The Two and the Proud (3 page)

She arched her back and laughed when he closed his lips on the pulse point behind her ear. Always one to exploit a weakness, he paid particular attention until she squealed in breathless laughter and then lifted his head to look down at her. Her cheeks were a ruddy pink, flushed with passion and laughter. “Tell me—what’s got you so wound?”

“You just met me. You don’t want my life story.” She dragged him back down for another kiss. Admittedly, the soft satin and velvet of her lips were like a drug to his system, he could spend hours sampling the different types of kisses—the long, hot wet one—the sweet, almost chaste teasing one—and the hard-tongue-sucking-teeth-nibbling-drive-his-cock-wild one.

But as stiff and painful as his dick grew, he wanted more than a quick bang in the dark—he wanted all the passion and fire beneath the thin veil of ice. He rolled her over and pinned her hands above her head. Lifting his head, he stared down at her.
Fuck, she’s gorgeous
.

The buttons on her shirt had come loose in their tussle to reveal a lacy-cupped bra hugging her breasts. The light sprinkling of freckles on her nose stretched down to decorate the gentle swell of flesh straining against the bra. The pupils in her eyes widened and her breath came in gasps to match his own.

“You know the best part of a one-night stand?” He traced his fingers down the column of her throat to her chest and shifted to circle the outline of one stiff nipple. “You don’t ever have to see me again…we can say whatever the hell we feel like and there’s no judging, no strings, no consequences—”

One minute he was on top and the next, he was flat on his back with the titian-haired goddess straddling him. She flicked open each button of his shirt until she could tug it out of his pants and drag her nails lightly down his chest. “Has anyone ever told you that you talk too much?”

Laughing, he curled upward and locked his lips around the nipple he’d been teasing, nibbling it lightly through her bra until her back arched and she hissed out a long breath through her teeth.

“We can talk about it after,” he unbuttoned her blouse the rest of the way and slid a hand around to unhook her bra.

“Good plan.”

Chapter Three

Kim didn’t know whether to scream in frustration or shout with joy. Of all the men the mysterious Madame Eve might have picked for her, she’d chosen a man who actually cared what she thought. Her breasts ached with every delicious caress he lavished on her nipples. He took turns, trailing hot kisses between each. His teeth scraped and electricity zapped through her. Tenderness snuck under the wave of passion with every stroke of his tongue. She cradled his head in her arms, holding him to her.

Emergency flags waved in her mind, but she ignored them. Rowdy’s hands slipped around her ass and flipped her over onto her back again. He traced a path across her belly to unbutton her jeans. His pupils flared until they swallowed the hazel irises. Dragging a zipper open never seemed to take so long or sound so loud. He slid off the bed and peeled the denim downward, sweeping her panties with them, but had to pause when he arrived at her boots.

Lifting up on her elbows, she grinned at him. Toe to heel on one and she kicked it free. He pulled the other off and then her jeans hit the floor and he stared at her, his eyes dark with desire.

“You’re beautiful, Kim.” He rubbed a hand along the calf of her leg.

“And you’re overdressed.” The temperature in the room couldn’t cool the heat raging over her skin. He stood at the foot of the bed, his shirt hanging open to reveal the ripped muscles stretched tight across his pecs and the sturdy four-pack of his abdominals. Lean and mean, like a Marine should be. She loved what she could see…but damn she wanted more.

He stripped off his shirt and dropped to wrap his arms around her. His kiss took her mouth, hard and demanding. His tongue invaded like a surgical strike, taking the perimeter and claiming it for his own. The rough fabric of his jeans glided against her legs, harsh and sensuous in the same breath.

Breaking the kiss, he nuzzled a path to her ear and tugged at the lobe. “Put your hands over your head.”

Her brain struggled to interpret the order beneath the fog of pleasure clouding her thoughts. She dug her fingers into his back, but he shifted until she pulled her hands free reluctantly. Shackling her wrists lightly, he drew them over her head and tucked them beneath a pillow.

“Keep them there.” He drew her earlobe back into his mouth and sucked on it. Shivers raced over her body and her nipples tightened further. He licked and nipped a path down the column of her throat, punctuating each stop with a word. “Don’t. Let. Go.”

