by Jo Leigh
And no woman had ever aroused him so intently.
She was playful and flirtatious and spontaneous; he was reserved and sober and scrupulous. She was windblown; he walked the straight and narrow. She lived to shock; he kept his feelings to himself. She was a blue blood and he’d been born with a plastic fork in his mouth. She was foie gras; he was a TV dinner.
And he was falling for her hard and fast.
Falling so hard and so fast that he didn’t even notice where they were.
You’re just horny, he told himself but Liam was afraid that wasn’t the whole truth. He was terrified he was starting to care more for her than she could ever care for him.
She pursed her lips.
He kissed her then, every cell in his body humming in harmony with hers.
She kissed him back, increasing the pressure, upping the tempo. Her lips blasted him into another realm of awareness, making him forget everything except the feel of her mouth under his. Her short fingernails dug into the back of his head. A deep flush of arousal painted her face, spread down her neck to her perky bosom. She was ready for action.
The flick of her tongue over his teeth was lazy, sultry, teasing him by degrees. Slowly at first, but then with steadily building pressure.
Liam didn’t remember how, but they made it back to the car. He wasn’t thinking, just reacting-blindly, crazily-and was mad to have her again and again and again.
They stood beside the Lamborghini, Katie’s back against the passenger side. Liam pressed against her.
His head spun, his heart pounded. His hand slipped down to cup her tight, round bottom. His penis strained against his zipper. Flexing, he curled his fingers into the soft, willing flesh of her buttocks. He heard her quick intake of breath, and it ignited him.
“Now,” she said. “I need you. Now.”
Then she reached up under the hem of her sexy black dress, pulled down her panties and stepped out of them. With her index finger, she made a slingshot of her red thong and shot it through the air. The tiny scrap of silk sailed over his shoulder.
Agog, Liam stared hard as she bent over the back of the Lamborghini, waggled her sweet little ass in the air and whispered, “Come and get me.”
11
THE SOUND of his zipper sliding down was incredibly erotic in the still of the chilly, dark night. The crinkling of a condom being opened caused her womb to contract. The feel of the cool, metal curve of the Lamborghini against her belly served to spike her desire even higher. The spicy taste of anticipation filled her mouth. Katie’s heart fluttered.
But the smooth glide of his hot, palm sliding up the hem of her skirt to cup her bare ass was Katie’s undoing.
Liam bent over her, pressed his lips to her ear and whispered, “Wild thing.”
She swallowed desperately, felt his erect penis throbbing through the folds of his pants. He pressed himself against her butt. She felt his body swell harder still. Combing aside her hair, he dipped his head and lightly nipped the nape of her neck with his teeth.
The hot wetness of his lips ignited her and the waves of passion that had been rising inside her streamed molten.
With both his hands now up under her dress and splayed across her bottom, he cocked his knee up and used it to spread her legs farther apart.
His hands slipped from her bottom up to her waist, his wrists pushing up the skirt of her dress in the process. The cool air on her naked skin drove goose bumps up her spine.
Groaning, he rocked against her. “Beautiful, so damned beautiful.”
She whimpered as the deep center of her feminine core constricted and her nipples squeezed down to rock-hard pebbles beneath the silk of her bra.
He reached up to weave the fingers of one hand through her hair at the same time he ground his hips against hers. Holding her firmly in place, he ran his devilish tongue down the back of her neck.
It was totally erotic, sandwiched between Liam’s hot body and the cool metal of one of the world’s most expensive automobiles. Shivering, she flexed her inner muscles, desperate to drive as hard as this precision sports car.
They were in the open park, hidden only by midnight and a privacy hedge shielding them from direct view of the neighborhood development behind them. At any moment a car could drive by and expose them.
The thrill of the notion stole her breath.
Liam’s fingers tightened in her hair, pulling her head up as if she were an untamed mare and he her wild stallion.
“Tell me you want me.”
“I want you,” she panted. “I want you inside of me now!”
Then he was in her, and she gasped at the immediate insurgence of pure pleasure. He filled her up so completely she might not be able to take any more.
“You’re so wet, babe,” he murmured. “Dripping wet for me.”
“All for you.”
He felt so good. Hard, lean, and strong. Her hips twitched against his, the muscles between her thighs clenching tight.
Their breathing pattern altered, grew more ragged, more urgent. Their mating was primal. Ferocious. He plunged heedlessly into her. Driving them closer and closer to the edge.
The stars twinkled overhead. The wind rustled against their fevered skin.
“Harder,” she cried. “Faster.”
Liam’s cock pounded, sending her spiraling upward, higher and higher. Her ears rang. Flashes of heat rolled through her. The feel of his big body behind her, his thick fingers fanned out over her ass, flung her into the stratosphere.
And when she believed she absolutely could not take any more pleasure, he separated her aching cheeks with a palm. His thumb pressed gently against the pucker of her bottom causing a sizzling jolt of white-hot lightning to shoot through her nerve endings.
Katie lost her last shred of control. She’d never felt anything so exquisite. She screamed his name and her spine arched at the piercing intensity of the sensation.
