Either stay and lust for a man that didn’t love her or move on and try to rebuild her life.
Or worse, stay and watch him fall in love with someone else.
Her heart clenched and she rubbed a hand across her chest. Leaving was the only option because no matter how much she craved his touch, she wouldn’t survive the heartache of seeing him with someone else.
She pushed the door wide and stepped out into the cold. Mind set on what she had to do, Willa opened the rear door and grabbed for her briefcase. She needed her copies of the contracts Nathan requested if she was going to help him with this one last task. No matter what, come tomorrow, he would find her resignation in the mail and the whole avalanche would come barreling down the mountain. She doubted he’d want to be in the same room with her, let alone go over contracts by then.
Willa waved her hand around in the area she always placed her satchel but came up emptyhanded. How could she have forgotten the one thing she needed to bring? Then again, easy enough, considering the man consuming her every thought.
With a deep sigh, a sinking feeling formed. Yes, her stomach sank. Sank right to her toes and lurched. She flicked on the back seat light, desperate for a better look.
“¡Ahí por Dios! ¡Que más!” Fear brought out her native language with a vengeance. Curses rolled like waves on a Hawaiian beach she’d rather be sitting on right now. And when they hit her stomach rolled and tumbled right along with them.
The briefcase in question held more than just the contracts. She’d also placed her newly-minted resignation alongside a letter from Black Oak’s rival, accepting her new job in California.
Realization hit and cold air rushed into her lungs on a long gasp. She’d left it at the office. This night had just gone from bad to worse with a second helping of fuck me sideways.
She swallowed hard.
But she couldn’t get past the fear lodged deep in her throat. She clenched and unclenched her fingers.
Breathe, Willa.
If she thought on it much longer she’d start shaking.
Oh damn. Too late.
It started in her toes and worked up her legs until even her fingers trembled.
Just because she’d left the briefcase didn’t mean he’d gone digging in it the minute she’d walked out the door. Never assume, right?
“Thought maybe you were going to leave before coming in and getting warm by the fire.”
Willa whirled, the snow crunching underfoot, and came nose-to-chest with a wall of well-defined, USA grade-A Marine muscle wrapped in a tight navy-blue T-shirt. The man had no sense of just how cold it was. He’d been that way for as long as she’d known him.
She could bounce a quarter off those pecs they were so hard. A strong scent of soap mixed with a hint of whiskey filled her nostrils.
Nathan. All one-hundred percent melt-your-panties, fuck-me-right-here-I-don’t-care male. Suddenly contracts, betrayal and the idea she needed to be three thousand miles from where she stood flitted away on the snow.
“Plan on coming with me tonight, or did you want to sit out in the cold?”
Before she could part her lips to answer him he stepped in, his body warmth in her personal space. He leaned in slowly, eyes locked on hers, and reached around her to close her car door.
What a damn tease. She had to stifle the whimper he nearly dragged from her.
Her gaze shot up and locked on his.
It seemed Nathan read her mind because a wicked glint flashed across his deep, dark eyes.
Arrogant bastard.
“Inside, I mean,” he rumbled, voice rough and low as his eyes lit with mischief.
Willa lightly rested her hand on his bare forearm, the heat of his flesh blissful against her hand. “There for a minute I thought you were going to kiss me, Nathan. What’s the matter? Scared?”
She had no idea where the bravado to say what was on her mind came from, but once the first syllables left her lips there was no stopping them.
And just like that something in him snapped. His eyes flashed with a hunger she’d never seen in him before as he pinned her smaller body against her car.
Cold from the metal at her back seeped through her thin sweater in contrast to the wall of fire at her front. From chest to hip he pinned her body; his mouth poised a whisper away from her all-too-ready lips. She couldn’t tell if it was from the cold or how he felt against her that made her nipples rock candy hard.
“Trust me, Willa, you’re playing with a fire you cannot control. Be very careful how you handle it. I’d hate for you to get burned, baby.”
Baby?
Oh, hell yeah, she wanted to get burned.
Cold weather forgotten, his growled words sent another kind of shiver through all five-feet-four inches of her body.
He could scorch, burn, set her ablaze, and she’d take it all if it meant he was finally ready to take her.
In a low voice, she taunted back. “Big words for a man afraid to touch, don’t you think, Nathan?”
Nathan growled and her whole body did the full shiver thing again complete with an aftershock of tingles.
This was how it always ended up—with them circling each other like animals in heat.
It wasn’t far off.
She braced herself for impact. Had she finally hit a nerve that would spur him into action? She’s risk getting a cold if he wanted to strip her and ravish her naked body in the snow. She could feel it in the air, the need that shimmered between them. Like he wanted to tear into her and would fight anything or anyone that would stop him.
Good.
Because she was ready for some freaky snow sex.
But something stopped him, held him back, toeing some invisible line between them. Invisible because she sure the hell didn’t see a speck of anything between them.
She slowly stepped back and out of his reach but caught the flash of anger her words caused. Or was that pain she saw in his eyes? In the low light she couldn’t tell, but she knew well enough what his silence meant.
