As she slammed her upper body against Tristan’s, she pulled at his hair and tore at the robe. She needed to feel his bare skin, his warmth under her. He rolled them so that her back laid on the couch and he braced himself on one arm, caressing her with the free hand. His hot palm cupped her cheek, smoothed her shoulder, teased her breast and abdomen, then traveled down to her pelvis and thighs. He hooked it behind her knee and brought it up to his waist.

Eyeballing her, he dipped his head and whispered inside her ear as he nibbled on her earlobe, “You’re perfect.”

She knew she was not in any sense, but hearing him say those words warmed her from deep inside. She groaned as his fingers hooked on the waistband of her silk shorts, pulling them down her legs and throwing them over his shoulder.

His eyebrows shot up when he noticed she wasn’t wearing panties. “I like the way you think.”

Tristan cupped her sex, then teased her hard nub with his thumb as his index finger dove inside her. She expected him to kiss her, but he seemed interested in studying her reactions, so she locked eyes with him.

Two could play that game.

She hitched her knee and moved her thigh to give him easier access.

He inserted a second finger while his thumb kept pressing down on her clit. He crooked his index finger to reach for her sweet spot and she moaned when the pad of his finger found it. Intensifying his stroking movements, Tristan brought her to the brink of an orgasm and slowed his fingers down when her flesh trembled under them.

She was about to complain when he leaned down to whisper against her lips, “I don’t want to take you on a couch, not after all these years. We deserve better.”

Standing, he reached out his hand and she grabbed it. He pulled her up and into a loose embrace. She squealed when he scooped her up in his arms. Once in the main bedroom, he laid her in the middle of the bed, and shrugged out of the robe, while she pulled the cami over her head and dropped it on the floor. Kneeling on the mattress beside her, he hovered over Izzie and she admired his body. Still as athletic and powerful as she remembered.

She sat upright and caressed his erection. “My turn. Lie down.”

She settled between his thighs when he did and licked his large head before sliding it over her tongue. Hollowing her cheeks, she sucked and licked Tristan, bobbing her head up and down like he had taught her to do. She had given head to other men, but none compared to Tristan. She truly enjoyed his scent and the texture as his cock poked the back of her throat. His loud moans and the tightening in his balls told her she’d better stop.

As if reading her mind, Tristan ran his fingers through her hair and pleaded, “That’s enough, sweetheart. I don’t want to come in your mouth. Not now.”

She didn’t want that either, so she let go of his erection and moved, intent on straddling him. Tristan stopped her from doing so, and knelt on the bed in front of her, cupping her cheeks. Capturing her mouth, he moved his lips slowly over hers and traced them with his tongue, but didn’t deepen the kiss. Pulling away, he smiled into her eyes. “I know being on top is your favorite position, but I’d rather try something different. Are you game?”

Intrigued, she conceded, “As long as it doesn’t involve pain.”

“No! None of that. Are you into it now?”

“Nope.”

“Good. I feel like neither of us should be on top for this first time. It’s a power thing, a sex position. So, I want us to be equals. If we’re to work on trust issues and stuff, we’d better begin in the bedroom, don’t you think?”

She couldn’t agree more. She smooched his cheek and giggled. “You’re amazing, Tristan Knight. How did I get so lucky?”

“Did you just giggle?” His expression was priceless.

“What can I say? You make me feel young again.”

He shook his head and the corner of his lips hitched up in his famous lopsided smile. She had missed that too. “I want to make you feel so much more than that. Come here.”

He gathered her in his arms, sitting on his heels and guiding her to sit on his thighs. She swung a leg over his, bracing herself on her knees, as she positioned each one on either side of Tristan’s legs.

As he adjusted the condom he had unwrapped, Izzie’s mind took her back to a certain prom night. She didn’t want to ask him if he remembered it for fear of breaking the spell of the moment. Although his logic made sense just now, when he explained that position would make them equals, she couldn’t avoid wondering if some part of his subconscious had taken Tristan to their first night, their first orgasm.

