by Mina Carter
Bored with her reflection—after all, it was nothing new—she took a healthy sip of her drink and savored the burn as it went down. Damn, that was good vodka. No watering down here, that was for sure, which was a bloody good job with these prices. She cast a baleful look at the wine list by her elbow. She earned good money, but these prices were ludicrous.
The door at the front of the bar crashed open, and loud male voices announced the arrival of a large group. The bar staff froze for a second before the one nearest to her, the one who had tried to engage her in conversation, groaned.
“Great, the Sharks. Molly, I’m heading out on my break.” And with that he was gone, leaving the girl at the other end of the bar shooting a glare full of daggers after him.
Fern studied the chaos at the front of the bar through the mirror. The Strathstow Sharks were famous for their abilities on the pitch, the favored sons of the town when they’d stormed to victory in the premiership and won the cup, and infamous for their somewhat exuberant nights out in the local bars. They were loud, brash, and could be a pain in the backside when celebrating.
If she’d know they were playing today, she might have thought twice about coming out tonight—date with Greg or not. A night in might have worked a lot better. Couple of vodkas and a chance to scratch the itch that had been bugging her for months… Christ, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d had sex. Long days at work and exhaustion had limited her options for meeting prospective partners. Thank God for vibrators. Without them, she’d have gone nuts.
The crowd moved closer to the bar, filling the empty space next to her as they all tried shouting their orders to the poor, harassed-looking Molly all at the same time. Fern huffed and shook her head, burying her nose back into her glass. When would they learn that they’d get their drinks quicker if they organized themselves, and one person ordered?
“SHUT THE HELL UP!”
A voice roared above the melee, and silence fell. Interested, she looked over as a man fought his way to the front of the group. Like the rest, he was suited and booted, but in his case, the smart jacket barely contained a powerful physique. Shorter than the rest, he had a set of shoulders on him as big as a barn, and a vicious bruise decorated one cheekbone.
Despite that, it was obvious he was the man in charge. Quickly, he collected orders and relayed them to Molly behind the bar in a low voice Fern couldn’t make out over the baying of the others as they pushed and jostled.
Shaking her head, she took another swallow from her drink and tried to ignore them. As soon as she was done, she was out of here in search of a tub of Ben & Jerry’s and a DVD. Something with explosions and car chases should do it…
*
Tom Sexton took his drink with a sigh of relief and turned to check that the rest of the lads were settled. He loved nights out with the squad, especially after a tough game like today, but it could be bloody hard work at times. On the pitch, they worked like a well-oiled machine, chewing up and spitting out any team that dared oppose them, but off it and out on the town, it was like herding ferrets—ones with ADHD and Tourette’s.
But miracle of miracles, now that they all had a pint or other libation of choice in hand, they appeared to be behaving. Casting an experienced eye over the known trouble-makers to ensure they were all well apart, Tom allowed himself to relax a little and took a drink.
The aged bourbon left a trail of fire as it slid down to his stomach. He sucked a breath in around it. Good stuff. Proper whiskey, just as he liked it, which was the reason that he’d insisted they come here. Some of the lads picked right dives, which was alright if you were into cheap beer and cheaper women.
Talking of women, his gaze slid past the two blondes Carson was trying to chat up, and to the brunette at the end of the bar. Petite, the figure under the black dress full of the sort of curves he preferred. Even now, he itched to run his hands along her waist and out over the cello curve of her hips. A shudder of heat rolled through him as he surveyed her over the rim of his glass, plotting his approach.
Despite his appearance, and he was the first to admit that stuffed into this bloody jacket, his broad shoulders and heavy chest gave him the appearance of a thug, he was a thinker. The first to spot and call plays on the pitch, he directed the front row with the ruthlessness of a war-general, smashing the opposition's defense and creating opportunities for the back row to storm to victory. And any victory, on or off the pitch, depended on the right approach.
