A SEAL's Pleasure (13 page)

As if he was in a trance—or simply knocked stupid from the explosion of lust between them—Gabriel watched as his finger traced along the edge of her dress. For a second he marveled at the contrast of his skin against the porcelain white of hers, the hardness of his hand against the softness of her breast.

Desperate to see more, he slipped his knuckle under the fabric, pulling it down until the sweet pink of her aureole was visible. Damn. He had to lean closer, had to taste her.

As soon as his tongue touched that pale delicacy he had to have more. Forgetting that they were in a public hallway, he hooked his finger between her breasts and tugged harder, nearly ripping her dress in half. Black lace wrapped over those breasts, highlighting rather than hiding their beauty.

Damn. Passion surged, need spiking through him so fast that he had to close his eyes for a moment to get control.

“Oh, yeah,” she gasped, her legs tightening around his waist. “Those are some very clever hands.”

His clever hands slid under her skirt, reveling in the taut smoothness of her silken thigh before squeezing her butt. He ran kisses over her breasts while his hand meandered around from her butt to dip between her thighs.

It was like discovering heaven. A wet, hot heaven.

Gabriel wasn't sure how he managed it, but somehow he got the key into the door, twisted it and shoved the carved wood open. It ricocheted off the wall, almost hitting him in the shoulder as he angled Tessa inside. He was pretty sure he closed it. At least, he heard a loud bang. But he couldn't spare it enough attention to check.

Instead, he gave himself over to Tessa.

Every delicious inch of her and the mind-blowing sensations she was eliciting in his body.

Her fingers combed over his chest, scraping gently before curling over his shoulders to grip him tight as she angled herself higher. Her heels dug into the small of his back, her body curved into his in a way that made him curse the layers of clothes separating him from her wet heat.

It took two tugs to send what was left of her dress and bra flying across the room, leaving that warm, silken flesh bare for his mouth. Cupping one full breast in his hand, he leaned closer, running his tongue around her aureole in ever-tightening circles until he reached the delicious center. He sucked her nipple, pebbled taut, between his lips, flicking it with his tongue.

“More,” she demanded, her breath coming faster in time with her hands as they raced over his shoulders, tugging at his shirt hard enough to send the buttons flying.

“Take it,” he said, his words husky against her other breast. He shifted so she was balanced between his body and the wall, leaving his hands free to cup both her breasts. His mouth moved from one to the other, hot and wet.

“Oh, yeah,” she moaned as her hands found bare flesh, her nails scraping like delicate fire down his abs. Then she grabbed hold of his chest with one hand, angling her body away so there was enough space between them for her hand to slip down and free his zipper.

Already on fire, Gabriel's body hit inferno as her nails skimmed his rock-hard dick.

He yanked her dress out of his way, the sound of ripping fabric echoing over their labored breath. Their arms tangled and bodies twisted as he shoved his shirt and pants out of the way and sent Tessa's panties flying. Somehow he managed to sheath himself with a condom before Tessa's legs tightened again, her heels pressing against the small of his back.

“Mmm, you're definitely worth the wait,” Tessa said with a little growl. “But I'm through waiting. So you need to do me, lover. And do me now.”

Oh, yeah. Need pounded through him, but one of her words echoed over pleasure's demand.

Lover
.

“Say my name,” he demanded.

“Do me first,” she teased, her words muffled because her mouth was skimming over his shoulder. She punctuated the demand with a bite sharp enough to send a shaft of desire through him so strong he thrust forward.

He barely caught himself.

“Say it,” he growled, his tense body poised for entry.

“Romeo,” she breathed, slowly lifting those heavy lids and giving him a challenging look.

“Say it,” he repeated, his fingers sliding between her thighs to gently flick her swollen bud. When she didn't respond, he gave it a little pinch.

“Gabriel,” she gasped. Her nails dug into his shoulders; her back arched.

“Gabriel.”

It only took a single thrust to send him to heaven.

* * *

O
H
, G
OD
.

Oh, God.

Oh, God.

The chant rang through Tessa's mind. Pleasure surged through her body with more power than anything she'd ever felt. The trembling started in her core and spread, rippling through her system in ever-widening waves of delight.

He was incredible.

Her hands gripped Gabriel's shoulders, fingers kneading with every plunge of his body. He was so big, so hard, every thrust slid against her G-spot, filling her with pleasure so powerful she was shaking.

