Waverly wasn’t about to wait for Archer to change his mind.

Or for her to lose her nerve.

She wrapped her arms around him, stroking the exposed skin of his back as if she were petting some powerful animal. It probably would bum him out if she admitted she was imagining something along the lines of the jaguars prowling through the jungles surrounding them rather than one of his beloved sea creatures.

Although he did seem to have something in common with a swordfish at the moment. Maybe she’d share her nickname with him some other time. One not so incredibly crucial for them both. Laughing now would probably bruise his ego. The fact that she could even loosen up enough to have thoughts like those amazed her.

And reinforced her belief that this was absolutely the right thing to do.

The two of them had always meshed. Had fun together. Been attracted to each other from the first moment she’d been capable of experiencing those feelings for another human being. It had been him she measured other men against. And they’d always disappointed. Not their fault. He was just…special.

Archer surprised her, seeming to be caught in the same current she was. Instead of ridding her of her clothes immediately, he cradled her against his chest for a minute, swaying in time to some slow music only he could hear while he stroked her hair, and then kissed the top of her head. She felt cherished and protected.

Two things that only turned her on more.

“Kiss me,” she murmured against his collarbone. “Like you used to.”

“How about if I do it better than back then?”

“I’d like to see you try.” She grinned, or would have if he hadn’t curled an index finger below her chin, tipped her face toward his, then descended, fusing his mouth to hers.

Softly at first, with tiny sips that left her room to suck in breath between them. Quickly, though, their tenderness morphed into something more urgent. He cupped the back of her neck and held her in place so that he could situate his mouth to allow it to fit tighter to hers. His tongue fluttered over the seam of her lips and she opened to him.

One of his hands dropped to her ass, pulling her flat against his body so she couldn’t ignore how turned on he truly was. His cock impressed her—thick and long between them.

“Is that okay?” he paused to ask.

“No,” she gasped.

He froze.

“More,” she demanded, tired of waiting for the real thing. “Take your time later. Right now I want it like you said it was. Wild. Frantic. Desperate.”

Because that’s how she felt knowing she was about to have something she’d dreamed of for as long as she could remember.

“I’m not normally a slow-and-steady-missionary kind of lover. Though sweet sex doesn’t sound half bad when I’m thinking of doing it with you.” He balked. “Are you sure it’s a good idea for all of me to come out and play right now?”

“Absolutely.” She smiled then went onto her tiptoes for one final sweet taste of him. “I want you for who you are, Archer. Not for who you think I need you to be.”

He nodded at her as he evaluated her sincerity close up.

Then he walked until the backs of her knees hit the bed. He kept advancing, pressing her backward until she bounced onto the mattress and he followed her down.

That’s when clothes started flying—his shorts, her shirt. Archer toed off his sneakers, letting them drop to the floor, followed by his socks. Finally, she wormed out of her pajama pants.

Good thing she hadn’t bothered to put on a bra or panties yet today.

Saved time.

“You’re even more beautiful now,” he rasped before he sampled her exposed body. First a lick on her collarbone, then a suck on one breast, followed by a pet between her legs. It was as if he didn’t know where to start first.

She could understand. Because while he lit up nerve endings all over her body with his random introductory touches, she was studying his body.

Yes, she’d seen nearly all of it the other day.

But it was different to observe him in motion, hovering over her, about to devour her.

Of all the things it made her feel to watch his power, grace, and strength, frightened was not one of them. Not even close.

Waverly returned the favor, groping every inch of him she could reach, wanting to catalog it in case she never got this lucky again. It was frenetic. Fevered. And honest.

When Archer rose, she took the opportunity to surge forward and crash their mouths together for another round of making out. This was no clandestine peck, though. Nothing like the innocent kisses they’d shared as teenagers.

It seared her from the inside out.

He groaned into her mouth and dropped lower, squashing her in the best of ways. She spread her thighs so his hips could rest between them. The rest was magic.

His erection aligned with her center.

A swing of his hips had the tip of his cock prodding her entrance. It was as if he was knocking so she would admit him.

