It seemed a long time later that she heard, as if from a great distance, the sound of someone knocking on her door. She sat up, groggy and disoriented. It must be room service with her food. Aiden was probably in his room, comatose from exhaustion. She climbed off the bed, clutched the towel around her, and called through the door.
“Just leave it in the hall. I’ll get it.”
The knocking continued and she shook her head. Probably the room service person didn’t speak English or they were hoping for a tip. Sighing, she opened the door.
It wasn’t room service, nor was it Aiden. Gideon stood in the hall, minus the ever-present sunglasses and hat, wearing clean clothes.
“You shouldn’t open the door unless you know who it is, Lainey. Especially dressed in just a towel. And especially in a country like Guatemala.”
Stepping past her into the room, he closed the door.
“Gideon...”
He turned and Lainey took a step backward, holding the front of her towel. Something in his eyes, the strange intensity she hadn’t seen before, sent her heart into overdrive. His hands were clenched in front of him, and for a moment, she thought he was going to just reach out and grab her.
“Why are you here?” Her voice was just above a whisper.
He took a step toward her and she backed up, bumping against the door.
“Gideon. You’re scaring me.”
He stopped abruptly, relaxing his hands with obvious effort, still held in front of him as if he suddenly didn’t know what to do with them. Or as if he wanted to reach out for her.
“Lainey, I’m sorry. That’s the last thing I want to do.” He ran his hands through his hair.
“What do you want then?”
He turned, pacing across the room. Lainey stepped away from the door, moving around to the edge of the bed. Gideon stood by the window, looking out over the lights of the city, his back to her. From where she stood, she read the tension in his body, from the hunched shoulders to the hands on his hips. He was silent for a long time.
“I drove around awhile and then got a room in a different hotel, tried to eat something, took a shower...but I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I was angry at you, furious really. Then I decided this wasn’t the place I wanted to be in.” His voice was low, his speech strangely hesitant, as if he were searching for each word, choosing them with care. As if he was afraid of saying the wrong thing.
“So I left. I checked out and drove out of Guatemala City. Got pretty far actually. But the further away I got, the more I realized I couldn’t just leave. I couldn’t leave you. I thought about what you said...how you feel about me.”
When he turned back to her, the intensity was still there, but it was now mixed with desire, passion...and vulnerability she never thought she’d see in Gideon Wolfe’s eyes. He stood motionless, hands at his sides. For a long moment, Lainey was lost in the power of his gaze, the emotions playing across his face almost overwhelming. Her mouth went dry, throat clicking as she swallowed. What the hell was happening?
“And that brought you back?” Her heart thumped erratically and a shiver ran down her spine. She tried to control her breathing. Gideon was unpredictable, a loose cannon. There was no way she could read his mind, much less try to understand him. Or what he wanted from her.
“Yeah, it did.”
“Why?” Lainey had the urge to cross her fingers behind her back.
“You, Lainey. You brought me back.”
She was no longer afraid. She couldn’t be. Something she’d said had gotten through to him and made him come back. He’d come back for her.
“Now what, Gideon? What do you want?”
He took a step toward her. “I want...you, for one thing.”
“What else?” Her voice was breathy and a low thump of arousal sounded deep inside her.
Gideon was standing in front of her now. The heat of his body brushed against her damp skin and she drew a shaky breath.
“Fewer questions.” His voice was the familiar growl she’d come to expect from him.
“And if I don’t stop?” She held his gaze, lifting her chin.
He shrugged, mouth curved into a seductive smile. “I’d have to think of some way to shut you up. Maybe like this.”
He finally reached for her, pulling her against him. The towel fell away, dropping to the floor. His mouth was on hers, and she was surprised by the gentleness of his lips despite his tough words and gruff growl.
His hands slid down, cupping her ass, pulling her hard against his body. They stood like that for a long time, her body pressed to his, the hardness of his erection clearly evident against her stomach. The kiss made her weak, his lips and tongue driving her wild.
Slowly he began walking her backward until her legs hit the edge of the mattress. With his mouth still on hers, he tipped her backward, his hand behind her as he lowered her onto the bed.
Breaking the kiss, he straightened and she looked up at him as he stood watching her. He took a step back and she rose up on her elbows, frowning. But he’d moved across the room, flipping off the overhead light. The room was bathed in the glow from the windows, soft shadows filling the corners.
With feline grace, he shed his shirt. As he came back to her, she heard the soft snap of the buttons on his pants coming undone, watching as he stopped to step out of them. The glow from the window gave her enough light to see him, lighting his broad chest and narrow hips, but his eyes were hooded, almost unreadable. But there was just enough light to see exactly how aroused he was. A thrill went through Lainey at the thought it was all for her.
He climbed onto the bed and she pushed herself back, opening her arms to him as he settled between her legs. Everything about this moment was both perfect and unreal. As he buried his head against her shoulder, she ran her fingers through his hair. His arms slid beneath her body, holding her tightly against him. He held her for a long time as she ran her hands over his back, down to his buttocks, loving the feel of his warm skin beneath her hands.
