by Lara Adrian
“Actually, I was on my way to the coffee shop, hoping that I might see you, when I saw you at the intersection.”
“Oh.” It was odd since they hadn’t seen each other since their first encounter a few days earlier.
“Yeah, when I saw you there, I realized you’d already left the coffee shop, so I called out to you.” Nick grinned, shrugging. Then he motioned to the changed light, and together they crossed the street. “Took me a few days to scrape together all my courage to ask you out for coffee. I didn’t wanna waste that opportunity. So I ran to try to catch up with you.”
Her heart started beating faster, and this time it wasn’t out of panic or shock. “You wanted to ask me out for coffee?” And instead he’d saved her from getting hurt.
Nick cast her a sideways glance. “Figured I’d try my country bumpkin charm on you once more; see if it works better this time.”
In disbelief, she shook her head. Was this man for real? Not only was he a hero, saving her without regard for his own safety, but he was also self-deprecating, sweet, and absolutely charming. Not to mention handsome and sexy as hell. She quickly glanced at his hands. And apparently still single. Jesus, why could she not have met a guy like him earlier, when her life hadn’t started to careen out of its tracks?
“I don’t know what to say.” She reached for his arm.
Wincing, he said, “No need to say anything. But a bag of ice would be great right about now.”
“So sorry,” she apologized when she realized that she’d just squeezed his injured arm. “Let’s get you inside, and then I’ll take care of your arm.”
She pointed to a three-story brownstone. “I’m afraid it’s a walk-up.”
“Nothing wrong with my legs.”
Michelle turned to the door and unlocked it. She entered, Nick on her heels, and walked ahead of him, climbing the old creaking staircase.
“You live alone?”
She looked over her shoulder. “Yes, it’s just a small one-bedroom, cheap enough so I don’t need a roommate.”
“Good.”
For an instant, her heart stopped. Was it wise to bring a man she’d only met for the second time today to her apartment? Was she inviting trouble by letting him into her place, where they would be alone? After all, she knew nothing about him.
Nothing apart from the fact that he was charming—which apparently serial killer Ted Bundy had been, too—and that he’d saved her life. That latter part helped her make up her mind. Nick had risked his own life to save hers and gotten injured as a result. She owed him to at least make sure he was all right. And she couldn’t blame him for not wanting to go to a hospital. Without insurance, they would charge him an arm and a leg just for getting an x-ray and an icepack.
“Here we are,” she announced as she reached the top floor and stepped onto the landing. There were two apartments on this floor. She pulled her key ring from her computer bag and inserted the key in the lock.
When she pushed the door open, she turned and saw Nick hesitating in the hallway. She waved him in. “Come in, I won’t bite.”
He smirked. “Promise?”
Michelle dropped her keys onto the side table in the short hallway from which one door led to the bathroom and the other to the bedroom. Ahead of her, an arch led into the living room with an adjacent tiny kitchen. It wasn’t much, but at least she had privacy here.
“Nice place,” Nick commented and followed her into the living room.
“Take a seat. And take off your shirt,” she demanded and marched into the kitchen.
The door between living room and kitchen had long been removed because of lack of space. She opened the freezer and rummaged through it, finally finding a bag of frozen peas. It would have to do. She snatched a clean dish towel from a drawer and turned back to the living room only to slam to a halt.
Nick stood in the door frame, his chest bare and glistening. He was even better built than she’d suspected the day she’d first met him. In fact, he was positively ripped. Her mouth started watering at the sight of his six-pack-abs and the well-defined pectorals that seemed to twitch.
The only sound she managed to produce from her dry throat was “Uh.” Great, she was turning into a drooling teenager. How pathetic.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.” The deep timbre of his voice bounced off the walls of the tiny kitchen.
In the small room he looked even more imposing, even more attractive, more tempting.
“Is that the ice?”
He motioned to the bag of peas, prompting her to spring back into action.
