Sinful Suspense Box Set (82 page)

Chapter
12

After Francesca had gone, a strange calm had fallen over the office as if the threat of a hurricane or looming disaster had been lifted. It was hard to know which one of us was happiest to see her go, but the relief showed in everyone’s faces.

Nick almost danced out of his office as we were closing up. “Hey, Flash, let’s go home and pack overnight bags. I’ve got a surprise.”

“I am a big proponent of surprises,” I said.

“What surprise?” Taylor asked as he as closed up the blinds.

“Doesn’t include you,” Nick said. He turned to Pierre before he could open his mouth. “Or you.”

“That’s fine. Taylor and I have plans of our own,” Pierre said.

“We do?”

“We do now.” Pierre assured him.

Since I had no idea what the surprise was, I hastily packed a dress, a bathing suit, and my sexiest nightie which wasn’t terribly sexy since I hadn’t really planned for this job to head in a trashy lingerie direction. Since we had to carry our things on the motorcycle, Nick and I shared a backpack.

I grabbed his shoulders and threw my leg over the back of the bike. “When will I know what the surprise is?”

“You’ll see when we get there.”

After a slow ride through the town’s traffic, Nick turned off on a long dirt road. I propped my chin on his shoulder. We headed through groves of palm trees and then onto a rough road, although road was too fancy of a word for the swath of dirt we traveled on.

We were definitely headed toward the beach. We came to a small clearing with a primitive, thatch-roofed hut that sat just feet from the turquoise water.

Nick turned off the motor. “We’re here.”

“Wow, what a location.” We hopped off the bike, and Nick took the backpack from my shoulders.

“It’s a vacation rental that belongs to my mom,” he said. “I rented it out today, but they won’t be arriving for two days so the place is vacant.”

Palm trees and shrubs surrounded the tiny hut, and the beach front was secluded as well. “It is so quiet.” I smiled up at him. “Like we’re the only people in the world.”

“The place isn’t much, but the location is the best on the island.” He dropped the backpack and pulled me into his arms. “In fact it is so remote. . . ” He kissed me. “. . .clothing is entirely optional.”

“Well, that is very good to know.” I left his embrace and walked to the water. Warm, silky sand squished between my toes. Aside from several small boats anchored a good distance away, it truly felt like a deserted island. A sultry breeze wafted across the calm water. I glanced back at Nick. Sometimes he was so incredible, I had a hard time believing he was real. And the fact that he truly seemed to like me made everything that much more unbelievable. It was rare for me to give my heart up to someone, and I had to constantly remind myself that his attachment was purely physical. That thought kept me grounded . . .  slightly depressed but grounded. 

“It’s still hot out. I think we should take a swim.” I walked back and picked up the backpack. “I’ll go inside and change into my suit.”

He grabbed my wrist as I skirted past him. “Uh, you have a short memory, Flash. Or have you already forgotten the clothing optional section of our conversation?”

I squinted out to the beach. “But it’s still light out.”

“And there’s no one around to see except me.” His fingers took hold of the hem of my t-shirt and he lifted off it of me. The sea breeze tickled the bare skin of my back as he reached for the hook on my bra. His calloused fingertips trailed along the skin of my shoulders and arms as he slid the bra straps down. It dropped onto the sand. His nimble fingers slid over the sides of my breasts, and he teased my nipples between his thumbs and forefingers.

I fumbled with the button on his shorts and nearly laughed at the clumsiness of my trembling hands. “Not enough praise can be given for thumbs.” I finally succeeded and pushed the shorts off his hips. His long, thick erection sprang free, and I wrapped my fingers around him His groaned was muffled by my breast as I traced my finger over the slick tip of his arousal.

With one hand, he had my shorts undone and around my ankles. My panties followed and I was standing stark naked on a beach wrapped in the arms of the most glorious man I’d ever laid eyes on. I worried someone would wake me from my dream.

“What about the swim?” I sighed as his fingers trailed up my inner thigh.

“What swim?” he muttered as his fingers slid into me.

