Chapter Four
When Bo had agreed to a new HQ, Elise had expected an abandoned office building or even a top floor of a hotel. But the man had commandeered an entire inn overlooking the coast and installed two other two-man teams so they could work around the clock.
And she had gotten her own bed, a private room decorated very similarly to her bedroom in her place. Upon opening the dresser drawers, she hadn’t been surprised to find fresh clothing—jeans, T-shirts and cozy sweats as well as undergarments—all in her size. Having a metrosexual best friend ex-husband with enough power to pull strings was definitely a perk.
And Sean… She couldn’t quit thinking about the way he’d stood up to Bo, who was known to be a bit of a ball-breaker, especially to any Marine ranked beneath him. But Sean had stood his ground and made demands of his own.
One of those demands had been for her comfort, and thinking about it gave her a small quivery feeling all over. She firmly put it out of her head for the dozenth time since arriving at the inn.
What had been the dining room of the place was now decked out with state of the art technology, and the four people working with them had nerded-out over the systems as much as Elise had. While Sean stood back watching with amusement on his handsome face, she and the others had talked over the system’s features like PMS-ing women talked about chocolate.
It had taken all of twenty minutes before it became a battle of teams. Or battle of nerds, as Sean had called it. His lumping himself into that group made her smile even now. He wasn’t the typical Brainiac she knew. No, he was more hands-on, trained for combat.
But she couldn’t help but admire how quickly he’d caught on to deciphering the codes. That was sexy as hell, whether she wanted to admit it or not.
And she most certainly did not.
Elise dressed in a soft pullover top and jeans that hugged her perfectly. Bo was a much better shopper than she was—he knew what would flatter her shape, and she didn’t mind giving the task up to him. When she stepped out of her room, Sean was waiting for her.
Leaning against the opposite wall of the hallway, his chiseled form looked entirely out of place against the floral wallpaper. He pulled away from the wall and offered her a crooked smile.
She went totally still. Staring at him. A dream flashed in her memory. It had been lost upon waking but that little half-smile had brought it to the surface, smacking her square in the face with the dream of her tracing her fingers over those well-shaped lips just before she leaned in and kissed him.
Hell no. She had to ditch the dream ASAP. She couldn’t be recalling those slow kisses or the wet flip of his tongue against hers that her stupid mind had conjured in a state of total exhaustion. No, she was responsible and couldn’t let him see what she was thinking.
Except he was staring at her closely with an amused crinkle at his eyes.
“Ready?” she asked breezily, striding past him down the corridor at a speed that had never been made for this coastal inn where vacationers lounged and found a slower pace in life.
She felt his hot gaze on her backside. Or she was imagining it. She had to be.
But she was a woman, and women had instincts. Sean Knight was checking out her ass, she was sure of it.
As they hit the dining room to relieve the other team, she recalled Bo’s words as he’d given them the tour of their accommodations. Access to the shore.
Sean’s response had been, “Good, I can train.”
The urge to turn and look at him again, to see if his muscles were bulging from exercise and the veins snaking down his arms a result of hard work claimed her. She pivoted to look at him.
He smiled again, and she spun away. Dammit, what was with this guy? Bo had asked her the same before practically stalking out, leaving her wondering what the hell his problem was.
But Sean had voiced it. “What’s with him? You hook up?”
She’d given a short, tense laugh. “He’s my ex. No. Absolutely no hooking up.”
Sean’s face had been unreadable, a mask lowered over his normally expressive face.
She looked to him now. “Let’s get to work.”
The other team got up and passed the proverbial baton to Team Elise and Sean. The blonde woman looked exhausted, with slumping shoulders and rings under each eye.
She glanced between Elise and Sean. “You two don’t look like the type to do this job.”
Elise started. “What do you mean?”
“You’re both too good-looking, too debonair. You’re like a couple of international spies posing as a married couple.”
“You’ve been up too long staring at numbers, Marissa.” Elise laughed, but the sound was too sharp. Being lumped with Sean in the way Marissa had said was unnerving.
The pair left, and Sean and Elise took up their seats.
“International spies,” Sean mused.
“Let’s get to work. The clock is ticking and we’re so close to having what we need.” Her tone was more snappish than she intended, and he just stared at her. His direct gaze burying too deep inside her skin, making her feel restless in a way she never had before and couldn’t understand.
Ignoring her partner and diving into her work was best—and essential to her sanity. She tried to focus on anything but how good he smelled as she began working the codes.
* * * * *
“Oh my God, why isn’t this obvious to me?” Elise said for the third time. She had run her fingers through her hair, making it fluffier, more exotic looking. Even in the height of her frustration, she was sexy as hell.
Sean pushed out a sigh. “We’ve hit a wall, cher.”
She eyed him the way she had each time he used the Cajun endearment. He was growing to like her glares as much as her rare smiles.
“We aren’t doing any good right now. We either skip this part and come back to it or let another team take over. Their minds are fresh. We’ve been at this seven hours,” he said.
“No. No, I’m not walking away. It’s right there—I can almost see it just out of reach. Why won’t it come to me?”
He leaned closer. “Because you need a break. C’mon.” He nudged her shoulder. “Get up. Let’s go for a run.”
“What?”
“You know, when you make your legs move to carry you faster across the ground?”
