Liar Liar (16 page)

Jess had the sudden urge to satisfy him. Utterly and completely.

And tonight, there was no holding her back.

***

He was an animal.

He’d been wounded and angry by Seneca’s assertions that Jess was investigating LoveLines. What started out as a determined effort to seduce her left his soul raw and aching for more. He wanted her. Damn, how he wanted her!

The way she clung to him while he fingered her, biting and nipping as she climaxed, Matteo realized he was in way over his head.

She was more than trouble.

She was his ideal mate.

Hot and primed after her orgasm, she was dripping between her thighs. He wanted to lick up every drop of her creamy sweetness, but Jess had other ideas. She pressed against him, clearly wanting more.

Matteo spared a moment to kick his slacks aside, retrieve a stashed condom and roll it on quickly before anything more could delay them. Then he settled his hands around her waist, marveling yet again and glorious site of her long pale legs clad in gartered black stockings, her breasts mounded like creamy pillows thrust out of the top of her silken bustier. Her eyes were heavy and deep with desire.

“Oh, yes. Take me,” she whispered. Her backside slid up against the wall as he lifted her onto him, wrapping her thighs around his waist, as he balanced them both. He wanted to prop her ankles over his shoulders and pump and pump himself into her, as if spilling himself inside her would make her his.

“Where,
querida
?” he savored the endearment that marked her as his. “Where can I take you?”

Her cheeks flushed. “Everywhere. All the way.” She arched against him, clearly a woman reveling in her sexuality.

“Do you want me?” he teased. “All of me?”

“Matt, I want it.” She moaned as he sucked those glorious tits of hers. “Give it to me.”

Her voice branded him, made him hers.

He reared back, positioning the tip of his cock against her nether lips. The sensation of pausing just outside her was indescribable. She gave a little impatient wiggle against the head of his member. He sucked in air, reveling in the feel of her heat against him. The tip of his cock slipped inside her.

“Mmm,” she moaned.

And then he was lost. He’d never felt a woman so wet and so tight around him. He thrust deep inside her, a mindless stallion, bucking and plunging in and out of her, until he thought he would lose his mind. She was so good.

He wanted to pound his fists against the wall, she felt so damn good. He wanted to shout her name, to make her say his, he wanted to take every inch of her inside and out and mark her as his own. She would never feel lonely or undesirable again, he’d make sure of it. She would only be loved…she would…be his.

Instead, he stopped.

“Matt!” Jess stopped moaning and wriggled impatiently on his throbbing shaft. “What are you…?”

He didn’t want her like this. Not like some rutting stallion giving stud services.

“I’m not fucking you.” His hands slid to her waist, and he wrapped his arms tight around her and slid her up and off. “No, shhh. Let me make love to you.” Before she could protest, he carried her to the waiting bed, and laid her down.

Her pale slim body lay before him, covered in lace and silk like a decadent buffet. She was a feast, a banquet of delightful sounds and senses. And he’d been going hungry for far too long.

If only he could be sure she was as genuine as she appeared.

“Is this real, Jess? No faking, no games?” He covered her body with his own, willing himself not to feel the mounded softness of her beneath him, not until he heard her answer.

Her face was surprisingly earnest, despite the desperate desire burning in her eyes. “I can’t…I can’t lie to you, Matt. I want this, and I want you.”

“Now?” he poised above her.

“Always,” she gasped.

And that was all it took for him to come undone.

As her lips spoke the words he most wanted to hear, he kissed her again, this time with agonizing sweetness. Her body couldn’t lie. As they lay together, she molded herself to fit him, instinctively threading her limbs through his, until he wasn’t sure where he left off and she began. Her hair was a glorious fiery curtain behind the porcelain of her face. A face he thought he could stare at for the rest of his life.

He hovered over her, waiting for the moment when her eyes met his. The tip of his member teased at her, and she spread her legs further in welcome.

“Matt, I…” she broke off. Her gaze drifted to his mouth, and she wet her lips.