“Son of a bitch!” he shouted, his head tipping back to expose the tendons in his neck. She couldn’t resist taking a love bite out of one. Until she registered his regret and the slight shift of his lower body.

Away from hers.

Fuck that.

She arched up to maintain contact, though it wasn’t as steady a pressure as she needed.

“Waverly. Wait,” he commanded between gritted teeth. “I don’t have protection. Definitely didn’t expect our conversation to go like this.”

Oh. Well, at least he’d thought of it. All her common sense had flown out the window around the time he took his shirt off. There was no way she was stopping short of the goal here. “Banks made each of the crew members get a full physical workup. I’m clean. And on birth control.”

“I’m clean, too.”

She nodded. “Then why are we wasting time talking?”

“Seriously, you trust me?”

“Would I be letting you fuck me in the first place if I didn’t?” She gave him a pass since there was some serious diversion of blood flow from his brain to his cock at the moment.

He gave her a curt nod. “Right.”

Then he didn’t waste another moment. He took his erection in hand and rubbed it over her mound, making her moan and writhe. Especially when he used the fat head to separate her pussy lips and rode the furrow up until he prodded her clit a few times for good measure.

He went one step beyond when he grasped his shaft then slapped his dick on her pussy, the vibrations making her mewl and forget about attempting to say anything coherent. Even more thrilling was the way it made her feel…owned.

“Inside. Now.” She planted her hands on his hips, loving the flex of his ass beneath her fingers, which rested on the upper swells of his tight muscles. Using her grip on his slim waist, she drew him closer, taking initiative in driving his cock within her the barest bit.

It had been a while since she’d indulged in sex with a real live partner. He had her vibrator beat both in length and girth. So when he wedged inside her, it took some adjusting to make him fit.

“Shh.” He held her still as he worked into her pussy bit by bit. “I’m gonna give you all of me, don’t you worry about that. Just let me take care of you. My way.”

When she relaxed, he slipped another few inches deeper within her.

They both groaned.

“That’s right. Take me.”

She did.

So he kept giving.

Each time she thought they couldn’t possibly be connected any tighter, he showed her that they could. With every push and retreat, he simultaneously stoked her lust and delivered additional pleasure.

And that was before he even really began to thrust.

Archer smothered her with kisses. He supported himself on his forearms, which were braced somewhere near her shoulders. His fingertips caressed her cheeks while he rippled his body above her, making contact with her breasts, belly, and pelvis.

Then he did it faster.

Harder.

With a wicked twist that pressed his abdomen against her clit in the most delicious way possible. It was at that precise moment that Waverly realized exactly how badly she’d underestimated him and his abilities as a lover.

“How the hell can I not remember this?” She moaned and hugged him tighter, probably scratching the shit out of his back in the process. He didn’t seem to mind.

“While you blew my mind, I probably wasn’t this great in bed back then. I’ve learned a few tricks in the past decade.” Unapologetically sexy, he demonstrated one or two then, sucking on her neck somewhere below her ear as he ground his pelvis against exactly the right place to make her spasm around him.

“Not sure I caught that one. Better show me again,” she panted.

He did.

Repeatedly.

“Oh, fuck!” she screamed. “Archer!”

“Am I hurting you?” His stride hitched then, making his cock slip from her pussy. “Scaring you?”

“Only because you stopped. Now I’m afraid you might leave me hanging. Get back in there and finish the job.”

“I’m not used to taking orders when I’m fucking, Waverly.” Something in his stare made her shivery at the revelation.

It wasn’t threatening when he admitted it. It was exhilarating.

“Then I guess you’d better do something to shut me up. You know, like fuck me some more. Harder.” She didn’t know where these suggestions were coming from. They weren’t like her either.

Though he plunged back inside her body and rode her furiously, her plan backfired.

Instead of keeping her quiet, his jackhammering hips only made her more vocal.

Waverly put one arm over her head, palming the headboard to keep him from shoving her into the wall with his frenzied fucking. She cried his name over and over.

Pleaded for him to get her off.

