It was crazy to go, she thought, but it was just as crazy not to explore where this night might take them.
*
Jase breathed a sigh of relief as Nickie relented and followed him down the steps of the terrace and onto the lawn. He waited for her as she slipped off her incredibly high crimson-colored heels and they hurried from the lush manicured lawn to the wooden boardwalk that took them through the protective shelter of the dunes and down to the beach.
There wasn’t a soul along the sand and for that he was eternally grateful.
As they walked down the stairs at the end of the boardwalk and back around beneath it, he grabbed her shoes and placed them on the edge of the wooden boards along with his hat.
“What’s up, Jase? Why did you almost drag me out of the party?” she asked and leaned against one of the thick pilings for the boardwalk.
He braced his forearm just above her head on the support and shifted until her warm breath spilled against his face. She smelled of something flowery and of Nicole and he inhaled deeply to memorize that aroma.
With his free hand, he brushed away a windblown lock of her hair and then skimmed his fingers down her smooth cheek. She trembled beneath his touch and he hardened as he imagined how smooth the rest of her skin would be and how she would shiver against him while they made love.
“I want you, Nickie.”
Her eyes widened in surprise and the words rushed from her. “Hell no. I don’t believe you.”
“Believe it, Nickie. I’ve wanted you for a long time,” he said and moved ever closer until his body was pressed to hers.
At that touch, she sucked in a shaky breath and closed her eyes. In a husky voice she said, “Don’t play with me, Jase.”
He chuckled and her eyes snapped open to meet his gaze. “Babe, I am so not playing with you. At least not yet,” he said and dropped his hand to trace the rounded swells of her breasts visible above the bodice of her killer dress. It was the kind of dress that invited him to touch and to see. The fabric was fine enough that even in the dusky night, the pebbled tips of her nipples were visible.
“There’s no sense in starting this. You’re leaving tomorrow.” She dragged in another irregular breath as he continued his caress across the sensitive skin beneath his fingers. Despite her words, as her gaze locked with his, he detected her hesitation, but also her need.
He decided to press on with his campaign to convince her that the two of them together was a good idea.
“Does everything have to be sensible with you, Nickie? Can’t you just let go? Even if only for this one night? It would be good between us. I promise.” To prove his point, he dipped his hand down and cupped her breast. He tweaked the tight tip between his thumb and forefinger as he pressed his body to hers and nuzzled the side of her face.
“Jase,” she said on a long exhalation, but didn’t move away.
His cock jumped to attention at the sound of his name on her lips. He lazily rubbed his erection across her belly and whispered into her ear, “I love the way you say my name, Nickie. Say it again. Please.”
“Jase, this is crazy,” she said, but she cupped his head with one hand and stroked her fingers across the short buzz of hair. She wrapped her other arm around his waist and dug her fingers into the fabric of his uniform.
“What’s crazy is how long it’s taken for this to happen,” he said and trailed a line of kisses down her neck and across the tops of her breasts, but it wasn’t enough. Not after so long.
He eased the fabric of the strapless dress down to expose her breasts and cradled them in his hands. Tenderly he teased the taut points of her nipples as he met her darkened gaze. Her hazel eyes were nearly chocolate brown with desire and she licked her lips and shot a quick glance down at his hands.
“Jase – ”
“Tell me what you want, Nickie. I’ll do whatever you ask … except stopping, that is,” he teased and smiled.
*
Damn that boyish grin that was always my undoing, Nickie thought barely a second before she said, “Kiss me there, Jase. Please kiss me there.”
With a rough groan, he dipped his head and dropped a quick kiss on the tip of each breast before alternately sucking and caressing her nipples with his mouth. Each wet tug sent a corresponding pull to between her legs where her clit pulsed and pleaded for more. She was already wet for him and every suck or bite or lick brought another wave of dampness between her thighs.
Her body shook as she held him to her and urged him on with soft cries until the sound of someone coming down the boardwalk made him pause.
He met her gaze, but instead of stopping, he inched his hand beneath the hem of her dress and continued upward, dancing his fingers along the sensitive inner skin of her thighs. When he reached her panties, he dipped his fingers inside and found the swollen bundle of nerves at her center.
“Jase,” she whispered urgently and grabbed hold of his wrist as from a few feet away on the boardwalk came the murmured conversation of others.
“They can’t see us. Or hear us if you’re quiet. Can you be quiet, Nickie?” he asked and stroked a finger across her responsive nub, dragging a strangled moan from her.
“Or are you a screamer?” he continued and kept up his caresses, drawing her ever closer to a release.
Nickie grabbed hold of his shoulders because she needed something to keep her upright. Each shift of his fingers raised her higher and higher and weakened her knees. Her heart pounded with both excitement from his touch and fear at the thought of being discovered by whoever was still nearby on the boardwalk above them.
“Jase, please,” she keened in a whisper and shot a worried look above them as the footsteps came ever closer.
He whispered against her ear, “Come for me, Nickie.” He pressed against her clit and slipped a finger inside her. Stroked her urgently as he bent his head and suckled her breasts. Gently teethed the hard tips and tugged on them.
