by Nic Saint
“Oh, God,” she mewled as his steady caress sent her soaring. She pulled him toward her, then, wanting to look into his eyes again. His handsome face was a mask of pure lust as he turned to her, his lips wet and wanting more. She opened her legs invitingly, wanting him inside her, plumbing her depths.
As he reared up, she watched his hard length twitch. Then, before she had even uttered her wish, he was entering her, burrowing into her flesh. Inch by inch, he plunged in deeper between her wet folds, until she’d swallowed all of him, swallowed his entire towering girth.
“Oh, yes,” she cried when he moved inside, rocking her sex with his. “Oh, Josh.”
“Chloe,” he growled, his hard body pinning her beneath him onto the sand as he moved faster. “I’ve wanted this so much, honey. It was driving me crazy not to have you.”
“Me, too. I couldn’t bear to be without you one more night.”
He thrust gently into her, and they moved in sync, lovers at last. She touched his hard chest, his burly arms, his broad shoulders, his gorgeous face, wanting to feel him moving against her, wanting all of him. She closed her eyes as she felt him stir deeply inside her, touching her deepest core, and she yelped as the first tremors took possession of her.
His mouth was everywhere, as were his hands. Her mouth, her neck, her breasts… And all the while he kept moving that ravishing length of his into her womanhood. She cried out when she came, and moments later, so did he. Panting, they lay together for the longest time, kissing and hugging and whispering terms of endearment into each other’s ears.
And when finally the time came to return to the house, Chloe was so drowsy she could have slept out on the beach. Instead, Josh lifted her up as easily as if she weighed nothing and carried her all the way back.
At least, that’s what must have happened. For by the time he’d safely put her to bed, she was fast asleep, the memory of their lovemaking igniting her dreams and filling her with the sweetest sense of joy.
CHAPTER 16
All through the flight, little was exchanged between Josh and Chloe. It was almost as if last night had never taken place. During the helicopter flight, the noise from the rotors had made speech impossible, but throughout the subsequent flight back to New York, they hadn’t spoken much either.
He’d gotten up that morning with a sense of dread, and looking next to him, he could see that Chloe experienced the same. How do you go from being collaborators to lovers to the real world where everything they’d built up over the course of the past week would inevitably be razed and had to be rebuilt from the ground up?
He’d go back to his life, she to hers. How would they fit together in the harsh light of reality? Once the golden beaches, the azure ocean, and the isolation were taken away, what would be left of ‘them’? If there was indeed a ‘them’ in the first place.
She looked a little sad, he thought, when he glanced over to Chloe for the umpteenth time, and he knew she looked exactly like he was feeling right now.
The flight and subsequent landing went smoothly, and then they were walking side by side out of the airport.
Chloe scanned the waiting cars and taxis with a frown. “Kiki was supposed to pick me up, but it looks like he’s a no-show.”
“Kiki?”
“A friend.”
“Uh-huh.” He realized how little he knew of her personal life. They’d talked for hours, but the name Kiki had never come up. “Do you need a ride?” He felt awkwardly formal all of a sudden.
“That would be nice.” She smiled.
Just then, a car horn hooted and they both looked up. A Golf convertible raced up to the curb and screeched to a halt directly in front of them. Inside, a particularly burly man sat, his torso barely concealed by a minuscule T-shirt, muscles bulging on all sides. He was extremely tan and had the face of a boxer, his nose apparently having been broken several times in the past. He looked… dangerous, Josh decided.
“Kiki!” squealed Chloe, practically hopping up and down.
Josh eyed the expanding he-man darkly. A pang of jealousy shot through him as he wondered how this monster figured in Chloe’s life.
“Hey, babe,” Kiki breathed huskily as he smiled up at the two of them. “I almost forgot about your arrival today. Good thing Mimi’s good at this kind of stuff.”
“Mimi?” murmured Josh.
Chloe looked over to him and whispered, “Another friend. Mimi’s the practical one.”
“She is, is she?” he tried.
