Chance Encounter

by Christy Reece

  Fearing an apology, she pressed her fingers against his mouth, loving that they were moist and hot from their kiss. “No, don’t apologize. That was surprising…delicious. Exactly what I wanted and needed.”

  He looked startled for a moment, and then the heat returned. “Then maybe we should get a room.”

  She laughed, and as if she had every right and did this every day, she reached up and kissed him, this time just a quick one, in case they got carried away again.

  “We can discuss that later. For now, I’ve gotta eat.”

  “You know, for someone I can do this to, you have an incredibly healthy appetite.”

  “Do what to?”

  “This.” In another surprising move, Brennan lifted her into his arms as if she were a child. “Where to?”

  Who was this man? She was used to a grim, solemn Brennan. This man bore only the slightest resemblance to her too-serious bodyguard.

  Her eyes narrowed. “What have you been drinking?”

  As if he realized how bizarre his behavior was, he grinned down at her. “Fruit juice. Has a remarkable influence on a man’s attitude. Well, that and a beautiful woman telling me she’s all mine.”

  After Brennan had literally swept her off her feet, Kacie thought things might be a little awkward for them at lunch. She was delighted that, instead of awkwardness, their conversation flowed as if the other night had never happened.

  Brennan had carried her only a few feet to the restaurant door and set her down. Then, while she dined on delicious lobster salad, he devoured a cheeseburger and fries. When he caught her staring covetously at his fries, he picked one up and held it to her mouth.

  Unable to resist the temptation, she opened her mouth, and he slid the salty, crispy fry inside. Her mouth closed around it, and then her tongue swept out to remove the salt from her lips.

  Making a sound of appreciation, she chewed the fry and was about to thank him when she saw the look in his eyes. Breath caught in her lungs, and a flush that had nothing to do with the ninety-degree weather swept through her body. Many men had given her lascivious, lustful looks before, but she’d never once wanted to return it with one of her own.

  As if he realized that things were getting a little more heated than he’d intended, he flashed her a quick, easygoing smile. “What comes after the sailing photos this afternoon?”

  “Supposed to be a full moon tonight. Francois wants to get some shots of a midnight picnic on the beach. I probably won’t be finished until late.”

  “No worries.” He gave her a rare, sexy smile and added, “I can wait.”

  Somewhere down the line, insanity must run in his family. That was Brennan’s only explanation for what had happened with Kacie earlier today. The minute she whispered those words—I’m all yours— he had felt like a different person.

  And now, as he watched while Francois insisted on another round of shots with the beautiful couple enjoying a midnight picnic on the beach, Brennan knew he was going to have to reel himself in. Kacie wasn’t ready for what he wanted from her.

  Okay, the way she’d been responding would lead anyone to believe otherwise, but he’d witnessed her breakdown the other night during their foreplay. No way was he going to put her through that again.

  “Thank you, my darlings. That’s a wrap. See you tomorrow afternoon.”

  Dressed in a short, white, sleeveless dress that seemed to drink in the moonlight, Kacie was a vision as she slowly came toward him. Brennan stood as she reached him. Despite the stern lecture he’d just given himself, he was about to tell her how beautiful she looked when he noticed that she was walking with extreme care.

  The instant he saw her eyes, he knew something was wrong.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Headache.” She closed her eyes and mumbled, “Really bad one.”

  “Okay…take it easy.” For the second time today, Brennan swept her up into his arms. This time, very carefully.

  Instead of protesting, she showed him exactly how ill she felt by leaning her forehead against his chest and closing her eyes.

  Ignoring the curious looks of the crew, Brennan headed toward their bungalow, which thankfully wasn’t too far away.

  Within minutes, they were inside, and he was laying her on the bed. She moaned briefly but didn’t open her eyes.

  “Kacie, do you have anything to take?”

  “Cosmetic case on the bathroom counter. Blue and white bottle.”

  With rapid strides, Brennan located the bottle, read the directions of the proper dosage, and then filled a glass with water.

  Taking them to her, he was alarmed to see her standing and swaying as she tried to unzip her dress.

  “Here. Take these. I’ll take care of your clothes.”

  “Thanks.” She took the pills, swallowed them down with the water, and returned the glass to him.

  Brennan put the glass on the nightstand and said, “Just stay still for a sec, and I’ll get you comfortable.”

  With quick efficiency, he unzipped her dress and let it fall to her feet. Ignoring the fact that she wore no bra and barely there panties wasn’t easy, but concentrating on taking care of her trumped desire by a long shot.

  “Want me to get your nightshirt?”

  “No. Just want to lie down.”

  Sweeping back the comforter and sheets, Brennan lifted her up, laid her on the bed, and then covered her up.

  “Need anything else?”

  “No…thanks. Just need to sleep it off. I’ll be better tomorrow.” She opened her eyes slightly. “Sorry to ruin our night.”

  Placing a soft kiss on her forehead, he switched off the bedside lamp, and whispered, “Get some sleep.”

  Her eyes closed again. Brennan knew he should leave but couldn’t make himself do it. Instead, he used his fingertips to massage her temples.

