Operation: Tempt Me

by Christina James

  He smiled. “Yeah? Well, that’s pretty darn good because I’m liking the hell out of you too, Cambrie Brasher. Now pick a toy and let’s have some fun.”

  Feeling brave, she chose the paddle. Always wondering what an erotic spanking felt like, she set her mind to find out with Miller.

  “Good choice. That should warm your pretty little ass nice. Then I’ll use the softer side to caress the marks I leave on your flesh.”

  Her pussy convulsed, causing her to squeeze her legs together, but then she’d forgotten to breathe. Her breath sucked in loudly and elicited a devastatingly powerful smile from Miller.

  “Damn. I love your reaction to me, baby.” He scooped up the remaining toys. “These are what I choose.” His grin held promise and warning, adding to her desire. “Now lead the way to your bedroom and let’s have that fun we promised each other.”

  Walking on shaky legs proved more difficult than she expected, and the short trek to her room seemed longer than she remembered.

  “Good thing none of these require batteries…well except your vibrator, but I think we can postpone using that for now,” Miller teased.

  She pressed her palm to her forehead. “I never thought of batteries. I was just in such a hurry to order them…never mind.”

  He strutted to her side. “Why were you in a rush?”

  Open mouth, insert foot. She sighed. “I…I wanted. Christ, if you must know, I just wanted to have some stuff on hand to use with you.” She stared at her hands and wrung them, not knowing where to look or what to think. “I’ve never used sex toys before except my vibrator and, well, I’m a bit curious is all.” She forced her head up until she caught his gaze. There was no judgment in his eyes, just desire. “I wanted to try them with you because you seem very open and adventurous.”

  “Hold that thought, baby.” He left the room and returned with his duffle bag. With a quick motion, he unzipped it, dug inside, and pulled out a plastic shopping bag. “I stopped at a sex toy shop on the way here. Was hoping I read you right and you were the adventurous type, too. See what I mean, we think alike.”

  He dropped the goodies back into his bag. When his hand rubbed her upper arm, she felt comfortable, a little giddy. What was it about this larger-than-life man that kept her at ease when she should be worried in the face of his obvious sexual experience? Would he be disappointed by her lack of skills? Remembering his promise to make love all day or night made her wonder if she could actually keep up with him. It thrilled her to hear a sexy man tell her that he wanted her in his bed for hours. But how did someone like herself, so inexperienced and lacking a sex life, really match his powers in bed?

  He stopped touching her. “Tell me I’m not scaring you off, Cambrie.” His voice rang of concern and care, interrupting her thoughts.

  She blinked a few times, staring at his face, mesmerized by the hardened features with small scars. “What? Why would you think that, Miller?”

  He offered a simple shrug, but never removed his gaze from hers. “I don’t know. You looked worried, distracted. I would never make you do anything that you didn’t want to, okay? You have to understand that hurting you is the last thing I’d ever do. That, darling, is a promise from my heart and soul. Plus, Finn would beat me senseless if I harmed a hair on your head—which I wouldn’t.”

  A sigh escaped her lips. “I believe that, Miller. Really. I do. I just wonder if I can live up to your expectations is all. I’m not, well, really experienced. Haven’t had a whole lotta sex.” She forced a smile to hide her embarrassment. Better to warn him now than to let him down without a heads up.

  This was it. This was the moment. She held her breath. He’d run now. Probably would realize he had chosen the wrong woman to get involved with. And once he ran, there went her job, the library’s chances of the grant to remain open, and Aunt Annabelle’s future. Not to mention Cambrie’s one chance to fulfill all those fantasies, those deep, dark desires that she had conjured up since first emailing Miller.

  Standing with his hands on his hips, his height was magnificent. “You expecting me to turn tail and run as fast as I can, or something?” Miller said softly but with an edge to his tone, like he was aggravated.

  “How did you know what I was thinking?” She couldn’t keep the shock from her question.

  “Baby, I make a living reading people. In my line of work, it keeps me alive.” His hands grasped her arms and he leaned down to her ear. “I don’t plan on leaving unless you tell me to go or my orders come in. The only place I ran was here…to meet you.”

