Stone Cold Surrender - Brenda Jackson [35]
Part of his plan had been to lay temptation at Madison’s feet but she was unknowingly laying it at his. He’d thought with all the chores he’d had to do outside that he would have worked off some of his nervous energy. But as soon as he’d seen her, the only thing he’d managed to do was to work up an oversize case of sexual need.
A prickle of unease made its way up his spine. For Madison to be someone who knew nothing about passion, she definitely looked like a woman who could deliver. And he had a feeling that that delivery would be so much to his liking that he might start getting crazy ideas about wanting to keep her around.
He closed his eyes and clenched his jaw tight. The last thing he needed was to think of any woman in permanent terms. And he refused to let a beautiful, proper-talking, brown-eyed, delectable-smelling city woman come into his life and change things. All he needed to do was remember that episode with Durango a few years ago to screw his head back on tight. The first time his womanizing cousin had let his guard down and fallen for a city woman, he’d been left with scars for life.
But then Stone knew Madison was nothing like the woman who had ripped out Durango’s heart. Madison Winters wasn’t like any woman he knew. He’d been so hell-bent on introducing her to sexual pleasures that he’d outright forgotten how long it had been for him. He hadn’t slept with a woman in over a year after practically shutting off his social life to complete his last book. And the last few women he had been involved with had been downright bores. The need for physical intimacy was tugging at his insides, making him feel things he normally didn’t feel; making him want something he usually didn’t think twice about doing without.
But still, when all was said and done, no matter what torture he was going through, the woman in the other room was his main concern. Her needs outweighed his and more than anything she needed to understand how it felt to be driven to lose control, to act impulsively and to be spontaneous. She deserved to experience reckless pleasure and uncontrollable passion at least once. And as he moved away from the door and walked toward the connecting bathroom, he knew he wanted that one time to be with him.
Madison placed her hand on her forehead, feeling her skin and wondering why she was beginning to feel so hot. But deep down she knew the reason why. Anytime she was within close proximity to Stone, her temperature went up a few degrees. There was no way she could deny that she wanted him. And hearing the sound of the bath running and knowing that he was in the bathroom naked and wet wasn’t helping matters.
Ninety-six hours was the equivalent of four days. That’s how long she had known him and here she was thinking all kinds of naughty thoughts. There were still some things about Storm Westmoreland that she didn’t know, but she felt certain there was a fair amount that she did know. She had a feeling that the same description he had given his uncle earlier that day could also be used to describe him.
During the ride up the mountain he talked about his family and she knew he was close to them and that all the Westmorelands had a special relationship. And she knew that he also had a love and deep appreciation for nature. That was evident when he had pointed out various plants and trees, as well as telling her about the different types of wildlife that was found in these parts. And she had a feeling there were times in his life—possibly while working on one of his novels—that he sought solitude more often than others. But at the same time he would feel comfortable in any type of social gathering if that was where he wanted to belong.
And she knew that although he would be the last person to brag