by T. K. Leigh
I closed my eyes, losing myself in the moment. I felt as if I was having an out-of-body experience. I forgot that I was sitting in the front seat of his car, the hot Texas sun beating down on me. For all I knew, I was in his bed, waiting for his next move. Unexpectedly, I felt him clench his teeth on my neck, sucking gently. It shocked me, the pain rather pleasurable as I squirmed in my seat.
“Mackenzie,” he murmured, his hand grazing the contours of my frame, settling on my leg. He raised the hem of my skirt, his fingers closing in on the spot I wanted him to touch, that I needed him to touch. My breathing grew erratic, the anticipation forcing a mounting pressure to build. After what seemed to be minutes, but was probably just seconds, he lifted the seam of my panties, relief washing over me as he touched me.
“You’re always so ready for me, aren’t you?” he asked. “I do this to you, don’t I?”
I simply nodded, moaning as I gently thrust against his hand.
“Tell me, Mackenzie. Tell me that just being near me makes you this fucking wet.”
“It does,” I said in agreement.
“More,” he murmured. “Tell me more.” He stroked me in a gentle yet demanding way. The way he told me what he wanted me to do flamed my thirst for him. He read my body as if it were a book, analyzing me, reacting to me, giving me exactly what I needed.
“You light me on fire every time you’re around, and even when you’re not,” I purred, moving against his skilled fingers with more ferocity. “And it confuses and scares me that my body craves you more than I can remember it wanting anything in my life.”
“Mackenzie,” he whispered, feathering kisses against my neck. “Don’t be scared. Stop thinking. Just feel. Let yourself feel. Do you feel this?” He grabbed my hand and placed it on his racing heart. I opened my eyes and met his, a look of part lust and part veneration on his face.
“I feel it.”
“Good. Tomorrow night, I’m going to make you feel so many things.” He abruptly removed his hand and I stilled from the void I felt.
“Why did you stop?” I asked, my tone demanding. I was so close to unraveling and I felt barren, empty, desolate.
“Because,” he said, closing the door and running around to the other side of the truck.
“Because why?” I whined.
“Because I need you to be at your breaking point. I want to give you an orgasm to end all orgasms. I want you so addicted to what I can do to your body that you’ll chase that feeling forever.”
“You want me to chase the dragon with you?” I asked.
He eyed me, his brow furrowed, and swallowed hard. “What did you say?”
I shrugged. “You know… Chasing the dragon. Trying to recreate the feeling of that first high every time.”
His expression softened, his rigid body visibly relaxing. “Yes, but it’ll be a bit different. I’ll do my very best to recreate the feeling of that first orgasm when I’m inside you over and over again. I want each orgasm that I give you better and more fulfilling than the last.”
“Well,” I said in a stern tone, “you do realize that tomorrow may be our one and only night together, so we should start chasing the dragon right now.”
He smiled, cranking the engine of the Bronco. “Nice try, sunshine, but not going to happen. I’m a damn good poker player, mainly because I observe the other people at the table.”
“Oh really?” I crossed my arms in front of my chest, slipping my flip flops off my feet and placing them on the dashboard. A gust of wind blew through my hair and there was an air of serenity about me, regardless that I was completely on edge from being brought to the brink and then left wanting.
Tyler glanced at me, licking his lips in a salacious manner as he scanned my legs. “Yes, really.”
“Well, then, by all means, please tell me what you’ve observed.” I gave him a smug look.
“I’ve learned you never show your hand until you need to. You love the rush of fooling everyone around you, maybe even yourself, into thinking the game will end one way. I’ll hand it to you. You play a good game, Mackenzie, because you’ve made more than your fair share of people fold their hand and walk away from you. But not me. While you’ve been playing your game, I’ve been sitting across the table from you, studying your every move, analyzing every word that’s been uttered out of those beautiful lips of yours.”
I swallowed hard at the fierceness in his eyes. “And…?”
