Smokin' Hot (21 page)

Dylan scanned the area again, but still didn’t see Talia. His concern began to morph into fear. Removing his cell phone from his belt, he keyed in Quade’s number.

“Yo,” Quade answered.

“Did you see Talia in there?”

“Nope, not recently.”

“She said she’d be right back, but the group is breaking up and going home. I don’t know where she is.” He looked up at the sky as his fear grew. “I’m worried about her, Quade.”

“I’ll check around in here before I come over to help you move the equipment.”

Desperate to find Talia, Dylan dialed her cell phone number. The call went directly to her voice mail.

“Damn it,” he muttered. “Where the hell are you, Talia?”

Quade walked toward him. “Did you find her?” Dylan called out before Quade made it halfway across the street.

“No. I even went inside the ladies’ room after I knocked. She wasn’t there.”

“She isn’t answering her cell.”

“She probably turned it off while she was serving and forgot to turn it back on.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

Quade laid a hand on Dylan’s shoulder. “She probably caught up with Clay or Marcus and caught a ride home with one of them. Her car is still in the lot, so she didn’t drive anywhere. That’s a good thing, right?”

“Yeah. The way she was tossing back shots of vodka, she shouldn’t be behind the wheel of a car.”

“Let’s move the equipment. That’ll give Talia time to get home. Then you can call her there.”

It sounded like a good plan to Dylan. “Okay. I’ll start with the tanker.”

“I’ll take one of the brush trucks.”

Dylan opened the door to the tanker and stood on the running board. His gaze swept the area one more time. No sign of Talia.

“Be on your way home,” he whispered. “
Please
be on your way home.”

4

T
he rumble beneath her ear woke Talia. She lifted her head from a hard surface and blinked her eyes into focus. She remembered downing a few shots of the sweet-tea vodka Paige had brought. After that, she began to get sleepy, which always happened when she consumed more than one drink. Deciding a walk would help her wake up, she’d wandered away from the group and . . .

She released a squeak of surprise when the hard surface beneath her moved. Having no idea what would happen next, she threw her arms straight out to give her more balance. Only after she’d blinked a few more times to stop her head from spinning did she realize she lay on top of the ladder truck.

She remembered now what she’d done. She’d become sleepy, but she’d also wanted to get away from Royce’s wandering hands. The man didn’t understand the word
no.
She had no desire to go out with him, much less sleep with him, yet he couldn’t seem to get that through his thick, conceited brain. She’d decided hiding would be the best thing to do. And what better place to hide than on top of the ladder truck?

The truck stopped, then that annoying
beep-beep-beep
sound flowed to her ears, a signal that whoever drove decided to put the truck in reverse. Talia flipped to her back and watched the sky disappear as the driver backed the truck into the garage bay.

She giggled. What a silly time to think of a nursery rhyme. She must be more tipsy than she’d thought.

The big garage door clanged shut. “I’ll walk out with you,” she heard Quade say.

“I gotta grab my leftovers from the fridge,” Dylan said. “Go ahead. I’ll finish locking up.”

“Okay. See you later.”

Silence, then she heard a door open and close. After that, lights began to go out over her head. She’d be completely in the dark soon if she didn’t let Dylan know she was here.

She scooted to the side of the truck and looked down. Dylan stood next to the set of light switches by the entrance to the kitchen. The remaining light shone on his head, highlighting his dark hair.

Damn, you are one fine-looking man.
“Pssst.”

He froze, looked around him. “Is someone here?”

“Pssst!” She waved one hand to draw his attention. “Up here.”

His gaze swung her way. “Talia? What the hell are you doing up there?”

“I was sleeping until you moved the truck.”

“You were
sleeping?
”

“Yeah. And hiding from Royce. I think that guy is part octo . . . octo . . . that sea thing with all the arms.”

“Octopus.”

“Yeah, that’s it.”

She could see Dylan’s lips twitching. Shaking his head, he walked over to the ladder truck. “I think you’d better come down and let me take you home.”

“Nope. I like it up here.”

“Talia, you can’t stay up there all night.”

“Sure I can. Toss me a pillow and blankey and I’ll be all co-cozy.” She leaned a bit farther over the edge. The liquor she’d consumed gave her the courage to say exactly what she wanted to say. “I’d be even cozier with you up here with me under that blankey.”

“Not gonna happen.” He gave her a come-here motion with his fingers. “Time to go home.”

“Nope.” She flopped to her back, curved her arms beneath her head. “I’m staying here.”

“Talia. Don’t make me come up there.”

She grinned. As if his stern tone could scare her.

