by Virna DePaul
In front of her, Luke narrowed his eyes and tilted his head as if considering something.
Shaking her head, she held up a finger and mouthed she’d just be a second. Turning away again, she cleared her throat. “Do you have an update for me?”
“I paid Officer Walters a visit, and he was quite accommodating. He denied everything you accused him of, of course. Said you were crazy and jealous, and still hung up on him.”
“He’s lying,” she said in a rush.
“Nothing to worry about, Sarah. Everyone denies wrongdoing at first. But he knows we’ve got our eye on him now. Hopefully that’ll make him reconsider contacting you again. But if he does, you let me know immediately, okay?”
She sighed, relieved he wasn’t going to simply dismiss her report now that he’d talked to Richard. In fact, something in his voice seemed to indicate that meeting Richard had only strengthened her case in his eyes. “I will. Thank you.”
“Take care, Sarah.”
“You, too.” She ended the call and stared at the receiver for several seconds. It was amazing, but with Luke’s appearance, their horizontal tangos, and Detective James’s call, she was actually feeling optimistic about the chances of Richard backing off. Of course, it had to be a false sense of security. She thought of how tricky Richard was and—
“Sarah?” She jumped at the sound of Luke’s voice behind her. Turning, her eyes widened. He was leaning against the bedroom doorjamb, still naked but for the jeans that rode low on his hips. With the tips of his hair bleached and his pierced ear, he looked like a badass version of the man she’d once known. Now that things had settled down, she was fascinated by the changes and wanted to explore them in much more depth. Tentatively, she moved forward, then reached out a hand to touch the snarling dragon tattooed on the side of his neck.
He went still, and for a moment she thought she saw a flash of insecurity in his eyes. It was almost as if he wondered what she thought of the tattoo. As if he wanted her to like it and was afraid she wouldn’t.
“It’s … sexy,” she whispered.
“Yeah?” He linked his arms around her waist. “I’m glad you think so.”
“Is that why you got it? I mean, not for me, but …” She waved her hand in a you-know kind of gesture. “Because you thought women would find it sexy?”
“Not exactly.” Bending down, he skimmed his lips against hers, the brief contact making her yearn for something longer. Harder. “Who was on the phone?”
She couldn’t help it. She stiffened against him, then pulled away in an effort to hide her unease. Once again, his eyes narrowed.
Lovely. She might as well have activated an alarm.
But to her surprise, Luke just hooked his thumbs in the front pockets of his jeans and continued to watch her with a small smile on his face.
“Just an old friend,” she said. Because she knew it would distract him and because she wanted to anyway, she wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her ear against the warm, tantalizing beat of his heart.
She sighed when he wrapped his arms around her again, returning her hug. “I’m … I’m glad you came to collect your payment,” she finally choked out, afraid the emotion in her voice was too obvious. Then thinking, To hell with it, she pulled back and met his gaze. “I’ve missed you, Luke.”
He tucked a stray tumble of hair away from her face. “I’ve missed you, Sarah. But don’t go getting too maudlin on me. Because now that I’ve got you where I want you, I’m not about to let you go. Not yet anyway.”
She swallowed her instinctive response and ducked her head, hoping he hadn’t already seen it in her eyes.
Not ever, she thought. Don’t ever let me go.
Of course he had to let her go sometime, but he did so only briefly.
Since she hadn’t been expecting his visit and had gotten into the habit of eating cereal morning, noon, and night, he insisted on walking her to the deli around the corner and treating her to a gourmet sub. When she teasingly said she wanted to keep feasting on her very own sub for a while longer, he laughed and told her the special of the day was far larger than six inches. That spurred a rather intense make-out session that started in the living room, traversed into the kitchen, and ended on the dining room table. But somehow he still got her into the shower and out to eat afterward.
She wondered briefly at his insistence that they leave the house, but got distracted when he offered to give her a ride on his motorcycle before they ate. Pressed tight against him, she wrapped her arms around his waist, squeezing him tight and loving the feel of his muscular butt jammed between her thighs. She closed her eyes, swaying with him when he turned the bike, their movements smooth. In sync. Natural. The cool night air was a wonderful contrast to the heat still pulsing through her, and when they finally stopped at the deli, she had to force herself not to beg him to keep going. To take her someplace far away. Someplace where they could be alone, with no ex-husband to worry about, no responsibility to interrupt them, and no insecurities to plague her. They were plaguing her.
They taunted her with old fears that while the sex was spectacular, sooner or later he’d realize he could do far better than her.
But this time, she refused to let her fears control her. Get over it, she mentally snapped. Maybe he’d get tired of her. Maybe he wouldn’t.
You finally stood up to Richard. Fight for what you want, damn it.
She wanted Luke.
Resolved to enjoy her time with him, she forced herself to take some risks. As they got off the motorcycle, she reached out and took his hand, basking in his smile. At the deli, he plied her with wine and dessert in addition to the sandwich, and she used the opportunity to feed him. When they returned to her place, she was feeling mellow and lazy, and she wanted nothing more than to explore his body from head to toe at her leisure. To show him how much she loved him, even if she wasn’t ready to say it.
She made her request.
