Thrill Me

by Susan Mallery

  “I can’t figure out why.” He turned to her. “I used to ask her why she stayed.”

  “She told you it was because he was her world.”

  “How’d you know?”

  “She’s my friend and her love for her husband isn’t a big secret. You look at your dad and you see how he disappointed you. How cruel he’s been. She doesn’t see that. Not in the same way. It works for them.”

  “I guess.” He leaned over and kissed her. “Did I ask you to the family dinner?”

  “No. It’s for family.”

  “I want you with me. Is that okay?”

  “Sure.”

  The evening would be highly charged and difficult, but she didn’t care. Time with Del was precious. Summer was drawing to a close. The changing leaves coloring the mountains moved a little lower every week. Soon fall would arrive. Del had said he was staying for the summer. With his father’s party over, there wouldn’t be anything to hold him here. Certainly not her.

  “I’m going to change the subject,” she said.

  He leaned in and kissed her. “Want to tell me how much you want me?”

  “With every breath, but this is about your project.”

  He straightened. “Shoot.”

  “You could get some feedback. School started this week. Talk to the local drama teacher at the high school about speaking with his or her class. You could show them one of the videos and then get their thoughts. What worked, what didn’t and why. I’m sure the teacher would be pleased for them to see real-world application of the arts and you’d get information.”

  He stared at her. “Damn, you’re good.”

  She smiled. “So I’ve been told.”

  “Seriously good. That’s brilliant.”

  She shrugged. “I’m a good team player.”

  “The best.”

  He kissed her again, then slid off the stool. “I’m going to go find out who the instructor is and contact the school right now.”

  He was out of the room before he finished talking. Maya appreciated his enthusiasm, even as she wished he wanted to talk about that team thing a little more. As in the two of them working together. Permanently.

  * * *

  NEARLY A WEEK LATER, Maya watched the Mitchell family men standing together. There was no doubt Ceallach was the father of his five children, she thought humorously. Talk about a powerful gene pool.

  All five sons were tall, with dark hair and eyes. Del and Aidan looked a little more like Elaine, while the younger three favored their father. Each of them was strong, muscled and annoyingly handsome. Not a loser in the bunch. She might be a little biased, but she was confident that Del was the best looking of them.

  Elaine joined the family. She looked so much more delicate than her boys. Maya refused to think about the illness she was battling on her own. This was a night to enjoy good company. Not to worry about her friend.

  Sophie was in doggie heaven, going from brother to brother to get pats and treats. In addition to ordering dinner, Del had instructed Angelo’s to send over appetizers. There were trays of bruschetta, a couple of dips with crispy focaccia bread, stuffed mushrooms and mini mozzarella with tomatoes and basil on a toothpick. Wine flowed freely and Maya noticed that by the third bottle, conversation was a lot louder.

  “Do you like it there?” Elaine asked, sounding doubtful.

  Mathias and Ronan stood by their mother. “Happily, Inc. is a great town. A little like Fool’s Gold, but with a different vibe.”

  “You’re still working in glass?” Ceallach demanded. “You must work in glass. The rest of it, any idiot can draw or paint. A three-year-old can paint. But to create something from fire, that’s talent.”

  The twins exchanged a look. “Dad, we saw that article about you in Time magazine,” Mathias said. “Nice coverage.”

  “The reporter mostly got it right,” the older man admitted grudgingly. “They don’t always.”

  “That must be frustrating,” Nick said. “Remember the guy from the New York Times a few years ago?”

  “Idiot,” Ceallach bellowed, then proceeded to list every way the reporter had failed him.

  Del moved next to her. “You’re seeing it, too,” he murmured directly in her ear.

  The feel of his breath against her skin made it difficult to concentrate, but she did her best to focus and process the words. “That they’re deflecting him every time he asks what they’re doing? Yeah, I noticed. Nick’s part of it.” She studied the middle brother. “Do you think it’s a plan?”

  “Absolutely.”

  She turned back to Del and found him standing deliciously close. If they’d been alone, she would have leaned in to press her mouth to his. Only they weren’t. Worse, they were surrounded by his family.

  “Why do you think they don’t want to talk about what they’re doing?” she asked, then sighed. “Never mind. I know the answer.” Ceallach. He had a way of sucking the joy out of a room.

  She wondered if it was really because he was brilliant or was he simply taking advantage of everyone around him. She knew Nick had a lot of talent, yet he managed to be a pretty decent guy. The twins were rumored to be just as brilliant as their dad, and although she didn’t know them well, they seemed okay. Maybe it was a generational thing.

  “After dinner we’ll all go to the studio,” Ceallach was saying. “You can see what I’ve been doing.”

  “We’d love that, Dad,” Mathias said. “There’s no one like you.”

  Ceallach puffed out his chest in pride. “This I know.”

  * * *

  SOMETIME AFTER ELEVEN, Del stepped out onto the porch. The night was clear and cool and he could smell smoke from the fireplace.

  Maya had ducked out an hour before. He couldn’t blame her for leaving. He would have done the same if he could have. Talk had turned to art and stayed there for much of the meal. Now Mom had gone to bed while Ceallach, Nick and the twins argued style, technique or whatever it was they could talk about for days.

