by Sara Fawkes
“Dani...”
Chin up, she turned around and marched back toward the castle, with Evan staring forlornly after her.
“Huh. She walks like a man. Such a waste of a pretty face.”
One of Evan’s hands curled into a fist, but Jeremiah chose that moment to step forward. “Have you had dinner yet?” he asked, addressing Evan.
It was difficult, but Evan managed to tamp down his sudden anger. “I’ve already eaten, thank you,” he said in a tight voice. “Now, if you’ll excuse me...”
“You see what I’m talking about?” The Maashole waved his hand toward Evan. “It’s like we talked about, Jeremiah, this boy isn’t interested in getting to know you or the company. He’s more interested in a piece of tail.”
Jeremiah blinked slowly, and Evan just stared. Did Preston realize how he sounded? Evan wondered if the Maashole had been drinking. Even Jeremiah looked as though he’d had enough of the bullshit, but Evan found he didn’t care.
“Mr. Hamilton, you brought me along on this trip to evaluate my potential for the position of CEO in your company. With all due respect, sir, if my performance on the job, not the golf course, hasn’t always proven to you my credentials, then I’d like to know now.”
“There’s more to this kind of position than office work,” the Maashole cut in, but neither man so much as glanced his way.
“Let him talk, Preston.”
“Sir,” Evan continued, not bothering to see how Preston had taken that order, “I received my MBA at twenty-two, have helped found and run several businesses since high school that I sold for a substantial profit. I’ve worked at Hamilton Industries for six years, working my way quickly up the ladder, and receiving glowing recommendations from my bosses. I understand today’s business world and see where the future is going. You need a new direction to keep aloft in today’s market, a younger face to move forward, and I’m it.
“Like you, I grew up in a family that placed business first. While my father was tough, he taught me how to succeed. I won’t beg for the job, I won’t try to bribe or wine and dine you. I will tell you however that if you choose the Maashole here over me, you’re empire will be declaring bankruptcy within a matter of years.”
Preston colored angrily. “Why you little...”
Evan swore Jeremiah’s lips twitched at the word “Maashole” but otherwise his face didn’t betray anything. “Are you telling me how to run my business?”
“I’m suggesting ways it could run better, yes.” Some of his earlier anxiety creeped in, but Evan shoved it aside. “Perhaps tomorrow we can talk more. I heard one of the employees here mention there’s a shooting range a few miles away from the castle, I booked a time tomorrow and you’re welcome to join me.”
He saw the immediate interest in Jeremiah’s eyes this time. “Sounds like a plan.”
Evan cleared his throat and raised his chin, tugging his shirt straight. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a lady to go find.”
The Maashole, who’d miraculously stayed silent the entire conversation, snorted. “I didn’t see a lady earlier,” he muttered to no one in particular, curling one lip.
Evan didn’t think, he just balled up a fist and let it fly. The sudden billow of pain in his knuckles was more than worth seeing Preston Maas the third stumble back and fall down on his butt, out cold.
Jeremiah stared down coolly at the prone man. “I was hoping someone would do that before I felt the need.” At Evan’s quizzical look, the CEO just shook his head. “Go, find your lady. I think it’s about time I find mine.”
Carefully stepping over Preston’s prone figure, Evan took off in the direction Dani had disappeared down, hoping he hadn’t screwed everything up.
CHAPTER EIGHT
The evening had gone well, if one didn’t count Rose’s fall or the fact her date ditched her to impress the boss. Again.
Seriously. I even shaved my legs.
Dani wanted to be madder about it, she really did, but practicality kept intruding. Evan’s whole reason for being here was work related; yes, they’d had fun, but he had a life to go back to once he was gone. Truthfully, so did she, one radically different than his.
Maybe it was better this way.
Behind her came the rising sound of shoes slapping the pavement. Someone was running up to her, and Dani considered ignoring it. She wasn’t in the mood for any more surprises today. “Look, I’m not...” she started, half-turning toward the sound.
