by Jamie Wesley
She leaned forward, teasing him with her breasts. It would take nothing for him to yank the spandex out of the way and taste her nipple. Nothing at all.
Lust thrummed through his veins. She was the cause and the cure. “Val.”
“Ready to give in?” she murmured.
This was a game to her. She didn’t want to acknowledge what was happening between them. He couldn’t let her win. She’d dismiss him from her life in an instant if she didn’t find him to be a worthy sparring partner. He couldn’t touch her, but he could make her see how much he wanted her with his gaze. He let everything he was feeling show on his face. Longing, desire, hunger. All for her.
She blinked, then slid a finger down his cheek. “So stoic. So in control. Don’t you want to give in? You feel the heat burning up between us.”
With some Herculean effort, he marshalled his thoughts one more time. “Is that was this is about? Trying to distract me with sex?”
“What’s wrong with sex?” she whispered in his ear.
“Nothing, except when you’re using it as a weapon.”
She shrugged and looked away. He held his breath, sensing what she would say next would be important and alter the course of their relationship in some way.
“Sex is what I know,” she finally said in a small voice like it had cost her everything to admit that truth. Her gaze returned to his, defiance blazing. “And I know you want it with me, too.”
He wanted more, but this would have to be enough. For now. She didn’t do vulnerable easily and it was plain to see that one confession had cost her dearly.
“Why were you avoiding me?” He couldn’t touch her, but she was kidding herself if she thought she was the only who could tempt. His breath tickled her flesh. “Tell me.”
“I wasn’t—oh God, do that again.”
He smiled against her neck. Breathed in her scent. “Do what? I didn’t do anything.”
She groaned. “Why are you torturing me?”
“Because I want you to admit I’m more than just a random guy you want to screw. Say you like me.”
Her eyes flashed. “Why?”
“Because it’s the truth.”
Her eyebrow rose. “If I don’t?”
“I’ll leave you a very, very frustrated woman. Those choppy breaths don’t lie. Hard nipples don’t lie. This isn’t just another routine for you. If you say yes, I’ll slip my hand inside those ridiculously short shorts and give you what you’re too stubborn to admit you want. I bet if I touched you there right now, you would be very, very wet.”
“Touch me, Malcolm.” Husky. Inviting. Nearly impossible to resist.
“Say it.” He moved his hand to the waistband of the shorts.
“Even if I do, this can’t go anywhere.”
He knew that, damn it. He wanted her to say it anyway. Didn’t he deserve to have some fun for once in his life? Not worry about whether every step he took fit into “the plan”? “Say it.”
“Fine. I like you. Now touch me, damn it.”
“Gladly.” He gripped the back of her neck and brought her lips to his. She ground her hips against his, making his task a difficult one, but he was a man of his word. He pushed aside the spandex and delved inside her shorts.
“Shit,” he muttered. She was wet. Wetter than he would have dreamed. If he had known, he wouldn’t have lasted this long. She spread her legs, allowing him to slip a finger inside her. Shit. Her slick folds felt fantastic. Perfect against his hand. She whimpered and he added another finger.
“Please,” she whispered, grinding against his hand, her movements now guided by instinct and need, instead of some mission to torture. The torture came anyway. He’d never been harder in his life than he was at this very moment with Val on his lap, touching and kissing her. He wanted more. He wanted everything she had to give. Now.
“Come for me, Val.” He twisted his fingers inside her.
She broke, her screams echoing in the wood cabin. He ground his teeth together in an effort not to join her. He drew her close with his free arm, wanting to feel her shudders.
“That was amazing,” she whispered against his neck.
“I know. I felt it.”
“You are so arrogant, Harvard.”
Back to Harvard, were they? Trying to resurrect the wall that had come tumbling down? Not if he had anything to say about it.
He pushed himself up to his feet. Val yelped and wrapped her legs around him. In two long strides, he reached her bed and lowered her to the bedspread. She’d never looked more beautiful. Hair in wild disarray, the sheen of an orgasm adding a glow to her already luminous brown skin.
