Chapter Nine

 

 

 

 

Matt’s gaze riveted her to the spot. Carolina sucked in a sharp breath. It was like her insides were replaced by molten desire. Not even the footsteps tramping down the hall prompted her to back away.

“McLemore, you make me feel undone,” she whispered.

“That’s probably a tenth of what you’ve got me going through,” Matt returned. “Ever since Saturday. I should never have walked away.”

“Then why did you?”

“Plain stupidity and pride. Never a good combination. Take it from me, regret ain’t no picnic. Darlin’ you’ve got me between a rock and a hard place.”

She swallowed, forcing down a dozen reactions. They couldn’t continue on this explosive path, yet every atom in her craved one tall, dark, and kissable cowboy. Carolina’s heart pounded in her chest. Unable to see a solution, she replied, “What did you expect?”

Matt’s chest rose and fell as a muscle clenched at his square jaw. He picked up the sample bag off the freezer. “Take this,” he growled.

Carolina clutched the bag to her chest. The cold felt good, felt polar to the volatile heat consuming her body. Matt pressed his fingers to the small of her back, propelling her from the closet, all the way across the floor of his office, to his desk.

Talk about getting kissed but good. The footsteps halted down the hall and they stopped.

“Hold your horses!” The order was loud, harsh, and came from the hall along with retreating footsteps.

Matt slammed his mouth back against hers in an explosive kiss. His hands gripped her upper arms, locking her in place. He parted her lips, thrusting his tongue across hers. When she tried to kiss him back, he nipped her lip. This was his kiss to her, hard, rough, and very masculine. Pleasure swirled in her belly from his overt sexuality. She dug her fingers into the roped muscle on his forearms, pressing into his rock-hard wall of a body.

“That’s it,” he murmured, tugging up the hem of her skirt. His fingers brushed up her inner thigh, inches from her panties.

Carolina jerked from the skitter of pleasure up her leg. She felt scorched by desire, not to mention his heated gaze. The footsteps started up again and she hissed, “We have to stop.”

Matt’s eyes darkened to the color of midnight blue. “We aren’t done. Not by a long shot.” As abruptly as they’d begun kissing, he let her go.

Carolina’s knees gave out and she sank down onto the padded leather chair. Stunned, she sat there, gripping the armrests unable to catch her breath. What was becoming of her? Her ability to hyper focus had taken a vacation. Carolina prayed that she’d get her sanity back. Plus, this heavy thumping in her chest had to simmer down as well. Things were happening way too fast.

Matt squeezed her shoulders. “Why don’t you review the lab sheets? I’ll check-in down the hall. If you need something, text me. If I don’t answer, it’s probably the reception, or lack thereof. Then you can do what everyone else does.”

“What’s that?” she mumbled.

Matt frowned. “Just holler.”

In four strides, he was out the doorway of his office. The door closed behind him with a slam. It ricocheted in her skull. She was tipsy from one sexy-as-sin cowboy. On her skin lingered the scent of Aramis. It was a heady mixture of leather, wood, and Matt.

For the next few minutes, it was a battle to get into her zone. After bringing up the lab on Matt’s computer, she hit print for the chain of custody forms. Since she already had an account with this lab, they’d begin sample analysis day after tomorrow. For now, she concentrated on setting up her workspace on Matt’s glass top desk. His office was a combination of glass, steel, and gun gray leather chairs.

Inside his desk drawer, she found Post-it notes, clips, and pens. She removed a handful of supplies that she placed off to the side. From the freezer pack, she pulled out the samples. Reviewing them one by one, Carolina was still conscious of the sting along her lips that Matt had unequivocally kissed swollen.

Back in Miami, when she hadn’t heard from him, she’d imagined the worse after that scene in the hotel. She’d chalked up that their contract was null and void, then she’d gotten Matt’s email, offering to pick her up. Given their chemistry, this had to be a work relationship. Nothing more.

Except twice in one day, they’d kissed. This up and down nature of Matt’s was like riding on a roller coaster without the lapbar. It was exciting, exhilarating really, and very, very scary. A loss of control Carolina had never experienced. It took minutes for her heartbeat to return to normal. But her imagination—good God—it would never let her forget.

The string of digits printed on the sample receded if she didn’t keep reminding herself to read the white label and write the identification number on the chain of custody—COC—for the lab.

