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  She held his mouth against her, drowning in its moist caresses, loving the way he was with her. There had never been any fear of intimacy since their first time. Her body knew what kind of pleasure lay ahead, and now it reacted with delight, not apprehension.

  For long, lazy minutes, he aroused her, not satisfied until she was trembling from head to toe and completely at his mercy. Only then did he undress himself, feasting on her soft curves and creamy skin while he discarded the rest of his clothing and lay back down beside her.

  She looked up with misty eyes as he arched above her, catching his weight on his powerful arms, and she felt the exquisite tracing of his skin on hers as he eased down over her.

  Her breath jerked at the first touch of him, and he laughed wickedly.

  “It shouldn’t shock you anymore,” he whispered at her lips as he moved even closer. “You’re an old married woman now.”

  “It isn’t shock, it’s…pleasure!” She clutched at him as he began to move. She buried her mouth against his shoulder, moaning again as his body merged so gently with hers. “Justin!”

  “I love you,” he whispered softly. “I’ve never really shown you how much, but now I’m going to. Lie still for me, little one. Let me take you straight into the sun.” He eased his mouth over hers, and began to speak to her in husky whispers, in fluent Spanish. Love words. Descriptive words that he punctuated with slow caresses and tender tracings that made her weep with new pleasure. There was no holding back this time, no hidden worry, no barrier. He adjusted his movements to the needs of her body, taking his time, treating her with exquisite tenderness. And somewhere in the slow fire of it, she heard her voice cry out as she followed him into the whirlwind of fulfillment.

  She couldn’t stop trembling afterward. She clung to his shoulders, trying to keep her breathing steady, her heartbeat from shaking her. But he seemed just as affected, which made it less inhibiting.

  “It’s all right.” He soothed her with his hands, kissing her face gently with lips that adored her. “It’s all right. It’s just the shock of coming down from such a height, sweetheart,” he breathed. “I feel it, too.”

  “It’s never been like this before,” she whispered brokenly.

  “But we never made love like this before,” he whispered back. He lifted his head to search her dazed eyes. “Not this completely.”

  She touched his mouth with trembling fingers, lost in him, totally his. “I don’t want to stop.”

  “Neither do I,” he whispered softly. “We don’t have to. We’re alone in the house, with nothing else to do. We’ll go upstairs and see if we can top what we’ve just had together.”

  He got up slowly, picked her up and started for the door.

  “Justin, our clothes,” she whispered, glancing back at the very evident turmoil of their garments leaving a visible trail.

  He balanced her on his leg and unlocked the door. He opened it and started up the long staircase with her cradled against his damp, hair-roughened chest. “They’ll still be there when we get back,” he promised.

  “But we don’t have any clothes on,” she protested.

  He looked down at the pretty pink body in his arms with pure pride of possession. “I noticed.”

  “But Maria and Lopez…”

  “…won’t be back tonight.” He put his mouth over hers. After a few seconds of it, she began to cling to him, loving the feel of him against her soft bareness. Loving, she thought while she could, was the most incredible pleasure. She kissed him back, all thought of arguing gone from her whirling mind.

  It was longer the second time. He drew it out, his voice soft and slow, speaking partly in Spanish as he taught her new words and coached her in their enunciation. And all the while, he touched her, adored her with his hands and his eyes, whispered all she meant to him, how pleased he was about the baby they’d made. They reached heights they’d never scaled, and it was almost dark when they awoke in each other’s arms.

  “We slept,” she murmured.

  “No wonder.” He grinned down at her, laughing when she blushed.

  “I’m thirsty,” she whispered.

  “So am I.” He got up, stretching lazily while her eyes adored his blatant nudity. “How about something cold and icy? And something to nibble on?”

  “That would be lovely.” She moved against the sheets, her eyes sultry. “Don’t be long.”

  He chuckled. “I’ll be back before you miss me.”

  He looked around for something to put on. His clothes were downstairs. Finally he went into the bathroom and came out with a huge colored beach towel with a giant frog on it. It was her bedroom he’d carried her to, and there was a noticeable shortage of male clothing.

  “Damned flashy thing,” he muttered, glaring playfully at her as he wrapped it around his hips. “You couldn’t buy a plain one, I don’t suppose?”

  “I like frogs,” she murmured.

  He arched an eyebrow and, ignoring Shelby’s giggles, went downstairs.

  He filled two glasses with ice and sweetened tea from the refrigerator, made ham sandwiches, and put it all on a tray. He went out of the kitchen into the hall and paused at the foot of the staircase to adjust his slipping towel when the front door suddenly opened and Calhoun walked in.

  He stopped dead, staring at his taciturn, very dignified brother standing in the hall with a giant frog towel wrapped around his lean hips. Justin was carrying a tray full of food and drink and he looked…strange.

  “I thought you and Shelby were coming to supper,” Calhoun began.

  “Supper?” Justin echoed.

  “Supper. It’s almost seven. You didn’t call and your phone seems to be off the hook. We were afraid something might have happened, so I came over to see about you.”

  Justin blinked. He’d taken the phone off the hook when he’d carried Shelby upstairs. He looked down at his towel. “Nothing’s wrong. I was, uh, just taking a bath,” he improvised, a little embarrassed at being caught in such a compromising situation even in his own home.

