by Karen Rock
She traced the ropy muscles of his opposite arm. His biceps twitched, and she rose on her toes so their noses brushed.
“Kiss me again.” Her words were soft, a stark contrast to the tempestuous force of her lips on his. She didn’t even wait for him to do as she asked; instead, she swooped in and took what she wanted. Her mouth pressed his, vanilla-sweet. But hidden in that heat, that desire, was a tinge of fear. He didn’t want her to be scared. He didn’t want fear to drive her to him. He wanted her in his arms because she wanted him with the same hunger, the same passion driving him.
He brushed her lips with his, a brief, blistering caress meant to convey his message. When her hands settled on his chest, the touch seared him with the promise of more. She swayed toward him, her body melting into his, and the slide of his mouth over hers turned to something more passionate, something he’d vowed not to unleash.
He started to pull back, but she moaned, soft and sexy, and his will to resist faded, damn near crumbling to ash when her tongue pressed past his teeth. Making love to Reese again was risky, no matter how much his body demanded it. This woman wasn’t just any woman. She was a woman he’d sworn to protect and…more. Much more.
And he needed to do what was right by her. Stripping her naked and burying himself inside her might sound pretty damn right, but she was in shock, and he wouldn’t risk her regretting one single moment of their time together.
“Sweetheart. You’re in shock,” he murmured, somehow managing to lift his mouth from hers.
“Maybe. But I want you.” She slid a finger down his drenched shirt. “I need you. Now.” Her questing touch skimmed over the thick ridge bulging the front of his jeans. “Help me forget all of this, just for tonight.”
Oh, hell.
A low growl escaped him as he recaptured her lips, his hands sliding around her back to mold her closer. There was explosive passion and an undeniable connection, a combination so rare, so raw, so intimately just for him, that he knew nothing but need. Possessive, hot need.
A bell dinged and the elevator door swished open. Before logic settled back in, he barged inside and had her pinned against the wall, his legs trapping hers. He didn’t wait for the doors to close before deepening the kiss—drinking her in, craving more of her, wanting more as she whimpered against his mouth. There was no right or wrong. There was only the moment, this woman, the incredible sensations they aroused in each other.
Reese shrugged her purse strap off her shoulder, let it fall to the floor, then wrapped her arms around his neck. He pulled her hips to his, sealing them together. The soft curve of her breasts teased him through her dress’s wet fabric. She was so sexy, so hot. And just what he needed to keep his mind from falling down the rabbit hole of what ifs. This was more than a good idea, actually.
It was a damn great idea.
“You forgot to hit the number for your floor,” she whispered, arching her neck as if she wanted him to kiss her there.
“I know exactly what buttons to press.” He breathed the words along her throat before he took a taste.
“You’ve been practicing cheesy pickup lines with Bryan, haven’t you?”
“I aim to please.” His mouth slid along her silken flesh.
Her soft whimper vibrated against his lips and hummed along his tongue. He could feel the thrum of her pulse at the base of her throat, and the need to have Reese seized him harder still. Ferociously. Jesus. He wanted to consume her.
“What floor?” she gasped, untwining an arm from his neck to reach for the elevator buttons.
“Six.”
The elevator lurched upward, one second dragging into the next, a tortuous crawl. Some part of his brain told him they were probably midway to his condo by now. Thank God no one else had wanted a ride yet. But just to be sure, he hit the stop button and the rising car jerked to a halt between floors. The drive to be inside her—to give and take, pleasure and possess—was so strong he couldn’t wait another minute. He needed her now.
Here.
His breath rasped as he studied her thoroughly, hungrily, his view of her body nudging him into cardiac-arrest territory. Her full breasts, clearly outlined by the clinging fabric, rose and fell quickly. He slid her sundress’s straps down over her arms and cupped the lush globes, sliding a thumb over the peaked, rosy tips.
Then he kissed her, promising, “I’m going to make you scream,” before scooting down her body, his palms caressing her breasts, making her head drop back and her eyes drift closed.
