Double Deception

by Desiree Holt

  He gave the other taut bud equal attention before sliding his hands down to the waist of her jeans. Pop! And the snap was open. A soft metallic slide and the zipper was undone. He pushed the denim fabric past her hips and down her legs, crouching down until it was all the way to her feet. Wrapping his fingers around her slim ankles, he lifted her feet, one at a time, to help her step out of it.

  He took a moment to indulge himself. Grasping her hips and pressing his face to her mound, so he could inhale her scent. And damn! He’d be lucky if he didn’t lose it all right there. Her scent was like seven kinds of sin, exotic and spicy and mouthwatering. He couldn’t wait to get his mouth on her and lick every inch of her slick surface.

  Pulling himself together he rose to his feet and took her mouth again, a short kiss but deep, so he could hold the taste inside him. Then he unclasped her bra and tossed it to the side with her other garments, cupping her bare breasts in his palms and brushing the nipples with his thumbs. Sydney’s breath hissed between her teeth and she leaned into his touch.

  But then she stunned him by moving away.

  “What?” He stared at her. “Please don’t tell me you changed your mind.”

  “Not even a little.” Her lips curved in an impish smile. “But one of us has too many clothes on.”

  He chuffed an unsteady laugh.

  “That’s because one of us is probably going to lose control if he takes his clothes off.”

  “I don’t care. I’m close to losing it myself. Time to get naked.”

  In all his fantasies about Sydney Alfiore, Liam had never expected her to be this forceful, this much of a participant. An equal partner. He wouldn’t have thought it possible for something to turn him on even more, but damn! It heated his blood and made it pump through his body.

  He started to unbutton his shirt, but Sydney brushed his hands away.

  “My turn.”

  He forced himself to stand as still as possible, while she slowly stripped his shirt from him then ran her hands over his chest. The soft feel of them as they brushed the hair on his chest and coasted over his nipples cranked up his desire even more, if that was at all possible. He prayed that he could maintain control as long as possible to make this better for Sydney than it had ever been.

  When she leaned forward and ran her tongue over each nipple with a light caress, he had to clench his hands to maintain his control. He was already so aroused that it wouldn’t take much for him to explode before they even got to the main event. The rasp of his zipper being lowered sounded so loud to him, magnified because he was so acutely aware of everything Sydney was doing. Her fingers brushed his skin as they grasped his jeans and pushed them past his hips down to his ankles. In seconds he had kicked off his shoes and gotten rid of the jeans pooling around his ankles.

  Sydney took a tiny step backward and let her gaze roam over his body. He could not have been more aroused if she’d grabbed his cock and begun massaging it. Just the idea of her devouring him with her eyes and sweeping her hands over his body sent him to another plane of excitement. He wanted to ask her if she liked what she saw, but was sure that would come off too egotistical. Anyway, he wanted the focus to be on her, not him. He wanted to give her so much pleasure that every other man she’d ever been with would be wiped from her brain.

  And so he stood there, rigid, while she explored his body with those graceful hands. Fingertips skimmed the waistband of his boxer briefs, their feathery touch sending needles of heat straight to his cock and his balls. Every muscle in his body tightened, and he bit down on his lip. It took every ounce of control not to toss her onto the bed on her back and thrust himself deep inside her. He’d waited so long for this and wasn’t going to screw it up. But when she lowered her head and pressed a kiss to his navel, then traced his curled flesh with her tongue, it was damn fucking hard.

  With agonizing slowness, she dragged his boxer briefs down his thighs and to his ankles. As he’d done with his other clothing, he stepped out of them and kicked them to the side. She stroked the curve of his hips and his thighs, then reached around to scrape her fingernails along the cheeks of his ass. He was okay until she wrapped her slim fingers around his throbbing shaft and slid them up and down.

  “Okay.” He bit the word off. “That’s it.”

