Recipe for Temptation

by Gina Gordon

Penn pulled Cole to a stop and wrapped her arms around him. They only had a moment before they’d be in public again.

  “Thank you.” She kissed him softly, quickly. “That felt really good.”

  “You did all the work.” His big hands slid down her back and rested just above her ass. “I just stood there and tried not to get an erection.”

  She laughed. “Which you failed miserably.”

  He kissed her forehead. “That I did.”

  When they made their way off stage, they returned to her siblings, most of them with disapproving looks, at their table.

  “Where did you learn to do that?” Cathy asked, forcing everyone at the table to stare in their direction.

  Penn suppressed her amusement. Cathy had tried to get the last laugh, thinking Penn would fall flat on her face. But she hadn’t. Imagine if she’d gone full Penn on that stage. They’d all be stunned silent.

  “I thought it was hot,” Christine said, then took a sip of water.

  Ian cleared his throat. “You sure know how to get Pennie to come out of her shell.” He looked over at Cole, who simply smiled.

  “Penn doesn’t really have a shell.”

  She knew he’d been trying the whole time he’d been here to drop hints, to get her family to realize she wasn’t the same little girl. But they were so oblivious, or so intent on keeping her in the box, they just didn’t see it.

  “Really, Pennie.” Cathy leaned over the table, lowering her voice as best she could over the music. “Do you think Dad would approve of you dancing like that? All you were missing was the pole.”

  Anger bubbled inside her. Of course she would bring Dad into it, and she had no doubt one of them would rat her out tomorrow morning at breakfast. But she had nothing to be ashamed of.

  She smacked the table in frustration. “Get over it, Cathy. I won.”

  “Good thing you didn’t become a teacher like Dad wanted, Penn,” Dave said, twisting his beer bottle in his hand on the table. “Clearly you’re not right for the job.”

  Just because she liked to grind on the dance floor didn’t mean she’d be a bad teacher, a bad influence. She just didn’t want to be a teacher.

  “Are you sure you two aren’t dating?” Beth cocked her head to the side, her eyes darting between them. “You look pretty familiar with each other.”

  Shit. Her decision to crack the mold was backfiring. Beth was getting suspicious.

  What did you expect? Your ass was all over his dick.

  “Women all over the world sexy-dance with guys they aren’t dating.” They were all getting suspicious. She couldn’t miss the side-eyed glances, the rolling eyes every time she tried to defend their non-couple status.

  Her heart sank. She’d shown them barely ten percent of what she was like at home, and this was what she got.

  It wasn’t worth it.

  “No wonder you have so much free reign at your job.” Beth wasn’t letting up. “It must be nice—”

  “I think we need to get back to work.” Cole stood, pushing his chair back.

  She sucked in a steadying breath. Cole’s timing was impeccable. He was one step away from clinching the knight in shining armor title.

  She scrambled up from her seat and sidled closer to him. She couldn’t help it. She needed his warmth, his familiarity, that something he gave her that she just couldn’t put her finger on.

  Without even saying good night to her siblings, they made their way along the beach toward the hut. She held her stilettos in her other hand and let the water wash over her feet with each rise of the tide. Cole had rolled up his pants and carried his shoes, too.

  She took in a deep breath, letting the fresh, spicy air fill her senses. This moment was perfect. She felt free. Safe. Somehow saying thank you to Cole didn’t seem enough.

  “The first time I ever saw the ocean was when I was sixteen years old,” he said, his voice low, barely a whisper against the sound of the waves.

  She looked up at him in surprise. Had he really just revealed something about himself out of the blue? If this was his attempt at distracting her from the disaster that had just happened in that club, then it was working.

  “Yeah?” she said softly. She didn’t want to push him. She was there to listen.

  “Vivian took Finn, Neil, and me to the beach for two weeks the summer before Jack came to live with us.” He looked over at her. “Pretty pathetic, huh?”

  She shook her head. “Not at all.”

