by Mia Zachary
He wrapped his arms around her and swiftly claimed her lips. The kiss was wild and demanding, familiar and yet new. Heart racing, her body on fire, currents of electricity zinged along her nerve endings. She returned his kiss with reckless abandon as his mouth teased and encouraged and enticed.
Then his hands began to glide along her sides.
She froze. Could he feel the stretch marks left from her weight loss? His hands continued toward her bottom and she began to panic. He would definitely feel the cellulite on her buttocks and outer thighs. She pushed up on one elbow, intending to roll off him, but the strength of his arms held her in place.
“Relax, Jordan. Just relax.”
She tried, but the core of tension remained. The reality was that not only didn’t she look like the girls in the magazines; she sure as hell didn’t feel like them, either. Reality sucked.
“I can’t.”
“In fantasies, nobody judges. Especially not strangers.”
Who was he kidding? Strangers were the most judgmental of all. She couldn’t go on with this. The fantasy spell had been broken. Suddenly overcome with anxiety, loneliness and longing squeezed her heart. If they made love now, it would be awkward and embarrassing and quickly over.
“Let me go, please.”
“Shh,” he whispered. “No inhibitions and no regrets tonight. There won’t be anything between us, not tonight.”
He kept one hand on her bottom, wordlessly insisting she accept his touch, while the fingers of his other hand tangled in her hair and guided her mouth back to his. This kiss was gentle and almost tender, a slow exploration and a gesture of reassurance. The intimacy of it added to her surreal feelings of confusion and familiarity.
He rolled over with her until they’d reversed positions. His fingers gently touched her temples and cheeks as he softly claimed her mouth again. Jordan allowed herself to unwind and to kiss him back. The tip of his tongue slipped between her parted lips, inviting her to partake. With a soft moan, she surrendered to the heat building inside her once more.
His left hand caressed the tender skin along her jaw as she parted her lips for him. His other hand moved to her breast, his palm slowly caressing the soft mound until the nipple beaded. She stroked her hands across his broad shoulders, both exploring and encouraging. Shivers of desire danced along her skin everywhere his fingers caressed her.
He brushed his lips along her jaw, nibbled on the sensitive places on her neck before kissing a path down her chest. She groaned as he suckled her nipples. The gentle, tugging pressure sent a wave of need straight to the juncture of her thighs. He continued to kiss her breasts, the top swells and the tender undersides before trailing his open mouth over her ribs and down her abdomen.
Every inch of her body felt alive with an urgent sense of need. He placed hot kisses on her belly and hips before tracing patterns along the inside of her thighs with his tongue. Moaning softly, her pulse quickened in excitement. He knelt over her, slipped his thumbs under the waistband of her panties and peeled them off. Apprehension trembled in her chest only to dissipate when his fingers probed into her damp heat.
He shifted until he could remove the panties altogether, then settled on the bottom of the bed. Jordan half gasped, half groaned at the first touch of his mouth to the damp, swollen flesh. When his tongue delved inside her, her whole being caught fire and a familiar tightening began in her womb. She lost herself in the overload of sensations as he coaxed her toward a quickly escalating climax.
“Condoms?”
“In the night-table drawer.”
David left her only long enough to strip off his sweatpants and underwear and protect them. Then he lay down beside her. Her fears and insecurities resurfaced. The last time they were together, he’d been a considerate lover, trying everything to please her. And yet she’d been left feeling empty and unsatisfied. She prayed this time was different, that her body would continue to respond.
He positioned himself between her legs, supporting his weight on his elbows. Her nipples grazed the crisp hairs on his chest before her breasts flattened against the hard planes. She could feel the ridges of his sculpted abs against her belly. Anticipation formed a knot of tension, the best kind of tension, in her belly.
His leg hairs tickled her inner thighs when he shifted. He moved forward so that the smooth tip of his penis was poised at her entrance. She tried to prepare for the sensual invasion, but she was too eager, too needy. He slowly penetrated her, inch by magnificent inch, until he was completely sheathed inside her. She writhed in pleasure as her body softened and stretched to accept him.
