He slid one fingertip inside her, spreading her sexy juices over her thick, dewy folds. Her hips rose without warning, that triangular dark expanse he’d eyed earlier jutting upwards, pulling his finger deeper inside her tight, wet sheath. He no longer wondered if she was ready for him. He knew, just as his shaking body informed him he was ready for her.

He paused only long enough to cover himself with protection before bracing his hands on either side of her head and poising his body over hers.

“Would you rather be on top?” he asked her, taking himself by surprise.

He’d never wondered with any other woman. Never cared to ask, no matter what position they happened to be in, because sex was sex. As he’d always sensed would be the case, anything with Lilly was so much more.

“Anywhere, any way with you works just fine for me.” She forced her heavy eyelids open as she spoke.

The honest feelings he saw there blew him away.

“Besides, I’m assuming this won’t be the one and only time tonight, so I’ll have my chance to experiment later.” Once again she surprised him.

Damn but he enjoyed her. Everything with Lilly was just right.

He nodded and eased himself inside her for the first time. Slowly, bit by excruciating bit, he pushed into her, his body straining as she gradually widened just enough for a perfect fit. His cock pulsed and his body fought against the way he held himself back, giving her time to accept and to feel.

Heaven knew he’d never felt anything so intense in his entire life. “Are you okay?”

She bent her knees higher, pulling him further inside. “How’s that for an answer?” she asked, her voice sounding husky and deep.

He got the point. He pulled out slowly and she moaned, her body shaking and trembling beneath him, squeezing him tighter in order to hold him inside and prevent him from pulling out completely. She had no reason to worry. All he’d wanted was slick passage and he got it, diving back into her with more force. More caring.

She lifted her hips to meet his, her small mound grinding into the base of his shaft. Arousal and desire peaked, his body’s needs driving him out of his mind. He pumped into her, feeling every inch buried inside her. Then he pulled out, depriving them both again, deliberately building momentum and need. In and out, in and-without warning she crossed her ankles behind his back, anchoring herself against him so she could lift her behind off the bed and lock her hips tight against his.

She wanted pressure, so he gave her pressure, twisting and turning his hips, meeting her motions, until together they found the perfect rhythm. The one that brought them higher and higher, closer and closer to climax.

Beneath him, she whimpered with need, her soft sounds begging him to give her release. He slid one hand around and found the place where their bodies met, the moist wet spot that let him tease her just enough.

“Ty, Ty, Ty.”

She came apart where he’d always wanted her to, in his arms, calling out his name, triggering a gut-wrenching climax of his own. His body tensed and then complete pleasure washed over him in waves of desire he never wanted to end.

And as he finally came back down and fuzzy awareness returned, he collapsed on top of her, her name on his lips.

LACEY TOSSED and turned. Beside her, Ty slept soundly and she envied him the ability. After making love with Ty, not once but twice, she had too much on her mind to sleep and she lay back against the pillows, trying unsuccessfully to relax.

She gripped the comforter and pulled the blanket tighter around her, inhaling deep. The musky scent of sex and Ty filled her nostrils. Suddenly he snored, a discovery that nearly made her laugh aloud. She turned to study him as he slept. How many times had she dreamt of watching the man she’d fallen in love with at seventeen, asleep after they’d made love?

She didn’t know where things between them were headed. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know. For now she just wanted to enjoy but she couldn’t begin to do that until she’d taken care of some personal business back home in New York.

It was late, a little past eleven. Normally Lilly was preoccupied with her career, but not tonight. She’d been checking in daily with the woman in charge of Odd Jobs while she was gone. It helped that Odd Jobs operated on the same schedules, if not weekly then monthly, which enabled someone to oversee things while the daily tasks ran smoothly. Knowing all was well allowed her to keep a clear mind while she stayed here in Hawken’s Cove.

It also allowed her to focus on Ty and what making love with him meant. It meant she had to deal with Alex. She owed him that much.

She climbed out of bed and quietly walked into the guest room, shutting the bedroom door behind her so she could talk in private. Her stomach churned as she dialed his number and it rang. Once, twice; he answered on the third ring.

“Hello?” he answered, preoccupied but not groggy from sleep. Alex normally worked at home until midnight and she knew she wouldn’t be waking him now.

She licked her bone-dry lips. “Alex, it’s me. Lacey.”

“Hi!”

She imagined him pushing himself up against his ivory-colored pillows, folders and work spread out over his bed.

“I can’t tell you how good it is to hear your voice. I was beginning to think I’d have to send a posse after you,” he said, the words meant to be funny but his tone was anything but.

Once again she heard the anxious edge in his voice. She supposed she couldn’t blame him since she’d been deliberately vague on her sudden trip and she’d only checked in with him once.

“Nothing that drastic is necessary, I promise.” She gripped the small phone against her ear.

“When are you coming home?” he asked.

“Soon. I have an appointment Monday morning that I have to keep and I should know more after that.” She’d managed to get the secretary of Paul Dunne at Dunne and Dunne, the trustee of her parents’ will, to fit her in for an appointment.

At first the secretary had insisted there were no open appointments for a few weeks, but Lilly had explained she was in town for a short time and she couldn’t possibly wait that long. The woman had squeezed her in, though Lacey could tell she hadn’t been exactly happy to do it.

“Well then hopefully I’ll be seeing you by the end of the week,” Alex said, his mood obviously cheering at his interpretation of her news.

