Ever since Devon had picked up Sahara from Adam and Josie’s she had been quiet. He had a sneaky suspicion one of his family members had said something that hadn’t set well with her. Yet every time he asked what was wrong she had replied, “Nothing.”
“You want to pick something up to eat before we go home?” The minute the question slipped past his lips her backbone stiffened, but she continued to stare into the night. “Sahara?”
“Devon, I think it’s time for me to go back to the inn.”
Now he knew something was wrong. They had spent a wonderful week together. The thought of her leaving made every muscle in his body tighten. He jerked the truck over to the side of the road and turned off the engine. “What happened? Was it Kat? Tabby? What did they say to upset you?”
“They didn’t say anything.” When her eyes remained focused on him, he concluded she was telling the truth. Growing up with three sisters and trying to run roughshod over them had taught him to notice the little nuances of their movements and when they wanted to pull the wool over his or their mother’s eyes. Clearly it wasn’t Kat or Tabby, and Devon knew it hadn’t been Heidi. His youngest sister wasn’t the spitfire Tabby and Kat were.
“Was Mom the culprit?”
“Uhm.” Sahara’s eyes darted to the right and then upward. “No.” She licked her lips, before her voice grew shrill. “I told you no. Why are you interrogating me? Isn’t that my brother’s job?”
“Doll.” He reached for her, but she leaned away. “Dammit, Sahara. What did she say that has your panties in a twist?” Devon knew the second he’d spoken he’d said the wrong thing.
Sahara’s eyes widened, her brows shot upward and she reached for the door handle. As she let herself out, he did the same. Eyes directed to the ground, she started to pace back and forth. Instinctively, Devon knew now wasn’t the time for words or to interfere with whatever she was attempting to work through in her mind. She stopped, inhaled a deep breath. He could sense her fighting to relax and take control. When she succeeded, she raised her gaze and narrowed it on him.
“Your mom seems to think there’s more to us than a summer fling.” She paused, eyeing him like he was an insect beneath a microscope. “She said something about your cabin being your sanctuary. You’re acting differently since you met me. And, she asked me not to hurt you.”
Well fuck.
Devon resisted the urge to run his fingers through his hair. Instead, he tried to laugh away the tension crawling up his neck as he approached her. “Mom’s always hearing wedding bells.” Even though his mother did want to see him happy and settled down, his statement was absolutely untrue. One thing his mother had never done was interfere in his love life.
The girls—yes. His—no. She knew he had no plans of marriage.
Still, the truth remained. For his mother to pick up on the subtle differences Sahara had made in his life he had to be giving off some signals. Of course, his mother knew he wasn’t a stay-at-home kind of guy, but for some damn reason he didn’t want to share Sahara with anyone. This last week he’d done his best to keep her at the cabin and in his bed. Not only because making love to her was fucking hot, it felt natural to have her in his arms.
And his mother was right.
Devon’s house had been his decompression chamber, a place to unwind and get back in touch with himself. But things had changed. Sahara’s presence never made him feel crowded. She was amazing, always knowing when he needed quiet time, like when he would sit on the swing with a beer in hand and stare into the dark. Either she would leave him be or she would join him. Without speaking, they would swing and listen to the sounds of nature move around them. Last night she had been excited when a deer approached the porch.
And then there was his other pleasure—food.
Eating out was second nature to him, but recently he and Sahara had been cooking together. Afterward, cleaning the dishes had turned into playtime. What kitchen utensils could be used for sexual pleasure? A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth when he thought of how sexy she had looked spread out on the kitchen table. He froze.
Well. Son-of-a-bitch. In a blink of an eye he had been domesticated.
A foolish grin crept across his face, but when he raised his gaze to meet hers, concern burned in her depths. He wanted to pull her to him, kiss the frown from her lips, and then take her home. The fact was he enjoyed having Sahara around. They were good together.
Again, her backbone grew rigid. “This is funny to you?” Her frown deepened.
