The last thing Lexi expected when she opened her door was to be face-to-face with the very thing that had caused her to toss and turn all night, her body hot and hungry, unsatisfied, even from the relief she’d finally had to give in to. Not that it had helped much. Her body had known it was a piss-poor substitute. Unfortunately, she knew exactly how he’d felt inside her, his big body dominating hers, his rough hands holding her, pleasuring her and oh God, his tongue—

She drew in a deep breath and fought like hell to keep her eyes all the way open and focused when the flesh between her legs heated, clenched and melted as his dark gaze met hers. It had happened each and every time she’d thought of him throughout the day as well and she was so over it by now. Jeez, Pavlov anyone?

Nash was wearing similar clothes to what he’d had on at the airport—beaten up cargoes and a t-shirt that clung to his large frame. Damn, but she really hadn’t had enough time to appreciate those muscles. Not the way she would have liked—with both hands and an open mouth. Yeah, too bad. That part was a real bummer.

Nash cleared his throat when she didn’t say anything, his gaze never leaving hers as he held out her phone. “You left this last night.”

Shit.

Her stomach clenched in a sharp, cold jab. She hadn’t even realized the stupid thing was missing. God, she’d gone all day without giving it a single thought. How could she have done that? She’d lived with the constant dread for months, day after day. For a few precious hours she’d forgotten, completely and totally. Incredible.

Lexi stared at the phone, hating the thought of even touching it. “How did you—”

“Your license plate. Just managed to get it last night as you tore out of the lot.”

Right. The big exit. Lexi frowned. “And how did you get my address?”

“Don’t ask. Here.” He motioned with the phone again.

The air locked tight in her throat as she took it from him, careful not to touch him. She so didn’t need that tactile stimulation right now.

“Thanks. You’re a real gem,” she drawled as she made to close the door. Was he serious? He made everything sound so normal, so ordinary, so…benign, as if he hadn’t—

He grabbed the door so quick and hard that she felt the impact of the sudden stop all the way up her arms. Her gaze shot to his. His eyes were dark and intense and still fixed on her, yet she couldn’t tell a thing from his expression. She shivered. To think she’d been under that big body, almost pleasured beyond belief by that big body. Pity the “almost” made all the difference.

“Ask me in,” he urged.

She snorted. “Go fuck yourself.”

“You have every right to be angry.” His voice was quiet, low.

“You think?” She jerked at the door. It didn’t budge. At all.

“Lexi…I’m an asshole. A jerk. Everything you’ve probably called me and more.”

“Yeah. So?”

“So I want another shot.”

She frowned. “Shot?”

“Chance. I want another chance with you.”

“Another chance?” She was staring, she knew she was. “Are you serious?” Maybe insane? On drugs? Possessed by aliens? “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“I fucked up. Big time.” His mouth tightened. “That doesn’t happen very often. At least—things usually go the way I want them and last night was not the way I wanted it to play out.”

Ah, so he hadn’t liked the lack of control. Figured. Or maybe his ego really was that big.

“Bummer. For you.” She tried to close the door again. Still not budging. “Let go.”

“Please. Give me another chance and I’ll show you I—”

“Wait.” She held up a hand. “Let me get this straight. You want me to let you do me again just so that you can make up for the fact that you left me hanging? Out of the goodness of your heart? Because you feel bad?” She laughed. “Yeah, I can see how altruistic that offer is. Don’t tell me there are chicks out there who really fall for that one?”

His jaw clenched, dark eyes flashed. “Look, I won’t get off. It’s all you, whatever you want, however you want it, for as long as you can stand it. All you.”

Jeez, arrogant much?

Yeah, but the thing was, his brand of confidence probably wasn’t misplaced. Despite how the night had ended, he’d gone down on her with a skill that could only have been honed over time and with a hell of a lot of practice. He may be rude and conceited but for some reason he still made her hot—plain and simple—and he’d left her wanting in a way she wouldn’t be able to get out of her mind for a long time. Maybe ever.

“That’s some ego you have there,” she choked out.

He sighed. “I didn’t—I shouldn’t have— Damn, I acted like an asshole afterwards and I’m—sorry. It was unforgivable. Let me make it up to you.”

Huh. She wouldn’t have seen that coming, not in a million years.

“Yeah, well…” Lexi cleared her throat, shrugged. “I…took care of the situation so…”

Except that taking things into her own hands had barely scratched the surface of the itch she’d had for him. No matter how many times she brought herself relief—and to be sure she’d tested the limits of her battery life trying—it didn’t make the need go away. Now that need was roaring to wet, hot, stinging life.

