She was used to Angel not being able to keep his hands off her, but today was different, the way he touched her and caressed her even as he just listened to her talk. She told him about long drive home from Havasu and how they’d nearly run out of gas because neither she nor Valerie had noticed how low they were until they were miles from a gas station either way.

“Monica slept almost the whole way home; she was so hung over,” Sarah said, touching his lips in the elevator up to their room.

Just like when they’d waited for the clerk to give them their hotel keys in the lobby, Angel held her close, hanging on her every word. Love-sick was exactly the word she’d use to describe the way he looked at her, and she loved it because it was exactly how she felt looking at him.

“Unreal,” he whispered, running his fingers through her hair.

“What,” she smiled, looking down at his lips then back into his eyes.

“The way you make me feel,” he whispered, tracing her lips with his fingers, then looked down at her as she stared deep into his eyes. “It’s like everything I felt this weekend, all the angst, all the worry and then mounting anticipation to be near you again, was all worth it. I’d even do it all over again, relive the torture the coach put us through a hundred times, for this very moment. This,” he whispered, kissing her softly then pulling away to look into her eyes again in that way that had always made her knees weak. “This makes anything worth it. I’ll never say it enough. I love you, Sarah.”

Feeling the warm tears flood her eyes, she hugged him tight just as the elevator dinged and came to a stop.” I love you too.”

They walked down the hallway, leaning against each other and giggling because they both knew how disgusting most people would think their behavior was. Alex and Valerie were likely already naked somewhere, making the most of their time back together. If Angel did nothing more than hug her and stare into her eyes the way he had since they’d met at the airport, she’d be just as blissfully satisfied.

The moment they were inside and the door closed behind them, Sarah found out real fast that hugging and staring lovingly into her eyes all night was not all Angel had planned. He pulled her close and kissed her a lot deeper than he had been since he arrived.

Walking backwards as their breathing accelerated with every stroke of their eager tongues in each other’s mouths, Angel lifted her blouse from the bottom and pulled it off her. He pulled his shirt off, and she ran her hands over his big bare shoulders, kissing them as he brought her down to the bed. Like a pro, he undid her bra and had it off her in seconds, all the while kissing her insatiably. Sucking her bottom lip harder and harder knowing damn well that would have her moaning soon, he unzipped her jeans. Sarah lifted her hips to help him pull her jeans off along with her panties.

Angel groaned at the sight of her now naked body under him. Sarah would never get tired of the way his eyes gazed over her so slowly in such awe as if it were the very first time he was taking in every inch of her. Spreading her legs, he slipped his hand between them and stroked gently, making her tremble uncontrollably. Maybe another time she’d be willing to wait for him to take his time, but not today. She reached down for his zipper and started to undo it until he pulled away and did it himself.

Once she had him out of his pants and just as naked as she was, she pulled him down onto her, loving the way his perfectly chiseled hard body felt against hers. “Make love to me,” she whispered anxiously.

“Okay,” he whispered back, looking into her eyes with a slow smile. “But first can I f**k you until your screaming my name?”

Her eyes twinkled as she spread even wider for him. “Yes please.”

Mercifully, he didn’t make her wait. In the next instant, he plunged in and began doing just that.

Chapter 19

Angel

Nothing had changed, not after all this time. And somehow Angel knew just by what he felt each time he made love to Sarah it never would. He could still lie there and hold Sarah for hours just gazing at her and kissing her softly. Her lips. Her nose. Her eyelids and forehead. After all this time, he was still as incapable of keeping his hands and lips off her as he was when he’d first met her. She’d owned his heart from the very beginning, and mercifully, she’d told him countless times he owned hers—she was his. It was something he needed to hear. He needed her to be aware of this because he’d never share her, not with Sydney and especially not Leo and not if doing so meant she’d be in any danger. As much as he could easily lie there forever just staring at her and holding her, he needed to get to what she said was too long to talk about last night.

Moving a few strands away from her forehead, he almost hated to ask and change the mood but he had to. “So what else happened this weekend? Last night you said there was more.”

Her eyes fell to his chest, and her entire body went tense. Angel fought the urge to gnash his teeth or even ask her what was wrong. Maybe she was just nervous about telling him how protective Leo had been of her, that the guy had beaten not one but two guys the moment either of them tried anything on her. As grateful as he should be that Leo had done that, he knew damn well her brother hadn’t done it for Angel. Brotherly protectiveness was nothing new to Angel. He knew all about it, but this felt different, and from the vibe he was getting from Sarah, he could already tell it was.

“I know that you already don’t trust Leonardo, Angel.” She pulled away and lifted herself onto her elbow, so Angel did the same thing and faced her, determined to keep an open mind.