Oh God, she thought, biting her lower lip to keep from crying out as he stroked and enticed with his lips and fingers. As the juices of her release spilled over his hand and down her thighs, she wanted to scream and rip off her clothes and his and fuck him right there and then on the sand like she had in her fantasy. Even if there was someone right there watching.
From above them came another footstep and then a laugh, chilling her passion for only the short moment it took for whoever it was to head back up the boardwalk toward the house.
“They’re gone, Nickie. Come for me, babe. Scream if you want,” he said and shoved a second finger into her while pressing his thumb against her clit and circling it possessively.
“God, Jase. I want you inside me.” She reached down and covered the long hard ridge of his erection with her hand. He groaned and laid his forehead against hers.
“Later, Nickie. I promise. Right now is all about you,” he said and kissed her, his mouth warm and mobile against her lips. Coaxing her mouth open as he stroked her and slipped his tongue past her lips to taste her.
She held onto his shoulders and bucked her hips against his hand, reaching for her climax. Loving the taste and feel of his mouth against hers and his hands on her breasts and inside her. As she moved for him, the tips of her breasts rubbed against the fabric of his uniform, making them ever more sensitized and alive.
God, so alive. So damn incredible, she thought and closed her eyes, giving herself over to the sensations he was creating in her. Sensations like nothing she had ever experienced before with anyone else.
But then again, no one, anywhere, was like Jase.
“That’s it, Nickie. I can feel it coming,” he whispered against the shell of her ear before he bent his head to suck a spot near the crook of her shoulder.
She could feel it, too. Building inside her, higher and higher. Sending shock waves throughout her body until with one rough pull of his mouth against her skin and a sharp bite, she came.
Her body shook and trembled against his and she keened his name over and
over as she shoved her hips against his hand.
“I’m here, Nickie. I’m not going anywhere,” he said as he held her and gentled his caresses, letting her ease back from her release. His kisses tender and less demanding, although she knew he still wanted more.
But she wanted it, too. Her earlier hesitation about what to do with Jase was totally gone, burned away by the fire he had ignited inside her. She wanted him and if this night was to be the only night they had, she intended to make it memorable.
Just One Night: Chapter Four
Jason helped Nickie get presentable again, smoothing the dress back into place. Finger-brushing the long thick strands of her dark hair into some kind of order. Before they climbed back onto the boardwalk steps, he kissed her again before reluctantly breaking away.
As much as he wanted nothing more than to make love to her all night long, there were still guests up at the house and responsibilities to be handled. Nickie was not the kind of woman that would fail to honor those duties.
He snagged his hat and her shoes from the boardwalk and they walked hand-in-hand back to the mansion. Many of the guests had left and there was only one couple outside on the terrace as they approached. He was grateful for that. He wanted to be alone with her for as long as possible.
As they reached the edge of the lawn and the steps to the flagstone, he urged Nickie back into his arms and kissed her again, reminding her that this was only a short break from the night they would spend together.
“I’ll meet you in your room later,” he said when they separated.
“When, Jase? People are going to linger – ”
He laid a finger against those lush lips he wanted to kiss all night long. “You head up and I’ll be there, Nickie. I promise.”
She nodded, her doubt obvious, but he kissed her once more to reassure her. When they parted, she went inside to mingle with the guests while he took a calming breath to curb the erection that refused to go away as long as she was near.
It took several long minutes and lots of thoughts about baseball scores until he could venture back inside. Somehow he managed to plaster on a smile and make nice with the remaining guests until little by little the number of people dwindled down to just them and a few long distance family members waiting to say their goodbyes before they headed to a nearby hotel. He and his parents had been invited to stay with the de Silvas because they were in some ways closer than distant family.
“Thank you for your hospitality, Mr. and Mrs. de Silva,” he said to Nickie’s parents as he and his parents stood by the stairway just past midnight. Nickie and Tommy waited there as well, completing their familial duties, although a bright flush of color erupted along Nickie’s cheeks as she shot him a quick look.
“It’s our pleasure, Jason. You’re family,” Mrs. de Silva replied.
Nickie’s dad grudgingly agreed, but shot him a hairy eyeball before likewise glancing at his daughter. He clearly sensed there was more going on than was obvious and judging from his glare, he wasn’t too thrilled about it.
“I guess we’ll see you in the morning,” his mother said and after all the parents hugged, he dutifully followed his up the stairs, but he had every intention of changing and sneaking back out to Nickie’s room as he had promised.
At the door to his parents’ room, he embraced them and offered a good night before entering the bedroom next to them. Their accommodations were located in the west wing of the beachside mansion while the de Silva family quarters were on the opposite end of the building. The grand staircase split the floors in half and there was no way he’d make it down the hall to Nickie’s room at the far end of the wing without being seen.
That was the last thing either of them wanted right now. Whatever was happening was still too fragile for such scrutiny.
Inside his room, he quickly stripped and hung up his dress uniform and sword. A sense of pride filled him for a moment to see them and all that they represented. He’d met the challenge and succeeded.
