by Jess Dee
“Can you please not say it?”
Daniel nodded slowly. “All right. We’ll play it your way.” Because he couldn’t help it, he added, “For now.”
The look she shot at him was deadly.
They were quiet for a few minutes, the air between them tense. Then she touched his arm. “Thank you. For not pushing the issue.”
He shrugged and looked around. It was almost dark. “Come on. I’ll walk you home.”
Together they set off for her flat, which was a couple of blocks from the beach. They walked in silence, neither saying anything until they reached her unit.
“Danny”—she closed the front door behind them and looked into his eyes—“I know I’m being unfair. But life without you would be too horrible to consider. I don’t ever want to have to.”
“I understand.” One of the reasons he needed to move slowly was for fear of losing her. If she ran from him now, he’d curse his hastiness until the day he died. “But you need to know what you’re rejecting if you insist on keeping things platonic.”
He watched her mind working, could almost see her brace for whatever he might say, determined to contradict his argument with a brilliant defense strategy of her own.
So he never said a word. In a whirl of motion, he wound his arm around her neck, pulled her close, and kissed her.
He expected her to resist, to fight him off, but she didn’t. Maybe she was too stunned. Maybe she didn’t want to. Whatever the case, her lips accepted his immediately and parted to give his tongue access to her mouth. Its velvety warmth seared him and played havoc with his libido. He’d been semi-hard since watching her at the beach. Now even her slightest movement played havoc with his self-restraint.
Her nipples beaded against his chest, and he pressed against them. A moan escaped her as she deepened the kiss.
Damn, the woman could kiss.
His toes curled, and his balls grew heavy.
Slowly but deliberately, he withdrew his tongue from the silky confines of her mouth and continued to hold her while he rubbed his chest against her soft breasts and tight buds.
“Give me five minutes of your time, Morgan. Five minutes, and I promise I’ll get out of your hair.” He nibbled her chin and jawline.
A soft sigh of indecision escaped. “This is a very, very bad idea.”
“Five minutes. That’s all. What can happen?”
Still she looked uncertain. He nipped at her earlobe, and she shivered. He made a mental note to give her earlobe a lot more attention in the future. “Five minutes.”
Again, she hesitated, so he nibbled her lobe.
“Okay. But that’s all. No more.”
He kissed her again. Only it wasn’t her lips his mouth ravaged now. It was her breasts. Pausing only to push her shirt up, he dipped his head and covered her white lace–clad nipple with his lips. Taking the bud in his mouth, he sucked.
The lace scraped her nipple under his assault, so he soothed it with his wet tongue, hoping the combination of sensations would drive her as insane as it was driving him.
It did. Amy shuddered and moaned his name.
Before moving to her other breast, Daniel popped the front clasp of her bra. The fabric gave way and her breasts sprang free. He pushed the lace aside and stopped dead for a couple of seconds, merely staring at her exposed chest. A strangled sound escaped from his mouth.
Her tits were incredible.
He whispered his appreciation, and she broke out in gooseflesh. “Your breasts…Christ, they’re beautiful. Round and firm. And inviting. And your nipples. They’re so hard. So aroused.” He laved first one and then the other with his tongue. “Like me.”
Her breathing became labored as she shook in his arms.
“I could spend hours kissing them, licking them. Like this.” He sucked one breast. Kissed it, caressed it, nibbled the erect pink bud while she shivered and groaned. His gaze flew to the clock. “But I only have four minutes left.”
He got down on his knees and trailed kisses from her breasts to her belly button. The gentle curve of her stomach was soft and firm, the skin around it satin to the touch. Some other time he’d explore it more thoroughly. The clock was ticking.
Her pants sat low and tight around her hips. He pushed them down over her curves. Her arms fluttered at her side, a pitiful attempt to stop him. Ignoring them, he planted a kiss on each hip and rested his nose on her panties, just above her clit.
Her legs shook, a nonsensical word escaping from her throat.