“You want me down, you have to come get me.”

“Shit,” he muttered.

Talia’s grin widened when she heard his footsteps cross the floor. The stepladder on the side of the truck made a squeaking sound as he lowered it. His boots clomped on the ladder, then across the top of the truck until he leaned over her, a cross between a scowl and laughter on his face.

“You’re drunk.”

“I am not. I’m just tipsy.”

He held out one hand to her. “C’mon. I’ll take you home.”

“I told you, I’m not moving.”

Dylan blew out a breath. “Talia, I’m willing to carry you over my shoulder, but I don’t think your stomach or head would like that.”

He had a point. Her stomach gave a lurch at the thought of her hanging upside down in a fireman’s hold. “Not a good idea.”

“That’s what I thought, too.” He tugged her hands from beneath her head. “Let’s go.”

Instead of allowing him to pull her up, Talia gave a hard yank on his hands. He fell on top of her with a loud
oomph
.

“See?” She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Isn’t this better than getting down?”

He rose to his hands and knees, but she tightened her arms around his neck so he couldn’t go any farther. “Talia, it’s time to go.”

“Nope. I like it here.” She tugged on his neck, trying to bring his mouth closer to hers. “Kiss me, Dylan.”

“Talia, you’re drunk. You don’t know what you’re doing.”

“I told you I’m not drunk. I know exactly what I’m doing.” All traces of humor disappeared from her voice. “I’ve wanted you from the first time I met you, Dylan. Please don’t turn me away again.”

“Talia, we—”

Her mouth cut off whatever he’d started to say. Finally,
finally,
she had her first taste of Dylan. A hint of spice mixed with a bit of wintergreen, as if he’d recently eaten a breath mint.

Delicious.

He grabbed her wrists, yanked them away from him, and held them tightly. “Stop it.”

His reluctance made her angry. She’d swallowed her last bit of pride and thrown herself at him, and he’d rejected her. Again. “Why? Why should I stop? Why don’t you want me?”

“I never said I don’t want you.”

“Then what is your problem?”

He hung his head, sighed heavily, then looked into her eyes again. “Talia, I can’t get involved with you. I can’t get involved with
anyone
.”

“Why not?” A sudden thought occurred to her, something she’d never considered. Perhaps he’d been injured and couldn’t get an erection. “Can’t you get hard?”

He barked out a laugh. “No, getting hard isn’t a problem. There are other, more complicated reasons why I can’t get involved with anyone.”

His hold had loosened on her wrists while they talked. She slipped them from his grip, ran her fingers into his hair. “There’s no involvement here, Dylan. There’s just you and me. I want you.” She tugged his head closer. “Don’t you want me?”

She covered his lips with hers in another kiss. She felt him tighten, as if he meant to pull away from her again. Then, suddenly, a low moan came from deep in his throat and he kissed her back.

Heaven.

Dylan lifted his head. He caressed her cheek with one thumb. “Yes, I want you,” he whispered. “But you aren’t acting like the Talia I know. I think the liquor is talking for you, and I don’t want you to regret anything tomorrow.”

His obvious concern made her fall even more in love with him. “I promise you, Dylan, I won’t regret
anything
tomorrow.”

His gaze slowly swept over her face as he continued that hypnotic glide on her cheek with his thumb. When it passed over her mouth, she parted her lips and touched it with the tip of her tongue.

“God, you’re beautiful,” he said in a husky voice.

This time,
he
kissed
her
. Talia’s head spun, but not from the alcohol. She’d waited two years to experience Dylan’s kiss. He caressed her lips softly at first, but his kiss soon turned deeper, more passionate. He slipped one arm beneath her, one leg between hers. She could feel the firm bulge of his cock against her hip.

He definitely had no problem getting hard.

The ten-inch difference in their heights didn’t matter when he held her so close to him. Their bodies fit together like two pieces of a puzzle, just as Talia knew they would.

She suspected they would fit even better together when they removed their clothes.

Dylan abruptly ended the kiss, pulled away from her, and sat up with his back to her. “Shit,” he mumbled as he drove both hands into his hair. “We can’t do this, Talia.
I
can’t do this.”

No way was he going to kindle a spark and douse the flame instead of fanning it to life. “Yes, you can.” Grabbing the back of his T-shirt, she jerked him down to the truck on his back. She would’ve smirked over the surprised look on his face if she hadn’t been so hungry for his taste. Before he had the chance to respond, she climbed on top of him and kissed him again.

It pleased her to hear him groan. It pleased her even more to feel his arms wrap tightly around her. She didn’t waste time with soft kisses, but dove right into ravishment. She moved her mouth one way, then the other, taking everything she could from Dylan’s mouth.