He frowned. “You went to someone else?”

He hated the thought of it. She could see that. She doubted sex with another flesh-and-blood guy would have helped any either. No. It had been him, all him and damn but he’d probably be her favored go-to reel when she needed to get herself off from now on. Probably would be for a long time to come.

“I don’t necessarily need a guy for that.”

The right side of his mouth lifted, his eyes heated and just like that her heartbeat kicked into high gear. Ah…now the thought of that turned him on. Lexi shook her head. Men.

“Look. Nash, seriously I—”

“A kiss. Give me one kiss and then if you want to tell me to go to hell, so be it. You’ll never see me again. I swear.”

A shaft of something went through her at the thought. It couldn’t be regret, right? And besides, what could a kiss hurt? Although when she remembered the kind of kissing he liked…

He took a step forward and she swallowed back a gasp when he pushed the door wide with the sheer size of his shoulders. The curl in her stomach burned a path all the way down and arrowed right between her legs until there was nothing but a stinging ache. His gaze tracked across her face, lingered on her mouth and went lower. Her breath froze, everything in her went still when he curled a warm hand around the back of her neck and eased her forward until her body brushed against his, lightly but enough to have heat scorch through her.

Oh, man.

He’d just had a shower and recently. She could smell his soap and something that underscored it that she’d forever associate with “hot guy” and this hot guy in particular.

She focused on trying to breathe when he lowered his head, but instead of her lips, he went for the sensitive cord of her neck in an open-mouthed kiss. She was pretty sure she moaned when she felt his teeth scrape against her skin gently, his hot tongue as he licked up to the sensitive place behind her ear, the warmth of his breath when he tugged on her earlobe. His movements were slow, unhurried and oh so thorough. Yeah, maybe she moaned through all of it.

This was a kiss?

Lexi loved what this guy did with his kisses.

She shivered each time the rough stubble on his cheek rasped under her jaw because she knew for a fact what it felt like on the inside of her thighs. She arched her neck to give him better access before she could second-guess herself. This time she was sure she moaned when he repeated the move again and then again until the roaring in her ears was so loud she couldn’t tell if she was making a sound or not. If they hadn’t been standing she probably would have climbed on to him by now, humping any part of him she could reach, anything to find some relief.

“So…” he rasped, his breath hot against the shell of her ear. “The verdict?”

Lexi was drenched between her legs, a weeping, aching, stinging hot mess and it was all she could do not to whimper when he pulled back.

She dragged her eyes open. This close she could see every whisker, every eyelash and the lighter flecks in his dark-brown eyes, eyes that blazed down at her.

So she was turned on. Probably a lot more than merely that, but did she really want to go there again? Was she really that dumb? She knew what her body wanted, what it was screaming for, but still— She took a deep breath and looked down at the hard-on he was making no attempt to hide. Not that he could.

“Um…you…”

“I’m not here for me, Lexi. I’m sorry about last night. Really. I’m here to make up to you for what happened, for what I did, the only way I know how.”

Oh God she couldn’t possibly. Could she?

“Let me,” he breathed, his eyes molten heat, full of promise—hot, dirty promise. “Let me take care of you.”

Oh God she couldn’t.

“I’ll make you come. I guarantee it,” he whispered, his voice guttural. “As many times as you want, as many times as you need, any way you want.”

“Um…” She glanced out on to the street. “We—we should probably go inside.”

Oh God. She could.

 

Nash felt everything in him still when her damn phone beeped. Again. He bit back the frustration with an effort. That was some fucked up timing right there.

“Boyfriend tracking you down?” he forced out.

Would last night have even happened if she had a boyfriend? Would he be here, inside her townhouse, about to do his best to worship that hot body of hers if there was another guy in the picture?

Damn. For some reason the possibility didn’t sit well with him. Of all the women he’d been with, fucked, he’d never once given a thought to that. Yeah. Until now.

“I don’t have a boyfriend,” she muttered, her eyes glued to her phone. Her teeth dug into her lower lip and he couldn’t miss the frown.

Was it his imagination or did she suddenly pale? He sure as hell registered the tension in every line of her body that hadn’t been there a second ago.

“Trouble?”

She looked up. He braced for a quick comeback, already conditioned to expect a smart-mouthed comment but she just looked dazed, unsettled. And for some reason that made him uneasy as hell.

She shook her head, took a deep breath and threw the phone over on to the sofa.

