Feel the Heat (7 page)

His mouth moved over the lips of her pussy, his tongue licking up one side and down the other then returning to her clit to torment her even more. She could do little more than anchor herself again with her hands gripping his hair and ride out the waves of pleasure crashing through her. When he finally thrust his tongue inside her, his thumbs pressing together on her clit, her climax slammed through her like a wall of water. Her entire body shook and trembled. Troy was right there riding her through it, pushing her, fucking her with his tongue and rubbing her swollen nub rhythmically.

The aftershocks were still rippling through her when he reached for the condom, rolled it onto his cock efficiently and slid his hands beneath her buttocks to lift her to him. The tip of his shaft probed at the entrance to her cunt and pushed in a little. Then a little more. It had been a long time since she’d last had sex, and she was aware just how tight she was. But Troy moved slowly, easing himself into her. She took him in a little at a time until with one last swift thrust he was inside her, filling her, stretching her. He paused, giving her time to adjust to him, balancing himself on his forearms and studying her face.

“Open your eyes,” he growled. “Look at me, Lauren.”

When she stared into his eyes, she saw such a depth of feeling that it stunned her. How was this possible, for something like this to happen so fast? To her especially, who had always been an oddity to the men she dated. She’d seen curiosity of varying degrees, but never real interest in her as a person. As a woman. Yet here she was with Troy, less than twenty-four hours after meeting him, enjoying incredible sex and feeling as if they’d been connected forever. And seeing that same feeling echoed back in his eyes.

When he lowered his head and ground his mouth against hers, slipping in his tongue, she tasted herself on him, his flavor mingled with hers. Then, as if he’d been waiting for some signal from her, he began to move, slowly at first, then faster, driving into her so that the tip of his cock touched the mouth of her womb. Lauren wound her legs around his waist and dug her heels into the small of his back, lifting herself to him as much as she could, riding the storm of pleasure surging thorough her. Her hands moved over his back, feeling the warm skin over taut, hard muscles.

Everything inside her unwound at a dizzying speed, surging through her body until she came apart. Seconds after her climax hit, she felt Troy stiffen then his cock pulsed furiously inside her. Her inner muscles clamped down on him, spasming over and over, fireworks exploding behind her eyelids in vivid shades of purple and red and green. She was falling through space, locked in a sensual dance with this man who touched her inner core.

At some point, a semblance of sanity returned. Her body still trembled with a combination of exhaustion and satisfaction and she wasn’t sure whose heart she felt pounding, hers or Troy’s. He moved his head enough to press light kisses on her cheeks, her neck and the upper swell of her breasts before sliding from her body and heading for the bathroom to dispose of the condom. Then he was back in bed next to her, cradling her against his body spoon-fashion. One hand cupped a breast, a finger lazily teasing a nipple. The other brushed lightly along the curve of her hip then settled on her stomach. His cock, semi-hard now, pressed against the crevice of her ass.

Neither of them said a word. Finally Troy broke the silence.

“Just so you know, this isn’t quick sex because I’m horny and you’re handy.” His voice sounded rusty. “It’s important that you really understand that.”

She had to clear her throat twice before she could respond. “I do. I-I have to say doing…this isn’t usual for me at all.”

His chuckle rumbled in his chest and vibrated against her back. “I get it, honey. I like to think I’m good at reading people and no way would I think that of you.” He let out a slow breath. “I don’t know what this is, Lauren. I’ve kind of cruised through life focusing first on the SEALs and now on Phoenix. I always figured I’d have plenty of time to look for a serious relationship.” He laughed again. “I guess Dan and Rick probably said the same thing and look at them now.”

“Mark and Faith have known each other forever,” she reminded him. “But it took his being in danger and her being determined to save him that finally made them realize what they had.”

“I don’t want to wait as long as they did. Or Mike and Kat, who had to reconnect after a long time. Like I said, this is sudden but it’s very real.” He kissed her shoulder. “You feel the same way, right?”

She nodded. “But it scares me.”

His arms tightened around her. “In what way?”

