Cold Heat (Seasons of the Heart, Book 1)

by LeeAnne White

  Drake studied Brian’s pictures. A man stared back at him, his expression ranging from smiling to defiant, a darker skin tone than expected, hinted at a Hispanic ancestry, hazel eyes framed with dark slashes for eyebrows. He had a masculine face, with straight, white teeth. Dark hair photographed initially in, what Drake thought of, a typical business up-and-comer haircut, short on the sides and a bit longer on the top. As the pictures became more recent, there was a noticeable physical change to Brian. He had cut his hair, it now buzzed his head, making him look more aggressive, coupled that with the added muscles on the man and Drake couldn’t help but think something was wrong with this.

  He reached into his back pocket and withdrew his cell phone, intending to call Rafe, and have him dig further into Brian. Rafe had never met a computer challenge that had beaten him, yet. Drake was counting on that trend to hold steady while doing a bit of research as he punched in that familiar number.

  “Yo, Capt’n, I’m beginning to think that you miss my pretty face,” Rafe answered as his greeting.

  “Since when did you ever have a pretty face, Rafe? Last time I saw you, which was just yesterday, you still looked pretty fugly to me.”

  “Aw, now, Drake, that’s just plain cruel, if you ask me. Now my feelings are hurt and I’m gonna cry about it.”

  “Please, I’ve seen you take bullets, shrapnel, and knives worse than that and never bat an eye. Maybe its all the rejections you take from the ladies that’s making you soft?” Drakes tone changed from joking to more serious, “Anyhow, I called for a favor. I need you to put your research skills to work, and maybe call some of your contacts if needed, for some info on a person of interest.”

  Rafe heard the switch in Drakes tone, and immediately altered his mind from playful to serious. “Who, and what, am I looking for?”

  “The name is Brian Peterson…” and he rattled of the pertinent information Rafe would need for his search. “Something about this guy just doesn't sit right with me. I think when you see the pictures on the web you'll understand what I’m talking about. I need more than what I can find here.”

  “Got it, but, I gotta ask what this is about? Just some random name? I’ve known you for years now, and this is the first time you've called me about an unknown. Are you going to share?”

  “Remember how I told you yesterday about coming across a car that hit some ice and then a tree? This has everything to do with the woman, Kaylie, who was in the front seat of that car.” Drake went on to tell Rafe how he came to the point of wanting more information on this guy. “Like I said, something just feels off about him, and I want to know what’s up before I let Kaylie go on her way.”

  “Alright, I’ll get back to you when I have some more info for you,” Rafe said before disconnecting the call.

  Drake leaned back in his chair, suddenly becoming aware of the smell of baking wafting through his house, and following his nose, he walked into the living room. He looked around his kitchen and was stunned to see fresh cinnamon rolls cooling on his counters, but did not see Kaylie or Jenny anywhere. “Kaylie? Jenny? Come on girl!” He wasn’t really worried about them, not yet, not when it was obvious they had been in here recently with the cooling cinnamon rolls gracing his counter tops. He wasn’t sure how she had done it, but the kitchen was spotless after the baking. Giving into temptation, he snagged a still hot cinnamon roll, juggling it from hand to hand to cool it off before sinking his teeth into it. Sweet mother of God, was all he could think, as he groaned with pleasure as the hot roll filled with melted butter and sugars all but dissolved in his mouth.

  Suddenly he heard a sexy and throaty laugh, accompanied by an excited barking coming from outside. Walking over to the window he stopped short when he saw the woman and dog in question out playing in the snow. He could not draw his eyes away from Kaylie’s smile as she threw snowballs, to Jenny’s delight. Kaylie laughed again as Jenny leapt into the air for a ball before disappearing into a snowdrift and bouncing back out of it again, hurrying back to Kaylie’s side, waiting for another throw.