  He sat on the bench and stretched out his legs in front of him. A few minutes later, Aidan joined him.

  “Tired of hearing about process?” he asked.

  His brother grimaced. “That and being ignored.” Aidan sat in one of the chairs. “They give me a pain in my ass sometimes. It’s as if nothing else matters.”

  “Nothing else does. To them, anyway. You know that.”

  Aidan stared up at the sky. “They’ll be at it for hours.”

  “Luckily we both have somewhere else to sleep.” Del knew he should head home, and he would. But for now, this was good. “How’s business?” he asked.

  “Busy. Labor Day freaks people out. They realize summer’s nearly over, so we get a lot of last-minute bookings for weekend tours. Some people deliberately take time off in September because it’s less crowded and the weather is usually still good. So we’re slammed.”

  “Does it ever slow down?”

  “Some. October and November have less going on. Once it starts to snow, we’re running ski weekends, back country trips, that kind of thing.”

  Del nodded. “Makes sense. You’ve really grown the company. You should be proud of yourself.”

  Aidan looked at him. “I am. Thanks. It was difficult at first. I didn’t know what the hell I was doing. But I’ve made it my own. There’s nothing I’d rather be doing.”

  “I appreciate you saying that.”

  “I’ll bet you do. Now you don’t have to feel guilty.”

  “It’s going to give me a lot of free time.”

  Aidan grinned. “I’m not sure that’s a good thing.”

  “At least I spend my days off pursuing something worthwhile.”

  Aidan’s grin turned into a chuckle. “So do I. Just with a different outcome.
”

  “All your outcomes are the same.”

  “Jealous?”

  “Nope.” Del thought about all the women he’d seen his brother with. What they had in common was they were female. Otherwise, Aidan didn’t seem to have a type. “Don’t you ever want more than variety?”

  “Hell, no. Why would I? Every time, it’s a new day. A new woman. I have my fun and we all move on. Why complicate life with a relationship?”

  “Because it’s nice to have someone who has your back. It’s nice to belong.”

  “So speaks the man who travels the world. Where do you belong?”

  An interesting question. He thought of Maya, wanting to say he belonged with her. Only he didn’t. Working together wasn’t the same as being romantically involved. He wanted to be with her in the most intimate ways possible. But that was different. It had to be. Trusting her again wasn’t possible.

  “I’m still figuring that out,” he admitted. “Which is a great way to try to distract me from what we were talking about.”

  “Saying it didn’t work?” Aidan asked with a chuckle. “I’ll try harder next time.” His humor faded. “I’m okay. I like how I live my life. I keep all my risks related to work. There’s nothing dangerous about what I do with women. It’s never serious and I never get stuck.”

  “Sometimes being stuck isn’t a bad thing.”

  “Believe that if you want. I won’t.”

  “Don’t you worry that going from woman to woman means never connecting with any of them? What if one of them falls for you? Unlikely, but it could happen.”

  Aidan grinned. “I’m clear with the rules. They know going in it’s just for the weekend or the week. Nothing long-term. I don’t want more. Don’t need it, don’t have time for it. If they push, we’re done.”

  “Doesn’t that make you an asshole?”

  “Maybe, but a lucky one.”

  “One day it’s all going to crash in on you,” Del said, knowing his brother wouldn’t heed his warning.

  “Never gonna happen.” Aidan sounded confident. “I know exactly what I’m doing.”

  Del hoped he was being honest with himself. Because if he wasn’t, things could go bad, and fast.

  * * *

  DEL STAYED ANOTHER half hour, but his father and brothers didn’t seem inclined to discuss anything but art. When he called out that he was leaving, they barely paused from their heated conversation about blending colors in nontraditional mediums. Whatever that meant. Aidan had gone home fifteen minutes before, so Del left them and made his way to his truck.

  It was late. If he checked on his smartphone he could figure out how much time had passed since the astronomical twilight. Not that it mattered, but the thought of it made him smile.

  He started the truck and headed toward the lake. At the light, he made a left turn, telling himself he wasn’t going to stop. He was just going to drive by.

  When he got to Maya’s street, he slowed. Most of the houses were dark. It was still and quiet, with only a bit of moonlight filtering between the leaves of the trees. As he approached her house he saw the lights were on.

  He pulled into her driveway and waited. Seconds later, her front door opened and she stood in the doorway. They stared at each other for a couple of heartbeats before he gave in to the inevitable.

  There were a thousand reasons to walk away, but the need to be with her, to touch her and be touched was more powerful than any of them. He’d loved her once. Maybe that kind of intensity left a mark on a man. One that couldn’t be erased by time and distance.

  Maybe it was just who she was, or who he was when he was around her. Maybe the draw couldn’t be explained. It simply was one of those strange laws of the universe.

  He turned off the ignition and got out, then walked toward her. She stepped back into the house. He followed her inside and carefully closed the door behind himself.

