Beck whispered her name and nuzzled the tender spot behind her ear. Jami sighed as she clutched his hard, flexed bicep.
Beck fiddled with the top button of her dress, but as it was poised to slip free, he paused and grinned wickedly at her. “Do you mind?”
Her breath caught in her throat, and her breasts strained at the silky fabric of her bra. Dear god. There were way too many layers of clothing between them. “Please.”
One by one, Beck freed each button. He placed a long, sultry kiss where each had been. As night air kissed her skin, Beck’s touch blazed a fiery trail down to the gentle dent of her navel.
He curved his hand around a breast, and her nipple peaked instantly. Beck’s arousal pushed against her, and she arched her back.
“You’ll have to hold very still.” Beck’s voice was low, with a hint of laughter. “Or we’ll flip right into the sand.”
“I think you’re enjoying torturing me.” Jami stroked his cheekbone and jawline and delighted in the rough stubble rasping under her fingertips.
“With my kisses?” He suckled the tips of her breasts through her bra, and sensation roared through her. Beck slid a hand down her back and squeezed a handful of her cheek.
“And your hands.” Jami let out a muffled moan, and Beck kissed her lips into silence. She held her breath as his hands drifted along her heated flesh. Electricity crackled between them, but she held ever so still.
With his hand caressing her thigh, and his lips working their way from her collarbone down to the valley between her breasts, Jami’s eyes fluttered closed, and a tremor of wanting arrowed down her spine. Beck’s tongue teased her nipple to a taut peak, and he cupped her mound as he rubbed small, light circles.
With a mind of their own, Jami’s hands stroked Beck’s erection through the thin fabric of his shorts. He nipped at her pebbled tip and spanked her hand away.
“Bad girl. This is my show. No wiggling or moving or talking.” Beck hummed with satisfaction. “We can’t let anyone hear us.”
There was a hint of laughter in Beck’s voice, but mostly, his passion and longing seeped into her consciousness. As Jami opened her mouth to protest, Beck moved the damp fabric of her panties and slid his fingers along her folds.
She was all sensation and craving. She held ultrastill as if the merest sway would violate Beck’s terms of engagement. A breeze riffled past and cooled the exposed skin on her stomach and contrasted with the heat coiling at the apex of her thighs.
Beck was slow and deliberate, and then heated and hard, and then back to achingly tender. He explored her curves and planes as if he had all the time in the world to discover every secret center of pleasure. His hands roamed her body like a wonderland of sensual delights.
Beck brought her close to the edge but backed down. For Jami, the world dissolved and all that remained was the moment. His heat. His touch. Her battle to remain still despite his plundering of her body.
“I want you, beautiful Jami.” Beck’s words were like luscious velvet caressing her soul. She whimpered with a faint mew as Beck rubbed his thumb across the bow of her lower lip. She pulled his thumb into her mouth and sucked.
The surf rushed up on the sands, and through her half-slitted eyelids, the lights on the water danced and flickered. Crimson need blazed, and her sheath clenched. He licked a pointed nipple and stroked her satin folds and taut arousal. Jami cried out as intense waves pulsed through her core. Beck crushed his mouth into hers. His breathing was uneven, ragged.
The hammock swayed, and the rope groaned on each arc until only the shurra-shurra chorus lingered in the night. Jami clung to Beck. His arms enveloped and held her tight to his chest. His heart pounded in rhythm with hers.
The sound of voices approached. Jami froze, and Beck curled a hand protectively behind her head, cradling her close. The nighttime walkers laughed and walked past, oblivious to the lovers.
Beck loosened his hold and brushed a curling tendril of hair from Jami’s cheek. She studied the outline of his cheekbones, but shadows concealed his expression. She sensed he smiled.
A delirious lassitude sank into her bones. She could barely move. Wrapped in Beck’s embrace, she was protected and cherished.
Jami wound an arm around the back of his neck and pulled his head to hers. She grazed her mouth along his and nestled into him. His erection strained against her. With a tender smile, Beck raised his head and eased his arm free.