David pushed into her once, withdrew slightly, and then returned. Crying out in need, in relief, the raw pleasure of his possession overwhelmed her. He began rocking in a deliberate, sensuous rhythm that she quickly matched. Then he drew his knees closer, slowing the pace and changing the angle of penetration. In the back of her mind were confused questions about what was happening, but her body couldn’t have cared less as long as this newly discovered passion didn’t stop.
He must have felt the wondrous quickening in her womb because he accelerated the tempo, increased the glorious grinding pleasure. Wild and wanton, she reveled in his hard, fast thrusts. Wrapping her legs tightly around his thighs, her hands clutched at the sweat-slick muscles of his back. The slow insistent throb became a deep pulsating tremor. He arched his hips, heightening the pleasure until they were both frenzied.
She couldn’t think; she could only feel. A sensual wave crested over her, followed by tremors of ecstasy. The orgasm shuddered through her, rocking her to the core. The joy of it almost brought tears to her eyes. He continued pushing deeper and faster until at last a triumphant groan escaped his throat when he found his own release.
Too overwhelmed to speak, Jordan simply held him tight, expressing her wonder and gratitude by her embrace. She felt something shift inside of her, felt her confidence and power as a woman blooming like a rose too long untended. Delight bubbled up inside her like champagne fizz, tickling her and making her giddy. She’d hoped that fantasy sex would be all the guidebook promised, but this had been so much more.
Smiling into the darkness, Jordan considered her seduction plan a rousing success.
THE NEXT MORNING, when she heard soft jazz music begin playing, Jordan groped for the alarm clock. She smacked her hand against a rock-solid biceps instead. Opening her eyes in surprise, she turned her head. David slept beside her. He’d stayed the night this time.
He rolled onto his side, dragging the black cotton bedsheet with him. Puzzled, she stared at the shiny, raised patch of skin that marred his right shoulder. She hadn’t realized he had such terrible scarring. But, then again, she’d only been naked with him once before and she’d never seen him in the light.
David fumbled for the night table and shut off the alarm before rolling onto his back. Normally she hopped right out of bed at six in the morning, eager to start her day with a three-mile run. But this morning she chose to enjoy the unfamiliar pleasure of waking up next to someone. She laid her head on his chest, closed her eyes and snuggled against his side.
Her fantasy had been more successful than she could have dreamed. Maybe pretending to be strangers and allowing their imaginations to take over had been all they needed to open up and explore their sexual relationship. Last night had been so unlike the previous time they’d made love, it was almost like being with a different person.
They’d reached for each other in the darkness, making love again, at times fast and desperate, in other moments slow and tender. She’d lost count of how many times he’d brought her to orgasm. Jordan stretched her arms over her head, basking in the warm glow of satisfaction. Some part of her, long imprisoned, had been set free and she had David to thank for opening the door.
Jordan mentally paged through the Fifty Fast Fantasies book, trying to decide which scenario to try out the next time. Maybe Special Deliveryman or Buried Treasure Hunt. She smiled, already making a list of pr
ops and outfits for the first one. David would look great in a brown parcel-service uniform.
He sighed in his sleep and tightened his hold around her waist. A glance at the clock had her sighing, as well. It was getting late and she was going to have to share the bathroom. Hmm. Maybe they could save time by sharing the shower. She rubbed her hand back and forth over his chest.
“Wake up, sleepyhead.”
David grunted then nuzzled his chin on her forehead as he muttered, “It’s my day off.”
Jordan laughed softly and propped herself up on her elbow. “Well, I guess I could call in sick, but I thought you had to take depositions this morning.”
He startled and his eyes flew open. Then she felt the tension steal into his body as he turned his head to look at her. Confusion tightened his features. Jordan made a comical face, teasing him.
“Did you forget all about the Gregg case?”