Her shoulders dropped and she turned to apologize. Before she uttered a syllable, he brought down a wall, effectively closing her out. Arms crossed and jaw set, Nathan stood there, his stance no longer filled with challenge.
Annnnd, just like that, the fire was doused. This was how it always ended.
With him impersonating a snowman, leaving her hands itching for a blowtorch. Anything to turn up the fucking heat and melt the polar ice caps that had become his emotions.
Willa hated when he did that to her. Shut her out completely when she hit a little too close to home. Must be nice to have the ability to shut down the way he did.
When her brother died, she’d wished long and hard for the ability to block out all the pain. Maybe things would be different for her now somehow.
Fat chance, she guessed.
Ignoring her heart only got her so far, that much she knew. Proof stood two feet in front of her and she was the one suffering from being so damn soft-hearted.
As for Nathan, no doubt in her mind his ability to switch his emotions on and off had saved him countless times while out on a tour of duty with his Recon unit. Here in her world, it just infuriated her. Right now she didn’t care if her words sliced to the core. He wasn’t the only one hurt by the death of loved ones. About damn time he realized it.
Words meant to slip the knife a notch deeper poised on the tip of her tongue. He closed the space between them before she could speak. He placed his hands low on her hips and hoisted her up to sit on the trunk. With his big hands he parted her thighs and slipped between her spread legs. With one tug he pulled her into his warm muscled body, her pussy snug against the ridge of his hard cock with only a few pieces of clothing between them.
His eyes narrowed on her a second before lowering his face next to hers just enough so his day-old scruff scraped seductively against her cheek. He spoke close to her ear. “Sweetheart, it’s time you learn the truth about how I feel about you. Make no mistake, by Chr
istmas morning every inch of flesh on your beautiful little body will ache with pleasure from knowing my touch and my cock.”
Every single word pelted her nerves and struck her core, forcing her eyes shut. Her whole body clenched from the growled promise of his words. Every heartbeat sent a hammered pulse through her body until her clit throbbed with the need to orgasm long and hard.
His lust-roughened voice, or the brush of his soft beard—probably a combination of all three—caused warm liquid to wet the strip of silk between her legs in anticipation. Anything she was going to say now lay crumbled in the corners of her mind, forgotten.
Her breasts grew heavy, and with every breath Nathan took, the light caress sent a lick of fire straight to her clit.
She shoved against his chest, but he didn’t budge.
Right. Solid wall. Remember, you like that kind of thing.
“Step back and let me down, Nathan.” She didn’t have time for games. He should know that by now. “Don’t play with me.”
His dark eyes on hers, he eased back enough to give her space but not lose contact. His warm hand engulfed hers where it still rested on his chest, his thumb gently smoothing the skin across her knuckles. As if he wanted to calm her when it had been her who’d hurt him with her words just moments before. He was always thinking of others. It was what she loved about him.
Willa raised her gaze from their linked hands. So many questions ached for a voice, but the look in his eyes begged her to accept what was happening between them. How could she fight that when she wanted the same? Wanted this reaction from him like she wanted to breathe?
Nathan cupped her cheek with his free hand and tilted her chin higher, his eyes ablaze with a fire she felt in her veins. “Fuck, Willa,” he groaned low. “Don’t look at me like that.”
“Like what?” she asked quietly, her breath lodged in her throat.
“Like I won’t fuck you and make you mine.”
And just like that, her panties were drenched. He had her in his arms and the door to his cabin kicked open before she could decide if she wanted the Marine quick and dirty on the hood of the car or long and slow in front of a roaring fire.
Chapter Three
The smell of pine hit her on a draft of warm air tinged with a hint of cinnamon and vanilla the second they were inside. Her favorite Christmas combination. Candles, the source of all the holiday scents, she assumed, scattered the parlor tables filled with memorabilia, their placements just as she remembered. He must have worked fast to bring a sense of cheer to the home. Did he do it for her?
Nathan sat her down and closed the door behind them.
A kaleidoscope of fond memories of her, her brother, and Nathan flitted across her mind in an array of vivid color, like no time had passed at all since their last gathering around Nathan’s table for one celebration or another. The Grant family was vast and losing the patriarch wouldn’t be easy for any of the people she’d come to consider her own family.
Tall wooden beams supported an open layout lit with low lights and a large fire in the hearth. How could he still live here and be sane? True, he was rarely home, but still… Everywhere she looked she saw her brother’s wide smile and handsome face mingled in with the rest of the Grant family. How did Nathan find comfort where she only found pain?
No wonder he’d called her over tonight. He’d rather work than be alone.
A soft click of a lock brought her out of the inner thoughts. Her balance wobbled just slightly, and she bumped into a table. She shot out a hand and grabbed a photo before it could fall to the hardwood floor.
Willa zeroed in on the image. There he was—Adrian—all smiles and full of promise. Her chest tightened and tears broke loose to fall freely.
Damn the holidays. They always made her a little more emotional.
A little more heartbroken for all the things she didn’t have.
Like Nathan and a warm home and lover to call her own.
Ugh. She needed to shove her heart into a vault and clamp that fucker shut already.
