Crossing Double (A Heartbreaker Novel Book 3)

by Tamra Baumann

  That wasn’t exactly how the regs read, but the spirit was close. Maybe. It was hard to think straight. “So you’re stating, for the record, the only way I will get that vital piece of evidence is for me to sleep with you?”

  Sara’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “Yep. Not budging.”

  Thank God for Google. “And you understand that this evidence might be the key piece of data that will absolve you of all guilt? Thereby ensuring that you’d not serve jail time and that it could save your life? And yet you still stand by this requirement, Ms. Chapman?”

  She laughed. “I do, Agent Keiser. I’ve been in here since we said good night trying to find a loophole. My plan B was to sneak into your bed later and beg.”

  “Really?” He pulled her into a hug. “I love that, but I’m still not sure.”

  She laid her small hand over his heart and looked up at him with the most earnest expression he’d seen from her. “My family gave you the stamp of approval, said I’d experience mind-blowing sex because I have real feelings for you. Feelings I’ve never had before.”

  His heart wanted to jump out of his chest and into her hand. “I feel the same for you.”

  “And for the record, my buttinski family also informed me that I hadn’t had mind-blowing sex before or I’d know it. I’d like to experience that, just in case Miller gets to me first and I die. You wouldn’t deny me that, would you?”

  Knife to the heart.

  He’d not deny her anything if he could help it. Why the hell hadn’t he memorized the fraternization part of the manual better? There was something close to what she’d said, but with all the blood in his body pumping somewhere other than his mind, he wasn’t sure. “Would you consider giving me the data first? And then we’ll sleep together?” That’d give his blood time to return to where it was supposed to be so that he could think more clearly.

  “Not a chance. Because then your boss would say you could’ve walked away. I’m not exactly the size of that guy sitting out in the hallway. You could overpower me. Instead, sleep with me first, and then you’ll get your data.”

  “You drive a hard bargain, but I won’t sleep with you, Sara.”

  “Seriously?” Her expression turned from confident to devastated in an instant. “I could promise never to tell. Would that be better?”

  “No. I learned growing up with a drug addict that lying is always wrong. But it’s what they do best.” He kissed her forehead. “What I’d meant was that I wasn’t going to sleep with you. I intend to make love to you. Blowing your mind will be the secondary objective of the mission.”

  Her face lit up again. “And you don’t like to fail. Do you?” She took his hand and led him to her bed.

  “Haven’t failed a mission yet. Don’t intend to now.”

  “Perfect. Because I saved a condom from the Jeep.” When they stood by the edge of the bed, Sara started in on his buttons. “Thanks for not making me beg.”

  He swept her up and laid her on the mattress. “I’m still going to make you beg, Sara. Guaranteed.”

  She smiled. “I love a guarantee.”

  He kissed her, then nibbled on her neck, before he whispered, “Hopefully, this one will last a lifetime.

  Chapter 16

  Sara was still processing his lifetime guarantee comment as she stared into Brent’s eyes. He had her pinned to the bed under his weight, already needy and ready for him. But she wanted to tell him something first. “You don’t have to say that. We have a crazy shared experience that will probably bond us forever. But please don’t feel like you have to make promises you can’t keep.”

  Brent dipped his head and ran his tongue along her collarbone. “Does it scare you to think of being with someone like me forever?” His lips tugged the string that held her flimsy negligée together.

  He was making it difficult to concentrate. “No. I just wanted you to know that it’s okay to make love and then go our separate ways, if that’s what you want to do.” Though it wasn’t what she’d want.

  With the flimsy material between his teeth, he tugged open the top, exposing her blatantly aroused breasts. “Anything off-limits? Like a gag?”

  “A gag?” She lifted her lower half up off the bed so he could tug the whole getup she wore down her body. He took his time sliding it down her legs, his warm breath teasing between her thighs on the way by. Then he kissed her toes before he tossed the whole thing aside. It took all her concentration to finish her question. “Who’d want to be… Oh, you want me to stop talking now?”