Matt’s voice was muffled in the hall, just feet from the door. She didn’t recognize the voice of the other man. But she heard Matt say a name. Miller? What his family would do if they found out about these samples? If someone came in, what could she say she was doing. Holding a blood sample, Carolina froze. They needed a backup, backup plan.

She dropped the sample back into the bag then opened the larger of the desk drawers. It was filled with file folders. She gathered handfuls and stacked them on the floor under the desk. Afterwards, she shoved the samples into the drawer. If anyone came in, she’d shut the drawer and they’d be none the wiser.

Hopefully, Matt wouldn’t mind that she’d dumped the file folders on the floor. Considering he’d kept the samples locked in a closet, in a thumb print freezer, he’d probably congratulate her. From what he’d implied about his family, they weren’t aware of his intent or suspicions, and it wasn’t up to her to spill the beans.

Male voices suddenly rose out in the hall. A deep rumble of a laugh was followed by a loud goodbye, then silence.

Carolina plodded on. Sample by sample, she quietly cataloged each on the COC. It seemed to take forever. Each time she checked the lab form against the same ID, she had typed it wrong. At this rate, it would take her a week to prepare the samples. Her neck and shoulders tightened.

Damn it. She wanted to bang on the keyboard in frustration. She exhaled hard enough to scatter a neat stack of papers along the desktop.

Matt quietly opened the door. He put a finger to his lips as he approached the desk. “How’s it going?”

“Not so good,” she said.

“What can I do?”

Carolina didn’t focus on his handsome face, but kept her eyes glued to the samples. “It would really help if you read out the ID numbers. This going back and forth isn’t foolproof. There can’t be any mistakes when it comes to lab analysis.”

“Sure.” Matt paused abruptly. “What happened to my desk?”

He was at the back of the tall office chair that Carolina sat in. Keeping her focus straight ahead, she whispered, “I heard you talking and thought I’d better stow the samples. It isn’t my best demo on redecorating but there wasn’t much time.” She opened the desk drawer and showed him the stash.

“Miller stopped by. I told him we were in here,” Matt replied.

She stiffened. “Doing what?” Matt didn’t answer. Carolina heard a click and swung around just as he snapped a photograph. Exasperated, she grabbed his hand. “What did you tell him?”

Matt shrugged, but she couldn’t let it go. Staring up into his dark blue eyes, she pinched his wrist.

He arched a brow. “I don’t kiss and tell, if that’s what you think.”

“I’m not thinking anything, but neither are you answering my question. You’ve become enthralled with that camera on your phone.”

He frowned, lowering his cell. “I told Miller that we were talking. He filled me in on a repair. Nothing more, Carolina. One day, you’re going to tell me why you think that I’d ever disrespect you.”

“It isn’t personal. It’s just…” Her stomach knotted. Unable to let down her guard, she whirled back around. What was she afraid of? This was nothing but the aftermath of letting Jeff screw with her head for far too long. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“Don’t be. I’m on your team.”

After a beat, she said, “This process will go faster if you read the ID numbers. We’re losing time if I have to read, type, and recheck each number.”

That’s all she had to say. Matt scooped up the large industrial-sized ziplock bag from his desk drawer. She showed him where to begin and explained her system of processing the samples. Their arms brushed and she pressed the balls of her feet into the carpet. The heat from his skin was searing. It was a struggle to concentrate on the computer screen.

“These are starting to thaw,” he said.

“They can’t. They’ve got to stay frozen.”

He rose and went into the closet. In no time, he returned, holding a cold storage box to keep the samples frozen. They sat next to each other. Matt called out the ID number on each label as she typed. She glanced up when she was ready for the next sample.

Their fingers touched as he took the samples and put them into the cold storage box. The jittery electrical tingle pierced Carolina’s focus each time it happened.

“Why did you become a vet for large animals?” His breath caressed her neck, upsetting her willy-nilly attention span.

Carolina’s focus splintered as she typed and tried to assemble her thoughts. “Uh, I volunteered at the zoo in high school. Like any kid, I was impressionable.”

“But you stuck to it,” he said.

“Seeing sick animals in captivity, sometimes injured, unable to do much for themselves made me want to help. I assisted some very caring vets.”

Without warning, Matt twirled some of her hair between his fingers. “Tell me more.”

“I also observed some very uncaring vets and that bothered me. I guess I fell in love with the idea of helping animals.”

“In the abstract only? You’ve got a reputation for diagnosing disease.”

