He kissed the breath right out of me.
His tongue plunged inside my mouth, and I opened eagerly. Helpless to do otherwise. He tasted like man and heat, firing my blood, igniting my senses. I could become addicted to his flavor, I thought dazedly. His lips were soft, so soft, the perfect contrast to the hard battle of supremacy our tongues waged.
Suddenly he jerked back, his breathing ragged and unsteady. He glared down at me. “Getting involved with an agent is stupid.”
I glared up at him as I dragged in my own unsteady breath. The blade winked between us. “Getting involved with your partner is stupider.”
“Do you care?” he said, brows arching.
“No.” I should have, but I didn’t. Not here, and not now.
“Me, either. Drop the knife, Eden. We finish this.”
“Do we?” I smiled slowly, seductively, though how I was capable of the action when my mind had long since forgotten everything but Lucius I don’t know. I moved the blade over his collar like a caress. “I could kill you, instead.”
“Drop it.”
“No.” I used the blade to cut his shirt. His eyes widened; his nostrils flared. I tossed the tatters of his shirt aside.
He grabbed the knife and cut off my top then flung the blade aside. It landed on the floor with a thump. We were chest against chest. My nipples abraded him, and he sucked in a breath.
“You better be worth the wait,” I said.
Neither one of us commented on the fact that we hadn’t truly known each other long. It just seemed like we’d waited for this for an eternity.
When he didn’t move, I prompted, “Do you need an engraved invitation?”
He groaned a sound more animal than human, and his lips instantly slammed into mine. I moaned when one of his hot, callused hands found my breast and squeezed, then plumped. My nipples beaded. I’d told him once that if he ever kissed me again, I’d kill him. To be honest, I’d kill him without thought or hesitation if he dared stop. We’d been building to this moment since we first clapped eyes on each other. Why not get it out of the way so we could at last focus on our jobs?
“This isn’t safe here,” he said, tearing his mouth away.
“Then hurry.”
“You read my mind.” He uttered a ragged chuckle. “Everything about you turns me on.” He laved my lips with his tongue. “The way you move. The way you talk.”
Weapons were strapped all over him. My hands unsteady, I tugged at the cords holding them to his chest. He let me, too. All the while, his mouth slanted over mine, his tongue plundering deliciously inside. Soon, his knives and guns surrounded us. He jerked off his pants. I jerked off mine. I shoved at the covers that separated our lower bodies until finally, we had total skin-to-skin contact. I sucked in a breath at the sheer heat, the rightness.
Luc whimpered.
Lucius tore away again. “Good girl,” he said over his shoulder. His eyes met mine, and his tone changed, deepening with his next words. “Very good girl.” Sweat ran down his temples, and he breathed as shallowly as if he’d run a marathon uphill. Lines of tension bracketed his eyes. “You’re a screamer. I can tell. Just try and keep it down.”
“I am not a screamer,” I whispered roughly.
A look of sublime pleasure consumed his features, tempered only by amusement and satisfaction. “Then get ready, baby, because you’re about to.”
“Enough talking.” I jerked his head to mine, claiming his lips in a kiss that branded my very bones. My hands were everywhere. All over him. His nipples speared my palms; the muscles of his back jumped under my assault, and his ass tightened. I bent my knees…and felt the weapons that were strapped to his thighs. Another barrier. I cursed under my breath.
“Take them off,” I whispered fiercely. “Hurry.”
I’d never seen a man bolt up and discard his weapons so quickly in my life. He watched me while he did it, his gaze so hot it scorched me. My blood flowed through my veins in a rush of need and eagerness as I allowed my own gaze to slide down his body. The long length of his penis strained thick, so thick, and hard. I bit my bottom lip to keep from panting; I clenched the sheets to keep from reaching for him.
I ached. I felt the moisture pooling between my legs. I wanted him all over me, inside me, stretching me, slamming deep.
Finally, he was completely naked. No weapons on him. The next thing I knew, he was on top of me, between my thighs. Guns and knives bounced around us with the swiftness of his movements. Without a word, he pushed his way inside me.
