by Ciana Stone
Nothing could have surprised her more. Had she gotten him completely wrong, assuming he was just another guy looking for a quick slap-and-tickle who would immediately move on to the next candidate?
“Why? “
“Because you’re all mystery and fire. You’re bold but wary and you bluff like a champion. You don’t trust easy and you keep a tight rein on what’s inside. You’re smart, strong and …”
“And?”
A slight flush rose on his face along with a grin. “And thinking of you keeps me awake at night.”
“Well…well, I’m flattered. But don’t confuse me with the fantasies, Beckett. Reality rarely lives up to fantasy.”
He pulled her closer, reaching up to run one hand through her long hair. “I know the difference between fantasy and reality, honey. Just like I know there’s one hell of a fire burning beneath that cool exterior.”
“And yeah, I play to win. Now that I have, I sure as hell hope you’re not gonna welsh on the debt, ’cause you can bank on it that if you let me, I’ll take you places you’ve never been before.”
“Promises, promises.” She tried to tease but was largely unsuccessful. At the moment she was feeling completely overwhelmed.
He shook his head. “Iron-clad guarantee.”
For a few moments they just sat there. She searched his eyes and, uncharacteristic to her nature, took the bait. Hook, line and sinker.
Cliff watched her eyes, waiting for her response. Was he about to get shot down? He hoped not. Something inside him said that she just might be the woman who could match him. Not just in verbal sparring, brains and talent, but in passion. That concerned him a bit. When had it become about more than just sex?
Then she gave him a sexy smile and his mind went blank to everything but his hunger for her. “Well, hell, Beckett. When you put it like that…”
Before he knew it, she’d grabbed his shirt in both hands and ripped it open. Buttons popped free, flying this way and that as she bared his chest. He had time to do little more than smile before her mouth was on his chest and her fingers were working on the button of his jeans.
Eagerly, he pulled her to him, claiming her in a kiss. Her hands abandoned their task of unfastening his belt to snake up around his neck, fisting in his hair, and she returned the kiss with unbridled passion.
Passion hot as a five-alarm fire. And the blaze had burned south of the belt way too quickly for comfort.
He wasn’t accustomed to instant heat, the kind that made you lose your mind and revert into a primitive man with only a single thought—to get in and stoke hard. But that’s where he was and it gave him considerable discomfort knowing that he’d stick to the terms of the deal and not push for that.
Still locked in the kiss he pressed her back onto the sofa, his hands tugging at the rolled waist of her skirt. She raised her hips, allowing him to slide the skirt down her legs.
He ran his hands down her sides, traveling over the curves, feeling the reaction when her thighs tightened. Damn, she felt good. Firm muscle beneath the soft skin. The return journey was every bit as good, moving up her sides to take hold of her tank top and pull it up over her head.
Her hands loosened in his hair when he tore away from the kiss to let his lips roam down the length of her neck to the hollow of her throat where her pulse hammered against his tongue through the soft skin.
Good Lord, thank you for women, he thought when he reached her breasts. Soft, round mounds that filled his hands, topped by a perfect pair of dusky nipples that screamed to be licked, sucked, bitten.
Roxie’s fingers fisted in his hair when he flicked his tongue across the taut nub of one perfect nipple then sucked it into his mouth. His dick jumped in excitement when she arched up, pressing against his mouth with a small exhalation of pleasure.
That sound stirred a side of him he wasn’t ready to reveal. The side that few people knew. Secreted away within was a man who needed to dominate. To know that his woman was his to pleasure at his leisure, to propel her to the edge of madness with wanting then stop her from crossing so that he could carry her toward release time and again until at last she achieved pleasure beyond her dreams.
As he abandoned her luscious breasts, he couldn’t help but wonder if Roxie would be able to handle that. His mouth traveled down her body toward the lacy triangle that covered her sex. Seductive, uninhibited and strong, she got to him in a way no other woman ever had. But was she strong enough to submit?
