Snatched (Coronado Series Book 2) (14 page)

Max, you’re not saying that in a literal sense … right?”

“I meant what I said; food + energy = more sex. It was literal. Why? Are you sore?”

“Ok, I guess we’re going to have to do this. I have not been in an intimate relationship for over two years. I need a warm up period or something like that. You are a big man and it’s a lot to get used to.” She looked at him and noticed he was void of expression. In fact, he looked sort of shell shocked. “Are you with me? Have I succeeded in shocking you into silence?”

“How is that possible?”

“It’s not that hard actually. Once you turn it off, it becomes sort of normal.”

“Why would you want to turn it off?
 

“Do you really want to know, or are you asking rhetorically?”

“I am asking you why you closed the door to romance and love and sex. You seem like a person who would want all of that in your life. Who in the hell broke your heart?”

“It wasn’t some huge heartbreak that caused me to take a break, it was a lot of small skirmishes lost. I decided that I may not be built for it. I don’t seem to have the intestinal fortitude to go after it anymore. That’s why I have a no boyfriend policy. I like to keep it light and breezy.” She took a sip of wine and looked him in the eye, daring him to argue.

“Let’s eat - I want you to start at the beginning. I’m going to need all the information I can get so that I know how to fix this.”

“I am not a person who needs fixing. I’m fine how I am.”

“I’m not fixing you. I’m going to figure out how I’m going to get you to let me in. I have to understand my wife and this is how I’m going to be able to do it.”

“Max, I just explained how I don’t want a boyfriend and you keep ignoring it.”

“I’m ignoring it because it doesn’t apply to me. I want more than that….I want everything.”

“Do you always get what you want?”

“Yes, I will do whatever it takes.”

“Can we eat dinner and talk about something else?”

“Sure, we have the rest of our lives. I have nothing but time.”

She stood up and started taking covers off and made him a plate. “I had them make a picnic, we have roasted chicken, cold lobster salad, cheese and bread and there is probably soup in the warmer.”

“Wow, this looks great. This was a good idea.”

“I have lots of good ideas - just you wait and see.”

“I’m looking forward to hearing every single one of them.”
 

Looking over at him made her heart flip a little, “I am so attracted to you, and it scares the hell out of me. I have never felt this way towards anyone before.”

“Why does it scare you so badly?”

“I think someone like you could prove to be fatal.”
 

“Can you explain to me how you arrived at this dark view of love? You seem like an optimistic person and you face your life head on. Yet, in this area, you seem to be a bit of a hedgehog.”

“Do we have to do this now? We just had amazing sex twice, so can we bask in the afterglow of sexual satisfaction for a while? I don’t really feel like exposing myself right now.”

“Baby, you already have. What do you think we were doing earlier? I don’t think you would have broken a two year hiatus if you were not interested in becoming intimate on more than a physical level.” He moved his chair closer and poured more wine in her glass and took her hand. “I would like to know if you would like to tell me.”

Turning to him, she debated how much she wanted him to know. “It’s not a very dramatic story, it’s just that I found dating to be a bit disheartening. I think I misinterpreted a lot of signals that men were giving me. I thought when someone said something - they meant it for more than five minutes. I found that not to be the case most times. I had a string of men ditch me right after I fell for them. It was like they knew the exact moment that I became attached and then left. I would resist for weeks or months and then the second I decided to give in - they moved on. The more I tried to figure it out, the worse it became. I kept thinking that the next man would be different and it was never true. I finally got worn out and I lost the stomach for romance. I decided that I was going to be light and breezy and leave the hard stuff for someone else.”

“I don’t know if I want to kill every son of a bitch who ever hurt you or thank them. Because if anyone of them had figured out how amazing you are, you wouldn’t be available. I think you are meant for me and I am meant for you.”

“Max, do you realize the more you push the more I resist? I have some pretty strong instincts to run from anything that smells like commitment. I don’t have any positive experience with it. I know I should probably try and reprogram myself, but I’m not sure I’m ready.
 

‘Ok, what if I don’t push anymore? We just let it be… what it is. That way you have nothing to resist, and I won’t push harder because I feel like your resisting.”

“I think that sounds like a good idea. I think if I was going to fall in love, it would be with you. I’m not ready to open myself up to it right now. It’s not that I don’t believe in love, I’m just afraid that is doesn’t believe in me.”

“I believe in love and I believe in us. We will just be together and that’s it.”

“I feel a little foolish because I made this big speech to Birdie a couple of months ago about honest communication. I was on this rant about why isn’t it possible for people to just express themselves honestly and quit playing games. Like if you need more love one day, you can just say ‘please love me more today’. Or if you need kisses, you can just ask ‘please kiss me extra today.’ You have done the very thing I have wanted and I’m resisting it. It scares me to death.”

“Maybe you were not ready for so much honesty so quickly at a time in your life when you are facing so many changes. It hasn’t even been a week and I’m telling you that I am going to marry you and put a baby in you.”

“Yeah, I might not have been ready for so much honesty right off the bat. Maybe if you waited until next week I might have handled it with more grace.”

“I just want you to let me in, let me in your life and your heart and your soul. I feel like I will not be satisfied until I have you completely bound to me. Maybe because I have all of these feelings that I’ve never had before and I’m scared shitless. I want you to be in the same boat as me. That way if we go down, we go down together.”

“That makes sense, I didn’t know SEALs were scared of anything - especially going down in a boat.”

“As a rule I would say that we’re not, except when it comes to our hearts. We are a bunch of hard men who have done an impossible job for a lot of years and faced a lot of nasty shit. If you asked one of us if we would choose to face a bunch of tangos or face our hearts, we would probably choose the tangos. At least that’s something we know how to deal with.”