Her back was anchored to the wall, so she used the pressure of her heels to pull herself tighter against his body with each thrust until they were slamming together.

His fingers pinched her nipples, his mouth taking hers in a sloppy, wet kiss that was all tongue and heat.

And that was all it took to send her over the edge. Her body exploded. Pleasure spun out of control, spiraling through her so fast she was dizzy. Gasping for breath, her head fell back against the wall, her orgasm going on and on and on.

Gabriel thrust faster, plunging in and out.

Harder.

More.

So incredibly good that he sent Tessa over another time.

“Gabriel,” she gasped.

He growled. She felt his muscles tighten, his thrust hitch.

“Gabriel,” she breathed again.

His moan reverberated through her, his body freezing before plunging again.

Having this kind of power over him sent Tessa spiraling up again. Need tightened in her core.

“Gabriel,” she gasped, grinding against him.

Then he thrust again. So hard, so deep, she swore she felt him all the way to her heart as he exploded.

“Gabriel, Gabriel, Gabriel,” she panted as she came again with an intensity that blew her mind.

The room went black against her closed eyelids, her body so numb with pleasure she wasn't sure if she'd passed out or not. It might have been five minutes, it might have been five hours before Tessa could feel her body again. She pried her eyes open, too overwhelmed to even be surprised that they were on the bed, Gabriel's body warm over hers.

She'd known he was talented.

A man didn't earn a reputation like his without pleasing an incredibly high number of women. She'd spent the past month with his own words about pleasure zones ringing through her mind, keeping her awake at night wondering which zones would give her the most pleasure if he played with them.

But she'd had no idea just how talented he was.

“Angel?”

“Hmm?” she murmured, struggling to hear him through the roaring in her ears.

“We're not finished,” he growled against her throat, his teeth scraping a gentle trail across her shoulder.

“We're not?” Tessa couldn't even raise her head, let alone imagine going another round.

Then his mouth found her breast, his teeth working her still-throbbing, deliciously swollen nipple.

“Not even close. I've wanted you for what feels like a lifetime. It's going to take a lifetime to get my fill.”

With that he slid lower, his mouth an erotic magnet for pleasure as it moved over her belly. His fingers teased and tweaked her nipples, flicking then rubbing in time with the kisses he spread lower and lower.

Tessa gasped as his jaw pressed her thighs apart, his breath warm on her still-wet, oversensitized nether lips.

She wasn't sure how she'd gotten naked—she barely remembered how they'd gotten into the hotel room.

All she knew was that she had never felt this way. Never before, in all her experiences, had she ever been so far gone with passion that she lost the ability to think, to reason.

All she could do was feel.

And, oh, God, she felt good.

As if he'd heard her thoughts and took them as a challenge, Gabriel's tongue swept over her clitoris, sipping gently before sliding into her trembling core. His fingers worked magic while his tongue danced so seductively that it took Tessa a few moments to realize the mewling sounds she heard were her.

“Come for me, baby,” he whispered against her thigh. “I want to taste you while you go over.”

Ooh, God.

Tessa's orgasm came in waves, each one bigger, more powerful than the last. Pleasure pounded over her, sweeping her away to a place she'd never been.

Overwhelmed, she pressed her eyes tight to try to keep the sudden tears from falling.

Gabriel gently kissed his way up her body, worshipping her back to earth with a sweetness that blew her mind.

Her head was spinning, her body melting into a sea of sexual delight. She'd never felt this way. So sated with pleasure that she knew nothing would ever feel this good again. How had he done that? Tessa surreptitiously rubbed her finger under her eyes to wipe away the teary mascara smudges even as he poised over her with a look of awe on his face that told her he was as hooked as she was.

Pretending that didn't terrify her, Tessa lifted her body, her hips thrusting high and hard to welcome him in.

Perfect, was all she could think.

He was so awesomely perfect.

* * *

T
ESSA
WOKE
LATER
, her body draped over Gabriel's, her bones a melted puddle and her mind pure mush. It took her a few seconds of blinking to realize that dark had fallen and she wasn't still asleep.

She still didn't move, though. She couldn't. How many times had they made love? Three? Five? She'd lost track.

Something did seep through the pleasure-drugged fog, though.

She'd been right.

