by Leah Brooke
Lowering his head, he covered her mouth with his, deepening his kiss with a groan.
Tangling his tongue with hers, he led her into a playfully erotic dance that sent her senses soaring.
Threading her fingers into his soft hair, Jasmine rubbed her breasts against him, her breath catching at the friction. She’d never known a man who put such eroticism into a kiss, or one who could make a simple kiss so incredibly sexual.
Her arousal gave her the confidence to seduce him in turn, and delighting at the feel of him, she moved against him in invitation, wanting to make him as crazy for her as she was for him.
Tugging his hair, she broke off their kiss, breathing heavily. “Mac. Hurry.”
Just as Mac turned toward the bedroom, the phone rang.
With a sigh, he grimaced and set her on her feet. “I know. It might be one of the girls.” He patted her ass. “Just remember that I’ll get hungrier every minute I have to wait.”
He surprised her by turning back to the sink to finish the last of the dishes. “Tell them I said hi.”
Jasmine smiled, trying to tamp down her arousal, and reached for the phone without taking her eyes from the sight of Mac’s wide shoulders.
“Hello.”
“Hello, Jasmine. I understand congratulations are in order.”
Recognizing the voice of her ex-husband, she gulped, her smile falling. The warm cocoon of arousal turned cold, her stomach knotting with anxiety.
“Hello, Tom.”
Mac whirled, his eyes narrowed and sharp.
Jasmine tried to smile in reassurance, but knew she’d failed miserably when the fury in Mac’s eyes turned to concern.
Warmed by Mac’s support, she straightened, her grip tightening on the phone. “What do you want?”
Mac dried his hands and came toward her, reaching for the phone. “Give it to me.”
Shaking her head, Jasmine held out a hand as Tom spoke again.
His short laugh made her skin crawl. “Tracy called and told me that you and that neighbor I keep hearing about are getting married. I’m getting married, too. Courtney’s real excited to meet you. I thought we could get together Friday night for dinner and get to know each other. I think we should all be friends, especially for the girls’ sake.”
“Dinner together?” Jasmine lifted her gaze to Mac’s, reaching out to him with a trembling hand. “I don’t think—”
Mac caught her by surprise, snatching the phone from her hand. Wrapping his other arm around her, he pulled her close. “This is Mac.”
Jasmine hated her own weakness, but the criticism and humiliation at the hands of her ex-husband came crashing back, shaking her self-confidence. He’d made her feel inferior for so long that just hearing his voice had the power to bring the feelings of inadequacy and stupidity rushing back to the surface.
Years of it had taken their toll, and the ease in which Tom brought it back infuriated her, as did his apparent need to keep doing it even three years after she’d divorced him.
She didn’t know why he felt the need to do it, and sure as hell didn’t know why she let it bother her, but she had more confidence now, and promised herself she wouldn’t be that woman again.
Pushing against Mac, she reached for the phone again, but he gripped her hand in his and brushed his lips over her knuckles.
“Sure, that’s fine. We’ll meet you there. Bye.” Still holding her hand, he disconnected and set the phone aside. “We’re having dinner with Tom and his fiancée Friday night. I think it’s time for Tom and I to meet face-to-face.”
“Damn it, Mac. I don’t want to go out to dinner with Tom and his girlfriend.” Snatching her hand from his, she threw herself onto the sofa and glared at him. “I can just imagine sitting across from him and some woman who probably isn’t much older than our daughters. He’ll criticize me all night and point out all my faults. I’m tired of playing his games, and pointing out my faults is all fun and games for him. It’s his way of justifying his cheating. I’m sick of listening to it. Everything he did is my fault.”
Mac gathered her close. “I already know all your faults and I still love you. You won’t hang up your purse, and you like to control everything.”
Jasmine blew out a breath, unable to stay mad at him, and reluctantly amused, she looked up at him through her lashes. “I’ll bet she’s built and gorgeous.”