She could feel his heart thudding beneath her hand. His expression became somber then he sighed heavily and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, a shadow had entered his gaze. His voice was quiet, remorseful.
“I’m not David. I’m Danny.”
6
HER HEART SKIPPED several beats, trying to regain its rhythm. Icy fingers crept along her skin and suddenly she felt violently ill. Danny. Not David. Danny. Jordan twisted away from him, throwing away the sheet as she scrambled off the bed.
Omigod. Omigod.
He sat up and called her name, but she was already running down the hallway to the bathroom. She slammed the door and bolted the lock, resting her back against the wood and gasping for breath. She eased over to the porcelain claw-foot tub on jellied legs, settling her naked bottom on the edge.
Omigod. Omigod. Omigod.
She pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes and rocked back and forth. Tears clogged her throat and her pulse hammered erratically. This had to be the most humiliating thing that had ever happened to her, if you didn’t count the disastrous prom date her cousin Keisha had set up back in high school.
A soft knock sounded. “Jordan. Let me in.”
“No.”
“Then will you come out?”
“No.”
She heard his grunt of frustration through the door. “You can’t stay in there forever.”
“Yes, I can.”
She dropped her hands, pounding her fists against her thighs. No, she couldn’t. Grabbing her bathrobe from the hook on the wall, she slipped it on before unlocking the door. David/Danny had been leaning on the door frame, but stepped back to let her pass. She glanced down long enough to see that he’d pulled on his boxer briefs. But his magnificent chest was still bare. His bare chest reminded her of last night.
“Can we please talk about this?”
“No!” She yelled over her shoulder as she stomped down the hall.
“Jordan.”
Danny grasped her elbow, forcing her to stop. She drew in a ragged breath to keep her stomach where it belonged. This was unbelievable and he didn’t seem to grasp the enormity of the situation. She looked at him, at the face that was identical to the one she thought she’d see this morning.
“You don’t understand. I had sex with a total stranger.”
His brows drew together. “Wasn’t that the idea of the fantasy?”
“Yes, but you’re the wrong stranger!”
HER WORDS HAD all of the power of a slap in the face. Danny dropped her arm and watched her go into the bedroom.
What the hell was happening? It felt as if a lead weight was crushing his chest and that wasn’t like him at all. He set the rules of his relationships, making sure things stayed nice and easy. He never got emotionally involved. And he wasn’t involved now. It was just an ego thing. Jordan had no idea who he really was when she’d met him outside his brother’s condo.
She hadn’t wanted him.
He knew his anger and a disappointment was unreasonable but, damn it, he’d felt something for her last night. Her vulnerability and fear had touched a place inside him that he hadn’t known existed. Instead of enjoying the sex for its own sake, he’d found himself wanting to protect and reassure her. The intensity of his feelings scared the hell out of him and the sooner he got over it the better.
He followed Jordan down the hallway.
“I can’t believe this! At least I thought I was kidnapping my ex-boyfriend.”
She was standing in front of her dresser trying to put on a bra without taking off her robe. One terrycloth arm flopped against her side as she wiggled into the straps. He caught a glimpse of the swell of her breast through the gap at the neckline when she turned to him.
“What’s your excuse, Danny? Do you normally go home with women you don’t know? Never mind. Don’t answer that.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and adapted a reasonable tone. “But I did know you. Since I recognized you at the St. Charles Hotel, I thought you’d realized—”
“Omigod.” Jordan started to hyperventilate and the color drained from her complexion. She strode across the room away from him then her legs seemed to melt beneath her. Concerned, he went to her as she sank onto the little divan by the window. “That was you. It was you in the elevator. Omigod. I didn’t think anyone would ever know about that.”
Danny crouched down beside her and took her hand. Then he felt something under his knee. When he shifted, he saw a book lying on the thick beige carpet. He didn’t bother trying to read the small print. The title, Fifty Fast Fantasies, said it all. He wondered if any of them involved elevators.
