Snapped (9 page)

He'd wanted to stay and watch her take a
bath, watch those cherry nipples float above the water. He could admire them
all day. If circumstances were different, he would have. But he wasn't going to
play her little game. She was a predator and he was her prey, that was for
sure. But he wouldn't succumb. No way was he going to be just another notch on
Lucy Hudson's belt. He'd have to walk around with this hard-on for the rest of
their time together, because he wasn't going to indulge.

Oscar's loud purring reminded him that he
had a job to do. He checked the kitchen cupboards to make sure they'd been
stocked with enough supplies for a week. They were, for humans.

"Guess you'll have to eat like one
of us, Oscar." The cat rubbed his head against Nick's calves. He seemed to
know where his next meal was coming from. Nick removed three pieces of steak
from the freezer and turned on the grill. While the steaks cooked he boiled the
potatoes, made a salad and chopped up one of the steaks for Oscar. By the time
Lucy came out of the bathroom, towel wrapped around her head but thankfully
wearing clothes, he'd mashed the potatoes.

"You cook?" She sat at the
green Formica table.

He nodded. "I don't get a chance
much with my weird schedule. Tonight was a little short notice so it's just
steak. Tomorrow night I'll try something more interesting."

"Wow, will you marry me, Nick
Dante?"

His face heated and he concentrated on
his stake to hide it.

"Sorry," she said with a
giggle, "too soon. We should date for a while first."

He didn't look up. He didn't dare. If she
so much as licked her lips, he was gone.

They didn't speak through the rest of
dinner but once they finished, Lucy stood and collected the plates.

"No." Nick reached for her
plate, his fingers colliding with hers. He snatched his hand away. "You
should relax after the accident. Go sit down, I'll clean up."

She shook her head. "Not fair. You
cooked, I'll wash."

He sighed. "We'll do it
together."

She nodded and headed for the sink. He
followed with the dirty plates. She filled the sink with water and detergent
and played with the bubbles before sliding the plates in.

"You know," she said,
"since we're going to be in such close proximity for the next few days, we
really should clear the air."

"It needs clearing?"

"Yeah." She handed him the wet
plate. "I saw the way you looked at me in the bathroom. Like you want to
touch me."

Nick's face heated. "I didn't. Don't."
It sounded feeble, even to him.

"No? So why were you drooling?"

She was pushing it now, but he could play
along with her game. "I wasn't drooling, Lucy. I was checking out your
bruise. It looks, um, sore."

She handed him the second plate. "Yeah,
I can't wear a bra. But that's okay. Those things are so restricting
sometimes." She ran her wet hand over her tight black sweater, cupping her
round breasts. The nipples hardened and strained against the wool. He hardened
and strained against his pants. "And I think my boobs look good without
it. Don't you think?"

He couldn't think. This was torture. How
was he supposed to not look at those round, high mounds, especially now that he
knew what they looked like in the flesh?

"You finish washing," he said,
throwing the tea towel on the bench. He left, the image of her impish grin and
pebbled nipples under the sweater filling his brain.

He switched on the TV in the living room
and sat in the armchair to one side. A few minutes later Lucy wandered through
and as hard as he tried, he couldn't stop staring at her tight ass. The way it
moved beneath her black pants was magic. What he'd give to run his hand across
her bare flesh, feel her wetness, spread her apart and make her squirm.

Jeez, get a grip, Dante.

She came back into the living room
carrying a jar and sat on the couch opposite. She untwisted the lid and placed
both lid and jar on the coffee table between them. She reached down and lifted
the edge of her sweater as if taking it off.

"What are you doing?"

With one swift movement, the sweater was
off and those luscious breasts were right in his line of sight. They were high
and round, a perfect ski jump from the base to the tip. She leaned forward to
pick up the jar again and they wobbled. Oh hell, how was he supposed to get
through these next few days now that he'd seen them?