  “I had a lot of firsts while living with Vivian.” His fingers brushed hers at their sides, sending an electric sizzle up her arm that settled in her chest, but she pulled away immediately. “First live professional sporting event.” He glanced at her. “Hockey, of course. First Christmas tree that wasn’t a meaningless token given by our group home. One that actually had presents under it.” He gave a sad laugh. “With a real tag that had my name on it.”

  No wonder he was so broody. He’d spent most of his life with no love. Even her crazy family showed affection once in a while. She had expected his story to be sad, but this was heartbreaking.

  Her fingers itched to reach out and touch him, but she held still. Their touching had to be reserved for inside the hut. She hadn’t just gone through the stress of denying a romantic relationship to blow it all now.

  “How did Vivian find you?”

  “She visited our group home—the one I grew up in, along with Finn, Veronica, and her brother, Mark. By then, Mark and Veronica were living two hours away with a nice family. So, it was just Finn and me left there with a heap of other kids. Vivian took pity on us, I guess, and became our new foster parent.”

  Vivian Madewood had been a saint.

  “Neil wasn’t so happy about us moving in. He’d had a chip on his shoulder for a while.”

  “A chip on his shoulder? Neil?” She faked a gasp.

  He laughed, and his teeth sparkled in the moonlight. She loved that smile. It always kicked up a flutter in her stomach.

  The tiki torches that lined the boardwalk and stairs were burning brightly, guiding their way home. Only a few more steps to their hut.

  “Penn?” he whispered beside her.

  “Hmm?” She settled her gaze on the sand below, at her toes squishing against the abrasive grains.

  “Thank you.”

  “Whatever for?” She looked up into his eyes. “I should be thanking you. What you did for me tonight—”

  He pulled her to a stop, seriousness darkening his gaze. “I wanted to. I owe you.” He shrugged. “I’ve been such a jerk for so long. Never giving you an inch. But you never gave up on me.” He kissed her hair. “I’ve had a lot of fun with you this week, and guess what, the world didn’t blow up without me watching over it.”

  She could scarcely believe her ears. She was so happy she thought she might float away. But she wasn’t just happy with him; she was happy with herself.

  “What I did tonight…” She looked up, biting her bottom lip. “Man, I’m going to catch a lot of shit for it tomorrow.”

  “Either way, you were great. You were…more like you.” He reached out and brushed her hair away from her face.

  Voices and laughter drifted from the resort. Lights twinkled in the distance as they stood on the path to their hut, sexual tension crackling between them.

  “I should also thank you for pulling that stick out of my ass.”

  She beamed up at him. “It was my pleasure.”

  “Penn, I…”

  She urged him on with a tilt of her head.

  His eyes darkened in the moonlight. “I want you.”

  She smiled and whispered, “I want you, too.”

  With every moment that passed, with every second they gazed into each other’s eyes, her heart beat faster. Her stomach fluttered so badly it felt as though it would burst out of her skin. It was the greatest feeling, and she never wanted it to end.

  Maybe it doesn’t have to.

  She had planned to sell her qualifications to the Madew
ood boys hard, but what if she sat back and did…nothing? How likely would it be then that she’d be considered for a spot on the board?

  When Cole reached out to grab her, she stepped away, looking both ways down the beach. She jerked her chin toward the hut. They stood silent for a beat, and then both of them laughed, bolting for the staircase that led to their private paradise. She stumbled a few feet from the hut, but she used a rock formation that housed a pond with bright orange fish to steady herself.

  He was up the stairs before her, fumbling inside his pants pocket for the key card. She rested her hand against the shutter, trying her best to catch her breath, but Cole wasn’t interested in letting her rest. His hand clasped around the back of her head and brought her mouth to his. Now that they were out of sight, she sank into the kiss. Into the feel of his lips and tongue, and that special way he made her feel with all her senses.

  He pressed her into the wall, his grinding erection a surprise against her stomach.

  “Inside.” She sucked in gulping breaths. “Now,” she demanded.