Oh man, she was so hot. Her heat pulsated through her panties. Like her bra, they were white and lacy and barely covered the trimmed hair on her mound.
He had to taste her.
Now.
He swept her up in his arms and marched to her dining table. As he kicked a chair out of the way, he settled her on the edge of the table and tugged off her shoes while peeling her pants off.
“Lie back, babe.”
She stared at him, her eyes hooded.
Three minutes and counting. His finger traced a line over her panties from her clit to her slit. “Lie back.”
With a soft groan, she complied.
Her panties were off, her legs spread wide, and for a full fifteen seconds, he did nothing but stare.
She was a goddess. Her butt was perched on the edge of the table, her knees bent, her secrets exposed. A sex goddess. His balls grew heavy, and he fought down the furious need to bury himself in her wet depths. God help him, he loved her, wanted to make love to her so badly. Her nipples were taut and erect and pointing skyward. Lord, how he ached to take them in his mouth again.
But first he had to taste her.
He buried his nose in her mound and licked her with the tip of his tongue.
Her reaction was so violent she nearly shot off the table, so he placed an arm under each knee and held her in place. He gently blew and watched her tremble as his breath touched her lips.
“Daniel…”
He looked up and caught sight of her swollen breasts.
“I’d love to suck your nipples, babe, but I can’t. I’m going to kiss you here instead.” He blew again.
Her legs bucked under his arms.
“Touch your tits, babe. Do it for me.”
Her breathing sharpened, and she whipped her head from side to side.
“Let me see you rub your nipples, pleasure yourself.” He licked her, filling his mouth with her sweet nectar, and she groaned in response. He licked her again, caught the moisture as it oozed out of her. “Touch them,” he coaxed.
When she did, he nearly came.
Delicate feminine hands cupped her breasts and massaged. Long fingernails, painted a sexy red, squeezed her nipples. She began to pant.
Blood emptied into his groin, and he forced himself to take a steadying breath. He fastened his mouth to her and ran his tongue between her folds, dipping it in to taste. The tempo he set was at first slow and then fast, alternating between licking her clit and her lips.
Breathless moaning egged him on. She was so hot and aroused she could barely keep her ass on the table.
Amy tilted her hips, pushing herself up to meet his tongue, and then relaxed back down.
Emotion boiled in his stomach, a mixture of love and need. His feelings for her couldn’t be more powerful. His need was equally urgent.
He licked faster as she moaned, watched her pinch her nipples. She thrust up again and again, her silent incitement compelling him to add pressure to his kiss.
Damn, she tasted good. Like honey and woman and sex—just like in his dream. If his cock came anywhere near her now, he’d last all of about one second. But he had no intention of fucking her today. He was saving that for another time. A time when she asked for it. Right now, he had maybe one minute left, one minute to remind her what she’d be missing out on.
He fastened his mouth on her clit and licked in slow, light motions, gaining speed and momentum with every gasp from her mouth.
“Yes,” she pan
ted above him. “Yes, yes, yes!”
He slid a finger inside her.
“Daniel. Oh God, Daniel.”
Amy screamed as he slipped a second finger in and sucked a tiny bit harder. Her muscles tightened around his hand and she came, her juices flowing onto his tongue. He lapped them up, not stopping until the final spasm rocked her body, until she lay motionless on the table, her legs hanging limply over the edge.
A quick check of the clock told him four minutes and forty-eight seconds had lapsed. Before his time was completely over, he walked around the table, leaned over, and kissed her soundly.
Five minutes.
For a heartbeat longer, his lips lingered against hers. Then, reluctantly, he moved away. She lay there on the table panting and breathless.
“That, my love, is what you’re rejecting.” His voice was raw and uneven.
Daniel straightened, shrugged his shoulders, and added, “But hey, if you want to be friends, that’s cool, too.”
Amy gawked at him.
“Gotta go.” He turned to leave.
It took every ounce of willpower not to go back to her. Not to rip off his pants and sheathe himself in her quivering, wet depths. Hell, it took every ounce of self-control to walk to the door without limping.