Finally he spoke. “I’d given up on ever having anything like this again.” Gideon lifted his head, looking down at her, his gray eyes almost silver. Lainey reached up and trailed her fingers across his face and against the stubble on his cheek. Turning his head, he kissed the palm of her hand.
“It’s not impossible, you know. People do change. You’re not the same person you were.”
He shook his head, breathing out a deep sigh. “Lainey, you don’t know how tired I am of all of it. Tired of the work. So tired of being alone when I get home. After my last job, I decided I was finished. I was ready to pack it up, head to Baja, and live in some villa on the beach. If I was going to be alone, at least I’d be alone someplace warm, not in Chicago in the winter.”
Gently he brushed a strand of hair away from her forehead. “Then Scott called. He’d gotten me out of a few jams; I owed him. I couldn’t say no.”
“Maybe fate had something else in mind instead of letting you run away to that villa in Baja.”
“I’m not sure I believe in fate. Or at least I didn’t before now. Maybe you’ve changed my fate.”
He bent his head, kissing her softly but firmly. His lips moved over hers, his tongue sliding between her lips, brushing against hers. Lainey closed her eyes, letting the warm rush of sensations wash through her body. The passion she’d felt had blossomed, flaming into full-blown arousal.
Their kiss deepened and Lainey sensed any hesitation Gideon might have felt lessen. He kissed her like he had before, with passion and power, and she responded. Desire and arousal flowed through her body and she arched up beneath Gideon, pressing herself against his hard, muscled body.
For the first time since she’d met him, Lainey felt him open up, trying to let her in through the walls he had spent seven years building up around him.
Gideon bore down on her with his hips, pressing her into the mattress, his cock resting on her stomach. Lainey wiggled her hips, rubbing back and forth beneath him, inc
reasing the contact and the heat between them.
She felt Gideon smile against her mouth before he lifted his head. In the gathering darkness his face was cast in shadow, but she felt a change in his body, his arousal heightening, matching the rising tide in her body. It was time and she was ready, and she knew he was ready as well.
Wordlessly she shifted beneath him, rolling her hips, her legs parting. Gideon was there instantly, sliding into her smoothly, quickly. Lainey drew a sharp breath as he flexed his hips forward, filling her completely.
Every emotion she felt, every sensation flooding her body was heightened knowing how much it took for Gideon to be here with her, to come back to her knowing how he felt, about himself...and about her.
From then on, everything spiraled upward for Lainey as he began thrusting himself into her, his low groans against her shoulder matching her moans and cries. He was different, somehow more present, responding to her as they moved together. Everything seemed to fit, every movement and thrust and counter-thrust working to bring her closer to her climax.
Gideon raised his body, knees braced, as he continued thrusting hard into Lainey. She reached up, caressing his face, hands sliding down to his chest. She could just make out his face, lips parted, head thrown back. For an instant he was outlined in the light from the window, and she saw the passion and lust she felt mirrored in his face. It was enough to send her over the edge.
She bucked up hard beneath him, her body twisting as she took her release. Wave after wave of ecstasy washed through her and she arched her back, her fingers twisting in the sheets. There seemed no end, her body taking on a life of its own, writhing beneath Gideon.
Gideon continued thrusting, his breath coming in ragged gasps. Lainey’s climax began to fade. She focused on Gideon, his body, his movements. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down, her legs around his waist. With a low moan he buried his face against her neck, open mouth pressed against her soft, hot skin.
His movements became sharp, erratic, and he thrust hard into her, over and over, as he came. Lainey felt every nuance of his climax, his heat flooding into her, the movement of his body beneath her hands.
With a final cry, he buried himself deeply inside her, holding himself steady as his orgasm peaked then gradually faded. Finally he rolled onto his back, breathing hard, one arm flung across his face.
They lay in the warm darkness for a long time, bodies recovering, breath and heartbeat slowing. Finally Lainey rolled over, fitting her body next to Gideon. She rose up as he slid one arm beneath her and she rested her head on his shoulder.
“What now?” Lainey ran her hand over Gideon’s chest, idly drawing circles on his taut skin.
Gideon gave her shoulder a squeeze. “I’m not sure. Some of that depends on you...what you want. I can’t make any promises...” His voice trailed off.
“I know.”
“Is that going to be a deal breaker for you, Lainey? I’d understand if it was.”
The room had grown darker as the lights of the city had dimmed. Lainey marveled at where she was; in a foreign city with a man she’d only met a few days before. And she was on the edge of building some kind of relationship with him.
As crazy as it all seemed, somehow it all felt right. Beneath that tough exterior was a man she found she already had deep feelings for, a man who was undeniably attracted to her. But was that enough to risk her heart? Was it enough for her to venture into the unknown and charter the dark waters of a new relationship with this beautifully broken man?
It was.
She rested her hand on his chest, reaching past him to turn on the bedside lamp. She looked down at him, meeting his gaze. The hope and longing she saw there made her heart swell.
