Bodyguard

by Lori Foster

  “Oh, yes,” he answered in his most fervent tone.

  She said a small, “Oh,” and then he lifted her knees with his hands, spread her legs wide and pushed inside her. She was tight and hot and so wet…Slowly, her body accepted his length, taking him in by inches, her softness giving way to his hardness. Judd had to clench his teeth and strain for control. She made small sounds of distress, and he knew he was stretching her, but she didn’t fight him, didn’t push him away. Her small hands clenched on his shoulders and held him close.

  It didn’t take her long to forget her embarrassment once he was fully inside her. He ground against her, his gaze holding her own, seeing her eyes go hot and dark and intent. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and arched her neck.

  “That’s it, sweetheart.” He drew a deep breath and began moving. Emily rocked against him, meeting his rhythm, holding him tight. He pressed his lips to her neck, breathing in her scent. He slid his hands down her back and cupped her soft bottom, lifting her higher. He felt her nipples rasp against his chest. Every touch, every breath, seemed to heighten his arousal. When she tightened her thighs and sobbed, her internal muscles milking his erection until he wanted to die, he gave up any effort at control and climaxed with a low, rough endless growl.

  It took him a few minutes to realize he was probably squashing Emily. She didn’t complain, but then, she wouldn’t.

  He lifted up and stared at her face. His eyes had adjusted to the darkness, and he could see her fine, dark hair lying in disheveled curls on the pillow. Her eyes were closed, her lashes weaving long thick shadows across her cheeks. The whiteness of her breasts reflected the moonlight, and Judd couldn’t resist leaning down to softly lathe a smooth, pink nipple. It immediately puckered.

  He smiled and blew against her skin.

  Emily squirmed. “You’re still inside me.”

  “Mmm. I’m still hard, too.”

  “I noticed.”

  Her shy, quiet voice touched him and he smoothed her hair away from her forehead. “I’ve wanted you a long time, Emily.”

  “We haven’t known each other a long time.”

  She still hadn’t opened her eyes. He kissed the tip of her nose. “I’ve wanted you for as long as I can remember. It doesn’t matter that we hadn’t met yet.” She shivered and Judd touched his tongue to her shoulder. “Your skin is so damn soft and smooth. I love touching you. And tasting you.”

  He licked a path up her throat, then over to her earlobe. “I could stay like this forever.”

  Emily drew in a shuddering breath. “No, you couldn’t.”

  He laughed, knowing she’d felt the involuntary flex of his erection deep inside her. He wanted her again. “If I get another condom, do you promise to stay exactly like this?”

  “Will you let me touch you a little this time, too?”

  His stomach tightened at the thought. And he hurriedly searched through the wallet he’d tossed on the floor only minutes earlier.

  But once he was ready, he still couldn’t let Emily have her way. Watching her react, touching her and seeing his effect on her, was stimulant enough. He’d thought to go slowly this time, to savor his time with her. But every little sound she made drove him closer to the edge. And when he entered her, the friction felt so unbearably good, he knew he wouldn’t be able to slow down.

  He’d told her the truth. He’d been waiting for her forever. But now he had her, and he didn’t want to let her go.

  EMILY WOKE the next day feeling fuzzy and warm and remarkably content. Then she realized Judd was beside her, one arm thrown over her hips, his face pressed into her breasts. His chest hair tickled her belly and their legs were entwined. They were both buck naked.

  She should have been appalled, but seeing Judd looking so vulnerable, his hair mussed, his face relaxed, made her heart swell with emotion. Very carefully, so she wouldn’t awaken him, she sifted her fingers through his hair. It felt cool and silky soft. Emily wouldn’t have guessed there was anything soft about Judd. She placed a very careful kiss on his crown.

  He shifted slightly, nuzzling closer to her breasts and she held her breath. But he continued sleeping. She was used to seeing the shadow of a beard on his face, but feeling it against her tender skin added something to the experience. She looked down the length of their bodies, and the vivid contrast excited her. He was so dark, so hard and muscled, while she was smooth and pale and seemed nearly fragile beside him.

