Only 05 - Autumn Lover

ecstasy. Small cries were torn from the back of her throat.
    Hunter caught Elyssa’s mouth beneath his. Then he sank into her, kissing her until their mouths were as intimately joined as their bodies.
    When Hunter could go no deeper into Elyssa, he began to move. With each motion of his hips, she cried out. She clung to him, moving with him, sharing the sharp, shocking pulses of sensation that lanced through her. With each shared motion, fire burned more intensely, biting deep into her flesh.
    Abruptly Hunter’s hips locked hard against her. His head lifted and his whole body shuddered wildly, repeatedly. Her name was ripped from him in a ragged cry of ecstasy.
    The sound of her name breaking on Hunter’s lips consumed Elyssa. Crying, holding him with fierce strength, she gave herself to the fire of their joined bodies.
    And to him.
    It was a long time before Hunter was able to gather himself enough to look down at Elyssa, to see if his wild ardor had hurt her.
    Eyes closed, she lay quietly beneath him, utterly relaxed but for the random echoes of ecstasy that shivered through her without warning.
    He hadn’t hurt her at all.
    Gently Hunter eased from Elyssa’s warmth, gathered her in his arms, and rolled to the side. He held her, stroking her slowly, enjoying the weight of her body against his. He had never felt like this with a woman, both at peace and as powerful as a god.
    I could get used to this , Hunter thought. Except for the belt buckle digging into my thigh …
    He laughed silently, both amused and amazed by the passion he and Elyssa ignited so effortlessly in one another.
    “My sweet, sassy girl,” Hunter said, kissing Elyssa’s hair gently. “Next time I really will have to slow down long enough to get properly undressed.”
    Elyssa smiled and nuzzled against Hunter’s chest.
    “Maybe after we’re married,” he added lazily.
    A chill went through Elyssa as she remembered the first time Hunter had discussed marriage.
    With God as my witness, Elyssa Sutton, if you don’t grow up and be a good mother to my children, you will rue the day you teased me into marrying you .
    “It’s not necessary,” Elyssa said with a calm she didn’t feel.
    “What?” Hunter asked, shocked.
    “I’m not a virgin. Just because we’re…”
    Elyssa’s voice died. She didn’t know how to describe what they were to each other.
    “We’re just lovers,” she said after a moment. “No promises are necessary. We don’t have to marry.”
    Hunter didn’t believe what he was hearing.
    And not hearing.
    Abruptly Hunter realized that for all the sweet cries he had dragged from Elyssa, her love for him had notbeen spoken aloud. In the heat of passion he hadn’t noticed.
    He was noticing now.
    “Don’t be a fool,” Hunter said roughly.
    “Exactly,” she retorted. “I’m glad we agree.”
    “I’ll send for a preacher as soon as—”
    “What for?” Elyssa asked in a tight voice. “If you’re missing a formal sermon on Sundays, go to Camp Halleck.”
    “Damn it, Sassy, what we just had is too good to walk away from!”
    “Yes, but it’s not enough for a life sentence.”
    “Of all the damn fool—”
    “You want a woman for a wife, not a sassy girl,” Elyssa interrupted tonelessly. “You want a woman you respect, someone you can trust to raise your children. That’s not me, is it?”
    For an instant Hunter hesitated as memories rose in a black wave. The last time he had let desire choose his wife, his children had paid with their lives.
    Hunter’s hesitation was all the answer Elyssa needed. Quietly she closed her eyes and fought not to cry.
    He made love to me so carefully this time, I had hoped …she thought. Then, painfully, Hunter’s right .
    I’m a fool .
    Hunter felt the change in Elyssa’s body, tension replacing relaxation, distance replacing trust. When she tried to sit up, he held her against his body.
    “I was thinking of the past just now, not of you,” Hunter said.
    Elyssa shook her head.
    “Damn it, honey. It’s not how you took it.”
    Elyssa looked at Hunter. In the mysterious twilight of the cave, her eyes were as darkly gleaming as the pool.
    “If I were a widow,” she said, “would you be pressing marriage now?”
    Hunter stared at Elyssa, not able to believe that she could calmly get up from their shared bed and act as though nothing special had happened.
    We’re just lovers .
    No breathless promises of love.
    Just lovers .
    Anger replaced the contentment that