Through The Lens (Creative Hearts Book 1) (7 page)

She spotted her bottoms at the base of the tree and bent over to retrieve them, fighting hard to hide her embarrassment at the size of her ass. He may be comfortable with this—an on-shoot hookup was probably a regular occurrence for him—but for her...well, it wasn’t. She peeked over her shoulder. There was no hiding. He was standing with his arms folded, seeming to completely enjoy the view. She gave him a frown. “Do you mind?”
 

He held up both hands in a posture of surrender. “Not my fault when you go around bending over and looking that good.”

Mika quickly stepped into her bottoms. She made quick work of tying the back on her bikini top behind her neck though her hands were all thumbs as she fumbled with the strings.
 

She let out a sigh. Why was he still looking at her like that? She could feel him. So intense. Her carefree feelings of surrender and confidence were seeping away, quickly being replaced by doubt and insecurity. She shook her head and looked up at the tree, where the fading sunlight filtered through the branches, before turning back to Ale and his all-seeing eyes. For a moment, she gave as good as she got. It was a game of chicken to see who would turn away first. But Ale was like a man in a trance, or maybe someone with just too much determination.
 

She snorted with disbelief and blinked. He smiled, full lips spreading with an invitation, and she instinctively lowered her eyes. She shouldn’t have done that.
Look up girl, just keep looking up.
But from this view, she wanted to reach out and relieve him of what must be an ever-growing ache. He was once again so hard she wanted to touch him to make sure he was real. That this was real. But more than anything, she wanted to hold on. Hold on to the absolutely wonderful feeling of joy, of power, of feeling like she was the only women he wanted—at least, for now.

And just then thoughts of the real world niggled at the back of her mind. She had to tell him about the job at
Stylist
. But how? Just a short time ago, it seemed difficult, but at least the conversation was had been mapped out in her head. Now those words, just below the surface, lodged in her throat. Before he’d have been annoyed, but with the way he was looking at her now? He’d be outright furious. She should just open her mouth and tell him.
 

She gave him another up and down, taking in his sharply defined muscles, well accented by his gorgeous, bronzed skin. Yeah, the words would come a lot easier if he’d just put on some pants.

Her breath caught as Alejandro suddenly wrapped his arms around her and lifted her effortlessly. He backed her onto the tree, the bark nipping tenderly into the flesh of her back. She wrapped her legs around his waist and held tightly to his shoulders for support as he cradled her bottom with one hand and used his other to caress her breasts. Any power she had a moment ago was gone.
 

Poof.
 

Right now he had the power, and she was fine with that. When he reached into her top and plucked at a nipple, she let out that damned whimper and felt him smile through his kiss. Thoughts of the new job flitted away as her passion sparked. Oh yes, he knew exactly what he was doing, and she didn’t care as long as he didn’t stop. He trailed his tongue to her ear, taking her lobe and giving it a tender suck. His tongue traveled south, down the side of her neck, where he teased her with tiny bites.
 

Along with his tongue, his fingers went to work, teasing her tender flesh over the fabric of her bottoms, causing yet another moan of pleasure to escape her lips.

“I want you to come for me,” he ground out.

“But- but we have to go,” she whispered.
 

“It can wait.” His fingers played their clever little game. “I want you to come for me first.”

Damn Alejandro. As if she had a choice.
 

He moved his fingers in and out of her in a sensual rhythm then dipped his head lower to tease her nipple through her top, causing incredible friction in two places at once.

“I need you inside me now,” Mika panted. Oh god, she was already so close.

Ale growled in her ear. The sound sent her that much closer to the tipping point. He lifted her higher and with one hand moved the crotch of her bottoms to the side and guided himself to her center. Then with one long and deep thrust, he was inside her. She felt the tree bark scrape at her back and winced. Ale stilled, looking at her. He shifted, and still holding her up, he turned, arching and bracing his own back against the tree. Mika felt her eyes roll back. The talented Mister Vargas. Would wonders never cease?
 

It was bliss, having him like this. He was so full, so deep. They were such a perfect fit. She squeezed her muscles, and he groaned, sending a rumble through his chest to hers. He threw his head back. Mika watched as his eyes seemed to look for something far off in the sky. She knew he was fighting to hold on, so she squeezed her muscles tighter and licked at his jaw. She would not have him so in control—not now, while she was so lost.
 

Mika pushed forward and then arched back, causing his erection to slide even deeper still in a sensual S motion. She let out a hiss, biting her bottom lip. She felt tears prick at the back of her eyes. Where he ended, she began.
 

Then he whispered her name, and it was like he turned on a switch. She whimpered and he answered, leaning forward and nipping at her lip, tugging it between his teeth. He lifted her slightly higher and brought her back down on him again. And again. Over and over. She quickly got the rhythm locking her arms around his neck and ground into him. They were like two animals, not able to stop until they were both satisfied.
 

Mika moved faster and faster, feeling the waves of passion ripple through both their bodies. Then suddenly it was too much. She couldn’t hold on no matter how hard she tried, even if she did want to stay this way forever.
 

He finally pulled her to him. His tongue mingled with hers, stroking her in the most amazingly tender and loving way. She broke. Unable to stop the orgasm that racked her body and shook her to the core. She heard him groan her name once again as a spasm shook his body, and he squeezed tightly at her hips. Her stomach, legs, everything quivered and turned to liquid as he shook with her. The only things stopping them from falling to the ground in a heap were his strong legs, which somehow held them both up, and that blessed tree.
 

*

“This isn’t real, you know.” Mika retied her swimsuit for a second time. She noticed Ale’s frown as she shimmied her hips and pulled her shorts up over her thighs.