  She almost wished he would wake up, but he appeared totally exhausted. His breathing was deep and even, and when she slipped away from him, he merely grumbled a complaint and rolled over onto his back.

  Lord help him. The man did have a fine body. It was certainly shameful of her to stand there leering at him, but she couldn’t quite pull her eyes away. Dark hair covered his body in very strategic places, sometimes concealing, sometimes enhancing his masculinity. And Judd Sanders was most definitely masculine. He took her breath away.

  Emily might have stood there gawking until he did wake up, if she hadn’t heard a knock on her front door. She gave a guilty start, her hand going to her throat, before she realized Judd had slept through the sound, and the person at the door had no notion she was presently entertaining herself with the sight of a naked man.

  She snatched her gown, then ran to her own bedroom to retrieve the matching robe. By the time she got downstairs, the knocking had become much louder. “Just a minute,” she mumbled.

  When she peeked out the small window in the door, she couldn’t have been more surprised. For the longest moment, she simply stood there, crying and laughing. When her brother shook his head and laughed back, she remembered to open the door and let him in.

  She grabbed him into her arms, even though he stood much taller than herself, and squeezed him as tight as she could. She couldn’t stem the tide of tears, and didn’t bother trying. “Oh, John, it’s so good to see you.”

  “You, too, Emmie. What took you so long to let me in?”

  Emily froze. Uh-oh.

  “Emmie? Hey, what’s up?”

  She shook her head. “What are you doing here, John? I thought you were still out of the country. Did Mother and Father come with you?”

  He set two suitcases just inside the door then walked past her, heading for the kitchen. Ever since she’d bought the house, the kitchen had become a kind of informal meeting place. Whenever John visited, they sat at the kitchen table and talked until late into the night.

  “John?”

  “Could I have something to drink first, Em? It’s been a long trip.”

  Emily stared at John, trying to be objective. He looked better, so much better. The scars on his right temple and upper cheek had diminished, and now only a thin, jagged line cut through his eyebrow. He’d healed nicely, but his eyes still worried her. They seemed tired and sad and…hopeless.

  “You look wonderful, John. The plastic surgeons did a great job.”

  He scoffed. “You call this a great job? This is as good as it gets, Em, though Mom keeps insisting she’ll find a better surgeon who’ll make me look as ‘good as new.’ She refuses to believe nothing more can be done.”

  Emily closed her eyes, wondering why her mother couldn’t see the hurt she caused with such careless comments. “John, I never thought the scars were that bad. I was more concerned about your eyesight, and once we realized there wouldn’t be any permanent damage there, I was grateful. You should be, too.”

  “Oh, yeah. I’m real grateful to look like a freak.”

  For one of the few times in her life, Emily lost her temper with her baby brother. It was so rare for her to be angry with John, she almost didn’t recognize the feeling. And then she slammed her hand onto the counter and whirled to face him. “Don’t you ever say something so horrible again! You’re my brother, dammit, and I love you. You are not a freak.”

  John seemed stunned by her display. He sat there, silently watching her, his dark eyes round, his body still. Emily covered her mouth w
ith her hand and tried to collect her emotions. Then she cleared her throat. “Are you hungry?”

  A small, relieved smile quirked on his lips. “Yeah, a little.”

  “I’ll start breakfast. The coffee should be ready in just a minute. There’s also juice in the refrigerator.”

  John tilted his head. “Since when do you drink coffee? The last time I asked, you said it was bad for me and gave me tea instead.”

  “Uh…” She’d bought the coffee for Judd, but it didn’t seem prudent to tell John that. “You’re older now. I see no reason why you can’t drink coffee if you like.”

  “Okay.” John still seemed a little bemused, but then he squared his shoulders. “I ran away, Emmie. Mom and Dad refused to bring me home, and I couldn’t take another minute of sitting around waiting to see which doctor they’d produce next.”

  Suddenly, Emily felt so tired she wanted to collapse. “They’ll be worried sick, John.”

