Harlequin E Contemporary Romance Box Set Volume 2: Maid to CraveAll I HaveThe Last First DateLight My Fire

by Rebecca M. Avery

  “You have no idea how hard.”

  Jessica grinned. “I have a pretty good idea.”

  He sat up abruptly and pulled off his shoes and socks. “No way to look smooth when you take your shoes off.”

  “True.”

  “Best to just get it out of the way.”

  Jessica bit back a sigh of pleasure as he crawled over her once more. “I agree.” She slid her hands along his shoulders and down his chest, enjoying the feel of the crisp, curling hair against her skin. He didn’t move. He didn’t blink. Worst of all, he didn’t even kiss her. “I’m almost naked, and you’re just staring at me.”

  “Memorizing you.” At last he lowered his head. “I really want to remember this,” he told her softly. “Every bit of it.”

  Her fingers slipped into his hair as he kissed her deeply. When he kissed her neck again, Jessica sighed. “I need you to touch me.”

  Lang smoothed one hand up her ribs then cupped her breast. “Like this?”

  “Oh yes, but more.”

  He pinched her nipple and she squeaked like toy. His lips curled into a smug smile. “More?”

  “Yes, more.”

  He squeezed and Jessica arched into his touch, urging him to take what she so desperately wanted to give. He nuzzled the valley between her breasts, then traced the underside of one soft mound. Using lips, teeth and tongue, he teased one hardened tip until she bowed and squeaked, then laved the pebbled flesh until she softened against him once more. And just when she thought she might go out of her mind, he covered her with his mouth and drew her in.

  Jessica cradled his head, bowing off the bed to meet each demanding tug. “Yes. Oh, yes.”

  He plumped her other breast, kneading, pinching and soothing until she squirmed. Her hips rose, bumping and writhing against his erection. He suckled insistently and pushing her breasts together. “Jesus, you’re so sweet. So soft and, oh, I have to…”

  He bit down a little, eliciting a surprised gasp then a throaty moan that shocked even her. Before she could separate the pleasure from the pain, he soothed away the hurt with his tongue, leaving her aching.

  “I don’t know what this is between us. Fate? Whatever.” He shook his head then looked up, his gaze bold and steady. “I want you more than I have ever wanted anyone.”

  “I’m yours.” The declaration wafted from her lips before she could stop it, shocking them both into stillness. Panicked, she searched his eyes for signs of retreat, but all she found was warmth and pleasure.

  Lang nodded once and pressed his mouth to her stomach. “Good.”

  He teased the undersides of her breasts with his fingertips as his mouth conquered new territory, inching tantalizingly lower with soft, sucking kisses. He dipped his tongue into her navel and she gasped. He looked up from under long dark lashes, making sure she was watching when he did it again. She squirmed and wriggled, shying away then moving closer each time he thrust into the shallow indentation. Pausing just above the line of her panties, he raised his head and looked her straight in the eye.

  “Say it again.”

  “Yours.”

  “Tell me what you want,” he commanded in a deep, throaty voice.

  Jessica moaned and arched her hips toward him.

  “What?” His breath wafted warm and damp through the thin barrier of her panties. “What do you want?”

  She raked her fingers through his hair and massaged his nape insistently. “You.”

  “You want me to what?” He brushed his nose along the edge of her panties and she almost came apart in his hands.

  “Kiss me,” she whispered.

  Lang feathered his lips across her mound. “Like that?”

  “More.”

  He rewarded her with a flick of his tongue over her cotton-covered folds, but it wasn’t nearly enough.

  “Kiss me. Lick me.”

  “Ah, now I see.” He nuzzled her damp white panties. Jessica’s fingers tightened convulsively on his scalp as she rose to meet him. The soft material rasped over sensitized skin. He ran his tongue the length of her. “I can taste you.”

  Jessica moaned.

  He slipped his tongue under the edge of the elastic. “You’re so wet I can taste you through your panties.”

  Writhing beneath him, she could feel his lips curve into a smile as he hooked a finger into the sides of her panties. Thank God he didn’t try to lift his busy mouth from her. She might have had to hurt him. He exhaled against her and a shiver shot up her spine. She let the sensation run rampant through her as he slowly pulled her underwear down over her hips.

