A Steele for Christmas

by Brenda Jackson

  She dragged in a deep breath and said, “No emotional entanglements.” As if Eli needed to hear that as well, have it reinforced in the recesses of his mind. She watched his eyes darken even more, saw them become filled with even more desire.

  He then repeated what she’d said. “No emotional entanglements.”

  And then she watched as he took a single step back to shed his suit jacket, remove the already loosened tie from around his neck and toss both on her recliner. His white shirt was tucked neatly inside his pants but soon he began tugging it out, unbuttoning it. She could only stand there and stare, watch and get aroused by the second. When he was through undoing his shirt, he peeled it off and then stood there, bare-chested and showing strong, muscular shoulders and a flat tummy dusted with black hair that led a path past his waistline to be hidden by his pants.

  “I thought about you every single night, Stacey,” he said, kicking off his shoes and bending to remove his socks.

  His words seemed to echo in the quiet stillness of the room, the sound ricocheting off the walls. The timbre of his voice caused goose bumps to form on her arms and she slowly found herself losing a grip on reality. Instead, she was oozing into fantasy land and the man standing before her had always occupied a place there.

  “But do you know what I thought about most of all?” he asked as he straightened and began undoing the belt to his pants.

  She watched the motion of his hands, felt a hard lump in her throat, and saw the hard erection pressed against his zipper. She forced herself to speak. “No, what did you think about most of all?”

  “Being inside of you. Remember how your body took me in then held me hostage, clenching me tight, drawing everything out of me.”

  His words painted a picture she could vividly remember and could still feel. Which was probably the reason her clitoris continued to throb something awful. “Why are you telling me that?” she asked in a voice she could barely hear herself.

  “Because I need you to understand my hunger, but more important, my need for you.”

  And she saw that need as he lowered his slacks. She tried to retain her composure but even the hardwood floor felt hot beneath her bare feet.

  “I want to make love to you. Here. Now. All over this living room. Then later we’ll make it to your bedroom. What do you think about that, Stacey?”

  She swallowed, barely able to think at all. She tried shifting her thoughts onto the wine she had waiting for them in her kitchen, but couldn’t. They could drink some later. Afterward. But right now all she could think about was the man standing there, in the middle of her living room, wearing a pair of briefs with an erection the size of which should probably be outlawed. He wanted her. She detected his desire in his features, his breathing and especially in the way he looked at her.

  “Stacey?”

  “Yes?”

  “You didn’t answer. I asked what you thought of me making love to you all over the place.”

  Remembering what he’d once warned her, she forced her gaze up from his huge erection to look into his eyes and said, “I dare you.”

  Chapter 9

  Eli never considered himself a slow person, but he hadn’t known just how fast he could move until he’d crossed the room and pulled Stacey into his arms. He began devouring her mouth with a greed he felt in every cell of his body. Every single molecule.

  The moment his tongue reunited with hers he felt her reaction, and it drove him to taste her even more. She tasted hot. She tasted delicious. Kissing her, entwining his tongue with hers, was giving him unparalleled pleasure.

  But he wanted more.

  He broke off their kiss and in an instant he had removed the short, sexy getup she was wearing and began touching her all over. She didn’t have on a bra and those barely-there undies didn’t count. When he had her completely naked he stood there and began stroking her skin, leaving no part of her untouched. He enjoyed the way her nipples responded to his touch and the way her inner muscles tightened around his finger when he reached down and inserted it inside of her.

  “Why are you doing this to me, Eli? Why do you enjoy torturing me so?” she asked in a heated rush when he bent his head to capture a nipple in his mouth and suck it. She ran her fingers over his head and the feel of her touch sent flashes of arousal through him that magnified at the head of his erection.

  He needed to get inside of her now.

  Eli moved to lower his briefs down his legs and when he straightened, she reached out and in an unexpected move she took hold of his shaft. He threw his head back thinking how warm her hand felt on him and then when she began roaming her fingers all over him, stroking him, his moan of pleasure reverberated throughout her entire room.

  “How does that feel, Eli?”

  He had to inhale a few times before he could speak. “So damn good.”

  “And how does this feel?” she asked, moving her naked body closer and keeping a tight grip on his erection as she rubbed it over her belly and thighs. He was throbbing mercilessly against every part of her that his shaft touched. When she shifted her body and opened her legs it was there, poised at her entrance. Ready. “And just so you know, I’m in good health and on the pill,” she met his gaze and said.

  “I’m in good health as well,” he eased through tortured lips.

  “Good. Then do you want to come in for a visit?” she leaned over and asked close to his ear, taking a lick in the process.

  Hell, he wanted to do more than just visit. He intended to make himself at home. By the time he left she would surely think he had worn out his welcome.

  Instead of answering her, he quickly reached out and hoisted her off her feet, spread her legs and thrust inside of her. He felt her legs wrap around him as he made it to the nearest wall, which was only a few feet away.