Jami started to speak, but Beck silenced her with a slow, deliberate kiss.
“You’re so lovely.” He bent and nuzzled and sucked each of her breasts, and then carefully rebuttoned her shirt.
Jami’s voice caught in her throat as her passion flared to life.
In one fluid motion, he pivoted and stepped away from the hammock with one hand steadying her. A gust of wind rustled through the trees, and she was chill, bereft without Beck’s warm presence. He gave her a small salute and then he disappeared back into the night.
Jami raised up and almost toppled down into the sand. She searched for Beck’s dark form strolling down the beach, but he was gone. She flopped back onto the canvas, and the hammock rocked wildly.
What had just happened? She laid her hand flat on her belly as desire coursed through her veins. One moment, she’d been deliciously complete, and with one kiss from Beck, she’d been flushed with passion in a mere heartbeat. Jami stretched like a sinuous cat and heat burned her flesh wherever Beck had touched her.
Beck had ravished her. Like a pirate claiming his treasure. Only he’d demanded her pleasure as his prize. It hadn’t been a race to orgasm like with so many of her other experiences. Beck had been totally absorbed with her sensations.
Jami ran her hands along her hips and arched with contentment. She almost checked her head for a tiara, she felt like such a pampered princess.
But why hadn’t Beck stayed? Had he just played her? He’d worked her into a frenzy and controlled her passions. Was this somehow part of his game to win the business deal?
Her mind spun. Was he hoping she’d be so weak in the knees at the sight of him that she’d gladly withdraw the offer on the property?
She rolled her eyes. That was about the stupidest thing she could imagine. Jami touched her mouth and knew that her lips were full and tender from the thorough kissing they’d received.
Damn Beck Kavanagh. She’d let him get under her skin. Hell, under her skirt, too. She wriggled at the thought.
Could it be as simple as lust? That must be what it was. She let out the breath she hadn’t even known she was holding. Well, passion she could control. She was a grown woman with needs, so there was no problem with that.
Jami leaned over and snatched her sandals from the sand and slipped them on before she slithered to her feet, the hammock bouncing against the back of her knees.
Lust was simple. But Beck had worshiped her like a goddess.
A girl could get used to that.
CHAPTER 14
With a little shake, Jami spread out her towel on the lounge chair and settled down with a view of the Plumeria pool. She adjusted her sunglasses, grabbed a glossy magazine from her bag, and plunked it in her lap.
The under sixteen set were playing games in the pool while Sam snoozed in the shade of a coconut palm, and Rob was typing away on his laptop. The kids called to her to join them, but she shook her head, pulled up her knees and turned the first page of the magazine.
Jami had to admit it. Anna had outdone herself. The day had been a blast with conch races on the beach, and then a guess-the-scary-food contest that the teenagers had won. Unlikely as it seemed, the two families were coming together and having a blast.
A blur of movement near the stairwell caught her eye. She turned and half-expected to see Beck, but it was only a dark-haired server bringing a fruit tray to Rob.
Jami rubbed the back of her neck. She was obsessed.
All day long, throughout all the games, she caught herself stealing glances at Beck. He’d smiled at he
r and even winked once, but he’d maintained his distance. They hadn’t been picked for any of the same teams, so she hadn’t been able to find a good reason to stand next to him, and somehow there was always tons of family chatting with him.
She studied how he interacted with his nephews and their easy laughter. He seemed determined to avoid solo conversations with his mother, but he laughed comfortably with his own siblings. But, what really surprised her was the ease of his relationships with her brothers.
Austin, Dillon, Kyle, and Beck had a constant stream of ready jokes and mild jibes to throw around. If she didn’t know better, she’d swear they’d been friends for years. Her brothers had fun with Rob, but they seemed to take Beck into their fold as one of their own.
Jami didn’t know what to make of it. Had she been totally absorbed in winning over her father’s approval, and perhaps not really as engaged in actually winning the Anderton deal? Kyle was the only other one of the family working for her father, and he had such a laid-back attitude, that nothing seemed to faze him.
