False Pretenses (11 page)

“Tomorrow,” she assured him and darted along the sand until she reached Nathan. He grasped her arm and peered over her shoulder. She pushed past him and started walking in the opposite direction.

“Who was that?” he demanded.

“Just somebody I met at the beach party—the
real
one,” she snapped.

“You alone in the dark with a man is not a party,” he growled.

She stopped walking and put her hands on her hips, glaring up at him. “Excuse me? You’re out here questioning my actions when that little blonde bunny wrapped herself around you so tight, she was practically in your boxers.”

“You’re exaggerating.”

“Whatever.” She started again, and he fell into step beside her until they bordered the partygoers, and light illuminated his face, a mask of anger. Now she knew he could get angry, but he still hadn’t raised his voice. The controlled way he held himself in check would have been sexy if he hadn’t pissed her off.

“So that’s what this was, a childish way to get back at me? You picked up some strange man at a party where you know no one, and you walk off into the darkness with him half naked?”

When he put it like that, she did seem like an airhead, but she would not straighten him out with the truth. “Look, it’s late. I’m tired. This night has been a joke, so if you don’t mind, I want to go back to your house. If you won’t take me, I’m sure I can find a ride somewhere.”

She cast a glance in the direction of several men, and he grunted as if he would toss her over his shoulder at any second. Alyssa would cut him down to size if he even tried.

“I bet you could,” he bit out.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Let’s go. I will drive you.”

“You mean your chauffeur.”

“I don’t understand the resentment you feel about my station in life, Alyssa. I swindled no one. I don’t own sweatshops. I work damn hard for what I have, probably more than the average man.”

“I’m not resentful. Just forget it. I’m going for another drink.” She headed to the bar, but he followed.

“Where are your clothes?”

His words brought her dress and shoes to mind, and she leaned on the bar and called to the man behind it. “Hey, can I have my stuff now, please?”

He approached with an excited grin spreading over his face. His gaze lowered to her breasts, which were smashed a little on the counter. “I get off in half an hour. How about I give them to you then?”

Nathan crowded her from behind and dropped a threatening hand on the bar. “She’ll have them now, and neither of us cares when you’re off work.”

The man paled. “Mr. Corde, of course, sir.”

Alyssa groaned. “Does everyone know you and kiss your ass?”

Nathan’s lips tightened into a straight line. “Not everyone.”

“I know you’re not talking about me, because if you are, you should get it by now. I’m never kissing your ass.” She grabbed her dress and shoes and turned on her heel to stalk away. He caught up with her and directed her to the hotel. Now that she had left the beach, dressed the way she was, she couldn’t wait to get out from under the bright lights.

They strode through to the front entrance where his car waited. Nathan didn’t wait for his driver to open the door. He wrenched it wide, and she shuffled inside the dark interior. The snide remarks from her side and the cold parries from his continued on the road home.

“So what? I’m supposed to put up with any kind of treatment just because I’m pretending to be your girlfriend?”

“No one said you did, Alyssa. If you would just calm down…”

She managed to scramble into her dress, and she felt his eyes on her the entire time. Goodness knows she wasn’t trying to entice the insufferable man when she wiggled to get the material to lie properly over her breasts. For some reason it felt tighter. “Calm down? It’s not like you’re paying me to do this, Nathan.”

“Money, you bring that up a lot.”

“You’re counting. And no, it’s not about money. It’s about respect.”

He growled in frustration. She rolled her eyes at him. When the car pulled to a stop, she jumped out and ran up to the front door. Aziz opened it before she got there, and she muttered her thanks before continuing up to the bedroom she shared with Nathan. He burned her up with that superior attitude. He didn’t see where he was wrong, or his uppity friends. Well, he could kiss her ass. She would ask for another bedroom too, because it was for damn sure she wouldn’t spend the night in the same bed with him.

Hearing him coming up the stairs, she slammed the door and headed toward the bathroom, chuckling under her breath. The move was childish, but at the moment, she didn’t care. She turned on the hot spray and stripped her dress and bikini off. The bathroom door crashed against the wall, and she jumped, covering her breasts with one arm and cupping her pussy with the other hand.

