Code Name Desire (8 page)

His story moved her more than she cared to
admit. “I’m sorry.”

“It was a long time ago, and I’m quite over
her. She married a nice bloke who manages a pub there in Cambridge.
Now, I told you something very personal I’ve never shared with
anyone. I would adore it if you’d afford me the same courtesy.”

“Share something profoundly personal?”

“Yes, please.” Teague entwined his fingers in
his lap and waited.

Shrugging the robe onto her shoulders, Jaeda
let her mind wonder to the only event in her life that could
compare. She didn’t want to share it, but he was right. How could
she capture his heart if she refused to bare her soul? She
sighed.

“It was summer in Virginia and I was sixteen.
I took a job watching two young girls, and we spent a lot of our
days at a swimming pool at their father’s apartment complex. A boy
came from Tennessee to visit with his mother at the same apartment
community, and he was a competitive diver, so he spent most of his
days at the pool, too.” She swallowed against the memory of the
heartache. “He was the most beautiful boy I’d ever seen. And he was
the most interesting, too. He was athletic, smart, drove a
motorcycle, and his Tennessee accent made him exotic to me. I was
so young.” She shook her head.

“And very beautiful, if your looks were
anything like now.”

She liked that he considered her beautiful.
Hearing him say so actually took some of the discomfort from the
telling of her tale. “The attraction was mutual. Strange thing was,
we never got physical beyond playing in the pool. Never even
kissed.”

Teague arched his brows but didn’t
interrupt.

“The first time he ever expressed an interest
in seeing me away from the pool, he asked me to take a ride with
him on his motorcycle. He came to my house like a gentleman and met
my parents. Then he took me on a scenic ride before parking next to
a wooded area overlooking the Roanoke River. He kissed me there. I
thought it was the start of something big. But then he told me was
going back to Tennessee the next day.”

“It crushed you.”

She whispered, “It was awful. I never saw him
again.”

“And you still feel the pain?”

“No. I remember how it felt, but I’m a
different person now. It doesn’t hurt anymore.”

He grinned. “Good. Thank you for trusting me.
And I can make you a promise.”

“Oh, yeah? What’s that?”

“I promise we’ll get physical. Seriously
physical.”

Chapter Ten

Jaeda didn’t wait for Teague to make the
first move. Cupping his jaw, she leaned her shoulder against his
chest. She tipped her chin and touched her lips to his. At the
contact, her stomach fluttered. What was it about this man that
turned her inside out?

Urging her to open under the pressure of his
mouth, he slid a hand into the V of her robe. His fingers skimmed
the upper curve of her breast. She inhaled sharply through her
nostrils as a thrill of goose bumps raced down her arms. His
tongue, smooth, soft and minty, tempted hers into a dance that sent
her senses reeling.

His hand went lower and his thumb grazed her
nipple. A bolt of electric pleasure shot through her abdomen and
caused an explosion of need between her thighs, making her spine
arch. Back and forth, he brushed the hardened crest until her pulse
throbbed within the swelling folds of her crease.

As she had wanted to since seeing him without
a shirt, she rubbed his chest. Taut skin stretched over hard
muscle. His widely swirling chest hair tickled between her fingers.
She enjoyed the fact that she could touch this sublime man anywhere
she preferred, as if he were hers.

He released her lips and pressed expert
kisses along her jaw then down her throat. His passion lit her skin
on fire, and suddenly, she couldn’t get out of the robe fast
enough. She hooked fingers on the collar and pulled while he untied
the belt at her waist. Opening it, he stared at her.

“You’re lovely,” he said so low she had to
strain to hear. He skimmed his hand from between her breasts to her
bellybutton.

A heavy heat centered deep within her, below
his hand. She hadn’t felt this in such a long time. With relief in
reach, Jaeda enjoyed the caress of his gaze. His eyes raked her
from face to knees and back, as potent as any touch.

“I love the way you look at me,” she said.
The throbbing between her legs grew stronger.

“I love the way you look.” Standing, he
unzipped his trousers and undressed in a single move.