I gasped at the extreme pleasure of it, at the heady sensuality. He was long and thick and stretched me to the point of pain—pain that soon vanished into pleasure. I’d been with other men, of course. Hadn’t I? I suddenly couldn’t recall the image of any other man. Only Lucius existed. Only the feel of his hands, his mouth, his cock.
“Eden, Eden, Eden.” He chanted my name with every inch he sank deeper. Finally, he was in to the hilt. But he didn’t move. He remained utterly still. He stared down at me, his hands by my temples. “I didn’t use any goddamn birth control.”
“Humans and aliens can’t conceive.” At least, to my knowledge it had never been done successfully before. Though that did raise the question of why the government had issued a law against it if it wasn’t possible. I didn’t voice that little gem, however.
Still he didn’t move. Didn’t answer.
Desperation sparked to life inside me, strengthening all of my desires. My body screamed for completion. I needed it, would disintegrate without it. I twined my legs around his waist; I gripped his ass and tried to force him to move.
“What are you waiting for?” I growled softly. “Finish this.”
One of his rough hands coasted over the sheet, then covered my knee and gently caressed upward. That was the only movement he made. “You’re impatient, competitive, spoiled, and so damn hot I think about you all the time.”
If he wouldn’t move, I sure the hell would. I arched my back, rolled my hips. Ah, there. Yes, just like that. I did it again. My eyes closed of their own accord, and I ran my tongue over my lips.
I heard him drag in a tortured breath. He gripped both my hips to still me. “Always determined to go it alone I see.”
“Fuck me, Lucius, or I’ll fuck you. Either way, we’re both going to come.”
Fire exploded in his ice-blue eyes. “Some of us are going to come more than others,” he muttered darkly, but he slowly withdrew, then surged forward.
I gasped. “I bet I win.”
“I bet you do, too. I liked it when you talked dirty. Do it again.”
“Again?” The word emerged as a blissful moan.
“Again.” Once more, he withdrew.
“Fuck me.”
His lips edged in a wicked grin as he slid forward. “My pleasure.” He clamped both of my knees and pushed them apart, wider and wider, sending him so deep inside me that I felt him everywhere. Not one inch of me was untouched by him.
That was all I needed to send me over the edge.
I shattered completely, and a scream of fulfillment burst from my throat. Spasms consumed my body, and I clenched him tightly to me. Luc barked.
“Shh, girl,” I said, still flying through the stars.
Lucius chuckled, and the sound emerged strained. “Told you,” he said. He stilled again with a muttered curse. “Damn it. Do you think we’ll have to do damage control?” He pulled out of me and rolled one of my nipples through his fingers. A drop of sweat trickled down his temple and onto my cheek.
I expected the pitter-patter of feet, and waited several moments. When I heard nothing, I said, “I think we’re good to go.” I bit back a blissful moan as Lucius replaced his fingers with his mouth, sucking hard on my nipple. “I’ll be careful next time.”
He moved his attention upward and licked my collarbone. I closed my eyes for a moment as I savored the silkiness of his tongue. Reaching up, I traced my hands over the ropes of muscles that comprised his stomach. God,
he felt good. Like velvet over iron.
He bit my earlobe, and I gasped. “Want more?” he rumbled menacingly. “Cause I’m dying here.”
“More, more, more.”
Once more Lucius pounded into me. Yes. Yes! As I met him stroke for stroke, arching into him, I would have sworn a blood oath at that moment that I’d never felt anything so right. My pleasure was already building steadily again, preparing me for another mind-shattering orgasm.
Surely I had experienced such pleasure with someone else. Surely Lucius did not mean more to me than any other. I tried to close my eyes, to resurrect a face that had given me comparable pleasure.
“Don’t you fucking dare look away,” he uttered gutturally, having realized my intent. “Watch me. See me. Know me.”
I almost experienced my second orgasm right then because, as he spoke, he stroked in and out of me with determination, slipping and sliding, our bodies slick with sweat and desire. The scent of cinnamon and honey intensified. My knees squeezed his waist.
