by Raine Miller
Slim arms wrapped around his waist from behind. “You would have done the same for him.”
Nic snorted. Everyone had said the same after Nino died. So what if it was true.
“Yeah, but I didn’t have a wife and baby at home waiting for me.”
“Then maybe Nino shouldn’t have been there at all.”
He shook his head. “No, that’s not right, either. He was a good soldier. God damn, so was I. And that day I lost Nino and my career. It should have been me. It was my fault.”
“No, Nic.” He heard tears in Annie’s voice. “The man who shot Nino killed him. Not you. Are you sorry you’re here, with me?”
Startled, he turned, grabbing her arms so she couldn’t move away then banding his around her. “What? Hell, no. Annie—”
“Then please don’t say it should’ve been you. Please.”
Shit. She looked exhausted. And devastated.
Gently, he cupped her face in his hands and dropped his mouth over hers, hard. It took a huge effort on his part to push away those memories, those feelings. But he did because he couldn’t live with them. Not when she was so close and he was so damn glad to be alive.
Shaking his head, he stole another kiss then released her and sat back on the couch. She remained standing, staring at him with those gorgeous green eyes filled with emotion.
“Come on, Annie, let’s—”
“Do you miss being a soldier?”
He sighed. Apparently, she wasn’t done yet. “Yeah, I miss it.”
“That’s why you take the dangerous jobs, isn’t it? For the rush?”
He frowned at her.
“My dad… He lived for that rush.” She took her seat at the end of the sofa again, avoiding his gaze. “He was into extreme sports before they called them that. White-water rafting down uncharted rivers, treasure hunts in South American jungles filled with guerilla soldiers. He died looking for that next thrill.”
Now she stared straight into his eyes. “I’m not sorry you’re not a Ranger anymore.” Then she smiled. “So, what do you need me to do?”
It took him a few seconds to assimilate what she’d said. End of discussion. She’d given him an out. As for what he needed …
He took a deep breath, felt the release of tension with it. “I want to look up a few things on the Internet and since I don’t feel like typing, I figure you can do that.”
Her husky laughter spilled out. “You can’t type and you’re too damn stubborn to learn.”
“I’m too damn old to learn.”
“You are not old, Dominic.” Her smile turned sinful, making his chest constrict. “You’re…experienced.”
“Oh yeah?” His gaze narrowed. “Then what does that make you?”
She batted her lashes. “Grateful?”
His body tightened in response to her flirting, letting go of the tension, the guilt. He tossed the papers he’d just picked up back on the table, never taking his eyes off of her. “How grateful?”
Shrugging, she moved closer, her arm brushing against his leg as she reached for the laptop. He was pretty sure it wasn’t accidental. “How grateful do you want me to be?”
Hell, he was really rusty at flirting. It’d been a long time since he’d had a lasting relationship with a woman. Previous relationships had been mostly about mutual satisfaction, not happily ever after. This one…
After taking the laptop out of her hands and putting it back on the table, he reached for her, lifting her until she straddled his lap, then letting her sink into him, arms around his neck.
“To hell with grateful.” His voice sounded raw, lust clearly evident. “I’m gonna make you beg.”
She didn’t even have time to gasp as he took her mouth in a devouring kiss and, by the time he let her up for air, he’d already started pulling her pants down.
“Up.”
She scrambled to her feet, feeling clumsy and uncoordinated but not caring at all as he stripped her pants down her legs.
Then he reached for her with one hand while his other reached toward the table. One hand landed on her hip and pulled her forward until his mouth landed on her stomach. Just below her belly button.
She shook as he licked a path straight down to her clit. Sinking her hands into his hair, she held on as he teased her with the tip of his tongue.
Her legs trembled and she thought her knees might actually buckle but she forced them to hold her steady because, oh my god, he made her want to scream with pleasure.
It washed through her in sharp waves, making her sex clench. Her fingers curled and she knew she was yanking at his hair but she couldn’t stop. And it didn’t slow Nic down at all.
She was on the verge of coming when he pulled back and she did scream then. A short, frustrated sound that made Nic groan. She felt his breath across her belly like a caress then he released her completely.
Her eyes popped open to see him rolling a condom over his erection then he was reaching for her again, pulling her forward until she had her knees planted on either side of his hips. It only took a second to align his cock and one tug on her hips to sink inside her.
They both stilled for a second before Nic leaned forward and nipped at her ear.
“Come on, Annie. Take me. Hard and fast.”
Sealing her mouth over his, she did.
***
Annie didn’t think she’d be able to sit on her sofa again without thinking about Nic.
Pulling her shirt back over her head, she watched him do the same and mourned the loss of gorgeous scenery. She’d never realized how satisfying quick sex could be. Of course, she’d never had it with Nic, which probably made all the difference in the world.
No, not probably. It did.
“Hey.”
Nic’s low voice drew her gaze from his chest to his eyes. She saw a question there, one she took care of by grabbing his chin and planting a solid kiss on his lips. The rasp of his whiskers against her skin sent shivers down her already sensitized skin.
