by Tawny Weber
She shifted her gaze to the gardens beyond the French doors, pretending she found the sight peaceful. Fingers clenching and unclenching around the stem of her glass, she took a couple of deep breaths and focused on pulling the soothing air down to her belly until she found some semblance of calm.
Then she looked back at the group of men who’d just walked into the mansion.
Her heart raced again. Emotions spun through her, too fast to identify. It didn’t matter. She didn’t care what they were. Only that they spun right back out.
“Why is he...they here?” she asked, hoping Livi hadn’t caught her slip of the tongue.
“The team? You don’t think Mitch would celebrate our engagement without his SEALs, do you?” Livi asked with a laugh. Then, before Tessa realized what her friend was going to do so she could have grabbed her arm to stop her, Livi gave a big ol’ exuberant wave.
As one, the men looked their way.
But Tessa only saw one man.
Taller than the rest, his shoulders broad and tempting beneath a lightweight sport coat the same vivid black as his eyes, he wore a simple dress shirt under his jacket, yet managed to look perfectly elegant.
His gaze locked on her, sending a zing of desire through her body with the same intensity as it had the first time he’d looked her way six months before.
Tessa Monroe, the woman who’d flicked off movie stars, who’d written articles calling out misogynists and who always—always—came out on top when it came to any encounter with the opposite sex, wanted to duck behind her friend and hide.
“That’s so sweet of his friends to come all this way to celebrate your engagement to Mitch,” she said hopefully, watching Livi’s fiancé stride through the crowd to greet the group with back slaps and what looked to be laughing taunts. “Isn’t most of Mitch’s team stationed across the country?”
“They didn’t have to come far. They’re all based in Coronado now. Didn’t I tell you?” Livi asked, her eyes locked on Mitch as if she could eat him up with her gaze alone. “Romeo’s the best man.”
Romeo.
Tessa’s smile dropped away as dread and something else curled low in her belly.
Her gaze cut across the room, honing in on the man she’d secretly dubbed her personal kryptonite after just one meeting. And had judiciously avoided ever since.
Gabriel Thorne. Aka Romeo.
His eyes were still locked on her.
At least a hundred feet separated them, but Tessa could see the heat in that midnight gaze.
It was as if he could look inside her mind and deep into her soul and see everything she’d hidden away. All of her desires, her every need, her secret wants.
A wicked smile angled over his chiseled face, assuring her that he not only saw them all, but that he was also quite sure that he could fulfill every single one. And in ways that would leave her panting, sweaty and begging for more.
There was very little Tessa didn’t know about sex. She appreciated the act, reveled in the results and had long ago mastered the ins and outs of, well, in and out. She knew how to use sex, how to enjoy sex and how to avoid sex.
So if anyone had told her that she’d feel a low, needy promise of an orgasm curling tight in her belly from just a single look across a crowded room, she’d have given their cheek a pitying pat and laughed at them.
And now, she admitted to herself, she’d have had to apologize for her mistake.
“Shall we?” Livi murmured, making as if to hurry across the room.
“I’ll catch up later,” Tessa promised. At Livi’s frown, she added, “I want to check with your mother and make sure everything is on schedule. You know, maid-of-honor stuff.”
“Willingly seek out Pauline, who you know perfectly well has everything under control?” Livi’s frown deepened as she planted her fists on her hips. “What’s going on?”
Over Livi’s shoulder, Tessa could see the men starting to make their way through the crowd toward them. Something clenched tight in her belly and it took her a second to identify it as panic. Desperate to get away but still not willing to upset Livi, her mind raced for an out. Wetting her lips, she shifted her smile from friendly to sultry and leaned toward her friend in a confiding way.
“There’s a very yummy model here I’ve been wanting a taste of ever since I saw how he could hold up a pair of jeans with his stuff alone. He’s over by the buffet,” she murmured. “You play hostess. I’m going to get a nibble before someone else dishes him up.”
“Stuff?” Livi’s laugh pealed with delight, her quick hug filling Tessa with enough guilt that she told herself she’d find a model somewhere tonight to flirt with. “Go, taste, nibble, enjoy. Just remember you have to sit at the head table for dinner.”
The head table. With the bride-and groom-to-be, and most likely their erstwhile best man.
Tessa offered a weak smile.
It was enough to make a girl lose her appetite.
* * *
WELL, WELL.
When a party was thrown by a woman who made her living as a fitness trainer, the guests were bound to be hot and gorgeous, with bodies to match. And Livi’s party proved that Southern California had a vast variety of gorgeous to choose from.
But Gabriel’s body hummed for just one particular woman. Petite perfection, Tessa Monroe was like something out of a dream. A very wet, sweaty, lust-filled dream. With long dark hair that called to a man’s more prurient fantasies and a face made for bad poetry and deep sighs, she was gorgeous even from across the room. Wrapped in a tiny bit of purple silk, her body was fifty shades of amazing, with curves and angles that promised almost more than a mere man could handle. Almost.
