HER EVERY FANTASY

There was no struggle over any sense of right or wrong in his conscience. It was full steam ahead for Collins Templeton. And maybe that was part of his strength, part of his overwhelming attraction. He knew what he wanted and went after it with single-minded purpose.

They turned right at the end of Crystal Street. The car climbed a steep hill-the head land-went over it and down the other side, turning sharp left and coming to a halt in a large dead-end parking circle that wasclosed in by a nature reserve, a thick belt of trees and bushes cutting off any sight of the ocean.

Shadows from overhanging foliage put them in a pool of darkness.

There were no other vehicles here. The sense of being very much alone with Collins Templeton sent a quiver of apprehension down Jasmine’s spine. Was she mad to do this? Was she?

Then he was opening the passenger door, drawing her out of the car and into an embrace that shot a flood of positive responses through her body, swamping any chilling fears. He planted soft little kisses around her face, gentle smiling kisses, transmitting a pleasure in her that Jasmine revelled in.

‘Do you have a rug in the boot of the car?’ he murmured.

She always kept a picnic rug there. More a rubber-backed mat than a rug. It could be laid on damp ground. Or firm, wave-washed sand. She could hear the ocean now, booming behind the trees, and the idea of a secluded little beach all to themselves misted what they’d be using the rug for in a romantic haze.

‘Yes,’ she said, and knew it was a yes to all that might ensue, regardless of how reckless it was.

Again he cupped her cheek, subjecting her eyes to an intense focus from his. ‘I didn’t come prepared for this.  Tell me now, Jasmine, do I need to use…’

‘No. There’s no risk. Unless…’

She paused. Did he have sex indiscriminately, whenever and wherever the urge took him? He read her question and shook his head.

‘I’ve always been careful.’ His mouth tilted ruefully. ‘You’re the only woman who’s made me forget… momentarily… what intimacy can lead to.’

The power of his desire for her was exhilarating. The only woman…

And he was the only man who had ever incited this compelling sense of need in her. A man of control, she thought giddily, a man she could trust to look after her.

He collected the picnic rug from the boot of the car, then took her hand, holding it with warm possessive strength as he led her onto a paved path that wound through the nature reserve. It stopped wherethe beach began. With the shadows of the bushland behind them and the full moon lighting their way, it was easy to see the boards marking sand-filled steps which took them down a long dune to the seashore.

‘Sit for a minute,’ Collins commanded, pausing to drop the rug on the step behind them. ‘I’ll take your shoes off.’

The first bit of undressing, Jasmine thought, her heart thumping erratically as she sank onto the rug-covered step and Collins descended a couple more before crouching to remove her shoes. She hadn’t worn stockings or pantihose. It was a hot night. It felt even hotter as Collins handled her ankles, undoing the crisscross straps, his fingers sliding along the soles of her feet with each shoe removal, making her toes twitch from the sensitivity aroused by his touch.

‘Cramp?’ he asked.

‘No. Just…’

He massaged her toes anyway, leaving her speechless and breathless.

It was some slight relief when he handed over her shoes and sat down beside her to take off his own, which were casual slip-ons, no socks.

Rather than stare at his naked feet, she trained her gaze on the big surf which was crashing onto a circle of rocks, sending up spectacular sprays, their froth gleaming white in the moonlight. The rocks encloseda small bay, reducing the waves rolling past them to small swells, a safe swimming area close to the beach.

‘Does this place have a name?’ she asked, trying to find some normallevel with him.

He grinned at her. ‘Spoon Bay.’

Laughter gurgled out, easing her nervous tension about accepting whatever would be between them. ‘Made for spooning by moonlight?’ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

His eyes twinkled, happy to have her more relaxed with him. ‘I think it refers more to the shape of the area… the way the beach curves intothe treeline and the rocks curve around the bay. You can’t see it properly from here. Come…’

He stood and pulled her to her feet, grabbed therug again, tucking it under his far arm so he could still hold her hand as they continued down the sand-and-board steps. Jasmine took a deep breath of the salty sea air. Somehow it was as intoxicating as the tingling heat of Collins fingers, intertwining with hers. All her senses seemed switched onto a much sharper level.

They walked along the beach to the little cove Collins had described, sand squishing underfoot, the surf beating out its own primevalrhythm, the almost eerie light of the full moon lending a mood of ancient timelessness to the scene. They could have been the only man and woman in the universe, making footprints where none had been before, surrounded by elements of nature that no human touch had ever controlled.

Would tonight with Collins leave its imprint on her… a night to remember?

He laid the picnic rug over a stretch of smooth sand in the centre of the cove. The sight of it, ready for them, so sensible and planned, suddenly put Jasmine at odds with its obvious purpose. Her nerves jangled a panicky protest. She tossed her shoes onto it and spun around to face the sea, instinctively seeking a spontaneous rush of something else, more natural, more enticing, more… explosive… like the waves on the rocks, a fierce flow and ebb, driven by mindless forces which were very, very real.

Like what she had felt with Collins before, when he’d kissed her, when…

‘Stay right there,’ he commanded from behind her, and she heard the rustle and click of his clothes being removed.

She didn’t look, couldn’t bring herself to look or take any action at all.

Her mind filled with a vision of him emerging naked in all his muscular splendour, primal male pulsing with a vitality which he was releasing from all the conventional bonds of their civilised world, and she wanted to be released too. free of all inhibitions. He would come to her… she was waiting… and her heart was drumming louder than the waves now.

No turning away from this, no turning…