Bare Nerve (8 page)

Even when they weren’t physically together, he was still affecting her. She thought about him when they were apart.

“I’m not much of a sleeper either,” Jack said.

“Do you have insomnia?”

“Yes. No doubt because of being such a savage,” he said.

“I’m sorry for the comment I made.”

“It’s okay, I meant it to be self-deprecating.”

“Why?”

“Probably the same reason you’re wandering around down here instead of sleeping.”

She wasn’t sure what he meant. “I’m not…You want to know what my problem is?”

“What?”

“I’m used to everything falling into place the way I want it to. I like being the one with the most knowledge on a mission.”

“Levels the playing field and gives you an advantage?”

“Exactly. But you’re something I didn’t count on.”

“Me?”

“Yes, you. Everything would be so much easier if you really were the savage you call yourself.”

“Why would that be easier, Anna?”

“Because then I could ignore you like I usually do men who make me uncomfortable. But you aren’t just some dumb macho warrior.”

He chuckled. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

“Well, for me it is. I don’t like things that don’t make sense. There are pieces of you I can’t understand that don’t fit with what I know.”

He walked out of the shadows and over to her. He was wearing a pair of skintight jeans and a dark T-shirt that molded to the contours of his chest.

“You’re the same. All precise manners and conservative clothes, yet feisty and kick-ass. You should be leery of holding a weapon in your hand, yet I know that you’re comfortable with it.”

“That’s my training. I’m not hiding anything, Jack. What you see with me is exactly what you get.”

He shook his head as he closed the gap between them. He caught her chin in his hand, lifting her face. Their eyes met, and she felt the brush of his breath across her cheek. “That isn’t true. You want the world to think you’re someone who views the world in black and white, and yet your entire life is based on that gray area in between.”

Anna shook her head but knew she was lying to both of them. She hated the fact that she worked in that gray area. That she didn’t officially work for any government. But she would never stop doing the job. She believed in what she did, even if she didn’t have the sanction from someone in power. “You might have a point.”

“I do have one,” he said, leaning closer to her. “Slap me if you have to, but I can’t go another moment without feeling your lips under mine.”

He lowered his head to hers. Rubbed his lips over hers. A slow back-and-forth movement that made Anna stop thinking. She realized this was what had made her so restless. Not Algeria or the mission. Not the fact that she was unsure of her future.

But this man.

Jack Savage and the unbridled lust he pulled so effortlessly from her.

She felt his tongue against the seam of her lips, and she gave up all pretense of being calm. She reached up to clutch his shoulders and drew him closer to her. She wanted more than his lips on hers. She wanted his hot, hard body pressed against her. She wanted his arms around her.

She wanted him.

She opened her mouth under his, returning his kiss with the kind of passion she’d always wanted to experience but never had.

This man was bringing her to life in a way she hadn’t expected. He groaned a deep sound that made her tremble as she tipped her head to the side and gave him greater access to her mouth.

His hands slid down her back, cupping her hips and drawing her against him. He lifted her and carried her back into the motel and up the stairs to his door.

Being alone for an entire evening with a woman wasn’t something he usually preferred, but he had the feeling tonight he needed just that. Needed the distance from his team and to spend the night with Anna. Because he had no idea where his personal life was heading. And for the first time since he’d enlisted at eighteen years old, he didn’t know what the future held.

J
ack carried Anna over the threshold into his room. He never slept on a mission—an old habit he’d never been able to shake. Normally he didn’t ask for a room, but he was glad he’d taken one this time.

He kicked the door closed, set Anna on her feet, turned and latched the door, and then settled his back against it. She stood there with only the dim light of the moon flickering through the threadbare curtains over the one window in the room.

“No pressure,” he said, realizing that with her he didn’t want to be as uncouth as he had been with other women.

Sex
. Was that what this was? Sex had always been a bodily function to him. But with Anna it seemed it would be more. His itch tonight couldn’t be scratched by just anyone—this was a specific craving for her.

“No pressure? Wow, you really have a way with the ladies,” she said.

“I know I don’t,” he said. “But I also know I can’t let this chance pass. There is something about you, Anna, that makes me feel…Well, it’s different.”

“Me, too,” she admitted in a small voice. “Come over here and kiss me again. I don’t want to think about this too long or too hard.”

He pushed away from the door and walked over to her. She looked small and fragile in the wan light and so infinitely beautiful he knew he should just walk away. She was a woman out of his league. But at the same time he’d never been a timid man. And he never backed away from something he wanted. He wanted Anna Sterling.

He leaned down and kissed her. He meant for the embrace to be tender, but with her he had no barriers. So he held her head tightly in his hands and ravaged her mouth. Tasted her as deeply as he could and made her groan in the back of her throat.

She undulated against him, clutching at his shoulders and pressing her body closer to his. He reached for the hem of her T-shirt. Encountering the holster of her weapon was a turn-on for him. This was a woman who, despite the many differences between them, was totally his equal.

