by Selena Kitt
"I don't think that would be a good idea," she stalled. The truth was, he scared her. Sage had never responded to a man like that before… had never relinquished control. Taking this further would be a bad idea.
"Conner, I—"
"Sage," sighed Conner, impatiently. "I didn't ask. Give me your number." He knew why she was hesitating and it was bullshit. Attraction like this didn't happen between people often. She was running from it because it scared her. Marines didn't run away, and they didn't get fucking scared.
Keeping her gaze lowered, she muttered, "202-639-8700."
"Good girl," he said, with a quick kiss on her lips. "Go see to your friend."
Sage practically ran to Melissa, who was already waiting in the car.
* * *
"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!" yelled Melissa as she laughed and beat on the steering wheel.
"Will you please stop?" groaned Sage.
"Do you have any idea what you two looked like? Oh my God! I came just looking at you! Girl, I am so jealous!"
"Well, don't be," said Sage. "I have no intention of ever seeing him again."
"Are you crazy?"
"Nope," Sage said, with more determination than she felt. "It would never work. He's too controlling. Too arrogant." Too primal. Too sexy. Too dominant. Too scary, she thought.
"But you gave him your phone number," argued Melissa. "What are you going to do when he calls?"
"That won't be a problem," said Sage.
"Don't act like you weren't all into him, Miss 'your underwear matches your eyes,'" laughed Melissa.
"Oh, God," moaned Sage. "That's just another reason why I will never set eyes on him again!"
* * *
Two hours later…
Not giving a damn about conventional dating wisdom, and not wanting to wait to see Sage again, Conner dialed her number.
"Domino's Pizza! Will this be a pick up or delivery?"
Conner hung up the phone, laughing. Game on, Sage.
Chapter Two
Three days later…
It was close to midnight when Conner found himself driving along 14th Street after leaving the Pentagon. As a Captain in the HMLA-167 Marine Warrior Squadron, he was in charge of seeing his crew through a massive new training program attached to a helicopter upgrade. The briefing on the new equipment specs took all day and broke into his leave but he didn't care. It took his mind off Sage. He couldn't recall ever having been this wrapped up in a woman. Not even his ex-wife had had him this enthralled. There was just an energy about Sage that drew him in, despite their short acquaintance. Made him want more.
It annoyed the hell out of him that three days had passed with no sign of her. That asshole across the hall had been no help. The chick was the best friend of his former girlfriend, and the piece of shit couldn't even tell Conner her last name, or what she did for a living. He tried looking for her real phone number but no one was actually listed nowadays. She preoccupied his thoughts. He wouldn't call it an obsession, but if he didn't lay eyes—and more, importantly, hands—on her soon, it could become one. Conner couldn't help it. He was a Marine. Single-minded purpose was in his blood.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a line of people from The Willard Hotel scurrying for cover as it started to pour with rain. It will be a much longer wait for a taxi now, he absently thought as he also waited for his light to turn green. That was when he saw her.
Breaking away from the crowd at The Willard, dressed in a flimsy, ruffled piece of fluff that stopped mid-thigh, showing off her spectacular legs, Sage darted across the street directly in front of Conner's truck.
* * *
Ditching her very boring date from the fundraiser, Sage hoped to grab a taxi sooner if she made her way to the Metro Center Station on G Street where there was usually a taxi stand, as opposed to waiting with the crowd outside The Willard. It meant getting soaked to the bone but at least she wouldn't have to listen to another minute of her date's droning advice about bonds versus stock options. Cutting across 14th, she began running along F Street, intending to scoot up 13th. That was when she heard the honking.
Looking over her shoulder, she saw a large maroon Toyota 4Runner swerve over to the corner right next to where she was standing. The window rolled down and a familiar voice growled, "Get the hell inside before you drown."
Sage leaned down to peer into the dark interior of the SUV cab. "Conner?"
"No, it's Domino's Pizza," he quipped. "Get in."
Sage had the grace to blush at the reminder of her prank. "Thank you, but I'm fine walking."
