by Ciana Stone
“So, you any good?”
His expression registered a moment of surprise before a slow smile rose on his face. “At what?”
“Sex.”
That did it. His eyes actually widened. She allowed herself a smile. “And pool.”
“Yes, to both. You?”
“I get by. You wanna play?”
“Pool?”
She shrugged. “It’s a start.”
He stood and gestured toward an empty table. “Ladies first.”
With a chuckle, she rose and made her way to the table. “Flip to break?” She pulled a quarter from her pocket.
“Tails.”
“Tail man, huh?” She grinned and flipped the coin. “Sorry, stud, heads it is. I break.”
“Have at it.”
She chalked up a cue and cut a look at him. “So what’re we playing for?”
“The fun of it? Bragging rights?”
“Kinda takes the thrill out of winning, don’t you think?”
“Okay, what do you want to play for?”
Cia propped one hand on the edge of the table, leaning in slightly with one hip cocked. “Hmmm, how about this? You win, you get me tied up and all yours for the night. I win, and I get you.”
The look he gave her told her quite clearly that he was interested. “Sounds like a win-win situation.”
She laughed and straightened. “You’ve never been tied up by me, cowboy.”
“Don’t reckon I’m about to either. Give it your best shot, slick. You’re going down.”
Cia leaned over, readying for the break, but looked up at him. “Oh, I plan on it, cowboy.”
Half an hour later, he admitted defeat. “Hustler,” he complained good-naturedly.
She laughed and placed her cue on the table. “Time to pony up, cowboy.”
He walked over to her, stepping up so close that she had to tilt her head back to look up at him. “Your place or mine, slick?”
“Let’s make it yours.”
“After you.”
Cia was just drunk enough not to let stray thoughts of right and wrong deter her. She was worked up enough to jump him in the parking lot. Neither of them spoke on the drive to the hotel or the short walk to the room she'd been assigned for the duration of the case.
He opened the door and held it for her. The moment he was inside she pushed it shut and closed in on him, pressing him back against it with her body. She ran her hands up his chest to take off his hat, toss it aside and then grabbed him by the hair to pull his face down to hers.
“You ready to ride, cowboy?” she whispered against his lips.
“You ready to be ridden, slick?”
“Thought I was the one doing the riding? I did win the bet.”
“Then I guess you better claim your prize.”
Their mouths joined in a clash of tongues and teeth. She couldn’t blame the alcohol for the sudden weakening of her knees or the fire that sprang to life in her groin. It was all him. His feel, his taste, and the way he took control of the kiss.
Impatience born of need had her breaking free of the kiss to tug off his jacket and work at the buttons of his shirt. She kissed, nipped and licked every inch of skin that was revealed as she parted the shirt and worked it over his shoulders and down his arms.
The more she licked his skin, she more she craved the taste of him. Kade helped her efforts by stripping off his shirt and tossing it aside. He gently pushed her back long enough to pull off his boots. When his hands moved to his belt, Cia’s eyes followed the motion of his fingers as he unfastened it, worked the button open then eased down the zipper.
Her pulse raced faster and her hands moved to her own belt, loosening it and then the zipper. When Kade eased his pants down over his lean hips, revealing his no-underwear status, she nearly groaned. Hunger stabbed strong and demanding inside her, prompting her to toe off her boots and shimmy out of her jeans.
Her hands pressed into the center of her belly and moved lower to the vee of her thighs as he stepped out of his pants.
Their eyes met and she saw an answering hunger in his; the gray had darkened to the color of storm clouds and narrowed slightly into a look of such intensity that it made her wet just looking at him.
He smiled and his gaze moved down her body to her fingers, fingers that had worked into the folds of her sex, stroking and rubbing.
Her throat felt thick and constricted as she allowed her eyes to roam his body. Good god was he beautiful. And that glorious length of male was too much temptation to ignore. She sank to her knees before him, gathering his erection in both hands.
