Under His Protection (13 page)

It was the same one he wore every day he
worked beside her.

Even that cold hard stare sent tingles
sweeping all over her skin. Because she knew the warmth beneath
that faux coldness, knew the heat of his touch, the fulfillment of
his body moving deep inside hers.

A shiver stole over her and she breathed
deep, hoping for strength.

“What’s your hurry?” She stopped just before
him, the tantalizing smell of his skin reaching out to her. She
resisted the urge to touch him.

Not yet, not yet.

“It’s getting late. I should take a shower.”
He shrugged, drawing her attention to those impossibly broad
shoulders and she wished this uneasiness wasn’t between them. She
wanted to move past it, embrace the pure delight they’d just
shared.

But she needed Mason to be willing
first.

“We could shower together,” she offered, her
voice soft.

The fire that lit his green eyes didn’t go
unnoticed. “Blake, what we just shared was...amazing.” Dipping his
head, he kissed her, his lips lingering. “But I still have a job to
do and that job is protecting you. I can’t do that when I’m with
you like...this. And I don’t want people talking about you
either.”

“Who would talk about me? No one can see us
here. Together.” His words tugged at her heart, and that kiss, that
one single kiss had almost unhinged her. She wanted another one.
She wanted a thousand more of them.

“You never know.” His mouth was grim and he
rubbed a hand over his jaw. “I don’t like taking risks where you’re
concerned.”

It was so arousing, how concerned he was for
her welfare. She knew it was his job but he took that job so
seriously. She was of the utmost importance to him and it was
thrilling.

“Come on, Mason.” She kept her tone even,
with the slightest hint of cajoling tingeing it. “We just had sex.
You just crawled out of my bed. Why don’t you crawl back into it so
we can do it again? Trust me. Nothing can happen to me while we’re
together like that.”

He actually turned a bit red at her comment
and she found that immensely endearing. “I should probably walk
around the property first, check everything out.”

“You can do that later.” The last word died
on her lips and she slowly undid the belt of her robe, letting each
end of the sash fall to her sides. The fabric parted, revealing a
sliver of her naked form but damn him, he kept his eyes glued to
her face. The tick in his jaw revealed that he was close to losing
control, though. She had an arsenal ready to push him right over
the edge.

She was not above pulling out all the stops
to get what she wanted. And right now, more than anything, she
wanted Mason.

“Blake.” He sighed and shook his head, his
gaze dropping, his eyes widening. “You’re naked.”

A smile curved her lips and she finally felt
in control again. The feminine power of rendering a man speechless
was heady stuff. “Is there something wrong with that?”

He sighed again, this one not so heavy,
maybe even a little lustful. “No, nothing. Absolutely nothing.”

She stood straighter, the robe opening even
more and giving him a full view of her naked body. He growled,
literally growled as he grabbed her, pulling her hard against him.
So hard, she rested her hands on his shoulders to brace herself,
her fingers curling around the thick muscles.

His mouth met hers in a soul wrenching kiss
and he devoured her, one hand gripping the back of her head, the
other hand curved possessively across her satin covered ass. She
squealed when he yanked the robe up and smoothed his fingers over
her naked skin.

Breaking the kiss, she buried her face in
the crook of his neck, her breath coming in fast spurts, body weak
with desire. Just like that, he had her mind reeling, her body
reacting.

Mason picked her up with ease, depositing
her so she sat on the edge of the counter and she watched,
wide-eyed as he smoothed his hands up and down the inside of her
thighs.

“Like silk,” he murmured, his fingers
getting closer to her heated center. “Satiny soft and smooth.”

She spread her legs a little wider, giving
him better access and the wicked smile that crossed his face made
her smile in return.

“I like touching you,” he admitted, his gaze
lifting to meet hers.

Her smile faded and she gripped the edge of
the counter. “I like it when you touch me.”

His hand cupped her sex, fingers teasing the
dark blonde curls there. “Do you like it when I touch you
here?”

Blake nodded, unable to speak, only able to
watch, to feel as his fingers began their search.