My knees weakened and he caught me with his free hand. I pushed his shirt up and he dragged it over his head. My mouth pressed against the smooth skin of his chest and my tongue trailed over the hard, muscular ridges. His fingers fell away from the hot moisture between my thighs, and I kneeled in the soft sand. My tongue traced the long scar on his thigh and then one hand cupped him as my other hand took hold of his hardened shaft. I pushed it between my lips. A low groan rolled out of his mouth as his fingers tangled in my hair. My tongue swirled wildly around the moist tip, and he clutched my hair tighter with each teasing flick. My lips moved quickly over him, and his hips moved in rhythm with my mouth.

“Stop, Jayden,” he growled. He reached down and lifted me to my feet. “Too soon,” he said hoarsely. “Those lips of yours are too much.” He lifted me into his arms and carried me to a faded wicker couch sitting on a small patio in front of the hut. He lowered me onto the cushion and leaned down over me. His kisses were hungry but tender as his knees pushed open my legs.

He stopped and gazed down at me. “Hell, Jayden, I can’t get enough of you.” His hand lifted my bottom off the cushion, and he slid inside and warmth flooded every inch of me. We moved in perfectly frenzied motion as the soft fragrant breeze dusted our naked skin and the waves slapped the shore. My fingernails dug into his shoulder as each of his thrusts went deeper and harder.

I muffled my cry against his shoulder as our release came simultaneously.

***

After one of the most luxurious naps I’d ever taken, naked and wrapped in the greatest arms I’d ever had the pleasure to be nestled in, all while snuggled on a wicker couch overlooking the most beautiful and most deserted beach in the world, I woke up completely famished.

An ethereal dusk had fallen over the beach giving the turquoise water a pinkish cast. The warmth of the day had remained, but the breeze had intensified and the palm trees performed their usual synchronized dance.

I lifted my face off of Nick’s equally great chest. He was staring down at me through his long black lashes. “Hungry?” he asked.

“How’d you know?”

“Your stomach was growling so loudly, it woke me.”

I pressed an arm against my belly. “Only I could completely obliterate the most romantic moment of my life with stomach churnings.”

“I thought it was cute,” he said.

I sat up and instinctively covered my naked breasts with my arms. “I’ll bet Francesca’s stomach never growled.”

He sat up next to me. “Hey, Jayden.” He pulled my chin to face him and kissed the sulk from my lips. “Don’t ever compare yourself to her. She represents all that is wrong with the world, and you are everything that is right.”

His words caught me off guard, and after the intimate nap we’d just shared, I blinked back unexpected tears. I’d tried my hardest to keep my guard up. Ridiculously, I’d convinced myself that I could enjoy the sexy trysts with this amazing guy and still keep my heart out of it. But the hunger in my stomach had grown into a heavy knot. It was my gut telling me it was too late. As practiced as I was at keeping my head cool in relationships, this time that coolness seemed to be slipping away.

I walked over to where we’d left our clothes in a sandy pile.

“Are you all right, Jayden?” he asked, obviously sensing my sudden unease.

“I’m fine.” My voice didn’t sound quite right to my ears. I decided I had to suck it up and fast. I took a deep breath and smiled at him. “Any food inside?”

His pale green gaze held mine for a moment, and the way he looked at me did nothing toward helping me regain my composure. I looked away and busied myself with pulling on my clothes.

I hadn’t heard him approach. His large arm wrapped around my waist and his chest pressed against my back. He lowered his mouth to my ear. “Jayden, you drown my senses. When I’m near you, all I can think about is touching you, kissing you, holding you. But it’s not just physical . . .” He didn’t finish but he continued to hold me. “Flash,” he whispered. ” His arm dropped away and he swept up his clothes. “I put some steaks in the fridge. Let’s go inside and fill that empty stomach of yours.”

The inside of the hut was cozy and incredibly small. Nick’s large frame barely fit in the small dining area, and he had to duck beneath the doorways. But then the man’s presence was always huge, no matter the size of the room.

We sat at the wobbly kitchen table eating overcooked steak, drinking sparkling wine, and listening to music from a pair of raspy sounding speakers.

