It was a constellation he had seen every summer but without really thinking that it had a name, or the names of the stars. “And what are some of the others?”
“Cygnus is those five stars in the shape of a cross, there.” She pointed. “It’s also called the Northern Cross or the backbone of the Milky Way. In Cygnus’s tail, Albireo, that last star there, it’s actually two stars. It’s what is known as a binary star. With a telescope at thirty power magnification, you can easily see the dim blue star and bright orange star that make up Albireo. The Ring Nebula, located in the constellation Lyra, can also be seen with this magnification.”
“How do you manage to remember all this stuff?” he asked, as captivated by her mind as he was by her lithe body.
She shrugged and cast him a sly grin. “It’s the way my mind has always worked. It’s why I did so well in school. I graduated from high school at fifteen, with honors. There’s nothing quite like being a freshman in college at fifteen.”
“That early? It must have been difficult to make friends when you were so much younger than your peers.” It made her even more unique in his mind—that she was so generous and caring, when she had little reason to be.
“I was so busy with my studies that I didn’t have much time to be social. I mean, I was, but they were all talking boys and using fake IDs to get into clubs, or attending the latest Kappa party to get drunk. And I wasn’t interested in that type of thing.”
It sounded lonely. She had grown up with this big, intelligent brain, and had been on her own. And now she traveled alone. He didn’t know why but it struck a chord within him. He reached out and fingered a lock of her hair, rubbing the soft strands in his hand. “What did interest you?”
“The world, the stars, where we come from, whether we are alone in the galaxy or if there is life on other planets. How the universe formed. The whys and hows behind gravity, to the creation of all life.”
“But do you travel alone all the time?” He was curious why she was single—or maybe that was a status that had only happened recently. He wanted to make sure he wasn’t poaching, or whether she needed protecting from someone, and that was why she didn’t have money or identification.
She shifted to glance his way with a thoughtful expression, and nodded. “Yeah. Men tend to become frustrated with me. I have a propensity to get uber focused on my work. I forget to eat, forget to answer my phone, and lose track of time. I’ll never be the stay at home housewife type. I have friends, colleagues whom I catch up with from time to time, but when it comes to traveling, I’ve always done it by myself.”
“Not all men are looking for a homemaker, you know,” he said. She made him want to wipe the momentary desolation at the mention of being alone from her face, to cuddle her and make her laugh, to have her grant him one of those dazzling smiles that stole his breath. He wanted her with all her quirks.
“Oh really? And what are you looking for, cowboy?” She cocked her head.
“At the moment, for a way to get you out of those clothes.”
She leaned toward him. “That can be arranged.”
Lying on his side, facing her, he cupped her nape. “We should head inside.”
“Why? We’re alone here with only the stars to bear witness.” She laid her mouth over his and kissed him passionately, beckoning his desire.
Colt groaned.
Lust, hot and heavy, invaded him. Her sweet nectar flavor rolled over his tongue as he plunged his tongue inside her mouth, dueling, tangling, and curling against hers. Avery’s hands gripped the front of his shirt, holding him close, and yet it still wasn’t near enough for his liking. Colt yearned for her bare flesh, to have her body wrapped around him, to bury himself inside her wet heat until they were connected at the deepest level imaginable.
He shifted, rolled her onto her back, and settled his body between her thighs. Originally, he had wanted to try bondage and some kink with her tonight, to see if she was submissive in any way because she definitely brought forth the more dominant aspects of his nature. She evoked his need to protect her, care for her, be the only man to possess her, and keep her to himself, the rest of the world be damned.
But the moment her lips touched his, all thoughts, all control, evaporated, and the need to be inside her overshadowed everything else.
Time had no meaning as Colt kissed her, threaded his fingers in her silken hair and ravished her lush mouth. Every instinct blared he must claim her, that she belonged to him, that this was the woman meant to be his for all time. He held her close, thrilled at the way she ground her hips, and he cursed the barriers their jeans made. Avery was the most potent woman he had ever met.
She turned him inside out. He groaned into her mouth when she cupped his jean-clad ass, rocking against his straining erection. He grew more addicted with every taste, loving the feel of her tight little body beneath him, of the gentle swell of her breasts that were flush against his chest. And he needed to touch her, needed to discover if her pussy was wet and ready for him.
Colt wanted her naked and writhing, yearned to hear her screaming his name in ecstasy. He lifted his mouth just long enough to divest her of her tank top and bra before he was filling his hands with her plump breasts. Her skin was softer than silk. He skimmed his lips over her jaw and down the elegant column of her neck, enjoying the sounds of her sweetly uttered gasps.
Taking his time, he licked and nibbled his way down to her beautiful tits. Surrounding the areola with his mouth, he laved the bud, fascinated by her large, rosy nipples. He fondled and suckled on the bud until it was raw and erect before switching to its twin. One of these days, he wanted to see her nipples in clamps, to torture them a bit, to mark them.
But first, Colt craved a taste of her pussy. So far, it had eluded him because they were always in such a hurry. And he might not be binding her wrists in his cuffs, but he would suck her pussy until she came with his name on her lips. He fought to temper the pulsating need pumping through his veins that demanded he hurry, that he plunge his dick in her hot cunt. But he would not be dissuaded from his objective. He pressed open-mouthed kisses over the flat curve of her belly, and nibbled her hip bones. Unbuttoning her jeans, he hooked the waistband with his fingers and drew the material down her legs until she lay before him with a tiny swath of ivory lace covering her mound, and nothing else.
Her hair was spread out over the blanket, her nipples were hard, beaded points, her thighs were spread, and he had never seen a lovelier sight. He wanted to fall on her like a ravenous beast.
Blinded by desire, he ripped the lace and tossed it behind him.
“Colt,” she gasped. Her eyes went wide, and she bit her bottom lip.
Spreading her thighs, he settled his shoulders between them so that his face was hovering over her cunt. The sweet scent of her pussy filled his senses as he parted her labia and tongued her crease. He groaned.
Fuck.
He pressed his groin against the ground to stave off his need. She tasted so fucking sweet. Holding her hips steady, he explored her pussy, lapping at her wetness like a starving man being given the finest cream. He was ruthless as he loved her sex, sucking and nipping her nub.
“Oh Colt,” Avery exclaimed, her breathy little moan spurring him on.
He flicked and circled her clit, and sucked on the nub until it swelled and poked out from beneath her hood for him.