by Lynda Chance
His hands fell to his sides and landed on either side of his hips at the edge of the desk. His body language seemed to be saying he was relaxed, but the fact that his fingers were clenching the desk so hard that his knuckles lost color, was telling. Maria wasn’t altogether buying his relaxed stance. “I need to talk to you about something,” he said a bit more gruffly, in a tone she was more used to, although the modulation of his voice turning serious did nothing for her nerves that were still bouncing around.
“What’s that?” she asked, trying to sound as calm as he appeared. Well, at least he appeared calm on the outside; what he was feeling on the inside was anyone’s guess.
“You need to either hire a personal assistant, or choose someone here who can do the job … Beth is young but she seems capable and dependable, but it’s your choice.”
The demand sent a knot to her stomach. “Why do I need a personal assistant?”
He studied her with set features, giving her no indication of his thoughts. “Until recently, you’ve always been the assistant, right? Doesn’t it make sense that you’d have one now?”
“I suppose, but I don’t need one.” She liked being in charge; she wasn’t going to deny to herself that she received a thrill from being so completely indispensable.
His brows furrowed into a frown. “You can’t be here twenty-four/seven … the hotel needs someone who can run things in your absence.”
“The number of hours I’m gone are negligible, I’m almost always on-site. I don’t think it’s necessary, the employees on the whole are more than capable.”
“There needs to be a designated person in charge when you’re not here,” he came back swiftly.
“I never go anywhere—”
“Well, you’re going to start. Not taking your vacation days isn’t healthy. You need to be able to unwind.”
“I do unwind—I don’t want to be anywhere else. I’m not a big traveler, you know? And we have some of the prettiest beaches in the world, right here. I certainly don’t think we need to get in a big rush—”
Her argument came to a grinding halt when he reached out and snagged her hand, pulling her bodily between his thighs with a force she was well acquainted with. “What, exactly, do you think is going on here … between you and me?” he asked, his eyes dropping to her cleavage for the count of two heartbeats before lifting and impaling her with his gaze.
Heat traced down her spine and she licked her lips. “I don’t—”
“Right,” he cut her off again. “What do you think it means when we say we don’t touch anyone else? That was our agreement—we’re only sleeping with each other.”
A delicious shiver of heat slammed her, making speech impossible.
His hand fell to her hip and he began caressing her. “I can’t stay in Florida indefinitely. I think you’ve already figured that out.” His hand slid down and cupped her butt, down so low that she felt his fingers pressing between her thighs. “Don’t for a second think I’m going to simply abandon this thing with you—I’m not giving this up until I’m damn good and ready. And that time isn’t remotely close. So get me when I say that whether you enjoy traveling or not, you’re going to have to accept it as part of your immediate future. And for that to happen, you need someone who can run this place when you’re not here, understand?”
“I—” she swallowed, a wave of desire rushing over her as his fingers began kneading her as if it were his due.
His hands landed on her hips again as he came off the desk with a surge of power. In the blink of an eye, he lifted her, turned, and Maria suddenly found her butt on the desk as he pushed between her spread thighs. He lifted her skirt to her waist, and before she could get her brain cells to function, she found her panties discarded, lying in a heap on the carpet.
As she tried to breathe evenly, he made quick work of the enclosure of his pants, and within seconds, he was gripping her thighs, ready to push inside.
Ready to push inside, without a condom.
Her heart racing, she balanced on one elbow as she snaked her hand down to cover her mound, the only protection from him she could find in that second. “Garrett—”
He rasped a low warning in his throat.
She didn’t move her hand. “Protection,” she got out, the only word she could manage.
His eyes bored into hers like heated missiles. “Are you on birth control?”
She worked her bottom lip, suddenly aware she was getting in spectacularly deep. “Yes.”
His hand sank into her scalp, his gaze holding hers captured. “I’m clean.”
She took a deep breath. “Me, too.”
His eyes blazed as his mouth firmed into severe lines. “Move your hand,” he demanded between clenched teeth.
A river of trepidation bled down her spine as her hand quivered over her mound. She was going to get hurt if she wasn’t careful.
He showed no signs of patience, his earlier display of gentleness nowhere to be seen. “Move your hand and understand—it’s mine.” His voice was firm, final, resolute.
She hesitated another second and his eyes hardened into icy slits of warning. Butterflies went wild in her stomach, and with her thighs trembling, she slowly moved her hand away. Finding his shirtsleeve, she clutched at his bicep for stability.
He took immediate advantage; he pushed her thighs farther apart and with his hands on her hips, pulled her to the very edge of the desk. He held his erection with one hand and maneuvered it to her opening, the fingers of his other hand sinking into her scalp and lifting her face to his.
She hung within the circle of his body, her breathing unsteady as his eyes lit with a primitive hunger. His nostrils flared as she felt the head of his cock push inside. His features were set, his brown eyes sharp as he hovered at the precipice. Her heart beat wildly and she watched him, enthralled by the smoldering depths of his eyes.
His gaze focused relentlessly on hers, he slammed inside with one hard, smooth thrust of his hips. Sensation rippled in waves as she exhaled a shallow pant.