Devon took a step forward and she countered it with one backward. “No. I don’t think it’s funny.” Another couple of steps and she did her best to keep him at arms-length, until her back struck the truck and she couldn’t go any further. “But I’m also not letting something my mom said get me riled up.” He placed a hand on each side of Sahara, trapping her. “Tell me something.” He eased his body against hers and she gasped. “Are you willing to give this up?” He placed his lips to hers, felt the moment she softened into his kiss. “Or this?” Trailing his mouth down her neck to the hollow of her shoulder blade, he glanced up at her. “Or this?” He dragged her scooped-necked shirt down, taking her skimpy bra with it until one breast was exposed. With his wet tongue, he circled her nipple before taking the taut bud into his mouth. He teased the sensitive skin before he scraped his teeth across it.
“Devon!” Her trembling hands cradled his face. “Don’t.” She attempted to push him away, but failed. “We need to talk.”
“No.” He slid his hand between her thighs and cupped her. “We need to fuck,” he growled.
“Damn you, Devon.” But even as she cursed him, her grip slipped to his shoulders and tightened before she rocked against his palm.
He licked her nipple once more. Watched the rosy skin of her areola pimple. “I love how responsive your body is.”
She leaned into his touch. “And I hate what you do to me.”
He looked up at her again and smiled. “Liar.” Leaving her breast uncovered, he worked his mouth up her chest and neck, kissing, nibbling and sucking, until he reached an ear. “I need you naked, beneath me,” he whispered. Devon felt a tremor snake through her. He would have taken her right there, but a set of headlights topped the road, bathing them in light. When Reece laid on the horn as he and Tabby drove by, Devon knew taking Sahara here wouldn’t be a good idea. “Let’s go hom— To the cabin.”
She nodded.
It was uncanny how in tune they were, because both moved at once to climb into the truck. When the lights of the cab came on, he could see her eyes were dilated. She wanted him as much as he wanted her and he found the knowledge arousing. His pulse sped and he couldn’t start the vehicle fast enough. His dick pushed angrily against his jeans as he pressed on the gas. It didn’t help she took that moment to reach over and scrape a fingernail across his zipper, sending naughty signals to his now swollen cock.
“I wouldn’t do that—”
The words stuck in his throat as she eased the zipper down and then worked on the button. The bulge between his thighs grew harder, thicker and thankful for its release when it pushed against his boxers. But now he had something else to worry about, because she didn’t plan to play with him and maybe jack him off. Instead she leaned into his lap and stared up at him from beneath thick lashes, blue eyes dilated with lust and filled with longing. His heart thudded.
God help him. He couldn’t have denied her even if he had wanted.
Dropping a single hand from the steering wheel, he tangled his fingers in her silky hair. After she tugged down his boxers, she blew a warm breath that mingled with the cool night air, sending a shiver through him. Her fingertips danced over him and a low moan escaped him.
“Don’t tease me,” he growled. “I’m riding a very fine edge right now.” Devon fisted his fingers in her hair, pushed her head closer to him, held her right where he wanted—a breath away from his rock-hard cock.
When her moist tongue slid over him, his hip
s shot upward and he nearly jumped out of his skin. She laughed quietly and he couldn’t help smiling. He loved how playful she was, especially when it came to loving him. She smoothed her tongue over the tortured length of his dick once more and his foot eased on the gas. As her soft lips slid over him and she took him deep, every muscle in his body clenched, including his foot, and he broke hard with a jerk. Struggling to wrap his mind around what she was doing and how fucking arousing it felt, he held his breath.
With each glide of her mouth, the way her tongue stroked him, the pressure of her lips, his body clenched, as did his fingers in her hair. When she rubbed against the outer vein that ran down his length and swirled her tongue around the sensitive head of his cock, he inhaled a sharp breath.
“Sahara,” he groaned.
Something about this woman drove him completely wild. He curled his fingers around the steering wheel and fought for control. This woman screwed with his mind, his plans, because right now it didn’t matter they were parked in the middle of the road. The only thing that mattered was this moment between them.