A sly smile spread across his full lips. “And I’m not ready to reveal my hand.” He closed the distance between us, his mouth poised on mine. “But I know you’re bluffing,” he growled, shifting into first and pulling the car onto the main road.
I dropped my jaw, about to argue, but he continued, “You can go ahead and tell yourself that this is just for one night all you want, Mackenzie. But we both know you can’t resist me. You can’t bear the thought of walking away from me after Friday night.”
“If you already know I’m not going to walk away, how come we haven’t…?” I raised my eyebrows.
“Fucked?”
“Well, yeah. I’ve given you more than enough opportunities. Hell, I pretty much throw myself at you every time we’re together.”
“And I love that about you. I love that you’re not timid, that you know what you want.”
“And I want you, so what’s the problem? And don’t give me some bullshit reason that you need to finesse me. What you need to do is grow some balls and fuck me already.”
He clenched his jaw, his chest heaving. Abruptly turning the wheel and directing his Bronco into a dirt parking lot overlooking the shore, he cut the ignition. There was this feral and malevolent air about him, and part of me was a little intimidated. The other part of me was holding a set of directional lights, letting him know he was cleared for landing.
Pressing the release on my seat belt, he grabbed my waist and brought my body on top of his, forcing me to straddle him.
“I want to, baby. Fuck, do I want to,” he grunted, pushing against me. He ran his tongue against my collarbone, the sound of whistling echoing from spring breakers as they strode past us. “But we have an audience right now. And while I’m certainly one who loves to spice things up, I’m pretty sure screwing in public is against the law.”
“Let’s go back to my place then.” I peered down at him, shading his face with my hair.
“Mackenzie, baby,” he muttered, splaying his hand on my back. “You have no idea how badly I want you right now.”
“No. I do, Tyler. I can feel it. Don’t deny your body what it aches for, what it hungers for, what it yearns for. You want me. You can have me. All of me…” I grabbed his hand and held it against my chest, allowing him to feel my now racing heart. Cupping his face in my hands, I brought his mouth to mine, my motions passive, at odds with the intensity with which my heart was beating. I wanted to feel him, to savor each and every sweep of his tongue against mine.
“Not yet, Mackenzie,” he said, his voice low. He ran his fingers up my back, brushing my hair from my face. “Not like this. I need to show you, to prove to you, that I meant what I said. I’m all in. And I can’t do that with a quick fuck in the middle of the day. I need time to appreciate you, to revere your body in a way no other man before me has. In a way no man after me will ever be able to, although the thought of any other man touching you makes me wild with jealousy. I want you to be taken care of, inside the bedroom and out, and that means giving you the whole package. You need the fairytale and that’s exactly what you’re going to get from me. Okay?”
I stared at him, dumbstruck. “Okay,” I whispered, climbing off him and back to my seat.
“Now, let’s go shoot some guns, princess.”
Tyler
“HERE,” I SAID, HANDING Mackenzie a folded pile of clothes once we arrived at the shooting range. I reached into my duffle bag and held out a pair of boots for her, as well. “Go change. There’s a locker room over there.” I gestured past a long case containing a wide arra
y of pistols, shotguns, and rifles.
“I have to change?”
“Yes. As adorable as you look in that skirt and tank top, it’s not exactly the best wardrobe in which to handle a gun.” I sat down, slipping my flip flops off and pulling some boots over my cargo pants, lacing them up. After all the years in the navy, I could probably do this blindfolded.
I sensed Mackenzie still standing in the same place and I looked up, smiling when I saw the sexy grin on her face.
“Honestly, Tyler, if you wanted to see me in fatigues, you could have just said something.” She spun around, her hips swinging like a pendulum. “I’m always more than happy to let you live out all of your fantasies,” she called over her shoulder, disappearing into the locker room.
Releasing a long breath, I bit my lip, needing to quiet my urges before I followed her in there. It had been taking all of my resolve to not cave in to her advances.
