by Elle James
He unwound her arms from around his neck and pressed her back against the mattress. “Let me show you how good it can be.”
“Just don’t take forever. I’m really a quick learner, and I want you. What more do we need?” she said, her voice quivering.
“If you have to ask, you don’t know.” Then he kissed a path across her cheek and down the side of her neck. He didn’t stop until he brushed his lips over the swell of her breast, taking the nipple into his mouth. He tongued the tip until it formed a hard, little bead that he then rolled between his teeth.
Reese moaned. She cupped the back of his head and guided him to the other breast, where he then performed the same treatment. When he had her squirming beneath him, he moved down her torso, flicking his tongue across her skin, dipping into her belly button and then moving lower to the tuft of hair at the juncture of her thighs.
Her body stiffened.
“Are you afraid I won’t stop?” he asked and blew a stream of air across the curls.
“No, I’m afraid you will stop. Please, don’t.” She widened her thighs, giving him better access to his goal. He dropped to his knees and looped her legs over his shoulders. Then he parted her folds with his thumbs and touched the strip of nerve-packed flesh at her center with the tip of his tongue.
She gasped and arched her back off the bed. “Oh, please.”
He chuckled. “Please, what?”
“Do it again.”
“As you wish,” he said, breathing warm air over her heated flesh. He flicked her again, this time staying long enough to swirl his tongue the length of the nubbin, drawing from her a long, low moan.
He swirled and pressed a finger to her entrance, pleased by how damp and ready she was. Still licking and flicking, he slid a finger inside her channel.
Reese bucked off the mattress and laid a hand over his.
He froze, afraid he’d scared her.
When she curled her fingers around his hand and urged him deeper, he wanted to yell hallelujah. He sent another finger into her and then another, stretching her and pumping in and out to prepare her for when he came to her.
Her juices drenched his fingers, making him so hard, he couldn’t hold out much longer. He flicked and swirled until she raised her feet, still wearing the shoes, and dug them into the mattress. Sweet heaven, she was sexy, pushing her hips up as her body pulsed and trembled with her release.
Diesel didn’t stop what he was doing until her bottom lowered to the bed. Then he pushed to his feet, reached into the nightstand for the accordion of condom packages he’d stashed there earlier when Reese had been in the bathroom. He tore one off, opened it and rolled it down over his throbbing shaft.
Then he hooked her knees in his arms and pulled her bottom to the edge of the bed, nudging her soft, wet entrance with his hardness. “Are you okay with this? I can stop now.”
“Oh, please, whatever you do, don’t stop now.” She wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him into her.
He entered her slowly, giving her body a chance to adjust to his length and girth. When he’d sunk all the way to the hilt, he stopped, breathing in and out, afraid he’d scare her if he went too fast.
“Faster,” she said on a gasp. “Faster and harder. I want to feel every bit of you.”
He obeyed, sliding out and then back in, increasing the pressure and the force with every thrust.
Reese flung back her head and arched off the bed, tightening her thighs to bring him deeper.
He pumped in and out of her until his body tensed and heat radiated from his center, sending electric tingles out to the very tips of his fingers and toes. Diesel thrust into her one last time and held her tightly against him, his shaft throbbing inside. His heart was pounding so hard in his chest, he thought it might break his ribs.
When he finally came back to earth, he gathered Reese in his arms and scooted her up onto the bed, laying her head on a pillow. Then he dropped down beside her, spooned her body from behind and cupped a breast. He kissed the curve of her shoulder. “Are you okay?”
“I don’t think I’ll ever be okay again,” she said, her voice sexy and gravelly. She wiggled her body against his. “I’ll forever be fabulous. Okay is for underachievers.” She laid a leg over his and wrapped his arms around her. “Thank you.”
Diesel chuckled.
“What?” She turned her head in an attempt to look at his face.
“Nothing. You just make me happy.” He pulled her closer, kissed her temple and reflected on how incredibly lucky he’d been to find her in the jungle.
