Everything Bared (Six-Alarm Sexy) (10 page)

She swallowed and met Will’s blazing gaze. “I… I’m so sorry. This was really inappropriate. I shouldn’t have taken advantage of you like that.”

“Did you think it was some sort of joke?” He dug his fingers through his hair, leaving it adorably ruffled. This must be how he looked after sex. She so wanted to find out for sure. Had she blown her chances? It wouldn’t be surprising if she had, given how she’d behaved.

He continued to stare at her, his jaw clenching when she licked her dry lips. His erection bobbed between them, begging for attention. “It started out as a joke. A little harmless payback, you know?” She tried to make light of it, tried to smile, but her throat was so tense and raw, she could barely breathe.

“Let me get this straight, so there are no misunderstandings. Blow jobs in the workplace are a joke to you, Ms. Harris?” His voice was hard, authoritative. Longing pooled in her belly and she squeezed her thighs together. What was wrong with her? Why was she finding all of this so damn
exciting
?

When she didn’t answer, Will continued. “Do you do this sort of thing often? No wonder the guys on the rescue team like you so much.”

She recoiled, as if he’d punched her in the gut. And that’s exactly how his words felt. “Fuck you, Will,” she spat, tearing her wrists from his grasp. “I should have known you’d turn out to be an asshole, like all the others.” Actually, he was a worse asshole. He’d rejected her
before
finding out the truth about her. She shuddered, thinking what his reaction would have been. Thank God she’d found out what a jerk he was before she’d revealed anything. Giving him her back, she rounded his desk. If she never laid eyes on him again, it would be too soon. Although, she’d really miss his family. And fuck. Where was she going to go now? She certainly couldn’t stay with him.

A hand on her arm stopped her momentum. “Please, give me a minute. I know that was unwarranted. Let me try to explain.”

“Fine.” Snarling, she crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him. She’d give him his minute, but not a damn second more. His head fell back against his chair and he pinched the bridge of his nose in a gesture that reminded her of Jamie. He took a deep breath and opened his eyes. “Danielle, I’m the one who’s sorry. Please, forget I said that.”

“Some things can’t be unsaid, Will.”

“You’re right. Of course.” He leaned forward and dropped his head into his hands. He looked so crestfallen, she couldn’t help forgiving him a little.

Leaning against the desk, she adjusted her clothing. Will straightened and his hot gaze followed each movement. She took pity on him. “Listen, I wanted to get back at you for making me feel like a cheap whore, and I went and acted like one instead. All you did was call me on it. I think we’re even.”

“No!” he shouted, his eyes filling with horror. He got to his feet, barely managing to grab onto his pants before they dropped to his knees. A smile tugged at her lips. Why couldn’t she stay mad at this man?

“You’re doing it again, putting yourself down. And I did it too.” He cupped her shoulders, squeezing gently. “This is my fault. I was aroused as fuck by what you were doing to me. I just wanted Torval to leave so we could finish what we’d started.”

Unable to see the suffering on his face without offering some comfort, she ran the backs of her fingers along his cheek.

“When he accused me of… when he threw that at me, all those feelings flipped, like a switch. I went from being sexed up to riled up. All I could see was red, and like the asshole I am, I took it out on you.” He covered her hand with one of his own and brought it to his lips where he pressed butterfly kisses on her knuckles. “Please forgive me. It was wrong, and I’m so sorry.”

Will had lashed out at her, but then again, she’d gone way too far. If they’d been discovered, that union guy would have made sure Will lost his job. Had their situations been reversed, she wasn’t so sure she’d be as understanding. Resting her forehead against his, she gripped his waist. “You know what they say about cheating husbands?” she whispered.

“Ah… no. What?”

“They’re always suspicious of their wives.”

He tilted his head back and frowned. “I’m not following.”

“Maybe he’s accusing you to deflect attention from himself.”

“A diversion.” He dropped into his chair and tugged on her arm until she sat on his lap. “Hmm… I never thought of that. I’ll have my team start auditing the books. If something funny is going on, we’ll figure it out.”

