A Tropical Rendezvous: A BWWM Interracial Bad Boy Billionaire Multicultural Romance (African American Romance) (19 page)

Chapter Four

“Today was a long day,” Brandi sighed as she took the chair next to Xander on the balcony of their suite. “But Kylie had so much fun she wore herself out.”

“I’m glad she had fun. I loved sharing it with her.”

She smiles because she could see that, all day. “It was very obvious. You’re a pretty charming guy when you let that guard down.”

The look he gave her could only be described as predatory. “Charming, huh?”

She nodded and stole a sip from his glass of scotch. “Goodness that burns.”

He chuckled. “Not a very smooth change of topics.”

She shrugged. “Oh, I didn’t realize you were fishing for compliments. You know you can be charming when you choose to be. That’s part of how you’ve become so successful.”

“Yes,” he leaned over the arm of the chair until his forearm brushed hers and the heat of his body enveloped her, “but the question is, do you find me charming?”

She nodded. “I do. But more importantly, Kylie thought you were the coolest today.”

Xander leaned back in his chair and tilted his head up towards the night sky. There were no stars to be seen in D.C., no crashing ocean waves to calm his racing mind and confused heart. “I know you think I’m a cold bastard because I can’t love Kylie, but I’m not. I just…I can’t.”

Her brows dipped low at his words, confused by them. “What do you mean you can’t?”

His sigh was heavy, filled with a burden she couldn’t understand. At least he didn’t think she could. “Like I said, I can’t. Losing Carlton pretty much obliterated any loving feelings I had. Hearing that my last living relative, my little brother was dead. It crushed me, Brandi. I vowed that I wouldn’t let another person into my heart because it would hurt too much when they left. And I knew they would. They always do.”

Her heart broke for the big strong man with the shattered heart. She placed a sympathetic hand on his arm and gently caressed soothingly. “And then you found out your brother had put Kylie in your care.”

He nodded, but he realized it wasn’t a question, Brandi just knew. “Yep. So I took care of her the best way I knew how. I made sure she had everything she needed.”

“Except the only thing she ever really wanted.” How sad, she thought before catching herself. Wasn’t it the very thing she’d done? Had been doing since her parents’ death two decades ago?

“I know it’s horrible.” He turned to her. “If you’ve never lost big, you don’t understand, but I just can’t risk it.”

She stood went to him, wrapping her arms around his body in comfort. “Trust me I’ve lost big so I get where you’re coming from, I do. But you don’t want Kylie to grow up and be like us, too afraid of losing to risk loving again. She’s wonderful and deserves the best of what this life has to offer.”

Xander turned at the tender tone of her voice, and his face was close enough to kiss her. So, he did. It began slow and sweet, meant to sooth and comfort. But quickly his fingers speared her hair as the kiss took on a life of its own. A brief smolders soon caught flame and threatened to rage into an inferno.

Brandi, for the life of her, could not pull away. Didn’t want to pull away, not from Xander. Not from the kiss that was sweet and sexy and full of promise. She adjusted her position so her legs were on either side of his hips and her hands were cupping his face. She nibbled his bottom lip and then swiped her tongue across it to soothe.

“Brandi,” he groaned as his hands held her hips tight, pressing her hot core against the hard ridge of his arousal.

“Yes,” she answered, to what, she had no idea. But whatever he was offering, she wanted it at that moment. Instead of asking for clarification, her mouth left his to explore the hard planes of his jaw and the hard muscles of his neck and shoulders. She licked and nipped, sucked and devoured him.

“Brandi, say yes.”

She pulled back and looked into those stormy gray eyes that looked like melted gun metal, and smiled. “Yes, Xander. Yes.”

He stood and smiled when her legs automatically wrapped around his waist as he stalked to his room inside the suite. When the door was closed and locked, he laid her on the bed and quickly undressed her. “You are beautiful.”

“And you,” she told him as she knelt on the mattress so they were eye to eye, “are wearing entirely too many clothes.”

