by Malone, Nana
Backing her against the wall of the sitting area, he braced himself for the shot of electricity bolting through his veins. But when he dipped his head and their lips met, her return kiss was so tender it had him on slow melt. While his lips glided over hers in curious exploration, her tongue teased and coaxed his.
Hard and fast was what he wanted—or thought he wanted. He’d gone looking for a flash of heat. His body hadn’t bargained for this kind of slow and easy kissing as if they had all the time in the world and he was a fine wine to be savored.
Heat spread from the center of his body, rising to the epidermis and scorching his skin from the inside. Breath trapped in his throat, he tried to speed up the pace. The slow torture was telling him everything he needed to know about her. She was thorough. Took her time. Didn’t rush things. She liked to be in control. It also meant she was confident and strong.
Sexy didn’t even begin to cover it. Good thing he was leaving soon. A woman like Jaya would shred his soul. He could see himself giving her anything she asked for. Including his freedom.
If she kept the slow burn up any longer, he would become a believer in spontaneous combustion. Alec heard a low rumbling in the quiet of the room. It wasn’t until he felt her smile against her lips did she realize he was the source.
Without breaking their kiss, he slid his hands down her arms and brought them up to wrap around the back of his neck. He mumbled nonsense words more focused on getting her as close to him as physically possible. One kiss had reduced him to a horny teenager and his brain couldn’t compute.
Looking down at her, feeling her warmth around him, the soft curves of her body gently molded against him, he couldn’t remember his own name. Couldn’t think beyond what he wanted. Couldn’t think beyond the need slamming through his chest.
Jaya arched her body into him and smiled. He couldn’t remember why he’d ever thought it was a good idea to stay away from her. As he kissed her again, he thought he was branding her as his, but really it was the other way around. Jaya Trudeaux stripped him bare. She made him feel. “You are so beautiful.”
In the tiniest corner of his mind, a voice called to him to be careful. It tried to warn him that she was dangerous to him. That that he wouldn’t be able to leave her easily as he did with so many others before. That she wasn’t his. But he didn’t listen. All he could hear were her ragged pants. All he could think about were those full lips and where he wanted them. How much he wanted her to be his.
He didn’t realize he’d pulled back and was staring at her until big honey-brown eyes blinked up at him as if waiting for some sort of command. The sweet and spicy scent of perfume mingled with her scent. He leaned his body into hers. He knew something inside him would change forever if he did this. He had a choice—listen to the voice, or fall into those brown depths. Voice or depths. Voice or depths. Tilting his head, sliding his lisps over hers, he chose depths.
She tasted like autumn. The flavor of apple mojito mingled with her unique brown sugar flavor. Hands tightening on her waist, Alec nipped at her bottom lip and she responded to him with a shiver. Her response made his cock jump up and threaten war with the fly of his jeans.
With every breath, shift and wiggle from her, he could feel the heat of her through his fly. He traced a path to her neck, inhaling deeply. She arched into him, pressing those full breasts into his chest. Needing to feel more of her, he slid a hand up to the V of her dress. Tracing the material as it clung to the rise of one perfect mound, he heard her sharp intake of breath and watched with fascination as her nipple puckered under the stretchy jersey fabric. No bra. Shit.
Continuing to trace his finger at the edge of the fabric, he used the other hand to restrain both of hers above his head. She didn’t struggle, only rocked her heat against him. Taking advantage of her arched form, he hovered his mouth for a moment over the puckered bud. He blew a warm breath and she shivered again as her body arched even more.
Not one to disappoint a lady, he pressed his lips over the raised peak and suckled her through the soft material. Her breath came out as a drawn out moan and he tugged harder trying to taste every rich flavor of her skin through the fabric.
Letting go of her hands, his fingers trembled as they peeled back the shoulders of the dress. One simple tug and it skimmed off her shoulders to her waist, baring the blackberry tinted tips of her breasts. Another tug and the dress slid to the polished travertine of the floor. Shit. Perfection.
