Love at First Flight by Marie Force Page A

as he
worked to summon the tenderness he would need for her.
    Her eager hands moved on his chest under
his sweater. “Show me. Show me what to do.”
    He undressed her slowly, taking the time
to worship each new discovery. Their clothes were soon in a pile on the floor.
Her breathless sighs and gasps were driving him mad, but he held back the need
to devour. Sliding his fingers through the dampness between her legs, he
carefully prepared her and then focused on the spot that throbbed for him.
    She came with a shriek that startled
both of them.
    Gasping, she clutched his shoulders. “God,”
she whispered, aftershocks rippling through her.
    With a chuckle, he said, “You're a
screamer.”
    “That's news to me.”
    He turned away from her to roll on a
condom. “I don't want to hurt you.”
    “I hear it's only bad for a second.”
    “Stop me if it hurts.”
    She tensed as he pushed into her.
    “Try to relax, honey,” he whispered.
    When she wrapped her legs around him, he
again struggled to hold back urges he'd never felt quite so strongly before.
    She, on the other hand, held nothing
back as she moved beneath him. Before long her breathing became more frantic. “Oh!”
she cried. “Oh, Michael, don't stop!” She came again with another scream that
snapped his control and sent him into a devastating release that left him
completely drained.

    ***

    Michael ached when he thought of that
first time with her. In the months leading up to graduation, they spent every
minute they could in his bed where her eagerness more than made up for her lack
of experience. It had been madness and passion and lust. And love. Definitely
love. But the madness never really abated.
    They hit the first of many bumps the
weekend of graduation when Admiral Simpson announced he had arranged a job for
Michael with his friend, the state's attorney in Baltimore City. Michael had
been furious, and the moment he was alone in the car with Paige he told her so.
    “I just wanted you to stay here, so when
Daddy told me about the job in Baltimore it seemed like the perfect solution.”
    “Damn it, Paige, don't give me that pout
face. It might work with 'Daddy,' but it does nothing for me.”
    With a coy smile, she ran a hand up his
leg. “It doesn't do anything for you?”
    He pushed her hand away. “Stop.” He'd
fumed about the interference for a week before he took the job, which was the
only offer he received in the capital area. Truth be told, he wanted to stay
near Paige as much as she wanted to keep him close. But the Admiral's meddling
rankled, especially since he never missed an opportunity to remind Michael of
how he got his job.
    The next bump occurred at graduation
when Michael's mother and sisters took an immediate and intense dislike to
Paige—an opinion they never wavered from in four years. “She's not for you,”
his mother had said.
    As Michael fell into a restless sleep in
the Simpson's guestroom, he heard his mother saying, “She's not for you.” He
dreamed of Paige, and as usual, they were making love. Her hands and lips were
everywhere on his fevered skin. Then he was inside her, moving with the abandon
that overtook him every time they made love. Only when he reached an explosive
climax did he realize he wasn't dreaming. As if he'd been scalded, he pulled
out of her and rolled away. “What the
fuck? What are you doing ?”
    “I love you.” Sobs rattled her petite
frame. “I just needed you so much.”
    “Jesus Christ, I was asleep.” Another
realization settled in on him. “No condom, Paige! What the fuck? ” They had never taken any chances in that department. His
head spun, and his stomach lurched from the booze.
    She reached for him. “Michael, please.
Talk to me.”
    He pulled away from her, got up, went
into the bath-room, and slammed the door behind him. Goddamn it! Splashing cold water on his face, he tried to contain
the urge to choke the life out of her. When he came out of the bathroom, he
pulled on