“So what was it like growing up as Cindy Hampton’s son?” I asked.

“Lonely. She was a single mom, and she was always gone. Business dominated her life and my brother and I were an afterthought.” There was a genuine sadness in his tone. He poured himself another glass of wine. “The only time I ever really got her attention was when I got into trouble. It was probably the reason I always got into trouble.”

I waved a finger at him. “I thought you looked like a troublemaker. What about your brother?”

“David was super brainy. Even when we were kids, he was determined to become a doctor. And he’s a damn good one too. But he never got into trouble. He didn’t seem to mind that Mom had no time for us, especially because she made enough money to send him to the best medical school.”

“Where does your brother practice medicine?”

He paused and seemed to consider his answer. “At the moment he is in the Amazon.”

I looked at him across the little table for a moment, completely baffled by his answer. “Do you mean as in the big internet company?”

“No, I mean as in the big South American river.”

“I’m just not picturing a state of the art hospital along the banks of the Amazon River.”

“That’s because there isn’t one.” He filled my glass. “After years in the best stateside colleges and hospitals, David went to South America to help villagers fight off diseases like cholera and malaria.”

“Truly?”

“Yep. My mom wasn’t thrilled but she supported him in his decision.”

“Wow, I think I would like your brother.” I sawed my tough steak. “Is David better at cooking than you?”

“Unfortunately, he’s better at everything than me.”

I lifted an eyebrow. “Truly?” I repeated.

He mirrored my lifted brow but his was definitely out of annoyance. “Well, I can’t vouch for all of his
talents
.”

I laughed. “I’ll bet he’s not as dreamy as you.”

“Hell no. No one’s that dreamy.” He stood and picked up the bottle of wine. “Let’s sit outside. It’s cooler out by the water.”

The moonlight reflected off of tiny sparkles in the slate gray sand, and a yellow blade of light split the surface of the water. We sat on the sand. I dug my toes down to the cooler layer and lifted my face to fragrant breeze. “Excuse my choice of words, but this place is fucking amazing.”

“It is definitely a step up from Los Angeles,” he said. “So did you grow up in California?”

I nodded. “I was born in Pasadena, and I’ve never lived farther than thirty miles from Los Angeles. I’m definitely a native. My mom struggled to keep us in one place so we moved a lot. I attended five different schools growing up, so I never had a lot of close friends. My sister and I were tight, but boys were her dominant interest and a little sister definitely gets in the way of romance.”

“And you?”

I leaned my head against his solid shoulder. “Oh, I was definitely boy crazy, but I was more interested in getting good grades and being a successful business woman.”

He reached down, took hold of my waist, and lifted me into his lap. His fingers pushed back my hair and his mouth began a tantalizing trail of kisses down the side of my neck.

“I always managed to find just the right balance of books and boys,” I sighed. “Because success is great,” I said breathlessly as his tongue found the back of my ear. “But boys are pretty great too.”

Chapter
13

After a long night of making love, and an incredibly erotic shower in a tiny stall with a giant man, I was feeling a bit lightheaded with bliss. But as was always the case with my life, I knew that the amount of good fortune and happiness I encountered at any particular moment in time was certain to be counteracted by a series of crap-ass events. My mom had always assured me that it was those ups and downs in life that kept people grounded. I just wasn’t expecting everything to go south so quickly. And never could I have predicted how far south it would go.

Nick and I lingered over a long breakfast of coffee, pastries, and intense flirting. We decided it wouldn’t hurt to be a little late for work.

“I think we should take that swim,” Nick suggested as we cleaned up the dishes.

“I agree. I’ve been dying to wear my bathing suit.”

“Well, I was sort of thinking sans the suits, but I guess we could go the more traditional route.”