"I have to rub this Aloe Vera on the
bruise. It has natural healing properties."

"You have to do it here?"

She glanced up and a smile tugged at her
lips. The vixen. She was going to torture him until he couldn't stand it any
longer. "I'm not ashamed of my body. If I don't mind you seeing it then it
shouldn't worry you either. Besides, I'm sure you've seen plenty of breasts
before and you don't strike me as the prudish sort."

Yeah, he'd seen plenty, just not ones
with the capacity to haunt his dreams forever. He didn't know they could be so
perfect.

Nick tried to concentrate on the TV show
but the circular motion of Lucy's hands between her cleavage and down her flat
stomach caught and held his attention. She strayed from the bruise too many
times, cupped her breasts, lifted them up and squeezed gently, offering them to
him. He groaned and shifted to alleviate the bulge in his pants but it just
made it worse. His erection screamed against the tight fit and he wished she'd
stop before he did something he had no control over.

He squeezed his eyes shut but the image
of her naked didn't go away. It just got so much worse. When she spoke, he
thought it was his fantasy at first. He had to open his eyes to check.

"The gel's warm," she said
softly. "It makes my skin tingle."

His own skin had started tingling, way
down in his pants. If he didn't look away, it'd do more than tingle. And if he
stayed in the living room, he couldn't help but look. He stood, his legs
feeling like the gel she rubbed all over herself.

"Where are you going?"

"My room." Was that squeaky
voice really his?

"Oh. I was hoping you could rub some
Aloe Vera on my neck."

She held out the jar to him and half
turned, tucking her feet under her.

"No."

"But I can't reach."

"Too bad."

She stood and came towards him, her
breasts jiggling enticingly with each step. "Please, Nick. My neck's very
sore and this stuff's good. If I don't put some on I won't be able to sleep
tonight." She blinked up at him. "Please."

He swore under his breath. Yep, he was
gone. But how could any man ignore the plea in those crystal blue eyes?

"Sit down," he said. He'd put
the stuff on then leave. No sweat. As long as he didn't stray from her neck. Necks
weren't sexy.

She grinned at him. "Thanks. I know
this isn't easy for you."

He bet she did. His desire must be
written all over his face. It was certainly evident if she took one look at his
crotch.

She padded barefoot back to the couch and
knelt in the middle. He sat behind her and dug his fingers into the cool gel. He
rubbed his hands together to warm it then placed both hands on her neck, at the
point where her hair brushed her shoulders. She shivered, just slightly, and
leaned into his fingers. He rubbed gently, not wanting to hurt her, enjoying
the feel of her soft skin against his gelled hands. Shoulders and neck soon
became moist and he ventured further, up to her ears, the tender spot he'd
always loved on a woman. She reached up and back with one hand and lifted her
hair so he could massage higher. Aloe Vera filled his nostrils, made him dizzy,
made him want her more. He'd never be able to smell it again without thinking
of Lucy and this sensual moment.

"That feels so good," she
murmured. "Your hands are so...big."

They're not the only things that were big
right now. His balls felt ready to burst.

She dropped the hand that held up her
hair and took his hand, guiding it around to her front. He should resist, he
should pull away, but he was like a train without a driver. Full steam ahead.

"No," he said half-heartedly. She
ignored him and directed his fingers to her breast.

"Just rub," she whispered,
"for the bruise."

The bruise was between her breasts but to
hell with that logic. He had a handful of perfection and he wasn't letting go. He
leaned closer, pressed his body into her back and snaked his other arm around
her shoulder to play with the other breast. No need for it to get lonely. His
heart pounded into her back and she leaned into him, throwing her head onto his
shoulder and moaning. He cupped each mound of flesh, weighing them. They were
heavy and filled his palms, just like he'd imagined. His thumbs strummed the
dark nipples until they pointed but he didn't relent. He rolled them, plucked
until Lucy's moans became louder.

