Playing Dirty

by HelenKay Dimon

  Maybe she should have skipped the dress completely. She’d like to think he’d notice naked. “Nope.”

  He leaned down on the counter across from her and took one of her hands in his. Fingertips touched her palm and a thumb brushed over the heel. “Okay, well, I can order in. What are you hungry for?”

  She fought to keep the shiver running through her. “Nothing.”

  “Really?” He shot her one of those sexy smiles that made her insides spin.

  “Yeah, Ford. Really.”

  He lifted her hand and kissed his way up her wrist. “You’re not exactly being helpful in the ‘we need food’ department.”

  This time her insides did a little dance. The tumbling sensation had her locking her feet around the bar footstep to kept from pitching forward. “I don’t want food.”

  “Then what . . .” He peeked up and his eyes widened, all signs of distraction clearing in record time. “Oh, I think I’m catching up here.”

  “Finally. Thought I’d need to get out smoke signals soon.”

  She slipped her hand out of his. Her fingers fumbled on the little white buttons of her dress, but she got the top two undone. Peeling back the edges, she revealed the tops of her breasts. She didn’t have to guess if he’d figured out the braless thing. His gaze locked on her skin until she thought she could feel the warmth of his stare rush over her.

  He swallowed twice when her hand moved to the next button. “I prefer stamina over quickness.”

  “I was just thinking the same thing.” The third button slid out of its hole, and the cool air of the condo mixed with the heat from his eyes. She leaned forward, giving him an unbroken view of the shadow between her breasts and miles of skin.

  “Nice dress.”

  About time he picked up on that. “I chose it specially for your homecoming.”

  His gaze bounced up again. Traveled to her hair and over her face. “How did I miss how amazing you look tonight?”

  Much better. “You should see what I have on under this.” She undid two more buttons and let the dress gape to her waist.

  “It looks like nothing, and I sure as hell hope that’s the case.”

  “It is.” She slid the material off her shoulders, letting it pool on her arms and dip down to her bikini line . . . if she had been wearing one.

  He walked around the counter to stand in front of her. “I like where your head is tonight.”

  “Want to prove it?” She took his hand and slipped it inside her open dress.

  “This thing where you take the lead?” He took over then with both hands roaming over her body, stopping to brush his thumb over her nipple and bring it to a tight bud. “So fucking sexy.”

  “Having me strip down in front of you doesn’t make you feel like a dirty old man?”

  His low chuckle filled the quiet room as he took her hands and brought her to her feet. “I’m not that much older than you.”

  “Seven years.”

  Leaning in, he pressed his mouth against her neck then trailed a line of kisses down and over her collarbone. To the tops of her breasts. “So beautiful.”

  “Thirty-­three or sixty-­three, you’re still impressive.” She cupped a hand over his erection. Rubbed back and forth over the bulge and felt it grow under her palm.

  “I try.” Slow and steady, he pushed the dress down from her waist and let it slip to the floor. The material puddled at her feet. Before she could kick it free he bent down and licked her nipple.

  Fingers and mouth, the joint pressure made her breath hiccup in her chest. He sucked and kissed until her mouth dropped open and her body pressed in closer. She fought for air and tried to keep her heartbeat even, but the blood thundering through her veins had other ideas.

  One hand slid around her stomach to her ass. The move dragged her hard against him as his mouth found that sensitive place behind her ear. He nibbled and licked until her knees turned to jelly.

  She grabbed fists full of his shirt and tugged it up his stomach and over his shoulders. While he skimmed his tongue over her the top of her ear, she dropped her head into that sexy space where his neck met his shoulders. Resting there, she inhaled his scent, all warm and minty like the soap he used each morning.

  “My head will explode if I don’t get inside you soon,” he whispered against her cheek.

  The words vibrated through her. She pulled back and cradled his face in her hands. “That’s not quite how I was going to say it, but yeah.”

  When she wiggled her eyebrows, he smiled. “But I love when you throw out the dirty talk.”

  With him, sex ranged from fun to heart-­stopping. He laughed, they joked. When he entered her, fast or slow, her heels would press into the mattress. And she needed to get them there right now.

  “Do you like this?” Her fingers went to work on his belt. The sound of the zipper screeched through the room as she lowered it. The only thing better was his soft groan when she reached inside the material and wrapped her fingers around his length.

  As her hand moved up and down, his forehead dropped until it touched hers. “Damn, Shay.”

  “Should I stop?”

  His hands smoothed over her back and down to her ass. “God, no.”

  “Are you begging?” He was loaded with confidence and liked to be in control, but she knew from experience he didn’t shy away from asking for what he wanted in the bedroom . . . or the kitchen or the shower.

  “I’ll get on my knees, if you want me to.”

  “I’d like that.” She kissed him then. Not teasing or light. A searing kiss that had her body plunging into a heat storm.

  His hands tightened against her lower back as he rocked her body against his, rubbing and igniting a flame in every cell. Her fingers speared in to his hair. Hands pulled at him, grabbing and touching, wanting to get closer and melt into him.