  He unlocked the shutters, and they slipped inside. She wasted no time undoing the buttons of his shirt and parting the edges. She ran her hands through the sprinkle of chest hair, loving the way it felt on her hands, the rough contrast to the firm smoothness of the rest of him.

  He locked the shutters, keeping out everything that threatened to ruin them. Real life had no place on this island, in this hut. And she was going to enjoy this fantasy for the short time they had left together.

  She led him over to the pillow bed and pushed at his chest. “Sit.”

  He stumbled back, his butt hitting the center of the pillow.

  When he had settled and crossed his legs, she smiled down at him. “How about a dance?”

  Her mouth watered at the sight of the wedge of tanned skin between the open sides of his shirt, wanting nothing more than to lick her way from his nipples to his cock.

  She didn’t have any music, but it didn’t matter because she was too hyped to actually dance. Instead, she slowly and sensually removed her clothing, one item at a time, starting with undoing the belt at her waist, then the zipper in back. The dress fell to the floor and she stepped out of it. She walked up and stopped at the edge of the pillow bed, widening her stance.

  He rubbed at his cock through his pants, watching her with half-lidded eyes. She stepped onto the mattress, and he stretched out his legs between hers as she came closer and closer, until the juncture of her thighs was inches from his face. She spread her legs and lowered her body, letting her core slide down his chest. Just before touching his erection, she eased back up. She teased him like that a few times, sometimes with a hand to his face, sometimes with a lick to his lips. With each movement, the flimsy lace of her thong scratched against her clit.

  When she was satisfied he’d been tortured enough, she stood and turned, again putting her feet to either side of his legs. After bending over, she grabbed her ankles.

  “Take out your cock,” she commanded, looking at him through her legs.

  He smiled and did as he was told. “You want this?” He rubbed at the hard length.

  She’d never wanted anything more in her life.

  “Then you should already be ready for me.” He stroked her backside, kneading and squeezing what she knew was his favorite body part.

  He gripped the waist of her thong and slowly, torturously, pulled it over her hips and down her thighs. She lifted a foot so it pooled around one ankle.

  Reaching out, he slipped his hand between her folds. No teasing. No torturing. He took exactly what he wanted. She hissed when he slipped a finger inside.

  He groaned. “That’s my girl.” He fumbled in his pants for a condom and put it on. “Sink down on me.” He fisted his erection, holding it out for her.

  She squatted and rested her palms on the floor in front of her. He positioned his cock, and that first touch of the tip at her entrance was absolute magic.

  He guided her down with his hands on her ass, inch by inch, letting his smooth length penetrate her body. An invasion so necessary, so not enough…

  “Slow. That’s—Fu-uck…”

  She engulfed him. All of him. But he didn’t let her linger. He pumped her up and down, up and down, building a steady rhythm, a slow burn tingling all over her body.

  “That feels so good.” She dropped her knees to the pillow. “So fucking good.” Leaning forward, she moved up and down on his cock, taking over the rhythm.

  He filled her so completely. She felt him in every nerve ending. She was on fire, smoldering with need and desire. For him.

  For Cole.

  Soft curses escaped his mouth the faster she bounced on his cock.

  “I love your ass. It’s fucking perfect.” He smacked it and sent a shiver to her clit.

  She bounced harder, the slapping sounds of skin against skin echoing through the hut. She locked her gaze on the bottle of Jack Daniels, took in her surroundings, maintained a keen focus, and stayed determinedly in the moment. She never wanted to forget this moment—the feelings that shot her physical pleasure to unchartered territory. But she’d keep those feelings safely hidden where he would know nothing about them.

  She was staring down the barrel of a life-changing realization. And that alone was enough to tip her over the edge.

  But he thrust up, harder this time, hitting a sweet spot she hadn’t even known existed. Her body tensed, and she tipped over the precipice. She fell headlong into the colorful abyss and laid her heart on the table, letting him claim it with every quiver and throb of her orgasm.

  He pushed her off, and his cock slapped against his stomach. He pressed his fingers to her folds, massaging the last thrums of her orgasm.

