Vulnerable: (McIntyre Security Bodyguard Series - Book 1) (37 page)

“Sure, honey,” Dottie said, reaching out to pat Beth’s shoulder. “Are you cold, sweetie?” she said, eyeing the jacket.

Shane stood. “Thanks, Dottie. Don’t leave her side until I get back.”

“I won’t,” Dottie said, waving him off. “Don’t worry.”

Shane kissed Beth. “I’ll be right back,” he said. “Stay with Dottie.”

“Where are you going?”

“To have a talk with Richard Morton.”

* * *

Shane found Richard Morton standing beside a table, deep in conversation with the CEO of the children’s hospital. Although it galled him to do it, Shane waited for a break in the conversation before he spoke up. “Excuse me, Susan,” he said, nodding at the CEO. Then he turned to Andrew’s father, his expression hardening. “Richard.”

Richard Morton turned to look at Shane. “Shane,” he said, surprised. “What brings you to my door?”

“Your son does,” Shane said. “Can we talk? In private.”

Richard Morton’s brows furrowed at the mention of his son. “Andrew? What about him?”

“Not here,” Shane said, nodding toward the double doors. “Let’s go out to the lobby.”

Shane turned and headed for the hotel lobby, not bothering to see if Richard followed him or not. If Richard didn’t care enough about his son to hear what Shane had to say, then Shane didn’t care either.

But sure enough, as soon as Shane stepped out into the hotel lobby, Richard spoke up.

“What the hell is this about, Shane?” Richard said, clearly irritated by the interruption. “I don’t appreciate your high-handed – ”

Shane stopped and turned to face Richard Morton. “I’ll make this quick, Richard.” Shane stood with his hands on his hips. “Your son has an unhealthy interest in my girlfriend.”

“Oh, come on!” Richard said, grinning. “How in the hell would Andrew know your girlfriend?”

“She works at the Kingston library.”

“Oh,” Richard said, frowning. Then his expression cleared. “Well, I’m sure it’s harmless. He’s just a kid! So he has a crush on your girl?” Richard scoffed.  “What, you can’t handle a little competition?”

“I don’t care what it is, as long as it ends.” Shane jammed his index finger into Richard’s chest. “Talk to your son. Tell him to stay the hell away from Beth. I’ve warned Andrew, and now I’m warning you. If Andrew bothers her again, I’ll put a stop to it,
my way
. Am I being clear?”

Richard glared at Shane. “You don’t scare me, Shane,” he said, scowling. “And you stay the hell away from my son.”

“Cut the crap, Richard. I’m giving you the chance to handle this your way. If I have to handle it – handle
him
– I guarantee you won’t like the results.”

* * *

When Shane came up behind Beth and laid his hands on her shoulders, she jumped. “Sorry,” he said, kissing the top of her head. He took his seat beside her. “What did I miss?”

“I was just telling Beth about our Alaskan cruise,” Dottie said.

Shane reached out and squeezed Beth’s hand. She gave him a surreptitious smile.

The meal progressed quickly as the servers brought out course after course. There was soup, and then the main course, followed by a parade of dessert carts offering a fantastic assortment of decadent sweets. Shane passed on dessert, opting for a glass of red wine instead. Beth selected a plate of strawberries dipped in dark chocolate.

Sipping his wine, Shane leaned back in his chair and watched Beth eat her strawberries. He reached out and snagged one of the lush berries from her plate and held it out to her. She grinned at him as she opened her mouth and took a bite, moaning softly as she chewed.

When she glanced at Shane, she was startled by the blatant heat she saw in his eyes as he watched her eat.

“Want one?” she asked with a teasing smile on her lips. She held a strawberry out to him.

He leaned forward and took the strawberry into his mouth. After he’d eaten it, he leaned toward her and whispered in her ear. “What I really want to eat is you, as soon as we get home.”

As soon as we get home
. That had such a nice ring to it, Beth thought.

Chapter 33

It was well after midnight when Shane led Beth out front of the hotel to the line of waiting cars. All of the awards had been bestowed and all the speeches made, to resounding applause, and Beth was exhausted.