Mac nudged her to her back, covering her body with his. “So are you.” Lifting her T-shirt out of the way, he pressed her legs to the sofa with his own and began to nibble at the underside of her breasts. “Delicious. Sexy.”
Lifting his head, he smiled. “I can’t wait for Friday night. If my hunch is right, you’re going to see just how ridiculous your fears are.”
Jasmine didn’t quite believe him, but the feel of his hands and mouth on her skin wiped thoughts of Tom and his fiancée out of her mind.
The slow, seductive quality to his lovemaking, a sharp contrast to the desperation he’d shown before, caught her by surprise.
He lifted her shirt, but instead of removing it completely, he caught her arms in it above her head, making it impossible for her to lower them.
Alarmed at her defenseless position, she automatically fought to get free, once again shaken at how easily he aroused her. “Mac!”
His free hand slid over her stomach, inching lower while his hot mouth continued its journey over her breast. “You’re fine, Jazz. Just relax. Hmm, I like you like this.”
Jasmine’s breath caught when he scraped his teeth over her nipple, her stomach muscles quivering when he slid his hand under the waistband of her sweatpants. Her clit swelled, aching for attention, her pussy clenching with the need to be filled.
Mac grinned wickedly, working his hand lower. “This is giving me quite a few ideas. You seem to bring out my dominant streak, baby.”
Struck by the slight hesitancy in his tone, and flutter of nervousness in his eyes as they searched hers, she reached for him, some instinct telling her that he was revealing a part of himself he didn’t show to others.
Leaning into him, she smiled. “Show me.”
Mac’s eyes flashed, the hunger in them thrilling her. With a groan, he pushed her legs wider. “With pleasure.”
She gasped at the stroke of his fingers over her mound, crying out at the sharp pleasure of his skilled fingers sliding over her clit.
Her hips lifted of their own volition, aiding his efforts to strip her sweatpants and panties from her.
Mac tossed them aside and lifted his head. Looking into her eyes, he smiled and ran a hand down her body, pausing to tease her nipple, creating a sizzling sensation everywhere he touched her. His smile widened when she cried out and arched toward him, so aroused at the feeling of helpless abandon that she found herself looking to him for guidance.
Stunned at the need to surrender to him, she fought to escape his hold as he caught her wrists again. “Mac?”
His eyes gleamed with something like satisfaction, the glint of possession in them filling a need inside her she hadn’t even known existed.
“Trust me, Jazz. I love you. I’ve waited for you forever. Christ, I need you even more than I thought possible.” He slid the hand holding her wrists over her head to her fingers, stroking the ring he’d placed there.
“Mine. All mine. Forever. We’re great together, Jazz, and it’s only going to get better.”
She’d never felt so desired—so craved. So deliciously feminine. She’d never felt like she belonged with someone the way she did with Mac.
The appreciation in his eyes made her feel even more desirable, and with the hot flow of lust consuming her, she lifted herself in offering.
His eyes met hers, glittering with anticipation, drawing her in and intensifying the bond between them.
Her inhibitions seemed to fall away under the heat in his stare, and without hesitation, she parted her thighs, arching her breasts to him in invitation. “How the hell do you make me feel like this? You make me want t
o give you everything. Oh, Mac, I’ve never felt like this before. I want you to take me. Just take me.”
His eyes widened, the stunned look in them quickly turning to heat.
“You stir something in me, Jazz, something that I thought had died a long time ago. Kinky fantasies that I never thought would be fulfilled, and you’re fulfilling every one of them. I’m going to release your hands because I want both of mine on you. Don’t you dare move them.”
Despite the flare of heat in his eyes, his love for her shone through, a love that came through in his firm touch.
His hand lingered in places, sometimes pressing, sometimes caressing, as though fascinated by the textures he encountered.
It aroused her beyond belief. Melting under his mesmerizing touch, she smiled. “What are you going to do to me?” Her words came out in a breathless rush as she gripped the arm of the sofa in a desperate attempt to keep from reaching for him.