“In the beginning, I wasn’t interested in pathology or being in a lab. I was excited by the hands-on stuff.”

“And now?” he asked.

“I have the best of both worlds. My van gives me the ability to work in the field and travel. It wasn’t what I planned. It sorta evolved.”

“Meaning?” Matt gazed at her. His piercing blue eyes were hard to resist but she wasn’t prepared to tell him every detail.

Hedging, she supplied, “I worked as a subcontractor to a vet. Dr. Haverty. He’s in my references. A pathologist and university professor. When it was time to renew the contract, I opted out. Now, I’m a free agent.”

“That’s gutsy,” he replied with a glint of appreciation in his eyes.

Heat washed over Carolina’s face. “Not really. Haverty sorta took advantage of the situation insofar as taking a lion’s share of the credit. Not that I’m complaining even though technically I kinda am. It was a situation where I had to earn my stripes.”

Matt laughed. “We all do.”

Carolina felt so at ease telling him about her past and added, “As a kid, we don’t know much except what a career looks like. I mean, I wasn’t practicing medicine just helping. Same thing with any decision. You never know for sure what it is you’re agreeing to, just what you imagine, or hope or fear.”

“Yeah, the idea of having the ability to pick up and leave…” Matt didn’t finish his thought. He picked up the last five samples that they’d worked on and strode away from the desk. He was silent as if contemplating her words. After placing the samples in the box, he stopped before a set of windows that overlooked the pasture. “We weren’t given much choice around here. Going to college meant coming back with a skillset for the purposes of ranching. Back then, I didn’t imagine another life. Do you?” Matt turned to face her.

“Unfortunately, that’s all I do. It keeps me up at night. I don’t want to settle for the easy route. Easy life, easy decisions, do what my family expects. All they see is me getting married and pregnant. As if being a vet is what I do until then. Some days that seems so farfetched. Then other days, getting married seems like it could be a good idea. But not my whole story. What I want is to find a place that feels—” Carolina paused, then shook her head. “I’m not sure what it would feel like. But I’ll know, the second I find it. I admire your conviction and tenacity in realizing your life goal.”

His brow furrowed and without responding, he lifted a computer bag and took out a laptop, which he set up on the side of the desk.

She turned back to her screen. “I’m ready for the next sample.”

The rest of their work sped by. Neither of them talked much after they settled into a rhythm of documenting each sample. Matt added the type of testing for each sample into his spreadsheet by copying the information from the chain of custody forms onto a jump drive.

They finished in less than two hours, ending up with five printed laboratory forms of samples to be processed and two taped-up shipping boxes, complete with printed labels and shipping forms. “The samples will be at the lab by tomorrow and it’ll take a week for the initial report.”

“Good work,” Matt said, admiration in his voice.

“It was a team effort. Not as daunting as I first envisioned.”

“This should be a piece of cake. You’re an expert at what you do.”

Hearing him describe her as an expert sent a bullet of elation through Carolina. “That’s very kind of you.”

“Cut-and-dried, it’s the truth. I don’t gloss over or lie when it comes to my business.”

“Or play nice?”

“With you, I’d like to. But that isn’t up to me.”

Heat blossomed over her cheeks. Maybe because of their recent admissions, she just said the truth, “I’ve never been opposed but we agreed. Back in Miami.” She glanced up and her breath caught at the smolder in the dark blue eyes that greeted her.

“And now?” Matt looked absolutely feral and she tensed.

Her leg muscles twitched like a runner in the blocks. Carolina gave into a primal instinct. She rose from her seat and he moved like a panther on a hunt. They met at the other side of his desk. This time, it was her mouth that came crashing down on his. She hungrily kissed him, her tongue searching like a lost soul.

Carolina let him move her, until her bottom was pushed up against the edge of his desk. Matt’s hand roamed over her hips, blazing a trail as he went. Her fingers curled over his muscular arms, trailing upward until she looped her arms around his neck.

He plunged his tongue between her lips, driving her wild. Unable to hold back, she danced her tongue against his as they explored, plundered, and pushed boundaries. It was a kiss but it was also a battle of wills. This time, Carolina didn’t back down or away from the desire of letting go. Her body seared with a craving to be taken.

As if sensing her ache, Matt lifted her up on the desk. They both groaned as his large, demanding hands slid to her thighs, tugging up her skirt. Carolina opened her legs as he scooted her to the edge of the desk. Beneath her panties thrummed in carnal want.

