Candy's Man (3 page)

“Yes.
 
Time to call it a night.”
 
She picked up her bag.
 
“It was lovely to meet you all.”

Everyone
wished her a good night and Candy sighed in relief as she made her way to the
stairs.
 
Being civil was hard work.

She
took a quick glance at the dance floor.
 
 
He
seemed to have disappeared.
 
Oh, well,
that was that.

As
she entered the empty elevator, she blew out a breath.
 
Being single at twenty-nine wasn’t what she’d
planned.

When
the elevator door opened, she walked out and moved leisurely down the
corridor.
 
She had no choice really
because her feet were throbbing.
 
As she
turned a corner, a door opened further up in the hall and some men made their
way toward her.
 

It
was Sean and his friends!
 
She
panicked.
 
She had to get out of there.
 
After the disastrous date, she couldn’t take
anymore embarrassment.

She
grabbed the first door handle to her left, and was thankful when the door
opened.
 
She quickly entered the dark
room and closed the door.
 
She listened
for voices and sure enough they seemed to have stopped right outside.
 

The
room was suddenly flooded with light.
 
She held her breath.
 
The room was
occupied!

Oh, God.
 

With
eyes widened, she watched as a figure stood in the bathroom doorway.
 
Her heart skipped a beat as the realisation
hit her.
 
There was no mistake.
 
His brawny physique was a giveaway.
 
It was
him
!

He
cleared his throat.
 
“Can I help you?”
 
The rich baritone voice made her shudder.

“I’m
so sorry,” she squeaked, and noticed the small smile on his lips.
 
He wasn’t angry.
 
She tried to catch her breath.
 
“I was...trying to...avoid someone.”

His
eyebrows went up.
 

“Your
door was unlocked.
 
I didn’t think...”

As
he took a step toward her, her throat went dry.
 
His shirt had been pulled
out of his trousers and was open, exposing his large, defined
chest.
 
Her senses heightened and she could smell the masculine scent of
him.
 
The pulsing in her veins
quickened.
 
She should get out of there.
  
She gripped the door handle.

“You
don’t have to leave.”
 
His deep American
accent reverberated through her body.

She
swallowed the lump in her throat and stared at him.
 
Her mind was a whirl of confusion.
 
What was he saying?
 
She had to leave.
 
She couldn’t stay in a strange man’s
room.
 
Could she?
 
If she stayed that would only mean one thing.
 

Her
gaze shifted to the door handle but she couldn’t get her hand to move.
 
Her heart was beating hard in her chest and
she was very aware of him so close behind her.
 
With every last bit of strength within her, she turned to face him.

His
eyes raked over her and in two long strides he was by her side.
  
She looked up at him and couldn’t move a
muscle.
 
A strong arm grasped her waist,
pulling her close, and she thought she was going to pass out.

With
their bodies thrust hard against each other, she could feel the heat of
him.
 
Pressed against his massive chest,
her nipples rubbed against the silk of her dress and grew taut.
 
She could feel the strength of his thighs as
they held strong against hers and
God,
she
could feel everything else in between.
 
Why wasn’t she kicking or screaming?
 
What the hell was wrong with her?

“I’ve
been watching you,” he whispered hoarsely against her ear, and she almost
jumped out of her skin.
 
His breath was
hot as he moved his lips along her jaw.

His
mouth caressed her neck and she heard a strange sound coming from her
throat.
 
Like a growl.
 
She had been celibate for far too long but was
she was going to let a strange man take advantage of her?

He
nipped her skin with his teeth and she whimpered.
 
His mouth found the hollow of her throat and
she almost fell to pieces.
 
“Please,”
she breathed.

When
his mouth came down over hers, she knew it was too late.
 
The burning within her turned to fire and she
kissed him back with a force she never knew she was capable of.
 
And he responded.
 

Oh, God.

He
tasted sweet, like wine, and she was giddy with desire.
 
Her body tingled as his mouth promised her
things she had only dreamed about.

Without
warning, he ended the kiss and Candy struggled for breath as he moved a hand
across the side of her breast.
 
“Take it
off,” he ordered huskily.

A
fire raged within her and she stepped back.
 
Her chest was heaving.
 
She looked
toward the door and then returned her gaze to him
.
 
His dark-brown eyes were
almost black.
 

Swallowing
the fear in her throat, her fingers trembled as they found the zip at her side,
and the red silk dress fell in a heap at her feet.

As
he stared at her, she felt a thrill shoot up her spine.
 
She brazenly stepped forward, whipped off her
red lace panties, and stood before him, naked.

His
gaze shot to her extravagant red shoes and his chest expanded before he knelt
at her feet.

***

Candy stretched, yawned, and snuggled back
into a ball.
 
