by Jess Dee
When he leaned down to plant sizzling kisses on her throat, she buried her nose in his soft hair. Triggers of awareness shot through her. If his mouth could seduce her without moving past her neck, what could he do when she lay naked beneath him?
Again, his lips found hers. What started as a sweet, heady kiss and a slow exploration of a new pleasure quickly spiraled into a frantic clash of lips, his mouth greedily sucking at hers. The action struck her deep within, and her limbs quivered with pleasure. His hands flicked under her shirt, teasing the sensitive flesh beneath. A cool breeze against her hot skin told her he’d undone the clasp of her bra. He pushed her blouse over her shoulders, but instead of removing it altogether, he caught the sleeves behind her back, snaring her hands, rendering her helpless.
He muttered something unintelligible and dropped his head to her chest. The warm breath on her nipples blew her mind, and she trembled.
“Please,” she whispered hoarsely. “Touch me.”
Fireworks exploded as his lips covered her nipple and he sucked the engorged peak into his mouth.
His mouth tortured her with its practiced touch, his tongue taking her to the edge of sanity and back. By the time he lifted his head to inhale, he’d explored and discovered every inch of her chest.
His actions weren’t those of an anonymous lover. In his arms, she felt cherished. Needed. Secure. And sexy. She moaned mindlessly, and her breath came in short, sharp gulps.
How could someone she’d just met stir such bone-deep emotion?
The frozen flames in his eyes seemed to absorb her reaction to his touch. Once again, his devastating looks struck her dumb. Never mind the hard lines around his mouth and eyes. He took her breath away. There was more to him than the fact that he was the sexiest man on earth. She sensed a depth behind his silence, a wealth of emotion behind his icy gaze.
“I-I need to touch you, too.” Her voice stunned her with its raspiness. Something more than her physiological reaction to him was coming into play. Something more…intense.
A pained expression flashed across his face, and he freed her hands.
Buttons flew across the room as she ripped his shirt open. She was a woman possessed. She had to touch him, had to see him.
Muscle rippled down his chest to his waist. His stomach was hard and flat, and she gawked at his sculpted torso.
A dark smattering of hair dusted his chest, trailed down his belly, and disappeared below his belt. Sweet Lord, she wanted to see what he kept hidden below that belt.
Leaning into him, she placed both hands on his torso and kissed him. She nudged him backward until he lay on the floor and she lay on top of him. Then she touched her tongue to the pulse throbbing at his throat. Salty. She licked lower. Hot. Her mouth settled above his nipple. It was tight and beaded, and he groaned when she kissed it.
Delicious.
She shimmied down to run her tongue over the grooves between each muscle, reveling in the reflexive contracting of his stomach. When his chest rose and fell as unevenly as her own, and she thought she might die if she didn’t explore more of his hard body, she unfastened his belt and pants. His cock jumped beneath her hands. She pulled back the waistband of his boxers, exposing the head of his dick.
She licked her lips greedily.
“Christ, woman.” He lay still.
Their eyes caught and held. His were dark, etched with hunger. Not a single trace of the coldness she’d seen in them earlier remained, only a flame of desire burning through the blue depths.
Exhilaration overcame her, making her dizzy. His resistance had melted away. Lexi dipped her head, and a throaty growl erupted from his chest.
She licked at the pearly bead on the tip of his cock, swirled her tongue around, and filled her mouth with his salty, male tang. His hands found her hair, and the roots strained against her scalp as he reflexively tugged at her curls. She pushed at his pants until he shifted his hips and kicked off his shoes and the rest of his clothes, exposing slim hips, a thick, hard erection and long, muscular legs.
An unexpected surge of emotion washed over her as she took in his nude form. She swallowed hard. This was supposed to be a night of gratuitous sex, nothing more. So why did something akin to affection well in her chest?
Giving herself a mental shake, she wrapped her hand around his shaft and lifted it slightly. From the tip of his cock, down his shaft, and over his balls, she licked, making her way over every delectable inch. He mumbled nonsensically, at which point she opened her lips wide and sucked him in.
His control snapped. Before she knew it, he’d flipped her over. She lay on her back with him on top of her.
“I’m only human.” He kissed her, hard. “I can take…just so much teasing.” He tugged at her skirt, pulled it up around her hips, and his hand found her panties. “So wet,” he rumbled.
He nudged the lacy thong aside to expose her hidden folds. They were slick from anticipation, and she moaned as he skimmed his fingers over them.
“Like that?” He slid her panties down, and she shifted and kicked them off. Ever so lightly, he touched her clit.
“God, yes.” She’d have cried out his name, only she didn’t know it.
He glided his finger into her hot, wet slit. “Good. Now let’s see how much you can take.” He slipped his finger out again.
Her breath came in short, sharp spurts as he repeated the movements in rhythmic sensuality.
Oh. My. God.
Lexi opened her mouth to tell him how amazing it felt, but he pushed deep inside her and bit her nipple. The only sound she emitted was a loud groan.
His tongue soothed her breast, easing the erotic sting, and his hand conducted an orchestra of sensation deep within. He edged downwards until his mouth was directly above her groin. Hot breath whispered between her legs, and she shuddered.