All she got was a blink and an instant recognition of Evan’s intense look. Then he wrapped her up into his arms and laid the most glorious kiss on her lips she’d ever felt, and Dani felt her mind go blank. He wound his fingers through her hair, holding her close as he pushed her up against a nearby pillar.
Dani gave a small sigh, a needy sound that got an answering growl from Evan. Her body lit on fire at his touch, and when he ground his hips into hers, she felt his desire. She tipped her head back as his lips trailed down her throat, unable to think beyond his touch.
“Stay with me tonight,” he murmured against her ear, and Dani’s stomach fluttered as he grasped her lobe with his teeth. “Just say yes.”
Reality threatened to intrude, and she pushed it away. The way his lips were blazing trails of fire across her neck made rational thought difficult. You’ll only ever have tonight, her mind whispered, a cold splash of water to her soul. Can you give him more and still walk away?
“Please,” he whispered, leaning his head against hers. “I’ve let too many chances in life slip through my fingers because they weren’t in my plans. If I do that with you, I’ll never forgive myself.”
She looked into his eyes, the desperate yearning there burning through her. Dani felt an answering desire coil deep inside her, burning away all traces of any other option.
Her motto was YOLO, right? You only lived once.
“Yes,” she whispered, and felt the relief in his body as her took her mouth again.
*
Whatever misgivings Dani may have had on the way up to her room, they disappeared again the moment Evan’s lips touched hers. She’d held his hand through the castle, practically dragging him to her room because it was closer, paying no mind to any looks they received. She’d seen what went on here at Eden—hooking up with a guest wasn’t frowned on, and often ended happily for the pair.
Somehow, Dani couldn’t see that happening here, but she didn’t care.
They’d barely gotten through the door when he tugged at her dress, ripping it up and off her body. “Damn, I need you so bad,” he murmured against her mouth, pushing her up against the wall beside the entrance. His hand closed over Dani’s breast and she gasped, but had barely the presence of mind to shut the door behind them.
Evan reached around, grabbing her ass and lifting her up off her feet. Instinctively, she wrapped her legs around his hips and he surged forward, grinding against her core. Dani’s body came alive, nerve ending sparking with pleasure, and she moaned loudly.
“God, I want to hear you scream.”
Her nails raked his back as he ground against her, and then it was her turn to insist on nakedness. She tugged at his shirt and he quickly shed it, pressing against her for a deeper kiss.
There was no art in their touches, no desire to draw anything out. Dani fumbled between their bodies for the clasp of Evan’s pants and managed to work it open. She pushed her hand inside, wrapping her fingers around his hard length, and Evan’s breath hissed through his teeth.
His mouth went to her neck, sucking and tugging at the skin there. When Dani put a hand on his chest, giving a firm push, he set her back onto her feet and stepped back. It gave her just enough room to slither down between the wall and his body, and a curse exploded out of Evan’s mouth as Dani took him deep inside hers.
She ran her tongue along the ribbed tip of his cock, sucking on the head, and Evan’s hand tangled in her hair. “Fuck, baby,” he murmured, breathless. Grinning, Dani pulled him deep, bobbing her head up
and down, listening to him pant above her. She ran the tip of her tongue down his hard length, digging her nails into the back of his thighs, and his fingers tightened in her hair.
“The bed,” he finally managed to bite out, releasing her and helping her to her feet. They didn’t make it that far however; as they passed the couch, Evan unexpectedly flung Dani against it, bending her forward over the back. “Stay like that,” he growled, kicking her feet apart, then knelt down between her legs and set his mouth on her burning core.
Dani cried out, the sensations rocketing through her entire body. Teeth, tongue, fingers—Evan used them all, leaving Dani a quivering mess. She grabbed one of the pillows, pushing her face onto it to muffle her cries. Against her, she heard Evan chuckle, but he didn’t let off on the sensations his mouth wrought. She clung to the pillow as her pleasure built, until her whole body was quivering in abject need.