“He is,” she corrected, then suddenly her face fell. “I guess this is it, Josh. Our holiday is finally over.”
“I guess it is.” They hadn’t been a moment apart for a whole week, and now she’d be gone.
She leaned up and gave him a gentle peck on the lips. He knew he should have taken the opportunity to grab a hold of her and ravish those cherry lips the way they deserved to be ravished, but he felt the scrutinizing gaze of Kiki drinking in every moment of their parting, and he reluctantly refrained from expressing his true feelings.
“Will I see you again?” she murmured in a whisper.
“Of course.” He managed a crooked smile. “Why don’t you give me a call once you’re settled in?”
She hesitated and seemed disappointed somehow. “Will do,” she said softly, then gave him a tiny wave before she stepped into Kiki’s convertible.
Kiki, who’d been staring at him all the while, suddenly seemed to make up his mind. “Say, aren’t you that writer dude?”
“That’s right.”
Kiki burst out into a raucous laugh and clapped his hands. “I knew it! I never forget a face! You’re that Lee Child, right? Jack Reacher? I love that shit, man!”
He frowned, his dislike for this character increasing. “Um, not exactly.”
He couldn’t help notice Chloe giving a little giggle at this. She then elbowed her friend in the ribs. “He’s Joshua Poole, silly.”
Kiki’s face fell. “Huh? Who?”
Josh glared at the man. “Never mind.” Suffering a major bout of writer’s block had done much to diminish his rather voluminous ego, but he still didn’t like to be confused with a fellow writer.
“Don’t mind Kiki,” said Chloe. “He’s not so smart.”
“Hey. I’m sitting right here!” vociferated Kiki. Then his wide face spread into an even wider grin. “She’s right, however. I’m not the smartest blub in the blub shop.”
“Bulb, Kiki. Not blub,” corrected Chloe with an eye roll. She gave him another playful shove, and in return he mussed up her hair.
Josh watched the scene with rising alarm. So this guy was some sort of boyfriend of hers, right? Then what the hell had she been doing with him? Playing around? Immediately, he felt the green-eyed monster of jealousy gnawing at his bosom.
“Let’s go, honey,” urged Kiki. “The guys can’t wait to see you.”
And before Josh had a chance to wonder who these guys were, Kiki had shifted his car into gear and peeled away from the curb with screaming tires and a cloud of exhaust fumes that had Josh coughing and his eyes stinging.
As he stared after the disappearing car, he had the same sinking feeling Jacqueline Spark had felt so many times when Frankie Knox ignored her carefully planned come-ons and disappeared on the horizon with yet another one of the dubious bimbos he seemed to favor over his trusty partner.
Perhaps, he thought, Jacqueline should simply get a life and find herself a good man instead of pining for that no-good wastrel Frankie Knox.
And perhaps he should do the same.
He shook his head sadly. How could he have been so wrong about Chloe?
That girl wasn’t the sweet-natured soul he’d taken her for. She was a real man-eater!
CHAPTER 17
Arriving back at her old place inspired Chloe with mixed emotions. Happy to be home on the one hand, and finding all the stuff she’d left exactly where she’d left it, but a pervasive sensation of sadness for the things she had left behind. Not things, she co
rrected herself. Josh. She’d left Josh behind, and she was surprised how sorely she missed him now.
She knew, of course, that he was only a phone call away, and she planned to get in touch with him as soon as she had settled in, but still… Knowing he’d be back at work, taking up his old life again, meant that things between them would never be the same. Already at the airport, she’d noticed a shift in the way he treated her. Gone was that easy smile, that laid-back attitude she’d grown to expect and love.
The writer she’d left at the heliport was the same one she’d met on that first day out on the island: stiff and suspicious. The way he’d looked at her, the way he’d jerked back his head when she’d leaned in for a kiss… Things were right back where they started, and watching him erect that wall added to the feeling of melancholy that now hit her full force.
