My feet slid across the sofa, the barrier my knees had offered crumbling away like any reservations I may have had about taking the next step.
Tristan's hands moved slightly higher, gripping my hips firmly as he used his new hold to simultaneously pull me closer to him while pulling himself toward me. His lips brushed against mine, hesitant for only a second before accepting the invitation of my mouth opening against his.
As our kiss deepened, our tongues exploring and probing against each other. Our new position on the couch forced his pelvis against mine, my thighs spread, allowing him to press himself against my body. I felt him pressing into the crevice between my legs and I couldn't resist the urge to push back against the hard ridge I felt growing within the confines of the jeans he was wearing.
"I thought I'd never see you again." He breathed against my skin as his mouth left a trail of fire where ever his lips touched me, "You're so beautiful, Lee, and smart." He was mumbling his words into my sweater as his hands moved under the hem and began lifting it up. "I never thought you'd grow up to be so damn...." He'd pulled my sweater up over my breasts and his hands had freed my breasts from my bra. His mouth locked down over one of my nipples, sending piercing little lightning bolts coursing through my body, causing liquid heat to pool between my legs.
My mind raced against the feel of his lips, his breath hot against my flesh, his hands cradling the contours of my bosom and sliding over my midriff on their way to the fly of my jeans.
I couldn't deny my attraction to him. I couldn't pretend I didn't want every kiss, every touch, every spiraling sensation that was moving through me at this moment. But he was my brother, wasn't he? Even if he'd only been family for a short time, did that make it OK? Was it acceptable if I didn't really remember him very well from back then?
How did it work? Once a stepbrother, always a stepbrother?
His hands had my jeans undone and he was pulling them over my hips, causing me to slide further down on the couch. Under him. He moved lower to pull the fabric from my legs and free my feet. And then he was on me, starting at my navel and working his way down, his arms wrapped around my thighs, holding them apart.
I arched my back and tangled my hands in those thick dark locks of hair as his mouth reached my softest places and began a sweet torture to drive any further concerns of our forbidden past from my mind.
His touch was expert and exquisite, it didn't take long before I heard myself crying out and begging him back to my mouth for more hungry kisses as I pushed myself against him. I needed to feel him.
It didn't take much convincing. I reached between us and rubbed the hardness I ached to feel inside me with the palm of my hand. Tristan's eyes fluttered and a deep groan escaped his lips.
His mouth clamped against mine again, more insistent, sucking my tongue into his mouth greedily as my hands busied themselves with the task of ridding him of his clothes.
We fell off the couch and onto the floor in our combined attempt to simultaneously pull his t-shirt over his head and drag his jeans from his toned thighs. I landed on top of him, my naked body stretched out along his so that I could feel the heat of his flesh against mine from the tips of my hardened nipples to the tops of my thighs.
I raised myself up so that I was straddling him. His stiffness pushing insistently against my crotch as I began kissing my way across his chest and down the six-pack abs that had been revealed when he'd shed his shirt. Before I could make my way any farther south, his hands gripped my shoulders and with one roll I found myself on my back. Tristan staring intensely down at me as he positioned himself between my thighs.
He moved one hand down to where I was still slick from his saliva and my own juices, his fingers slipping inside me for just one excruciating moment where I thought he planned on making me wait even longer. Then he lined up against my opening and slid himself inside me. Slowly, watching my face contort in pleasure as he moved into me until his entire length was deep inside me.
My eyes were locked on his as I drew my breath in sharply. We stared deeply at each other for just a moment, a slight twist on the edges of his lips as though he was pleased with my reaction. And then he withdrew, pulling almost all the way out of me, before pushing forward forcefully.
I tilted my pelvis up to meet his thrusts, rocking my body against his as we settled into a varied tempo. Hard and fast, frenzied in our desperation to be one with each other. Then slow and gentle, we would catch our breath and take time to kiss tenderly.
I was dancing on the edge of consciousness and I felt myself contract around him as he plunged in and out of me, filling me both physically and emotionally. I dug my fingertips into his shoulder blade as I pulled myself up against him, locking myself against him with my legs as I rode out the roughest waves of my orgasm.
Tristan wasn't far behind me. I could feel him swell inside me, his breath coming ragged and harsh against my neck before pushing deeply into me one more time. My name escaped his lips softly with a deep groan as he tensed and shuddered before his body relaxed against mine. Finally releasing his grip on me and falling limply against me, he stroked his fingers along my skin and tilted his head to look at me.
"I still think I want to marry you." His smile was broad and genuine as he moved a sweat drench piece of hair from my cheek to place it behind my ear.
"Maybe we should move a little slower?" I laughed, "The last time I saw you, you were still my brother."
"Brother schmother." Tristan moved his arm under my neck and wrapped it around my shoulder, pulling me tightly against his chest where I could hear his heart still thundering from our lovemaking. "That didn't last long enough to count." He murmured against my hair as he kissed me sweetly one more time.
I lay in his arms, staring at the ceiling and considering the chain of events that had led me to this warm, soft rug on the cabin floor, drowsing off in Tristan Powell's arms.
