Chase stared down into her face, into her eyes, vibrant, pulsing green. He let his own travel her body, relishing the way her nipples pebbled beneath her shirt at nothing more than the touch of his gaze.
He couldn’t stop himself. His hand plunged into the sagging neckline of her shirt. He thrust a hand beneath the satin of her bra to find the silk of her body beneath. Chase cupped her breast, the point there tightening, thrusting, burning a hole at the center of his palm.
“God, you’re so responsive.” He looked into her eyes, wanting her to know what she could do to him. “It drives me mad. Seeing you every day, buttoned up and pristine, knowing that beneath all the prim and proper lies a sex goddess.”
A breath caught in her throat. He could hear the edge of it as it scraped for release. An answering catch jerked in his belly, making him crave.
“I’m no sex goddess.”
“Oh, I think you are.”
Releasing her, he took several moments to relieve her of the clothes that were left. He cast them aside, uncaring when he heard the liquid plop of paint splattering onto plastic. They were already ripped, what was a little dab of color?
Sabrina stretched before him on his brand-new bed, naked as the day she was born. Beautiful…“Gorgeous.”
With slow hands, he ran them up her body. Her skin was pliant and soft, the muscles beneath hard and supple. She let him explore, moving her body, arching her back, thrusting her breast into his hand when he traveled close enough to touch.
He kneaded and tugged, tempted and teased.
His fingers found the center of her body, hot and slick. He played at the folds of her sex, running a finger around the edge, enjoying the feel of her soaked skin and the way her hips arched up to meet him.
Her thighs dropped, open wide for him. She was pink and plump, swollen with a desire that throbbed in time with his own speeding pulse. Bending down, he placed his mouth just there. Her body convulsed with a quick shudder as his tongue laved her, sweeping up to caress the tiny bud of her clit.
He slipped a finger inside her, relishing the way the muscles of her body wrapped around him, coaxing him further in. He lifted his head, wanting to see her face, her eyes glazed dull and sightless with passion…passion for him.
“Chase.” The word was no more than a breath. But her eyes, they pleaded with him, deep, dark pools of green.
He wanted nothing more than to sink into her, for it to be over and them both to be satisfied. And it would be good. But they would both miss so much. It could be better.
“Not yet.”
Sabrina groaned, a protesting sound that halfway through turned into a growl. Wrapping both of her legs around his thighs, she reached out and grasped his arms. His body twisted with hers, collapsing beneath her.
He heard the sucking sound of plastic as it came away from her damp skin. His senses filled with her scent, sex and strawberries, as he dropped.
She loomed above him, her eyes glowing, a satisfied smile curling her lush lips. With nothing more than a jerk on his shirt, she commanded that he lift up and let her take it from him.
Her deft fingers unbuttoned the fly of his jeans. The bite of the zipper and the heat of her touch brushed down his aching erection. She didn’t touch skin on skin, instead making sure to torment him even more than he’d teased her.
Dragging herself up from the bed, she stood at the edge of the mattress, a fisted hand tugging at the cuff of each leg until his pants fell to the floor. He hadn’t bothered with anything underneath…he hadn’t exactly expected it to matter.
Her grin widened as she gazed down at him. He enjoyed the way her eyes dilated, enjoyed knowing she gained pleasure from looking at his body.
“Pretty gorgeous yourself.”
With a laugh, he raised his arms and pillowed them beneath his head. “I do my best.”
Shaking her head, Sabrina climbed onto the bed, kneeling between his legs. His breath caught at the picture of her there, knowing her mouth, her hands were so close. She could give him unbelievable pleasure. The image of her mouth, slick, wet, a dot of white frosting at the edge, swam across his mind. Had given him unbelievable pleasure.
Her palms slapped down onto his chest. The tops of her thighs brushed his own. Her body planked out above him, only touching him palm to chest and thigh to thigh.
His cock strained between them, jerking towards her as she rocked her body gently above him.
“We seriously need to do something about that ego.”
“My ego’s fine. But there are certainly other parts of me that could use some attention.”
She laughed, her head thrown back, the sound erupting from deep in her belly. When she leaned forward again, a single curl of her hair slipped from her back, falling down to tickle the center of his chest.
The caress was light, too light. He wanted more of her. Grasping her hips, he jerked her off center, her elbows buckling beneath her. Their bodies collided, skin on skin. It was the best sensation he’d experienced for months.
Unable to stop an unexpected surge of emotion, Chase wrapped his fingers tightly around her hips. He knew he was hurting her, could see her wince of pain. But he couldn’t make his hands relinquish her. For a split second he was utterly terrified that if he let go, even an inch, she would disappear. And never come back.
That he would lose the one thing that was keeping him centered right now.
Closing his eyes for a moment, he willed the thought away. Sabrina wasn’t going anywhere. At least not tonight. His hold relaxed and he inhaled her scent. He relished the feel of her body against his own and simply enjoyed.
But he didn’t stay that way long. The fire bursting through his blood wouldn’t allow him that. It demanded respite, release.
He slipped a hand between their bodies, finding the core of her hot and wet. A single finger inside had the breath surging from her lungs, tickling a path across his face. She rocked against him, a mindless, increasing rhythm that told him everything he needed to know.
