The Runner's Enticement (Men of Circumstance Book 2) (15 page)

“More,” she whispered.

He chuckled at her greedy request. “Think, Anna. We are in the drawing room with a locked door that will do nothing for your reputation. Hardly the place to bring this to a pleasurable conclusion.”

She wasn’t ready to concede. “More.”

“Anna,” he groaned.

“More.”

A full grin joined his warning. “You asked for it.”

Anna had no time to think before he freed himself from her arms, slowly slid down her body, and proceeded to give her what she’d asked for . . . more.

In a futile attempt to preserve her modesty, he managed to touch her without removing any clothing, while somehow baring every bit of skin that craved the feel of his fingers—and lips. She was too consumed by endless pleasure to study his technique.

It wasn’t until he began to work her dress up her legs that she started to wonder how he could conclude their lovemaking with him still fully clothed. Not to mention his manhood was closer to her feet than where she craved it.

She found her voice to question his actions. “Nate?”

Instead of answering with words, his eyes skimmed over her body before he flashed a very wicked smile as he bared her sex to his close perusal, causing her to squirm. In nervousness or wanton anticipation, she wasn’t certain. She couldn’t isolate the conflicting emotions flowing through her to know which one was stronger.

Either way, she wasn't about to stop him. Not yet.

His eyes fused with hers as he descended, bringing him even closer to her center. Not until his head disappeared behind the bunched fabric of her dress did he lower his gaze. The thought of him viewing her most private flesh had her simultaneously twitching to cover herself and silently begging for him to touch her and ease the ache building under his scrutiny.

Afraid he’d never soothe the deep throbbing, she panted with need. When he finally ended her misery and touched her, her back arched sharply against the sofa. For, instead of the more familiar stroke of his finger, she felt the slick glide of his tongue, followed by his lips working over her.

“Nate!”

“Now you can thank me,” he murmured against her slit.

She almost sobbed at the added vibration.

Immersed in his intimate kiss, her body shuddered when his finger joined his mouth. He placed his hand on her hip to steady her.

“Easy, sweet. Just let it overtake you.”

His tongue pressed harder, increasing the momentum creating havoc within her. Before she could comprehend where he was guiding her, her moans filled the room.

“That’s it, Anna. Let it go. Take more. Take it all.” Enticing words muttered so close to her core that she
felt
each utterance.

Nate had brought her so close to the edge, the moment his finger slid deeper into her heat she lost all control and shattered from the inside out.

Chapter 27

Even after he had lowered her dress to a respectable level and she’d returned to the party invitations, Nate struggled to calm his arousal. The memory of Anna’s soft cries, as she’d finally let go, rang in his ears. He shifted in his seat and readjusted his throbbing erection.

After their first intimate encounter, he’d vowed it would be the only time he’d take advantage. Yet a man would have to possess god-like strength to resist her pleas for more.

So, there he sat, his lust stronger than ever and worse, more deeply involved with Anna. Two things not in his favor.

He studied her over the table that kept them a safe distance apart.
It had been worth it.

Each time the line of her lips curved up in the corner, he knew she recalled his illicit kiss. Her smile alone kept him from regretting the impulses to taste her.

“If you don’t stop staring, I’ll finish what
you
started.”

Her bold pronouncement left him struggling to breathe. Once he managed to mollify his desire to accept her offer, he realized he liked this side of her. A brazen yet demure kitten had replaced the spoiled princess.

“As tempting as that may be, you know it can’t happen,” he answered with more conviction than he felt.

He also ignored his cock that seemed to question
why
it couldn’t happen, just as he’d brushed off Anna when she’d attempted to see to his needs. Lifting her skirts in her father’s house had already gone so far beyond decency, anything further would surely land him in hell.

Her eyes remained focused on her task when she answered, “So you say.”

Envisioning countless instances of him needing to spurn her advances, he swallowed a heavy moan. He doubted he had the strength to refuse her for long. Not with the honeyed taste of her still on his tongue. For both their sakes, though, he must at least try.

He didn’t know where she thought their liaison would advance, but he wasn’t foolish enough to believe shackling her life to his factored into it.