He raised an eyebrow at her. “The fact that I’m still working on catching my breath, honey, tells me it’s very real.”

Mika leveled him with a hard stare. Then her eyes softened as she took in his sincerity. That was how Ale rolled. He went all out, 100 percent. “No, it really isn’t, but thank you. And please, don’t call me ‘honey.’ It doesn’t sit well with me.”

Ale said nothing for a moment as he studied her, cocking his head to one side. Then he spoke slowly, his voice rumbling over her. “You’re right, ‘honey’ doesn’t suit you at all. Too trite. But this was very real. That can’t be denied.” He reached down, snatched his shorts from the ground and shook them out with a violent snap before putting them on.
 

Perfect—she’d pissed him off.
Way to keep it light.
 

Mika couldn’t help but notice that he didn’t waste time with his underwear, instead stuffing them into the side of his equipment bag. But he was right. It was real, it had happened. The briefs shoved in with her well-organized media cards were proof of that. The question now was how to deal with it.

They finished dressing and packed up the rest of the equipment in silence. Just as they were about to walk away, Mika watched as Ale bent down for the flower that had fallen from her hair. He picked it up and tucked it into the side of his camera bag. Mika turned away, not able to take in the tender scene. It hurt way too much. It was all just a part of the fantasy. She was nothing if not a realist and Alejandro had to know this wasn’t anything more than a passing thing. No more real than the fantasy shoot they were about to concoct. She sensed he knew it in his heart, and she wanted him to know she expected nothing from him. Not a feigned emotional attachment that would only become strained and end badly for both of them. Or for her at least.
 

But she didn’t want things to be strained now. She wanted that carefree feeling. She wanted to see that cocky smile.
 

“I’m sorry,” she said softly, as they cleared the ridge and finally came upon the beach.

Ale stilled and turned to her. The dimming sun reflected in his chocolate eyes, turning them golden amber. He waited, not saying a word, causing her heart to thump wildly in her chest. What was she going to say to him?
 

She took a breath to ease her nervousness. “I’m sorry I made things weird back there,” she finally said, tossing her head back toward the jungle from which they had just emerged. “Well, weirder than they were.”

Ale ran the back of his fingers slowly up her arms. “Don’t worry. You didn’t make anything weird. It’s just that we have lots to talk about.”
 

“No, we really don’t.”

His eyes narrowed, lips curling in frustration. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about this, about the sex.”

“You mean
us
?”

“No, I mean the sex.” She twisted her hands nervously. “It was wonderful. Fantastic. Amazing really. But I meant it when I said it wasn’t real. It was just a fantasy.” The words were tumbling out too fast, and she willed herself to slow down. “You don’t have to worry. I realize exactly what it was, and I’m under no delusion that this is more than an island fling for either of us.”

Then she stepped back, just out of his grasp, and walked away quickly, staying ahead of him on the beach. Thankfully, the setting sun was at her back so he couldn’t see the tears glistening in her eyes. It was all for the better. It would all be fine is what she told herself. Better to get the truth out in the open right from the start.

Chapter 5

He wouldn’t chase her. No way in hell. So why did he have this overwhelming urge to start running? Instead, Ale kicked a bit at the sand, then felt ridiculous for it.
 

So she considered this “nothing,” just an island fantasy? How practical and modern of her. He watched as she made her way down the beach, back straight despite the sloping terrain and the equipment bag she carried. Her sleek brown legs quickly crossed the white sand. He supposed he should be grateful for her laying things so neatly on the table. It was so very Mika, like the condoms she stashed in his bag. Who were they for? Had she planned this thing from the start? He shook his head. Shit. Of course—she thought he’d been using them on some of his many conquests. According to the New York tabloids, there was a new one every month. And in a way, they were right. He wasn’t a long-term guy and made no apologies for it.
 

But this was Mika. She should know better than to believe he’d treat her like that. He stopped walking. But really, what did he expect her to think? She had a point. They had crossed the line. She had been a woman off limits for so long because he didn’t want to jeopardize what they had, and he still didn’t. Now it had all changed.
 

He frowned at the thought of the tabloids and gossips columns and all the women of his past. What must she think of him? The worst he was sure. But with Mika, he knew it could be better.
He
could be better. He loved how she challenged him, kept him on his toes. With her around, he was never complacent. He was at his best. She never used him like other women. Never just took. Only gave, unselfishly. Never betrayed. With her, he could trust.
 

And now...well, now he’d tasted her. Felt her. Knew she fit him perfectly in every way, and it opened up doors he barely dared to think about. But what good did it do if she considered it just a fantasy? The words gnawed at him. He lived his life creating fantasies, and now she threw those words in his face to taunt him. It burned.
 

Once again, Mika was getting the best of him. Maybe she was right as usual. They had to find some sense of normalcy so they could make these next few days work for both of them.
 

Eventually his long strides caught up with her again, and they silently entered the hut together.
 

Tai came bustling into his hut from the adjoining back doorway. “Good, you’re back. We were about to go and look for you.” Then she narrowed her eyes on them. Ale noticed the hint of a blush that rushed to Mika’s cheeks. Normal for them wouldn’t be easy. “Miss, your hut is all finished. Do you want to see?” Tai asked her.
 

Mika lowered her eyes a bit then raised her chin and smiled at the woman. “That would be nice, Thanks.” She deposited the equipment bag on the floor of his hut, turning to go to her own. He went to follow, but she whipped around, putting up a hand to block his path. “I’m just going to have a quick shower and change before dinner,” she said, eyes shuttered, blocking out any argument from him.
 

“I guess it’s been a long day,” Alejandro said, caught in a sudden irritable need to fill the empty space now that he was alone with Tai. What was this? He’d never been a space-filler before.