Trial by Fire (18 page)

Connor’s lips lifted in a genuine smile, replacing his tentative one. “If you still feel that way in the morning, half-pint, call me and I’ll beat the crap out of him.”

Nate roared. “She’ll be calling you all right Connor. I guarantee it. But she’ll want to kiss your feet, thank you for tellin’ me where to find her. Won’t, you darlin’? After I’m finished with you, Erin…”

Erin pounded on his back, getting angrier by the minute. “You egotistical, arrogant asshole. Put me down. I don’t want to go with you. Connor, make him put me down! Don’t you understand, Nate? I don’t want to talk to you….”

Nate shifted her weight and tightened his hold on her legs.

“That’s good, darlin’, because we’re not going to be doing much talking. At least until I’ve shown you exactly how I feel about your running away when you knew damn well I would be frantic looking for you…”

He jerked his head at Connor in a silent thank you and patted Erin’s bottom.

“Say good night, Erin.”

At her shriek, he laughed and said. “Erin says good night, Connor, and thanks you for telling me where she was so I could come and haul her home with me where she belongs.”

Connor shook his head and waved them out the doorway, a broad grin lighting his face.

Nate ambled down the porch steps and headed to his car. He held her firmly. Surprised at her continuing efforts to free herself, he murmured more to himself than to her, “Sam might be right. Maybe I should put a collar on you. And after tonight, a leash—a short one!”

Erin sputtered, “What? How… how dare you talk about me like that with Sam? Nate, I’m going to kill you if you don’t put me down. Now!”

Nate swung her to the ground and hauled her up against his chest, trying to calm her fierce struggles. He thrust his finger under her chin and tilted her head back, forcing her to meet his gaze.

“Baby, listen to me. You need to settle down. I’m warning you, Erin, I’ll toss you in the trunk if I have to.”

Making good on his threat he pressed the release on his key and the trunk lid flew open. At the same time he opened the car door.

“Your choice, baby.”

She gave an angry sob and jerked out of his arms. Stomping over to the car, she climbed into the front seat, her head held high.

Nate chuckled as he reached across Erin and strapped her in. Kissing her lightly, he said, “Good choice, spitfire. That trunk woulda been a tight fit.”

Chapter 17

As they roared through the streets, swerving around corners, speeding up on the straightaways, Erin stole a glance at Nate. He was no longer laughing. Dark shadows played across his stern face. A deep frown had replaced his grin. From his rigid jaw to his corded neck, the simmering anger rolling off of him was palpable. Nate always drove fast, knowing that his highway patrol buddies would recognize his black and silver Turbo 911 and the likelihood of anyone stopping him was nil. But, even so, he was driving faster, more recklessly than usual. His strong hands clenched the wheel so hard his knuckles were white. Erin edged back against the leather seat refusing to relinquish her anger, to give into the tension throbbing between them.

Nate slammed on the brakes bringing the powerful car to a shuddering stop in front of the cabin. Nate was out his door and around the car before she could release her seat belt. He didn’t speak, just reached in and hauled her out of the car. Before she could protest, he scooped her up in his arms and strode up the field stone walk.

“Put me down, Nate. Now. I can walk.”

She could have been in another country as little attention as he paid her. He released the lock on the massive paneled door with his automated key and kicked the door open slamming it against the wall with a loud bang. He marched through the dark house into the bedroom, and tossed her onto the bed with such force that she bounced when she landed on the puffy duvet. Erin gasped and scurried back until she rested against the headboard, her knees drawn up protectively in front of her. She knew in her heart that Nate wouldn’t hurt her, but the fury on his face frightened her.

He stood by the side of the bed glaring at her. His eyes were dark, a stormy sea of green. Erin tried to summon the anger that tormented her earlier but it paled compared to the emotion she saw in his eyes. Forcing herself to sit up straighter, she lifted her chin defiantly and scooted across the bed, away from him.

“Nate, I don’t appreciate being hauled out of….”

The words died in her throat as he dove for her. Capturing her in his arms, he held her shaking body against his chest. Dragging her in front of him across the room he stopped in front of the full length mirror. Threading his fingers in her hair he pulled her head back forcing her to look at their reflection. He’d wrapped one strong arm across her stomach, pinioning her against his towering frame. She looked small, fragile in comparison to his hard muscled body. His eyes were icy cold, his expression dark.

