Telepathic Cravings

by Melissa Schroeder

  “Yes. We’ve have it in the lab being tested right now.”

  For a moment, she felt irritation flare, but it wasn’t her own. It shook her to her core. Where did it come from?

  She glanced at Drake and saw it there plain on his face. He was agitated they had messed with the drug.

  While trying to ignore Drake’s feelings, she decided to let them fight it out themselves. “Drake, I have some work I need to catch up on. Zarak, make sure he gets full cooperation from you and your staff.” His face flushed and he opened his mouth, but she stopped the argument. “This comes from Carlyle. You want to fuck your career, go ahead.” With a nod to Drake, she turned on her heel and headed back to her office.

  Once there, she massaged her temples trying to will away the tension that had erupted the moment Drake had appeared at her door that morning. Who was she fooling? She’d been preoccupied with him since she had seen him in Carlyle’s office months ago.

  And now, she was dealing with things she never thought would bother her again. Feelings? From her childhood, she had been able to hear thoughts and move objects. She’d been shunned by her foster families and taught to hide the gifts. When she’d been tossed out of the lab, she’d cursed the horrible experience, but rejoiced in her newfound freedom. But now, her powers were returning and at times they were sharper and scarier. She didn’t need this shit right now.

  She shook her head to clear it of morbid thoughts and decided to get back to work. If she could make it through this investigation without falling apart, she’d take a break from work, sort out this mess.

  The memory of Drake’s thoughts sparked across her mind and she shivered. As long as she could resist the lure Drake represented, she’d survive.

  * * * *

  With his body aching from hours spent bent over a lab table, Drake leaned against the wall of the elevator. He wasn’t looking forward to meeting face to face with Nolete, but he didn’t want to take the chance someone would hear him talking on his phone with her. The doors slid open and he slowly walked down the hall to Nolete’s apartment. The unsettled feelings that had plagued him since his return to Earth churned in his stomach. He’d kept his contact with her to a minimum. He rubbed his belly knowing no matter how much he avoided her, he had the same reaction: sweaty palms and a rock-hard erection.

  Just to get her home address, Drake had fought a lot of red tape and then finally broke down and called Genoa. The satisfied tone in her voice had made him wince, but he couldn’t very well bully anyone at the Counterterrorism Department to get him the information. Most of them didn’t know who he was and even if they did, it wouldn’t get him anywhere.

  He pressed the ringer, his heart thumping in his chest. A minute or two later, her voice sounded on the intercom.

  “What the hell are you doing here, Drake?”

  He glanced up at the miniature camera used for viewing.

  “I need to talk to you about something.” He sensed her hesitation and he couldn’t fight the ball of irritation that swelled and burned in his gut. “It’s work, Nolete.”

  The locks sounded and a moment later her door slid open. The moment he saw her, every thought he had in his mind disappeared.

  She wore a one-piece catsuit thing that clung to every curve, accentuating her full hips, her tiny waist. His blood heated, searing his veins.

  “This better be good.” She turned to walk away and he figured she expected him to follow, but getting his brain to work with no blood in it whatsoever was pretty hard. Especially with the wonderful view of her ass.

  She looked over her shoulder at him. “What the hell are you doing? Aren’t you coming in?”

  Feeling like a fool, he followed her.

  “Ashford, secure.” The door closed and locked behind him, but he barely noticed it. That’s the way it had always been with Letty. He’d have all kinds of things to talk about that he, the science geek, had planned out, but he would get within ten feet of her, and be harder than a steel pike, ready to jump her bones.

  She led him down a hall to what he figured was the living room. Probably the opposite side of the house from her bedroom. Not that it had mattered ten years ago. They’d made love just about everywhere. He remembered one particular instance in her dorm bathroom. She’d been sitting on the sink, her legs wrapped around his waist, and both of them had gotten off on the fact someone could have walked in on them at any moment.

  When she faced him, her skin was flushed, and she seemed to look everywhere but at him.

  “So, what do you need?”

  What did he need? What he needed was to strip her bare and sink his cock into her, but he had a feeling she would object. Her face turned brighter.

  He cleared his throat and ordered his hormones to take a rest. “I wanted to talk to you about the testing and I really didn’t want to do it over the phone.”

  She finally looked at him, her green eyes filled with interest. Damn, he had missed that look from her.

  “What?”

  “First thing. You have to do something about Zarak.”

  She sighed and nodded. “He has been difficult since I got my job. He has a problem with paras.”

  “A problem?”

  “Don’t worry about. There are still some scientists who want nothing to do with people like me.”

  Anger shot through him and he opened his mouth to condemn the bastard, but from the look on her face, she wouldn’t be happy to have any interference from him. He’d seen that look enough in the past to know Letty wanted to be the one to take care of it.

  “Okay, but you also have another problem.”

  One eyebrow rose and she crossed her arms.

  “You have a leak in the lab.”

  “Yeah. I know.”

  “You know?”

  “Well, it’s a government agency, of course there’s a leak.” She shrugged. “Not much I can do about it.”

