Special Agent: Austin (7 page)

“Hmm…” she said, on a low moan. “So glad I thought of this.”

He smoothed his hand up her waist to cup her breast. Her gasp swallowed her groan. “Hate to disappoint you, but I thought of it when I saw you at the airport.”

His fingertip teased her hard nipple, making her delirious. She couldn’t think when he touched her that way. She’d had no idea a man could possess that kind of control. Her body already prepared itself for his invasion, her core moist and swollen.

The effects of the Madam’s serum became more clear by the minute.

“I don’t believe you,” she said.

He pulled away to stare at her, his dark eyes sparkling with auburn flecks. “You’re a gorgeous woman, Belle.”

Glancing away, she said, “I’m not… feminine.”

Her line of work didn’t afford her an ounce of weakness. She could never allow a man to think of her as anything other than a formidable opponent. Could she?

His palm kneaded her breast with languid, concentrated strokes, a riot of sensation exploding inside her. She couldn’t contain her moan.

“That’s the most feminine, sensuous thing I’ve ever heard, Belle.”

Her heart soared. It pleased her that she pleased him. With every minute that passed, he proved the Madam wrong.

“As a matter of fact, you’re too feminine.”

She stilled at the playful tone of his voice.

“In the hallway yesterday, there was no way you could’ve hurt me. Impossible.”

Oh, really
?

Flipping around, she pinned him against the wall, a superior grin on her face. His wide smile took her aback.

“What’s so funny?”

He gave her a hard kiss on the mouth. “You’re so gullible, Sweetpea. But, if you want to know the truth, I was hoping you’d toss me on the bed and just take me.”

Mother butler.

Laughter bubbled up her throat, but she refused to give him the satisfaction. Unbuckling his belt, she unbuttoned his jeans, her eyes on the gradual flush up his cheeks.

His smug smile disappeared. “Don’t stop now.”

With his jeans gaping, she cupped him in her hand and caressed him with bold strokes, eliciting his own loud groan. “I’m sorry. Is this too feminine for you, Honey Dumpling?”

His manhood grew in her hand, long, hard…exciting.

All teasing left his voice, breathless arousal in its place. “Please don’t stop.”

Disbelief clouded her mind as she watched how her touch affected him. Was he really that turned on by her? That vulnerable to
her
? Hope and something else fluttered in her heart, filling it.

Smiling into his glazed eyes, she lowered his jeans and boxer briefs, kicking them off his feet. His jutting manhood felt like silk over stone, the head swollen and beaded with translucent liquid.

“Shit, Belle,” he said, squeezing his eyes shut. “This is supposed to be about you, not me.”

“I thought we were on equal terms.”

“We are, but your night of lovemaking will be over in seconds if you don’t stop touching me like that.”

She snatched away her hand. Had she done something wrong? Why was he mad at her?

Fear and bafflement must have shown on her face. Grabbing her hand, he brought it to his lips and kissed her palm.

“You didn’t do anything wrong, baby. You’ve just got me too hot, too soon. We need to slow down.”

“I do?” The words escaped before she could stop them.

His strained grin was fleeting. “Can we do this my way the first time?”

First time? There would be others?

Nodding, she allowed him to lift her into his arms and set her on the bed. He whipped his t-shirt over his head and tossed it on the ground.

Lean, roped muscle covered his torso and arms, his shoulders absurdly wide. Now she knew why they created sculptures of men. Something so masculine, so awe-striking called to the elemental woman inside her. She wanted to capture the unbridled desire raging through her, to ride it to the end of the line. She wanted to savor the vision, etch it in her mind to keep with her forever.

Making love with Austin wasn’t something horrible and degrading, but wondrous and magical. If only her sisters could experience it.

With a light touch, he pulled her arms from her lowered straps, his fingers settling on the zipper at her side. Lowering it with lingering purpose, he stared at her, his dark, dilated eyes hypnotizing as his fingertips met the sensitive flesh of her breast. A tremor raced through her.

“Are you cold?” he whispered.