“That’s it, sugar.” Matt nudged her thighs wider apart as he moved into the narrow V-shape between her legs.

The hardness of his body provoked a hunger to let him have his way. Pressing closer, she felt the rigid bar of his erection between her legs. The evocative contact made her gasp, “Matt, this could go too far.”

“I promise, it won’t.” For a beat, he held her in place. “Trust me, Caro.”

She found it hard, next to impossible not to want to believe him. Matt must’ve read her tells, her acquiescence, and dipped his head forward. Carolina offered up her mouth that he reclaimed in a burst of passion. With this man, all she had to do was unlock her desire, giving into what they both craved. The idea of her naked and open to him ignited a yearning housed in her core.

Matt’s fingers were at the buttons of her shirt and she wasn’t about to protest. The feel of his hands on her breasts, kneading and rubbing was too tempting to resist. Carolina moved her hands over his, pushing her chest forward, teasing him with her erect nipples.

More than anything, she wanted to sample his mouth on her aching flesh. Ever since their first kiss, she’d been haunted by every word he’d said. For the last two nights, her dreams were filled with visions of him doing things, things that made her crazed to the point of hollering his name.

Clinging to Matt, she almost wept from the feel of his hot wet mouth on her skin. He kissed, nibbling a path down from her lips to her neck, his sandpaper jaw scraping her cheek. As if riding a fast-moving wave, each kiss, each suck of his mouth sent her higher and higher. Her skin was on fire. When Matt lifted one of her legs, hooking his hand under her knee, she was weak from desire.

“Look at how good we fit together, sugar,” he drawled in a low chocolatey rasp.

Slowly, forcibly, he ground the bulge housed in his jeans against her panties. Darts of pleasure exploded in her core. She needed more and grazed her sex over his erection. It was the most erotic thing she’d ever felt, ever seen, and she cried out incoherent primitive sounds.

Sensations overtook Carolina’s body. Electrical jolts fired under her skin as his mouth captured hers in a kiss to best all kisses on human record! She wanted him, needed him, unclothed and pounding. That’s how he had her—ungrounded—a cresting wave, rising higher, faster, and still Carolina couldn’t halt the inevitable. The crash was too powerful a draw. Together, they were on a course that had one endpoint. Needing more, she ran her hands over Matt’s hard body. She relished the corded groove down his back, only outmatched by the sculpted muscle on his broad shoulders that flexed under her fingers. He’d be a vision to see. Undressed and over her…or better yet, under her in bed, or this desk, for that matter.

Yes, yes, she wanted to ride him until he was as undone as she felt. Never had she sampled an overpowering desire to collide with something hardwired and explosive. Oh God!

Matt’s sweltering lips touched her throat. He sucked a point on her skin — a magic keyhole unlocking her self-control. In a rush of wanton ache, they both pushed out harsh groans. This wasn’t simply pleasure, this was madness, and she gave in, throwing her head back, giving him…them better access.

So in need, Carolina journeyed her hands down his flat stomach. She was searching for one thing. Her fingers found him. A zing of carnal bliss shot up her arm. Matt was hard against her palm. Rigid and erect, ready and wanting her. Syllables spilled from Carolina’s lips, an unstoppable yearning to feel him, skin on skin. She traced the length of his long, thick erection.

“Darlin’, what do you want?” Matt rasped in a hoarse voice.

Touching him made the throbbing pulse between her legs echo as if a second heartbeat, impelling her onward. She squeezed his hardness. “This,” she whispered. There was no denying how much she wanted this man.

One zipper stood between their fulfilment. This was exactly what she’d experienced the other night. Exquisite torment. She ran her hand along the length of him, down one side and up the other edge. Matt’s breath changed to short rapid exchanges. His fingers worked the button of Carolina’s shirt. As he undid button after button, she pulled at the thick leather of his belt.

Matt spread apart her shirt. Wafting cool air didn’t douse the fire blazing over her skin.

“Caro, you’re so beautiful.”

The hungry expression on his face filled her with the buzz of heady anticipation. She cupped her breasts, squeezing them for his pleasure. Desire thrummed in her veins and pushed her to tease him by tracing the top edge of her bra. “I don’t want to be beautiful, I want to be filled.”

Matt groaned softly as his gaze followed her fingers. Was this how it felt to be so close to exploding? Tender, hungry, and hot. This moment didn’t involve plans. There was no need to consider what lay beyond this room and this man’s body. There was no need for conversation.