  Kaylie looked up just then and saw Drake looking out the window with a smile of his own, watching her and Jenny play. She turned to Jenny and they walked back towards the house together, Jenny’s entire body was wagging with pure, unbridled joy. Stopping just outside the door, Kaylie leaned down and brushed the snow off of Jenny’s coat, and then repeated the same procedure, more or less, on herself, knocking snow off of her coat and stomping the boots free of snow and mud before opening the door to go inside.

  Drake met them at the door, smiling as they came in, bending to rub Jenny before she walked over and plopped down in an exhausted doggy sprawl in front of the fire. His eyes met Kaylie’s as he straightened before assisting her with her gloves, and then turning her to help her with her coat. “You’ve been busy, and I apologize for being preoccupied in my room. I thought I was just in there a few minutes, but apparently, I was in there much longer than I realized. You were…“

  Kaylie’s smile froze. “I should have asked you first.”

  “If you even think about apologizing to me for baking, I might just turn you over my knee, Kaylie. You’re here with me right now and I expect, and want, you to feel comfortable and at home here; besides, it’s damn hard to be angry after tasting one of those rolls. How’d you learn to bake like this?”

  “Growing up, and in the early days with Brian, I loved baking, it relaxed me, gave me a chance to think and be creative. I stopped several years ago because, well, the why is not important, but I did feel comfortable in your house, comfortable enough to let myself experience it again. It was all just sitting there, in the back of my mind, waiting for me to open it back up.” Kaylie grinned at him, her eyes sparkling. “When you went into your room, I needed the outlet, so I baked.”

  Chapter 10

  Drake couldn't explain to himself why he kept feeling this draw towards this woman. She was not his usual type. He was more of a love ‘em and leave ‘em man and hadn’t given it much thought. Life in the SEALs was one that was held in a constant state of readiness to go wheels up at any time, and that ‘any time’ clause didn’t afford much opportunity for dating.

  There was something about her though, something that was pulling at him like iron to a magnet. Without thinking about it, he followed that pull and stepped up to Kaylie, putting one hand at the nape of her neck, his thumb caressing her jaw, while his other hand reached around and rested on her lower back, pulling her in closer to him, reducing the space that separated them.

  Kaylie’s hands came up to rest on his chest, her fingers splayed across the expanse of muscles as she looked up at Drake through her lowered eyelashes.

  Drake’s eyes, darkened with heat and hooded, focused on her mouth. His mouth was suddenly there on hers, and Kaylie opened her lips to him immediately and without coaxing from him. This was no gentle kiss; this was a claiming of her by him.

  She tasted the cinnamon on his tongue, mixed with the taste that was uniquely Drake. Their tongues alternating between caressing and dueling, Kaylie made a sound in her throat, a sound that Drake swore to himself he would draw from her again. A sound that was one of the most erotic sounds he’d ever heard from a woman.

  Drake changed the angle of the kiss, deepening it and tipping her head back further. He moved his mouth, feathering kisses across to a spot below her earlobe where he kissed and then bit ever so gently.

  Kaylie moved her head to the side, offering herself to Drake and his ministrations. When she moaned again, Drake felt his erection straining at the zipper in his jeans.

  Hooking his hands under her thighs, he lifted her up and carried her backwards to set her on the table. Once he had her settled on the table, he spread her legs apart and stood between them, getting her acquainted to the size of his body. His hands found their way under her sweater to her skin, trailing his hands up her ribs, taking her sweater with them.

  Kaylie was watching Drake through shuttered eyes, her breathing rapid and her
face flushed with passion as she reached her hands over her head, allowing Drake to remove the top. Kaylie’s arms automatically went to cover herself; embarrassed to let him see her without her sweater.

  “Don’t,” he said in a guttural tone as his eyes scoured her body, taking in her full breasts that were currently covered by a simple white cotton bra. “You’re beautiful. Don’t hide yourself from me.” Drake stopped when he saw the bruising across her chest and shoulder, a not so subtle reminder of what brought them together in the first place. His fingers lightly traced across one of the bruises, concern creasing his brow before leaning down and pressing light kisses across the bruises. His hands moved to cup her breasts, rolling her taut nipples between his thumb and fingers, eliciting a sigh from her lips. He leaned over and took a nipple in his mouth, moistening it through the simple cotton that covered her while keeping her other nipple in his hand.

