Scalded (3 page)

Right now.”

He reached for the condom he’d tossed onto the bed, stripped away the foil and rolled it on with hands that she noticed were trembling. Bending her knees back to her chest, he paused for a moment at her waiting opening, resting the head of his cock on the wet flesh before pushing forward. He rocked his hips, easing himself inside her. A good thing, she thought with some working part of her brain, because he was long and thick and stretched her to capacity.

When he was fully seated he paused and drew in a long breath.

“Look at me,” he commanded.

Halli forced her heavy eyelids open and looked into eyes that burned with hot, sexual need.

“Please,” she said, the only word she could manage.

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“Right now, sugar.”

He set up a steady rhythm, in and out, moving one hand so his thumb rubbed her clit in tempo with his cock. Halli felt the climax rise within her, a needy beast raging through her body, spreading out, out, out.

“Now, Halli,” Reed gasped as he drove into her, hard and fast.

“Now,” she panted.

They exploded together, his cock pulsing inside her contracting pussy, her muscles gripping, gripping, gripping that wonderful cock. Her fingers dragged through his silken hair, holding on for dear life, pulling his head to her as they tumbled through space together.

Halli had no idea how long they lay together, lungs dragging in air, hearts hammering, neither able to move or say a word. After a long time Reed slid carefully from her body and went to dispose of the condom. Then he was back, sliding into bed beside her and yanking the coverlet over them. He cuddled her against him, his chin on her head, his hand stroking her arm.

“Sleep, sugar. You’re gonna need your rest.”

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Desiree Holt & Allie Standifer

Like most mistakes she’d made in her life, Halli didn’t think of the consequences until much, much later. Like when she woke with a large hand cupping her breast and a hard thigh tucked neatly between her legs.

How had her life come to this? Sex with a stranger? Granted it’d been really amazing, earth-shattering, mind-blowing, rocket-launching sex, but still with a person she hadn’t known this time yesterday. Damn Tina and her matchmaking mouth. As knee-melting as the bedroom bingo had been Halli didn’t want a man in her life telling her what to do. She liked having sole control of the remote and never consulting someone else if she wanted to stay late somewhere.

Men, she knew from somewhat limited experience, liked to keep tabs on their women under the guise of concerned protection. Ha, Halli thought with a smirk, men liked to gossip as much as women and were twice as nosy.

Still she couldn’t pretend to sleep all day. Sooner or later Reed would wake up and demand some sort of action from her. Probably wanted her to make him breakfast, she grimaced with a mental snort. Besides her bladder wouldn’t allow her to play opossum much longer.

Feeling like a thief in the night, Halli slowly slid one leg off the bed. She followed the successful action with an arm, the other leg, her torso, until finally she slithered the rest of her parts off the mattress and onto the floor. Refusing to look at the man responsible for giving her so many orgasms, she grabbed her robe from the back of the door and slipped out of the room.

“Fuck,” she cursed softly after taking care of her immediate needs. What the hell was she supposed to do now? A few careful steps brought her to a decision.

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“Coffee and shower,” she decided. The coffee would provide the life-giving caffeine jolt she desperately needed to clear up her sex-muddled brain. The shower would rinse away the lingering pleasant smell of sex and man. She didn’t need to go through the rest of her day smelling Reed. Her memories were more than vivid. They were 3-D

images plastered into her brain for all time.

With practiced ease Halli had the coffee brewing in no time. She carried her favorite oversized mug into the bathroom and quietly shut the door. Waking the sleeping bear next door didn’t top her list of things to do at the moment. She needed to get her own head on straight before trying to explain her thoughts to another human being.

Being as soundless as possible, Halli turned the shower on, sipped her coffee while the water warmed then stepped beneath the pulsing stream with a sigh of relief.

Maybe she’d get lucky and Reed would disappear while she cleaned up. It wouldn’t bother her in the least if she found him gone when she got out. Even as the thoughts raced through her mind Halli ignored the small pang of sorrow at the thought of never seeing him again. What did it matter? Clearly this could just be another notch in his bedpost, a one-night stand that ended when the sun came up.

