encased in a pair of briefs and behind a zipper. She was beginning to feel light-headed at the thought that anything of such monumental size could fit into anything...especially a woman.
“Ready for me to undress you, Joy?”
His words made her snatch her gaze up to his face. Undress her? Did he actually think what he was packing could fit inside her? The thought of him even trying should have made her loins ache in pain, instead of the throb of pleasure she was feeling between her legs. For some reason it was anticipation and not panic ruling her mind.
As if he knew her concerns, he said, “I won’t hurt you.”
She frowned. “You don’t know that.”
He chuckled. “I haven’t sent a woman to the hospital yet.”
Was that comment meant to be reassuring? It was on the tip of her tongue to tell him that there was a first time for everything, but instead her gaze lowered to the area between his legs again. Definitely impressive, and she had a feeling he knew it, which was probably why he didn’t appear self-conscious. Not all men owned what he had. She forced her gaze lower, past his genitals and legs to a pair of pretty feet.
“You’ve seen enough of me. Now I’m dying to see all of you.”
Joy suddenly imagined two naked bodies. Theirs. Limbs entwined while going at it beneath the sheets. Just the thought, the very idea, sent a gush of wetness flowing between her legs. Suddenly the thought of being able to handle Stonewall Courson stirred a raw need inside her.
He leaned down, brushed a kiss across her lips and whispered, “There will be no pain tonight, Joy. Just pleasure. I promise.”
She didn’t see how that was possible but decided she would take his word for it. “Alright, if you say so.”
“I do.” He slid his tongue between her lips and proceeded to ply her mouth with intense strokes of his tongue. Joy knew at that moment she would never tire of being kissed by him.
Getting caught up in the kiss, for a minute she thought she only imagined the feel of his hand beneath her dress. But when his fingers eased behind the waistband of her panties and began stroking her wetness, she tore her mouth from his and moaned deeply against his neck as sharp sensations invaded her womanly core.
“Remember. More pleasure than pain.”
She pulled back and looked at him. “Hey, wait a minute. Moments ago you said no pain, just pleasure. Why are you backtracking?”
He licked the side of her face. “Because I felt you down there. You’re pretty damn tight.”
Pretty damn tight? Maybe in his book but not in hers. His statement only raised her anxiety level a notch. He stared deep into her eyes. “Trust me.”
Trust him? Didn’t he know she was a cop and a cop didn’t fully trust anyone? But that throbbing force between her legs all but demanded that she trust him. It had been a long time since any man had given her pleasure, and she wanted it. She needed it. She would even go so far as to say that after six months and four canceled dates, they both deserved it.
“I can handle it,” she said with a lot more confidence than she actually felt. And it didn’t help matters that his fingers were still planted between her legs, inside her, stroking her in a way that would make her agree to just about anything. This was their first date. Were they moving too fast? From the relentless throbbing at her womanly core, one would think they weren’t moving fast enough. And she was woman enough to admit, she wanted to have sex with him. She wasn’t looking for anything permanent, exclusive or otherwise. She needed something to take the edge off, to relieve her stress. She wanted this.
She wanted him.
She eased up and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Okay, Mr. Courson. Show me what you can do with all that you’ve got.”
* * *
STONEWALL INTENDED TO do just that. Starting now. He reached behind her to ease down the zipper of her dress before pulling the garment over her head and tossing it in a recliner chair. He looked down at her and couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lips when he saw her matching bra and panties. Pink. And not just any shade of pink. It was a soft pink. Damn, the mere thought of the tough, kick-ass Detective Joy Ingram wearing sexy pink lingerie sent his libido into overdrive. And the sensual scent of her perfume was arousing him to enormous heights.
“I’m discovering that underneath all of that hard-hitting and rough detective facade is one hell of a sexy woman. I think I’m going to start calling you Sexy Joy,” he said, using his fingertips to gingerly stroke up and down her