“Yes, yes. Sorry, I don’t have real ice cubes, but this’ll do the trick.” She turned sideways. “Why don’t you sit down here then, and I’ll look at you.” Not that she wasn’t already looking at him. Or better yet, ogling him.
He squeezed past her to the single barstool next to the miniscule breakfast counter that was just big enough for one person. Awkwardly, she turned to try to avoid brushing against him, but it happened nevertheless.
A bolt of adrenaline shot through her at the unexpected contact. The accompanying heat wave scorched her from the inside, adding to the stifling temperature in her top-floor apartment. Right now, she wished for air conditioning, though she wasn’t sure it would help cool her body down.
Nick took a seat on the barstool and turned toward her. She placed the bag of frozen peas on the counter and reached for his arm.
“I’m just gonna touch your arm lightly to see if it’s broken, okay?”
He only nodded, but remained silent. Michelle felt his eyes on her and tried to remain calm. It was only natural that he was watching what she was doing, she told herself. In his situation, she would do the same. It didn’t mean that he was checking her out. Besides, he was probably in pain, and not even men had romantic feelings when in pain, right?
Slowly, she ran her hands over his arm. His forearm felt fine, and when she squeezed hesitantly, he didn’t protest. When she reached his elbow, she tested his range of motion, and again, nothing struck her as odd.
“All good,” he commented.
She brushed her hand over his upper arm and applied a little bit of pressure. Instantly, Nick jerked back and groaned.
“Sorry.” She caught his gaze. “I need to check a little more.”
“Mmm-hmm.” His eyes were unreadable. Had they turned darker?
The warmth of Nick’s skin made her fingers tingle. She took a steadying breath, hoping he didn’t notice how touching him affected her. Hell, she was no blushing virgin! He wasn’t the first man she’d touched. He wouldn’t be the last either. Though it had been a while since she’d been with somebody. Maybe too long. Perhaps that was the reason why touching him got her all flustered.
Pulling herself together, she continued examining his arm. Even though he hissed when she squeezed his bicep, she didn’t think his arm was broken.
“I think it’s just bruised. It’ll probably turn blue in a day or two.” She exchanged a look with him.
“Just as I thought. Thanks.”
“Hold on,” she said. “How about your ribs?” She pointed to his side. “You crashed against the newspaper rack quite hard. Lift your arm.”
Nick followed her command and she placed her hand over his side, pressing lightly.
He shrank back. “Okay, that’s enough playing doctor for one day,” he said lightly, though his facial expression told her that he’d gotten bruised there, too.
Michelle tilted her head. “And there I was having so much fun,” she said sarcastically. She sighed. “Honestly, men.”
She grabbed the bag of peas and placed it over his upper arm. “Hold this.”
While he pressed the makeshift icepack to his bicep, she wrapped the dish towel around it then knotted it. “That should do.”
She opened the freezer again and snatched a bag of sweet corn from it. “This is for your ribs. You’re gonna have to press it against your side for a while.”
“Aye, aye, ma’a
m.”
She braced her hands at her hips. “And don’t make fun of me. I’m just trying to help you, you stubborn idiot.” She sniffed in a short breath.
“So I’m an idiot now?” he asked way too softly—almost as if he knew what was going on inside her.
Tears sprang to her eyes. Nick could have gotten killed today. For her. For saving her miserable life, when she knew her life was practically forfeit anyway. Because if she couldn’t produce the results Mr. Smith wanted, he’d have her thrown in prison. And right now, she was at a dead end. As if somebody had put a wall up right in front of her. One she couldn’t penetrate. She was running out of options and out of time.
“Why did you do that?” A sob tore from her chest. “That cab could have killed you! You don’t even know me. You don’t even know whether I’m worth risking your life for. You idiot.” The last word barely made it over her lips, tears choking off her voice.
She felt his hand wrap around her wrist a moment later, pulling her to him. His arm came around her back, dragging her closer until she was captured between his spread legs, chest-to-chest with him.
