Summer Heat

by Carly Phillips

  And I have no interest in being alone now.

  He jumped up. Two flights of stairs later, he was at a guest room door. He knew Mia would give Nicola this one with its fancy private bathroom. Jared would get the other with the same layout. The rest of the grunts could share the hallway bathrooms.

  The sound of footsteps padding on the carpet caught his attention. He looked over his shoulder to see tiny Mia with her big pregnant belly smiling as if she knew what clamored around in his head. She was a therapist, after all, so maybe she understood this maze of emotion.

  She nodded toward Nicola’s door. “Are you going to knock?”

  That was the question, all right. He hadn’t mapped out what he’d say. Or if he’d knock. A compulsion had brought him to her door, but it hadn’t clued him in on the next steps. “Not sure.”

  “I think you should.”

  “You don’t know—”

  “I know enough, being that I’m a military therapist. Jared has no problem bouncing concerns off me.”

  Cash laughed. Mia Winters might be the only woman in the world who would square off against Jared. It happened a lot, even more now with her crazy hormones, though he’d never say that to her face. Watching Mia take on Jared was better than watching a Saturday night barroom brawl. And Mia won almost every time. She was the odds-on favorite.

  “Oh, I moved your stuff to the room next door. Adjoining doors, by the way.” Mia winked.

  He choked when he tried to swallow and didn’t know what to say. There was no way he’d sleep tonight. He’d been sweating another night under the same roof as Nicola. Now one flimsy door separated him from her bed. No way. No how. He wasn’t going to survive the night knowing she slept mere feet away.

  What would she wear to bed?

  Time to find out.

  Knock. Knock.

  No answer.

  Cash wasn’t going to let her ignore him, especially not when her clothing options, or maybe lack of, were on his mind. He knocked again. No answer. Cash turned the knob and walked in.

  Nicola emerged from her bathroom in a cloud of steam with a tiny towel wrapped around her chest that barely reached her thighs. Her cheeks were fresh and rosy, and her blonde hair dark and shower-wet. He choked, again, and whatever he wanted to say dissolved into the steamy air. She looked like a heaven-sent angel.

  “Cash!”

  “Sorry.” He put his hands up in surrender, but didn’t retreat, freezing in place, mesmerized by long legs and a scrunched-up, pissed-off face. The scent of lavender filled the room.

  He lowered his hands. “Can we chat?”

  “I’m in a towel.”

  “Don’t I know it, darlin’.” She clung tighter to the towel, as if Cash could will it off of her.

  “I need to get dressed. Get out of here.” She tried to shoo him away without releasing her grip on the towel.

  “Or I could get undressed. Even things out.” Not the right thing to say… He tilted his head, praying for her grin, knowing damn well he’d shed his gym threads quicker than she could say, “go ahead.”

  She smiled and gave a tame laugh that said he wasn’t a dead man. Thank God. “What do you want?”

  “You. Nicola Garrison.”

  Her hesitant smile faded, but her warm eyes spoke with a fire and sparkle. She didn’t move. Didn’t speak. Didn’t give him anything to work with other than the brightness in her glare.

  “Stop with the last name.”

  “No.”

  “I don’t want to be just another notch in your belt. I’m not one of your many conquests.” She smirked, and he made a mental note to give Rocco another round of hell for telling tales. Maybe this honesty bullshit would be the only way to figure things out.

  “No, you aren’t a conquest. You were my first love, and I’d thought you’d be my last. Anything after you was just killing time.”

  She turned away from him, fidgeting with a pair of earrings on the dresser. Her body looked strong, and the towel wasn’t hiding much. She cleared her throat. “Killing time until what?”

  “I had no idea.” He scrubbed a hand over his five o’clock shadow. “But now I know.” Silence. She didn’t say a word, and his heart combusted, falling to the hard floor in a fiery explosion.

  Her head dropped back, and she stared toward the crown molding. He took one step, then another. He had to save this moment. Had to save them.