  “You know if this got out—”

  She uncrossed her arms and placed her hand on her hips. “You don’t have to tell me how important this investigation is. But even though we’re considered one of the most secure departments, there’s always a leak.”

  “I’m not talking about going to the papers here with some useless information. I’m talking about someone tapping into the computers. On top of that, someone was messing with the sample before I could get to it. There are people in that office who don’t want you to find out where this comes from.”

  Anger vibrated between the two of them. The only problem with that was he remembered every time they had fought ten years ago, they had ended up in bed. Well, not always the bed. “Drake, I don’t need some virgin investigator telling me how to do my job.” Her voice had turned sharp, but he could also feel a hum of something else. Something he hadn’t heard from her in years, had thought never to hear from her again. “I know there are leaks. I know they’re fucking with the samples. I know someone is leaking things to the press. But at the moment, there isn’t much I can do about it, now is there?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “If I launch a full investigation into the leaks, the information we’ve been trying to keep to ourselves will hit the fucking news in less than an hour.” Her hands dropped from her waist and her shoulders sagged. “The pay for working in government isn’t great so there have always been people ready to sell secrets.”

  He hated the defeated tone in her voice. Knowing there was nothing she could do about it didn’t matter. His Letty hadn’t been a woman to make compromises. She didn’t follow the safe path.

  He wanted to see her get mad and kick ass. He wanted his Letty back, the one who didn’t give a damn about what was better for the company. The one who only cared about truth and justice.

  Before he knew what he was doing, he stepped forward and grabbed her by her shoulders. He should give her a shake, hoping to knock some good sense loose. But instead, he found himself pulling her closer, and before she could say a word, he crushed his mouth down on h
ers.

  Chapter 3

  Fear, anger, and lust rushed through Nolete, heating her blood. Never in her life had such a jumble of emotions coursed through her, sent from one person. She tried to fight it. She needed to push Drake away in her mind so she could do it physically. Unfortunately, the emotions tumbling through her at the moment kept her from saying no. She couldn’t ignore the heat that had flared the moment they had seen each other again.

  His tongue traced the seam of her lips. Without thought, she opened her mouth and allowed him to steal inside. As the taste of him, warm and spicy, filled her, the emotions tumbling through him lanced her to the core.

  She slid her arms up to his shoulders and stepped closer. Her breasts brushed against his chest, and they both moaned when her hardened nipples teased him. His hands moved down her back to her ass. Fingers she remembered so well traced the cleft between her buttocks before cupping each cheek and pulling her against him.

  Wrapping her legs around his waist, she rubbed her pussy against his hardened cock. His emotions ran through her, twisting and turning her own to a higher level until she could barely breathe.

  Hot, juicy…so damn good.

  As she tried to control her own reactions, his thoughts invaded her mind, pulling her further away from reason. At first they had been slowly sensual, of what he wanted to do to her with his hand, his mouth. But soon, they were stumbling over each other, and she couldn’t grasp onto one concrete thought.

  Her body reacted as if they were her own thoughts. It was just like before, but this time it was sharper, darker. His need coursed through her, pulsing in her veins.

  He stumbled over to the couch and toppled them both onto it. The weight of his body made her all the more aware of every lean, muscled inch of him. He ground his groin against her. More juice wet her pussy as he increased the pace. The fabric of her suit clung to her clit, heightening the friction.

  His own arousal was pulsing in her, deepening, changing, pulling her further away from sanity. He shifted his weight and slid his hand to her breast. At the same time, he left her lips and kissed a trail down her neck to her ear. As his fingers pinched her nipples, his teeth grazed her earlobe. Those two little actions shot through her and she moaned his name. His head shot up, his hand stilled on her breast.

  “Say my name again.” His voice was rough with arousal. The sound of it washed over her, and sent another wave of heat straight to her sex. She could feel her muscles clench at his authoritative tone.

  “Drake.” Her voice was just above a whisper, but she knew he heard her responding desire. He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath.

  “You have no idea what that does to me, Letty.”

  The use of the old nickname should’ve irritated her and brought her to her senses. Unfortunately, she had the same reaction as when he had used it years ago. She shivered. Every fiber of her being wanted him. She wanted his cock deep within her as she came.

  He drew back and pulled her clothes off her, and before she could think, he was on top of her. Urgency threaded through his arousal, and for some reason she felt a sense of panic edging both.

  She wanted his clothes off. Feeling his skin next to hers… It had been the one thing she craved. But, as she reached for his shirt, he was undoing his pants, and had his cock in hand. Looking into his eyes, she could feel his intent, but she wanted something more.

  With not much more than a half-hearted push, she got him to move to a sitting position. She stood and pulled him up, then helped him discard his shoes and pants. A second later, she was on the floor between his knees. As she trailed her hand up the inside of his thigh, he moaned and clawed at his shirt. It joined the rest of their clothes on the floor.

  She slid a finger up one side of his shaft, then the other. He rewarded her with a groan. The sound shifted through her, tangling with his emotions and his out-of-control thoughts. Wet and damp, her pussy clenched at the thought of hearing him groan, of making him lose control.

