by Jaci Burton
Jaz panted, trying to catch her breath. Good lord, that had been intense. How long had it been since she’d come? Days? Weeks maybe? Or had it been only yesterday?
She could hardly remember masturbating to such a furious crescendo. This one had seemed more intense than anything she had experienced recently.
Her mind drifted back to Trey Sanders, and her pussy spasmed, warming and opening. Her nipples beaded against her thin T-shirt, begging for his touch, his mouth, his hands on them.
She was ready for more.
She was ready for him.
She was in deep trouble.
* * * * *
Trey had known the minute she’d looked at him that he was in deep trouble with Dr. Jaz Quinlan. Her green eyes had darkened, pupils dilating. Her breath came in quick pants, her breasts rising and falling rapidly.
He’d caught her scent, a curious mixture of vanilla and an essence unique to a female. The scent of arousal. Her arousal.
And then he’d hardened instantly, shocking himself and forcing him to place the envelope containing his bogus portfolio in front of his erection so no one would see.
Thankfully she’d been too busy staring at his face and sneering at her boss to notice.
Damn, she was a spitfire. Hot, passionate and didn’t want anyone to fuck with her or get in her way. And at the same time she oozed sexuality as if she carried it around with her like an extra skin. He’d felt her—all of her, vibrating against him, touching him in ways he hadn’t been touched in a very long time. His senses tuned in to her scent, the way she moved, the way she kept fiddling with her hair until all he wanted to do was block out that moronic Claude, throw her on top of the desk and fuck her until they both screamed their release.
If his senses were any indication, she’d been thinking the same thing. She’d certainly scurried out of there as quickly as she could. Curious, as soon as she left he’d excused himself, found the apartment he’d been assigned to, and discovered it was next door to Jaz’s.
He’d heard her, his sonar finely tuned, for some strange reason his body psychically connected to hers. Her breathing whispered to him through the walls, her quiet pants and moans driving him insane.
Granted, he couldn’t see her, but he could well imagine what she was doing in there.
Lying on the bed, no doubt, her pants pulled down and her fingers strumming rapidly against her clit.
He wondered if she had a red thatch of hair on her mound that matched the beautiful curls on her head, or if she went bare. Either way, the thought enticed him, hardened him, made his balls pull up tight against his body.
Thoughts of masturbating along with her had entered his mind, but he stopped himself. Okay, maybe he had rubbed his cock through his jeans, but that only made the ache worse.
Then he’d heard her muffled cries, as if she were trying to hold back. He’d bet she was a screamer. He loved it when a woman screamed her orgasm out, letting it fly through her like the rush of an oncoming wave.
When she went quiet, he imagined her lying there, her body flush with her orgasm, her skin pink and vibrant, her pussy damp.
His cock strained against his jeans, begging for the chance to slide into her wet cunt. Too bad she wasn’t there.
Nevertheless, why should he deny himself a little pleasure? She certainly hadn’t.
He sat on the bed and unzipped his jeans, allowing his rigid cock to spring free. He closed his eyes and leaned back against the headboard, imagining her.
Her scent surrounded him and he placed his fingers over his shaft, lightly stroking. A visual entered his mind of Jaz standing at the foot of his bed, showing him how and where she touched herself, teaching him the secrets of her body so that he could please her the same way she pleased herself.
And then his hand became hers as she crawled up the bed and grasped his erection, her fingers tightening around the base and slowly slipping upward to the tip. She’d bend down and lick away his salty fluid, then put her lips on him, taking him deep inside the warm recesses of her mouth.
He groaned, unable to hold back, not caring at this moment if she banged on the wall and asked him what the fuck he was doing in here. Maybe if she did, he’d invite her over and ask her to watch him come.
And that thought tightened his balls into hard knots. They rested snug against his body, readying for release.
Release which wasn’t going to take long. He quickened his strokes, visualizing her pussy beaded with moisture, knowing she’d taste like her scent…sweet, intoxicating, arousing. He’d want her to beg him to lick her pussy, then he’d want her to demand he make her come.
Her soft whimpers as she climaxed rang through his ears as he pumped his cock faster, tightening his grip on the shaft. Would her cunt be as tight as this? Would she wring out an orgasm so intense it would make him dizzy?
The sensations spiraled out of control. He let loose a low growl as his climax shot upward, wetting his own hand as he pumped his cock furiously, imagining that it was Jaz’s pussy gripping him so tightly.
He panted, relaxed, slowly stroking until there was nothing left to give. He righted his clothing and went to wash up, not nearly satiated enough from his release.
A temporary release, unfortunately. His body was still on fire for Jasmine. But he refused to be swayed by the red-haired siren who’d seemed to capture him. No, he may have eavesdropped on her little escape into masturbation, but no way did that mean he wanted to fuck her In his fantasies, maybe. In reality, not a chance. He was tougher than that and could easily resist whatever temptation she threw at him.
In fact, it was still early and he’d be damned if he was going to wait to join her in the lab, knowing she’d put him off until tomorrow to purposely avoid him. Besides, Dane hadn’t seemed all that pleased to have to while away the days in the aquarium tank. Truthfully, right now he wished he could trade places with his brother. The aquarium seemed much safer than here on land.