He needed to be inside her. Now.
“Condom?” he demanded. She’d pushed him to his limits. The time for games was over.
She pointed to her nightstand. He reached it in less than a second and rifled through it until he found his prize. While he was busy, Val undressed. He raced to join her, whipping off his shirt, shorts, and underwear. Then he rolled on the condom, climbed on the bed, and covered her body with his. Her mouth met his in a long, hot kiss.
She placed a hand against his chest. He growled. She spoke fast. “Forgot to mention you’re going to have to sign a consent form saying this is all mutual.”
It was his turn to arch his eyebrows. “Say what now?”
“Yeah, that’s what Heather said. She doesn’t care if we get involved. She just doesn’t want to get sued, so agree and we can move on to much more important things.” She whispered the last part against his neck in between small nips of his flesh.
“Fine. Whatever you say.” He was too far gone for any more discussion.
He covered her mouth with his, hooked her leg over the crook of his elbow, and entered her in one sure stroke. Val screamed into his mouth and locked her other leg around his waist. He rocked his hips into hers seeking more contact, even as minute as it was. It was worth it. Bliss shot to every corner of his body. He retreated, loving the feel of her inner muscles clenching him.
“More,” she demanded. He gave it to her, each stroke harder and faster than the last, her moans urging him on. It was a wild, fast, desperate ride. He didn’t know how he’d lasted this long without being inside her.
“Please, please,” she moaned, clutching him tighter. She was close. So was he. Malcolm adjusted the angle of his hips and thrust one more time. As he soared off the cliff, Val was right by his side, screaming her pleasure in his ear.
SEVEN
“Now do you want to tell me why you were avoiding me?” Malcolm spoke quietly into the darkness. Val’s eyes were closed, but he knew damn well she wasn’t sleeping. The line of her body, usually so elegant, was too rigid, her grip on the bedsheet too tight. But maybe she’d actually answer him with the shadows surrounding them in the still of the night.
Val’s eyes flickered open. She stared at the ceiling, a small smile curving her lips. “Want to have a heart-to-heart after I gave you a lap dance you’ll never forget? Not to mention the best orgasm of your life?”
Obviously, he’d been overconfident in his evaluation of the situation. Malcolm bit back a sigh. “Val.”
She squirmed. “Don’t get your boxers in a twist.”
“If only I were wearing any.”
She snorted. “That sense of humor slays me yet again.”
“Answer the question.”
“Oh, all right.” She huffed out a breath. “Everything got so real today.”
“With the contest?” With them?
“Yes. We’re not just finalists. We’re the only finalists.”
“That scared you?” He rose onto his elbow. Needing to see her. The unrest in her eyes nearly undid him.
“Um, yes. What if I’m not good enough? What if my idea is stupid? What if I can’t make it work? All my work would be for nothing. It would be devastating.”
“I get it.”
She pulled the bedsheet over her shoulder and turned toward the wall. Away from him. “How would you kn
ow?” Her voice was small. “You’ve never failed at anything in your life.”
“Hey, look at me. Look at me.” He didn’t speak again until she complied. He couldn’t resist smoothing out the worry lines between her eyebrows. “You think I’ve never failed? I have.” His old wounds started crowding his voice, but this wasn’t about him right now. “I have a lot riding on this too. I get worried, but that doesn’t mean I get to retreat. I don’t want you to retreat, either. I know the effort it took to get this far in the contest.”
Finally, a smile began to pull at her lips. “So I’m not a pity finalist?”
“Come on now. You know you’re not. No matter what happens, you’re a badass. Satisfied’s proposal was fantastic, if I do say so myself, so I know yours must have, too. The fact that you haven’t let whatever’s held you back in the past stop you from going after what you want speaks volumes to your perseverance and talent and brainpower. Why don’t we both continue to kick ass and let the chips fall where they may?”
