Emma gasped and leaped toward it. She never would have made it in time, but he did. His many Were gifts included reflexes that made his sudden movements a blur, even when captured by the fastest camera shutter in the world. As kids he and Roarke had tested it. Aidan caught the bottle before a drop of Lafite Rothschild spilled.
Emma took hold of it a split-second later. Still clutching it, she stared at him. “I’ve never seen anybody move that fast.”
“I have good reflexes.” There was nothing wrong with his eyes, either. Her wild leap from the sofa to catch the bottle had loosened the tie holding her bathrobe closed. He had a perfect view of her creamy breasts. Her nipples, soft and full from the warmth of her bath, were the color of a light rosé. He longed for just one taste.
If she hadn’t recently immersed herself in a commercially produced bubble bath, he would have been aroused beyond all reason by the temptation of that open robe. He would have taken her right then and there. No power on earth could have stopped him, other than her refusal. She wouldn’t have refused. When Aidan was in full command of his sexuality, no woman had ever said no.
But the aroma of flowers did nothing for his libido. He was operating completely on visual stimulation, which didn’t stir his sexual needs nearly the way her natural scent would have.
Yet he was stirred. His mouth grew moist and his cock stiffened.
“Oh. Sorry.” She released the bottle and pulled her robe together.
He had a brief glimpse of her soft nipples tightening before she blocked his view with thick terrycloth. Whether her nipples had reacted to the air or his glance, he couldn’t say. Her cheeks were pink, but that could be from embarrassment as well as desire.
“I should have put on clothes instead of the robe.” She avoided his gaze as she tightened the sash. “I brought pajamas that cover me from head to toe, but after that wonderful Jacuzzi, I wanted to snuggle into this robe. It’s so thick and soft.” She looked up. “But it’s completely opaque, and I didn’t think…I didn’t mean to be seductive, Aidan. At least I hope I didn’t.”
His tailbone ached and the backs of his hands prickled. He had two choices. Kissing her thoroughly, and not just the quick peck she’d given him on Wednesday night, would temporarily stop the process. If he fooled his body into thinking it would eventually get what it wanted, his shift could be delayed indefinitely. He might even be able to put it off completely. Yet that seemed like such a selfish route to take.
On the other hand, if he didn’t kiss her, he would have to leave the penthouse and surrender to the shift somewhere in the middle of Grant Park. He’d be forced to strip down outside in the snow and hide his clothes somewhere they wouldn’t get stolen. He didn’t like those conditions worth a damn. But he’d brought it on himself. He should just swallow his pride, head for the park, and accept that Roarke was right. He’d been an idiot to think this would work.
Taking off his watch, he laid it on the coffee table. He’d never worried much about it before, but she’d made him more aware of losing it. “I’m going out.”
“Out where?”
“For a walk.”
Her voice rose in alarm. “Without your watch? Are you planning to go someplace where you’ll be mugged?”
“I won’t be mugged. I just would rather not take a chance on losing the watch.” He wanted to leave without wearing his topcoat, which was one more thing that could be swiped while he was in wolf form, but then she’d get even more suspicious. Walking over to the foyer closet, he opened it and took out his topcoat.
“Aidan, you can’t leave.” She hurried over to him, her bare feet whispering seductively on the carpet. “This is because I flashed you, isn’t it? You’re afraid you’ll do something you’ll regret.”
He shrugged into his coat. “Or something that would be unfair to you.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You said it yourself on the plane today.” He chose his words carefully as he buttoned the coat. “We’re from different worlds, yet we’re inconveniently attracted to each other. If I acted on the impulse I have right now, I’d be doing it with the knowledge I was only…using you.”
“For sex?”
“Yes.” He met her gaze. “For sex. Pure, unadulterated sex. Nothing more.”
She swallowed.
“You deserve more than that, Emma. So I’ll go for a walk and get myself under control. You’ll be safe here, and I won’t be long. Maybe an hour or so.” He started for the door.
