Below the Line (6 page)

CHAPTER TEN

She knew who was at the door because of the way her heart leapt at his knock. Leaning her forehead on the cool metal, she tried to decide if she was strong enough to do this with him after last night.

Schooling her features into a mask of blankness, Marissa opened the door and immediately took a step back when a bouquet of flowers was thrust into her face. “Nate?”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to attack you with daisies.” Nate moved down a step and held the flowers out at a more normal level. “Can I come in?” He saw the shift in her posture, a slight stiffening in her shoulders. “Please?”

The indecision was written all over her face. Finally, she stepped back and let him come in, closing the door softly behind him. He held out the flowers, and she took them, turning to her small kitchen to find something to put them in. There was nothing big enough to hold the bouquet, so she grabbed an empty milk container from the trash cut off the top and filled it with water.

He watched her fumbling to find something suitable for the flowers. He never thought that she might not have a vase to put them in. It was another glimpse into the kind of life she had been living. Nothing permanent. Not even a vase. “I wanted to come apologize for being out of line last night.”

Staring down at the happy blooms, Marissa nodded. “I said some things I regret as well and-- I may have overreacted just a touch.”

Putting his hand on her shoulder caused her back to shoot ramrod straight. He still had quite a fight on his hands. “We both said things we shouldn’t have, but I really do want to be your friend, Marissa. I like working with you, and I’m learning a lot from you. I don’t want to lose that.”

She had to put the carton of flowers down because her hands were shaking.
Why does he have to be so nice? It would all be so much easier if he would be a complete ass,
she thought
.
“Dammit, Nate, why can’t you just let it be? You make me want things that I’m not ready for.” The words were out before she could stop them.

For a moment, he thought he had heard her wrong. Her grip on the sink was white-knuckled. It was an opening that he couldn’t ignore. “What aren’t you ready for, Marissa?” He ran his hand from her shoulder to the side of her neck, letting his fingers dance along her collar bone on the way up. “For someone to touch you?”

She lowered her head, trying not to give in to the temptation to lean into his touch. She shook her head, using her hair to hide her face from him. Pressed close to the counter, she had nowhere to go when he moved closer, bringing his body flush against hers.

“Not ready for a man to want you?” he asked, using the hand that wasn’t around her neck to pull the wild tangle of her hair out of the way. “Or not ready to want him back?”

His lips brushed across the skin on the back of her neck, making the tiny hairs there stand on end.
Who would have thought that area could be so incredibly sensitive?
“Nate,” her voice came out breathy and small, a tone she’d never heard come out of her mouth.

Sliding his hand around the front of her throat, he tipped her head up and brought her ear even with his lips. “Tell me to go, Marissa. Last chance.”

She turned, opening her mouth to tell him to leave; but, the look on his face took the breath from her lungs, and the words died on her tongue. Her much vaulted self-control was gone. Her head down, she whispered, “I can’t.”

The rush of disappointment nearly brought Nate to his knees. It took two deep breaths before he could force himself to move away from the heat of her body. Two big steps away that didn’t give him a better perspective.

When he turned his back to her, she realized he had misunderstood her words. Placing her hands on his waist, Marissa leaned in so her body was pressed to his. “I can’t tell you to leave,” she started, bringing her lips as close to his ear as possible, “because I want you to stay.”

He froze, at first unsure he had heard her correctly. Her hands came up his back in a slow stroke that had him clenching his teeth and no longer doubting his hearing. He turned quickly and snatched her up, fitting his mouth to hers and desperately drinking in the taste of her.

***

Nate had left her defenseless. She was surrounded the by scent of him and the strength of his arms while his mouth commanded hers. There wasn’t one part of her that was engaged in something other than him. It was something so completely new to her that she didn’t know how to pull back and regain even a small measure of her iron control.

Before Nate, she had always been the one to choose. She decided the who, when, and where—and she never chose someone she had to worry about running into on the street someday. Almost every encounter had been with someone far away from California and the movie business. Almost every encounter had been with someone she found pleasing to the eye but wasn’t overwhelmingly attracted to. She wanted to ensure she could walk away in the morning without a second thought. This wouldn’t end that way.

The way he held her to his body made her feel protected and cherished. It was tight but not painful. Tight enough that she could feel the way his heart raced and the sharp rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. She realized her eyes were closed. She never closed her eyes.

His lips were firm, nipping along her jawline and down the side of her neck. Each little press of his lips shook her to the core. Already gasping for air, she clawed at his shoulders trying to get even closer to him, practically climbing his body. It set him off-balance, and he took a stumbling step back, then he sat down into the chair behind him.

The quick descent onto the chair broke his concentration for a moment and gave Marissa an opening. Hands on his chest, she pushed him back and slid fully onto his lap, wedging her knees against his thighs. She rocked her hips into his, rubbing the seam of her shorts against his zipper. His hands rushed to her hips and held her in place, pressing himself tightly to her core.

Eyes finally open, Marissa looked down at his face—and was lost all over again. His face was the picture of sexual torture. Control— he was holding tightly to it, and she was going to take it from him. She planned on making him as crazed inside as she was feeling.

It was too much. The feel of her, hot and thrusting against him, overwhelmed the part of him that warned to slow down. They would have to try going slow some other time.