“Almost,
querida
. I’m so close.” He slipped himself into her, thrusting into the wet, silken tunnel of her body. “Come. Come with me.” No longer the raging rapids, they moved in time, like ripples lapping at the river’s edge, steady, repeating and each one larger than the next. He felt her breathing quicken and allowed himself a moment to simply feel every inch of him inside her.

When she wrapped her legs around him, he knew there was no going back.

“Now, Jess. Come with me,
querida
. I can’t hold back any longer.”

She wound her arms around his neck like she was drowning. Matteo felt the pressure building behind his eyes, until his muscles quivered from the need to release. But first, he had to take her with him. He rolled his hips, making sure his cock stretched every wall of her, and she groaned with pleasure. She ground herself against him, greedy and wet, and her heels dug into his backside as if she could spur him faster.

So, faster he went. His pumped himself into her, rhythmic and steadily building until he couldn’t take it anymore. She filled his vision, his mind, every sense completely attuned to her, so he knew precisely the moment when her eyes fluttered closed and the walls of her vagina began to contract on him.

And then he let himself go.

The orgasm took him so forcefully, he could do nothing but stiffen atop her, letting the sweet muscles inside her milk his cock. Long seconds passed, where every shift of her body added to the sensation of pleasure, until all he could do was bury his face in her neck and shudder. He made sure to prop himself up, so he wouldn’t crush her with his weight. That much sense he held onto. Everything else drifted away.

Except the overwhelming realization that he had to have her. And to have her, meant he needed to tell her the honest truth. About him. About LoveLines. Hopefully she would forgive him and they’d be able to move forward together. After today, he didn’t want to be without her.

He didn’t let himself consider the possibility she might not feel the same, once she knew he was a liar.

“You’re amazing,” Matt said, his face buried in her hair. “Fucking hot as hell amazing, Jess. Damn.” His arms stole around her and pulled her backside tightly to his chest. She didn’t want him to ever let her go. “Damn,” he repeated again.

She smiled.

Their breathing slowed.

She thought maybe she should say something, but the silence that stretched between them was golden and comfortable. It was glorious to finally be free of the insecurities that had plagued her whole life. She’d never felt she measured up, never felt as wanted as she did right now.

“I’m going to run us a shower.” He slipped free, kissing her cheek. “And then let’s talk.”

“About?” she prompted.

“About ‘us’, Jess. There’s something I need to tell you.”

“Is there an ‘us’?” she couldn’t help but ask. What was he saying? That he wanted her for more than a weeklong hook up?

His finger hooked under her chin and he gave her a lingering kiss before sliding off the bed. “I hope so. Call you when the water is warm.”

Her heart trilled in her chest. She stretched, feeling completely happy and sated. In the bathroom, Matt turned the shower on. She could hear him puttering around, humming under his breath, and thought maybe those were sounds she would want to hear every day for the rest of her life.

Who would’ve guessed that she’d find love in an online matchmaking service?

“It’s ready,” he called.

Jess smiled, slipped out from under the sheets and walked naked into the bathroom.

Matt was waiting for her, his expression like hot chocolate.

Jess felt a familiar heat in her body at the sight of him. Really, when had she become so insatiable? She covered her blush by stepping under the spray.

“Hang on,” Matt paused. “There’s only one towel. Do you have another?” he asked, looking around.

She’d used three in her pre-dinner primping preparations. “Um, I think by the bed. Check the floor by the nightstand?” she asked, angling the spray to her face.

He disappeared from view.

Jess ran her head under the water, trying to clear her thoughts. No getting around it, she was his. They were so good together—even the river guide said so. While that wasn’t a glowing endorsement for a long term relationship, she couldn’t deny how she felt. Every inch of her felt sated in his presence, both mind and body. But how to tell him?

“Matt? Did you find it?” She called again.

Steam fogged the glass, but she thought she saw him emerge into the hazy bathroom. He was holding something too small and thin to be a fluffy towel.

Jess peeped her head out.

It was her litigation paperwork.

“Jess?” Matt met her eyes, his face an ugly shade of red. “What’s this?” he asked.

She ducked back in quickly and turned the handle to cut off the spray. “Where did you find those?”

