“Oh . . . my . . . God,” he whispered.

  She giggled again, and before he could guess what she was doing, she ran away from him, across the clearing, and disappeared into the dimness on the other side.

  Running with a crowbar in his pants wasn’t easy, but she didn’t go at top speed, and he could keep up with an easy lope. In fact, she didn’t seem interested in getting away from him so much as she wanted to lead him on a chase. Mostly, she ducked around trees, leaving the sound of her footfalls as directions on how to follow, and she giggled, too. More like a forest sprite than the distinguished professor she’d become once they left this magical setting.

  He let her get away a couple of times so she could enjoy herself and so he could let the anticipation build. They were going to make love in these woods, if not this very minute, then soon. He’d get to hear the sounds of her orgasm floating up into the trees. With any luck, she’d scream loudly enough to scare a few birds.

  A bit farther off the path, he lost her. They’d entered a stand of truly huge trees, probably first growth and some possibly over a thousand years old. Some of the most magnificent living things on Earth. They might have watched a millennium of mating seasons. The elk, of course, and bears, maybe cougars. He couldn’t shake the hope that he and Gayle would be the first humans to couple here.

  First he had to find her. He walked slowly among the trees, making as little sound as possible. Hardly daring to breathe.

  The clue came as he walked by one of the giants. A sigh so soft he might have thought it was the breeze if he wasn’t so attuned to everything about this human female, his mate. As he continued around the massive trunk, more laughter came to him. It had an odd, contained sound, as if it was echoing off something. Or inside something.

  The explanation became clear as he rounded one more curve. The tree was hollow at the base, likely the result of a fire that had burned inside it decades if not centuries before. That happened fairly often with redwoods, and they went right on growing. Gayle had “hidden” in there and told him with her laughter how to find him. When he stepped into the threshold, he had her “trapped.”

  “I thought you wanted to make love outdoors,” he said.

  “This is outdoors,” she said. “Sort of.”

  She was still completely, gloriously naked, of course. She’d even removed her shoes and set them aside. Keeping his gazed fixed on her in case she decided to bolt again, he knelt to remove his own footwear. She stayed exactly where she was, watching him the way the female elk watched her bull approach.

  After straightening, he unzipped his jeans and stripped out of them and his boxers. When she saw the state of his member, she licked her lips as if she’d like to eat him. He might have needed that help right after screwing her in the shower. Maybe. He sure didn’t need it now.

  “What are you going to do with that thing?” she said.

  “I thought I’d let you ride it.”

  A shiver went through her, strong enough to make her breasts shimmy. “It’s very big.”

  He wrapped his fist around his shaft and pumped. “You shouldn’t say things to inflate my ego.”

  “Even if they’re true?” She walked to him, curled her arms around his neck, and tipped her head back to kiss him. The minute their mouths touched, sparks went off inside his body. He pulled her against him, and in a moment they were tangled together so intimately, the boundary between his flesh and hers disappeared. He cupped the buttocks he’d admired in the sunlight, pressing her against his aching cock. The ache turned to a throb as her skin rubbed against the shaft and her belly made contact with the head.

  As their lips battled for dominance, seeking more and deeper contact, her hands roved over his back. She dug the tips of her fingers into the muscles there and flattened her breasts against him, making her hard nipples graze his chest. And still, no matter how close they got, it wasn’t enough.

  Lowering himself to the ground, he brought her down with him. Once he had her on her back, he took his time to explore her the way he should have from the first.

  There was a place behind her ear where a nibble of his teeth earned him a purr. She loved kisses along her neck, which she told him by gripping his head as he covered the expanse of skin. His own special treat was the hollow above her collarbone. He dipped his tongue in it and tasted the tang of her exertion. Beneath him, her body writhed. He could plunge his cock inside her and find her ready for him, but why rush things if he could drive her insane first?

  Sucking her nipple into his mouth didn’t take any creativity, but he stroked her ribs as he did it, urging her upward to meet his caress. By now, the sound of her breathing filled the space around them. If the lover who gave the most won, he’d make sure to be the winner. So when he moved to the other breast and she arched her back, calling out his name, he didn’t do the easy thing. He didn’t take his place between her legs and drive himself home. He continued teasing the peak with his tongue as he reached to her knee, dipped his fingers beneath it, and stroked the tender flesh there.

  She jerked in response, tensing all over. “Damn, what made you do that?”

  “Lots of nerve endings here,” he answered.

  “What are you, an anatomist all of a sudden?”

  “Just an expert in sexual behavior.”

  “I’ll say.” She groaned and sank back against the floor of their enclosure.

  If that could make her groan, she had other places that could create an even more interesting reaction. He rolled onto his side and propped his head on his hand so that he could watch her as he trailed his fingers along the inside of her thigh toward her sex. She had to have guessed his destination because she closed her eyes and let her legs fall apart to invite him to touch her. He didn’t rush that, either, but stroked the impossibly soft skin as her breathing became fast and shallow. Inside the walls of the tree, he didn’t have enough light to see her chest turn rosy as her arousal heightened, but he’d be able to feel her nectar as it spilled against his hand.

