What She Wants: Cape May, Book 1 (7 page)

Instead of wallowing in self-pity, she worked, stopping only when her body grew too exhausted to stand. As she cleaned one of the suites, a sense of pride filled Summer. She liked the work, enjoyed seeing the rooms all neat and ready for the next guest. The downside was all the quiet time. That was when her thoughts strayed to Gage the most. As she dusted the top of the entertainment cabinet, she thought of the way Gage had talked her into playing in the nude in her hot tub, how he’d taken her and how connected he’d made her feel. She couldn’t look at it now without feeling as if she’d just gotten kicked in the gut.

Summer tossed her dust rag into the cleaning cart before pushing it out of the room and down the hall to the next vacant room. To Gage’s room. She stopped and stared at the door, willing him to appear. Nothing happened, of course.

“You really need to hire some help, sweetheart.”

Oh, God, that voice! Summer whirled around and nearly fainted as she came face-to-face with Gage, a grin as wide as Texas on his handsome face. He grabbed her up and swung her into his arms, then strode down the hall.

“Gage! What on earth?” She tried to sound firm, but her body had already begun to react to his, and she couldn’t think straight. The man was positively addictive.

“I’ve missed you, baby.”

Emotions clogged her throat at his declaration. When he pushed his way into her suite and set her on her feet, he frowned. “Why do you look like someone just kicked your puppy? I thought you’d be happy to see me.”

She bit her lip and shook her head.

“What is it, pretty baby?”

“I-I’ve missed you too.”

He stepped closer, pinning her between his large body and the door, then he leaned down until he was a mere breath away. “When I come within ten feet of you I bet your heart races, doesn’t it? Your eyes turn drowsy and your nipples peak for me.” He paused, tipped up her chin and forced her to look at him. “I know I turn you on, and I sort of had the feeling you were beginning to care about me.” The finger resting under her chin moved down to her neck. He massaged her jumping pulse. “Now I have this crazy feeling that you’d rather I’d stayed in Ohio. Is that it, baby?”

She couldn’t think with him so close, touching her. As she breathed in his musky male scent, Summer blurted out the first thing to pop into her head. “Your life is in Ohio, Gage. Mine’s here. How can that possibly work?”

“Things can change.” He stroked her throbbing pulse once more before moving lower. That devastating finger touched the top swells of her breasts and dipped beneath her blouse, stroking her overheated skin. “I need you, and not just for a roll in the hay, either.”

“Gage, please.” Summer wasn’t even sure what she was begging him for.

He moved his finger down her body, leaving her breasts heaving and aching for more. When he came to the waistband of her shorts, Gage slipped his hand beneath and cupped her through her soaked panties.

“I enjoyed everything we did together. That much is obvious as hell. But I want— No, I
need
more than sex from you.”

For the first time hope began to bloom. “More?”

His gaze scorched her everywhere it touched. “Yeah, more, baby.”

Concentrating on his words wasn’t easy with his finger teasing her clit. Summer tugged his hand free and pushed at his chest. He stepped back, albeit reluctantly. She counted to ten before she felt confident enough to speak without stuttering.

“Why me, Gage? How can you be sure I’m not just a passing fancy? What if you realize you’ve made a terrible mistake after a few months?” Her heart twisted just thinking about it.

Gage rubbed a hand over his scalp. God, she loved his shaved head. It was just so damn sexy. “Nothing in life is set in stone, sweetheart. All I know for sure is I’ve never felt this way.”

Fear kept her from leaping into his arms. “I loved Seth. When I lost him, it tore me apart. I can’t go through it again, I can’t.”

He looked at her with such overwhelming compassion, tears sprang to her eyes. “My guts are churning here. I’m terrified you won’t give me a chance to love you.” He held his hands straight out, palms up. “My damn fingers are shaking because I want to touch you, feel you, hold you in my arms and never let go.”

Gage closed the gap between them and took her in his arms. Oh God, it felt so good to be there. So right. After all the worrying she’d done throughout the week, Summer wanted only to curl up in his arms and stay there.

“I know you’re scared,” he said against the top of her head. “How you lost Seth. You’re afraid of going through that again. But don’t you think you deserve a second chance?” His voice was so soft, so tender, and Summer melted as she listened. “I’m falling for you, Summer.”

Her heart sped up, and tears began to trickle down her cheeks, soaking the front of his shirt. Everything he’d said was true. She’d tried to take the easy way out, but that road led to heartbreak. “I care about you,” she admitted, laying her own heart on the line. “I’ve thought about you every second since you left.”

“I missed you too. And soon I’ll be back for good.”

She pushed backward so she could see his face. “But what about your business? Your family?”

He pressed his lips to hers briefly before saying, “I already talked to Aunt Bev about you. I think she’s planning our future even now. As to the business, I’ve set things into motion. I’m going to get a New Jersey license, open my investigation business here. Unless you’d rather I didn’t?”

She frowned. “That’s a huge decision. Are you sure this is what you want?”

Gage cupped her cheek in both palms. “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life, but I need to know this is what you want too.”

Summer wrapped her arms around his shoulders and hugged him hard. “It’s what I want. God, this week has been pure hell.”

Gage tugged at the hem of her blouse. “Take these clothes off, baby. I need to feel you.”

Summer pushed out of his arms and slowly undressed. Gage’s intense gaze ate her alive.

“Mmm, my sweet Summer treat.” His voice was a rumble of sound in the quiet room.

In that moment, Summer knew she’d always have a warm place in her heart for Seth and could see that moving on didn’t necessarily mean forgetting about her past.