Liam was equally crazed. He slammed relentlessly into her. His cock was a sword and she the waiting scabbard. He moved his hips and his hand in unison, satisfying her sex with his, caressing her in a secret place she’d never been caressed before. Supplying her with new dreams to dream, fresh fantasies.
Glorious.
She gasped.
Her womb spasmed, squeezing him tight as her muscles clenched around his exploring thumb.
“You like that?”
“More,” she pleaded. “More.”
“My pleasure.”
Amidst the sultry haze, inside the warmth of her own skin, Katie closed her eyes and breathed in the power of the moment, experiencing everything-the distinct contrast between the soft velvet of her dress, the hard metal of the car and the friction of Liam’s skin.
This was a memory she planned to treasure forever. She memorized the deep bass thud of her heart; experienced the taste of her desire, sharp and sweet as strawberries; savored the thick ebb and flow of blood rolling through her arms and legs. And, she accepted the uncertain sureness of fear breathing into her ear. Don’t enjoy this too much. It’s only temporary. It’s nothing but a dare.
He drove into her one more time and she was gone.
Katie felt weighted in a deliciously lazy way, as if she were floating, hanging, flying high. Her thoughts retreated. Her mind emptied as her body filled up, dragging away her ability to form full sentences. Words slipping through her head like beads on a pearl necklace.
She. He. The Lamborghini. The luxurious night.
Heat. Flesh. Bodies. Thumbs.
Adventure. Excitement. Lust. Love.
Love?
No, no, not love.
Maybe not love, but sincere like and lots and lots and lots of lust.
There was no escaping the power of their lust for each other. He’d captured her, made her his prisoner, and taken her free will. She was nothing but his sex slave and she loved her sentence.
> It took her down.
The orgasm. Splendid and brilliant as a shooting star.
The power took her down. Down, down, down. Into a place she’d never before explored.
She heard Liam cry out. Moments later, he was pulling her up, turning her around and tugging her into the crook of his arm. They clung to each other, their bodies glued with perspiration and honeyed sex.
His fingers stroked her hair, pushing it out of her eyes. She looked at him, searched his face for any signs that what he’d felt was just as monumental as what she’d experienced. Afraid to see the answer, terrified equally of either yes or no.
He smiled softly, dipped his head, captured her lips and kissed away her doubt. He’d taken this as she’d intended. Living in the moment, enjoying himself.
Katie breathed in the scent of him, along with a sigh of relief, but she couldn’t figure out why she suddenly felt so impossibly sad.
DREAMILY, Katie gazed out her office window, her mind on Liam. No matter how hard she tried to focus on the art graphics design for his ad campaign, she couldn’t stop thinking about him.
Or the rather wanton way she’d acted.
Katie cringed. What was the matter with her? Why did she possess this constant need to outdo herself by finding ways to shock and surprise him? The sex had been mindblowing, but she couldn’t help feeling bittersweet about it. Their relationship was based on nothing more than a silly dare.
And speaking of dares, the latest one had arrived in her mailbox that morning. She’d stuffed it in her purse on her way to work, and there it sat, unopened.
Mocking her.
She glanced under her desk at her purse. She could see the corner of pink linen paper peeking out at her. Part of her couldn’t wait to rip it open and discover what exciting Martini dare awaited inside that gilded envelope. But another part of her was scared of what the dare might say.
You don’t have to do it, you know. Just toss it in the trash, forget all about the Martini dare.
But Katie had never been one to walk away from a challenge. She pulled the envelope from her purse and leaned it against her coffee mug. Propping her elbows on the desk, she sank her chin into her upturned palms and glowered at the envelope.
It might sound like a romantic cliché, but she’d never met a man like Liam. When she thought of him, her heart grew full and achy and her stomach twisted up in knots.
She remembered the innocent things about him. The way his unexpected smile made her light up inside, the reassuring sound of his rich comforting voice, the spark of passion in his eyes when he looked at her.
And no man had ever responded to her sexual teasing in quite the same way that he did. Magically, he hardened at the slightest brush of her hand. Provocatively, he took the bait when she challenged him to expand his sexual horizons. Bravely, he followed where she led, and yet he made it seem as if he were the one doing the leading.
His sense of adventure matched hers-even if he was just now discovering it. The power of his life force was a thing of awe. He was secure in his masculinity and self-confident in business. And he made her feel like the sexiest woman on Earth.
She thought about the secret he’d told her-that he was the illegitimate son of Finn Delancy. She tried to imagine what that felt like-growing up without a father, never feeling that he was good enough, having to find his own way in the world.
It explained so much about him and made her love him all the more.
Love?
No, no, she didn’t mean love. She admired him, yes. But that was all. Love was much too strong of a word. Love required too much of her. Most definitely, this feeling wasn’t the budding bloom of love. Maybe it was time she cut the relationship short before things got too complicated.
She thought of how terrific sex was with him. How good she felt when they were together. How simply looking at him or thinking about him made her pulse quicken and palms grow damp.
Her gaze fell on the envelope.
Well, maybe one more date.
She reached for the dare, opened it and read.
You are hereby dared to have sex in an exotic place.
Exotic place? Hmm.
