He was willing to bet, however, that it wouldn’t seem so oppressive from the comfort of her bed…
“We ask you to pay at least one night in advance, although there’s a discount if you choose to pay for the entire week up front,” she said, looking up at him nervously.
“I’ll pay for the entire week,” Jax said, holding out a credit chit. She reached for it and their fingers brushed against each other. That spark of electricity arched between them again, and she gasped. Both of them were breathing heavily now, and the tension stretched out for several long, silent seconds before she took the chit and slid it into the computer terminal. Once the credits were deducted, she printed out a receipt and handed him an access card.
“Just take this and use it to program your palm print into the room,” she said.
“Climate control is optional, although I think you’ll find that you get used to the heat pretty quickly. We don’t usually even bother with the cooling system any more.”
Jax gave a sigh of relief at that welcome information. He had no intention of sticking around long enough to acclimate to the heat, but he definitely planned to use his role as a guest to get closer to Sarai. A climate control system would go a long way toward making that wait more comfortable. Of course, the passion would burn itself out quickly once he bedded her, he knew that from experience. Until then, things would be very pleasant for both of them. He knew how to please a woman.
“Can you show me the room?” he asked, glancing toward the stairs. Sarai looked startled, then nodded.
“Yes, please follow me,” she said, moving quickly from behind the counter and across the room. She moved lightly up the stairs in front of him, giving him an excellent view of that shapely bottom. The hard length of his arousal stirred in response, and he all but groaned aloud. He needed to get in this lady’s pants fast, he thought. This was ridiculous.
“Here’s your room,” she said, pushing open the third door on the right. Jax followed her in, pleasantly surprised by the accommodations. There was a large bed with a wicker frame, as well as a desk and several chairs. There was a large window as well, and a ceiling fan stirred the air. Sarai walked across to the window, then turned to look at him.
“It’s a rather nice view from here,” she said. “You can see across the garden to the forest. At night, if you open it, you’ll be able to hear all kinds of animals. A lot of the students who stay with us like it here because we’re so close to nature.”
Jax nodded, disinterested. How far was her room, he wondered? Sarai walked across to one of two doors on the wall. She pushed one open and stepped in. Jax followed behind her, then stopped short when he realized the small room wouldn’t accommodate both of them.
“This is the fresher,” she said, turning back around. He was still standing behind her, and she almost ran into him before she realized he was there. She was so startled that she threw up her hands to catch herself, and both palms came to rest firmly against his chest. That exquisite sensation ran through Jax again, and he smiled.
“I can see that,” Jax said, reaching his own hands up to cradle her head with them.
Her eyes, wide with surprise, gazed up at him. Her pink lips were open in a small “o”
of surprise. She was so beautiful that he couldn’t think. He had to kiss her.
His lips closed over hers and her hands clenched against his chest reflexively. She was soft and warm, and Jax slanted his head against hers, hoping to probe her more deeply. He thrust his tongue into her mouth and she moaned. His loins surged in response, and his grasp on her tightened.
Grinding his mouth over hers, Jax pressed her back against the wall. She slid her hands up around his neck and pulled at him, whimpering against his mouth. The sound almost undid him, and he thrust against her lower body with his rock-hard erection.
What would her hot flesh feel like closing around his length? He couldn’t wait to find out.
Continuing to hold her head with one hand, he reached the other down to the rounded globes of her ass, which he’d admired in the garden. Her muscles were sleek and firm, and he dug his fingers into them, pressing her against his body. Wrenching his mouth away from hers, he swept her up in his arms and carried her purposefully across the room to the bed. He set her down, coming down on top of her and kneeing her legs roughly apart. Then he fell on her like a starving man, plunging his tongue into her mouth. She moaned and bucked against him. He felt like he was going to explode in his pants. He had to get into her tight cunt or he was going to die.
“Mommy?” a child’s voice called. “Mommy, where are you?”
Jax stilled at the sound, and Sarai frantically tried to push him off her. “Get up,” she hissed. “That’s my son. I can’t have him find me like this.”
Jax rolled to one side, and she stood up quickly. Running her hands over her clothing, Sarai turned to the door. A small boy was standing there, watching them.
“Mommy, I want to get a snack,” the boy said, looking at Jax suspiciously. “Is that all right with you?”
“Yes, sweetheart,” Sarai said, her voice trembling.
“Will you come with me?” the boy asked. From the child’s glare, Jax knew he suspected something was wrong about the situation. He was trying to protect his mother from a strange man, Jax realized.
“Thank you for showing me my room, Sarai,” he said, trying to sound innocent. The boy gazed at him coldly, then turned to his mother and held out his hand to her.
“Of course,” Sarai said. “Please let me know if you need anything.” Then she walked out of the room with her son. Jax lay on his back for several minutes, watching the fan on the ceiling. Her smell was still in the air, like flowers, and his aroused cock throbbed with frustrated desire. He had never wanted a woman so badly. She wanted him, too, he knew it. It was just a matter of time before he would be able to take her, he told himself. Otherwise she might be the death of him.
Chapter 15
“Calla, I need to take a rest,” Mali whimpered. The little girl had already taken several “rests” along the way, but she was weak. In another six months, Calla hoped she would be strong enough to skip along beside her. Until then, she was content to take as many rests as the child needed.
The gravity on Hector Prime was slightly higher than any of them were used to, but the nature preserve had been the perfect place to start over in every other way. Erika’s aunt had welcomed them with open arms, insisting that they stay with her until they were on their feet. The money from the ship had been more than enough for them to buy a little hostel in one of the many tourist towns hugging the vast rainforests.
All that Erika and her mother had told them was true. Hector Prime was an ecologist’s dream, and it attracted hundreds of thousands of students each year. All of them needed inexpensive places to stay for a few months while they took classes. These young men and women were the ideal guests for their hostel. Many were homesick, and they were happy to be “adopted” into Calla and Sarai’s small family unit.
Calla had even offered a reduced rate to one of them in exchange for tutoring the children. For the first time in their young lives, Mali and Able had started school. She and Sarai studied with them. Things would have been perfect if she could just stop thinking about Seth.
“Come on, Mali,” Calla said, rousing the girl. Mali smiled up at her sweetly.
“Can I get a candy?” Mali asked, pointing to a little shop across the street. They almost always stopped off there on their way home, so the child’s request wasn’t a surprise.
“Will you get one for Able, too?” Calla asked.