Nothing In Common Read online

  "You’re going to pee your pants," he remarked over his shoulder.

  More laughter. It had taken on a high-pitched, desperate quality. He glanced around to see Lila clutching the edge of the cookie sheet with one mittened hand and her stomach with the other.

  "Stop!" She burst into another peal of laughter as he jerked forward on the ropes again. "It hurts! Oh, it hurts!"

  Tom slid his next foot forward. "You think you hurt." The ropes he’d attached to his waist jerked again on the cookie sheet. "I’d like to see you tug me around on a cookie sheet."

  Lila laughed harder. Suddenly, his load lightened so much he knew she had fallen off even before he heard the snow-muffled thump of her landing. Without the weight to hold him back, Tom shot forward too fast and lost his balance. He went arse over elbow into a pile of drifted snow; his skis tangled like taffy.

  Thankfully, they’d reached the restaurant. It even looked like the snowplow had managed to get through the main street, so all he had to do was crawl another few yards and climb over the mountainous drift and he’d be all clear. For the moment, Tom was just content to lie in his crumpled heap and listen to Lila laugh.

  "Tom, are you all right?"

  Her nose and cheeks were red as raspberries, and her eyes shone with tears of laughter. Most of her hair was tucked up inside the ugliest ski cap he’d ever seen, but a few dark curls had managed to escape around her face. Snow covered her from hat to boots as she climbed to her feet. She looked so lovely he didn’t even mind having to watch her from a pile of snow.

  "Whose bright idea was this anyway?" he growled as he struggled to get to his feet. It was obvious he’d only be able to do that by kicking off his skis, so he did. Lila reached out and grasped his hand to help him up. He took her offered mitten, not because he thought she’d really be any help, but because he wanted to touch her.

  "Yours." She showed no shame at all. "Totally yours, as I recall. I was completely content to stay in by the fire, but no! You had to traipse out into the wilderness in search of steak and potato."

  "Lila." Tom held up his secret weapon. "You do realize I have a handful of snow, don’t you?"

  She shrieked and tried to run, but the snow was too deep. She only managed to tangle her feet and fall next to him in the drift. Her lips were like ice against his, but their kiss soon warmed them both. His tongue stroked the velvety inside of her mouth and she responded. They stayed there, kissing, long enough for his fingers to grow numb even through his heavy gloves.

  "Think we can make it over this mountain?" Lila pointed at the massive mound of snow pushed up by the plow.

  Tom tipped an imaginary hat at her. "Race you!"

  The climbed over the top, slid down the other side, and landed right in front of the door to The Foxfire. Some civic-minded person had been along the sidewalk earlier with a snow blower. Though the blizzard had dumped several more inches since then, the way was at least clear enough for them to get inside.

  "It’s dark," Lila said. "And cold."

  Tom could fix that, and he did. Leading her back to the kitchen, he turned on the lights and lit the oven. Within minutes, the industrial size oven had warmed the room considerably.

  "We need to get our clothes off." Lila shivered. "We’re both soaked."

  Tom pulled her closer for another kiss. "Sounds like a good idea to me."

  Lila pushed him away gently. "We could’ve done that at my house, stallion. We came here to eat, remember?"

  She began peeling off her layers of clothing, and for a moment, all Tom could do was watch. She tugged off her hat and set free the coiled masses of her hair. It tumbled around her face in wild disarray. She didn’t even bother to comb through it, which he loved. He could think of any number of his female acquaintances who would have been mortified to be seen in such a state, but Lila didn’t care.

  Next came her bulky field coat and mittens, the two pairs of thick sweatpants and her sweatshirt. Finally, she wore only a thin set of insulated underwear that clung to her like plastic wrap. Her perfect breasts and hips were completely outlined by the thin fabric, and he swallowed heavily. What made the sight even more erotic was that Lila obviously had no idea about the way she looked. That, coupled with the fact his penis was still half-erect from all the foreplay earlier, made him take a step back to keep from charging over to her and ravishing her right there on the kitchen floor.

  "C’mon, Tom. You’re going to catch a chill."

  He physically had to shake himself in order to clear himself of the spell he’d been under. She was right. Already he felt his sodden clothes making him shiver.

  She watched him with the same intensity with which he’d watched her undress. Their eyes locked as he stripped down to his final layer, boxer briefs that did nothing to hide the way he was feeling at the moment. He hooked his thumbs in the waistband, but paused. Tom knew as well as any man the difference even one article of clothing could make. He didn’t want to destroy the sensuality of the moment.

  "Look at you." As if in a daze, she reached out to run her hand along the smooth curves of his chest. At her touch, his erection strained against the black fabric of his briefs, but he forced himself to remain still. Lila caressed his nipples and softly rolled them beneath her fingertips. She let both hands slide along the rippled flatness of his stomach and moved closer until he could feel her breath on his skin. Still, he didn’t move.

  Slowly, almost reverently, she traced the waistband of his briefs and dipped her fingertips slightly inside. His knees felt weak. She stared at him hungrily, taking what looked like an almost masculine delight in the sight of him. Her intense study of his body was incredibly erotic, and Tom didn’t want to break the mood.

  Lila dropped gently to her knees in front of him. Still keeping her eyes fixed on his body, she languidly tugged his briefs down, over his thighs, and finally to the floor. Tom clenched his jaw. He wanted to see her face, but Lila didn’t look up.

  "Hmmm." There it was again, that wordless sound of approval. Or maybe "Mmmm." He still couldn’t be certain. Either way, the noise kicked his arousal up several more notches.

  Without warning, Lila closed her mouth around him. The wet heat of her mouth made him groan. His knees nearly buckled, but Lila’s hands, now on his buttocks, kept him standing. Blindly, Tom sought the edge of the counter with his hands to keep himself steady.

  She made love to him with her mouth, a slow and steady movement that brought him to the edge within minutes. As if sensing his impending climax, she eased off and teased him with her lips and teeth. She cupped his rear and held him close, then moved him away from her.

  Sweat broke out on his brow. His fingers were white-knuckled, gripping the edge of the counter. His other hand twined in her hair, tangling in her curls. It took great effort not to pull it hard enough to hurt her.

  She was doing things to him that no woman had ever done, and it was better, more intense because it was Lila kneeling before him. The woman he loved. He moaned her name, and she paused to press a kiss just below the navel.

  Tom could wait no longer. It was no longer good enough to receive such pleasure; he wanted to share it with Lila. No longer so careful not to pull too hard, he tugged her upward. She gasped, but the sound had more pleasure than pain in it.

  With one swift movement, he lifted her onto the counter. Their mouths molded together, and her hands clutched his shoulders. Without breaking the kiss, Tom slid her long underwear down past her hips. He pushed them off her feet and into a tangled heap.

  He slid into her with one smooth thrust that had them both groaning. Lila wrapped her legs around his hips, her arms stretched back behind her to support herself on the countertop. Her head was thrown back, and the sleek line of her throat begged for him to kiss her there.

  They moved together like clockwork dancers freshly coated in oil. Every thrust into her slick heat had him wanting to last forever, but as Lila rocked her hips against him Tom knew he wasn’t going to last even two minutes. H