His life couldn’t be better than at that moment. Tomorrow they’d have to sort through what had just happened, but tonight was everything he could have dreamed of.
“Diesel?” Reese said, her voice barely above a whisper.
“Yeah, babe?” He brushed her hair aside and kissed her shoulder.
“Do you really think Sabando’s brother will try something stupid while the delegates are attending the conference?”
“I don’t know. But there are a lot of important people here from all over the world. If his brother is desperate enough, he might.”
Reese lay quietly for several minutes.
Diesel thought she’d gone to sleep.
“Diesel?”
“Yeah, babe?”
“Do you think your team will get here in time?”
He chuckled. “You bet. It might be overkill to bring them here, but I’d rather have overkill and nothing happen than do nothing and innocent people die.”
Silence settled in around them. Sleep was just a blink away.
“Diesel?”
“Mmm?”
Reese yawned and stretched her lithe, sexy body against his. When she settled back into him, she sighed. “What’s going to happen tomorrow?”
“At the conference? I have no clue.”
“No,” she whispered. “Between us?”
“I don’t know, but we’ll figure out something.”
She hugged his arm around her and pressed it to her breasts.
Diesel’s body jerked awake, his groin tightening at her touch. He willed his desire to recede.
Reese needed her sleep, and so did he. Tomorrow might be more of an event than even the attendees anticipated. At least his team would be there to provide backup.
Chapter Nine
A firm knock on the door in the outer room of the suite broke through the dead of sleep Reese had fallen into. For a moment, she lay comfortable, surrounded by the luxury of clean sheets and an incredibly soft mattress. She didn’t want to wake up, but the incessant knocking forced her to open her eyes.
Diesel was already out of the bed, running for the other room, stark naked. Through the open bedroom door, Reese could see him snatch up his suit trousers from the floor where he’d left them and jam his legs into them. Half running, half hopping, he made it to the door on the third round of knocking. A quick peek through the peephole, and he flung the door wide.
“Damn, you guys got here fast,” he said quietly and opened the door wide, grinning.
Five hulking men, dressed in dark pants and T-shirts stretched tightly over broad chests and massive biceps, tumbled into the room.
Reese yelped, rolled out of the bed and dropped to floor on the other side, where she’d laid her suitcase. She dug through, searching for her workout clothes and sports bra. While lying on the floor, she dressed quickly, her heart pounding, and her cheeks on fire.
When she was convinced all pertinent parts were covered, she straightened, pretending that getting up off the floor of a hotel room was a natural occurrence. She could have been exercising for all they knew.
And pigs might learn to fly.
Diesel’s men would all know she’d been in bed with their teammate as soon as they caught sight of the discarded clothing on the sitting-room floor.
The man she’d made love with stood in the middle of the group of men, each back-slapping and filling each other in on the other’s st
ories.
Reese stepped into the room and cleared her throat.
Diesel turned, grinned and held out his hand for her.
She took his and allowed him to draw her into the circle of his friends.
“Guys, you remember Reese Brantley. Reese, this is just part of my team. Apparently, they only got clearance to send them, no more. Which is probably for the better. Too many SEALs in a public place would raise red flags all over the world.”
Reese remembered most of their faces from the boat ride the day before. “Hi. I’m sorry, I don’t remember your names.”
Diesel pointed to a man about the same height as him with black hair and brown eyes. “This is Harmone Payne.”
He held out his hand. “Harm.”
“I don’t understand.” Reese took his hand, a frown drawing her brows together. “I have no intention of harming you.”
Harm laughed. “The team calls me Harm.”
Heat climbed into her cheeks. “Oh. Sorry. Harm, it is.”
“You remember me, Graham Buckner.” A brown-haired man with bright blue eyes held out his hand. “You can call me Buck.”
“Percy Taylor.” Another hand was shoved toward her by a man with short dark hair and hazel eyes. He was stockier than the others and built like a freight train. “But you might remember me as Pitbull.”
