His stomach clenched. Fuck. Natalie Blackwell, of the stunning face and librarian skirts, talked dirty in bed. “Nat—”
“I want to taste you, suck you, drive you wild.”
That slimmest thread of control snapped. He shoved her back on the bed, making her gasp. He opened her jeans and yanked them down her legs.
“Yes.” Her voice was a husky promise.
Axel gripped the lace and satin covering her, and with one twist, he tore them off her.
The dark curls at the apex of her thighs were neatly trimmed to a tiny strip that didn’t hide her pretty folds. Perfection.
His cock throbbed so hard it hurt. Shit, if he didn’t get a grip, he’d embarrass himself and blow like an untried boy.
She held out a hand. “Axel, I want to—”
He shook his head, leaning over her. He gripped one of her thighs and pushed it wide. “I’m going to taste you first.”
Her breath hitched.
“I’m going to make you scream, Nat, then I’m going to do it again.”
Chapter Fourteen
She was burning up.
Nat looked up at the big, sexy, naked man looming over her. His brown gaze never moved off her, like if he looked away, she’d disappear.
Axel’s head lowered between her legs and she sucked in a breath, her belly filled with butterflies. At the first touch of his mouth, her back arched, and she made a strangled sound. His big hands slid beneath her buttocks, that clever tongue licking in exactly the right spot.
She moaned, the growing pleasure almost painful. “Axel.” She lifted her hips, riding his face. He tongued her, making a hungry sound that told her that he was enjoying devouring her.
“God, I’ve wondered what you tasted like for so long.” He buried his face against her and inhaled. She bucked in his hold. “So wet, so sweet.” Then his mouth was on her again, licking and sucking.
Nat fought off her climax as long as she could. His tongue plunged into her before moving up to lick her swollen clit. “Oh… Oh… Don’t stop, Axel.” She twisted beneath him.
“Fuck, you taste so good, mi cielo.” He slid a thick finger inside her, then another one. “I could do this every day and still be hungry for you.”
She felt a taut stretch, even as his tongue kept licking her clit. Sensations swelled, and she was riding the sharp edge of her climax.
“Don’t fight it, Nat. I want you to come. Come all over my mouth.”
A cry ripped from her. She came hard, her body shaking. He held her and she whimpered his name. So good. White heat licked through her.
Limp, she collapsed on the bed. Axel rose over her and she drank him in, her hungry gaze drifting over his perfect body. “I love looking at you.”
“Believe me, I feel the same way.”
His gorgeous cock rose against his hard abs. She watched him grab a foil packet from the bedside table—she had no idea when he’d grabbed it—and tear it open. She didn’t look away as he rolled the condom over his rock-hard cock.
Her belly spasmed. She wanted him, needed him inside her.
Then that big, muscled body was covering hers. She spread her legs and wrapped them around his lean hips.
The blunt head of his cock brushed against her and she moaned. He lowered his head and kissed her, his tongue stroking hers as he pushed into her.
Nat gripped his sides and suddenly realized that no man had kissed her right at this moment before. It was so sexy, intimate, and stole her breath away.
“Nat.” He thrust into her, filling her up.
Nat screamed his name, her nails scraping his skin.
Both of them froze, locked in the moment. Their gazes met. He was deep inside her. There was nothing between them, no place where she ended and he began, instead they were joined.
Her heart pounded hard. His body trembled above hers.
“Do it,” she whispered. “Take me.’’
Something dangerous flickered in his eyes. “Mine.” With that one growled word, he moved. He drew back, then thrust forward again.
Sensations exploded in Nat. As Axel’s big body surged in and out of her, she clung to him. She clawed at his back, chanting his name. His plunges were fast, hard, deep, and she loved it.
Every muscle in her body tightened, pleasure growing inside her. “Axel!”
He pinned her to the bed, hips hammering as his cock filled her. “Come, Nat. Your orgasm is mine.”
Another thrust, and she splintered apart.
As she screamed his name, Axel plunged again, all finesse gone.