“So…we gonna get this show on the road or what?”

Nash frowned at the flatness of her voice. She’d gone from soft and willing to not, in three seconds flat. Every instinct he had, honed over years of close call after close call, went on full alert.

“Are you sure everything’s okay?”

“Peachy.”

He glanced around the small living room. It was colorful and mismatched, no particular style, kind of eclectic. Not that he knew anything about stuff like that. His eyes locked on to the sway of her hips as she walked past him, down a short hall and into another room. She had on a pair of those stretchy workout pants that clung and molded to her ass in a way that had his breath hitching, his hands trembling.

He followed her into the small bedroom. He didn’t particularly need the bedroom, or a bed for that matter, not for what he had in mind, but the thought of having her under him again on a soft, comfortable surface appealed more than usual. And all at once he was fiercely glad for the big-ass bed she hadn’t bothered to make today.

Still, the prickling sensation was there at the back of his neck.

“What’s wrong, Lexi?”

“Nothing.”

“Sure?”

“Yep.”

Right. Not a subject up for discussion, at least not with him. Got it.

She turned to him, fixed him with a stare full of challenge and lifted her chin. “Make me forget, Nash.”

He frowned. “Forget what?”

There was a moment’s hesitation before she answered. “Why, what an arrogant jerk you were. Remember?”

Somehow he didn’t think that had been what she’d intended to say, but whatever.

He looked her slowly up and down, letting his eyes linger on all the right places. She had on another brief tank top. No bra. He’d wasted his last opportunity. This time? He was going to see every inch of her.

“Take the top off.” The words were deep and guttural and nothing less than a command.

He was pushing his luck for sure, but he cocked an eyebrow when all she did was grab the bottom of the top and peel it up and off—slow and smooth.

He swallowed against the heat low in his gut and the instant blood loss from his brain. His memory was nowhere near as good as he’d thought.

“The pants,” he managed.

She smiled a half smile, hooked her thumbs in the waist band and eased them down, taking her panties with them.

And then she was naked, completely fucking naked. And beautiful. And man, all the way naked.

Nash curled his hands into fists. There was a ball of tension in his gut at the task he’d set himself. Not because he didn’t think he could do it, but because he didn’t want to screw up with her. Again. No way.

And that’s when reality hit him—he cared what she thought of him. A lot. It shouldn’t have mattered, never had before. He could have dropped the phone off, apologized and been on his way. He could have just stuffed it in her mailbox. Hell, he could have posted it to her. Right?

But no. He wanted to impress the hell out of her, he wanted her mad with lust for him, and if he was honest with himself? He wanted to make her smart mouth beg him. Beg him for release, for pleasure, from him and only him. And he’d be happy to give her whatever she needed, however she wanted it. Hell, he was looking forward to it like he’d never anticipated anything else in his life. Even the no getting off part. He’d be totally focused on her, singularly centered on her pleasure and he could barely wait to get started.

He knelt at her feet, smiling savagely to himself when her eyes went wide. He skimmed his hands up the back of her thighs, caressing the smooth curves of her ass as he eased her forward and right on to his mouth.

“Nash,” she gasped.

Oh yeah.

She smelled incredible. Hot, wet, aroused. He opened his mouth, lapped at her with his tongue and groaned when she grasped his head and shifted her legs slightly so that he had better access. Her fingers threaded into his hair, clutched tight and he went at her in earnest, licking her in long, deep, firm licks, or as much as he could reach, flicking her clit with his tongue, kneading the cheeks of her ass to keep her firmly against him.

“Oh God, Nash…”

“You like?” he murmured against her.

“Are you kidding? I—I need to lie down though, please…”

He gave one last soft suck against her and surged to his feet, grasping her ass and lifting her high against him.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and her startled gaze flew to his. Yeah, he could see how much she’d liked it. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes dark, her lips red and parted as she drew in some quick breaths. Almost as if she couldn’t help it she rubbed herself against the fly of his pants and her eyes flickered.

Oh, fuck yeah.

But she wouldn’t be sending herself over. She’d come because he made it happen. In his own good time. When he decided she’d had enough. To make it count. To make it up to her.

Nash eased her back on the bed, making sure the move was gentle, fluid. He looked his fill of her gorgeous tits, teasing himself with all the ways he was going to touch them, licking, flicking, maybe biting. And her stomach, between her legs. Yeah, maybe he’d start there—again—and then he froze.

“Who’s…” He leaned forward, tilted his head to the side. “Danny.”

