Licked by the Flame

by Serena Gilley

  She was like no one he’d encountered before; the raw energy churning inside her intoxicated him. Having his way with Lianne would be a rare delight. In his mind he touched her skin, traced scorching lines over her shoulders and along the enticing length of her arms. Her nipples puckered when he focused on them. There was sweetness on her lips and temptation in her soul. He could feel how she enjoyed the fantasy. Soon he would make it reality for her.

  * * *

  Numbers and columns and statistics had been nearly swimming in front of her eyes. It was late and she ought to be in her bed. She had pushed herself to concentrate, to make sense of this data, but hadn’t made much headway.

  Nic. Why the hell couldn’t she quit thinking of him? Because he was wild and sexy and she wanted to do nasty things with him, that’s why. Damn it, but she hoped he’d give her the chance. After she got a few more answers from him, of course.

  He was at the heart of all her questions as she’d gone over the readings and reports tonight. Everything always seemed to come back to him. She’d obviously have to confront him tomorrow. She would go to him…she would ask him about…about his shoulders, and that tattoo, and…no, damn it. That wasn’t it. What would she ask him?

  Hell, she could hardly think straight right now. She must be more exhausted than she realized, although her mind was far from shutting down. Her thoughts were a torrent of images, emotions. Nic. She couldn’t concentrate on anything but Nic. His face, his arms, his perfectly cut clothing, everything he had under that clothing…for a moment she thought she even heard his voice.

  She was clearly alone here, though. Of course she was thinking of Nic. He wasn’t just uber-attractive, but he was involved in every questionable aspect of this disorganized project. To find any answers, she had to go through him. It only made sense that he should be on her mind. She just needed to quit thinking about how to get him naked and start thinking up how to get him to give her the truth.

  It wasn’t truth she wanted right now, though.

  His lips. How would they feel pressed against her skin? Hot, demanding…she could practically feel them now. The skin at the back of her neck prickled. It was as if she’d been touched there, caressed by unseen hands that stroked gently over her shoulders, down her arms, warming her along the way. A tremor of excitement trilled through her.

  Something sizzled inside—her blood boiling in her veins, perhaps. Her eyes drooped shut and she leaned back in her chair. Exhaustion, that must be the explanation. Her body must be desperate to stay awake, inventing these crazy sensations and the wild images to go along with them.

  She could see Nic. He was with her—but he wasn’t. She only saw him in her mind, and he loomed large, reaching for her and speaking her name softly, calling her to relax. How could she do anything else? Her limbs were beyond her control. A wave of scorching desire enveloped her and held her where she was, trembling in place as his touch roamed over her body.

  The sensation was strong, almost as if he were right there in the room with her. She felt his demanding fingertips brush over her jawline, along her collarbone, and then slowly he was touching her breasts. She drew in a labored breath, begging him to continue but trying to remind herself this was not real.

  Her arms moved of their own accord, her fingers moving to the pearl buttons on the thin blouse that she wore. Her shirt gaped open, her body begged for more of Nic’s touch. She waited, panting for air, alone with her imaginings, yet very much not alone. She could feel him, sense him as clearly as if he had been standing there over her, reaching to take her into his arms.

  For a moment the empty air nearly pulled her out of the fantasy, but then his hands were on her. He cupped her breasts, exploring them as if he’d found rare treasure. She gasped as searing desire shot to her core. She was hot and she was wet and she’d never wanted a man so badly in her life.

  She reached for his hands, but found nothing. Her eyes opened and she shuddered, suddenly chilled, glancing nervously around. Empty. The room was vacant, except for her. The files she’d been studying were still laid out on the table in front of her. No one was here. No one had been touching her but herself.

  How had it felt so very real, though? How could she have imagined Nic so distinctly? Why had she imagined him, of all people?

  Because she’d never met anyone like him. And she wanted him.

  “You should be in bed.”

  His voice. Had she imagined that, too? No. She hadn’t. She whirled around to find him watching her from the doorway.

  It took just a moment to catch her breath and begin fumbling with her blouse. “I’m working.”

  “No you aren’t.”

  “I was, until…”

  “Until what?”

  “Until I started feeling…too tired. What are you doing here? Why are you still up?”

  “Apparently I was feeling too tired, as well.”

  “Then you should go to bed.”

  “Exactly what I was thinking about you.”

  Instantly, bed was all she could think of. Bed, with him in it. Even with her eyes wide open and common sense screaming in her head, she still felt the heat of his touch and pictured herself ripping that shirt off his back. She wanted him as if she’d been starving for him all of her life. Thank God he had no idea she was feeling this way. Or did he? Hell. His smug smile and flashing eyes were just as cocky and annoying and damn tantalizing as she could have guessed they would be.

  “I could tuck you in, if that’s what you need,” he offered.

  Yes! Or rather, No! She had to concentrate on work before she could play.

  “I need to finish going over these reports,” she said, turning back to the pages laid out in front of her. “I’ve been looking over this data and comparing it to some of our start-up files.”

  “And what are you finding?” he asked, his voice closer behind her.