"What?" Conner couldn't hear her over the loud clap of thunder and pouring rain.
"I said I'm fine with walking," shouted Sage.
"Get in the damn car, Sage."
There it was again, that arrogant demanding tone that both repelled and compelled her. She had to get away from this man.
"No," she shouted like a petulant child before storming off as fast as her heels would carry her.
The rain obliterated the colorful curses that streamed from the SUV as Conner raced ahead before throwing the truck into park. Tossing the hazard lights on, he got out, instantly muttering another string of curses as the rain cut through his dress blues. He was in formal uniform because of his meeting at the Pentagon.
Sage had already cut up 13th street. Conner broke into a trot after her.
"Sage, I'm warning you," he loudly growled after her retreating back against the pouring rain.
Sage turned to toss a sassy retort over a shoulder and stopped dead in her tracks. The sight of Conner bearing down on her in full uniform was nothing short of powerful. Even through the heavy gray rain, she could see the shining glint of the brass buttons and countless medals across his broad chest. The intent look in his eyes was unmistakable. She turned again to run but it was too late.
Conner bent low, pressing his shoulder into her mid-section, lifting her clear off the ground.
"What are you doing?" she screeched. "Put me down this instant!"
Conner ignored her protests as he made his way back to his truck, carrying her weight as if it were nothing.
"Conner! Conner! I mean it! I will scream!" she warned.
"Go ahead."
At a loss, Sage tried to beat him about the back with her small evening purse, but it was like beating a rock with a feather. Next, she tried to kick him. That was a mistake.
Conner ran his hand up the back of her rain-slick thigh, under her short dress skirt, till he cupped the lower curve of her buttock. He then reared his hand back and gave her a stinging slap on her exposed bare skin.
"How dare you!"
He repeated the gesture on her other buttock. Sage was mortified to feel the prickling warmth spread beyond her bottom cheeks to between her legs.
"Try kicking me again and see where I spank you next," warned Conner.
She immediately quieted down. It was a short distance back to his truck. Conner set her down on her feet by the passenger door. Caging her in against the car with his forearms, he leaned in close.
Taking in the wet strands of hair clinging to her cheeks, the smeared make-up, her drenched clothes, he still thought she was the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on.
He cupped her jaw with both hands and tilted her head back, staring into her large brown eyes. They sparkled with sexual awareness tinged with fear. Before this night was through, he would see them sated and dazed.
Sage tried to lower her head, unwilling to acknowledge the intensity of his emotions or how they matched her own. He opened the truck door and pushed her inside, with a warning look to stay. She refused to admit how disappointed she was that he hadn't kissed her just then.
Conner slid into the driver's seat and the truck roared to life.
After several minutes of silence, Sage cleared her throat. "I live on Connecticut," she said in a low tone.
Conner didn't say a word.
They drove on in silence.
A
fter a few minutes, it became clear to Sage they were going the wrong way. It occurred to her that he may not be very familiar with D.C. "Conner, you are going the wrong way. I live on Connecticut. If you just turn down Massachusetts, we can get there."
After a long pause, Conner responded without so much as glancing her way. "I'm on P Street."
It took a moment for his meaning to sink in. Mustering up her courage, she tried to keep her voice as calm and firm as possible when she said, "Conner, I'm not going home with you."
Without taking his eyes off the road, he reached his right hand over and forced it between her legs. Her short dress skirt gave him easy access. Sage grabbed his wrist to try to hold him back but to no avail. He pushed the thin material of her thong aside and quickly found her slick heat. As he thrust his long index and middle fingers into her tight passage and his thumb brushed across her clit, Sage instinctively pushed her hips upwards and cried out, helpless.
Conner ruthlessly pulled his fingers free. Taking his eyes off the road for a moment, he captured her gaze as he slowly placed his fingers in his mouth, tasting her. "You're coming home with me, Sage. That's final."
Neither said a word for the remainder of the ride.