Carolina didn’t want words — she wanted his mouth on her body. Their skin sliding against skin.

His stare was hot enough to boil water, incinerate metal, vaporize regret. In that instant, she understood how sex could be so evocative it was addictive. There was no possible way to back away from this type of fire. Not with this man in how he made her feel.

Starting now, she pulled the plug on rational thinking. She didn’t care about today or tomorrow. All she wanted was to give into Matt. Never had she been this alive and this implosive. He was right. Regret sucked. What they had didn’t have to be forever. They were adults. One time, and she’d see for herself what it was like to know the other side of desire.

He tugged her straps down, running his calloused thumbs across her breasts. Carolina’s breath hitched. Her nipples tightened so in need of his touch. His mouth. Unable to stand another moment, she unsnapped the hook at the front of her bra. Her breasts spilled out from the confines of lacy lingerie.

Matt’s eyes feasted on her chest, his eyes darkening as he blew out a breath. “Slow down, Caro. You can’t imagine how much I’ve wanted to see these beauties.” He cupped each, flicking his finger over the top of her nipples.

“Please,” she begged, consumed by how he made her feel so feminine and adored.

Matt lifted, squeezing and kneading her bare hot flesh as if she’d given him a prize that he fully intended on savoring. He lowered his head. The decadent suck of his warm, wet lips on her nipple sent a jolt right between her legs. This was beyond intense elation. Hot sensation rippled over her skin and there!

Pleasure burst up her spine. She had to bite her lip hard to keep from calling out. Instead of relenting, Matt traced her erect nipple with his very talented tongue, watching her through hooded eyes. Without warning, he sucked her peak back into his mouth, exorcising the thoughts right from her head. Deep in her core, a sweltering tension built, getting hotter, thudding harder.

Matt changed breasts, sucking and kissing and driving her to the point of whisper-screaming, “Please, don’t stop!”

As he worked her flesh, she yanked handfuls of his thick dark hair. Between her legs ached for his hardness. One more suck, one more kiss, and there! Oh God, what was happening? All at once, between her legs pulsed and throbbed in sweltering ecstasy.

“That’s it. Come for me,” he whispered against her skin as she convulsed uncontrollably.

A tsunami of pleasure hit her hard. Her muscles clenched. Bliss coated her body as she clung to Matt, burying her head against his sculpted shoulder.

Down the hall, the front door slammed shut. Voices rumbled at the front, near the previously empty offices. Several male voices jostled the silence and Carolina jolted upright in Matt’s arms.

Good Lord, she was at the brink and about to be a public spectacle! Carolina tried to shove away from Matt to cover her chest, and whisper-shouted, “It’s like Grand Central Station here!”

“Whoa,” he drawled, capturing her hands. “Not so fast.”

“What if they come down here? Neither you nor me are in any position to receive visitors.”

Matt’s warm fingers pressed into her skin. He arched upward and held himself partially aloft, their hips still pressing against each other. Her breasts were bared, her nipples pink and sensitive. “I’ll deal with them,” he growled, grinding his cock against her crotch.

Decadent pleasure fireworked deep in her core, leaving her speechless. How did he know just what to do?

“Please,” she begged for more and—for the love of God—for her sanity to return!

Sprawled across her boss’s desk without a shirt was a new experience, and so was being taken over a cliff into a cascading pool of desire so penetrating, she’d never be the same. The full realization hit Carolina. She’d just experienced her first orgasm at the hands, no the mouth of this man.

And God had it felt amazing!

Her head fell back and she gazed up at Matt. Their eyes met. He brushed his mouth against her lips, lingering and tasting. As if having a mind of their own, her hands reached up and forked into his hair. She kissed him back, danced her tongue across his in a quick flirty dip.

“Matt! You here?”

The voices outside the door were another matter. “It’s after five,” he murmured as if that explained the mixture of bravado, a combination of high whoops and low laughs.

“Quitting time,” she returned. Of course, for men who worked hard, the end of the day was something to celebrate.

“I’d better head ‘em off. It’ll give you time to…” his voice trailed off.

Carolina smiled. Without thinking she caressed her fingertips along his carved angular jaw. This was simply too crazy for words and she sighed.

It was consuming to be here with McLemore. Heady, earthy, nearly naked, their passion flaring, hot and exciting as his tongue delved into her mouth, again.