As quickly as the pang came she dismissed it. Sex was sex was sex. A long sexual drought caused these feelings. It had nothing to do with the man and everything to do with his penis. Yep, she agreed with herself as she dumped shampoo on her wet head, any man, any cock would have scratched her itch last night. It had been too long since she’d felt the hard planes of a man’s body pressed into her own.

Maybe she’d have to take one of her toys out for a test run. Anything to keep from jumping back into bed with Reed Brody.

A sigh of relief escaped Reed’s lips when Halli slipped silently out of bed. She’d given him the perfect opportunity to sneak out without involving a big scene. He hated those. Women crying or screaming or blaming him for leading them on when he’d made his feelings known plainly the night before.

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God love ’em, the fairer sex was a constant mystery to him and he loved the challenge of trying to understand their mercurial moods and nature. Too bad so many of them were looking to him to find their happily ever after.

Reed didn’t know what it was about fairy tales, but they gave women the wrong idea. He wanted a female who didn’t need him to make her happy or complete. If he ever got ready to settle down, his lady would be already satisfied with her life. Just as he was with his.

The sound of the shower reached his ears. He could always take the coward’s way out and leave while she cleaned up. Write a note saying…he didn’t know what. Besides he didn’t like the thought of never seeing her again. Aside from the best orgasm of his life, Reed didn’t know much about the woman he’d spent the better part of last night inside of.

From the look of her merchandise he knew she might be interested in playing a few of the games he liked. A little bondage, a few toys and the right woman would be like a dream come true for him. Maybe he should take the time to find out more about Halli.

In order to do that he needed them to be out in public and away from any flat surface.

Yeah, he made up his mind, grabbed his clothes and followed the scent of fresh coffee to the kitchen. He’d offer to take her out to dinner, get to know her and lay the truth out for her.

He’d take sex, but no relationship. If she went for it then he’d go into more details about what he wanted to do with her and her suitcase full of fun.

With a grin stretching his lips, Reed sat down at her small kitchen table with a large mug of coffee and planned his next move.

* * * * *

The bed was empty, but Halli could still feel his presence in the house. With economical movements she pulled on a pair of worn jeans and her old college 22

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sweatshirt. Leaving her feet bare she padded silently into her tiny sunny breakfast nook and found Reed sitting at the table with a satisfied grin on his smug face.

“Help yourself,” she grumbled, not feeling very gracious as she refilled her own mug.

“I did, thanks.” His voice caressed her as his golden brown eyes traveled over her baggy clothed body. “I want to take you to dinner tonight.”

“Do what?” She stumbled on her way to the table and grabbed the counter for support. She assumed, incorrectly it seemed, that he would tell her last night had been great, but he had to go.

His eyes gleamed with humor. “I want you to go to dinner with me tonight. I’ll pick you up at seven.”

Trying to regain her mental and verbal footing, Halli sank into the chair across from him. “Ever thought of asking?”

He gave a shrug. “Why would I do that? You might say no.”

His reasoning left her baffled but determined. “Look, you don’t owe me dinner.

Last night was what it was. We both enjoyed ourselves. There’s no reason to make more of it.”

“One thing has nothing to do with the other. Look,” he said, leaning forward, his low voice determined. “Do you have plans for this evening?”

“No, but—”

“Good. Now you do.”

Wearily she rubbed her forehead. “Why do you want to do this?”

He didn’t pretend to misunderstand. “I think there’s some things we need to discuss. Plus, we both need to eat. Why not kill two birds with one stone?”

“What things? Why can’t we talk now?”

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“Because we’re alone and when we’re alone all I want to do is find the quickest way to strip you naked and fuck you. Dinner in a public place will at least offer me some respite.”

Halli shook her head, feeling the wet strands of hair clinging to her neck. “You are a confusing man.”

He stood quickly, leaned over pressed a quick, but thorough kiss on her lips and walked out the door whistling.

