But he didn’t move his hands, didn’t let them wander. And that merely built the anticipation until her skin ached for his touch.
As they swayed, she pressed closer and closer until she swore she could feel the heat of his stiff cock through their clothes.
“Belle?”
God, she loved the way he said her name. Her nerve endings tingled and her pussy pulsed with need. “Yes?”
He deliberately ignored the question in her voice and instead tugged on her hair until she tilted her head back. Then he kissed her with the most devastating desire she’d ever experienced.
His lips moved over hers, eliciting a swift response she couldn’t control. And didn’t want to.
Her body buzzed with desire from her curled toes to her tight nipples. Her mind went blank and only sensation processed. The heat pouring off his body, the tension building between her legs, the pressure on her lungs that made it hard to breathe.
He kissed her with a dominating force that made every cell in her body melt in surrender and she opened to him. Her lips parted for his tongue to slide in and tangle with hers.
Her hands clutched at his shoulders, fingers sinking into sleek muscles, wishing he was naked so she could get her hands on his warm skin. His hands moved to her waist, where they slid under her T-shirt to stroke along her sensitized flesh.
He splayed his hands on her back, each finger a hot brand. Arching into him, she rubbed her aching breasts against his chest, silently begging him to ease her. Or make her burn hotter.
He chose the latter, his hands sliding up to cup her breasts for a brief second before sliding back down. She moaned in protest but he’d already begun to lift her shirt over her head.
Pulling back, he tugged the T-shirt up, having her lift her arms over her head so he could pull it off. His gaze dropped to the pink lace bra Kate had designed and his lips curved in a smile.
“Very nice, sweetheart. You’re going to be leaving that on.”
His husky voice made her sex pulse, and a flood of juices seeped into her already-wet panties.
“I’m going to lay you out on the counter and have you for dessert. I’m going to make you scream my name and then I’m going to make you beg.”
Annabelle couldn’t breathe. The air in the room had been replaced with a drugging haze that she couldn’t seem to draw into her lungs. She barely noticed when his hands moved to her jeans and pushed them over her hips.
As she watched, he went to his knees in front of her, dragging her jeans down her legs, lifting her feet to get rid of her sneakers, and tossing her jeans to the side.
Panting, she swore she felt his breath against the sheer lace panel of her pink thong. Her knees nearly buckled when he placed a kiss on her stomach directly below her belly button.
Her hands slid into his hair, grasping the strands so tightly he couldn’t get away. Not that he seemed in any hurry to do so.
His mouth and teeth blazed a path from one hip to the other, nipping and sucking and kissing. His hands reached around to caress her buttocks before filling his palms with them and pressing her closer.
As he spread her thighs wider, she was truly afraid her legs wouldn’t hold her upright any longer. Reaching behind, she braced herself on the breakfast bar just as he pressed his mouth over her clit, causing her body to arch.
He tongued her through the lace, the slightly rough texture of the material making her clit throb with each swipe of his tongue. Teased her until her body felt like one tight ball of sensation, nerves popping and flaring, muscles clenching, her brain about to overload.
And when he nipped her, a short, sharp orgasm lit through her with the intensity of a flash fire.
Her mouth parted to gasp in air as she sagged, only to have Jared stand and lift her onto the counter.
“Lay back, Belle.” His voice had dropped to almost a growl. “Lay back and hold on, honey.”
Without conscious thought, she did as he asked, her eyes closing as her head came to rest on the counter.
The surface felt cool against her naked flesh, but she only had a second to notice before Jared grabbed the strings of her thong and drew it off. He wasn’t gentle about it, and the wet material didn’t want to separate from her flesh. So the flash of almost painful sensation that flashed through her nearly made her come again.
Overstimulated and starting to ache, her back arched and she spread her thighs until she knew her sex was completely exposed.
“Oh, sweetheart.” Jared’s voice came from somewhere above her. “You are so beautiful.”
Practically panting with desire, she cried out when one hand molded to her breast, pinching the hard tip between his fingers and sending lightning flashes straight to her womb. It tightened in response as did her pussy, and she opened her eyes to find Jared.
The glow of the light over the sink gave off just enough illumination for her to see the hard planes of desire on his face. His mouth had drawn into a straight line that made her sex pulse with the promise of satisfaction.
But not before she danced to his every command.
His other hand began a slow, forceful caress from her knee to her hip and down again. He repeated the motion until his hands worked in a rhythm that made her body respond. He stroked and she lifted into his hand, her flesh molding to his.
Switching hands, he paid attention to her neglected breast and leg until she thought she might sink into a blissful stupor.
Just as she felt her body tighten for what she hoped would be a climax, he released her.
Her eyes flew open and she tried to speak, to beg, but before she could, he put his hands under her ass and lifted her sex to his mouth.
He flicked his tongue over her clit before plunging it between her plump lips and into her sensitive sheath. After a few seconds, he retreated to nip her clit with his teeth, testing her limits with sharp bites and gentle squeezes.
Her body moved as if she had no control over it, completely under his domain.
And he played her like a grand master.