“Get out, Nathan!”

His gaze full of rage swept her from head to foot, and if possible, it darkened. Her mouth went dry, and behind her arm, her nipples pebbled. To her annoyance, her pussy moistened just having him look at her.

“We were not finished with our discussion.”

“Discussion? That’s what you call it? Why don’t you go have a discussion with Natasha? I’m sure she’d enjoy it. Me, I’m already bored silly.”

He advanced into the spacious room. At her apartment, she would have been trapped. Here, she could run around like a mad idiot and maybe avoid him. Well, that would be if Nathan didn’t have the speed and grace of a damn animal. She spun on her heel, about to jet, but he crossed the space between them and grabbed her arm. A sudden crouch to the floor surprised him enough for her to get free, but when she stood and took a step, he was on her once again. She stumbled and had to uncover her breasts to keep from slamming into the wall. Nathan had no mercy. He followed and pinned her there.
How the hell did I end up like this?
She drew in a deep breath and was glad he couldn’t see her face at that moment. To be butt naked, pissed, and facing the wall and him so close behind was not a good thing.

“Why would I want Natasha,” he demanded, “when I can have this?” His fingertips skimmed the back of her thigh up to her ass, and he squeezed. She shut her eyes and swallowed hard.

“I-I’m not going to be your mistress. What we did before…” Damn it, she couldn’t say it. She couldn’t flat out tell him no.

He released her arm and thumped the wall beside her head with a heavy hand. Even while he wanted her, the anger hadn’t lessened. “You will not deny you want this, Alyssa.”

She scowled over her shoulder at him. If she tried to move, her ass would brush his leg, or worse, she’d confirm he had a hard-on, and something told her there was no coming back from that knowledge. “If you’re not going to get out, then move so I can take a shower. You’re wasting water.”

He stepped closer and bent his knees, bringing his pelvis in line with her ass.
No, no, no!
The barest touch had her back arching, and she stuck her butt out. Chin to her chest, she shut her eyes. The bastard played dirty.

He kissed her shoulder. “I want you.” Another kiss landed at her nape. “You want me.” He moved to the other side and nibbled her ear. “Nothing else matters.”

She curled her fingers into her palms and sank toward the wall. He didn’t follow, so she turned around to face him. Panting, she couldn’t help her breasts rising and falling, and she had no energy to raise her hands to cover them. He stared as if mesmerized. Her stupid body responded to that alone. Looking at him made it worse, so she shut her eyes again, but she felt it when he neared. His lips touched hers.
Don’t open your mouth, Alyssa.

She parted her lips, and he snaked his tongue inside. Somehow, she broke the kiss. “We’re not doing this.”

“We’re not?”

The rustle of clothing made her open her eyes. He undressed, and at the sight of his bare chest, she swore.

“Don’t even think about it!”

His pants hit the floor, followed by his boxers.

“Why the hell!” She raged while taking in the angle of his cock, all hard and jutting from his body. The thought of sucking it flitted through her mind, on the heels of it pumping deep inside her pussy. Both ideas seemed impossible to walk away from. “This isn’t fair. You need to give me space to make my own decision about whether to have sex with you, not seduce me into it. I thought it was important to you that I have no regrets.”

The jumbled words seemed to have an effect. He backed off a step, and she sighed in relief.

“You’re right. I apologize.” All the anger appeared to drain out of him, and he turned his back.

Her gaze lowered to his muscled ass. Even that was pretty. Did the man have any physical imperfections? She lit on a small scar at the back of his right calf. No satisfaction came from knowing it existed. When he walked away, she followed his movements with hunger eating at her core. He opened the shower door and stepped through it.

“I will not follow him,” she whispered to no one.

Even with steam rising, she saw through the glass door as Nathan raised his hands to his hair and let the water cascade over his form. He stood strong and erect, legs apart. His biceps flexed with his actions, and the gel he’d used bubbled on his taut skin, glided down his abs, and coated his muscular thighs. He turned around, facing her way, his eyes shut, and she was drawn not just to his body but him, the enigmatic man. She wanted to be near him, to hear him speak, to have him look at her and listen to her.