She shook her head, words lying dormant in her throat. His question seemed almost comical with the insane fire blazing through her veins. She surprised herself when she pulled him down to snuggle against her side. The need to just lay there a moment, to be off guard and relaxed for once in her adult life, seemed as necessary as his presence.

“You feel so good, Austin.”

He tightened his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. “So, do you.”

Pulling the dress out from under her, she shucked out of her panties and kicked both to the floor. Raising up on his elbow, he gave her a slow onceover, his nostrils flared, his dark eyes black and swirling.

“God, Belle…”

“What?”

His big hand brushed back the hair from her face. “You’re perfect.”

Tears built behind her eyes but she fought them back. Why his compliment, his words meant so much confused her as much as her feelings for him. Why did she
need
his approval?

Men are weak. Remember that, girls
.

The Madam’s words played over in her brain like they had a thousand times before. The words were taught to her from early on, yet Austin lay with her, not weak, but strong. Not an enemy but…a lover.

Was she wrong to feel this? Did that mean
she
was weak? How could something that felt so good be so wrong?

His kiss held a sweet craving, a yearning that every fiber of her being said belonged to her alone. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she deepened the kiss, delving her tongue into his welcoming mouth, pouring all of her troubled thoughts, her angst, her forbidden desire into the kiss. He clutched her tight, his arms a silent band of defense, a champion of their time together, however sinful it may be.

With slow hands, he removed her arms from around his neck and hooked them through the slats of the headboard.

“My way.”

Nodding, she said, “Your way.”

Brushing back the ringlets from her brow, he stared at her, his gaze roaming over her face 
before trailing down her bare body. Leaning forward, his lips pressed against hers, patient yet laced with need. Over and over, he returned, taking a little more each time, leaving her destitute - and frustrated.

Lowering an arm to his neck, she tried to take more. He returned it to the headboard with patient hands.

“My way, Sweetpea.”

Scooting up, he leaned over her and kissed her –
really kissed her
– dipping his tongue into her mouth and taking his fill. He tasted of orange juice and toothpaste, of happiness and passion. She welcomed it all, anything that was a part of him, her body responding to his patient seduction with fierce annoyance. Arching upward, she rubbed her hips against his length, his warmth seeping through the last of the Madam’s icy commands, melting all remaining doubts.

Austin broke away, his breathing labored. “If you don’t stop, this isn’t going to last.”

“Good,” she said, her nerves strung tight, her patience threadbare.

Grinning, he said, “Not good.”

His mouth clamped over her bare breast. She cried out, the moist touch of his tongue like a branding iron, searing her, marking her as his pawn. He suckled her with thorough, lazy strokes, her center ripe and pooling with moisture.

“Please, don’t stop, Austin.”

He smiled against her breast before pulling away. Cool air washed over her damp skin, waking her from his mind-numbing ministrations. “My way, Belle.”

Her lungs struggled to take in oxygen. “I’m so sick of hearing about your way, Austin. Just do it, already.”

He chuckled, without touching her. At all. “I am.”

“No, you’re teasing me.” She held the headboard slats in a white-knuckled grip.

“Are you really arguing with me right now?”

She stilled. “Well… I’m…”

“Turned on?” He quirked a brow.

Her breath rushed out on a smile. “God, yes.”

His arrogant grin irritated her. “My way.”

His mouth found her other breast, showering it with the same amazing, toe-curling attention, her body throbbing with desire. She needed something to bring her down to earth, to balance her.

Calm her.

Austin paid homage to her cleavage, his lips trailing over every square inch of her bare torso until he found the delicate area below her belly button. Her mind whirled as he moved lower at a slow, torturous pace.

She closed her legs around his head. “What are you doing?”

He spoke against her, his breath fanning the moisture there. “Making love to you.”

She stilled, her thigh muscles quaking. He was
making love
to her?

Don’t go there, Belle. It’s not possible. He’s amazing and you’re… dead.

“I’d like to breathe sometime soon.” His voice vibrated against her center.