  Cash placed his hands on her warm, freshly dried shoulders. She smelled delicate and felt silky, satiny, and so much better than he remembered. He slid his hands, shifting her hair over the spectacular slope of her neck and thumbed the nape, rubbing her muscles until a soft sigh drifted into the humid air and hung between them.

  Shivers erupted under his touch, and goose bumps rose. Chasing their path, he caressed her neck until she released another sigh.

  There was no hiding his arousal. He thought about it too late as she leaned back into him. Hell. He’d tell her—he’d show her—the truth. He was consumed by her.

  “I don’t want to be just another girl.”

  “You weren’t, and I promise, you aren’t.” That she might think that killed him.

  “I’m confused. Concerned.”

  He ran his hands up and down her biceps, enjoying the simple touch of something he never thought he’d have again. “Why?”

  “You hate what I do, and what I do is who I am,” she whispered over her shoulder.

  “That’s your hold-up?” He trailed a finger down her arm.

  “It was hard enough to walk away from you before, Cash. I can’t get mixed up with you again. It’s a recipe for heartache.”

  “I loved you once. You think I can’t again?”

  She sucked in a breath. His thoughts raced, dying to say something more, but having no idea what more there was to confess.

  Nicola’s towel dropped like it was lead lined, taking with it any coherent thought left in his brain. Seeing her gorgeous back trail down to her perfect ass, all he could do was feel the smoothness and strength of her body. He fanned his fingers down toward her waist. Hands on her hips, he spun her to face him. Studying every inch of her body, one thought detonated in his mind. Never just another girl.

  He traced her jaw, tilting her head up. Trusting eyes met his. She fingered the hem of his shirt, and he shrugged it off.

  “I need a shower. I should’ve…” He should’ve done a thousand things.

  “I’ll get in with you.”

  “You just—”

  “I don’t care—”

  He hushed her with a kiss as promising as he could make it, knotting his hands into her hair, and her mouth welcomed his. Cash tasted her sweet lips. A step forward and he crushed his body against hers, needing nothing but her.

  She sighed into the kiss. “Shower?”

  Taking her hands in his, he walked them into the bathroom. The fog on the mirror had started to fade, but the humidity and heat enveloped them. She turned the water on and stood naked by the cascading water, his image of perfection.

  Cash was suddenly aware of himself, of his history. His unworthiness. She deserved better than him. Rocco and Roman were right.

  “Cash?”

  “Yeah.”

  “You okay?” Her delicate chin tilted up, and compassion shone in her eyes.

  No, he wasn’t. But how to word what made him a shitty asshole? He rolled his bottom lip between his teeth, searching for a word that wouldn’t kill the mood, a way to explain how he’d been an overly friendly bachelor without sounding like a dick. “I’m feeling guilty.”

  “That’s my line.” She smiled, warm and caring as an embrace.

  “It’s just…” He gestured toward the bathroom counter, like that was supposed to mean something.

  “Let’s take a shower. Kiss me like the years weren’t missing.” She stepped to him, pushed her bare breasts against his chest, and he almost moaned. He considered bartering for a ten second shower, then a long dive under the covers, but her lips met hi
s, she hooked an arm around him, and they kissed into the shower. No bartering or negotiating needed.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Heat surrounded her. It wasn’t the hot water pouring down that made her feel wash-cycle dizzy. The granite-tiled wall of water jets and the rain showerhead added to the mind-reeling moment. Cash was naked, gloriously large, broad, and overwhelming. His rolling pecs and biceps rippled as he moved. His muscles barely hid under the layer of golden, water-flecked skin. He locked her with a gaze that made her legs tremble. The knowing and depth in his eyes told the story of their past and made her heart bleed and her hands heavy.

  In this impossible moment, she existed in the midst of deliberate, tender kisses. The minty taste of his kiss flooded her mouth and melted away her hesitation in the way only a promise and a hope could. As Cash explored her throat, his stubble tickled the underside of her chin. This was more than she remembered. Deeper. A grown man on a mission. She teetered on the devastating edge of a Cash coma. She’d dissolve and slip down the drain, a puddle of the liquid fire burning through her veins.