“You’re an idiot, Alyssa.” She stumbled toward him as if there were an invisible cord drawing her closer. He seemed to sense her and opened his eyes. For a moment, they stared at each other, and then he opened the door and stood aside. She joined him. He made no effort to touch her but waited for her to make the first move. “I’m not going to be your mistress.”

“Okay.”

She squeezed around him to get closer to the water and let its warmth ease some of her tension. After working gel into suds in her sponge, she began smoothing it over her body. Still Nathan didn’t touch her.

“This thing we’re doing.” She licked her lips. “It’s just this week. You can do what you want to do. We aren’t exclusive.”

What the hell was she thinking? She’d just broken it off with a guy because he wanted her and any woman who crossed his path, too. No, this wasn’t the same. Nathan wasn’t her boyfriend, and if she kept it straight in her head, she might never let her feelings for him grow to love. If he could sleep with whomever and she knew it, she could walk away with her heart intact. After all, they were from two different worlds, and she’d never thought she had the kind of hang-ups she’d displayed in the last few days. That also made it easier.
Good, it’s settled.

She held out the sponge to him. “Can you get my back?”

He took it and began stroking the ball over her skin. Tingles skidded along her spine despite the fact that he hadn’t touched her with his hands.

“Are you sure about this, Alyssa?” He sounded doubtful.

“Why not? Men…and women…do it all the time. No big deal. Like I said, we aren’t in a relationship, and this arrangement isn’t permanent. We’re having a little fun. Nothing wrong with it.”

“You said before you didn’t want an open relationship.”

Damn, had she said that? “Oh, well, we’re not together.”

Nathan dropped the sponge and spun her to face him. He drew her close and wrapped his fingers at her waist to raise her in his arms. Together they stood beneath the stream, and when he kissed her lips, she forgot all protests, everything except him and the way he felt, the way he smelled, and his taste. She breathed him in, her lids heavy from the drunkenness that he caused. Her heart threatened to beat out of her chest, and her breaths—when he let her drag in air—were noisy.

“Right now, there’s just you and me.” He kissed her again and turned off the water while still holding her. She protested when he stepped out of the shower and didn’t let her go.

“Nathan, put me down. We have to dry off.”

His hold loosened, and she slid down a few inches. The head of his cock pushed against her pussy entrance. She moaned.

“If you make that noise, how will I let you go?”

“How am I going to keep quiet when your dick is about to slide into me?”

He shrugged. They stood there in the middle of the floor, him taking all of her weight without a problem. She held on to his shoulders, dripping wet and trying not to give in, but her heat was moist and ready. One more inch and he’d fill her.

“Nathan,” she begged.

He allowed her to fall a little more, and she cried out his name once again. His cock pierced her sex an inch. She had to have more and wriggled her hips. A hiss escaped between his teeth. When she raised her head, she caught the same hunger she felt glimmering in his eyes, but his grip tightened.

“Not yet.”

She let her head fall back and shut her eyes. “You want to torment us both.”

“Isn’t it good?”

“Yes.” She panted, trying to get it together. The effort cost too much energy. Nathan lowered her down his shaft until he filled her to capacity, and then he raised her higher. She clenched his shoulders. “More.”

“You want all of it, baby?”

A tremor shook her, and she nuzzled his neck, snaked her tongue along his throat, and sucked with gentle pressure at his Adam’s apple. This time, he moaned, and she grinned in satisfaction.

He brought her down again and then back up. Her pussy walls seemed to swell around his dick, squeezing it. She exercised her internal muscles, trying to keep him where she wanted him. Nathan palmed her ass to maintain control. He set the pace, and no matter how much she pleaded, he didn’t speed up or slow down. Her body thrummed to the beat he set, and nothing she did changed the fact. She kissed his lips, along his strong neck, and even tweaked his nipples. The man gave in to moans of pleasure but nothing more.

“Nathan.”

“Yes, baby,” he murmured, “say my name. Tell me how I make you feel.”

“You’re a bastard,” she complained and struggled against the wonderful onslaught of his cock grinding into her, only to be taken away. Her core wound tighter, escalating toward an orgasm, but every time her thighs began to quiver, he stopped moving. “You’re driving me crazy!”