“Hey.”
“Annie—”
“Nic, I’m fine.” Well, as fine as she could be when she still couldn’t catch her breath after a ten-minute lovemaking session that might possibly have been better than the one before. “What happened to the work you needed to do?”
His eyebrows lifted. “I got waylaid.”
Her toes curled and her scalp actually tingled at his expression. She was toast. Take her out of the oven because she was done.
She’d been in love with this man for a decade. She’d dreamed about having him just like this but she’d never thought it possible. Now… Now, she had the whisker burn to prove it was.
She smiled at him, careful not to let too much of her emotions show. “What do you want me to do?”
The man didn’t even smile and she felt giddy simply because he looked at her. “I think we better save that for later. I really do need to get some work done.”
Annie had never been a flirt. She had too much money and her name was too well known to have it be just flirting. With Nic, it came naturally. But he’d actually asked for her help and there was no way she’d pass up the opportunity to prove herself to him.
So she backed off. “Okay.” She picked up the laptop. “Tell me what you want to look for.”
Three hours later, Annie flexed her aching fingers and watched Nic toss the financial records of an abusive ex-husband onto the coffee table and lean back into her couch.
“Damn, I think we got the bastard. This creep’s been a thorn in my side for two months and I don’t like being outsmarted by a guy who beats his wife.” He looked straight into her eyes. “Thank you. I don’t think I would’ve been able to navigate through that mess.”
Annie gave him a wry grin. “I know you wouldn’t have. I’ve seen you try to use a computer. How many have you killed so far?”
Nic shrugged as he stood, grabbing his second beer bottle and her glass from the table and heading toward the kitchen.
“Can’t tec
hnically kill a computer and I can use them. I just knew you could do it faster.”
A few clicks shut down the laptop then she followed him, leaning a hip against the counter as he put her glass in the dishwasher.
“So, basically you’re lazy.”
He turned, devastating half grin on his lips, knowing she was kidding. “I just know when to let someone else do things for me.”
She huffed. “Which is never.”
He stood and stepped into her space. Only inches separated their bodies and she had the almost overwhelming urge to grab him and drag him back to her bed.
“No true. I know my limits. But I don’t like to let others do things for me when I can do just as well for myself.”
“Everyone needs someone, Nic.”
With lightning-fast moves, he reached out to grab her by the hips and pull her against him. As if he thought she wouldn’t come willing.
When he had her body aligned with his, he threaded his fingers through her hair and looked into her eyes with a gaze hot enough to melt chocolate. Then he smiled and her insides started to combust.
“So, you want to watch a movie or do you mind if I watch the game?”
He was doing this deliberately, she knew. Trying to steer her away from a conversation he didn’t want to have now. But she was willing to cut him some slack because she had him here, with her.
“I guess I can handle a little baseball.”
As long as he was there beside her, she didn’t care what he watched. Her eyes would be on him.
***
Nic felt the exact moment Annie fell asleep with a barely audible sigh.
The warm weight of her body relaxed more fully against his side as they sat on the couch watching the Phillies lose another one.
In reality, he hadn’t been watching the game. He’d been watching her.
Goddamn, she was gorgeous. In sleep, she looked soft and sweet, such a contrast to the Ice Princess she projected during the day.
He loved all of her, every single goddamn thing. He wasn’t going to let her go this time. Hell, her mother had given him her approval for their relationship and that had been a real kick in the ass. Somehow, hearing her say it, though, made it even more imperative that he not screw this up.
He just hoped like hell that Annie still wanted him when she realized what being his actually meant and that she didn’t come to hate him for it.
She’d told him she loved him and he’d been too caught off guard to respond immediately. He needed to remedy that pretty damn soon but first he needed to clean up his mess. She needed him to keep her safe.
For years, he’d needed only work and family to keep him going. His parents needed him, especially lately with his father’s health problems. His sister and brother needed him, if only to be their older brother. Mags and Toni needed him. His clients needed him. It’d been enough.
Annie hadn’t needed him. At least not that she’d ever known.
It’d been for his own benefit that he’d told off her former, womanizing employer two years ago. She thought his father had handled it. If she’d known it was him, she would’ve bitten his head off.
Now… Well, she’d probably still bite his head off but they’d probably end up naked in bed afterward.
Which is where they should be now.
Instead, careful not to wake her, he maneuvered her until her head rested on his thigh. Then he reached for Jimmy’s report and tried to find something, anything, in the limited information his brother had been able to dig up about the call.
But he caught himself watching Annie more than studying the report.
Asleep, she looked so young, much younger than she really was. He remembered her at nineteen, finally coming into her own at college, nervous but determined to kiss him.
He’d always admired her courage and gotten a kick out of her quick wit and dry humor. Still did. It’d been heaven and hell when she’d come to work for the agency. The young woman had grown into a polished professional who’d stepped into their office and taken over a difficult job.
So what happened now?
Hell if he knew. They couldn’t go public. There was a madman out there threatening her because of him. But he wasn’t leaving her side until this was resolved.