She was careful with her words. “I’m…not like other people, Troy. What if I disappoint you? What if you suddenly can’t deal with my gift? What if you even come to resent it?”

“Hush.” His lips were right at her ear. “I told you I learned a lot about psychic healers and I have a lot of respect for your ability. Besides, I was a medic in the SEALs and I still keep up my training, so maybe there will even be times when we work in tandem. But most important, I may not have known you long but I feel right in my gut that you could never disappoint me. Let’s keep exploring what’s going on here. When we get this crisis handled we can talk about where we go from here. Because we’re definitely going somewhere. Okay?”

Lauren’s lips curved into a smile, even though he couldn’t see it. “Works for me.”

* * * * *

They woke early the next morning and made lazy love with the colors of dawn slanting in through the blinds. With the first frenzy of need satisfied they took their time exploring each other’s bodies, learning each other’s needs.

Do you like this?

Does it feel good when I touch you here?

When at long last Troy sheathed himself and slid his cock slowly into her body, the walls of her pussy closed so tightly around him it took his breath away. He held himself in place, just enjoying the intensity of the sensation. When he began to move, it was with slow, deliberate strokes. He locked his gaze with hers, watching her, seeing the signs on her face and in her eyes as she moved closer and closer to release. Feeling the slickness of her as her hips moved with him.

When they came together the orgasm rushed through them, both of them shaking, her arms firmly around his neck. Her legs were wrapped around his hips, heels digging into the small of his back to keep him locked to her as tightly as possible. And each throb of pleasure, each spasm rocketed through them as if they were one single unit.

He kissed her softly as they came down from the high, touching her lips, her cheeks, her forehead, before easing from her to dispose of the condom. After that they dozed comfortably in each other’s arms before showering and dressing. Lauren went into the kitchen to start breakfast. Coffee first, to give them both their first caffeine fix for the day. She poured a mug for Troy to take into her office with him while he checked the answering machine and the camera feeds.

There were a number of calls, some from the night before but most from that day.

People get up damn early to start their harassing.

Only a few were from the stalker. He wanted to think maybe the man was winding down again but his experience had taught him better. It was possible he was just getting his second wind. There were a few personal calls that he jotted down to give to Lauren. The rest were from every type of media in existence and they seemed to have overdosed on persistence. He was just about to exchange the SIM card so he could hand it off to Dan later when the doorbell rang

Lauren came out of the kitchen holding a dishtowel, her face lined with tension.

Troy held up his hand. “Let me. You stay where they can’t even get a glimpse of you.”

One of the first things he’d insisted on the day before was closing the shutters in the kitchen so people couldn’t see in. He also closed the door to the tiny mudroom that gave access to the rear entrance. Now he waited until Lauren retreated into the living room before heading to the foyer, the insistent sound of the doorbell clanging in his ears. He checked the feed on the computer and saw only one person standing there. But the cameras also showed a small crowd gathering at the curb again, two news vans and three or four cars. At the moment, no one had emerged from them but Troy was prepared if and when they did.

He left the safety chain on when he opened the door just enough to talk through.

“What?” He made his tone as hostile as possible.

The man standing there in jeans and a button-down shirt held up a business card.

“Dan Jenkins. I’m with a magazine.
Psychic Journeys.
We’d very much like to do a feature on Miss Cahill.”

“Not interested.”

Troy tried to close the door but the persistent ass had stuck his foot in the opening.

“Someone’s going to do this story,” he said. “And it probably won’t be very flattering. We’d do it with skill and care.”

“The answer’s still no. Miss Cahill won’t be giving any interviews at all. You might want to pass the word. And you’d better get your foot out of the door before it gets broken.”

Jenkins pulled his foot back but he wasn’t happy. Troy pulled his cell from his pocket and pushed the speed dial for Dan.

“Reinforcements,” he said. “Now.”

“On our way,” Dan told him.

“Who was that?” Lauren wanted to know when he walked into the kitchen, her voice firm.

Underneath the fear and apprehension, there was a core of steel that he couldn’t help but admire. His girl was no pushover.

