MINE FOR THE WEEK

by Kelly, Erika

  “I’m sure it is.”

  “What does the odometer say?”

  “Two point one.”

  “Yay. I’m so excited.” She reached into the back seat, unzipped her travel bag, and pulled out a towel. “I only brought one towel, but we can share.”

  “I’ll wait by the Jeep.”

  “You trust me to go all by myself into those deep, dark woods? To get near a body of water by myself? Because, Ryan, I didn’t bring my water wings.”

  One half of his mouth kicked up, and she absolutely loved that she could make him smile.

  She nudged him. “You’re not losing interest in me already are you?”

  “No.” The word rang out like a shot.

  She smiled at his intensity, trying hard to ignore the zing in her chest. He had no idea how passionate he was. He really didn’t. “Well, good. Then you better come with me. I’d hate for a merman to yank me down and whisk me off to his underwater castle.”

  He slowed the car, edging onto the shoulder of the road. Leaning forward, he looked into the woods for a path. “Is that it?”

  “Must be.”

  He eased into a stand of trees and cut the engine.

  Her bare thighs stuck to the leather seat as she got out of the car. “Oh, it’s beautiful here.” The air smelled so fresh, like pine, a hint of ocean, and sun-baked earth. “I’m so excited.” She turned back to find him leaning against the Jeep, watching her. She motioned for him to join her.

  He pushed off the Jeep, blew out a breath like he was so put-out, but fell into step beside her.

  “You know, I’m thinking those magical properties might do you a world of good.”

  CHAPTER TEN

  As they descended the rocky path that followed the falls, Sophie had to stop and shake out the dirt and pine needles from the bed of her flip flops.

  When Ryan turned and offered a hand for balance, the whole world quieted, narrowed, to just the two of them. She reached for him, their gazes catching, and her pulse quickened.

  Something about the density of the forest, the shelter of the tree canopy, made her feel him intensely. In that long, intimate moment, she let it sink in. That he’d chosen to come with her, knowing she’d be gone overnight.

  He could be with his friends, he could be with all those willing women, but when his hand curled around hers, his grasp so warm and secure, she couldn’t help feeling that he belonged here. With her.

  “Ready?” he said softly. And maybe she was reading into it, but the look in his eyes made her certain he felt the same way.

  She nodded, sliding her foot back into the flip flop. Just as she started to pull her hand away, he tightened his grasp and headed back down the path.

  When they got to the biggest pool, Sophie set her towel down at the foot of a big pine tree. Pulling off her gauzy white tunic, she tossed it on the ground and then turned to find Ryan staring at her.

  It still surprised her, how much he liked her body. She didn’t wear skimpy swimsuits. Her bottom and boobs needed coverage, so there really was nothing provocative about her bikinis. Certainly nothing like what the women at the resort wore.

  But every time Ryan looked at her like that—all hungry and lustful—it thrilled her. She had no idea what about her rendered him so speechless, but she loved it.

  At the water’s edge, she turned to him. “You coming in?”

  He reached behind his neck for the back of his Polo, the muscles in his arms bunching. “Sure.” Pulling off his aviators, he tugged the shirt over his head.

  Holy cow. That muscled chest, the bulging biceps…God, he was gorgeous. She’d never been so aware of a guy’s physique before. Sure, King was cut, but she’d never felt this intense, powerful attraction. It unsettled her.

  Only when he reached out to her did she realize she was just standing there, staring at him. He gave her a sweet smile, so unlike what she’d expect from a guy like him. She figured he’d be all cocky about her drooling over him, but he wasn’t. He was kind.

  She wanted to run her hands all over him. She wanted to lick that smooth, golden skin. Was that weird? She couldn’t remember ever wanting to lick a guy before. “Let’s do this.”

  And then she jumped into the warm water, her feet landing on soft, silky mud. The pool came up to her ribcage, so she dove under, swimming out a few feet. Bubbles streamed out of her nose, as she rose to the surface. She found him watching her. “Come in. It’s warm.”

  He shucked off his boat shoes and crouched at the edge of the water.