He tossed the dish towel on the counter and reached for my wrist. He brought it behind my back, and with one quick movement, he had my second wrist trapped in his large hand as well. His free hand reached beneath my shirt, and his fingers felt their way up to the hook of my bra. My breasts sprang free and he pushed the bottom of my t-shirt up above them. I squirmed in his grasp but he held my hands tightly behind my back as his mouth devoured my taut nipples. He released my hands and immediately my fingers groped for the buttons on his pants, but he didn’t allow my freedom for long. He clamped both of my wrists in one hand and dragged me up against the kitchen wall, where we effectively managed to knock two small pictures to the floor. He grasped my wrists tightly in his strong hand as he lifted my hands above my head. His free hand quickly removed my shorts. We’d made love half a dozen times in the last twelve hours, yet I still ached for more. Without releasing his hold on me, he dropped his pants to the ground. His green eyes were like liquid emeralds as his magnetic gaze drew me in. His mouth slammed down over mine, and his free hand slid beneath my bottom and lifted me. My back pressed against the cold wall as my legs wrapped around his waist and he drove inside of me. I gasped at the delicious agony as he buried himself deeper. My fingers tingled above my head as his grip on me tightened with each movement of his hips. The fingers of his free hand dug into the skin of my bottom as he pulled me harder against him. I collapsed against his nearly punishing grasp of my wrists as I climaxed around him. He nearly lost that same hold as he threw his head back with a groan of ecstasy. The two of us slid down the wall, and I collapsed in his arms. We sat there for a long time in each other’s embrace until the ring of Nick’s phone vibrated the kitchen table.

Nick sighed and I scooted off his lap. I got dressed while he answered his phone.

“What?” he asked rather rudely and then walked out of the room.

I wondered if Francesca was calling him.

“What the fuck, Pierre?” His angry tone filled the small house. “How the hell could this have happened? Yeah, I’ll be right there.”

I looked cautiously into the room where he stood. There was plenty of tension in his massive shoulders as he scrubbed his long hair back with his fingers. “Sonavabitch,” he muttered to himself.

I poked my head around the corner. “Nick?”

He glanced up at me. “Yeah, sorry, but we’ve got to get to the office. Grab up your things and I’ll meet you on the bike.” He sounded distant and cold. It was such a contrast to the wild, passionate man who’d just held me in the kitchen, it was almost surreal.

We rode silently and hastily back to the office. I felt invisible as Nick stormed into his back office where Pierre and Taylor were waiting for him. The door slammed shut and I plopped down in my chair determined not to cry. I’d just spent the twelve most passionate hours of my life with one man but a completely different man had just driven me through the streets of Papeete.

I stared at the list of phone calls I needed to make for the day but couldn’t bring myself to pick up the phone.

Then the door to Nick’s office flew open.  “Jayden, would you come here for a mintue?” Pierre called from the doorway.

I pushed up from the chair and an icy cold knot formed in my stomach as I walked inside. Taylor stared out the small window as if he didn’t want to look at me. The man who, just hours ago, had looked at me with lust in his eyes, now stared coldly at me.

“Jayden,” Nick said hesitantly, “did you tear a page off the front of my sketch book? It had drawings with numbers on it.” The accusatory tone in his voice made the icy knot tighten.

“I saw the drawings but I didn’t take the page.” My voice came out less confident than I’d intended.

“So you don’t know anything about it? You never touched it?” Nick repeated.

Tears burned the back of my eyes, and I wanted to reach out and slap him for being so callous after the evening we’d just spent together. I swallowed back the ache in my throat. Hurt induced rage helped me find my tongue. “The only time I’ve ever spent in this office was straddling your lap on that damn chair. Did you happen to see me rip that page off while we were in the throes of passion, you bastard?” He flinched at my words, but I was certain I’d managed to rub some of the hurt off of me and onto him. His expression showed regret now, but it was too late. The damage was done.

“I told you it was Francesca.” Taylor spoke angrily to Nick for the first time.

Nick stared down at the drawing pad. The picture on top was the pencil drawing of me. He fingered the picture absently and then looked up at me. His green gaze had softened, and I had to steel myself against the draw of it.

“I’m sorry, Jayden. Please give me a chance to explain all of this.” His throat seemed to tighten around his words.

I glared at him from across the room. All eyes were on me, and the room fell dead silent. There was nothing I could do to stop the flow of tears, and I could have kicked myself for breaking down in front of him. I shot Taylor a look of thanks for sticking up for me and then my gaze fell on the man who’d both captured and smashed my heart in the space of a week.

