by Jamie Denton
He removed one hand from her bottom to reach beneath her top and palm her breast. He swallowed her soft moan of pleasure as he rasped his thumb over the pebble hardness of her nipple. The need to taste her, to draw her into his mouth and suckle overwhelmed him. A need he could barely contain when she suddenly broke the kiss and pulled away from him.
He nearly panicked, thinking she’d changed her mind after all…until he focused on her face and saw a slow, seductive smile curving her lips, and a blazing need flare in her periwinkle eyes, turning them a deeper shade of blue. Those luscious eyes said it all. There would be no turning back tonight.
She reached for the bottom edge of her crop top and slowly began to lift the fabric, exposing rich creamy skin, inch by delectable inch. The smile on her face was nothing short of wicked as she tossed the top somewhere over her shoulder. Next, she toyed with the plaid bottoms, running her middle finger between the fabric and her tummy. His mouth went dry when her whole hand dipped beneath the edge of elastic.
“Umm,” she murmured. “You should feel how wet your kiss has made me.”
The rate of his heartbeat increased to dangerous levels. He tried to speak, but the words lodged in his throat. All he could emit was a low moan of combined pleasure and frustration.
“Do you remember how you could make me come just by touching me…here?”
Did he ever. His fingers flexed in response.
“Do you want to touch me, Jared?”
Her throaty whisper nearly had him coming. He cleared his throat. “Yes,” he managed to rasp.
“Then take off your clothes,” she ordered.
She could’ve asked him to swing from the rafters and he’d have done it if it meant being able to touch her again. He did as she requested, understanding her need to be in control. For now, he thought. Later, he’d show her what it meant to really lose that control she guarded so carefully.
Within seconds he shed his clothes, then stood waiting for her next command. The appreciation in her eyes warmed him a thousand times more than the heat from the flames crackling in the hearth. No matter what tomorrow brought, tonight they would have this moment, where only the two of them existed in a heated convergence of heart, body and soul.
She tugged on the loose-fitting pajama bottoms, and they landed in a puddle of blue-and-pink plaid cotton at her feet. “I’ve changed my mind,” she said, moving toward him. “I don’t want you to touch me…yet.”
She stepped past him and snagged a pillow from the sofa before coming back around to stand in front of him. The pillow hit the floor at his feet. His erection bobbed in anticipation as she settled to her knees in front of him.
She slipped both hands around his penis and began a rhythmic massage. “I’m going to taste you. Can you handle it?”
“I’ll handle anything you want to give,” he rasped. “I’m yours to do with as you please.”
“Umm,” she said, bringing her mouth closer to the swollen tip. Her warm breath fanned him. “Anything?”
He sucked in a sharp breath as she used the tip of her tongue to circle the head. “Anything,” he croaked despite the dryness of his throat.
She chuckled before taking him in her mouth, making cardiac arrest a distinct possibility as she slid her lips farther down his shaft.
Her hands clutched his backside, kneading his flesh while urging him to move his hips in a gentle thrusting motion. With each thrust, she took him deeper, using her tongue and her lips to drive him wild.
Her throat closed around him, drawing him deeper, milking the moisture from his body. His legs trembled. With nothing to hold on to for support, he dug his fingers into her honey-blond hair. He heard a moan, but he was too lost in the sensations rippling through his body to know which of them made that low, mournful sound.
The pressure built, and he knew that if he didn’t stop her, he would come in an explosion of heat. Yet he couldn’t bear to put an end to her sweet brand of lovemaking, so he let her have her way with him. Her hands moved from his backside to cup his sac. Using her nails, she gently scraped her fingers along the underside of his testicles, heightening his pleasure to the point where he could take it no longer.
He tried to push her mouth away, but she was insistent, pressing him harder toward completion. Unable to bear the exquisite torture another second, he shuddered as he tried to hold back, but she refused to relinquish her control over him. He came in a rush. The world stopped spinning as she took all he had to give.
Tremors continued to wrack his body as she slowly brought him back to that place where he could hear the sounds of their ragged breathing and feel his own heart beating a rapid cadence in his chest.
Slowly, she kissed her way up his body until she was standing on the pillow, nibbling his jaw as he tried to regulate his breathing. Her hands slid into his hair and he banded his arms around her, pulling her close. There were a thousand things he wanted to say to her, but he sensed her need for another type of communication, so he remained silent.
Despite the weakness in his legs, he bent and scooped her up in his arms. He considered taking her to the bedroom, but that could wait until later. Right now he wanted her as mindless as she’d made him. Besides, lengthy foreplay would give his weakened body a chance to renew itself.
Peyton wasn’t exactly sure where she’d expected Jared to take her, but the overstuffed chair in front of the fire had not entered her mind’s list of places for making love. Of course, with Jared, anything was possible. She very fondly recalled an incident with unlit tapers that had been highly erotic and incredibly satisfying.
She looked into his eyes as he gently set her down. He quickly positioned the chair so she faced the fire, then sank to his knees in front of her.
“Do you trust me?” he asked as he used both hands to scoot her bottom toward the center of the cushion.
