“Lucy’s accordion playing.” Brent snickered. “She’s been known to clear a room.”
Actually, everything about her performance had been adorable. Her obvious nerves, the soft, husky quality of her voice as she sang in French. She’d practically sparkled. Such a parallel to his shadowed life, he could do nothing but stare, feeling ashamed of himself. He’d taken that girl, the blushing girl with curls framing her face, and used her to slake a need she had no business even being aware of. That thought had finally sent him out the door, needing to escape the reminder of what he’d done. How he wanted to do it again. And again.
Then she’d followed him and every self-issued warning had gone flying out the window in a matter of seconds.
Troy saved him from having to answer. “Why did you ask her to play if she’s so terrible?”
“See, that’s how this sibling thing works. I embarrass her because I love her.” Brent strapped on his belt. “Don’t worry, she’s already thinking of a way to get me back. Let’s just hope it doesn’t involve burning my house down.”
Or fucking your best friend blind. Feeling nauseous, Matt considered the possibility that Lucy might have seduced him to irritate her brother, but just as quickly, discarded the notion. She might have lied to him, but you couldn’t fake their kind of chemistry. Or the way her body had responded under his treatment. Christ. Stop thinking about her.
Brent wasn’t finished talking about his sister, however. “I should be getting a call any time now to come bail her out. Maybe turn on the news and see her bungee jumping from the Chrysler Building.”
Matt frowned into his locker. That didn’t sound like the girl he’d spent the day with. A double major at Syracuse. Smart and logical, with an amazing sense of humor. A girl with job opportunities lined up. A detailed itinerary for her week in the city. Then I heard you call me a nuisance…and I guess I just wanted to be someone who didn’t inspire irritation. Just for one day. Sympathy stirred inside him before he ground it to a halt. No way would he feel sympathy for her. Anger, yes. Lust, hell yes. But he wouldn’t feel sorry for her. Not after she lied.
Daniel laughed. “She’s still up to her old tricks?”
“Actually, she’s been quiet lately. Must be gearing up for a big explosion.” Brent slammed his locker shut and twisted the lock. “I haven’t met her friend Sasha, who she brought with her from Syracuse, though. Maybe she’s the good influence.” He tipped his chin toward Matt. “You gave her a ride. What’s she like, Matty?”
Matt’s eyes slid shut and he fought the sudden urge to punch his locker. Lucy obviously hadn’t told Brent she’d come alone. Why? He didn’t know. Nor did he understand the wave of uneasiness that came with the knowledge that she’d be alone in the city all week. He only knew he was being dragged into her lie now. Making him something he hated. Unless he came clean now. Intending to do just that, he turned. Brent watched him expectantly, perpetually goofy smile in place. Matt couldn’t do it. Maybe if he hadn’t dragged her into a doorway last night and said all manner of dirty things to her, knowing full well who she was, he could have done it. But he had. He even wanted her again, despite her identity. And he didn’t belong anywhere near her.
“Jesus, Matt. You were born in the wrong era.” Brent finished tying the lace of his boot. “You would have made one hell of a silent film star.”
All four of them received an emergency page at the same time. Matt breathed a sigh of relief as they holstered their weapons quickly and left the locker room. His mind should have been on the situation they were heading into.
Instead, he thought about the itinerary Lucy had accidentally left in his car.
…
Lucy picked a spot off to the side of the gathering crowd and spread her blanket down on the grass. She thought she’d gotten to Bryant Park early enough to get a better view, but it was fifteen minutes before the outdoor screening of Back to the Future was set to begin and the entire lawn was packed. Couples and groups of friends munched on popcorn or hot dogs; some moviegoers were even sneaking covert sips from brown paper bags. Evening had just fallen and the buzz of excited conversation made Lucy smile. She might be alone, but with so many people around, it didn’t feel quite as lonely as she’d expected. The last six years of her life had been spent hunching over a textbook in a deathly silent library. There was no comparison.