His quarry turned on the stool, the turn of a slender ankle captivating him for a heartbeat before he realized she’d gathered her bag and was preparing to leave.
Oh, no sweetheart, we’re not having any of that. I haven’t gotten to know you yet. And I intend to get to know you a lot better. Like the Shark he wore on his shirt, he slid through the group around him and cut off her retreat before she’d taken a step away from the stool.
“Hey.”
She stumbled mid-step and trod on his toe, obviously not expecting anyone to be so close. “Oh! Sorry, I didn’t see you there.”
A hint of perfume reached his nose, delicate and haunting. He’d thought she’d be pretty. He was wrong.
She was stunning.
Dark eyes tilted up at the corners, cat-like, set over a button nose and a pair of bee-stung lips that looked kissable soft. Unlike the hanger-ons crowding the bar, she wasn’t plastered in makeup, her natural beauty drawing him like a moth to the flame. A cap of dark hair framed her face. His fingers itched to reach out, touch it to see if it was as silky as it looked, and to run through it, gripping it as he angled her head so he could claim her lips.
Her hair fell forward, covering her face as she looked down at his foot, and bouncing back as she glanced back up at him.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to trample you. I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
If she hadn’t looked so worried, he might have laughed at the idea a little thing like her could have hurt him. Hell, she could run over him in full studs, and it wouldn’t bother him, not after the rest of the elephants on the team tried it in training regularly. With her, it would just be kinky.
He smiled. His best, panty-remover, charming smile. “Well, that depends.”
The delicate arch of her eyebrow rose, her lips pursing a little in a way that fascinated him. “Depends? On what?”
Her questions were blunt and direct, without a hint of a giggle or other coyness he was used to when dealing with women on a night out. As he’d thought as soon as he saw her, she was cut from a different cloth to the normal class of women who pursued the Sharks. Then again, that might be because she wasn’t chasing him, he was chasing her. And with every second, he was growing more determined to catch her.
“On whether or not you let me get you another.” He flicked a glance to the empty glass behind her and dropped his voice, risking a small move closer. “You’d be doing me a big favor. Half this lot wants to talk about cars, and the other half just wants to chat up women. I’m dying for some intelligent conversation here.”
Triumph hit him when she smiled and nodded. “Hmm, okay. I guess I have time for one more drink.”
“Thank you. You’ve saved me from insanity, seriously. I’m Tom. I’m with the Sharks, but I guess you already knew that,” he said, and kicked himself. So much for Mr. Cool. “I’m babbling, aren’t I?”
She chuckled, a dirty little sound that hit him right in the groin, and nodded. “Maybe a little. I’m Fern. Pleased to meet you, Tom.”
“Likewise.” He turned her back to the bar with a gentle hand on her waist, angling his body to cut off the rest of the squad’s view. He wasn’t normally so anti-social, but he didn’t want to share her with anyone. With a quick gesture, he signaled the girl behind the bar to bring more drinks. “Fern. A pretty name for a pretty lady.”
“Smooth talker.” Despite her come-back, a faint flush rose on her cheeks, proving she wasn’t immune to his compliments. “I didn’t hurt your foot, did I?”
He sli
d her a sideways glance and winked. “Would I lie about something like that? It’s throbbing something fierce.”
Throbbing—like something else. Keeping a smile on his face, he tried to clamp down his body’s reaction, but her perfume winding around him and the curve under his hand stopped it. He was as stiff as a fucking goalpost and so ready for action that if they were alone right now, he’d have that dress off and her under him in a heartbeat.
“Yeah, sure it does. Next, you’ll be asking me to rub it better.”
Fuck me. His mind on a different track, he almost spat the mouthful he’d just taken across the bar, managing to swallow at the last moment and half choking himself in the process.
She grinned as he coughed and spluttered, offering him a napkin, the light in her eyes proving she knew exactly what he’d been thinking.
“Saucy witch,” he muttered, wiping his mouth and looking at her with a keener gaze. Oh, this one was much more intelligent than the usual bimbos who crowded around the team. With a thrill, he realized he’d have to step up his game.
