by Stark, Cindy
No.
She peeled off her wet clothes and glanced in the bathroom mirror, surveying the damage time had wrought on her body. Could be worse. Joe seemed more than happy with the way she looked. She ran the backs of her fingers down a breast, a tingle rushing through her as she imagined his hands on her. Oh, god. She must be crazy.
She headed back into the bedroom, toward her lingerie drawer. During her marriage, Richard had always insisted on being the one to instigate sex between them. She'd never needed to seduce. In fact, the few times she'd tried, he'd made it very clear that he'd set the limits. Being young and naïve, she'd gone along with it.
But now? Oh. The pleasure of power sizzled inside her. Now, it was her turn to make the conquest. Her turn to set the pace. Her turn to set Joe on fire.
She lifted her just-in-case-she-met-someone bra and panties out of the drawer. The black lace set had cost her a small fortune, something she'd had considerably less of since her divorce. But she'd fallen in love with the sexy ensemble upon sight, and Mercedes had insisted they would give Elena some inner confidence. Besides, the push-up bra did wonders for her thirty-something breasts.
She slipped them on, enjoying the feel of lace against her sensitized body. Soon. The word echoed in her mind as she hurried to touch up her makeup and spritz on a bit of perfume. Soon, she'd be in Joe's arms. She smiled and shrugged into the white fuzzy hotel robe, not quite daring to walk out so bare.
Elena cracked open her bedroom door and caught the sounds of soft Spanish guitars wafting from the entertainment system. Joe must have turned it on. The music called to her and with her heart pounding, she stepped forward out of her room.
He was there. Relaxed on her couch, still shirtless, and looking like a delectable sin. His gaze connected with hers, and he smiled, a self-assured, promising smile that took her breath away.
"Your replacement key came." He held up the plastic card, and Elena reached out to take it. Her hand bumped his as she grasped the other end, but he didn't let go. "You smell wonderful."
A sexual spark skittered through her. "Thank you." She tugged and the card came free. It wasn't going to be easy to remain the seducer with Joe.
A knock sounded on the door, and she glanced at Joe with raised brows.
"I took the liberty of ordering some wine." He got to his feet, pulling a wallet out of his back pocket. "I thought a nice bottle of Chardonnay might fit into our evening."
He couldn't have done a better job of reading her mind. Chardonnay was her favorite. "Sounds nice." She set her keycard on a nearby table.
He grinned and crossed the room to open the door. A moment later, he returned with a bottle, two glasses and a corkscrew. "Look tempting?"
Oh, yes. She took in his dark hair, his midnight eyes with slanted brows, and his well-tanned chest. "Very tempting."
She waited while he uncorked the bottle, watching the muscles in his arm work as he twisted the corkscrew. She caught his eye and smiled.
He returned the smile as he filled her glass, and she wondered how she'd never realized that even the eyes could engage in foreplay. Sexy.
She tasted the wine, its rich body smooth on her tongue. Joe slid this thumb across her bottom lip, capturing the moisture from the wine. Elena watched, fascinated, as he ran his tongue down his thumb in an erotic gesture. "Tastes good."
"Yes," she said a little breathlessly. She blinked and turned toward the couch. The man was an artist. If she didn't watch herself, she'd be completely at his mercy.
She sank into the plush jungle-green pillows scattered on the sofa, tucking her feet up next to her. The split in her robe revealed a nice amount of leg, and she didn't bother to fix it. She sipped from her glass, watching over the rim as he sat next to her. He poured his drink, setting the bottle on the coffee table in front of them.
"To us," she said, lifting her glass.
"Us?" He shot her a quizzical look.
"Yes, us. Two people old enough to recognize the good things in life, and still young enough to enjoy them."
He grinned. "To us, then." He clinked her glass and took a large swallow.
Elena followed suit, the liquid leaving a rich, buttery feel on her tongue. "Mmm…that's wonderful."
He set his glass on the table and patted his lap. "Give me your feet."
She widened her eyes. "Why?" Was this another ploy to get the upper hand?