He was good.

So good that he took sex past the realm of pleasure into the land of mind-blowing oh-my-God awesomeness.

That was the kind of sex she could get hooked on.

She didn't know if it was his mouth and the wicked things he could do with his tongue or his hands.

Oh, his hands. Her thighs trembled, the swollen folds of her center throbbing at the memory of those hands.

The man had some amazing hands. Almost as amazing as his body. She took a deep breath, her lungs the only thing she could move, and reveled in the sensations of that body beneath hers.

Oh, yeah. He was good.

Good enough to be dangerous.

Her muscles, molten just seconds ago, stiffened as fear trickled through her system.

That kind of dangerous was scary.

Then Gabriel—no, not Gabriel. If she were going to keep from freaking out, he needed to stay Romeo.

Then
Romeo's
hand curved over her butt, giving it a gentle squeeze. And all the fears faded, the worries, the crazy thoughts about getting up and running away didn't stand a chance against the pleasure of his touch.

“More,” she urged, forcing herself to lift her head. It wasn't until she did that she realized it had been resting on his incredibly toned, deliciously sculpted abs.

A wicked smile curving her lips, she found her second wind. And used it to kiss her way over those abs and up to take him into her mouth.

As distractions went, it was delicious.

11

G
ABRIEL
HAD
HAD
a lot of sex in his life.

He considered himself something of an expert at it, actually. Because of that expertise, he could easily discern the difference between good-enough sex—the kind that relaxed the body and cleared the mind—and great sex, the kind that blew the mind and pushed the boundaries of pleasure.

But sex with Tessa?

His gaze cut across the moonlit beach, easily finding her in the crowd dancing around the bonfire. Her hair was up tonight, swirled into some sort of tangle of curls that made her look as if she'd just rolled out of bed.

Sex with Tessa was beyond anything he'd experienced before.

He'd expected it to be intense. She was a woman who nurtured her sexuality; she was an expert in the games between the sexes. He'd seen for himself how responsive and sensual she was during the myriad of sexy-talk sessions they'd shared.

He'd been ready for great.

He'd been prepared for mind-blowing.

He'd even anticipated a little addiction and need.

Yeah. He'd been ready for all of that.

But the sweetness? The protective feeling he'd had while watching her sleep? And that possessive urge to grab her tight so she could never get away?

Those had been a shock.

He was a man who specialized in explosions.

But what'd happened between them yesterday—every one of the seven times—had leveled him in every way.

But Tessa?

His scowl deepened.

He'd never slithered out of a woman's bed without a word. He considered that disrespectful. And he'd certainly never had a woman leave his—usually they had to be pried out with the equivalent of an emotional crowbar.

So he didn't figure he could write off his morning-after experience to karma or paybacks. And while he readily acknowledged that Tessa had her own sexual MO, he didn't think she made a habit of sneaking out of a man's bed without a word, either.

But she had his.

He did know that waking that morning ready for another round of mind-blowing sex only to find himself alone had totally sucked. It'd sucked even harder to spend the day missing Tessa at every turn. He walked into the hotel lounge to be told she'd left a few minutes before to lead the wedding guests on a hike over the island. He'd joined the hike and found out she'd asked one of Livi's trainers to lead the hike so she could join the bride at the spa. He'd looked for her at lunch but apparently there had been a flower-petal emergency. Everywhere she was supposed to be, she suddenly wasn't.

It didn't take intelligence training to know she was avoiding him.

He clenched his teeth as frustration and anger stirred up a tasteless cocktail in his belly.

He'd known she'd do this.

Dammit, he'd called it two months ago. That was why he'd launched Operation Romance. Because he'd been damned if he'd be tossed into her easily dismissed pile of discarded lovers. Because he'd known there was more to the spark between them than just hot sex.

Images of the previous day and night flashed through his mind—hot bodies sliding together in a perfect symphony of tangled limbs, escalating passion and out-of-control orgasms—and forced him to amend that to incredibly hot sex.

This thing between them was about more than sex, though.

Operation Romance had done more than delay sexual gratification. It'd proved that he and Tessa truly connected. They fit. From their tastes in entertainment to their personalities, their devotion to fitness to their love of sushi. He felt inspired when he talked to her. As if there was more to his life than his career. He felt at peace when he was with her, as if he'd finally found that something that'd been missing for so long that he hadn't even realized it was gone.

