Fuck. He was instantly hard.

Hudson made his way to the open doors. Steam billowed and curled upward around Allie’s face. She was slick, flushed from the heat, and so goddamn beautiful. He stood there with a case of the struck-stupids while his hard-on kicked behind his fly, more than ready to go for a swim.

“You told me to get warm,” she said. Her voice was low and seductive.

“That I did.” Hudson’s lips curved into a lazy, sinful grin. “And I like where you went with it. Very thinking outside the box.”

She pushed her hand through the swirling water, and as she did, her breast rose out of the bubbling foam, revealing a taut pink nipple just begging for his mouth. “Are you going to join me?”

She didn’t have to ask twice. Hudson stripped out of his wet coat and gloves, dropping one on top of the other and not giving a shit about the puddle they were leaving on the floor. His shoulders rolled and his biceps thickened as he pulled his sweater over his head, taking the T-shirt underneath with it and adding them both to the pile.

Allie’s gaze raked over him as he popped the buttons on his fly, the avid hunger in her stare making the need between them a living, breathing thing. He yanked his jeans and boxer briefs down in one swift move, and his cock sprang free, jutting out from his hips. Her jaw went slack and her tongue swept the curve of her bottom lip. Sweet hell, he could practically feel the glide of it along his achingly hard length.

With his eyes locked on hers, Hudson stepped into the hot tub and lowered himself into the water. “Come here, Mrs. Chase.” He pulled Allie across his lap and her thighs parted over his. Her forearms came to a rest on his shoulders and her fingers played with the hair curling at his nape.

“I like hearing that.”

He brushed his lips against her mouth. “I like saying it.”

“Say it again,” she whispered. Her wet hand slid down his chest, forging a heated trail to his cock, and when her fingers grasped him, he hissed.

“Two hands, Mrs. Chase.” He smirked as he said the name that now linked them together. She took him in both hands and squeezed, her thumb brushing across the wide crest. Fuck, she knew exactly what he liked.

Allie arched her back, and with his tongue leading the way, Hudson latched onto her breast. He palmed the heavy weight in his hand as he teased the taut peak, his lips soft and gentle and his suction greedy. When he caught her nipple between his teeth, her breath rushed out and her hands tightened on a downward stroke of his shaft.

“Christ, Allie.” He was too goddamn hard to think straight, but he had just enough blood running to his brain to know he was dangerously close to the edge. And there wasn’t a hand job in the world that could replace the feel of her coming all around him. “Put me inside you, baby. Take what’s always been yours.”

She hovered over him, her body glistening in the warm glow emanating from the house; then, in a lithe move, she eased down on his cock. Hudson’s head fell back on a groan. She was tight, even hotter than the water that licked their bodies, and so fucking silky. He gripped her hips to halt her for a split second while he regained his control. When the urge to come too fucking soon passed, he began moving her up and down with smooth, measured strokes.

“I love you,” she gasped as he filled her again and again, planting her palms on the thick muscles of his chest as he drove them both higher. The rhythm was inexorable, and as she began to move on her own volition, his hands drifted up her waist and over her ribs, her sleek muscles flexing and releasing under his hands.

“I love you, Mrs. Chase.”

Allie smiled, then her head lolled back and her eyes fluttered closed. He pumped his hips faster and deeper, wanting her to feel every damn inch of his cock. With every thrust his pecs tightened and his abs flexed.

The motion of their bodies sloshed the water over the sides of the hot tub, splashing all over the deck and dripping through the cracks to melt the snow below. Steam rose all around them and sweat gleamed on Allie’s face. He was drunk on the sight of her and the feel of being deep inside her was the chaser.

“Hudson.” Allie’s fingers dug into his shoulders. “Oh . . . God.” Her eyes met his and her breath hitched in her throat as her body began to quiver.

“That’s it, give it to me,” he commanded. The muscles in his neck chorded with the last vestige of restraint. “Now.”

Her orgasm shot through her so violently that she shouted his name. Her release ricocheted and pulsed around his cock; all the while her eyes remained locked to his. Every sensation and every emotion manifested into this one perfect moment. Their life was a complicated mess, but the truth of their love was simple.

Raw and unchained, Hudson’s own release shot down his spine. “Fuck,” he cursed on an explosive breath. His hips locked to hers and his erection kicked deep inside her as he came long and hard.

Incredible. Absofuckinglutely incredible.

They rode out their orgasms together, and when they finally stilled, Allie’s head collapsed on Hudson’s shoulder and her body melted against his chest. His arms tightened around her, and for a moment he felt as though he could keep them connected like that forever.

But the next morning, reality crashed in and twisted up hard in his gut. They ate breakfast in near silence, then waited for the driver to arrive to take Allie back to Chicago. Alone. The weekend might have been perfect, but their lives were far from it. And going their separate ways after a one-day honeymoon wasn’t the natural fucking order of things. They should have been jetting off to a tropical island, or at the very least hibernating in his cabin for the next two weeks.

Instead Hudson found himself kissing his new bride good-bye. Allie’s lips lingered on his for a moment, and a single tear slid down her cheek.

“Hey.” His voice was soft. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“I know.” She lifted his hand and kissed his wedding band. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Mrs. Chase.” He mustered a reassuring smile. “Call me when you’ve arrived home.”

“Of course.” Allie slid into the backseat, and Hudson leaned down to press one last kiss to her lips before shutting the door. He knocked his knuckles against the roof, then watched as the car pulled away, taking his heart with it.

Chapter Twenty-two

Allie kept her head down as she made her way to the back of the conference room. Since they’d returned from Paris there had been plenty of occasions where she’d had to pretend Hudson meant nothing more to her than any of the other board members. But this time it was her husband who had just strolled into the room. The sight of him dressed in a navy pinstripe suit and wearing her favorite crystal blue tie hit her like a brick wall. Every instinct told her to go to him, to touch him, to kiss him, or hell, to even just talk to him. But she couldn’t, not without raising suspicion. So instead she turned on her heel, seeking refuge at the small breakfast buffet Colin had ordered for the morning’s meeting.

She felt Hudson’s presence as he drew closer, and by the time he was standing next to her, every nerve in her body had sprung to life. In a subtle move his fingers brushed the back of her hand as he reached for a coffee cup. “I missed my wife this morning,” he murmured, his voice caressing her heated skin.

Allie’s lips parted on a sharp intake of air. Hearing Hudson call her his wife was bittersweet, a double-edged sword that both warmed her heart and pierced it. Her gaze met his for the first time, but Ben Weiss walked up behind them before she could reply. Not that it mattered. The look in Hudson’s eyes told her he knew exactly what she was thinking.