“Maybe we can catch a movie sometime next week? I’ll call you.” He waved good-bye, opened the door, and before closing it behind him, whistled the first few notes of a tune from The Lion King. He almost laughed out loud when he caught a last glimpse of Amy’s face, gaping at him in disbelief. For her benefit, he whistled the rest of the tune a little louder as he hobbled painfully down the corridor.
She wouldn’t come after him. After that orgasm, she’d hardly have the energy to breathe. Calling him back would probably kill her.
Chapter Seven
Amy was happy. Nope, more than that, she was absolutely, positively, 100 percent thrilled. It had been a month since Daniel had been to her flat, four weeks since he’d blown her away with his wicked, wicked mouth. In all that time, he hadn’t touched her. He hadn’t hugged her or even tried to shake her hand. He hadn’t kissed her. Not once. Not even a little kiss. Not even a peck on the cheek.
Daniel always kissed her on the cheek.
Not anymore. Now he was respecting her wishes. Keeping their friendship platonic.
She was delighted. Except maybe for the kiss-on-the-cheek thing.
Okay, so she wasn’t crazy about the fact that when they walked together, he no longer draped a casual arm around her shoulders. And maybe she felt a bit uncomfortable looping her arm through his, which over the years had kind of become habit for her.
Then there was the incident last Saturday, when he was eating his lemon meringue pie. What was that about, anyway? Their routine was standard. He’d cut off a piece with his fork, eat half of it then feed her the rest and so on, until the plate was clean.
Only last week, he ate the whole thing. The whole slice. He didn’t even push the plate over so she could help herself. She loved lemon meringue pie.
Otherwise, she was over the moon about the way their friendship was getting back to normal. Really delighted.
True, it had been a little awkward at first. Okay, it had been downright excruciating. Initially, she hadn’t known how to act around him. She couldn’t even talk without stuttering. She knew her cheeks had rivaled the color of the deep-pink tulips that were starting to blossom outside.
But things were starting to settle. Now both of them were fine. Happy as pie in their friendship. Everything was hunky-dory. Except maybe for the kiss-on-the-cheek thing.
Amy started as the phone rang, jarring through her thoughts.
“Hello?”
“Amy?” The voice was feminine and anxious.
“Yeah?”
“Hey. It’s Lexi.”
She couldn’t remember the last time she’d received a call from Lexi. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes. Um…well, no, not quite.”
Amy went cold. “What’s the matter?”
“It’s Daniel. He’s had an accident.”
Spots dotted her vision, and she struggled to breathe. “Oh God. Please no.”
“No, no. Don’t panic. It’s not serious. At least, I don’t think it’s serious. Daniel does, but then, you know Daniel. He thinks stubbing his toe is serious. It wasn’t really an accident. Well, I guess that would depend on how you define accident—”
“Lexi! What happened? Is he okay?”
“Yes, he’s fine. I think. He was kind of attacked.”
The hairs on Amy’s neck stood on end.
Visions of violent, masked men assaulting Daniel, leaving him half-dead on the pavement fighting for his life, floated before her eyes. It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility. Daniel went wherever he thought he could find a good picture, regardless of the risk he exposed himself to.
She forced air into her constricted lungs and focused on Lexi’s words as opposed to her own burgeoning fear. “What do you mean, kind of attacked?”
“Well, he was mistaken for an intruder and hit with a cricket bat.”
Her jaw dropped. “What? Who hit him?”
“See, here’s the stupid part. Um…I did.”
“You mistook your brother for an intruder and smacked him with a cricket bat?”
“I know it’s ridiculous. Dan has a key to my flat. If he comes to visit and I’m not home, he lets himself in. When I got home today, I heard someone in my kitchen. I didn’t think. I just picked up the bat and swung.”
Amy’s galloping heartbeat finally slowed to a gentle trot, her initial shock giving way to amusement. “He must have been delighted.”
