Relentless (15 page)

Bryn raised one elegant brow, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “Is she ever.”

Whatever that cryptic comment meant, Rhys was sure he didn't want to know. He peered past her shoulder. An instant later Nev appeared from around the corner, still laughing at something one of the others had said. She was so beautiful she almost hurt his eyes. Her raspberry satin blouse brought out the rosy tint in her cheeks and skimmed over the pert curves of her breasts. The snug knee-length skirt hugged every curve and made him think about having those amazing long legs wrapped around him. In her heels, she was only a few inches shorter than him.

“Thanks again for having me. See you tomorrow,” she called out, shrugging into her coat. Then she stepped close to Bryn to give her a big hug, and the sight filled him with warmth. Nev, even taller than Bryn, displaying her obvious affection for his friend. “See you at the church.”

“You bet,” Bryn replied, meeting Rhys's eyes as the two women parted. “We like her,” she told him. “You can keep her.”

“Uh... thanks.”

When they were outside and Bryn had shut the door, Nev startled him by going up on tiptoe to wrap her arms around his neck and snuggling in tight.

“Hey,” he said, returning the embrace. She took a deep breath and exhaled, leaning against him. “What's this for? You okay?”

“Just wanted to. Do you mind?”

“No.” He didn't mind at all. In fact, he loved it. He was starting to crave any kind of physical connection with her.

She finally raised her head and gazed up at him with happy blue eyes. “I had fun. I like them, especially Bryn.”

“I'm glad. Ready to go?”

“Sure.” But she stayed where she was, looking up at him.

Damn she was beautiful with her cheeks all pink from her wine and her eyes sparkling like that. But he didn't dare take things further. He'd done enough damage last night.

“Missed you.” Taking him off guard, she lifted her face and kissed him, gently but with enough hunger to make him tangle his hands in her gorgeous hair.

Acutely conscious of the fact they were kissing on the front porch under a carriage light for all the world to see, he toned his response down considerably. But the soft moan that escaped her made him want to get her somewhere more private so he could get his hands all over her and press his weight flush against her. Get inside her.

God help him, he didn't think he had the strength to walk away from her a second time.

Something thumped against the window.

He jerked back in time to catch a glimpse of three very curious faces pressed against the front window before they dropped out of view like he'd aimed a weapon at them.

The blood rushed to his face.

Neveah laughed and grabbed his hand, the sound so joyful and carefree he couldn't help but grin back at her. He felt like a teenager who'd just been caught necking with his date by her parents.

“Let's get out of here,” she whispered against his ear.

Now that was a hell of an idea.

He helped her into the truck, gaze getting stuck on the tantalizing inches of bare thigh the skirt exposed as it rode up. When he looked up at her, he found a pleased smile on her lips. Brat.

Pulling down the long, curving driveway, he listened to her impressions of the evening, fascinated by the way she saw people. Nev truly made an effort to understand what made people tick, and her desire to help and heal were evident in the observations she made. “All of them have suffered, yet they haven't let their experiences cripple them. I admire that.”

So did he. “You're like that, too.”

The smile she flashed him hit him square in the heart. “Thanks. I'm trying hard.” With a sigh, she leaned her head back against the headrest and stared out at the road. “Speaking of trying hard... ” Her fingers trailed over his palm.

Uh-oh.

“You realize I was forced to take care of business myself after you left me hanging last night?”

His cock swelled to life in his pants. Christ. Was she trying to make him drive off the road? He had a sudden image of her hands moving over her naked body, giving herself the pleasure he hadn't let himself.

“What do you have to say about that?”

Uh...
“Hope it was good for you.”

Her eyes narrowed. “It wasn't near as good as it would have been if you'd stayed.”

His hands tightened on the steering wheel. The beast inside him snarled and rattled its cage. “You'd better be sure you want what you're asking me for before you keep pushing me.”

“I am.”

Keeping his eyes on the road, Rhys chuckled at her bluntness. He'd already made up his mind, but he wasn't going to tell her what his decision was. He'd rather show her instead.