  He dragged the covers back on the bed then lifted her and placed her with her head on the pillows, then knelt between her legs. He took a long moment to study her breasts, the gentle swell of her stomach and the trimmed lines of dark hair bracketing the lips of her pussy. Kneeling between those lush thighs, he traced the line of her slit with the tip of a finger, up and back, pleased to see her tremble with pleasure at his touch.

  Liam licked her cream from his skin, the taste better than any aged bourbon he’d ever had. And he wanted more. Nudging her legs apart and bending them at the knee to give himself full access, he lowered his head, spread the lips of her pussy wide and treated himself to a long, slow lick of the tongue over her slick, soft flesh. He used his tongue to tease her clit again and again, her little sounds of pleasure making him hotter and hungrier.

  When he thrust his tongue fully inside her, she arched her hips and moaned with pleasure. God! She tasted like seven kinds of sin, better than any woman he’d ever been with, and he wondered if he’d ever be able to get enough of her. He thrust in and out with his tongue, curling it to scrape against that sweet spot, that special place that would give her extra pleasure. He shifted one hand to pinch her clit between thumb and forefinger, rubbing and squeezing it as he fucked her with his mouth.

  “Oh, god!” The words were as much a shout as a plea, her body rocking in a steady rhythm, her hands fisted on either side of her head.

  The more he fucked her with his tongue, the louder the sexy sounds she made and the more she rocked up to his mouth. Her muscles tightened, she lifted her hips toward him and came on his tongue.

  He never let up, keeping his tongue and fingers busy as she shuddered through the orgasm. When the last spasm had subsided, he kissed his way up her body, taking tiny bites out of her hip, her belly, her breasts. Then he captured her mouth, sharing her taste with her, plunging his tongue into her mouth, clasping her head in his hands to hold her still while he fucked her mouth with his tongue.

  She lay back on the pillows, her gaze languid, her body relaxed. But Liam, not so much. He was hard as a spike, his balls ached and he was hanging on to his control by a thread. He was going to make sure, however, that she was damn well satisfied before he took his own pleasure. He couldn’t remember the last time, if ever, he’d been so focused on a woman or so attracted to her. More than a physical attraction. Maybe that was why it was so important to him to take proper care of her.

  Bracing himself on his forearms, he trailed his lips across the line of her jaw and down the slender column of her neck, taking little nips here and there. He captured her earlobe between his teeth and tugged on it before releasing it and tracing the shell of her ear with the tip of his tongue. She sighed and ran her hands up and down the muscles of his back, her touch igniting all the little nerves just beneath the surface of his skin.

  Liam began to kiss his way down her body again, paying particular attention to what he’d discovered were the sensitive areas just behind her ears and where her neck and shoulder met. He took his time again when he got to her breasts, licking circles around them before taking each nipple, in turn, into his mouth. When his teeth closed down on the pebbled flesh, Sydney arched up to him, making soft little sounds of pleasure.

  God, he loved those sounds. He was sure he could worship her with his mouth forever just to hear them. But right then, he had more important business. He slid down her body until his mouth was aligned with her sex and he could take the swollen nub of her clit into his mouth. He closed his teeth around it gently and tugged, moving one hand to stroke the wet flesh of her pussy.

  Sydney eased her thighs apart, and when she did Liam slid two fingers into her hot, tight channel. The slick fle
sh closed around his fingers as she tightened down on him. When he set up a rhythm thrusting those fingers in and out, Sydney moved her body with him, pushing down on his hand even as he continued to tease her clit with his teeth.

  Liam added a third finger, stroking her inner flesh, feeling the orgasm rising within her body. Delicious little sounds were drifting from her mouth and she kept thrusting her hips at him. At the moment she pushed down on his hand, hard, he closed his teeth around her hot nub again and sent her into orbit. The walls of her pussy convulsed around his fingers, gripping them as spasm after spasm rocked her body.