A low-throated moan escaped her open lips. He leaned in and drew a taut nipple into his mouth, lavishing first one then the other with his tongue. “Look at me,” he commanded.
Her eyes opened, dazed and unfocused, bright with the same desire coursing through his body, her passionate response everything he remembered and more. Deeper still, the emotion he glimpsed mirrored his own ardor for this incredible woman. The light floral scent she wore curled around them like a fragrant whisper. He was so ready for her he thought he’d lose it at any moment.
“I’m too far gone to be gentle,” he warned.
“Me too. Hurry,” she gasped, her breath coming in warm, soft pants.
Hauling her against him, he slanted his mouth over hers. Hard. Kissed her with more need than finesse. She returned the kiss as she unbuttoned his shirt, yanked it from his jeans then shoved the cotton off his shoulders and down his arms.
“Condom,” a voice of reason murmured. Her voice. “Please say you restocked.”
It took him a moment to realize she was digging through his pants pocket for a reason. A damn good one. When had he ever lost control so badly he never even thought of protection?
She emerged from the pocket with his wallet, pulled out the necessary item and lost no time ripping open the packet with her teeth. He hooked his fingers inside the lace of her panties and whisked them down her hips and legs, tossing them aside.
“I’ve got it.” He shoved down his jeans and boxer briefs. Someone could call the building superintendent and report the “stuck” elevator. There was no time to lose. Right now, he just needed to be inside Reese and forget how close he’d come to losing her tonight.
She was kissing his chest, her tongue blazing a hot trail to his shoulder. His abs tightened as she touched the muscled ridges and valleys before her fingers dipped lower and wrapped around his aching erection, stroking him.
A guttural groan escaped him. The tantalizing touch drove him wild and made him need her all the faster.
He had himself sheathed and ready in two seconds flat. He cupped her soft, round bottom, lifting her so her back pressed against the elevator wall. His chest rose with a sharp intake of air at their bodies reflected in the elevator’s mirrored walls. “You wreck me.”
“And that’s supposed to be a bad thing?” she teased, her words full of air as she traced her fingers lightly down his rib cage. Her legs wrapped around his waist, anchoring her to him.
“I want to protect you,” he whispered, his voice jagged and thick with desire.
The urge to explain himself more—that he couldn’t slow down because he’d never felt like this before—died in his throat. Instead, he gripped her hips and, shaking with longing, covered her mouth and lowered her onto his cock. Inch by fantastic freaking inch he eased his way inside her. She cried out and writhed against him. Blake’s head dropped to the crook of her shoulder, and he took deep, shuddering breaths, desperately trying to slow down and savor every sweet, wet inch of her. The exquisite feel of her heat surrounded him. She was so damn tight and slick, he had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from exploding on contact.
“Oooohhh,” she whimpered, bearing down on him, digging her fingernails into his back, trying to bring them closer still.
With his face buried in the damp cascade of her hair, he inhaled her scent. Soap and flowers. Sex and desire.
For
a long moment, he just held her there, cherishing the tantalizing feel of her, relishing the fact she was here in his arms and he hadn’t lost her—because if he had, he would have been lost, too.
“I’m so close,” she whispered. She rocked back and forth on his near-to-bursting hardness. “You feel so good.”
“So do you,” he groaned. How long since they’d last been together?
Just days.
Not nearly long enough to be this close to the edge already. It was just because it was her. Reese. The woman who messed with his head, his heart, his preconceptions about life and his self-imposed rules.
This erotic moment was chaotic and unpredictable and once again, probably a little illegal—she’d cost him his badge at this rate—but he didn’t give a fuck. Not when he was inside her, all around her and breathing her killer fragrance right from the source. He blinked up at her flushed face. The pressure of his desire licked through his blood. Then she bit the edge of his bottom lip, sucking it into her mouth before soothing the ache with her tongue as her hips undulated over him.