She compressed her lips, but he saw a flash of laughter in her eyes. “I can’t go for a run now. I’m—”
“Not dressed for it. I agree. So go change into workout clothes and meet me out front.” With that, he got up and walked out.
She sat there a long second, staring at the indecipherable words on the screen. She could continue to work and try to crack it or—
Sean was right—she was burnt out. Maybe a run would do her good.
She abandoned her post and waved to the next team seated in the lounge with a chessboard between them. “You’re up,” she said and went to her room to change.
Minutes later, she stepped outside to see Sean in shorts, running shoes and low socks. Nothing else.
She blinked at the sight of his chest, arms and shoulders on full display. Tattoos that hadn’t been visible sneaked down his shoulder and a huge eagle with wings spread took up one pec, a part of him that seemed to fit like nothing else could. He’d probably come out of the womb looking like this.
The man was a damn powerhouse, that was sure. Tanned, chiseled, each dip and swell looking as if he’d spent time oiling himself up. She wouldn’t put it past him—he did seem full of himself.
Hadn’t she also thought that of Bo a few months after meeting him? They’d worked together closely, become a team. Then one day he’d kissed her, said they should make it a team in all ways and asked her to marry him. From the start, she’d known it was a bad decision. She and Bo just weren’t cut out for that kind of relationship.
But Sean…
He was grinning at her as he lifted his knees to limber up. “Ready? You’d better stretch first. Don’t want you pulling anything.”
Ideas of him stretching out over her, tongues entangled, popped into her head.
She jerked into action, holding her knee to her chest and feeling a light pull along her thigh from sitting too long.
“You’re in great shape.” Sean’s gaze wandered over her tank top and compression shorts.
“Thanks. So are you.”
The grin was back, wider this time. Terrific—she’d fed his ego. Just what she needed.
After another few moves, he said, “Ready?”
“Sure.”
“Can you keep up?” He took off in a jog that quickly became a sprint. Then Elise was laughing, legs and arms pumping as she gained on him. He was messing with the wrong woman—she was known for her speed.
He tossed her a grin, feet flying across the shore, and kicked it up a notch. His longer legs shot him forward, leaving her behind too many paces to recover. So she slowed to a natural pace and just enjoyed the feeling of heat in her unused muscles.
Sean realized she wasn’t keeping up and circled back to her side. “Sorry. I have four brothers. But it’s my younger sister who’s really competitive. I can never run without making it into a competition.”
They ran alongside each other for another couple steps. Then she took off, calling out, “I have brothers too!”
“Damn, woman!” His footsteps pounded behind her, but she had hit her stride and she could run for miles at this speed. She’d proved with Bo that just because he had longer legs didn’t mean he could beat her. She planned to show Sean the same thing. He might be built for speed but she could go the distance.
After half a mile, his voice reached her. “Okay, you win!”
She slowed and let him catch up. Throwing a glance his way was a mistake, because the man was even hotter with sweat glistening on his chest.
She could get into some major trouble with a guy like Sean.
Especially since her radar was telling her to steer clear. He liked women, that was obvious, and he knew how to charm. But she wasn’t interested in being one of his conquests.
Except one night would be fun.
No. Absolutely not. She shushed her libido and focused on her breathing so she could hold a conversation.
“You’re fast,” he said.
“Thanks.”
He held out his fist for her to bump her knuckles. Okay, this she could do—bros fist-bumped and the action would keep him firmly in the friend zone.
“How many brothers?” he asked.
“Two.”
“Both military?”
“Yes.”
“When did you join up?”
“2010.” She wanted the attention off her. For some reason, she didn’t want him to get too close. And did he wear that adorable smirk nonstop? He hadn’t lost it since they’d gone outside the inn. She didn’t want to admit that the quirk of his lips was growing on her and that she could trace the outline with her eyes closed.
That same quivery feeling inside her stomach made her increase her pace.
“What’s the hurry? The operation is in good hands. We don’t need to rush back.”
Her mind snapped to their work. “I don’t like leaving it unsolved.”
He nodded. “I get it. We’re trained to complete a job at all costs. But the longer we sat there, the more frustrated we got.”
She chewed her lip. “You’re right.”
He leaned forward, putting his face in hers. “Wait—what did you just say?”
She slapped him aside, but he came right back, those hazel eyes full of mischief and his hair damp with perspiration. “Get out of my face, Knight.”
“I didn’t hear you clearly. Can you repeat what you just said?”
She cuffed him in the jaw, making him stumble right in her path. She slammed into him and they pitched forward, hitting the ground. The breath whooshed from her as she landed on top of his chest, which was like hitting a brick wall.
Her bare thighs were twisted at odd angles, the sole of his running shoe digging into her calf. She shifted, which only brought her hips flush against his.
His gaze met hers, forcing the last of her breath out of her. She stared down into his eyes, thinking of how the colors reflected the forest, when she came to her senses.
She pushed off, rolling in the dirt and coming up into a sitting position.
He got to his knees and reached for her. “Are you okay? I’m sorry—I shouldn’t have been screwing off. Did you twist your ankle or anything?”
She panted. “I’m fine.” Except she wasn’t—her body was on fire after the barest touch of his.