Now it was time to face another challenge in his life.
He quickly changed into black jeans, a black polo shirt, and sneakers for traction. His room opened onto a balcony that faced the ocean and ran the length of their wing. The de Silva family section had a similar balcony, but the two weren’t connected.
That wasn’t about to stop him. He’d scaled higher and harder places during some of his ROTC training assignments.
He shut off his lights and exited onto the balcony, careful to keep out of sight. A trellis at the far side of the space was covered with fragrant wisteria. The thick tangle of the plant’s vines provided an easy way to climb down to the ground floor and the fragrant blooms would provide some cover to keep him from being seen. Luckily the bees wouldn’t be buzzing around the flowers at night.
On the flagstone terrace he skirted the edges and watched as Nickie and her family bid the last of their guests good night. Together they trudged up the stairs and into their wing of the home.
He waited until the lights snapped on in the various rooms and easily identified Nickie’s as he caught sight of her silhouette by the French doors leading onto the balcony. He jogged toward the wisteria-covered trellis close to her room and scrambled up the tangle of vines and over the railing.
At her French doors, he rapped lightly on a glass pane and barely a heartbeat later, she cracked open the door and let him enter.
*
Nickie had told herself all night long that Jase wouldn’t keep his promise. That he’d rethink what he’d done earlier and decide that she just wasn’t the kind of woman for a man like him. A man who took risks. A man of action and not hesitation.
But having him standing there, looking dangerously sexy in all black, told her otherwise.
“I didn’t think you’d actually come,” she said and defensively wrapped her arms around her waist.
“I made a promise, Nickie. I keep my promises,” he said and stepped close.
But all he’d promised was tonight and I’m not a one night stand kind of girl, she thought. Almost as if he could read her mind, he said, “Don’t run from this before we even get started.”
She chuckled hesitantly and offered up a hesitant smile. “Seems to me we already got started beneath the boardwalk.”
He grinned and laid a hand by the crook of her neck. He urged her forward until they were barely inches apart. He smelled like sunshine and the beach and she breathed that scent in deeply. The weight of his hand on her neck was demanding, but in a good way, and sent a thrill through her. Between her legs, her clit throbbed for his touch and she grew damp again.
“I guess we did, babe. So are you ready for more?”
“That depends.”
He narrowed his amazing green eyes and examined her features. “That depends on what?”
She was nothing if not honest. “On what you want to do.”
He grinned again and she realized that sex with him would always be filled with light and laughter and fun. “Let’s start off easy, Nickie. I want you to talk dirty to me.”
“Talk dirty?”
He expects me, a woman who blushes at the good spots in romance novels, to talk dirty?
“Like this,” he said and finally closed the last few inches between them and his warm breath tickled her skin as he whispered in her ear. “I love your tits. The way they feel in my hands and in my mouth. I’m so hard thinking about how they’ll taste again and how they’ll move as you ride me later.”
She moaned and beneath her dress, her nipples pebbled almost painfully, aching for his touch and his wonderful mouth.
“You so don’t play fair, Jase.”
“I’m always fair, Nickie. You know that, but I’m also determined to get what I want and I want you. So will you do it?” he asked and bit her earlobe playfully. “Will you talk dirty to me?”
“Christ, Jase. You know this is difficult for me,” she said and he surprised her by grabbing hold of her hand and pressing it over the long ridge of his erec
tion.
“You don’t know how difficult it was to see you all night long and ignore the fact that what I wanted the most was to be buried inside you.”
She moaned at that thought and cupped his cock, getting even wetter as she imagined him filling her. Somehow she found the courage to say the words he wanted to hear.
“I used to watch you on the beach with Tommy and wonder what you’d look like. How you’d feel in my hand, like you do now,” she said and stroked him. Explored the length and width of him as best as she could with the fabric of the jeans keeping her from his erection.
“That’s it, babe. Oh God, that’s it,” he said, urging her on as he stood stock still in front of her, as if understanding that if he did another thing, she might reconsider their night together.
“You’re so big, Jase. All of you,” she said and she ran her free hand across the broad width of his shoulders and then down to cup the thick muscles on his chest. He was well over six foot and without her killer heels, the top of her head barely brushed his chin. She raised her head and brushed a kiss along the rasp of beard on his jaw.
“I want to see you, Jase. Feel your skin,” she said.
She’d fantasized about it so often in her dreams and as she’d sat on the beach reading, although a good part of her attention had been on him as he’d worked the lifeguard stand or surfed. He was so beautiful and she’d wondered more than once how his board shorts had stayed on those lean hips. She had sweated more than once as the shorts had dipped low to reveal those enticing Vees that temptingly pointed down.
At her words, he went into action, ripping off his sweater to reveal his chest, immense shoulders, and a defined six pack that was more of an eight pack and would put any cover model to shame.
She laid her hands on his shoulders before moving them all across those muscles and his smooth hot skin. Beneath her hands he was tense and as she met his gaze, she realized just how much he wanted her and how much control he was exerting.
Lucky 7 Brazen Bachelors Contemporary Romance Boxed Set Page 3