  Lang sat back and smoothed them down her legs, freeing them from her feet and letting them dangle from his fingers as he looked at her with an arrogant smile. He pressed his mouth to her knee, nipping at the soft skin where it joined her thigh, and running his hands over her legs possessively. Jessica stared at him, mesmerized. “Pleased with yourself?”

  “Pleased with you,” he corrected, gently kneading her thighs.

  “You’re so full of yourself.”

  “Full of you.” He kissed the inside of her thigh, letting his mouth glide further north.

  “You should be arrogant,” she conceded softly. “So good.”

  Lang chuckled and the husky reverberation set her nerve-endings singing. “Barely started.”

  She couldn’t hold back a breathy laugh of her own. “Conceited.”

  “Confident.” He slid his hands up and parted her legs gently. “Committed,” he whispered in her curls just before touching her clit. Her body arced as if he’d shot a thousand volts through her, but Lang kept her grounded. His gaze sought hers and held. “Absolutely certain.”

  A soft sound of surrender tangled in her throat. He thrust his tongue into her sweet heat, but those penetrating gray eyes never wavered. Jessica rose to meet him, moaning her approbation when he circled her clit then drew it into his mouth. Big, warm hands squeezed her thighs, massaging them, demanding she take every delicious lashing he could dish out.

  Parting her with his thumbs, he opened her wider, pressed his tongue to her entrance and drove her up with quick, hard thrusts.

  “Lang.” Desperation edged her voice but still he pushed her higher, faster.

  “Hmm?”

  “I’m…oh!”

  “Mmm-hmm.”

  His satisfied hum broke her. She buried her nails into his scalp and called his name. Tremors quaked long after she lost her voice. He gentled her with his mouth, bringing her down slowly, lapping at her tenderly as her muscles quivered and softened.

  She stroked his silky hair, caressing him with the reverence of the most devoted supplicant. It took a full minute for her to realize she was smiling like a fool. Another passed before she gave up and went with it.

  Lang trailed kisses along her thigh and ran his hands over trembling calves. She melted beneath him, her body soft and pliant, entirely his for the taking. He kissed his way over her hip and across her stomach, nuzzling each breast appreciatively as he stretched out beside her again, his fingertips trailing lazily over her heated skin.

  Jessica turned her head. “I’m two up on you.”

  “We’re not keeping score.”

  “Maybe you aren’t, but I am.” Casting a meaningful glance at his suit pants, she met his eyes. “Are those things padlocked, or do you plan to lose them soon?”

  “I was just thinking I needed to get rid of them.”

  “Do it.”

  “In a minute.”

  Jessica ran her hand over his stomach. “I want to touch you.”

  “You are.”

  “I want to touch all of you.”

  “You will.”

  She looked up at him. “Aren’t you frustrated?”

  Lang’s smile spread slow but sure. “Not at all.”

  “Really?” She gave a dubious laugh. “Now who’s a liar?”

  “Excited.” He caught her hand and pressed it to his fly as if he felt he needed to give her proof. Her fingers cu
rled around his impressive hard-on, but he quickly drew her away. “Not frustrated, though. Happy.”

  “You’re easy to please.”

  “Very.”

  She kissed his throat, reveling in the beat of his pulse against her lips. “Your heart is pounding.”

  “Did I mention that I was excited?”

  “But not frustrated.”

  Lang smiled placidly. “I’m as contented as a man can be.”

  “Well, I can’t have that,” Jessica grumbled against his skin. She rolled on top of him. “That’s almost an insult.”

  “Not an insult at all.” His body pulled taut as a bowstring. He arched, rubbing his arousal against her.

  “I want you to be as desperate and needy as I am.”

  “Trust me, I am.”

  She sat back with a triumphant smile and Lang cupped her breasts. Her nipples pulled into painfully tight points as he brushed his thumbs over them.

  “You make me ache.”

  “That’s more like it.” She let her head fall back and smiled up at the ceiling. “I want you. I want you deep inside of me.”