“Sounds good to me,” he said.
He stretched out on her bed and literally let her feast on him. He’d done the same thing a few other times in the past, and she’d always relished every second of it. It was her turn to be in control. To do as she pleased with this strong, masculine creature who normally didn’t let anyone or anything dominate him.
She controlled where she touched him. How hard and how light.
Whether she used her fingers or mouth.
Whether she used her body, pressing her breasts into his mouth or rubbing her core against his leg while he moaned and begged for mercy.
She ordered him to suck her nipples, softly at first then harder, even urging him to use his teeth a couple of times, which he did with the utmost of care.
She decided how shallow or deep to take him inside her mouth, and if he made the mistake of arching his hips and trying to push more of himself down her throat, she’d be the one to smack his ass, then she’d punish him by “making” him pleasure her with his mouth. With his tongue. On her clit. In her pussy. Once even in her ass again.
When he was desperate to have her, she teased him some more.
She ordered him to fist and stroke himself in front of her. She loved the slow, sure way he handled his thick cock. The way his big hand engulfed his engorged length, masculine against masculine, in a way her smaller fingers never could. But she wouldn’t let him get off that way, not even when he accused her of being a merciless bitch. As he worked himself into a state of nirvana, she cupped his balls, rolling them gently in her palm and occasionally licking them. She waited until the last possible second, when he looked crazed with his desire for her, and then she took his dick gently in her mouth and sucked him for all she was worth.
He emptied himself into her with grunts and curses and animalistic moans. Afterward, he told her it was worth the wait.
And then he gathered her in his arms, wrapped himself around her, and completed a ritual she’d desperately missed.
He kissed her forehead.
He
kissed her mouth.
He said, “You, Sarah Larson, are my everything.”
And then, once again, he held her while she fell asleep.
CHAPTER FIVE
The next morning, a knock on Sarah’s front door roused her from sleep. Beside her, the bed was empty, but the running shower assured her that Luke hadn’t fled in the middle of the night. Lazily, she stretched and admired the way he’d marked her body the day before. There were small bruises on her thighs from where he’d held her open, and scrapes from his five o’clock shadow lingered nearby. She had red splotches on her breasts and stomach where he’d suckled and laved her pale skin until she’d thought she’d die from the pleasure. She ran her hands over her body, still tingling with the aftershocks of the orgasms he’d pushed on her, again and again throughout the long night.
Another knock, this time loud enough to make her frown. Remembering, she covered her mouth to stifle a gasp.
Richard.
What if he was knocking on her door? What if Richard had seen her with Luke? On the motorcycle? At the deli? He was crazy anyway, but she knew the sight of her with her former lover would drive him beyond crazy and into sociopath mode. What if—
“… police department …”
Over her accelerated heartbeat, rapid breathing, and the sound of the shower, she thought she heard the person at her door announce he was with the police. Of course, Richard was with the police, too, but he wouldn’t announce himself that way to her.
Quickly, she threw on fresh panties, a tank, and a different pair of sweats, padded to the front door, which she’d thankfully locked, and looked through the peephole. “Detective James?”
She opened the door and stared at him. He was as breathtakingly handsome as the first time she’d seen him. His silky hair was dark but threaded with mahogany strands no salon could replicate. Not overly tall, he was leanly muscled and would likely be as swift and dexterous as a jungle cat. Appropriately enough, his eyes tilted with a slightly feline slant, glowing with warmth. His sharp features radiated confidence that definitely bordered on arrogance.
“I wasn’t expecting you. Is something wrong?” She glanced over her shoulder to make sure Luke was still in the shower or at least out of earshot. “Is Richard—”
The detective shook his head. “No, Sarah. Like I told you yesterday, everything’s fine.” His gaze drifted to her chest and then wandered lower.
There was definitely a slow simmer in his amber eyes that hadn’t been there before. She blushed, which seemed to startle him.
He cleared his throat. “I’m actually here to see Luke.”
Her eyes rounded with shock. He knew Luke? Knew Luke was here? “I don’t understand. How do you—”
“Oh good. You’re here.” Luke strode up behind her, his hair mussed, his body smelling of her favorite liquid soap, and a towel wrapped around his waist. Gently, he nudged her aside to shake Detective James’s hand. He scowled down at her. “You shouldn’t have answered the door. While I’m here, I’ll do that.”
“Why wouldn’t I answer my own door?” she shot back. “What the hell’s going on here? How do you two know each other?”
“Noah and I are friends. We have been since the academy.”
In her periphery, she saw Noah James step inside and shut the door, then absently rub the back of his neck as he took unprecedented interest in a watercolor hanging on the wall. Hands on his hips, Luke shook his head at her—a movement that caused his towel to slip precariously low. “Come on, Sarah. You didn’t seriously think I’d buy that ‘It was just an old friend’ bullshit you gave me after Noah called, did you?”
Sarah gasped.
The corners of his mouth turned upward. “While you were in the shower yesterday, I simply checked your Caller ID, dialed Noah back, and got the lowdown on what’s been going on.”
Outraged, she turned to Noah, who still studied the watercolor like his life depended on it. “That’s completely unprofessional! You had no business telling him.”