* * * * *

By seven-thirty that evening Halli’s butterflies had finally settled down into a comfortable holding pattern. She sipped her glass of very good white wine and listened to the handsome and captivating man sitting across from her. He’d told her about his cybercrimes job, about his two brothers who were also cops, and about his older brother’s recent romantic adventures.

“Then Sky finally pulls his head out of his ass and tells Kasey everything.” He finished the funny story of his oldest brother’s recent engagement. The tale warmed her heart and lent Reed a more normal tone he’d been lacking, at least in her own mind.

She laughed at both the ending and her own weird musings. “He really thought he could hide his job from her?”

Reed shot her cocky grin that made her grateful to be sitting down. The full wattage smile made her knees weak. “My brother was and is ass over heels in love. In his mind he equated being a cop with losing the girl.”

“But they’re together now?”

“Oh yeah, Sky hasn’t let Kasey out of his sight since they made up. Plus, he says she needs his help with research.”

“Research? I thought you told me Kasey worked as a bookkeeper.” What possible research would a number cruncher need?

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“Ah… Kasey quit her day job. She’s now writing full-time.” A red flush rose over Reed’s tanned cheeks and Halli’s interest rose. Whatever this Kasey wrote must be something to cause a grown sexually active man to blush.

So she did what any sane woman would do in her position. She taunted him mercilessly. “And what does Kasey write now? Kids’ books?”

His horrified look answered her question before his lips moved. “Hell, no.”

Having way too much fun at his expense, Halli continued to tease him.

“Cookbooks? How to? Self-help?”

With a quick glance around the elegant restaurant, Reed leaned over the table. “She writes erotic romance. Or at least that’s what she calls it. Seems to make a decent living with it and keeps Sky happy. Other than that it’s so not my business.”

She couldn’t stop the laughter from spilling out of her lips. Slapping her hand over her mouth to stifle the worst of the giggles, Halli sent him an unrepentant shrug. What the hell did the man expect from her? A saint she was not.

“Laugh it up, yuckles. Let’s see how you’d feel if you read one of her books and then had to picture your big brother ‘researching’ the sex with her.” He gave a manly shiver and drained his own glass.

“Poor baby, it must be hell being the perfect middle child.”

“Perfect I’m not.” He leaned over the table, all humor suddenly drained out of the situation. He looked dark, lean and predatory. With that one hot glance her underwear needed changing.

“What,” she demanded, not trusting this new side of him.

“We’ve talked about
my
family,
my
job and
my
life. I want to hear about
you
now.”

Before she could evade it Reed captured her hand and gently clasped it within his own.

“Let’s hear it, Halli. How and why do you have those
tools
? Do you make them, sell them or just use them? If the latter can I schedule a private showing? You never answered me about it last night.”

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“Perv,” she said without heat, knowing any man in his seat would have thought and asked the same questions without bothering to be polite. “I sell them. It’s a good business with no overhead for me. The parties are fun. The women are entertaining and the sales great. I make enough to tuck away every month for my house fund.”

Instead of making some mocking comment or a leering gesture, Reed simply stroked his thumb over her knuckles. “This is all to buy a house?”

“It’s not just a house,” she defended her dream staunchly. “It’s the perfect house.

Another month with good sales and it will finally be mine.” Talking about it just made her ache all the more for what she didn’t have. Yet. “No more living in cramped spaces over the coffee shop. I’ll be able to buy a huge bed, shower for at least half an hour without the hot water going out on me and take a genuine bath. I can’t wait to sit, bundled up on the back porch, in the middle of winter and drink hot cocoa while a fire blazes in my fire pit.”

“Wow,” he looked impressed at her plans. “So this house actually exists somewhere outside your mind?”

“Yep, I’ve made a deal with the real estate agent. If someone else bids on the house before I get my money together she’ll call me with the heads-up. With the economy what it is, I doubt a house that size is going anywhere, but I’ve got my fingers crossed, anyway.”