“On account he looks like one,” Diesel said.
“And smells like one,” Buck added.
Pitbull swung a fist at Buck, hitting him hard in the shoulder.
Reese flinched, imagining the pain of that meaty fist on her own shoulder. But Buck didn’t seem to notice.
“I’m Trace McGuire.” A man with dark auburn hair and blue eyes held out his hand.
Buck leaned close. “That’s T-Mac to most.”
The biggest man in the room stepped forward. Reese remembered him. “Jake Schuler.” He had dark blond hair and gray eyes. He tipped his head toward his buddies. “You’ll remember me as the one called Big Jake.”
Reese smiled at the men. Even at five-foot-eight, she felt dwarfed by their size and extra-large, alpha-male personalities. “Have you been up all night?” she asked.
“We have,” Big Jake said. “We could use some shut-eye, but the front desk said the hotel was full. We thought we’d let you know we were here before we looked for other accommodations.”
Diesel shook his head. “You aren’t likely to find anything nearby. Not with the convention in town.”
Buck glanced around the suite. “There’s enough room here. We could catch a few Z’s.”
The corners of Reese’s mouth quirked upward. “On the floor?”
“Lady, we’ve slept on worse,” Buck admitted. “The floor would be heaven.”
Harm nodded. “We only need a couple hours to recharge our batteries.”
“Do you mind?” T-Mac asked.
Reese laughed and frowned. “Not at all. Are you sure you’ll be all right on the floor?”
“Perfectly,” Big Jake yawned. “I could sleep on a bag of rocks about now.”
“Hopefully it won’t be that bad.” Reese hurried for the bedroom. “I’ll get some pillows and whatever blankets I can find. But you might want to keep it down. The hotel staff will kick us all out if they find out I’ve got six men in my room.”
Diesel grabbed their clothes from where they’d landed on the floor and tossed them on the bed. Then he helped her gather the spare blankets and pillows from the closet, and a couple from the bed, and carried them out to the five men stripping out of their shirts and boots.
Reese’s eyes widened at all of the muscles on display. She was in every woman’s paradise.
Diesel nudged her with his elbow. “Hey, don’t get any ideas. I’d like to think you’re all mine.”
She smothered a giggle. “You can’t blame me. It’s like looking at works of art.” Reese dropped the pillows and blankets on the sofa. “I believe that sofa folds out into a bed.”
“I call it,” T-Mac said.
“Sorry, dude. I’m pulling rank on this one.” Big Jake nudged the auburn-haired SEAL out of the way. “You can have the cushions.”
“Deal. Actually, that sounds better anyway.” T-Mac gathered the cushions from the sofa and carried them to a corner of the sitting room.
Pitbull snagged a pillow and stretched out in front of the floor-to-ceiling window. He didn’t ask for a blanket or a spare sheet. He lay down and closed his eyes. Within seconds, his chest began to rise and fall in deep, restful breaths.
Harm draped his body over a large chair and was snoring within seconds.
Buck grabbed a pillow. “Do we need someone to stand watch?”
“Not tonight,” Diesel said. “We’ll come up with a plan in the morning. I’m not sure I can get all of you into the convention center. But having you close by will be a relief.”
Buck nodded to Diesel and Reese. “Okay, then. I’m catching a few Z’s. See you two when the sun comes up.” The big man found an empty space near the door.
Big Jake unfolded the bed from inside the sleeper sofa and dropped onto the thin mattress. He gave Diesel a salute, crossed his arms over his chest and closed his eyes.
Diesel clasped Reese’s hand in his and led her back to the bedroom and closed the door.
“How do they do that?” Reese asked, amazed at how quickly they settled in for sleep.
“Do what?”
She shook her head. “Go to sleep so fast?”
“Part of it is that they’re tired. That, and they’re used to grabbing a nap whenever and wherever they can. You never know when you’ll get to sleep again.”
Reese nodded. “Like when we were in the jungle.”