With teeth-clenching restraint, Blake stroked the slick folds where she stretched to accommodate him. He wanted to give her ultimate pleasure, pleasure that’d be burned in her memory, seared into her dreams for weeks, months to come, so she wouldn’t forget him.
Because he’d always remember her, this exact moment, and wish it hadn’t had to end.
He slid his fingers over her heated clit. Raw masculine pride surged at the way she thrashed and moaned. He cupped her ass and kneaded its firm flesh, pressing her even closer, his cock buried to the hilt.
It was exquisite torture to stay still. She began to move against him, stroking his shoulders and driving him wild with her uninhibited response. Sweat popped along his forehead and his back, the effort of holding back rapidly catching up with him. His hands took control of her hips, seizing them between his open palms, leveraging her to get the right angle that would take her to the sensual edge.
Then he raised her along his shaft and sank her down the length of him in one slick stroke, watched her through half-opened eyes, his lips grazing her throat, her breath ragged in his ear. She met him thrust for thrust, grinding her hips against him, digging her heels into his back and holding him fast.
For the first time in his life, he lost control. He couldn’t slow the pace. She wouldn’t let him. He had absolutely no discipline as he drove into her, trying desperately to give her as much pleasure as she was giving him. Her nails scored his shoulders, and she began to tighten all around him, squeezing him, as he pushed harder, faster, reaching a blistering pace.
Her head tossed back and forth, her cries frantic at the mad mating of their bodies. Mental satisfaction pounded through him. Physical satisfaction hovered, loomed, demanded release as their movements grew more frenzied, both straining for the unbelievable release. Pumping, pulling, they chased each other closer. Her breasts bounced against his chest with the force of their joining, a heart-stopping tempo, their fast pants mingling in the cramped space.
His skin burned the way it did in those moments before a kick-ass climax. He teetered on the edge, about to lose control. He wanted to prolong this moment. Savor it. Draw out each mouthwatering sensation, but it was beyond him. Instead, he held her tight, lifting and lowering her, over and over, faster and faster, bodies pounding, meeting frantically.
Reese held on tight. Her nails dug hard into his shoulders as she let loose a keening wail, shuddering and contracting. He could feel it, see it, practically taste the sweetness of the orgasm ripping through her body. He enjoyed watching her tremble with the sensations, enjoyed knowing he was the source of her pleasure.
When she’d finally stilled above him, he let his own pleasure break free, shaking with the force of his restraint. A primal shout ripped from his throat, and he let the aftershocks of her orgasm haul him with her, the muscles of her inner walls massaging his sex, his powerful release steamrollering right through him. It was a union as unreal as anything he’d ever experienced in his life.
Their bodies slick with heat and sex, they dissolved together into a boneless heap on the elevator floor. He was damn lucky he didn’t drop her. Instead, he punched off the stop button, rearranged their clothes, then stalked off the elevator when it opened to his empty floor. Thankfully, the only other occupant had moved out earlier this month.
“Hold on to me,” his hoarse voice whispered over her ear. Supporting Reese with one hand, he managed to insert his key and turn the knob. It was awkward as hell, but he was beyond caring about smooth. He wasn’t letting her go. Plain and simple. Inside, he kicked the door shut with the back of his foot and paced to his bedroom with her in his arms. They collapsed onto his rumpled navy comforter, surrounded by scattered pillows.
For once, the steroid case, the need to prove himself, didn’t come rushing back to his brain in the quiet moment when his body was satiated. It was there in the background, but he could separate himself from it, and for that, he was damn glad.
“You’re amazing.” He couldn’t begin to analyze the way she’d gotten into his head, his heart, and stayed there. He strongly suspected he’d carry her there long after she left him.
“So are you.”
He brushed his lips over the pulse at her temple, evidence she was alive, that this was real and she was safe in the circle of his arms.
What would he have done if she hadn’t returned home?
Searched the ends of the earth for her.
Wherever she was in life, he’d always need to know she was safe.