The butler appeared in the doorway and Nate was grateful he’d had enough sense to open the door after he’d removed his head from beneath Anna’s skirt. He’d hate to have to explain a locked door to Brodford. The man might be scatterbrained at times, but Nate could still see him planting a well-aimed bullet straight through the heart.

“Mr. Frederickson, a letter came for you,” Carson stated as he held out the silver tray holding the letter.

Certain it was Lawson reiterating what Foxmoore had already shared, Nate flicked open the seal without thought.

Only the now familiar script taunting him wasn’t Lawson’s familiar scrawl. The sight before him solidified why he needed to keep his distance from Anna and his mind focused on his job. He not only must stop a killer from making Anna his next victim, but silence his blackmailer once and for all.

Hopefully, the letter in his hand would bring him at least
one
clue.

Aware of Anna’s eyes on him, Nate kept his features smooth, despite wanting to tear the person responsible for the latest threats limb from limb. Because there was no mistaking the blatant threats written on the paper.

By now you must be aware of my special gift to you. I figured it was time for you and The Viper to be reunited. I just hope your pretty charge doesn’t meet him first.

Since we are both aware of how unpredictable the man can be, know I retain no control over his actions. You should have heeded my words, Frederickson. Now you will pay the consequence. Or will it be her?

Through his haze of fury, Anna’s voice finally penetrated. “Nate? Nate, what is it?”

It took all his resolve to harness the impulse to kick over the furniture. Anything to release his anger at being the target of not one, but
two
madmen.

As composed as possible, Nate focused on Anna. Worry was written into the crease of her forehead and he hated himself for putting it there. He should have been more careful. He should have thought before opening the letter in front of her. How was he to know the blackmailer would be bold enough to have a letter delivered during the middle of the day?

“Nate?” Anna questioned once more, alerting him to the fact he had been gaping at her.

“Sorry. It is nothing,” he managed to say as he folded the letter and removed it from her sight, hoping she’d forget its existence.

He should have known better. “Is it about The Viper? Did Foxmoore have additional information?”

Damn. He never should have allowed Foxmoore to divulge anything within her hearing. He must have lost his touch. He should return to London and hand Lawson his resignation. He wasn’t fit to be a Runner.

Recalling his promise to her father to keep her from knowing the extent of the danger he’d placed her in, Nate flashed the charming smile that had helped him brazen through most of his life. “You, princess, have been reading too many novels. It is only orders from my supervisor. Nothing to worry about.”

For a slight moment he thought she’d believed him. Then her eyes narrowed, but not before a flicker of hurt turned them more green than blue. “How silly of me to think after everything, you’d at least have the decency to not lie to me. I forget you are a Runner above all.”

He might not welcome the distance emerging between them, but it was necessary. He’d let his guard down and she’d found a way past his defenses. If he wanted to keep her safe, he needed to reconstruct the barricade. And keep it there.

Nate just hoped she wouldn’t hate him in the end.

“Why would I lie?”

At her single, raised brow he understood how her wayward students felt when faced with her silent chastisement.

“I’m here as a Runner to do a job. I’d think you’d be more accepting of the fact.”

“Is that what you were doing while you had your head between my legs? Being a Runner? Doing your job?”

She spat the last into the open air between them, the daring admonishment flying from her mouth and sending him into near-madness. Not enough to overlook her pain, though.
Blast the woman and her newfound boldness.
He wanted to distance himself from her, not cause her to regret sharing her body with him.

Unwise or not, Nate stood, skirted the table, and pulled her to her feet. With her short stature her nose was level with his chest and in her typically stubborn fashion she kept her eyes pinned forward, refusing to meet his gaze, leaving him no option but to study each strand of fire hidden within the brown of her hair.

Mesmerized by one specific cluster curving over the side of her head to disappear into the loose knot at the back, Nate battled the urge to pull her into his arms. Instead, he placed his finger below her chin and tipped her head until he met her sad eyes.

“Anna, know today—and our night together—had
nothing
to do with my job. I was with you
despite
being here for an assignment.”

As she continued to regard him silently, Nate was at a loss as how to proceed. He’d relied on his charm and decent looks for so long, he’d rarely encountered such a problem.