  At last the tiny aftershocks subsided, and Sydney sprawled limp against the pillows, face flushed. He eased his fingers from her and, lifting them to his mouth, deliberately licked each one clean. She watched him from beneath heavy lids, running her tongue over her bottom lip. He moved up her body so he could put his mouth over the delicate hollow of her throat where her pulse still beat in an erratic rhythm. She moaned softly at his touch.

  Okay, that was it. He’d held off as long as he could but he needed to be inside her right then more than he needed to breathe. He shifted his weight so he could rise to his knees and leaned over to fetch one of the condoms from the nightstand. His movement put his cock directly within her reach. When she closed her slim fingers around it and gave it a gentle squeeze, he had to grit his teeth to hang on to his control.

  “Honey, if you don’t move your hand now, it’ll be over before we get to the really good part.”

  Her little laugh was light and breathy. “I don’t know. The first part wasn’t too bad at all.”

  “I’m so close to the edge…” he groaned.

  “Next time,” she promised, running the tip of her tongue over her bottom lip. “Next time I get to play first.”

  He rolled the latex on with one smooth move and knelt between her thighs. The sight of her face, flushed with a combination of satisfaction and need, of her eyes darkened with desire, her lips so full and tempting and he had to have a taste. Right then. He lowered his head and brushed his mouth over hers, running his tongue along the soft skin. She tasted so damn good everywhere he didn’t think he’d ever get enough of it. Of sampling all her flavors. When he urged her to open her mouth, she did and slid her tongue over his.

  Jesus!

  He’d worried that he’d worn her out with the two body-shaking orgasms, but he could tell by the way she moved against his body that she was ready for him again.

  He kept his eyes locked with hers as he moved and adjusted her body. Wrapping his fingers around his very swollen shaft, he nudged the head at her opening. She spread her thighs wider as he eased slowly into her slick pussy, sucking his breath in at the tightness of it even after two orgasms. He eased forward in increments, the heat of her making his blood race and his breath quicken.

  He sucked in his breath at the tight grip of her sex around him, taking a moment to just let the pleasure roll through him. He threaded his fingers through Sydney’s and pressed her hands back against the pillows. Then he drove into her, slowly at first but then moving faster. She wrapped her legs around his hips and held him to her, locking her ankles at the small of his back. Then, as the rhythm increased, they moved together in synchronicity, flesh slapping against flesh. She matched him stroke for stroke, his balls striking against the curve of her ass.

  He gritted his teeth, determined to wait for her not to be a jackass and leave her half-finished, but holy shit. He was so close to the edge. Then he felt it, the beginning of the tremors in her inner muscles. He picked up the pace, thrusting harder and deeper and faster.

  The orgasm hit them both with unbelievable force, her pussy squeezing him while his cock pulsed and pulsed and pulsed. Nothing existed except their two bodies caught up in an enormous erotic whirlpool.

  The downward slide began, spasms turning to tremors, breathing not so labored, heartbeats returning to normal. Liam collapsed forward, catching himself on his forearms and touching his mouth to Sydney’s in a barely there kiss. He brushed the damp strand of hair from her forehead and looked directly into her eyes. He saw satisfaction and pleasure but no regrets.

  Thank god.

  “This wasn’t a mistake.” She said it before he could.

  He smiled. “No, it wasn’t. I just wish time wasn’t our enemy.”

  “Me, too.” She placed her palm against his cheek.

  The gentle caress went right to the middle of his heart. “We lead crazy lives, Syd. Especially right now. But I don’t want to wait months to get together again.” He stroked her cheek with his thumb. “And I’d at least like to take you to dinner.”

  She chuckled. “But this is so much more fun.”

  He studied her face for a long moment, desperate to make sure he wasn’t misreading things.

  “It is, but I want it to be a lot more than this. Agreed?”

  He held his breath until she nodded.

  “Agreed.”

  “Okay, then. I know we probably won’t be able to talk every day, but even if it’s just before we fall into bed at night, we can exchange one text. Okay?’