She whimpered as he released her.
“Soon, baby, soon,” he soothed as he grasped her hips and slid home deep inside her.
The plastic was sticky and stiff under his body. It had slipped and bunched in places. He didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was Sabrina, the glove-tight hold she had around his body.
She sat up, her nails digging crescents into his chest as she fought for a grip. Her eyes struggled to half-mast but she wouldn’t let them close all the way. Instead, her gaze locked with his as she rocked her hips back and forth against his body.
She sucked him in, her breasts swaying seductively, calling to him. Rearing up, he took one tight, pink bud into his mouth, sucking hard before laving it with his tongue. He loved the sensation of her pebbled skin, the tear of electricity that shot through his body at the touch.
She reached behind her, changing the angle of her body, forcing him higher and harder inside her. Her palm landed on the outside of his thigh, and he felt the brush of it and heard the rustle of plastic.
Her body tightened around him. A keening moan rumbled from between her parted lips. And all the while she watched him with hot, burning eyes.
Her mouth opened on a silent cry that finally burst free as her body contorted with the force of her orgasm. Her muscles contracted around and above him.
It was an amazing sight, one he wasn’t likely to ever forget as long as he lived. Her hair rolling free and tangled down her back. Her body glowing with the sheen of sweat and pleasure. Open and uninhibited, for him, only for him.
That realization burst through him, vaulting him to a heart-stopping release of his own. He pumped high and hard inside as Sabrina rocked along with him, milking his body and pulling the last possible moments of ecstasy from the experience.
Minutes later she collapsed beside him, half on and half off his body, and mumbled, “The plastic’s got to go.”
Her face was buried between his ribs and his arm. Her breath tickled against
his skin, leveling eventually to something approaching normal.
One arm wrapped tightly around her waist, he relished the moment, enjoying the feel of simply holding her next to him.
Until she ruined it.
“You do know we need to keep this to ourselves right? A one-time thing that shouldn’t get in the way of our annulment. And definitely shouldn’t happen again.”
Her body stiffened against him as she waited for his response. Tension snapped through her yet again. Why couldn’t she just relax? Enjoy.
Chase sighed. The feeling of contentment had lasted roughly three minutes. He supposed he should be grateful for that. But he couldn’t lie to her. Not now. Not after what they’d just shared.
“I don’t want an annulment.”
10
“WHAT THE HELL do you mean you don’t want an annulment?”
Rina shoved up from the bed, using his chest as leverage to get herself away. And it was a good thing, too, because she was starting to feel altogether too comfortable in his arms.She could get used to that sensation. And that would not be good. She was scared. Scared that with one unbelievably reckless and amazing moment she’d tied herself irrevocably to this man, to this pilot, to this idiotic hero.
“Well, considering what just happened, I don’t think an annulment is an option anymore.”
“Shit!”
Chase simply shrugged—the damn man—and smiled at her. The sort of smile that said he’d won a battle she hadn’t even been aware they’d been fighting.
Oh, she’d known he’d wanted sex. If she was honest with herself, she’d admit that she’d wanted it as well. But her willpower had been stronger than the urges.
Or so she’d thought. So much for mind over matter.
“Honestly, Sabrina. I don’t see the problem.”
“Obviously. That doesn’t mean it isn’t there.”
She’d spent the past weeks of her life planning a medal ceremony for the night he’d almost died. Every day he went up in that plane was a day an accident might happen, a day he might not come back. The man took risks. Risks her damn heart couldn’t stand.
Not to mention the small fact that they could both lose their positions with the squadron, receive a formal reprimand that would tank their careers or possibly be court-martialed for fraud if anyone found out about their marriage.
And if the air force found out, her father would. And he wouldn’t be able to keep his nose out of it. He’d ride in like some knight in shining armor and try to protect her…no matter if she wanted the protection or not.
He’d be mad she hadn’t told him, upset that she’d done something so stupid to ruin her career…and he’d be right, damn it.
She’d had a plan. But with Chase, her plans seem to melt away. Instead, the wild child she’d been ignoring since she was five took over.
Rina groaned. “We go through with the annulment.” It was the best thing for them both even if he didn’t realize it yet.
Chase reached for her. She twisted out of his grasp, walking away toward the window. But he followed her, wrapping his arms around her waist and neatly blocking off all of her exits.
The warmth of his body burned into her back. His arms were red-hot bands around her stomach. And her skin felt itchy and tight. Her head told her to run away. But her body refused to listen.
“Look, that option is gone. Although, I can’t say I’m terribly upset.”
“What?” What was wrong with him? “We don’t even know each other, Chase. Just because we said ‘I do’—without realizing it was for real, I might add—doesn’t mean we should stay married. In fact, it means we should end it as soon as possible. We don’t belong together.”
“You’re wrong.” His mouth nuzzled at her neck, sending a thrill of awareness down her spine. “We certainly have sexual chemistry.”
Her chest tightened at the shot of pleasure spilling into her veins. She needed to get away from him. Right now. Because if she didn’t she was afraid she’d never have the strength to step away.
