Explosive Conditions

by L. J. Garland

  Filling his own glass, he took a healthy gulp and read the bottle’s label. Bollinger Les Vieilles Vignes Francaises? “Tastes expensive.”

  “Try three hundred a bottle.”

  He choked. “Seems Madame Evangeline goes all out when it comes to romance.”

  She peeked up at him through her lashes, a wisp of shyness falling over her features. “Is that what this is, a romance?”

  Damn. His groin tightened. He’d been pretty much obsessed with his memory of this woman from the day he’d pulled her from the burning yacht. He’d dreamed about her, wondered how she’d fared since those pirates attacked and murdered her family. But romance? Never once had that word entered his head.

  He grabbed the champagne and refilled their glasses. As he set the bottle on the table, he made a show of reading the label again. “And how do you happen to know the price? Three bills a pop? What, you out there living large with the high ballers?”

  Of course she was. He’d rescued her from a damn yacht. Her family obviously had money.

  She shook her head. “Not sure the rich and famous would let a common marine biologist like me into their clubs.”

  He arched a brow. “Marine biologist?”

  She laughed. “Well, a girl’s gotta make a living, right? And I’ve always loved the sea. Everything about it. From the creatures that swim in the vast oceans, down to the microorganisms and chemical makeup of the water. Did you know if you took a sample from the Gulf of Mexico and another, say from the Black Sea, you could pinpoint where each originated?”

  He offered her more champagne. “Really?”

  “Well, yeah. The biological chemistry between the two regions is completely different.”

  Her momentary shyness had vanished, and Zeke sat back, enjoying her animated explanations. “Is that so?”

  “Think about it. Everything is so different. The weather patterns, the soil, the temperature of this coast versus that one. Not to mention the populations, industrialization, and contamination issues.” She emptied her glass. “For example, if you tested the Gulf waters, amid the expected naturally occurring chemical composites, you’d find a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of notable molecular weights and other organic compounds that shouldn’t be there.”

  Damn, she was smart. From the few minutes he’d spent with her on the flight to the hospital, he’d had no clue of her intelligence, just that she’d needed him. “What shouldn’t be there?”

  “Oil.”

  “Ah.” He nodded.

  Bright pink stained her cheeks and throat. “You asked me why I wouldn’t be embraced by the wealthy. Guess it’s pretty obvious.”

  “What’s obvious is you love your work. Like I love what I do.” He lifted the bottle and found it empty. “Out. Let me see if they have something else.” Standing, he strode behind the bar. “Here we go.”

  Leaning over, he opened the mini-fridge tucked beneath the counter. He grinned. Straightening, he held up another bottle of champagne and a tray of crackers, cheeses and fruit.

  “Perfect.” She moved to the barstool opposite him. “I’m starving, and I need something to offset all the bubbly. My friends tell me I share too much when I get tipsy.”

  He laughed and, gripping the dark green bottle tight, popped the cork. “Sharing is good.” Especially your body.

  “Ooo…more Bollinger.” She held out her glass, and he complied by filling the flute almost to the rim.

  “You still never told me how you knew this bottle costs three hundred dollars.” He grabbed a cracker, smoothed some cheese on top, and ate it in one bite.

  Kaci swallowed the grape she’d been chewing and averted her gaze. “My parents. Dad was a corporate lawyer, which meant a lot of stuffy Christmas parties. But Mom….” Her jaw tightened for a moment. “My mom, on the other hand, pretty much had access wherever she wanted.” Tipping her flute up, she gulped down her wine.

  He suppressed a cringe. No one said anything about tonight including emotional landmines. Fuck. He’d truly stepped in it, and with the mention of her parents, he couldn’t retreat. Question was, could he defuse the situation?

  Following her lead, he downed his champagne and poured more for them both. “How’d she manage that?”

  “Press pass will get you into all kinds of upscale places.”

  He frowned. “Press pass?”

  She exhaled and turned toward him. “Florida Times.”

  “Oh, a reporter. Wait, I thought the Florida Times was located down in Jacksonville.”