When his mouth covered that small patch of lace, she bucked up against him, her fingers tightening almost painfully in his hair.
“Oh, god. Damn. Beckett, wait.”
That was the last thing he hoped to hear. She pushed him away and he sat back on his heels. Roxie moved onto her knees, running both hands along the tops of his shoulders to his neck.
“Sorry, Beckett, but my fuse is a little short. Need to slow it down a notch.”
Thank god. She wasn’t backing out, just slowing down. He could do that. Maybe. Now that he had a look at her, kneeling naked and flushed in front of him, her hair spilling around her shoulders in a wild riot of waves, it was hard for his brain to retain control. His little head was screaming for him to toss her back on the couch and bury himself inside her.
Cliff’s smile brought a flood of relief. Roxie hadn’t lied. If he’d done so much as move his lips against her clit, she’d have exploded like a bottle rocket on the Fourth of July.
And once that happened she wasn’t sure she’d be able to stop herself from taking things to the next level. She needed a moment to get control.
After a few moments, she leaned closer, brushing her breasts against his chest and shivering at the tingle that danced over her skin when his hands moved to play over her back and down to her ass. She hoped it wasn’t obvious how eager her lips were for his when he caught them in a searing kiss.
And oh, my god, could the man kiss. Long and deep, just the right amount of pressure and tongue technique.
It had been a long time since a kiss had affected her so profoundly. She sank into the feeling, her body acting on its own accord to settle more firmly against him. The feel of his firm chest against her breasts, rising in quickening breaths was an impetus to press closer. The muscles of his abdomen tightened in time with the deepening of the kiss in what seemed an echo of the own tension mounting inside her.
His hands moved along her sides lightly, working around to her back. She’d heard women talk about a touch leaving a wake of fire but until now had chalked it up to exaggeration.
Those strong hands moved lower, cupping her ass to pull her tighter against the erection trapped between their bodies and her mind lost the ability to reason. Roxie wound her fingers in his hair, devouring him with a kiss that had the wonderful result of a groan coming from deep in his throat.
She flinched as she realized how much she wanted him, how much she wanted to forget silly bets and old fears. And with realization came the return of that annoying inner voice. The one frantically trying to remind her how unwise it was to fall victim to the sensuous temptation Cliff offered.
She almost managed to reign in her lust when his hands moved lower, pulling off her underwear to bare her ass. Feather-light strokes down the crease of her ass to her sex had her moaning before she could stop herself.
She knew Cliff was a man she didn’t dare lower her defenses to. At least not emotionally. She had to keep a tight rein on her needs and emotions and just play the game, she told herself. No involvement, just some physical pleasure. That’s all it was.
That was a game she’d played most of her life. She could do it now. Had to. Cliff Beckett was nothing more than a momentary diversion. She just had to take control and not let it go. As long as she controlled things, she was safe.
Determined to make that real, she moved out of the kiss and lowered herself down inch by inch, her lips and tongue enjoying the feel and taste of him as her hands worked to unzip his pants and slide them down his lean hips.
Damn. Everything really is bigger in Texas, she thought as she wrapped both hands around his shaft.
When she began to stroke, she heard him groan slightly. His body tensed and his hands tangled in her hair. Slowly she stroked, increasing the strength of her grip a little at a time and watching him close his eyes and lean his head back. God almighty, he was sexy. She’d love to have lapped at the bead of precum that sparkled at the tip of his cock, but not even someone as sexy as Cliff could make her throw that much caution to the wind.
Instead, she ran her thumb over the bead, circling the head with its slickness. In doing so, she discovered one of his hot buttons. Obviously, the head of his cock was quite sensitive because his hands tightened in her hair and his cock jumped.
She continued until he groaned and pulled back. “Now it’s my turn to plead a short fuse.”
“Nothing short about your fuse,” she countered with a smile as he stood and stepped out of his pants.