“Well…he wasn’t happy. He was fast, though. Moved like lightning. Just as well, I suppose, otherwise I think I might have fractured his skull.”
“So where did you hit him?”
“I tapped him on the shoulder. That’s not how he got hurt.”
“There’s more?”
“Yeah. He was holding a glass of water. As he jumped out the way, he dropped the glass. Then he slipped in the spilled water and twisted his knee.”
Unable to dodge the absurdity of the situation any longer, Amy began to snicker. “Lucky he didn’t cut himself on the broken glass.”
“It’s not funny. Dan’s in pain.”
“Sorry. Where’s he now?”
“At home.”
“Will he be okay?”
“He’ll be fine. As soon as he realizes his injuries aren’t critical. He needs some cheering up, but he’d throttle me if he saw me now. Is there any chance you could go over to his place. You know, see how he is?”
“Yes, of course. No problem.”
“You’re a lifesaver. I’d phone Mum and ask her to go, but then I’d have to explain what happened and I’ll never hear the end of it.”
“It’ll be a pleasure. Besides, I’d like to get Daniel’s take on the whole incident.”
“Please don’t tell him I phoned. He’ll get madder at me for sending someone to look after him.”
Amy grinned. “Right, Lex. I won’t say a word. I’ll pop in for a surprise visit. I’m sure he won’t suspect a thing.”
“I owe you one. Look, I’ll call later to see how he’s doing.”
“Don’t worry so much. I’m sure he’ll be fine.”
The women said good-bye and Amy hung up with a smile. Oh yeah. She couldn’t wait to hear this story from Daniel’s perspective.
Amy pressed Daniel’s doorbell and bit the inside of her cheek. Every time she pictured Daniel slipping in the water and going down, she started to chuckle.
It was important she kept a straight face or Daniel would know right away Lexi had phoned her.
Slow, heavy footsteps sounded on the other side of the door, and then it was jerked opened. “Yeah. What is it?”
Oops. Daniel wasn’t a very happy camper.
“Morgan? What are you doing here?” If he wasn’t scowling so much, he might have looked
surprised to see her.
“I popped in to say hi. But you’re obviously not in the mood for company. I’ll come back another time.” She turned to leave.
“Wait. Don’t go. I’m a little…peeved, that’s all. Come in.”
“You sure? You look like you’d prefer to be alone.”
“I’m sure.” The frown didn’t leave his face.
Amy nodded and walked into his flat. She wasn’t about to go back on her word to Lexi. Besides, a small part of her needed to make sure he wasn’t seriously injured. As funny as the incident seemed now, hearing Daniel had been attacked hadn’t been a joke at all. It had scared the living daylights out of her. If Daniel were ever seriously injured, Amy didn’t know what she’d do.
She set her purse and a large plastic bag down on his dining room table, next to a packet of frozen veggies. She looked from the peas to Daniel and smiled. “Dinner?”
“Yeah. I was about to pour myself a bowl of frozen peas,” he said testily. “Want some?”
“Had a bad day?” Amy asked innocently. “You’re as touchy as a bear with a sore paw.”
“My paw is fine. Thank you for asking.”
“Then why are you limping?”
“I twisted my knee.”
“Ouch. How?”
“It’s not important.”
Amy raised an eyebrow. “Is it painful?”
“No.”
“Then why are you limping?”
“Okay, it’s painful. Happy?”
“How did you twist it?”
“Suffice to say, I twisted my knee, and it hurts like hell. Can we talk about something else?” He grabbed the peas, hobbled to the couch, and collapsed onto it. Stretching the long, injured leg out in front of him, he placed the vegetables on his knee and winced as the icy packet touched his skin.
Amy sat on the opposite couch. “That looks cold. It must feel like hell.”
“It’s helping with the swelling, so I can’t complain.”
“Have you taken something for the pain?”
“A couple of Nurofen. Waiting for them to work.”
“So how did it happen?”
He glared at her. “Did you come for a reason, or are you going to sit there and annoy me?”