She put all thought aside when he kissed her again, this time with passion and hunger. His expert lips devoured hers and his tongue invaded her mouth, stroking its velvety length against hers. She crossed her arms behind his neck, embraced his hips with her thighs, and gasped when he seized her tiny waist and pulled her down his erection. He filled her up and her tight walls gripped his cock when they moved against each other, up and down, in and out.

He broke the kiss and rested his forehead against her when her flesh began trembling around his cock. She dropped her head back and closed her eyes to savor the feeling of Tristan’s dick twitching inside her again. She didn’t try to hide a satisfied smile. He pinched her clit and her eyes flew open. “Stay with me,” he asked.

She couldn’t deny him that, so she gazed into his blue eyes, turned almost black by passion, and groaned when the first orgasm hit her like an eighteen-wheeler. She gasped and gritted her teeth, but didn’t let go of his stare. Spearing her fingers through his hair, she increased her speed, moving up and down his lap, his cock stabbing her womb with each pass.

Tristan grunted and scratched her back, when he reached his climax. Unloading his cock deep inside her, he fused their lips in a passionate kiss as she crossed her ankles on the mattress behind him and reached her second wave of bliss.

Throughout the night, they rediscovered each other’s bodies and what made them tick and curl their toes. Although Izzie was aware they had a long way to go before Tristan would trust her again, she was optimistic he would eventually forget past mistakes.

The following morning, as they sat down in the hotel main restaurant for breakfast, their future looked promising. “I’m glad you stayed last night.”

“I’m glad you twisted my arm to stay.”

She punched Tristan’s upper arm and he flinched as if she had hurt him. “Don’t be a wuss. I cannot possibly hurt you with a fake slap like that.”

“You hurt my feelings,” he replied in mock indignation. He laughed out loud and she joined him.

Covering his hand with hers, she sobered up. “Seriously, Big T. Thanks for letting me in, for giving us a second chance. We’ll make it work this time. I promise.”

He squeezed her hand and smiled. “Dig into your omelet, young lady. You’ll need energy to keep up with me today.”

She let the naughty come out to play. “Oh, really? I remember I wasn’t the one begging for mercy last night.”

“You think I’m made of rubber or something? I don’t run on batteries,” he countered, and the double meaning wasn’t lost on her. “I just needed a second to recoup, that was all.”

“Yeah, let’s go with that.”

Izzie didn’t have time to continue tormenting him on the subject because a fan came up to their table.

“I’m sorry to inconvenience you, but would you mind if we took a picture?”

“Not at all.”

Tristan stretched out his hand for the young guy’s phone. “I’ll take it for you.”

“Oh, I kind of hoped you’d be in it as well Mr. Knight, if that’s okay with you.”

“Sure.” Tristan shrugged and signaled for a waiter to approach. “Would you mind taking a picture?”

“Absolutely, sir.” The man accepted the phone, snapped the picture and returned it to the fan.

“Thanks! My friends will go berserk when they see this,” the guy muttered to himself as he turned towards the restaurant exit.

Still smiling, Izzie turned to Tristan and kissed his lips. “The next couple of days will be crazy busy with the final tests and preparing to leave.”

“I sat in a meeting with Noah and Nelson and we discussed the restaurant since I’ll be gone for at least three months, but my biggest concern is my mom.”

“She’s happy we’re doing this.” Izzie tried to make light of it, so he wouldn’t feel bad, but she knew why he worried.

“That’s not it. It’s her health.”

“She’s going to be fine. You’ll be back soon.”

“What if I don’t want to come back?”

Izzie’s heart thudded against her chest like the percussion section of one of those Carnaval groups she had seen on TV. Could she dare hope?

Much to her surprise, she replied, “I don’t believe I’m saying this, but let’s cross that bridge when we get to it. First, let’s give our son a future.”

“I like the sound of that.”