For all she knew, she might have begged him to marry her if it meant he’d do this with her every day of their lives. There was no telling what he drew out of her during those impossibly long minutes. One thing was certain, though—it was something that no one else had ever evoked.

The next time he kissed her, she knew she was going to shatter.

She tightened around his stroking shaft, trying to keep him as deep within her as possible. Sweat slicked his chest, making him glide over her.

And when she felt the first flutters of orgasm, she called to him.

“Yes, that’s it. Come for me, Waverly,” he grunted. “I’m right there with you. Going to fill you so full. Fuck.”

Who knew dirty talk did it for her?

Archer did, now.

She drummed her heels on the bed as she flew apart, afraid that she might never recover from bliss this complete. Her heart nearly exploded in her chest when he began to shoot deep in her pussy, branding her with the rush of his come.

Feeling him share this ecstasy with her set her off again. She wrung him dry.

Archer collapsed onto his back, making the entire bed shake as if there had been an earthquake. Then he patted his heaving chest, calling her to him. She gladly went, cuddling into the crook of his arm. Her head rested perfectly on his shoulder and she slung a thigh over his. He kissed her forehead then lay still, recovering.

It took a few minutes before she could even think straight again. What they’d shared hadn’t been perfect, or careful, or planned. It had been authentic. An outpouring of relief and passion that had been stored up for years.

Of course, it was also exhausting.

When she became aware of their surroundings, she wanted nothing more than to pack up and leave so they could do this all over again. Somewhere not so creepy.

“I have to admit. I never pictured my first time—actually, second, I guess—with you going down in a place like this.” Waverly chuckled as she glanced around at the yellowed wallpaper, which peeled up at the corners.

“Try not to look. Next time we do it in a hotel, I’ll make the reservations.” He put his hand over her eyes and drew her closer still.

“Yeah, right. You’ll ask Banks for help.”

“Even better idea.”

Waverly snuggled against him, sighing in bone-deep contentment.

She stayed there, utterly relaxed, until her body refused to listen to her brain’s demands any longer.

“Archer?” she mumbled on a groan, hating to ruin the moment.

“Hmm?” He sounded half-asleep. Content and relaxed in a way she never remembered seeing him before, unless it had been for a split second when he reclined on the swim line after their snorkel last week.

Her stomach protested. Loudly. “I’m starving.”

“I don’t suppose this place has edible room service?” he sighed.

“Negative.” She shook her head, sending her hair flying.

He ran his fingers through the messy waves and smiled softly at her. “You’re so fine. Leave your hair down from now on. Loose, like this. It suits you.”

“Thanks.” She shoved him off the edge of the bed. “Now get up. Before you give me any ideas. Because I’m seriously going to pass out if you don’t feed me soon.”

Archer growled. “Oh, I’ll feed you all right. Once we’re back on the ship.”

Though she realized he wasn’t talking about lunch, she couldn’t help but ask, “How long is that going to take? Can I swing by McDonald’s or whatever the equivalent is here on our way to the airport?” Honestly, she didn’t recall from her harried trip here. Her mind had blanked.

“I’ll buy you a whole damn restaurant chain of your own if you get it to go.” He eyed her with an entirely different sort of hunger. “I’m going to be hard again before we even make it there. I don’t suppose road head is an option when you’re the pilot, huh?”

“Sky head,” she corrected as they yanked their clothes on nearly as fast as they’d shed them. “And sorry, no.”

“That’s all right. I’ll entertain myself by watching you handle the stick and being jealous.” He grinned.

Just then, Waverly heard voices outside the broken door. Maybe someone on staff had noticed the damage. Oops.

Except they weren’t speaking Spanish.

Archer noticed that, too. He put his finger over his lips and stepped between her and the door.

Without wasting a second, Waverly grabbed the gun off the nightstand and unpacked her bullets. She had not found Archer again, and begun to make things right, just to get jumped by some street thugs who might do more than steal their wallets.

Archer was wealthy. That made him a target wherever he went.

Confirming her suspicions, the dresser rocked. They were trying to get in.