He took her breath away. Though not as
defined or as large as a bodybuilder, he obviously worked out and
played hard. And she wanted him to play hard with her. Right
now.

She reached for him, but he shook his head.
With an arm behind her knees and the other around her back, he
lifted her from the loveseat. Her arms slid free of the robe and
left it behind as he carried her to the bed.

“You like carrying me, don’t you?”

He grinned and lowered her hips to the
exposed sheet. He pressed her against piled pillows while flipping
the thick comforter out of the way. The linens cooled her hot skin.
Teague didn’t give her time to catch a chill, however.

Kneeling between her ankles, he grasped her
hips and hauled her to him. “Seduction becomes you, gorgeous.
You’re magnificent, with your blushing skin and shining eyes.”

“Seduction?” She wanted to worry, but he
began stroking her thighs. “Are you seducing me?” Whatever he
called it, she needed him to keep doing it.

“
You’re
seducing
me
, Jaeda.
You’ve been at it all evening – since the club. But I like it.” He
tipped forward and planted a kiss to the gentle rise of her
belly.

It occurred to her that she ought to deny it.
Turn it around on him. With his hands learning her body, though,
she couldn’t think. She wanted simply to feel – pleasure, joy,
connection. Anything but the loneliness and distrust that had
consumed her life since her recruitment into the agency. She bent
her knees and hugged her inner thighs to his hips, urging him
closer.

He trailed lips and tongue along a searing
path up her abdomen. At her breasts, he kissed one then moved to
the other and proceeded to manipulate the nipple into aching
hardness. Jaeda encouraged him with massaging fingers on his
shoulders. His readiness rested against her, but he didn’t hurry.
On the contrary, his leisurely pace ensured her a rapid plunge into
yearning insanity. Increasing her massage didn’t help.

“Please,” she begged. Only he could relieve
the pressure in her loins.

Moving to her other breast and employing his
teeth on the straining nipple, he caressed a hand down her stomach
then eased a finger into her slick folds. She sighed. She rolled
her hips and arched. Although it didn’t meet her ultimate desire,
he provided some alleviation.

He stroked her cleft and abandoned her
breast. Hovering above her, he stared into her eyes a long moment.
In his gaze, he bared his soul – his determination and a glimmer of
insecurity. Did he doubt his ability to pleasure her? A miserable
sadness washed over her. His generosity astounded her. He was real,
and strong, and from what she could tell, faithful to everyone dear
to him.

She inserted her fingers into his hair and
drew his lips to hers while swallowing a sob. How could she spend
four hours on target and not catch one wicked glint? One iota of
body language to indicate he hid something? One sign of illegal or
dubious activity? Granted, they'd had merely one evening, and
perhaps he showed her his best face, but she began to wonder if the
agency had made a mistake.

Tomorrow, in the light of day, maybe she
would renew her watchful stance and wait for him to show his true
self. For tonight, however, she would trust him. She would bare her
soul as he had, and give him everything within her.

Anticipation tightened in her womb. His
finger no longer assuaged her need. She wanted him inside her. With
his tongue in her mouth, she closed her lips around it and gently
sucked. At the same time, she reached between them and grasped his
jutting staff. He stiffened – in a good way.

“Now, Teague. I can’t wait.”

“Thank God,” he breathed in her ear, sweeping
his cheek against hers. Leaning across her, he reached into his
nightstand drawer then reared up and tore open an aluminum condom
pack with his teeth.

Jaeda took it from him and rolled the
protection over his steely erection. With her entire body on edge
with need, she felt like she would come out of her skin if she
didn’t have him inside her immediately.

She fitted his tip to her opening, and he
took it from there. Bracing his palms on the mattress, he entered
her in short strokes. She would have melted with relief if not for
his size. As he inched forward, he stretched her, and she had to
concentrate on relaxing her muscles to allow him entry. One final
thrust had him filling her completely.

“Are you okay?” he whispered.

“More than okay.” She wrapped her legs over
his back and crossed her ankles. “Make me scream.”

“Your wish is my command, milady.” Teague
withdrew to his tip then thrust hard.

