A Wolff at Heart

by Janice Maynard

  “No. Not anymore. I came close to a breakdown in my early twenties. I became so fixated on finding the truth that I made myself ill. It took a year of counseling to help me see that the past was going to have to stay buried. Who my parents were, why they didn’t want me, how they died…all of it an unsolved mystery.”

  “I can’t even imagine what you went through.”

  “Let’s just say that when you told me you didn’t want to know who your real father was, it made me angry and sad. If all of this plays out like I think it will, you’re going to find that you have not one but two families who love you. Two, Pierce. The people who raised you won’t care if some accident or deliberate malice brought you to them. You are their son in every way that counts. And if we discover the identity of your biological parents, they will likely be thrilled to have a man like you as a son as well. It’s a win-win as far as I can see. You’re far luckier than you know.”

  From where she was sitting it must certainly seem so. And he knew what she was saying made sense, particularly given her past. But try as he might, the overwhelming emotions he felt were grief and loss over the destruction of his personal life story. On top of that was a helpless guilt that his parents had somehow lost the child who was supposed to be theirs. Pierce was an impostor.

  He put aside his own turmoil. Gathering Nikki in his arms, he tucked her head to his chest, stroking her hair. “Come here, my lovely lady lawyer. Let me hold you.”

  She didn’t protest, didn’t say anything, in fact. All she did was nestle against him, her arms sliding around his waist.

  He held her tightly, his brain whirling with images of both of them as children. Pierce remembered the pride with which his parents had displayed his trophies for soccer and field-day races. The many times they’d sat in an elementary-school auditorium and witnessed plays and speeches and awards nights.

  Truth be told, his parents should have received the accolades. He hadn’t been an easy child, but they had kept him on the straight and narrow, loving him too much to settle for excuses about why he wasn’t getting his schoolwork done. Hour by hour, day by day, week by week they had worked with him until he had the confidence to believe he wasn’t dumb, but in fact was actually pretty smart.

  Who had done that for Nikki? No one in her formative years. Thank God for the social worker who helped her transition to college. What funds had Nikki lived off of? Who paid the bills? From what he knew of her, it had been Nikki and no one else. He wouldn’t be surprised to hear that she’d held down two or three jobs while studying and making straight A’s at an Ivy League school.

  He played with her hair, loving the texture, the scent. Gradually, his body began to acknowledge that a lovely, sexy woman was curled up on his lap. His breathing grew hoarse. His arms trembled. His sex flexed and thickened. This wasn’t the time for carnal thoughts. All he wanted to do was comfort her as she had comforted him.

  But his body had other ideas. Gently, he began to ease her out of his embrace. She clung tightly, even as he tried to escape.

  “Don’t go,” she whispered. “I like it here. You feel good.”

  He sucked in a breath, hoping he was strong enough to cuddle her without taking things further. She deserved tenderness. More than anyone he knew.

  There came a distinct moment when she realized why he was trying to let her go. She sat up suddenly, her cheeks flushed and her eyes heavy lidded. “Pierce?”

  “Sorry,” he said, his tone wry. “I was trying to be sensitive.”

  Nikki grinned at him, a gamine smile that tugged at his heartstrings. “Screw sensitive. I want you to take me to bed.”

  He froze. Was this some kind of test? “Um, well…” His vocabulary dried up along with the inside of his mouth. The air in the room grew thin.

  Nikki took one of his hands and placed it on her breast. “I like you more than any man I’ve met in a long time. You make me feel things. Good things. Fun things. And no, I haven’t changed my opinion of how ill-suited we are to be a couple, but it’s been a long day, and I’d like to be with you tonight.”

  Simple. Direct. Painfully honest. He had to swallow twice before he could speak. “I’d like that, too.”

  She smiled at him, just a smile. And though she didn’t realize it, she ripped his heart right out of his chest.