Dani glanced at her watch and groaned. “I have to go get Coco at the dog spa.”

His eyes bulged. “Dog spa?”

“Coco loves her mani and pedi,” Dani said, laughing at the expression on Will’s gorgeous face.

His eyes sparkled with humor as he pulled her against him. She pressed herself into his firm chest and squeezed her eyes shut. The heat of his hands burned through her work shirt and she wanted nothing more than to stay in his arms forever. She loved seeing him happy, loved knowing she’d put that smile on his face.

He shifted beneath her legs and his erection rubbed against her thigh. Reaching down, she took it in her hand, stroking the silky flesh with her thumb. She raised an eyebrow. “Rain check?”

Leaning forward, he kissed the tip of her nose. The fresh scent of his cologne teased her senses and made her yearn for more with this man.

“I’ll be home at six.”

She gulped. “I’ll be waiting.”

Where the fuck is she?

William checked the whole condo, every room, even the balcony. Empty. He glanced at his watch again, just to be sure. Past six. She
should
be here.
I’ll be waiting
, she’d said. He’d had a raging hard-on all afternoon, and his concentration had been shit. He’d been so focused on coming home, to her…

With a vicious yank, he loosened his tie and poured himself a drink. The Glenlivet burned a path down his throat as he swallowed half the tumbler. He refilled the glass before walking outside. His mind instantly filled with images of Danielle, standing nearly naked in the candlelight. The memory of her taste made his tongue tingle. What was it about her? He’d never obsessed about a woman before, certainly not like this. Hell, a couple weeks ago, he could barely stand her. Everything about Danielle had rubbed him the wrong way: her athletic figure, her brashness, the way she spoke, the way she dressed, the way she deliberately pushed his buttons. Strangely, those were now the very things that attracted him to her. She reminded him of some of the women he’d enjoyed when he’d partied at
those
clubs with Jamie. Free-spirited. Fearless. And totally unsuitable.

He tossed back the rest of the Glenlivet and shrugged off his jacket. Might as well make himself comfortable. He unlaced his shoes and removed his socks, placing everything neatly beside the chaise. Then he stretched out and wiggled his toes, enjoying the cool breeze from the Sound as it fanned over his bare feet. Days like this made the winter rains bearable.

Eyes closed, he relaxed into the thick cushions and let the sun warm him. He’d just reached that dreamy in-between state, not quite awake, not quite asleep, when what felt like a piano landed on his lap. A sharp bark identified the owner of the claws parked dangerously close to his dick. When he opened his eyes, he was face-to-face with a very playful and sweet-smelling Coco.

The dog moved in for a lick.

Oh no! It was bad enough he’d have fur all over his suit, he would not have dog slobber all over his face. Even if her breath did smell like she’d just had her fangs cleaned. But how to stop her? His feet were on the chaise, so saying
heel
wouldn’t work. The dog was already sitting, so that wouldn’t work either.

“Down,” he ordered, accompanying the words with a snap and gesture of his hand. He hoped it was a command she knew.

Coco barked and jumped off the chaise. Immediately, she sat beside it, tail wagging and an expectant look in her eyes.

Remembering what Danielle had taught him, he added a hasty, “Good girl.”

Clapping drew his attention to the woman standing in the doorway. Dressed in black running shorts that molded her thighs and a hot pink sports bra barely covered by a white tank top, Danielle was stunning. Her eyes shone with humor and her cheeks glowed with exertion. A light sheen of sweat made her entire body glisten. William’s mouth watered with the need to lick her from head to toe.

“Sorry about the suit,” she said, stepping out onto the balcony. He watched, mesmerized, as she uncapped a bottle of water and drank deeply, the movement of her throat calling attention to the golden flesh of her neck. A drop of water escaped from the corner of her mouth. She giggled and chased it with her tongue in a long sweeping motion.

William’s cock filled with blood at the sensory memory. He was more than ready to finish what she’d started under his desk.