He went so deep she practically felt him in
her throat. Jaeda cried out and threw her arms around him. Clinging
to him, she concentrated on the building tide within her as he
found his beat. His rhythm became hers, and she rocked her hips to
meet his thrusts.

Never once did he close his eyes, and never
once did she look away. She let him see her pleasure, her
susceptibility, her reliance on him to help her reach fulfillment.
His features grew pained and the skin stretched tightly across his
cheekbones as his thrusts turned urgent. The urgency communicated a
straining tension within her, and she began to ride the wave to
climax.

Each stroke took her higher until she
couldn’t hold on any longer. Screaming her release, she shut her
eyes and let the orgasm wash over her, pull her into its undertow,
drown her. When it relinquished its hold, she surfaced and sucked a
breath through her mouth with a gasp.

Above her, Teague braced, his body shuddering
and his head back like a wolf howling at the moon. Every muscle in
his chest and arms bulged. Every vein stood at attention. Then he
yelled – a low, rough, anguished cry that touched her heart.

Tears welled in her eyes. When he relaxed and
looked at her, she didn’t try to hide it. She offered him a watery
smile and held out her arms. Accepting her invitation, he sank
until his weight pressed her into the bedding. It comforted her.
Somehow made her feel whole.

“I made you scream,” he said against her
neck, sounding proud.

She chuckled and wiped wetness from the
corner of her eye. “Yes, you did.”

* * * *

Jaeda woke in the quiet of the night. She
didn’t remember Teague withdrawing from her body or leaving the
bed, yet he now slept with his back to her and the bathroom light
had been turned off. Across the room, a gas fireplace gave off
orange light. She used the glow to see her way as she rolled from
the bed and snatched her robe from the loveseat.

Her bare feet made no noise on the carpet,
but she glanced over her shoulder, just the same, to make sure he
still slept before she entered the sitting area. The curtain on
this side of the bed remained closed. She had forgotten. It
disappointed her that she wouldn’t get a last glimpse of him before
she went to prowl his house. She shrugged into the cozy robe and
snuck from his suite then proceeded cautiously toward the
stairs.

The house's quiet unnerved her. She wanted to
turn around and crawl into bed with Teague. Snuggle against him and
perhaps persuade him to play. But she had a job to do.

At the bottom of the stairs, she went slowly
as her heart pounded. She could hardly make out a thing in the huge
space. She retraced her steps from memory and hoped she wouldn’t
trip or stub a toe. When she reached the door to the foyer, she
released a breath she hadn’t realized she held.

A nightlight near the foyer table offered a
soft white glow. Pausing for a moment, she listened for any noise.
Silence met her ears. Jogging on tiptoes, Jaeda found the study and
shut herself in.

The fire, burning low now, still sent flames
dancing around the last log. Yellow-orange light flickered on the
walls, making the study the brightest room in the house. Heat from
the fireplace also made it the warmest.

She scampered across the chill hardwood floor
to the desk. Tucking her legs under her on the chair, she gave the
mouse a wiggle to see if his computer was running. The screen
blinked to life and the CPU whirred awake. She clicked on the globe
icon at the upper left corner of the desktop and received a reward
of instant internet.

Nibbling at her bottom lip, she quickly
accessed her favorite weather website and checked the weather at a
glance. She used memorized code to hack the website’s server, and
buried her query in their high-powered computer. The weather
website spun like a piece of paper and revealed a hidden page
behind. Typing the site given to her by the agency earlier, she
glanced at the study door. It remained closed.

A security screen blocked her, but she
bypassed it by entering the op code name and then her own. An email
page formed, and she smiled. She was in.

“Am stranded at target’s country manor.
Snowbound. Need further instruction.”

The response came immediately. “Have you
completed your assignment?”

“Soon.” What else could she say? If she
did
capture Teague’s heart, how would she know? Did she have
to wait until he told her?

A movement in her peripheral vision caught
her attention, and she glanced past the monitor. The study door
stood open, and Teague watched her from the doorway. Panic seized
her heart, which didn’t seem to want to beat anymore. Forcing a
smile to her lips, she gave him a little wave.