If anyone tried to get at Annie—or anyone other member of his family, for that matter—they’d have to go through him.
And he was pretty damn tough to damage.
Shooting a glance at the clock, he realized it was close to midnight and the day was starting to catch up. And, if he was honest with himself, he wanted to put Annie in bed and curl around her.
Easing off the couch, he picked her up and carried her upstairs. Laying her on the bed, he peeled off her soft pants and shirt and tucked her under the sheets. When he returned from the bathroom in a pair of boxers, he crawled under the covers, pulled her into the curve of his body, her back to his front, and felt every muscle in his body relax.
***
Nic came awake slowly, conscious only of Annie pressed against him and his throbbing erection fueled by her warm hand.
He didn’t struggle to full consciousness, simply let awareness wash over him in waves, spurred on by the teasing kisses she laid across his chest. She stopped to graze one nipple with her teeth then made her way back to do the same to the other. Her fingers trailed from his soft sac to the sensitive tip, nails dragging hard enough to torment but not painful.
Arousal surged, and he drew in a deep breath, letting her sweet scent sink deep, pushing him that much closer to full awareness. Still, he kept his eyes closed and let his body absorb every sensation.
Her soft lips trailed kisses from his chest to his neck, skin sliding against skin as she moved up his body. A quick nip on his earlobe led to the flick of her tongue in his ear, followed by a soft breath of air that raised all the hair on his body and tightened his erection almost unbearably.
Unable to stay still any longer, he grabbed her hips and pulled her over him, stroking his hands along her body to find her naked and wet.
The discovery elicited a deep groan from him and he grabbed her head to pull her down for a kiss, which she returned with heart-stopping intensity.
Wanting to be inside her, he rocked his hips and realized he still wore his boxer briefs.
“Take them off,” he ordered, knowing she’d understand.
He finally opened his eyes when she leaned back, hands on his chest as if to hold him down. A pale glow from the bathroom nightlight seeped in, providing just enough illumination for Nic to see her beautiful face.
“Mind your manners, Dominic. It’s my turn to call the shots. You just lay back and enjoy.”
Oh, he’d enjoy it…if it didn’t kill him first. Gritting his teeth, he kept silent.
Scooting to one side, Annie pulled off his briefs and tossed them. She straddled him again then reached out and ran her nails down his thighs. He bucked at the arousing sensation, pushed that much closer to release just by the touch of her nails on his skin. When she did the same on his stomach, he groaned and reached for her hips, pulling her up to his thighs.
“You have such a beautiful body,” she whispered, as she stroked her fingertips down his arm.
“Isn’t that supposed to be my line?” Getting his fingers to cooperate, he released her hips and moved his hands to her small breasts, rubbing his thumbs over the puckered nipples until she arched up and dragged her moist center over his erection. “Jesus, Annie. We need a condom.”
She must’ve already retrieved on because, in a few seconds, she’d sheathed him.
Then she sank over him, surrounding him in tight, hot glory. They both drew in a breath and held it, neither of them moving. Passion flooded her expression, sending a tidal wave of heat through his body.
Before she could move, he grabbed her hips and lifted her, just a bit, then let her sink back down. She moaned and opened her eyes, gazing down into his as she smiled.
And started a slow rhythm that took his
breath away. She lifted her body slightly then took him back in, each time slower and more excruciatingly erotic than the last. When she rolled her hips, increasing the friction, he groaned and closed his eyes, trying not to explode.
Then she leaned down, changing the angle and bringing her breasts close enough that he could reach her with his mouth. He licked one nipple then pulled it into his mouth, suckling her as she rode him.
His hands ended up on her hips, helping her with the rhythm, keeping her from speeding up or slowing down. And when she came, her body pulsing around his, moaning his name, he grabbed her head and forced her mouth down on his as he let himself go.
CHAPTER 14
“It’s a good thing your parents and Janey are out of the office. They’d know what’s going on just by looking at me. What did you do to me, Dominic? I look like I haven’t slept for weeks.”
“You never look bad. You’re just too damn beautiful.”
Sliding her hair out of the way, Nic dropped a kiss on her nape as she stood before the full-length mirror in her bedroom Monday morning. They hadn’t left the apartment at all Sunday and Annie had whisker burn in some interesting places.
He liked that a little too much.
Sliding one hand around to rest on her stomach, he pulled her back against him. He liked the contrast of her naked body against his fully dressed one. She was sex incarnate with her heavily lidded eyes, her full mouth and that slim body that had wound around his again this morning. He wanted to let his hand slide down into the pale curls covering her mound and find out if she wanted him as much as he wanted her.
Again. Always.
“Don’t even think about it.” Her expression was stern but her tone held a note of breathless anticipation that altered his breathing. “We’ve got to get into the office. I have things I need to do.”
So did he. He didn’t move his hand. Instead, he nuzzled his nose into the curve of her shoulder and breathed her in. He couldn’t seem to get enough of her—not of her scent, her touch, her smiles.
Reluctantly, he straightened and pulled away. “So finish dressing and we’ll head out.”