  “Mom worked freelance, breaking stories.” She slathered some cheese onto a round cracker. “Like the prostitution scandal with the mayor two years back. And the district attorney paying for vacations with county funds last year. That one got tricky because the DA had been suing one of my dad’s clients over some huge money-laundering scheme. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black.”

  The stories sounded familiar to him, and his eyes widened as he made the connection. “Your mother was Joanne Carter-Phillips?”

  Kaci nodded.

  “She broke all kinds of stories. Dug into presidential candidates’ backgrounds, exposing tax evasion and character inconsistencies. Even uncovered that gun-running operation out of Miami.” Why wasn’t that in the files I read about the family? It listed her mother as a journalist, but that was it. Was the omission a mistake or an intentional cover up?

  “That was last year, too.”

  “Crap. I had no idea.”

  She shrugged. “Why would you?” She took a bite of the cracker, chewing slowly, her jaw clenching hard with the motion.

  “Your parents must have been proud of you.”

  Reaching for her glass, she gave him a wry smile. “Dad wanted me to follow in his footsteps. Join him at his firm. But defending corporations just wasn’t in my blood. He was thrilled when my brother, Danny, got accepted to Yale, his alma mater. I, on the other hand, ended up at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale.”

  “Impressive school.” He bit into a strawberry.

  She nodded. “Dad came around. But Mom?” The corner of her mouth lifted. “She got me from the beginning. Told me to follow my heart.”

  “And that led you here to Destin?”

  She grimaced. “After…everything that happened, I kinda went off grid. You know? I needed time.”

  Remembering the grisly murder of her family six months before, his heart ached for her. “Sure you did.”

  “A job led me back here.” She set her glass down. “We used to alternate summers between the beach and a family lake house. Well….” Her gaze met his, her tragic loss coming through loud and clear. “Anyway. I needed a change.”

  “Like your hair?”

  She lifted her hand and smoothed a lock behind her ear, her sudden nervousness wildly enticing.

  “It was longer.” He reached over and fingered the bobbed-off strands, which ended just below her jawline. “And darker in color. A warm brown.”

  “You don’t like it?”

  He smiled. “It suits you. Very sophisticated.”

  He stared into her eyes—the same green gaze that haunted his dreams, both sleeping and waking. The room around him seemed to vanish, and the inexplicable connection he’d experienced when he’d rescued her from her family’s yacht shot along his nerves, settling deep in his gut. She could change her hair, her makeup, her clothes, even her eye color, and it wouldn’t make a damn difference. She would still affect him in a way no one else ever had.

  He drove his hand into her hair, letting the glossy threads sift between his fingers. “That is a sexy shade of red.”

  She licked her lips. “Really?”

  “Oh, yeah.” He leaned across the bar and pulled her toward him, crushing his mouth to hers.

  She parted her lips and met his tongue with a heat that sent lust careening through his veins. Shifting higher onto her barstool, she angled her head and ravaged his mouth. Hot shock bolted to his gut. Damn, no woman had ever kissed him
like that before.

  She moved closer, wrapping one arm around his neck, and nipped his earlobe. What the hell? He’d never had to work to keep up with a woman. He’d always been lead in his sexual encounters.

  A champagne flute toppled to the floor, landing next to his foot. He opened his eyes.

  How the hell did she get up on the bar in that skirt and those heels? Oh shit, who cares?

  She ran her tongue down the side of his neck, eliciting a rush of need straight to his groin. Moaning, he cupped her deliciously round bottom with one hand and tugged her closer.

  “Oh, God,” she whimpered. “I just…I just….”

  Chapter Seven

  Want you. Kaci reached for his shirt, tugging it up and over his head. She gulped. “Oh, my!”

  Unable to stop herself—not that she wanted to—she trailed her hands over his muscular shoulders and down the hard planes of his chest. Good Lord, who knew all this was under his shirt?

  She dragged her nails through his chest hairs, pausing to draw circles around one of his flat male nipples. When she flicked the tight tip, he jolted.

  “Jesus,” he breathed.