He slowly undressed her and then stood back to just look at her. She had none of the scars he had, despite the fact that they worked in the same crazy business.

“Jack?”

“Hmmm…?”

“Are you just going to look at me?”

“Maybe,” he said.

But he wanted to touch her and taste her. To make her completely his.

He caressed her shoulder and down her body, tracing the lines of her figure, leaning closer and nibbling on her skin. Her nails dug into his shoulders, and she leaned up, brushing against his chest. Her nipples were hard points, and he pulled away from her mouth, glancing down to see them pushing against his chest.

He caressed her back and spine. Scraped his nails down the length of it. He followed the line of her back down to the indentation above her backside.

She closed her eyes and held her breath as he fondled her, running his finger over her nipple. It was velvety compared to the satin smoothness of her breast. He brushed his finger back and forth until she bit her lower lip and shifted in his arms. He wanted to give her this dream night—to make it everything for her.

She moaned a sweet sound, and he leaned down to capture it in his mouth. She tipped her head to the side, again immediately allowing him greater access to her mouth. She held his shoulders and moved against him. Rubbed her center over his erection.

God, he hadn’t been this hot since…never. This was more than just sex, and it was important to him that he make it good for her. He scraped his fingernail over her nipple, and she shivered in his arms. He pushed her back a little so he could see her. Her breasts were bare, nipples distended and begging for his mouth. He lowered his head and suckled.

Jack held her still with a hand on the small of her back. He buried his other hand in her hair and arched her over his arm. Both of her breasts were thrust up at him. He had his arms full of woman, and he knew he wanted Anna more than he’d wanted any other woman.

Her eyes were closed, her hips moving subtly against him, and when he blew on her nipple, he saw gooseflesh spread down her body.

He loved the way Anna reacted to his mouth on her breast. Her nipples were so sensitive he was pretty sure he could bring her to orgasm just from touching her.

The globes of her breasts were full and fleshy, more than a handful. He hardened further as he wondered what his cock would feel like thrust between them.

Jack leaned down and licked the valley between her breasts, imagining his cock sliding back and forth there. He’d swell, and she’d moan his name watching him.

He bit carefully at the lily-white skin of her chest, suckling at her so he’d leave his mark, and when this was over and they were both back to being just operatives on a mission, she’d still have this bit of remembrance from their sexual encounter.

He kept kissing and rubbing, suckling her nipples, trying to quench the thirst, until her hands clenched in his hair and she rocked her hips harder against his length. He lifted his hips, thrusting up against her. God, he wanted to feel her pussy on his cock. Wrapped around him until they were truly one person. He bit carefully on her tender, aroused nipple. She screamed his name, and he hurriedly covered her mouth with his, wanting to feel every bit of her passion for him alone. He didn’t want any of his men to hear the sounds Anna made.

Jack rocked her until the storm passed, and she quieted in his arms. He held her close, her bare breasts brushing his chest. He was so hard he thought he’d die if he didn’t get inside her.

He glanced down at her and saw she was watching him. The fire in her eyes made his entire body draw tight with anticipation. He carried her to the bed, fumbled for the condoms he carried in his pack, hurriedly stripped off his clothes, and donned the condom before turning back to her.

“You are absolutely gorgeous,” she said.

“I’m scarred and battle hardened.”

“You’re hard,” she said teasingly, her hand going to his erection. She caressed him and then moved her hand up his abdomen. Her hands were small and infinitely exciting. He wanted to let her touch him all night, but he was going to come in a second, and he wanted to be inside her when he did.

“Ah, Anna,” he said. “You are so tempting.”

“Am I?” she asked. He heard the hesitation in her voice.

“You have no idea.”

“I’m glad. You tempt me, too.”

No woman had ever wanted him the way she did. She wanted him for him despite the man he was. This was more than anything they could explain to themselves or each other.

She reached her hand out to him, beckoning him to join her on the bed. Opening her arms and her legs, she invited him into her body, and he went. He lowered himself over her and rubbed against her. Shifted until he’d caressed every part of her.

She reached between his legs and fondled his sac, cupping him in her hands, and he shuddered. “Stop, Anna. I won’t last.”

She smiled up at him. “Really?”

He wanted to hug her close at the look of wonder on her face. “Hell, yes.”

Jack needed to be inside Anna now. He shifted and lifted her thighs, wrapping her legs around his waist. Her hands fluttered between them, and their eyes met.

He held her hips steady and entered her slowly. Thrust deeply until he was fully seated. Her eyes widened with each inch he gave her. She clutched at his hips as he started moving, holding him to her, her eyes half closed and her head tipped back.

He leaned down and caught one of her nipples in his teeth, scraping very gently. She started to tighten around him, her hips moving faster, demanding more, but he kept the pace slow and steady. Wanted her to come again before he did.