A faint humming filled the
cabin, and she heard water running.

“Damn!”
 
The masculine voice was loud and clear, and her eyes snapped open.
 

Oh, my God!

She searched the room and her gaze rested on
clothes neatly folded over a chair.
  

Men’s clothes.
  

Under the chair, a pair of shoes sat in an
orderly fashion.

A neat freak.
 

She soon discovered that was the least of her
problems.
 
She lifted the bed
covers.
 
Just as she
thought.
 
She was naked in a
strange man’s bed.
  
Her stomach
clenched.

I slept with a stranger!

With the sobriety she lacked the evening
before,
she shook her head in disbelief.
 
She had never been so reckless in her entire
twenty-nine years.

The bathroom door flew open and a man stood
before her in all his natural majesty.
 
Candy flushed
and pulled the covers over her head.
 
His
deep laugh resonated throughout the room.

“You’re not shy?” he asked, the amusement
evident in his husky American voice.

Shy?
 
Shameless
was a more appropriate word.

“Come on,” he said playfully, and Candy
heard him move closer to the bed.
 
The
bed shifted as he sat near her.
 
“You’ve
nothing to feel embarrassed about.”

Embarrassed?
 
Try
mortified!

With forceful hands he grabbed the covers and
tried to pull them from her.
 
She refused
to give up without a fight.
 

“I won’t bite.
 
Well, only if you
don’t want me to,” he said with a chuckle.

“I don’t even know your name,” she croaked.

“What?
 
I can’t hear you. Will you look at me?”
 
He finally yanked the covers from her.

She looked into his fiery brown eyes, her
chest heaving.

“Now, what did you say?” he asked as his gaze moved over her.

She swallowed, took a deep breath, and covered
her breasts with her arms.
 
“I don’t know
your name.”

“Cleve,” he said with a smile.

“Oh.”

“And you are?”

She cleared her throat.
 
“Candy.”

Laughter rocked his hulking
frame.
 
She frowned and balled her hands into
fists.
 
“Sorry,” he snorted.
 
“That’s classic.”

Candy glared daggers at him and pulled the
covers back over her.
 
“Do you mind? I’d
like some privacy to get dressed.”
 

“Where are you going?”

“To my cabin.”

“No.”

“What do you mean,
no
?” she
said between clenched teeth.

“Um, that didn’t come out right...”

“Then what did you mean to say?”

He reached out and caressed her cheek with a
warm hand, and the bravado she felt vanished
.
 
“I don’t want you to go.”
 
He moved his face closer to hers and his
scorching breath heated her skin.
 
“You have the
most amazing green eyes,” he whispered as his thumb stroked her cheek
bone.
 
He was so close.
 
She stared, transfixed.

“You’re bleeding,” she stated, resisting the
lure of his gaze.

His hand moved to his jaw.
 
“I cut
myself, shaving.”
 
He headed for the
bathroom.

Candy closed her eyes to the returning memory
of what they had done last night.
 
As
much as she tried to erase it, she couldn't forget how glorious it was.
 
Oh, she had to give him credit.
 
He was extremely talented.
 
She couldn't stop the smile that formed on
her lips.

He appeared in the doorway and watched her.

A tingling sensation crept up her spine.
 
Couldn’t he put some clothes on?
 
It was pretty unnerving having a man like that stand before you, naked.

He rubbed the white hand-towel across his jaw.
 
“So, you enjoyed yourself then?”

The deep timbre of his voice caused a rush of blood to her face.
 
He knew perfectly well she had enjoyed
herself.
 
They had been up half the night
enjoying, not only themselves, but each other.

“You’re very quiet this morning,” he said, as
he reached behind the bathroom door for his bathrobe.
 
As he shrugged himself into it, someone
knocked on the door.

Her stomach did a somersault.
 
Who can that be?

“Breakfast,” he said and moved toward the
door.

Candy swore under her breath and covered herself.

“Thanks,” Cleve said.

She peeked out from under the covers.
 
Cleve shook his head.
 
It was
alright for him.
 
He was a man after
all.
 
The more
conquests the better.

He exhaled sharply.
 
“Do you want something to eat?”

She wanted to tell him just where he could
stick breakfast but she was starving.
 
She nodded.

He sat on the edge of the bed with the tray in his hands.
 
The smell of bacon and eggs wafted from under
the covered dish and her stomach growled in unison with his.

“I guess we’re both hungry.”
 
He smiled as he lifted the metal cover.
 
Candy lowered her eyes and smiled
weakly.
 
“Sit back and I’ll put the tray
on your lap,” he said.

She pushed herself against the headboard and tightened the sheet across
her chest while Cleve fussed over the tray.
 
Inhaling his scent, she licked her lips.
 
He smelled so good.