Alec’s brain stuttered. She was more perfect than the goddess Nefertiti herself. It had been a long time since anyone affected him. Since any woman had touched more than just his flesh. Jaya had managed it the moment he saw her. And now. Now she stood before him in all her naked perfection and his mind completely fuzzed out on what to do.
Lucky for him, she knew what she wanted. “Alec, I need this.” She gazed up at him through thick lashes. “I need you.”
Alec couldn’t move. He’d had sex—lots of sex. Shit, he’d had all sorts of sex on six different continents. Never once had he felt truly connected. Not like he did now. Jaya reached for him and he could only watch as delicate fingers tugged his cotton polo out of his pants. She leaned in close comingling her scent with his.
Her hands, delicate, but sure, moved inside the shirt, skimming his shoulders as she slipped it off over his head. At the contact of skin on skin, his cock pressed against his pants, urging, begging him to love her. To slide into her soft warm depths and never come back up for air.
Heat flared in Jaya’s eyes as his cock nudged her belly. As he felt the now-familiar shock of electricity, he eased her hands away from his belt. He grabbed a foil packet from his wallet before violently kicking off his pants. Alec left the boxer briefs on, tucking the condom in the waistband at his back.
For a moment, he saw the look of confusion in her eyes. His body finally surging into motion, he shifted her onto the antique end desk, slanting over her lips again like a starving man.
His hands took their cue from the roaring, pulsing blood in his veins and slid over her hips to her rounded ass. Cupping her flesh, he levered her against him. “Put your legs around my waist.”
When she complied, he cursed as her wet heat met the cloth covering the head of his straining penis. He braced her against the corner and slowed the kiss. Taking his time, he teased her tongue into dancing with his.
He traversed a path from her full ass to her waist to her breasts, never quite reaching the sensitive tips. Jaya moaned and rocked against him trying to get closer, urging him to take her breasts in his hands. When he gave her what she wanted, she moaned and arched her back, giving him better access.
Those breasts were a thing of beauty. He’d always been an ass man and Lord knew Jaya had one that could win awards, but her breasts were quickly making him a breast man. They weren’t much bigger than a B-cup, but they were high and firm—and real. For some reason most of the women he slept with these days sported fakes.
Jaya arched her back as much as the confined space would allow. He took the hint. Dipping his head, he grazed first one nipple, then the other with his five o’clock shadow. He followed up with his tongue and with playful tugs with his teeth.
“Alec.”
He wanted to hear her moan again.
He growled against her breast. “I like it when you say my name.”
She said it again on a whisper and he sucked in a delicate tip. One arm wrapped around her for support, he slid his hand down the flat expanse of her belly. Only pausing to trace a circle around her belly button, his hand slid farther down, searching for her center.
When he found it, he hissed in a breath. She was wet. Slick. Teasing the entrance, he slid one finger into her moist core and she bucked. He buried his lips in her neck, inhaling the scent of her. She smelled like home. Gently, he withdrew then entered, withdrew, then entered in a slow, lazy rhythm that said they had all the time in the world. When in truth, they only had a minute before he spontaneously combusted.
Her
hands fisted in his hair and she rocked her hips against his finger, trying to force him to increase the pace. He didn’t. Instead, he inserted another finger and kept up the rhythm. Nice and easy. They had all the time in the world.
Jaya raked her nails up his back and he chuckled through a hiss. “You’re making it really hard for me to take my time.”
Doing it again, she asked, “Who said I wanted you to take your time?”
Hell. If that didn’t wreak havoc with his self-control. Easing his fingers out of her, he reached around his back for the condom. With a series of wiggles, his briefs went the way of her dress. Getting the condom on in their current position took more effort than he thought, but when he was sheathed and his cock nudged her slick folds, he didn’t care. All he could think about was how she felt against him.
“Alec, now.”
Her rocking motions caused her sex to rub against his tip.
He shuddered from the need. “I’ll go easy.”
She smiled. “There you go, trying to make decisions for me again. When I want easy, I’ll ask for it.”
With slow, tilting motions of his hips, he slid in to the hilt. The both hissed in breaths. Hers was an “Ahhhhh.” His “Ohhhhh.”
