Triple the Fun

by Maureen Child

  Her hands curled into his upper arms and even through the fabric of his shirt, he felt that contact like match points, burning into his skin.

  “Let go, Dina,” he told her softly, unable to look away from her amazing eyes. Such fire. Such passion. All for him. “Stop fighting it and let go.”

  “Connor—” She gasped for breath, his name barely more than a strained whisper shuddering from her throat.

  “Do it, Dina,” he demanded and plunged two fingers into her heat.

  She exploded. Her body shook, her hips pumped wildly against him, and she tossed her head back, crying out his name in a strangled gasp.

  Before she had even stopped trembling, Connor reached down and threw back the dark red duvet, exposing crisp white sheets. He laid her down, stripped out of his own clothes and paused only long enough to grab a condom from the bedside table, rip open the package and sheathe himself before he joined her on the massive bed. She lifted her arms in welcome and he slid into the circle of her heat, her warmth, like a man who had been freezing for far too long.

  She parted her thighs and took him inside her. He entered her in one long stroke, feeling her silky heat surround and envelop him. For one long, heart-stopping moment, he held perfectly still, savoring the sensations of finally being where he most wanted to be. Then her legs came up to wrap around his hips, pulling him deeper, closer. He moved within her, slowly at first, setting a rhythm she matched, even as her hands moved up and down his back, her short, trim nails scoring his skin, driving him on. His hips pistoned, his body claiming hers in an ancient blending of selves.

  They moved as one, pushing each other toward a release that hung just out of reach. He kissed her again and again, their mouths taking and giving as their bodies raced to completion. He felt the tremors of her release take her and when she tightened her grip on him and shouted his name, he let go and joined her, submitting to the inevitable as his soul shattered.

  * * *

  Dina held him long after the last aftershocks of what could only be called a nine-point-five on the Richter scale slowly faded away. She’d never known anything like that. Hadn’t even guessed that her body was capable of feeling so much. Oh, she wasn’t a virgin, reacting to the first experience of a male-driven orgasm. But in a weird way, the fact that she’d had three previous lovers only underlined the extraordinary truth of what had just happened.

  Until tonight, she would have said that sex was good and orgasms were pretty nice. But those pitiful words didn’t come close to defining what had just happened to her. With his every touch, Connor had set her body and soul on fire. She’d felt him right down to her bones and even they had trembled under his sensual onslaught. Now, with his weight pressing down on her, she felt...complete somehow, in a way she never had before.

  And that’s when it hit her. She loved Connor King. Dina didn’t know when it had started, or when she had taken that last slippery slide into love, but it was here now. She was sure of it. Oh, God, how clichéd was that? Have incredible sex and assume you’re in love?

  She squeezed her eyes shut as her brain raced. This wasn’t just about the sex, her brain argued. It was about everything else—the way he handled the triplets, his loyalty to family, his willingness to include her, even his stubbornness—and the amazing orgasms were pretty much just the icing on an incredible cake. Yet another part of her mind demanded to know how this was even possible. She’d known him about two weeks. It shouldn’t have been feasible to love someone after such a short period of time. It was nuts to even think it, but this feeling she had was undeniable.

  Opening her eyes again, she stared up at the ceiling as the irony of her situation sank in. For most of her life, Dina had avoided situations that could lead to love, and here she found herself loving the very man she’d been at odds with from the beginning. It had to be a cosmic joke at her expense.

  But while she worried over the implications, she also couldn’t help relishing the moment. Love. Whether it would eventually bring her joy or pain, she didn’t know. Sliding her hands up and down Connor’s back, she relished this moment, this realization, even though it terrified her. For right now, she was at an Irish castle, in bed with the man she loved, and she wasn’t going to waste another second worrying about what tomorrow would bring.

  There would be time enough to tangle her thoughts around trying to trust that a man could accept her as she was without expecting her to change and be what he preferred. Plus, there was the fact that the only thing holding her and Connor together was the triplets. If he got custody of those babies, he wouldn’t need her anymore and she’d be gone. She knew that and hated it.

  Oh, loving him was a tremendous blunder, but God help her, she didn’t know how to correct that error now, when it was too late to turn back.

  “Are you okay?” he asked, lifting his head to look down at her.

  Could he sense what she was thinking? Feeling? No, she told herself firmly. If he could he would be leaping off the bed and putting some distance between them. So she buried her newly realized emotions deep and kept her response light. “I’m great,” she said, smiling into those ice-blue eyes.

  He gave her a brief, hard kiss. “Me, too.” He skimmed one hand over to cup her breast and she gulped. Amazingly enough, her body, hardly recovered from that first incredible round, was clearly ready to go again.

  She felt him pulse inside her and knew he felt the same. “Connor—”

  He shook his head, his smile gone, replaced by the stamp of fresh need on his features. “I want you again. And again. And again.”

  “We should probably talk about this—”

  “Yeah, not really interested in talking.” He eased away and off the bed. “Don’t move,” he ordered.

  She didn’t think she could move if she had to. Besides he was back a moment later. He grabbed a fresh condom, slid it on and was joining her in the bed an instant later.

