Page 28 of Axel
He shrugged. “She is a sweet woman, kind and unspoiled. It was the same way when we didn’t have two nickels to knock together. She always had a smile on her face.” A smile tugged at his lips and Ellie felt the increase in her blood pressure.
“She made everything into an adventure. When I was eight, she came home and declared that we should celebrate. It wasn’t anyone’s birthday, but she would do things like that.”
She turned fully around, a fascinated look on her face. “What was the occasion?”
“That’s just it.” He laughed softly. “It was just an ordinary fall day, and she was tired after holding down three jobs. She said we should celebrate life. The leaves were just changing colors, and we had a few in our yard.
She made us put warm clothes on and trudge outside to study the different colors of the leaves. She said she wanted us to appreciate the beauty of nature and reminded us that no matter what happens, we have a lot to give thanks for.
Frankly, I didn’t think so at that time. We were always hungry; she was working too hard and there was never enough to feed all three of us. Anyway, she made hot cocoa for us when we went back inside, and it made things bearable.”
“She sounds like a remarkable woman.”
Tilting his head down, he stared at her. “She is. And very difficult to replicate. She is one in a million.”
His eyes on her face had the breath backing up inside her throat and heat permeating every inch of her body. The atmosphere became charged and for a few seconds, neither of them moved. Even the birds had stopped singing and the squirrels had ceased their scampering. Everything was still and quiet, except their breathing.
In slow motion and as if he was watching outside his body, he found himself reaching for her. She didn’t resist him, instead, she met him halfway, her hands lifting to spread over his chest. The warmth of his skin scorched her fingers and sent her into a dizzy spin. His large hands spanned her narrow waist as he pulled her against him.
“This is a lousy idea.”
“And yet here we are!” Her voice was husky, fingers curling into the soft material of his sweater.
“I am not open for a relationship.” He could feel the warmth of her skin through the material of her dress.
“Neither am I.” Her hands slid upwards to wrap around his neck. She was wearing boots with heels, but only came up to his shoulders and had to tilt her head back to look at him.
His hands wandered upwards, beneath her jacket until they came to rest at the small of her back. Easing her towards him slowly, he bent his head towards hers. She could feel his breath on her lips, and it was making her feel faint. “Is this what you do?” He whispered against her mouth.
“What?” Her eyes flew open.
“Do you make out with every guy you interview?”
Her eyes flashed and she started to push against him, but he held fast. “Is that a, no?”
“Let go of me.”
“It was just a simple question.”
“What the hell do you take me for?”
“A beautiful woman who knows that she is.”
“Go to hell.” She pushed at him again, but his head swooped down to capture her lips. She stopped struggling, her body melting as his tongue toyed with the seams of her lips. She went weak, her fingers digging into his shoulders and then his back.
His hands traveled up to cup the back of her head as he angled her for a better fit. With a hoarse groan, he deepened the kiss, his lips mashing against hers with a hunger that shocked him.
He crushed her against him and felt his heart rate increasing, his body primed and hot, the heat blazing through like and kindling until he felt as if he was being swallowed by the flames. He wanted to gulp her, ravish her, and devour her completely.
His fingers gripped the thick strands of her hair as he kept her steady, his mouth moving over hers with increasing ardor.
Ellie felt as if she was drowning in liquid ecstasy if there was such a term. Her core was tight and aching, her nipples a painful reminder that she was a woman with incredible needs. A moan escaped her as she drew nearer to him, her gasp swallowed by him when she felt the evidence of his desire.
Axel’s fingers kneaded the back of her neck slowly, caressing the satiny skin. He was rock hard and painful. The lust was coursing through his body with the speed of lightening, and he was in his mother’s garden. Not that there was any fear of them being interrupted, but still…
Dragging his mouth from hers, he cradled her neck as he fought to control his breathing.
“Christ!” He whispered thickly, eyes swirling with emotions he could not quite place. Or did not want to.