* * *
Conner pulled up to the apartment complex. Getting out of the truck, he swung around and opened Sage's door.
She didn't move.
"Get out of the car, Sage."
"I think we should talk about this."
"No."
"You really like that word."
"Get out of the car, Sage."
"Aren't you supposed to buy me dinner or something?" she tried desperately.
"I will buy you all the damn dinners you want. After. Now get out of the car."
"Conner, I—"
She didn't finish her sentence. Conner swooped in. Placing one hand under her knees and the other behind her back, he pulled her out of the car. "Watch your head." He slammed the door with his foot and carried her in to the apartment complex.
Placing her on her feet, he unlocked the door. Grabbing her by the upper arm as if he was still afraid she was a runner—which she was—he ushered her in to the darkened apartment.
Sage tried to lighten the sexually strained atmosphere by striving for some normalcy. "You have a lovely place." She wasn't sure if that was actually true. He hadn't turned the lights on. Plus, from what she could see from the street lights streaming through the windows, there wasn't much by way of furniture, no artwork, and not a single knick-knack.
"It's not mine." His voice floated from somewhere in the darkness. Then silence.
Then the unmistakable sound of a belt buckle.
Sage cleared her throat. She slowly turned to see Conner taking off the belt from around his midnight blue uniform coat. She watched, fascinated, as one by one he released the large brass buttons. Unwittingly, she held her breath as he rolled the coat off his shoulders. Sage was actually disappointed when the bright white of a t-shirt was exposed instead of the warm, tanned skin of his chest. Her disappointment was short-lived. Almost without taking his eyes off her, he whipped the shirt over his head. Kicking off his shiny, black dress shoes and socks, he was left only in his sky blue trousers.
Sage swallowed, trying to moisten her suddenly dry mouth. "I see that your… your coat is all midnight blue with no red trim, so that means you are not enlisted and… and an officer, am I right?" Good lord, I am babbling!
Conner took two steps forward until he stood directly in front of her. Heat radiated off him. Sage took a deep breath. He smelled like musk and whiskey. It was a comforting, sexy scent.
"I see that this thin, pathetic piece of fabric you call a dress is all wet," rasped Conner as he fingered the spaghetti strap of her ruffled dress. "You should take it off."
"I'll have you know this is an expensive dress," she said with a huff.
"It's barely a dress because it barely covers your ass. If I ever catch you wearing something so flimsy without me nearby to protect you, I'll turn you over my knee." He sounded like an over-protective boyfriend and he didn't give a damn. The thought of her wearing something so revealing around other men was driving him crazy.
It was a Neanderthal thing to say to her, thought Sage. He had no right. He wasn't her boyfriend. And even if he was… men didn't say such things in the twenty-first century!
It would be insane to provoke such a man. And yet she couldn't resist saying, with a bit of sass, "This happens to be one of my favorite dresses. In fact, my date tonight seemed to like it quite a bit."
The sudden spark in his blue eyes was her only warning.
Two large fists gripped the front of her dress and tore the gossamer fabric to shreds. Her cry of alarm was swallowed by his descending mouth. Wrapping his hands around her exposed ribcage, Conner lifted Sage up and walked her backwards till she made contact with the cool, smooth surface of the wall. Moving his hands down, he roughly pushed her thighs open, wedging his own slim hips between them. Sage felt as boneless as a rag doll as he jerked her knees up to straddle him, forcing her pussy to rub against his straining cock.
Conner used his teeth to seize the delicate fabric of her bra cup and pull it down, exposing her pink, erect nipple. Pulling it deep into his mouth, he flicked it hard with his tongue until Sage squirmed in his grasp. Her other nipple got the same treatment till she was practically crying for mercy. All the while, he ground his hips against her tender flesh. Conner placed an open-mouthed kiss on the upper swell of her left breast, tasting her skin.
Reaching between them, he boldly gripped the thin strap of her thong and pulled, snapping it in two. Fueled by her soft mewing sounds and his own thundering heartbeat, he placed two fingers at her tight entrance. He remembered that, in the car, he could barely get his thick fingers past the first knuckle. Palming her pussy, he once again tried to pierce her flesh. She was so impossibly tight.