  “Sweet girl,” wet lips whispered against her neck. Vibrations buzzed inside her, and her body responded with a desperate wetness that only Cash knew how to command.

  Nicola swayed forward, her hand finding balance on the rigid plane of his abdomen. Cash cupped her jaw, thumbs skimming over her cheeks.

  “You still with me, Nic?”

  Absolutely. She nodded, a lust-drunk smile slipping onto her face. “Still here.”

  “Good.”

  “Wait.” Pulling back, reaching for reality, she grabbed the shampoo bottle. “We’re in here for a reason.”

  “Nah. I’m here ’cause you’re the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen, and then you smiled.”

  Oh, the things he said to her. Heat flared in her cheeks, and she focused on action, rubbing a dollop of shampoo into a lather. She reached for his hair. Caring for him felt as natural as running kiss-first into the shower.

  Her fingers massaged in the soap. Lathered hair feathered under the water. Zips of sensation spiraled from her fingertips. Cash’s eyes closed. Sudsy, soapy water ran down his chiseled cheekbones and straight nose. All hints of the bruises were gone. His face was unmarred and unhurried.

  “I missed you, Cash.”

  The corners of his mouth turned up, not quite into a grin, just an acknowledgement of this perfect moment.

  She rinsed his hair clean, watching the last of the bubbles slip down his chest and over his torso, past the light dusting of hair that rolled down his stomach leading to his hardened shaft. Nicola felt twenty years old again. All she could do was stare. Each time she brushed and moved against him, shockwaves of excitement pulsed to her core.

  Startling blue eyes caught her staring. Her breath hitched in her throat, a rare mixed reaction of nervousness, interest, and eagerness. His finger ran over her lips, then he kissed her mouth.

  “Come here.”

  Water cascaded down her face, dripping off her eyelashes. Cash thumbed the droplets away and carefully lowered her down onto the massive shower’s built-in ledge. The cool tile was a welcome contrast to his warm, strong hands. Cash knelt in front of her and nudged between her knees with his large hands. He was a massive man. Built powerful and beautiful, and his laser focus made her feel like the center of the universe.

  She wanted him. Wanted them. Nerves and doubt could disappear. She had no interest in second guesses. Right now, they had the opportunity to make things whole again.

  “In your truck tonight—I swear.” Nicola cradled his chin in her fingers, holding his gaze to hers. “I trembled for your touch.”

  Honesty. It was the only thing she could offer. The only thing she knew might heal the aching, gaping hole. A hole just like hers that every deep breath in his arms helped to repair.

  He took her hand in his, put her palm to his mouth, and kissed. His tongue stroked each finger. Nicola moaned, whispering his name. Steam danced around them. The heat of his touch swirled with memories. Thank God for the warm waterfall protecting them from the outside world.

  Putting one word after another was too hard a task, and his kiss said that it was all right. She would be okay.

  Cash leaned forward and nuzzled the valley between her breasts, then turned his attention to one stiff nipple. He drew it into his mouth, and the tip grew tighter against his gentle suction. Her sex ached for contact.

  He moved to her other breast, repeating the action. She arched forward, needing to be against him. Needed to feel him covering her. Her hands threaded into his hair, moving with the lazy motion of his kisses. Lips, mouth, and tongue, he teased her. Heat bloomed within her, a magical feeling both intoxicating and addictive.

  He whispered in their waterfall. “I’d wait a decade for you again. For this.”

  Her bottom lip quaked. Cash smoothed his hands over her stomach, gliding between her legs. His lips followed, creating a sensual trail her body craved. Nicola tightened her grip in his hair, shifting toward him. She swayed in place when his tongue licked her hip bone.

  “Yes?”

  She nodded, scared she’d given him a reason to stop.

  Following the water’s path, his mouth crept across her, inching toward her sex. A kiss captured her breath as he molded his lips and tongue against her heat. A curse slipped from her lips. Cash lowered the width of his shoulders between her legs, relaxing into place, spreading her legs further apart.