It would have been easier if I didn’t feel anything for her. It wasn’t supposed to happen. It was supposed to be one-sided. I never expected to feel so strongly about the target, the asset. But here I was, torn about the entire mission, regardless of the assurances I had given my brother that I would be able to put it all aside. I could almost see the expression on Mackenzie’s face when she realizes I disappeared without saying goodbye. I could almost hear her sobs. I could almost feel her heart breaking in her chest because, knowing the role I needed to play, my heart was aching.
“You okay?” a sweet voice cut through my thoughts and I snapped my head up, my bereft expression turning to one of hope, of promise.
“Yeah. Sorry. I was just thinking about something.”
I pushed off the bench and walked toward her, enveloping her in my embrace before holding her at arm’s length, surveying her. “Yup. This is hot. I’m officially done for. Any woman who looks as equally enchanting in a dress as she does in a pair of combat boots is a keeper in my book.”
I inspected her body, the gray t-shirt snug around her chest and tucked into a pair of cargo pants. Her hair was pulled back, and she had washed most of the makeup off her face.
I leaned toward her, planting a soft kiss on her head. “You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met. No matter what happens between us, please remember that. Know that you have done what I thought no woman would ever be able to do.”
She tilted her head, gazing into my eyes. “And what’s that?”
“You made me believe in love again. You made me believe in the lightning strike.”
Sighing, she intertwined my fingers with hers. “And you made me believe in the fairytale. Now, let’s get to the part in the book where the heroic prince teaches the stubborn princess how to fire a gun.”
“You got it, mi amore.” Slinging my duffle bag over my shoulder, I guided her down a narrow hallway leading to the outdoor shooting range.
“Tyler!” I heard a voice bellow once we emerged outside. I smiled, heading toward a shorter, balding, slightly overweight man who had become almost like a father to me.
“Hey, Mike,” I said, shaking his hand. “Thanks for this.”
“You bet. Anything I can do to help out a kid of Thomas’. How’s your mom doing?”
“Good. I haven’t seen her since Christmas, though.”
“Well, you should make an effort to pay her a visit, Tyler,” he scolded. “I’m sure she misses her baby.”
I tried to ignore his last statement and turned my attention to Mackenzie. “Mike, this is Mackenzie. Mackenzie, this is Mike. He worked with my dad at the CIA.”
She held her hand out, allowing Mike to take it. “CIA? Were you a spy?” she asked playfully.
“That’s classified information, ma’am,” he said with a wink. “Although, I knew his dad long before his days with the agency. We were at Great Lakes together before shipping off to Vietnam.”
I leaned toward Mackenzie. “Great Lakes is−”
“I know. It’s where you go for basic training when you’re in the navy. I am more than just a pretty face, you know.”
“Oh boy,” Mike said, laughing and slapping me on the back. “I like this one. She’s got some bite to her.”
I winked, keeping my eyes focused solely on her. “I like this one, too, Mike.”
“Good. Now, I’ve cleared the range for the next few hours, so it’s all yours to do whatever you want with no interruptions. Have fun, kids, and make sure you take it easy on her, Tyler. She hasn’t been handling guns since she was twelve like you, son.”
“I’ll be good.”
“If you need anything, let me know.”
I reached out and shook Mike’s hand once more. “I sure will. Oh, and were you able to−”
“Yup. It’s all set in your usual stall.” He gestured with his head down the row of booths.
“Great. Thanks, Mike. You’re the best.”
“No worries.” He smiled before turning and leaving us alone in the outdoor shooting range.
“So,” Mackenzie said with a grin, “want to shoot some guns?”
“Hell, yes. This way.” I wrapped my hand around hers and led her toward the far end and my favorite stall. A grin crept across my face when I entered and saw that Mike had pulled through for me, even on such short notice. I dropped my bag on the ground and unzipped it, pulling out two pairs of protective glasses and earmuffs.
“Hope you don’t mind. I got you a pair of pink earmuffs to match your lips.”
“They actually make pink earmuffs?” she asked, taking them from me and fitting them over her head, adjusting them slightly. She stared straight ahead at the steel targets set at various distances across the rolling dirt hills.