"Foot massage."
"Seriously?" She'd struck gold with this man, and at the moment, she was glad he wasn't playing fair. Especially after wearing three-inch heels all night.
"Unless you don't want me to."
She felt like a child on Christmas morning. "Are you kidding?" She maneuvered until her feet rested on his lap. He wrapped his warm hands around one foot and began pushing his thumbs into her arch. She sighed as she took a sip of wine and leaned against the armrest. Heaven. The man knew all about pleasure. She closed her eyes and indulged.
He pushed and prodded her feet, and it wasn't long until she felt his bulge against her heel. Oh, my. She wiggled her foot a bit, bumping against him. He paused. She kept her eyes closed and clamped her tongue between her teeth to keep from smiling.
He resumed his ministrations. Elena waited a moment, and then she nudged him again. This time he stopped completely.
She waited longer, but when he didn't move, she peeked between her eyelids and found him watching her. He raised a brow.
"What?" she countered, trying to keep her expression innocent.
"Are you trying to seduce me?" He echoed her earlier question.
She finished the wine in her glass. "Me?"
This time both brows went up. "Yes, you."
"No." She almost giggled. "I believe if I were trying to seduce you, I'd do something more like this." She rubbed her big toe slowly down the length of his shaft, enjoying the hardness of it, and the fact that she'd brought about that reaction in him. "And I wasn't doing that at all."
"No, that's true. You weren't." Joe grinned, catching on, his breathing a little more erratic than it had been a few moments ago. "Just so you know, if I wanted to seduce you, I'd do something like this." He trailed his fingers slowly up her calf, over her knee, and along the inside of her thigh. He pushed the robe higher, and she tensed with the anticipation of him touching her.
He stopped, mere inches from the edge of her lacy panties.
She sucked in her breath and met his gaze. Their eyes locked, and she couldn't resist licking her bottom lip. Please.
"But I'm not seducing you, either."
Her breath whooshed out of her as his fingers slid back down her leg. Not fair. She wasn't going to let him get away with that.
"Well…" She lifted her feet off his lap and stood. He followed her with his gaze, watching her every move, a sexy grin lingering on his sensuous mouth. "If I were going to seduce you, which I'm not…" She hiked up her robe and climbed onto his lap, straddling him. Her reward was his sudden intake of breath. "I might try something like this." She moved her face close to his, their lips a whisper apart. She paused, and then kissed him. A small, soft, sweet kiss.
She pulled back, wanting to keep torturing him, though it tormented her, too.
"Uh-uh." Joe growled and hauled her back to him. He captured her mouth with his as his fingers dug into her hair. Dear Lord, the man was potent. She wrapped her arms around his neck and held on. Every nerve bunched up as hot blood singed her veins. He kissed her until she was breathless. Then, he nipped her bottom lip, sucking it into his mouth.
She pulled back, overwhelmed.
Her chest heaved from a lack of oxygen, and it didn't take long for Joe to notice. His gaze traveled back and forth several times between her eyes and her breasts.
Elena looked down to see that her robe had parted, the sash hanging loosely around her waist. Her breasts sat full and lush in her revealing black bra. Her belly was pressed against his, and she became intimately aware of the contact there…and below.
She glance
d at his face, finding him watching her, desire smoldering in his eyes. Then she slowly leaned away from him, watching their stomachs part, to reveal her black lace against his khakis. "Oh," she sighed, still trying to catch her breath.
"Yeah."
She smiled, very aware of things unresolved between them. "Good thing I wasn't trying to seduce you."
"Damn good thing. Who knows what might have happened?"
She took a few more breaths, her heart racing. "Now what?"
He tugged at her sash and the belt slipped away. "I'm sure you'll think of something."
"I can be resourceful when needed." She studied his eyes, dark and dreamy, the perfect place to lose herself in Cabo. "First, I think some clothes need to go." She backed off him and held out her hand. "Stand up."
He complied, grinning the whole time.