  The minute her back pressed against it, he couldn’t wait and began moving. He kept a tight grip on her thighs as he went in and out of her. Pressure began building in his belly with every hard thrust. They were skin to skin and he couldn’t recall the last time he’d made love this way. Maybe never. Pill or no pill he never had sex with a woman without using a condom, so what the hell was he doing, screwing her against the wall unprotected?

  He determined the answer moments later when she screamed his name. And as if on automatic pilot, he felt the first spurts of release leave his body and travel into hers. She was giving him pleasure of the most intense kind and his body was reciprocating, holding nothing back, even the semen he’d guarded all these years like his life depended on it. But he was giving it to her, shooting her right into another orgasm and enjoying every single moment of doing so.

  “Stacey!”

  He went after her mouth, captured it in his and gave her a tongue-tingling kiss he didn’t ever want her to forget. He definitely knew that he wouldn’t. Every nerve in his body was on fire, and as he continued to kiss her and make love to her, his body felt even more energized. And then he felt it. He was coming again. Heaven help him! When was it going to end? He figured no time soon as long as her gorgeous legs were open and wrapped around him tight. His shaft was still throbbing inside of her, even while bursting in yet another release.

  Incredible.

  Stacey quietly eased out of bed and glanced back over her shoulder at the man sleeping there. A smile touched her lips. They had started out making love in the living room and at some point ended up in here. When, she wasn’t sure. She wasn’t even sure how they’d done it after refusing to separate their bodies even for a second. She had never done anything like that in her life with a man. Certainly not with Wallace or that guy she’d slept with that one time in college. Neither man had had a lasting effect on her where sex was concerned and neither man could hold a candle to Eli. He was male sexuality on two legs both going and coming.

  And speaking of coming…he had the stamina of a bull and the longevity of a sitcom that refused to go off the air. He was awesome. She grabbed her bathrobe off the back of the chair and slid it
over her naked body while thinking Eli Steele had a way of making a woman feel sexy and desired. Not all men could do that. Wallace certainly never had. She figured she needed to stop comparing the two men since there was no comparison. Eli had no equal. Even Wallace would realize that if he and Eli ever met, which wouldn’t happen. She could just imagine Wallace sizing him up and knowing he’d failed miserably in contrast.

  She tried to push thoughts of Wallace out of her mind, and instead, as she headed down the stairs, her thoughts went to the one person she did want to think about. The man she’d left sleeping in her bed.

  There was no such thing as getting enough where he was concerned, but the intensity of his desire didn’t bother her. Especially when he could stimulate her like nobody’s business. If he got his then he made certain she got hers. He had to be the most unselfish lover.

  Totally exhausted from making love, they had dozed off to sleep. She had awakened later to find his head resting on her belly and didn’t have to recall how and why it had been there. She smiled at the memory and later, after he practically made a meal of her, they had dozed back off to sleep again.

  When she’d awakened this last time, his erection—still somewhat hard although he was sleeping—was nuzzled against her backside as they slept in the spoon position with one of his legs thrown over hers. When she had untangled from his hold and eased out of bed, he had flopped on his back and continued to sleep.

  When she reached the bottom stair she gazed around the living room. Usually she was a tidy person, but clothes—both hers and his—were strewn everywhere. She was glad Cohen, who would usually drop by unannounced, was working the night shift at the hospital. She could imagine what his reaction would be to find she had a Steele in her bed. He, more than anyone, knew how the Steele men operated and the thought that his sister had gotten tangled up with one, intimately so, would have sent his blood pressure boiling.

  Although Cohen knew she was old enough to make her own decisions, he still had that protective instinct where she was concerned. He’d never liked Wallace and hadn’t hesitated to let her know it. He liked Eli well enough, considered him a good friend and would probably continue to do so as long as he didn’t know Eli was sharing his sister’s bed.

  When she made it to the kitchen, she paused. Although she and Eli had made love on two different occasions, he was not sharing her bed. At least not on a frequent basis. Tonight would probably be the last time he dropped by. Why he wanted to do so now was a mystery, just like him saying he’d missed her.

  She looked at the bottle of wine on the table as well as the two glasses. They would probably have a drink together before he left. She glanced over at the clock on the stove wondering when that would be. It was close to midnight and he seemed to be sleeping rather peacefully. She didn’t have the heart to wake him.

  She glanced over at the book she had begun reading last night and decided since she wasn’t sleepy, she could stretch out on the sofa and continue reading. When Eli woke up and noticed her gone he could come looking for her if he wanted her.

  And she had a feeling that he would.

  Eli slowly opened his eyes and glanced around the room. Pink. He blinked and sure enough the predominant color in the room was pink. He was certain he’d noticed it when he’d carried Stacey in here. But then he might not have since his mouth had been locked to hers the entire time and his concentration had been on her and not his surroundings.

  He shifted his position in bed and her scent from the bed linens consumed him, tantalized him in the way only her aroma could. Nice fragrance. He closed his eyes then quickly opened them. What the hell was going on here? What was happening to him? He glanced at his watch and saw it was close to one in the morning.

