by Lori Foster
She tilted her chin up, meeting his gaze. “No matter what either of us is feeling, I refuse to be just a number.”
Abel drew his brows down. “What?”
“I saw you earlier with some bimbo at the Burger Shack.”
For a moment he was silent, then he threw his head back and laughed. Hard. “That wasn’t a bimbo, and I certainly didn’t sleep with her.”
“Obviously not,” Saige said. “I saw you at home only a half hour later, but I won’t be the replacement, either.”
“I was tutoring her,” Abel defended.
“Tutoring?” Saige propped her hand on her hip and smirked. “Surely you can come up with something more original.”
“Did my sister not tell you what I do?” he asked.
“She said you used to be a cop, and while she was out of the country, you were house-sitting, and I should feel safe.”
Abel reached out, smoothed a stray hair off her forehead. “I’m teaching the summer session Criminal Justice classes at the college. That bimbo you saw me with was one of my students.”
“Student?” Saige studied his face. “You’re a tutor?”
“I’m a professor at the college, and Sara is actually very intelligent. That typical reaction to her appearance will help her nab more than one scum when she goes undercover, if she chooses to go that route.”
“A professor?” Saige’s hand fell to her side as if the giant fact bubble had just burst, and she had learned the real truth.
“But, but...you’re so...”
Abel bit the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling. “Yes? What am I?”
Squaring her shoulders, which was funny that she was trying to regain composure as she stood clad in her bra, Saige looked him in the eye. “You’re just not like any professor I ever had.”
“Because I’m... What was the word my sister used? Oh, yes, broody. You never had a broody professor?”
“No, and I certainly didn’t have one who was built like you, if you must know.”
As much as he wanted to inch closer, as much as he wanted to lay her flat on her bed and rid his system of her intrigue, he remained still. “It’s best if I just head home to rest my leg. Is your arm okay?”
Saige tilted her head. “Running away, Abel?”
“Not running. Just using my head here.”
Saige stepped forward, ran a fingertip along his jawline. “Don’t you ever just relax and have fun?”
Abel laughed. “I have fun. But right now, fun and mistake are both dangling in my face.”
“Why mistake?” she asked, sliding her hand over his shoulder, sending gooseflesh popping up all over. “You don’t want to kiss me?”
He clenched his teeth. “My wants are irrelevant.”
Saige smiled. “It’s the middle of the night. All we have are wants.”
For so long he’d always made the right decisions, always put the needs of others first and had never been selfish. But he’d be a damn fool to turn down a half-naked woman, blatantly seducing him and looking up at him with mesmerizing green eyes.
Not to mention the fact he had wanted the hell out of her from the first time he had laid eyes on her. They were adults, they were willing, and she was right. In the middle of the night, what else was there but a person’s wants?
Abel gripped her shoulders, careful to not brush her wound on the back of her arm, and shoved her against the vanity before crushing her mouth beneath his. Her slight gasp quickly turned into a moan as her body melted against him, and her lips tangled with his. One delicate hand slid up his arm, clutching at his bicep beneath the sleeve of his T-shirt.
Full breasts rubbed against his chest, and it took all Abel’s strength not to rip off both their clothes and finish this silent dance they’d been doing for a couple of days.
Had it only been two days since he’d first seen her? She’d certainly consumed his thoughts enough for at least a month. How the hell had someone so innocent and sweet infiltrated his life in such a short time and why now? Once the go-ahead came through, he’d be moving hours away.
More importantly why was he analyzing this like a damn woman when Saige was nearly rubbing herself all over him? It was sex. That’s all.
Abel kissed his way down her neck, because there was no way he’d let this opportunity pass him by when she was standing here with no shirt on.
In a silent plea, Saige arched her back, increasing her grip on his bare arm. Abel slid his hands over the dip in her waist and up to the sides of her lacy bra, then his thumbs roamed across the bottom edge. Her visible trembling made him smile as he dipped his head and laid his lips on the swell above the lace.
He licked along the edge, tracing a path to the other breast before palming her with both hands as he returned to her awaiting lips. Her tongue darted into his mouth, tangling with his as she continued to mold herself into his touch.
Abel couldn’t handle this. He was a pretty strong man, but even the strongest men had their breaking points. He’d reached his.
With one quick move, he flicked the closure until the bra unfastened. Saige broke the kiss and looked up at him, her eyes full of amusement.
“Wow, when you let loose, you really don’t hold back.”
“I’m pretty much an all-or-nothing guy,” he told her. “Tell me if this gets too much for you.”
“The only thing that’s too much is your clothes.”
He reached for the hem of his shirt and ripped it up and over his head, then flung it aside in the tiny bathroom.
Saige slid up against his body and damn if her bare skin didn’t heat his entire torso and shoot sensations through him he never knew he had. The woman was pure sin, and he couldn’t wait to explore every naughty inch of her.
“Are we really going to do this?” She panted. “Not that I’m complaining, but our first kiss was a make-out session without my shirt, and now we’re both clearly eager for—”
“A bed, I hope, because my knee can’t do anything too kinky right now.”