  “Mmm. Feels good. Where’d you learn to do that?”

  “My mom suffered from migraines. When my dad was home, he’d massage her temples. If he was at work when she got one, I did it. Seemed to help.”

  “It does…thank you.” Her last words were slurred, telling him she was dropping off to sleep. He continued to massage her for several more moments and then quietly stood. He recognized the pain pills from some he’d taken before. They were powerful and should put her out for several hours.

  Brennan went to the bathroom to get ready for bed and then pulled on a pair of running shorts. Sliding in beside Kacie as silently as possible, he allowed her even, shallow breaths to lull him to sleep.

  Kacie woke, instantly aware of three things: Her headache was gone, she was in desperate need of the bathroom, and someone was holding her hand.

  Turning slightly, she looked beside her and marveled at the sight. Brennan Sinclair was sprawled out before her like a Greek god. Pushing aside her need for the bathroom, Kacie sat up, gently slipped her hand from his, and then took the time to fully appreciate waking up next to the sexiest man she’d ever known.

  With the exception of the black running shorts he wore to bed, all six and a half feet were hers to appreciate. Her eyes started at his head, taking in the thick black hair, only slightly mussed and incredibly sexy. Her gaze moved to his face. When his eyes were open, their piercing intensity either made her quake with a delicious kind of fear or want to hide because he seemed to see too much. With his eyes closed, she felt infinitely safer to enjoy the scenery. His silky black lashes were so ridiculously long and thick, they would make any woman envious, and he had the kind of cheekbones that would make a photographer ache to capture. When he was angry or upset, they looked as though they were set in granite.

  His nose would probably be considered his biggest facial flaw—the slight bump in the middle indicated it’d probably been broken at least once. However, it suited him and allowed a slight imperfection in an otherwise perfect face.

  His mouth… Kacie held back a sigh. She had never fully appreciated a man’s mouth before, but Brennan’s was quite the most delic
ious mouth she’d ever encountered. His lower lip was larger than his upper lip and had a sensuous, sexy tilt to the edges. And from experience she knew how very soft and delicious his lips could taste.

  Reluctantly leaving his face but wanting her eyes to experience even more wonders, she moved her perusal downward. His neck was thick and muscular and melded into broad shoulders and muscular arms that looked as though they could squeeze the life out of a person with little effort. But all they’d ever done to her was hold her gently or passionately.

  His chest had a light sprinkling of hair that led to hard abs that she could only describe as magnificent. The trail of hair followed beneath his shorts, and she had to grip her hands at her sides to resist temptation. What would he taste like? She remembered his size. How much would she be able to take into her mouth?

  She had never done that before, never wanted to. And then Harrington. No, just no. That perverted pig had no place in her thoughts.

  Resuming her visual exploration, she shifted her gaze lower. Long legs, covered in black hair and bountiful muscles, flowed to big, narrow feet. Size thirteen and a half, he’d once said—they matched the rest of him.

  All in all, Brennan Sinclair’s body had seemingly been packaged to create what any sane person would describe as utter male perfection.

  She moved her gaze back up his body, intending to stop on her favorite parts for a second, maybe longer, look. When she reached his shorts, she swallowed a gasp. One part of his body had made a sizable change and was apparently ready for action.

  “Enjoying yourself?” The raspy voice, with a touch of smooth velvet, held slight amusement.

  Fire burned through her, and Kacie figured she had three choices. She could pretend she hadn’t been staring at his body like a starving woman over an all-you-can-eat dinner buffet. She could just get up and walk away without saying anything at all. Or she could move those shorts aside and let her curiosity about his taste take control.

  Instead, she opened her mouth and made the most inane, irrelevant statement she’d ever uttered. “You have ugly feet.”

  He snorted a laugh. “They get me where I need to go.”

  Of everything she could have said, why did she say that?

  “I take it you’re feeling better?”

  She forced herself to look at his face, a little surprised that his eyes were still shut. “Much. Thank you for taking care of me.”

  A slight smile curved his beautiful mouth. “My pleasure.”

  She cleared her throat. “I…um. I guess…”

  “Kacie?”

  “Yes?”

  “Kiss me good morning?”

  Brennan kept his eyes closed, wondering if she would take him up on his offer. He had been awake for several minutes, aware that she’d been staring at his body like it was some sort of statue she was trying to figure out. He hadn’t planned on saying anything, wanting to see just how long she would stare at him and what she might do. His morning wood, along with her heated perusal, halted that plan. He was now so hard that he was clenching his jaw to keep himself in check.

  He wanted her to feel comfortable with him, which meant she needed to take the initiative. If she wanted, she could get up and he’d never say anything else. But, by the look in her eyes, she wanted something else, and he wanted to give her that opportunity to take it.

  It seemed to take an eon for her to make that decision. At last, he felt a soft, sweet press of her lips against his. He smiled, and he could feel her lips smile back. Seconds later, she was off the bed and headed to the bathroom, leaving Brennan harder than ever with no relief in sight.