  Hell! When was the last time he’d felt this comfortable in a woman’s bed? Okay, he would admit that for four hours he’d had the hottest sex of his life, and he meant hot with a capital H. But that was no reason for his mind to start acting crazy on him. And the last thing he needed was to let his guard down.

  And he’d made love to her without a condom. It hadn’t been an accident. He’d known full well what he was doing. But he had wanted her and had wanted to feel her in a way he’d never felt another woman. Why?

  He didn’t have to think hard about that one. Things with Stacey were different. He couldn’t explain why yet but he knew they were. But he didn’t want things to be different. He was Eli Steele and he wasn’t prone to succumb to any woman, no matter how good she was in the bedroom.

  What he needed to do was get the hell out of there so he could think straight. That hot, enticing scent of hers was affecting his brain and his ability to think. He pulled himself up in bed and glanced around. When he didn’t see his clothes, he remembered where he’d left them. Downstairs. He had gotten out of his clothes after less than five minutes of being inside her house.

  Naked, he padded his way to the door. He had no qualms walking through her house naked and hoped when she saw him that she didn’t have any complaints.

  When he got downstairs to her living room he glanced around. He didn’t see her but heard soft music coming from her kitchen. He noticed his clothes had been picked up off the floor and were neatly placed on her table. Moments later, he had slipped into his briefs and slacks when the smell of onions and green pepper stimulated his nostrils and stirred his stomach.

  Shirtless and barefoot, he opened the kitchen door and his heart nearly stopped beating. And his groin began throbbing into an erection the size of New York. Stacey was bending over, looking in her refrigerator for heaven knows what, and presenting him with an eyeful of the sexiest bare backside he’d ever seen. He tamped down his thoughts of how he would like to get her from behind.

  He drew in a deep breath forcing his body not to cross the room and do just that. He glanced around her kitchen and saw the bottle of wine and wineglasses. He leaned against the door and said in a voice that sounded husky for even his ears, “That short robe isn’t covering much, Stacey, and what I’m seeing is something I definitely would like to have.”

  Stacey swirled around, nearly dropping the water bottle out of her hand. She drew in a deep breath and stared across the room at Eli. And then she wished she hadn’t. He was leaning against her kitchen door with that just-barely-awake look on his face, in a stance that had sexy written all over it.

  His face appeared smoldered in passion and those green eyes were ablaze with desire so thick you could probably use it to butter your bread. How could a man who’d made love to a woman for four hours straight, take a nap and wake up with a look that all but said he wanted to roll between the sheets again?

  For a moment she couldn’t move and couldn’t even speak. She just stood there and stared. He had slid on his pants and she wondered how, after being tossed on the floor, the slacks had retained their sharp crease. There wasn’t a wrinkle in them anywhere. And some men, she thought, had chests that were made to be shirtless and his was one of them.

  Knowing she needed to say something instead of standing there staring like a nitwit, she said, “Sorry, the flash wasn’t intended.”

  She closed the refrigerator door and leaned against it. “I thought you’d be sleeping for a while. In fact, I had tried lying on the sofa and reading but my concentration kept getting interrupted.”

  He lifted a brow. “By what?”

  “Your phone. It kept ringing. Someone is trying to find you.”

  He shrugged. “Probably one of my brothers.”

  She smiled. “Probably.”

  “Maybe I need to explain things.”

  She shook her head. “No, you don’t owe me any explanations.”

  “I don’t?”

  “No. Remember our agreement. No emotional entanglements. Although we’ve made love on two occasions, we aren’t officially lovers. Besides, I knew what you were before making love to you.”

  He continued to stare across the room at her and she felt the heat from his gaze. “And what am I?”

/>   She wished he wouldn’t look at her like that. Like he would love to taste her all over again. “You’re Eli Steele. A man who enjoys women.”

  She noticed he didn’t deny her claim. “And you don’t have a problem with that?” he asked.

  “Heavens no. I would only have a problem with it when it pertains to my health. And you’ve assured me you’re healthy and I believe you. You don’t come across as a man who would take risks.”

  “I don’t.”

  “Then I don’t have anything to worry about. Now, would you like to share a glass of wine before you leave?”

  Chapter 10

  She was kicking him out?

  Forget about the fact that less than ten minutes ago he’d made plans to leave on his own anyway, it was the principle of the thing. And the principle, according to the book of Eli, was that he always decided when he left a woman’s place. No female had ever suggested it was time for him to go. Usually, they begged him to stay.

  A barely-there smile touched his lips. “You want me to leave?”

  “Why would you want to stay?”

  Oh, he could give her countless reasons. Pass him a piece of paper so he could make a list. At the top would be the fact that although they weren’t officially lovers, like she’d just said, he’d shared a lot more of himself with her than he had with any other female. Pill or no pill, good health or not, he had made love to her without a condom, releasing his semen inside of her plenty of times over.

  He rubbed his hands down his face. Never had he been confused about a woman. Maybe she was right. He should share a glass of wine with her and split.

  “Hey, you okay?”

  He glanced over at her. “Yes. Let’s share the wine and then I’ll be out of your hair.”

  “No rush.”

  You could have fooled me. “I’ll finish dressing.”