 

Lexi sighed. Did he have to be so predictable? It was small, discreet, but every guy she’d ever been with had eventually got around to asking that same question. For some reason she thought Nash might have been different.

He looked up at her when she didn’t say anything. “You tattooed a guy’s name on your ass.”

She rolled her eyes. “Brilliant, Sherlock. No. I paid someone else to do it. And it’s not on my ass. It’s on my hip.”

“And?”

She sighed. “It’s ancient history.”

He whistled, low and soft. “Just have to wonder about your judgment.”

“Yeah? Well my judgment’s been known to suck. I’m here with you, aren’t I?”

He winced. Well, he’d asked for that one.

She went to get up, but he held her. Lexi was strong, a lot stronger than she looked, but she couldn’t move an inch beneath the heavy weight of his body. Not without struggling and looking like an idiot and she’d already had her share of that with him.

“We’re done here,” she huffed out, blowing a strand of hair away from her eyes.

He smiled. Yeah, she didn’t sound convincing to herself either. “I don’t think so. Prickly and fiery. It’s an interesting combination.”

“Is that just another way of saying bitchy?”

“Nah. I’m thinking you’re just horny and frustrated, but I’m going to fix that. Right now.”

Lexi closed her eyes against the sensations that shot through her when he shifted his weight, eased down her body, bent his head and put his mouth against her. No hesitation, no easing her into it, no soft, slow buildup.

Oh God.

She arched her back and tried to keep the moan from tearing out of her as he sucked at her clit, then licked at her hard with the flat of his tongue. The blood roared in her ears.

“Damn, I love to go down on you,” he murmured. “I think I’m addicted to those sounds you make, the way your breath catches in the back of your throat when I do this.”

He flicked at her with his tongue again, over and over. She tried to get a breath, couldn’t, and instead screwed her eyes shut and hung on for the ride. Her hands fisted in the bed covers when he angled his head and his rough jaw scarped against flesh so sensitive she trembled at the contact. She gasped. Her body stiffened.

“Fuck yeah, Lexi.”

Her hips jerked. Once. Twice. And then sensation exploded in bright light behind her eyelids, a shaft of pleasure so intense it was almost pain between her legs. Her head went back, her body shook.

“I’m so sorry I didn’t do that for you last night.”

The words were low, thick and she barely heard them. She tried to control her breathing—to some level of normal anyway—and failed.

“Again,” he demanded.

“Nash…” But already he’d slid two thick fingers inside her. God, how she ached to be filled, fucked, but properly.

His tongue—merciless, unrelenting—flicked at her swollen clit again as he fingered her in a maddening rhythm. She grasped for his shoulders, couldn’t quite reach, dug her fingers into his scalp instead and did the only thing she could—she rocked her hips against the assault, moaning his name over and over until the pleasure became so intense she exploded, again, just like he’d demanded.

Lexi fought for breath, aware on some distant level that Nash had already made a move to get up from the bed. He’d done good, so good, but she still ached. For him. And if the huge bulge in the front of his pants was anything to go on, so did he.

“Nash, now.”

“Ah…no.”

“Nash, please…I want you. Inside me. Now.”

“No.”

“Nash…God, I’ll beg.”

He closed his eyes, groaned. “You have no idea how much I want to, how much I’d love to hear that, but… It won’t matter. I gave you my word.”

She pushed herself up on one elbow and frowned. “And you did what you said. Perfectly. Expertly. Twice. There’s no way you can feel as good as I remember.”

One half of his mouth lifted in a smile. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

He shook his head. “I’m sorry, Lexi. You have no idea how much.” Regret tinged every word, every syllable, so strong, so resounding it was almost tangible as he sat on the edge of the bed and turned away from her. “I gave you my word, and to me? That’s everything.”

Lexi touched one hunched shoulder, keeping the contact soft, gentle. He was shaking, fine trembles he couldn’t hope to hide.

Huh.

“Just—just give me some space, okay?” he ground out. “I may be a man of my word, but I’m just a man. And right now I need to cool the fuck down.” The words were forced out, low and rough and guttural.

“Why don’t we ah…swim?”

“Swim?”

“There’s a huge common pool here in the complex.”

“I don’t have a swimsuit.”

Oh, man. Lexi took in the width of his shoulders, the play of muscles under his skin, his lean waist. And that was a problem, how?

“Well, I wouldn’t be complaining if you wanted to skinny-dip but I can’t speak for all the residents.”

Actually, she probably could, the female ones anyway.