“Can you handle a harder ride?” he demanded.
“Harder. Rougher.”
That was all the encouragement he needed. He rocked into me deep, deeper still, harder still. Rougher still. As he did, he bit down on the sensitive cord in my neck. I came right then. My body shuddered with the force of it, and I silenced another scream that demanded release.
Lucius meshed our lips in a brutal kiss of warring tongues. He continued to hammer into me, riding the waves of my orgasm. Then his body stiffened, bowed, and spasmed, and I swallowed his roar of satisfaction.
A long while of shallow breathing passed. When both of our heartbeats at last calmed, he collapsed on top of me. I didn’t mind his weight; I welcomed it. We stayed like we were, weak in the aftermath, every ounce of our bodies sated, afraid to shatter the lethargic spell.
“I told you,” he breathed against my ear.
“What?” I barely had the strength to get that one word out.
“That you’d come more than me.”
I smiled into his chest. “That means I won.”
“Competitive,” he tsked.
We settled into a comfortable silence for several minutes. “Speaking of competitions,” I said, “have you learned anything about solar flares?”
“Not much. You?”
“No.” Colin hadn’t contacted me, and I hadn’t had time to do the research I wanted.
“Guess we’ll have to wait to crown the winner, hmm. I will beat you.” He paused and pushed out a breath. “You’re not the spoiled princess I thought you were,” he said. “Not at all.”
Another admission from him. Two in one day. This one weakened me as much as the other. “I was at one time,” I admitted. I traced my finger around his nipple. “Michael spoiled me rotten. Whatever I wanted, he bought me. If he didn’t buy it fast enough, I threw a tantrum the likes of which you’ve never seen.”
His breath fanned my cheek as he chuckled. “What about your parents? Do you remember them?”
“Not really.” Maybe I should keep my past to myself, but he’d shared with me. And for the first time, I had someone I could talk to about my parents, people I had loved and still missed. I couldn’t with Michael. “I have a vague image of my mother’s face, pretty and golden, but that’s all. Sometimes, in the quiet of the night, I can still hear her voice singing me to sleep.”
“She sounds like a good mom.”
“She was. I wish I had a memento of her, something, anything, but the day after she and my dad died, our house was burned to the ground, destroying everything inside. Michael had moved me to a hotel, so I wasn’t hurt at least.”
“Why did they leave Raka and come here?”
“They wanted something better, I think. To escape the dictator who ruled them. I’ve always wanted to ask them, but…”
Lucius kissed the top of my head. I realized, then, that this kind of bonding was propelling us into another realm of awareness. A dangerous realm. We both knew the drawbacks of becoming sexually involved with an agent. But emotionally…did we have any clue about the ramifications?
I forced myself to get back to business. Keep it light; keep it casual. “Tell me what you and Parker argued about at the party, after I left.”
He rolled off me, then off the bed entirely. Cool air immediately ghosted over me. A muscle ticked in his jaw as he began strapping his weapons onto his bronze chest and thighs.
“Lucius?” As I watched him, I noticed the bite marks and scratches I’d left all over him. I liked it. I liked seeing my brand on him.
“Jonathan wants me to leave you alone for a while,” he said, the words rough and raw, “to give you a chance to settle in before I pursue you.”
What was wrong with him? “Why does he even care? I highly doubt he’s afraid of Claudia’s wrath.”
His shrugged, the action stiff. “Why else? I told you it might happen. He got a good look at you, and he wanted to fuck you himself.” Lucius ran his tongue over his teeth, his eyes glinting like pressurized steel, but he said nothing more on the subject.
“Will he continue to help you?” Luc appeared at the side of the bed, silently requesting reassurance. I patted the bed and she jumped up beside me, all the while watching Lucius warily. I ruffled her fur, and that seemed to be enough for her because she relaxed.
“I think so,” he answered. “Even if it’s merely to help himself to you.” Lucius pushed out a long stream of air. “I know I told you before, but it bears mentioning again. You did good today.”
“I know. You roared your satisfaction.”