Easier said than done, he knew, but all he had at the moment. Especially since he was nowhere near being ready to let her go.
She squeezed his hand, her smile finally reaching her eyes. “Okay.”
***
Val refused to classify what she was doing as mooning. She did not moon. She was a grown-ass woman. She’d been through hell and back with too many men to build fantasies around them. She was simply admiring Malcolm’s fine form as he slept. His very fine form.
No need for her to overanalyze why she’d woken up thirty minutes ago and simply watched him sleep. He was gorgeous, the hard lines of his mouth softened in slumber, his too-die-for body only partially covered by a blanket she’d have to get rid of at the closest opportunity.
Her gaze caught on the scruff covering his jaw. Damn, the man’s beard did all kinds of things to her insides. A memory of the soft hair rasping across her skin while he pleasured her breasts with his mouth nearly had her moaning out loud. Her nipples peaked.
Good lord. They’d spent the majority of the night having sex.
Thank goodness she had a bet to collect on. A distraction from her growing feelings for him. She pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “Wake up, Sunshine.”
His eyes fluttered open. “What time is it?”
His voice, all deep and grumbly with sleep, slid through her, awakening her desire yet again. Focus. She needed to focus. “Six thirty.”
He groaned. “In the morning? Didn’t we fall asleep at four thirty?”
Val nodded. “We did.”
“And you’re awake now.”
“Yep.” Her plan to seduce him had worked. But that’s as far as it needed to go. Only one of them would win the contest and to pretend that result wouldn’t have an effect on their relationship, as tenuous as it was, was stupid. Mixing business with pleasure wasn’t smart anyway. The last time she’d done so, it had ended horribly and the guy had stolen her money and ideas.
Besides, why was she assuming Malcolm would want to see her again after he left at the end of the week anyway? This had summer camp fling written all over it. So she wanted to have some fun with him while she could.
“Why?” His voice was still all craggy and, good lord, she was wet again.
“Because I won the bet, and I’m ready to collect.”
“You did what?” A little more of his natural bass had found its way into his voice.
Val poured all the innocence she could into her smile and tone. “I won the bet.”
“How exactly do you figure that?”
She blinked. “You touched me.”
“After you told me to.”
She shook her head. “No, that’s not how I remember it going down. I told you not to play dirty. And you did.”
“How?”
Being too attractive and sexy for words. “Tickling my neck with your breath. Talking in your deep voice. ‘I’ll give you what you’re too stubborn to admit you want Val.’ Remember that?” His plan had worked to perfection. She’d been aroused from the moment she’d spotted him. “So up and at ’em. We have somewhere to be in less than an half an hour.”
A line appeared between his eyebrows. “Where?” He blinked, then shook his head. “No. Not going to happen.”
“Of course it is. You came here to have some fun. So we’re going to have some fun.”
“You think yoga is fun?”
She beamed. “Absolutely. You need to give it a chance.”
“Can’t we stay here and make good use of this bed again?” He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her down on top of him.
Val treasured the contact for a moment—okay a couple of moments—before wiggling away. “As tempting as that offer is, we can’t stay in bed for the rest of the week.”
“Why not?” His manly pout was the epitome of cute. She was in so much trouble.
Because I’m afraid I’ll become even more addicted to you than I already am. “Pretty sure my boss would frown on that. She’d probably understand, mind you. I’ve seen her with her husband, after all. But I have a feeling she’d get a little annoyed if I didn’t show up for my classes or performances. So let’s go.”
Val hopped out of the bed and did what she had to do—whip the blanket away. She didn’t bother stopping herself from taking a visual tour of his body. So much tempting flesh right there on display. Long, lean muscles. A six-pack. His erection was long and firm. Her mouth watered. Why was she doing this again?
He groaned and swung his feet to the floor. “I will have my revenge.”
“Not if we don’t get to yoga first.”
He grabbed a pillow and tossed it at her.