This was gonna be a long-ass drive back into town.

By the time Rhys took her back to her hotel and checked her room to make sure it was secure, Neveah was fighting the need to throw herself at him. That calm, cool, collected routine of his was a total turn on. As was the efficient and decisive way he handled everything, like when he'd whisked her off the porch and into the truck after they'd been caught kissing.

After her bold declaration, he'd been extra attentive to her on the drive back, stroking her hand and her arm with his fingertips, the side of her neck. Add in the way he looked in his suit, and... God, how much stimulation was a girl supposed to withstand?

When he flicked on a lamp in the corner, she assumed everything was fine and took a step closer. “Can I come in?”

“Yeah.” His deep voice caressed a place low in her abdomen that had lain dormant until that moment. “Coast is clear.”

Slipping inside and shutting the door, she made sure to bolt it securely. The single lock and slide struck her as pathetically inadequate protection against a real threat, but she did have Rhys with her, and that was better than any reassurance she would ever get.

She took off her coat and hung it in the closet, then toed off her pumps. Looking behind her, she found him sliding his tailored jacket off his wide shoulders, exposing the gun holster cris-crossing his back and the black grip of the pistol beneath his left armpit. She swallowed, suddenly reminded that no matter how beautiful he was and how well he treated her, he was still lethal. The edge of unease came back to haunt her.

Stop it.

Meeting her gaze, Rhys shrugged out of the holster and set it carefully atop his folded jacket on the top shelf in the closet. He shut the sliding door so she wouldn't have to see it. As though he'd read her mind, he asked, “You okay with me being here?”

He was staying. Her heart started to drum in her ears.

“Yes. Thanks.” She felt a hell of a lot safer being in the same room with him than if she were alone. Might even be able to get some sleep if he stayed, too. Or, if she was really lucky, no sleep at all.

She eyed the breadth of his shoulders and the swells of muscle beneath his dress shirt. He was the best reason she could think of to go without sleep, and she'd gladly sacrifice her precious hours of rest if it meant being alone with him. Especially if it involved being naked in bed with him.

Meeting her blatant stare, he arched a coal black brow. “Need something?”

Her eyes jerked to his while a hot blush stole over her face and neck. Where had all her bravery gone? “What?”

He seemed to be hiding a smile. She wasn't quite sure how she knew it, but something in his eyes warmed and flickered for a moment. Amusement? She hoped not.

“I asked if you needed anything.”

“No, thanks. I'm good.” She wasn't going to beg. He hadn't touched her since kissing her briefly in the Escalade when he'd parked in the underground, except for that gentlemanly hand on the small of her back on the way to her room. She wished they were still back in the shadowed confines of the truck so she could have more of him. Now, the comparatively bright light from the lamp across the room made her feel awkward about going to him. As did the remote vibe she sensed from him now.

Running her gaze over him longingly while he had his back turned, Nev withheld a sigh. Didn't he feel how strong the pull was between them? The magnetism was so powerful it sizzled over her skin and settled in her bones. Her lungs couldn't seem to get a full breath of air when he was in the same room as her. How could he just turn his feelings on and off like that?

To distract herself she picked up the remote and flipped the TV on to a sports show, figuring he'd appreciate that, and sank onto the couch. Behind her, Rhys turned off the lamp. She glanced over her shoulder, expecting him to come over and sit beside her.

But when he turned around and locked his gaze on hers, the little oxygen remaining in her lungs disappeared. Her stomach flipped like she'd just dropped three floors in a runaway elevator. Rhys had never looked at her like this. Everything about him radiated erotic promise.

She couldn't tear her eyes from his while he strode over and took the remote from her unmoving hand. Without breaking her gaze, he hit the power button to turn off the TV, plunging the room into sudden darkness before he leaned over and placed it on the coffee table.

Silence enveloped them. With him standing so close, invisible currents of electricity leapt across the empty space between them. As her eyes adjusted in the pale moonlight streaming through the window, she caught the stark hunger in his expression. She swallowed hard.