She gave a distressed cry when Evan pulled his mouth away. Her legs felt incapable of holding herself aloft, but Evan picked her up in his arms and carried her to the bed. He laid her across the sheets and Dani didn’t release her possessive hold on his arm as he hastily put on a condom, then followed her down. She pulled him back into a kiss as he positioned himself above her. When he began probing her entrance however, Dani put a hand on his shoulder and pushed.
Evan rolled over, taking her with him so she was straddling his chest. Dani raked her nails softly down his torso and Evan’s body rolled, following her touch. “You’re beautiful,” she breathed, and felt his dick jump against her backside. He was laid out before her, need and longing on his face as he stared up at her, and it made her heart clench.
He’s mine.
Leaning down over him, she rocked backwards with her hips, running her wet folds over him as her lips locked around his nipple. Evan’s fingers dug into her hips, pressing her down against him as she dragged her tongue against his chest to the other nipple. A low rumble came from his chest and Dani grinned. His hands wrapped around to clench her backside, kneading and pressing her harder against him.
Evan reared up, following Dani’s lead and took one nipple into his mouth. It was her turn to gasp as he toyed at it with his tongue, giving her breast a small bite before moving to the next. She wrapped her arms around his neck, barely even noticing when he maneuvered her over him and pressed inside.
Dani shut her eyes, whimpering in need as he oh-so-slowly filled her. Once he was inside, Evan’s hands left her hips, palming her breasts and thumbing the nipples there. Leaning down over him again, Dani rocked her hips expectantly, and his breath hitched. Grinning, she took his mouth in another scorching kiss as she moved above him, taking him deep inside her then clenching her inner muscles and pulling slowly off him.
Evan groaned. “You’ll kill a man like this,” he rasped.
“You can deal,” Dani purred, repeating the move, and Evan groaned again. She tilted her hips over him, riding him hard as the sensations built deep inside her. She shut her eyes, desperation kicking in as she moved faster, then Evan began thrusting his hips with her and she cried out.
Evan’s hand dragged up her sides until they cupped her breasts. He thumbed her nipples, and the sensation shot through Dani’s body. Evan pushed up deep inside her again, causing her to gasp, then the world tilted as they rolled sideways. He grinned down at her, his lips widening as he surged hard inside her and Dani gasped.
“My turn.”
Dani was already so close from riding him, but this was deeper, harder. Evan held nothing back, and the orgasm Dani had felt hovering roared over her, lighting up all her nerve endings. She cried out, raking her nails over Evan’s shoulders. He captured her lips but didn’t let up on his thrusts, and the waves of pleasure kept rolling over her.
He leaned down and bit her neck, sucking at the skin there, then all of a sudden pulled out. His hands were rough as he forced her over onto her belly, but Dani didn’t mind in the slightest. Her body was still humming when he looped an arm under her hips, raised her backside into the air, and pushed himself between her legs again.
The angle here felt even deeper, as if he were reaching to find her core. His thrusts lit her body up all over again, and Dani cried out in time with his thrusts. Evan’s hard breaths filled her senses, his fingers reaching around to tweak her nipples, and inexplicably another burst of pleasure built up inside her.
“Oh god,” he murmured, laying his forehead against the back of her shoulder, and Dani knew he was close. She tilted her hips up more, bearing down, and felt her own orgasm take her just as Evan gave a stuttered cry. His teeth closed over her shoulder, and she felt him pulse inside her as he came.
Without disengaging, he wrapped his arms around her chest and pulled them sideways so they were spooning. Neither was inclined to move, but Dani shifted. “You want to clean up?”
“Give me a minute,” Evan murmured, nuzzling her neck. Dani subsided, enjoying the feel of his arms around her too much to care. She hugged his arms to her chest, laying a soft kiss against one knuckle of his hand, and Evan tightened his hold on her body.
I could stay like this forever, she thought, and tried not to delve too deeply into whether that would be a problem or not.
CHAPTER NINE
“So, how did you get to be working on the island?”