Luke swung her around, his grip on her arm inescapable. “You should have told me yourself. Damn it, when Noah explained how Richard’s been terrorizing you, I wanted to kill him, then spank your ass for keeping it from me. Only we both know you’d enjoy that last part way too much.”
Her face turned red. “Luke,” she squeaked out. Sure enough, a glance at Detective James confirmed he’d heard Luke’s little revelation, and found it amusing.
She didn’t know what infuriated her more, the fact that Luke had just told Detective James that she liked her ass spanked, or that it had provoked an enormous flutter between her thighs. “You know, the two of you can get the hell out of here. I don’t need either one of you—”
Noah turned toward her. “You’re wrong, Sarah. You do need us. Me to make sure Richard stays away from you. Luke for the same thing. I can’t protect you during personal hours. At least, not for the most part …”
The silence in the room was deafening.
“What?” she breathed faintly. Her eyes sought out Luke, who was glaring at Noah.
“Smooth, Noah, really smooth,” Luke said.
The other man just shrugged his muscular shoulders, then removed his sport coat and tossed it on her couch.
Sarah stared at it slack-jawed. “Staying long?” she growled.
The detective tried not to smile and failed miserably. “I don’t suppose I could get a cup of coffee?”
Her frosty glare conveyed her answer.
“That’s okay, precioso,” he grinned. “I don’t need the caffeine anyway.”
Precioso? Had he really just called her precious? In front of Luke?
But Luke simply asked, “Did you put the tail on Richard?”
“We’ve had one on him since Sarah came to talk to me. He’s in Orange County at the moment. Getting his back waxed at some frou-frou salon,” Noah sneered. “Mentecato.”
Sarah glanced at Luke, who translated for her. “He called him a wimp.”
Noah held up his cell. “My man will call me as soon as Walters even thinks about returning to Palm Springs.”
“Good.”
Hands on her hips, Sarah gritted out, “Will someone tell me what’s going on here?”
Luke studied her so long she actually started to squirm. Then, with a sigh, he reached for her hand, carried it to his mouth, and kissed it. “Give us a second, will you, Noah?”
“Why don’t I help myself to a glass of agua …” he said, then stepped out of view, into her kitchen. She heard a cabinet door open and close. The faucet ran as Noah presumably filled a glass.
“Listen to me, baby. I don’t want you to think either Noah or I take your safety lightly; Richard can’t get to you right now. He can’t take a piss without us knowing about it. Believe me, you and I are going to talk about the fact you didn’t tell me what was going on with him.” He raised his hand to forestall her protest. “Later. But for now … I heard how you sounded when Noah called. I saw your expression.”
“And?” she prompted, even though she had an idea where this was going.
Bending down, Luke nuzzled her ear. “He turns you on, doesn’t he?” he whispered.
She shook her head. “No! Of course not. D-did you ask him here for … for that? I’m going to kill you, Luke.” She jerked away and tried to yank her hand out of his, but he held on. Something—or someone—bumped into her from behind, and suddenly she found herself sandwiched between two of the hottest men she’d ever met. It should have been panic or outrage she felt, not the heady tidal wave of desire that threatened to sweep her away.
“In case there’s any doubt, I want you, Sarah,” Noah whispered in the same ear Luke had spoken into, his breath hot and his slight accent even hotter. “I’ve discussed it with Luke, and I want to pleasure you. Sin compromiso. No strings attached.”
She shivered and a sizzle ran straight between her legs, causing her to grow even wetter. “This is insane.” She laughed nervously. “You guys are cops!”
“This isn’t about Noah’s job, baby. He’ll protect you from Richard. I’m going to make damn sure of it. But he can give you more. So can I. More than I’ve ever given you before. I want you to experience that. Having two men pleasure you at once. How about it? You said you’d do all the nasty things I wanted you to. How about letting Noah join us? Right here. Right now.”
“No,” she said, but even she could tell her protest sounded weak. Noah’s hand rubbed along the waistband of her sweats and she struggled for sanity in a world where everyone had gone mad. “I can’t believe you had him show up like this. That you just called him and you both expect me to … to …” To what? To give herself over to them so they could pleasure her in every way imaginable? No strings attached?
Did he truly want her to experience a threesome with him, just as he’d claimed in the past? And was it possible he really wouldn’t think less of her if she agreed? That he’d still want her?
If so, the guy was just too good to be true.
Only he really was that good.
Her old insecurities raised their ugly head, threatening to swamp her, but she refused to give them credence. At least for now.
Luke might be good, but he was also very, very bad. In all the best ways, of course.
But what if she’d been right before? What if he only wanted to see how far Sure-Thing-Sarah would go?
She jerked when Luke’s mouth took hers, a short nipping kiss that brought her abruptly back to the present. “This isn’t something you have to think so hard about, Sarah. We just want to pleasure you, nothing more, I promise. Now say yes and let Noah and me get started.”
She held her breath. She thought about the fact that Richard was miles away, being watched by Noah’s man, and that Luke had promised to keep her safe. She thought about the years she’d spent without Luke, without any man in her bed. Then she imagined how good it would feel to be completely selfish and let these two virile, handsome men give her all they had.