Leaping to her feet, she brushed the grains of sand and dirt off her clothes. Sean stood with the swift move of a Marine at the ready. Oh, he was locked and loaded, all right. She’d felt every hard inch of him through his shorts.
How did a man even run with such a beast between his legs?
And why was he sporting it to begin with?
She burned to glance down at the front of his shorts but kept her gaze trained on her arms as she wiped away the dirt. Her concentration was crap, and she dropped her gaze.
Heat climbed her cheeks. Yeah, he was packing. Sweet mother, was he.
Reaching out, he used his knuckles to brush away some grains of sand from her cheekbone. “You sure you’re okay? We can turn back.”
“No, let’s go on. I need the exercise to think.”
The case was far from her mind, and what she needed to think on had nothing to do with codes. No, it was the way her body had reacted to falling on top of him.
* * * * *
Sean had been hard for most of the day. Okay, not just hard—aching. After watching Elise’s shapely legs and ass and then her falling on top of him… well, he was only human.
And he was also lying to himself. He wanted her—had from the first time he laid eyes on her. He was finished with fooling himself. Also, his reason for being irritated with Hawk had to do with how much he desired Elise.
Even a cold shower after their run hadn’t cut the need inside him. Now she was seated so close, smelling delicious and wearing a fitted T-shirt and sweatpants rolled down at the waist to bare her flat belly, and he was losing his fucking mind.
At least he’d thought he was losing his mind before he realized she wasn’t wearing a bra and the cloth of her shirt molded to her small breasts and tight nipples. Then he was really losing it.
He ran a hand over his face for the third time, trying to wipe away the nonexistent drool. She was oblivious to his self-control issues as she stared at the screen for the second minute straight.
He was about to nudge her when she let out a gasp.
She slammed her hands onto the table and cried, “That’s it!” She jumped up, as if she held too much energy to remain sitting. He gazed up at her, but that was worse—her soft breasts were hovering somewhere around his eyeballs, the centers beaded.
He couldn’t take it anymore.
“What’s it?” he grated out.
She blinked at him, a confused smile on her face. Then she shook her head. “I got it! I figured out how to crack this code!”
Her breasts jiggled in her excitement, which only caused more… ahem… excitement in him. His cock was bursting.
Taking a risk on his life, in case she decided to use her Marine training on him, he placed his hands on her hips and urged her back into the chair. His fingers flexed on her flesh, hard and soft at the same time. Christ, what was he going to do now? It would take an explosion to peel his fingers off her.
For a dizzying moment, he considered tugging her down into his lap. Imagining the feel of her backside cradling his cock pulled a groan from him.
Up until this point, she’d been dead still, but now she stepped back. He gripped her hips again before he dropped his hands.
She took her seat next to him again, avoiding his gaze. “I… I know how to solve this now.”
As she explained the process, he gawked at her. She talked with her hands, a flush coating her pretty face. He realized that for the first time ever, he was just as attracted to a woman’s mind as he was her physical appearance.
The longer she talked, the more he stared until she stuttered to a stop and turned her dark eyes on him. “You don’t think it’s going to work?”
He shook his head. “I wasn’t thinking that at all.”
“Then what were you thinking? I’d like to hear your take.”
He pushed out a breath, chest burning to blurt everything going on inside his head, from how much he admired her abilities, to his desire—no need—to suck her nipples until she moaned out his name.
She was staring at him expectantly. Fuck, what to say to her?
“I think that you’re as brilliant as you are beautiful. Now let’s get this cracked.”
She blinked, her lips a small O of surprise, and then she redirected her attention to the screen. But her foot was tapping under the table, only causing her breasts to jiggle more.
Hell, it was going to be the longest afternoon of his life. A never-ending loop of torment.
Seconds later, she put fingers to keys and flew through several equations and cross-analyzation that had his head spinning.
“Look at this,” she cried, excitement taking hold.
“Yes, it’s an address? Jesus, it is. It’s—”
“A street number,” they said together.
“Oh my God, I can’t believe it,” she practically squealed.
He couldn’t tear his gaze off her—she was so freakin’ gorgeous.
She threw her palm up for a high-five, and he smacked his hand off hers, lightly closing his hand over her fingers for a brief second.
Her eyes flashed and he swore her breaths came faster. Was she feeling it too? This attraction was beyond anything he’d known before.
They grinned at each other, and something else passed between them, far more than a simple working relationship. The way she slid her gaze away told him she was uncomfortable with whatever emotions coursed through her when she looked at him. But he was far from uneasy about them. He wanted her.
For another twenty minutes, they worked away, filling in each other’s sentences and running through more material than they and the previous teams had before. When the final message was deciphered, she leaped up, fist-punching the air at their success.
He couldn’t hold back anymore. He got to his feet and closed his hands over her shoulders. Stunned, she tipped her head back to meet his gaze. Something broke in her eyes and she made a soft noise.
No more holding back. He was a man of action.
“Cher, I’ve been wanting to do this since the first moment I saw you.” Leaning in, he moved around the chair to claim her sweet, plump lips.
* * * * *
Elise stilled in Sean’s grasp, her heart pounding her ribcage like a trapped bird. His lips could not be on hers.
They most certainly were on hers.
He was kissing her.