Apparently what Operation Romance hadn't done, though, was achieve its long-term objective. To keep Tessa hooked after the ecstatic cries of her orgasms had faded.

Her sneaking out this morning had convinced him that despite everything they had between them—all of the potential for more—she'd still walk away.

She'd throw away what they had without a backward glance.

What in the hell was her issue?

Gabriel would happily change his Navy rating to join the IDC if it meant he could find out why. Leaving explosives for Information Dominance Corps would be a small price to pay to know what had gone wrong.

Gabriel's gaze easily found Tessa again. Shoulder to shoulder with a couple others on a log, she looked as if she was having fun. But even from a distance he could see the wall she put up between herself and everyone else. He knew firsthand just how effective that wall was. Hell, he'd constructed a carefully planned operation to get past it, hadn't he?

Yet another plan he hadn't followed through on.

His fists clenching and unclenching, Gabriel tried to shake off the sick feeling in his gut, to squeeze it away.

He'd give a lot to blow something up right now.

* * *

T
ESSA
HAD
BLOWN
IT
.

She'd thought she was so smart.

Seduce Romeo, use the distraction of sex between them as a buffer to get through this week. Keep it light and easy and, yes, maybe prove that she was still the same ol' Tessa. A naughty man-eater who could seduce a guy stupid and walk away without another thought.

She'd managed the seducing him part incredibly well.

The memory of their lovemaking sent shivers of desire through her body so strong they actually drowned out the fear.

Because the seduction had gone too well. Sex with Gabriel had been the most powerful thing she'd ever felt. The most incredible time she'd ever had.

She'd been worried she'd lose herself in him.

Instead, she'd found herself.

Curled up in a quiet corner of the hotel veranda, she watched the lunch crowd disperse, grateful that there was no sign of Gabriel. She'd been avoiding him since she'd woke in his arms yesterday, the two of them wrapped together as though they'd found heaven. She'd lain there imagining the two of them wrapped together for the rest of their lives, each of them completing the other.

And then she'd totally freaked out.

Thinking that a little distance between them until she could handle the unfamiliar emotions ricocheting through her system would be best, she'd sneaked out.

Her gaze shifted to her shoes, a cheer-me-up gift she'd bought herself yesterday while working on that distance. She had four more pairs up in her room. But no amount of shoes, shopping or partying had changed her feelings about Gabriel.

Unable to sit any longer, she got to her feet and paced by the railing, the ocean beyond doing nothing to ease her turmoil. It was a good thing that her specialty was on writing about the chase and not the relationship. Fitting, since she had no idea how to have one.

As if on cue, her cell phone rang a jive beat.

“Maeve,” she answered, grateful for the distraction. “Hey.”

“Whoa, I didn't figure you'd pick up,” Maeve said, her surprise coming through the line loud and clear. “I thought you'd be all tied up in wedding stuff.”

“Nope, I'm totally free,” she said, thinking back to her visit to the florist that morning with Livi and Mitch's mom, Denise. It'd been her first experience as an invisible person. “Why did you call if you didn't think I'd answer?”

She was pretty sure she knew, though.

In case she was right, Tessa moved away from the cheerful brunch crowd, crossing the balcony toward the stairs.

“I was going to leave you a message. Not that messages are a good way to impart this sort of thing, but I figured voice mail was better than email. And texts? Those always suck. Might as well develop a texting font called screw-you-I'm-too-busy-to care.”

Her breath tight in her chest, Tessa dropped to sit on the top step, the ocean a blur in the distance.

“Maeve,” she said quietly, forcing the words past the knot in her throat. “You're babbling.”

“Right.” The redhead's shaky breath whooshed over the phone line, making Tessa shiver. “Another takeover offer came in this morning.”

“I thought we had a plan. Revamp our format, up our game and hold out for more money.”

Scowling at the ocean, Tessa wondered why people couldn't slow the hell down. She was in the middle of this ridiculous identity crisis. How was she supposed to figure herself out if everything kept changing?

“I guess word got out. Two other media groups contacted Jared yesterday, so he figured he'd up the game a little and gave all three companies our tentative proposal. The big boys were seriously impressed with the new direction and changes. Either that or they just got freaky over competition. Whatever it was, they came in immediately with a new offer.”

