Nikolai smiled. Teasing was half the fun with a woman as hot as Summer. “Tell me what you want. Be precise so I don’t get it wrong.”
She sucked in a harsh breath. Her lovely breasts lifted then settled, her nipples tight and needy, reminding him he had to explore her a little more.
“Okay.” She sounded breathless but determined. “I want you to touch my clit with your tongue. I want you to lick me until I’m hot and can’t bear it anymore. Then I want you to put your cock inside me. I want you to thrust hard and fast while I ride you. I want you to make me come.”
Proud amusement replaced the niggling doubt inside him. He’d been right. Nothing fazed her. She wasn’t all talk about wanting to meet on equal terms. She wanted a man who challenged her and was capable of accepting any challenges she issued. Nikolai felt his balls tighten painfully. He hoped he could keep up with her demands.
“Is that all?”
“For starters,” she said primly.
“You got all that from research?” He brushed his thumb across her clit, reveling in her sigh, her musky scent.
“Yeah.”
Man, he couldn’t wait to hear what else she had in mind. “Move a little closer.” He positioned her level with his mouth and breathed deep. She smelled of sex and citrus, and tasted better. Going slow and easy, he parted her folds and raked his tongue along her cleft, then teased her clit with a much lighter pressure. She shuddered and issued a soft moan that tugged at his cock. He felt his dick lengthen while the air crackled with sensual tension.
Nikolai listened to his body and increased the pace. Instead of teasing, he licked and tasted her engorged flesh. Summer was so wet for him, and a vocal lover.
“More. Harder. I need you inside me.”
Nikolai gave her the steady thrust of his finger while he continued to lap and nibble around the edge of her clit, feeding on her juices, and urging her higher and higher.
“Oh, Nikolai. I’m so close. Stop. It’s too much.”
He didn’t think she meant that so he kept pushing her higher, thrusting two and then three fingers deep inside her while he licked and sucked some more, slowing now to tease because he loved the way she moaned, her hips gyrating, silently pleading for a deeper possession.
“No more!” Summer wrenched away, her chest rising and falling rapidly as if she’d exerted herself. She ran a hand the length of his cock, her thumb smoothing across the drop of pre-cum at the end. “I want to come with you inside me. I want to feel your cock stretching me.”
“Condom,” Nikolai said. Damn, she unmanned him with her honesty. His gaze wandered the curves of her rounded backside as she bent to retrieve a foil packet from his bedside cabinet. Tempted, he ran his hand across one smooth butt cheek and down the crack between, down her perineum until his fingers skimmed her damp flesh. Her intense shudder filled him with anticipation for the weeks ahead, the adventure in store.
Summer opened the foil packet and handed the latex to him. “You do it.”
“Don’t you know—?”
“I know how to do it. Done it before,” she said with a grin. “Banana.”
A banana. Hell’s teeth. And she called that experience? Bemused, he rolled the condom on and waited for her next move.
“Haven’t done this next step before,” she said cheerfully. “I figure you’ll tell me if I don’t do it right.”
Her honesty was gonna kill him. Nikolai helped her guide his cock inside her pussy, eagerly waiting for her to impale herself. She did—inch by tortuous inch until he shook, so close to climax he was afraid to move. He took refuge in talk, trying to distract himself from the raw sensation stalking his body.
“Nothing we do together is wrong, or has a right or wrong way,” he said through a surge of raw need.
Summer settled, fully impaled. She rocked in an experimental move. “I feel so full it almost hurts. But it’s a good pain,” she added. “What do I do now?”
Nikolai almost laughed. She asked for instruction now? Hell, if she did any better he’d internally combust. “Just move. Any way that feels good to you.”
She lifted and sank downward. Her eyes drifted shut while her breasts bobbed in front of his face. “That feels good.” She repeated the move and added a swivel of her hips. Her breath hissed out. “Sooo good.”
Nikolai reached for a breast when it moved close to his face again. Her eyes flew open as he shaped the globe with his callused fingers then drew her pouting nipple into his mouth and sucked hard.