  Kaylie was overwhelmed with sensations, her body felt ready to implode. Every time Drake touched her, she heated, and craved more. Her back arched off the table, silently offering more of herself to Drakes skilled mouth and tongue, her hands seeking him, wanting to touch him, to taste him like he was with her. Her hands moved to Drakes nape and into his hair, tugging him closer to her, showing him what she liked. “Please, I need to see you, to feel you, Drake. I need you.”

  Straightening up as Drake pulled his shirt off, Kaylie’s eyes drank him in as he revealed strong, broad shoulders. His sculpted chest was lightly dusted with hair, and that chest hair narrowed into a thin line that drew her gaze further down to lean hips. Her fingers itched to run across his abs, a lovely six pack that was divided by his happy trail. Her eyes trailed lower still before her view was cut off by the faded blue jeans he was still wearing. Jeans that were currently pulled tight across his straining erection.

  Her eyes traveled back up his body taking in scars that were evidence of his time as a warrior. Sitting up further, she reached out and touched one of the scars, a long, puckered stretch of hardened skin that ran around his ribs and down toward his waist. Her gentle touch tore a growl from deep in his chest. Her eyes flicked back up to meet his, and his stare was both hot and primal. Kaylie continued to explore his body with her eyes and her fingertips, as she brought her hands up and traced the tattoos that wrapped around each one of his thickly muscled arms.

  Unable to stand not seeing all of her any longer, he reached behind her, unhooking and removing her bra, and trailing his fingers in the valley between her breasts and lower still until he reached the button to her jeans, deftly flicking it loose before lowering the zipper with one swift tug. Keeping his eyes on hers, he slipped his hand underneath the denim that was covering her, smiling with satisfaction when he felt the wet evidence of her arousal on her panties, his thumb teasing her nub.

  Leaning over her again, laying her back against the table, he took her mouth in another claiming kiss as he began rubbing the swollen bud of nerves, driving her closer and closer to the edge that she was more than willing to throw herself from.

  “Please,” she said. “Drake? Please, please, please.” Her head was twisting from side to side as the tension built up to the breaking point inside her. She was overcome with the sensations Drake was providing her. His mouth moved lower again, both kissing and nipping down the column of her neck, gently biting the spot where her neck and shoulder met. Kaylie couldn’t stop the moan when he applied that bit of pressure, seemingly marking her. Her body was flushed, her skin sensitive to the days growth on his face as he kept kissing and nibbling his way back down to her breasts.

  Drake slipped his finger beneath the elastic on her panties and then into her, thrusting his finger inside her tight channel until he felt her tightening around his finger. Hearing her cry out as he thrust his finger inside of her was the sweetest sound, and he was determined to hear that sound from her again and again. He watched, mesmerized, as he took her body higher and higher, adding a second finger, until she shattered around him, her body tightening and squeezing. A cry of pleasure breaking from her as her eyes looked into his while she broke. Drake withdrew his hand, bringing his finger to his mouth, licking her juices off of his hand. Scooping Kaylie up into his arms, he carried her sated body into his bedroom, and laid her on her back. His mind thinking about how right she felt in his arms.

  “Drake, but you didn’t?”

  “Oh, no honey, but I’m not done with you. You are a sweet temptation that I just can’t seem to resist.” He leaned back down and kissed her gently. “Can you handle more, sweetheart?”

  Kaylie nodded her head as she sat up and started tugging at the belt around his waist, and then freeing the button on his pants and lowering his zipper. She pulled his jeans and boxers down until he sprung free, his cock acting like a divining rod, pointing at her. Her eyes were large as she reached out and ran her hands up and down his length. He was longer and thicker than she was used to, and she shuddered with anxiety at the thought of how he would stretch and fill her.

