by Lyric James
He reached into the basket sitting on the table and broke off a piece of bread. “So, tell me about you, your family. Any brothers or sisters?”
“Yes. I have two brothers, no sisters.”
He smiled. “The only girl, huh.”
“Well, yes. Except my mom of course.”
“How long was your dad a police officer?”
Jade squirmed. He was too close to her. Every time his leg or his elbow brushed against her, her pussy throbbed. “He um…retired after thirty years on the police force about three years ago.”
Rhys leaned back against the seat, so composed, too relaxed, when her body screamed inside. “And your brothers are cops also, right?”
She nodded. “My older brother, John, has been a cop for about fifteen years, and my younger brother, Justin, about seven.”
Under the table, his leg moved back and forth, which made his pants leg sweep against her bare skin, like a caress. Little tingles of desire skittered around her calf muscle.
“Oh, so you’re a middle child as well?”
She needed to keep her mind on what they were talking about. She was having a hard time formulating coherent speech. “What about your family?”
He shrugged. “Only child.” A brief hint of longing slid across his face, and his voice lowered when he said, “I used to crave a brother or sister when I was growing up, but my mom had such a hard time when she was pregnant with me, she didn’t want to try again.”
Jade laid her hand on top of his forearm. “I’m sorry.”
As she watched him shake off the unpleasant emotion, he took a sip of his champagne and smiled. “Thanks. I think that’s one of the reasons why Jackie and I are so close, you know? She was an only child too. I think our parents secretly harbored wishes, still do I think, that she and I will fall in love and get married, but well, you know the answer to that already.”
“Where is your mom now?”
“In Florida. After my father died, I don’t think she could bear living in that huge house anymore without him. She has a sister who lives in Destin, so, she’s not alone. I try to get down there and visit her at least once every few months.” He reached for his glass and took another sip. “Where is your family?”
“Serving and protecting the great city of Nashville.”
The conversation stopped for a minute when their waiter brought their food. After Rhys took his first bite, he asked her, “Why didn’t you become a cop like your father and your brothers? How did you end up a private investigator?”
Jade was quiet for a minute, her fork hovering between the plate and her mouth. She tended to shy away from asking herself that very same question.
“I’m sorry,” he said, “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“I’m not upset,” she said a bit too defensively.
Rhys reached over and with his thumb, smoothed the space above her nose, between her eyes. “When you get upset, this part right here always crinkles.”
“It’s just…”
“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”
She took one bite of her food, then set the fork down.
“You didn’t want to follow in everybody else’s footsteps,” he stated plainly.
“When I was a kid, even though I was a girl, I always played with my brothers. We played cops and robbers and cowboys and Indians. They always made me the robber or the Indian and they would chase me around the backyard.” Happy memories flooded into her mind. The old plastic badges her father gave them, her grandfather’s cowboy hats with feathers on the side, too big boots she always stumbled out of running from her brothers. “I begged them to let me be the cop just one time, but they never did.”
“But when you grew up and could really be a police officer, you didn’t want to be.”
“Right. I wanted to do something along those lines, but not something so rigid, with so many rules to follow.” She smiled, glad but surprised that he understood. And she was afraid to admit she was beginning to understand him too. She wasn’t sure if that was good, or bad.
Rhys took his napkin out of his lap and wiped the corners of his mouth. “So, you’re not the conformist, huh?”
“I’m not,” she said and laughed. “Plus, I didn’t want to be a cop just because my father did it and my brothers did it.”
He swung his arm up and behind her to rest on the booth again. His fingers slid across and down her neck. “I knew there was something special about you.”
She shivered. “Being a P.I. means I don’t have to sit behind a desk or ride around in a car all day.”
With his other hand, Rhys swirled his drink in the glass. “So, this job must be pretty boring to you.”
Rhys and bored were not two words she’d put in the same category, let alone in the same sentence. The first time they’d met, they’d had a one night stand. They’d gone to a fundraiser, went to a meeting, almost had sex in a hotel lobby, did have sex in his office. “Boring isn’t exactly the word I’d choose to describe working for you.”
Rhys leaned closer to her. “So, what would you call it, exactly?”
Jade moistened her lips. “Um…interesting.”
He took her hand and turned it over. “That’s all?” He massaged tender little circles along the inside of her wrist with his fingers. “I’m positive you can come up with something more imaginative than that.”
She drew in a deep breath and let it out. “Well…” The statement stalled in her throat when Rhys pulled her hand to his mouth and kissed the same spot. “Wh-what are you doing?”
An erotic spasm clinched in her chest when he nibbled her skin. His tongue snaked out and left a wet spot. “You called working for me just ‘interesting.’ I don’t think I like that.” He lowered her hand onto the table. His disappeared under it where he drew his hand up her thigh. “I think I need to change your opinion of me.”
Jade had on a skirt that cinched at the waist but flowed out loosely around her legs, so it was easy for Rhys to maneuver his hand under the material without her having to move an inch. “But…but, the waitress, the…the other people…” His finger slipped under the rim of her panties and found the lips of her pussy.
“Will never know a thing,” he murmured.