He kissed her nipples again, licking swirling circles of pleasure around them then nibbled a bit at the curves of her breasts and dipped down to her belly button. Her belly quivered at the feathery touches of his lips to her flesh. She dug her fingers into the pillow, gripping it tighter the lower he traveled. When he slid his hands beneath her thighs and lifted her legs, she groaned.

Warm breath tickled the inside of her thigh. “Not letting go, are we?”

“No.” The single word came out as a growl between her teeth. He chuckled and showered warm, wet kisses along the inside of her thigh. He took his time, lingering at sensitive areas each time her hips bucked in an invitation. Her sex clenched in anticipation. Fumbling with the pillow, she nearly pulled her hands free, but he looked up the length of her body as though sensing the decision and their gazes clashed.

“Don’t.”
One word
.

One order
.

And her body went liquid with need. She unclenched her hands and forced them to stay beneath the pillow. He slid forward and draped her legs over his shoulders and cupped her ass. It was torture, sheer, unmitigated torture—his hot mouth closed over her clit and she moaned. He sucked, drove her insane as the unbearable tension mounted inside her. Stroking his tongue along the length of her labia, he stabbed it inside her once in a provocative tease.

“You’re killing me,” she complained. She couldn’t hold still, even as he dug his fingers into her ass, firming his grip.

“Shh….” He whispered the command, but thrummed her clit until she nearly pitched over the edge. When he pulled back at the last moment, she got pissed. Tipping her head up, she glared down at him.

“Dammit, Marine. If you don’t put something inside me in a minute, I’ll scream.”

Rowdy grinned at her, a lazy, heart-flopping smile, bathing her passion in sweetness. “Is this what you want?” He drew one hand from beneath her ass and then a finger slid inside of her. It wasn’t much, but her eager body jerked to meet it, clamping down greedily as he gently thrust in and out.

“How’s that?” The droll humor barely disguised the husky need in his voice, but she writhed against the tension pulling at her.

“Yes.”
Close…so close
.

He bit down on the inside of her thigh—a sensitive spot and electricity zapped through her. She came in a rush, riding his fingers as he continued the rhythmic thrusts. When the lightning dimmed to quivers of pleasure, he slowed his fingers. She looked up to find him watching her, his sweet lips curved into the most beautiful smile.

The low light from the lamp haloed behind his head and the gaze locked on hers felt dark and hot. A fresh shiver of anticipation raced through her. “Better?” he murmured.

“Almost.”

“Oh, only almost?” He drew his fingers out, dragging them over the sensitive flesh, stroking around her clit, but not quite touching it. “Did I forget something?”

She gripped the pillow, tempted to throw it at him. The hard points of her nipples ached. Pleasure still danced through her blood and as good as an orgasm…. “More, please.”

“More.” His grin curved higher. “And you said please.”

“Yes, sir. Now give me more.” She feasted on the sight of his chest, surprised—and delighted—to see the sheen of sweat on his brow and glistening on his arms. He was nowhere near as unaffected and calm as he played it. “Unless we’re done with the keep-my-hands-still part?”

He slid off the bed and free of her legs. She couldn’t quite read the expression on his face, but his chest rose and fell rapidly. The veins in his arms popped above the muscles. She dragged one foot up the bed lazily, thighs parted. When his gaze fell to her sex and he moistened his lips, she smiled.

Definitely not in as much control as he wants me to think
. He wanted her and the naked heat of his desire nudged her own need back into overdrive. Long seconds passed while he stared at her. A muscle ticked in his jaw and his breath echoed noisily as he exhaled. Finally, he shook his head as though breaking a trance. He pulled a foil-wrapped condom out of his pocket and his jeans hit the floor. It was her turn to lick her lips. His erection was full and a droplet decorated the tip. She wanted to lick her way from base to tip—what a tequila chaser he would make.

He slid the condom on slowly and, the hell of it was, the action only served to turn her on more. She rubbed her thighs together and lifted her hips, half in invitation and the other half in demand. But he didn’t rush. Smoothing the condom into place, he gave himself a firm stroke and her pulse seemed to double.