  “I keep seeing your name pop up, as a matter of fact. I was wondering if—”

  His hands were on her shoulders. His real hands! She wasn’t just imagining his touch this time. He had come near to her and was now gently massaging her shoulders, his fingers kneading tenderly over her tight muscles. Her body responded immediately, her chest rising with a deep, halting breath and her tense shoulders sagging in welcome relief.

  “You work harder than you should,” he said softly into her ear. “It’s time for you to rest now.”

  “I can’t,” she replied without any real conviction. “There’s too much to do.”

  “And you’ll be much better equipped to do it tomorrow, after you’ve gone to bed.”

  “No, I can’t,” she protested again. It was, of course, true. Her body was on fire right now and sleep was the last thing she could think of. “I’m not tired.”

  “You will be,” he said.

  He turned her chair around so she was facing him. Her skin still tingled from where he had touched her, but now he leaned in to take her hands. She let him and wondered when she’d lost control of her arms. It seemed her mind had gone numb, unaware of anything but the desire building inside her.

  He loomed before her, the one crystal clear object in a world gone fuzzy and warm.

  “Come, Lianne. Let me take you to your room and take care of you tonight.”

  Her room. That sounded good. His voice was so smooth, his words reassuring. He seemed to want to lull her into blindly trusting him, but he didn’t need to do that. She knew who he was and just how far she could trust him. He was an asshole, but he wouldn’t harm her. He might lie about the job, and he sure as hell wouldn’t be someone to rely on for the future, but this had nothing to do with any of that.

  She was smart enough to figure out the job with or without his help. And the future? Well, there was no way he would figure into that, so he was totally off the hook there. All she wanted right now was his hot body making her feel good. There was no doubt he could do that. She rose from her chair and he led her toward the door.

  “Which one of these
buildings are you staying in?” he asked as they stepped out into the chilled night air.

  His touch was light as he helped her down the wooden steps onto the chipped gravel pathway that connected this modular to the others. It was late and the windows around them were dark. Aside from the wind, the only sound she could hear was the droning hum of generators and heating units.

  And now their footsteps as she led him toward the boxlike building where she was staying. Would anyone see them? She hoped not. Maybe common sense would tell her to stop, to send Nic off and ignore the burning want in her core or the smoldering promise in his eyes.

  She paused on the pathway and gave common sense about three seconds to chime in.

  “What is it?” Nic asked. His voice was deep and hot and as intimate as if he breathed into her ear.

  “Nothing,” she replied. “Come on.”

  She reached the steps leading up to the main door of her modular. A porch had been constructed there to give the place a homey, welcoming feel. She took a heady breath and Nic’s scent filled her senses. Her legs felt like jelly and she stumbled a bit on the stairs. He put his hands on her waist to steady her. She nearly melted under his touch.

  “I’m okay, thanks,” she said, steadying herself and realizing that she’d never before actually felt dizzy from pure desire. His hands practically burned through her clothes, yet she couldn’t wait to get even closer to him.

  She fumbled with the key card they’d assigned her. Finally the lock clicked and she pushed the door open. Nic was at her side, but he didn’t follow as she stepped in. She held the door, confused by his hesitation.

  “You coming in?” she asked.

  “Are you sure that’s what you want?” he asked.

  Hell. Her heart pounded and her body threatened to burst into flame at any moment now. Yes, it was what she wanted! The fact that he asked made her remember how serious this was, though. She’d come to do an important job, not get herself tangled up with the resident bad boy. Would she be jeopardizing her ability to get things done? Would she lose the team’s respect if they found out about this? Would she ever forgive herself if she sent him back to his room now?

  She contemplated the answer. When she finally spoke, her reply hung like a mist in the crisp air between them. She couldn’t take it back if she wanted to. Which she didn’t.

  “Yeah. It’s what I want.”

  He smiled at her. Those damn eyes were black and fiery all at the same time. She fell into them, trapped by his intensity and aching for something to quench the heat burning inside her.

  “I know what you need, Lianne,” he said as he reached for her.

  She pulled him into the homey modular and practically slammed the door behind him. “Good. Then you aren’t going pretend this has anything to do with the job or any kind of relationship or fluffy rainbow dreams for the future, right?”

  He gave her another of those boiling-hot grins just before he pulled her into his arms. “I was hoping it was about really hot sex.”

  Yeah, she was damn sure hoping that, too. She felt good, pressed up against him as his body literally sucked the cold night chill out of her. She’d left her sweater back in the computer room, but the way she was heating up now, she’d never need it again.

  The man might be an ass, but he certainly knew how to give the right answers. From his cocky attitude to his smoldering eyes, broad shoulders, and tight, grabbable ass, he seemed to have everything that she wanted. At least for one night. She was getting really good at taking life one night at a time.

  They were making out in the lounge area of the VIP guesthouse. There was a small kitchenette behind them, plus two bedroom suites, one at each end of the building. She was the only VIP staying here right now, so they’d have the whole place to themselves. Not that she expected they’d use much of it. The way he was touching her now, pressing his lips to her neck and murmuring in—she guessed—Russian, they might not even make it to the bedroom.