  Lifting her gaze to his, she grinned at the lust clear on his face. Emboldened, she leaned forward and set her mouth atop his nipple. She teased the rigid point with the tip of her tongue, while she slid her hand down his taut abs, over his hips, and between his strong thighs. Oh, yes. She stroked the length of him, enjoying the feel of his erection beneath her palm.

  He groaned, his hips arching toward her touch. She loved the way he responded to her, as though only she could give him pleasure. With her other hand, she loosened his belt, thoughts of intimate caresses driving her forward.

  When he stepped back, she stared up at him. Had she done something wrong?

  Fire danced in his eyes—both intimidating and thrilling her at the same time.

  “Kaci,” he growled.

  Her body tightened with need at the sound of his voice. Heat suffused her breasts, her nipples peaking beneath her halter-top. Her tummy quivered and warmth spread through her lower regions, dampening her panties. How was it possible he could make her respond so wantonly by merely saying her name?

  His gaze raked over her. No way he could miss her reaction. Unable to allow him control, she lifted her chin and stared him down. “Yes.”

  The muscle in his jaw twitched, and his nostrils flared. A moment later, he leapt onto the bar next to her. God, his gracefulness reminded her of a jungle cat, the feral gleam in his eyes completing the image. She yelped and leaned back.

  He grabbed her arm. “You don’t get away from me that easily.”

  “Who says I want to?” she shot back.

  In a single, swift move, he yanked the bow of her halter-top free. “No?”

  Her face flushed, and her breaths came in short pants. Damn, she was so turned on. Lifting her knees, she swiveled toward him where he knelt and straddled him. Her heels clicked against the counter on either side of his knees. Leaning forward, she pressed her mouth to his. He stroked her tongue with his, dueling her for dominance. At last, her head spinning, she broke the kiss.

  “Does it look like I’m trying to get away?” she challenged.

  Reaching around her, he shoved the cheese tray down the length of the bar, sending it crashing to the floor. His warm palm pressed against her lower back. He eased forward, forcing her to lie back.

  “Maybe.” He ran his tongue from her shoulder, up the side of her neck, and nipped her ear, releasing a delicious shiver over her body. “Maybe not.”

  He stared at her and picked up the half-full champagne flute. “Let me see….”

  He tipped the glass, dribbling cold wine on her breasts. The liquid raced over her skin, some pooling in her navel. Another shiver tore through her, and she sucked air between her teeth.

  Bending over, he dipped his tongue into her bellybutton. “Delicious.”

  She arched, never once believing she would react in such a way.

  He pressed her hips back to the bar. “Not done yet, darlin’.”

  Lowering his head again, he licked the erotic spot, his tongue darting against her skin. Reaching up, he cupped one of her breasts, teasing the sensitive point with his finger and thumb. His other hand slid beneath her skirt, his fingers delving between her folds.

  His dark gaze found hers. “I like the way your body responds to me.”

  He darted kisses along her fevered skin, moving higher and higher until he took her nipple into his mouth. She drove her fingers into his hair to hold him there while his hand stroked her over and over, tightening the coil deep within her core.

  “I….” She moaned.

  He moved along her skin, kissing and nipping her throat while he continued his exquisite torture. “What?”

  “I just….”

  “Tell me.” He took her mouth, ravaging her with his lips until the room spun. “Say it.”

  “I want you.”

  He sat back on his knees. Bereft, she reached for him, but his intense gaze gave her pause. Beneath her skirt, he slipped his fingers from her, latched onto the slim band of her panties, and tugged.

  “Oh!” she yelped as her lacy undergarment broke free.

  Grinning, he tossed it aside. He pulled a foil packet from his pocket then unbuttoned his pants and shoved them to his knees. His immense erection sprang forth. Sitting up, she reached for him, stroking his silky length. Taking the packet, she ripped it open and covered him with the condom, caressing him as she rolled it into place.

  Gritting his teeth, he growled and clasped her hands. “Easy, or we’ll be done before we start.”

  She arched her brow. “Tell me,” she challenged. “Say it.”

