Chapter 9

Hunter finished puttingthe final touches on dinner and set out a bottle of wine. The kitchen filled with the tantalizing aromas of fresh tomatoes and garlic. He sliced crusty Italian bread and placed chunks of mozzarella on the plate, then stepped back to admire his handiwork.

Perfect. He needed everything to be perfect tonight.

Because tonight he was going to tell her the truth.

Hunter fought off the nervous tug in his gut and poured the wine. He already had a voice mail from his father, expecting his speedy return. There'd be some hard decisions to make.

Hunter was tired of working in the city under his father's reign. He'd craved this time upstate at the cabin to really discover what he wanted. Now he knew, but had no idea how to get it.

He wanted Skye.

He'd have to start by having a heart-to-heart talk with his parents about a new direction. Skye's life was in the Hudson Valley, and he needed to find a way to be in her world without losing sight of his own career.

Yeah, it was a mess. He was determined to make it work, but there was still one question haunting him.

Would Skye still want him when she learned his true identity?

The doorbell rang.

He opened it and his breath caught. Her honey colored curls tumbled over her shoulders, and her face was open and happy, her heart literally worn on her sleeve for him to see. Hunter had never met a woman who gave herself so freely and unselfishly, not asking for anything back. She was truthful, headstrong, and passionate. She was the woman he'd been spending his whole life looking for, and tonight he wanted no more secrets between them.

"I brought pastries from the bakery," she announced, holding up a small box. She wore a fuchsia pink turtleneck, hip hugging jeans, and low-heeled boots. Golden hoops flirted with her hair as she turned her head. Her lips were painted in bright pink to match her shirt.

"Did you sneak any before you came?" he asked, studying her with narrowed eyes.

Skye looked shocked. "Of course not!"

"We'll see about that." He pulled her in tight and kissed her. Like old lovers, her body peaked and responded to his with unconscious ardor, as his tongue thrust into her mouth to taste and stroke. His hands came around her body to grab her buttocks and arch her closer. He swallowed her moans with masculine pleasure. "Hmm, you're right, you weren't lying."

She pushed him away in mock outrage and made her way into the cabin. "Very cute. You better feed me, buster. I'm starving."

They feasted on the meal and drank wine under the mistletoe. After two heaping plates of pasta, she leaned back in her chair with a satisfied groan. Her sated expression tempted him to satisfy her in a whole lot of other ways. Most involved her being stripped naked, and lying open for him. He fought a shudder and reached for patience.

"I shouldn't be surprised you can cook so well. Who taught you?" she asked.

Hunter sipped his wine and smiled at the memory. "God, I hate to say I was a mama's boy. But I kind of was." She laughed. "Since I was an only child, I grew up in the kitchen. Both of my parents liked to cook, but for my mother, it was almost a sense of purpose. She taught me how to make pasta cranked by hand, and how to make the perfect sauce which simmered for hours. I learned how to pick a fresh vegetable and the best way to carve meat before I even hit a baseball." He shook his head. "Cooking made her happy. She'd invite cousins, neighbors, friends to the table. Most of my memories centered around meals."

Skye propped her face in her hands with a dreamy expression. "That sounds so wonderful. I'd love to meet your mom."

"I already know she'd love you." The image of the two most important women in his life standing together urged him to be positive. But then his father's face filled his vision—the stern set of his mouth, the disapproval in his dark eyes when he disagreed with Hunter, the constant push for his son to be better, do better, until he was driven to leave to find his own way and his own peace. "It's my Dad who's the problem."

She leaned over, gaze trained on his. "Because he wants you to take over the family business. But you want to do things differently."

"Yes."

"Have you tried seriously talking to him and your Mom? About your own dreams?"

Hunter nodded. "Yeah, but I think the real problem was me. I didn't know what I really wanted to push back on."

"And now?"

He cupped her cheek. "Now I do," he said simply. "And I have something important to talk to you about."

"I'm listening."

Hunter closed his eyes. He needed to tell her. Everything. His heart pounded with nervous anticipation. Would she understand? Would she forgive him for keeping the truth from her? "And I'm going to tell you. How about I set out the pastries, put more wood on the fire, and we'll talk?"

"Sounds like a plan." They cleaned up together and Hunter put on a pot of coffee while she sang "Holly, Jolly, Christmas" in an uneven melody that made him laugh.

