Cody shuddered. He shouldn’t do this, God knows he shouldn’t, but he wasn’t going to say no. He should have gotten off her when he’d woken and realized he was pinning her down, but he hadn’t been able to make himself move. She’d felt too good beneath him. The effects of the dream were still dragging him down into a pit of despair, and Miranda was the only bright spot he could see. Losing himself in sex with her would chase the darkness away, at least for a little while.

With a groan, he lowered his head and captured her mouth. She opened to him eagerly, her tongue sliding against his with sensual abandon. The bolt of lust rocketing through him wasn’t surprising. The wave of tenderness for the woman beneath him was.

Whether he took a woman to bed after knowing her for a few hours or a few weeks, emotion was never involved. It was a transaction to him. A mutually satisfying exploration of bodies. Sometimes he saw the same woman again. Sometimes once was enough.

He had no idea which it was going to be with Miranda, but the tenderness was new and unexpected. Quite possibly because he felt sorry for her and everything she’d gone through. She was in trouble and he wanted to help her, and maybe that added something to the mix that he hadn’t accounted for.

Whatever the reason, he wasn’t stopping to explore his feelings. Fuck that. Besides, it wasn’t going to last. Once he relieved this searing tension in his balls, his head would clear and he could think again.

He lifted himself up enough to get his hands on the T-shirt she’d worn to bed, and then he dragged it up and over her head. Her arms went around his neck again and she pulled him down, her eager mouth seeking his. He kissed her hard, deep, his fingers sliding up to cup a breast. She moaned and arched into him as he flicked her nipple.

Damn, she was sensitive. He broke the kiss and took her nipple into his mouth, flicking his tongue against the tight, fat peak. Miranda writhed beneath him, her fingers curling into his shoulders almost painfully.

Jesus. She’d said it had been more than a year. He couldn’t imagine a woman as beautiful as her going without physical contact, but who knew why people did what they did sometimes? He thought of her with Conti earlier, of the look on her face as she’d approached him. She’d been tough and determined and scared all at once.

Thank God he’d let her steer him outside. That he hadn’t disarmed her then and there and turned her over to the men who wanted her.

“Oh,” she gasped as he grazed his teeth over her nipple. “Yes, like that. Please, like that.”

He cupped both her breasts and pushed them together, giving her nipples the attention they needed with his tongue and teeth.

“Oh my God,” she moaned, arching into him, her hips lifting as she rode the bulge in his athletic shorts. He shifted away from her and she whimpered.

But he didn’t want her reaching orgasm that way. He wanted to give it to her, not have her find it while rubbing her clit against his hardness.

“You have perfect nipples,” he told her before sucking hard on one while she mewled. He let it pop from his mouth and then did the same to the other one.

He couldn’t see her as well as he would like in the darkness, but he didn’t want to take the time to turn on the light. Maybe it would break the spell if he did. Maybe she wouldn’t want to keep going, or maybe he wouldn’t—though he doubted that very much.

But he wanted to see her body again. The glimpse he’d gotten of her earlier had been amazing, but he wanted more. He wanted to watch her eyes dilate with pleasure, watch as she bit her lip and moaned. He wanted to see her reaction when he slid deep inside her.

It wasn’t going to happen though. Maybe next time. Assuming there was a next time. He was smart enough to realize that once might be it. No matter what she said, she might regret that she’d crossed this line with him tonight.

A wave of fierceness rolled through him. He didn’t want her to regret it, goddammit. And he was going to do everything he could to make sure she didn’t.

Swiftly, he hooked his fingers into her panties and yanked them off. She lifted her legs, helping him out. Their eyes met, tangled for a moment. And then he settled between her legs and pushed her knees apart.

He tested her with his fingers first, sliding them down along the seam of her sex. She was wetter than he’d imagined, the folds of her pussy swollen with desire, and a shot of primal need lanced through him.

“Do you want me to lick you, sunshine?”

Her breath caught. “God, yes. I’d make a deal with the devil himself if that’s what it took.”

Cody couldn’t help but chuckle. She amused him even when he didn’t expect it.

“No deal with the devil. But Miranda, if you change your mind about the rest of this after you come, I’m going to cross you off my Christmas card list forever.”

It was her turn to laugh. “You don’t have a Christmas card list, cowboy. You’re a manly man, and your kind doesn’t send cards.”

“Damn, you got me there—but honey,” he said, his tone serious, “if you don’t want to do this, tell me. I’ll stop.”

She reached down and threaded a hand into his hair. Something about her touch sent a shiver down his spine. A good shiver.

“You need to stop talking and start licking, big boy. And then, once I’ve recovered from what is sure to be an awesome orgasm, I’ll return the favor. Promise.”