She shouldn’t have come. Being here was a big fat mistake.
She sensed Nathan’s strength a second before he wrapped his arms around her from behind.
Strong. Muscular.
Her heart jumped in her throat and refused to budge.
And then she did the one thing she shouldn’t have done.
She hoped.
His strong arm slipped around her waist while he took the photo from her grasp. Solid muscle pressed up against her back and her body melted into him, welcoming his strong support.
Nathan set the picture on the table and gently turned her to face him.
She blinked quickly, dashing all the tears away.
Catching her chin in a firm but gentle hold, he forced her to look at him.
His warm, brown gaze caressing over every part of her face as if he was looking at her for the first time.
“He made me promise not to touch you, Willa.” A gentle touch to her cheek sent a pulse of desire to rock through her. “I want you to know since the first day you walked into my life you’re all I ever wanted. Adrian knew that. And you need to know I plan on breaking that promise to stay away from you tonight. I’m going to claim that virgin pussy with my fingers, my mouth and my thick cock. Part those beautiful silky thighs and watch as I stretch you and take what I’ve wanted since the first time I met you. I knew you would be mine one day. And Willa, today I’m tired of running. Tired of waiting. I want what’s mine. You.”
Me?
Claim me?
Her breath hitched in shock.
A good shock. A do-I-strip-right-now kind of shock.
Jesus, she couldn’t catch her breath. It was like he wanted to make her come right then and there without even touching her all-too-willing body. She might be inexperienced, but her body had desired him long enough and her fantasies were fierce. Plus she did have the internet. Her body might not know the touch of a man, but her well-primed mind would fill in the gaps where she lacked experience.
Her gaze raised to his as he spoke. Heavy and thick with lust, each word struck a tingling nerve. Mentally stuck on the imagery that went along with his words, she was caught off guard when his lips crashed into hers.
Hungry, starving.
Minty with a hint of whiskey? Or was that tequila? Who cared—she was drunk on his taste already.
There was no denying the need, the lust, the deep-seated passion that thrived between them untapped for so long. His tongue parted her lips and she opened, matching his masculine moan with her feminine one. It fed into her through him. Each stroke of his tongue against hers. She wound her arms around his neck and he anchored her against his hard body with an arm around her waist.
Willa paused and her heart broke a fraction. “Why? Why would you make such a promise and why wouldn’t he want me—us—happy?” Thoughts warred between his words and his actions over the past years.
Against her better judgment, she leaned into his warm welcoming body and soaked in his touch before he pulled away from her. A single tear slid down her cheek at the thought of letting go of him for good this time.
But he didn’t pull away. Not in the way she thought he would anyway.
He stroked her jaw with the rough pad of his thumb and then swiped at a single stray tear.
He mumbled a curse and his eyes slipped closed for a moment.
She watched in fascination as he wrapped his lips around the digit and sucked. It was like he wanted to take all her pain and grief into himself for her.
He opened his eyes and that same hunger from a second ago hit her like a bomb.
“Tonight is about us, baby. No tears, no regret. Only pleasure.” He paused and took a deep breath. “And definitely no guilt.”
That last declaration had to be for his own benefit because there was no way she’d regret loving him even if for only one night. With all the loss he’d suffered, she knew just how deep his wounds went. He couldn’t hide his pain of losing t
he people he loved from her any more than he could hide how much he wanted her. She studied his soft expression and tender look in his eyes. Something had changed since she’d last seen him. But what?
He returned his hand to her face and pulled her closer to rest his forehead on hers.
“I’ve dreamed about slowly peeling away your clothing, kissing your body from head to toe and taking you by my fireplace. I want to see the warm glow of the light dance across your body as I slide my dick balls-deep into your sweet pussy.”
“How dare you, Nathan Grant! Damn you!” She shot poisoned darts at the man with her heated gaze and shoved her hands in her pockets—that or risk breaking her fingers on the man’s stubborn jaw.
Her gaze flicked over said fireplace and it didn’t take any stretch of the imagination to picture them naked and making love in the glow of the fire.
Her anger simmered to a low boil.
“I want you, Willa. I don’t care how fucked up it is or was. I’ve wanted you since you were barely seventeen. Your brother knew it and made it understood you were off limits. Hell, even I knew I couldn’t touch you. You became hands-off when he made me commit to that fucking promise, but dammit, I loved him. So I did it. How could I not? We went into war with him covering my six. I couldn’t disrespect that. But he’s gone and I still love you. I have you here standing in front of me with love in your eyes. And you’re definitely not seventeen anymore. What the fuck am I supposed to do?”
His words, a low husky whisper filled with promise, danced across her senses and she shuddered from their power. Embers burned in the depths of his eyes and she knew he meant what he said.
Damn him. She didn’t know how she should feel now.
Stunned, that much she knew. As she peered up at him, her mouth went slack. Their dance around each other had just escalated to a completely new level. But she didn’t understand. After so long of wanting him, why now? Why make her heart ache for him for so long?
Red Hot Steamy Romance Boxed Set: A Steamy Military Romance Series Collection Page 2
