Ten
As far as Swan was concerned, Friday hadn’t arrived fast enough. With every passing hour, she would glance at her shop’s door expecting to see David walk in. One would think his surprise visit Wednesday would have sufficed. Unfortunately, it hadn’t.
She’d had two days to think about how irrational her thoughts about David were becoming. He didn’t come across as a forever sort of guy and she wasn’t looking for a forever kind of relationship, so what was up with this urgency to see him?
The only reason she could give herself was that she’d been alone and without a man’s attention for so long that now that she had it, she was in greedy mode, lapping it up like a desperate woman. And she had never done the desperate thing before.
The door chimed and she looked up to see that it was Rafe who walked in. Lately she’d noticed him using the front door a lot more, instead of the back door to his parlor. They had decided at the beginning of his lease that the entrance to her shop was off-limits so his customers wouldn’t trounce back and forth through her shop on the days Rafe worked late.
“Did your box of ink finally arrive?”
He stopped and looked over at her. “Why would you be asking about my ink?”
Now that, she thought, was a silly question. Did the man have a short memory? “Because you came by Wednesday looking for the shipment and left in a tiff when it hadn’t arrived.”
“I wasn’t in a tiff and yes, I did get my box of ink.”
Yes, he had been in a tiff, but if he wouldn’t acknowledge it, then she would leave it alone. “Good. I’m glad you got it.”
She watched him walk off toward his parlor. He hadn’t been in a good mood lately. But then, maybe she’d been in such an extremely good mood that she had a distorted view. In fact, come to think of it, it was pretty normal for him to be moody.
Moments later, while she worked with a customer, Swan watched as Rafe walked back through her shop and toward the front door. She decided if he did that again she would remind him of their agreement about which door he should use whenever he went in or out of his tattoo parlor.
After her customer left, she glanced at her watch. Her shop would be closing in a couple of minutes. David usually arrived early. It would be understandable if he’d gotten detained, but she hoped he hadn’t been. She was so anxious to see him.
The thought of how much she was looking forward to being with him should bother her, but for some reason it didn’t. Like she’d told Candy, Swan wasn’t expecting anything from her relationship with David. There had been no promises made, so none would be broken. The only thing she was expecting was exactly what she was getting—a good time. He was excellent company and great in bed.
It had been almost three years since William, and during that time, although she’d dated, she hadn’t allowed herself to get serious over a man. Instead she had concentrated on opening her shop and making it a success.
She had put her mind, heart and soul into Swan’s. Especially her heart, deciding that if she put it into her business, she wouldn’t run the risk of placing it elsewhere. Now it seemed there might be a risk after all and that risk had a name. David Holloway.
A part of her wanted to protect herself from another possible heartbreak by calling David and canceling any plans for tonight and then to stop sharing any time with him after that. He had given her his number so she could reach him. She could certainly come up with a plausible excuse. But did she really want to do that?
No, she didn’t.
David would be her test. If she could handle a casual affair with him, then she would ace the test with flying colors.
The door chimed and she glanced up and there he was. She watched him lock her door and put the Closed sign in place before pulling down the blinds. Then he slowly sauntered toward her wearing a pair of khaki pants and an open white shirt and holding her within the scope of those laser-blue eyes. There was his too-sexy walk and a smile that made her heart beat rapidly.
Suddenly seeing him, when she’d been thinking of him all day, took complete control of her senses. Without much effort, the man had turned the sensuality up more than a notch. He had his own barometer of hotness.
Finally moving her feet, she strolled across the floor to meet him halfway and walked straight into his arms. The moment he pressed his body to hers, she reached up and looped her arms around his neck. He responded by wrapping his arms around her waist, drawing her even closer so she fit against him.
“I missed you, Swan.”
She shouldn’t let his words affect her, but they did—to the point where she was having difficulty replying.
“I missed you, too.”
And she had, although they’d seen each other Wednesday. Even when she’d tried to convince herself that missing him to such a degree meant nothing. Now, as she stood wrapped in his arms, with her body pressed tight against his, hip to hip and thigh to thigh, she knew it meant everything.
“That’s good to know, sweetheart,” he said in a throaty voice.