  He ran his finger from her collarbone to the place where a row of buttons started down her chest. “Your lawyer suits make me hot,” he muttered, “but I like this look, too….” He unfastened her blouse slowly, unable to hear anything but his own heart beating. Nikki’s gaze was downcast, her eyes shielded by thick lashes tipped in gold.

  When he folded back the sides of the fabric, he saw that she was wearing a silky camisole. Her breasts were small but perfect, the nipples lifting against the paper-thin fabric. “You’re so lovely, you make me ache,” he said, reverence in his voice.

  Finally, she looked at him, her cheeks pink. “I know I should work out. I suppose you’re used to being with athletic women.”

  He chuckled as he removed the blouse completely. “I’ve never seen a more perfect body.” Her skin was pale and smooth, and she was curved in all the right places. She wasn’t wearing a bra beneath the camisole, so he entertained himself for long minutes just stroking the swells that were so beautifully feminine.

  Nikki’s head fell back against his arm, her eyes closed, her lips parted as she breathed heavily. “Feel free to take that off,” she said, the words barely audible.

  He knew better. Desire was a train barreling down the track. If he had any chance of slowing things down, he needed to keep her dressed as long as possible. “Patience, my Nikki. We’ll get there.” But in truth, he needed more room for what he had in mind, and a giant bed lay not ten feet away.

  His own impatience growing, he scooted out from under his delightful burden and stood, lifting her in his arms. In three quick strides, he deposited her on the mattress, abandoning her only long enough to remove his belt for comfort. His shirt and pants he left in place to ensure he didn’t rush this first time, when he wanted so badly to show her a slow, tender loving.

  Nikki startled him by shimmying out of her jeans. The panties that matched her little top were barely more than two triangles covering her most intimate secrets. She threw back the covers and stretched out on the bed, arms over her head, palms to the ceiling. One leg was bent at the knee, her foot propped against her butt. “I’m counting on you for stamina,” she said with a naughty grin. “All that aerobic exercise you do must count for something.”

  He laughed hoarsely, hunger riding him hard. Nikki challenged him and made him laugh. A combination he hadn’t expected in the bedroom, but one that was damned arousing. “I knew there was a reason to stay in shape.” He sprawled on his side next to her, putting one hand, fingers splayed, on her flat belly.

  Nikki’s eyelids fluttered shut. “Pierce…”

  The way she groaned his name made the hair stand up on the back of his neck. What a surprise to find out that beneath the ladylike facade of the driven lawyer was a sensual woman with a kick-ass body and a knack for driving him crazy in the bedroom.

  Slowly, tormenting them both, he slid his hand down the slick fabric of the camisole until his fingertips reached the edge of her almost-not-there undies. “Do you want me to touch you?” he asked.

  Her hips lifted in a silent plea. “Yes. You know I do.”

  The hint of imperious demand made him grin, but she couldn’t see it, because her eyes were squeezed shut, a tiny frown of concentration marring her perfect brow.

  Instead of trespassing beneath the elastic band, he stroked two fingers downward, over the cloth, and pressed gently where the fabric was warm and damp. Nikki shuddered, panting but silent. He played with her…light, teasing strokes and then firm pressure, but backed off before she could reach what she wanted.

 
She grabbed his wrist. “I need more.” The demand held little heat, because her words were slurred with pleasure.

  “All in good time, my sweet. All in good time.”

  But he, too, fell victim to impatience. Sitting up only long enough to drag her camisole up and over her head, he lay down with her again, this time propped on his elbow so he could explore what he had uncovered. Her nipples were raspberry pink, just begging for a taste. When he took her in his mouth, they both moaned.

  Rolling his tongue around one little nub, he felt the flesh pucker even more tightly. When he lightly scraped his teeth over the sensitive skin, Nikki caught her breath. Her eyes opened, and she smiled at him drowsily. “I might have been wrong about that eight ranking,” she whispered. “You’re climbing the charts every second.”

  As he moved from one breast to the other, he nodded. “I do have a competitive streak.” He stayed tanned year-round from his many hours outdoors, and the contrast between his masculine hand and her soft, womanly skin was both erotic and fascinating. He traced her collarbone, the underside of her chin and back south to the shallow indentation of her navel.