She thought of the bungalow her family owned in Fiji. How easy it was to think of her and Liam walking the white sand beaches, sipping festive umbrella drinks, feeling the balmy tropical breezes on their skin. Not to mention making love in a hammock under a bright starry sky.
Goose bumps scattered up her arm. Erotic and exotic.
But how to get Liam to go to Fiji?
Before she could formulate a plan of action, the sound of Tanisha dragging into the office twenty minutes late drew Katie’s attention to her coworker.
She took in Tanisha’s disheveled appearance, wrinkled clothes, her lovely braids coming undone, eyes red-rimmed. She’d never seen her confident, stylish friend looking so demolished.
Katie sprang to her side. “Omigosh, are you all right?”
“No,” Tanisha whimpered, and plopped down in her chair, knees pressed together, feet splayed apart.
Katie knelt beside her, wrapped her hand around Tanisha’s forearm. “What is it?”
“It’s Dwayne.”
“Has something happened to him?”
“He broke up with me.” Tanisha’s voice cracked, and a single tear slid down her caramel cheek.
That solitary heartbreaking tear startled Katie. She’d never seen her friend cry, much less shed a tear over some guy. She pulled a tissue from the box on the desk and pressed it into Tanisha’s hand. “Oh, honey, I’m so sorry. What happened?”
“He said he couldn’t trust me.” Tanisha pressed the tissue to her eye.
“Why would he say that?”
“Because,” Tanisha mumbled, “I sort of lied to him.”
“Sort of?”
“He wanted to be open and honest. He told me about his past, the women he’d known, and then he wanted to know how many men I’d been with.”
“What’d you tell him?”
“Two.” Tanisha cringed.
“Why did you lie?”
“Because he’d only been with two women. How could I tell him the truth? I was afraid he would think I was slutty or something.”
“So how’d he find out that you weren’t being honest with him?”
“He met Jerome.”
“Your brother ratted you out?”
Tanisha nodded, sniffled. “He said if I would lie to him about this kind of thing, how could he trust me when it came to the important stuff?”
“You were only trying to salvage his ego.”
“I know,” Tanisha wailed.
“He placed you in a no-win situation.”
“Exactly, but he’s an honesty-is-the-best-policy type of guy.”
Katie let out a soft sigh. It certainly didn’t sound like a happily-ever-after ending for her friend. To think, strong-minded, independent Tanisha was reduced to rubble over a man. If it could happen to her, it could happen to anyone. Her heart gave a strange jerk of disappointment and she realized she’d secretly been rooting for Tanisha’s relationship with Dwayne to be of the soul-mate variety.
See what happens when you believe in fairy tales?
Katie rose to her feet. This was precisely why she avoided committed relationships-too much chance for heartache.
“I knew better than to tell Dwayne a white lie. I made a mistake. I know it now. But he won’t even take my calls.”
Not knowing what else to do, Katie patted her friend’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry you’re hurting.”
“You were right to stick to sex and avoid romantic entanglements,” Tanisha said. “Love, marriage, happily-ever-after, it’s all bullshit.”
“No.” Katie shook her head. “I was wrong. Yes, maybe I’ve never been hurt, but I’ve also never had the depth of intimacy you found with Dwayne.”
B
ut you could have it, if you let yourself.
Yeah, right, willingly lay herself open to the kind of pain Tanisha was suffering. No thank you.
“I love him so much. I’ve never felt this way before and it’s ripping me apart inside to think I’ve lost him because of my own stupidity. How can I ask him to forgive me when he won’t even talk to me?”
“If he’s this unforgiving, maybe he’s not the right one for you,” Katie ventured.
“He was the one,” Tanisha said, and shed another tear.
“Then if Dwayne’s the one, you guys will work this out,” Katie said, not believing what she was saying but knowing it was the only thing that would make Tanisha feel better.
“You really think so?”
Katie crossed her fingers behind her back, telling her own white lie. “Absolutely. Give him some time to deal with his bruised ego and he’ll figure out he can’t live without you.”
Tanisha smiled sadly through the tears. “Thank you, Katie, for being such a good friend. You’re probably right, the male ego being what it is. Dwayne really is a stand-up guy.”
Katie forced a smile of her own. For Tanisha’s sake, she prayed it was true.
WHILE KATIE was consoling Tanisha, Liam was staring out the big plate-glass window of his office building watching the bustling city go about its daily activity. He knew she was holding back, keeping her emotions in check. Using sex to keep from experiencing something deeper. He had a feeling she’d been using adventure as a barrier against intimacy for most of her life. He’d just had to figure out a way to knock that wall down.
Truth was, he was out of his league when it came to this romantic stuff. But like any successful executive, he knew where to turn to find answers. Breezing past Vanessa, he headed down the corridor to Tony’s office.
He knocked at Tony’s door but charged in without waiting to be invited.
Tony glanced up from his paperwork. “Hey, boss, what’s up?”
“I need your advice.”
“Sure.” Tony tossed down his pen, leaned back in his chair. “What can I do for you?”
This suddenly seemed like a stupid idea, and Liam almost turned on his heel and walked away. But the thought of winning Katie’s heart had him taking a seat across from his best friend’s desk.