“Bite me,” she said, rising until her nipple almost released from his mouth.
The fire in his loins blazed. Higher. Harder. Deeper. With each lazy rock of her hips. he bit down on her nipple, giving her enough teeth to transmit signals to her sex, but not hard enough to break any skin. Her entire body shook while her sweet pussy clasped him in sweet agony. He bit a little harder and pinched her other nipple. She tightened around his cock, and they gave a unified gasp of pleasure, his hips jerking, moving in counterpoint to her slow rocking. He released her breasts to grasp Summer’s hips.
“Close?” he murmured.
“Mmmm.” She arched her back, grinding her clit against the base of his cock.
Nikolai smoothed a finger across her clit, and she exploded, her pussy squeezing him rhythmically.
“Nikolai.” Summer threw back her head and growled her pleasure.
He thrust upward. Once. Twice. Hard and fast while her sheath clasped his dick in a silken grip. Climax burst through him, an explosion of heat that seemed to go on and on as he spurted his seed.
They fell on the bed together, Summer aligned along his body. Nikolai held her close, their bodies still joined. His eyes closed and he drifted into sleep.
Insistent thumping on Nikolai’s front door pulled him awake. For an instant, he had no idea where he was, and then Summer’s soft sigh clued him in. He moved her carefully off his chest and dealt with the condom that still cloaked his semi-limp cock.
“Not the smartest thing to go to sleep like that,” he said as thoughts of condom leakage filled his mind. Better not happen again.
Whoever was at his door leaned on the doorbell. He grabbed his jeans and yanked them up before hurrying down the passage leading to the front door.
Jake and Louie stood on the other side.
“I should have known,” he groused, glaring at his mates. “What do you want?”
“Seems we caught Nik at a bad time.” Jake wore a healthy smirk.
“Can we come in?”
“No,” Nikolai said flatly.
Louie peered past Nikolai. “Do you have a guest?”
“Yes.”
“A man of few words,” Jake mused. “We want details.”
“None of your bloody business. What do you want?”
“Who do you have in your bed? I didn’t think you let women into your house since Laura.” Louie grinned so broadly Nikolai was tempted to hit him.
“Back off.”
“I wonder if it’s the babe,” Jake said.
“Henry’s niece?” Louie asked.
“Fuck off. Summer is here but not for the reasons you think,” he said when their toothy grins widened. “Someone tried to run her off the road yesterday. Then they rang the hospital and told the receptionist they’d be in to visit. They told the nurse they were related. No one else knew she was there except the cops and Martin. Someone planted drugs in Henry’s house and tattled to the cops. Summer is here for her protection, no other reason.”
His friends sobered, but Louie’s grin took flight again without warning. “You know, Nik, I almost believe you.” He leaned close and whispered, “But the babe looks as though she’s had more than a sleep. In fact, if I was being crude, I’d say she’d had a good f—” The air exploded from his lungs, encouraged by Nikolai’s fist applied to his stomach. He danced out of range to complete his sentence. “Fuck.”
“No one asked you.” Nikolai wanted to slam the door in his friends’ faces, but the soft footste
ps behind him indicated Summer had made an appearance. Nikolai smelled his soap as she stopped beside him. Desire kicked him in the gut when he glanced at her. Damp curls framed her face while her lips were red and swollen.
Damn, he’d wanted to share a shower. The first woman he’d ever met who took quick showers and he missed the occasion. His gaze wandered her body, noting she’d raided his wardrobe. The long navy-blue T-shirt plus the pair of black boxer shorts looked damn fine.
Taking advantage of his distraction, Louie pushed past him, and ran a quick hand across Summer’s cheek. “Nik said someone tried to hurt you.”
Nikolai suddenly felt very possessive. If Louie didn’t step away, he risked an injury. He growled under his breath, but of course, Louie didn’t back off.
Jake stepped inside his hallway too, taking Nikolai unawares and forcing him to take a step backward. His friend slung his arm around Summer’s shoulders. “You okay, cupcake?”
“I’ll make coffee,” Nikolai muttered. No one took the slightest notice. With a last glare at Louie and Jake, he stomped into the kitchen.
