by Lavinia Kent
He was heading her way—and he wasn’t even carrying a tray of drinks. What should she do? She might be eager to see him, but this wasn’t the type of place that one wanted to be seen talking to the staff, not that she was a snob. Hell, she was acting like a snob. She might as well admit it. Anyplace else and she wouldn’t have had a problem, but here in Forbidden Cove, in her hometown, in her half sister’s hometown—in her father’s hometown—the rules were different. She’d always known that, known that the impression she made reflected on him. And when her father had been so broadly hinting at making her a partner…
Should she ignore Brian?
No. She might be a snob, but she wasn’t rude, at least not often—and besides, she didn’t want to ignore him. She was beginning to think he might be exactly what she’d been looking for.
She turned and watched him walk toward her. Damn, he was hot, steaming, every bit as perfect as she’d remembered. She doubted he had an ounce of fat on his entire body—and she’d gotten a good idea seeing him in those shorts, his shirt damp with sweat after carrying Baxter. And the way he moved. She bet people would pay just to watch him walk, to watch the strong muscles of those legs…
Forcing her eyes away from those hard thighs in the tight, dark pants, she lifted her gaze to his face. It felt like his eyes were boring right through her, and tingles began low in her belly. She kept her legs pressed tight, wobbled a bit in her heels. He held her gaze for a moment and then she could feel, truly feel, his eyes move to her lips and settle there.
It was all she could do not to let her tongue out to slowly dampen them.
Her breathing slowed and each rise and fall of her chest became deliberate.
She swallowed. Her fingers curled into fists as she imagined running them down his chest.
No. She wasn’t going to do this here. Even if he hadn’t been a dog-walking waiter, she wasn’t going to stand here in public gawking like some schoolgirl.
Holding his gaze, she nodded toward the doors that led out to the lawns and then down to the ocean. This encounter would be much better out of view—and she wasn’t about to complain that it was dark except for the silver moonlight. With another nod, she pivoted on her heels and turned to the door. A little fresh air would be exactly what she needed to cool her off.
She did not turn back to see if he followed.
* * *
—
It had been impossible to miss the flush that rose on Veronica’s cheeks as their gazes met. Had she missed him? They’d only met in passing when she handed off her dog this past week; she’d been so busy there’d never been time for more than a few words. Was her mind as filled with that almost-kiss as his had been? Brian could almost taste her, feel her full, damp lips tight against his own, feel her body melt into his, feel her breasts push into him, imagine his dick pressed into the softness of her belly, imagine…
Fuck. It was a good thing she was heading out into the dark. His body was reaching a more than embarrassing point and he didn’t even have a jacket that might cover his erection.
Without another thought, he quickened his step to follow her.
The fresh air hit his face as soon as he was out the door. God, he loved the smell of the sea. That salty air so full of life. There wasn’t another smell like it. He stepped forward, eager for what the rest of this night would bring. There’d been no mistaking the invite in Veronica’s eyes.
He peered into the darkness, looking for her.
She stood halfway down the lawn, peering out toward the sea.
He walked to join her, pausing a few feet away. She did not turn.
Stepping closer, he said, “I hadn’t expected to see you here.”
She turned slightly, her face in profile. “I can say the same. Are you free now?”
That was a strange question. Maybe she’d seen him with Aunt Mols and understood his duty to her. And that made him think of his aunt, if only fleetingly. He should have given her the keys before coming outside. “I’m free, for at least a while.”
Veronica turned back to the ocean and he moved forward to stand beside her.
“Good.” Her chest rose as she took a deep breath. “I’ve always loved being here, Forbidden Cove. I was away for college and law school, but after that, I swore I’d never leave. It’s why I don’t live in the city, though it would make so much more sense. I even convinced my father to open a small office in Forbidden Cove and to let me work here some of the time. In the summer, when everybody is taking a break from the city, I can work almost full-time with minimal commute. I love it. If I’m away too long, I feel like I can’t breathe.”
He should turn his face to the water, should stare out with her, but all he wanted was to keep gazing at her. “I’ve only lived here these past couple of months. I visited Aunt Mols sometimes when I was a kid, during the summer, but mostly I lived inland. I do admit to falling for the ocean fast, though.”
“I can gaze at it endlessly. I hope someday I’ll be able to afford a property that overlooks the water, the way my father’s house does. And I have a friend, Jordan, who is right on the beach. She lets me visit whenever I want, but it’s not the same as waking up and looking out the window to see the endlessness of the water. Sometimes on a really quiet night, if I leave the windows open I can hear the waves crashing on the beach. I love those nights.”
“I can’t say that I’ve ever experienced that—except maybe on vacation. It must be wonderful.”
“It is.”
They were both quiet for a moment. Veronica gazing out at the waves, while he enjoyed how the moonlight played over her face, lit her eyes.
“I should be leaving,” she said as time slid by.
“I was thinking the same thing before I saw you, but now I could stay forever. God, that sounds like a pickup line. I just meant…”
“I understand. But I have to get back to Baxter.”
