“Blah?”
The incredulity in his voice soothed some of her frayed nerves.
“Yeah, blah. You’re gorgeous. I mean perfect. And I’m just blah. We don’t match up very well,” she said in a serious tone. “Gorgeous male specimens such as yourself do not have sex with blah women. They don’t have to. They can have sex with gorgeous female specimens, so why would they settle for blah?”
His lips flapped up and down a moment and he looked so exasperated that she felt sure his next move would be to start pulling at his hair. “You’re shitting me, right?”
She shook her head solemnly.
“You’re an idiot,” he muttered.
“You don’t call a woman an idiot if you have any plans to have sex with her,” Maren retorted.
“You’re an idiot,” he said calmly.
She had nothing to say to that.
He gestured down. “Look at this. Do you think I get this hard for ‘blah’? That I’m so horny and desperate that I’ll fuck anything with a pussy? Jesus Christ, woman, I’m a goddamn walking hard-on around you. Haven’t you ever noticed?”
“N-no,” she stammered out.
“You’re an idiot,” he repeated.
She frowned. “Okay, I’m really not liking that word.”
He sighed. “Okay, you’re clueless then. Completely and utterly clueless.”
She probably couldn’t argue that point because well, it was true. She’d had no idea that he was remotely attracted to her. It still stunned her.
She licked her lips and cleared her throat. “So let me get this straight so we’re on the same page. We have sex tonight. You leave at eight. And we never speak again and pretend this never happened. Do I have it right?”
“Didn’t say we’d never speak again,” he rumbled.
“Yes, because we spoke so much before,” she said sarcastically.
“I want you out from under my skin.”
Well, okay then. That was that. She wasn’t sure how she felt about being used as an exorcism of herself, but sex with Steele wasn’t something she was going to pass up. It wasn’t like opportunities cropped up for her in Bumfuck, Costa Rica. And she damn sure wasn’t going to admit how long it had been since she’d had sex. Better to let him think he’d been the one to go longer without it.
“Whatever works for you,” she said with a sigh.
She started to undo her pants, but Steele put his hand out and wrapped his fingers gently around her wrist.
“No, let me. My fantasy. We’re doing it my way.”
She wanted to say, Hey, what about my fantasy, but this was definitely her fantasy too, so he could have at it. And the idea that she was his fantasy . . . Whoa. Heady stuff. She could live with that. She liked it a whole lot.
He bent over the bed and pressed her backward until she was flat on the mattress. Then he unfastened the fly of her jeans and began to peel the pants down over her hips.
Nerves bubbled in her belly and chill bumps raced over her exposed skin. This was nerve racking. He was naked, and she was okay with that. Definitely. But the idea of her being naked? Of being utterly exposed to him? Of having him see her without clothes? Ugh.
“Relax,” he murmured as he pulled the pants free of her legs.
“Easy for you to say.”
He leaned down and kissed her belly and the flutters increased, rising into her throat. He made what should have been something so simple incredibly sexy. Just a kiss. His lips barely brushed over her skin, but it was the most erotic gesture she’d ever experienced.
“This is nice,” he said against her belly. “But I want that mouth and that pussy. They have to be sweet. I’ve dreamed about it. Wondered what you’d taste like. What you’d feel like underneath me. How it would feel when I got my dick inside that sweet pussy.”
Wow. He’d dreamed about her. She really was under his skin. She kind of liked that even if he didn’t.
He pushed up her shirt, rolling it up over her head, and then he gently raised her arms so he could tug the shirt free. After he tossed it aside, he settled his body over hers, warm and hard.
Suddenly she didn’t mind her squishy body because it accommodated him in all the right places. He felt nice. No, not nice. He felt awesome. If he’d dreamed about her, she’d most definitely had a few X-rated fantasies about him.
“Give me your mouth,” he whispered.
Though his mouth hovered just over hers, his breath warm on her chin, he waited for her to offer her lips. Sucking in a quick breath, she raised her head so that her mouth touched his.
If he’d been patient and slow to that moment, it all fled the moment their lips met.
She sucked in his breath. He sucked in hers. Their tongues clashed, rolling hot and wet. He tasted faintly of mint, and she wondered if he’d done a quick cleanup before she’d arrived back at the cottage. For that matter, he smelled awesome. Clean. Not of dirt and blood and whatever else he encountered on his missions. Obviously he had made use of her shower.
He pulled back, his chest heaving, his eyes glittering down at her. He brushed his hand over her cheek, pushing back her hair, sliding his fingers up and over her ear.
“I was right. That mouth is sweet. Can’t wait to taste the rest of you.”
She shivered uncontrollably. “I want to taste you too.”
He smiled then. An honest-to-goodness full-on teeth-flashing smile. It startled her that his entire face transformed so quickly. He went from brooding, intense, to someone she’d never seen. Relaxed. Warm. Sexy as hell.
“Holy shit,” she whispered.
His eyebrow went up in question.
“Your smile,” she explained. “I’ve never seen you smile like that. I don’t think I’ve seen you smile at all.”
He grimaced, and she regretted her words because she lost the smile.
“Usually not a lot to smile about when we see each other.”
This was true enough, since the only time he saw her was when he or a team member was injured.
“And you’ll get that chance to taste me,” he said, a wicked gleam in his eye.
She put her hand on those muscled shoulders and rolled her fingers over his skin, down to his collarbone and then back up again, lazily tracing a path.
“You’re a really beautiful man,” she said in a breathy voice.
“You’re nuts. Cute but nuts.”
She arched an eyebrow. “Cute is usually a code word when people don’t want to say something that could be considered an insult.”
“I believe we’ve already covered your hotness factor. No insults, veiled or otherwise, from me. I’ve got you in bed. I’m good for at least a year on the fulfilled fantasies list.”
“You know, I really like what you say now that you’re actually talking to me.”
He grinned again, and it sent a thrill all the way to her belly. Lord, but this man was to-die-for sexy. And he was naked. On top of her. Saying sweet things and giving her compliments. Looking at her like she was the sexiest woman on earth. If this was a dream she was going to be one super-pissed-off woman when she woke up.
“If you don’t mind, I’m done talking for a while. I’ve got a lot of tasting to do.”
“Oh, not at all,” she breathed.
“But first, I’m going to get you completely naked so I can mark number two off my wish list.”
“What’s number one?”
He pinned her with his fierce gaze, his expression utterly serious.
“I’ll get to that one when I’m balls deep inside you.”
CHAPTER 5
MAREN held her breath when Steele thumbed her bra straps down her shoulders and began slowly peeling back the cups covering her breasts. He leaned to one side, propping himself on his elbow and turned her with him so he could reach behind her to unfasten the hooks.