Bliss. He rocked his hips back, slowly pulling out, and rocked forward again. As his cock stocked the sensitive walls of her flesh, she dug her nails deep, scoring marks a part of him hoped would become permanent.
She tossed her head back, baring her neck to him. Taking advantage, he nipped at the column of her neck even as he drew forward and the sensitive flesh of her core milked his cock. Pulsing and releasing in its tight sheath.
“Alec.” His name on her breath was both a balm to the part of him that was always searching, always moving, and an accelerant to the driving urge for self-destruction. Even as their bodies moved together, mixing sweat and her perfume, Alec knew once wouldn’t be enough. She was already under his skin. As he drove her higher and higher and felt the tingling at the base of his spine, he knew walking away from Jaya Trudeaux would be torture.
“Alec. Please.” Her delicate fingers twined in his hair, pulling him close.
“Come on, sweetheart.” He drove into her with a demanding pace. No longer coaxing, but demanding she be his for a night. For a millennium. “I want to feel you around my cock as you come. Let go, Jaya. You’re safe with me.”
“I—” Her breath hitched.
He ground his teeth together. The tingle in his spine had turned into fire. He couldn’t hold back. “Jaya.”
Her body trembled in his arms and he felt the quiver of her slick flesh against his cock. “Oh. Fuck. Me.”
As she came, her body flooded his and clamped tight around him, unwilling to let him go. The last thought he had before his body jerked in heated relief was home.
***
Darkness. That’s all Jaya’s brain registered. She blinked her eyes. Nope, still darkness. She rolled over under the duvet to try and get a glimpse at her bedside clock. Instead, an arm flung around her waist, bringing her up against a wall of muscle and…erm, yeah, that was definitely someone’s penis. Someone’s hard, thick penis pressing against her hip.
Shit. Her brain began a frantic scramble for purchase. She dragged in a breath, smelled spices and mint, and smiled. Alec. The muscles of her lower belly contracted and the tingles in her belly made her bite her lip. She could feel her body soften for him. Achy inner thighs fell apart in anticipation. Put that all together and what do you have—Get the hell out of Dodge time.
Peeling the heavy arm off her waist, she tried to orient herself. Maybe this was all a dream. Maybe if she pinched herself, she’d wake up in her own bed. Except her brain flooded with memories of her fingers laced in dark curly hair as he licked her to a toe-curling orgasm. More images of her straddling and riding strong hips as his electric blue eyes worshiped her body. The final image of her with hands braced against the French doors of the balcony while he took her from behind. Alec + Alec + Alec equaled So. Totally. Screwed.
Jaya slapped her hands over her flushed face. What the hell had she been thinking, sleeping with Elevator Guy? She’d bought in to Micha’s whole moxy pep talk. Stupid, stupid, stupid. More stupid if she just lay here, waiting for Mr. I’m a Sex God to wake up. Awkward post coital—make that multiple coitals morning-after seshes—were so not her thing.
Launching herself up, she darted a glance at Alec. Talk about excellent bed partner. He certainly knew what he was doing. That’s probably because he’s slept with every woman from here to Sweden, honey. Don’t go thinking it’s something it’s not. While she talked her body out of believing all the things Alec had told her last night, she tried to stretch as achy muscles protested in a honey-you-used-muscles-you-had-no-business using way.
Lifting the sheet covering her to the neck, she peeked down. Yeppers, definitely naked. Not at all a dream. As the events of the previous night started to unpeel themselves like an onion, she flushed again. She'd slept with him. More than that, she'd seduced him. And somewhere in the foggy sex haze, she’d asked him to be her date.
Jaya blushed when that memory flooded her brain. Her, kneeling in front of a spectacular erection, refusing to let him come until he promised to do her a huge favor by being her date. The way he coiled his hand in her hair and called her a tease, all the while making his own counter-bargain about seeing her in this position again.