Shane had reclaimed his tuxedo jacket from Beth just in time to go up on the stage to hand out several awards to top donors. He received an award himself – the last one of the evening – as Benefactor of the Year for donating $12 million so the pediatric oncology department could purchase some ground-breaking new equipment.

Beth watched him as he accepted the award. Of course he looked debonair in his tuxedo, but it was more than just his looks. He was so confident and relaxed standing in front of this huge crowd. His remarks were brief, yet poignant. His said the impetus behind his donation to the Pediatric Oncology Department was the memory of big brother, who died at age six from a brain tumor. His hope was that with this new equipment, other families might not have to endure the same tragic loss that his family had.

Beth was shocked by his pronouncement. He hadn’t mentioned anything about having lost a sibling. He finished his brief speech, then left the stage to a resounding round of applause from the audience. When he returned to his seat, he reached blindly for her hand and held it tightly as the applause died down.

After saying their goodbyes to the Pattersons and to a few other friends of Shane’s, they collected Beth’s purse from the cloakroom and left the hotel. Beth caught a glimpse of Andrew Morton and his father standing beside a limousine. A chauffeur opened the rear passenger door and Richard climbed inside. Andrew paused to look at Beth, his expression hard. After a moment, he climbed in after his father.

“There’s Cooper,” Shane said, leading Beth by the hand down the sidewalk to the Mercedes.

Even though it was summer, the late night air was a tad cool. Shane put his arm around Beth’s shoulders to keep her warm.

“Let’s get you home and into bed,” he said.

Seated in the back seat of the Mercedes, Beth closed her eyes and sighed as she leaned into the soft leather seat. She slipped off her shoes and stretched her feet. “Oh, that feels so good.”

Beth reached across the seat for Shane’s hand. “Thank you for this evening,” she said. “I had a lovely time.”

“Liar,” he said affectionately, and he squeezed her hand. “You were accosted by one of my bitter exes in the ladies room and nearly assaulted on the dance floor,” he said. “I wouldn’t blame you if you said it was the worst night of your life.”

“And you rescued me both times,” she said. “So I won’t complain.”

* * *

The three of them rode the elevator up to the penthouse floor.

“Good night, Cooper,” Shane said, as he and Beth turned down the hallway that led to his private suite. “Hold down the fort tonight, will you? No interruptions, please.”

“I hear you,” Cooper grumbled, chuckling as he headed for the kitchen.

By the time they reached the bedroom, butterflies had taken up residence in Beth’s stomach. She had an agenda for tonight, and the thought of it scared her to death. Shane had been wonderful all evening, and she wanted to do something special for him. She knew what she wanted to do. She just wasn’t sure how well she could pull it off.

“I’m going to lose the tux,” Shane said, heading for the closet.

Beth nodded, heading in the opposite direction. “I’ll just freshen up.”

She stood looking at herself in the bathroom mirror, trying to give herself a pep talk. Her dress truly was lovely, but it wasn’t the dress that Shane wanted to see her in. It was the lingerie. So she stripped off the dress and hung it on a hook on the bathroom wall. Then she quickly brushed her teeth, touched up her hair, and walked back into the bedroom.

“Lights 30%,” she said, and the lighting dropped to a seductively low level.

She really didn’t have a lot of experience at seduction – well, actually none any at all. She looked around the room, searching for the perfect spot to wait for him. Should she stand somewhere? Should she lie on the bed and strike a seductive pose? Crap! She had no idea how to do this. She was afraid she’d look silly no matter what she did.

Shane walked out of the closet dressed only in his boxers. She stopped breathing at the sight of him. He stopped abruptly and stared when he saw Beth standing at the foot of his bed in only her lingerie.

“Say something!” she said, feeling foolish and overexposed.

“I’m speechless.” His eyes glittered hotly as he took in the sight of her in the lingerie he’d been fantasizing about for the past week. The sexy lace bra and panties showed off the sleek lines and curves of her body. But the garter belt and sheer thigh-high stockings were probably going to give him a heart attack. “You take my breath away,” he finally said.