“Witch is it? Be careful or I’ll put a spell on you.” Her tone was light and flirtatious as she picked up her glass and took a sip.
“Sweet thing, you can put a spell on me any time you want.”
He moved closer, sliding his hand around her waist until he could feel the heat of her body beating against his through their clothes. She didn’t argue, just watched him over the rim of her glass. Emboldened, he stroked his thumb against the curve there, a soft caress but one that signaled his interest.
She made a show of looking around at the rest of the bar. The fact that she had to rise on tip-toe to look over his shoulder fed his male ego. Not as tall as the rest of the squad, his lack of height didn’t bother him, but she was so tiny that he felt huge next to her. He’d have to be careful not to hurt her.
And just like that his mind headed for the gutter again, feeding him images of the two of them locked in passion, her slender figure spread out naked beneath him, over him, in front of him…
“Oh no, I couldn’t possibly cast a spell in here. Too many people.”
No fucking way. She did not just hand him an opportunity like that. Startled, he looked at her. Her chin was tilted up, set in a defiant line, and she watched him, an expectant look in her eyes.
Shit. She had. She knew exactly what she’d just said.
“Well. We could go somewhere more…” he lowered his voice and tugged on her waist until she was flush against him. Her lips parted in surprise as their hips met, his cock hard in the prison of his pants and more than ready for action. “Private. If you’d like.”
He waited, giving her the chance to back out. To step away, smile and make her excuses. He was no oil painting, and he knew it, but he had more than enough stamina to give her the best night of her life. Hell, with how horny he felt right now, the best week of her life, if he could persuade her to stay naked in his bed that long.
She swallowed, the confident mask slipping and granting him a glimpse of the woman beneath. A small tremor rolled through her body, and his heart softened. She was nervous. Why, looking the way she did, he had no clue, but she was.
Slow so as not to scare her off, he tucked a finger under her chin and lifted it. He bent his head, senses on alert for the first sign of tension in her body, and brushed his lips over hers. They were soft, sweet, and oh-so enticing.
Schooling the groan that wanted to break loose from his throat, he kissed her again. One kiss, two. Slow. Innocent. He kept things light, although all he wanted to do was crowd her back against the bar and kiss her to within an inch of her life. Lifting his head before the temptation grew too great, he looked down.
The dazed, sultry look on her face nearly did him in then and there. His cock jerked savagely, a wave of possessiveness washing over him so complete that he almost staggered under the force of it. He leaned down to whisper into her ear. “Say something now, or I’m going to take you home and screw you senseless.”
Chapter Two
What the hell was she doing? Fern fell silent as Tom took her hand and led her from the bar. He stopped for a second to talk with another man, one built like a small mountain. She couldn’t do more than offer the guy a tight-lipped smile, heat burning into her cheeks like napalm.
It had to be obvious what they were up to. God, how embarrassing. Before she could chicken out though, Tom led her out of the bar. She shivered as the night air hit her, her thin dress scant protection again the cold.
“Here, let me.”
He shucked his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. Warmth and the scent of his cologne, sharp citrus and sandalwood, surrounded her. She breathed a sigh of pleasure but frowned, starting to shrug out of it. “But you’ll get cold. Take it back.”
“Cold? This? This is mild compared to what we train in.”
He wrapped the jacket about her with a tight grip on the lapels. Leaning down, he kissed her again. A lingering kiss that was over too soon. Her lips tingled as he lifted his head, and she couldn’t help a pout of frustration.
He rumbled, a low sound of amusement from deep in his broad chest. “Soon, I promise. Riggs is calling us a cab, but it’ll take a couple of minutes to get here so how about you come over here and keep me warm.”
Keeping his grip on the jacket, he walked backward until he leaned against the wall, pulling her closer. She stepped between his spread thighs, hands splayed over his chest for balance, but he carried on tugging her until she rested against his hard body. She bit her lip at the leashed power in his frame, the muscles beneath her hands corded and tense.