An arrogant brow went up, the possessiveness and love in his eyes even more pronounced.
“I’m going to surprise you. Play with you. Enjoy you. Do you trust me, Jazz? Do you trust me enough to explore my fantasies, and hopefully yours, and maybe even create some new ones?”
Jasmine moaned, lifting her hips when he slid a finger inside her and began to stroke her pussy walls. “Of course. Yes. Everything. Mac, I want to touch you.” She started to lower her arm, her fingers itching to feel his hot skin and sleek muscle under them.
Mac caught her arms again, using her bunched-up shirt still wrapped around her elbows to keep them held high. “No. Not this time. Keep your arms up there. If you lower them, baby, I’ll spank you. You have no idea how many times I’ve imagined having you naked over my lap, especially when you’re being stubborn.”
Jasmine blinked, fighting to hide the rush of excitement. She had to swallow heavily before speaking, forcing herself to meet his gaze even as he curled the finger he held inside her and began to rub at a spot that had her crying out and bucking her hips.
Mac groaned. “That excited you as much as it excited me. Oh, Jazz, you and I are definitely made for each other.”
Sucking in a breath at the pressure on her nipple, she squirmed beneath him, wrapping her legs around his thighs and lifting her hips for more.
“Yes! Oh, Mac, every time you touch me, I go up in flames.”
* * * *
“Burn for me, baby.” Mac stared down at the woman he would soon marry, struggling to come to terms with the surge of love and possessiveness that made it difficult to breathe.
Jasmine wanted the man he’d become. She wanted to spend time with him.
She seemed to want everything he was.
He’d never expected just how much he would come to need her. He thought about her often during the day, and could never wait to get home.
Seeing the emotion in her eyes filled him with such a need to protect her—to be there for her whenever she needed him.
The phone call from her ex-husband had created a situation he hadn’t anticipated, but one he would use to push Jasmine’s boundaries and make her see just what a beautiful, passionate woman she was.
She needed to see herself the way he saw her, and to see that her ex-husband’s actions were his shortcomings, not hers.
Delighted by the desire in her eyes and the way she writhed against him, he ran his hands over her, humbled at the way she responded.
Vowing to himself to never betray the love and trust shining in her eyes, Mac smiled and stroked her slick pussy, desperate to show her how exciting he found her.
“You drenched my fingers when I threatened to spank you. You have me so turned inside out that even when I worked myself into exhaustion, thoughts of having you like this kept me awake.”
“Mac.”
He didn’t think he’d ever get used to the way she whimpered his name whenever he touched her. The plea and surprise in it aroused him to new heights, creating a hunger inside him to be everything she needed—everything she could rely on. She made him want to be more, while freeing him to be what he wanted to be.
Flicking a thumb over her clit, he fought for every bit of control he could gather, wanting to prolong her pleasure as long as possible. “The way you say my name, the huskiness in your voice when you’re aroused, is like a stroke to my cock.”
Shaking his head at her look of surprise, Mac stilled as an idea that had been forming in his mind took shape. Deciding to surprise her, he kept his plan to himself, his cock throbbing in anticipation.
“You don’t even know the effect you have on me, do you? You couldn’t, or you wouldn’t have gone out on a date with another man.”
The memory of it still knotted his stomach.
Jasmine lifted her luscious body, her hips bucking against his hand as she cried his name again, pleading for release. He’d never seen anything so beautiful, or heard anything so incredibly sexy.
With a smile, he stroked her clit to give her the release she begged for, never taking his eyes off of her.
He loved to watch her as pleasure consumed her, and loved the whimpering sounds she made, the low huskiness in her voice when she cried out his name.
His body was tight with need as he sent her over. “That’s it, baby. Damn, you’re beautiful.”
He released her hands, just to see the flash of his ring on her finger.