He gazed down on her bobbing head, her hair a halo of strawberry blonde lying across his thighs. Each time she swallowed around him, squeezed, his toes curled in his shoes. The heady sensation of her sucking and nibbling sent him into meltdown. With each stroke, his balls grew heavy, drawing close to his body while his hips rose automatically to meet her sweet, sweet rhythm. Then there were the little sounds she made, the warmth of her mouth, and the way she used it to drive him senseless. When she scraped her teeth over him, he threw his head back, slamming it against the headrest.
“Damn.” His curse eased out on a shaky breath.
Her sultry moan filled the cab in response.
“Harder,” he breathed, when he meant deeper, faster.
Devon couldn’t think—only feel as she consumed him in a fiery ball of ecstasy. He was past grasping for straws of control when white-hot lightning erupted at the base of his groin. In the next second, he rode a blaze of sensations that ricocheted throughout him and set off a series of electrical currents burning beneath his skin. When he reached the pinnacle of his climax, he cried out and his vision dimmed. The sense of spiraling out of control sent a tremor down his back. He prayed she didn’t feel him tremble or sense what was happening to him, because he was falling for this woman and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.
Hair mussed, she raised her head from his lap. Her blues eyes locked with his. Like a cat savoring cream, she slowly licked her swollen lips. The movement was heart-stoppingly sexy, so much so that his flaccid cock twitched. His body’s reaction to her didn’t go unmissed. A smile touched her lips. Judging by her grin, she realized exactly what power she had over him. But how he felt about her was still his secret, because letting her go right now was not an option. When the time came he would deal with it, but not now. For the next week he would enjoy the time with her.
When her fingers wrapped around his hardening dick, the sudden blare of a horn made her jerk her hand away. Her eyes widened when Leo and Sky drove by in his patrol car. Red and blue lights briefly flashed, dying as she began to laugh.
“Well crap.” Hot embarrassment swarmed up his neck. “You know what your brother will suspect?”
Sahara cocked a brow. “So?”
Her challenging expression curved his lips. “Paybacks are going to be a bitch, baby.”
“Bring it on,” she growled.
Chapter Six
The day before Leo and Sky’s wedding was a busy one. Not only were Sahara’s company’s lawyers meeting with the landowners, her family had arrived in town yesterday, and the surveyors had been delayed and were rescheduled for today. Needless to say she was nervous about the deal, but what had crept beneath her skin was tonight she would be going to bed alone.
While her mom and dad chatted with Lila and Jon, the innkeepers—well, actually, Lila ran the inn and her husband was a doctor—Sahara stared out the large picture window of the inn’s grand room. Oh lucky me. Her parents had decided to stay at Sleepy Cove and took a room right next to hers, while Neal and Sandy stayed at Leo’s. She might not care what her brothers knew about her nocturnal adventures, but her parents… Now that was a different story.
“Sleep well?” Lila asked Sahara’s mother.
Those were the same words Devon had asked Sahara this morning. His groggy voice should have sounded sleepy, not sultry, but her nipples had grown taut and her pulse sped. When she attempted to move, he had eased his hold and she’d managed to turn onto her back. A five o’clock shadow darkened his square jaw and his sexy upper lip rose in a crooked grin.
Lord save her.
She loved his smile and the way his eyes twinkled with mischief. With just a heated look from him she had been hot, ready and more than willing for morning sex. What was she saying? He made her think of sex no matter the time of day or where they were.
Sahara had never felt this way about any man before. Even now her pulse was racing, her breasts laden with desire. Devon not only loved her with a tenderness she felt soul-deep, but the other side of him—the wilder side—had introduced her to a whole new level of excitement. Her body still sang from last night’s escapades. After he had tied her up, he had tormented her, teased her, until she had begged him to take her. He hadn’t complied immediately and when she climaxed the earth shattered around her.
“What’s the smile for?”