Sweetheart? The endearment left her defenseless. She was trying to summon all her senses to regroup. And it wasn’t helping matters that his arousal was cradled in the apex of her thighs. Good Lord, he felt so good there.
“Ready?” she found the voice to ask him.
His gaze studied her face as if he was seeing her for the first time. As if he was trying to record her features to memory. And then a mischievous smile touched his lips. “I’m ready for whatever you have in mind, Swan.”
Shivers of desire skittered down her spine and Swan wished his words hadn’t given her ideas, but they had. Ideas that were so bold, brazen and shameless she felt her cheeks staining just thinking about them. But at that moment, she didn’t care. She could and would admit to wanting him.
She should wait until later to act on her desires. That would be the safe thing to do. But she knew she would be tortured during dinner whenever she looked at him. The way his mouth moved when he ate, or the way his hands—those hands that could turn her on just by looking at them—gripped his beer bottle. There were so many things about David Holloway that would do her in if she were to wait until later.
“You sure about that, David?”
“Positive. Do you want me to prove it?”
Did she? Yes, she did. “Where?”
“I will prove it anywhere you want. Right here in the middle of the floor if you like,” he said. “But I suggest your office.”
* * *
Flipper could tell by the way she was looking at him that she was giving his offer serious thought. He had no problems tilting the scale in his favor and he decided to do so. Lowering his head, he kissed her, trying to be gentle and finding gentleness hard to achieve. Especially when her taste made him greedy for more.
He knew she’d ceased thinking when she responded to his kiss by sinking her body farther into his embrace and tightening her arms around his neck.
Some things, he decided then and there, were just too mind-blowingly good, and kissing Swan was one of them. What they’d shared these last few days was a dimension of pleasure he hadn’t felt in a long time—or maybe ever—while devouring a woman’s mouth. And when his hands shifted from around her waist to cup her backside, he groaned at the feel of her body pressed tightly against his erection.
When he finally broke off the kiss, he buried his face in the curve of her neck and drew in a deep breath. This woman was almost too much. She looked good, tasted good and as he drew in another deep breath, he concluded that she smelled good, too.
“You want to come with me, Mr. Holloway?” she asked, stepping out of his arms.
“Yes.” The answer was quick off his lips.
She took his hand. “Then follow me.”
He had no problem following her and the minute he crossed the threshold into her office, he recalled the last time he’d been in here. Namely, when they’d shared a kiss that had nearly brought him to his knees.
“It appears dinner will have to wait.”
He glanced over at her. She had stepped out of her sandals. After locking the office door, he leaned against it and watched her undress. She was wearing a burnt-orange sundress with spaghetti straps. It looked good on her and the color of the dress seemed to highlight her hair and skin tone.
He had gotten little sleep since his friends had arrived in the Keys. But then they hadn’t come here to rest. They had left their families to come here and help him solve a sinister plan of espionage against the country they loved.
And to protect the woman he loved.
He suddenly swallowed deep when that last thought passed through his mind. As he watched Swan remove her panties, he knew without a doubt that he had fallen in love with her. He wouldn’t try to figure out how it happened but just accept that it had. Now more than ever he was determined to make sure whoever was trying to screw her over didn’t succeed.
“Are you going to just stand there?” she asked, standing before him completely naked.
“No, that’s not my intention at all,” he said, moving away from the door to stand a few feet from her in what he considered his safe zone. If he got any closer, he would be tempted to take her with his clothes on. He removed his shirt and eased both his khakis and briefs down his legs at the same time. Quick and easy.
“I love your dolphins,” she said. “I meant to ask you about them a number of other times, but always got sidetracked. So I’m asking you now. Any reason you chose dolphins?”
He decided to be as truthful with her as he could. One day he would have to explain to her why he’d lied about so many things. “Like the dolphins, I love being in the water. But this isn’t just any dolphin.”
“It’s not?”
“No. This dolphin’s name is Flipper. Surely you’ve heard of him.”
“Not as much as I know Willy from Free Willy.”
He chuckled as he moved toward her. “Willy was a whale. Flipper was a dolphin. That’s what my friends call me. Flipper.”
“Flipper?”
“Yes. Like I said, I love being in the water.”