“Wait.” She caught his arm. “It’s snowing out there.”
He glanced down at her hand on his coat sleeve. Such a small, soft hand to wield such immense power over him. “No problem,” he said. “I like the snow.”
“So do I. Let me get dressed and I’ll go with you.”
He couldn’t help but smile. “That would defeat the purpose. I’m trying to put some distance between us. You need to stay here.”
Her grip tightened. “So do you.”
He made the mistake of looking into her blue eyes and seeing the hunger there. He gave her as much truth as he dared. “Emma, you don’t know me at all.”
“I know enough. I know that you’re the kind of man who would rather walk off his sexual urges than take advantage of a woman he has no intention of making part of his life.”
“It’s what any decent—”
“That’s where you’re wrong. Actually, you’re wrong about a lot of things. You say I deserve more than pure, unadulterated sex. In the long run, when I choose a life partner, that’s true, but I can’t think of anything I’d like better tonight.” She gave him a saucy look. “For research purposes, of course.”
Lust speared through him, and as he stood there fighting it, his pelt began to grow. “You want to find out how the wealthy do it?”
“Could be.”
“We have sex the same as everybody else.”
“Somehow I doubt that’s true of you.” She moved around in front of him and began unbuttoning his coat. “You’re much stronger than I am, so you can shake me off and go out that door if that’s what you really want.”
He clenched his jaw as his teeth began to ache. “It’s not about what I want. It’s about what’s best for both of us.”
She finished unbuttoning his coat and slid her hands up the front of his shirt. “Maybe I unconsciously wanted to seduce you by wearing only this robe.” She gazed up at him as she lightly massaged his chest. “You intrigue the writer in me, Aidan. But you fascinate the woman in me. There’s something of the animal in you.”
She was on target with that one. He was afraid to look for fear his chest hair had curled up past the open neck of his dress shirt. He had about ten seconds before the buttons would pop from the strain of his growing pelt and the powerful muscles forming beneath it. He had to go now.
“I want to undress you, Aidan.” She unfastened the first button. “You’re so masculine, so…my, you do have a lot of chest hair. So soft, so sexy.”
Too late. He’d hesitated and now he’d never make the lobby in time. He had one option left, and he hoped it would still work for him. “I need to kiss you, Emma.” He cupped the back of her head and slid his arm around her waist. “Hold very still.”
“Aidan? Your teeth are so white and so…”
He used what little control he had left to lower his head and kiss her gently. Easy now, light pressure. He could only tease her mouth with his, because if he kissed her fully, he’d draw blood. His canines were sharp enough to do that.
She was so innocent, so trusting. Dear God, he hoped he hadn’t waited too long. If he shifted now, in front of her, she might never get over the shock of it. What if he still craved her after the shift? Would he take her while he was in wolf form? He’d never been in this precarious position before. It was uncharted territory.
But, ah, he wouldn’t shift. As she kissed him back and pressed her sweet little body to his, his teeth stopped aching and his canines began to retract. His tailbone no
longer bothered him, either. The insistent pressure he’d felt there had moved forward and now affected his cock. Women were used to that phenomenon. In fact, they seemed to enjoy making it happen.
As his shift gradually reversed, his lust grew stronger. Her natural scent had begun to filter through the fragrant oils from her bath, and he fumbled with the tie of her robe, impatient to remove it and sniff every inch of her naked body.
His topcoat was in the way, and he released her temporarily, still keeping contact with her luscious mouth as he shrugged out of his coat and dropped it to the floor. Freed of that burden, he worked her out of the robe.
Yes. At last he could stroke, touch, fondle. He buried his nose in the side of her neck and breathed in as he ran both hands over her quivering skin. She was smooth, warm, moist…rich. So rich.
The scent of her drove him to nuzzle her breasts. He’d learned that kisses could disguise his real purpose, which was to breathe in every delicious aroma rising from her body. The more he caressed her, the sweeter she smelled. He trailed kisses down between her breasts as he absorbed every tantalizing fragrance along the way.