A slight intake of breath and sudden tension in his body was all the response he gave when she ran her tongue over the head. It was enough to have her take him into her mouth. And enough to elicit a groan from him.
His fingers moved to her head, tightening in her hair and guiding her tempo as she laved and sucked.
His fuse must have been short because it wasn’t long before he pushed her back. Cia sat back on the floor, looking up at him. Damn was he fine. She lay back on the carpet and raised her hand to him.
Kade didn’t hesitate and she admired his economy of motion as he lowered himself down and spread her legs so that he could kneel between them. She shivered with impatient anticipation as his hands traced up the inside of her legs. When his fingers brushed the sides of her sex, she spread her legs wider, bending her knees to grant him better access.
With a touch that spelled practice, he stroked her outer lips. Her labia swelled and grew pliant, wet and ready. “More,” she encouraged, tilting her pelvis up against his hand.
He smiled and spread her wider, using one finger and working it with slow, steady pressure inside her. She bucked up as another finger joined the first and began to move rhythmically within her. A climax started to build, rumbling inside her like a hungry beast. When his thumb, slick with her juice, circled her clit, she exploded.
Kade didn’t speak but raised his eyebrows in question and she smiled up at him, the smile fading to be replaced with a look of desire as their eyes met. There was no more need for words. He pulled her to him and her arms instinctively went around his neck as their lips met, his tongue parting her lips to taste her.
Cia groaned and deepened the kiss, her tongue warring with his for dominance.
With his heart pounding in his chest and his body on fire, Kade’s mind went empty of every other thought than the feel and taste of her. When she wrapped her firm thighs around him and pressed her hot sex against him, madness swept through his mind. He sat back, put his hands on her hips, and pulled her down onto him. She released a sharp, excited breath as his erection pressed against her wet sex, and then growled something he didn’t understand, but responded to with a sharp stab of hunger that nearly blinded him.
Cia pulled herself tighter to him, heat from her sex radiating through his aching groin as she rotated her hips, fueling his flame as she ground against the length of his erection. Every rub and slide shredded his weakening control a little more. His fingers tightened on her hips, then clenched as he struggled to hold back the building need to ram insider her and fuck her like there was no tomorrow. Christ on a crutch, he had to get inside her. He captured both her breasts, thumbing the hard nipples. She hissed out a breath that spelled pleasure and he lowered himself down to cover one nipple with his mouth.
She moaned and arched against his mouth. Her hands traveled over his body, exploring the ridges of muscle beneath the skin of his abdomen. A shudder ran through him when her fingers traced the hair that ran from his navel and thickened into a dense forest around the base of his penis.
Her touch was like electricity, sending currents arcing through him. His breath hitched in his throat when her warm hand closed on him and stroked. He groaned and closed his eyes, fighting to hold back while his body demanded that he plunge into her, pound hard and fast and sate his need.
His eyes met hers in a searing look that was so replete with hunger it h
ad her breath catching in her throat. Her own need intensified to the point that the throb of her heart was matched by an echoing pulse in her sex.
With eager hands, she grabbed the back of his head and pulled him to her. Kade eased down on her, his erection sandwiched between them, pressing into her belly as he assumed the dominant position.
Cia explored his mouth with her tongue, tasting his lips, nipping at his full bottom lip before indulging herself in the warmth inside his mouth. Coupled with the fire that was dancing on her skin from his hand traveling down the side of her body to slide beneath her and tighten on her ass, she was breathing hard with desire.
A groan from him had her pulling away to stare into his eyes. There was fire burning in their depths, and something more, something raw and powerful. She traced her fingers over his face, feeling the strong bones that lay beneath the surface. A slow, sexy smile spread on his face.
She returned the smile and reached up to lick at his lips, feeling his alcohol-sweetened breath in her face. Like an addict drawn eager for the next high, she claimed his mouth in a devouring kiss.