There was no hiding his physical reaction, since his erection strained eagerly against the material of his boxers. He started toward her with a determined glint in his eyes. Steeling herself, Beth took a deep breath and met him halfway. She laid her hand on his bare chest, right over his heart, and was surprised to feel it thundering beneath her palm. She smiled and slid her hand slowly down his muscled torso, brushing her fingers through the crisp dark hair that arrowed downward. Her fingers kept going, slipping down to trace the stark outline of his erection through his boxers.

Shane reached for her, his hands sliding down her torso to her waist. His fingers skimmed along the top edge of her garter belt, then slipped underneath it to stroke the soft skin of her belly. “I can’t wait to strip this garter belt off you.”

She stepped back out of his reach, a hint of a teasing smile on her lips. “Not so fast, mister.”

Shane cocked an eyebrow at her, his expression a mix of disappointment and anticipation as he wondered what she was up to.

She walked around him in a slow circle, her fingertips trailing across his abdomen and around his back. Standing behind him, she dragged her fingernails gently down his spine and was thrilled to see him shiver in response.

She came around his other side, she sank to her knees on the rug and ran her hands up his muscular thighs.

At the sight of her on her knees, Shane closed his eyes and let out a long, heavy breath followed by a groan. “Beth.”

“Yes?” She ran her hands around to the back of his thighs, urging him closer.

He looked down at her. “Sweetheart, you don’t have to do this.”

“But I want to,” she said.

He looked down at her skeptically.

“I do!” She gazed up at him, stunned by the blatant desire in his glittering blue eyes. He might be trying to give her an out, but his eyes told a different story. Yeah, he wanted this. Badly. And she was going to give it to him.

She leaned forward and pressed her lips against the hard ridge of his erection, right through the silky fabric.

His stance faltered. “You’re trying to kill me, aren’t you?” he said.

She smiled against his boxers, then pressed her open mouth against the ridge of him, breathing her hot, moist breath on him. When she felt his cock buck beneath her mouth, she smiled.

“Jesus!” Shane cried.

Beth’s hands gripped the backs of his thighs. Her nails lightly scored his flesh through the fabric.

“Beth.”

Grinning at the rough tone of his voice, her hands went to the waistband of his boxers and she peeled his shorts down his hips, taking care to free his cock from the material. She let his shorts drop to the floor, and he stepped out of them and kicked them aside.

Shane stood at Beth’s mercy, watching her with avid interest. His arms were stiff at his sides, his hands clenched as he resisted reaching for her. This was her show; he’d let her call the shots.

Beth leaned forward, peering up at Shane’s tense expression, and licked the head of his cock.

His hands went to her head, cradling her face. “God, baby,” he choked out.

Taking badly needed courage from his reaction, she licked the length of his cock, from root to tip, marveling at the softness of his smooth skin. How could he be so hard and so soft at the same time?

“Sweetheart?” he said, his voice uncharacteristically hesitant as he stroked her hair. “I should shower first.”

“No,” she said. “I want you like this.”

Shane closed his eyes as if in pain, and his hands gently gripped the sides of her head.

Her fingers wrapped around his cock and traced the path of a thick vein with the tip of her tongue. He groaned harshly.

She kissed her way up the length of him, alternately stroking him with her tongue. When she reached the crown, she opened her mouth and enveloped the head of his cock, licking the droplets of moisture she found here. Her tongue swirled around the crown and stroked his sensitive glans. Then she pushed him deep into her mouth, as far as she could take him.

“Oh, God,” he groaned, his hands tightening in her hair.

When she began to suck on him, her head bobbing up and down on his erection, he made a rough sound deep in his throat. She bathed the glans with her tongue, teasing the ridge until his groans grew louder.

Shane lost his balance and stumbled, catching himself. “Fuck!” His breath came fast and harsh now, and his hips began to move on their own accord. Unable to help himself, he held her head as he began to thrust into her wet mouth. “Beth.” Her name came out as a low, ragged groan.

She licked and sucked him, moving her mouth and her tongue and her hand on him. She must have been doing something right, because he was holding onto her head like a drowning man holding on to a lifering. He started making low growling noises in his throat.

“Beth,” he grated. “I can’t hold out much longer.”

He hissed loudly when she gently scraped her teeth along this length. “Fuck!” He reached down to grab her beneath her arms and haul her to her feet and kissed her, his mouth devouring hers.