"Let me use the bathroom. I"ll be right back," she said.

"Ok, I"ll put another log on the fire." He walked to the wood pile and reminded himself they had deep feelings for one another. This was more than a one-night stand. He wanted a permanent relationship with Skye, and he'd bet she felt the same. The way she looked at him with her heart in her eyes couldn't lie.

He closed the door, stoked the fire, and turned.

Then froze.

Skye stood in the doorway. She wore a tiny black lace slip that cupped her full breasts, skimmed her curvy hips, and halted mid-thigh. Her hair tumbled around her shoulders in full burnished glory, and a faint blush touched her cheekbones as she shifted her bare feet and stared at him.

"Hunter?"

His name floated to his ears in a breathy whisper, rich with promise, husky with desire. Every thought he"d ever had; every emotion he ever experienced; all fled in the midst of the woman across the room, waiting for him to answer her.

He closed the distance between them in three quick strides and took her in his arms.

His fingers met silky, warm skin, and soft, full curves. He twisted his fingers in the thick waves of hair and tugged, exposing the delicate line of her throat and rapidly beating pulse. She moaned low in her throat and Hunter drank in her scent, punch drunk like a vampire about to feast. Her arousal drifted to his nostrils, and he bent his head to run his tongue down the vulnerable curve of her neck, nibbling, then sank his teeth gently into her skin.

She cried out and arched in his arms. With a low murmur of satisfaction, he scooped her into his arms, walked into the bedroom, and lay her on the bed.

His head pounded with an urgency he rarely felt when claiming a woman, and he shed his clothes in minutes to join her on the bed. Hunter took her mouth for a deep hungry kiss, while he tugged the delicate straps of her slip down over her shoulders. Bared to the waist, he stared at her ripe curves with delight, and she squirmed under his gaze, obviously uncomfortable at such rapt attention. Hunter bent his head, grasped one ruby nipple between his lips and sucked. The contrast between her soft curves and the hardness of her nipple made him crazy, and he rubbed his five o'clock shadow between her breasts as he kept up a steady suction. Her head tossed back and forth on the pillow as he pleasured her. Her breasts gleamed wetly in the moonlight, and muttered his approval as he gently took one rigid tip between his teeth and tugged.

Her body shot up as sensation grabbed her. He laughed low in his throat and worked his way downward, pulling the slip inch by inch to reveal more of her body.

He kissed the flat curve of her belly and nipped at the sensitive skin of her inner thighs. The delicious scents of lavender and mint drifted to his nostrils. Halfway drunk on her scent and taste, he tossed the slip on the floor and sucked in his breath.

She wore no panties.

"You"re so frikkin beautiful," he rasped. "Look at how perfect you are for me. So ready." Tight golden curls hid her sex, but he deliberately pushed her thighs open. After a brief hesitation, she allowed him full access, and he spread her wide, glimpsing pink swollen lips. He slipped one finger into her tight, wet heat and shuddered with the intensity of her response. Hunter realized he wouldn"t be able to wait much longer to claim her. She gasped for breath, and her arousal eased the passage of his fingers as he stroked her deep. One finger. Two. Then--

"Hunter!"

"Not yet, baby. I have to taste you first, I've waited too long." He dipped his head between her spread thighs and pressed his tongue against her swollen nub.

Liquid heat rushed over him. He drowned in her sweet taste as he allowed himself to explore her most intimate folds, his tongue stroking while his thumb rotated with teasing motions around her clit. She paused on the edge of release but he kept her there, refusing to give her the strong pressure she needed to climax. His name sang in his ears as she thrashed beneath him. When his own arousal became too much, he reached over to the table and grabbed a condom. He sheathed himself quickly and paused at her entrance. "Look at me, Skye."

Her eyes flew open. Deep blue eyes pierced his. Foggy with need. Dazed with passion.

He surged forward and claimed her.

Home.

His whole body shuddered with pleasure as her channel squeezed him and held him tight. He pulled out inch by inch, teasing the tight bud, then lifted her thighs and plunged.

Skye cried out and spasmed around him. He milked her orgasm and savored every nuance of her expression as she let go, but soon he neared the edge and with one last thrust he climaxed. Every muscle tightened and released in a sweet agony he never experienced. He tucked her into his body and rolled to the side, his lips buried in her hair.

They lay together in the shadows of his bedroom, her heart beating under the palm of his hand. And slept.