When he was finally able to take a normal breath, he lifted up and studied her. Passion lingered in her eyes, and her cheeks were flushed from their lovemaking. She was so incredibly beautiful, and he realized he was in danger of falling in love with her. In fact, it might already be too damn late.
He leaned down and kissed her. “Are you okay? Not too rough?”
She grinned. “Very rough,” she murmured. “I like when you’re out of control. Hot Cop—not Officer Knight.” She stroked his face. “Don’t you like walking on the wild side?”
Blake loved the way she smiled. Her eyes sparkled with such devilment. Damn, he wanted her all over again. He leaned even closer until his mouth was just inches above hers and whispered, “Only with you.” Their eyes met, and his heart seized at the raw emotion he glimpsed in their depths. Did she share his feelings?
No woman had ever affected him this way before, challenging his rigid self-restraint and making him question its necessity. Then along came Reese, showing him who he really was…stripping off the uniform to the skin, the heart, the soul beneath, making him feel as though he’d finally found a place to belong.
With her.
Except it couldn’t last.
“You’re the only one I’ve ever been so uninhibited with, too,” she confessed, taking him by surprise. She rubbed her cheek against his shoulder. “I mean sex in a gazebo…an elevator…who does those things?”
A twitch of humor tugged at the corner of Blake’s mouth. “Sexual deviants?”
“Exactly,” she half groaned, half laughed. “If you only knew the things I’d like to do to you.”
“I’m up for the challenge,” he said, vowing he would not let himself hurt her. Even if he’d have to let her go sooner than he wanted. Reaching for her, he rubbed her hip and realized he’d never undressed her, a fact which he would remedy immediately. “At least until you head back to New York.”
“I can handle that.” She helped him untangle her bra straps from her clothes so he could reveal every smoking-hot inch of creamy flesh.
“Are you sure?” he demanded, rolling on top of her, his body rock hard and ready for more.
“Bring it on, Hot Cop,” she drawled with a cheeky grin.
Damn.
It was going to be so damn hard not to fall in love with her.
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* * * *
Reese woke the next morning to the smell of fresh-roasted coffee. She stretched on the soft mattress, her muscles pleasantly sore from last night’s marathon lovemaking. Heat warmed her cheeks as she recalled their taboo interlude in the elevator that’d spilled into an evening of boundary-pushing experimentation, which left her feeling empowered rather than vulnerable. No man, save Blake, laid her so completely bare and made her feel utterly safe.
Could she trust him with the news of her father’s casino debt?
No.
Of course not.
It was his job to report the facts and investigate the evidence. This was a lead he wouldn’t ignore for her sake.
Still, a part of her, a big part, wanted—no—needed to share this with him because somewhere along the way he’d become a partner; in bed—yes—but also out of it, too. She screwed her eyes shut.
Oh. Her feelings for the gorgeous man were one hot, tangled mess.
And was that bacon?
She sniffed the salty scent, donned a T-shirt hanging from the back of a chair and followed her nose to a galley kitchen off an open living/dining area. The place was sparsely furnished and utilitarian; perfectly acceptable, except for the fact that it lacked personality. Every austere piece of furniture seemed chosen for functionality rather than joy, from the box-shaped tan sectional to the dark wood coffee table and its matching end tables. It was as if Blake were a boarder, someone merely passing through, with nothing belonging to him, or he to it.
Where was Blake in here?
In fact, where was Blake?
Warm arms wrapped around her. “Morning, beautiful,” a low baritone rumbled in her ear, rough and a bit rusty.
She turned and looped her arms around his neck. Wearing a pair of gray athletic shorts and nothing else, his hair still wet from his shower, Blake looked incredibly sexy. He had an incredible chest. Pure muscle. She knew because she had kissed every inch of it last night. A hard six pack surrounded his belly button, which she’d kissed, too, she remembered, and oh God, what hadn’t she kissed? His legs and thighs were just as strong. She remembered squeezing those firm thighs while overcome with heedless passion. “Morning.”