Star of His Heart - Brenda Jackson [82]
Then he was above her, entering her, giving her the full length of him, going so deep she felt him touch the crest of her womb before pulling out and coming back into her again. She arched her body, loving all he was giving her, all he was making her feel, and still wanting more. She clung to him, wrapped her legs around him as he stroked sensation after sensation from her body.
“Look at me, Netherland,” he whispered as the warmth of his breath touched her face. “Look at me.”
And she did. She met his gaze and felt the beating of his heart on her breasts as he held her tighter to him.
“No matter what happens, always remember that I love you.”
Before she could say anything he dipped his head and kissed her again. Her body hummed, then began spinning out of control as he made love to her mouth and her body. And then the coil within each of them exploded, slamming them into the throes of ecstasy as she felt her womb flood with the force of his release as well as her own.
But she wasn’t ready to let go. Neither was he.
She held him tightly within her, rocking her hips against him as he continued to move against her in a rhythm that was more dynamic than any music she had ever heard. More powerful than any tempo. The beat Ashton was hammering out was electrifying and earthshaking. She felt it and knew he felt it, too.
“Come back to me, Ashton.” She breathed that plea just seconds before another explosion, one more powerful than the last, overtook them.
When Netherland woke the next morning, daylight was shining through the windows, and she heard the busy sound of cars in traffic. She sat up straight in bed as soon as she realized she was alone.
Ashton was gone.
She glanced across the room and saw a stack of papers that he had left on the dresser. Getting out of bed she walked over and picked them up.
Her heart nearly stopped beating.
The first was a copy of a power of attorney in which Ashton had given her the right to act on his behalf while he was away. The second was a copy of the marriage license the two of them had signed the night before.
Netherland closed her eyes and took a deep breath before she forced herself to look at the final document, having an idea what it was. Tears clouded her eyes when she reopened them and looked at the remaining document Ashton had left for her.
It was a copy of his will.
The date indicated it had been updated the day before and from what she read, he had left everything he owned solely to her. But what filled her with gut-wrenching emotions, so intense she could almost not endure them, was the paragraph above his signature that said:
To Netherland and my sons, I bequeath all my worldly possessions as well as all of my love. I will always be with them in spirit, to watch over them, protect them, care for them as only a husband and a father would, and to love them forever. Death will not end my love. It will magnify it.
A choked sound escaped Netherland’s lips at the same time an ache started to unfold within her chest, the pressure of which was unbearable. She felt herself crumbling to the floor, crying in tormented sobs while praying over and over to God to return Ashton to her and to give her the strength to endure until she saw him again.
Chapter 24
Netherland stared at the two men, unable to speak. The news they had just delivered had basically knocked the wind out of her body. She latched onto Trevor’s arm in desperation, hoping she had heard him wrong.
“What do you mean you lost radio contact with Ashton? That’s not possible. Rome and Sir Drake are with him. They were supposed—”
“Ashton went in alone, Nettie. Didn’t you know that?” Trevor asked gently as he eased her down in the nearest chair.