Typical. Tessa rolled her eyes.

Then Maeve laid out the offer.

Holy crap. There was nothing typical about that kind of money.

Tessa's brain shut down.

She couldn't think.

She could barely breathe.

Her head buzzed in time with the tiny dots dancing in front of her eyes.

“Tess?”

“You're serious?” Tessa said, repeating the dollar amount. Her share was at least ten times more than she made in a year. “That's a real offer?”

“Real enough that Jared wanted to bring you home to nail down the contracts before they change their minds. I told him next week was soon enough, though.”

Tessa couldn't blame him. The deal sounded too good to be true. But even her usual cynicism couldn't stand up to the hope unfurling in her belly. This offer was big enough to not only give her breathing room to figure out what to do with her life, but it was also impressive enough that nobody hearing it would think she was a talentless fraud. Which was even more important than the money, she realized.

“How's Jared handling it?” she asked.

“Last time I saw him, he was breathing into a paper bag.”

Tessa didn't have a paper bag, so she dropped her head between her knees and tried to breathe.

“We have to accept the offer.” Maeve's voice was faint but echoed through Tessa's head, as if she was talking from a cave. Not surprising given the angle of the phone. “You agree? We have to take it?”

Her head spinning a little slower now, Tessa slowly straightened to stare at the wild dance of the waves over the ocean's surface.

“Well, we don't have to do anything,” she said, grateful to hear a little confidence in her voice.

“But?”

“But we'd be crazy not to.”

“Okay, that's not all, then,” Maeve said after giving a relieved sigh so big, Tessa was surprised it didn't fluff her hair.

“There's more?” Unable to sit any longer, Tessa slid out of her shoes. She wasn't about to mess up the darling canvas platforms by wearing them on the beach. Scooping them up, she hurried down the stairs toward the beach.

“There's more. Are you sitting down?”

“Sitting? You're kidding, right? I feel like dancing.” Tessa kicked up a little sand with a laugh, feeling as if some of her fears scattered along with the tiny grains.

Then Maeve told her what
more
was.

Tessa didn't even feel her darling canvas platforms slide from her fingers. Her knees gave out, her butt hitting the sand with a thud.

She didn't know if she responded. She didn't remember hanging up. All she could do was stare at the water and wait for the buzzing in her head to abate.

Eventually she shivered, realizing the sun was setting and she'd been plopped here for who knew how long. Before she could get up, a shadow fell.

Out of the corner of her eye she noted two very large feet encased in a pair of military-style hiking boots. She didn't recognize the footwear, but the heat pooling in her belly recognized the wearer.

Still, she'd suffered a shock. Maybe her belly was wrong. Tessa shielded her eyes with one hand, letting her gaze climb a pair of deliciously long legs clad in worn denim, then rest for a moment on the zipper—behind which lay the key to heaven—before she resumed her inspection with abs worth drooling over, a glorious chest covered in black cotton and shoulders draped in a loose jacket. Her gaze finally reached the face etched forever in her brain. And, if she wasn't careful, on her heart.

A face that was sporting a scowl.

Tessa frowned. Had she ever seen him scowl before?

“Your alert must be faulty,” Romeo said, the chilly distance in his voice sending a trickle of guilt down her back. Like the scowl, that was new.

And apparently new wasn't always a good thing.

Tessa frowned, dropping her hand to stare at the ocean again. Was new ever a good thing? She'd always thought so, but lately new seemed to be tossing her life into a crazy whirlwind, mixing everything up and leaving her confused.

A part of her wanted to jump up and grab Romeo, to share her news while leading him in a frenzied happy dance over the sand.

A part of her just wanted to grab him.

The little voice in her head warned her to keep quiet, to decide what she wanted and how she felt before sharing her news. Maybe even verify a few things. Otherwise she might end up looking like an idiot.

Instead of just feeling like one.

She slid a sideways glance at Romeo's feet and sighed.

Yeah. She'd definitely screwed up. She just wasn't sure if the screwup had been in leaving him in bed yesterday. Or in joining him there in the first place.

“Are you okay?” he asked, the chill replaced with concern.

Was she? Tessa blinked, her brow creasing as she tried to decide.

“What alert?” she finally asked after replaying his greeting a couple times in her head.

“The one that warns you that I'm approaching. You know, so you can be somewhere else.”