  “Mmmmhmmm.” He couldn’t speak because his mouth had traveled back north and was busy pleasing her breasts again. He was making her mind turn to mush, so she closed her eyes and let all the thoughts about promises and the future go. When he used his teeth to apply pressure, her back arched off the bed. “Please tell me you don’t need complete silence to work. I might not make it.”

  “Nope.” He chuckled. “Anything in particular you’d like me to do to you?”

  With her eyes still closed and her body heating up at a dangerous rate, she weakly managed a hand wave. “You’re doing fine.” Better than fine, but now talking seemed like too much work. Sharp darts and quick zaps of pleasure made her hips writhe for him. Against him.

  He slowly moved up her body, his mouth hovering above hers so close, his warm breath tickled her lips. “I love kissing you, Sara.”

  She opened her eyes and stared into his deep blue ones. All she could do was nod her agreement. The desire in his gaze was enough to make her self-combust. No guy had ever looked at her like that. As if she was the most desirable woman in the world. And pleasing her was his number one goal in life.

  Brent rolled halfway off her, his gaze lowered to take in her naked body. Why had she left the lights on? That chalupa probably hadn’t been her friend the other day.

  “Even better than I’d imagined.” His fingers danced along her collarbone, then his warm palm flattened, and he ran it down her chest, across her belly to her thighs, and then he circled her calf before starting back up again. “So soft. So perfect.”

  So aroused, she was going to go off like a rocket in about two seconds, but she didn’t say so. With all self-consciousness suddenly gone, she ran her fingers through his spiked silky hair and pulled his face toward hers again. She needed to kiss him.

  His gaze met hers again, his desire so blatant, she licked her lips. When she couldn’t take the anticipation any longer, she lifted her mouth to meet his warm, soft one. He had plump, full lips that made her want to settle into them and stay awhile.

  Brent kissed her back just long enough, deep enough, to get her engines revved up to overdrive. Then he left her humming with need when he lifted his mouth from hers and used his incredible lips on her neck. He made all sorts of foreign kind of magic happen there, so she let her head drift all the way back onto the pillow with a moan. Her mind wasn’t blown yet, but things looked promising at the rate he was going. Even if some mysterious thing didn’t happen, Brent was already the most considerate lover she’d ever had. Every soft touch of his hands and mouth left her skin hot and aching for more. Her heart was melting for him right along with the rest of her body. Was she falling in love with Brent?

  Wanting to be even closer to him, she ran her hands up his back, needing his hot skin against hers, but her palms filled with silk fabric instead. As soft and sensual as it was, it was in the way. She’d unbuttoned his shirt earlier, so she parted the material and dragged it down his big arms. He sat up and straddled her. After a little help from him, she managed to get the shirt all the way off, and she tossed it to the floor.

  And then his tempting abs were right in front of her face with all their glory. Her fingers had to touch, so she reached out and traced all six of the hard muscles that quivered under her touch. It wasn’t enough.

  She leaned forward as the heat between her legs grew from a bonfire to an inferno. She glanced up at his face, his eyes closed in ecstasy, and whispered, “I’ve dreamed about touchi
ng you like this.”

  “Me too.” He groaned. “It’s been hell not being able to make love to you.”

  She smiled while she caressed his abs with her tongue. But now she wanted to see more. She slipped her fingers under his waistband to tug his pajama bottoms off, but his large hands stopped her.

  Confused, because no guy had ever turned down the chance to have her please him, she glanced up in time to see his sexy grin.

  He said, “I have other plans for you first.”

  The naughty gleam in his eyes made her lean back and place her hands behind her head. “Can’t wait.” “Other plans” sounded like more pleasure for her to reach. Maybe she’d achieve her goal of experiencing the best sex ever yet. It wouldn’t take much, it already had been better than any before, but she was more than eager to let him show her how much more it could be.