With a laugh, he took a step back. “A problem I’ll remedy soon enough. Now, lie back like a good girl.”

With a sultry smile, she happily obeyed. Under normal circumstances, she would have balked at his commanding tone, but she was so hot for this man she shouldn’t want, shouldn’t have, that it only fueled her desire. Leaning on her elbows, she looked up at him, “Well?”

Xander smiled and dropped to his knees beside the bed, pulling her ankles until her glistening sex was exposed to him and just a breath away. His lips pursed, and a rush of air left his mouth and sent a shiver from her core to her toes.

“Xander,” she groaned and gripped the bed sheets. She called his name over and over as his tongue licked through her wet folds before dipping inside her. He was a master with his tongue, bringing her to the brink several times and pulling back until she was ready to climb the walls. “Please,” she begged.

“Please, what?” His mouth hovered over her, waiting for her words.

“Please Xander, make me come.”

“Now
that
would be my pleasure,” he told her and sucked her clit into his mouth as several fingers plunged her moist depths.

She shattered, violently convulsing beneath his mouth, his hands before collapsing in a satisfied heap on the bed. “I’m pretty sure that was
totally
my pleasure.”

He chuckled and stood, lying beside her as one finger caressed her sensitive, naked body. “Believe me that was good for me too.” She looked so beautiful when her orgasm hit that Xander knew he would do anything to put that look on her face every day. If he was capable of that type of feeling.

Brandi looked over at Xander, so handsome in his disheveled state she couldn’t keep her hands off him. Kneeling beside him, she kissed his mouth, sucking her juices off him and kissing until she knew he was close to bursting. “Tasty,” she grinned, making quick work of removing his clothes. “My goodness, you’re gorgeous.”

He gave her a lazy grin as her heated gaze caressed his body, her fingertips following the same path. “Glad you approve.”

“Oh, I do,” she said and kissed down his body, loving the way he gripped her hair tighter and tighter as his passion took over. Gone was the stiff and controlled billionaire businessman and in his place, a man driven wild with passion.

“Brandi,” he growled when her lush mouth wrapped around his erection, his hips acting on their own, thrusting in tandem with her movements. “Enough,” he bit out.

With a smug smile, she looked up at him and licked her lips. “We’ll get back to that, then.” Crawling up his body, she took him in one hand and slowly sank down onto his impressive length. “Yes,” she hissed out and paused to adjust to his size. Then she was moving like a wildcat, possessed by the delicious feel of him deep inside her. It was too much and not enough all at once, and she felt her pleasure rocketing forward.

Xander gripped her hips tight as she moved, loving the weight on his chest as she used him for leverage. She was beautiful, a sensual dynamo, as her hips rolled and rocked, head thrown back in ecstasy. When she began to bounce on his erection faster and faster, he knew his control was snapping. Her body began to tighten around him, milking him. And then she was coming again. Brandi screamed his name as her orgasm rolled over her naked, sweat slicked body and it triggered his own climax. Thrusting up into her, he was determined to lengthen their pleasure for as long as possible.

Brandi was floating in another world, her body still moving at warp speed. She couldn’t get enough of his body, his erection. His loving. His fingers snaked between them and flicked at that sensitive bundle of nerves, and she came again. This time, she was silent as her body spasmed and bowled her over. “Oh, Xander,” she whispered as her body collapsed on top of his. “Wow,” she laughed nervously. “That was intense.”

Xander was stunned by the intensity of what had just happened. His body still shook as hers clenched around him and he felt himself hardening all over again. He squeezed her ass and rolled them over so she was on her back.

“Again,” she asked in her sated state.

“Oh yeah.”

~

The next morning Xander heard Brandi creep to her room just after sunrise, and groaned in disappointment. He knew why she’d gone and why it had to be that way, but he wasn’t nearly done with her yet. He hadn’t felt such a connection during sex…ever. “Dammit.” He slid off the bed and headed to the en suite bathroom for a shower. It wouldn’t be a cold one, though because he planned on getting another taste, or ten. Soon.

