Hal passed the drive to Asheville in silence. Avery spent most of the ride in puzzlement. He didn’t say or do anything that spoke to his confusion, but Hal had known his partner long enough to know his quirks—and judging by his solemn look, something was bugging his friend. What, he didn’t know, but he let the other man ride it out in his musings. Avery would share his thoughts with him later. Meanwhile Avery drove as if on autopilot.
Besides, Olivia kept drawing him in. Seated beside him, Olivia perched with her legs crossed at the ankles and the hem of her sundress brushing the tops of her knees. Hal had convinced her to sit beside him. Brave and beautiful, she had spunk, and it called to him. Like a moth to a ravaging but enticing flame, Hal was drawn. Protecting her would not only be his pleasure, but his paradise as well. He wanted her beneath him—feeling her smooth, caramel skin grow stickier under his kisses, and the triangle between those luscious thighs gush. Damn her for forcing him off kilter. All he could think about was pushing the bulbous head of his cock just inside her sweet nether lips.
“Hal?” his tormenter and temptress called.
“Yeah?” he asked, startled by the huskiness of her voice as it scraped across his ears. It made chills race down his arms and forced his stomach to ball in on itself. His cock already lay thick in his pants, making them tight.
“I said how did the locals get a hold of Mr. Grabby?”
Avery’s eyes met his via the rearview mirror.
Hal looked back at her and noted the soft blush staining her cheeks. Her gaze was fixated on his crotch.
He adjusted his position in the seat, trying to alleviate his swelling phallus and hide it at the same time. Assuming she wanted to see his horniness wouldn’t do. His assumptions had already failed him once today.
“Dunno, Avery took the call,” he said and glanced over to him.
“Oh, right,” she said, smiling.
Hal waited for her to ask about the perp and the call, but she didn’t want to talk to Avery. Sharp and observant, Olivia knew he didn’t know about the situation—she had only wanted to start a conversation with Hal. Instead of conversing with Avery, she sighed and leaned back into the soft leather seat, stretching her legs out. Her gorgeous hair brushed her nude shoulders, and the spaghetti straps clung to her flesh the way his hands wanted to. A few times he reached out to run his finger across her shoulder, like one did to taste something delicious and exotic, and caught himself.
The swell of her breasts against the flimsy fabric told him she didn’t wear a bra. She slowly opened her eyes as they pulled into valet parking, and her eyes met his. When they connected, a jolt shot through him, and his rod jumped at the look in those eyes. She blinked, and the expression vanished.
“We’re here, princess,” he said, putting emphasis on her title. The valet got the door for her, and as she got out, the sliver of well-formed thigh and the sleek outline of her leg came into view. Without warning, he touched her calf, making her gasp.
“Hal!” she said, and froze.
“Is everything all right, ma’am?” the valet asked politely, albeit slightly nasally.
“Yes, uh, of course,” she said, though his touch had clearly rattled her—whether in a good way or not, he didn’t know. She frowned at him. “I’m just fine.”
“Amen to that,” Hal added with a smirk.
They made their way through the luxury hotel in silence. Hal made sure to stay behind Olivia—to keep the gentle swish of her ass in his direct line of vision. Sure, he meant to protect her; no one followed them, except for that crazy person on a bike who popped a wheelie and flirted with their car, but hell, Avery looked menacing enough. The rider scrammed.
“Avery will get the rooms,” Hal said to her, pulling his gaze away from the round swell of her ass to scan the faces streaming through the hotel. No one stood out, although a bunch of men kept turning to check out Olivia. Bastards.
“Okay,” she said and stood out of his arm’s reach. “I actually already have a room here.”
“You don’t now,” Hal said, sternly, frowning at bit.
“I’m not sharing a room with you, if that’s what you’re thinking. I’m more than capable of taking care of myself and staying in the room I rented. My belongings are there.”
Hal stepped closer to her and again fought down the urge to kiss her hard on the mouth.
“No. I said no, and that ain’t up for argument, princess,” Hal grunted.
