Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 102071 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 510(@200wpm)___ 408(@250wpm)___ 340(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 102071 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 510(@200wpm)___ 408(@250wpm)___ 340(@300wpm)
“Do you like it?” I asked.
“I might need another taste to know for sure,” he said in a rumble.
I grabbed the drink and took another sip. “Try it again.”
He patted a spot on the lounge chair next to him. “Come here.”
The thrill of kissing in the dark on the beach all alone whipped through me. I looked around, confirmed that nobody was nearby, then obeyed. I slid next to him on his lounge chair. It wasn’t really big enough for two people, but that was the point—being so deliciously close.
He cupped my cheek and kissed me again. Thorough. Deep. Confident. A man who knew what he wanted. And I was a woman who wanted him.
A woman who wanted to be kissed by him, deeply and passionately.
I moved closer, pressing against his chest.
“Yes, your drink is very, very good,” he said between kisses, then returned to my mouth.
He spent a good long time kissing me till I was boneless and extremely wet. I pressed against him, seeking contact and…Oh, that was nice. The ridge of his erection against my stomach. He was ridiculously hard, and the evidence of his arousal turned me on even more. I half wanted to invite him into my room and let him just take me all night long. But I wasn’t quite ready for that.
I was definitely ready for more than kissing though. I pushed his shoulders down, climbing over him and straddling him.
With a groan, he rumbled, “Use me, sweetheart, however you want.”
I didn’t know the man. But I didn’t need to know him. My body was leading the way tonight as I rubbed shamelessly against his erection through our clothes under the sultry sky, the stars and the inky black blanket above us, the waves harmonizing with my moans.
I pressed and rocked until I was shockingly close. I didn’t expect to be so turned on to the point where I was shaking and shuddering. Where I could feel my body wanting to fly over the cliff. But I wasn’t quite there. Panting, I breathed his name, “Jake.” It came out plaintive and needy.
He cupped the back of my head. “Want me to get you there, sweetheart?”
“I do.”
His hand slid under my sundress and into my panties. He growled when his fingers made contact. I groaned so loudly that he covered my mouth. “Be quiet for me, sweetheart.”
I nodded desperately.
“You’re perfectly wet,” he murmured as he stroked, expertly rubbing me exactly where I wanted him. Sparks flew inside me and pleasure crackled as I rocked shamelessly against his hand.
I moved faster and faster still. He stroked me in just the right way, at just the right speed, till I was groaning and panting. Desire coiled in my belly, and I could feel myself nearing the edge. I was close, so damn close. Soon, I was biting my lip, trying to keep my sounds tamped down when all I wanted was to cry out. My body tightened and my legs shook, and he never missed a beat. He read me completely, sensing my needs every step of the way. He stroked me expertly all while kissing my shoulder, my neck, the corner of my lips until I was shuddering and coming undone with my sexy stranger.
I was still seeing stars a minute later when I asked, “Do you want me to do that to you?” I was dying to touch him.
His eyes darkened with desire. “I do but not here or now. Besides, a man needs to earn it. You need to come again, maybe even a few more times, before I do.”
“You’re going to give me another orgasm tonight?” I wasn’t used to that kind of largesse. But I wanted it. Oh hell, did I want it.
“How about tomorrow?” he asked with a devilish grin.
I couldn’t hide my smile. “Oh, you really do want to see me again.”
He pulled me in for another kiss. “I do.”
I climbed off him, and after we straightened up and finished our drinks, I said goodbye. “Be sure to check your note if you haven’t already.”
“You are a mystery, Ariel.”
“And you like it.”
With a sexy nod, he said, “Seems I do.”
9
THE DIAMOND TEMPERATURE
Jake
Later, at my hotel, I researched tomorrow’s plan of attack and tackled Kylie’s tutor project, firing off emails to a few of the names she’d sent me already.
As I lay in bed, I unfolded the napkin from The Pink Pelican and reread the details. I knew this was a distraction, but I’d already given in tonight.
Was there room for a little tryst on the side? Mixing business with pleasure was dangerous. Ever since the romance with Rosalinda went belly-up, I’d been a rules man through and through, and the number-one rule was to maintain boundaries. Rosalinda’s trickery had endangered the assignment and nearly cost me one of the biggest jobs I’d ever nabbed. I pressed my thumb and forefinger against the bridge of my nose, crumpling the napkin in my other hand.