She stretched her legs out on the blanket and kicked off her sandals, enjoying the warm breeze as it lifted the hair from her neck. It felt like she’d been living in jeans and a sweatshirt for most of grad school, so she’d worn a lightweight dress tonight. Freshly shaven legs, a sundress, and no assignments hanging over her head felt divine. She leaned back on her elbows and closed her eyes, for the first time letting herself enjoy what she’d accomplished. The feeling only lasted a few minutes because a prickling started along her scalp. Peeking one eye open, she moved into a cross-legged position and searched for the prickle source.
It didn’t take her long at all to spot him. His stillness gave him away. Across the park, leaning against a tree with his arms crossed over his chest, stood Matt. For a split second, before he’d gotten his mask in place, she saw hunger tightening his darkly handsome features. It sent heat moving through Lucy in a slow ripple, making her aware of every inch of her exposed skin. She could hear the quick pace of her breathing, loud to her own ears. The blanket underneath her legs went from comfortable to caressing. What was he doing here? Did he come just to stand there in his uniform looking delicious, merely to torture her? If so, holy smokes, it was working. With desire coursing through her, she felt indecent just being in a public place with so many witnesses.
The movie started then, giant projection screen at the front of the park flashing white, then rolling the opening credits. Still, Matt didn’t move. Why did it feel like he was touching her from a hundred yards away? Everyone around her had settled onto their blankets, wrapped up in nostalgia as Marty McFly enters Doc Brown’s garage in the first scene. She tried to ignore Matt, she really did. He’d made it perfectly clear last night that he wanted nothing to do with her. But her gaze continually returned to him, making sure he was still there. His steady perusal of her distracted her to the point she couldn’t focus on the movie. Finally, she’d had enough. She needed to force him into coming closer or leaving.
Please let him come closer.
Lucy unfolded her legs and slid forward onto her belly. She propped her chin on her hand, and crossing her ankles, she let her legs sway back and forth in the air behind her. It was a provocative pose, especially for a girl sitting by herself, but she took comfort in the fact that no one sat behind her to see her bare thighs on display. As she predicted, though, Matt didn’t like it. When he pushed off the tree wearing a warning expression, a low thrumming began in Lucy’s stomach, spreading lower with each passing second.
These instincts she had where Matt was concerned were completely new, yet she somehow trusted them. She knew what turned him on because it did the same to her. Driving him crazy, pushing his limits, made her feel desirable. It gave her a sense of control while simultaneously giving her permission to lose control. She wanted to tempt him past the point of return so he’d have no choice but to fulfill his needs with her. Somewhere underneath his stoic expression, he wanted it, too, or he wouldn’t be here.
Hands clenching and unclenching at his sides, Lucy could tell he wanted to close the distance between them. She tossed her hair over her shoulder, exposing her neck, while at the same time writhing her hips ever-so-slightly on the blanket. When Matt began stalking his way to her through the crowd, she felt a surge of triumph, but lust quickly blanketed it. Female heads turned in his direction as he passed but he didn’t remove his eyes from her once. Matt held an air of command at all times, but he wore his uniform today, only increasing his air of authority. She wanted to kiss him. She wanted him to refuse to kiss her. Nothing made sense any more.
Matt finally reached her, but she made no move to change her positi
on. A growl lingering in his throat, he knelt down on the blanket beside her.
“Sit up,” he commanded, keeping his voice low. “Immediately.”
“I’m good.”
His gaze lingered on her bottom before coasting down over her thighs. “You’re the opposite of good.”
Everything below her waist tightened. “W-what are you doing here?” she managed.
He sat back on the blanket keeping his legs bent, moving like such a sleek animal that Lucy’s breathing faltered. “Your brother doesn’t know you’re alone. Apparently you weren’t finished lying when I dropped you off on Friday.”
His harsh comment hit home and she finally sat up, wondering if he’d known calling her on her lie would achieve his goal. “Mood killer,” she muttered. “If you came here to knock me down another peg, it’s not necessary. You did a bang-up job of it last night.”
“I just came to check on you,” he said curtly.