Then his body shuddered, his hands holding her tight as he let go and groaned her name.
* * *
Axel opened his eyes to Nat’s silky, black hair. He buried his nose in it and drew in the scent of her and sex.
Fuck. She’d blown his head off. She’d been hot, sexy, and perfect.
He stroked a hand down her side. Sex could be fun and pleasurable, and it was easy to use it as a distraction. Whatever the hell he and Nat had done had been none of those things. It had been in a different stratosphere.
“Be right back,” he murmured. “Going to take care of this condom.”
When he came back to the bed, she was on her side, watching him. He had a hell of a view of that lush body, and her flushed cheeks and swollen lips.
“You okay?” she asked.
“I was going to ask you the same thing.” He pulled her close.
“I feel great.” She pressed her hands to his chest. “I’m just waiting to see if you were going to have a crisis about sleeping with me.”
He pinched her butt.
“Ow.”
In apology, he smoothed his hand over her sweet curves. “I still think you can do better than me.”
She made the cutest growl, her nails pricking into his chest. “If you say that again, I’m going to…”
“Going to do what?”
She leaned forward and bit his pec.
He laughed and then she pushed him onto his back. She leaned over him, peppering kisses down his abs.
His cock swelled. Oh, fuck. As Nat moved lower, he tensed. She looked up, her eyelids hooded. His own temptress and siren. He was only a mere mortal, unable to resist her. But more than that, this beautiful woman, this gorgeous creature, wanted to be his.
She licked the head of his cock. It jumped and she smiled. He felt like he was going to spill then and there. Her tongue skated over the tip, then down his thick length.
“Nat… Jesus…”
“Are you ready?”
“Mi cielo.” He’d sell his soul to have her touch him. To have that sexy mouth he dreamed about wrapped around him.
“Hold on,” she murmured.
His abs clenched, then she sucked his cock into her mouth.
Axel bit off a curse. Sensation skated down his spine. Fuck.
Her mouth was warm and wet. She sucked hard and he felt himself get harder, swelling in her sweet mouth.
She made a humming sound, bobbing up and down. He felt his cock brush the back of her throat, but she kept working him. Electricity hit his nerves, and he felt a freight train of an orgasm building. But he didn’t want to come in that tempting mouth. He shifted, pushing her back on the bed. He ignored the twinge in his shoulder, shoved her legs apart, and covered her. A second later, he drove into her with a savage thrust.
She gripped his biceps and made a strangled cry.
Shit. “Nat. Did I hurt you?”
“No. Don’t stop.”
He drove deep. Shit, each second he was inside her felt like the best thing ever. His heartbeat thundered in his ears.
“Give it all to me,” she panted. “No holding back.”
“Mine.” He growled the word, torn from the darkest part of his battered soul.
“Yes. And you’re mine.” She clung to him as he set a brutal pace, their bodies slapping together.
He wanted her to come again and changed the angle of his thrusts.
She cri
ed out, and he knew he was hitting the right spot. “My sexy little archeologist likes it hard and sweaty.”
“I like it however you give it, Diaz.’’
He growled. On the next thrust, she screamed his name and came. Her body shook, her inner muscles clenching on his cock.
Oh, fuck. His vision blurred, raging pain-pleasure hitting him like a punch. “Nat.” He clung to her, pouring himself inside her.
Afterward, he was left sucking in air as he pulled her warm body close.
She made a humming noise. “I need to clean up.”
Axel froze, disbelief hitting him. Shit, he hadn’t used a condom.
“Shit, Nat. I didn’t suit up.” He thrust a hand through his hair. He’d never, ever forgotten before.
Nat touched his jaw. “It’s okay, I’m on birth control.”
He hadn’t protected her. “I’ve always used a condom. And since my last test at base, which was clean, I haven’t slept with anyone.”
She cocked her head. “You haven’t?”
He swallowed. “There was only one woman I wanted.”
Both her hands pressed to his cheeks. “Axel.”