She’d never considered herself the delicate type of female, apt to swoon at the mere presence of a man, but wrapped in his arms, she felt tiny and feminine. He surrounded her, his body language both protective and possessive.
He held her close, one hand sliding to the nape of her neck while the other slid down the length of her back to cup her ass in a bold move. She gasped as he pulled her flush with his hips again, his interest pressing hard into her belly. Sparks of arousal fizzed through her veins, tingling along every inch of her skin and settling low in her abdomen. An achy, nervous feeling as though a thousand hyper-active butterflies took up residence.
His lips curved towards a smile as he looked down at her, still taller even though he was in a slight squat against the wall. She liked that, liked that he was so tall and powerful. The light in his blue eyes was warm, with a hint of darkness lurking behind them. A heated darkness she wanted to see much more of.
He bent his head, nudging at her nose with his, more a nuzzle than anything, before he claimed her lips. Again, he was soft and gentle, but the tension in the muscles beneath her hands told a different story. He was holding back, and she didn’t want that. She wanted all that power unleashed. Wanted to feel it, taste it.
So she moved in, pressing against his hips with hers to trap his hard cock between them. Sliding her hands up to his shoulders, she kissed him back, angling her head and parting her lips in invitation.
He growled, a low sound deep in the center of his chest that she more felt than heard. His fingers tightened, gripping the rounded globe of her ass as he took her up on her offer. His tongue slid past her lips to stroke along hers, and she became a victim of her own plot.
Pleasure and anticipation rolled through her in equal measures as he lazily kissed her. He didn’t push, didn’t touch her up or grope, just kissed her, as though she was the only woman in existence. Gently, as he learned the shape of her lips and thoroughly, as though he were committing them to memory. She could get used to this, the way he held her and kissed her tapping into something deep within her.
Her breath caught when he pulled back, teeth grazing against the full curve of her lower lip. Her hands became claws to mangle the collar of his shirt. She moaned in frustration when he pulled away and tried to drag him back.
He rumbled in amusement, dropped a quick kiss on her upturned lips, and stood straight. “Shh
, it’s okay. Just the cab. Come on, before you get too cold.”
There was fat chance of that, she mused as he led her across to the cab parked at the curbside, his arm firm around her waist. Which was a good thing, since her legs didn’t appear to be working at the moment. Not due to the alcohol. Anticipation and the cold air had burnt that out of her system as soon as they’d left the bar.
No, it was all him and his soft approach. It was so different to what she’d expected of him, of a rugby player, and was so sexy and seductive that she was hooked. Totally and utterly hooked.
She didn’t catch the address he gave when they were settled into the back of the cab, but she wasn’t worried. The whole bar had seen them leave, and it wasn’t like he was hard to identify, not built the way he was. Besides, she felt safe with him, a knowledge that arrived from nowhere but a gut feeling she trusted. There was something about his manner, the way he looked at her and touched her that told her he would protect her with his life if need be.
Leaning back as the car pulled off, he pulled her back into his arms. She went happily, settling into his side, her head pillowed by his muscled arm.
“You warm enough?” He leaned into her, keeping his voice low. His warm breath whispered against her ear, and she nodded, feeling like she was caught up in a little cocoon that contained just the two of them.
The journey passed in silence. Not a comfortable one, but one super-charged with awareness. His thumb stroked down her arm, the pressure felt even through the layers of his jacket, and he reached out with his free hand to capture hers.
Half turned on the seat, he surrounded her, his broad shoulders blocking her view out of his side, but he didn’t kiss her, not on the mouth. His lips grazed her temple in small caresses that kept her blood simmering. What would he be like in bed? Soft and gentle? Slow but determined? A shiver hit her as her pussy clenched hard in anticipation.
The car turned left into a residential street, and pulled up outside an apartment block set a little way back off the road.