  She ducked under again, swimming away from him. When she popped up, she found Ryan buck naked in the clear water, coming for her. “Do you feel it?”

  Gaze trained on her, he broke into a slow, sexy smile. “Oh, yeah. I feel it.”

  “Why do I think we’re talking about totally different things?”

  “What’re you talking about?”

  “Magical properties.”

  “Nope. We’re definitely talking about the same thing.” Never taking his gaze off her, he took long strides towards her, the water swirling around him. Her chest tightened, her fingers tingled, and she held her breath until he reached her. Lifting her, he hitched her leg over his hip.

  He lowered his face into her neck, breathing in deeply. “Hell, yeah, I feel it.” And then he cupped the back of her head, lifting her mouth to his and kissed her.

  ******

  Jesus. He couldn’t get enough of her. Gripping her ass, he lost himself in the slick heat of her mouth. The low roar of the falls, the rush of water around his legs, and the clutch of her hands around his neck, sent a pulse of electricity through him.

  With her body pressing against his, struggling to get closer, she grabbed a fistful of his hair and pulled. Hard. He walked her across the pool, lifting her onto the rock ledge.

  “Fuck, Soph. I can’t stand it. I want to be with you.”

  Foreheads touching, breathing uneven, her fingers stroked roughly through his hair. He knew she wanted him the same way, but she’d shown a hell of a lot more self-control so far than he had.

  “Okay.” She said it so softly he had to pull away from her.

  Excitement struck his heart, and he couldn’t catch his breath. “You sure?”

  “Yes.” She shifted forward and wrapped her legs around him.

  He kissed her again, harder this time. Oh, fucking hell.

  Desire roared like a bullet train through him, and he brought his mouth back to hers, his hands cupping her face, angling her so he could deepen the kiss.

  Tongues stroking, he untied the back of her bikini, pulling the straps down to reveal her breasts. He cupped them, pushing them together, loving the weight, the hard nipples in his palm, and the way her body shuddered from his touch.

  When he sucked a nipple into his mouth, she gasped, and he yanked the tie at the back of her neck, tossing the top onto the dirt.

  Fingers dipping into the elastic of her bottoms, he tugged. “Off.” She lifted one hip, then the other, as he peeled them off her wet skin and threw them.

  Hands on her knees, he pressed soft kisses along her inner thigh. Her legs trembled, and her hands clasped the back of his head. Reaching for her ass, he drew her closer to his mouth, and his tongue stroked into her folds, seeking her slick heat. She gasped, shifting restlessly against him, her hands fisting in his hair.

  Fuck, she drove him crazy. Everything about her. He loved the way she whispered his name, loved the way her thighs cupped his head, and he fucking loved the way her honey coated his tongue. Her response to him drove him wild.

  He wanted to fuck her more than he wanted to breathe, but he needed to calm down and take the time to make it good for her. So he focused on the sounds she made and the way her body stiffened when he licked her hardened nub. Her back arched, and her fingers dug into his scalp. When his tongue swirled around her clit, she let go of him, arms bracing behind her on the rock, ankles clasped behind his neck. “God, Ryan. Oh, God.”

  As she roc
ked her hips against his face, her cries grew louder, more insistent, letting him know how close she was, and it fueled him, made him bury his face deeper between her legs, made his tongue flick harder and faster. He wanted her to come apart from his touch.

  Her legs tightened around his shoulders, muscles tensing. “Ryan.” She gasped, one hand coming back to grip his head.

  Fuck. Fuck. He needed her so badly. Couldn’t wait to get inside her, to feel all of her. And then her body jerked, and he knew she was there. She cried out, hips twisting and clutching his head to keep him in place.

  When she settled, she lay back on the rock. “Oh, my God, Ryan. I just…that was…God.”

  As much as he loved her dazed, satisfied expression, he couldn’t take not being inside all that soft, wet heat. Heaving himself onto the ledge, he scooped her limp body into his arms. His bare feet crunched pine needles, as he snatched her towel off the ground. He tried to shake it out, but his cock throbbed, and the feel of her bare breasts against his chest made him wild. Jesus, he’d have her against the tree if he couldn’t manage to lay the damn towel down.