She flopped down onto her bed and lay staring up at the ceiling. The moment she closed her eyes, all of the sights and sounds of last night came flooding back into her mind. For a moment, she was back on the beach, feeling Josh’s strong arms around her, his hands touching her, his lips insistent on hers. They’d made love for the first time, and it had been glorious. Josh was all the man she’d hoped he’d be and more.
On an impulse, she reached for her cell and dialed his number.
He picked up on the first ring.
“Josh?”
“Chloe,” he breathed as if he’d been running. “So good to hear your voice.”
She relaxed, and a smile spread across her features. So things were still okay between them. “I was thinking about you. Lying on my bed and thinking about you.”
He chuckled softly. “Guess where I am.”
“Um. In a meeting probably? With one of your high-powered agents?”
“Nope. In bed. Thinking of you.”
She giggled. “Wish you were here right now.”
“Me too. I never noticed before, but my bed—my house—is awfully empty without you in it.”
She swallowed away a lump in her throat. “You mean that?”
“Uh-huh. Why don’t you come over?”
Her heart leapt, but then she remembered. “I’d love to, but I can’t.”
“Prior engagement?”
“Something like that.” She hesitated, but then decided to tell all. It was no use keeping secrets from Josh. “Kiki’s got a rehearsal and asked me to come.”
She could hear him frown on the other end. “A rehearsal? Why, he’s an actor or something?”
“Stage performer. And he’s got a big show coming up.”
“Oh.”
Silence hung between them for a moment, and Chloe wondered how to break it. “So… perhaps we could have dinner later on?”
“Sounds good.” His tone was clipped all of a sudden.
“Domani’s at eight?”
“I’ll be there.”
“Great. I can’t wait to—”
But he’d already disconnected.
Frowning, she wondered what that was all about. Just because she couldn’t join him at his mansion was no reason to become all grumpy all of a sudden. She sincerely hoped he wasn’t one of those men who expected their women to jump through hoops. The kind who got upset when you denied them their every whim and fancy. He hadn’t struck her as one of those man-children, but you never knew. He was a celebrity, and from experience she knew that they tended to see the world as revolving around them all the time.
She heaved a deep sigh and felt disturbed when a soft knock interrupted her thoughts.
“Yes?” she hollered, a little louder than necessary.
The door opened a crack, and Kiki’s big head popped in.
“Hey, beautiful,” he croaked. “Just checking in on you.”
In spite of herself, she had to smile. Kiki was a real sweetheart.
“I’m fine. Just getting used to being back, I guess.”
He stepped into the room, and took a seat on the bed, the bedsprings complaining loudly, and gave her a worried frown. “You look sad. Why are you sad?”
“Not sad. Just… homesick.”
“But you are home. How can you be homesick when you’re home?”
“Homesick for Eden Island. For…”
Kiki’s face lit up. “You’re pining for him, aren’t you? For Lee Child?”
“He’s not Lee Child, Kiki. He’s—”
The big guy waved his hand impatiently. “Whatever. You love him?”
“I…” She hesitated. It was a little premature to talk about love. “Let’s just say I like him. A lot.”
“I can tell. You have that look.”
“What look?”
“The puppy look. You know. The way a puppy looks at its master? I’ve sent you dozens of Facebook links.”
She didn’t want to mention she’d carefully managed to ignore all of Kiki’s Facebook activity, which was borderline stalky. Kiki posted at least fifty status updates a day. A struggling writer like her had better things to do than spend all her time on Facebook watching puppy videos. “I do not look like a puppy!”
“Oh, yes, you do, honey. I can tell. I’m a puppy expert.” He pointed his thick finger at her. “You love Lee Child. Don’t you deny it.”
She heaved another long sigh. “Maybe I do. So what? I’m pretty sure nothing will come of it.”
“Why? Because he’s a famous writer, and you’re not? Haven’t you seen My Fair Lady?”