Kissing alongside her neck, he growled into her ear. "God damn, baby. You're tight."
Abashed, Sage whispered, "It's… it's been a while."
Conner felt a surge of possessive power. There was no way she was a virgin, but he liked the idea that it had been a while since another man had touched her. So long, in fact, that her pussy had tightened up.
Circling the pad of his thumb around her clit, he slowly increased the rhythm and pressure as her breathing became shallower, reading the signs of her arousal. With each indrawn breath, he stroked his fingers in a little further, opening her up… preparing her.
"Oh God. Oh God," she breathed before latching painfully onto his shoulder with her small teeth. Conner didn't mind. She could brand him all she wanted.
Sage lurched forward so powerfully as she came, he had to tighten his grip so he wouldn't drop her. Her whole body trembled with the aftershocks of her orgasm. Conner held her close as he walked them to the bedroom.
Sage felt the cool softness of rumpled sheets against her heated back. Still she kept her eyes closed, overwhelmed. She could feel the bed dip as Conner pressed down on his left forearm above her head. His right hand moved to the fastening of his uniform trousers. In the silence of the room, all that could be heard was their harsh breathing and the sound of his zipper lowering.
Remembering back to her first glimpse of his cock against the fabric of his Calvin Klein's, Sage momentarily panicked. "Wait!"
"Baby, I can't wait."
She could feel the head of his cock press against her small entrance.
"What about protection?" she squeaked.
Conner was tested regularly as part of being in the service. Despite that, he always wore a condom when with a woman—any woman. Always. There was just something about Sage that made him rebel. He needed to feel her. Needed nothing between them.
"I'm clean. You?"
Sage shook her head yes. "I'm on the pill, too, but maybe you should still—"
He shook his head. "I need to feel you. All of you. Spitfire, I can't explain it."
Conner gripped her j
aw and looked deeply into her eyes as he slowly pushed his cock past her resisting entrance.
"Oh, God. It hurts," she cried out as her pussy contracted around his girth. Her muscles burned and trembled as they stretched to accommodate his wide shaft. "Conner, I think you're, you're too… too…"
"Shhh… just hold on."
His back muscles ached with the strain, and sweat broke out across his brow as he reined in the urge to ram deep inside her clenching, wet warmth. Using every ounce of discipline he possessed, he slowly pushed inside her, giving her body time to adjust with every inch. After what felt like an eternity, he had finally sheathed all nine inches inside her welcoming heat.
Conner stroked Sage's hair. "Baby."
"Mmm."
"Baby, I need you to open your eyes."
Slowly, Sage opened her eyes and stared up at him.
"Good girl. Does it still hurt?"
The pain had receded to a throbbing warmth. Sage felt a building energy. A clawing need. The desire to be controlled and overpowered by this man. The very thing she had been fighting this whole time came roaring to life. Conner could read the shift in her expressive eyes. Desire storming to life.
Trapping her hands in his own, he stretched her arms above her head, forcing Sage down with his weight.
"It might hurt again, but this time I won't stop. You understand?"
Unable to speak, she nodded her head.
Conner pulled his hips back, groaning when her tight passage gripped his cock as he pulled free before thrusting back inside. Sage's body jolted at the impact. She gave a soft moan. Charging ahead, he plunged his cock in deeper with each thrust. Her slick passage opened a little further with each forced movement.
Her body was no longer her own. Conner had taken over. The pain. The pleasure. The fulfillment. She felt cherished and used at the same time. She braced herself as he quickened his pace. The friction of his cock sent shock waves through her system. She could feel another orgasm building. It came over her in a rush. Wave after wave.
Savagely smashing into her hips, Conner came with a roar. His whole body tensed above her own as he spilled his seed deep within her. Branding her. No man had ever cum inside her, thought Sage. The thought made the act even more carnal.
