He lifted his face toward the direction of the cool breeze and let out a forced sigh. “She’s always sided with my dad. Not once did she believe my mom.”
“Then help her understand.” The calm in my voice was strained around the edges. “Before you go back to Iraq, you want to know that you have said everything that you need to say, and that you have said it to everyone who needs to hear it.”
He didn’t answer. A moment passed, then another, and still he remained silent.
I watched him in the silver moonlight, waiting for him to say something. Anything.
“Come here,” he said at last, reaching for me and drawing me closer. “How can you not have a love affair with this place?” He smiled at me, and our eyes lingered on each other for a moment. “Or at this place?” he added, desire and heat comingling in his gaze.
“Here?” I said with some surprise.
I knew he was trying to deflect, but I saw a raw vulnerability in him that I’d never seen before. So for now at least, I chose to go with the flow. “You want to do it right here?”
“Near here.” He brought his hand around the nape of my neck and rested his forehead against mine. “Wasn’t sex in the car on your list?”
Before I could even formulate a reply, Liam leapt to his feet and scooped me up into his arms, startling a laugh out of me. I held on for dear life, squealing into the wind, scattering laughter in the breeze behind us as he charged up the trail, headed toward his bright red Jeep.
Chapter Sixteen
Vivian
Liam cranked the Jeep into four-wheel drive, and jammed onto a sandy embankment.
When he stalled the engine, I slipped off my espadrilles, then grabbed onto the top roll bar of the Jeep, pulling myself up so I was in a standing position.
We were somewhat near the ocean, I surmised as I stood on the passenger seat and took in our surroundings. There were no roads or streetlights for miles and miles.
This spot was secluded and quiet except for the steady crashing of waves as they threw themselves upon the rocky shore.
“My secret hideaway.” Liam tilted his face upward, fixing his dark gaze on me. “You like it?”
“It’s nice.” I gave him a wry smile. “You bring all your other honeys here, too?”
“No.” The tenderness in his face turned to something else, something that made me keenly aware of the cool air rushing up my legs, and my lack of underwear. “Just you.”
A burning heat rose to my cheeks. “So.” I cleared my throat twice. “Aren’t you gonna join me up here?”
He said nothing, but he continued watching me.
Under his heavy gaze, my knees felt unsteady and I had to grip the roll bar for support. “Come on up here and check out the view.”
“I like the view from down here,” Liam said without expression.
My heart skipped a beat. Even as I looked away, I could still feel his eyes upon me.
I felt his heated stare as surely as any touch.
As I inhaled the sweet midnight air that mingled with the sharper tang of the sea, my lightweight silk chiffon skirt danced in the ocean breeze.
When I glanced down, I caught Liam staring right up into my skirt.
His gaze was so searing it shook me to the core.
I suddenly felt very exposed, and utterly aroused.
Pleasure unfurled across my skin as his warm palms smoothed up my legs, travelling in unhurried thoroughness, caressing my calves, my knees, my thighs, before slowly smoothing back down.
Sighing, I closed my eyes, feeling the Pacific winds caressing my skin as his palms smoothed up my legs again, his fingers brushing against my inner thighs before sliding back down to my ankles.
A throaty moan escaped my parted lips as he continued smoothing his palms up and down the length of my legs, his fingers stroking the slope of my inner thighs, his barely-there touches leaving me longing for more.
At last his hands slid higher. Higher. And higher still. I panted with anticipation but his palms only curved over my bare bottom before they slid back down.
My pelvis arched toward him in an instinctive invitation, and this time when his hands slid up my legs, he was close.
So close. So very close.
My nipples tightened to sensitive buds beneath my shirt and my skin was alight with anticipation.
Alas he did not drift close enough.
A quiver started from the top of my spine and travelled all the way down to my toes as every inch of my skin gained pleasure from his rousing touches.
It was as if my whole world and my entire existence narrowed around the feel of his hands on my fevered skin.
It was all I could focus on. Nothing else mattered.
Pleasure built, scorching between my thighs and when he finally cupped me there, I rocked against the heel of his palm, desperate for release.
And release me he did. But it wasn’t the release I had been hoping for.
He cupped my ass and then released his grip, his hands sliding down to my ankles and then moving back up to my inner thighs, but never getting close enough.
It was exquisite. It was torture. It was exquisite torture.
Suddenly, his hands stopped their leisurely wandering.
My eyes snapped open and I stared down at him, disoriented by the sudden loss of his touch. Between labored breaths, I found him kneeling on the passenger seat, spreading my legs apart so I was open wide for him to peruse.
Only then did he look up, holding my gaze for one heart-stopping moment.
Emotion, raw and intense filled his eyes.
Then he brought his mouth close to my pussy, parted his lips and blew his minty hot breath where I was most sensitive.
Gasping, I gripped onto the roll bar for support as he feathered my skin with his breath, the sharp hints of spearmint adding to my heightened sense of pleasure.
He inhaled deeply, his breath warm against my skin, and then he exhaled, blowing cool air up my sex. The tingling sensations, hot then cold, sent tiny sparks racing through me.
Liam was relentless. He began alternating between sucking my clit, and blowing a steady stream of cool air up my sex.