  Feral lust flashed on his face. Grabbing her knees, he jerked upward, and she fell back against the bar. His massive hands skimmed along her thighs, raking her skirt up to her hips as they went, leaving her open and exposed to him.

  “Have no doubt, darlin’.” He rose over her and, in a swift move, thrust deep inside her. “I want you.”

  Damn, she was hot silk beneath him. All that tousled red hair, those emerald eyes glinting with defiance. How could he not want her?

  He jerked his gaze from her face and focused on the scattered crackers and cheese on the floor. The dented platter amid the mess.

  He pumped his hips against hers, unable to keep from losing himself in her heat. Hell, he’d been dreaming about her for months. So how long did he think he could last?

  Until she screams my name. That’s the mission, Matthews.

  He drove into her, remnants of the champagne he’d poured on her slipping between their bodies. Her chest flushed, and her breath hitched. She moaned, bucking beneath him, and he almost lost control. Clenching his jaw, he soldiered on, urging her closer to climax.

  She clutched at him, her nails dragging across his back. The pain rippled along his skin, an erotic distraction while he continued to move against her. Beneath him, she wound tighter and tighter.

  Trigger. He dared to glance at her face. What will set you off, honey? Make you explode?

  He angled to the side, setting his weight on one elbow. Pulling the knee she’d rested against his hip higher, he draped her leg over his shoulder. He groaned. Good God, who’s triggering who here?

  Her breasts jiggled enticingly. Leaning over, he took one turgid nipple into his mouth, laving it with his tongue. She whimpered. Wanting more, he dragged his teeth over the tight bud.

  “Zeke!” Gasping, she arched against him.

  She quivered in his arms, her face a mask of ecstasy. He looked away, wanting her to ride through her orgasm, but caught sight of her in the mirror behind the bar. The skirt bunched at her waist. Her long, sexy leg. The high heel still strapped to her foot.

  “Oh, shit,” he groaned. Apparently, watching her climax was his trigger. “Kaci!”

  The knot in his gut unraveled, and lightning flashed to the very tips of his nerve endings as he thrust deep. He t
ensed, his entire being zeroing in on his groin. And then, he released, all thoughts lost as pulse after glorious pulse wracked his body. Drifting back into himself, he moved against her, completing his pleasure. Damn, if he didn’t shoot right through the end of the rubber, he’d be amazed.

  Soft fingertips trailed up and down his back. “That was….”

  Brushing a copper lock from her forehead, he gazed down into languid eyes. “Yeah.”

  She moved her legs, wrapping them around his waist, and a naughty grin curved her lips. “Soooo?”

  He sat up, bringing her with him. “Hungry?”

  “Not for food.” She locked her feet together behind his back.

  “How about we relocate?” His body stirred, responding to the way she remained snuggled against him. “I hear they have a king size bed with memory foam somewhere on this boat.”

  “Ooo, memory foam.”

  He laughed and kissed her sweet lips. Damn if he didn’t want her again.

  Chapter Eight

  Light caressed Kaci’s eyelids, rousing her from the most amazing sex dream she’d ever had. Her lover had been the man who’d rescued her from another horrible nightmare in her life. Zeke.

  Zeke?

  Strong fingers stroked the side of her thigh. A warm mouth pressed above her knee, the wet kiss sending decadent tingles dancing along her skin.

  A moment later, a strange crunching noise filled her ears. Curious, she peeked through her lashes. Another sensual lip caress a little higher on her leg increased her heart rate. Where had this guy learned to kiss like that?

  More crunching.

  She glanced down. What the—?

  A line of colored pellets dotted her body from above her knee, over her hip, and across her stomach. The trail ended between her naked breasts. Her lover was busy consuming each candy in turn. She smiled and fought not to squirm as he licked the next one from her hip.

  “You’re awake.” He chewed the treat he’d removed from her body.

  “Yes.” She pointed at the trail he followed. “Care to explain?”

  “Found a bowl of M&Ms on the dresser next to another bucket of champagne.” Leaning over, he set his mouth to her quivering tummy, bestowing another titillating kiss while he gathered his sweet treat. “You and chocolate, darlin’. A combination like no other.”