  Drake stopped her motion. “Sweetheart, if you keep that up, I’m not going to make it inside of you, and I want to feel you when you come apart again around my cock, but not yet. He pushed her back down and settled himself once again between her legs. Going to his knees, he draped her legs over his shoulders before leaning in and licking her slit. He watched her as he began tasting her, his tongue doing what his fingers had done moments before. He could not get over how sweet she tasted as he continued destroying her defenses. He placed his hands on her hips as he took her clit in his mouth, sucking it before gently biting down on it while putting his fingers back inside her, working his hand in and out and finding her inner sweet spot. He felt when her body flew apart again around him, as he hungrily swallowed down her flavor.

  Kaylie was undone, her body like molten lava after Drakes’ experienced mouth took her to levels of ecstasy that she’d never experienced before. When she opened her eyes she realized that Drake still had not been satisfied. Sitting up and then getting on her knees, she reached out and palmed his cock, running her thumb across the tip. She gathered the bit of moisture that was there on her thumb before taking him into her mouth. Humming with pleasure as she tasted him, she lowered her head, taking as much of him as she could into his mouth before withdrawing again. She could feel the thick vein that ran underneath his cock, using her tongue to toy with it when she felt his hands in her hair, stopping her.

  “Jesus, Kaylie, as much as I love that, I’ve got to be inside you. He bent down and pulled a foiled square out of a pocket in his jeans that were crumpled on the floor, before tearing it open with his teeth.

  Kaylie was incapable of thought as he stroked himself; base to tip before sheathing himself in the condom.

  She swallowed audibly as Drake laid her back down on the bed, covering her with himself. He settled easily between her thighs, and started kissing her slowly this time, savoring the moment.

  She sighed as he took her mouth tasting herself on him, running her hands down his back and around to take his shaft and rub it over her slit, willing him inside of her.

  Drake propped up on one arm and groaned as he slid himself inside her. She gasped at the intrusion, the stretch and slight burn as her body worked to accept him.

  “Fuck, Kaylie, you are so hot and tight,” he said as he began to rock his hips against her, working his way until he was fully sheathed inside her.

  Kaylie couldn’t help it, she wanted more of him, and she showed him this by wrapping her legs around his waist and pulling him in closer. She wanted to touch him everywhere, to feel him everywhere.

  Drake chuckled at her insistence, tutting at her as he raised her hands over her head, holding them together in one of his, and started thrusting deeper, his hips like a piston, moving faster and faster. He brought his hand between them, back to her tight nub, and began rubbing it in tempo with his hips. He felt her body tensing as her orgasm began building again, her channel beginning to tighten, squeezing around his shaft as she cli
maxed, her body eagerly milking his. Drake thrust into her one, two, three more times before feeling his own orgasm racing out of him, and into the condom, their bodies shuddering as Drake collapsed onto his side and drew Kaylie into him, holding her in his arms, while their heartbeats returned to normal.

  After walking into the bathroom to dispose of the condom, he walked into the kitchen and downed a glass of water before refilling it and bringing it back in to Kaylie.

  Kaylie took the glass gratefully and took several deep swallows before rubbing the cool glass across her brow, and giving it back to Drake.

  “I don’t know about you,” he said, “but I worked up a hell of a hunger. If you’ll wait here, I’ll go grab us something to eat.” He pulled on his jeans and left them unbuttoned as he walked out of the room to the kitchen.

  Kaylie had no clue what she was supposed to do now, should she lay here naked, go into her room and throw something on, or look for something of his to put on? She was looking around his room as if the answer would miraculously appear to her.

  She was still sitting in the bed, with the sheets pulled modestly around her, when he came in carrying a plate and sporting a grin, and that grin had her worrying.

  Chapter 11

  “What are you grinning about, Drake?”

  “There’s one thing that the military couldn’t drum out of me, and I always had to work extra to beat back the consequences of it. My one major vice is my need for sweets, and these,” he was saying as he showed her the cinnamon rolls on the plate, “are like a narcotic to me. Cinnamon rolls are one thing, but fresh, homemade cinnamon rolls are something else entirely. I may have to keep you feeding my habit with these babies.” Drake offered her one of the two on the plate.