I gasped again, gripping the roll bar so tightly my knuckles turned white.
And when he started kissing my pussy, my knees nearly dissolved.
For he didn’t just kiss my pussy, he French kissed my pussy.
His mouth, hot and insistent, enclosed my whole labia and his wet tongue swirled around my clit as he gently sucked my pussy lips between his moist lips.
I gazed down, panting for breath. The sight of Liam’s head moving between my quivering thighs, my flesh drenched with my arousal as he French kissed my pussy, just as if he were French kissing my mouth, it was so erotic it almost sent me over the edge.
But I held back, and I held on to the roll bar.
A low moan escaped me as Liam deepened the kiss. His scorching tongue swirled around and around my clit all while his wonderful lips suctioned my pussy completely into his mouth, sucking and swirling, sucking and swirling, all at the same time.
Desire snapped through every nerve ending in my body and I could not hold back the primal cry that curled up from my throat.
Suddenly Liam stopped and I whimpered at the loss of his lips.
And the loss of his tongue.
And the loss of his lips again because they bore repeating.
They felt like sweet minty heaven on my pussy lips.
A roughish grin tilted the corner of Liam’s mouth. “Sweetheart, you’re loud enough to wake the dead.”
In his eyes I read approval and something else which made my heart beat faster.
Flushed with arousal, I slackened my grip on the roll bar.
“Don’t,” Liam whispered fiercely. “Don’t move. Stay right where you are.”
Then he sat back on his haunches and reached into his pocket for his packet of mints. “Double the mint.” He popped two mint strips in his mouth. “Double the pleasure.�
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His tongue darted out to lick his lips before he leaned forward and blew a steady stream of cool air up my pussy.
My skin tingled between my thighs and I felt a throbbing ache in my pussy.
An ache so sharp and so deliciously acute.
Breathing heavily, I let my head roll back.
My breath hitched when another sharp sensation swept over me.
When I looked down, Liam’s lips were closed around my clit and he was gently humming, making Mmmmm sounds in smooth and steady tones, sending spine-tingly vibrations up my sex.
Rocked by a fierce surge of pleasure, my inner thighs quivered, and I writhed and twisted helplessly, slick with moisture.
So much moisture. On and on it continued seeping out of my sex.
Then the humming stopped.
The wind picked up, whipping my chiffon skirt around my thighs and the next thing I knew Liam was cupping my ass with both hands and lapping up my juices, his tongue cool and sharply minty, driving me mindless with pleasure.
The tangy sea breeze in my face, the wind blowing up my skirt and the silky chiffon fabric caressing me between my exposed thighs, both cooling and inflaming me, all while Liam lapped at me greedily with his ice-minty tongue, it all became too much.
All my senses caught on fire.
White-knuckled, I gripped the roll bar as tightly as I could.
Awash in sensations, my inner muscles contracted and I came so fiercely the climax jolted my hips.
Still Liam wouldn’t stop. Even as I bucked against his mouth, his lips molded over my drenched folds, sucking on my labia, his tongue plunging deeper and deeper, devouring me until the violent shudders claimed my body and clouded my vision.
With a final sweep of his tongue across my clit, Liam shifted his weight and rolled back onto his seat.
At last, I slackened my grip on the roll bar and collapsed into a heap on the passenger seat.
The strong winds had died down to faint breeze.
Breathless and completely spent, I sat there panting, my lungs working to suck in more air as my pussy pulsed between my thighs.
As I felt my intimate muscles begin to relax, I let my head roll to the side, gazing at Liam heavy-lidded, my languid body still tingling with pleasure.
I swallowed. Liam was watching me, his heated stare focused on the rise and fall of my breasts beneath my cotton shirt.
The button on his jeans was unsnapped, his zipper undone, and he was pumping his shaft. “Touch yourself for me,” he rasped.
An unbearable heavy ache settled in my breasts. Wordlessly, I lifted my arms and drew my shirt up over my shoulders.
“I love your sweet tits. They’re perfect.” His voice was full of longing. “Touch them for me.”
His words gave me a head rush.
His liquid brown eyes followed my every movement as I cupped the soft swells of my breasts and gently thumbed my nipples to stiff, aching peaks.
As he watched me, he gripped his erection, working his thick, hard length.
Encouraged by the raw desire in his eyes, I gently lifted my breasts and bent down to suckle one of my nipples, drawing on it until it pulled and elongated inside my mouth.
Liam’s breathing grew more rapid as he worked his cock with increasing speed.
Letting my eyes drift shut, I swallowed a moan as I drew my nipple deeper, closing my lips over my areola, suckling harder.
Unexpectedly, I felt this moist and delicious warmth encasing my other breast.
My eyes snapped open, wide and unfocused.
Liam’s mouth was fastened onto my other breast, suckling my heated flesh, tonguing my pebbled nipple until it grew rigid inside his mouth.
I swallowed another moan deep in the back of my throat as I resumed suckling on one breast while Liam feasted on the other.
His mouth, his lips, his tongue was pure ecstasy and having both my breasts suckled simultaneously was so erogenous it almost hurtled me into a shattering climax.