And he tasted of pure male and a hint of the lemon water he’d taken a sip of a bit ago. The feel of any man’s lips besides Bo’s was completely foreign to her, and she was too stunned to do much more than stand there.
He wasn’t forcing his tongue into her mouth or yanking her against his big, hard body, even though she ached for him to do so. He held her in place, the faintest brush of his lips across hers sending a thousand zaps to her nerve endings.
Most of them between her thighs.
A shiver ran through her, and he issued a guttural groan. “Hell.” He pulled her on tiptoe and slanted his mouth over hers.
Need washed over her, a wild force she had no control of. She moaned in return and threw her arms around his neck, parting her lips for him.
He swept his tongue inside, dancing it back and forth over hers. She wiggled closer, fitting her hips to his and finding him once again bulging with arousal. Her panties grew wet and her clothing too confining. She needed them to fall off immediately so she could be naked and underneath this man.
Or against a wall.
There was also the table…
He slid his hands down her spine and around her waist as he fed her kiss after kiss. Her mind slowed, drinking in each moment because it was her last. She couldn’t let him kiss her again—they had a working relationship, and she knew how that would end.
Except Sean’s kisses felt nothing like Bo’s. Her ex’s had been less passionate, even on their wedding night. And Sean smelled so good…
She locked her arms around his neck, and he lifted her, hitching her thighs high on his hips, never releasing her mouth. He thrust his tongue into her mouth in a mimicry of the sex act, and she was going to combust if she didn’t get these clothes off—now.
Threading her fingers in his hair, she took his kisses, running her tongue along his lower lip and raising a masculine growl from him that sent goosebumps skittering all over her body.
“You’re fucking incredible. Everything about you,” he said between her nibbling bites.
When she reached the corner of his lips and she flicked her tongue there, his expression grew fierce and he slammed his mouth over hers hard.
“Sean…” It came out as a whimper or a coo, and Elise was not a cooing woman. She’d never cooed in her life. What was he doing to her?
The pressure must be getting to her. She didn’t just fuck men, but they’d just had a huge breakthrough and were getting caught up in the excitement.
Swept away, more like.
Off the dining room was a flight of stairs, and he turned toward it, still cradling her in his arms. In fifteen steps they’d be at the top and either of their beds were so close.
Oh God, did she want to sleep with him?
Hell yes. Her body was on fire for it, her nipples throbbing, tightly puckered. Her pussy slick with need and every other inch of her body screaming out for Sean’s touch.
“My room or yours?” he asked halfway up the stairs.
“Yours.” She dipped her head to suck on his neck, salty-sweet.
He groaned and took the steps faster, skipping two and three at a time. At the top, he shot forward, propelled by lust. He supported her weight in one strong arm as he fiddled with something, and she realized it was the door. A second later, he kicked it in.
Kicked. It. In.
Ripples of desire had her pussy clenching as he slammed the door shut behind them and strode to the bed. She expected to feel the mattress beneath her but he stood there, holding her.
“Tell me you want this.” His voice sounded as if he’d guzzled ground glass.
Dammit, now he was making her stop and think. She didn’t want her analytical brain to kick in. She was more than happy to let go and just feel.
His dark eyes glistened with desire as he looked at her. Gold flecks seemed to sparkle brighter. “Make the choice, Elise.”
She wasn’t letting him walk away now. Her libido, now awakened, was an insatiable beast. She grinned. “You don’t know what you’re asking for.”
That bad-boy grin flashed again, making her heart roll over. “Oh yes, I fucking do.” He laid her on the bed and stood at the side, hands fisted. For a long second, she feared he’d walk away from her. But his heated gaze swept her from head to foot and then he reached for her sneakers.
“I know exactly what I’m getting with you, cher.”
She bit into her lower lip as he removed her shoes and then made slipping off her socks insanely erotic. Her breaths came in heavy pants, and she makes us t she might come on the spot the moment he reached for her sweatpants.
Instead he reached between his shoulder blades and tugged off his shirt. Baring the muscles she’d admired—no, drooled over—during their run. And now she’d get to touch them, lick them…
“Come here.” She beckoned with a finger.
His eyelids drooped. “Fuck, I want you.”
“Then take me.”
He didn’t need a gold-lettered invitation. He lowered himself over her, taking control of her mouth as he closed his finger and thumb around her nipple. She arched, her cry lost to his kiss. Heat sparked inside her, running along her nerves like liquid fire. When he reached under her top and located her bare breast, she pinched her eyes shut hard and lost herself to sensation.
“So hard for me. Jesus,” he ground out, moving his hand across her ribcage to her other breast.
She couldn’t get enough of his kisses, his touch. She reached between them and found the button of his jeans. He locked his fingers around her wrist and moved it up and over her head, pinning her to the bed.
“Not yet. I need all the control I can get with you.”
His admission shouldn’t slam her so hard or burrow so deep. He was a playboy, all Knights were, and he probably used that line on every girl he took to bed. But her body lit up at his words, and there was no going slow on her part.
She dug the nails of her free hand into his shoulders and yanked him down on her. Feeling his weight only heightened her need. She spread her legs, drawing him against her center.
“Hell, I can feel your heat. Fuck.”