It certainly seemed like our reunion had been conspired by Fate.
***
Tristan and I had been a couple since the winter retreat. We tried to keep it under wraps, but everyone who had been at the retreat had caught on immediately. Soon it had spread through the entire ORI offices.
Far from being the source of jealousy and anger, the entire ORI staff seemed to approve of our new arrangement. Even the ladies who had revealed their own lustful thoughts about my new beau offered me their best wishes. It was refreshing to work in such an open minded and supportive company.
Tyson even shook my hand and offered me congratulations. He confided to me one afternoon that he thought very highly of Tristan and had worried that "the boy" never seemed to be involved in a real relationship. He was glad that Tristan had found finally found someone.
I had moved out of Rob's apartment immediately upon returning from Idaho. I packed my stuff and had most of it moved out before he came home from the non-profit offices, still obsessed with whatever project they were working on.
"What the fuck are you doing?" His footsteps vibrated against the floor of the second story apartment as he made his way between the remaining boxes to find me pulling clothes out of the closet in the bedroom. "What the hell is going on?"
"I'm moving out." I said simply as I folded a stack at time in half and dropped them into a box at my feet.
"What do you mean you're 'moving out?' Where are you going?"
"I got a studio closer to work." I taped the box closed and started pushing it past him toward the front door before making one last round of the small apartment to make sure I'd got everything.
"I thought ORI was only temporary?" He said snidely, "What? You go snowmobiling with a rich guy and you decide to sell you soul?"
I was trying very hard to keep calm. I knew by now that nothing I said was going to change Rob's mind about ORI-- or Tristan-- and telling him about Tristan and I certainly wasn't going to help any. I just wanted to get my stuff and be done with this chapter in my life.
"Rob. Look. We both know you and I haven't
really been a couple in a long time. We're different people with different ideas. It's time for me to move on."
"What the fuck am I supposed to do, Leanna?" His voice was rising to a hysterical pitch. Now it came down to what he was really worried about, "I'm not working anymore! How am I supposed to pay the bills if you move out?"
"The rent is paid through the end of the month, all the utilities-- including your internet-- are paid through next month. That means you only have to come up with rent next month, instead of having to come up with everything all at once." I'd made sure to take care of everything I could. I thought I was being more than generous, but he had helped cover some of my expenses in the beginning so I felt I was being fair. "I suggest you start getting serious about finding a paying job, Rob."
He stared dumbly as I loaded the last few boxes into my car. I thanked him sincerely for the help he'd given me while he just stared at me, refusing to speak anymore.
All I could do was shrug and head for my new home.
I had rented a spacious studio on the edge of town within biking distance to the ORI offices. Tristan had offered to have me move in with him, but I thought it would be best to have my own place, at least for the time being.
Tristan and I spent the rest of the winter months making love, enjoying good food and laughing together while he brought me in on the rally project. Soon I was working with his team of environmentalists, learning about the steps they were taking to protect the land along the race route and helping trouble shoot some of the details they were still working out.
I was coming to a much deeper understanding of the politics of conservationism and why it was such a hard topic for anyone to agree on. Eventually, I realized I was not only no longer against the rally, but actually finding myself looking forward to it, excited about the challenges of coordinating such a huge event while ensuring the lowest ecological impact. It felt good be working toward positive changes, even if I was realizing these things would require taking baby steps toward a cleaner future.
Tristan and I had flown down to Colombia twice to meet with the family that would be handling the ferry service and I got a tour of the new ferries. Very modern, with the most efficient diesel engines available designed to run on the biodiesel that would be available in that part of the world so the ferries could continue to be operated long after the rally was over.
Before I knew it, we were headed to Brazil for the wrap up Carnival and the kick off of the big race. A week later, as the last vehicle left the starting gate, we moved on to Categena where we would wait for the contestants to arrive and begin the ferrying process.
I still didn't really understand how making everyone stop and regroup for the ferry crossing made sense if it was supposed to be a race. Tristan explained it as an equalizing point-- like a caution flag. It was supposed to allow all competitors to have a pit stop and compress the field. It didn't make sense to me, but everyone else seemed to understand it better than I did.
We were enjoying our stay in a nice hotel near the ocean. We expected the first round of racers to start arriving within the next week. While we waited, I found out that everything I'd heard about Columbia when I was growing up was also off the mark.
OK, not everything. The coffee really was amazing.
One afternoon, having coffee on the balcony of our suite overlooking the Caribbean Sea, Tristan and I got to talking about Rob. We'd started out discussing my new outlook on ORI, and somehow I found myself talking about Rob. About how he had been content to just let me pay all the bills for him while he worked on some secret project with his eco-buddies. About the credit card bill.
"I still don't understand that." I mused absently as I traced the edge of my coffee cup with my fingertip, "He was always really good about his credit. He only had one card and he never kept much of a balance on it. Then he goes out and order 6 thousand dollars worth of something from some mineral company in South America."
Tristan looked up when I said "South America" or maybe it was "mineral company," I couldn't be sure, but suddenly he wasn't content to simply listen as I told my story, he was leaning forward and asking me questions.