  “Just be sure you’re out of here long before anyone on-site wakes up and sees you,” she admonished, knowing she’d better talk now before his kisses turned her brain to complete mush.

  He scooped her up into his arms. “Which bedroom is yours?”

  As if that really mattered. She’d settle for any place with a flat surface right now. But for the sake of propriety she pointed to the door at the east end of the modular, where she’d stowed her suitcase and freshened up after arriving. He marched forward like a man on a mission. Maybe she’d regret it in the morning, but right now she was perfectly content that she was his mission.

  Chapter Five

  He dropped her onto the bed. She was clinging to him so tightly that he followed her right down into the fresh linens and downy spread. He’d thought her persistent refusal of his attentions all day had made him more interested in her, but right now her overwhelming willingness was twice as tantalizing as her coy disdain had been. It was nearly enough to send him out of control. She was so open to his touch, so demanding with her desire, that he had to struggle to close off his mind. He needed to focus on the physical now, ignore the waves of sensation that assaulted him mentally.

  The woman was a rampant torrent of emotion. He didn’t want that—couldn’t deal with that now. She claimed this was about nothing other than sex, yet her emotions whorled with much more.

  Her raging mind and ragged passions were tantalizing. He wanted to reach deep inside her and discern what was at their core, what fueled such strong emotions. He wouldn’t dare let himself, though. This was supposed to be about the physical, about him using her to feed into his need and to regain control over himself and his situation.

  She was even hotter and more vigorous than he was right now. If he didn’t slow her down just a bit, this wouldn’t take any time at all. Although that would still certainly suit his purpose, it wouldn’t be nearly as much fun. Lianne McGowan was the sort of woman a man wanted to take his time with.

  And he sure as hell wanted her to take some time with him. He had plans for them tonight and they definitely involved more than just a few minutes of panting and sweating. He was counting on a few hours of panting and sweating.

  She was clearly going for minutes though, the way she tore at his clothes and started fumbling with his belt buckle. Feeling her hands working him there certainly did put him in the mood for being agreeable to her accelerated pace. His cock was as hard as a boulder and straining at his clothing. He could hardly wait to get it inside her, feel the heat of her tender opening, the wet muscles tensing around him as he stroked her over and over again.

  She suddenly went rigid underneath him, her hands clutching at the fabric of his shirt, and she moaned, arching up to grind herself against him. He ached with need, but he tried to push himself away from her, to get control of himself long enough to think straight. Hell, he realized he’d been so distracted that he’d allowed his mind to slip back inside hers. She’d felt his thoughts, felt him planning his onslaught, and she’d begun to climax already.

  “Slow down,” he soothed, shifting to lie next to her and stroke her wild, vibrant hair. “There’s no reason to hurry.”

  “I want to hurry,” she said, not meeting his eyes but instead turning her focus onto the buttons of his shirt. “Before I change my mind here.”

  “I promise I won’t give you any reason to do that.”

  “Good. Then take off your damn shirt.”

  He had to laugh at her tone, not that it made his raging hard-on any less raging. No, in fact it made him all the more eager to get out of his shirt and strip her out of every scrap of her clothing. With that red hair, he was imaging a sprinkling of freckles over her shoulders and lily-white skin where the sun never shone. He loved the feel, the look of willing female flesh. He could hardly wait to have her laid out before him so he could take in every inch of her.

  He leaned back on his elbow and slowly undid the top button of his shirt. He watched as she chewed her lip, mesmerized by his movements. Slo
wly, he moved on to the next button and then carefully to the next. Her eyes followed. The desire was so thick around them that he was careful not to breathe it in too deeply. He would maintain his control, stay in command of their actions here tonight. It was damn near impossible, though, to rein in his wandering thoughts.

  He could feel her approval, the raw lust surging in her as he tantalized her one button at a time. By the Fires, he could feel his own flesh singeing where her eyes lingered on him. She was holding herself back from touching him, from running fingers over his chest or gliding over his skin, across his abdomen clenched tight. Her thoughts were having their way with him and he throbbed for the actual feel of her, for the hands he knew were just itching to get beyond his clothing and explore him in detail. He studied her lips and gave out a groan when the image of them moving over his flesh, devouring him, taking the full size of him into her mouth entered his mind. He’d never experienced this with a human before. Usually his was the mind that did the teasing, using his thoughts to increase the sensual need within his partner. This was the first time he’d encountered it working the other way around.

  He liked it.

  She startled him out of the fantasy, though, as she shoved him back down onto his back, brushing his hands away and taking over the buttons for herself.

  “Hell, let me do it,” she said.

  She ripped his shirt open the rest of the way and yanked it out from his pants. She’d already gotten the belt undone and now immediately went for his zipper. The woman was nothing if not efficient, and before he could remind her to slow down, she had him exposed. His cock practically leaped out of its confinement, and she grabbed it as if she’d been stalking a wild animal.

  He half expected her to exclaim, to make some randy comments about his size or the obvious state of his arousal—he was fairly used to those reactions—but she said nothing. She simply wrapped her hands around him and purred as if she’d won some sort of prize. He had to draw in a slow breath and remember why he was doing this or he would have been lost already. She was stroking him carefully now.