A burst of panic seized her chest as her gaze slid from one corner of the room to the other. What if someone saw him? But it quickly changed. Her breath caught in her throat as a little thrill followed in its wake. Rhys moved his fingers slowly, in and out.
“You know,” he whispered, “we’ve made love at a hotel.”
There was heat, gigantic waves of it, and every muscle in her body tightened and reached for the pleasure his hand promised.
“And we’ve made love in my office.”
Tension coiled tightly in the center of her body. Desperate for more, she lowered herself in the seat, just a bit, so he could go deeper, because she wanted—needed—for him to do so.
“But I’d bet a million bucks that you have tastes…decadent flavors I have yet to savor, yet to discover, hidden inside you.”
His voice was low, and in response to his words, every cell in her body strained and begged for release, pleaded for climax as it built and built between the walls of her pussy.
Her breath came in short gasps and she became weak with desire. The noise in the restaurant seemed almost non-existent while he pleasured her. But when she heard a plate drop in the distance, reality trickled back into her senses. And luckily it did, because the waiter was approaching their table.
“Rhys,” she panted. “Stop, stop… The server.”
He leaned close and whispered in here ear. “I will finish this,” he promised her.
Jade sat motionless, breathing in and out slowly, trying to still her desire as it cascaded over her like a waterfall. It was inevitable, she and Rhys, from that very first twirl on the dance floor. Didn’t she tell herself once already that the man was a predator when it came to matters of sex? Hadn’t he proved that to
her again and again?
Let’s just face it. She was powerless to stop it. Powerless to stop her desire or need to be with him, to want him. Why not just go with the flow? Why not take what he offered and enjoy it while it lasted? No one said she had to fall in love.
Rhys was standing. He reached for her hand, and she gave it to him. She walked out of the restaurant oblivious to her surroundings. In the limo, Rhys closed the inset between them and the driver, then pulled her into a kiss. She sank into the bliss of his lips without question. No more wondering. No more questions. Just the caress of his fingers across the back of her neck was all she needed. Just the slide and tangle of his tongue against hers was all she desired.
To hell with the rest of it. She’d worry about it tomorrow.
And then Jade took control of the kiss. She became the wanton sexpot she’d always wanted to be. If she was going to indulge in whatever this was with Rhys, then so be it.
She pushed him back against the seat and straddled him while sliding her fingers through his hair and pulling his head back, exposing his throat. With each slow beat of the music filtering through the speakers, she licked, bit, and savored his taste. He moaned when she tugged at his earlobe, nibbling just beneath. Smoothing the lapels of his jacket aside, she reached inside and shoved the garment over his shoulders and down his arms. Power vibrated beneath her fingertips, and his heartbeat hammered against the palm of her hand.
At the same time, and awkwardly, they removed each other’s shirts until they were skin against skin. Her skirt was bunched around her hips and the palms of his hands slid around to cup her ass and squeeze. He traced a path upward until the pads of his thumbs grazed her lace enclosed nipples. She gasped when his mouth replaced his fingers. The throbbing tips ached as he gently teased one with his thumb, the other with his tongue. He enclosed them both in his hands and lapped at each.
“Take it off,” she whispered.
In one fluid motion he removed her bra and the discarded piece of silk hit the car floor.
“Glorious…simply glorious,” he murmured and applied kisses over each mound as they skimmed tantalizingly against his hard chest.
Jade was so aroused she could barely hold air in her lungs. “When are you going to be naked?”
She heard the familiar wisp of a zipper coming undone. “Just as soon as I do this.”
Rhys took her skirt, lifted it up and over her head. Left in nothing but her panties and shoes, Jade scooted across to the other seat and removed her remaining clothes and he did the same.
Small amounts of filtered light came through the tinted windows each time they passed a street lamp. Every once in a while the car would dip as it rolled over a bump in the road. The only sound emanating in the small space was their heavy breathing and soft music from the radio. God he was beautiful. Broad shoulders, wide and rounded with muscle, tapered down to the solid wall of muscle that was his chest. The corrugated leanness of his flat abdomen was as hard as any professional athletes. And his penis was blatant and aggressively aroused. Magnificent.
He moved to shorten the distance between them, but she stopped him, putting her bare foot on his chest and pushing him back. She shook her head. “No.”
The look on his face was incredulous until she said, “Let me.” When Jade straddled him, a slow, sensuous smile crossed his handsome face. She captured his mouth again with hungry urgency. Her tongue darted repeatedly between his lips, taking everything he offered while he readied himself with a condom. Finally, she eased herself down onto him where he filled her completely. He was thick and hot, and sweet pleasure washed over her as she arched her back in unspeakable ecstasy. Encircling her hips with his hands, he rocked against her, slowly, insistent. Each measured thrust provocative and primal.
He captured a nipple between his teeth and pulled, and she gasped. Jade pressed down to meet each and every upward thrust. He rocked her to his rhythm, and willingly she twisted and obeyed an instinct she hadn’t known she possessed. His hardness. Her softness. She matched him. When he thrust upward, she thrust down. When he delved deeper, she bucked and collided with him in a perfect cadence.