Eventually, they all ended up sitting around his wooden table, nursing cups of black coffee—black being mandatory since the milk was off. Jake and Louie looked comfortable, as if they’d settled in for the duration. They chatted away with Summer and generally made themselves at home.
“Is there a reason for this visit?” Nikolai asked, doing his best to keep his voice calm. It didn’t come off. He sounded plain testy.
“Captain wants us to go in this afternoon.” Louie’s gaze skimmed across Summer in silent warning.
“So, why are you here? I’m on sick leave.”
“Captain wants you on the mission too.”
Nikolai glanced across at Summer and saw she was watching him. A faint smile twitched at her lips, and it made him wish his friends to Outer Siberia. The need to claim her lips leapt inside him, but the last thing he wanted was an audience, spectators who were likely to critique his performance.
Summer stroked her fingers across his forearm. Nikolai barely suppressed the shiver of awareness that raced through him. Damn, he had it bad. He was sick—definitely too ill to go on a mission. But no, that wasn’t good either. Remember Henry.
The smile widened as if she read his confused thoughts. “You don’t need to worry. I’ll be fine.”
“As far as I know, it’s a strategy meeting,” Louie said. “We’ll be gone a few hours.”
“No problem. What can happen in a few hours?” Summer said.
Nikolai snorted. “Where you’re concerned—quite a bit.” She’d lived in Auckland for a few days short of a month and so far had hooked up with a gangster, had two break-ins, been taken in for questioning by the police and someone had run her off the road. And that was just for starters. Nikolai didn’t intend to add losing her virginity to an older man to the list—not when he was trying to convince himself that sex didn’t count in this situation since it was consensual.
“I’m not a child.”
“No one implied you were.” He glanced away from her to see Louie and Jake observing them closely. “How long? Two hours? Three? Okay. You’ve got my number. You can ring if you need us.”
Summer watched the three men leave with something like relief. The testosterone in the kitchen had been so thick she’d thought about opening the window. It was the same when her brothers were at home with their friends. One on one was fine, but with a herd of the big he-men things could turn ugly, particularly if you were unlucky enough to be related to some of them.
She shut the front door and wandered into Nikolai’s kitchen. The room was functional and basic with no feminine frills. The gray counter, the color of her father’s goslings, which her mother muttered about tossing into the soup pot, and the teal-blue cupboard units were newly installed. Nikolai had furnished the floor with tiles a shade lighter than the counter. The wooden table in the middle of the tiled floor still needed sanding and varnishing. Add a few plants and a blind or some curtains and the place wouldn’t look too bad.
From the little her uncle had told her about Nikolai, he’d purchased this house some time ago but hadn’t started renovations until his recent sick leave. Nikolai’s bedroom was completed, while the other rooms were stripped back to basics, waiting for a coat of paint and tender loving care.
She wrinkled her nose at the acrid paint scent. It was worse in this part of the house. Despite breathing in slow, shallow pants, the paint was affecting her breathing. Her chest tightened, her breathing strained enough for her to need her inhaler.
Summer collected her clothes from the previous day along with her handbag and keys. After peering out the windows for a long time, checking for anything remotely suspicious, she decided it was safe. Living with SAS brothers and an uncle had taught her a thing or two—not to mention the Heroine’s Handbook.
She let herself out of Nikolai’s house, navigated the missing boards on his deck and ducked through the gate in the boundary fence.
The door was locked when she tried it and nothing seemed out of place. She fished her keys from her bag, unlocked the door and stepped inside, flicking on the safety chain after she entered. First stop—her bedroom and an inhaler. The thought of an asthma attack hurried her along. She grabbed an inhaler off her dresser, took a quick puff and headed back to the kitchen.
A small red light flickered on the answering machine. Guilt stabbed her for an instant as she reached for the play button. She knew Nikolai wouldn’t approve of her being here alone, but he wouldn’t want her to have an asthma attack either. Nah, no problem. She had a cast-iron excuse if—when—he started to holler.