Gabriel had no doubts about his ability to handle her. But he was getting impatient. He’d been waiting to get his shot at the sexy little angel for more months than he cared to admit. And tonight was it. His chance to finally start making good on every hot dream he’d had about Miss Tessa Monroe since their first meeting last Halloween.
He’d never figured out why she’d taken an instant dislike to him. He hadn’t gotten further than introductions that night before she’d shot him down. A first, and not one he cared to repeat. Gabriel still didn’t know what’d caused her instant animosity. His cologne? His Native American brave costume? A hideous past life experience where he’d kidnapped her from her wagon-train adventure, carried her off into the woods and introduced her to the carnal delights of the flesh?
Whatever it was, it was standing in the way of all the great sex they should be having. And tonight was the night to see it gone.
Even as he exchanged greetings with Mitch, clapped hands with his friend’s father, Captain Donovan, and shared friendly nods with various brass surrounding them, Gabriel watched Tessa flee. She’d probably claim that she was simply showing her disinterest in his presence. But he’d seen the look in her eyes. That flash of desire so hot it came with a mind-blowing guarantee. The dismay, reluctance and anger that had followed told him she wasn’t quite ready to see that guarantee through, though.
Not yet.
Rocking back on his heels, he assured himself that it wouldn’t take much to push her over.
“Gabriel.”
His smile shifting from predatory to friendly, he opened his arms to Livi, giving her a gentle hug. She was a total sweetheart and it was easy to see why his friend had fallen for her. Gabriel was still having trouble with the concept of Mitch actually marrying—some things just didn’t mix. Oil and water, fire and ice, military and marriage. Hence Gabriel’s relationship rule—keep it light and easy, walk away early, leave them with a smile. He’d never ask a woman to make the sacrifices necessary to be with a military man, and he refused to let any woman be a distraction from his number one focus—his career.
But that was him. Irish was different. So even knowing
his friend was probably making a mistake, Gabriel still understood the motivation behind his friend’s decision. Irish was gonna be a dad, so this was the right thing to do. And Irish was nothing if not right.
And lucky, given that his baby momma was a doll like Livi.
“You’re gorgeous,” he told her in greeting.
“I was just going to say the same thing to you,” she said with a soft laugh. “How do you get better looking every time I see you?”
“Clean living and fresh sea air,” he joked, since he’d spent a large part of the past three months on an aircraft carrier. “How about you? Don’t tell me it’s Irish that’s put the glow in your smile.”
“In my smile, in my heart,” Livi murmured with a sheepish grin.
Her gaze cut to Mitch, and Gabriel had to admit, the emotions shining in those eyes were enough to make him wish for a second that he believed in marriage. Because if anyone deserved a happy one, it was the pretty blonde and his best pal.
“Enough with this guy,” Mitch said as he joined them. “He already knows how fabulous you are. Ready to meet the rest of the team so they can know, too?”
Gabriel saw the nerves in Livi’s eyes, felt her take a bracing breath and knew she was battling her instinctive shyness as she was introduced to the large group of men. What must that be like? Gabriel wondered. Not shyness. That was a concept so beyond his comprehension that it wasn’t even worth considering.
But the idea of having a woman put her own fears, her own issues, aside for you... Gabriel was used to women wanting to do a lot of things with his body, and there were just as many who’d be happy to lay claim to his emotions. But he’d never known a single one—his own mother included—who gave a damn enough to put him ahead of anything in their little world.
Once the introductions were through and everyone had offered their wishes, Mitch tilted his head toward the room, indicating the men were on their own. Livi, easily reading him, offered to take the team around and introduce them.
“We’re fine,” Gabriel assured her. “I’m sure we’ll find plenty to entertain ourselves.”
And so they did.
By the time the team meandered through the party, exchanged greetings, snagged beers and commandeered a table in the back, Gabriel had plenty of entertaining options.
What he didn’t have, though, was a clue as to where his quarry had scurried. Because as intriguing as the many offers he’d received were, there was only one woman he was interested in tonight.
The only one who’d ever turned him down.
Tessa Monroe.
His very own angel.
2
SOME WOMEN ATE when they were stressed, and why not? Who didn’t love the comfort of chocolate?
Others managed their stress by shopping. Because, well, one could never have too many pairs of shoes.
She’d used both tactics from time to time with varying degrees of success. But Tessa often said her favorite go-to guaranteed stress reliever was sex. It loosened the body, eased tension and, if done right—and she tended to do it right—emptied the mind of pesky thoughts and troublesome worries.
But despite her reputation as a man-eater, it’d been a while since she’d had sex, stress relieving or otherwise.
Besides, all things considered—all things being that sex itself was integral to the stress dancing through her system—she’d hit her second-favorite release reliever.
The pool table.
Tessa leaned forward, angling from the waist as she peered down the pool cue and lined up her shot. She wasn’t concerned with the minuscule length of her dress. Hey, she could feel the silky fabric against the back of her upper thighs. She knew she wasn’t sharing anything she didn’t want to. She never did.
Besides, the party was still confined to the main rooms of the manor. Guests likely wouldn’t break away into small pockets until after dinner. She’d have regained her usual poise and control long before then.