“They were on the floor by the bed, where you told me to look for the towel. I couldn’t help but see them, Jessica. Are you….are you investigating LoveLines?” His voice was cold now. “Tell me you aren’t.” She desperately wanted to hear that hot fudge drawl again.

But he was all work and no play.

She grabbed the one remaining towel from the counter and wrapped herself up, feeling completely exposed and as if she’d done something wrong.

“I told you. It’s my job.”

“So, it’s true? You’re
working
? This…you and I…” Matt looked light he might be sick. “It was all some notes for an investigation file?”

“Of course not! I enrolled as a LoveLines client before they assigned me to look into the case!” Her cheeks burned. How could he think that after what they’d just shared?

Matt’s eyes scanned over the pages, as if memorizing them.

Her paperwork should’ve been confidential. She cursed herself for forgetting to put them away, but she’d just been so preoccupied with thoughts of being with him, she’d forgotten to put them back in her briefcase.

“Here, give me those.” She grabbed for them, awkwardly. The towel started to slip off.

He paused and for a moment she wondered if he would hand them back, but he shook his head and thrust them at her, as if afraid to make contact with her hand.

“So, all this…you and me. What you said earlier?” He shook his head sharply, as if trying to wake himself. “I should’ve known you were too good to be true.”

“I don’t understand why you are so angry, Matt. I told you, I am a LoveLiner, I have been for months. This investigation has nothing to do with us.”

He turned away from her now and went into the bedroom, dragging on his briefs and slacks as if he was on fire. “It has everything to do with me. You’re trying to ruin LoveLines’ reputation. Everything they’ve worked for.” His voice was hard. His eyes met hers with hot accusation. “Everything I’ve worked for.”

She felt his words like a slap to the face. “You?” She shook her head. “I don’t understand. You’re one of my guaranteed matches.”

“We were never matched, Jessica. My name is Matteo Brandt. And I’m the creator of LoveLines.”

“But…but…” she sputtered. It didn’t make sense. “You run a horse ranch. The Smoking Brandt Ranch.” She shook her head. “You…pretended to be a client? Why?” Her hands went icy and her vision started to cloud around the edges. Her bullshit meter went ballistic, and realization hit her like a fist. “To thwart the investigation.” She sat down heavily on the edge of the bed to catch the breath that seemed stuck in her throat. “You knew about me and you tried to skew the investigation.”

“I own the ranch, but I run LoveLines. It’s my system, Jessica. My software programs, my hosting platform, my creation. It’s me. And you’re trying to destroy it.”

“I’m not trying to destroy anything, Matt. I’m trying to find out the truth! I never meant to hurt you. I never expected to fall….” Her voice trailed off before she made a complete fool of herself. Again. “How could you trick me like that?”

“I did what I had to do.” Matt was breathing heavily, and not in a good way. “I had my reasons for posing as a client.” His jaw clenched stubbornly.

“As did I,” she rationalized, yanking the towel back over her chest. “The truth is I never expected to find someone who makes me feel like you do.”

Matt recoiled as if he’d been slapped. “Yeah, well. Truth hurts.” His voice was soft and sharp as a knife to her heart. He gave her one last tortured glance and stalked out, shutting the door between them.

***

“Oh, boy…so you just left her there, Bro? Please, tell me you didn’t.” Seneca put a hand over the phone receiver, while she dialed the front desk for a status update on Jessica Barlow.

“Yeah.” He put his head in his hands. “I’m a complete asshole.”

The minute the door had shut behind him, he knew it was a mistake. The one thing Jess feared most was a guy who loved her and left her—which was, ironically, his original plan to derail her investigation. Now that she’d left her mark on his heart, he hadn’t meant to be ‘that’ guy. Pride had led him to his sympathetic sister, instead of the bar, but now he had no clue what to do next.

“Mhmm,” Seneca agreed. “You are.” She held one pointed finger in the air and then nodded to the phone receiver. “Okay, thanks.” Seneca put the room phone down with an audible click and patted his back. “She left town, Matteo. First plane back to Atlanta. Looks like we better saddle up and get ready for mediation on the Alicia Lange case. Don’t worry. Your affair with Jessica means we’ve got her right where we want her. She can’t hurt us.”

Oh, she’d already hurt him.