“Umm.” Her heart lodged in her throat as she formed the words she had to say next. “About seeing me again. We need to talk about that.”

Lacey hated to break things off with him over the phone. She owed him better and she’d explain more when she returned home, but after tonight with Ty, everything had become clear in her mind. She couldn’t continue to leave Alex dangling without an answer when she knew where her heart belonged.

Even if she and Ty never made love again, Lacey had to end things with Alex. There wasn’t room for another man in her life. There never had been.

“What is it?” Alex asked, his voice curt, as he obviously sensed bad news to come.

“I’ll explain more when I see you, but since being here, things have changed for me.” She curled her legs beneath her. “Actually they haven’t changed as much as they’ve become clearer.”

“Stop pussyfooting around and say what you’re trying to say.”

She stiffened at his words, but she continued. “I know now why I haven’t been able to commit to you. It has to do with unresolved feelings for people here.”

“We all have unresolved things in our past,” he said in what she could only call a patronizing voice. “So wrap those things up and come home. You’ll feel better once we’re together again.”

She ran a hand through her hair. He wasn’t hearing her and her frustration grew, mainly because she hadn’t wanted to hurt him by having to spell things out too plainly.

He’d left her with no choice. “Alex, I’m sorry to do this over the phone, but we’re over.”

He let out a harsh laugh. “Oh, no, we are not.”

She reared back. “Excuse me?”

“What I meant was, you need to think about what you’re saying.”

“That’s all I have been doing since you asked me to marry you. Thinking. And the truth is, I shouldn’t have to think about my answer. If I loved you the way you deserve to be loved, the answer would have been automatic.” Sadness filled her, for all the fun they’d had and the caring they’d shared, but she knew in her heart that she was finally doing the right thing for them both.

“Lacey, please stop talking nonsense. Whatever’s going on in your hick hometown-”

“Hawken’s Cove is not a hick town.” Surprise and a small pang of hurt rose inside her.

Well, what did she expect? She’d broken things off with him by phone. Had she thought he’d understand and wish her a long happy life?

She’d just never heard him be so nasty before. But she’d never disagreed with him until now, either. At least not on something so monumental.

“Well, obviously the people there are messing with your head. You’ll come to your senses as soon as you return.”

“Don’t count on it,” she said, clenching her jaw tight.

He made a tsking noise. “Nobody will ever love you as much as I do.” His words sounded more like a threat than the lie she knew them to be.

“Alex, I’m sorry. I care about you and you deserve so much more than I can give. You’ll see that one day and you’ll thank me for coming to my senses before we made a mistake,” Lacey said, trying to maintain her dignity in the face of his hurt and anger.

“I doubt it. And I don’t believe for a minute that we’re finished.”

She shivered at his words. “You’re wrong. We are over,” she said, needing him to hear it one more time. “Goodbye, Alex.” Lacey disconnected the line and placed the phone on the bed.

Her head throbbed badly. She made her way quietly back to the bedroom, tiptoeing as she let herself back inside. She climbed back under the covers and snuggled deep into the pillows, inhaling Ty’s comforting scent.

She assured herself she’d done the right thing. She’d told Alex the truth as soon as she knew it herself. There was nothing more she could do. Time would heal his pain over her rejection.

She glanced at Ty, then rolled closer and wrapped her arm around his waist for comfort. Because time would also tell her what her future held.

TY PULLED the frying pan out of the cabinet and greased it with oil, preparing for his pathetic version of an omelet, then placed the pan on the stove. He opened the refrigerator to retrieve the eggs and came up empty. Muttering a curse, he searched the kitchen for something to make for breakfast but the cabinets were empty, too. There was no cold cereal because he’d finished a box of Cheerios yesterday, no milk because Lilly lived on milk and cookies, and he remembered now there were no eggs because she had finished those, too. He had promised to pick up some things after work but he’d forgotten all about making the stop.

He was too used to living alone and not answering to anyone. Most mornings he grabbed coffee and a bagel at the place next door to his office. Most mornings he didn’t awaken wrapped around Lilly, too content to move.

The longer he’d lain beside her, his groin pressing into her back, the more aroused he became. Aroused and content at the same time. Two scary enough prospects to jolt him into reality and force him out of bed.

He couldn’t allow himself to get too used to feeling good. To having Lilly around. He knew all too well how quickly things changed and not for the better. She’d be gone before he knew it. So he decided he was better off padding around his cold kitchen cooking instead of wishing for things that couldn’t be.

One last glance into the refrigerator and he knew he had to hit the grocery store if they wanted to eat. Besides, the pooch would be back soon and she needed more food, he thought, looking at Digger’s empty bowls. He glanced around at his kitchen, the frying pan on the stove, the dog dishes on the floor, and then turned toward the bedroom where a beautiful woman lay sleeping in his bed.

Ty grabbed his jacket and headed out in search of food, fresh air and hopefully some sanity along with it.

HUNTER PULLED Digger along the sidewalk in front of Night Owl’s bar. The dog stopped for every odd smell and Hunter wondered how Lilly walked her dog every morning and still made it to work on time. He’d been at it for a solid forty minutes and she still hadn’t done her thing.

Considering he’d woken up face-to-face with Her Smelliness as he’d come to call Digger, he couldn’t wait to return the dog to her owner.

“Hunter?”