Her lips parted and her tongue pressed
first against the top one, then caressed the bottom lip, leaving a moist trail.
Never had lips looked so inviting. Never had he felt so hard in his life as he
did right now.

His head, filled with the scent of Aloe
Vera, dropped forward into her hair. He nibbled her ear, eliciting a groan from
deep within her throat. She turned her head, just enough to press her lips
against his. She tasted like nothing he'd ever tasted before. Sweet and sinful,
spicy and succulent. He couldn't get enough. The short, exploratory nips turned
to a deep, thrilling kiss that boiled his blood. His heart felt like it was
going to break right out of its cage.

He felt her hand reach back and fingers
touched his crotch, setting his groin on fire. He tilted his hips so she could
get a better angle but she didn't undo the fly of his pants. Instead, she
traced a fingernail down the zipper and along his too-hard erection. He sucked
in air, kissed her deeper, teased her nipples and pressed himself into her
hand. His entire body burned, stoked by the furnace in his rigid penis.

Take it,
he silently begged.
Please take it.

She cupped him. Gently squeezed. He cried
out against her mouth. He was going to come. If he didn't release himself soon
he'd do it in his pants. He fumbled with his fly but she brushed his hand aside
and he had no choice but to return it to her breast while she tortured him
further. Instead of unzipping him she rubbed along his shaft, up to the tip and
down to his heavy balls where she squeezed again.

He moaned, agony and ecstasy combining to
give exquisite pleasure. Unrelenting pleasure. He didn't care if he came, where
he came, he just wanted to quell the fire burning inside. He sucked in a
lungful of Lucy and air as the tight spring uncoiled a little more with every
squeeze of her palm, every massage along his erection, roaring within its
prison.

"Ah, Lucy," he murmured. "Yeeessss."

Then something happened. Or rather,
nothing. She stopped and got off the couch.

"Wh, what are you doing?" he
managed to mutter through ragged breaths.

She picked up his cell phone which he'd
placed on the coffee table and handed it to him. It was ringing.

He swore and slouched back into the arm
of the couch, exhausted. His erection still ached for release but it looked
like that wouldn't happen now. Lucy, her back to him, got dressed.

As his breathing steadied, his erection
died and he could focus again. He'd had a narrow escape. Only seconds away from
making a fool of himself and a huge mistake. He pressed his hand to his temple,
blew out a breath, and answered the phone.

"What?"

"Hey, how's it hangin'?" O'Connor.

"What do you want?"

"Gee, you're testy. A little
frustrated are we?" He chuckled.

"Just been doing some kick boxing
practice with Lucy." He glanced up but Lucy had left the living room. Good,
at least she couldn't hear his pathetic lies.

"Yeah, sure. What other sorts of
moves have you and Juicy Lucy been up to?"

Nick ground his molars. He was tired of
hearing that stupid nickname. "If I hear you call her that one more time,
I'll make sure you do surveillance duties for the next month. Got it? Now, what
the hell do you want, O'Connor?"

"Okay, okay, calm down. Just want to
tell you we can't find Mack Thompson."

"Did you try the number I gave the
chief? He left it on Lucy's answering machine."

"Yep. No good. Just a machine. He's
probably screening his calls."

"Keep looking. Let me know how you
go."

"Sure thing. Oh, and ah, the guys
and I want to know when it's our turn to ...
protect
Lucy. We reckon
you've had long enough."

Nick hung up to the sound of Dave
chuckling. Little asshole. He needed a lesson in respect.

And so did Nick. Minutes ago he'd been
about to make love to a woman he barely knew. If he had, it would have been the
biggest mistake of his life—after marrying Donna. Lucy needed to be shown a
little respect for once. Men like Dave gave her very little of it, but Nick
didn't want to be like every other guy. He wanted to be different. He wanted to
prove to her there was more to life than sex. Maybe if he showed her some
respect, she'd start acting a little differently towards men in future and not
jump on the first one who came along.