Instinct told her his question went beyond sex, but she didn’t want to go there. Not now, when her emotions were running rampant and her body hummed with anticipation. Later, much later, would be a more appropriate time for that kind of reflection and consideration. All she wanted was Jared inside her, loving her. Still, she had a moment’s hesitation before she slowly nodded.
A lazy grin canted his mouth. “Good answer, sweetheart.” His hands slid from her bottom to her thighs, his fingers tenderly kneading her flesh.
Then one hand moved from her thigh to the curve behind her knee. Carefully, he lifted her leg and placed it over the arm of the chair.
She tensed. “Jared?”
“Trust me, sweetheart.” He placed a kiss on her inner thigh. “I’m going to take you someplace you haven’t been to in a very long time.” He repeated the process with her other leg until she was lying in the chair, completely exposed to him.
She closed her eyes and leaned her head back while Jared’s fingers gently massaged her flesh. Each time the back of his hand brushed against her moist core, her hips jerked toward him.
He chuckled. “Not just yet, sweetheart. We haven’t even begun this journey.”
The sound of his voice soothed her, as well as filled her with an excitement born of sensual promise.
She heard the rasp of leather and opened her eyes. He was standing with the leather belt from his jeans in his hand. “What do you think you’re going to do with that?” She couldn’t help feel slightly alarmed. She was turned on, most definitely, but the teasing glint in his eyes made her wary.
“Not what you’re thinking,” he said with a soft chuckle. “Relax, Peyton. I haven’t picked up any strange or dominating sexual habits recently.”
Not exactly reassured, she kept a close eye on the leather belt in his hands.
“Lie back again and close your eyes,” he ordered gently.
He knelt before her, so she did as he instructed. Then nearly leaped out of the chair when she felt the glide of smooth, soft leather against her center, followed by the silken slide of his tongue over her clitoris. The combination of sensations as he rhythmica
lly repeated the process had her panting. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d ever felt anything so incredibly stimulating. His thumb rested at her opening, teasing her as he gently slipped it inside—only enough to make her body yearn for more.
She arched her back and tried to press her hips forward, her body needing, demanding more of the exquisite pleasure.
His lips kissed the flat of her belly as the strange softness of the tip of his leather belt slid against her. “You are so wet,” he murmured against her flesh. “Wet and ready to come for me, aren’t you, baby?”
“Jared,” she cried, begging him to give her the release her body so desperately sought.
“Not just yet. Now open your eyes.”
She did, and was at first stunned by the fierce light of possession shining in his green gaze. An odd sense of comfort quickly followed.
“I want you to watch,” he said. “See how your body responds to my touch?”
Her arms trembled in protest as she pushed herself upward so she could fulfill Jared’s intimate request. She hardly believed it possible, but the sharp tug of need in her belly pulled harder, demanding and insistent. How was it that the sight of his long slim fingers slipping in and out of her moist heat made her even more aroused?
“You like watching me, don’t you?”
The only sound she could make that even resembled coherency was a sharp moan of intense pleasure. She watched in fascination as he discarded the belt, then added another finger to the two already inside her, pushing deep and making her cry out as every single nerve ending in her body came alive with sensation.
She pulsed around his fingers. His eyes darkened as he dipped his head and placed an openmouthed kiss over her, his velvety soft tongue whirling around her swollen clitoris, driving her closer to where pure satisfaction awaited.
He eased back ever so slightly until he could look into her eyes. The intensity of his gaze held her spellbound, while her heart rate soared into the danger zone. Her body trembled with the need for release. The sight of his tongue laving her, the feel of his fingers drawing her moisture were too much. Just when she thought she couldn’t hold back another second, he stopped suddenly, and was looming over her before her mind could assimilate the changes.
Stretched above her with hands gripping the arms of the chair, he eased himself inside her. Exposed as she was, she felt every glorious inch of him as he entered her deeply. She cried out as he thrust over and over again, pushing her into mindless wonder. The intensity of her orgasm gripped her hard, shook her body to its very core. He continued to rock against her, driving into her relentlessly as her body poised for yet another release.
They came together like a crashing wave. Her fierce cries of pleasure were barely perceptible over his deep groans at his own powerful release.
Somehow, in the sensual fog, they made it to the rug in front of the hearth, their bodies entangled as they soothed and gently explored each other at their leisure.
As much as she hated to admit it even to herself, she had desperately missed this part of her life with Jared—the closeness and intimacy. No matter what demons from the past haunted them, when they came together in love, nothing could hurt them. Their months apart faded away as she snuggled closer in his embrace.
Their future might be uncertain, but Peyton knew without a doubt that somehow her future would include Jared.
JUST AFTER TEN the next morning, Peyton woke to the heavenly aromas of frying bacon, baking bread and fresh-brewed coffee. The scents wafted into the bedroom, drawing her reluctantly out of her slumber. She smiled. The bedroom wasn’t the only place she considered Jared a whiz. He made the best eggs Benedict east of the Mississippi.
She threw back the covers and crawled out of the warmth of the bed to fumble with her bag for clothes and other essentials. A hot shower was definitely in order before she faced Jared. With any luck, she’d ease some of the ache from all those dormant muscles that had been reawakened with a vengeance, thanks to him. The memory of how she’d gotten into such a state made her smile widen.