  After a light breakfast, she and Brennan took a long run on the beach and then used the weight room for a quick workout. Since she and David had worked late last night, Francois had been gracious enough to give them a long break. They were due back at four o’clock for another boat ride for snorkeling photos. Tonight they’d have to be photographed enjoying an elegant dinner, which meant another hour or so at the spa for Kacie.

  Neither of them had mentioned the good-morning kiss or what had led up to that offer. She was grateful for that but also couldn’t wait to see what else might happen.

  She finished a set of upper-body lifts and then wiped her face with a towel. She glanced over at Brennan, who was finishing up a set with some massive barbells. No wonder he had no issues with lifting her as if she weighed nothing.

  He was a man of great strength, both mentally and physically. He was also a man of action.

  “This assignment is probably the dullest one you’ll ever have.”

  In the middle of lifting a large barbell, Brennan finished and then replaced the weight with impressive control. “Guarding a beautiful woman in paradise? Most guys dream of this kind of assignment.”

  “You’re not most guys, though, are you?”

  His face took on a seriousness as he said, “There’s no place I’d rather be than here with you.”

  She wanted to melt at that sweet answer. When she’d first met him, his gruff, grim demeanor had been off-putting and downright scary. Now she realized that, though he was more serious-minded than lighthearted, he possessed a strong element of kindness, too.

  She sat on a workout bench, took a breath to steel her nerves, and said, “Can I ask you a question?”

  “Yes.”

  “What’s going on with us?”

  He dropped down to another bench across from her. “What do you mean?”

  Okay, he was going to make her come out and say it, and she was so not experienced at this. “I know we’re attracted to each other…I just don’t know where we go from here.”

  “Where do you want to go?”

  “You know, it’d be real helpful if you would stop answering my questions with questions.”

  “I don’t know what you want me to say, Kacie. Am I attracted to you? Most definitely. I don’t think I’ve ever been more attracted to anyone. But I’m your bodyguard, not your boyfriend. When this thing is over, we’ll probably never see each other again.”

  Exhilaration and heartbreak in one swift, compact answer. But he was right. He was here to guard her while LCR found out who was trying to hurt her. She was a job to him.

  Yet she had never felt more comfortable with another man before.

  “Can I ask you another question?”

  He nodded.

  This was going to take quite a bit more courage, but she had to take the chance. “Even though we might not see each other after this is over, would you…could we…” Crap, this was harder than she had imagined.

  Apparently realizing where she was headed, he leaned forward and took her hand. “When we tried before, I scared you. I never want to do anything like that again.”

  “It wasn’t you that scared me…it was—” Oh hell, how do you tell a man that you want to make love with him but that you’d really prefer it if he didn’t give you an orgasm?

  “What, Kacie? You know you can tell me anything. Right?”

  “I just…” No, she didn’t have that much courage. “Could we try it again? I know that doesn’t sound very sexy, but—”

  “Stop right there. There’s nothing that’s not sexy about you. Hell, you take a deep breath and I get a hard-on.”

  “Really? That’s…wow. Guess I’d better start breathing deeper more often, then.”

  “Don’t you dare. It’s damn uncomfortable to walk around like that.”

  “So…would you? I mean…could we…?”

  Still holding her hand, he pulled her until she was close and then settled her onto his lap. And she discovered that, despite her very unsexy proposal, he was very hard.

  Without worrying whether he would like it or not, she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him. Despite her attempts to seduce him with her mouth, he kept the kiss light, teasing her mouth, easy and sweet.

  And Kacie knew, no matter what happened tonight, whether she was able to go through with it or not, Brennan wouldn’t judge her. He would k
eep her safe.

  If he had the patience to try once more, then she should have the courage to try, too.

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  He had been on edge all day. In fact, Brennan didn’t know if he’d ever been more nervous in his entire life. At least not about something that had to do with sex. Since losing his virginity at age sixteen, sex had been easy, and when he’d been playing ball, from high school all the way to the NFL, it had been available to him in abundance.

  Having a beautiful woman ask him to make love to her would be a fantasy by most men’s standards. It had happened to him many times. And before he was married, he’d said yes numerous times.

  But when it came to Kacie, she was more than just a beautiful woman. She meant more to him than anyone he’d known in a very long time. If he hurt her, or damaged her trust, he’d never forgive himself.

  What courage she had, though, to come out and ask him if they could try it again. That kind of grit humbled him and made him more determined than ever that she would enjoy tonight. He didn’t care if it took all night long to help her overcome her fears, didn’t care if they had to stop and talk about it. He’d always been a man of patience and control, and he’d prove that tonight.

  He’d spent the afternoon on a giant cruiser watching Kacie and David snorkel and pretend they were having a blast. He’d never been on a photo shoot like this one before, his short stint as an underwear model notwithstanding. A three-day shoot had to be exhausting, but Kacie took it all in stride. Even when he figured she was exhausted and would much rather be lounging by the pool, when Francois told her to smile, she gave him a genuine, sunny one.

  What Brennan would consider torture, she honestly seemed to find enjoyable.

  Now, as he watched her have a romantic dinner with David, he struggled with what would happen when they went back to the bungalow. He admired her determination to pursue this when she was still obviously terrified that she would panic again, but he wondered how far that resolve would allow her to go.