  His breath came in puffs as he slid his hands down her back to her ass and grasped it firmly. She slithered lower, trailing hot kisses from his shoulder to his neck as her hands roamed over his chest, tweaking his flat nipples with her fingers. He moaned when she gave his belt an impatient tug.

  “Jessica.”

  The rasp in his voice spurred her on. She unzipped his pants and worked them over his hips. Lang lifted up, allowing her to pull them free. His belt buckle hit the floor with a clink. She ran her hands over his taut thighs and skimmed up under the legs of his snug black boxer briefs.

  “You have an incredible body,” she whispered. “Hard and hot.” She tucked her fingers into the waistband. “I can’t wait any longer.”

  Lang lifted his hips again and said, “Now.”

  “Now is the best time ever.”

  Jessica hummed her approval as she took in the sight of him, hard and straining against his stomach. She stripped the briefs the rest of the way off and moved back over him. She looked down at him, naked and wanting, watching her carefully. She trailed her fingertips the length of his erection, collecting the pearly drop gathered at the tip and smoothing it into his skin. His abs jumped when she bent closer. Letting her breath wash over the thick head of his cock, she wet her lips and whispered, “Beautiful.”

  A tiny kiss elicited a strangled groan. The urge to push him beyond all reason overtook her. Their gazes held as she took him into her mouth. Lang sucked in a breath and buried his hands in her hair.

  “Jess,” he said softly.

  She drew on him, pulling him deeper, swirling her tongue over his velvety tip.

  “Stop. Please.”

  She released him with a soft pop. She searched his eyes. But instead of the discomfort she feared, she found only hunger and longing. “Stop?”

  “Please? I can’t. Not now.” He shook his head, lost for words. Here was the frustration she wanted from him. And the desire. He reached for her. “I want…”

  “I want, too,” she whispered.

  “Come here.” When she stretched out over him, he pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her like steel bands and burying his face in her hair. “Desperate and needy enough for you?”

  “Shh,” she soothed.

  Lang chuckled and rolled over, pinning her to the mattress. “I don’t want to ‘shh,’ I want to shout. I want you. All of you.” He surged against her. “I want you so bad I’m about to blow. Tell me there’s a condom somewhere in this room.”

  Turning her head, she blinked at the piles of bags and boxes that contained all her worldly possessions. “Somewhere.” He rolled off her, flinging his arm over his eyes as she wriggled off the bed and dove into the sea of magic-marker-labeled moving boxes. “You mean to tell me you were going out on a hot date without packing protection? Isn’t that against the cop code?” She spotted the box that claimed to contain the contents of her old bathroom and lunged for it. The cardboard flaps opened with a shuuuust. “Aren’t you supposed to serve and protect?”

  He roused himself enough to give her a squinty stare. “Are you complaining about the service?”

  “I’m complaining because I can’t remember where I would have packed—” She caught sight of a makeup-counter giveaway bag and a spark of memory ignited. “Aha!”

  Lang sat straight up, his long legs sprawling wide, but not as wide as his smile as she plucked a foil-wrapped package from the zippered bag. “Thank God.”

  Jessica raised one eyebrow as she approached. “Shouldn’t you be thanking me?”

  He plucked the condom from her fingers, wrapped his hand around her wrist, and properly expressed his gratitude by pulling her back under him with lightning speed. “I hope you have more than one. I plan to keep thanking you over and over.”

  “And here I thought I was getting flung.”

  The wrapper fluttered to the bed but Lang’s gaze never wavered. “I told you, this isn’t a fling.”

  Before she could answer, he captured her mouth in a slow, aching kiss. Jessica barely had time to come up for air when the head of his cock nudged her entrance. She hooked her leg over his and pulled him closer still.

  “Oh, yeah,” she whispered as he sank into her. “So much more than a fling.”

  Lang hung his head, his face taut and drawn as he pushed deeper. When he was fully sheathed in her, he stared into her eyes. She held still beneath him, holding her breath as she watched him struggle for control. At last, he began to move.

  Every pulse of his body inside hers built upon the last, his pace sure and steady as he loomed over her. The shaft of his cock stroked her clit with each thrust. His biceps bulged with strain. The firm mounds of his ass flexed and tensed.