Was she making an excuse? Or issuing an invitation? “I could go back with you. We could walk him together.”
“That’s not necessary.”
That was not a no. “I’m not offering because it’s necessary.”
Finally, she turned her face to him fully. He looked deep into her eyes for a moment, then lowered his own to her mouth. Her lips parted, and her tongue darted out and then back in. He moved his gaze back up, right as her eyes lowered to his mouth. He stopped breathing.
Her eyes came back up, held his, dropped again, rose again.
Now, that was an invitation.
The air about them grew heavy.
He stepped forward, closing the little distance between them. She inched closer, rose on her toes.
He bent his head.
Still she did not move, although her eyes stayed locked with his, waiting.
He bent farther, brushed her lips with the lightest of kisses, although all he wanted was to crush her to him, to taste and devour.
Her lips moved slightly against his, soft, sweet.
Her eyes closed.
He pressed slightly harder, felt her lips tremble and then part.
His tongue slid along the seam, tasting her, letting her know how much more he wanted.
And then he drew back, stared down into her darkened eyes as they slowly drifted open, let his gaze linger on her glistening lips.
Chapter 4
It took a moment for reality to intrude, for Veronica’s mind to clear again after that perfect moment of peaceful passion. Peaceful passion. It should have been a contradiction, but it so perfectly described what she was feeling.
She focused on Brian’s eyes as her thoughts re-formed. They were beautiful, so clear and green; even in the dark they shone like bottle glass rolling in the waves, the pupils large and filled with banked fires. Her lungs filled, and she exhaled slowly, the warm air chilling on her damp lips.
“What do you want?” he asked quietly.
You. You. You. Her mind filled in the answer, but she hesitated to speak. There was no question what she wanted, but there might be some as to what she should want. She shook her head slightly, trying to find sanity. “We were going to walk.”
“You want to go back to your place and get Baxter?” His voice was tight.
Yes. Yes. Yes. She should go back and walk her dog. It was late, and it had been too many hours since the poor boy had been out. Although knowing her hound, he’d slept them away and was unaware of any time passing. And once they were back at her place…
“Or would you rather take a walk down the beach?” he asked when she was slow to answer.
Beach. Things could happen on the beach. Wonderful, wonderful things.
Although sand, bugs, other people, wind…She’d lived in Forbidden Cove her whole life and knew exactly what the beach offered at night.
Still, the beach would be lovely, the soft pound of the waves, the light breeze, cuddling together to keep warm. Who cared about all the little inconveniences?—only, no. Some things worked better far from a public beach. The sparks between them might not yet have fully ignited, but when they did, the fires would be all-consuming, and she didn’t want to have any worries.
Even if the beach meant now and her place meant waiting.
She stared at him, her lips tasting that gentle kiss, preparing for the next not-so-gentle one.
If she let that happen.
God, she wanted to let it happen.
She stepped back, allowing cool air, and hopefully cooler thoughts, to settle between them. “I do need to go home.”
“Then I’ll walk you.” His eyes met hers again, held, dropped to her lips. “I’ll just need to give Aunt Mols the keys to the car.”
She could still taste him, still feel the firmness of his mouth pressed against hers. Temptation. God, she wanted more, needed more. That first kiss had been soft; she knew the next one would not be. “I was planning on calling for a ride.”
“The walk would do us both good.” He stepped slightly closer. His scent tantalized her. It would be so easy.
“I can’t.” Sometimes the truth could be simple.
“Why?”
She glanced down at her feet, at her high, strappy shoes. Lifting one foot, she turned it under his stare. “I could take them off to walk on the lawns or the beach, but not for a mile walk home, part of it over gravel. My feet are already aching from trying to stand on my toes as I walked on the grass.” She shouldn’t have brought up the possibility of the beach again; clearly her mind was not quite decided.
“I could carry you on the gravel.”
Her eyes fixed on the bulge of strong biceps stretching the sleeve of his shirt. She was quite sure that he could. “Like you carried Baxter?”
He moved back again, a chuckle rising deep in his throat. “You are trying to kill the romance of the moment, aren’t you? But yes, like Baxter.”
“Not tonight. Tonight, I think it had better be a car.”
He breathed in and out audibly. “Fine, but let me call for one. Then perhaps another night.”
Her mind filled with being lifted, carried, with feeling those strong arms wrapped about her. She was not a small woman, but he seemed made of steel. “Perhaps.”
* * *
—
Perhaps was not no, Brian thought. He was tempted to pick her up, sling her over his shoulder and head down to the beach. It was dark and quiet, and…He knew he could persuade her, knew he could show her all the passion that gentle little kiss had promised. However, he knew that was not what she’d asked for. “I’ll settle for that; however, I’d really appreciate if you’d take off those evil shoes and walk the rest of the way down the grass to where the sand begins. I’ve never been to this part of the beach before and it’s quite lovely.”
“Trying out your pickup lines again?” she asked.
“I’m not sure. I’d just like to go look at the waves.”