“That’s something I can understand. I’m the type of person who likes things that are concrete, like the ocean. Something that I can point to and know what it is. Maybe that’s why I’ve struggled with love. I can’t touch it. I can’t hold on to it and make sure it never changes. I understand how crazy that sounds….. believe me.”

“It doesn’t sound that crazy to me.”

“That’s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.”

“I thought when I told you that I had faith in you was the best thing.”

“I want to add this, these are the two best things anyone has ever said to me.” You are batting 1000.”

He got up and pulled her hand and brought her into his lap. “I have to touch you now - I hope you don’t mind.”

Unable to respond because he had his mouth on hers and his hands were inside her robe, she let herself fall into him. He kissed her, avidly, sucking, licking as if he couldn’t live without her. He lifted his head and his deep green eyes blazed into hers. His hands tunneled through her hair and cupped her head. He was holding her tightly, holding her still as if he was afraid she was going to avoid the kiss. Which of course was ridiculous.
 

He stood up in one motion with her in his arms and turned and placed her gently on the bed. As he untied her robe and looked down, at her she realized she’d never seen such intensity in a human face before. It was as if he was reading her mind and heart. “I need this, I need you.” She nodded, throat dry, this was the very definition of desire. He undid his robe and let it fall off as he ran his hands up her body, “Let me in Rory… let me in.”
 

She shifted her legs and adjusted her hips, he dropped his hips and waited. She pulled him down and tilted her hips so that he was inside and lifted her head and whispered in his ear, “Now.”

With a growl that came up from his belly that gave her goose bumps, he thrust inside. He filled her completely, “Are you OK?” A drop of sweat fell down his chin onto her breast. Tugging him back down, she tilted her hips so he moved even more deeply inside of her.
 

He had to feel the welcome. “Oh yes,” she sighed, grasping him even more tightly. He started moving slowly with measured thrusts, completely in control. He touched her everywhere inside and she let herself go. Enjoying the feel of him under her hands, against her chest and groin, feeling the rhythm of his thrusts, she rode the wave of pleasure. When she exploded, it took her completely by surprise. Her body shot into overdrive from one second to the next. It was like an electric shock, and she instinctively held on tighter to him. He was the only stable thing in the universe right now.

“Yeah, baby that’s it.” He felt her contractions hard around him. He moved in her faster and harder and kept her contractions going on and on. For a while they were one, moving tightly in unison. “Oh god,” he breathed. His voice sounded shaky as a shudder went through him and passed through her. He started coming in huge hot jets and felt himself almost black out.
 

Their bodies were covered in sweat, and he was breathing heavily and panting. She felt his big barrel chest bellowing in and out. She tightened her arms around his shoulders - feeling the absolute strength of him. Enjoying the weight of him, she took shallow breaths. He finally rolled over and kissed her head, “I think my head blew off.”
 

She looked over and smiled and closed her eyes and fell instantly asleep.
I guess I wore you out. Sweet dreams.
“Love you Rory.”
 

CHAPTER TEN

“Good morning beautiful.”

Opening an eye she looked over and smiled at the good looking naked man lying next to her. “Did I pass out last night? One minute I was drowning in pleasure and the next minute it was lights out.”

“Yes, I think I wore you out.”

“In the best possible way…. I thought it might have been a dream.”
 

“I want to wake up every day like this… kissing you. No pressure of course. Just wanted to let you know all my dreams came true in the last twenty four hours.”

Running her mouth down his neck she felt him shudder as she moved her hand down his body. “I didn’t know that a southern man with a deep voice was going to become my kryptonite. The sound of your voice utterly seduces me.”

“I’m glad you told me that, because now I know that I have to speak quietly in your ear when I’m doing this.” In one motion he rolled on top of her, parted her knees with his leg and swiftly and completely entered her.”
 

“Don’t say anything too complicated because….” she arched into him “the way you feel makes me feel….everything.” Shuddering she felt his equally enthusiastic response as he moved slowly and completely inside of her. Just when she thought she couldn’t take anymore the last thrust had her going over the edge into a free fall of pure happiness.

Whispering in her ear, he encouraged her to let go and thrust hard several more times and then joined her. Much later when his brain began functioning again, he lifted himself up on his elbow and ran his hand down her back, “I love how you fall apart when I touch you. You are a woman who is always in control…. and I make you lose control.”

“I told you that I don’t want a boyfriend or a husband, but will you be my love slave? I have waited 28 years to have an experience like this, and I don’t want to give it up anytime soon. You touch me and I fall apart. This has never happened to me before.”

“Love slavery can be arranged. Does it go both ways?”

“I think it has already been established that I will follow where ever you lead. What else would you like?”

“Your heart.”

“I don’t give that away until the second month of knowing someone. So you’ll have to wait a little while.”

“I can do that.” Kissing her hard, he got up and looked for the coffee maker. “I better not slack in my duties of making coffee. Is there a maker in the room or should I run downstairs?”

“There is a maker over there. I’ll jump in the shower and then we can go down for breakfast.” Getting up, she made her way into the bathroom, he stared at her until she disappeared behind the door.

“For the rest of my life she is going to be the queen of my world.” He made quick work of getting the coffee ready and gathered their clothes from the room. He didn’t want anyone finding any of Rory’s lingerie. He opened his laptop and checked in for the day and was happy to see that they had made progress on the research they were doing on the two suspects in Rory’s case. He wanted to be done with this and give her a solution once and for all.