Never breaking the contact of her body to his, she moved her lips from his mouth to his neck and rolled them over so that he was beneath her. His taste was like no other she had experienced, exotic and male. His natural smell made her hunger for more. Slithering lower, she explored his chest with her mouth, taking her time, lost in the feel and taste of him. Inch by slow inch, she worked her way down his body.
When she slid down his legs, spreading his thighs to kneel between them, she looked up the length of his body. Her eyes met his as both her small hands wrapped around his erection. His body arched at the contact, provoking a stab of powerful feminine satisfaction. She started to stroke him, but he suddenly grasped her wrists and sat up, pulling her arms behind her back.
Something wild and primitive called from deep inside her, something that wanted to be taken until she was drained.
Kade smelled her need and felt it vibrating through her body. It fueled the need inside him. Her skin was hot and moist. He ran his tongue under her breast, moving up the side of the full mound. She arched her back when he flicked his tongue over her nipple, using the tip of his tongue to run small circles around it. When he captured it between his teeth, she moaned.
Within seconds, she was writhing, her breath fast as she pressed forward, thrusting her breast against his mouth. Kade knew that he could take her then, ride her hard to a climax that would have them both spent. But he wasn’t quite ready for the final act.
Kade released her wrists, gripped her hips, and raised her to stand before him. Her protest transformed into a purr of pleasure when he kissed her stomach and ran his tongue down the center of her belly, stopping at the fringe of hair that topped her sex. His hands moved up the sides of her legs to her hips, then around to grip her ass tightly and pull her sex to his face. She ran her fingers through his hair, pulling his head tighter to her and murmuring inarticulate sounds of pleasure.
Her clit was swollen and sensitive when his tongue moved over it. Cia gasped and gripped him tighter, arching toward him. He sucked the hard nub into his mouth, circling the sensitive flesh with his tongue. Just as she gasped and started to shudder, he moved his mouth away and stood before her. Cia bent like a reed as he gathered her against him in a searing kiss. Her body hummed, creating a sound that was primal.
He recognized the sound, his mind translating for him on a primal level that she had moved beyond mere want and fully into need. Knowing that he’d awakened such hunger had his groin tightening. His mind nearly went nearly blank with the desire to fill that need, to hammer inside her, make her scream and shudder until there was no need left. She undulated against him. His hands cupped her ass, slowing the rotation of her hips.
Cia broke the kiss, both of them breathing hard as her hands moved down the center of his body, going steadily south. He was long and hard. She ran her fingers through the hair at the base of his erection and down the crease at his legs, admiring his length and thickness. He quivered when she ran a fingernail down the shaft to the bulging head, knowing that neither of them would last long with so much built-up need. And his need demanded to be filled.
He grabbed her shoulders and waltzed her backwards to push her down onto the bed. His hands slid down her arms and over her hips. She moaned when he kissed her stomach and ran his tongue over her clit. His hands moved up the inside of her thighs, brushing her sex with his thumbs, and then his mouth replaced his hands. She screamed in pleasure, demanding more.
Kade was more than willing to comply. Kneeling between her legs, he lifted her hips to meet him. Slowly he entered. Her muscles tightened around him, sending a burning bolt of pleasure through him strong enough to have him grit his teeth. Fighting to go slow, he put his full length inside her. Her body resisted at first, her sex tight and wet around his thickness.
He stifled a groan, wanting to pound into her, to slake his thirst. It took all the control he possessed to hold back. His chest tightened as he fought for control, the effort making his breath hard and ragged. Despite the need that pounded at him with ever increasing intensity, he began a slow rhythm, pulling almost completely out before plunging back in again. Cia quaked with each stroke, opening herself for full penetration. His rhythm began to build in speed. Aching to get deeper, he grabbed behind her knees and lifted her legs in the air.
She moaned and stretched her arms up over her head, arching up against him, abandoning all control. It was so supremely feminine and submissive that it threatened his tenuous control. Primal need took over and he stroked hard and fast, her cries and gasps driving him faster and harder until he felt control fading like mist in sunshine.