He waited for the sound of Jaz’s door, then decided to fix himself a cool drink to douse the fire raging within him.
Hopefully, his desire for her would subside by the time he arrived at the lab.
Chapter Four
Jaz knew the minute Triton Sanders walked through the door. Her senses perked up, her body tuned into him like some weird radio frequency.
Damn. And just when she’d managed to get her thoughts under control. As it was, she was certain she still wore the stupid I-just-had-an-orgasm-and-damn-it-was-great grin on her face. The heat of a blush crept over her cheeks. Sometimes she hated being a redhead. Every freckle, every blush showed on her body like a damn blinking beacon.
She turned, intending to question him about why he ignored her request to meet in the morning, when his grin stopped her mouth from opening.
He looked at her with his brow arched and a knowing smile on his face as if he was aware of what she’d been doing twenty minutes ago.
No way could he know.
“I thought I told you we’d meet in the morning.”
He shrugged and approached her. “I didn’t want to wait. What are you doing?”
Trying to work alone and get thoughts of you out of my head. “Running the blood samples against some of the known toxins caused by pollution.”
“Do you think a pollutant is the cause?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. Frankly, it’s too early to tell.”
Trey stopped next to her, ignoring the way her cheeks reddened the closer he got. He avoided inhaling so he wouldn’t breathe in her sultry scent. “Have you considered poisoning?”
She examined the data on the computer. “Yes. It’s on my list to test. I’m hoping that’s not it.” She looked up at him. “Why would someone want to poison the dolphins?”
“Who knows? There are a lot of sick humans out there.”
Tendrils of hair escaped her haphazard ponytail and curled along her cheek. He wanted to grab one and slide his fingers through the silken mass, then free the rest of it and
busy his hands in her hair.
Damn. A rush of heat settled in his groin. He forced his thoughts to Oceanic formulas and away from sweet-smelling redheads.
Blood samples whirred softly in the analyzer. Trey took the opportunity to familiarize himself with the lab. All the latest technology, much of it state of the art.
“You have very impressive equipment,” he stated, stifling his grin when she turned and gave him a wide-eyed look.
“Excuse me?”
“You know. Analyzers, chromatographs, microscopes. Lab equipment?”
“Oh! Oh, yes of course.” She hurriedly turned away, but not before he caught her face turning pink again.
“I got the impression from Claude that your funding is somewhat limited.”
“That’s an understatement. He gives me very little to work with.” She busied herself with one of the analyzers, continuing to avoid looking at him.
Trey peered into one of the microscopes, adjusting the viewer to clarify the image. “Where did you get the expensive equipment?”
“I do a lot of begging to big companies with money to burn and a cause to identify with.”
Could she move any further from him? Whenever Trey sidled closer to view what she was working on, she’d move to a different analyzer or pick up a chart and make notes while she was walking away.
“Do I make you nervous?”
Her hand stilled on the clipboard but she didn’t look up at him. “No, of course not. Why would you think that?”
“Because you keep blushing, and moving away from me whenever I get close.”
“I do not.”
He approached her, knowing he had no business challenging her this way, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. “Prove it.”
Then she did look at him, her gaze wary. “What?”
It had to be the way she seemed terrified of any contact with him that made him want to push her just a little bit. “I said prove it. We’re going to be working closely together. If you run to the other side of the room every time I get close, this project is going to take twice as long.”
In an obvious attempt at bravery, she lifted her chin. “I don’t care where you stand. I’m simply used to working alone and don’t need someone hovering over my shoulder.”
“I wasn’t hovering. I was looking.”
“Well, quit looking and do some work.” She thrust a clipboard at him. “Those are the notations from the first round of tests. The blood samples are over in the refrigerator.”
They worked side by side through the evening, neither saying much other than calling out data or asking questions. Trey settled into a rhythm, studying the notes and tests that Jaz had run so far.
He had to admit, she was thorough. Most everything he would have thought of, she’d already done. Which didn’t leave him much room for suggestion, but at least he knew now that she wasn’t incompetent. In fact, she’d even thought of some angles that hadn’t occurred to him. Grudgingly, he realized she wasn’t inept. For a land human, that is.
By the time they’d run through all the tests, Trey realized they’d been up almost the entire night. Jaz yawned and covered her mouth, then rested her hands on her lower back and stretched. The movement thrust her breasts forward, her nipples straining against her tight T-shirt.
His cock responded, twitching and reminding him that the short relief he’d had earlier hadn’t done nearly enough to dampen his arousal. With water sprites always available and willing, he rarely had to resort to masturbation for release.
“Muscles sore?” he asked.
She turned and shook her head. “I’m fine.”
He caught her wince and the way she tried to stretch her neck.
“No, you’re not. Nothing worse than lab work to tighten up your shoulders.” He approached and stopped in front of her. “Turn around.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Why?”
“So I can massage the kinks out.”
From her expression of horror one would think he’d just offered to cut her throat.
“I can do that myself.”
“You can rub your own shoulder blades? Now, this I’d like to see.”