  There. He found her clitoris easily, as it had already hardened. When he brushed it with his fingertip, she released a soft cry. Such an amazing organ, the little bud of nerve endings existed only for pleasure—hers to experience, and his to give. His body had nothing devoted solely to sensuality like this miracle, but he could lie beside her and watch her face as she approached the peak and flew over it.

  She reached down and placed a hand over his, asking for more, and of course, he gave her what she needed. He pressed her rhythmically, pausing every once in a while to roll her nub between his thumb and forefinger. And every time he did, her breath hitched a little higher.

  He knew her well enough to recognize that she’d climax soon, and he took a second to slip a finger inside her. Her sex answered with a release of moisture, the reward he’d hoped for. In a few minutes, he’d feel her wet heat around his cock. She’d take the ride he’d offered, and he’d come inside her with a reaction so powerful only this woman and this place could explain it. But first . . . oh yes, first . . .

  When he stroked her clitoris again, her face registered pleasure so intense it looked like pain. “Don’t stop. Please, don’t stop.”

  “Never.” He continued, now harder and faster. Just what she needed to drive her past the edge. Her voice rose in pitch as her body tensed. He could feel her orgasm in his balls, sense the rush of it through her. And then, she was shouting, her head thrown back, as her hips jerked. Inside her, the walls of her sex would be squeezing and relaxing as the climax continued. He kept rubbing, making the joy of it last for as long as he could.

  After moments that hung suspended in time, she went limp, and he removed his hand from between her legs. He gazed at her face as her features relaxed into an expression of pure bliss. His chest filled with wonder.

  “Wow,” she whispered without opening her eyes.

  He leaned over and kissed her forehead. “You’re quite a gift, lady.”

  She rolled onto her side, snuggling against his chest. Her hand snaked over his abdomen and then curled around his cock. “This is the gift.”

  “We’d better be careful, or we’ll end up liking each other.”

  She finally opened her eyes and gave him a lazy grin. “I wouldn’t go that far.”

  “Okay, enjoying.”

  “That I can believe. I plan on enjoying you right now.”

  “So soon?” he asked.

  “Insatiable, remember?”

  “Right. I’m at your mercy.”

  “I wouldn’t count on any mercy,” she said. “I’m going to ride you hard.”

  “Knock yourself out.” He positioned himself on his back and grasped his member by the base. The poor guy had been hard for so long, he needed some relief. She’d give it to him soon. She’d take him inside her and own him the way women had possessed men since the beginning of the species. The next time she climaxed, she’d take him with her. How could he ever have written that claptrap about women not being as sexual as men?

  When she swung a leg over him and guided her pussy to take the head of his cock, his mind slid away from work and papers and even the reality of the forest and how he’d gotten to this perfect moment. Nothing in the world mattered except for the way she lowered herself onto him and how he could watch his sex disappear into hers. The wetness he’d felt earlier surrounded him, so hot and wicked. He could so easily forget everything but his own need and rush to the conclusion, but he couldn’t leave her achy and wanting. Not his Gayle.

  Before he could process that last thought, she began to move in a rocking motion, much as if she were riding a horse. Her inner muscles gripped him on each pass, creating the tension in his sac that would finally finish him. With so little control over his own body, he thrust up into her in time with her movements. Perfectly matched, stroke for stroke, until his heart thundered and blood rushed in his ears.

  “How is it you always make me feel this way?” she said.

  “What way is that?”

  “Oh, God . . . as if I’m going to burst out of my skin.”

  “You are,” he said. “And I will, too.”

  “I don’t want it to end.”

  “We can always make more.”

  “Yes.” The word came out of her throat like a cry, and she increased her pace, moving, pulling at him, her pussy sucking on him. He kept right on—push, push, push—as if he could penetrate her to her core.

  “So good.” She gasped. “So good.”

  He couldn’t take any more. He was going to come. No amount of self-control, no high-minded wish to put off his orgasm for her pleasure could stop him. What he could do was make her climax first. She was already so close.

  He placed his thumb between her pussy lips, just in front of where he continued to plunge into her. Her clit was hard, whether again or still didn’t matter. He worked it for all he was worth, rolling it and pressing it upward. She shuddered and held herself above him as he slammed up into her. Damn it. She had to come now.

  As the climax roiled inside him, demanding release, she let out a shout. The walls of her pussy clamped down on him, snapping the last thread of his sanity. As her convulsions began, he emptied himself into her in waves. They came hard together and didn’t stop until light exploded on the backs of his eyelids. And still, she clutched at him, although the spasms became softer and she lowered herself against his chest.

  They’d both finished. The climax had lasted only a few seconds but held eternity in it. He managed to wrap an arm around her as they floated in a sea of spent passion. If he’d thought he’d understood sex before, he’d been a fool. The same had to be true of her, whether she’d admit it or not. No one made love like that and came out untouched on the other side.