She walked around and stopped behind him, the Spanish guitars crooning in the background. "Shorts." She reached around to his stomach, pressing her breasts against his bare back. With deliberate slowness, she inched her fingers downward and found the button at his waist. "These really need to go." She flipped open the button and dragged down the zipper.
He held still as she slid down his shorts, and then he stepped out of the puddle. She tilted her head as she walked back around to the front of him. She let her gaze slide lazily down the muscles of his chest. "Nice."
Her heart thudded at the magnificent man standing before her in nothing but his boxers, but she kept her exterior calm. She didn't want him to know just yet how hot she was for him. Let him wonder.
The bulge in his boxers caught her attention. She allowed herself a moment to stare. Then she smiled at him. "Really nice."
He chuckled, enjoying their game. "What about you? Don't you need to lose some clothing?"
The terry robe was hot, especially when she had him stoking her fire. "Not yet." She walked over and opened the large windows in the room. A crisp ocean breeze blew in, tickling her skin.
"Now…" She returned to Joe and ran her hands down his biceps, up his chest, marveling over his body that was hers for the night. She slipped a finger in the waistband of his boxers. "I think these need to go as well."
He shook his head. "Uh-uh."
"Yes."
"Not until you lose something, sweetheart." He tugged until her sash was completely undone. He caught her gaze and paused, apparently waiting for her to stop him. When she didn't, a slow smile crept across his lips. He slid his big, strong hands beneath the robe, caressing her bare shoulders as he pushed the fabric away. It fell to the floor, leaving him to devour her exposed flesh with his dark, beautiful eyes.
Her insides quivered. "Lose the boxers."
He didn't cooperate, and the heated look he gave her sent her closer to the edge. Her reign as master was near the end. She could feel it…but she wasn't ready to relinquish quite yet.
She tugged at his waistband again, but he stopped her. "No," he whispered, his playfulness gone. "Not yet. I want to savor this first."
Elena stilled, dropping her hands. "Savor what?"
"You."
His reply pierced her heart. Richard had never said anything like that to her, had never made her feel this beautiful, this wanted.
She forced in a breath. The man certainly knew what he was doing. He'd zoomed past turning her on, straight to sweeping her off her feet. A little voice warned her to be careful, but Joe wasn't going to make it easy on her.
She had to keep her emotions out of this. He was a player, an expert at seduction—that's why he was so good, right? She was determined their encounter would remain purely physical. Otherwise, someone would get hurt, and that someone would most likely be her.
She shot down her budding feelings and focused on his eyes as he reached behind her and unhooked her bra. Her breasts were heavy, weighted by desire as they fell free from their constraints. Sex. This was just sex. Free, unadulterated, wonderful sex.
He arched a brow and then looked down. A long, slow sigh fell from his lips. "You're beautiful." He dipped down, sucking a nipple into his mouth, and her mind erased everything but that moment. The man was exquisite.
He twisted her in his arms, like he had when they'd danced, and pulled her to him, the hard length of him pressing against her bottom.
With one arm around her midriff, he moved aside her hair. She shivered with delight as he pressed his lips to her shoulder and continued up the side of her neck. As he kissed her, he tickled his fingers up her stomach, over her breasts, finding the nipple that was still wet from his kiss. It was a war of sensations between her neck and her breasts, and she barely had the presence of mind to breathe.
When he abandoned her breasts, his hands heading south, she pulled away. She sucked in a breath, trying to still the dizziness in her head. Control. She exhaled. She had to get a grip if she wanted to command this seduction.
Turning in his arms, she pulled his head to her, claiming his mouth in a fierce kiss.
"I want you, Joe," she said, her lips still touching his, her fingers tugging at his boxers. "Now."
This time, when she tried to remove his boxers, he didn't stop her. He didn't give her long to admire him before he slipped his hands beneath her lace and tugged off her panties. He reached for her, pulling her back into his arms, kissing her.
She ran her hands down the smooth expanse of his back and over his buttocks. She reached between them and encircled him, anticipating what he would feel like inside her. She stroked his satiny steel. "I have a condom, if you don't." Mercedes had made sure she was well-prepared.