  That Sara lay before him, offering up her body for him to do as he pleased, tested his limits. He wanted her so badly, but he wanted to please her even more.

  He kissed her again while he slipped his hand between her thighs. She was ready for him, but he wanted to watch her come undone first, so he slid two fingers inside. Using his thumb, he matched the cadence her hips set. He leaned away to better concentrate on her beautiful face.

  Sara’s hand searched the nightstand while her teeth dug into her lower lip. “Condom,” she panted out as she lifted the wrapper. “Hurry, please. I’m going with or without you here in about ten seconds.”

  “What was that?” He’d promised to make her beg.

  Sara’s head thrashed from left to right on the pillow. “Not funny, Brent.” Then she grimaced, and her insides tightened around his fingers. “Okay. Fine. I’m begging. Now hurry up and put that on!”

  He wanted nothing more than to slip into that condom and pound away the weeks of relentless desire he’d suffered for her, but instead, he pressed his thumb harder, moved his fingers deeper and faster until her hands dug into the sheets. Her back arched off the bed, and she let out a moan so deep, so full of desperate desire, it reverberated in his groin.

  He wanted to be buried deep inside when she came, so he reached for the condom, but the way her body convulsed and then clamped down hard around his fingers signaled it was too late. She was going over the first edge without him.

  He slowly moved his hand away, giving her time to recover and for him to cool his jets or he’d go off like a schoolboy soon. But Sara’s smug smile and the lazy stretch of her arms above her head that did amazing things to her breasts snapped the last cable of control left within him.

  Her eyes were still closed as he settled between her legs. “Ready for the mind-blowing part now?”

  Her eyes opened, and she focused on his. “I’m pretty good right now, actually.”

  She might as well have thrown a bucket of freezing water in his face. Seriously? He should have joined her when she’d asked. He was an idiot.

  He nodded and rolled off Sara, headed for a cold shower to put him out of his misery, but her hands slipped around his waist from behind and tugged. “I was kidding, Brent.” She laid a soft kiss on his neck as her hand slid under his pants and circled him. Her small hand stroked him while she nibbled on his earlobe.

  He wasn’t sure he could take much more “kidding.”

  She whispered, “Let’s get rid of these pants—”

  He was out of his pants and on top of her so fast that she yelped. Then Sara grinned at him and cupped the back of his neck, drawing his mouth to hers again. When she kissed him, long, slow and deep, his control teetered on the edge again. He ended the kiss on a frustrated growl and searched for the condom that was somewhere on the sheets where Sara had dropped it.

  “Looking for this?” Sara slowly ripped the package open. “I’d be happy to do—”

  He grabbed the condom and quickly rolled it on. He didn’t want to wait another painful minute to be inside her.

  Sara must’ve felt the same, because she reached down and guided him to just where she’d like him to be. Then she whispered in his ear exactly how hard and fast she’d like it. God, he loved that, but instead, he took his time. Slowly filling her all the way up before moving out at the same pace. Sara’s body resisted when he’d pull away, clenching around him, encouraging him to fill her back up again.

  Like the ocean tide, back and forth, he kept the slow and steady pace until he thought his head might explode from the pressure built up inside him. But the way Sara’s body throbbed for him, around him, tighter and harder, was something he might have missed had he not slowed the pace.

  He’d never make that mistake again. It was his mind blown now.

  Sara’s hands moved lower, grabbed his butt, encouraging a faster pace. He took her cue and opened his eyes to find her staring into his. Then she kissed him, and all his resolve was gone. He couldn’t hold back any longer, and his body took over.

  With his mouth still on hers, he reached down and wrapped one of Sara’s legs around his back to go even deeper for her. She followed suit with the other leg, so he placed both hands on the mattress and breathed out her name with every thrust. Harder, faster, and deeper, until Sara cried out and her body clamped down on him like a vise, making him lose all control.

  He closed his eyes and succumbed to a powerful wave he’d never experienced before. It stole his breath, his strength, and his mind. He felt as if he’d been hit by a dump truck. But in the best way.