“You don’t look like a Flipper.”
He came to a stop in front of her. “Don’t tell that to my family and friends. They wouldn’t agree with you.”
She reached out and touched the tattoo of the dolphin on his arm. Her fingers felt like fire as she traced along the design with her fingertips. “Beautiful. Not just your tattoos but all of you, David.”
“Thanks.” And in one smooth sweep, he picked her up and sat her on the desk, spreading her legs in the process.
“Did I tell you how much I missed you?” he asked, running his hands over her arms.
“Yes. Just a few moments ago when you arrived here and I told you I missed you, too. You also told me that you missed me when you walked me home Wednesday night and I invited you to stay.”
Flipper heard the disappointment in her voice. If only she knew how much he’d wanted to stay. But once he’d found out Jamila would be out for a while with Horacio, he needed that time to check out her place. “I couldn’t, but I intend to make it up to you when we have more time.”
He was letting her know this little quickie didn’t count. He had something planned for her when all this was over and he could sit her down and tell her everything.
“Not here and not now? What do you call this?” she asked when he reached up and cupped her breasts in his hands, marveling at just how beautiful they were.
“This is an I-can’t-wait-until-later quickie.”
“Interesting.”
Shifting his gaze from her breasts to her eyes, he said, “Let me show you, Swan Jamison, just how interesting it can be.” He leaned forward and kissed her while placing the head of his erection against her wet opening. The contact sent heat spiraling through him.
While his tongue mated greedily with hers, he entered her in one hard stroke. Pulling his mouth from hers, he let out a guttural moan when her muscles clamped down on his throbbing erection. That made him push harder and sink deeper.
And when she moaned his name, he knew she could feel the fire of passion spreading between them as much as he could.
* * *
Swan wrapped her legs completely around Flipper, loving the feel of him moving inside her. He was giving her body one heck of a workout on her desk. She could feel the heat in his eyes as he stared at her.
He used his hands to lift her hips off the desk’s surface for a deeper penetration. When his erection hit a certain part of her, she gasped and arched her back.
“David...”
She whispered his name when she felt him going deeper and deeper. The intensity of their joining sent emotions skyrocketing through her.
She needed this. She wanted this. Like him, she needed it now, not later. This was more than interesting. This was a hot, frenzied, torrid mating. More than a quickie. David was thorough, meticulously so, and not to be rushed. It was as if he intended to savor every stroke.
Suddenly, she felt herself falling. Not off the desk but out of reality when an orgasm rammed through her at the same time as he shuddered with the force of his own release.
They stared at each other, realizing something at the same time. Wanting to make sure he didn’t stop, she whispered, “Pill.”
It seemed that single word triggered another orgasm and she felt him flooding her insides again while his deep, guttural groan filled the room. His release sparked another within her. His name was torn from her lips when her body shattered in earth-shaking and mind-blowing ecstasy.
As the daze from Swan’s orgasmic state receded, she felt David slowly withdraw from inside her. That’s when she forced her eyes open to stare at him and accepted the hand he extended to help her off the desk. Once on her feet, she wrapped her arms around his waist, feeling weak in the knees.
“It’s okay, baby, I got you. I won’t let you fall,” he whispered close to her ear as he leaned down.
Too late, she thought. She’d already fallen. Head over heels in love with him. The very thought suddenly sent her mind spinning.
Hadn’t she just given herself a good talking to moments before he’d arrived? Told herself he was someone she could enjoy, both in and out of bed and nothing more? That he was someone she knew better than to give her heart to because she hadn’t wanted to take the risk?
What on earth had happened?
She knew the answer as she moved closer into the comfort of his warm naked body. David Holloway had happened. As much as she hadn’t meant to fall in love with him, she had.
It didn’t matter that she had known him less than three weeks. Somehow he had come into her world and turned it upside down, whether that had been his intent or not. When his work on the island was finished, he would move on and not look back. But still, knowing that he would leave hadn’t stopped him from winning her heart.
“Ready?”
She lifted her head and look up at him. “You know, David, that lone question will get us in trouble.”
He held her gaze for a long moment and then caressed the side of her face. “Or take us to places we really want to go and inspire us to do things that we really want to do.”
Then he lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her.