Then he remembered what he’d said to her. The harsh words, the crude insult. Shame clogged his throat and his erection wilted. He pushed himself up from the chaise. “Ah, hey. What I said to you at my office… I want to apologize again. It was sexist and demeaning, and absolutely uncalled for.”

She set her bottle on the table and leaned against it. “Why’d you say it?”

Like her dog, Danielle was showing her claws. His stomach churned. If she wanted him to spill his guts, he would. He owed her the truth, even if it made her mad all over again. He kept his voice as soft and neutral as possible. “Because I knew it would hurt you.”

She held his gaze, her expression completely unreadable. His shirt began to feel tight, constricting his chest and squeezing off his air, as he awaited her first volley.

“So, is this what you always do when you’re angry, or am I just special?”

“It’s an attack strategy: Use your opponent’s weakness against him.”

Her brow creased and she gripped the edge of the table. “I’m your opponent now? Maybe you should tell me what we’re fighting over and what the rules are, so I can be prepared for next time.” He marveled at her self-control. If their situations were reversed, he wouldn’t be so calm.

He stepped closer and very tentatively touched her cheek, giving her plenty of opportunity to knock his hand away. But she didn’t. “There won’t be a next time.” His voice was thick with conviction.

“We’re what—friends?—then?”

“I’d like that.”

“Ditto.” She grinned, and he felt like a weight the size of her dog had been lifted off his shoulders.

His eyes roamed her face, her eyes, her lips. He wanted to kiss her, wanted to do more than that, but he had to keep things cool, at least for now. Instead, he settled for curling a dark strand of hair that had escaped her ponytail around his finger. “How about we get changed and go out? Grab a bite to eat.”

“As friends.”

Since they were keeping this whatever it was quiet, an evening out as friends would have to do. “Sure.”

Reaching down, she rubbed her palm along the bulge in his trousers, eliciting a groan from him. It just felt so fucking good.
She
felt good. Chuckling at his reaction, she said, “And here I thought you’d jump me as soon as I walked through the door.”

He leaned down and sniffed her neck, then licked her from her clavicle to that little spot behind her ear. “That can still be arranged,” he whispered, knowing his breath would cool the path he’d made wet.

She shivered and clung to his shoulders. “Maybe going out first would be a good idea.”

Pleasure swelled in his chest upon hearing the rasp in her voice. A rasp he’d put there. His hands tightened around her waist and he lifted her onto the table where they’d shared dinner the night before. She wrapped her legs around his waist and scooted forward until their groins touched. Hormones turning his blood to liquid fire, his mouth came down on hers. Dinner would have to wait. Right now he was hungry for something else: her.

She sucked his bottom lip into her mouth, biting gently with her teeth. The sting, the strange mix of pain and pleasure, ripped through him. And when she bathed the spot with her tongue, the smooth stroke went straight to his cock. Moaning, he tilted her head back, changing the angle, and took control of the kiss. She tasted like sin and salvation all rolled up into one.

Desperate to touch her, to explore the texture of her skin, he ripped off her tank top. As his lips reconnected with hers, his hands skimmed over every exposed inch. When they finally broke apart, both panting, needing air, her eyes twinkled. “Change of plans?”

“We’re eating in tonight.”

“Eating?” she teased.

“Oh, yeah.”

“What’s on the menu?”

His lips quirked. “A sweet succulent firefighter.”

She laughed and glanced around. “Sweet? Where is she?”

He caught her lip, nipping it gently. “She’s right here.” Bending his head, he ran his tongue over the swells of her breasts. “So sweet.”

Sports bra and all, he sucked a nipple into his mouth. “So succulent.” Letting her go, he raised his head so he was staring into her eyes. “And don’t you forget it.”

Her eyes glazing with passion, she grabbed his head and pulled him to her for another kiss. Her fierceness took him by surprise. His lips parted and her tongue invaded, plundered, conquered. Fuck. No woman had ever made him feel so taken. And he wasn’t exactly sure what he thought about that. He just knew that he wanted her, no matter the terms.