When he darted out his tongue and licked her, he slid a second finger in.
Oh. Sweet. Lord.
Oh. Sweet. Stranger.
His mouth devoured her. His deep strokes within compounded the tension. He was good—so damn good her orgasm took her by surprise, sweeping through her with the force of a tornado.
She convulsed in ecstasy, writhing on the floor beneath his wickedly talented tongue.
Lexi was still reeling when he reached up and kissed her mouth. Her taste lingered on his lips, and her groin clenched in reaction. She shook from the aftermath of her orgasm, but emptiness seized her. Something was missing.
That something nudged her upper thigh.
She shifted so the head of his cock brushed her swollen lips. Her legs bent instinctively as she prepared to take him in.
“Wait.” He groaned as she rubbed her clit against him, need flooding through her.
She couldn’t wait another second. She wanted him inside, now.
“We…need a…condom.”
God. Yes, they did. In her pleasure-swamped state, she’d forgotten all about protection. Thank God one of them was rational enough to remember.
As he rifled through his pants and wallet, she dipped her hand down. He was taking too damn long. Her eyes closed as she touched herself.
Her swollen bud responded instantly. She stroked, imagining her hand was his. As good as it felt, it wasn’t enough. She delved between her lips and moaned. It was good. But still not good enough.
“Jesus.”
She opened her eyes. He stared at her, frozen. His cock was half sheathed in a condom. She pulled her finger out, only to slide it in again. Her carnal behavior shocked and excited her. She was fucking herself in front of him, and the more she did the faster his breath came.
It was good, but…
“Not enough,” she panted.
He was on top of her. Her arms were pinned at her sides, and he was driving into her. His thick, beautiful cock pushing into her, stretching her, filling her. Completing her.
Lexi screamed as he filled her to the hilt. She was beyond caring about her unrestrained and uninhibited behavior. All she cared about was him, d
riving her past reality and into a realm where sensation alone existed.
Shivers burst into full-blown raptures; her muscles clamped down around him and she came again. Waves of delight rolled through her for a second incredible time, and Lexi spun away in a cloud of delectable bliss.
Sanity returned slowly as the tremors ebbed away. His eyes were squeezed shut, his body rigid and his shoulders taut with the effort of remaining still.
She wrapped her legs around his waist and rolled her hips.
Sweat beaded on his forehead as he fought to keep her movements in check. Lexi rolled her hips again.
With a fierce groan, her beautiful stranger let go of his restraint. He pulled out and thrust back in again, hard and fast, over and over. Coming so close on the heels of her orgasm, the friction against her inner walls sent her over the top. She cried out at the mad sensations swirling through her. It was too much. She’d never experienced anything like it before. She was too sensitive, she couldn’t…
Oh, God, yes, she could. She was going to.
Again.
Only this time, she was determined not to come alone. She clenched her muscles around him, and he cried out in response.
“Lexi,” he gasped and gave up all pretense of control. He plunged into her repeatedly, his movements wild and uninhibited, and she met him thrust for thrust. He filled her and enticed her and wowed her, and the tension built, stretching higher and higher and tighter and tighter until it snapped.
As her body gave way to the third and most powerful set of spasms yet, he gave one last thrust, his body stiffened, and he cried out her name and joined her as she tilted over the edge of reason and into a whirlpool of pleasure.
…
AJ lay in Lexi’s bed longer than he should have. Her head rested on his shoulder, and her breast was squashed against his chest. After the night they’d shared, wanting her again should have been a physical impossibility. His dick disagreed. The first stirrings of arousal prickled his belly.
He suppressed a groan and carefully, so as not to wake her, disentangled his body from hers. Slipping from the sheets tortured him. His heart objected immediately—unexpected pangs of regret tightened his ribs.
Christ, what had he done?
Broken his own cardinal rule, that’s what. He’d slept with the woman he’d vowed to keep at a distance. The woman he feared had the ability to break through his barriers and access his secret.
On a day-to-day basis, Lexi dealt with the circumstances almost identical to the tragedy he sought to bury in the depth of his fractured heart. How could he spend any more time with her and hope to keep his past to himself? Talking about it, sharing it with others, shredded his control. And without his control, he was powerless to stave off the despair and heartache.
He might have done a piss-poor job of stitching himself back together after Timmy’s funeral, but at least the stitches had held. He’d learned to function again. Breathe again. If so much as one stitch tore, he wasn’t sure he’d have the strength to survive the pain a second time.
He dressed quickly, knowing if he remained naked, desire would beat down his need for control. He’d caress her exposed breast, kiss her into wakefulness, and lose himself once more in her bewitching charms.
The sun peeked through the curtains. Time to leave. At least under cover of night he could pretend their encounter had been meaningless. Facing her in the clear light of day would be too much of a risk.
He’d put his heart on the line once before, and the experience had destroyed him. If he never again allowed himself the weakness of emotion, he’d be fine. But there was something about Lexi that threatened to evoke powerful emotions in him. Given half a chance, he’d let her in. She’d tunnel her way into his life and into his past, and she’d make him feel…something.
The very idea scared him shitless.