Saige laughed, as he’d hoped, because if he thought about this moment too much, he might talk himself out of it. How well did he know her? She could turn all Single White Female on him and become a stalker.
Of course that was his ego talking. He highly doubted this animal knight would do any harm to his body...at least not that he didn’t ask for.
“If you want a bed, I can provide you with one.” She started out of the bathroom and glanced over her shoulder. “You sure about this?”
Abel gazed along her bare back and down to her ass covered in black spandex. “Hell, yeah, I’m sure.”
“No regrets in the morning?”
“I’m not thinking about the morning right now.”
With a slight grin, Saige turned and went down the hall to her bedroom and turned on the lamp next to the bed. With slow, methodical movements, she ridded herself of her shoes, socks, pants and...mercy sakes, she hadn’t had on any underwear.
“I like a woman who goes commando.”
“Then you’d love me, because I hate panty lines. It’s either thongs or nothing.”
Abel hissed. This woman truly would be the death of him. A curvy woman who wasn’t ashamed of her body? That was the sexiest thing in his opinion.
No words could make him sound intelligent at the moment, so he stepped forward, wrapped his hands around her bare waist and pulled her against him. That sultry body was nothing short of a fantasy. Some men liked athletic women; he preferred his with some meat on her bones. And Saige certainly fit every criteria he had of a dream woman...in bed that is, because he had enough emotional baggage and career goals that he didn’t have time for anything other than a romp.
That was so unlike him, but if he gave the “I don’t normally do this sort of thing” speech, he’d sound predictabl
e.
He was a man, damn it. He needed to grow a set and take this night for what it was. Sex. Hopefully hot, sweaty, satisfying sex. Nothing more.
Saige’s body slid against his as she glided her delicate hands up his arms and over his bare shoulders. After nearly a year of sleeping in his bed alone, Abel’s male pride took over and had him worried he’d embarrass himself too soon here.
But when her hands traveled down and one inched between them to cover his erection, he didn’t care. He wanted her, and there was no use denying the fact that he was more than likely going to have a short fuse, especially if she kept rubbing him.
Which meant he had to turn the tables and make this about her. How gentlemanly of him.
Abel clutched her waist and picked her up, tossing her on the bed where she squealed.
“Did I hurt your arm?” he asked. “I got so caught up, I forgot.”
“My arm is fine,” she told him, then raised up on her good elbow. “You didn’t like me touching you?”
“I’d rather concentrate on you.”
Quirking a brow, she grinned. “You have the best ideas.”
Saige could not believe she was doing this. She hadn’t had a one-night stand since she was in college, and that had only been because she’d been young, drunk and stupid.
Now she certainly wasn’t drunk, and after raking her eyes over Abel’s very fine chiseled body, she knew she wasn’t dumb. There wasn’t a woman with breath in her lungs that would turn this man down, if he offered to take her to bed...or anywhere else he wanted to lose his clothes.
He eased down on the edge of the bed next to her thigh. Tingles shot through her at the anticipation, the promise.
Mercy sakes, when his large calloused hands ventured up her thighs, it was all Saige could do to keep from spreading her legs and begging. Apparently her body felt deprived, because the last time she’d slept with someone was... Yeah, she’d have to think on that later, because she couldn’t rightly remember, and Abel’s fingertips were finally reaching that spot she’d been waiting on.
He parted her, gliding one long finger over her moist center. Saige lifted her hips, silently pleading for him to...
Oh, yeah. That’s what she needed. Saige moaned as Abel slid a finger in, then two. In no time he was pumping; she was grinding against him. He settled in beside her, resting on an elbow and leaning over to capture a nipple in his mouth.
She may not know much about Abel, but she already knew he had some amazing skills in the bedroom. The man literally touched her all over, making erotic sensation after erotic sensation chase one after the other through her body as her climax built.
“Abel,” she said, panted. “Oh...”
He released her breast as his hand moved quicker, his thumb sliding over her sensitive nub. Abel captured her lips as she cried out, his tongue thrust into her mouth, meeting her demands and taking some of his own.
Before she had time to come down from her high of tremors, she heard the fumbling of a foil packet.
“I need to lay down, so my knee can stay straight, and you can get off that arm,” he told her.
“We truly are a sexy pair, huh?”
She laughed as she threw her leg over his bare thigh and hovered right above him.
“We can get kinky later,” he told her.
“Later?”
Abel shrugged. Damn, that wasn’t supposed to slip out. They hadn’t even fully had sex, yet he was already making plans for the next round. And there would be a next round.
Chapter Five
Unable to take another second of torture, Saige sank down onto Abel and eased her legs wider to accommodate him. She’d known he was a big man, but looking at him and having him settle between her thighs was another story.
“Am I hurting you?” he asked.
Saige glanced down. With his fingertips digging into her hips as if to hold her in place, she smiled down at those sexy, heavy-lidded eyes. In response to his question, Saige squeezed her knees against his sides and jerked her hips as she sat fully on him.
