Tucker's Claim. Sarah McCarty

but if we do not speak of them for tonight, they cannot exist.”

      “Interesting way to look at things.”

      “There is no knowing the future, so I have decided there’s value in enjoying the now.”

      The theory coincided with his own. Except for their opposing views on the necessity for violence, he and Sally were often on the same side of an argument. Testing her, he led her through some intricate steps. She had no trouble following them. If she could follow those steps, she was aware enough to make a decision, and if Sally was ready to take a lover, he wanted to be first in line. He finished in a series of turns, pulling her tightly against him, forcing her with pressure in the small of her back to arch away, until she braced her hands against his chest and looked up at him.

      “And now is tonight?”

      Her lips parted, and he could see the hint of her teeth, the flick of her tongue. Lust shot deep.

      “Yes.”

      He spun them one last time, before leaning in. “Then let me help you with the enjoying.”

      Chapter 2

      Kissing Sally was as natural as breathing. Tucker bent and she lifted, participating in the discovery as if she were as hungry for the taste of him as he was for her, her lips already parted when they met his. Soft, demanding with feminine hope. She didn’t have to worry. He wouldn’t let her down in bed. Supporting her with his hand in the small of her back, he arched her closer, not immediately taking advantage of her parted lips, savoring the anticipation, raising it with light nips and easy busses. Grunting as the fire gathered deep inside, built, flashed outward in a near crippling release of pleasure.

      “Ah, damn, pretty thing, I knew you’d be like this.”

      Her fingers dug into his shoulder, gripping tightly as the shock went through her. No shy miss here, just an open, honest woman very sure of what she wanted, which was good because he’d never been so vividly aware of a woman, the press of her nipples against his chest, the soft graze of her hips, the sweet relaxation of her body against his…Never been so vividly aware of his own senses through a kiss to the point that he could feel his blood surging through his veins, feel her breath whispering over his skin as she relaxed against him with the soft sigh of surrender he’d been imagining for the past six months. Her lips were soft, her muscles taut as she rose up on tiptoe, stoking the fire between them. She pulled back. He allowed it, barely.

      There was a touch of wonder in her expression. “Thee kiss like an angel.”

      He caught the words in his mouth, holding them, irrationally making more of them than was wise before letting them go and falling into the game, the seduction. Brushing a few strands of hair away from her temple, he smiled as if he weren’t so aroused that he was in danger of simply lifting her, unbuttoning his pants, finding the wet heat of her through the slit in her pantaloons and thrusting deep. “You should see what my devil can do.”

      “An angel, a devil, a man and a woman. Our bed is going to be crowded tonight.”

      Laughter caught him by surprise, escaping before he could muffle it. “I suppose we could kick a couple out.”

      “Good, because I want only thee.”

      For tonight. As a young man he’d been slow to hear that silent qualification, but he’d soon learned the reality of this exchange. And the benefits of giving a woman what she wanted. Pretty much, his size and muscle, when combined with the forbidden of his ancestry, meant that no matter what town he landed in, his bed was never empty unless he wanted it to be. Since he’d landed in Lindos for the first time a year ago, he’d slept alone because the only woman he wanted was grieving, but now it looked like his luck was turning. Satisfaction spread right along with his smile. “Good.”

      Sally Mae blinked, reached up and touched the corner of his mouth. “Thee are smiling.”

      The tenderness, when he expected passion, threw him off balance.

      “You’ve seen me smile before.”

      She shook her head, leaning back. He liked the way she trusted he’d support her almost as much as he liked the gentle brush of her fingertips over the corner of his lips. “Not a true smile.”

      “I’ve got you in my arms with the night in front of me. That’s a lot to be happy about.”

      “Will thee think badly of me if I admit I’m smiling for the same reason?”

      He pressed experimentally with his fingertips. She responded by snuggling closer, her breath catching as she felt the extent of his desire. “If I say yes, will you try harder to please me?”

      “I would be more likely to find a man less persnickety.”

      “In that case, absolutely not.”

      The softening of her smile let him know she understood his teasing. “Ah, good, because I have my heart set on thee.”

      Inside, the music died off. People would be coming out soon to catch a breath of air. They couldn’t stay here.

      “What are thee thinking?”

      “Where we can go for a little privacy.”

      “Thee do not have this all planned?”

      The question hit him on a raw spot he had thought long since scabbed over. His mother being Indian didn’t make him an amoral tomcat with nothing better to do than plan the next skirt to lift. “I’ve been busy.”

      Trying to find Desi’s sister, Ari, before her uncle’s henchman did. Trying to keep Sam and Bella alive against the outlaws that wanted Sam dead and Bella’s inheritance in their pockets. Trying to keep his hands off Sally Mae.

      Sally winced and sighed, her palms pressing against his chest, stroking the apology into his skin. Her fingers tangled in the cord around his neck, sliding down to nudge the bullet he always wore around his neck as a reminder of what happened to those who were weak. “Thee should know I’m not good at this.”

      He pulled them away, not liking the thought of her tainted by the memories it harbored. “What exactly is this?”

      “This is supposed to be me seducing thee.” She slanted him a look from under her lashes. “I’ve been led to believe it doesn’t take much.”

      “To seduce an Indian?”

      This time, she slapped his shoulder, the small, painless violence just arousing him more. Pushing back, she glared at him. His hand in the small of her back kept her from putting any real distance between them, but it didn’t keep her from trying. A little of his resentment faded as he quelled the rebellion by lifting her just a bit so her struggles snuggled the ridge of his cock into the V of her thighs. On a sharp gasp, she went utterly still. But she didn’t back down.

      “Any man.”

      “Your momma tell you that?”

      “It was more of a warning, to keep me safe from the base desires of men.”

      “And yet, here you are, blatantly tempting my baser self.”

      She frowned. “Who wants to aggravate me.”

      “Who wants you very much,” he corrected, sliding his hands up her back.

      “I’m not so sure I want thee anymore.”

      The little liar. The truth was in the way she cuddled against him and the way her eyes watched his lips shape around the words as if imagining other things. “Even if I promise to be very easy to seduce?”

      Her fingers dug into his shoulder as he pressed against her in little pulses. “How easy?”

      Trailing his fingers down her cheek, over the slight ledge of her shoulder to her chest, he confessed, “Very.”

      Biting her lip, she continued to hold still as he found and followed the strap