Even his situation with Diana didn’t compare. His problem hadn’t been how to proceed with her. It had been placing his trust—and ultimately his heart—with her to begin with. She’d been all too willing to continue their relationship, as long as it remained private and he didn’t mind sharing her with the man who had been deemed worthy to be her husband. Since he wasn’t enamored of sharing his women, or being reduced to a sensual plaything, he’d walked away with a battered heart and a more enlightened view of the aristocracy.

He already knew Anna was different. Different than Diana and surely different than the overindulged brat he’d once thought Anna to be. Nonetheless, he wasn’t ready to lay his feelings before her. She might be different but her future was still with a man as blue-blooded as she.

He struggled to lighten the mood of the room. “It has been my pleasure to give you
more
.”

He added his typical easygoing smirk, ignoring the fact it felt forced when used with Anna.

And should have known she wouldn’t be fooled.

“You know there is no need to charm me. I’m not about to go running from the room in hysterics. I have more sense than that. I’m not asking anything of you, Nate. What you’ve given me has been all I expected.” She now grinned at him. “More, actually.”

After today he might never be able to hear the word
more
without becoming aroused.

“All you’ve
taught
me aside, I thought we had become friends. Or at least on friendlier terms. I only ask you not lie to me.”

Her honest plea grabbed at his heart, leaving him torn between honoring her request and keeping her safe.

Could he do both? Maybe it would be best for her to be aware of the possible danger. If she saw the threat coming she would be prepared. But since he vowed to take down The Viper before he could strike, there was no need to raise her fear.

More so, Nate feared her reaction to the truth that he was the reason behind her being threatened. Anna could easily resent him.

Taking his silence as his answer, she released a soft sigh before she withdrew, leaving Nate feeling cold.

“My father placed my wellbeing in your hands, essentially entrusting you with something important to him. All I ask is you extend a similar trust to
me
.”

Still the same determined pixie of a woman he’d met the first day, there was no wavering of her words. Nate didn’t doubt she meant every one of them. A bit of tension drained from his body when she sat and returned her attention to the invitations he’d distracted her from.

How could he prove he trusted her if he was essentially lying to her? She was too stubborn to believe he’d done it with her safety in mind. Nate could only hope she’d come to understand his decision.

He had turned to reclaim his seat when she spoke, all the while keeping her concentration on the invitation she was writing. “You have nothing to fear from me, Nate. I’m not about to force you down the aisle of the nearest church. I knew what my decision meant the moment I made it. You have no reason to feel guilt or responsibility for me.”

Words fell from his lips before he could think of what they meant. “You might not like it, but you are my responsibility.”

She graced him with her beautiful eyes. When she opened her mouth to speak, he rushed on, “Before you claim my job as the reason, even if I were to catch the thief today and there was no longer a question of your safety, I’d still want to protect you. And I don’t fear you. At least not for the reason you think.”

Heat rushed up his neck. Truth was, he did fear
her
. Terrified would be more accurate. If only it were because of something as simple as not wanting to be leg-shackled. That worry he could handle.

At her scrutiny, Nate wished he could respond to the question shining from her eyes. How could he possibly fear her?

A stronger man would just open his mouth and give her the answer. Admit she had the power to destroy him. Somewhere between being frustratingly annoyed with her days ago—and today—he’d come to want her, and not solely for sexual reasons. He desired her for more than the gentle curves of her body. Pure and simple, he wanted
her.
He wanted Anna in his life—and for more than the here and now.

What terrified the hell out of him more, he wasn’t sure he could open himself to the possibility of not being enough for her.

Even if by some small chance she felt the same, it wouldn’t be fair to tie her life to his and essentially close doors once open to her. He wanted more for her.

She
deserved
more.

No easy answer in sight, Nate ignored her imploring look and lowered himself to the sofa, brushing the forgotten letter with his hand. A reminder as to why he needed to keep his fanciful fantasies to himself. His life was filled with the kind of peril and uncertainty he never wanted her exposed to.

He’d give his own life before he allowed The Viper to breathe the same air as her.