Abel groaned and started to move beneath her. Silence and darkness enveloped them. Saige almost felt as if this moment was a dream, but the sensations she felt from her ratty ponytail down to her unpolished toes were beyond any fantasy she could conjure up.
Even with injuries, he’d allowed her to dominate, to take control. Now that was a man. And she intended to take his mind off his knee.
His hands came up, molding to her breasts, sliding against her sensitive nipples. She thrust her hips harder, knowing she wasn’t going to last. The pleasure, the fact she hadn’t been with someone in so long and just the sheer naughtiness of being with her neighbor in the middle of the night made her all the more aroused.
When one of Abel’s hands glided down her body, she sat up straighter. His hand reached between them, his thumb slid over her where they were joined, and that was all Saige needed.
With Abel’s talented hand and those fast-rocking hips, Saige couldn’t hold back any longer. Bursts of pleasure erupted through her body as she clenched her knees tighter against his waist, trying to remain upright and not fall directly on him in a puddle of euphoria. Before her tremors ceased, Abel gave one last hard thrust, his body stilled as he clenched his jaw muscles. Holding on to her hips now, he arched his body, tilting his head against her pillow.
Saige cruised her hands over Abel’s very fine body, because she knew this was nothing more than sex, even though he’d mentioned there would be a next time for them. She still wanted to memorize all those ridges for the nights when she was alone and...lonely. Who knows, he may not want another time with her.
After Saige collapsed to her back, Abel pulled off the condom. As soon as he stood and walked to the bathroom, Saige knew this moment of sweaty, sexual bliss had come to a screeching halt.
So much for feeling like a dream. The bathroom light flicked on, forcing a slant of bright light directly across the bed and right into her eyes. Yeah, this fantasy was over.
Might as well get up and throw some clothes on. The faucet turned on; she assumed he was washing his hands, and Saige pulled on a thong and her black spandex pants.
She was pulling the matching shirt over her head when Abel stepped into the room. At least she felt a little less awkward, especially since he was still naked and she was dressed. As far as she was concerned, he could stay naked at all times. Such a shame to cover all that...yumminess.
“Where do you think you’re going?” he asked, stopping as soon as he looked across the room at her.
“I have a dog to rescue.”
Obviously not caring about his state of undress, which was perfectly fine with her, Abel propped his hands on his narrow hips. “Are you kidding me? You can’t go down there. Do you know what area of town you were trespassing in? Those people won’t just call the cops, they’ll shoot you.”
Saige shrugged. “I’ve been shot at before.”
“What the hell?” Abel took a step forward. “All this for an animal?”
Saige met his gaze, which was hard when all those dark muscles were begging for her visual attention. “It was a BB gun, Abel. Chill. Besides, I can’t stand the thought of mistreated animals. They can’t defend themselves, so that’s where I step in.”
Abel sighed, glanced up to the ceiling and shook his head. “You’re just asking to be hurt or arrested.”
Glancing around the room for her boots, Saige found one beneath the bed, the other by the nightstand. She sat on the edge of the rumpled sheets and pulled the boots on.
“Listen, I’m not asking for your help. I appreciate the patch job you did on my arm and the...other. But right now I need to get that dog so I can come home, get some rest and be ready for work in the morning.”
She glanced at her alarm clock and groaned. I
t was already one, and she had to get up for work at six. Still, saving a dog’s life was worth the lack of sleep.
“I can’t talk you out of this, can I?”
She zipped up her boots and came to her feet as Abel pulled on his shorts.
“No,” she told him. “You can’t.”
His eyes darted to the bed, then to her, and her body heated all over again.
“You want to talk about this, or are we just going to move on?” he asked.
Saige offered her sassiest smile. “I’m good either way, but I didn’t take you for the type to hash out post-sex feelings.”
“I was just giving you the opportunity.” He stepped toward her, forcing her to tip her head back to meet his gaze. “I figure most women want to talk about their emotions.”
Saige patted his stubbled cheek. “I’m not like most women, and I really do have to get going. So, either come with me to assist, which goes against your moral code of ethics, or head on home.”
A hint of a smile tugged at Abel’s lips. “You really aren’t like other women. Too bad I’m not looking for more than sex.”
“Too bad,” she told him. “I’m quite a catch. Of course, I’m too busy for anything else, either, so it’s good we got each other out of our systems.”
Finally, the man chuckled. “You’re not afraid to say what’s on your mind, are you?”
“Why would I be? I’d rather be honest.”
Saige strode from the bedroom and headed down the hall. From the dog beds in the corner of the living room, Fluffy and Toby barely opened their eyes to look at her. She grabbed her keys from the hook and turned, plowing right into Abel.
He reached for her arms and she hissed.
“Sorry,” he told her, releasing her hurt arm. “Damn. I forgot. You okay?”
“It’s fine.” She tried not to look into those dark sexy eyes, but she couldn’t help herself. “Thanks again for breaking my fall and for helping me. I hope your knee is okay.”
“It’s fine. But I think you going out is a bad idea.”
“So you’ve told me already. Let that cop inside of you rest, would ya? I’ll be fine.”