Knowing that he was perilously close, Kade slowed his pace and lowered her legs. Coming forward, he captured her mouth with his. The kiss was slow but passionate. Together they danced a primitive dance, each naturally matching the rhythm of the other. He lost himself in the moment, wanting it to last forever. As improbable as it was, nothing in his life had ever felt so right as this moment, and this woman.
Cia deepened the intensity of the kiss and wrapped her legs around his waist, prompting his motions to become harder. He drove himself into her and she pushed against each thrust, driving him deeper. Her legs tightened around him as her body went into climax. Her neck arched back, eyes closed in abandon. Kade slowed his movements, enjoying the feel of her orgasm.
Cia went limp and sank into the feeling of Kade kissing and sucking her neck. He pulled out of her as his mouth traveled to her breasts. He teased her nipples as his hand continued the journey down her body and slipped under her ass. With expert motion, he rolled her on top of him. He ran his fingers down between her cheeks, over her anus and to her swollen lips. He fingered her clit gently as he sucked her breasts. Just as another orgasm began to ripple through her body, he shifted and drove himself into her.
She cried out and, at that moment, power that was primal female asserted itself. She whispered word that made his skin burn and his mind explode with light and sensation. She took him, setting the pace and rhythm, riding him like a runaway stallion. Sweat poured from both of their bodies. His hands pulled at her hips as his eyes raked over her body, stopping to stare into her eyes. With eyes locked and bodies connected, they traveled together to a shared climax that left them both spent and exhausted.
Cia lay down on him, the side of her face against his broad chest, listening to the rapid beat of his heart. She felt his arms circle her protectively. Relaxing into his embrace, warm against his skin, she fell asleep.
Chapter Four
Cia groaned at the offensive sound of the phone. Knowing it was the wake-up call she’d requested, she lifted the receiver and immediately lowered it. She didn’t want to get up. She rolled over, reached for Kade, and found the bed beside her empty.
That had her opening her eyes and coming to full consciousness. The sound of the shower let her know that he hadn’t just snuck out. Then sh
e remembered. They were in his room.
She was relieved that he had not wakened her. Morning-after sex talk was not her strong suit. But then, Kade was a smart man. He’d probably already figured out that she wasn’t interested in anything other than what they’d shared, mind-blowing sex with no strings and no emotional entanglements.
A knock at the door accompanied by a male voice announcing “room service” had her scrambling off the bed and looking around for something to wear. She grabbed the first item she spotted—Kade’s discarded shirt.
Hastily buttoning it, she opened the door.
“What the --! I can’t believe you! What the hell are you doing here?”
“Why delivering breakfast.” Joe smiled and rolled the cart into the room.
“You shouldn’t be here.” Cia lowered her voice to a hiss.
“And you should?”
“Joe.” Her tone was a clear warning.
“Gracie.” His tone was of good-natured argument that masked a stubbornness she’d come to know could outlast the erosion of rock by water.
“Joe, you need to leave.”
“Gracie, what’re you doing, child?”
“At the moment, trying to get you out of here.”
“Why? You ashamed of me? Oh wait, I get it. Kade doesn’t know that you talk to me, does he? You probably didn’t get around to telling him stuff like that. You were too busy…discussing the case.”
“Joe, get out!”
“Cia, the shower’s free if you—” Kade’s voice had her freezing. She turned her head to look at him and saw the perplexed frown on his face a split second before he continued. “Who are you?”
She nearly fainted dead away. The room did a crazy spin and she reached out for the chair by the small desk for support.
“I’m Joe,” Joe announced in his ever-so-friendly Southern drawl.
“Don’t remember seeing you before, Joe.”
“Probably ’cause you haven’t, Ranger Lawson.”
Kade’s posture changed to one of suspicion and preparation. Cia recognized the signs. “You work for the hotel?”