His shirt hung open—the only button still attached dangled on a thread. He shrugged on his jacket and mentally coerced his growing erection down. Shit, thinking about their night got him hot.
It was a damn good thing he’d never see her again.
Chapter Three
When Lexi awoke, he was gone.
At some point during the night, they’d moved to the bed, and with him curled around her, she’d fallen into an exhausted, satisfied sleep. When she opened her eyes a few hours later and stretched her deliciously aching limbs over the soft mattress, she found herself alone.
The crumpled sheets and her scattered clothes bore testimony to the fact that she hadn’t dreamed up the previous night. The warm glow in her belly confirmed the reality. And what a reality—better than any fantasy she might have had.
The man had been insatiable. So had she. He’d made her come three times in the space of half an hour and then at least another three times during the night. Each time, she’d thought he’d wrenched the last orgasm from her. Then somehow he’d inspired another one.
She’d wanted a little pleasure with him, and she’d gotten it. Repeatedly. On the floor, on the chair, in the shower, and finally, in bed.
She stretched again and yawned. A pleasant smell reached her nose. His scent mingled with the aroma of sex. Strong masculine smells that fired her imagination and her body. Her thighs ached, and muscles she never knew she had were stiff from the night’s vigorous workout.
She could do with a workout like that at least every day.
Sighing, she forced herself out of bed and into the shower. He was gone, and real life continued. She waited for the water to heat then adjusted the pressure so the jets pulsated over her tender body, washing away the sticky remains of their passion.
Last night had been unforgettable. He’d turned a night of casual, anonymous sex into something spectacular. Perhaps she’d broken through her usual limitations and surrendered herself to whatever he’d suggested, because the night had been shrouded in anonymity. She’d done things with him she’d never dreamed of doing with another man.
Far from embarrassing her, she’d felt liberated. Being with him had affected her on a primal and emotional level. It had filled her and fulfilled her and left her feeling more complete today than she had in a very long time.
It also left her feeling empty.
The night was supposed to have been about sex. When she’d least expected it, she’d experienced…something. She wasn’t sure what. Just…something. Which only served to exacerbate her loneliness this morning.
He’d been affected just as deeply. She’d seen it in the melting of the ice-blue irises as passion suffused him. She’d noticed it in the softening of the lines around his mouth after he’d kissed her. And she’d felt it in the way he’d held her afterward.
The scent of the chamomile-vanilla conditioner overshadowed the last traces of the male fragrance that clung to her skin. Now all she had left of him were her memories of a beautiful, nameless man and a glorious, gratifying night of magnificent sex.
She rinsed the soap from her body and climbed out of the shower. As she toweled herself dry, patting down the places where a few hours before his lips and hands had been, melancholy settled over her.
He was gone, and she’d never see him again.
…
“He what?” Lexi stared at the woman, aghast.
“Checked out,” the woman repeated.
“But…when?”
“This morning. At about seven-thirty.”
Around the same time she’d been washing away the last remnants of her stranger from her body.
Damn it. The article had said Riley would be at the hotel for four days, and she’d only read it yesterday. How could he have left already? She hadn’t had a chance to speak to him.
“Please, I need to see him. It’s urgent.”
“I’m sorry, miss. He left.”
“I…oh…um…I… Never mind. Thanks for your help.” Lexi’s shoulders slumped.
She’d had a fighting chance to track down Riley and get him to listen, and she’d blown it. He’d checked out whil
e she was daydreaming in the shower. Okay, so the daydreams were worth spending a little time over, but now she had no idea where Riley might be.
Not that it mattered. She was flying back to Sydney this evening anyway, after the close of the conference. She’d have to wait until her official appointment on Wednesday to see him.
Chapter Four
Five minutes before her appointment, Lexi stepped into an elevator in the Riley Building. She checked her appearance in the mirror, straightened her collar, and smoothed down an invisible wrinkle on her blouse.
She was about to meet AJ Riley. After weeks and weeks of waiting and restless impatience, she’d finally get to talk to him and—she hoped—finally get the desperately needed money so she could put it to good use.
Tucked in her briefcase were pages of useful stats, books and articles, and a detailed proposal of her project. Riley should know she wasn’t starting up the program on an emotional whim. She’d done extensive research and had enough facts and figures to justify the cost of the setup.
She needed to blow Mr. Riley away. By the time she left his office, he had to be as convinced of the merits of the project as she was.
Lexi stood alone in the lift as it glided to the top floor of probably the highest building in the city. She shivered. Since the conference, she hadn’t been able to view elevators in the same way. They were no longer just a means of getting from one floor to the next. Now they were tiny intimate rooms where delicious acts of seduction took place.
For the gazillionth time, she relived that night in her head, felt his hands on her breasts and his mouth between her legs. By the time the doors slid open, she was flushed and her panties were damp.
Walking into Riley’s office with glazed eyes and a major nipple stand probably wouldn’t be the best way to make a professional first impression.
She fanned her face, collected her thoughts, and focused on the task ahead. Her stomach trembled from a sudden onset of nerves. If she couldn’t convince Riley of the brilliance of the sibling program, she wouldn’t get the money from him.
If Riley didn’t come through, she might not be able to start the project.