  “Ha! I left them a note. You watch. When they can’t reach me at home, they’ll call here, probably blame you somehow, then carry on as if they’re on vacation. We both know they’ll be glad to be rid of me. Lately, I’ve been an embarrassment.”

  Since Emily had suffered similarly at the hands of her parents, she knew she couldn’t truthfully deny what he said. She decided to stick to the facts, and to try to figure out what to do. “You came straight here from the airport?”

  “Yeah. Mom and Dad probably don’t even realize I’m gone yet. They had a couple of parties to attend.”

  The disdain, and the hurt, were obvious in his tone. She wished she could make it all better for John, but she didn’t have any answers. “You know you’re welcome here as long as you like.”

  John stared at his feet. “Thanks.”

  “You also know you’ll have to face them again sooner or later.”

  “I don’t see why,” he said. “They’re disgusted with me now, but they won’t say so. They never really say anything. You know how they are. I won’t hang around and let them treat me the way they treat you. Do you remember how they acted when that fiancé of yours tried to scam them for money? Did they offer you support or comfort? No, they wouldn’t even come right out and yell at you. They just made you feel like dirt. And they never forget. I don’t think you’ve been to the house since, that Mom didn’t manage to bring it up, always in some polite way, that she’d been right all along about him, that you’d been used by that jerk, just so he could get his hands on your money.” John shook his head. “No thanks, I don’t want to put up with that. I can just imagine…how…I’d…”

  Emily looked up from pouring the coffee when John’s voice trailed off. She’d heard it all before, his anger on her behalf, his indignation that she let her parents indulge in their little barbs.

  She didn’t understand what had silenced him now until she followed his gaze and saw Judd leaning against the doorjamb. He had his jeans on—just barely. The top button was undone and they rode low on his hips. His feet were bare, he wore no shirt and his hair fell over his forehead in disarray. He looked incredibly sexy, and the way he watched her, with so much heat, instantly had her blushing.

  Then John stood. “Who the hell are you, and what are you doing in my sister’s house?”

  JUDD WISHED Emily’s little brother had waited just a bit longer before noticing him. The conversation had taken a rather interesting turn, and he wouldn’t have minded gaining a little more insight into Emily. But he supposed he could question her later on this fiancé of hers and find out exactly what had happened.

  He was careful not to look overlong at the boy’s scars, not that they were really all that noticeable, anyway. But just from the little he’d heard, he knew John was very sensitive about them. He was actually a good-looking kid, with the all-American look of wealth. Now, however, he appeared mightily provoked and ready to attack.

  Judd ignored him.

  His gaze locked on Emily, and suddenly he was cursing. “Damn, Em, are you okay?”

  Emily faltered. “What?”

  He strode forward until he could gently touch the side of her face. “You’ve got a black eye.”

  “I do?” Her hand went instantly to her cheek.

  “It’s not bad, babe. But it looks like it might hurt like hell.”

  She cleared her throat and cast a nervous glance at her brother. “No, it feels fine.”

  Judd smiled, then deliberately leaned down to press a gentle kiss to the bruise. Before Emily could step away, he caught her hands and lifted them out to her sides. In a low, husky tone, he said, “Look at you.” His eyes skimmed over the white cotton eyelet robe. The hem of her gown was visible beneath and showed a row of lace and ice-blue satin trim. It was feminine and romantic and had him hard in a heartbeat.

  Leaning down by her ear, Judd whispered in a low tone so her brother wouldn’t hear, “I woke up and missed you. You shouldn’t have left me.”

  He could feel the heat of her blush and smiled to himself, then turned to greet her brother. The kid looked about to self-destruct. Judd stuck out his hand. “Hi. Judd Sanders.”

  John glared. “What are you doing in my sister’s house?” he repeated.

  “That’s none of your damn business.” Then in the next breath, Judd asked, “Didn’t you notice Emily’s black eye?”

  John stiffened, a guilty flush staining his lean cheeks. “It’s not that noticeable. And besides, Emily was asking about me, so I didn’t have time—”

  “Yeah, right.” Judd turned to Emily. “Why don’t you sit down and rest? I’ll fix breakfast. What do you feel like eating?”