Evan lay beside Dani, staring down at her naked form. His free hand was making slow circles around her belly button, tracing the dips and curves of her stomach and hip bones. Dani’s eyes fluttered closed and she gave a small sigh. “Would you believe that it fell into my lap?”
“Seriously?”
She nodded, folding her arms under her head. Evan was content, for now at least, just touching her, and she seemed to be enjoying it. Already he wanted...“So my bike had broken down in a Costa Rican monsoon. I’d only just managed to find someone with a truck willing to take me to the nearest village...”
Evan’s hand stopped in surprise, and Dani gave a mewl of dismay. He hadn’t been expecting anything like that. “Hang on, rewind that story a bit and start again.”
Dani gave him an impish grin. “I had just finished with Carnival down in Guatemala, which has one of the most insane celebrations I’ve ever seen. Carnival is basically what Mardi Gras is to the southern states here in the US, except that all of Central America celebrates it. I’d been told that Mazatenango, Guatemala is the place to go, so I arranged to be there in time for Carnival.”
“What was it like?”
“Crazy!” She laughed at the memory. “I’ve been to Mardi Gras down in New Orleans before and that’s its own kind of insanity, but this was...incredible. The colors, the parades, the dancing. There’s always something to do, especially at night. There’s an air of pure fun and folks just want to have a good time.”
Dani trailed off, smiling, and Evan swallowed. She was so beautiful like that, laid out before him, but he wanted to hear more of her stories. “So, afterwards?”
She snorted. “Ever been in a tropical rainstorm? I’d timed my trip to coincide with the Central America dry season in the hopes of having good riding weather. I’d arranged passage on a ship in Panama and needed to be there by a specific date, but I thought I was fine. Just as I was leaving Mazatenango though, unseasonal rains moved in.
“The way out is through hilly terrain, and even with my knobby tires I had problems. Still, I managed to make it to the border with time to spare, only to have my chain break on me. So imagine me on the side of the road in the rain, trying to fix my chain while buses carrying folks from Carnival passed, spraying me with more muddy water.”
Evan’s lips turned up in a smile at the image, and Dani slapped his arm. Undaunted, Evan scooted himself back and lay beside her on the bed, folding his arms across her belly and laying his chin atop them. “Keep going, this is just getting interesting.”
She shot him a narrow-eyed look but continued. “Anyway, I managed to get it fixed enough to get me into Costa Rica three days later. I’d hoped to get a new cha
in and sprockets in San Jose since the one I had was borked, but it broke again on me right after the border.
“So there I was, having to push my bike down a muddy road, soak to the bone with rain and mud. I’d finally found a ride to the largest town and was waiting for the truck to show up when out of nowhere this helicopter appears. Mind you, it’s pouring rain outside, but this thing touches down in this tiny area and out jumps a man in a suit. Comes straight up to me and hands me a letter without a word.”
“What was it?” Evan asked.
“My invite here to the island.” She was staring at the ceiling, lost in the wonder of the memory. “At first I thought they had the wrong person, but as he held a large umbrella over me, I saw it really was my name on the envelope. I opened it and inside was a gold invitation, made out to me, inviting me to spend time at someplace called Eden.”
Dani trailed off, and Evan nudged her. “I’m assuming you got a lift from something other than that truck,” he teased, and she glared at him.
“There comes a time in a girl’s life when she needs more than tents and sleeping bags. I was tempted to say no simply because it sounded too good to be true, but...what if it wasn’t? What sort of adventure would I be missing? And seriously,” she added with a snort, “what could be worse than that muddy little patch of rainforest?”
“Damn.” Evan squinted at her. “You’re not having me on, are you?”
She grinned. “Got the whole thing on video at my website, if you wanna check it out sometime.” She nudged him. “How did your invite come?”
“In the mail.” Evan deflated. When had his life ever had that kind of adventure? “I guess I’m pretty boring compared to you.”
“If you’d met me five years ago, you’d be singing a different tune.”
“Oh?” Evan asked, intrigued again, but this time she shook her head.
“If we’re opening up and spilling secrets, it’s your turn. What made you want to become a businessman?”