She loved how he spoke in grunts and monosyllables. It made her feel desired, but later when she analyzed it, she’d know it was just words. But for now, she had a gorgeous hunk of a special ops man between her thighs and she wasn’t going to think too much.
Especially when he was soooo good with his fingers.
When he pulled off her T-shirt, she watched his face. Men liked the way her body looked, and she was damn proud of it. She’d worked hard for it, after all.
His eyes hooded as he stared at her. Suddenly, a wolfish grin took over his face, and he stripped her entirely.
She reached for his jeans again, but he wasn’t having any of that. He grabbed her hands and pinned them to her sides as he hovered over her. Holding her gaze, he parted his lips and sucked her nipple into his mouth.
Heat blazed through her, and she bucked off the mattress. With soft pulls of his mouth, he drove her from wild to wildfire in zero point two seconds. Juices squeezed from her folds, and if he didn’t get inside her soon—
“Oh God, Sean!” He bit into her nipple, leaving her humming with a brand-new need. She curled her fists into the bed and rocked upward to get closer to the torment of his mouth.
His dark gaze lingered on hers as he drew his teeth over the tip of her breast before moving to the other one. When he drew it into his mouth, she cried out.
The bed shook, and she realized he was chuckling.
“You’re laughing at a time like this?” She gasped as he swirled his tongue around her hard peak.
“I like an enthusiastic woman.”
What he probably meant was the entire inn of nerdy code-crackers could hear her screaming with pleasure and she’d never be able to show her face again. But she didn’t care. His mouth was the stuff of legend.
He teased and lapped at her nipple until she arched off the bed. To her disappointment, he didn’t graze her with his teeth again, but the light kisses he spattered over her stomach made up for it.
He reached her mound, the trim fuzz as dark as the five o’clock shadow sprouting on his angular jaw. “You’re soaking.”
“I…”
“Let me taste you.”
Without waiting for her acquiescence, he flattened his tongue over her slit. Heat curled through her clit and spiked deep inside. She threw her head back on another cry.
“Sean!”
“Mmm. I fucking knew you’d taste this sweet.” He took his time, licking up one outer lip and barely skimming her clit to lick down the other. When he fixed her in his gaze and plunged his tongue into her pussy, she came off the bed.
No man had ever gone down on her the first time. The fact that Sean was enjoying it—eyes shut and groaning as he explored her entire pussy from top to bottom—made her expectations of what was to come rocket skyward.
The man knew how to sex a girl up.
“Holy… shit.” She gasped as he sucked on her clit and eased one long finger inside her. Her inner walls clenched around him, spilling more juices. He pulled his finger out and painted her with them.
And then licked her clean.
More profanities filled her mind, but she was too far gone to utter them. She gave herself up to his lips and tongue. When he eased two fingers—then three—into her channel, she quaked on the edge of ecstasy.
He seemed to delight in keeping her there, on the brink of coming but not allowing it to happen.
Arrogant man.
She thumped a heel on his spine, and the bed shook with his rumble of laughter again. He pressed his three fingers up against her inner wall, and juices flooded his hand.
“How… are you… making me do that?”
“I have a few tricks up my sleeve.” He massaged that erogenous zone until so much pressure grew in her core that there was no way to remain still. She bucked, ground her hips and finally begged.
“Let me come. Please, Sean.”
He lowered his tongue to her clit again, licking her slow even as he finger-fucked her fast. Elise hovered in a headspace of bliss for ten seconds, twelve…and then a wave of orgasm hit her so hard that she had no air to scream.
* * * * *
Sean’s fingers were soaked and his mouth wet with Elise’s sweet juices, but he wasn’t finished with her. He’d never wanted to give a woman so many orgasms, and he wasn’t stopping until she came again.
Only then might he consider removing his jeans and gliding into her. Knowing once he felt her tight heat, he’d have all of five strokes before he exploded, he had to restrain himself.
She bucked into his mouth, and he found a new rhythm, tonguing her slow and then fast. Her pussy pulsated around his fingers and under his lips, and damn if his cock wasn’t leaking pre-cum in a constant stream.
She twisted the covers in her fist, her stomach muscles leaping as he pushed her higher and higher.
He couldn’t tear his gaze from her beautiful face. Contorted in pleasure, her cheeks a darker hue with her flush. Her lips were swollen from his kisses or her biting them or both.
He moaned against her pussy, and she pushed off the bed again, sculpted inner thighs quivering. Pressing his fingertips up into that magic spot had her spilling more juices for him. By the time he was finished, he wanted her hoarse from her cries and in need of hydration.
His chest tightened, and he doubled his efforts. A new emotion had his mind reeling, but he didn’t have time to stop and examine what it could be. He toyed her clit back and forth with his tongue and slowly removed his fingers from her pussy.
“Ahhhh.”
He plunged them deep again.
“AHHHH.”
Suddenly, he didn’t give a damn about the intercepted messages or the mission. OFFSUS had it set up that they received each new bit of intel automatically and Hawk no longer needed to carry anything. Sean’s sole goal in the world was to make Elise come apart for him until she collapsed.
The only worthwhile achievement of his lifetime, as far as he was concerned.
He grinned as she tugged at his hair, pushing his head down where she wanted it. “Happy to oblige,” he drawled.