He had the huge potential to break her heart. The Babe Magnet would get tired of her…that’s what he did. He’d move on—other women, other assignments, more dangerous stunts, more heroic maneuvers.
Her parents’ marriage had started out as an instant attraction, love at first sight, her father had told her. And look how well that had turned out. Attraction always faded away. And where would they—she—be when it did?
She couldn’t stay here. She couldn’t risk that. It was cleaner, safer her way.
Lifting her foot, Sabrina stomped squarely on his instep. Chase’s grunt of surprise and pain whooshed past her ear, tickling the tender shell and sending another unwanted shiver through her body.
His arms dropped away, leaving her naked, alone and somehow disappointed. She ignored the sensation.
Turning toward him, she said, “You’re delusional, Chase. There is no us. There never has been and there never will be. A relationship—a marriage—takes a hell of a lot more than sexual chemistry to make it work. It isn’t a mistake you make and decide to keep just because the sex is great. It’s something you dream about for years, something you plan.”
He rubbed at the center of his foot, hopping up and down. She fought against a laugh and the urge to reach out and grab him. On one hand it was somewhat comical, the way the moonlight fell across his naked, contorted body. On the other, unfortunately arousing.
“Plan. Everything in life isn’t neat, Sabrina. Everything doesn’t fall into line with a plan.”
“It does in mine, mister, and I have no intention of making a small mistake bigger because I let idiotic impulses rule my brain.”
A flash of something she didn’t like crossed his face. It wasn’t pain…it couldn’t be. She couldn’t have hurt him. Not really. It was pride, that was all.
“Besides, all we do is argue.”
“That’s not true.” He gave her a pointed, steamy look that had her insides melting yet again, damn the man. “Of course, we wouldn’t argue as much if you’d just admit that you want me.”
“Oh, I want you all right. I want you to sign the annulment papers so all this can go away.”
“I can’t do that. One, I don’t want to. And two, I’m not going to lie to the judge. We have a relationship, Sabrina. Even if you’d like to pretend that we don’t.”
With a growl of frustration, she yanked on her clothes, uncaring that they were covered with drips of paint.
“Fine. I’ll call my lawyer tomorrow and rest assured, I’ll let you know what he says about divorce.”
“ARE YOU GOING to talk to me?”
“Yes.”“About anything important?”
Sabrina looked across her office at Chase as he stood watching her. She wasn’t entirely happy to see him this morning, not after the night they’d shared, the night she couldn’t seem to put out of her mind no matter how hard she tried. She’d completely forgotten the interviews she’d scheduled for today and the fact that they were supposed to travel into the city together.
She sighed. It had been difficult this morning, putting on her uniform, the layers of armor she used to keep her life ordered and perfect. She hadn’t wanted to, but she’d done it anyway.
“Are you ready to go?”
He was here a little early, but better they get things started than stare at each other for the next half hour.
“No.”
Grabbing an office chair she’d stashed in the corner, Chase turned away from her and wedged it beneath the handle of the door he’d closed when he’d walked in.
“What are you doing?”
Instead of answering her, he walked across the room. His eyes burned into her body, setting off a chain reaction of sensations. How could he do that? Turn her on with little more than the glitter of promise in his eyes?
“You know, I’m getting really tired of having to convince you this is real, Sabrina. I’m not sure how much longer I can do it. You sure as hell aren’t making it easy.
”
Yeah, well, that wasn’t her intention. “Excuse me for trying to be realistic.”
“Excuse you for being scared. Fine, I get it.”
“Probably not.” There was no way he could when even she didn’t understand the level of terror that filled her—both at the thought of losing him and at the thought of keeping him in her life.
Reaching for her, he buried his fingers into the hair pulled tight at her nape. The tug hurt a little but, as he leaned down toward her, she decided she didn’t care.
“Sabrina, this is real and I’m not going anywhere.”
“What are you doing?”
She should stop him.
“Trying to kiss my wife.”
“Well, stop.”
He stared down at her, frank appreciation stamped on his face. It was an unsettling and heady sensation, like she was the Christmas present he’d waited all year to open.
“If someone sees us…” Her voice trailed off on the protest she didn’t really want to make, not with his fingers trailing slowly and tantalizingly across the front of her shirt. She wanted his touch. Ached for his touch.
“I know. Public displays of affection. Why do you think I stuck a chair under the door?”
“You should still stop.” His fingers brushed against the swell of her breast. She instinctively leaned into his hand.
“You don’t want me to.”
He pulled back, his gaze snagging hers, waiting, demanding she admit to the truth.
And she couldn’t give it to him.
She pushed away from her desk and stood up. “We have to go. Move the chair.”
DONALD FOLLOWED discreetly behind as the vehicle turned into the parking lot at the Las Vegas Review Journal. He’d been surprised to see Carden’s car pulling off of the base so early in the day. He’d been there less than an hour.
He wondered who the woman in the car was. She was probably air force since she’d already been on base. He’d love to see her uniform, to figure out what her rank and possible position was.He drove slowly down the opposite parking aisle, watching and waiting…for what he wasn’t sure. A sign. Maybe his Amy would give him one, show him what he was supposed to do.
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