“Exactly.” He pulled her into his arms and kissed her soundly. “As much as I’d like to make love to you again, we should get some sleep, as well.”
“Yeah, you two need to sleep,” Buck called out from the other side of the door. “We don’t need reminders of how lonely we are out here.”
“Speak for yourself, dirtbag. You can always snuggle up to me,” T-Mac said.
“In your dreams,” Buck shot back.
Reese’s face heated, but she chuckled. “Sleep it is.” She could have gone for another round of lovemaking with her handsome SEAL but not with an audience of five of his buddies on the other side of what appeared to be a paper-thin bedroom door.
Diesel stroked his thumb along the side of her cheek. “Do you want me to sleep out there with the guys?”
She frowned. “Hell, no.”
“Does it bother you that they know we’re sleeping together?”
Reese stood on her toes and pressed a kiss to his lips. “I’m a grown woman. What I do and who I sleep with is my business, and I don’t give a damn what anyone else thinks.”
“You tell him, Reese,” Buck said.
Diesel growled. “Go to sleep, Buck.”
“I would, if you two would stop yammering,” Buck grumbled.
Reese took Diesel’s hand and led him to the bed. She lay down, fully dressed in her workout clothes.
Diesel stripped out of his trousers and slipped beneath the sheets, pulling her body against his.
She touched a finger to his chest. “I want to get closer, but—”
“Shh. There are far too many men in this suite. Go to sleep knowing that at least you’re safe.”
She pressed her ear to his skin, listening to the strong, steady beat of his heart, her own swelling inside. This was a man worth keeping. Someone she could easily fall for. Too bad they were in such difficult jobs. They’d never find time to be together. She’d have to settle for what little time they had together for the next couple days. Her memories would have to carry her for a long time. Finding someone like Diesel would be impossible. He’d set the bar for her. No one else would ever do. Eventually, exhaustion claimed her, and Reese slipped into a troubled sleep.
* * *
DIESEL LAY FOR a long time, wishing the guys hadn’t come as soon as they
had, but glad they were there.
He wanted to make love to Reese again, but the others would hear and give him and her hell. Until they made it through the conference and got Reese and Klein on their way back to the States, he would just have to abstain. But it was hard. Really hard.
When he finally went to sleep, it felt like only moments before an alarm blared on the nightstand nearby.
Reese reached out and turned it off, and then rolled over into his arms and kissed him. “They can’t hear if I kiss you,” she whispered, and did it again.
Diesel gathered her close and took her mouth, thrusting his tongue past her teeth to spar with hers. He could get used to waking up every day to this strong, beautiful woman.
But he was a SEAL. He would always be on call and deploy at the drop of a hat. He’d seen too many SEALs divorce within the first few years of marriage. Their wives couldn’t stand the uncertainty, never knowing when they would be home, or if they would arrive in a body bag.
Reese deserved better. After what she’d been through at the hands of the Taliban terrorists, she deserved someone who could be there to protect her every day, not just a part-time lover who would enter and leave her life at the whim of the navy.
He kissed her hard, wishing they could stay in bed for the entire day, but knowing they had a job to do. He smacked her bottom. “You can have the bathroom first. I want to work with the guys to come up with a plan.”
“I want to be in on the planning, too,” she insisted.
“Then you better hurry. Your boss’s meetings begin in less than an hour, and my guys will want to grab something to eat before the fun begins.”
“Going,” she said, grabbed his ears and pulled him to her again for another kiss. Then she scrambled from the bed and raced to the bathroom.
Diesel pulled on his suit trousers and walked out of the bedroom.
T-Mac crouched by the window, unpacking items from a duffel bag, laying them out on the floor.
Harm was checking out the coffee maker. “One lousy cup. Why bother?” He glanced up as Diesel entered the room. “We have to make a run for coffee.”
“We will, after we discuss the mission.” Big Jake pulled a polo shirt over his head and tucked it into his khaki pants. “What are the chances of us getting into the conference?”