She lay back on the sofa, watching and admiring. “I wish I had a camera.”
He chuckled and lay down, covering her body with his, nuzzling her neck and earlobe. “Darlin’, this ain’t no spectator sport.”
“But I know women who’d pay to see,” she teased.
He rose up, his hands on either side of her, arms braced. “Thank you, sugar, but the real beauty is lying here under me.”
Roxie snorted. She hadn’t been fishing for a compliment. “You got me naked, cowboy,” she said, running her hands up his strong body. “I don’t need compliments.”
His smile faded. “This isn’t sugar coating, honey.”
She shook her head in dismissal and let her hands drift down to the point where their bodies met, rubbing at the head of his cock pressed against the length of her belly. She had to turn the conversation. Now wasn’t the time to allow feelings to come into play.
“I have an idea.”
“Yeah?”
“Um hmm. What about a nice hot shower?”
Cliff was on his feet, pulling her up. “I have a better idea.”
He tugged her to follow him down the hall and into the bathroom. They stopped in front of the wall sized mirror over the long, marble vanity. Cliff positioned her in front of him.
“Watch.”
Roxie met his eyes in the mirror’s reflection. “Watch what?”
“This,” he said and moved her hair to one side to nuzzle her neck.
Something shot through her. Something hot and erotic. It wasn’t so much his words but the way he spoke them. He was almost commanding but in such a sexual way that there was no sting from the issuance. She remained silent, unsure of what she would say even if she chose to respond.
His lips traveled up her neck to nip on her ear while his hands moved around her body to cup her breasts. His thumbs moved over her hard nipples, creating pulses of sensation that had her struggling not to wiggle. It felt too good. She couldn’t help it. She wiggled her ass against him and leaned her head back, closing her eyes.
Cliff almost let it pass, but wanting something bad enough sometimes had a way of provoking bold moves even when those moves might be unwise. This might be one of those times, but his need was strong and this would be a test to determine if she could learn to be the woman that could fulfill those needs.
“Don’t close your eyes. I want you to see what I do to you.”
She opened her eyes and met his in the reflection. He saw anxiety in them, but also a certain defiance, a need to prove she would not back down from a challenge.
“Put your hands on the vanity and spread your legs.”
She complied, bending forward slightly with her hands on the polished surface of the vanity, her legs shoulder width apart. The position served to spread her ass, to expose her anus and pussy, something the tiny thong couldn’t hide.
He ran his hand over her ass, up the cleft and over to the thin elastic strap of her thong. One tug and it gave way. He tossed it aside, smiling at her in the mirror. She cocked one eyebrow at him and gave him a little half smile that sent a sizzle through him hot enough to melt titanium.
He lifted his left hand to her breast, toying with the nipple, rolling it between thumb and finger. Her eyes left his to watch his hand. With his right hand he lightly trailed down her back and over her anus to cup her sex.
She gasped as his fingers parted her lips, working aside the hood of her clit. Her lips parted slightly in a soundless gasp.
“I want you to stand on the balls of your feet, slightly bend your legs and arch your back. Open up for me.”
Bingo. He saw her eyes go dark. A thrill shot through him as she complied, the position spreading her wider. Rubbing his thumb down her sex, he penetrated her. She gasped and pressed back into his hand, her hands curling on the marble vanity as if to dig into the polished surface.
He stroked inside her, each stroke causing his fingers to rub across her clit.
She began thrusting back against his hand and he withdrew. “No, don’t stop,” she begged.
Damn, he liked the sound of that. This time he used his fingers, alternating between stroking inside her and rubbing her clit.
She started to tremble and he stopped. “Don’t,” her voice was a rough plea. “Do it. Now. Please.”
Cliff understood. This wasn’t the time to draw things out. She needed to come. He started again. It wasn’t long before she moaned and he felt her pussy start to contract.
“I… damn… oh.” Her last syllable was drawn out and breathy as she shuddered in climax.