  With a whoosh of air from her lungs, she relaxed as he leaned back and studied her. The friskiness welling up inside her became overwhelming. “Can you tell what I’m thinking right now, Miller?”

  His eyes darkened. “It better be about getting naked with me.”

  She laughed and began unbuttoning her blouse. His eyes fixated on the movement of her fingers. “It’s exactly what I’m thinking. But I need to make a request.”

  “Christ, anything.”

  “The first time we make love, no toys. Just you. Okay?”

  His gaze rose to meet hers. “Agreed. Just us this first time.” Long fingers grazed her shoulders after she shrugged off her blouse. “Feeling all your softness and beauty. Then I want to feel the wild woman hiding inside here.” His thumb brushed across the swell of her breast to her heart.

  When his lips landed on hers, something deep inside her awakened, a feeling of finding what was missing. His kiss was sharper this time, like he claimed her. Delving deep into his mouth, she relished the feeling of heat and strength. Strong hands gripped her sides, pulling her against his hard chest, never breaking the connection of their mouths.

  She moaned, the sound swallowed up by his mouth. The way his tongue roamed inside her mouth, like he was sipping at sweetness, unnerved her with its patience. Leaving her mouth to trail along the side of her neck, Miller’s lips left a fiery wet path wherever they touched. Leaning her head back, she offered him the access he demanded, wanting his kisses to pamper her skin with their attention.

  Her hands busied themselves, wandering over the hard muscles of his arms and shoulders. Crossing over the tattoo on his upper arm brought her crashing back to reality.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked when she stiffened and pushed back.

  “The tattoo. I need to know who she is before we continue. I need to know if there’s another woman in your life. I…I just don’t operate that way. I won’t be anyone’s plaything.”

  The frown covered his face, reflecting slow burning anger. “Don’t ever insult yourself like that. I’d never use you, Cambrie. Let’s get that straight right now. I sure as hell wouldn’t hightail it from my mission the second it was over if I wasn’t totally into you.”

  She crossed her arms, vulnerability rearing its ugly head. “Then why’d you say that tat is of me when you know damn well we only just met. The picture you shared with me was a year old and you had that tat then. Explain.”

  He crossed his arms to match her stance. Not backing down a bit, he spoke slowly. “I love temper in a woman. Good to see you have one. Now I don’t have a clue how to explain this tattoo. You’ll only think I’m crazy.”

  “Try me.”

  The corner of his mouth raised a bit to soften his hard stare. “You’ve come to me in my dreams for over a year now. It’s driven me crazy and preoccupied my waking hours. I can’t explain why I know it was you.” He sighed and continued. “This tat, well, I had it done after one particular mission. I was cornered in a building owned by a drug lord. After my team extracted me, I had your face permanently etched into my arm. Wanted to carry your image with me. If something were to happen to me, then you’d come with me into the next life. May sound fucked up…I don’t know how to explain it. But you have my word, there is you and no other woman, Cambrie.”

  She moved his arm and studied the artwork. “I’m hardly a mermaid, Miller.”

  He laughed, the deep sound filling the sma
ll bedroom, easing the awkward tension. “I made the tat a mermaid because she was unique like I knew you’d be. She’s a mystical creature, one that can’t be explained, wasn’t predictable. That’s how I felt about every dream. I couldn’t explain you, and really didn’t want to. I was just glad you kept coming back. The nights you didn’t appear in my dreams, well, I’d wake up in the worst of moods. God help the poor fuck that got in my way.”

  Wow. She did all that to him? “Can I tell you something and promise you won’t laugh?”

  He smirked. “Darling, did you not hear what I just said? I’m the last person to laugh. Now spill.”

  She rubbed the tattoo with a gentle rhythm, admiring the detail. She had to admit, as odd as it was, that the woman did resemble her. The long, dark brown hair flowing around her like a halo, small face with a defined jaw line, lips parted and waiting for a lover’s tongue, eyes half closed with lust. “You said earlier that the men around here are blind because none of them have claimed me. That’s partly my fault. Besides having absolutely no time to date, none of them compared to the man I occasionally dreamt of on many restless nights. A man larger than life. Someone I could imagine being myself with, no pretenses, no fakeness. Someone I could share what’s inside here.” She placed his hand over her heart. “The part of me that even I don’t really understand. The part of me that goes against how I was raised. So while you dreamt of me, I like to think you haunted me at night as well. My dream man.”