“Rowdy….” She pursed her lips, the heat scorching her insides climbing from slow boil to flaming sizzle. “Get your ass on this bed.”

He laughed. “You are very impatient for a Marine….”

“And even more so as a woman, but you have until three—” She didn’t have to finish the sentence because he crawled onto the bed and fused his mouth to hers, settling into the cradle of her legs, rubbing his cock against her sex. She dragged her hands out from under the pillow but he shackled her wrists with his hands.

Groaning, she gave a playful struggle and he laughed against her mouth. “Patience, very Special Agent Wakefield, or I’m going to come and then we’re back to square one.”

Catching his lower lip in her teeth, she rubbed her chest to his, the friction driving her nuts and his erection bumped her clit. She broke the kiss. “Rowdy….”

“Fuck it,” he groaned again, released her wrists, and drove into her.

Kim exhaled hard. He filled her, stretching her out in all the right places and seating so deep it melted her restlessness like sugar in the rain. She locked her ankles behind his hips. She didn’t want gentle, and based on the struggle in his face, he didn’t have it in him to give it to her anymore. He drove into her with hard, impatient strokes.

She welcomed the pounding, exulting at each exquisite glide of his cock against her inner walls. Her sex clenched around him, greedily holding on. He thrust his tongue into her mouth, a conqueror this time, mirroring every push of his lower body, driving her toward the blissful edge. With her hands free, she was finally able to let them roam over his body. She explored every ripple of muscle along his back, stroking them as they strained, and when she dug her nails into his ass, he swore and slammed into her harder.

The tension in her middle coiled tighter and tighter. She arched her hips, meeting every pounding thrust and her lungs burned. Oxygen became optional as she clung to him.

“Come,” he ordered, his voice low, and urgent. “I need you to come.”

Understanding that he struggled to hold off his own satisfaction while fulfilling hers burst the dam inside and she spiraled right over the edge. The climax struck her like a tidal wave, and she let out a cry, clinging to him. A second wave of pleasure burst over the first, and he tightened his arms, driving all the way to the hilt until a third wave robbed her of thought and he came with a shout. The tension rippled through him and down, and the waves eddied around her, drenching her in bliss. He collapsed slowly, and they clung to each other, slippery with sweat and sweet release.

He buried his face against her throat, and they panted for air.

“Better?” He asked when his breathing calmed, and she laughed.

Chapter Four

He pulled two bottles of cold water out of the mini fridge and trailed a caress along her bare leg with one when he sat back down on the bed.

Kim lifted her head and shot him a dry look. “Not nice.”

Looking at the length of her warm leg, superbly shaped muscle, and her very firm ass, he disagreed. “You said you were hot.”

Unabashed at her nudity, she rolled onto her side and snatched the bottle from his hand. He barely twisted the top off his when she pushed the ice cold bottle against his own ass.

“Damn, that’s cold.” He didn’t flinch, but only barely. Her laughter was reward enough. He tipped the bottle back and nearly drained it. His heart was finally beating a normal rhythm and he didn’t have to pant for air. Yet, every time he glanced at her, his cock stirred again—making its intentions known. It would recover as soon as it was able.

“Thank you.”

The odd sentiment turned him around, and he twisted to meet her gaze. “For what?”

“For not opening it.” She twisted the cap off. “Sounds stupid, but guys do it all the time. It’s sweet and thoughtful—and you are both of those things—but you still let me open my own bottle.”

Stretching out next to her, he flung an arm behind his head and used it for a pillow. “I would have opened it, but you grabbed it out of my hand.” He could have accepted the compliment, but why bother with false platitudes? Kim fascinated him, the layers of vulnerability hidden safely behind impenetrable body armor.

She took a drink, as thirsty as he was from the way her throat convulsed with each swallow. “It’s a bitch sometimes, being female.”

Yeah, he wasn’t going to walk into a landmine-laden field without a map and a guide—in fact, why not just go right around it? “I can’t imagine it’s any easier being an agent.”

“You’d be surprised.” She rolled over and leaned against the pillows. Her head was higher than his, but he liked the angle. He liked to see her face when she spoke. He’d ripped away some of the veil she kept over her expressions, and she stared into the distance.