Anger sparked along her nerve endings. “I don’t need to be checked on. I’m watching a movie in the park, not dancing topless in Times Square.” When he only continued to watch her, she sighed. “Look, I didn’t lie to him for the fun of it. He’s got all this engagement stuff happening with Hayden. Not to mention the two jobs. I didn’t want to be a—”
“Nuisance?”
Hearing him call her that—again—did not sit well. Lucy knew from experience that redness was climbing her neck, coloring her cheeks, and she refused to let him see it. She grabbed her purse and attempted to stand, but Matt curled an arm around her waist at the last second and dragged her down onto his lap.
“Hey. I didn’t mean that.” His voice rumbled at her neck and caused her to sag back against him, the new contact allowing his mouth to sift through the hair behind her ear. “Not the first time I said it. Not now. Okay?”
She blew out a breath. “Can you please strike it from your vocabulary, then?”
Matt hummed in his throat by way of answering. She couldn’t help but marvel at how right it felt being held by him like this. Cradled against his chest, his body temperature warming every inch of her. Their bodies molded together, like they’d been superglued. How could she have missed touching him when they’d known each other such a short amount of time?
“What movie is this?” he asked into her hair.
Lucy’s eyes shot wide. “Back to the Future. You’ve never seen it?”
“No.”
“I weep for your childhood.”
Matt’s hesitant laughter rolled through her, but she quickly became distracted when his rough fingers began drawing patterns on her inner thigh, teasing the hem of her dress. He might as well have been stroking her between her legs for the sensations he was creating. “Catch me up.”
“Huh?”
“On the movie. Tell me what’s happening.”
She tried to swallow but her mouth was dry. “Um…so. Doc Brown, the older gentleman who looks perpetually stressed out, has built a time machine.”
“How?”
Lucy turned her head slightly and caught his clean leather scent. “Basically he souped up a DeLorean. And also…gigawatts.”
“Gigawatts?”
“You kind of have to suspend your disbelief for this.”
The corner of his mouth twitched. “Disbelief suspended.”
Oh God, he really should smile more. “Marty goes back in time, but everything gets screwed up when his mother develops a crush on him.”
“What kind of movie did you say this was?”
She laughed, but it emerged sounding breathless. “It’s a classic.” Matt’s fingers inched higher on her leg, slipping underneath her dress, effectively cutting off her amusement. Her head fell back against his shoulder as he hooked his free arm around her midsection and positioned her higher on his lap. When his erection swelled underneath her bottom, Lucy released a shaky breath.
“Keep explaining. What happens to Marty?”
“You can’t be serious.”
“Me?” He tilted his hips once, twice. “I’m always serious.”
“They go to the high school dance and Marty plays ‘Johnny B. Goode’ and happily ever after,” she said all in one breath. With his big body surrounding her, arousal evident in his deep voice, yearning rolled through her, concentrated between her legs.
Matt took one corner of the blanket and tossed it over her lap. “Did you go to dances in high school, Lucy? Were you the bad girl who tempted all the boys? Yes, I think you were.”
In one quick movement, he pushed aside her panties and shoved two thick fingers inside her. It took her by such surprise that a small scream would have escaped her throat if Matt hadn’t covered her mouth and yanked her head back against his shoulder.
“Shh.” His breath at her ear sent a delicious shiver down her spine. “Be very quiet and very still or everyone will know I’m fingering your pussy under this blanket. It needs to be our little secret, doesn’t it, baby girl?”
When Lucy could breathe normally, she nodded. The illicitness of the situation hit her full force. Not only was this her brother’s best friend, but he was an ESU officer. In uniform. She would have been lying to herself if she said the risk didn’t crank up the yearning in her belly to overdrive. His fingers were high and tight inside her, creating heart-pounding pressure. It felt like her survival depended on what happened next. With a valiant effort, she tried to slow her shallow breathing and relax against him, so no one would notice what they were doing. Otherwise he might stop. No. Don’t stop.
“Good girl, Lucy.” His tongue outlined her ear, but still his fingers didn’t move. “Your ass feels good sitting on my cock. We didn’t get that far last time, did we?”
She whimpered into his hand, her hips beginning to circle of their own accord.