"Do you remember the name of the company?"
I shook my head, "I just remember "mineral" maybe "petrol?" "
"And Rob never told you what he ordered?"
Tristan's voice held a note of immediate concern. Suddenly I was worried. "No. He wouldn't tell me. He just kept saying that the group was working on a project and that everyone had to chip in on costs because they'd lost their funding."
Tristan was on his feet, leaning over to kiss me tenderly before apologetically begging out of our plans for the day. He seemed very distracted suddenly and he said he had to make some calls ASAP.
I watched him go into the office in the hotel suite. He didn't close the door, and I could hear most of what he was saying on the phone, "...Robert Qualls... yes. Uh huh. That's him. Can you look into that for me?... Call me immediately..."
I crossed the main room, my bare feet padding against the tile floor, till I was standing in the doorway of the office just as Tristan hung up the phone.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"Hopefully nothing, Babe." Tristan smiled up at me, then stood up from the desk chair and in a flash he had crossed the room and had caught me in his arms. Those strong arms where I always felt so safe and adored. "The race headquarters have been receiving some threats since the kick off. Security has everything buttoned down pretty tight, but when you said he ordered from South America... I don't know-- I just got a bad feeling in my gut. It's probably nothing, I just had to follow up. Just in case." Before he'd even finished his sentence his mouth was on mine as he pulled me against his hardness. I forgot what we'd just been discussing, all I wanted was to feel him as he carried me to the bed.
***
I heard the printer whir to life through the dreamy haze of our post-coital nap. I felt Tristan moving beside me as he went to the office to check the fax. I smiled lazily as my hand drifted across his chest and dropped onto the mattress. A few moments later he returned fully dressed, kissing me tenderly and telling me he had to step out to take care of some business and that he'd be back shortly.
I heard the click of the door latching behind him and I rolled over and stretched out on the big bed, the sheets crumpled from our lovemaking. The sunlight falling across the room from the glass doors to the balcony that we had left open, the sea breeze moving through the room.
All was right in my world.
I stretched for a moment before heading to the shower.
After my shower, after dressing in a breezy sundress, while I was combing through my wet hair, I wandered into the small office alcove to check email. That's when I saw the fax that had come in earlier.
Tristan had left it laying across the top of the desktop keyboard. My eyes were drawn by the sight of familiar words, "Robert Qualls... Guardians of Gaia... Centerville..." I picked the page up and began to read, my curiosity piqued.
I hadn't even finished reading the entire document before I was bounding down the stairs and hailing a cab. I knew exactly where he'd be.
Ten minutes later I was walking through the deserted area near the ferry dock where several temporary buildings had been set up to serve the pit crews for the incoming racers.
A few of the crews had already come down and set up shop, expecting their racer to arrive in another day or so, but most of the contestants were still several days away. The first ferry wouldn't leave the dock until it was full though, giving the first racers to arrive a few days of rest.
It was all carefully planned out, how the vehicles would be loaded, arranged, and unloaded and then their departure from Panama timed to keep their positions.
Rob was down here somewhere. Down here with his "Guardians of Gaia" and several thousand gallons of leaded gasoline.
I had to find him before he did something really stupid.
According to the information in the fax, Rob's belo
ved eco group-- the so called "Guardians of Gaia"-- had lost funding due to impending investigation into allegations that they were in violation of several requirements for the grant that had been funding them. The word "eco-terrorist" had been in that document.
I didn't know who Tristan had called to investigate, but they turned up information pointing to a plot to sabotage the race.
I wasn't sure what they had planned, but I was sure I could talk some sense into Rob if I found him in time.
What could he and his friends possibly be planning to do with gasoline? All I could think of was that they must be planning on setting something on fire. I didn't see any unfamiliar vehicles in the pit area, so I started toward the ferry dock.
The dock was partly modern metal and concrete, and partly still old wooden dock. I figured they would burn the dock, effectively crippling the race course.
A lot of people would be hurt if they set off explosives there.
I had made my way down to the beach and was searching under the pilings for barrels or wires or-- shit. I wasn't sure what I was looking for. I was basing my entire knowledge of explosives off of old James Bond movies.
I was hiking under the pier in strappy little sandals, wearing a short sundress and trying to navigate my way through a labyrinth of giant posts and metal girders. The toe of one sandal filled with sand, causing me to stub my toe and trip. I landed on my hands and knees, cursing.
Where had Tristan gone? Why wasn't he down here trying to find these wackos and stop them?
It was just then that I felt hands on my waist, pulling me back up to my feet. I was just about to turn and offer my thanks for the assistance when an arm wrapped around my waist and a hand clamped over my mouth.
I tried kicking but my captor managed to side step my heels. I heard a hoarse whisper against my ear and my blood ran cold. I knew that voice.
Rob dragged me across the sand and up to the parking area where another man waited at a truck. No one else was around, it probably wouldn't have mattered if I screamed or not, there was no one to see them shove me into the back of the small box truck.
Stepbrother Reunion: A Billionaire Stepbrother Romance Page 3