His hand tightened on her scalp, color tinting his cheekbones. His jaw tensed as he held himself there, stretching her, as his lips twisted in an almost cruel line. “I get that you’re independent and strong-willed when it comes to your career—and I’m fine with that if it makes you happy. But trust me when I say that when it comes to everything else—” he pushed so hard against her that her breath caught before he continued, “—I’m in charge. You’ll learn to like it, but for now, it’s enough that you accept it.” He took another stroke and advised darkly, “Don’t argue with me for argument’s sake … don’t think you can twist me around your little finger and control me because I want your pussy more than I want to breathe …don’t give anyone the impression that you don’t fully belong to me, not if you don’t want to see me come unhinged.”
His voice came to a halt and shock at his words hit her full force. As he began to thrust within her, the impact of his strokes jarred her and at the same time, sent a wave of liquid heat to the point where they were connected. Her senses spun in a conflagration of twisted emotions. God, she loved this. Loved the way he felt inside of her, loved the scent of his skin, loved the forceful control of his dominant personality. But an arrow of very real concern was beating through her bloodstream, making her wonder if she was doing the right thing by being with him. His words and actions were only proving what she already knew; he was a maniac.
But then the memory of his gentleness the previous night washed over her, spreading like a balmy mist over her, easing her distress. He had been so gentle. She knew he had that capacity inside of him. Could she bring that aspect of his personality out if she tried? With that thought, but without her conscious volition, her hands reached up and found his shoulders, her eyes holding his. “I don’t want you to come unhinged,” she soothed. “What do you want me to say?”
The lines of his face only hardened and his words came out just as aggressively as before, “I want you to agree th
at you belong to me, and understand what that means.”
Maria took a sharp, uncontrolled breath. “Okay,” she complied, keeping her voice soft with effort.
“And that you’ll do what I say when it comes to all things sexual,” he hissed in a tone that wasn’t anywhere near gentle, the grip of his hands only growing tighter.
Maria forced herself to ignore the alarm bells and focus only on the amazing way he made her feel, determined to see if her idea would work. “Okay,” she agreed again, hoping against hope that she hadn’t just lost her mind.
“I want you to find a person who can run this goddamn hotel for you so you can be with me when I need you,” he demanded, biting the words out as if there would be hell to pay if she didn’t comply.
“Okay, I will,” she said simply.
“Promise me,” he said, but it sounded as if he hadn’t finished his thought.
“Promise you … what?” she asked gently.
There was a pause while Maria thought he wouldn’t say anything more, but then he rattled out in a pained, almost vulnerable sounding tone, “Promise that you’re mine and only mine.”
She heard what sounded like a need for reassurance in his voice and was shaken by it. “I promise,” she whispered.
When she said the words, it was as if a switch flipped inside of him. His eyes closed as if in relief and then his head dropped to her shoulder. His arms wrapped all the way around her, and still buried inside her, he clutched her to his chest almost as if she was as precious as gold.
A ribbon of emotion bled through her veins and encompassed her entire body as she lifted her arms around his neck and held him back. “Garrett,” she whispered.
After a moment, he lifted his head and wrapped his hands around her cheekbones. “What?” he asked simply.
She took a deep breath. “Make love to me.”
His eyes closed, almost as if he were feeling an emotion he didn’t want her to see. His eyes opened, ran all over her face, and then with a rasp of oxygen, his mouth fell to hers. He began kissing her as if he couldn’t get enough, as if he wouldn’t ever get enough, and Maria felt fireworks explode in her head.
As they kissed, his hips began moving again and soon, Maria was swamped with a desire, a heightened emotion unlike any she’d ever felt before.
His kiss was so sweet it felt almost like adoration, and she fell hard and fast under his spell. It was exactly as it had been the night before, his caresses though firm and controlled, were as gentle as if she was deserving of everything he had to give.
Right before she fell over the edge into orgasm, she felt him coming with her, felt the scalding heat of his release warming her, and she knew that she was in deeper waters than she’d ever been before.
Her eyes remaining closed, euphoria engulfing her, her last thought was she hoped he’d save her from drowning.
****
When Maria left his office, Garrett sat behind his desk, feeling almost as if he was in a daze. Christ, had he just trusted her to be on birth control? What the hell had come over him? And why, even now, did he know in his heart that he was going to continue to trust her word?
He’d never trusted a woman’s word about birth control in his life; he’d been particularly careful after the incident in grad school with the condom splitting and that bitch claiming she was pregnant.
He’d been so careful, that in fact, the sex he’d just had with Maria was the first time he’d ever been naked inside a woman. And it had been amazing, stupendous even. As he drummed his fingers on his desk, it didn’t escape his notice that he was fast becoming addicted. He’d been obsessed with Maria for a long time, but having her hadn’t helped the feeling go away. Hell no, sleeping with her had only made matters worse.
And now he was acting far from his usual careful self. He never trusted women; he’d found most of them to be prevaricators as well as mercenary.