  Chapter Five

  GAYLE SMILED INWARDLY as she allowed Nolan to hold her hand while they walked beneath the redwoods on their way back to the cabin. They’d reached an understanding sitting on that log, and they’d forged an emotional connection inside the hollow of the tree. The bond was more than sexual now, more than the sum of the orgasms they’d shared, despite how out-of-this-world those had felt. Anything stronger than an understanding and appreciation of each other would have to develop over time if something were to develop at all. They’d set foot on that emotional path, though, with its frightening power to cause pain or great joy.

  As they followed the path, the simple weaving together of fingers carried more emotional weight than fucking, but then, so did curling her body against his after one orgasm and then allowing him to cradle her after another one. With this man, there was no rolling off and saying thanks. The aftermath of their lovemaking had its own significance that mere casual encounters couldn’t. The sex act had a new definition for her now, and she’d certainly never look at a hollow redwood the same way.

  They didn’t speak as they went on. They didn’t have to. Body posture, a glance, a smile communicated without words. She’d had sex with him to make a point. Now they’d made love, really made love, and her heart lay in the balance. She honestly cared for Nolan Hersch. Where in hell had that come from?

  And what was she going to do about it? She hadn’t worried about snickering or rumors because no one was supposed to know what they’d been doing out here in the woods. She’d expected that he’d go back to taunting her publicly, and she’d respond the way she always had, with logic of her own and a heap of scorn for his inability to see the obvious in his own data. Now instead, she’d end up gazing at him like a lovesick undergraduate with a crush on the handsome prof. No that could not happen.

  As they neared the cabin, he suddenly pulled her aside and back against a tree. Before she could ask what he thought he was doing, he wrapped an arm around her and pressed a finger to her lips.

  “Listen,” he whispered.

  She did, not hearing anything for a few seconds before she detected the sound of a motor. “One of our vehicles?”

  He turned to peer around the trunk. In an instant, he was back. “Susan and Dave. The road must have opened.”

  Well, shit. Her heart sank as a blanket of disappointment settled over her. No fair. They’d known their time together would end, but did it have to be so soon? Surely, the repair crew had had better things to do than work overtime to end this beautiful fantasy so quickly. She and Nolan had only just connected on a personal level, and they’d hardly scratched the surface of where their sexual life could go.

  “Well, lover, this is it. The moment of truth,” he said. He gave her a half-assed smile that didn‘t get all the way to his eyes, but the tension in his jaw said more than his lame attempt at cheer. This turn of events had made him miserable. She probably looked more or less the same.

  “Great. What do we do, just walk into camp as if we’ve been out for a stroll?”

  “Can you think of anything else?” He let out a frustrated huff. “I can’t.”

  Any number of things came to mind, none of them remotely possible. They couldn’t change sleeping arrangements unless Dave and Susan had suddenly discovered they had an undying passion for each other. They couldn’t run off into the forest for quickies during the day and risk having one of the others catch them in some sexual act with each other. They sure as hell couldn’t share the shower any longer.

  “I guess not,” she said. Damn it, this wasn’t supposed to hurt so much. She wasn’t supposed to care about this man. She’d planned on letting him know in no uncertain terms that she’d won the challenge and that she’d sit in the back of his presentations with a knowing look in her eye. Then, she’d shame him into the truth if he tried spreading any more of his bullshit. Now she knew the person inside his skin and how he could make her spirit soar with his lovemaking. How was she supposed to sit across a table sharing dinner without climbing into his lap for dessert?

  The engine sounds got closer and closer and then ended. Voices followed.

  “Where do you think they are?” A woman. Susan.

  “They must be observing the elk,” Dave answered. “They said there’d be a key hidden under the steps. Here.”

  The cabin door opened and closed and then opened and closed a few more times as the graduate students hauled their gear and supplies inside. Finally, silence returned to the forest.

  “Do you think they’ll notice we’ve been rolling around in a hollow tree?” she asked.

  “Not unless we take off our shirts.”

  “We’re safe then,” she said.

  He gave her a rueful smile. “I was planning to scrub your back.”

  “I was planning a lot more than that.” She hadn’t figured out the details, but now that didn’t matter. She couldn‘t have him any way at all with the others here. After the research project finished, they’d go back to their respective universities. They‘d see each other . . . when? Would things even be the same between them after so much time apart?

  “Gayle, I . . .” He heaved a sigh.

  “I know. For a while I thought we were getting close to something.”

  “We were. Something unique and beautiful.” He took her face between his hands and let his gaze bore into hers. “This really sucks.”

  “It surely does.” She wrapped her arms around his ribs and felt the brush of his fingers against her cheek as he tucked her head under his chin. They stayed that way for long minutes as the breeze ruffled her hair and the birds continued calling.

  Finally, he tipped her head up and took her lips in a kiss so full of sweetness and promises it made her heart ache. The promises had nowhere to go now. The real world had settled back into place.

  After a while, she pulled her mouth from his and rested her cheek against the side of his face. When she felt as if she could breathe on her own again, she straightened and dropped her arms to her sides.