She laughed. First she was a puppy and now Eliza Doolittle? Women’s Lib would have a field day with the likes of Kiki. “I don’t think Josh qualifies for the Professor Higgins role, Kiki. He’s not that old. And I’m definitely no Eliza Doolittle material.”
Kiki scrunched up his face. “If he loves you, he’ll turn you into a star. He simply has to!” He fixed her with a baleful eye. “Did you sleep with him?”
“Kiki! A lady doesn’t tell!”
He gave her a sly smile. “But you’re not a lady.”
“True, true. But still.” She couldn’t prevent a grin from creeping up her face.
“You did, didn’t you?” He clapped his hands and expelled a loud laugh. “Good for you!” Then suddenly he turned serious and wagged a finger in her face. “If this Lee Child gives you any trouble, you call me, all right? I’ll set him straight. If he so much as frowns at you, I’ll break his neck, I swear.”
“Thanks, Kiki. I guess.”
The burly man gave a satisfied snort. “Now I will tell the others.”
“Oh, don’t tell them, please,” she pleaded, sitting up. She just knew she wouldn’t have a moment’s peace if the others knew.
Kiki hesitated, rubbing his chin. “Perhaps I won’t. But the moment I discover this man isn’t treating you right, I’m mobilizing the troops.”
She flopped back onto her pillow. Just what she needed. A speaking choir commenting on her every move. Finding love was hard enough as it was, but when her friends started interfering, things were going to prove a whole lot tougher still.
CHAPTER 18
Frankie Knox kicked the first thug in the gut. The goon went down with a pained grunt. The second thug came at him with a stiletto. Knox simply applied some of his practiced Aikido moves and moments later the Russian lay sprawled out on top of his buddy. The third heavy thought he was smart in using pure force to pummel Knox to the floor: he came charging at the dapper agent like a rhinoceros. Knox deftly stepped aside like a matador and tapped the charging hulk with the butt of his service weapon. Lights out.
“Hands up, Mr. Knox,” an icy voice sounded in his rear. “And lose the fancy peashooter, will you?”
Knox turned around to face his nemesis, the heavily scarred leader of the Russian crime syndicate intent on taking over his neighborhood. He narrowed his eyes as he raised his hands.
“This is the end of the line for you, Mr. Knox,” rasped the villain. “No more wisecracks. No more puns. I’m just going to shoot you dead and be done with you.”
“Why don’t you do it, Kharkov,” growl
ed Knox. “Just get it over with.”
“Oh, I will, Knox. I most definitely will,” wheezed the crime lord. “But not before I slice and dice your beloved partner Jacqueline Spark into bite-sized chunks.” The bag guy expelled a freakishly eerie laugh that cut to the bone.
Josh lifted his hands from the keyboard and leaned back in his chair, asking himself that age-old question: how to go from here?
He wasn’t referring to his manuscript, but to the kindling romance between himself and Chloe Thomson.
In his thirty-eight years on this planet, he’d never felt for anyone what he felt for her, and he had to wonder if it was wise to throw himself head over heels into another romantic entanglement when the last one had cost him so much emotional effort to get out of.
Furthermore, it seemed she was involved with this other guy. This Kiki. Oh, he didn’t blame her. It would have been a surprise if a woman of her caliber had come with no strings attached. Even though she hadn’t mentioned him, she was bound to have a boyfriend stashed away at home. Or, as it now turned out, several.
What bothered him more, now that he’d had some time to think about it, was the fact that she hadn’t been honest about it. She could at least have mentioned the fact. Not that what they had going was serious. But still. It irked him.
He laced his fingers behind his head and closed his eyes, Frankie Knox and his impending predicament pushed to the back of his mind now.
When his phone rang, he instantly picked up, hoping it was Chloe. He was more than a little disappointed to find it was his mother instead.
“Mom,” he intoned.
“Honey! It’s your mother!”
Mom was becoming a little hard of hearing lately, and had formed the habit of repeating everything she said three or four times in case others were suffering from the same predicament.
“I know. How’s things?”
“Mom’s on the line, honey. How are things over there?”