  “Hey, wait a minute!” John’s neck had turned red now, too. He apparently didn’t like being ignored.

  Judd sighed. “What?”

  For a moment, John seemed to forget what he wanted. He opened his mouth twice, and his hand went self-consciously to his scar. Then he asked, with a good dose of suspicion, “How did Emmie get a black eye?”

  Judd smiled to himself. He folded his arms over his chest and braced his bare feet apart. “Some guy broke in here—”

  “It was nothing, John.” Emily frowned at Judd and then rushed toward her brother. “Would you like to go freshen up, John, before breakfast?”

  “Women freshen up, Em. Not men.”

  She glared at Judd for that observation.

  Judd lifted his eyebrow. “He has every right to know what happened to you. He’s your brother and you care about him, so it only stands to reason that he cares for you, too.” Judd looked toward John. “Am I right?”

  “Yeah.” John stepped forward. “What did happen?”

  Emily looked so harassed, Judd took pity on her. “Why don’t you go upstairs and…freshen up, Em, or change or whatever. I’ll entertain your brother for you and start breakfast.” Then he leaned down close to her ear. “Not that I don’t like what you’re wearing. You look damn sexy. But little brother looks ready to attack.”

  Her eyes widened and she cast a quick glance at John. “Yes, well, I suppose I ought to get dressed…” She rushed from the room. Judd watched her go, admiring the way her delectable rear swayed in the soft gown.

  “What did you say to her?”

  Little brothers were apparently a pain in the butt, and Judd wasn’t known for his patience. But he supposed, for Emily, he ought to make the effort. “I told her how attractive she is. I get the feeling she isn’t used to hearing compliments very often.” The way he said it placed part of the blame for that condition directly on John. Judd didn’t think it would hurt him to know Emily needed comforting every bit as much as anyone else. “Emily’s a woman. They like to know when they look nice.”

  As he spoke, Judd opened the cabinets and rummaged around for pancake mix and syrup. It was one of the few breakfast things he knew how to make. He wanted to pamper Emily, to make her realize how special she was.

  Last night had been unexpected, something he hadn’t dared dream about, something he supposed shouldn’t have happened. Bu
t it had happened, and even though he didn’t know what he was going to do about it yet, how to balance his feelings for Emily with his need to get Donner, he knew he didn’t want her to be uncomfortable around him.

  He thought breakfast might be a good start. Besides, he owed her one from yesterday.

  John interrupted his thoughts with a lot of grousing and grumbling. “I’m good to Emily.”

  “Are you?” He pulled out a couple of eggs to put in the mix, his mind whirling on possible ways to proceed against Donner, while keeping Emily uninvolved. Perhaps having her brother here would distract her from capturing the gun dealer.

  “She’s been worried about me.”

  Judd glanced at John as he pulled down a large glass mixing bowl. “I don’t see why. You seem healthy and strong. Hell, you’re twice her size.” He took the milk from the refrigerator and added it to the mix.

  “I nearly lost my eyesight not too long ago. And now I’ve got these damn scars.”

  Judd gave up for a moment on the pancakes. He turned to give John his full attention. “That little scar on the side of your face?”

  John nearly choked. “Little?”

  “It’s not that big a deal. So you’ve got a scar? You’re a man. Men are expected to get banged up a little. Happens all the time. It’s not like you’re disabled or anything. You’ll still be able to work and support yourself, won’t you?”

  “I’m only sixteen.”

  Judd shrugged. “I was thinking long term.”

  “My face is ruined.”

  “Naw. You’re still a good-lookin’ kid. And in a few more years, that scar will most likely fade until you can barely see it. Besides, you’ll probably get all kinds of sympathy from the females once you hit college. So what’s the problem?”

  John collapsed back in his chair. “You really don’t think the scars are all that bad?”

  Judd went back to mixing the batter. “I didn’t even notice them at first. Of course, with Emily around that’s not saying much. I wouldn’t notice an elephant at the table when she looks at me with those big brown eyes. Your sister is a real charmer.”