Cash’s hands roamed her thighs and made their way under her dress. She gasped and threw her head back as his fingers trailed between her legs, touching the dampness of her panties. She unbuttoned his pants and slipped her hand inside as his crept under the hem of her lacy underwear. His fingers found her damp core, and she threw her head back, reaching inside his boxer shorts. She found his manhood and began to stroke as he flicked his finger over her wetness. The tempo of their hands, stroking each other, increased until Cash growled and stood, his pants falling to the floor.
He kicked off his shoes and stepped out of his clothes until he was only in his underwear. Then he took her hand and led her into the bedroom, where he unzipped her dress as he stood behind her and kissed her shoulder. His hands cupped her breasts, and he unfastened her bra. It fell to the floor, and she turned to him. His face was bright with longing, his manhood erect under his boxer shorts. She’d never been so full of desire, and it made her frantic. He walked her backward toward the bed, and she sat down as he stood before her. She looked up into his eyes and pulled down his boxer shorts to reveal his erection. Her lips parted with longing as she leaned forward to lick and stroke him. He gasped with need and then bent down to slip her out of her panties. She leaned back on the bed, and he licked her frantically, growling and groaning as he consumed her core.
She felt herself come undone as an orgasm cracked through her body and mind. She screamed with release, and he climbed over her then rested beside her on the bed as they kissed and she stroked him. She wanted him inside her.
“I want to claim you, River,” he whispered in her ear. That snapped her out of her frenetic longing. She was not ready to be claimed. She still hadn’t decided who she wanted. In this moment, she wanted to make love to Cash. But she also wanted to make love to Cal.
“No,” she said. “Not yet.”
“But here we are. You’re still not ready. You’re still not sure.”
“No, I’m not. I’m sorry if you want to stop.”
“I don’t want to stop. I just need to know what you want. And if you’re not ready for me, then I’ll respect that.”
Cash pulled a condom package out of the bedside table and ripped it open with his teeth. He slipped it over his long, thick erection and slid between River’s legs. He held her close and kissed her, stroking her face and whispering how much he cared for her and loved her.
“I love you too,” she said. “I’m sorry I’m not ready.”
“It’s okay.” He pressed the head of his cock to her dripping-wet opening and gradually spread her open as he slipped inside.
She gasped in awareness of him as he entered her channel, spreading her wide, as she’d never been before. For a split second, her body screamed with pain as her inner fox screamed with need. But just as quickly as the pain had come, it was over. Cash whispered in her ear, asking if she was okay and if she wanted him to stop.
“No. I want this. I want you. Don’t stop.”
He licked her earlobe and her neck as he rested inside her. As the pain subsided, it was as if he could feel that she was ready for him. He slowly pulled back and thrust his hips.
She let out a groan. All she could feel now was pure pleasure. The feeling of Cash inside her was like a revelation. She was learning about all the things that she’d never known before or even imagined. And he was teaching her, showing her the way of the world. She gripped his hips as he thrust in gentle waves into her body, kissing her tenderly on the lips and cheeks and neck. He embraced her and caressed her with such tenderness that she felt as if her heart might break from the beauty of it.
“I love you, River. I didn’t know that I could love anyone. But now that I know you, now that I’ve touched you, I know that you are all I’ve ever wanted.”
She was overcome by his admission of love. All she could do was kiss him and hold him and abandon herself to the feeling of his body inside her and around her. It was so intimate and intense.
“I love you, Cash. I never want to let you go,” River said, and she meant it with everything inside her. If she hadn’t also loved his brother, Cal, she would have let him claim her right then and there. But she knew it wasn’t right. She wasn’t ready. She still hadn’t made up her mind.
“You’re everything to me,” he said, looking into her eyes in the flickering candlelight.
Their lovemaking had been tender and sweet and everything she could have hoped her first time to be. And even with her inexperience, Cash’s gentle touch and understanding led her to release more than once, until the intensity of it was too much for him to bear, and he whispered that he was coming. All she could do was say yes and cling to him as he poured himself inside her. River could feel the heat of it even through the condom. For a brief instant, she wished there was nothing between them, even though she knew the wisdom of his decision to protect them.
When they were done and holding each other in the afterglow, she felt as if she’d discovered a precious and beautiful part of herself, something that only Cash could give her. But as he held her in his arms and kissed her shoulders, she thought about Cal in the rain the night before. She thought about the intensity of her feelings for him.
She didn’t know if she could ever make up her mind. It was unfair to all of them for her to continue to string them along. She would have to choose one of them eventually.
13
Cash woke up the next day entangled in River’s arms. The night before had been the most beautiful, sacred experience of his life. His only regret was that he hadn’t been able to claim her. She was still unsure, and it broke his heart. He wanted to be the one she chose. He wanted to be the man to protect her from the evil in the world. If she would only let him, he would be the happiest man who ever lived.
He watched her sleeping as the gentle morning sun streamed through the curtains and kissed her soft pink cheek. He leaned in and pressed his lips to that same spot, jealous that the sun had kissed her before he did. He quietly slipped out of bed, not knowing how he would ever be able to let her go now that he’d touched her and tasted her and been inside her.
He almost wished that he’d never had the experience because the fear of losing her now was a hundred times worse than it would have been otherwise. He tried to push it from his mind and to reassure himself that everything would turn out fine, she would choose him, and somehow Cal would come to accept it.
He studied the room-service menu and quietly ordered breakfast for them both. When the tray arrived, he wheeled it into the room as River stood up, wearing a bathrobe. Her hair was rumpled around her shoulders, and she looked like the most beautiful goddess he’d ever seen.
She wrapped her arms around him, and he smelled her scalp. His inner wolf screamed, Mate, mate, mate! If she chose his brother over him, it would destroy him.
He was nearly in tears as she pulled back and smiled up at him. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
“I’m just thinking about how lucky I am that I met you and that I got to know you,” he said, his voice cracking.
She gazed at him with eyes that told him she knew what he was thinking. Then she sighed, looking away. “Last night was one of the most beautiful experiences of my life,” she said softly. “If only it were just you—”