He used his forefinger to tip her face up so she had to look at him. “Every life is worth saving.” He paused, smirking. “As for calling me an idiot: I’d like an apology for that.” His gaze dropped to her mouth.
Her breath instantly hitched, awareness permeating every cell of her body. Her pulse began to race, and perspiration slicked her skin.
“A really nice, long apology.” He dipped his head until his lips were floating just an inch above hers. “How about that apology now?”
His voice was drugging, his strong arm imprisoning her. His breath blew against her face, tempting her further.
“Just one kiss,” she murmured.
“Two. You called me an idiot twice.”
“Two then.”
The moment the last word left her mouth, she felt Nick’s lips on hers. At first the touch was soft and gentle, a mere brushing of skin on skin, of warmth sliding against warmth. Instinctively her lips parted as she took in his masculine scent, inhaling his aroma, taking it deep into her lungs. A pleasant shiver ran down her spine, making her tremble in his arms.
An appreciative hum came from his lips, reverberating against hers, the vibrations spreading a tingling sensation over her mouth and face.
She knew then that two kisses wouldn’t be enough to satisfy the sudden hunger that was growing inside her.
7
Nick tilted his head and captured Michelle’s lips fully, tasting her drying tears and her sweet breath. Her sudden emotional outburst had taken him by surprise, yet at the same time given him the chance to do what he knew he had to: get close to her so he could find out what she knew. He pushed the twinge of guilt that surfaced to the back of his mind. Deep down he knew this was wrong, but he couldn’t stop himself.
Seeing her die in his vision had been too real, and knowing that had he arrived only two seconds later, the vision would have come true, still sent chills down his spine. That was a feeling he couldn’t ignore. What he needed now—what they both needed—was a few moments of sheer and utter abandon. A brief celebration of life, of lust and passion, of tenderness and ecstasy. For a short while, he would forget what his real mission was and concentrate on only one thing: making the woman in his arms forget the fact that she’d narrowly escaped death today.
He wanted to shower her with passion, make her body hum with pleasure, and lose himself in her. Just for a short time. That part wouldn’t be a lie. It would be real and honest.
Nick ignored the pain in his side and focused only on Michelle, on the softness of her lips, the delicious taste of her mouth, the insistent strokes of her tongue as she dueled with him in a match that neither could win. Hunger was the word that came to mind when her hands dug into his shoulders, holding on to him for dear life as if she was afraid he’d toss her to the side.
He slid his hands down below her waist, feeling her firm ass through the thin fabric of her summer skirt. Goddamn it, was she wearing anything underneath that thin scrap of cotton? It felt like she was naked.
Nick growled involuntarily, intensifying his kiss, while he pressed her against his groin, where his cock was already as hard as a crow bar.
Michelle moaned into his mouth, her body stiffening for an instant. Yes, she could feel his erection, knew what was coming, because a kiss wouldn’t suffice now. He needed more from her. He needed to be inside her to make the horrors of the last hour vanish. To make him forget.
Impatiently, he slid his hands underneath the fabric of her skirt. He nearly jumped out of his pants when he felt bare skin beneath his fingers. He palmed her ass, exploring her, and realized she was wearing a thong. He should have known that a hot woman like Michelle wore sexy underwear like that. Not that at this moment he needed any additional turn-on in the form of sexy lingerie.
Michelle kissing him with such unrestrained passion was turn-on enough. And Michelle rubbing herself against his cock was almost too much. But she was doing it, and he wasn’t going to stop her. Just as she wasn’t stopping him when he pulled her thong down to her thighs until it finally dropped to her feet.
Now he had full access to her sex and made use of it. He slid his hand down her ass to the juncture of her thighs, reaching between them. She complied immediately and widened her stance so he could bring his hand between her legs.
She was warm and wet there. A drop of her juices coated his finger and he rubbed it along her moist cleft. She jolted under his intimate touch, but didn’t pull back. Instead, she rocked her pelvis against his cock as if asking for more.