  Every touch made her sigh. But if his tactile exploration gave her pleasure, it gave him twofold in return. He was so hard he ached and shuddered with the need to move between her legs. It was too soon, though. He wasn’t finished with her.

  Making his way south once again, he removed her underwear entirely. Seeing her smooth shaven was both a shock and an intense turn-on. He fingered her mound, loving the plump curve of it, and lower—the moist, pink folds of her sex. He slid a finger downward, not entering her, only skating across her clitoris and separating the petals below.

  He inhaled the scent of her arousal, felt it in the rigidity of her limbs, heard it in her choppy breathing. Seeing the swollen, glistening evidence told him only one sensory gift was left to unwrap. Taste.

  Nikki made no protest when he moved lower in the bed. Now he could no longer toy with her breasts, but the consolation prize was as good or better. He rested his head on her upper thigh, enjoying the view. It was spectacular, though he wanted her too badly to linger long. Using both hands to spread her legs wide, he kissed her intimately, teasing her with his tongue.

  Nikki cried out, not in climax but in shock. He knew there was more room for pleasure. “Slow, honey, slow.” He thought if he kept his attentions light and irregular, she would linger on a knife edge of wanting. But when he stroked her long and slow with his tongue, she came instantly, her hands fisting in his hair and her body trembling violently as her skin flushed pink from head to toe.

  Feeling something akin to a seismic shift, he scrambled up in the bed and moved on top of her, kissing her wildly. “Nikki, Nikki, Nikki…” He felt his control slipping away.

  She opened her eyes, the irises cloudy and dark. Touching his lips with two fingers, she demanded his attention. “I think it’s about time for you to take off your clothes, Mr. Avery.”

  Nine

  Nikki was in trouble. Earlier in the diner, when she’d told Pierce she hadn’t had sex with “that many men,” she might have given him the wrong impression. There had actually been only three, and two of those hardly counted. During a particularly bad period in high school, she’d let herself be pressured into sex, twice, with two different boys, each time searching desperately for someone to love her. Both experiences had been pretty awful, and thankfully she’d been smart enough to demand they wear protection, so there had been no consequences other than a lingering feeling of depression and shame.

  It wasn’t until her last year of law school that she had tried again, and on that occasion she’d had reason to hope her new beau might be the real deal. With a seven-month relationship under her belt, she had honestly believed she was finally going to get her happily-ever-after. Unfortunately, when it came time to take the bar exam, she’d passed with flying colors and her lover had not even made the minimum required score. Things had gotten ugly after that, and once again she’d found herself alone. Since then she had dated on and off, but intimacy was not on the table. Until today.

  Now she had found the kind of man every woman dreamed about, but she and Pierce were wrong for each other in almost every way.

  She watched him stand up. His face was tightly drawn, and as he ripped off his shirt, she could see the muscles in his chest and arms cord and bunch. His skin was golden bronze. When he unzipped and shucked his pants and boxers, a strip of white at his hips was the only indication he didn’t go commando in the great outdoors.

  His penis reared proud and strong against his flat belly. Its length and girth made her shiver, either in anticipation or anxiety, or perhaps a dollop of both. Even in the aftermath of a truly spectacular orgasm, she wanted him so badly she was trembling.

  When he was completely nude, he stared at her. “I’m afraid this one’s gonna be pretty fast. We’ll go for aerobic stamina the second time around…okay?”

  “Already planning an encore?” She’d die before admitting that his arrogance gave her heart a little pitty-pat rhythm.

  His eyes narrowed as his gaze scanned her from head to toe. “You have no idea, Nikki, no idea…”

  The mattress dipped when he joined her. Before she could get used to the idea of his naked body hip to hip with hers, he dragged her beneath him and began to suckle her breasts one at a time. The fiery pleasure spun from her nipples to her womb, rekindling hot, shivering need.