  Jessica caressed every inch of him, drunk on the feel of his smooth back beneath her fingertips. “You feel so good…so good inside of me.”

  He drove deeper, thrusting harder. She grasped his ass and hung on. Pleasure coiled low and deep in her belly. The hum of her previous climaxes resonated in each gasp he wrung from her. Her nails scored his flesh, but Lang didn’t flinch. A man possessed, he drove into her time and again.

  “Lang.”

  He growled. Honest to God, he growled deep in his throat, then plunged into her with renewed vigor. Jessica clutched at him, grinding against his cock as she felt the quickening in her chest. He closed his eyes, shifted his angle, and hit just the right spot to make the top of her head come off.

  Her cries bounced off the walls, hoarse and all but unrecognizable. She mangled his name one last time and that seemed to do the trick.

  He lunged, his body bucking as the power of his own release pulsed through him. Out of control, he chanted her name as he came, his handsome features drawn sharp with relief. His movements slowed and his arms buckled. He collapsed onto her, his hips still moving in small, delicious circles that drew shivers from her spent muscles. His face hidden in her neck, he whispered into her skin.

  Jessica ran her hands over his back, relishing the weight of him on top of her. “We are so good at that. We should do that all the time.”

  A chuckle shook his shoulders but no sound came out. “Okay.”

  “You’d be all right with that?”

  “Yeah.” He raised his head enough to look her in the eye. “After we have dinner or see a movie.”

  His stubborn insistence on dating her made her giddy. “Still trying to make sure I’ll respect you in the morning?”

  Lang cut her teasing short with a hard, fierce kiss. “To hell with morning. I want you to respect me now.”

  “I do.”

  “Jessica?”

  His shoulders straightened and his chest expanded as he attempted to peel his body from hers. And if that wasn’t enough to make her grab on and hold tight, the sincerity in his silvery eyes definitely did the trick. Her fingernails bit into his biceps but his gaze never wavered.


  “If it’s too soon, I can wait until you’re ready.” Her surprise must have shown because he chuckled. “I mean, I probably won’t be very good at it, but I can try.”

  “It’s not too soon.”

  “I mean, you just found out your ex—”

  “Old acquaintance,” she interrupted. “Already forgotten. Kiss me, Detective Dreamy.” Her eyes drifted shut. “Kiss me good, or I might forget you, too.”

  “No way,” he whispered against her lips. “This is a night we’re going to remember forever.” His kiss was gentle and lingering. The slow slide of his tongue against hers plucked her heartstrings like a well-tuned violin. He came up smiling a rogue’s smile, his eyes twinkling with satisfaction. When he tried to disengage, she pulled him back down. “No.”

  “I’m too heavy,” he protested.

  “You’re perfect.” She ran her hand the length of his spine, then snuggled into the crook of his neck. “I just need to rest a sec.”

  “Take your time.” A smile laced his words. “I have all the time in the world.” Jessica smiled as he ducked his head and nuzzled her ear. “What a great night.”

  “Best New Year’s Eve ever.” She wound her arms around him and burrowed deeper into his embrace, a sly smile twitching her lips. “Thanks for the jump.”

  “My pleasure.” Lang brushed a lazy kiss over her hair and hugged her tight. “Anytime.”

  About the Author

  Nicole Helm grew up with her nose in a book and a dream of becoming a writer. Luckily, after a few failed career choices, a husband and two kids, she gets to pursue that dream. Nicole lives in Missouri with her husband and sons, and writes her novels one baby’s nap at a time. She’s slightly (okay, totally) addicted to Twitter (@nicolethelm), loves watching the St. Louis Cardinals, and her dream is to someday own a barn.

  The Last First Date by Maggie Wells

  Dedicated to all those who dare to demand limes when life hands them lemons. A stiff margarita is much more effective than a glass of lemonade. Let’s drink a toast to unexpected love. Cheers!

  Acknowledgments

  When I sat down to write the acknowledgments for this book, I couldn’t shake the phrase “gratitude for the multitudes” from my head. That’s what I truly feel when I think of all the people it took to bring this manuscript to fruition. If you don’t mind, I’d like to take a moment to thank a few of them.