He pulled his shirt up and over his head, her hands on his chest before the garment hit the floor. Grabbing her wrists, he put her hands by her side and went to work on the buttons of her shirt. His hands shook so badly that the task seemed impossible. Frustrated, Nate grabbed the neckline and pulled down hard, popping the buttons and yanking it off her.

There was a quick impression of heavy-bottomed, full breasts and dark, rosy-colored nipples before his brain shut down. Leaning her back over his arm, he nuzzled gently before sucking a hard tip into his mouth.

Marissa felt her eyes closing again. It was such a foreign feeling for her, this utter weakness, this loss of sanity. Deep down, her entire soul cried out for more. More of him and more of that driving need that seemed to want to swallow her whole.

It was her hands that finally seemed to find some kind of life. They buried in his hair, gripping the cool strands tightly and pulling hard until his mouth came back to hers.

For Nate, it was the ultimate breaking point. He stood, switching her from his lap to the chair. With little finesse, he pulled her shorts off, surprised to find she was naked underneath. He left her at the edge of the seat and spread her legs wide, running the rough pads of his fingers up the inner softness of her thighs and letting his thumbs brush over the wetness at her core. Her hips bucked at the soft caress.

She was more than ready for him, but he needed to taste her. He needed proof of her want on his lips, on his tongue, and coating his fingers. He needed to watch her come for him.

It wasn’t the most graceful seduction, but Marissa was beyond minding. It was a real thrill to know he wanted her so bad that he was off his game. The tremble in his hand whenever he reached out to touch her had her stuttering out a rough moan. It was so unexpected to see such a rough-and-ready kind of man reduced to trembling by a woman’s body and touch. She could feel his breath on her outer lips and his eyes on her face. She looked down at him the moment he claimed her with his tongue.

Most women didn’t watch, but Marissa’s eyes stayed focused on his face. Once her eyelids fluttered as a soft moan fled her throat, but she quickly snapped them wide again. They fluttered again when he slid one long finger inside her wet heat. She was tight, already gently squeezing her muscles around his knuckle. He set a smooth, quick rhythm, reaching up to pluck at one taut nipple with his free hand.

Planting her hands on the seat of the chair, Marissa sat up and thrust her hips down with each stroke of his finger. He slid a second finger inside her and curled them up, using the pads to find that spot. Once he did, he pressed and released over and over.

Nate knew it the moment she broke. The whole time he’d been touching her, tasting her, she had been quiet— responsive but quiet. The second her body went tight in orgasm, she screamed his name.

He was dying to be inside of her and wanted to be face-to-face when she screamed his name again. Setting back on his heels, Nate managed to get the belt and buttons on his jeans undone despite his shaky hands. He was so focused on his task that he didn’t notice Marissa sitting up and reaching for him.

She felt out of control like no other time in her adult life. Any other time she would have hated the feeling. She would have hated not being in control of her emotions, her responses, and her need. Not this time, not with Nate. All she wanted right now was for him to hurry.

Reaching out, Marissa pulled him up onto his knees, pressing hungry lips to his. When his bare flesh touched hers, chest-to-chest, she knew she would never get enough.

Somehow he managed to get his pants down far enough to free himself. He fumbled a condom from his pocket, dropping it on the floor. Before he could reach for it, Marissa had it in her hand. She ripped the package open while her mouth found its way back to his. The first touch of her heated fingers on his shaft had him pulling away to watch. His breath was frozen, as she rolled the thin latex onto the hard length of him.

Nate continued to watch, as she scooted closer and lined their bodies up. Her hand held him firmly at the base, his blood pounding in her grip. One little movement of her hips and his head parted her lips. Her heat made him swallow hard and clench his jaw.

Another small movement and she welcomed him inside. Her head was down, watching just as he was. She was holding her breath, the same way he was, as well.

He tried waiting and letting the moment play out, but it was useless. He pressed forward until his hips were flush with hers. He let the air he’d been holding out in a rush. Running his hands up Marissa’s body, Nate gripped her behind the neck and waited for her to meet his gaze.

Marissa raised her eyes, but not her head. Looking up at him from under her lashes, she let him see the desperation she felt. “Don’t make me beg, Nate.”

Those low, whispered words shattered the last of his thin control. Pulling back as far as possible, Nate waited for her to look back down before plunging back in and letting his hips slam into her. Gripping her shoulders hard, Nate sought out her mouth as he rode that edge, needing to go faster, yet wanting it to last forever.

Her nails raked a layer of skin from his biceps, and a growl rolled up from his chest. He could feel her smile against his lips before she nipped the lower one with her teeth.

He wanted more. Scooting back, Nate pulled her down to the floor, loving how her legs automatically came up to lock around his hips. She was quickly meeting him thrust for thrust, reaching up to twist his hair around her fingers to pull him closer. Her mouth was at his ear, as she whispered, “Please.”

Burying his face in the soft skin of her neck, Nate let his body take the lead. The sound of her soft gasps urged him on—faster and faster. When that first deep clench of her body gripped him tight, he knew there was no stopping. His strokes became more erratic. Raising his head, he watched her as she came, her mouth forming his name over and over again.