“Sean!” She shook, on the verge of release, and he took mercy. Opening his mouth wide over her pussy and fingering her with rhythmic strokes. He was already tuned into her body’s needs, and while that wasn’t anything new with him and his lovers, he felt like he’d broken some barrier in Elise.
She sucked in sharply and held her breath. Arching underneath him and then jerking her hips fast as her pussy squeezed around his fingers. He didn’t slow his torment until she dropped to the mattress.
Licking her slick folds, he watched the peace and ecstasy spread over her beautiful features.
“Good?” he rumbled from his perch between her thighs.
She nodded and opened her eyes to pierce him in her glazed stare. “Acceptable.”
He reared up. “Acceptable? You’re still shaking and haven’t stopped for half an hour.”
Her smile was pure teasing woman, a side of her he hadn’t seen before. And damn, did he like it. From the start, he’d known she was a passionate female, but he suspected there was much more in Elise he hadn’t tapped.
Yet.
He did an erotic pushup and moved to stare down into her eyes. “I guess I’ll just have to keep working to please you.” With lips still damp from her juices, he kissed her. She melted, opening her mouth for him to sweep his tongue inside. Passion ignited, and he couldn’t kick his jeans off fast enough.
She lay watching, dark hair mussed around her oval face and lower lip trapped in her teeth. He’d had a lot of women’s eyes on him before, but somehow having Elise appreciating the hard work he’d put into his body meant more.
As her gaze roved over his chest and shoulders, down to his abs, he reached into his jeans and drew out his hard length. Fuck, he could barely touch his throbbing flesh. A few strokes of his fist and it’d be all over.
Her eyes widened and she pushed onto her elbows. “No way can that be all you.”
“Who else could it belong to, cher?” He grinned and shoved his jeans and underwear off in one hurried move, giving her a full frontal view.
She wet her lips, tongue darting out to run along them. His cock jerked, and he gripped it at the base, giving it one smooth stroke of his fist.
“Hell,” he heard her mutter under her breath.
He made a show of turning to the side and bending for his wallet and the stash of condoms there. Early in his military career, he’d learned to never leave home without more than one. Because if he got a chance to fuck, he was fucking all night long.
From the corner of his eye, he saw Elise watching his every move. He made a show of tearing open the packet with his teeth.
“Were you a stripper before you were a Marine?”
He flashed a grin and rolled the condom over his cock in one jerk of his hand. Then he walked toward the bed, his shaft jutting toward her. The constrictive rubber made him wish he could tear it off and sink into her bareback.
When he reached the side of the bed, she pushed to her knees and slipped her arms around his neck. Kissing him with an urgency that fed into his desires until his precious control was threatened. He had to take action before it was too late.
He lifted her and stretched out on the bed, settling her over his cock. As the tip of his erection poised at the quick of her, she gave a harsh breath.
“God, Sean. Why do I want this so bad?”
Her admission stole his mind. With a growl, he jerked his hips upward as she sank over his cock. Each inch filling her, stretching her. They shared a loud moan, and she took him completely, the soft globes of her ass skimming his groin.
He cupped her backside in his hands and urged her to move. As she eased upward, he locked his gaze to her face, drinking in the pleasure he saw rippling across her features. His balls clenched, and he tightened his grip on her toned ass.
“Ohh,” she breathed out as she sank down on him again. The motion caused her breasts to jiggle, and he cupped one, strumming his thumb back and forth over the distended tip as she began to set a pace.
Rolling her hips, head tossed back, her body the sexiest he’d ever laid eyes on. Everything about her set him off, stripped away his control.
She rocked her hips, and the tip of his cock bottomed out. They both groaned, loudly.
A giggle sounded in the hallway, and Elise’s gaze locked on his. “We’re noisy.”
“I was thinking you’re not noisy enough.” He twitched his hips, digging his cock deep. She answered with a louder moan.
“This is… unprofessional.”
“I’m not a professional. But thank you for the compliment.” His joke came out with a hitch of his breath.
She shuddered as she withdrew on his length again. He watched his cock slide out of her sweet, wet pussy. Her pussy he could still taste on his lips and tongue. Her tight, hot, clenching pussy…
“Fuck, cher. I’m too close. Hold still.”
Those words seemed to be the challenge she needed to double her efforts. She braced her hands on his shoulders, her weight feeling like nothing atop him, and she moved faster. Taking him deeper with each passing stroke until her movements grew jerky.
He grabbed her hips and fucked up into her fast and hard, watching her face for the point of no return. When he saw her eyes widen and her mouth fall open on an O of surprise, he let go.
Roaring out his release as it shot up from the base of his spine, his mind blanked to anything but Elise’s tight body and the squeeze of her inner walls around him, drawing out spurt after spurt.
* * * * *
Elise watched Sean’s backside disappear into the bathroom, the sight of his strong form resonating within her for what… the fifth time? How could she go from completely satisfied to wanting him again after one glance at his muscled body? Or his sparkling eyes or that crooked smile?
She pulled the sheet over her nudity and thought about what she was doing. It was still daylight, and she was thinking about spending the day—and night—in bed with her hot sidekick.
Bo would kill her when he found out.
No, she could never share this type of information. Sure, she knew a bit about the women he dated but not details. And something about the way Bo and Sean faced off told her to keep the news to herself.