“Here are the keys,” Avery said, his deep voice rumbling through the space between them like a low riding storm. “I…I gotta go check something out.”
He slapped the keycards into Hal’s open palm and made a beeline to the rear of the hotel, toward a woman dressed in a pair of lightweight linen pants and a pink chemise, trying to reach her before the crowd overtook her. But once it cleared, she was gone, and so was Avery.
“This one is yours,” Hal said, making his voice light. Frightening her off, or even better, pissing her off would only keep her at bay. And he didn’t want her at all far away. He wanted all that luscious body wrapped up inside his arms, rubbing against his abs and making all the parts of his body warm. “Come on.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you. I’m fine. Your attempts to make me slink back to a hotel room with you aren’t going to work,” she said. She reached into her large Coach satchel and pulled out a keycard. “I’m going to my room.”
Hal didn’t argue but followed behind her again, seduced by the sway of her ass beneath the flimsy fabric. The bustling screams, laughter, and yells of alcohol-induced happiness crammed down the narrow hallway to the rear elevators. In the grand ballroom, several groups of red and pink hats milled about the area. Women dressed in shades of red, pink and fuchsia drifted about, laughing and drinking.
The Inn at Biltmore boasted two hundred and four rooms, and the only one he wanted to get into was hers. To be honest, he didn’t give a damn where she slept as long as it was next to him. Patience had never been Hal’s strong suit, and Olivia had worn it down to the threads. Holding on to it had become very slippery.
The doors of the elevator slipped to a hush, and he released a breath he hadn’t even known he’d held.
Olivia stood opposite him, holding the railing inside the car as if she expected to plummet to the depths of the shaft any minute now. Her almond-shaped eyes met his, and she swallowed hard. The glossy mahogany panels and lush carpet made the inside of the elevator car look like an elegant sitting room.
Hal could smell her desire beneath the floral scent of jasmines being pumped into the car with the lazy piano music. He pressed the stop button, and the car came to a jolting halt. Without waiting, he stalked over to her and pinned her between the wall, the railing, and his fucking hormones. He leaned down and inhaled the sweetness of her perfume, dipping his head further into the cradle of her neck. She swallowed so hard he heard her, but it was the rapid beating of her heart, pressed against his chest, that told him her desire had revved up to a steady gallop.
She hadn’t told him to move, to get or to back the fuck up.
He placed a single kiss at the base of her neck, right at the beginning of her collarbone.
“Ah,” she cried, relaxing into him. He felt her hands clutch his jacket.
Encouraged, he dropped a few more light, soft kisses across her collarbone, tasting the salty sweetness of her skin, licking it up like he would an ice cream cone, smiling briefly as her nipples pebbled. Her nails raked over his jacket, up into his hair, seconds before she clutched it into her fists. She yanked his hair, forcing him to grunt as she lifted her face to his.
“You manipulative bastard.” She sighed and spread her legs wide, allowing his narrow hips to slip in between them.
He smirked at her before kissing her, pulling her full bottom lip into his mouth and tugging on it with his teeth. She groaned, melting even more into him and rotating her hips against his swollen cock. Growing more eager, she pushed her lips against his, and he gently pried them apart. His tongue darted i
nto her mouth like a bee dipping down for pollen again and again, as he tasted her. Moaning as he softly sucked her tongue, Olivia wrapped her arms around his neck and held him fast. Her smooth, creamy mocha legs slipped around his calves.
The jolt of the car climbing again made him release her.
“What the hell?”
“I think it starts after a few minutes, after they run diagnostics,” she explained, a bit out of breath. She didn’t release him, but she did stand up on her heels by herself. “You nearly had me there.”
“Yeah,” he said, putting his arm around her waist. “Nearly ain’t good enough, princess.”
“That’s as close as you’re gonna get, mister,” she said coolly, removing his hand before strutting through the parted metallic doors.
Chapter Four
Olivia felt him behind her. Panties drenched from her desire, she couldn’t wait to slip into the shower and wash the day down the drain. She was torn—her brain knew it didn’t make sense to mess up the elegant and ornate king-sized bed with Detective Hal, but her body sung with longing so loud, she couldn’t concentrate on anything else. She stopped at the door to Room 211. Slipping the keycard in, she felt his breath on her neck. Too close. The bastard came too damn close again.