  “Okay.” She swallowed and he saw a trace of uncertainty in her eyes. “Liam, we aren’t moving too fast here, are we?”

  So he wasn’t the only one who hoped this was more than a tumble or two in the sheets.

  “Not at all.” He brushed a soft kiss on her mouth. “The way our lives are, we need to telescope things and take shortcuts when we can. All we need to know is that this is the start of something very good.”

  “It is.” She giggled. “I guess I should thank you for being as overworked as I am.”

  He smiled at her. “It just makes every moment together that much more important and special.” He shifted away from her body. “And now I think I need to get out of here. When I have a sleepover with you, I want time the next morning for breakfast in bed and some playtime in the shower.”

  She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair. “Yes. It will be special.”

  Special, indeed. He discovered when Sydney Alfiore took off her professional suit of armor, beneath it was a warm, loving, giving and slightly vulnerable and very desirable woman. He needed to be sure he didn’t do anything to screw this up.

  The moment he rolled away from her and pushed himself to his feet, he felt the loss of her presence. He almost crawled back in bed with her but reminded himself of what they’d just agreed on. She watched him as he pulled on his clothes, and when he was fully dressed, he kissed her, a hot, open-mouthed kiss that included lots of tongue. Then he lifted his head,

  “Just so you won’t forget.” He winked.

  “Trust me. That won’t be the case.”

  She insisted on getting out of bed, pulling on a robe and walking him to the door.

  “It locks automatically, but I wanted a chance for one more kiss.”

  “And here it is.”

  This one was more emotional than erotic and he hated to break the contact.

  “One text tomorrow,” he reminded her before he turned down the hallway to the elevator.

  The feelings of satisfaction and fulfillment stayed with him as he drove home. But they would have stayed a lot longer if that sensation of being watched hadn’t interfered. But all the way back to his townhouse, he wondered if every car was one of the ones that had tried to run him down, or carried someone spying on him.

  I’ve been watching too many reruns of old James Bond movies. I need to get over this.

  But damn it, the feeling just would not go away.

  Chapter Eight

  “A couple of weeks at most then?” Robert Hoffman, CEO of Hoffman Contractors, smiled at Liam.

  “You have my word.”

  “Great!” Hoffman grinned. “Excellent, in fact. We’ve been keeping the components of the design sequestered on free-standing computers just waiting for this to put all the pieces together and move forward.”

  “Will that give you enough time to prep for it and have y
our key people there when we install it on your server?”

  “It will. We’re more than ready.”

  Liam looked across the desk at the man. Average height, average weight, average looks but off-the-charts brain. His company was anything but average, designing highly sophisticated defense equipment for the government. Software By Design was just completing an equally sophisticated security software program that, once loaded into the Hoffman system, would prevent hackers from accessing the classified design for their newest project. He had asked Teri, Sy and Jason to each try hacking the program at various stages, and they’d been stymied. Not that he didn’t trust all his people, but those were the ones he had the longest history with and felt the closest to.

  “I promised we’d get it done before Gasparilla and I like to keep my word.”

  “Liam, I hope you realize we would not use anyone else to design this program.”

  “I appreciate that.”

  “You did an excellent job for us last time.” Hoffman picked up the pen he liked to twiddle with when he was talking. He’d once said it settled his nerves better than anything except a stiff shot of bourbon. “And I appreciated you explaining to me why we should not use the same security software for another project.” A tiny grin quirked his mouth. “Uncle Sam appreciated it, also.”

  “Most people don’t think about it.” Liam shifted the tablet on his lap. “You’re on a supposedly secure classified network. Only you and the Department of Defense.”

  “You use that word ‘supposedly’. That’s what caught my attention the first time we talked.”

  “Because it’s the correct adjective. As long as you are connected via a network that goes beyond your physical premises, there is plenty of opportunity for someone to find a way to hack into it.”