Veronica bent and with some care removed her shoes, looping the heel straps over one finger. “You’re lucky that it hasn’t rained recently. I hate mud.”
“I can’t say I’m fond of it.” He held out his hand and she accepted, wrapping her slim, warm fingers through his bigger ones.
“I’m surprised. I would have taken you for the type of guy to run Spartan Races or something.”
“I might go for ‘or something,’ but I’ve never been much for racing. I like to run at my own pace—now more than ever.” He caught himself glancing down at his knee, hidden beneath his pants.
“Not competitive?”
He laughed. It was impossible not to. “I wouldn’t say that.”
“Good. I’m competitive enough myself that I never understand people who lack the instinct.”
“I don’t think you’ll find that a problem with me. I like to win—and to decide what’s worth fighting for.”
“I know what you mean. Ideally, I should care about all my cases, but there are some that genuinely make me want to give it my all.”
“You’re a lawyer, right? What kind of law do you practice? My aunt may have told me, but I don’t remember.”
“Nothing exciting, at least not to anybody else. I long to practice general litigation, but part of the deal with my father was that I handle wills and estates and some basic local real estate. That’s actually what keeps me in Forbidden Cove in the summers.”
“I admit it doesn’t sound thrilling to me, but I’d bet if you were to tell me about one of your cases in detail, explain it, I’d find it interesting.”
“Maybe sometime.” She paused as they reached the point where a low stone wall separated the grass from the sand. “You’re right, it is lovely.”
“Maybe someday I’ll get a house overlooking the water.”
She turned her face partway toward him, opened her mouth as if to say something and then closed it again, turned back to the water.
They stood in silence, hands clasped for a few minutes, staring out at the lapping waves, enjoying the peace.
He gave her hand a light squeeze, enjoying the small tremor that ran through her. She was as eager as he was. “Time to go. I know you need to get back to Baxter and I don’t want my aunt looking for me. I do have the keys to her car. Then I’ll call for that ride.”
She moved toward him, her lips parting, her chin tilting, eyes slightly glazed.
It was a repeat of earlier, but this time there would be nothing gentle.
Maybe he should just swing her up and…
He took half a step back. “Don’t do that unless you want that beach walk.”
She shook her head. He could see her trying to clear her thoughts. “No. You’re right. Let’s head to my place.”
* * *
—
They were almost silent on the ride. Veronica wasn’t quite sure she had anything to say, but the driver inhibited her unknown words. She glanced to the side as the car pulled up in front of her house. Brian was glancing away from her, out the window, but his thigh was pressed tight against her and in some ways that said so much more than any words could.
The man exuded heat, both physical and mental.
His very touch might burn.
As the car stopped, he turned, and the breath was sucked from her body. No mistaking what that glance meant. What he wanted.
He held her eyes for a moment, then deliberately—so deliberately—dropped his to her mouth. He looked up, a slow smile spreading across his face. He looked lower. He truly was undressing her with his eyes. She could almost feel her dress slide from her shoulders, feel him staring at her matching red bra. Could he see her thong? Feel how wet she was?
“Is this where you want me to drop you?” The driver’s voice interrupted the moment.
&nb
sp; “This is fine,” Brian answered, his voice a good bit lower than its normal husky tone.
She was glad he’d spoken because she wasn’t sure she was capable of words.
Then they were out of the car and heading up the stairs to her place.
He walked behind, and she knew he was staring at her ass, and yes, she swore he knew she was wearing little more than a single strip of ribbon between her ass cheeks.
She fumbled with her keys, managed to unlock the door. It swung open with its usual scratchy creak.
And then they were inside. She had a fleeting thought of Baxter before she found herself pressed against the wall, hard demanding lips devouring hers.
There was no time for thought, for care, for consideration. All that mattered was the feel of him against her. Hard lips. Hard chest. Hard…was he really that big? She pressed her hips forward, her too soft belly pushing against his dick. Yes, he really was that big. It almost made her come on the spot.
She opened her mouth against the demand of his. His tongue plunged in, taking no prisoners. He’d been all consideration before, making sure this was what she wanted, but that was gone. Now he was a conqueror and she was his.
Only…
Only…
She’d never been the maiden waiting to be ravished. Slipping her hands up under his shirt, she raked his back with her nails, not hard enough to leave marks, not yet, but hard enough to let him know that she was every bit as demanding as he. She pulled back, stared at him for a moment, holding his gaze, forcing him to slow down—even as the heat grew and built.
She leaned forward again, stretching up on her toes, caught his lip between her teeth, nipped enough that he would feel, then let her teeth move over his soft beard, down his neck. She paused at the hollow, letting her tongue dart out to play before pressing harder, tasting, devouring.
Her fingers worked about his torso at the same time, until she was at the buckle of his belt. God, she wanted to yank it loose, needed to yank it loose, but she was not yet ready to give up control. Instead, she moved upward, letting her fingers work at the buttons of his shirt until his chest was bare before her.