“If you don’t stop that right now,” he growled, “I’ll take away my fingers. Do. Not. Move. You’re going to sit like this the entire movie.”
Immediately, her hips went still. She wanted to wail in frustration, but could do nothing but remain unmoving. His thumb brushed over her clitoris once, only once, and she started to shake. Oh please, why won’t he give me what I need? I need. I need.
“You need to get off, Lucy? It wouldn’t take much, maybe a couple strokes of my thumb and you’d get relief. I’d get to complete my shift with your pleasure on my fingers.”
Lucy reached up and removed his hand from her mouth. “Please,” she whispered. “Matt, I need it.”
“Do you know how many times I came thinking about you last night?” He took a quick, angry bite of her shoulder. “Thinking about your hot, wet pussy?”
His words, the sting radiating from her shoulder, sent her closer to the precipice. All the while, the pressure grew and became more insistent, though he hadn’t even moved his fingers. “I-I’m sorry. Please, Matt. It hurts.”
“I thought you like the way I hurt you.” His thumb jiggled her clit until her teeth bit so hard into her lip, she was sure she drew blood. Abruptly, he stopped. “Or was that a lie, too?”
Lucy’s world tilted momentarily as his words registered. Her inner studio audience gasped in unison, one member of the front row fainting in shock. Is that why he’d come here? He was punishing her for lying? Even with a monsoon of hormones raging through her, the idea of him using her attraction against her was infuriating. Every moment they’d spent being physical had been honest. This moment was honest. She hadn’t held a single part of herself back. Matt questioning her truthfulness when it came to the pleasure they’d experienced together…it felt like a betrayal. It made it, and her, feel cheap.
Lucy didn’t know where she found the will to push his hand away and slide off his lap, but somehow she managed it. Matt tried to keep her against him, but released her when she started to struggle in earnest.
“Did you enjoy that?” she whispered furiously. “Torturing me?”
His expression was a mixture of confusion and stark arousal. “Lucy—”
“That was low,
Matt.” Her voice shook. “Getting back at me…like that.”
If she hadn’t been watching him closely, she would have missed the tinge of guilt that crossed his features. She’d been right. He had been punishing her. With no intention of giving her pleasure. He’d come here for some sick form of revenge.
“I’m not that hard up.” She stood, backing away as Matt rose to his feet as well. “Don’t come near me again.”
Deciding to ditch the blanket instead of going anywhere near him, Lucy spun around and made for the street. She wasn’t surprised to feel Matt’s hand curl around her elbow before she reached the sidewalk. With a curse, he pulled her back against his chest. “You have the wrong idea. I didn’t mean to—”
“If you’re going to punish me, Matt…we both have to be on board for it. And I’m not. Not like that. I don’t like feeling manipulated.”
He pinched the bridge of his nose, opened his mouth to speak.
His two-way radio on his shoulder crackled to life. A nasally female voice released a series of codes that sounded foreign to her. One thing was obvious from his expression, though. He was needed somewhere else. Matt looked like he wanted to rip the thing off his body and hurl it into the nearest garbage can.
“We’re going to talk about this,” he said gruffly.
“What’s the point?” Lucy pulled her purse higher on her shoulder and turned away. Her pride had been battered. Her body ached for something only Matt could give her. She needed to get away from him and think.
As she turned the corner toward Hayden’s big, empty town house, there was an undeniable part of her begging him to follow, but she quashed it, increasing her pace instead.
Chapter Eight
Matt stood among the flashing blue and red lights on West Forty-Second Street as the final civilian was loaded into a waiting ambulance. A downtown city bus had overturned when the driver tried to take a left turn at too high a speed, crashing through a department store window. As a sniper, there hadn’t been much for him to do in this situation besides assist rescue workers in carefully extricating the injured from the wrecked bus and blocking off the immediate area surrounding the accident. His particular skills were needed in vastly different situations, such as hostage standoffs or high-speed chases when a vehicle needed to be disabled from a distance. He spent the rest of his time on patrol, utilizing his other ESU training, as with tonight’s situation.
Staking His Claim (A Line of Duty Novel) (Entangled Brazen) Page 7