“I have a bag of stuff in the car with some work out gear.” His head turned then, gaze locked with hers, hot and dark. “Laps might be a good idea. A few hundred should do it.”

 

*****

Lexi watched Nash swim back and forth with powerful strokes, his body cutting cleanly through the water—fast, even, economical. God, it was like watching a machine in action as he ate up lap after lap. She was tired just watching him even though the only exercise she’d had was moving her lounger so that she could soak up some of the warming sun.

When he was done, he leveraged himself up on the side in a single powerful move, shaking the water from his hair. Some of the droplets landed on her feet. It was a wonder they didn’t start steaming.

Nash’s thin running shorts weren’t really designed for swimming and clung to his lower body with shocking clarity. Her mouth went dry, between her legs, not so much. His cock was a thick ridge laying along the seam of his thigh. She might have seen every inch of him naked, but that didn’t lessen the impact of his body, of him. Not. One. Bit.

When he turned and bent to pick up a towel, she held in the gasp. Barely. It wasn’t the first time she’d noticed the scars but under bright light, no shadows, nothing hidden and time to study them? They were flat-out terrifying. In a couple of places on his shoulder his skin was puckered, uneven and he had a number of what looked like slashes on his side. They stood out against his skin, lighter than the rest. And those were just the big ones.

Pain. Danger. Warrior.

Lexi had already seen how fast he could move, how well he could handle himself. And his confidence, she’d seen that too. Now she realized he didn’t need a weapon. He was a weapon.

His body was lean, ripped with hard muscle and littered with the evidence of God knew how many battles. And none of them did a thing to detract from how flat out badass-hot he was. Maybe just the opposite, because a guy like Nash? He was probably used to women falling all over him, telling him how good-looking he was, how hard his muscles were, how gorgeous he was and she’d be damned if she’d fall into that same groove. Even if she was thinking all of those things. And more.

Lexi groaned when she noticed who entered the pool area. She couldn’t remember their names, but she thought of them as the “Barbie twins”. Tall, blonde, tanned and stacked, they wore miniscule bikinis that barely covered the basics and always made her feel overdressed in her own bikini.

They were checking out Nash and making no attempt to hide it. And why should they? They winked and giggled, giving him a small wave each. Lexi rolled her eyes. Was she friggin’ invisible? When she looked at Nash to check his reaction he wasn’t looking at them any longer, he was looking right at her.

“I heard they’re into threesomes,” she blurted.

Dammit. It wasn’t what she’d meant to say and as soon as the words left her mouth she wished she could call them back.

His gaze stayed steady on hers. “Is this some kind of test, Lexi?”

“Test?” she snorted. “I— We haven’t—I mean, we’re not—”

Jeez, exactly what were they?

She took a deep breath. “I don’t have any hold on you. I don’t expect any, I don’t feel entitled to any. You can do whatever you like.” She shrugged. “You more than redeemed your non-jerk status. Go for it if you want.”

“Yeah?” He glanced back toward the two women. They noticed his interest and motioned him over. Was there a single guy alive who wouldn’t at least consider it? She should have kept her mouth shut. Why couldn't she ever keep her mouth shut? And why should she even care what he did anyway?

Nash ran the towel in a rough swipe over his hair. “Know what I want? Right now?”

Her stomach knotted at the look in his eyes.

His voice lowered. “I want to go back to your place, get your hot little body under mine, have you wrap those gorgeous legs of yours around my hips and fuck until we both explode. Together.”

Lexi’s stomach muscles clenched and her heart beat kicked up so hard and so fast she struggled to take a breath. She licked her lips, glanced over at the other women. They were still watching and motioning to him. Confident much?

“Nash, if you wanted to…don’t feel you have to… I mean, don’t let me stop you. Really.”

The thread of sincerity in her voice was unmistakable this time. Even she heard it.

He held out his hand to her. “I may not be able to guarantee much, but I know this—you are the only woman I want right now. Okay?”

“Okay.”

“And Lexi?”

“Yes?”

His voice dropped, roughened. “I’m not bound by my word any longer. Just so you know. We’re all square. Got it?”

Oh God.

She nodded, wouldn’t have been able to form a single word if her life depended on it anyway.

“Let’s go,” he ground out, as he urged her up and off the lounger.

He glanced back over at the women. They were looking at her with envy as he kept her hand in his and tugged her after him.

“Damn,” he drawled. “Threesomes you said.”

She punched him on the arm. Hard.

“Ow.” He laughed.