  As he fumbled with it, she laughed into his neck, then pulled free of him. Grabbing the towel, she bent over to lay it on the ground. Her round ass, the cheeks all pink from the cool rock, sent a shot of lust so intense through him, his knees went weak. Christ, he had to have her. Now. “Come here.”

  “Just wait a second.”

  Hands on her waist, he swung her around to face him, kissing her, reaching for that pink ass and hauling her up tight against him. He groaned into her mouth. He loved the feel of her, the way her hands moved restlessly over him. But then she reached between their bodies and palmed his cock and need burst into flames.

  Enough. He couldn’t take it anymore. He lowered to his knees, rolled onto his back, and grabbed her hips. “Birth control?”

  She nodded, straddling his thighs. When he tried to pull her forward, to position her over his aching cock, she resisted. “Slow down.”

  “Can’t.” Jesus, she had no idea, as she sat astride him naked, those breasts bouncing with her every move. “Clean.”

  “Yes—”

  “No, me.”

  When she shifted back his cock thrust up between the juncture of her pale thighs. She clasped both her feminine hands around him.

  He jerked, his dick ready to explode. “Now, Sophie.”

  She gave him her mischievous smile. “Can’t I have a second to appreciate you?” Her hands slid in a twisting motion around his length. “You are so beautiful. Every part of you.”

  “Jesus, Soph.”

  She leaned over and slowly licked around the sensitive head, her wet hair sprawling across his stomach.

  He gritted his teeth and arched his neck, out of his mind with need. “Fuck.”

  Her tongue swirled, and then licked under the ridge, one hand gripping him firmly at the base. Without warning, she sucked him deep into her mouth, and his hips lifted off the towel, fingers curling into fists from the decadent pleasure.

  “Soph.” He pushed her hand away, grabbed his cock, and pulled it out of her mouth. Gripping himself to ease the pressure, he watched her sit up, eyes all sexy, lips parted and wet. With a hand on her hip, he tried to position her over his cock. “Let me in, Soph.”

  “I just want to savor you.” She fell forward, planting her hands at either side of his head, breasts at his chin. “I want to lick you from your mouth to your—”

  He rocked his hips up, wedging his cock along her slick opening. He thought he might explode just from the slight friction and lush heat.

  She closed her eyes, features softening. “Oh.”

  “Savor later. Need you now.”

  Slowly, she rocked on him. His cock sank deeper between her hot folds.

  His eyes rolled back in his head, the tension in his body unbearable as her slick heat rubbed along the length of his cock. “Let me in.”

  She licked his nipple, let her tongue swirl around it, while her hands caressed his shoulders, his biceps, all the way down to his wrists.

  Muscles bunched and coiled tight, he thought he might explode. “I want to fuck you, Sophie Valentine. Like I’ve never wanted to fuck anyone in my life.”

  “God, Ryan.” Her expression turned hungry and feral, as she sat up, gripped his cock, and guided him inside her hot, slick body. “Oh.” Her shoulders hunched, and her head tilted back. “So good.”

  His hips jerked up, plunging him deep inside her, and it felt so unbelievably good. He grabbed her hips and held her in place. Jesus, nothing had ever felt like this. Nothing.

  Hands on his chest, she lifted and sank back down, closing her eyes and sighing.

  “Faster, Soph.” He grabbed hold of her hips, fingers digging into her flesh, and lifted her. He thrust his hips up hard as he slammed her down on him. She cried out, the look of rapture on her face letting him know she liked it just as much as he did. So he did it again. And again. And, Jesus, did it feel good.

  She was a goddess, with her dark hair all wet and wild around her, her shoulders pushed back. She reached behind her to grip his thighs, and it thrust her breasts out. They bounced—so fucking erotic—and he jerked up to cup one, sucking the nipple deep into his mouth. She swung forward, clutching the back of his head, riding him just as fast and hard as he needed. Her desperate sounds only fed his frenzied need for her.

  “Fuck, Soph, fuck.” A hand on her back, the other on her ass, he toppled her onto her back.