Her neck arched, head tilting back and body trembling, lowering so that her forearms were pressed on the dresser. And the whole time her eyes were glued to his.
It excited him. Intoxicated him. And shook him.
Before that last realization could fully hit home, she blew out her breath and turned to face him. “Damn that felt good. And to be honest, right now I’d love to go down on you. But I’m not that much of a risk taker.”
“I’d give you my word I’m clean but somehow I don’t think that’d be enough.”
“Sorry,” she said and reached out to fist his cock. “Tempting as it is, I tend to err on the side of caution. However, I can think of other things we could do with this bad boy.”
Cliff couldn’t help but grin. Roxie’s straight-forward approach was refreshing. He pulled her to him, claiming her lips.
Roxie kept her hand wrapped around his shaft, working her free hand around him to grab his ass. Holy shit, if he didn’t have a fine ass. Actually he was fine everywhere. Slow down, girl. The orgasm he’d just given her had her primed and ready. She had to tread carefully or she’d let this go too far.
As if sensing her thoughts he started moving backward, still locked in the kiss. When he fell back on the bed, it broke the kiss. She fell on top of him, laughing.
He lay back and she straddled his legs and slid up, trapping his cock between them and rocking back and forth on it. And if the feel wasn’t enough to make a strong woman weak, just looking at him was enough to have her wanting to toss caution to the wind. He looked so, so sexy lying there, those grey eyes of his darkened to the color of a thundercloud. She’d have to be damn careful. It would be way too easy to fall for him.
“Darlin’, you ever heard the term ride the wild bull?” He interrupted her thoughts.
She laughed and tossed her hair. “Darlin’, I’ve heard most everything but there ain’t gonna be any riding today.”
“Can’t fault a man for trying,” he said and pulled her down into a kiss. Damn if he couldn’t turn her mouth into one of the most erogenous zones on her body. The way his tongue caressed, explored and teased, then plundered as the heat increased, teeth nipping and hands moving to hold her face immobile.
It had her squirming against his cock, which was trapped between them and pulsing against her belly. Her sex had a pulse of its own happening. No, make that a throb. As if sensing her need, he released her from the kiss. She sat up, perched on her knees and reac
hed between them to take his hard cock in hand and rub it against the wet opening of her sex.
That was a mistake. She wanted to sink down on that glorious shaft of hardness so much it was almost an ache. Instead, she rocked back, fisting him with one hand and running the tip the index finger of her free hand around the engorged head.
Stroking slowly at first then increasing the tempo, she watched his body tense.
“Best slow down, sugar or…”
No way was she going to slow down. Watching him, the way his eyes darkened to near twilight, the ripple of tension that washed down his body and the way his hands tightened on her thighs let her know she was about to shove him over the edge. And she wanted to do that.
“Roxie.” His voice was part warning and part plea.
“Cliff,” she breathed his name.
His eyes locked on hers and stayed there as she stroked him to release. Roxie saw hunger in those depths, a need she understood all too well. She knew this was a poor substitute for what he really wanted. Just as she knew that he’d take this, for now, because the need was too great to be ignored. And yet, even in the need so clear in his eyes, she saw something else. Something that had a part of her that had been locked down for a long time trying to break free.
If only she could break down those walls. Cliff made her long for things that went beyond physical gratification. But she knew that was not something she could have, no matter how much she wanted it. What she could have was this. And it would have to do.
For a few minutes there was only the sound of their breath, their eyes still locked. Then she smiled and swung her leg over to climb off him. “I need to clean up.”
She hurried to the bathroom and started the water in the sink. When she looked up at her reflection in the mirror, she froze in the act of washing her hands. The eyes that looked back at her were her own, but there was something different in them. Something that made her heart race with fear.
Cliff Beckett had gotten to her. Somehow, he’d opened a crack in that wall she so carefully maintained and crept in.
