All That I Desire (20 page)

“I know that, but I also know that, once you check out the perimeter, you’re going
to be working on that computer of yours. You can just as easily work in here as you
can in the command center.” She raised her right hand. “Girl Scout’s honor, I’ll behave.”

“For how long?” he countered.

She kissed him. “Isn’t it wonderful that we know each other so well?”

His hand fisted in her hair and he pulled her closer for another taste. What if something
had happened to her? “I’ll be back. To work.”

She held up her hand again.

Smiling, he left the room. He’d known from the first that Skylar would be a handful.

*   *   *

Skylar took another bath and pulled on a long white cotton gown. The oversized neck
bared one shoulder. Delicate white lace and ribbon was stitched around the hem and
on the long sleeves. She planned to keep her word, but that didn’t mean she didn’t
want Rio to see her as beautiful and desirable.

With a sigh, she straightened the bed they’d wrecked, her hands smoothing out the
bottom sheet. When she picked up the pillow on his side of the bed, she pressed it
to her nose and inhaled his faint scent—man, soap, and the outdoors. She exchanged
it for the one on her side.

Finished, she grabbed her iPad and crawled into bed. She checked the bids and did
a quick sideways bounce. They were all trending up higher. Tomorrow, she thought,
she might take some photographs of the auction items and post them on the Web site
that could only be viewed by the people attending the auction.

Her smile faded. She leaned her head back against the four-poster’s headboard. She
couldn’t for the life of her think why anyone would want to harm her because of the
work she was doing for the auction. Those attending were all upstanding citizens or
she wouldn’t have considered inviting them and Rio wouldn’t have cleared them.

There was no connection that she could figure, but if there was one, Rio would find
it.

She sighed and brought up her e-mail. She almost sighed again. There were four e-mails
from Matt Hampton, the man whose invitation had been rescinded by Blade because he’d
tried to invite Sherman Tennyson, Blade’s enemy.

The poor man was pleading to come. Not happening. He’d picked the wrong horse to back,
as her Grandfather Dupree would say. She deleted three and answered the fourth.

The decision is final. S. Dupree.

Short and to the point. Hopefully, he would get the message.

But she didn’t think so. She answered calls or e-mail daily from others trying to
finagle, bribe, or cajole their way into the auction. Or they’d use the old ruse that
their invitation must have gotten lost in the mail. The rude ones just asked why they
hadn’t received an invite.

As she’d expected, the auction was becoming one of the most talked-about events of
the year. The rich and glamorous, the movers and shakers, wanted to be there or it
would seem they weren’t on the A list. It had been extremely difficult to limit the
number of people she invited to two hundred. Of course the Graysons and their friends
the Falcons and Taggarts were coming. Mary had already volunteered to babysit. Luckily
there were enough bedrooms for everyone.

She smiled as she wrote the next email.

Mother, there’s someone joining us for dinner Friday evening. I’ve mentioned him before.
Rio Sanchez. He’s a very special man and very special to me. I know you, Father, and
the grands will know I’m right when you meet him.

Her mouth tightened for a second. Her father still thought she was ten years old and
he needed to intervene on her behalf. He could be tenacious and stiff-necked. If anyone
came down hard on Rio, it would be her father.

I’ll e-mail Father as well, but I don’t want either of you drilling Rio about his
past or anything else. Suffice to say that since he’s head of security for Blade,
and all of his properties, he can be trusted. I can’t wait to see all of you again.
The auction is going well. Granddad and Grandmother Dupree are in a heated bidding
war for Pure Bliss. From their e-mails, I can tell they’re having fun on their vacation
and trying to top the other bidders. I’m blessed to have each of you, and now there’s
Rio.

Love, Skylar

Skylar reread her e-mail, did a spell check, and sent it. The e-mail to her father
was a variation on the one she’d sent her mother. Only with his, she had bolded the
part about not drilling Rio. She doubted it would stop him. But she’d just remind
him again. No one, not even her father, was taking him away from her.