He suckled her nipple and rotated his hips to catch her pleasure point with each thrust, and he felt her hands in his hair clenching as she threw her head back and her climax ripped through her.

He varied his thrusts, finding a rhythm that would draw out the tension at the base of his spine. Something that would make his time in her body, wrapped in her silky limbs, last forever.

He leaned back on his haunches and tipped her hips up to give him deeper access. She scraped her nails down his back, clutched his buttocks, and drew him in. His sac tightened, and his blood roared in his ears as he felt everything in his world center on this one woman.

Jack called her name as he came—and hoped she’d sleep now because if she didn’t he was going to curl himself around her and tell her all his secrets. She’d brought him completely out of himself and into a spot he’d never thought he’d be. A place of vulnerability he’d hoped to never find.

Jack didn’t “do” contentment, so the fact that he wanted to just lie there with Anna in his arms was disconcerting to him. But her silky curves felt right pressed against the hard angles of his own body. He buried his head in her hair, breathing deeply the sweet, clean-smelling scent.

Anna slept in his arms as no woman had before. He should have been anxious or itching to get away, but instead he felt the rightness of this moment to his soul. He glanced at his watch. They were flying to Hawaii later that afternoon. He wanted to pull her closer into his arms and hold her even more tightly to him so he knew she’d be right by his side forever.

Damn, this was a complication he didn’t need. He made himself let go of her and sit up on the edge of the bed.

“Jack?”

“Right here,” he said, refusing the impulse to sink back down next to her.

“Is it morning already?” she asked, leaning up to kiss his thigh. He shifted on the bed so he was lying next to her. He shouldn’t have been hard again, but he was. Maybe his body realized this night was all the two of them would ever have.

He knew it was only a matter of time before Anna realized she was a princess and he was nothing but the kind of man she should be with. The type of man she should never allow to touch her unmarred body.

“No.” He traced a line down the center of her body, lingering at the small mark he’d left between her breasts. He took her mouth in his, letting his hands wander over her, still amazed that she was there with him.

Her stomach growled, and she covered it with her hands. “I can’t believe that just happened.”

“We haven’t had a decent meal since we left DC.”

“I know, but I…Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” he said, glad to see this proof that she was human and not the sexy angel he’d been imagining her to be. He got up and went to his pack. Rummaging around, he found a protein bar and brought it back to her.

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

Jack sat back down on the bed and watched Anna eat. She wasn’t self-conscious about her body, which was a turn-on. A crumb from the bar landed on the sloping curve of her breast, and she reached to brush it off, but he caught her hand, lowering his head to lick it off. He couldn’t get enough of this woman.

She shivered with awareness, and her nipples tightened. He reached for the snack bar and broke off a few more crumbs, letting them fall on her breasts so her nipples were speckled with the food.

He leaned down to lick each nipple until each one tightened further. Then he blew gently on the tips. She raked her nails down his back.

“I’m not really hungry for food anymore,” she said.

“Good,” he said, taking the remaining part of the bar and scattering bits of crumbs down her body.

Her hand covered his. She leaned up, displacing the crumbs on her breasts. Instead they pooled on her lap and just above her pussy. “How’s that?”

“You messed up your breasts,” he said, but his hands were already moving lower.

“That’s okay. It gives you a reason to fondle me again.”

He did just that, taking his time to caress her body before lowering his head to nibble on her stomach. Then he knelt between her thighs and looked down at her.

He rubbed his fingers over her most intimate flesh, dropping the remaining crumbs in his hands on the tawny hair between her legs. She swallowed, her hands shifting on the bed next to her hips.

“Open yourself with your hands for me,” he said.

Her legs moved, but she shook her head. Was he being too crude for her? He started to move away, but she caught his shoulders. “Don’t go.”

“Show me you want me to stay,” he said, taking her hands and bringing them to her mound. She hesitated, but then she pulled those lower lips apart. The pink of her flesh looked so delicate, much like the woman herself.

“Hold still,” Jack said.

He leaned down, blowing lightly on Anna before tonguing that soft flesh. She lifted her hips toward his mouth.

He drew her flesh into his mouth, sucking carefully. He clutched her hips in his hands, moved his hands up her thighs, pushing her legs farther apart until he could reach her dewy core. He pushed his finger into her body and drew out some of her moisture; he lifted his head and looked up her body.

Her eyes were closed, her head tipped back, and her shoulders arched, throwing her breasts forward with their berry-hard tips, begging for more attention. Her entire body was a creamy delight accented by the moonlight streaming through the window.

He lowered his head again, hungry for more of her. He feasted on her body the way a starving man would, carefully eating out the moist flesh between her legs. He used his teeth, tongue, and fingers to bring her to the brink of climax but held her there, wanting to draw out the moment of completion until she was begging him for it.