Dropping to his knees, he cupped her bottom and kissed her navel, but his goal was the downy patch of blonde curls just below, where the musky scent of arousal called to him with a siren’s song. When he reached his destination and breathed in her essence, he growled low in his throat.
She trembled, but didn’t resist as he sought her out with a swipe of his tongue. She tasted as he’d known she would, like the nectar he’d dreamed of all his life and never found in either wolf or woman. He needed more.
“Come down.” Bracketing her waist with both hands, he guided her to her knees, then onto the thick carpet.
Her breath came fast. “Aidan…there’s a perfectly good bed…”
He didn’t want a bed. Urging her legs apart, he settled down on the carpet and slid both arms under her hips. Then he took her, burying his nose in her fragrant sweetness and using his tongue to lap, to caress, to arouse in ways that were guided partly by human instinct, partly by the wolf that lay just under the surface.
She responded like the wild thing he’d always suspected she could be. He’d read her books, watched her dance. He’d sensed the sensual creature waiting to be turned loose.
He gave her that freedom. By holding nothing back, by making low, urgent sounds deep in his throat, he encouraged her to writhe in his arms, arch toward his ravenous mouth, and cry out for more. He made her come once, twice, three times, before she sagged against the carpet, panting, her body limp and quivering.
The smell of sex filled his nostrils as he suckled her gently, easing her back from the last shattering climax. His shift was in retreat because he’d fooled his body into thinking relief was at hand. If he’d been in wolf form, it would be.
But he’d pleasured her as a man, which meant he had to follow human rules. That meant pretending that he had to avoid pregnancy. Kissing his way back up her moist skin, he gazed into her heavy-lidded eyes. “We need room service.”
She frowned.
“Never mind.” He feathered a kiss over her lips. “You’ll see.” Reaching for the robe that had fallen to the carpet, he pulled it over her and got to his feet. A phone sat on a nearby end table.
Picking up the receiver, he punched the button for the front desk. “A box of Trojans, ASAP,” he said, and replaced the receiver.
A muffled sound made him turn toward Emma. She had a hand over her mouth, but she was definitely laughing.
Crouching beside her, he tossed aside the robe and lifted her into his arms. “Go ahead and laugh. Some of us still have business to take care of.”
“But room service?”
He carried her toward the master bedroom. “That’s how the wealthy handle these things. I hope you’re rested up, because I have plans for you while we’re waiting for those Trojans.”
Chapter Eleven
Emma wasn’t going to argue with the man. He’d turned her inside out and she couldn’t believe she had more to give in that department, but he seemed to know his way around a woman’s body. No man had ever given her an orgasm on the living room carpet smack dab in the middle of a luxury penthouse, let alone three.
She was curious as to what he had in mind until room service arrived. Whatever it was, she had a good feeling about it. Aidan was all she’d imagined he would be, and she hadn’t even seen the package she hoped he’d deliver to her once he was supplied with condoms.
Settling her in the middle of the king-sized bed, he pulled the covers out from under her in one quick motion so that she was lying on the smooth white sheet. Feeling incredibly satisfied and decadent, she gazed up at the provider of all things orgasmic.
She might be naked, but he was still mostly clothed. She’d managed to get his shirt unbuttoned and pulled out of his slacks, but that was the extent of her efforts.
Still, she had a nice view of his pecs and his muscled abs when the shirt billowed open. Funny, but when she’d first started unbuttoning his shirt, she’d thought he had more chest hair. Now she could see he had an average amount. She must have been so focused on getting him to stay that she’d misjudged.
There was no chance she’d misjudged the firm length of him pressed up against her when they were kissing, though. No doubt he had some magnificence going on underneath that expensive pair of slacks. She was more than eager to find out what would be modeling one of those Trojans.