By the time he lifted his head and opened his jeans, she would have thought it couldn’t get better.
But it did.
When the broad head of his cock pierced her, she felt an entirely new set of emotions and sensations shift through her.
She’d moved from pleasure to complete abandonment. She wanted him to fuck her, begged him to fuck her, hard and fast, as he worked his cock into her in controlled thrusts.
Her hands reached for his wrists to hold herself steady as he rocked against her, vaguely noticing how his thrusts began to lose their smoothness.
He was losing his control with every thrust, every retreat.
She loved it. She tilted her pelvis and took him even deeper on his next plunge. He groaned as he thrust and held for several seconds before she rotated her hips and caused a shower of sparks to ignite low in her body.
Her sheath tightened around him just before her orgasm detonated.
She cried out, her body caught in the throes of her climax, and she vaguely registered the fact that he was pumping his release into her body seconds later.
Minutes later, when she’d regained enough energy to move, she opened her eyes and looked straight into Jared’s. Dark with some emotion she couldn’t fathom, his eyes stayed glued to hers as he pulled away from her body. Then he reached for her hands to pull her up into a seated position, lifted her into his arms, and carried her to the bathroom.
“Can you stand?”
She lifted her eyebrows. “Think that highly of yourself, do you?”
There, that made him smile. “I only ask because you look…a little tired.” He set her feet on the ground but kept an arm around her shoulders as he nuzzled a kiss into her neck. “Shower?”
Part of her wanted to just curl up in bed with him and pass out. But the other didn’t want the night to end, knowing he wouldn’t be there when she woke. And that— No, she didn’t want to think about that now.
“Only if you p
romise to wash my back.”
“Baby, that’s not all I’ll wash.”
In the bathroom, Jared turned on the water and waited for it to get to the desired temperature before he stripped off her bra and waved her in. Then he shed his clothes before following.
As the water fell around them, she let him wash her from head to toe, falling more and more under his spell with every stroke of his hands.
He poured her body wash into his hands, then slicked it all over her body, paying careful attention to her breasts and between her legs.
She felt arousal flare low in her belly and stepped closer to wrap her arms around his shoulders.
“Will you stay tonight?” She barely whispered the words in his ear but his hands faltered for a second.
“Absolutely.”
Jared couldn’t get his brain to shut off.
Annabelle had fallen asleep right away, which made him want to beat his chest like a caveman. He’d fucked her so good, she’d passed out.
And yeah, he knew that sounded crude but damn…
So why was he still awake when normally he’d be passed out too?
Because he loved lying here, holding her. That was part of it. The other part was the phone call he’d made earlier today. He hadn’t told Dane the whole truth about why he wanted him to come up here, and Dane had inferred that his visit would involve sex.
Yes, that was part of the reason. And no, he couldn’t completely explain his rationale for inviting another man into her bed. Except for the fact that she’d enjoyed the hell out of their play at the Salon and he wanted to give her more of that pleasure.
Hell, he wanted to give her a lot more than simply pleasure. Which made the second part of why he wanted to talk to Dane tricky.
But he had to know.
Fifteen
The bell over the door rang only minutes after she’d unlocked the shop.
Annabelle still wore the smile she’d had since waking up with Jared’s bigger, harder body curled around her. He’d tried to convince her to stay in bed with him and had almost succeeded.
But she did have a business to run.
Jared had kissed her one last time and ran his hand over her ass in a hot caress before he got up, pulled on his pants, and called his brother. She’d left to give him some privacy, since they seemed to be talking hotel business.
She didn’t recognize the man who walked through the door but there was something about him that seemed familiar.
First, she noticed how absolutely gorgeous he was. Straight, dark hair hung around a face full of sharp planes, cheekbones to die for, a straight slash of a nose. Only his full mouth…
She knew that mouth.
She felt a frown crinkle her brow. Why would she know him?
Her gaze shot back to his pale green eyes. She drew in a quick breath, her pulse kicking into a staccato pace as goose bumps covered her entire body.
Oh, shit.
She took a deep breath, trying not to let her recognition show.
What the hell was he doing here? Maybe he didn’t remember her.
Oh, God, please let him not remember me.
She forced a friendly smile, hoping he couldn’t see the sheer panic rushing through her like adrenaline. “Can I help you?”
He didn’t answer immediately, just let his own smile build.
“Nice shop,” he finally said.
Her smile wanted to slip but she shored it up. “Thank you. Can I help you with something?”
Was that smile of his supposed to mean something, or was she reading too much into a simple expression?
“I was told you have a decent collection of erotic art.”
She swallowed hard and forced her mouth to hold its pleasant curve. “Are you looking for something in particular?”
“As a matter of fact…”
“Hey, Dane. I see you found your way here.”
Annabelle whipped around at the sound of Jared’s voice. His expression was carefully neutral as he caught her gaze, but she knew he was cataloguing her every conflicting emotion.
“Annabelle, this is Dane Connelly. A friend of mind for a very long time.”