He stared back at me. I could see his throat move as he swallowed, but I wasn’t going to give him a chance to talk.

“Go to hell, Nick. There is nothing you can say at this point.” I raced out of the office with tears clouding my vision. I pushed through the tourists crowding the sidewalks. I heard Nick call my name, but I didn’t turn around. I just ran.

I half-jogged, half-stumbled through town and ended up in the crowded marketplace. My black mood suddenly made the friendly smiles of other tourists and pushy sales people in the kiosks irritating rather than charming. In fact, the whole damn place, palm trees, azure seas, and crystal sand beaches became an annoying monotonous blur of scenery. I was homesick for my family, friends, and the smoggy streets of Los Angeles. Everyone here, Nick included, were technically strangers, and I was crazy to fly so far from the security of my life at home.

I found my way onto the walkway and decided to make a bold attempt at finding my way back to the house. I’d run from the office without my bag or my sunglasses. My head had begun to throb in the relentless sunlight. But mostly it was the heavy weight of betrayal pressing against my chest that sickened me. Back home, Darren had pulled a terrible trick on me, and I’d lost my job because of it. It was the worst thing any guy had done to me until now. I’d gotten over Darren within ten minutes of rushing out of the sales meeting. This newest act of betrayal would stay with me a lot longer. I had never been with a guy like Nick, and stupidly I’d allowed myself to fall for him. I should have known no guy was that perfect.

I wandered for what seemed like hours but was most likely only thirty minutes. Every street and shop front looked the same, and the blur of people milling about the walkways didn’t help. I finally came upon a palm tree I recognized. Its oddly twisted trunk had always caught my eye when I was clinging to Nick on the back of the bike. My shoulders drooped at the thought. Apparently I was already experiencing one of the most annoying side effects of a break up where everything was a reminder of
him
.

The deformed palm tree marked the long road that would eventually lead to the house. Of course, my key was back at the office tucked securely in my purse, but I could sit on the shelter of the porch and sulk until I’d made up my mind on what to do next. My heart was leaning toward heading back home.

My headache had churned into a thunderous migraine by the time I reached the house. No one was home, which was a profound relief and disappointment all at the same time. Nick obviously didn’t care enough to see if I’d ended up back home, and that reality depressed me more. Not that I wanted to see him, or anybody for that matter, but I really needed to take a couple of aspirin and collapse on my bed. I stretched out on the rickety chaise beneath the roof overhang. My head ached and my stomach felt queasy and my chest was filled with the weight of heartbreak. All in all, not a great day.

I woke to the sound of a motorcycle roaring up the driveway. The shade over the porch told me I’d slept well into early evening. I sat up groggily and pushed my fingers against my temples. The pain had subsided but I felt lightheaded.

“Jayden!” Nick yelled into the empty house. “Damn it, Jayden, where the hell are you?”

Pierre’s car sputtered up the driveway next.

“She’s not here,” Nick called as they pulled up to the house. “Where could she be?” The angst in his voice almost convinced me that he was worried, but recent horrid events made that seem like a stretch. Maybe he was worried that I was out selling all the secrets I’d stolen from his drawing pad. And now I really was curious about his other line of business.

I pushed to my feet and walked to the front door where the three men were making plans to search for me. All three of their heads shot up as I rounded the corner of the house. No one said a word as I walked past them and headed into the house and straight into my room.

A few moments later, Nick knocked lightly on the door. “Jayden, can we talk?”

I sat on the edge of my bed and stared at the door, but I couldn’t convince myself to answer him. Disappointment kept me from opening the door. After the callous way he’d accused me of taking his notes, I couldn’t think of anything he could say that would make me feel better. Even Taylor had been convinced that it was all Francesca’s doing, but Nick had jumped to another conclusion and that would stick with me always.

My headache had nearly disappeared, but I downed a couple of aspirin and climbed into bed. The pills burned my empty stomach, but I had no appetite. I was just depressed enough to drift off into a dreamless sleep.