  “Am I now?” His voice vibrated with lust.

  She swallowed hard. “I’m glad you’re here, Miller. I’m sorry if I made you feel unwelcome in my previous emails. I just didn’t know how to deal with my busy schedule, and I wanted everything to be perfect when you arrived.”

  “Then thank you, Cambrie, honey.”

  “For what?”

  “For making everything perfect. You continue to surpass my expectations in every way.” He stepped closer until they stood toe to toe, the twinkle in his eyes lit up his face. “I’m about to seduce you. Last chance to back out.”

  Clearing her throat, she asked the question she really didn’t want to hear an affirmative answer to. “There’s no other woman in your life?” Just because the tattoo was of the woman he dreamt of, didn’t mean there wasn’t another woman in his life.

  His gaze remained on hers. Never flinching, he spoke clearly. “No. Hasn’t been for a long time. And you? Any guy I need to pound on?”

  She laughed. “Nope. So let the seduction begin,” she said, flipping her hair over her shoulder while angling her head, not feeling shy standing in her bra.

  “God, we think alike. Love it,” he said, pulling his shirt over his head, baring a chest rippled with muscles and a fine mat of brown hair that disappeared in a V into his pants.

  His hands roamed up and down her back before inching over her ass. Long fingers kneaded her cheeks through her skirt. Her hips pushed forward grinding her clit against the hardness of his thigh. Her pussy awakened with jealousy, needing attention desperately. Oh, how she wanted his hands everywhere on her body all at once. Didn’t matter that it wasn’t physically possible. She just needed it.

  When Miller’s lips covered hers, she melted against him, loving the way he held her up with no effort at all. He tasted of heat so potent, she swore he burned her lips. But there was nothing she’d change about his approach. She came alive under his ministrations, like an electrical wire sparking in all directions. The manipulation of his fingers on her ass cheeks warned of his strength and his seduction. The patient massaging, crawling inch by inch, over her ass drove her insane with the need to feel his hands on her bare skin.

  “The skirt. Take it off. If I do it, babe, I’ll only rip it,” he choked, his voice strangled as he laid wet kisses across her jawbone.

  With shaking fingers, she found the clasp on the back of the skirt and undid it. Stepping back from him, she immediately missed his body heat. Feeling sexier than ever before, she slowed down her movements and allowed the material to shimmy over her hips and down her thighs until it pooled at her feet and she could step out of it. Standing before Miller in beige thigh highs, tiny panties and demi bra, Cambrie should’ve felt the urge to cover up. But instead, the look in his eyes, pure animal lust, gave her all the prompting she needed to continue her teasing moves.

  “Don’t stop. I want you naked. I’ve endured too many tormenting dreams. Strip now, baby. Or I can help you.” His tone thrilled her with its manly demands and the lust hidden behind each word. No doubt he meant what he said.

  Oh, what a feeling to be the center of Miller’s attention right now, knowing that he had seen so much more than she had in this life. And yet, here she was, standing half naked in her bedroom, captivating him beyond his control.

  Hell, yeah! Now this was addictive. More powerful than anything she had ever experienced.

  “I’ll tell you what, Miller.” She ran her fingers under her bra straps. “Get naked with me.”

  A low growl emanated from his throat, but his gaze remained on her while he sat on the edge of her bed and untied his boots, leaving them neatly on the floor once he shoved his socks inside. Standing before her, he wasted no time undoing his pants. When he pulled each leg free of the jeans, he tossed the pants to the side, stood and crossed his arms facing her. She studied his long frame dressed only in dark green boxer shorts and felt a little cheated since the material hid the bulge that lay behind it.

  Without a word, he waited for her to continue, his breathing increasing and the swell of his chest showcasing magnificent muscles with each rise and fall.