The memory of Maria calling him a liar the other night hit him. She’d told him that she had no room in her life for liars. The idea that a woman thought that about him was twisted. The tables had damn sure turned on him, and he had no idea if he was as in control of the situation as he was pretending to be.
But for now, he had no choice in the matter; there wasn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that he was ready to let her go.
The insidious thought that he might never be ready to let her go tried to well up and take over his brain; he ruthlessly pushed it to the back of his mind, refusing to give it any attention.
****
A week passed and Maria had no idea if she was sinking or swimming. The sex between them was stupendous, amazing.
As she stood in the break room, she heard the click of the door shutting and the lock sliding into place. Without turning and looking, she knew who’d done it; she knew who stood behind her. Her hands shook as she made a fist around the coffee filter she’d just pulled from the box.
She continued to stand still in front of the counter, not moving a muscle, not turning to face the threat behind her.
“You knew Villareal was coming today, I believe I mentioned that yesterday.” Garrett rasped in a low, heated tone.
She had braced herself for a bark, but when he began speaking, that wasn’t what she got. His voice was low and quiet, and the fact that she knew more about his personality wasn’t something that was soothing her now. Hell, no. It was scaring the crap out of her. Garrett always barked when he was angry. The fact that he presently felt he had to keep his vocal chords under ruthless control only proved how pissed he really was.
She nodded her head in confirmation of his statement.
“Turn around,” he bit out in a voice that brooked no denial.
She turned slowly and leaned against the counter for support.
“You understand his reputation with women?”
Not fully understanding the question, Maria narrowed her eyes and shook her head.
“He wants to fuck anything on two legs,” he elaborated, gritting the words through his teeth. “I told you that once before—he’s a player.”
She sucked in a breath. “And you think this has something to do with me, how?”
He stared at her for the count of three beats and then pushed off the door. Without hesitation, he advanced on her until he was standing only inches away, invading her personal space. He lifted her chin, and as she looked up, she was mesmerized by his eyes. Eyes that contained a fire that almost scorched her where she stood.
His voice when he spoke reflected only a small slip of control, but Maria knew him well enough to know how affected he truly was. “We have a lot of shit going on between us,” he announced as his eyes ran over her face, down her neck and landed on the madly beating pulse in her throat. Sliding his hand from her chin, his thumb landed on the spot that told of her rapidly beating heart. He pressed on it, with just a hint of his strength, and raised his eyes back to hers. “I get that you’ve made it your mission in life to continue to keep me off-balance. Wearing your hair like this, the stiletto heels, making damn sure I know when you’ve got on thigh-high stockings.” His thumb slid up and down her throat before pressing into her pulse-point again. “Why you feel the need, I don’t have a clue.” He took in a deep breath. “But this dress … “ His voice trailed off before he began again. “You, in this dress. You know how fucking good you look in this dress. You knew I’d remember it. You had to know what I’d be thinking about the second I saw you in it.” His eyes turned into gleaming slits of accusation. “And you knew the son-of-a-bitch would be here today, watching you. You did it on purpose.”
“No, I—” She began, knowing he spoke the truth, but not about to admit to it. Why had she worn The Dress? Granted, she’d teamed it with a blazer to play it down, but Garrett was right. She had known that Maximo Villareal would be here today, and she’d known what Garrett would remember when he saw her in it. Why was she playing with fire? Was it because she’d let him have his way in so many areas that she needed some sort of affi
rmation of her own control?
He interrupted her thoughts and her fiercely beating heart. “You need to be careful with the game you’re playing. I’ve been letting you have the upper hand, been letting you win your little game, because it humors me. But be careful, Maria—don’t take it too far.” His hand spread out over her neck and his fingers pulsed against her windpipe in a shocking, sexual threat. “Trust me when I tell you that you don’t have to go out of your way to provoke my jealousy. I’m already jealous. I already want to kill every motherfucker who looks at you. I already want to take you home to St. Louis, tie you to my bed, lock the door and toss away the fucking key.”
Her heart began pounding so hard, she thought it might explode. She heard a roaring in her ears and her knees began to shake.
When he slid his hand from her throat to land on the vee between her thighs, Maria gasped and closed her eyes.
She heard a deep, tormented sound before he growled, “Now here’s the deal. I’m pissed, and I need to clear my head. And for that I need some clean, Midwest air to breathe. I’m going to finish my business with the motherfucker in my office and then you and I are catching a flight to Missouri.” He glanced up at the clock on the wall. “You have about an hour. Pack what you can, but other than that, don’t worry about it, I’ll buy you what we need when we arrive.”
A roaring began in her head. “Garrett, I can’t go with you. I can’t leave the hotel.”
“You damn sure can leave the hotel, and you will leave the hotel.”
“But I—”
“If you want to spend the next hour going through the motions with Beth instead of packing, that’s your business, I don’t give a fuck. All I care about is your little ass next to me on the plane.”
“Why?”
His eyes impaled hers with an icy look. “I told you already. I can’t breathe. Need some goddamn air.”
She swallowed and gave a last ditch effort. “If you want to go home, go, but I can stay here.”
“Not happening, babe.”
“Garrett—”