“Gideon, I won’t ask you for hard and fast promises. That wouldn’t be fair to either of us. I won’t beg you for something you can’t give me.”
His eyes searched hers for a moment and she saw relief mixed with something else cross his face. The half-smile she’d come to know, the one that crinkled the corners of his eyes, was back. In one powerful movement he rolled Lainey onto her back, pinning her to the bed.
“But what can I make you beg for?” He leaned forward, kissing her hard with all the force she’d come to expect from Gideon Wolfe. And she smiled, happy to have the Gideon she knew...and loved...back in her arms.
About The Author: Adriana Hunter
New York Times & USA Today bestselling author Adriana Hunter wrote her very first novel at only thirteen years old, by hand, in an old lined scribbler. She hasn't stopped since. Her contemporary and paranormal romance stories feature irresistibly powerful alpha heroes and the beautifully curvy heroines that love them.
Connect with Adriana on her website at http://www.AdrianaHunter.com and subscribe to her official newsletter at http://www.SpicyTales.com for details on upcoming books!
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Rich Man's Proposal
Blake Cross leaned forward, his face half a foot from mine as his hands gripped the sides of my desk. For the first time in a decade, I felt small and helpless as his dark gray gaze bored into my skull.
“What is there to think about, Pippa? Marry me and your problem is solved.”
I didn't know whether to laugh or cry and was trying hard not to do either—or both. The idea that my biggest, richest and by far most attractive client had just proposed marriage felt like the lead up to a punch line or the pilot episode of My Big Fat New York Wedding. That I was desperate enough to consider the offer was the opening act to my own personal tragedy.
I pushed my chair back from the desk. I couldn't think straight with him so close to me. The warm spices of his aftershave curled around my senses to stroke at my plump thighs until my stomach and chest clenched. My perineum pulled tight to control the building arousal.
Just looking at him eroded my self-control. This was Blake Cross, for heaven’s sake!
I closed my eyes. Ignoring the growing attraction to him I'd felt for months was hard enough on a good day, but right then I needed a shoulder to cry on and big strong arms to hold me while a deep baritone whispered assurances that everything would be okay.
Blake was offering just that—sort of.
“Pippa.”
I looked up to find him leaning closer, the distance I’d just put between us bridged.
“Answer me.”
I'm sure lots of women have fantasized about Blake proposing to them, just not like this, and not me. “You're serious? You want to marry me?”
Stupid question, but it was too late to take it back without looking the fool. Rich and drop-dead sexy, Blake spends his days swimming through a stream of perfumed A-list actresses, supermodels and socialites. His affairs are legendary and a big part of the Cross brand—a brand I’d busted my ass cultivating the last twelve months.
That I was beneath his interest was apparent in his response.
“What I want isn't part of the equation.” Blake straightened and folded his arms across his broad chest. He stared at me, his gaze unreadable. “I need a temporary wife—fast. This arrangement will solve both of our problems.”
Realizing he was serious, I took a slow breath in to compose my thoughts.
I looked beyond him to the glass wall separating my workspace from my employees. Half the crew of twenty was gone for lunch or off site with clients or vendors. Of those left, half a
dozen were casting furtive glances in our direction. Blake was to blame. His visits always drew attention, particularly among the women. Today was worse than usual. He was more animated, his stance aggressive the second he walked through the elevators, and the man was dripping sex appeal.
His gaze followed my line of sight. He walked over to the blinds and started to close them. “How many do you think have any savings to get them through to the next job?”
I watched the gaps in the blinds narrow as he drew the string. I forced myself not to blink. Tears would fall if I did. “That's not fair, using them against me like that.”
“Nothing about this mess is fair, Pippa.” He crossed back to me, stepping around the desk so that he stood next to my chair. “It isn't fair Gorman screwed you, it isn't fair your employees could lose their homes because you misplaced your trust.”
I tried to inch my chair to the side.
“Running away isn't your style, Pippa.” Blake reached down, captured my wrist and forced me to stand. “Give me your answer.”
Tilting my head back, I felt my knees weaken. I’d been dealing with this Gorman problem on my own for a month. Nearly sleepless, unable to eat without feeling like I was going to throw up, I was in no shape to handle Cross tightening the screws on me.
Releasing my hand, Blake grabbed my shoulders. Holding me steady, he glared down at me. I still had no idea how he knew about Gorman embezzling from the firm or the IRS agent that had visited me, threatening jail and a penalty as big as the hundred thousand plus in unpaid payroll taxes. I hadn't told anyone yet.
More mysterious was Blake's need for a wife and his willingness to pay for one—especially when the would-be bride was the chubby bunny who ran his PR campaigns.
Bloody hell! The would be another can of worms if I was stupid enough to accept his offer. The TV gossip shows and press would have a field day. Any woman Blake went out with was assured of plenty of coverage—frequently accompanied by a public vivisection on blogs and in the comment sections of the papers and shows. When that woman happened to be a virtual nobody who wore a size sixteen?
Crazy About Curves: 10 Luscious Reads Page 9