“You want to deny it,” he whispered and reached under her dress, flipping it to her waist. He stepped right up to her, making her gasp as he pushed his hand between her thighs. She parted her legs a little, since her body had stopped listening to her brain. Thick fingers roughly shoved her lacy thong aside.
“Sweet Jesus,” he whispered. “Damn, princess.”
His words raised goose bumps across her flesh, making her instantly hot. Her nipples instantly diamond hard, she thrust her ass against his hands, helping him find her soaked center. He moaned, low and deep as if it had been wrenched from his gut, as he slipped one finger, then another into her sizzling, soaked core.
“So wet for me,” he said against her ear. “Is it all for me, sugah?”
“Yes,” she hissed, unable to make more sounds, and failing miserably to stop the rush of heat coursing through her. She knew what would put out the fire crackling across her skin—his mouth. In and out his fingers thrust as her hips rocked in rhythm with his hand, but goodness, it wasn’t enough, not nearly enough. Long and thick, his fingers touched her core, making her pussy tremble, but she wanted more.
“More,” she croaked. Damn, she couldn’t get her mouth to form words, only one syllable at a time.
“Get in the room,” he ordered, his voice stripped down to the base of his desire. “Hurry.”
The damn keycard wouldn’t work, and she swore, but then Hal plucked it from her hand. He turned it the other direction and laughed as the light switched to green. Pushing through the door, she swallowed her doubts. She wanted him, pure and simple, and fighting him didn’t make it better. Hell yeah, Hal with the ordinary name, and the heavy Tennessee accent made it all seem sexy in a way few men ever had.
He snatched her to him and kissed her hard on the lips, pushing his tongue into her mouth, eagerly tasting her. She loved the way he took control. His strong hands lifted her up, and he tossed her lightly on the bed. He slipped out of his jacket and started undoing his tie, but his eyes, they remained locked on her. Hunger had darkened them to a deep sapphire, but the message in them came across loud and clear.
She couldn’t take her eyes off him. Beneath the designer-label clothing, smooth flesh stretched over hard-as-nails abs. He looked like an advertisement for the Bowflex Gym. She leaned forward and raked her nails across the trail of dark hairs spiraling outward. He shuddered from her touch.
“Take that thing off,” he said and grabbed a fistful of her hem. “Now, princess, ’cause I ain’t gonna be able to hold back for long.”
With her feet, she kicked off the heels. They fell to the floor. Coming up to her knees on the king-sized bed, she reached up to her shoulders and untied the tiny bows that kept the spaghetti straps from falling. Why she did what he told her to do, she didn’t know, but the command, the urgency in his voice made her all hot and wet at once. No one had ever dared to command her, or demand anything from her without a serious ass-kicking coming, but Hal made it sound so natural, so damn sexy, she couldn’t help herself.
She loved it.
“Damn, you’re fucking beautiful, princess,” he said, unfastening his belt and allowing his slacks to drop down to his ankles. Inky black boxer briefs hugged those hardened thighs. He looked like he rode a bicycle and did squats for breakfast. Not that she gave a damn how he got those thighs, but she knew without a doubt she wanted to ride on them. Just like she rode her scarlet BMW S1000RR—hard and fast. Hell, yeah, they’d support her and those solid abs, they’d be more than able to withstand her thighs as they wrapped around his waist.
“You like this?” he asked, smirking at her, and he pushed his boxer briefs down and stepped out of them.
“Fuck me,” she said before her mind had fully processed what she was looking at. He kicked off his shoes, removed his socks, and was at last deliciously naked. Olivia didn’t think she could yank her gaze away from his muscular form and the centralized package standing tall and begging for her mouth. Purple-tipped and solid like a log, Hal’s cock stood rigid against the air-conditioned atmosphere. It bobbed as if bowing to her, and the tiny drip of pre-cum caught her attention.