Yet, here she was on an island paradise and stressing about a business deal. Austin had been the smart one to run. He’d changed lines of work and moved to another state to avoid their father. Maybe she needed a change, too.
Jami shook her head. No. She loved her real estate career, and she adored living in Barrett Ridge. The problem was her father. Or her need for his approval. What did she think was going to happen if she beat out Beck for the property? That her father was suddenly going to do a one-eighty and accept her for who she truly was.
Jami choked on her drink. Where had that come from? Had she seriously been pining for acceptance?
A fresh shout of laughter erupted from the swimming pool as Mae and Daphne took turns jumping from the pool’s edge into the middle of Emma and Clara doing underwater handstands in competition with Ryan and Carl.
Mandy and Elaine strolled up the stairs from the lower pool level up to the Plumeria Pool with their ever-present half-full piña coladas. The pair exchanged greetings with Caitlynne and Fiona as they sauntered down the stairs. The two matriarchs looked thick as thieves. There must be some new devilment in the making. Jami looked down at her magazine. One minute those two looked ready for a death match and the next they were intimate chums. It was best to ignore them, if possible.
The two Edwards sisters made a beeline for Jami and her empty table next to her.
“What’s on the agenda for the rest of the day?” Mandy asked.
“Anna’s given us the rest of the day off.” Jami tucked the magazine back in her bag.
“She told me she’s got a massage and a mani-pedi this afternoon.” Elaine took off her straw hat and hung it on the corner of the chair back.
“A little quiet time sounds ideal.” Jami wasn’t so sure she meant it. She’d much rather romp with Beck.
“We’ve been on the go since arriving,” added Mandy.
“I think Anna’s plan has worked.” Elaine played with the straw in her empty glass. “We all know each other a whole lot better than we did.”
Jami stifled a cough. Oh, man. She’d certainly gotten to know a lot more about Beck than she had a few days ago. Well, he knew her body a lot better now. As if on cue, Beck appeared at the top of the stairs. He stood for a moment and surveyed the patio. He stopped on Jami, and he smiled slowly as if he had a secret.
Jami returned his smile and hoped no one noticed that her nipples had tightened into nubby peaks. Beck made his way across the pool deck.
“Beck, sweetie, will you get me a fresh drink?” Elaine waved her now drained glass at Beck.
“Your wish is my command, oh lady of leisure. What else are little brothers for?” Beck smiled wryly at all three women but winked at Jami. A dart of tension clenched between her thighs. She exhaled slowly. One look from Beck and she was panting.
“We’ve finally got him trained.” Mandy chortled.
Jami smiled to herself. Oh, yes. Beck was well-trained. He knew his way around a woman’s body. A shiver shimmied down her spine.
Beck returned with a full round of drinks for all three women, and as he handed them out, his fingers lingered on hers and sparks of desire erupted all along her flesh. Beck’s eyes were dark and smoldering for a brief moment before he turned and stepped away.
Mandy snagged the tail of his untucked shirt and tugged on it. “Sit with us. We need entertaining.”
“We do,” Elaine said.
Beck smacked Mandy’s hand away, but he pulled out a chair, facing Jami, and joined them. Jami inspected her drink before looking up at Beck through her eyelashes. A flock of butterflies seemed to have taken up residence in her belly.
“Did you two notice Mom and Caitlynne in deep conversation?” Mandy asked.
“It cannot bode well for any of us.” Beck raised his eyebrow.
“The snark sisters have found each other after being separated at birth.” Elaine’s eyes got big, and she mouthed, ‘I’m sorry’ to Jami.
“Don’t be shy around me. I’m not exactly a fan of my stepmother.”
“She’s horrible to you.”
“Caitlynne is an equal opportunity dispenser of sarcasm.”
“She isn’t sweet or cuddly, is she?”
“Not exactly.” Jami shrugged but smiled. She sure didn’t need to defend Caitlynne. Let the woman’s actions be judged on their own.
“At least you’re not related to her.” Elaine sighed. “I live in fear of turning into our mother.”
“You’re not going to.” Mandy flicked her hand dismissively. “You’re like Dad. I think I’m in more danger of turning into the Queen of Interference.”