With her juices coating his fingers, he eased her down, bending to take her lips with his, swallowing her low moans while slowing his strokes to drag out her orgasm.
With his name from her lips still ringing in his ears, he withdrew from her and picked her up, holding her limp body against his, where it belonged. Walking down the hall toward the bedroom, he felt ten feet tall as she trustingly curled into him and whispered his name again.
His cock pressed against the zipper of his jeans, the need for release clawing at him. Struggling to keep his tone calm so as not to scare her, he kissed her damp temple.
“Yes, baby.”
Jasmine touched his cheek, her softness weakening his knees. “I didn’t want to love you, you know. I couldn’t help it. I love you, Mac.”
His chest swelled, his love for her so strong it nearly brought him to his knees.
“I love you, too, Jazz.” He lowered her to the bed, primed and ready for her. “I’ll never let you go.” He stripped off his clothes, relieved to free his aching cock, and covered her body with his, spreading her thighs to make a place for himself.
“You’re mine, Jasmine, and for the rest of my life I plan to make sure you never forget it.”
Gathering her against him, he breathed in her delicious scent, a scent uniquely hers.
“Or regret it.”
Thrusting his hips forward, he groaned as her pussy clamped down on him.
With her cries of pleasure ringing in his ears, he pulled her closer, staggered by the sense of being right where he belonged.
Chapter Seven
Exhausted after the day she’d had at work, Jasmine frowned at Mac’s empty driveway and continued to her front door.
She’d have loved nothing more than to have Mac’s arms close around her, but she didn’t feel like having company, especially in her present mood, and figured it would probably be better to spend the night alone.
Going inside, she closed the door behind her, tossed her keys and mail onto the side table, and stumbled across the room, kicking her shoes off along the way. She dropped her purse and started pulling off her jacket, tossing it into the chair as she passed it before dropping onto the sofa.
Days like the one she’d just had didn’t happen often, but when they did, they left her exhausted.
She just wanted to relax, and pamper herself, and didn’t want to have to worry about being social.
When the phone rang, she groaned, and seriously considered ignoring it, but figured it had to be Mac or one of the girls, so she dragged herself from the sofa to answer it.
Her movements clumsy, she tripped over her purse on the way,
and by the time she’d untangled herself from the straps, the phone had already rung three times.
Kicking her purse aside, she finally managed to reach it, forcing a politeness into her tone she didn’t feel. “Hello?”
“Hey, babe. I heard about that bus accident today, and wanted to be home when you got there, but I got a little tied up on a job. Are you okay?” The concern in Mac’s voice flowed over her—a balm to her soul.
Making her way back to the sofa, Jasmine kicked her purse aside before she tripped over it again. “Just tired.” She dropped onto the sofa with a sigh and leaned back. “I’m sorry, but I really don’t feel like having company tonight. Please don’t be offended, but I wouldn’t be any fun at all. I just want to relax.”
A long silence followed, and after several tense seconds, she could hear the sounds of Mac moving. “Damn it. I’m not company, Jazz. Don’t try to shut me out. I thought I made it clear to you that I want it all. You’re mine, and it’s my responsibility to take care of you. I’ll pick up some dinner on the way home. I’m sure you didn’t have a chance to eat anything. Pizza okay?”
A little surprised at the hurt in his tone, Jasmine blinked and sat up. “You don’t have to do that. I’ll grab a sandwich later.”
Mac’s voice lowered. “You’re not alone anymore, Jazz. Do you really think I’m only in this for the sex? Do you think I want to avoid you because you’ve had a bad day? Are you planning to avoid me when I have one?”
“Of course not.” Reaching for one of the pillows, she gathered it against her chest, hating that she’d hurt his feelings. “I didn’t mean to insult you. I guess it’s still a little too new.”
Trying to ease the tension, she sighed. “I can’t imagine why you’d want to come over and put up with me tonight. I have a headache. My feet are killing me. I’m tired and grouchy. I don’t even feel like putting up with me.”