  His hips pinned her down, effectively making her a prisoner. But with his erection trapped between them, the kind of release she wanted would only come from his body entering hers. Almost sobbing in frustration, she grabbed fistfuls of his hair and guided his mouth to hers. “Kiss me, Pierce. Kiss me again.”

  She loved the way he did it, lazy dueling tongues, sharp nips at her top lip, slow, steady torture when he took her bottom lip between his teeth and pulled gently.

  Finally, it was too much. She arched her back and wriggled and scooted. But it was no use. Pierce was in control of the timetable.

  “Please,” she begged. “Don’t make us wait. I can’t stand it.”

  He looked down at her, a lock of hair falling onto his forehead. Sweat dampened his brow. His scent was something wonderful, a mélange of plain shower soap and piney aftershave and warm aroused male. Even with his cheekbones darkened with color, his gaze was teasing. “I kind of like having you in my power.”

  “Neanderthal.” There wasn’t much heat in her accusation. It was hard to criticize a man so dedicated to giving pleasure.

  “I could play with your body for hours,” he murmured, smoothing a strand of hair from her face. “But if I don’t have you soon, I may spontaneously combust.”

  “Well, we wouldn’t want that.” She kissed his nose and his chin and his hard shoulder. “I’m ready when you are.”

  From the look on his face, it pained him to leave her, but he moved away just long enough to retrieve one of the condoms he’d tossed on the nightstand. Rolling it into place, he faced her once more, stretched out on his side. “Thank you for coming with me today.” The expression in his eyes was the most open she’d ever seen from him.

  She knew his statement was dead serious, and it made her want to cry. So she covered up her emotions with a quip. “Thank you for making me come.”

  He stared at her, lips curled in a smile that resembled a pirate about to plunder and pillage. “Don’t thank me yet. You can roll them all into one.”

  Again, he covered her body with his, only now he aligned them for practicality. Taking both of her wrists in one big hand, he held her arms over her head. “You’re pushy and stubborn and sometimes aggravating as hell, and I need you more than any woman I’ve ever known. Close your eyes, Nikki. I want you to feel us.”

  She did as he asked, and lost all the oxygen from her lungs when she felt the inexorable push of his po
ssession. Big and fully aroused, he managed only an inch or so at first.

  He kissed her cheek. “Relax, honey.”

  She tried, she really did. But every nerve in her body was rigged to a timer set to explode, and she couldn’t seem to catch her breath. He rocked back and forth…back and forth, gaining new ground with each slide. Skin on skin. Heart to heart. Arching her back, she gained him another few centimeters. Unbearably full, uncomfortably stretched, she panted. With her vision wiped out, the universe pinwheeled, little flashes of light pulsing in time with his thrusts.

  Something coiled strong and hot, low in her belly. She squeezed her inner muscles and heard him curse. No longer able to bear the dark, she opened her eyes and saw his face. He was a man at the edge, trying with all his might to hold on.

  Deliberately, she dug her fingernails into his shoulders. “Finish it, Pierce. I need all of you.”

  His gaze went blank. A mighty shudder racked his frame. He bowed his head and then reared back with a muffled shout as his hips pistoned.

  She wanted to be there with him at the end, but she had been too close for too long. With a helpless cry, her hips ground into his and she felt the scalding heat of a climax so intense, she lost a few seconds in the aftermath.

  Dimly, she heard Pierce groan as he came. His body went lax and heavy on hers. Exhaustion claimed her, and she slept….

  * * *

  Pierce awoke disoriented. Several things came back to him all at once. Nikki. Hot, sweaty sex. Feeling himself turned inside out by her generous passion. He lay still for a moment, cataloging the situation. She was curled against his side, one arm across his chest, one leg resting on his thigh.

  He craned his neck to see the clock. Only seven-thirty, and it felt like midnight. A responsible man would call the hospital. But at the moment, he reveled in selfishness…savored the sheer perfection of having Nicola Parrish in his bed. He’d known from the first moment that she flipped his switches. But good God almighty, she was amazing.