He ordered breakfast for three while Kylie and Brandi got dressed for the day. Kylie came out first and greeted him with a smile. “Morning Xander,” she said brightly.
Too brightly
.

“Good morning Kylie. Are you hungry?”

She nodded and took the seat across from him. “Can we go to the Smithsonian today?”

Xander smiled at her enthusiasm. “That is exactly where we’re headed today.”

“Cool!” She ate quietly for a few minutes while he finished up his coffee. “Uncle Xander, thank you. I know I haven’t said it, probably because I was hoping they would find Mom and Dad, but thank you for taking care of me.”

His smile was sad. “You don’t need to thank me for that, Kylie. We’re family. I’ll always be there when you need me, I promise.”

“Okay.” She cleared her plate and looked up at him. “Can I have some coffee?”

He frowned. “Are you tired?”

“No. I just want to try it.”

“It’ll stunt your growth,” he told her sharply.

Kylie rolled her eyes. “No, it doesn’t, that’s just a myth. Probably to keep kids from drinking it.”

He smiled. “Fine. Have a sip but you can’t add anything to it.” If she wanted to taste it, she would have to drink it naturally.

With a smug smile, she poured half a cup and took a sip. And promptly spit it all out, and on her uncle. “Gross. How can you drink that?”

His lazy shrug gave away nothing. “You drink it because you need it, not because it’s delicious.”

He felt her curious gaze on him. “Why do you need it? Were you up late?”

“You ask a lot of questions.”

She blushed. “You’re avoiding the question. Why?”

“Morning guys,” Brandi said as she took the seat between them. “What did I miss?”

“Uncle Xander was just about to tell me why he needs coffee so badly.”  Her gaze never left his. It was a battle of wills.

Brandi’s face was as relaxed as it was when she sat down, Xander noticed, impressed. “Coffee is delicious. I drink it every morning.”

“You guys are hiding something,” she said decisively.

Brandi set her coffee down and looked at Kylie with a serious expression. “The truth is Kylie, last night your uncle and I were very bad. Very very bad,” she said in a way that made Kylie giggle. “We decided to celebrate the way your relationship has grown and being in this beautiful city, and we drank a bit too much.”

Xander had never felt so much relief in his life.

“You did?”

Brandi nodded. “Well you were knocked out like an old woman, and we didn’t know what to do. It was dumb, but adults do dumb things too.”

Kylie thought for a minute and gave a mischievous smile. “Did you share a drunken kiss too?”

“Why on earth would you ask that,” Xander roared.

But Kylie was unaffected. “Mom used to watch reality television and people always got drunk and kissed a lot. Sometimes more.”

~

Xander may have bought Kylie’s little white lie, but Brandi did not. “Really? What shows did she watch? Sometimes on a boring Friday night, I indulge in reality TV.”

Kylie’s gray eyes darted around, a giveaway she was being dishonest. “I forget the title.”

Brandi raised a skeptical eyebrow at the little girl. “If you remember, be sure to tell me.”

She blushed and asked to be excused. “I should find something else to wear for the Smithsonian.”

When Kylie was gone, she turned to Xander. “She knows.”

“What?”

She placed a hand on his thigh. “Calm down. She saw us kissing on the balcony, I think. But I doubt she knows more.”

“That’s plenty, dammit!” He slammed his napkin down and stood. “The last thing I need is for Kylie to start getting ideas.”

Her heart sank because she knew exactly what kind of
ideas
he was talking about. Love. Marriage. Happily ever after.
I guess last night meant less to him than it did to me.
She should have known better, but last night she could only give in to the passion. Too bad for her it wasn’t
only
passion. “Right,” she stood, leaving her breakfast untouched.

“I told you, I can’t do love.”

She nodded again. “Of course. I’ll go get ready, then.” She refused to let herself care, but dammit she did. She wasn’t built for casual and just because she’d been reckless last night didn’t mean she would be again. Brandi would do as she always did. Move past it. There was nothing to be done about Xander’s reluctance to love. If he couldn’t love his adorable little niece, she had no hope.