"Got it covered." He reached for his shorts and pulled a condom out of his wallet. She grabbed his hand and a large pillow from the couch, tugging him near the open windows. The palms outside would provide enough privacy.
"Here. I want you here where I can smell the salty air and hear the waves." She pulled him down to the carpet, kissing him the whole way.
When he was on his back, she crept up his body until she straddled his belly, the hardness of him teasing her most sensitive spots. He tried to roll her over, but she resisted. "Sorry. This is my fantasy."
He chuckled, obviously enjoying her version of pleasure. "Do I get mine next time?"
Next time? She stumbled on the thought. It was unlikely there would be a next time, but she didn't want to think about that now. She smiled. She'd allow no worries in her fantasy. She only wanted to live in the carefree present. "Maybe." She laughed and leaned forward, kissing him and silencing any talk of a next time.
"Right now, I'm only thinking of this." She rose up on her knees, moved him into position, and impaled herself.
She couldn't breathe as he filled the aching space inside her. "Dear God."
The length of him, the hardness consumed her. He was heat…and power…and pleasure. And she commanded him. She began to move, keeping her eyes locked with his.
"Good?" he whispered. A slow grin spread across his beautiful mouth, and she mirrored it.
"Yes." She pulled back, and then took him inside again, each sensation rocking through her body. He was good. "So good."
"Then do what you will, sweetheart. I'm yours."
She laughed as she leaned forward, teasing him with a brush of her breast against his lips.
He grasped her hips, sucking a nipple into his mouth. Exquisite sensations flooded her. "Joe," she whispered, as he teased her with his tongue. He nipped her then, and a thousand tingles shot through her, making her muscles clench him tighter. He released her breast on a groan.
Her world closed in, centered solely where they were joined. She'd never experienced anything so potent, and she couldn't get enough. With each thrust, she welcomed him deeper into her body, wanting him to discover that unknown destination that lingered just beyond her reach.
It was close, though. Close enough that he would take her there.
She moved her hips faster, enjoying the sweet friction they created. She tried to remain focused on his eyes, but the intensity of their
passion left her dizzy. White heat built inside her, pushing her, drawing her nearer. "Oh, God." She closed her eyes. "I…I…oh." Her muscles constricted, her movements turning momentarily clumsy.
* * *
Joe nearly lost it when she did. Finding himself buried in Elena's sweetness was far more intense than he'd expected, more than he'd ever encountered with another woman, and it threatened his self-respect as a man. Her seduction was beyond powerful. With each stroke, he found his restraint slipping. When he'd first laid eyes on her at the club, he'd known she was a find, but he had no idea she'd affect him this much.
He gripped her hips, trying to hold on to his sanity. Her breasts bounced above him, distracting him as she rode out their storm. The fire in her eyes raged, and her smile had long since vanished.
It seemed only moments passed before she was riding high on the wave again. She was close. He could sense it.
Her fevered gaze connected with his, sending a sharp electrical current shooting through him. Shit. If he didn't do something now, he'd be a goner. She shuddered above him again, and before he could follow, he pulled her close and rolled over. He caught her lips in a kiss, trying to regain his concentration.
He held out for a bit longer, but it was too late. He was too far gone. He clutched her in a tight embrace and gave himself to her.
The heat of the moment slowly faded, allowing him to catch his breath. He held her tight, not wanting to leave her delicious body. She kissed him soft on the lips. "Thank you."
"No, thank you." He rolled and pulled her into his arms.
She snuggled against him, wrapping her leg over his, and she let out a contented sigh. "Mmm…and to think I almost missed this opportunity."
It was surprising to him that something that would be a fleeting experience in both their lives could be so great. He'd expected some quick satisfaction, not this incredible blending of sensations and feelings. He chuckled. "Yeah? Does that mean you were going to tell me no?"
"Maybe." She laughed. "Okay. I'll admit you had me from the first dance. I couldn't resist seeing what other moves you had in store. I certainly picked the perfect partner for dancing and for an amazing evening."