  One minute she was hugging and caressing him and the next she held nothing but air. Before she could protest, he slipped out of her arms. Bent his legs and slowly sank to his knees. She looked at the top of his head. Her muscles shook and she snagged the counter behind her in a death grip as he opened her legs to fit between them.

  Fingertips slid up the inside of her thighs and a breath of hot air blew over her. When he trailed his tongue inside her, over her, her hips bucked. The waiting plus the prolonged foreplay had her body on edge and her blood pounding through her.

  She reached down, thinking to push him back so she could drop to the floor in front of him, but her hand hit his shoulders and stayed there for balance. Her nails bit into his skin. If the sting bothered him, he didn’t let it show. He used his fingers and mouth to wind her up until every muscle in her body clenched as if begging for relief.

  “We should get to the bedroom.” She blew out a rough breath as his finger hit the spot that made her heart stop.

  She was wet and ready and five seconds from crawling all over him. When her knees buckled, he caught her around her thighs and brought her down until she straddled his thighs. The rough denim rubbed against her bare skin but she barely felt it. Sensations bombarded her as they kissed and his palms caressed her.

  One hand dipped between then and a finger pressed up inside her. “You are so fucking wet.”

  Words jammed in her throat. She couldn’t say anything.

  “I can’t wait.” He flipped her and the room spun.

  When her back hit the carpet, her thighs dropped open to make room for him. He slid over her. The friction of his clothes against her bare stomach had her squirming for more.

  “God, I can’t stop wanting you.” His finger pressed and her body pulsed in time with the intimate touches.

  “Don’t.” She mumbled the words between kisses.

  Not sure if he heard, and not caring, she focused on wrapping her legs around his hips and clinging to his broad back with all h
er strength. Everything inside her clenched. His heavy pants and her soft moans hung in the air.

  She was on the pill but her mind flashed to protection and the condoms they’d agreed to use. She would have offered a reminder but her mind kept blanking as thoughts whooshed into her head, scrambled, then left again.

  He did this to her. He flooded her senses and had her forgetting about every man that came before. Took her life and control and shook them until they scattered.

  “I have to . . .” He sat up before he finished the sentence.

  His hands never stopping, he stripped off his jeans and the boxer briefs underneath. Instead of his usual smoothness, the moves were jerky and wild, as if a fever gripped him. He moved quickly and didn’t slow until he was naked and staring down at her again.

  With a hand on the inside of each knee, he pushed her thighs open. “So fucking beautiful.”

  All embarrassment and every doubt gone, she let her legs fall to each side. She craved his touch and the feel of him pulsing inside her. Her hands landed on his, guiding him closer to the spot she needed him to touch.

  “Ford, now.”

  Her sharp order seemed to snap him out of his stupor. He stopped staring at her stomach, loving every inch with his gaze, and scrambled to the side. Half on her, half off, he reached for the leg of his jeans and pulled the pants closer.

  She tightened her hold on his hands. “What are you—­”

  “Condom.” He pulled the small packet out of his pocket and held it up.

  Before she could blink, he ripped the package open and rolled it on. She had to fight off a laugh at his determination. It was a stark contrast to how he’d acted when he first came in. He sure saw her now.

  And here she was getting all pissy because he kept eyeing up everything including the leftover Chinese food containers in the refrigerator. “I thought you only came here for dinner.”

  “I planned to eat first, but then . . .”

  “Make ‘then’ now and we can work our way back to food later.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Balancing some of his weight on his elbows, he pressed against her again. His palm slid over the back of her thigh, lifting her leg higher on his hip. Their mouths fused together as he guided his length inside her. Stretching and pushing, he thrust into her long and deep. He cradled her head in one hand while the other skimmed over her leg and then up to her stomach.

  In and out, his body pumped into hers. Each pulse sped up the thudding of her heart. The guttural sounds he made matched the buck of his lower body against hers.

  They’d been sleeping together for weeks. Sometimes slow and lingering, sometimes hot and fast. Always smoking and shared. Never selfish. He made demands of her body and gave back equal measure. He didn’t hide his need or desire. Never judged. The feminine power he unleashed had her more confident to ask for what she wanted.

  Right now she wanted more. “Harder.”

  The rhythm increased. When he shifted his hips, her head dropped back against the floor. With her back arched and tension coiling inside her, she held on tighter to his forearms. Their harsh breathing echoed around them as her body thumped against the floor with each press of his.

  She ached for release. Her body, so primed for him, silently begged to break free.

  Without a word, his hand snaked between them and his finger found her clit. He rubbed and circled. His body pressed in and out and sensations swirled around her. She couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think.

  When he lifted her hips and pressed her thighs back toward her stomach, he took her even deeper, her lungs squeezing and the last bit of air leaving her body. She clenched her fingers in his hair and held onto him as the orgasm hit. Wave after wave pummeled her. The clenching inside her released in a rush and her body clamped down on his.

  The moan coming from deep in his chest had her lifting her hips. The need to drive him wild swamped her need to relax. Her body had gone boneless but she held on, waiting for his control to snap.