  Reaching behind her back, she unsnapped the clasp, loosening the lacy material. Keeping her attention on his face, she watched his gaze roam down to her breasts as his jaw tightened.

  “You’re killing me, Cambrie.”

  The warning fell on deaf ears. She was enjoying his torment too much to fear pushing it too far. Driving him wild was part of her plan to give him the ultimate pleasure tonight. She didn’t feel as inexperienced as her history proved.

  “What a shame,” she said, inching the bra down over her breasts until the ruched rosy tips were exposed. Tossing the lacy material onto the floor, she whipped her hair back over her shoulders with a quick flick of her neck before taking each nipple between her thumbs and fingers and pinching them.

  Without a sound, Miller leapt forward, lifted Cambrie by the waist earning a loud squeal of pleasure. He lowered her onto the bed with his massive body as a blanket. The weight of him pressed her deeply into the soft mattress. She reveled in the moment, in the closeness of this sexy man whose hard body was so gentle.

  Without warning, his lips latched onto her nipple and sucked hard, his tongue lapping at it like she were a special treat. Arching her head back, she cried out. “Oh, yes!”

  With her hands unable to fist in his hair because it was too short, she resorted to holding him by the back of the head to keep his delicious attention on her breast. Her short fingernails dug into his scalp, but the low growl escaping from his busy mouth only proved he was as aroused by her actions as she was by his.

  Within seconds, he had her so aroused and needy. She yearned for rougher, harder, faster. He’d made her vibrator an obsolete toy. Now what the hell would she do to achieve an orgasm once he left and she couldn’t replicate what he was doing now?

  She’d be doomed to crave him like a potent obsession. And she’d yet to even feel an orgasm brought on by Miller’s attentions but, from the way it built deep inside her womb, like a smoldering flame bursting to life, she expected to be addicted to him as soon as the climatic sensation captured her.

  Losing herself in the moment, she was swept away by the desires swirling around them. The heat from their bodies fed her pulse until her heartbeat roared in her ears. With every inch of her body craving Miller’s touch, Cambrie squirmed under his massive body. Pinned in place with not much room to move, she was desperate to keep his hungry mouth on her heated flesh until he brought her
the explosion her pussy begged for. Above her, Miller’s body trembled. Was it from holding his weight off of her? Doubtful. The guy looked like he bench-pressed refrigerators.

  “Cambrie, honey. I want to go slow. Really. But I can’t promise anything once I’m inside you. I’m afraid I’ll lose any control I have.” His mouth struggled to form the words as he kissed the swells of her breasts.

  Keeping her hands busy massaging his firm muscles, she didn’t want to stop touching him. “I don’t want slow. Just want you, Miller. All of you. Inside me. Now.”

  Her breathing hitched against the side of his neck when he climbed up her body, his heat encompassing her in a blanket of warmth. Her hands had a mind of their own, running along his upper body. They glided over his smooth skin, memorizing every outline of his muscles on his back, shoulders, arms.

  Each time her fingers ran over his mermaid tattoo, she felt a sense of pride, believing that she resembled his dream woman. She believed in the romance of it all, the fairy tale likeness. For once in her life, it felt right to do something for herself, temporarily forgetting every responsibility or other aspect of her orderly life.

  Miller’s strong voice interrupted her giddiness. “Need a sec, baby. Touch yourself for me,” he commanded, lifting off of her.

  With the loss of his body heat, she shivered, not wanting to let him up and not understanding why he needed to leave her bed. Had she done something wrong?

  It had been a very long time since she’d had a man in her bed, but things between her and Miller were heating up very fast and progressing as nature intended. So why would he need to jump up just when they were reaching the point of breathlessness? Oh, how she loved that oxygen-starved feeling.

  Leaning up on her elbows, she watched as he removed a condom from his bag and sheathed his cock with the latex. His tall, muscular frame appeared massive in the light of her small bedside lamp.

  With a sigh of relief, she dropped back onto the bed and did as he had requested. She strummed her hands over her breasts, stroking the hard nipples. Electric sensations swirled deep inside her belly. Feeling the bed sink, she turned her head to watch Miller creep over her again but this time he began his kisses at her navel.