“Yes. And I may bring them Friday night, along with an eye mask,” I said in a soft voice. “If you can’t see or hear, it’ll just increase your other senses…like touch.” I ran my finger down her arm, causing her to jump and remove the earmuffs.
“What did you say?”
I smirked. “Don’t you wish you knew? Okay. Let’s get started.”
I brought Mackenzie toward the small table at the front of the booth, placing the eyewear on my face and gesturing for her to do the same. Picking up a pistol set on a small cloth, I checked the magazine, ensuring that it was empty before placing it back on the table.
“This is a SIG Sauer P229 pistol. I think this is a good gun for you to learn on. It’s compact and lightweight. Once you get the hang of it, it’s easy to fire.”
She approached the table, her eyes glued to the weapon. A low whimper escaped her mouth as she reached out for the pistol, her hand shaking. A minute ago, she was carefree and full of light. But the second her eyes fell on the weapon, she tensed up, her spine stiffening.
I grabbed her arms, turning her to face me, rubbing her skin in a soothing manner. “Talk to me. What are you thinking?”
“I’m just worried that you feel it necessary to teach me how to use one of these. It’s just… It’s a little overwhelming, that’s all.”
“I know it’s a lot to take in, but don’t be scared of the weapon. It can protect you. I hope you’ll never have to use it for that purpose but if you do, I’ll feel better knowing I taught you how to use it properly.”
“But what if I kill…?”
“If someone’s breaking into your place and intends to do you harm, you can’t think about that. I’ll teach you how to shoot to maim and not kill. That’s how my father taught me. But sometimes, Mackenzie… Sometimes you have no option but to shoot and take whatever you get, and…” I paused. “Sometimes that’s the difference between your life and theirs. Not to be selfish, but I really prefer you to be alive.”
“Don’t you think this is a bit extreme?” she asked, obviously a bit distressed.
“Mackenzie, I don’t want you to do anything you’re not ready for. Owning a gun is all about being comfortable with and understanding the weapon, not being afraid of it. Trust me. I’m going to teach you everything you need to know and, I assure you, no harm will come
to anyone who doesn’t deserve it in the first place. Now, we can either leave and I’ll take you back home so you can go to work, or I can show you how to use that weapon.” I nodded toward the small pistol. “Your call.”
She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply as if trying to convince herself she could do this. She appeared unguarded and exposed.
“Mackenzie,” I soothed, embracing her.
She visibly relaxed, sighing into my chest. “This is better.”
“What is?” I asked, meeting her eyes.
“Your arms. It’s where I feel safe. It reminds me of…” She turned her head, staring at the targets in the distance.
“What does it remind you of, Mackenzie?” I murmured, kissing the top of her head.
“Home. The only home I’ve known for years. I felt it that night we first danced, although I refused to admit it. I could be completely wrong, but I think you felt it, too. That’s why you’ve been so annoyingly persistent.” She inhaled deeply, her breathing growing even. “The truth is, before you inundated yourself in my life, I was drowning.”
“How do you mean?” I asked, gently caressing her face. This was the real Mackenzie. During all those months I spent observing her, I never truly figured out who she was. Sure, I knew what she liked, what she didn’t like. I knew her habits, her routine. But I never had a grasp on who she was as a person. Part of me thought she didn’t even know who she was. Finally, the guarded shell of a woman had begun to expose herself to me, and I wanted nothing more than to rescue her from the water that was washing over her.
“I was pulling myself down, refusing to do anything out of the ordinary. I needed the routine. I needed everything to be perfectly ordered. And I fought it with you. I tried to tell myself there was no way anyone could feel this way about someone they’ve barely known a week.” She closed her eyes, a slight smile crossing her face.
“My mother always told me falling in love is a lot like jumping from an airplane without a parachute. There’s no stopping it once you’ve taken that first step.” Opening her eyes, she grabbed my hand in hers, holding it against her heart. I could feel it thumping in her chest, the intensity of the drumming causing my heart to beat in time with hers.