  Calhoun noticed the open door of the living room and the trail of clothing. “In the living room?” he asked. “And since when do you wear dresses?”

  Justin glared at him, his lips in a thin line. “I was sorting clothes at the same time. Then I got hungry.”

  “You were invited to supper.”

  “I got hungry first. I was going to have a bite to eat before I started getting ready.” His complexion had gone ruddy by now.

  Calhoun was grinning from ear to ear. “In the shower?”

  “I was going to eat first,” Justin said stubbornly.

  “Where’s Shelby?” Calhoun asked curiously.

  Justin cleared his throat. “Upstairs. She was tired.”

  Just then, a plaintive voice came from upstairs. “Justin, are you ever coming back?” Shelby moaned. “I’m lonely.”

  Justin’s face went scarlet. “I’ll be right there!” he called tersely. He glared harder at Calhoun. “She’s taking a shower, too.”

  Calhoun had to stifle laughter. He grinned knowingly at his older brother and turned on his heel. “When you finish your snack in the shower and get through sorting clothes, come on over and we’ll feed you.” He glanced at the towel. “Better put on some pants first, though, we wouldn’t want to shock Abby. Honest to God, Justin, a frog?”

  “It was the only damned thing I could find, and what’s it to you?” Justin demanded hotly.

  “Oh, I think it suits you,” Calhoun replied. “I like frogs.”

  “We forgot the time,” Justin said stiffly. “We’ll be there in about thirty minutes, if it’s convenient.”

  “No rush.” Calhoun grinned wickedly. “If you think the living-room carpet is a good place, you ought to try it in a whirlpool bath,” he murmured, and got out quick, because Justin looked torn between shock and homicide.

  Justin carried the tray upstairs, his dignity bruised, and put it on the bedside table.

  “Iced tea! I’
m parched.” Shelby laughed and picked up her glass to drink thirstily. “I heard voices.”

  “Calhoun came to see where we were,” Justin muttered. “We were invited to supper, remember?”

  “I didn’t think about it,” Shelby confessed.

  “Neither did I. We can go in a half hour. Still want a snack first?”

  “Maybe we’d better wait. We can always have them for a bedtime snack. I’ll wrap them up and put them in the refrigerator when I’ve dressed.” She looked at her husband lovingly. “Calhoun and Abby are married, too,” she reminded him. “It’s not so shocking to be caught spending the afternoon in bed with your wife, is it?”

  He shifted. “No. But it’s uncomfortable,” he confessed with a wry glance. “Six years of celibacy makes a man secretive, I guess.”

  “Six years.” She reached up and kissed him very tenderly. “I thought I’d made you too bitter to sleep with anyone else. But it wasn’t that at all, was it, Justin?” she asked quietly.

  He touched her fingers to his lips. “I didn’t want anyone else,” he said with a sigh. “I loved you too much. It was you or nobody.”

  She had to bite her lip to stem the tears. “That’s how I felt. I tried so hard to protect you,” she whispered.

  “I was doing the same thing for you, when we got married. I suppose both of us went overboard, though.”

  “But no more.” She smiled. “Now we’ll use our protective instincts on our baby.”

  “That sounds like a good idea.” He bent and kissed her. “We’d better get dressed and go see the in-laws, little mama,” he murmured. “Before they come back.”

  “It was nice of Abby to invite us.”

  “Yes. I hope you feel up to what’s coming,” he added. “Knowing Calhoun, it’s going to be a trying supper.”

  She laughed, hiding her face against him. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too, honey.” He got up, frog and all. “Shelby, would you have told me about the baby if Calhoun hadn’t gotten me to the airport on time?”

  She nodded. “It was your right. I wasn’t really leaving you, Justin, I just needed a little time to think things through. I’d have come back. I’m not equipped to live without you any more.” She stared at him hungrily. “Were you coming after me?”

  “Of course.” He chuckled. “I figured I’d spend several months searching the city for you, but that wouldn’t have stopped me. I felt bad about what I’d said and done. But it was because I loved you that I’d have gone looking for you, honey, not out of guilt.”

  “Yes. Now I know.” She sighed lazily, so much in love with him that she felt near to bursting with it. “I could eat a horse.”

  “I’ll phone Abby to cook one. Get up and get your clothes on, woman. I’m starving.”

  “Don’t look at me. Not eating was your idea.”

  She got out of bed and he swung her up against him, his eyes full of tenderness. “It sure was. I take these spells from time to time.” He bent and kissed her. “Will you mind?”

  She linked her arms around his neck and held him closer. “I won’t mind at all.”

  Outside the night sky grew even darker, and a few miles down the road, Abby was starting to reheat the meat and vegetables in her Irish stew one last time. She’d tried to tell Calhoun that champagne didn’t really go with such a simple dish, but he was too busy chilling it to listen. So Abby just laughed, and got down her best champagne flutes. Maybe he was right at that. It did seem like a good night for a celebration.

  * * * * *

  If you love Diane Palmer, you’re not going to want to miss UNTAMED

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  Looking for more? With more than one hundred ebooks available, you can also enjoy dozens of other memorable titles by Marta Perry!

  Connect with us on Harlequin.com for info on our new releases, access to exclusive offers, free online reads and much more!

  Other ways to keep in touch:

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  ISBN: 9781460393529

  Long, Tall Texan Legacy

  Copyright © 2015 by Diana Palmer.

  All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

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