Nick ripped his lips from hers. “You want that, yeah? You want my cock?”
Passion-clouded eyes stared at him. Her face was flushed, and she dropped her lids, but he wouldn’t allow her to evade him. “Look at me.”
Her eyes flew open and she pinned him.
“Do you want that?” He rocked his cock against her and rubbed two fingers along her wet sex, gently probing at the entrance to her body. “Do you want me inside you?”
“Yes.” She put her hand on his nape and pulled him back to her so there was only a sliver of space between them. “I want you. Now. Here.”
Just as well that he was prepared for this. He’d shoved a couple of condoms into his pants pocket before leaving his place. Those would come in handy now.
“Good, ’cause that’s what I’ve wanted to do from the moment you made me spill my mocha.”
“I didn’t make you spill your mocha.”
“Did, too.”
He captured her lips again, stopping her from voicing any further protest. Kissing her, Nick lifted her off her feet and spread her legs, wrapping them around his waist. He marched into the living room, his cock sliding against her center with every step. The thrilling sensation even made the pain in his arm fade into the background.
When he reached the sofa, he laid her onto it and lowered himself between her thighs. He didn’t lose any time and lifted her skirt to expose her now naked sex. The sight robbed him of his breath. She was entirely bare. Nothing was hidden from his view.
“Baby,” he groaned.
How was he going to survive this? Another few seconds and he’d come right in his pants. Fuck! He had to get himself under control.
Nick lifted his gaze and met Michelle’s eyes. “You’re absolutely gorgeous.” Then he lowered his head, but continued to keep eye contact. “I hope you don’t mind, but I skipped lunch. And I love buffets.” And the kind of feast that was spread out in front of him was impossible to resist. “All you can eat, you know.”
Her breath hitched before he lowered his mouth to her smooth folds and took his first taste. Slowly he licked over her bare skin and gathered up the dew that was trickling from her. With his hands on her thighs, he spread her wider.
“Open up for me,” he coaxed and suckled along her delicious folds.
Michelle spread her legs wider, lifting one over the back of t
he sofa.
“There you go. Just like that.” He scooped his hands under her ass and tilted her pelvis toward him. Then he dove back to her sex and sucked her like a man who hadn’t eaten in days.
Michelle was so easy to read. Every moan and sigh, every move she made told him what she liked and what she craved more of. He adjusted to her wishes, licking her more gently now, with longer strokes. She was getting wetter with every second, her moans becoming louder and more frequent. Her hands tugged at her spaghetti top, and he realized that she was perspiring.
Nick lifted his head from her and helped her rid herself of her top and the skirt. When she finally lay naked before him, he swept his eyes over her. She was as sexy as sin itself. And the fact that he was still wearing his pants made the whole situation even more exciting.
Nick took her hand and pulled it to the front of his pants, pressing it against the erection that pulsed there. “Feel what you do to me.”
Michelle pulling her lower lip between her teeth nearly made him spill, or was it the fact that she squeezed his cock right at that moment? It didn’t matter. What mattered was getting rid of his clothes, or there would indeed be a disaster on the horizon.
He lifted himself off the couch and shucked his shoes, then unzipped and pulled his pants off. When he hooked his thumbs into the waistband of his boxer briefs, he met her eyes. She stared at him with open desire.
“Yes, look at my cock. Look at what you’ll feel inside you in a moment.” Slowly he pulled his boxer briefs down and revealed his erection.
When he saw the look of admiration and eager anticipation on her face, pride swelled inside him. He would make sure that look turned into one of satisfaction and ecstasy shortly.
Reaching for his pants, he pulled a condom from the pocket and ripped open the packaging.
“You came prepared.”
At her words, he snapped his gaze to her. Michelle was propping herself up on her elbows, her nipples pointing at him.
“Can’t blame a guy for hoping he’d get lucky.”
She smiled softly. “Is that what you call it?”