Too soon, he tore his lips from my breast, breathing heavily.
Words were unnecessary as he scooped me up and spread me out in the backseat of the Jeep.
Pushing to his feet, he began stripping out of his clothes, the muscles in his abdomen shifting and rippling as he removed his shirt.
I reclined into the backseat and splayed my thighs, watching him.
As if by their own will, my fingers began moving over my clit, massaging the swollen bud. I admired the prominent cords of the muscles in his biceps and forearms as he divested himself of his jeans, and lastly, his boxer briefs.
He was magnificent … lean and tight, so hard everywhere and yet so beautifully contoured.
Wide shoulders that tapered down to a long, sculpted torso and hollowed abdomen.
As my gaze slid downward, my breath hitched.
His cock was long, thick, and hard like forged steel, the broad mushroom head glistening with moisture.
And he stood gloriously naked without a tremor of self-consciousness.
I was so wet for him. Feverish breaths lifted my chest as my fingers continued working, rubbing my juices around my labia.
While I touched myself, I extended my free hand and stroked his shaft, reveling in how it swelled even greater in my grasp.
Heat flashed in his eyes as he watched me pleasuring myself while I pumped the length of his shaft, working it mercilessly.
His skin was slick and smooth, and I noticed the steely line of his jaw as he fought to keep his desire in check.
Thick droplets began seeping out. Using my thumb and forefinger, I spread the moisture around the broad head of his cock.
With a low and guttural groan, he pulled back. “Viv,” he rasped. “I can’t hold it in much longer.”
In less than two seconds, he sheathed his rigid cock in a condom. Grasping me by the hips, he lifted me and half-stood, repositioning us as he lowered himself onto the backseat so my legs were astride and I was straddling him.
At his silent urging, I began rolling my hips, rubbing my clit against his stiff shaft, coating the broad mushroom head with my juices.
The wind picked up and the rush of the cool ocean breeze only emphasized the heat building between our bodies.
With another hoarse groan, he guided my hips so that tip of his cock penetrated my sex.
Straightening my spine, I stared into his eyes as I eased myself down the length of his thick shaft, clenching my inner muscles around his delicious length until I was fully seated.
Then I lifted my hips, slowly, deliberately, all the way to the tip before I lowered myself all the way down to the root of his cock, deepening the connection, using my fingers to stroke his sac as our bodies joined.
He captured my mouth, crushing his lips to mine, his tongue plunging to meet each frenzied thrust of my hips.
Our kisses gained urgency, and Liam groaned against my mouth as I rode him harder and harder, losing all control, losing all my inhibitions, trying to fight the tide that was pulling. Pulling.
Each thrust drove me to even greater heights, pushing me closer and closer to the edge of the cliff, sending me over the precipice.
Clawing my nails into his muscled arms, I pierced his skin as the carnal waves came crashing over me.
With a quiet sob, I slumped forward and buried my face in his neck, shuddering in his arms as the waves pounded against the shore.
Sea foam surged across the sugar sand.
Frothy bubbles pooled and curdled before they were pulled back by the tide.
Chapter Seventeen
Liam
“So what did your grandmother say?” Vivian asked as soon as I’d hung up the phone.
I joined her on the couch and reached for the remote.
She raised her eyes to mine, her expression cautiously hopeful. “Well?”
“She wants to see me before I leave for Iraq,” I said, flipping the channel over to CNN. “And she’s arranging a little family get-together this Saturday.”
&n
bsp; Her eyes immediately lit up. “That’s great, Liam.”
Reluctant as I was to see my grandmother, I couldn’t bring myself to disappoint Viv.
I couldn’t even begin to explain it, but I felt sensitive to her opinion of me.
She affected me so much that what she thought about me, it mattered.
It mattered a lot.
“Will you come with me?” I asked. “It’s not going to be anything fancy, just a regular ol’ backyard barbecue.”
“Of course.” She met my gaze and smiled, and the affection on her face made me feel like the luckiest man in the world. “I’d love to come.”
I smiled, too, absorbing her warmth. Then in the background I heard: Nine U.S soldiers were killed in a series of attacks in and around the Iraqi capital on Sunday. The latest violence stresses heightened sectarian tensions in the war-torn country.
That was all that was said of it before the credits rolled and the next news segment came on. I stood corrected. I wouldn’t exactly call it a news segment. It was an hour-long full coverage of the Casey Anthony trial.
I narrowed my gaze, my eyes trained on the ticker scrolling across the bottom of the TV screen that showed the number of soldiers killed and the current death toll.
A tight muscle pulled at my jaw. I thought of the human cost of the war. All the men who were fighting, suffering and dying, both U.S and Iraqi, both soldiers and civilians … their stories, their lives had been reduced to a ticker that scrolled across the bottom of TV screens.
My heart clenched and I felt a sharp twist of pain in my gut. I wondered how many people watching even noticed those tickers … those neat and clean little footnotes, and if they did, I wondered if it even penetrated their daily lives.
Meanwhile, the trial of Casey Anthony took center stage. And it shocked me to the core. The crime she’d committed was indeed horrific, but what truly shocked me was how much it dominated the airwaves every hour of the day.
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