  She stood barefoot in a T-shirt and yoga pants. She’d washed off her makeup and her hair was long and loose. She looked as she had when he’d first met her. Young and sweet and sexy. He’d wanted her then—more than he’d ever wanted anyone else. That hadn’t changed. He still wanted her. The difference was, now he knew exactly what to do to please them both. And he could last longer than fifteen seconds.

  “Hey,” he murmured, reaching for her.

  “Hey, yourself.”

  She stepped into his embrace. Their arms came around each other. She was soft and smelled good. Even better, she fit. The right height, the right curves. When he was around her, he wanted her. He supposed in some ways he had always wanted her.

  He lowered his head and kissed her. She met him more than halfway, her lips already parted. There was no way he could resist that, resist her. He eased his tongue inside her mouth and felt the familiar heat slam into him.

  She wrapped her arms around him, squirming to get closer. He tilted his head so he could deepen the kiss. At the same time he ran his hands up and down her back.

  She was the perfect combination of curves and softness. He dug his fingers into her butt, bringing her lower body up against his. He was already hard and ready. She pressed her pelvis against his erection, arousing him until thinking became difficult and there was only wanting.

  He drew back so he could kiss his way along her jawline, then nibbled on her earlobe. He pressed his lips to the sensitive skin on the side of her neck. At the same time he reached for the hem of her T-shirt and pulled it over her head. By the time he was tossing it away, she was already undoing her bra.

  The fabric fell away. He cupped her breasts in his hands, feeling the weight of them, the softness of her skin. He didn’t get it. Men had skin and women had skin, but hers was a thousand times softer than his.

  He shifted his fingers to her tight nipples. As he brushed his thumbs across the tips, her breath caught and her head fell back.

  He wanted more of that, he thought as he lowered his head and captured her left nipple in his mouth. He wanted her gasping and panting, calling out. He wanted her naked and shuddering her release.

  He remembered when they’d been together so many summers ago. They’d been so young. Inexperienced teenagers with more love than sense.

  Hunger had burned hot and bright, and as they’d made out in the front seat of his car, he’d come in his jeans. He hadn’t said anything and she hadn’t realized. The darkness had concealed the telltale damp spot.

  Later, when he’d finally seen her bare breasts, he’d had the same reaction. Touching them had been worse. He’d finally confessed, and she’d been nothing but fascinated by his body and how she affected him.

  They’d progressed quickly from there, moving from the front seat to the backseat. Together they’d discovered what made her quiver. They’d found her clitoris together and learned what she liked. She’d learned how to stroke him to climax. Days later she’d gone down on him. A first for both of them.

  The first time he’d come in her mouth, he’d thought he would die from the pleasure of it. He’d returned the favor and she’d screamed out her release. It had been weeks before they’d moved on. Weeks until they’d taken each other’s virginity.

  He remembered everything about that night. How she’d carefully lowered herself onto his erection, sliding down until he’d filled her. She’d already pleased him once, so he’d been able to hang on for all of thirty seconds before exploding inside of her.

  They’d practiced together, finding the right rhythm. They’d mastered the art of bringing her right to the edge, then having him thrust so they came together. They’d made love in her bed out at the ranch, whispering their love, kissing deeply through their releases so there wasn’t any sound.

  Those old memories crowded up against current need. Del released her breasts and dropped to his knees. He pulled down her yoga pants and bikini panti
es in one quick tug. She’d barely stepped out of them when he gently parted her and pressed his mouth against the very heart of her.

  Memories returned. Of how she liked an openmouthed kiss first. Soft, all lips. Then a light flick of his tongue—more teasing than passionate. He played until he felt tension start to tighten her muscles, until her breathing quickened. Only then did he settle down to a steady rhythm of moving his tongue against her clit. She grabbed the small entryway table behind her and hung on.

  “Don’t stop,” she begged.

  Time fell away and he was that kid again. He would swear he could hear music from the car radio and feel the slick leather of the backseat. They’d had their favorite positions—ways to make a cramped space workable. Now there was a whole house for them to play in. Assuming he could pause long enough to leave the foyer.

  Only he wasn’t going to do anything but keep on pleasing her. How could he resist when she began to whimper? One of Maya’s best qualities was there was no doubt about what was working for her. All the signs were there. He moved a little faster and she trembled. He sucked deeply and she groaned.

  He continued to hold her open. Under his palms he felt the first telltale quivers of muscles preparing for her release. Her breathing quickened. She was so close and he was in control.

  He slowed, just a little. He circled her with the very tip of his tongue, then flicked across the swollen nub. She gasped again. Behind her, the table shook against the wall.

  “Del.”

  Pleasure laced with anticipation in her voice. Need, he thought with satisfaction. He pressed his mouth against her clit and sucked. At the same time he pushed two fingers inside of her, then withdrew them before pushing in again. Her body contracted. He began to move his tongue against her, faster and faster until she cried out her release.

  He felt her orgasm from the inside out. She tightened around his fingers, drawing him in deeper. He moved his tongue steadily, drawing out her pleasure. She moved her hips, grinding against him, taking it all. Her sharp, high-pitched cries brought him to the edge.