  Careful not to crush Sara, he wrapped an arm around her waist and rolled onto his back, taking her with him. She rested on top of his chest while he panted for air and tried to work up a coherent sentence. He wanted to tell Sara how amazing that had been, but it’d take a bit.

  Sara crawled up his body and slipped her face into the crook of his neck. Then she laid a sweet kiss on his cheek. “I’ll go write those transactions down for you and send them to your laptop.”

  He tightened his hold on her. “What’s the rush?” Maybe she hadn’t enjoyed the sex as much as he had? The thought made his stomach ache a little.

  She shrugged. “Most guys don’t like to snuggle after sex. I don’t want you to feel like you have to.”

  “Or maybe the sex didn’t meet your expectations, so you’d like to get away as fast as you can?” Didn’t she have a fantastic time like he did?

  She lifted her head and looked him square in the eyes. “That’s a ridiculous assumption. I liked it so much that you made me beg.” She poked him in the chest. “And it wasn’t very nice of you.”

  Relief that she’d liked it too made him smile. “You weren’t so nice yourself. I thought I was going to have to take an ice bath.”

  Sara laid a quick kiss on his lips. “So you can dish it out, but you can’t take it?”

  He rolled Sara under him again. “The better question is can you take any more?”

  “I only grabbed one condom. Unfortunately.” She sweetly smiled as she ran her hands through his hair. He loved when she did that.

  “Lucky for us, I grabbed a handful. But they’re in my room.” He kissed her, taking his time about it, amazed that he was ready for round two so fast. “Be right back.”

  “Wait.” He started to leave, but Sara’s arms snaked around his waist again, nudging him back on top of her. “The real reason I was going to leave so fast was that I’m a little freaked out.”

  His stomach clenched. Was she going to cut him loose? Like so many other women had because he wasn’t an excellent communicator or an attentive enough boyfriend? He was afraid to ask, but he whispered anyway, “What’s wrong?”

  “Please don’t feel like you have to respond if you don’t want to, but…” She closed her eyes and scrunched up her nose. “I think I’m falling in love with you.”

  Thank God.

  She opened just one eye. “I know it’s quick. It’s stupid quick. And maybe it’s just adrenaline or lack of sex or lack of having a real man in my life, but—”

  “Stop.” He laid his hand over her mouth. “I feel the
same, Sara. But I’ll bring a gag back anyway before you talk either of us out of our feelings.”

  Her smile bloomed under his palm, so he lifted his hand. She whispered, “Really?”

  “Yes.” He leaned down and kissed her. “Be right back.” He found his pants and slipped into them, while Sara made her way to the bathroom.

  Just as his hand landed on the knob, Sara called out, “Just for clarity’s sake, you meant you feel the same about me too, not that you’re really bringing a gag back, right?”

  “You’ll just have to wait and see,” he said with an eyebrow hitch.

  After dodging the baby bar of soap Sara threw at him, he jogged across the hall, the happiest he’d been in his life.

  Chapter 17

  Sara glanced at the bedside clock while she waited for Brent to return from her bathroom. Would he kiss her good night and then go back to his room now that they’d had their fill of each other? It was after one in the morning, so he must be tired. She wasn’t, though. Her blood hummed with energy and an excitement she’d never experienced after sex before. Heck, she’d never had sex that many times in a row before. Maybe that explained her restlessness.

  Brent returned and slid under the covers next to her. “I don’t know how to ask this without seeming like a jerk, but…did you…was it better than…”

  The nervous anticipation in his eyes warmed her heart. “You want to know if my mind was blown as promised?”

  He swallowed hard and nodded. “Because mine was. I’m pretty sure I’m falling in love with you too, Sara. And I can’t wait to see where this relationship can go.”

  A hallelujah choir sounded in her head. And in her heart. “Being with you was better than I could’ve ever imagined. I hate that we’ll have to wait until my name’s cleared to be together.”