“Two ball in the corner pocket,” she murmured.
She had overreacted. A silly thing to do, and she was sure it was because she was worried about Livi. Maybe she was a little stressed because things were so crazy at the magazine right now, too. After a year of running around the country with Livi to promote one workout video after another, it was just weird to be home for so long actually working out of the Flirtatious offices instead of emailing her articles in.
She was just having a little trouble readjusting, getting back into the groove of her life.
That was why work was stressing her out.
Why she was getting all wiggy over seeing Thorne again.
That was all it was. Stress causing a little overreaction.
Because Tessa Monroe never, ever worried about a man.
A man. Tessa hissed between her teeth at the idea of a mere man shaking her confidence. It’d been months since she’d seen the guy. They’d only met the one time last Halloween and she’d taken an instant dislike. Not to the man himself, but to the power he seemed to have over her.
All he’d done was introduce himself and shake her hand on Halloween. His touch had sent a zing of desire through her, more potent than anything she’d ever felt in her life. With just that touch, she’d known he could take over her world. That he could bring her the most incredible pleasure, the wildest joy. And the deepest pain.
Something she refused to allow any man.
Yet here she was, hiding from him.
And all he’d done was flash his smile her way.
Ridiculous, she reminded herself as she watched the pretty white cue ball spin across the green felt. It smacked the blue ball with a loud crack, sending it in a fast diagonal slide into the corner pocket.
She’d overreacted earlier, like she had on Halloween. Just because Gabriel Thorne looked as if he could see all the way into her soul and knew her every secret wish and dream didn’t mean he really could. He might think she was going to fall at his feet simply by virtue of his gorgeous face and sexy body, but he was wrong. Tessa Monroe didn’t fall for any man. Especially not one so used to stepping over the bodies of his groupies to welcome the next conquest.
Who cared if he was the sexiest man she’d ever met in her entire life? The promise of incredible sex would never be incentive enough to give any man the kind of power Gabriel demanded with a single look.
“Three in the side,” she muttered through clenched teeth.
Hell, she made her living understanding the influence of sex appeal. The lure of engaging the opposite sex. The delight of flirtatious interplay. She was an expert. Well, sort of an expert.
At least expert enough to know that this...
She took a deep breath, trying to shake off the needy feelings clutched low in her belly as she attempted to put a name on whatever it was she felt.
This thing she was feeling for Thorne was just a chemical reaction. Not a big deal. After all, sexual sparks were as easy to come by as a good Wi-Fi connection. All it took was tapping in to the right signal, a password or a clever hack and voilà. A world of possibilities, right there at a girl’s fingertips.
Tessa straightened, leaning on the pool cue as she inspected the table. The sound of laughter and chatter filtered through her focus, reminding her that the cocktail party was heating up in the rooms beyond. Figuring she had another three, maybe five minutes max before she’d be missed, Tessa bent low again, planted her feet in their five-inch heels and arched the small of her back in order to see the shot she wanted.
“Seven, side.” The words were barely a breath of air as she took aim. As the ball spun toward its target she felt a little more of her tension ease and control reclaim its place in her body.
She’d simply forgotten his appeal over the past five months. Out of sight and all that. Which was proof enough that she had nothing to wor
ry about. If she could so easily dismiss a man’s sex appeal—and, oh, baby, did he ooze sex appeal—then he clearly wasn’t a threat to her peace of mind.
By the time she’d lined up the ten ball, Tessa’s nerves were as rock solid as her aim and her mind calm.
All she had to do was remember that she was in control. She didn’t have to make changes at the magazine if she didn’t want to. And as for Gabriel? Well, there wasn’t a man alive who’d gotten the best of her. So why should this one be any different? Before her mind could begin a litany of warnings of why he was already different, she took aim and sent the cue ball sailing.
Just because he oozed the kind of charm that promised to leave her grateful when he broke her heart didn’t mean she was going to let him. Silly man; he had no idea who he was dealing with. If he did, he’d know what every man had ever said about her since she’d turned fifteen was true—that Tessa Monroe’s body might be hot as hell, but her heart was as cold as ice.
Ice, baby, she reminded herself with a chilly smile.
By the thirteen ball, she was comfortably confident again. Damned if she wouldn’t enjoy putting Gabriel Thorne back in his place, she decided. She knew plenty of women who’d want a man like that at their feet, who’d want to make him into a pet just to prove they could. Not Tessa. If she wanted something slobbering on her feet, she’d get a bulldog. Nope, the only place for a man like that was away from her. Far away.
Back in control, enjoying the inner peace that came with it, Tessa added a little hip wiggle to her next shot, letting her body zing with the delight as the balls cracked together.
“There’s nothing prettier than a woman who’s mastered the art of body English.”
Damn it all to hell.
Tessa’s heart jumped. She couldn’t stop its silly reaction, but she made sure it didn’t show. She didn’t straighten. She didn’t let her expression change. She simply lifted her gaze from the soothing expanse of green felt to the disturbing view on the other side of the pool table.