“Gage?”

“Yeah?” he ground out.

She reached out her hand and stroked it over his cheek. “I’ve been thinking a lot about what we did in the hot tub. I’d really like to do it again.”

Summer watched, transfixed, as Gage stripped out of his clothes. She nearly drooled as he took her by the hand and led her to the glass patio doors. “Come on, Summer. It’s time I showed you how fun a spanking can be.”

Her pussy creamed. “A spanking?”

His answer was a grin and a wink.

About the Author

To learn more about Anne Rainey, please visit
www.annerainey.com
. Send an email to Anne at
[email protected]
or join her Yahoo! group to join in the fun with other readers as well as Anne!
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Look for these titles by Anne Rainey

Now Available:

Haley’s Cabin

Seduce Me

Burn

Turbulent Passions

The Vaughn Series

Touching Lace

Tasting Candy

Taking Chloe

Tempting Grace

Coming Soon:

What She Craves

A hard man is good to find…and impossible to resist.

Tempting Grace

© 2009 Anne Rainey

The Vaughn series, Book 4

Since a car accident left her unable to have children, Grace Vaughn has hidden her heart behind a wall. So far it’s held strong, and no one complains much—except the few men she dates.

Now that fortress is crumbling thanks to Jackson Hill, an annoyingly attractive man who makes her imagination go wild just watching him in the office. He’s practically bullied her into attending a Vegas conference with him. Three days alone with the delicious Jackson—in Sin City, no less—is sure to push her right over the edge.

With a loving family, a decent bank account, a nice set of clubs, Jackson’s life is almost complete. Except for the missing piece. Grace. She sets a fire in his blood, and the conference is the perfect crowbar to get past her defense mechanisms. It’s time to see if the bump-and-grind potential in that booty of hers can be channeled into something a little more satisfying than
looking
.

He’s got just the tactic to get her to let down her guard—and hopefully her panties. A wicked bet. Because if there’s one thing he knows about Grace, she can’t resist a double-dog-dare…

Warning: This title contains graphic sex, rope bondage, anal sex, and a deliciously inventive hero who just happens to be really good with knots and a doling out spankings.

Enjoy the following excerpt for
Tempting Grace:

He winked and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer. “You’re too stubborn to let percentages keep you from having what you want. Even I know that much.”

“Thanks…I think,” she said.

He leaned toward her, noting the way her lips parted and her breathing increased. “You know what I think, Gracie?”

“W-What?”

“I think if I don’t kiss you, I’ll die,” he murmured as he closed the gap between them and pressed his lips to hers. Jackson inhaled her gasp of surprise and pulled her close. As his tongue dipped inside her mouth, Jackson knew he’d been right about one thing: Grace’s kiss was definitely potent.

Grace couldn’t think, couldn’t move. Jackson pressed his lips to hers. His tongue played and teased. Her body turned to liquid fire in two seconds flat. She should push him away, send him home. Instead, she lifted her arms and wrapped them around his neck. Jackson groaned as if pleased with her response, slid his arm beneath her knees and pulled her into his lap. Her body seemed so light against so much power and strength. It devastated her senses.

He lifted his mouth from hers and whispered something against her skin, then moved his lips downward, teasing her beyond measure. Grace leaned back, giving him permission to lick a fiery path along her chin and collarbone, before he zeroed in on the V of her ivory colored blouse. He kissed her cleavage and dipped his talented tongue beneath her white satin bra. She arched against him, desperate for more, so hungry for his touch all over.

Jackson chuckled and stopped long enough to murmur, “Easy, Gracie. We’ll get there, I promise.”

She didn’t like that answer to her body’s demands. “Faster or you can leave, damn it.”

Jackson stopped his ministrations and stared at her in the brightly lit room. What went through his head in that moment was anyone’s guess. When he touched her cheek, she practically melted at the tender caress.

“Is that what you really want, baby? Do you want me to leave?”

She hadn’t expected him to take her seriously. She’d only been trying to get him moving along, to quit dawdling.

“No. I’m just…”

“Anxious?” he helpfully supplied.

She clenched her eyelids shut and admitted, “Yes.”

Jackson’s lips against her forehead forced her to open her eyes once more. His gaze held a wealth of tenderness. Butterflies came to life inside her. An entire swarm of them fluttered around in there.

“I like you like this. Anxious, wanting me. I’ve wanted you for months, but you were so damn good at evading me.” He paused as if carefully choosing his next words. “Rushing isn’t an option, baby. I like to take my time with a woman. A good, long time.”

“You talk too much, Jackson. That’s always been your downfall. All talk, no action.”

“You’re mean when you’re horny.” He grinned and let his gaze travel over her torso. “Fuck, you’re a vision. I think I’d like to keep you for my pet.”

She smacked him on the chest. “That’s the most sexist thing I’ve ever—”

He effectively cut her off with a press of his lips to the pulse in her neck.

“Oh, my God,” Grace moaned as she dug her fingers into his closely cropped dark hair, holding him firmly while he suckled her skin. She ached to feel those lips and that tongue lower. Much lower.

As if she’d spoken the thought aloud, Jackson inched downward, touching off several spasms as he went. Air brushed against her stomach, and she realized he’d somehow managed to unbutton her blouse and pull it down her shoulders, exposing her torso. When his tongue flicked over one hard nipple through the soft material of her bra, Grace nearly shot off the couch. She forgot her misgivings. Her body craved his touch. It’d been so long since she’d had sex. So damn long since she’d derived any real pleasure from a man’s body.