“You’d better watch out, Beck.”
“You know I avoid Fiona whenever I can.”
“I think she’s decided she needs some more grandkids.”
“I doubt that.” Beck shot a hard look at Elaine. “It would only remind her that she’s getting older. If she could, she’d probably tell everyone we were still teenagers.”
Jami snickered. It was reassuring to know their family was almost as messed up as hers.
“Nevertheless, Fiona has been busy thinking about your lack of a wife.”
Beck choked. “My what?”
“I think she has someone in mind for you.”
“I’m going to rebook my flight and leave in an hour.”
“She keeps harping on about the daughter of this movie director.”
A fist of jealousy hit Jami in the solar plexus.
“Is she dating this guy?” Beck sounded wary.
“I think she’s targeting him for her next spouse. Through his daughter.”
“Poor man.”
“You’d better get yourself a new girlfriend, or you’ll find yourself saddled with this woman.”
“You know Fiona has the powers of Satan at her beck and call.”
“Be nice,” Beck scolded his sister, but she ignored him.
“Are you dating?”
Beck shifted in his chair and studied his glass of water. “I might be.”
Jami’s eyes narrowed. Did he mean he had someone back home or that she was a maybe? She wasn’t sure she like the direction of this conversation.
“I think you should let it happen. Fiona might pick better than you.”
“Meaning?” Beck’s tone was crisp.
“You need a new type.”
“And just what do you think my type is?” Beck said with irritation.
Okay. Now this was getting interesting. Jami kept her gaze on her cocktail.
“You’ve never even been engaged, so you must be picking the wrong women.” Mandy sounded exactly like a bossy older sister. “From what I’ve seen, you only date artistic, touchy-feely women.”
“Wasn’t there a yoga instructor?” Elaine chimed in helpfully.
“I also met the Feng Shui consultant with a part-time witch gig.” Mandy fluttered her eyelashes and smiled angelically.
“I liked the dog trainer. She was ho
t.”
Jami laughed, and Mandy shot her a triumphant look.
“Are you guys finished?” Beck grunted.
“We haven’t even begun.” Elaine leaned over and toasted her glass toward Jami as if encouraging her to laugh at their little brother harassment.
Jami’s gazed bounced from one sibling to the next in amusement and almost horror for poor Beck.
“What about you, Mandy?” Beck’s tone was deceptively mellow. “Isn’t your biological clock ticking or something?”
“Mom gave up on me last year, so now you’re it.” Mandy didn’t miss a beat.
“Wonderful.”
“Isn’t it?”
“We’ve been talking, and we think you’re dating the wrong type of women.”
“And?” Beck scowled.
“You’re big time logical and analytical, so you must be going for the soft, cuddly, creative types.”
“You need a woman who competes with you. Challenges you.”
“You know, there was Alicia. She was competitive,” Elaine ruminated.
“That was a thousand years ago.” Mandy turned to Jami. “Beck broke up with her within a year of college graduation.”
“You’re not still carrying the torch for her, are you?” Elaine shot an accusing glance at Beck. Jami held her breath.
“You two are killing me.”
“She was exactly like you. Tough. In-charge. Needs to be first.”
“You guys are painting a flattering picture of me, but I’m not a sad sack who’s still in pining for an old college flame from ten plus years ago. I’m happy to report she’s on her second husband in the last five years and has twin sons who are three.”
“You know a lot about her.”
“Her husband is one of my investors. I like him a lot, much better than Alicia.”
“Fine. But that doesn’t answer the question.”
“Which is?”
“You’re thirty-five, and you haven’t had a serious girlfriend in ages. Why?”
“It’s not some ginormous secret, Miss Nosy Pants.” Beck ran his hand against the grain of his close-cropped hair at the back of his head. “I’ve been two thousand percent wrapped up in BKI for the last five years. It doesn’t leave much spare time for dating.” Beck’s gaze flicked to Jami, but it was unreadable.
Tropical Tryst: 25 All New and Exclusive Sexy Reads Page 108