She heard the water running and a second later, the bathroom door opened. Sean appeared, looking mussed and sexy as hell. A sprinkling of dark hair on his chest drawing her gaze down to the thin trail running straight to—
He made a gruff noise that snapped her attention to his face.
“I’m glad you like what you see.” Great—his arrogant swagger as he crossed the room to the bed was all she needed. Now he’d thump his chest and brag about his conquest.
She drew her knees to her chest, keeping the sheet over her bare parts. “I could say the same for you.”
He dived into bed, jostling her so the sheet fell away. He dragged it down and rolled against her, pulling her flush to his body and then flipping the sheet over them both. She blinked at how fast he’d managed that maneuver. Was that a special ops thing or a gigolo thing?
Plastered against his big body, she stiffened. He ignored her posture and began to rub small circles from her shoulders to lower back. By the time he started up again, she relaxed.
Okay, this wasn’t just a victory fuck. This was couples stuff, and she didn’t do couples.
He seemed to sense her thoughts, drawing her closer and pressing a kiss to her temple. “You’re an amazing woman, you know that?”
Oh no—not the compliments. She had to get out of this bed.
“Um, thanks?”
“I don’t just mean that hip action, baby. Though Dieu knows, that had me on the edge of my control.”
A quizzical smile hit her lips, and she lifted a hand to toy with his chest hair. Maybe she was overthinking things—she’d jumped into bed with him spontaneously. Who said she had to complicate things now and make it more than the fun she’d set out to claim for herself?
Besides, she was a grown woman. She knew her course in life, and men weren’t part of the equation. Maybe someday, she’d settle down with someone and have a family, but for now, she was happy with her independence.
“Your mind makes a noise when you’re thinking, you know that?” His rumbled words jarred her. She stopped tracing his sculpted pec and looked at him.
Amusement crinkled the corners of his eyes. Man, why did men get to have all the good things in life? They got better with age while women spent hundreds on creams to keep the same smile lines from taking over their faces.
“Now you’re glaring at me,” he said.
She smacked him across the shoulder. “I was thinking.”
“You’re deciphering us.”
Her brows drew together. “There is no us.”
“Oh, but there is an us. Many orgasms between the two of us.”
She smacked him again, causing him to shake with laughter. “We’ve finished what we set out to do and got carried away.”
“Is that what you call all the chemistry you’ve been battling for days?”
She rolled onto her back and stared at the simple white ceiling. Light played across it, making her think of dinner on the patio or their run on the shore. She had to admit they got along in many ways, and their romp in bed had been an extension of that same chemistry.
“We work together,” she stated.
“Uh huh. And play together.”
“Sean, I’ll just come out and say it—this is a one-time deal. One day—”
“And one night,” he cut her off.
“That’s to be determined. But we won’t see each other after this.”
“We’ll see.” When he smiled, her heart pattered faster. How did he cause such a reaction in her body? It must be because she’d been alone too long. She was just acting on her needs, taking what she wanted.
With the hottest man she’d ever met.
“What I was trying to say before you thought it important to let me know you’ll never be in my bed again, is that you’re amazing, Elise. The smartest woman I’ve ever known, and that’s saying something since I have some pretty clever sisters.”
She’d been told this before but coming from him, it touched her. She lowered her eyes to stare at the angles of his jaw. Dark stubble shadowed it, giving him a more dangerous look. But she didn’t need to guess at how lethal this man was. He’d killed to protect, yet he’d touched her with indescribable tenderness.
He ran his hand down her spine to cup her buttocks. The roughness and heat of his hand sent spears of lust straight to her pussy. He kneaded her behind, his mouth at her ear.
“I’m an ass man, and this one…” he squeezed, “is everything.” His dirty words coupled with his touch rendered her stupid, and she didn’t even realize he’d rolled her onto her stomach until the sheet tickled her cheek.
He sat up, she assumed to stare at her bottom. When he began to trail his fingers over her globes, she sighed with pleasure. The light, ticklish touch acted like a stress reducer, and she flung her arms overhead. He moved his fingers to the top of the muscle, gently massaging, before gliding along the outer curve. As he reached the undercurve, her nipples hardened and her pussy contracted.
But when he dipped his fingers between her thighs, brushing her wetness, she let out a moan.
“Still so wet for me, cher. I can’t tell you how much that pleases me.”
Did she want to please him? God yes. And as soon as she could get her mind back, she wanted to flatten him to the bed and taste that big, hard cock of his too. If she was getting one experience with Sean, she was going all in.
He drew his fingers out of her pussy and ran them over her buttocks. Her body relaxed, and her thighs fell apart. So when he dragged his fingertips down her ass crack, she was suddenly so… exposed.
His caress against her anus drew a shocked gasp from her, and she tightened her muscles.
Warm breath washed over her neck. “Relax, baby. Let me learn what you like.”
“I… don’t like that.”
“You know this?”
She didn’t. And she could still feel his touch—there. It aroused her.
“Your body is so fine.” He continued exploring, loosening her muscles and knocking down her walls again. Surely he wouldn’t touch her there now. She issued a soft sigh and closed her eyes, reveling in the relaxation of her muscles after long hours seated in front of a screen.
Her breaths came slower. His touch slowed too. So when he ran his finger over her netherhole a second time, she gasped.