“There’s another robe in the closet,” she said. “You could get out of those clothes and keep the robe handy for when room service arrives.”
“I thought I might do that.” He stripped off his shirt and threw it on a nearby chair. Then he nudged off his wingtips without untying them.
She barely noticed his shoes because she was too entranced by his biceps. The guy was ripped. No wonder he’d been able to pick her up so easily and carry her in here without breaking a sweat. “You must work out a lot.”
“Some.” He reached for the buckle of his belt.
She sat up and scooted to the edge of the bed. “Let me.”
“All right.” He walked to the side of the bed with that loose-hipped, easy stride that turned her into jelly.
“I’m glad I asked.” Sitting with one leg on either side of him, she ran her knuckles slowly up and down the material being thrust forward by his erection and was rewarded with the sound of his breath hissing out between his clenched teeth.
“Maybe I should be the one to answer the door when room service arrives,” she murmured as she unfastened the buckle on his belt. “You may be indisposed.”
“If I am, you will be, too.”
“We’ll see about that.” His belt flexed easily, indicating the dark brown leather was top grade. She could see how a person could get used to handling only the best. She was about to do that once she unwrapped his package.
After his belt hung open, she tuned in to his breathing as she unfastened his slacks. The cadence definitely picked up. So did hers. Because she was a writer and knew the value of suspense, she slowed her movements. Grasping the zipper, she edged it down tooth by tooth. Tension coiled within her, and the body she’d thought was thoroughly sated and satisfied was no longer in that condition. She wanted him again.
“Emma.” His voice was strained.
“I’m building anticipation. It’s a plot device.”
He made a noise that sounded like…no, it definitely was…a growl.
“Excuse me? Did you just growl?”
He groaned. “I want your hands on me. I want your mouth on me, Emma.”
“I see.” She finished with the zipper and pushed his slacks to the floor.
As he stepped out of them, she admired his black knit boxers that so lovingly cradled his awe-inspiring equipment. She was about to divest him of the boxers, too, but he didn’t give her the chance.
Slipping his thumbs under the elastic, he shoved the boxers down and his glorious cock sprang free.
She
drew in a sharp breath. He was even more impressive than she’d imagined. Those Trojans couldn’t get here soon enough.
“Dear God, touch me, Emma, before I combust.”
She didn’t have to be asked twice. With one hand circling his cock and the other cupping his balls, she leaned down and brushed her mouth over the velvet crown of his penis. His shiver of reaction inspired her to use her tongue to lick the smooth surface, and he moaned softly.
Another pass with her tongue, and a clear drop of liquid appeared at the very tip. She tasted its salty goodness and another appeared to take its place. This time she closed her mouth over the rounded dome and applied gentle suction.
He gasped and combed his fingers through her hair to press his fingers against her scalp. Then slowly, gradually, he urged her down, until the tip of his cock nudged the back of her throat. Yet still her hand encircled the base. She hadn’t taken all of him.
Breathing hard, he held her head as he withdrew. Then he went to his knees in front of her. His voice revealed the strain of controlling his needs. “I don’t want to hurt you. Not this way, and not when I begin to thrust. But I’m crazy for you, Emma. I’m afraid I’ll forget myself and…”
She looked into his golden eyes that glowed with lust. “I’m not afraid.”
His thumbs brushed her cheeks. “You should be. You’re small. I never expected to be here with you like this, and now that I am, I’m quivering with the need to drive into you. I’m afraid I’ll overpower you and take you with no regard for what I’m doing. Don’t let me. Make me stop if I lose all reason.”
“You won’t.”
“I can’t promise that, Emma. I’ve never felt quite like this before.”
“Never?” Hot excitement bubbled within her at his confession.
“No, never. I’m not sure what’s happening to me, but I want you in a way that…” He shook his head. “In a way I can’t even explain.”
“We’ll go slow.”
“Maybe I can’t.”
“Then the first time, I’ll sit astride you.”
Werewolf in Manhattan Page 11