“Not what I meant. I’ll take a hot bath when I get to my apartment.”
Her statement conjured up visuals he’d just as soon not be having. “Turn around. I won’t bite you.” Although he’d like it, and he’d bet she would, too.
“No, really, I—”
“Just turn around!” He hadn’t meant for it to come out so forceful, but she quickly turned her back to him, surprising him once again. She sure was hard to figure out.
Taking a deep breath, Trey laid his hands on her shoulders and closed his eyes as the feel of her silky skin shot through him like a bolt of lightning. When he pressed in on her muscles, she quickly inhaled, then let out a soft moan.
Oh, hell, whose brilliant idea was this? Every time he bore down against the tight muscles in her shoulders, she arched her back and let loose little whimpers and moans that sounded like whispered words of passion.
His cock responded by hardening, lengthening and being generally in his way. He didn’t want to desire this woman. He didn’t want to have images of sliding his shaft into her pussy and feeling her vaginal walls squeeze him until he spurted deep inside her. He didn’t want to taste her lips to see if that scent of vanilla lingered on her mouth.
What was even worse was now that he’d started touching her, he didn’t want to stop.
“That feels great,” she said, sweeping her hair away from her neck. He wound his fingers slowly up toward the nape, brushing the silken tendrils aside, desperately wanting to place his lips there and see if she shivered when he kissed her.
He supposed groaning would be inappropriate right now, but damn if he found it difficult to keep from voicing his frustration. His hard-on pressed painfully against his jeans, pulsing and pounding from tip to base. Now he wished he hadn’t listened in to Jaz’s impromptu masturbation noises earlier.
“Um, Triton?”
“Call me Trey.” He ran his fingers up the nape of her neck, gently massaging the base of her scalp.
“Trey?”
“Yes.”
“I think that’s good enough now.”
“Is it?” He didn’t want to stop. What would she do if he turned her around, swept her into his arms and took what he wanted so desperately to take? “Are you sure it’s good enough, or do you want more?”
She stilled. All he heard was her breathing—rapid inhales and exhales. Her scent floated around him, that curious mix again of vanilla and aroused female. He took a chance and pressed closer, feeling her tense when his erection brushed against her buttocks.
But she didn’t move away, didn’t turn around, didn’t slap him or tell him to stop.
She stiffened, then sighed. A long, shuddering breath that tore away the last vestiges of self-control he possessed. He turned her around and gazed at her face. Her eyes were dark green pools of desire. Her tongue swept out and licked across her bottom lip.
Oh no. He wanted to be the one to lick her lips. He bent toward her and brushed his tongue along the seam of her lip, tasting where she had just tasted. She gasped in a feather light whisper.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“I’m kissing you. Do you mind?”
Confusion furrowed her brow. “Um, no, I guess not. But I should mind.”
“Why?”
The question hung suspended between them for a few seconds. Then she shook her head, her hair falling toward her face. “I have no idea.”
When she wound her arms around his neck and pressed her lithe body against his, he lost it completely. Any hold he had on what was right or wrong disappeared when she touched him.
He pulled her roughly against him until every inch of her body that was able to touched his. Her mound pressed against his erection and he rocked against her, rewarded with her whimper of pleasure.
Then he did what he’d wanted to do from the
moment he’d met her—he tasted her mouth, his tongue diving inside as soon as he pressed his lips against hers.
What was she doing? Jaz tried to clear her head, unable to believe she’d just willingly stepped into the embrace of a virtual stranger. And yet since the moment she’d met him she’d felt connected to him.
This contact seemed preordained, as if she’d been meant to touch him, kiss him, feel his hands roaming over her body. She welcomed it despite the fact her behavior was totally insane and completely unlike her.
His lips were full and warm. His mouth tasted of coffee and some kind of minty flavor. Peppermints, that was it. One of her favorite candies. She licked the flavor off his tongue and he groaned, his fingers digging into her hips as he ground his sizeable erection against her. The heat of his shaft burned through his clothes and hers. She wanted nothing more at that moment than to feel him buried deep inside her.
She tilted her head back, allowing him access to her neck. His lips seared her skin as he traveled from her chin to her collarbone, licking the hollowed spot there. She shivered, wanting more than she dare ask for.
But he instinctively seemed to know what she craved. He turned her again so her back was to him, then snaked his hand down over her collarbone and across her shoulder, leaving a hot trail down her arm. When he crossed over and palmed her abdomen, her belly quivered. His hand hovered close to the waistband of her pants. Would he slip his fingers inside and plunge them into her pussy?
Did she want him to? Oh, hell yes she wanted him to.
He didn’t. Instead, he reached under her top and moved his hand upward, flaming her desire with every touch of his palm against her bare skin. When he reached her ribcage and swept his hand up over her breast, her knees nearly buckled. He wrapped one arm around her middle and teased first one, then the other breast, thrumming her nipples until they stood hard and rigid under his questing fingers.
He pulled her shirt up and over her breasts, freeing them for his touch. The rise and fall of her chest thrust her breasts deeper into his hands. She looked down and watched him roll a nipple between his thumb and forefinger. The spark of his touch shot between her legs, wetting her, readying her for him.