“Wet.” One thick finger slid along her slit,
searching her folds. “Hot.”

A shuddering breath escaped her and she held
on tight to the counter, afraid if she let go, she’d topple to the
floor.

“Wet and hot for me, baby?” He continued
touching her, his focus solely on the spot between her legs and she
whimpered her reply.

He knelt before her, his big hands resting
on the inside of her thighs, opening her to him. His mouth was so
close and she couldn’t believe this was happening. Just minutes ago
he tried to push her away and now he was about to go down on
her.

Would it always be this passionate, this
lightning quick between them? Would it only take one glance, one
word for them to fall into each other’s arms?

God, she hoped so.

Mason kissed first one thigh, then the
other. His mouth teased, his teeth nipped and she lifted her hips,
indicating exactly what she wanted without words.

His mouth on her, lips sucking, tongue
licking.

When he placed a soft kiss directly onto her
mound she shuddered. His tongue dabbed out to lick and search her
thoroughly, making her cry out. God, she was so close already. It
was such an intimate thing, his mouth on her sex, his hands
spreading her wide open and she reveled in it.

Nearly shot off the counter when he wrapped
his lips around her clit and sucked. She tilted her head back and
closed her eyes as the full impact of what he did to her body hit
her.

It was as if he knew just what to do, just
how to touch her to make her feel so amazingly good. Reaching out,
she smoothed her hand over his head, her fingers sinking into his
thick hair.

He glanced up, his eyes meeting hers and he
moved away from her the slightest bit, his tongue curling out to
lick, lap at her over and over again.

Just watching him, his gaze locked with
hers, his mouth wet with her juices brought her closer, her orgasm
right there just waiting for her to claim it. And when his lips
wrapped around her clit and sucked it into his mouth and a thick
finger slid deep into her body, she shattered. Fell apart all
around him, her body growing so limp afterward, she almost slid off
the counter.

Thank God, Mason was there to catch her.

* * * *

Christ, Blake tasted so sweet. But the look
on her face when he’d brought her to orgasm was even sweeter. Her
eyelids had fluttered shut, her mouth went slack and the rosy flush
that crossed her skin made her glow. Glowing with her orgasm, her
entire body trembling, the inner walls of her sex clenched around
his finger, her hard little clit throbbing against his lips.

It had been incredibly arousing. And now the
raging hard-on he had pressing against his jeans would not settle
down. He needed to get inside Blake and quick.

Funny, considering he’d been ready to bolt
just a few moments ago. A clear head and a bit of distance had told
him he’d put Blake at risk by having sex with her. Her father would
hit the roof. He could lose his job.

Clearly, he wasn’t thinking straight.

But then she’d walked into the kitchen
looking like a rumpled-I-just-had-sex-and-now-I’m-a-very-satisfied
woman. The silky robe clinging to her every curve and the smile on
her face had been full of knowledge. Of him. Of them. Together.

He’d tried to play it cool, put her off, but
ultimately, he couldn’t resist. And when she’d opened her robe and
he caught a glimpse of all that delicious, naked skin, he’d
caved.

And hauled her up onto the kitchen counter
and dived between her legs like some sort of crazed mad man. She
might think he was too much of a barbarian to deal with after that
experience, and he couldn’t blame her.

“Oh, my God,” she whispered, her voice shaky
and hoarse. She cleared her throat. “What was that?”

Mason stood, dropping a kiss to her
trembling lips and she deepened it, not seeming to care if she
could taste herself on his mouth.

He found that beyond arousing. So did his
cock. It was straining against the fly of his jeans so hard, it was
painful.

“Did you like that?” He kissed her again,
his tongue darting out to meet hers.

She nodded, her expression slumberous. “Oh,
my God,
yes.
”

“Good.” He dropped a tender kiss to her
lips, chuckling at the dazed expression on her face. “I want to be
inside you.” He paused, pulling away so he could look at her. “This
is a long shot, but do you have condoms in the kitchen? Maybe? Or
somewhere else stashed in the house?”

Blake shook her head. “I don’t think
so.”