  The press of her hand against his lower back did the trick. Sweat gathered on his skin and heat radiated off of him. His mouth left hers and his head dropped. His jagged breathing drowned out everything else as he drove into her in one long last push.

  He didn’t shout, but whispered her name as he fell heavier against her. “Damn.”

  “Yeah.” That was all she could manage. Once she figured out how to send a signal to her brain to ease up on her hold around his waist, she’d work on words.

  Seconds, maybe minutes, later he lifted his head and stared around the kitchen and family room areas. “We didn’t even make it to the couch.”

  “Was that the original plan?” In her mind she’d only gotten as far as stripping the dress off. She’d figured he’d take it from there, and he had.

  He looked down at her. All the tension he carried with him after coming home from the job had disappeared. From his relaxed muscles to the sexy way the corner of his mouth kicked up, he seemed satisfied. Happy even.

  That made one of them. She was too busy fighting off how good this felt. Last thing she needed was to fall this hard this fast.

  From the beginning, she’d hidden him away and kept him from her friends. He’d only met her uncle because Anthony used his spare key to get into her place. Until now they’d thrived on privacy and stolen moments between his work assignments. Tonight struck her as something else. He came in keyed up and his attention scattered. She brought him around but the heat between them had her brain misfiring.

  She couldn’t be in love. But, damn, this felt like something big.

  He brushed the hair off her forehead. “What are you thinking?”

  That falling for a guy she barely knew was a stupid move.

  Pushing the doubts and attractions away, she focused on the moment. “We should use the bed next round.”

  His smile grew. “Then let’s get there.”

  Ford told himself he wanted water. Nothing else. Two hours had passed since he’d scooped her up and carried her to the bedroom for that promised second round. He’d been all over her, unable to get enough. Even now he was amazed his legs carried him.

  He was so fucking lost where she was concerned. She didn’t hold back or even try to protect herself from him. The trust drove him nuts because he didn’t deserve it.

  Now, as he got out of the still warm bed, she dozed. They’d rolled across the sheets, ending with her on her knees and him behind her. Ten minutes after sex, his instincts had screamed at him to get up and check her condo. To slip on his briefs and conduct some quick recon, sick prick that he was.

  Battling back a serious case of self-­loathing, he concentrated on the job. On Trent and the destruction he could bring down on the city. On the world.

  The emotional back and forth gave Ford a nasty case of whiplash.

  Still, he pushed on, walked through the condo, turning on a light to keep from tripping over furniture. Making his way from one end to another, he double-­checked the devices he had planted in her place. One look at the camera hidden in a picture frame on the mantel and he froze. The equipment relayed the video back to the Warehouse and Ellery’s terminal. He hoped she had the sense to fast forward through the sex.

  Until tonight he’d been careful up to confine his time with Shay to the bedroom, where at least a sheet could hide some of the deed. Rolling around naked on the floor hadn’t been in his plans until she unbuttoned that dress and he lost his fucking mind with the need to take her right then.

  Refusing to think about the show they’d put on, he went to her purse. Flipping through the pockets and scanning the contents of her wallet, he didn’t see anything new or interesting.

  Next came her computer. She worked on it all day. With budgets and bills and collecting rents, she had a steady amount of accounting to keep track of. Ford was more interested in her e-­mail ac
count. He’d been all over the computer and sent a copy of the hard drive back to Ellery to analyze. They’d found nothing. But that didn’t mean Shay didn’t have something new now. Possibly some way to bypass whatever trace Ellery had on her account.

  He lifted the top to the laptop and hit the space bar. Shay hadn’t logged off, and her word processing program popped up. A few clicks of the keys and Ford got right into her e-­mail in box because her computer automatically filled in her user name and password. Her convenient choices made his life easier, but she needed to be more careful. Not that he could think of a way to broach that subject without giving away his snooping.

  After scanning a few e-­mails, he hit on one that grabbed his attention. Not the right one. One from Shay to a friend that mentioned him and dating and talked about him not being anything like Devin, her piece-­of-­shit former boyfriend. The guy with all the debt and no boundaries.

  Ford knew the name and the broad strokes from her file. He wanted an address and a few minutes scaring the shit out of the guy to teach him a lesson.

  He sat there clenching and unclenching his hands until the need to punch something passed. The keys almost cracked under the force of his typing as he deleted the browser history and covered his tracks.

  Now for a quick buzz around the room to make sure he hadn’t left anything telling for her to uncover. Seeing their clothes scattered across the floor stopped him. He bent over and scooped up her dress before dumping it on the armrest of the couch.

  “What are you doing?” Her voice cut through his mental checklist.

  Damn, that never happened. She actually got the jump on him. He didn’t hear her until she spoke. Even now she lounged in the doorway to the hall wearing nothing more than a short see-­through white robe, and he only knew that much because she announced her presence and gave away the upper hand.

  Unable to fight it, his gaze wandered over her, remembering every naked inch. “I thought you were asleep.”

  She squinted as she glanced at the clock on the stove. “It’s only ten.”

  “So I didn’t knock you out with hot sex?” That made one of them. He barely had the strength in his legs to move.