“Why?”

When she didn’t answer, he repeated, “Why, Erin?”

The heat flooding her body was reflected on her flushed cheeks. Before she could answer, he asked again, his voice as commanding as his presence.

“Tell me, Erin. Tell me why you ran away? Why you left our house? Left me a
note
? A note that said you’d
talk
to me after the case was finished? When would that be, Erin? A week from now? A month? How about a fucking year? Is that when you would condescend to talk to me?”

His voice was low, commanding. Danger wrapped in silk.

“Didn’t you get my messages? Any of them? Any of the
seven
messages I left for you? Telling you how sorry I was that you misunderstood? How badly I felt? How upset I was that
you
were upset? No? You didn’t hear those messages, Erin? That we are being played by a master? And that you fell for it? Fell into her trap?”

Erin swallowed hard, struggling to get by the golfball-sized lump in her throat. She’d heard his messages. Heard the desperation, the worry, and finally the angry pleas. But the image of Laura’s gorgeous body wrapped around Nate’s overrode his increasingly agitated messages. But now, as upset as she was, she allowed herself to see the pain in his eyes.

“Nate, I’m sorry—”

“No, Erin. Don’t. I don’t want to hear your apologies. Uh uh, baby. This isn’t the time for talking. I want you to look in this mirror, Erin. What do you see?”

His expression was as harsh as his demanding question.

“Do you see a man who loves you? Do you, Erin? Or aren’t words enough for you? What do you need from me, Erin? To believe that I love you more than anything in the world? That I will never let you go? That I will never allow a wicked, vicious woman to come between us?”

At the pain in his eyes, a giant hand squeezed her heart. She’d never seen him like this. His intensity frightened her. She tried to free her arms. She wanted to touch him, reach out to him. But he shoved her hand away. His grip tightened.

“Uh uh, darlin’. I’m not done. I’ve told you in words how much I love you, but that’s not enough, is it? Fine. Now I’m going to show you. I want you to pay attention. Pay attention to what your body does, Erin, when I make love to you. If you won’t listen to me, maybe you’ll listen to your body.”

A flash of heat flared through her body at his sexy threat. Her heart leapt when he grabbed the hem of her t-shirt and in one swift move pulled it over her head. His eyes gleamed at the sight of her lace-covered breasts. A breathy moan escaped her lips as her nipples hardened and poked against the satiny fabric.

At her response, a wicked smile flickered across his lips. Still holding her tight with one strong arm, with his other hand he tugged at one taut nipple then the other. She whimpered at the sensations pouring over her at that simple touch. She grabbed at his hands, and pressed them against her breasts, silently begging for more.

He huffed out a sharp laugh.

“What’s your body saying, Erin? Are your breasts swollen, aching for my touch? For my mouth, my tongue? My teeth?”

With an expert flick of his fingers he unhooked the clasp on her bra freeing her breasts. Erin startled at the rush of cool air on her heated flesh. Nate cupped the rounded globes in his big hands, expertly rolling the tender tips between his fingers and thumbs. Erin gasped as a current of sensation ran from the peaked nubs straight to her core.

He murmured in her ear, his hot breath raspy against the sensitive skin on her throat.

“What do you want, Erin? Tell me, baby. No, darlin’, not in words. Let your body tell me. Look at your breasts, Erin. See how they swell at my touch? You see how much your luscious breasts love my fingers, Erin. Are they hungry for my mouth?”

He chuckled at her whimpering cry.

Plucking at the tender tips, he crooned, “Look at your nipples. They’re as hard as berries. Tight, sensitive nubs aching for my mouth, aren’t they darlin’?”

Erin arched her back desperately wanting his lips, his mouth on her. Tugging at his head, she pulled him closer. With a harsh groan, he leaned over, capturing one puckered tip between his teeth. She cried out when he nipped at the tender flesh. Ignoring her cry he bit down harder, and gave the other nipple a sharp pinch.

At her shriek, his voice was soft, taunting. “I think you like that, don’t you Erin? In fact, Erin, I think you like it so much that you might come from this alone. How about it, Erin, if I suck on you like this… and this… will you come for me?”

Her breasts throbbed, aching for release. She clutched at his hair, trying to hold him tight, trying to push her swollen tips into his mouth.

He growled, low, deep in his throat.