He kissed her. A part of him was still afraid to touch her, have her, worried he’d ruin her. But another part of him never wanted to let go.
On the bedside table, his cellphone beeped. With one last kiss, he pulled back and grabbed his phone. When he saw the screen, he grinned.
“One of your admirers.” Nat’s voice was tart.
“Yeah, she’s my biggest fan,” he said.
Nat started to pull away, but he wrapped his arm around her and laughed.
“Let me go,” she snapped.
“It’s a message from my mom.”
Nat stilled. “Oh.”
“She wanted to let me know that there are cheap flights from Vegas to San Diego. My parents live just south of the city. An unsubtle way of telling me to visit.”
“You’re close with them?”
He nodded. “Yes, and I have two sisters. I don’t go home as much as my mamá would like…”
Nat’s piercing gaze cut into him. “You’re holding yourself back.”
He blew out a breath, discomfort making him feel twitchy.
“If I had a family that loved me,” she said quietly, “I’d spend as much time with them as possible.”
His hands flexed on her. “Nat…” Anger made his throat tight. “Your parents abused you?”
She shook her head. “God, no. They were never around.” She shrugged a slim shoulder. “They’re both ambitious workaholics. They divorced when I hit my teens and I was shuffled between households. I knew my nannies better.” She tucked her hair back behind her ear. “I was luckier than most. I had plenty of food, designer clothes, spending money, the best schooling. Expensive presents every birthday from my parents’ assistants.” Her smile was forced.
Maybe she hadn’t been abused, but she’d suffered. He heard the old pain in her voice.
He sank a hand into her hair. “Nat, you deserved more than that.”
“I just can’t seem to make people want to stay,” she whispered, “or want to love me.”
Fuck. Her words were like a spear through his heart. He dropped his mouth to hers. He kissed her, nipping at her lips, taking his time. She slowly melted against him and sighed. He deepened the kiss.
The bedroom door opened and Seth walked in. “Diaz, time to— Oh shit, my eyes.” Seth turned to look at the wall.
Axel whipped the sheet over Nat. “You look at her and I’ll kick your ass.”
“All I have burned in my brain is your bare ass.” Seth edged toward the door. “Brooks found the Minotaur. Get some clothes on. And I do feel compelled to add that Nat does have a spectacular set of—”
Axel growled and Nat laughed. She tossed a pillow at Seth. The other man smiled as he closed the door.
“Real life calls,” Axel said.
Her eyes narrowed. “This here is real life, too, Axel. You and I aren’t just fun, or pretend, or a fantasy.”
He just stared at her.
She stroked a thumb across his lips. “It’ll start to sink in soon. Now, we need to get dressed because we have a mission to finish.”
Chapter Fifteen
Nat finished dressing. She kind of rocked the cargo pants and fitted tee look, if she did say so herself. She pulled her hair into a neat ponytail.
She had a small hickey on her neck, and the sight of it made a shiver run through her. Her body still tingled from her wild loving with Axel. Her breasts were tender, and between her legs…well, she’d be feeling it for a while.
He’d been everything she’d imagined—a wild, skilled, and passionate lover. But she hadn’t expected the way he kissed her. How he held her. Like she was precious. Oh, yeah, Axel Diaz was going down.
Then she glanced down at her bare feet, and the sight made her think of the labyrinth. Of the women who hadn’t made it.
They’d never have a chance to go back to their loved ones, or to fall in love. The Minotaur had to be stopped. There was no way they could let the Hannibal Syndicate get their hands on the Minotaur virus and turn it into a weapon.
Shoulders set, she headed into the main control room. Every member of the team looked at her.
She glanced at Seth. “You have a big mouth.”
He winked.
Nat tossed her head back. “Yes, I slept with Axel. Actually, there wasn’t much sleeping involved. And it was phenomenal.”
Lachlan looked at the ceiling, Blair and Callie grinned. Ty rolled his eyes and pulled a smiling River closer against him.
Smith groaned. “Thank fuck the walls are soundproof.”