Her door opened quietly. Her head snapped up. Joy spread through her. She was reaching
for the cover to throw it back when Rio held up one hand. It could have been to stop
her headlong flight into his arms or to remind her of her earlier Girl Scout’s promise.
Either way, it was effective in stopping her. His hair was up again. He was back to
being all business.

“Why aren’t you asleep?” he asked. “It’s almost two.”

She held up the iPad. “Working, and I wanted to e-mail my parents and tell them you’re
joining us for dinner Friday night.”

He paused on the way to the small love seat near the bed. “Maybe you should invite
them here.”

“Reservations already made and you’ll be with us. Besides, I want to show you off.”

“We’ll see.” He plugged in his laptop and took a seat on the small sofa. Opening it,
he began typing quickly.

They certainly would see, she thought. She turned toward him, her gown sliding down
her shoulder a bit more. “What are you doing?”

“Rechecking all of the people who requested invitations and were turned down, and
those whose names you submitted and were turned down.” He never lifted his head.

She sat up. “That’s a lot of people. That will take forever.”

“Then the sooner you stop distracting me, the quicker I can get it done.”

She felt like flouncing back into bed like a spoiled child—but then she looked at
Rio, his head bent over the computer, his shoulders hunched, all for her. He had to
be uncomfortable.

“You can go back to the command center and send Conner to guard the door.”

His head did come up then. He stared at her.

“All right. I did intend to tempt you back into bed, but you look so uncomfortable
all hunched over, working to keep me safe.” Her head tucked briefly. “I was being
selfish and I’m sorry.”

Putting the computer on the table in front of him, he went to her. His hands bracketed
her hips on the bed. “There have been times I didn’t have a desk to work on or had
to stay in a certain cramped position for hours, but there has never been a time that
I felt for a woman the way I feel about you. No discomfort is too great to be here
with you.”

She blinked back tears. She wanted so badly to tell him she loved him. “I told my
parents what an amazing man you are.”

He kissed her nose. “They already know what an amazing daughter they have.”

“My father thinks I’m headstrong.”

Rio merely lifted a dark brow.

“And where would we be if I wasn’t?” she asked, removing his hair clamp and threading
her fingers through his hair.

“I probably would have eventually gotten around to it.” He kissed her bare shoulder.

“I wanted you now.” And she wanted him again.

He lifted his head. “I really need to do this.”

She started to ask what fifteen minutes would hurt, but knew from past experience
that wouldn’t be nearly enough time. They enjoyed savoring each other. She gathered
her hair, pulled it over her shoulder, and put the clip on. “You have to sleep sometime.
You can do it here, guarding me inside my room.”

“Thin.”

“Since your men respect you and, I hope, kind of like me, thin is all we need.”

He straightened. “Try to get some sleep.”

“I just have a few more things to do and then I’ll shut it down,” she told him.

He went back to the love seat and picked up his computer. He smiled at her, then went
back to work.

Skylar blew him a kiss and also went to work, wishing again that she’d been able to
give the intruder a whack with the poker.

*   *   *

It was almost dawn. Skylar was asleep on her side facing Rio. With the first shadows
of night fading from the room, she looked ethereal and beautiful. Her lips were slightly
parted, her black lashes lush against her delicate skin, her slender fingers pillowing
her cheek.

The bedding was to her waist. He’d pulled it up over her bare shoulder, but she’d
always shoved it away moments later. He didn’t like heavy covers on him when he slept,
either.

He should still be working to find the bastard behind the hit. He’d checked and rechecked
fifty names, while three of his best men divided the others. Ten names popped up as
having questionable business dealings or not being on good terms with Blade or Navarone
Resorts and Spas. But none had any history of violence—at least none that they knew
of. They were digging beneath the first layer, but that would take time.

And while they worked, Skylar’s and possibly Mrs. Grayson’s lives were in danger.
His jaw tightened. Nothing would happen to either of them.

His little warrior hadn’t panicked. Even if seeing her naked with a poker in her hands,
ready to help, had given him a bad moment or two. Like her, he didn’t think the threat
came from any dealings her parents had as corporate attorneys. He’d checked the last
cases they’d been involved in. They’d won for their clients, but both cases were up
for appeal—and there was no telling how long that would take.