His girl?

Well, yes, dumbass. You certainly staked your claim last night and made no bones about it.

He’d been so footloose where women were concerned that his partners warned him when he fell, it would be hard and instantaneous. They were certainly right about that. He felt as if a truck had rolled over him. But in a good way. And every one of his married partners had somehow conducted their romance in the midst of a dangerous situation. Maybe it was just a pattern for the men of Phoenix.

Even more quickly than Mia and Dan, they had skipped the getting to know you part and gone straight from hello to extraordinary sex. They needed to learn about each other and that might be the tricky part. Troy was not at all used to giving people pieces of himself, except for his partners, and he had the feeling Lauren had the same reticence. He’d have to move even more carefully in this area, but he was determined to know all about her. Everything. Because he knew with an unexpected certainty she was the woman he wanted to share his life with.

Getting there would take a careful touch.

He just hoped in the light of day Lauren didn’t have a change of heart.

Now she studied him, waiting for his answer. He hated the anxiety that lined her face. Hated that she had to go through this at all. What he really wanted to do was scoop her up and take her far away until this died down again but he knew she’d never agree to that. Instead he settled for giving her a quick but hard kiss on the lips.

“A reporter from
Psychic Journeys.
He wanted to do a story on you.”

Lauren shook her head. “I know the magazine. It has a good reputation, but I don’t want the notoriety. It would be like advertising myself, something I don’t want to do. My clients come to me through referrals or people who know of me and that’s as much as I can handle.”

“Have you ever thought about doing this full-time?”

She shook her head again. “First of all, I’d have to give up my regular business, so I’d have to charge people, which I don’t want to do. Secondly, successful healing takes a lot out of me physically. I don’t think my body could stand it on a regular basis.”

“I’d like to watch you sometime. If you’d let me, that is.”

She smiled at him. “Of course. I want you to see what I do.”

He brushed another kiss over her mouth. “Dan and Mark will be here shortly. The mob outside is smaller today but the day is young and we may need some reinforcements. They’ll assess the situation and see who we need to call in.”

“You mean like guards?” Lauren frowned. “I thought with the security system and cameras and all we wouldn’t need it.”

“And maybe we won’t. But it never hurts to be prepared. Now.” He brushed his knuckle against the soft skin of her cheek. “Is there any more of that really good coffee you made?”

“As much as you want.” She took his mug and turned to fill it from the pot. “Do we have time for breakfast?”

“We’ll make time.”

He took the mug from her, their fingers brushing, and the sparks shot through him more electric than ever. “I’m going to check the video from last night. Everything's saved to a disk, and we can erase whatever is useless.” He needed to have some space from her to get his act together before his partners arrived, although he didn’t know how they could miss what was going on. He was more worried about Mark’s reaction. He and Faith were Lauren’s good friends. Would he approve or think he’d taken advantage?

“I’ll call you when everything’s ready,” Lauren told him.

* * * * *

At the knock on his door, Olberman swiveled in his desk chair.

“Come.”

Reid McFadden, the man some called his chief henchman, walked in and shut the door.

“Vivian said you wanted to see me?”

Olberman nodded. “I have a situation for you to check out.” He slid a folder across the desk for the man to pick up. “Take a moment to read this and I’ll explain what I need.”

McFadden sat in one of the big leather chairs facing the desk and read the documents in the folder carefully. When he was finished he looked up.

“Do you want me to check out the woman or the patient in the hospital?”

“The patient first. Vivian tells me he has pneumonia and none of the medications are helping. Complications have developed. His insurance has run out and he and his wife are not sure what they are going to do.”

“And this is important because…”

“Because I want to make sure this Lauren Cahill is the real deal.” He paused to light a cigar then put it in the smokeless ashtray Vivian insisted he use. “I see a good source of income if I can take possession of her.” His smile was more smug than humorous. “Think of all the wealthy people in the world who have incurable diseases, not to mention their families. How much do you think they’d pay for a cure? Millions. Perhaps in some case even billions. But first I want to make sure the stories about her are real.”