  “No more talk,” he whispered, sitting on his heels, drawing her with him until she straddled his lap, holding his hard length deep inside her. Dina shook her hair back from her face, looked into his eyes as his hands settled on her hips and dismissed the notion of some awkward conversation. There would be plenty of time for that later.

  She squirmed on top of him, twisting her hips, creating a delicious sort of friction that rekindled the fire still licking at them.

  “Ride me, Dina. Take me to the edge and then jump off with me.”

  She nodded, breathless at the explosion of sensation rocketing through her. Moving on him, she set a blistering pace, helped along by his strong hands at her hips. The only sound in the room was their eager gasps and the good, healthy slap of skin on skin.

  She took him deeper, higher than she would have thought possible, until Dina was convinced he was actually touching the tip of her heart. She moved her hands from his broad shoulders to cup his face and then she kissed him, parting his lips with her tongue, demanding entry. Demanding he give her all that he had and then just a little more.

  He threaded the fingers of one hand through her long, thick hair and held her head in place while he gave her just what she needed. And this time, when their shared release crashed down on them, their mouths were fused and each swallowed the other’s moans of indescribable pleasure.

  When it was over, they stared at each other and Dina wished she could read what was in his mind, his heart. Did he feel anything for her beyond desire? Was there caring and affection, too? Could that turn to love if given enough time?

  And would they have that time? This move to his house was temporary and she knew it. Now, especially, she couldn’t continue to live with a man she loved knowing he didn’t love her in return. Could she?

  He bent his forehead to hers and fought to steady his breathing. Their eyes met and he smiled. “Give me a half hour and we can go again.”

  Since h
er body was still buzzing with the kind of pleasure she’d never known before, she liked that idea. “It’s a deal,” she said, still willing to put aside all of her recent revelations until she could be alone with the craziness now settling in to stay in her mind.

  “You are definitely my kind of woman,” Connor said, grinning now as he rubbed her nipples with his thumbs.

  She sighed, loving that near electrical charge zipping through her system. “Keep that up and we’ll never make your half-hour timeline,” she warned.

  “I’m willing to risk it,” he said, dipping his head to plant his mouth at the pulse point at the base of her throat.

  Dina tipped her head back to give him access and felt the deliciously slow build of excitement stirring in her again. “You’re not playing fair.”

  He smiled against her skin and whispered, “I’m a King, honey. We always get what we want.”

  Her heart turned over. He wanted her. But for how long?

  From across the room, the baby monitor erupted with a half cry that splintered the haze of passion as surely as hitting a light switch chased away darkness.

  Sighing, Connor pulled back and looked at her. Smoothing her hair from her face with his fingertips, he said, “Duty calls.”

  Duty. Why had he chosen that word in particular? Were the triplets merely duty, in spite of the way he treated them? The way he acted when he was with them? Was she a duty? Or was she simply handy?

  “Yeah,” she said, shifting to move off of him as her thoughts darkened and doubts spilled through her veins like tar. “I should go take care of that before whoever it is wakes up the other two.”

  “No,” he said, catching her hand as she moved to grab her clothes. “I’ll take care of it. You don’t have to do it all anymore, Dina. You’ve got me.”

  He pushed off the edge of the bed, pulled on his jeans but didn’t bother buttoning the fly. He cupped her chin in his palm, tipped her face up and gave her a quick kiss followed by that half smile that always tugged at her heart. “I’ll be back. Don’t go anywhere.”

  She didn’t. Dina sat on the edge of the rumpled bed and thought back to what he’d said before. She had him. Did she really?

  * * *

  A week later, they were back in Dana Point and Ireland was nothing but a great memory.

  Connor grinned to himself as he walked up to the front door of his house. He’d never enjoyed a business trip more. Sure, he’d secured a new adventure for his and Colt’s business, but it was more than that. It was spending time with his family—the triplets, Maura and Jefferson and their brood—and it was discovering just how good he and Dina were together.

  He hadn’t expected it, but maybe he should have. She was nothing like any other woman he’d ever known, so why would sex with her be ordinary? Instantly, his body went tight and hard and he wasn’t even surprised. Simply the thought of Dina stirred the hunger that was always close at hand.

  Connor opened the front door of his house and was hit by a wave of delicious scents pouring down the hall from the kitchen. Mexican food. And since his housekeeper, Louise, had never once cooked Mexican for him, he knew exactly who was at the stove. Smiling to himself, he followed the amazing aromas and pushed the kitchen door open. He stopped in the doorway, fixed his gaze on her and just enjoyed the show.

  Dina’s long black hair was pulled into a high ponytail at the back of her head. She was barefoot and wore a dark red T-shirt with faded, skintight cutoff denim shorts. Music drifted from the speakers overhead and she moved to the rhythm, dancing across the white and gray marble floor tiles. His gaze fixed on the sway of her hips and his mouth went dry.

  They’d been back from Ireland for two days and she hadn’t been in his bed since they left the castle. The hell of it was, he missed her. He couldn’t remember a time when a woman had made such an impact on him that he actively missed being with her. Until Dina, women had been fleeting distractions.

  She was different. He wanted her here. Now. Teeth clenched, he got a grip on his needs and took a single step into the room. “Smells great in here.”