“Damn…damn. What have you done to me?” he whispered against her lips.
“Mine. All…mine,” she answered in short, sharp gasps.
“Yes. I am.” Rhys took her face between his hands and caught her gaze. A look so full of need, longing…love…passed over his features, making her shiver.
“I am yours,” he said, a solemn promise.
He shifted their positions and turned her around until she lay on the seat, her back flat against the cool leather and he was over her. He lifted her hips, embedding himself deeply within her. He linked their fingers, palm to palm, over her head. So caught up in the rapture of it all, Jade couldn’t tell where his body began or hers ended. It shook her.
What she read in his eyes wasn’t possible. But here they were. It didn’t matter that they were in a car, rolling past homes where families shared dinner. The only thing that mattered right now, in this very instance, was Rhys.
A pulsing desire moved through her, beginning with the soles of her feet, inching upward until it slammed through her center, bowing her back. Rhys released her hands and took her hips in his firm grip, sucking a nipple into his mouth as she rode out the wave of her orgasm. “Oh, yes.”
He lifted one of her legs over his shoulder and tucked the other up under his arm against his side. Then he rode her. Pumping and pumping until a bead of sweat trickled over his nose and landed on her chest. It was exquisite. His gaze never left hers as he withdrew and entered her again and again.
When her legs began to shake and the onset of another orgasm erupted, he pulled back, leaving only the tip inside her.
“Oh please, don’t stop. Don’t stop.”
He entered and slid out again as she bucked against him.
Rhys bent and kissed her, grazing her lips with his tongue. “What do you want, Jade?”
She jerked against him, trying to suck him back inside her, but he wouldn’t allow it.
Rhys slid all the way back in and out again. “What do you want from me, Jade? Say it.”
Her head swung back and forth against the leather.
He repeated the slow torture. In. Out. In. Out. “Say it, baby. Say it.”
“Fuck me,” she whispered.
“I didn’t hear you.”
The small cabin was consumed with their ragged breaths. It was permeated with the smell of her flowery perfume, his cologne and sex. ”I want you to fuck me. Hard.”
He obliged and arched into her with the fierceness of a beast. She lifted her hips to accept him and grind her body into his. To her satisfaction, he pounded in and out of her in a pace that matched the rapid thump of her pulse. Only peripherally, she hoped the sounds they made could not be heard by the driver on the other side of the partition. But she hardly doubted it.
Rhys leaned down and captured her mouth again, kissing her as if he was a man starved. She groaned and used every ounce of muscle inside her to meet him stroke for stroke, thrust for thrust.
She shifted her mouth away, needing to see him, to look into his eyes, to determine if one ounce of the same emotions welling inside her ripped through him as well. Pure pleasure poured through her at the passionate look on his face that told her that indeed, he did. And even if that didn’t, each drive of his hips, each moan from his lips confirmed it. It was deep and primal and reached all the way to her G-spot like a bullet. And he pushed deeper, pounded harder until at last, it began. Just as his muscular arms began to quiver, he let out a deep groan that matched hers in intensity and it triggered her explosion, and he clamped his mouth over hers to quell her screams.
Their tongues tangled and mated until at last they were both sated and panting, wrapped in each other’s arms.
Chapter Eleven
Rhys shoved his feet into his shoes as he glanced over at Jade. She was buttoning her shirt over her luscious breasts. The woman was
something to behold, and even now, while aftershocks of his orgasm still coursed through his system, his body wanted more. But more than what his libido wanted, his heart wanted more. But he knew he needed to prove that to her.
The scent of sex mingled with the rich perfume of her body. He liked it. When he reached toward her and ran his fingers through her curls to bring some semblance of order back to her hair, he thought she never looked more beautiful.
He shook his head. He’d just made love to her in the back of his limo. Would they ever make it to a bed again? They were only minutes from her house. His plan had been to take her home, kiss her goodnight and thank her for a wonderful dinner, but instead, he hadn’t been able to keep his hands off of her.
“I have to go to Chattanooga this weekend. I need you to come with me,” he said with an ease that was totally fake.
Her startled gaze swung up to meet his. “For what? I mean, like a…”
“It’s business.” Rhys watched a myriad of expressions cross her face before he continued. “I have to speak at a fundraiser.” He knew he was pushing it and it was probably stupid to force her into going with him, but he didn’t think he could last the weekend without seeing her. And he wanted Jade to see who he really was beneath the playboy. Today had been a success, and he needed to keep that forward momentum. He wanted her thought processes centered on him in a positive light, not negative, and the only way to do that was to keep her by his side as much as possible. Spending the weekend together, he hoped, would be what he needed to convince her he wanted more than sex.
His driver pulled up at her house and as he stopped the car and moved to open the door, Jade stared out the window. Mind reading would be a nifty trick right now. Worried she’d think he only wanted her there to keep his bed warm, he said, “I’ll get you your own room if you want me to.”
For a moment, disappointment flickered across her face. Fisting her keys, she replied, “I should really spend the weekend here in Memphis, trying to find out who’s sending you the letters. There’s a couple more people I need to speak with, and I need to get an analysis of the letter you got today.”