  “Turn around baby,” he whispered. “I want to see you.”

  Her body limp, she climbed over his legs and straddled him, face-to-face.

  She rubbed herself along his cock, letting his hard shaft peek out, then disappear between her folds. Her body reacted immediately to the friction. It hadn’t taken long for her to jump to the edge again.

  She rested her forehead against his. “On a normal day, you make my heart race so fast I can’t catch my breath, and I just want to jump out of my skin. But now…” She clasped his face and pressed her lips to his, sucking and licking in uncontrollable need.

  But she stifled her emotions. This was about fucking. Temporary. Fucking.

  Her orgasm had been spectacular. She’d thought she’d been sated. But instead, she burned for more. For something stronger, harder, more consuming.

  “I need more. Give me more.”

  She slipped him inside and moved, giving him the up and down friction he needed to get off. The closeness of their bodies also gave her the steady grind of her clit against his pelvis that she needed to soar a second time.

  Somehow he met her with thrusts of his own, pressing deeper, harder. And it was exactly what she wanted. She wanted him inside her, joined so close she didn’t know where he stopped and she began.

  That was the way it had always been with Cole, body and soul. From the very first time they’d met she’d known they had a connection.

  Her breath hitched, and she couldn’t catch it. Until he kissed her—like he was the very breath she needed to survive.

  “Look at me,” he commanded.

  She opened her eyes. “Cole, I—”

  Don’t say it. Don’t you dare say it.

  “Cole, I’m…coming.”

  This time, her pleasure didn’t explode, it consumed. It washed over her like a wave, crashing from the top of her head down to the tips of her toes. It engulfed her in everything that was Cole.

  Her head dropped and rested on his shoulder. They stayed in each other’s embrace, their chests rising and falling with deep, heavy breaths.

  Tomorrow was the scavenger hunt. The only reason he’d shown up on this island. But somehow, they’d managed to change the game and ended up giving in to the sexual tension that
had smoldered between them for three years.

  Coming out of her shell tonight with her family, even the slightest bit, had backfired. It had proved that she could never truly be herself with them. Despite feeling stifled, she enjoyed the relationships she had with her family, and pretending to be a toned-down version of herself for a few days each year was worth keeping those relationships intact.

  Once the trophy was successfully in her hands, Cole would have fulfilled his duty, and they could return home, back to their normal roles.

  She wasn’t going to rest until that spot on the board of directors was hers. She needed her head in the game, not on Cole’s skills in the bedroom. A temporary fling on vacation was one thing. But she had too much pride to let a permanent relationship dictate her career. She was never going to let that happen again.

  Chapter Twelve

  Cole put on his flip-flops and headed down to the dining room to meet Penn and her family.

  They had showered and dressed separately this morning for the first time since they’d agreed to take their relationship to the bedroom. Penn had been a nervous wreck when they’d woken in the hut. She’d barely spoken to him, tension and nervousness overwhelming her to the point of distraction. He knew she was terrified over what was going to transpire this morning, afraid her siblings would tell her parents about her inappropriate dancing. After what he’d seen last night at the table, he knew it was a distinct possibility.

  But Penn wasn’t the only one in need of distance. Last night had been intense on so many levels. Not just the sex.

  It was cooler this morning with the sun hiding behind a set of clouds as he wound through the pathway through the pools to the main building. For the first time since he’d arrived, he didn’t have a light sheen of sweat dampening his skin.

  He’d gotten on stage and put on a show. In public where anyone could have snapped a picture. His desperate need to defend and protect Penn had become overwhelming, and he’d proven to himself that he could be more than just a moody, broody, pain in the ass.

  But maybe chickening out last night was a blessing in disguise. He’d gotten so caught up in his lust for her that he had convinced himself telling Penn the truth about his past was a good thing. The last thing he needed was to burden her with the knowledge, to have her thinking about it while they worked together. He wanted no one’s pity. Especially when it came to Penn.