“Oh, God.” She cringed when the whisper filed the silence. What had gotten into her last night? She'd barely had anything to drink, so it hadn’t been the alcohol clouding her brain. It had been her stupid plans. They'd gotten her jazzed. She’d listened to her friends. Worse, she’d wanted to believe she could be someone different. Once she figured out how to get her life back, her brain had started to think she was invincible—like she could make anything happen. And she had. She peeked under the sheet one more time and still, she wasn’t wearing any clothes. Three, no make that four times—with a total stranger. Well at least he hadn’t killed her and chopped her up into the freezer. Thank Buddha for little favors.
Okay, must escape before the awkward, gosh-I've-seen-you-naked-now-we-must-make-small-talk conversation. If she could slip out without waking him, she'd never have to see him again. Never mind the fact that's she'd asked him to be her date for the wedding. Damn, she'd practically offered to pay him—with her body. She covered her eyes. Moron didn't even begin to cover it.
Okay, girly, find your big-girl panties and bounce. Erm, make that thong. Standing up, she swept from side to side, looking for her dress. Nowhere in the bedroom. A stirring in the bed had her freezing like a cockroach in the daylight. When Alec settled himself back to sleep, she let out a long breath. Right. Dress came off in the living room. She padded out to the main room. Success.
While shoving her arms into the slinky red number, she allowed herself a little pat on the back. Yeah it was a stupid stunt, but God knew she needed it. That was the first time she'd had sex in nine very long months. Since Derrick, actually. She'd gone for it—all out. No holds barred. Problem was, now that she’d had sex-so-good-you-wanna-slap-your-ex, she remembered how much she liked sex—craved it. Even worse, she really liked sex with Alec.
Her body melted into readiness at the mere thought of his sure touch. Too bad you won’t be doing that shit again. Grab your panties and wallet and go. Except, she still couldn’t find her damn panties. They'd been on the table when Alec had taken them off, but she had no idea where they were now. Whatever. She could buy another pair. She grabbed her clutch and made a beeline for the door. Glancing down at her bare feet, she frowned. Oh, right. Shoes. She’d kicked them off somewhere around here.
Finding the stupidly expensive shoes under one of the foyer chairs, she slipped them on. Immediately losing her footing, she dropped her purse. Shit, shit, shit, Gathering the wayward items, She checked around to see if she could see the panties but couldn't. Get gone love. No more one night stands for you. Most important, no more Alec Danthers. Reck
less didn’t even begin to cover her behavior. There were reasons for rules. And she was a rule follower to the letter.
Chapter Six
Alec woke to the scent of roses and a stiff body. He sucked in a deep breath and groaned as his body stirred. Jaya. He couldn’t help the smile spreading across his face, unable to remember the last time he had sex that actually touched him. That’s because it’s been a while buddy. Usually, after he met a woman, he forgot her name in minutes, but Jaya’s name wasn’t one he’d ever forget.
As soon as possible, they needed to do that again. Even while his brain registered the need, his body responded with a surge of lust rushing through his veins, accompanied by the vivid imagery of the previous night. He licked his lips and could still taste her on them—her sweet juices as he circled his tongue around her clit. The way her hands stroked though his hair, then clenched while her body shook in orgasm. The way she’d responded to him, like his every action turned her on, like she’d been made especially for him.
Usually, he couldn’t wait to get a woman out of his bed and sight after they had sex. But she wasn’t just any woman. And he knew that before he slept with her. A brief flush of regret washed over him when he remembered how hard they’d gone. Once he had a taste of her, there wasn’t any going back. What they’d done together would shake him for longer than he cared to think about. Each time he reached for her, she’d been more than willing. She hadn’t wanted gentle. The mere thought of her curved form braced against the glass while he smoothed his hands over her ass and up her back as he slid inside her, stroking her g-spot, was enough to bring him to the explosion point. Damn it.
The blood pumping through his lap woke the-not-quite-sleeping soldier. Taking his cock in his hand, he meant to just shift him out of the way so he wouldn’t wake Jaya, but the moment he touched himself, the urge to stroke was too strong. Wrapping his fingers around the base, he gave a slow, gentle glide down. Then a firmer grip flowing up over the head. Just the way he liked it. “Ahhh.” He expelled a long slow breath. Except it wasn’t as satisfying as he hoped. He needed more. He needed her.