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.„Raspberries and cream,“ Carson said huskily.„I could eat you,little fox.You give yourself to me so sweetly that I – “ His voicethickened.„There aren’t any words.There’s only this.“Carson’s tongue touched each nipple and delicately traced theaureole, savored Lara’s visible trembling at each touch.He took offthe frothy lace peignoir and let it slide from his fingers, wantingnothing between his body and the woman who came to him soperfectly.Slowly, as gently as sunlight itself, he kissed her lips and the hollow of her neck, the creamy swell of her breasts and their deep pinkcrowns, the shadow pool of her navel and the smooth curves of herthighs.His hands moved over her legs in tantalizing caresses, shiftingher subtly with each touch until her legs were drawn up against herbody in a gesture of trust and sensual abandon.At the first touch of his fingertips tracing her layered softness,waves of pleasure radiated through Lara.She opened her eyes andtried to say Carson’s name, but all that came out was a broken soundof pleasure as he looked into her eyes and caressed her again.Hesmiled as he felt her melting at his touch, wanting him.The slow,sweet friction of his palm made her moan.Lara tried to tell Carsonthat she needed him, but all that came out was a husky sound.Alanguid fire spread up from his caress, ravishing her as sweetly as histouch.She tried to speak again but forgot the words as she felt himslowly begin to take her.The sensation was so exquisite that sheclosed her eyes and her body arched helplessly, silently pleading formore of him.He answered her with a small rocking motion that sentshowers of pleasure through her.His name came from her lips in aragged sigh when he finally filled her, only to retreat slowly, leaving her empty once more.„Carson,“ she whispered, looking up into male eyes that were darkpools of need and a pleasure so intense that it was nearly pain.Slowly he came to her again, filling her completely, rockingagainst her gently, perfectly, teaching her with every sweet movementthat passion could be expressed in many ways; and that pleasure couldbuild so subtly, almost secretly, that there was no warning of theecstasy poised to consume her.Seeing his face taut and his powerfulbody misted with sweat, feeling him move with such restraint insideher, suddenly made her body unravel in tiny, endless ripples that wereso exquisite she wept without knowing it.Carson held himself tightly within Lara, both sharing andincreasing her climax with small, powerful movements of his body.Then he was overtaken even as she had been, and he poured himselfinto her until he cried out unknowingly, consumed by an ecstasy bothfierce and endlessly sweet.When the last aftershocks of pleasure finally stopped sweepingthrough their joined bodies, Carson kissed away the tears caught inLara’s black lashes.He rolled onto his side, taking her with him,holding her close.The breeze lifted a corner of the comforter.Hecaught it and pulled it over Lara, kissing her with tender care.Shesmiled and curled more closely against him, loving him so much thatshe was afraid to put it into words because she didn’t want him tothink that she was asking him to say the words in return.Finally, with aching tenderness, Lara brushed her lips againstCarson’s warm, salty skin and relaxed completely in his arms.Hereturned the kiss as gently as it had been given to him, holding Laraclose while she drifted into sleep, holding her and wishing with all his strength that he could absorb her into his very soul, shaking with theforce of that wish.„Little fox,“ he whispered, „what am I going to do if you leaveme?“There was no answer but the wind lifting Lara’s hair acrossCarson’s cheek in a silky caress.„Mmmm,“ Lara murmured as Carson slowly released her mouth fromhis kiss, „I thought I was bribing you into bringing my researchpapers.Now I wonder who’s bribing whom?“A smile that was both beautiful and oddly haunted transformedCarson’s face.Even though Lara had been up and around for a week,fear still clutched at Carson’s heart every time he remembered howhelpless she had been in the library when he had found her.„I’m bribing you,“ he admitted huskily, looking down at Lara asshe sat cross-legged on the bed, fully dressed.„I want you to take iteasy, even though Dr.Scott said you could go out and brand calves ifthat’s what you wanted to do.Stay here.Be here when I come back.“The urgency beneath Carson’s words caught at Lara.„Don’t worryabout me,“ she said, taking his hand and bringing it to her lips.„I’mfine, Carson.Good as new.Better,“ she added, grinning and putting ahand on her slightly rounded stomach.„I’m twice as good.Go on andtake care of the ranch.I hate to think of how much work you’ve put offto take care of me the last two weeks.“„After the fever broke, I enjoyed every bit of it.“ Carson hesitated,then looked at Lara with eyes that were intent, luminous…oddlyhaunted.„You’ve given me so much, Lara,“ he said simply.„Morethan I can tell you.If I’ve been able to give even a small part of it back to you, I’m glad.“The door closed gently behind Carson, leaving Lara alone but notlonely.The echo of Carson’s deep voice and the memory of thegolden warmth of his eyes as he looked at her made lonelinessimpossible.Smiling, she reached for the stack of documents that dealtwith the legal aspects of the Rocking B’s history from 1940 to 1960.Feeling more vital and alive than she had in years, Lara tackled thelast two decades of the Rocking B’s history that she needed for herthesis.There were many papers dealing with small loans for seed andfertilizer, loans that were repaid within nine months.Some of thenotes amounted to little more than IOUs written by hand on notebookpaper.Others were more formal.One document in particular intrigued Lara.It was dated March 17,1949, and signed by Larry Blackridge, but it hadn’t been drawn up by any of the Donovan lawyers.If the first page was anything to go by,the document seemed to detail the circumstances under which LarryBlackridge would borrow at no interest a large sum of money fromMonroe White.„White,“ muttered Lara.„White.Have I heard that name before inconnection with the Rocking B? A shirttail relative of some kind?Must be.Who else would loan money with no collateral and nointerest?“Lara pulled over a notebook and began to read, pen poised to takenotes.The more she read, the less sense the document made.Wrylyshe reminded herself that impenetrable prose was a common problemin legal documents.With a sigh she began the first page all over.Gradually Lara realized that she was reading a prenuptialagreement between Sharon Harrington and Lawrence Blackridge.Monroe White was Sharon’s maternal grandfather, a man ofenormous wealth.Once the legal language was boiled down, thedetails emerged in all their emotionless austerity [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]