A screen on the wall winked on. Brooks’ tired face appeared, his glasses askew. His white T-shirt had a lightsaber on the front, with the words “Pretty fly for a Jedi” under it.
“What did I miss?” Axel sauntered in with that loose-hipped stride she loved.
Nat’s heart skipped a beat. She smiled, and he gave her a wide, sexy smile back.
“God, did you two finally do the nasty?” Brooks asked.
“No more sex talk,” Lachlan ordered. “I’m going to add a no fraternizing rule around here.”
Nat raised a brow. “You met Rowan on a mission. Same thing happened with Seth and January. Blair’s man is our police contact. Everyone else is paired up with another team member.”
Lachlan held up a hand. “Mission.”
The smiles quickly turned serious.
Lachlan turned to the screen. “Brooks?”
“I spotted the Minotaur not far from King’s Cross Station. It went into an old, abandoned Tube station at Euston. While Euston Station is still an operating station, part of the tube station and underground tunnels were abandoned in the 60s. The London Transport Museum ran some tours through them a few years back, but they are mostly untouched, except for where the new HS2 construction has touched them.”
“HS2?” Seth asked.
“High speed rail project,” River said.
“All right, let’s move,” Lachlan said. “We’ll access the tunnels at Euston.”
“I’m coming,” Nat said.
“Oh, no, you’re not,” Axel countered.
She crossed her arms. “Just because you’ve had your cock inside me, doesn’t mean you get to boss me around.”
Lachlan, Seth, and Smith groaned.
“It does,” Axel said.
She glared at him. “It does not. I still have a perfectly functioning brain, in spite of your very energetic cock.”
“Next person who says cock, I’ll shoot them,” Lachlan bit out. His golden gaze zeroed in on Nat. “Why do you think you should come? And driving Axel crazy with worry isn’t a good enough reason.”
She glanced at Axel. He did look worried, and she softened a little. “I’ve been studying all Minoan and Greek texts with references to the Minotaur. I might be able to communicate with it.”
“Might?” Axel shook his he
ad. “That monster is out of control, with no rational thought.”
“We have no idea what it’s thinking,” she said. “I think Daedalus managed to alter the virus and make the Minotaur seek out the tunnels they designed to entrap it.”
“How?” Lachlan asked.
“I don’t know. I’m slowly combing through his writings and piecing things together.” She blew out a breath. “I might be able to help, that’s all I can tell you right now.”
Lachlan nodded once. “Okay. You can come.”
“Goddammit,” Axel muttered. He followed up with an impressive barrage of Spanish.
Nat strode to him, grabbed a fistful of his shirt, and kissed him.
“I’ll be okay because I’ll be with you badasses.” She lowered her voice. “Including my badass.”
“Shit, you’re totally going to get your way all the time.”
“Get used to it,” Smith grumbled.
Nat winked at Axel. “Sometimes I’ll let you be the boss.”
Lachlan held up a hand. “No more sex talk. Everyone get in the SUVs.”
Not long afterward, they were all in the SUVs, following River’s directions to Euston Station. Nat fiddled with her vest. Ty’s design was sleek, but it still felt heavy to her.
A part of her was a little nervous about heading into more underground tunnels after the Minotaur, but she didn’t want to mention it in case Axel tried to stop her from coming.
They pulled up at Euston Station.
“You need to head into the existing Tube tunnels for the Northern Line,” Brooks said, taking over the directions.
As they headed inside, they all tried to look inconspicuous. They all wore light jackets to hide their rifles.
“Head down the escalators, and along the Northern Line platform. There’ll be a door you’ll need to get through to get into the tunnels. I’ll block any cameras.”
Nat tried to look natural as they walked out onto the Tube platform. There were a couple of dozen, bored-looking people waiting for the next train. She smelled that distinctive, musty scent underground train systems had, and quickly followed the team.
Smith stopped beside the unremarkable door set into the wall. With Lachlan turning to block anyone’s view, Smith quickly dealt with the lock.
Mission: Her Shield: Team 52 #7 Page 11