“Do you want to come, baby, is that what you want?”

“Yes, please, Nate! Please, don’t stop!”

He moved from breast to breast, flicking his devilish tongue over the tortured tips, nipping, licking, teasing her, tormenting her. Every sweep of his lips drove her higher. She was unraveling, but he held her back kept her fighting for more. When she was sure she would break apart, shatter if he didn’t let her come, a tidal wave of passion surged over her and she wailed at the excruciating ecstasy.

Nate rocked her in his arms as wave after wave of sensation raked her shuddering body. Erin struggled to stay standing. A particularly hard tremor shook her slender body and her knees buckled. She would have fallen if Nate hadn’t caught her.

When she could breathe without gasping for air, he lifted her so that she faced the mirror and whispered in her ear.

“Look at you, darlin’. Your face is flushed, and just look at your breasts. They are the most beautiful shade of pink. This is what I am telling you, Erin. Your body knows who loves you. Who craves you. Who can’t live without you!”

His voice grew rough, taunting.

“Are you wet, baby? I think you might be. Shall we see?”

At her impassioned moan, he unsnapped the button at the top of her jeans and slid the zipper down. Sliding his fingers under the tiny satin triangle covering her mound, he brushed across her damp folds. She gasped as electricity zinged through her sensitized nerves.

Nate held his slick fingers beneath his nose and inhaled. Groaning at the musky odor, he sucked on his fingers then pressed them against Erin’s lips.

“Taste this, baby. Have you ever tasted anything sweeter?”

Pushing his fingers past her lips, he murmured, “Suck on them, Erin. Taste what sexiest woman in the world tastes like.”

Erin licked her juices off his fingers, reveling in the tantalizing flavor. She understood why it drove him crazy with lust.

Feeling his hands on her hips she glanced in the mirror and met his gaze. His gleaming eyes narrowed and he licked his lips. Tucking his fingers in the waistband of her jeans, he eased her pants over her smooth curvy hips, inch by tantalizing inch. When he cleared her hips, he shoved the pants to her knees. His heavy lidded eyes glittered with greedy passion at the sight of the tiny patch of black satin covering her mound. With a quick twist he broke the fragile strings holding the miniscule triangle in place and ripped it from her body.

He held the damp fabric to his nose, then tucked the fragrant satin in the pocket of his jeans. His voice was low, gritty.

“I owe you another pair of panties, baby.”

Tangling his fingers in Erin’s hair he pulled her head back and leaned down to kiss her. His lips were deceptively gentle for the first several seconds. He licked across the seam of her lips and tugged at the corner of her mouth with his teeth. Nipping at her puffy lips he suddenly thrust his tongue deep inside her mouth. At the same time he drove two fingers into the wet folds between her thighs. She threw her head back with a hoarse cry, writhing with agonized pleasure, begging him not to stop. Ignoring her impassioned pleas, he held her at a distance, turning her to face the mirror.

His voice was harsh. “Look at yourself, Erin. This is what I see when you writhe beneath me. I see your gorgeous eyes grow dark, wild with pleasure. Your body flushes, dampens with passion. Look at you, Erin. Have you ever seen a more beautiful woman?” His voice dropped to a husky drawl. “I haven’t, Erin. Never. In. My. Life. Do you hear me, baby? Do you understand what I am saying?”

She groaned and leaned back into his strong body. Feeling his arousal under the rough material of his jeans, she ground her soft bottom against his iron hard shaft. The friction from the coarse fabric sent a flood of moisture between her thighs. She fought to rub her bottom along his fearsome erection as white hot flames of passion streaked across her core. Nate growled a low animal sound and pulled her away.

“Uh uh, Erin. No, darlin’, not yet. I’m not nearly done with you. But if you keep doing that, it will be all over. I’ll be in you so fast you wouldn’t know what hit you.”

He nudged his foot between her feet and moved them apart.

“Spread your legs. Here, let me help you.”

He dropped to his knees in front of her and pulled off one shoe and sock and then the other. With a quick tug, he had her jeans at her ankles. Resting her hands on his shoulders to support her trembling limbs, Erin lifted her feet, one at a time to free her legs kicking off her last remnant of clothing. He knelt before her and raked his gaze up her slender legs, past the slick vee at the top of her thighs and met her eyes with an impudent grin.