The night spent in Jared’s arms had been nothing short of glorious, she admitted as she stepped beneath the stinging spray from the showerhead. As a lover, he’d never left her wanting—unless, of course, it was for more of his scrumptious brand of lovemaking. Of that, she could never seem to get enough.
Last night there had been something more to their coming together. Something infinitely emotional and definitely more intense. She suspected part of the intensity may have had to do with the fact that they were running for their lives, but she sensed the closeness they’d shared went beyond their skewed reality. Not only had he said he loved her, but he had shown her over and over again, each time twice as sweet and tender as the last.
She dipped her head beneath the spray. Once they were able to reclaim their lives, she still hadn’t a clue what would happen to them, or rather, their future. She had her own demons to wrestle with, and one of those included a discussion with Leland. After what the press was doing to her reputation by linking her to Jared and his alleged crimes, Leland might even refuse to see her. Considering how he absolutely despised having his neat and orderly environment ruffled, it was a possibility she had to consider, and maybe even accept.
Assuming she and Jared did manage to clear their names, she didn’t have a moment of doubt that her job with the Justice Department would be history. But what about Jared? she thought, lathering her hair. He had said he had no qualms about returning to the bureau. According to him, the FBI itself wasn’t bad, just those on the inside using the agency for their own personal agenda. The one thing she was having difficulty reconciling wasn’t so much that he would return to the bureau if he could, but that he might once again carry a badge, disappear for weeks on end without a single word, and keep that part of his life separate from his life with her. In other words, she wasn’t sure she wanted to return to the status quo. If they were going to resume their relationship, she needed things to be different this time. If not, they would end up being one of those pitiful couples people talked about.
She gave herself a mental shake as she rinsed her hair and left the shower. There would be time later for thoughts of the future. Right now they needed to come up with a plan on how to expose those involved in the conspiracy. Their personal life would just have to wait.
Ten minutes later she emerged from the bedroom. Upon entering the living room, the first thing she noted was that all evidence of their lovemaking had been effectively erased. No stray articles of clothing, no furniture out of place. Even the pillows they’d scattered in front of the hearth, where they’d made love again at a much more leisurely and exploratory pace, had been returned to their proper spot. If it hadn’t been for the aching tenderness between her legs, she might have believed she’d dreamed the entire, delicious night of passion in the arms of the man she loved.
She headed into the kitchen to see if Jared needed some help with breakfast, and came to a dead stop when she reached the doorway. Instead of finding Jared, as she’d expected, Harry was opening the oven door and retrieving fresh-baked rolls. Disappointment rolled through her as her heart sank clear to the toes of her cheap sneakers.
“Where’s Jared?” she asked, but she already knew. She knew, and it hurt her right to the core of her soul.
Harry closed the oven door and set the rolls on the counter next to the stove before turning to face her. His sympathetic gaze only confirmed the news. Jared had left.
“He didn’t want you to be alone,” Harry told her.
She crossed her arms. “That explains why you came back,” she said. “Where is Jared?” She despised the telltale sharpness of her tone, but disappointment did that to a woman.
Harry let out a sigh and gestured to the small round table in the dining area. “You better sit down, Peyton.”
She narrowed her gaze. “Dammit, Harry. What’s going on?”
“He went back to D.C. this morning.”
“Back
to… But why?”
He poured them each a cup of coffee, then carried the mugs to the table, waiting patiently for her to join him. “He knew you’d be upset,” he said.
“Upset?” She remained in the doorway, not trusting her legs to carry her. Of all the stupid, asinine places for Jared to go, marching right into the lion’s den had to top the list. “Upset doesn’t even begin to catalog what I’m feeling right now. Furious is closer to the truth.” And disappointed beyond belief.
Instead of looking at her, Harry concentrated on stirring creamer into his coffee. “He’s only doing what he thinks is best for you.”
“Oh, screw that,” she retorted. She marched across the kitchen and dropped into the chair opposite Harry. “Jared is doing what Jared always does. Whatever is the easiest and least complicated for him, and to hell with what anyone else thinks.”
While she seethed, Harry took a few sips of coffee, before wandering back to the stove. He heaped two plates with fluffy scrambled eggs and crisp bacon, just the way she liked them. “You’re not being fair to him.”
She looked up as Harry set the food in front of her. “He’s going to get himself killed,” she said more calmly. “These people, they’re ruthless.”
He settled his hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. “Trust him. He knows what he’s doing.”
Trust him? She’d thought she could. Unfortunately, she’d just been taught otherwise.
She waited until Harry was seated across from her. “What did he say to you?” she demanded.
“Not much.”
That sure as hell didn’t surprise her.
“Just that he was going back to D.C. now that he had enough evidence to hopefully put an end to this mess.”
She shook her head. “That’s insane. All the so-called evidence is at best circumstantial. What does he think he’s going to do? He can’t go to the bureau. There’s no one there he can trust, if his suspicions are right and someone high up in the chain of command is involved. God, Harry. He’s going to get himself killed for sure this time.”