  Dina shrieked, spun around and slapped one hand to the base of her throat. “You scared me.”

  “Sorry.” He shrugged. “You didn’t hear me come in.” Glancing around the kitchen, his gaze swept across the familiar pale gray walls, red and white marble countertops and white cabinets. The room was big and he’d probably only seen it a handful of times since he’d moved into the house four years ago. This was Louise’s territory and he didn’t intrude on it.

  “So where are the kids?”

  “Louise is watching them upstairs,” Dina said. “I had to make the appetizers for a cocktail party and she volunteered to babysit so I could work faster.”

  “So we don’t get to eat any of this stuff?” His gaze slid across the trays stacked on the end of the counter and the big round table set against a bay window. Late-afternoon sun streamed through that window in golden shafts that cut through the room and sparkled off the stainless steel fridge.

  “We get to eat this.” She turned back to the stove and lifted the lid off a tall soup pot to allow a cloud of steam to lift from the surface.

  Connor took a deep breath and sighed. “That smells amazing. What is it?”

  “Chicken tortilla soup,” she said and let him peek into the pot before she slapped the lid back down on it. Her gaze met his and just for a second, he saw the same kind of desire he was feeling. And, as if she sensed what he was thinking, she cleared her throat, stepped back from him and busied herself with the trays of goodies she had prepared.

  He walked over and stopped beside her, close enough that their arms brushed together. Connor heard her quick intake of breath and smiled to himself.

  “So, what else do you have here?”

  As she snapped the clear plastic lids on the trays, she said, “Mini chicken chimichangas, red-pepper-and-spinach quesadillas, shredded beef taquitos, cheese-stuffed jalapenos, and pulled pork miniburritos.”

  He snagged one of those before she put on the lid and he’d taken a bite before she had time to whirl on him and say, “Hey! That’s for my client.”

  Connor groaned as flavors exploded in his mouth. Everything had looked great on the trays, but one taste told him that she was a damn artist with a stove. He could understand now why she wanted to open a restaurant. The woman was a chef.

  Chewing slowly, he shook his head and looked at the half a burrito he still held. “That,” he said with reverence in his tone, “is incredible.”

  She smiled, pleased at the compliment. “Thank you.” Sighing, she said, “I’ve been cooking since early this morning and now that everything’s done I’ve got to shower and change so I can deliver the food to my client.”

  Connor ate the last of his burrito and tried not to send a greedy glance at the covered trays. “Where’s the cocktail party?”

  “Long Beach,” she said, turning away to stack the trays neatly. “So I’ve got to run. Now that you’re back, you can take over for Louise. I’m sure she’s more than ready for a break by now.”

  “Long Beach is, like, an hour from here,” he said, not liking the thought of her having to drive alone all the way back after the party. It would probably be after midnight and if she drove down Pacific Coast Highway, there were plenty of dark stretches she’d have to pass through.

  Frowning, he realized he was worried about her.

  “Do you have someone working the party with you?” he asked.

  “No,” she said. “This is a small affair. I can handle it on my own.”

  “Maybe I should go with you,” he blurted out, almost as surprised by the offer as she appeared to be.

  Dina looked at him. “Why?”

  Shrugging, he said, “I can help you carry those trays, for one. Help set up, drive you to and from...” />
  “What’s going on with you?” Her dark brown eyes were fixed on his, gleaming with curiosity.

  Good question, he thought. Even Connor wasn’t sure why he was so drawn to her. Why being around her made him feel more alive. More...hell. Just more. After that week in Ireland with her, he’d found that he wanted to be around her all the damn time. To hear her laugh. To watch her with the kids. To have her turn to him with those big dark eyes open and shining with pleasure.

  To reach across his bed and have her turn in to his arms. But he wasn’t about to say all of that to her, so he went with the most immediate reason.

  “I don’t like the idea of you driving around so late by yourself, is all.”

  A slow, pleased smile curved her mouth just before she went up on her toes and planted a soft, quick kiss on his lips. “That is very sweet.”

  Now Connor frowned. He wasn’t sweet. Ask anybody.

  “Dina,” he said, catching her hand in his as she started to walk past him. His insides were tangled up in a mess of sensations, emotions and thoughts he didn’t want to explore. But there was one thing he had to say to her before she walked out of the room. One thing he wanted straightened out.

  She looked down to where their hands were joined, then lifted her gaze to his again. “I can’t talk now, Connor. I’ve got a job and I have to go do it.”

  He didn’t let her go. Instead, he gave her hand a squeeze and held on. “Yeah. Another minute’s not going to make that much difference.”

  “Okay. What is it?”

  “Since we got back from Ireland, you’ve been staying in your own room.”

  “Yeah,” she said, inhaling sharply, “I thought it would be best if we got back to reality.”

  “Reality sucks,” he said, giving her hand a tug hard enough to pull her into him. He looked down into her eyes, let her see the need, the hunger in his. He lifted his free hand to cup her breast and smiled when she closed her eyes and sighed in response. Dragging his thumb across her nipple, he felt it harden even through her bra and the thin fabric of her shirt. “I want you, Dina. Right now, but I’ll settle for tonight.”