“Shit.” He thrust a hand in his hair, pushed
it away from his forehead. He hadn’t planned for this very well,
though he couldn’t deny the surge of possessiveness that filled him
at her admission. No condoms in the house meant she’d rarely if
ever brought a guy into this house, either. He liked that, macho
asshole that he was. “I only had the one in my wallet.”

Not like he’d planned on having sex with
Blake, but damn. And how was he going to march down to the tiny
drugstore in town and buy a box? The entire island would be amiss
with the fact that the burly, quiet guy who followed the VP’s
daughter bought condoms.

Which meant he was having sex with the VP’s
daughter. And wouldn’t that go over well with her dad if he ever
found out?

Yeah, he didn’t think so either.

Gentle fingers touched his cheek and he
glanced up, found Blake watching him intently. “I’m on the
pill.”

Of course, she was. The girl who had the
outrageous sex life, according to the tabloids at least, would need
to be on the pill just as an extra precaution.

Mason grimaced. Talk about thinking like a
macho asshole...

He’d never seen her with another man since
he started working protection duty with her. She flirted, she even
went on the occasional date, but she never brought the man back
home. Never entertained them anywhere.

And he would know.

“I’m safe,” she whispered, her fingers
stroking down his cheek, along his jaw. “Are you?”

“I just went through a set of tests four
months ago, right before I began working your protection detail and
needed to get a physical.” He shook his head, loving the way she
touched him, wishing she would touch him like this everywhere. “I
always use condoms.”

“With all of those many girls you have sex
with, Mason?” She smirked, but her eyes were filled with worry.

He shook his head, wanting to comfort her.
Despite his need for wanting to keep this—thing between them
casual, he still cared. “You make me sound like a total
player.”

“You’re the one who admitted it’s been a
long time since you’ve been with someone.” She paused, letting her
words sink in. “Is that true?”

“Yeah.” His reply was gruff. He hated
admitting that to her.

“Has it been since you started working for
me?” Her voice sounded hopeful, not teasing at all, and it was
embarrassing as all hell that she touched so close to the
truth.

Who was he kidding? She touched right on the
truth. Yes, he’d been busy with work, following her everywhere, but
since he met Blake Hewitt, no other woman had interested him.

Only her.

“Mason?” She pushed, though her voice was
gentle. She was curious and he couldn’t blame her.

“Yeah.” He met her gaze direct, saw the
warmth in her eyes. He didn’t say anything else. Just let her think
what she wanted to think.

“Oh.” Her lips curved, a little ghost of a
smile that proved his answer pleased her. “It’s been a long time
for me, too.”

She drew him near, her mouth so close to
his, he could feel its every movement when she spoke. “I don’t let
just anyone into my life.”

He was silent, unable to resist sneaking his
tongue out to lick at the corner of his lips and she kissed him
there.

“I don’t trust very many people.”

“I know.”

“I trust you, Mason. I trust you with my
life.”

Her words shouldn’t mean anything. She was
supposed to trust him with her life, it was his goddamn job. It was
the reason he woke up in the morning and went to bed at night. The
reason he was with her, protecting her, watching over her on a
daily basis.

But her words
did
mean something. The
sincerity in her voice when she spoke, the way she looked at him.
He’d told her this was nothing but sex between them, but he lied.
He was a complete liar. What was happening between them was so much
more than sex.

Fuck, he didn’t mean for that to happen. But
he was helpless to it. For once in his life, he was simply letting
go.

And liking it.

“I’ll protect you with my life,” he vowed,
meaning every single word.

She sighed, the sound so full of longing, it
tugged at his heart. “And you’ll protect me by always doing the
right thing. You won’t hurt me, Mason. I know this.”

“I would never hurt you,” he whispered, his
voice so harsh it hurt his throat when he spoke.

God, he couldn’t imagine harming one single
hair on her head. She meant far too much to him to even consider
it.

“I know.” She wrapped her arms around his
neck and tilted her face up, her mouth rubbing against his in a
kiss that wasn’t quite a kiss. More of a gentle connection of lips,
a brushing of damp skin upon damp skin.