Kissing him had to be one of the sweetest things on Earth and she hated to stop, but they wore way too many clothes. After giving him one more drugging kiss, she sat up, straddled his hips. His hard shaft pressed against her pussy. Staring into his eyes, she began to unbutton her blouse.

His gaze dropped to follow the movement of her fingers. When she freed the last button, she unfastened the tie at her waist, let the blouse slip off her shoulders. Dylan laid his hands on top of her thighs and squeezed.

Talia had a weakness for pretty lingerie. Her bra and panties set today consisted of mostly sage-green lace with just enough satin to hold the lace in place. She knew Dylan could easily see her nipples through her bra, even in the dim lighting.

She unhooked the front fastening of her bra, tossed it to land on her blouse. Dylan drew in a sharp breath through his nose. “Damn.”

Talia had always wished for bigger breasts, but Dylan didn’t seem to mind their small size. He cradled them in his palms, scraped his thumbs across the nipples. “Perfect,” he whispered.

His compliment made her feel perfect. Needing some of his clothes off now, she pushed up his T-shirt to under his arms. Dylan lifted his torso a few inches off the truck, enough to let her pull the shirt over his head. It landed somewhere in the vicinity of her clothes.

She’d seen Dylan without a shirt many times at the fire hall. She’d never seen him this close, or had the chance to touch his bare skin. She did so now, running her fingers across his collarbone, his pecs, down the center of his stomach, to his navel. The light dusting of dark brown hair tickled her fingertips.

“I can’t believe I’m finally touching you.”

 

Dylan couldn’t believe it either. He should stop this before it went any further. Talia’s bravery had to come from the vodka. He couldn’t equate the sweet, easygoing woman he knew with the temptress who dragged her fingernails down the center of his torso. He hissed at the slight bite of pain.

Her lips curved up in a siren’s smile. “I like scratching.”

“Good to know,” he managed to rasp. He had a difficult time concentrating with her hands on him, much less saying no to something so pleasurable. The warmth of her pussy covering his cock felt wondrous because he wanted her so much, and also torturous because he knew he shouldn’t have her.

It would be easier if he could think of Talia as just a lay. Not happening. He cared deeply about her and would never intentionally do anything to hurt her. The bliss they’d achieve having sex wouldn’t accomplish anything other than making their hormones do a happy dance.

His hormones
really
wanted to do that happy dance.

She scooted back on his thighs, unfastened his belt buckle, and released the button at the waistband of his jeans. The rasp of the zipper sounded loud in the quiet garage. Dylan hissed when her soft hand slipped inside his briefs. His eyes drifted closed at the intense pleasure.

He’d hungered for her touch for two long years. He didn’t want to deny himself—or Talia—any longer.

“You’re so hard,” she whispered.

“Yeah.” His voice sounded like a frog croaking. He couldn’t be expected to speak correctly when Talia had her hand wrapped around his dick.

She scooted back a few more inches, taking his jeans and briefs with her until his bare cock lay on his stomach. She ran her hands all the way up to his shoulders, then down to caress his thighs. Dylan had almost reached the point of begging her to touch his cock again, when she did exactly that. Wrapping one hand around it, she pulled it straight up. Happy to let her do whatever she wanted, he folded his arms beneath his head and watched her.

“Do you like me touching you?”

“Yeah. Very much.”

“What about if I . . .” She swiped her tongue across the head. “Lick you?”

“Sweetheart, there isn’t a man alive who doesn’t love to have his cock licked.”

She grinned at his comment before she dragged her tongue down the entire length, from the crown to the base. She repeated her action from base to crown, then took the head in her mouth.

“Sweet Jesus,” he muttered. Talia’s mouth felt like a wet furnace. Heat and moisture engulfed his flesh. He arched his hips off the truck, trying to capture even more of the delicious sensation.

“I guess you do like this.” Her tongue swirled around the crown, the same way she would lick an ice cream cone. “I like it, too.”

This time when she dragged her tongue down his length, she swept it across his balls before she nuzzled them with her nose.

“I love the way you smell.”

The combination of abstinence and her expert mouth drove up his desire the highest he thought it had ever been. He had to have more of her. Now.

Dylan rose enough to grab her upper arms and pull her on top of him. Holding the back of her head, he urged her closer for a long, deep kiss.

Still holding her, still kissing her, he rolled them over so she lay on her back. The feel of the zigzag pattern in the truck’s surface had him reaching for their shirts to place under her to protect her skin.