“I aim to do just that,” Hal said hoarsely and climbed onto the bed.
With his lips locked over hers, he snatched the sundress from her body, lifting her with his powerful hands and cradling her in his arms before setting her back down on the soft covers. Naked except for her lacy scarlet thong, Olivia couldn’t stop her fingers from rubbing her swollen clit.
He released her lips and growled. “I’m going to fuck you, princess, right and damn proper.”
With that, he shoved his hand around the lace string of her panties and snapped them right off.
“Shit!” she shouted and watched as he brought the panties to his nose and inhaled her scent.
“So good,” he said and kissed her again. “I want to taste you and spend all fucking night with you, princess, but right now, I just want be buried inside you.”
“Yes, fuck yes,” she moaned, rotating her hips against him. She couldn’t control herself, or her hips, for that matter. She rubbed her index finger over her hard clit, then lifted her finger to his mouth. He licked her finger before slipping it into his mouth and sucking gently on it. She crumbled, and her legs opened wider. With the dew from his cock dripping on her thigh, she knew neither of them could afford much more foreplay. Hell, she was ready to come just from his kiss, and no man had ever done that to her before.
She lay back onto the lush bed and sighed. The soft comforter and firm pillows made her hum in joy. Hal parted her legs and bent down to kiss the inside of her thighs, the back of her knees, and the sides as well. Unable to stand it, she squirmed as each little brush of his lips made her clit throb and her core ache so damn much.
“Stop teasing, Hal!” she breathed, shoving her hand into his hair. She tugged his mouth closer to the apex, wanting to feel that delightful tongue of his pressed hard against her throbbing love button. Hell, she wanted it to sound off. “Lick my pussy!”
“Yes, ma’am,” he purred against her hot mound.
He ran his fingers across her shaved pussy, drawing invisible circles and causing her to dance. She wanted him inside her, but he wanted to take his time.
“Hal!” she shouted and yanked his head closer to her very wet garden.
“Gimme me a minute or two, princess.”
“Now, fuck, now!” she bellowed, not giving a damn if the people next door heard her begging.
Hal slipped a finger into her dripping canal and kissed her clit, slipping his pillow-soft lips around it.
“Shit!” she squealed, bucking for more than his finger, aiming to get more of his mouth.
At the same exact moment she screamed, music floate
d up around them. It took her a second to recognize the song: it was the theme from Shaft.
“Who the fuck?” Hal swore and then pressed his tongue against her clit, licking and flicking it like he owned it.
Olivia closed her eyes and fell into the sensations crashing over her. She kept her hand on Hal’s head, holding him in place, just in case he thought about moving. He ate her out like a starved man at a Burger King. But his fingers wouldn’t be enough, not nearly enough. He’d proven that already. That thick and long piece of equipment she’d witnessed earlier would do the trick, and then some.
There! Music again.
Hal sat back on his heels and said, “It’s Avery.”
“So?”
“So, he’s my partner. I’ve got to take this,” Hal said and raised up on his knees. He gazed at her with raw hunger, until she saw him force himself to look away. The muscle in his jaw pulsated, and he clenched his teeth.
He started to reach down for his pants when she snaked her arms around him and pulled him gently into her embrace. She kissed his mouth, tasting her essence on his lips.
“Princess, I’m protecting you and technically, still on the clock,” he explained gently.
She locked her legs around his waist and pulled him closer. If she could just get that beautiful, full head of his cock inside her, he would forget about the phone, his partner, and the job. Kissing him once more, she moaned and thrust her hips upward. The ache raced through her.
“Give me,” she whispered before she kissed his throat. Raking her nails gently down his muscular back, she added, “All that wonderful cock.”
“Don’t worry, sugah, you gonna get it,” he said back and nibbled on her ear. “Right now.”
Three hard knocks echoed straight through the room and made Hal growl like a mad beast.
“Who the hell is knocking like the police?” Olivia asked, the mood fleeing as she scooted up to a sitting position.
“Somebody better be dead!” he snapped, glaring at the door.
Chapter Five
Operative Attraction Page 3