“I don’t mean the sex, smart-ass.”
I snorted and jerked upright. Stiffly I pulled on my ripped tank and shimmed into my panties. “All I did was turn you down. I didn’t do a damn thing to truly help this case.” I tried to keep the bitterness from my tone. “I haven’t since the day I started.”
He whipped around, leveling me with a hard stare. The fierce scowl he wore had enough power to kill anyone in its path. “Who got Sahara Rose to talk? Who got closer to EenLi than any other agent ever has? Who got us the lead about solar flares? Who got inside Jonathan’s room undetected and knew to look for a hidden door?” Before I could respond, he added, “You want so badly to prove yourself that you’re forgetting to stop and acknowledge what you have done.”
His intense gaze held me immobile. Only Michael had ever praised me like that. It was astonishing—and wonderful—that Lucius kept doing so.
As if he hadn’t just rocked my entire world, he turned away and casually resumed dressing. “I put one of my men in this house,” he said. “He’ll let me know which parties you’re going to attend, so I can make sure I’m there.”
I forced my mind on his latest words. “Who is this man?”
“He’s now the main driver for Claudia. White hair, violet eyes. Six feet. A human pretending to be an Arcadian. Go to him if you need immediate assistance. Also, I left a cell unit in your bag. It’s programmed to dial my number the moment you open it.”
Expelling a breath, I shoved my hair out of my face. “You could have given it to me before I flew here. Why did you come here tonight, Lucius?”
He shrugged, didn’t turn to me.
“You risked a lot,” I persisted.
“I risked nothing.”
“You could have been spotted.”
“I wasn’t.”
“How can you be so sure?”
His motions clipped, he shoved a blade into the scabbard on his thigh. “Because I’m damn good at breaking and entering.”
“Well, I’m good at getting answers, and you haven’t answered me. Why did you come here? Tell me the real reason.” I wanted to hear him say it.
“Maybe I wanted to tell you to make sure Claudia Chow brings you to see Jonathan and me tomorrow. I want us all to have a heart-to-heart so you can rebuff me again.”
“You didn’t have to come here to tell me that.”
He bent over and jerked on his boots—I did
n’t remember him ever removing them—giving me a glimpse of his taut, pant-clad ass. He straightened and paused; his fists clenched. “I wanted to see you. Is that a good enough reason to risk everything?” Without waiting for my answer, he stalked to the bay window and disappeared into the night.
More than enough, my mind foolishly supplied.
The thought made me stiffen. Made me panic. It hinted at deeper feelings, hinted at…caring. No. No, no, no. I dropped my head into my hands and forced myself to breathe. He was an agent and my partner. We’d had sex, but it couldn’t be more than that. I wouldn’t allow it to be more than that. Too much was at stake.
“Nothing matters but the mission,” I whispered, then said with more force, “Nothing matters but the mission.”
Chapter
16
The next morning my body thrummed with sensual remembrance, mocking my resolve. Sunlight poured past the wispy yellow-and-white curtains as I lay in the bed. For a long while, I soaked up Lucius’s lingering scent and let the softness of the sheets caress me. My skin felt oversensitized, my thighs bruised, and I still emitted the telltale fragrance of honey.
“You’re an agent, Eden Black. Don’t forget again. Last night doesn’t matter. Remember?” I’d give myself the reminder a thousand times if necessary.
Agents who become emotionally involved were easily distracted (case in point) and constantly put their missions at risk. Michael didn’t have a rule against it because he knew the forbidden often became the obsession. Still, we all knew the reality of agent relationships.
I forced myself from the bed. I took Luc for a walk, fed her, then quickly showered in the dry enzyme spray. I strapped on my arsenal and dressed in slim black slacks and a white silk top. Steps clipped, I strode to my laptop, which was perched atop the marble vanity in the sitting area of my bedroom.
As I booted up the blue, jelly-like holoscreen, Luc padded to me and I rubbed her head. A message from Colin popped up within seconds, and I nearly jumped up and down in eagerness as the words crystallized. Finally!
The Alien Huntress Series Page 15