In any case, the ruling had been against a multibillion-dollar company and, until
they had to pay up, they’d let their lawyers drag the case on. Since it was copyright
infringement, there was no possible loss of good public will. But if they lost, it
could potentially mean a big financial hit. If the company wanted to put the lead
attorneys out of commission, they’d go after them, not their children.

So he was back to the auction. He had to find the connection. He picked up the computer
again.

“Rio.”

He looked up to find Skylar frowning at him. “Go back to sleep.”

She rose up on one elbow. “Have you been to sleep at all?”

“I’m used to all-nighters on the computer.”

“Emm.” She lifted the cover to show a shapely leg and scooted backward. “You need
to sleep. I’ll wake you up in an hour.”

His heart turned over. She wanted to protect him. Watch over him. “We both know what
will happen if I get into bed with you.”

“You’ll sleep better afterward, and I’ll still wake you in an hour. Come on, my arm
is getting tired holding the covers.”

He
was
waiting for some data on those ten men to load.

“I should get some reward for leaving you to work, and you deserve one, too,” she
reasoned.

He laughed, toed off his shoes, jerked off his shirt, and shucked his jeans and underwear.
He was rock-hard. Skylar’s eyes narrowed in anticipation. She licked her lips.

“You always have a reason to get what you want.” He got into bed with her, removed
the hair clip, and dropped a kiss on her bare shoulder. “Guess it comes from your
days on the debate teams in high school and college.”

She kissed him quickly on the lips. “I need all the help I can get where you’re concerned.”

He stared at her. “All you need is you.” He took her mouth.

She quivered at the tenderness of his kiss, his hard, muscled body pressed against
hers.

Grabbing a handful of her gown, he drew it over her head and tossed it aside. For
a long moment he stared at the perfection of her body; then he lowered his head and
took her nipple into his mouth. Slowly his hand skimmed downward over her flat belly
and beyond to caress the inner flesh of her thighs before moving upward again to find
her hot and damp.

Moaning, she arched against him, raising her hips to meet his touch. He’d intended
to love her slowly, but the need to feel himself buried in her satin heat, to feel
her arms and legs clasped around him, was too great.

He’d almost lost her. He released her and quickly sheathed himself, then brought them
together with one sure thrust. She gasped in ecstasy as he surged in and out of her,
stroking, filling, loving.

Their bodies were in perfect harmony as pleasure built and they succumbed and found
their release. He continued to hold her as aftershocks rippled though her body.

“Rio.”

She murmured his name with such tenderness and pleasure, his hold tightened. He felt
an overwhelming need to protect, to possess, to love her. He was familiar with the
first, and out of his depth with the last two. However, he wasn’t going anywhere.

“Sleep. I’ll wake you.”

He didn’t need sleep; he needed her. “I’ve a better idea.” He rolled on top of her.
This time he’d take it slow.

*   *   *

Skylar met the entire Grayson clan and their wives at the front door. Patterson was
still in bed, and she had called Mary and the other members of the house staff to
give them the day off. Rio had cautioned Patterson to keep the attack to himself.
He’d said he would.

“Good morning. Please come in.”

“Good morning. Thank you,” they greeted.

“Conner, we’ll be in Blade’s office,” Skylar said to the man Rio had assigned to be
her shadow if Rio himself wasn’t with her.

“I’ll be outside the door,” he said.

“This way.” Skylar led the family into the office where Rio sat behind the desk. He
nodded and motioned Mrs. Grayson to take his seat. On the twenty-one-inch computer
screen was Blade, with Sierra perched on the arm of his chair.

“Good morning. You two look happy,” Mrs. Grayson said.

Sierra yawned. “Good morning, Mama. It’s two
AM
our time.”

Blade’s arm circled Sierra’s waist. “She’s turning into a sleepyhead here. Is that
Luke behind you?”

“Yes,” Mrs. Grayson answered. “I’ll get up and let Rio explain.”