  Her legs flexed around him. He kissed until she moaned, eyes closed. Water misted around her. One of his fingers teased and tested her sweet spot. He found her willing and wanting, then eased forward, retreated back, and started his seductive torture again. She couldn’t catch her breath. She didn’t want to. This was the beginning of exquisite madness.

  The strength and restraint he showed was as much an aphrodisiac as seeing the man so intent on her climax. She wanted to watch, but couldn’t. Her head drifted side to side, his name escaping on each gasp.

  Teeth rasped over her. Cash’s fingers speared her as she pushed toward him. A thrilling build started. Feminine muscles tightened. The tight bud of nerves praised his loving attention. An internal, slow pulse started deep within her body, that she knew Cash would drive straight to an explosion.

  He growled sweet words against her and thrust his fingers each time she rocked into him.

  Nicola cried out as she unraveled, pushing for more and rocketing away almost as fast. An internal supernova— heat and energy—blasted from deep within. Her climax exploded from her core, vibrating to her hands that clung onto the granite and her toes that flexed against the tile floor.

  A deep breath rolled into her lungs. She sighed, and he stilled, catching her with his sapphire stare. Watching him was bliss.

  Cash leaned back, water rushing over him and framing his face. His smile looked like she felt.

  “Hi.” It was the only thing her brain could manage.

  He hitched a one-sided grin. “Hey.” He grabbed her purple shower poof and sudsed it up with foaming bubbles. “Give me a second.”

  Whatever you say.

  He’d smell like a flower and didn’t look like he cared. From shoulders to kneecaps, he covered himself up in bubbles. He snagged a handful of bubbles and put them on her nose.

  “You’re adorable.”

  No one had called her adorable in years. Warm, fuzzy compliments tended to evaporate in the wake of castrating looks. Funny, she didn’t mind it from him.

  “Let me take you to bed.” He turned off the water and leaned over. “Wrap around me.”

  Nicola bear-hugged his sturdy body, and they eased out of the shower. Cash grabbed a handful of towels, put one on the counter, and set her on it. He started with one foot, drying her. Methodical as he was tender, he worked up her leg to her shoulders, then back down to the other foot.

  She was speechless.

  No one had ever paid that much attention to her, and his face said this move was a first for him too. She
kissed him a thank you and kissed him again because no moment had ever been sweeter.

  He picked her off the counter and sent her world spinning counter-clockwise. Her blood rushed to life again at the sight of her bed. Sex with Cash had been spectacular before, and the anticipation of him holding her, being in her, made her stomach twist into a thousand excited knots.

  Cash pulled back the covers, placed her under a sheet, and slipped in next to her, pulling the comforter over their heads. Cocooned away from the world, it was just her and him, and everything felt as it should.

  “My sweet girl.” He’d left the lights on, and they could see each other under the bedding canopy. “Hope you know you’re not leaving this bed until sunup.”

  “You’ve said worse things to—”

  Knock, knock, knock.

  She giggled like they’d been caught breaking a rule and whispered the obvious. “Someone’s at my door.”

  His fingertip traced down her nose. “Do not engage the enemy.”

  She giggled again.

  Bam, bam, bam.

  Both hands were over her mouth, losing the battle with an attack of the giggles. “Cash, we have to answer.”

  “Why?”

  “What if it’s impor—”

  A voice growled through the door. “Nicola, I know you’re in there. I need to talk to Cash, and I can’t find him anywhere.”

  She lost the battle, laughing out loud, eyes watering. “We’re so busted.”

  And Jared was so killing the mood.

  Nicola sat up, pushing the covers off of them, and Cash looked ready to kill his boss. She could only imagine the things Cash would say once the two men were alone.

  Cash-the-sniper, not the man from the bathroom, lumbered out of her bed, grabbed his gym shorts, and stepped into them, cursing Jared with every passing step.

  He opened the door and leaned his elbow above his head on the doorjamb, blocking any view inside the room. Good, it gave her a chance to watch without Jared seeing her wrapped in the comforter. It also gave her one hell of a view of Cash. Those gym shorts might as well have been made for his body.