Twenty-five minutes, they’d checked out mats from Essa, the yoga instructor, and found a spot amongst the other campers, many of whom seemed to know each other and had paired off. Val had come to a session Essa held for staff before camp started and had enjoyed the experience. The setting, here on the lake’s main dock, was perfect with the sun rising over the lake and the call of the birds waking up for the day.
They followed the Essa’s directions and did a couple of stretches to warm up. Then it was time for the fun part. At the instructor’s direction, she sat in Malcolm’s lap and crossed her legs behind his back. Because of the camp’s theme for the week, this wasn’t just yoga. It was tantric couples’ yoga.
“Look into your partner’s eyes and try to regulate your breathing,” Essa said, weaving her way through the pairs. “You want to make the connection that allows you to believe you two are the only people on earth.”
Val did as she was told.
“Don’t move. Just be,” the instructor called out. “Feel the moment. Be in the moment.”
A laser-like focus entered Malcolm’s eyes. His breaths intensified like he was counting them silently. Like the quest to relax was a competition, and there would be a winner declared at the end of the session. Val couldn’t help herself. She giggled.
“Is this not supposed to be sexy?” Malcolm asked through gritted teeth.
“Yes.”
“Then stop laughing.”
His affront only made her giggle harder. “Sorry.”
“I’m really trying not to be offended right now.”
“It’s just that you’re taking this so seriously,” Val whispered. “No one is going to give you a test at the end of the class. It’s about relaxing. Enjoying yourself.”
“Oh, you mean like this?” He worked a hand underneath her shirt and skimmed his fingers up her spine. His light touches shouldn’t have felt like licks of fire melting her, but they did.
He dipped his head and pressed gentle kisses to the side of her neck. “What’s wrong, Val? You’re breathing is a little shallow and ragged. Not at all regulated. I’m a little concerned that you’re not in the moment.”
She couldn’t be more in the moment if she tried. His closeness and his touch were sending darts of unchecked pleasure through her system. “You should stop.”
“Why? Aren’t
you relaxed?” The dark allure in his voice seeped through her.
“You know I’m not.”
“You’re not? What about this? Does this help?” His fingers curled at her waist. He paused for a second, then scraped at her skin.
The tickling shocked her. She collapsed in a fit of giggles that only got louder as he continued his playful torture.
A clearing throat penetrated her consciousness. Essa glared down at them. “Guys, if you’re not going to take this seriously and continue to interrupt the other campers, I’ll have to ask you to leave.”
Val looked around. All the other yoga class attendees were staring at them. Oops. “Sorry. We’ll do better.”
And they did. For a few minutes. Until his fingers curled against her side. She shook her head. “Don’t you dare.”
Wrong thing to say. She knew it the instant the words left her mouth. The more she wiggled to get away from him, the more he tickled. And the more she laughed.
A shadow landed over them. Essa, who pointed her index finger toward camp. “Out.”
Silently, Val unwound her legs from Malcolm’s waist and took the Walk of Shame with him at her side. When they were safely away from the dock, she released the bubble of laughter she’d been holding in.
Malcolm shook his head. “I got kicked out of tantric sunrise yoga. I’ve never gotten kicked out of anything.” He sounded so perplexed and embarrassed, which only made her snicker more. “Val, really.”
“You’re a delinquent now, Harvard. However will you show your face in the lodge again?”
He glared. She wiped away tears in between giggles.
“You think I’m done with you?”
She froze. Uh oh. He’d sounded way too serious. Looked it too. She backed away. “What are you talking about? We’re even, remember.”
Malcolm shook his head. A dangerous glint entered his eyes. “Not even close. You woke me up after two hours of sleep, laughed at me in yoga, which led to us getting kicked out, and now you’re laughing at me again.”
“You got us kicked out of yoga when you started tickling me. And stop smiling at me.” Her pace quickened as she threw glances over her shoulder to make sure she didn’t run into anyone or trip over anything.