He returned his attention to Jordan. The harsh sunlight streaming through the window made her look even paler. Without letting on what he was doing, he checked her pulse with his thumb. “I’m confused. You told me you couldn’t stop thinking about last weekend, about the way we left things unfinished.”
“But that wasn’t what I meant.” She wouldn’t meet his eye, staring instead at his bare chest. Then she pulled her hand from his grasp and massaged her temples. “Omigod. I can’t believe this is happening.”
He sat back on his heels, careful not to touch her, but letting his voice slide into an intimate tone. “I haven’t been able to forget it, either. Before last night, I would have said it was the most incredible thing that ever happened to me. After I recognized you, I was upset at first—”
“Upset?” Jordan jumped to her feet and swept past him. “I feel like I cheated on my boyfriend. And, as if that wasn’t bad enough, I cheated with his brother!”
Danny stood up and went over to grab his T-shirt off the floor by the foot of the bed. He noticed for the first time that the black bedsheets didn’t really go with the rose-colored scheme of the rest of the room. “David told me you two split up. So there’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
“Yes, we did. But I thought we could get back together temporarily. Why do you think I went to all this trouble to seduce him?”
Danny paused in the act of pulling on his shirt, then continued to slip it over his head. He watched her fling open the closet door, then rifle through the contents. All of her clothes were arranged by color, dark to light, then long to short. A woman that organized must hate to make mistakes.
He scrubbed a hand over his face and wondered what to say. She considered and rejected several outfits, finally choosing a white V-necked blouse and dove-gray business suit. He took a couple of steps toward her then stopped, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. “This is really awkward…”
She scowled at him over her shoulder while she knelt down to pick out shoes. “No kidding.”
“Last night you said you knew about David. You said, quote, ‘I know all about your brother,’ unquote.”
“That’s because I thought he was talking about you again, but it was you talking about you. I mean, about him. Argh!”
What had David been saying to Jordan about him? Why? Never mind. It could wait.
“I’m sorry, Jordan. I thought you knew.”
She st
ood up and slowly turned toward him. “Knew what? Why do you sound so strange?”
This was a hell of a mess. He felt terrible about betraying his brother’s confidence, but at the same time he resented being the bearer of embarrassing news. “Jordan, David is gay.”
The clothes draped over her arm slipped onto the floor as she stared at him. Though her mouth fell open, no words escaped. Her face was absolutely expressionless, but her eyes had taken on a sheen of wetness. Suddenly, she stooped down to pick up her suit and blouse, her movements jerky.
“I’m really late for work. I can’t talk about this now.” Her voice sounded thin as she shoved the gray suit back into the closet. “I’ve got to get to the office so I can leave early and go to the airport. I have to pick up my family.” She pulled out a bright blue pants suit instead and tossed it on the bed. “Then I have to figure out how to explain to them that my whole engagement was a fraud.”
Danny’s eyes darted to her hands, to the emerald ring on her right hand…and the diamond solitaire on her left. He cursed viciously under his breath, really damned unhappy with his brother right now. He looked at Jordan’s face again and felt something twist inside his chest. He reached for her, but she shifted away. Her light brown eyes were rimmed with tears and her expression was bleak.
“Get dressed, Danny, and please go.”
He shoved his fists into the pockets of his sweatpants to keep from reaching for her again. “I can’t.”
“Excuse me?”
He frowned, no happier about the situation than she was. “You kidnapped me, remember? My car is still at David’s.”
THE SILENCE in Jordan’s car as she drove to David’s condo was like an unwelcome third passenger. Annoying and awkward. But it was preferable to dealing with the situation before she’d had time to think about everything.
Danny cleared his throat. “Jordan, we should talk.”
“I don’t want to talk.”
“Avoiding me doesn’t solve anything.”
She continued to stare straight ahead, frowning as she drove. Couldn’t he just leave her alone? She felt humiliated enough without rehashing every detail.