laughed. “With siblings it’s always about competition and pecking order.”
“Even with triplets?”
“Especially with triplets.”
After glancing at the slips in her palm, she handed one of them to Reid. “I’m going to use the box again and tap into the power of the stones.”
And it was going to work. Whatever doubts she’d had, whatever nerves plagued her had begun to fade the moment her fingers first brushed against her mother’s jewelry box. There was a power here that had never failed her.
While he leaned toward the mouth of the arch to maximize the light, she glanced down at the folded pieces of pink paper she’d written her sexual fantasy on. They were easy to identify because all the other goals were written on small single sheets. She’d filled two large pieces of paper with her plans for Reid, and over the years she’d expanded them a lot.
“‘My goal is to find Eleanor’s sapphire necklace before sundown tomorrow,’” Reid read aloud. Then he refolded the slip of paper and passed it to her. “You’re being more specific with your time frame, I see.”
“A lesson learned the hard way.” She placed the goal on the top of the pile.
“You really believe that putting that into the box and tucking it into the stones is going to help you find the necklace?”
“I know it is. There’s a power here.” Positive of that, she placed the second slip of paper she’d brought on the top of her pile and closed the lid.
“Don’t I get to read that one?”
“I’ll tell you all about it.” Just as soon as I get it buried. She slid the box into its niche and replaced the stones. Then, still on her knees, she faced him. “That final piece of paper was a sexual fantasy I wrote about you on the night our parents married.”
“Nell—”
She stopped him by placing a hand over his lips. “Let me finish. I knew even then that you would be a reluctant lover, so I wrote about seducing you. I’d never before imagined myself in that kind of role, but with you it was easy. Let me turn that fantasy into reality. Just one night—no harm, no foul.”
When he said nothing, she moved her hand to his shoulder, then down his arm and closed them around his fingers. Triumph thrilled her when his fingers gripped hers hard. “I’ve waited so long to touch you, and it’s the perfect time. Once we find the necklace and everyone’s safe, we’ll go our separate ways. End of story.”
“Life doesn’t work like a story line, Nell. Shit happens.”
“I’m a big girl. I can handle shit.” She raised his hand to her mouth, kissed their linked fingers. Then she placed her free hand on his chest. His heart was beating as hard as hers. “My story line in my fantasy is all about enjoying each other for as long as we can.”
With his free hand, he simply took a strand of her hair. “People leave.”
“Of course they do.” There was no mistaking the flash of pain she’d seen in his eyes. Odd that she’d never thought of Reid as being vulnerable. But it occurred to her that he might be just as afraid of being hurt as he was of hurting her.
Her instinct was to soothe. “People walk in and out of our lives all the time. I lost my mother before I could even remember her. Adair and Piper missed her terribly. But they at least had the memory of her. I don’t. You and I can have each other now. I’d rather live with the memory of that than with regret, wouldn’t you?”
Regrets. Reid was sure he’d have them. He already knew he wanted to give her more than she was asking for. More than he was capable of giving her. “You win.”
When he leaned toward her, she placed a firm hand on his chest. “We have to find a better place for me to seduce you. We don’t want the legend kicking in.” Rising, she tugged him with her and stepped out of the stone arch. “In my fantasy, I started my seduction very slowly. Just a stolen kiss in the gardens. Come on. I’ll show you.”
“I can’t wait.” He’d been wanting to kiss her ever since they’d left the castle. Ever since the last time he’d kissed her. For seven long years.
Forever.
In one quick move, he pushed her into the shadows at the side of the arch and caged her against the stones. Her eyes darkened; her breath caught. He could have sworn he felt her body melting into his until every soft, round curve fit perfectly.
“Wait. In my fantasy, I’m supposed to be the seductress.”
“You’ve done your job.” He streaked his hands up her sides and thrust his fingers into her hair and crushed her lips with his. The low purr in her throat shot fire straight to his loins. The desire he’d felt for her, already consuming, became even more raw, more impatient, more primitive. Undeniable. It beat in his blood, in his mind, until he couldn’t think. He could only want. Take.
He inched them farther into the shadows, but she slowed his progress by fisting her hands in his hair to keep his mouth on hers. Gone was the slow, gentle seduction she’d begun beneath the arch. Her tongue met his, tangling, tasting, testing. Her hands were just as demanding, tugging his shirt free from his pants so she could run her hands up his back.
And those nails. Each scrape, each little stab fanned the flames she’d ignited with her story. He couldn’t stop touching her. She was stronger than he’d imagined and more agile. She moved against him, not in submission but in aggression. Give me more, she seemed to demand. As if there were something he was holding back.
He wasn’t. He couldn’t. He thought he’d known all the variations of desire before, but it had never sliced at his control this way. As he dragged her closer, he thought that maybe she was all he’d ever wanted—the softness, the fire. When she was pressed against him like this, it was easy to block out the past, the future, and think only of now. Of having her right now.
Nell told herself she had to think. She had to breathe. But the searing heat he created was burning her seduction plans with the ferocity of a wildfire. When he tore away his mouth to run kisses over her face, her throat, she dragged in a breath and willed the oxygen to her brain. She needed a new plan.
“Wait.”
“Nell....” His grip on her tightened. “You want me to stop?”
“No. I just want you to let me show you another fantasy I’ve dreamed of.” The night air filled her lungs, and the sound of her ragged breathing mingled with his was erotic, tempting. “I’ve dreamed so often of doing this.” She pulled his belt free. “And this.” She unsnapped his jeans and tugged down the zipper. “And finally this.” She freed him and wrapped her hand around him. The instant she did, she revised the rest of her plan because she simply couldn’t wait another moment. “Now you can kiss me again.”
The instant his mouth crushed hers, she did her best to melt into him. Her body had never felt this alive. She could even feel her blood racing through her veins. There was so much to absorb—every hard angle and plane of his body. The roughness of his hands as he gripped her hips to pull her closer. The sharp, unyielding press of the rocks at her back. Each separate sensation brought its own unique thrill.
He