  He powered into her, his cock swelling, spine tingling, and her eyes went wide as she let out a cry. She planted both feet on the towel and bucked her hips up to meet him. “Ryan.”

  She looked so beautiful, her features lost in ecstasy, her wet hair sprawled around her, those sexy lips parted.

  His orgasm bore down on him. Clamping his hands on her hips, he held her to the ground as his hips pumped into her. Fuck him, her tight grip on his cock, all slick and hot, made his body yearn for more—more friction, more…more her. He needed to get deeper, go harder. God, he just needed her so fucking much he couldn’t stand it.

  And then electricity raced across his skin, making him burn. “Fuck, oh, fuck.” He came hard, not letting her move as he snapped his hips again and again, out of control, through burst after burst of raw, wild pleasure. He didn’t want to ever come down off this high.

  Still planted deep inside her, he wrapped her in his arms, breathing harshly in the curve of her neck. His body shook from the power of his orgasm. “Did I hurt you?”

  She scraped her hands through his hair. “Stop it. Would I let you hurt me?” She held him tightly. “I love when you let go with me. It’s hot and real and…God, Ryan, it’s amazing.”

  She was amazing. Everything about her.

  He fell onto his back, and they lay side by side, looking up through the dense tree cover, sunlight spearing through the branches.

  As his skin cooled and his mind settled back into his body, the tension slowly coiled through his muscles again.

  He could tell himself he’d bailed on his friends because he didn’t want to party all day and night like they did. He could tell himself he didn’t like golf or hanging out by the pool. But the truth was he was falling for this woman.

  Only, he couldn’t have her. He had one objective: to go back to school refreshed and ready to face his future. Nothing was more important than getting back to the time when he was confident and sure of himself, of his life.

  He sat up. “Let’s get you to your three-star dinner.”

  Back on the road, Ryan ignored the phone vibrating in the cup holder. He knew Sophie thought he wasn’t checking it because he was driving. But the truth was he suspected it was Emma, and he had no interest in dealing with her.

  Last night, after he’d gotten Carrie safely to her room, he hadn’t gone back to the bar. Instead, he’d showered and turned on the TV, trying to find his world-class discipline and block out all thoughts about Sophie.

  But then Emma h
ad called. He’d told her to back off, that he’d talk to her after spring break. And he’d kept the conversation short because he didn’t want to engage her.

  But, of course, she wouldn’t listen. She didn’t like when he withdrew.

  When his phone buzzed again, Sophie said, “You want to pull over and get that?”

  “Don’t want to make you late for your reservation.”

  “It could be important.”

  He wouldn’t let Emma on this trip with him. “We’ll be there soon enough.”

  “You afraid it’s your coach?”

  He shot her a look. “I’m not afraid of anything.” And he wasn’t. He knew he’d earned a consequence for bailing on his team. He was the captain, for Christ’s sake.

  Besides, it wouldn’t be his coach texting. He’d given Ryan forty-eight hours to get back to his team. He had nothing else to say. The next move was Ryan’s.

  Houses started springing up, letting him know they were approaching the town of La Marca. When he got to the resort, he’d check his messages. They couldn’t all be from Emma.

  “Do you think it’s your ex?”

  “I don’t know, and I don’t care. Whatever it is can wait until I get to the resort.”

  “Then maybe you should turn off your phone. You can’t relax when it’s blowing up like that.”

  It buzzed again. Something was wrong. Too many texts coming in. His fingers gripped the wheel. “We getting close?”

  She nodded, looking ahead. “The resort’s on the outskirts of town, so we should see a sign coming up soon.”

  “I’m sorry for jumping down your throat.”

  “Don’t be. I’d be freaking out, too.”

  “I’m not…” He blew out a breath. “Yeah. Something’s going on.”

  She put her hand on his thigh. “We can pull over. Better to face it than make stuff up in your head.”

  “We’re almost there.”

  The road descended, and the area grew more populated. An automotive shop, a gas station. And then he saw a billboard, set against a backdrop of trees, announcing the resort and its three-star Michelin restaurant. “Here it is.”