He watched her, waiting. He reminded her of a predatory animal, choosing its moment to strike. All she could hear was the thudding of her heart in her ears. She sat completely still, the muscles in her belly drawn so tight they hurt.

You wanted this. Little late to be having second thoughts.

He closed the remaining distance separating them and stopped in front of her, taking her hands in his. The simple contact jolted deep in her womb.

Nev craned her neck back to meet his eyes, and the sheer desire revealed in them stunned a gasp out of her. No one had ever looked at her like that. Rhys's expression made her think he wanted to eat her alive. A shiver of anticipation rolled through her body.

When he tugged her to her feet, she obeyed without a thought, riveted by his focused expression. Before she had time to wonder what he'd do, he slid his hands up the intensely sensitive skin of her inner arms and over her shoulders, up her throat to her face. The seductive touch was completely at odds with the molten heat blazing from his eyes and set her heart pounding.

She'd sensed this in him, this volcanic heat beneath the icy exterior he showed the rest of the world. This was the real man beneath the cool facade. Some part of her had recognized this side of him the moment they'd met in Paris. Yet confronting the overwhelming power of him in the shadowed room wracked another shiver out of her.

Tilting her head and stretching up to meet him, she waited while he lowered his lips to hers. She was caught off guard when he moved aside at the last instant to ever so lightly graze his cheek against hers. His delicious scent enveloped her as the shockwave of warmth suffused her body. The five o'clock shadow across his cheeks and jaw rasped gently over her tender skin as he caressed her. The gesture was almost feline, like a huge lion nuzzling its mate. Her fingers automatically curled into the fabric of his shirt, famished to feel the bare skin beneath.

Rhys brought her even closer, until her breasts touched the wide wall of his chest and the front of her thighs brushed his. The rock hard length of his impressive erection against her lower belly set off an unprecedented wave of heat between her legs. She gasped, and at the same moment he covered her lips with his. Instantly she opened for him. He rewarded her with the slow glide of his tongue across her lower lip before dipping inside to stroke hers, the erotic caress making her womb clench. The damp glow between her legs intensified into a throb, as though her heart beat there.

Nev leaned further into him, wanting, craving more contact, running her hands over the mind-blowing swells and dips of muscle she found. His kiss was the most intense she'd ever experienced, and his almost lazy movements made the fire burn hotter.

In the space of a few moments he had her panting and clinging to him, little moans bubbling up from somewhere deep inside. The pleasure he'd already given her was unbelievable, and all he'd done was kiss her.

This was all wrong. This wasn't her.

With nothing more than a kiss, he'd turned her weak and pliant in his arms. She didn't
do
weak and pliant, especially when it came to sex. And she most certainly didn't do soft and submissive, either.

You do now.

The startling thought made her eyes fly open. How the hell did he affect her so much? God help her, but Rhys made her want to lie down and pull him on top so he could do whatever he wanted with her. She tried to come up with an explanation for it, but came up empty. Then he angled his head for a better fit with her mouth, and she stopped thinking altogether. Her lashes fluttered down on a sigh.
More
, she thought dizzily. She needed more of him.

With shaky fingers she found the top button on his shirt and undid it. She kept going until he released her to pull the hem from his waistband and peel it over his head, exposing the mouthwatering landscape of his muscular torso to her gaze and touch. She almost whimpered.

A dark scattering of chest hair narrowed to a thin strip that traveled down his ribbed abdominals and disappeared beneath his waistband. Her eyes followed the gorgeous lines of his lats as they fanned out from his ribs. She flattened her palms over the hot skin of his chest, ravenous to touch him, and turned her face up when he threaded his hands in her hair.

Rhys kept complete control of the kiss, never letting her take over, forcing her to meet his lazy rhythm. His fingers swept over her hair where it fell in waves against her throat and down to her breasts. Each light caress of his fingertips brought another wave of goose bumps racing over her violently sensitive skin, until she was arching her back to rub her breasts against his hard chest, seeking relief from the torture. In answer, Rhys let out an erotic purr and backed her up against the wall behind the couch, pressing her there with his body.