Summer listened to the messages. Two heavy breathing calls. Charming. Then Dare’s voice floated into the kitchen. “Summer, it’s Dare here. I wondered how you were. I rang the hospital but they said you’d gone home. I’m glad you’re feeling better. I presume you’re at work, so I’ll ring you later this afternoon. Perhaps we could get together for dinner?”
Dare’s message was the last one. She pressed the erase button and checked her watch. Maybe she should go to dinner with Dare and let him know she couldn’t go out with him again. A frown wrinkled her brow at the thought. She’d slept with Nikolai and enjoyed it, but were they actually together?
Hard to say. She pulled a rueful face when confusion poured through her. But the truth stood out. If she wanted to go farther along Relationship Road with Nikolai, she needed to talk to Dare. She was strictly a one-man-at-a-time kinda girl.
Decision made, she started to dial Dare’s number before having second thoughts. It wasn’t difficult to imagine Nikolai’s reaction if she went out to dinner with Dare. Besides, she rather liked the idea of exploring more positions. There was an article in Miranda magazine, which offered lots of suggestions.
Summer picked up the phone again. She’d propose lunch and arrive back before Nikolai returned. What the big, bad SAS man didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him.
Or her.
Chapter Eleven
“Summer, how are you?” Dare rose from behind his desk and came around to greet her, hands outstretched in welcome. Dressed in a smart charcoal-gray suit with a black shirt and black-and-gray tie, he appeared handsome and successful.
But he wasn’t Nikolai.
“I’m fine.” She wondered how to avoid a kiss without making a big issue of it. Dare aimed for her lips and in the end, she turned her head so his kiss landed on her cheek.
He grasped her hands in his and stood back to study her, seemingly unperturbed by her action. “I’ve tried ringing. Your phone was switched off. I wasn’t sure if you were going to work or not.”
“I slept in this morning.” Summer felt the crawl of heat in her cheeks and knew she needed to change the subject fast. “Thanks for meeting me for lunch. I’m not a good invalid. Got bored with my own company.” She found herself thinking about Nikolai’s assertions—about Dare and his family’s involvement in illegal activities. If criminal propensity w
as written on his face, she couldn’t see it. He appeared the same as always.
Sophisticated. Attractive. Sexy.
Dare cleared his throat. “Do I need to wipe my face?”
She blinked, irritated at her transparency. Could she be any less subtle?
Amusement glittered in his eyes. “If there’s lipstick on my face, it came from my mother. She popped in to see me about an hour ago.”
Summer imagined her parents meeting Dare, and knew that although her mother was no pushover, she’d like him. Her father might take longer to warm to a man dating his daughter. Ditto her brothers.
“Sorry,” Summer said, aware she was woolgathering yet again. “Are you ready to leave?”
“I’ll let the restaurant staff know I’m going out then we’re all set.” He paused by the door to his office to smile at her. After tucking a curl behind her ear, he leisurely kissed her, taking her by surprise.
When they parted, she gasped for breath. Her pulse throbbed faster than it had mere seconds ago. There had to be something wrong with her. She’d spent the morning in bed with Nikolai, relished everything they’d done together and wanted to repeat the experience, yet kissing Dare was enjoyable too. A topic for rapid thought because her family wouldn’t approve of her stringing along two men. Heck, she disapproved since the object of the luncheon exercise was to end the budding relationship.
“You look beautiful,” he murmured, his eyes skimming her body.
She’d dressed carefully for the meeting, needing to bolster her nerves. Maybe she should have settled for casual jeans and a shirt instead of her favorite black skirt and the cream knit top that clung to her breasts. Too late now.
“Thanks.” Summer nibbled her bottom lip as she tried to think of the right way to put a halt to their romantic liaison yet remain friends. Not a single word came to mind.
Dare hustled her from his office with a warm hand at her waist. “I thought we’d have lunch at the Sky Tower today.”
“Really?” Call her shallow, but she’d wanted to see the penis-shaped tower from the top. There hadn’t been an opportunity so far. “That sounds great.”
Field Stripped: 15 Steamy Military Romances Page 94