He placed his lips at her ear. “Tell me you don’t like the way this feels, Elise.” He paused with his fingertip on her anus. The barest of pressure.
And damn if she didn’t want more.
Her nipples hardened against the mattress, and her pussy clenched. He didn’t move his finger away, only rested it over her most intimate spot for a long minute.
Then he moved on. Tracing down to her undercurve again and back around. To her opposite buttocks. Leaving her stomach quaking with anticipation of when he’d stroke that spot again.
Oh God, what had he turned her into?
She wasn’t a prude by any means, but this wasn’t even something Bo had done with her.
Her belly quivered when he reached her seam once more. His hot finger blazed a path down between her cheeks. When he reached her pucker, she pushed back.
He groaned, a gritty sound that raised the hairs on her nape. The erotic noise buried deep in her even as he pressed harder on that place. What would it feel like if he slid his finger inside her?
She let her thighs part naturally, giving him more access.
“Feels good, doesn’t it, cher?”
A moan escaped her, and she couldn’t bring herself to care.
He teased her by continuing his massage, even working down the backs of her thighs. By the time he reached the spot she most wanted touched, she was out of her head.
“Sean…” she whispered, “touch me. Please.”
He released a rough noise that only turned her on more, before circling his finger around her pucker. Need splashed across her senses, and a deep ache took hold. Some unseen end hung within reach and yet so far away.
Each light, skittering brush of his finger thrust her higher toward a pleasure unlike anything she’d known before. “I wish I had some lube,” he said quietly.
“Oh God, Sean. Forget the lube! Just slide your finger in me.”
A beat of silence followed, and then, “Fucking hell.” He knelt behind her, drawing her hips high in the air. She gripped the sheets, prepared for whatever he did to her. Even if he gave her that big cock of his… she just needed… more.
“Christ, you’re beautiful. Open to me. So primed.” His rough words hit her belly and her heart somersaulted. But she didn’t have time to think on those things because he eased his finger inside her. Past the tight ring.
She buried her face in the sheets. It was so good, so unexpected.
He slipped a bit farther in, and she understood why he mentioned the lube. It would make it soooo good. But he was gentle, and she was too horny to care if this wasn’t the ideal situation.
He worked his finger to the first knuckle. Then to her surprise, he slipped in the rest of the way.
“Oh God,” she cried.
“Oh fuck,” he answered.
Then he reached between her thighs with his other hand and began massaging her clit while extracting his finger with mind-bending slowness. She was going to die of pleasure. But at least she’d die happy.
* * * * *
She was an ass virgin—he was sure of it. From the tight clench of her body to her uninhibited responses, he knew it. And the fact that she was letting him explore her this way raised some primal need to claim.
He watched her body for cues as he slowly finger-fucked her ass and rubbed her clit. The moans leaving her left no question as to how he was making her feel. His cock bobbed against his abs, stiffer than it had ever been. If he listened to his body, he’d be buried in that tight heat right now. But she wasn’t ready, and he wouldn’t hurt her.
With each move of his fingers, she quaked a little more until the whole bed shook with it.
“Sean… it’s… I’m…”
“Let it come, cher.”
“It’s going to be… big.”
“I know. Let it happen.” He thrust his finger in once more and she stiffened, not breathing. One hard pulsation hit his finger and then she was screaming, contracting around him with an orgasm so big that her screams could be heard way out at Colonel Jackson’s place.
As soon as the final tremor left her, he drew his fingers free and reached over the side of the bed for a condom. He had to get inside her—now.
She lay still, face down, but when he dragged her ass back into the air, she glanced over her shoulder. Perspiration dampened her hair and her eyes were wild with need. “Take me, Sean. I need you to fuck me.”
“You got it.” He barely ground out the words before he was balls-deep, churning his hips toward an end so huge that it would erase all the other women who’d come before her.
She reached back to grasp his hip, guiding him in with more forceful thrusts. A roar rose up in his throat and he tipped over the edge. The first spurt would have hit her neck if he weren’t wearing a condom, but she was bucking, taking everything he had to give. Sapping him.
And damn if he wasn’t going to give his all. He was aware of her orgasm stuttering to a stop as his last jet of come left him.
They collapsed and he rolled off so he didn’t crush her.
“I can’t move,” she murmured.
“After that, no wonder.” He curled around her body, her back fitting so perfectly to his front. His eyes drifted shut, and he was aware of their breathing. How it synced.
How unusual that was.
Long seconds passed and then he kissed her nape. “I’m going to clean up. Don’t move.”
“I couldn’t if I wanted to.” Her words were slurred with exhaustion, and his chest might have swelled a bit, knowing what he’d done to her.
When he got up, he was shocked to see how dark the room had become. Hours must have passed, and he’d lost all track of time. The messages they’d decoded would be in the right hands by now, and his brothers would be dispatched soon. Sean’s work with Elise was finished, and he had no excuse to not join his team.
But until he got that phone call, he was staying right here in this room with Elise.
He washed up and crawled back into bed. As soon as he stretched out, she turned to him and gave him a wicked smile, eyes snapping.
“What do you know that I don’t?” he asked with a smile of his own.
“This.” She slid down his body and gripped his cock at the base, swallowing him to the root.