  As she cupped his balls, she shifted forward and touched her tongue to the tip of his penis. A drop of pre-cum had leaked out. She licked it, then savored the salty-sweet taste of him. There had been other men since Drake, but none of them had affected her this way. She had never been ready to get on her knees and suck them until they came. Thinking of doing just that sent a dizzying wave of heat through her.

  She took his cock in her mouth. As she sucked, she twirled her tongue around the blunt head. He slid his fingers through her hair and molded them to her skull. She moved her hand to the base, as she continued to torture him, reveling in his moans and groans.

  Her muscles tightened and she felt another gush of liquid fill her sex. She knew she was close, that just a little more and she would come. As she edged closer, her moans grew, and the thought that he could feel them, that they pulsed around his dick almost sent her over.

  But Drake had other plans. He grabbed her by her forearms, and pulled her up onto his lap.

  “That’s enough, Letty.” The tendons in his neck were tight, his face strained and flushed, and a feeling of pure exhilaration swept through her. She still had the power to make him lose control.

  She positioned herself over his shaft and slowly took him in. She was wet, but he was large, and her muscles quivered then readjusted. They groaned together as she gyrated her hips. He bent his head and took her nipple in his mouth, sucking and grazing the tip with his tongue. Slowly, she lifted herself, and then sank back down. Soon, they built a rhythm together. Her excitement grew, heightened by his. His intense emotions almost superseded her own. She gained control, hoping somewhere in this she would not be lost in the tidal wave of his wants, his needs. It was hard because as she fought his feelings, she had to deal with his thoughts. They sparked through her, but all she got were bits and pieces of his thoughts. And with each passing minute, they grew more incoherent.

  With the dual assault on her senses, she was easily losing control. She quickened her movements, feeling she was close, that her body was ready to burst free. He had moved to her other breast. Each time his tongue swept over her nipple, she felt it all the way to her sex.

  He slid his hand to her clit and massaged the hardened nub. She took his face into her hands and pulled it level with hers. She crushed her mouth against his, as the first tremors of her orgasm shook her core. As she spasmed, he grabbed her hips, his fingers biting into her skin.

  Holding her still, he thrust into her once…twice…

  He pulled back from their kiss, groaning as he spurted his seed into her. She collapsed on top of him with a groan.

  Long moments later, he stirred.

  “Letty.” The gentleness in his voice curled in her chest, and sank into her bones. He tightened his hold.

  “Hmmm.”

  The warmth that had filled her during their lovemaking was now replaced by cold panic. She couldn’t handle this feeling. She’d allowed someone close once, someone who ripped her heart out.

  “Drake—”

  “Don’t, Letty.” His hand ran the length of her spine. “Don’t say let’s forget this happened. There is no way in five hells I can forget it.”

  She shifted her weight, then drew back from him. As she looked down into his eyes, she saw the tenderness that almost threatened to swamp her, to send her running for cover. But she also saw something else. Something that had her rethinking her denial. Vulnerability. She wouldn’t have believed it if she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes. But both of them were raw with emotions and she knew he couldn’t control his anymore than she could hers.

  “You have to admit that this isn’t a good idea.”

  He cocked an eyebrow. “Really? Hard to tell that when you moan my name so prettily.”

  His arrogance should have angered her, but she couldn’t fight the laughter that bubbled to the surface.

  “Drake, this is really important. If we fuck up this investigation because of our personal relationship, I could never forgive myself. You would never forgiv
e yourself.”

  His eyes narrowed as he studied her. “So, we pretend this never happened.”

  “Pretending would be hard. We just work around it.”

  “Listen. I think we can do this. We can’t work day in and day out without touching each other. Damn, we didn’t even last a day.”

  “But—”

  He placed his fingers on her lips and the heat of them warmed her. “No. Can you imagine working as tightly wound as we have been? Jesus, we’d be fighting within three hours. And think about it. It’s been ten years. Now that we have this, these memories, do you think we will be able to keep our hands off each other?”

  She knew he was right. Shouldn’t she be repulsed she’d screwed him like there was no tomorrow, even knowing what he had done to her? Why did she keep setting herself up for this? But he was looking up at her, honest intent showing clearly in his eyes. She couldn’t allow the fact that he had controlled her life before to have any impact now. His rejection had been the hardest thing for her to survive, but she had.

  “I’ll agree with you on a couple of conditions.” She waited for his nod and continued. “First, no discussion of the past. I don’t want to rehash it. It’s over with and there’s nothing we can do about it now.” He nodded again. “And there is no future. After this assignment is over and we catch the bad guys, we have nothing.”

  A defiant light gleamed in his eyes, but his lips thinned and he nodded one more time.

  “Are you hungry?” He looked a little confused by the change in topic and she felt her lips curving. “I need something to eat and you need to tell me what you think about this drug.”

  * * * *

  Drake bit into his sandwich and lounged back to watch Letty putter around her kitchen. It was a very domestic scene. As she cut into her own sandwich, he glanced around and realized he would have never picked this apartment for her. It was mostly stainless steel and black polyleather. It was so…not Letty. But she wasn’t Letty anymore, according to her. Ten years ago, he couldn’t see her being the cold, distant woman she was today—that was until they’d made love.