Startled, she spun around to come face-to-face with her father’s keen gaze. It was the one she had seen many times at home and in court. The one that said he knew what you were up to. She silently prayed he didn’t know what was currently on her mind. Today he appeared very judicial in his three-piece gray suit minus the ugly black robe. A tall man, he hovered over her, but when he opened his arms she walked into them.
Softly he kissed her forehead. “Tell me about this man you’re seeing?”
She jerked her gaze up and met his knowing eyes. How? She’d been facing away from him. “But—” She was about to ask how he knew she was smiling, not to mention Devon, when her mother joined them.
“Dear, you know your father hears all—sees all.” The five-foot-tall redhead smiled, her green eyes twinkling.
Sahara’s mother had a larger than life personality. She had a way of taking control of a situation, and by God it would be resolved one way or another. Neither of her parents let things stew. If there was an issue, it was addressed immediately and calmly. Sahara was like them in that respect, except with Devon.
This thing between them had thrown her off course. Over the past couple of days she found herself reanalyzing the things she wanted in life. It didn’t help to watch Sky and Leo day-in and day-out acting so much in love, and then there were Neal and Sandy and her parents. She looked between them. They had stuck together through good and bad times. If anything, their love had grown throughout the years. Sahara wanted what her parents had and she wanted it with Devon. Not the summer fling they had both agreed on when they first met. Maybe that’s why during this last week neither of them had mentioned the night of Tabby’s shower. They had simply gone on as if Sahara’s outburst had never happened.
“Well?” Her father released his hold on her. “Devon Taylor? Who is this young man who has captured my precious daughter’s attention?”
“Uhm.” What should she say—could she say? “He’s a friend.”
Her mother’s brows shot upward as she gave Sahara one of her famous don’t-lie-to-us looks.
“You’ll meet him tonight at the rehearsal. If you’ll excuse me, duty calls.”
Her father frowned. “Duty?”
“I didn’t want to say anything, but my company is contemplating a resort in Whispering Cove. The surveyors were delayed until now. I need to meet with them at the location we’ve chosen. I’ll be back in time for the rehearsal.”
Both of her parents’ expressions grew grave.
“Does your brother know about this?” he asked.
> “No.” When her father’s brows tugged lower, anxiety crawled across her arms. “What?”
“Sahara, small towns are usually small for a reason.”
Disbelief burst from her mouth in the form of a taut laugh. “You don’t think the townsfolk will welcome a resort which will attract more businesses and bring culture and refinement to their town?” Even though Sleepy Cove was beautiful in a rustic way with its wood-beamed ceilings and floors and rock fireplace, it didn’t have the refined ambience people with money sought. In fact, not many of the places in this town did.
“No, honey. I don’t.”
“Remember, what this town offers is the exact reason Leo moved here,” her mother added.
Sahara gazed between her parents, again. “You’re wrong. I know you are.” Even still her confidence began to waver. Surely, Devon wouldn’t feel the same. He built things—improved them—realized what progress meant. But her parents’ defeating expressions didn’t offer her much support. They’re wrong, she tried to assure herself. “Excuse me.”
After retrieving her purse, she headed to the door. When she saw Lila standing in the doorway of the kitchen she waved. The woman returned the gesture, but the wariness on her face said she’d heard every word exchanged between Sahara and her parents.
As Sahara continued toward her car, she tried to console herself. Of course, Lila would be upset. A resort would mean business taken from her. A moment of guilt wiggled its way beneath Sahara’s skin. Pausing, she took a good hard look at the quaint inn. For the first time she allowed herself to consider what it must be like for progress to squeeze people out of business. A tremor raced through her. In all honesty she didn’t like the way it made her feel, not one little bit. Especially when she thought of Sky’s glass shop on Main Street.
A sickening feeling knotted in her stomach as she climbed into her car and started it. It was too late to stop the ball from rolling, even if she wanted to. This was her big shot. The project would get her noticed and maybe even lead to a partnership. She loosened her grip on the wheel. Maybe she was overthinking the whole thing. Her father and mother could be wrong. Maybe she should give Leo a call—feel him out and what he thought the town’s reaction would be when they discovered what she’d done.
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