Her heart beating a mile a minute, Annabelle forced herself to turn back to Dane and put out her hand as she tried to swallow down her rising…confusion? Fear?
No, it wasn’t fear.
Anticipation?
Had Jared asked Dane to come? Why? To join them in bed?
Heat flashed through her body, hard and fast. Her nipples peaked beneath her cotton T-shirt and she went wet between her thighs.
She should be embarrassed, should want to crawl in a hole somewhere and hide.
But this was definitely not embarrassment.
This was lust, pure and simple.
And both men could probably read it all over her face though Dane’s smile was nothing but pleasant.
Damn them.
Fighting back the urge to gape at the man, Annabelle forced her lips to curve in a smile. She could do nothing at all about the blush she knew stained her cheeks.
“Nice to meet you, Dane.”
Again.
Jesus, did Jared actually think she wouldn’t know who this man was? That she wouldn’t recognize that mouth and those eyes?
Did he expect her to just fall into bed with both of them?
And would that be such a bad thing? The first time was amazing.
Dane released her hand as she pulled hers back, successfully quashing the impulse to rub her sweaty palms on the thighs of her jeans.
Damn it, she was not into playing games. She wanted to know what was going on. Her arms crossed over her chest as she looked directly into Dane’s eyes. “So, what brings you all the way to Adamstown?”
Dane’s lips curved in a devastating grin. “You’re right, Jed. I do like her. She cuts to the chase.”
What the hell was that supposed to mean?
She opened her mouth to ask but Jared touched her elbow, effectively cutting her off and drawing her attention. “I asked him to give me his opinion on a few of the properties since Tyler’s tied up at the hotel.”
Blinking, she tried to get her brain to function enough to ask rational questions. “Oh. Are you in the hotel business too?”
Dane shook his head. “I’m in information retrieval.”
She gave him a confused frown. “And what does that mean?”
“It means when Jed needs information, I track it down for him.”
Her breath caught in her chest, but she shoved down the trepidation threatening to choke her as she flashed a quick glance at Jared. “And what information are you tracking for Jared now?”
Dane shrugged. “Mainly boring stuff. Local zoning laws, tax structures, things like that.”
Okay, that sounded innocuous enough. But she still couldn’t shake the feeling that that’s not all Dane was investigating.
The way he looked at her, like he was dissecting her…
Was she reading too much into this?
Or had Jared invited Dane here to join them in bed?
Her heart pounded as Dane’s expression gave nothing away, and her gaze flipped back to Jared.
Hunger started to show in the darkening of his eyes and the line of his mouth. That gorgeous mouth that gave her so much pleasure.
“Are you wondering if he’s going to join us in bed, Belle?”
All the air left the room and her lungs collapsed in on themselves. “Jared…”
He took a step forward, their bodies almost touching. “Are you thinking about New Year’s Eve? You remember him, don’t you?”
God, yes, now she could think of nothing else. Her mouth went dry and her hands clenched into fists, practically aching with the desire to touch him. To be touched.
By both of them.
Jared’s features had sharpened with lust. He had to have seen her thoughts in her eyes, read it in her body language. He took another step closer and this time she took a step back. Right into Dane.
Dane’s hands settled on her shoulders, light and unconfining. But her reaction to his touch was anything but. She began to burn.
Oh, holy hell, this was screwed up.
“No, don’t start to analyze it.” Jared cupped her chin in one hand, forcing her to hold his gaze. “Pleasure isn’t bad. If no one gets hurt, there’s no need for embarrassment or regret. I asked Dane here to help me out but yes, I specifically asked him to come here. To stay the night.”
Jared didn’t ask her permission for Dane to stay. But she didn’t feel like he was forcing her to agree to take Dane into her bed.
And if she had to admit it, if only to herself…she wanted to explore that passion again, that sense of freedom.
“Belle, do you want Dane to leave?”
She took a deep breath and shook her head. “No. He can stay. But traffic may be heavy today. The weekends always pick up and the shop’s open until eight tonight. I won’t have time to talk until later.”
Jared controlled the smile that might have made Annabelle run for the hills. Or kick him and Dane to the curb.
“Then Dane and I will get out of your hair for awhile.”
He bent to kiss her, forceful enough that he pressed her even more fully against Dane. She didn’t flinch. And when he knew she was about to open her mouth and let him in, he pulled away.
Belle’s cheeks blushed a very pretty pink before she carefully stepped out from between him and Dane.
“I’ve got work to do.”
She walked away and he turned to watch, her fiery braid twitching down the back of her dark green T-shirt and that luscious ass swaying in her tight jeans.
Christ, he’d be hard all day.
When he’d called Dane yesterday, he’d wondered if he would be pushing her too far, too fast.
Yes, she’d enjoyed the party on New Year’s Eve, but that had been a moment out of time for her. She’d never told him otherwise, but he knew the moment Dane had touched her that night, that she’d never had two men make love to her at the same time. It wasn’t a situation most women found themselves in. It wasn’t a situation most men would be comfortable with.
He wasn’t most men. And neither was Dane.
By Private Invitation Page 18