A moan escaped her throat before she dropped open her legs. “Austin, I can’t-“

His mouth found her then, cutting off all thought, all common sense, sending her into a wild, 
thrilling tailspin. God above, he was a master. There was no way the man could elicit such carnal, intense desire without loads of practice.

A wave slowly formed inside her, rushing from deep within, building, heading to his mouth. She 
squirmed against the covers, wanting it, yet fighting it, her instincts telling her she couldn’t be exposed.

“Belle, let go.”

Breathing hard, she stopped, her gaze connecting with his down her body.

“I’ll catch you, baby. I promise.”

Shutting her eyes, she laid back her head and let go. A light flashed behind her eyelids, bright, blinding before she shattered, dusting oblivion with shards of surrender.

Moments later, Belle felt him climb up her body, the head of his manhood dipping into the moisture at the juncture of her thighs.

“I need to be inside you.”

Her eyes fluttered open, her body still in the clouds. Austin’s face looked flushed with restraint, a condom stretched over his straining manhood. She knew this part would hurt, but she felt sure she’d been through worse in her life.

Then again, could having Austin inside her be anything but wonderful?

Lifting her hips, she invited him inside. He slipped further into her channel.

“You’re beautiful, Belle.”

He shoved inside her, the sting of his invasion no more than a pinprick of admittance. Filling her, he seemed to swell inside her, fitting perfectly, forming a unique bond only the two of them could create. With it came a wanton passion, bone-melting heat, like he had lit her narrow canal one match at a time, illuminating her from the inside out.

“Are you okay?”

Nodding, she thought it impossible to feel anything more glorious. “Are you?”

A slight grin flashed on his face. “I will be.”

It made her happy to see him take his own gratification.

Then he moved.

Sliding out of her slow and easy, his length seemed to go on forever as it glided through her thick juices. He slipped back inside, moaning as he increased his tempo, in and out, finding a rhythm that resurrected the need she thought she’d slaked a few minutes before.

It struck her then that they were united, closer than any two people could ever be. The beauty of their lovemaking, the intimate wonder, could never be anything but genuine. This, this… gift was mystic, a connection with another human bonded in complete trust and exposure.

A tear ran down her temple and into her hair. Thank God she’d experienced it before she died.

He pumped into her with renewed vigor, his thrusts growing wild and rough. Climax mushroomed inside her again, deeper, more powerful, as her name tore from his lips, pulling them both into his whirlwind of rapture.

Rolling onto his back, Austin pulled her against his side, his body lax along her length. A sob escaped despite her attempts to stifle it. He jolted awake, twisting to face her.

“Did I hurt you?”

Shaking her head, she shut her eyes, the magnitude of what had just happened hitting her like a blow to the chest. She’d waited until the end of her life to find him, to discover the beauty of human nature.

To love a man.

His thumb caressed her cheek. “Why are you crying?”

Sniffing away her melancholy, she lifted her chin. “I’m just being stupid.”

Frowning, he studied her a moment before laying back and pulling her on top of him. That hint of leather seemed to come with his body, a permanent scent on his skin. He rubbed her back with feather-light strokes, calming her.

“I want to go home and get my sisters’ DNA samples.”

Lazy undertones laced his voice. “Not happening.”

She looked up, her chin resting on his chest. His eyes remained closed.

“Now you think you can tell me what to do?”

He shook his head against the pillow. “No, I’m trying to inject some common sense into the situation. You already said she, whoever
she
is, will kill you. It’s suicide.”

She turned her cheek back to his chest. “My death is inevitable. I’ve accepted that.”

He bolted upright, her heart racing in genuine panic.

“Well, I haven’t, Belle. I’m not going to let you die. You might as well get that through your thick head.”

His brown eyes glittered with an anger she hadn’t seen in him before. His shoulders seemed to grow before her eyes, his lip curled in hostile derision.

Yet, despite his threat, she knew he based it in an honest truth, an honest intent.

An honest bravery.

She had seen too many fall against the Madam and her timeless arsenal to risk him. Somehow, she had to confiscate the samples without Austin finding out. She had to know he would live in safety after she was gone.

“If I can get them to you, you can ensure my sisters know the truth.”