Circle of Desire (9 page)

Chapter Ten

D
espite Collin’s warm hands on her shoulders, Olivia couldn’t stop shaking. She hated feeling weak. Smothering underneath his kindness, she pushed him, blindly slapped her hands against his chest and then her fingernails reached for his eyes. He clasped her hands for a second to give himself time to move back. With a twist of her body, she was off the bed, crouched in a fighting stance, ready to take him on for real.

She struck out with her left foot, hitting him square in the stomach. He grunted, staggered back, giving her a ferocious look, and then blocked her next two kicks. Her arm hit the television and her hip slammed into the desk chair with each swing or kick she used. The room was too small for them to truly fight without alarming the other guests with the crashing of lamps and furniture. She quickly realized he remained on the defensive, only blocking her moves.

She took a couple steps back from him, panting like an overheated dog. Her gaze drifted down his body to see a bulge beneath his zipper. The thought of him being turned on by her story pissed her off.

“You sick bastard!” She stared pointedly at his crotch.

His upper lip curled. “Fighting with you makes me horny.”

“Oh.” She exhaled and all the air left the room.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she bit off.

He tilted his head as his eyes narrowed.

Of course, she didn’t mean it, but she was unsure how to handle her feelings on hearing him say the word
horny
. She’d instantly wanted to spread her legs for him.

She turned her back, afraid of what she would do. Beg him to fuck her? Her weak knees and the moisture soaking her thong told her she was lying by denying him and herself. But, oh mercy, that reasonable little voice in her head reminded her that no matter how bad she wanted him, she needed to take a cold shower and rein in her lust for a man who had control of life and death over her. He’d made it plain he didn’t want her body no matter how his cock hardened in her presence.

An arm came around her waist and lifted her off the floor while a big hand covered her mouth. She kicked back and heard a grunt. Good. Probably only his shin but it should leave a bruise. She landed face first on the bed and Collin’s weight kept her down. He jerked her arms back, tying her up with what felt like a silk tie. At the rate he was going, he would have to replace his whole wardrobe of ties.

“What the hell are you doing?” she asked, her voice sounding airy. He continued to press so hard on her back she struggled to breathe.

“I’ve let you work off some steam, now it’s only fair you let me have my turn,” he said in a guttural tone.

His hand slipped into the front of her jeans and yanked the snap and zipper open, shoving them below her hips. He didn’t do anything more for several seconds. Then she felt a light flutter on her buttocks. Had he pressed his lips to her?

Then she heard another zipper. He was going to fuck her like this? To wait all this time and have her looking away? No way! She’d wanted to see his face when he came into her the first time. She wiggled, trying to turn over but he held her down, controlling her. In her struggles the bedspread rubbed her cloth-covered breasts and they hardened, aching for his touch.

He slapped a bare buttock. The sting promptly halted her movements.

“Be still,” he ordered and smacked the other one. His fingers brushed across the sensitive skin, likely tracing the outline of a red handprint.

The spot burned as hot as she felt between her legs. She imagined he enjoyed marking her like that. Never a lover of pain, nevertheless her body tingled in all the places she wanted him to suck, lick, and fuck.

Then his heavy body rested along her back. His cock found a cradle between her butt cheeks but nowhere near an opening for them to enjoy. He kissed her neck and tugged at her earlobe with his teeth. She groaned. When he began to rock, pressing her hips into the mattress, she pushed back and his breath heated her neck. His cock slid up and down the crevice perfect for the motion. She continued to apply friction to her breasts and against his groin. He thrust harder, rubbing an absurdly long and thick cock against her, but not into her.

“Please,” she begged. “Fuck. Me. Please.”

His hand slid beneath her and a broad finger slipped between the moist folds. As soon as he touched the stiff little clit, it was over for her. He rammed her smarting cheeks twice more and then he released a soft groan and warmth filled the small of her back.

A flutter near her shoulder felt like another kiss and he lifted off her. With a tug, her hands were free, but he held her down for second.

“Wait a minute, don’t move. I’ll get you a towel,” he said.

She couldn’t move anyway. Every bone in her body had melted from the most intense . . . what would she call that? A brawl? Sex? She wasn’t sure, but she had a feeling he hadn’t intended for it to happen. He’d been so cool until she began fighting him. He’d been telling the truth. He hadn’t wanted her until she tried to kick his butt. The only man she’d never been able to defeat. Maybe that was why she wanted him so bad too.

A warm wet cloth wiped at her back. Then he gently dried her skin. His attentions were so soothing she didn’t dare move a muscle for fear of him stopping.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his hand caressed her waist.

She closed her eyes. Couldn’t he just leave her alone?

“Olivia?”

With a deep breath she turned over. Those beautiful dark eyes of his were filled with concern. She liked that. She also liked how he looked with mussed hair and his shirt wrinkled. Dark blue splatters decorating the front shook her up. He’d lost control. She was used to losing control around him, but this was the most he’d allowed his desire full rein. It had to be disturbing for him. Poor baby.

She looked at the alarm clock. “No worries. If you don’t mind, I’ll take a shower in the morning. I’m beat.”

Giving him her back, she shoved her pants the rest of the way down her legs, and then crawled under the sheets. Like a virginal bride, she unclasped her bra beneath the covers and tossed it toward her suitcase on the other side of the bed, not caring if it hit its mark or not.

He still stood beside her bed watching her with dark brooding eyes.

Then she faced the wall, ignoring whatever was bothering him. He got what he wanted. Didn’t most men? Sure, he brought her off but the relief was fleeting. That she knew better than anyone and it didn’t really matter.

So why was her chest tight and tears in her eyes?

C
ollin sat in the chair farthest from the bed. In the two hours since she’d fallen asleep, he’d hoped, if he remained quiet and watched her, he could understand what in the hell he was thinking when he . . . hell, what had they done?

He’d nearly raped her. She’d been fighting him and then, before he realized what he’d done, he’d been pumping against her creamy peach buttocks. Somehow he’d remained in control enough to refrained from sticking his cock into her and fucking her senseless.

Sure she begged him to fuck her. It would’ve still been rape. She hadn’t wanted him at first. Only later had she changed her mind. His need was there, barely restrained below the surface. He’d wanted to pound into her. He knew how close he came to hurting her by taking her the way he really wanted to. He wiped his face and shook his head.

Her soft skin rubbing against him, smelling the delicate perfume she used, knowing she could kill him any moment if he released her, all added up to a lethal woman he wanted more than breathing. But he couldn’t take her. He needed her on the edge, wondering when he would give her what she wanted. Acting as the carrot was becoming difficult. How much longer could he last?

His cell phone vibrated. He checked the screen and then answered, “Yeah.” He kept his gaze on Olivia during Rex’s quick explanation. “Are you sure?” After a couple more questions, he hung up.

She hadn’t moved. He would let her sleep through the night undisturbed. They had a long day ahead of them tomorrow. Mason had disappeared and they could only hope he wouldn’t miss the big after-race party at The Phoenician in Scottsdale.

He stripped completely and slid into bed next to her. The smell of sex and Olivia surrounded him. She moaned and her butt squirmed against his hard cock. A smile flitted across his lips. Unsure if she sensed his presence and wanted space, or she hungered for his touch as much as he craved her taste, he refused to think anymore about it. Instead he snuggled a little closer. He was sleeping with her whether she liked it or not.

She whimpered and grabbed his hand, pressing it to a firm full breast. Her nipple pebbled as he cupped her but he held back from doing more. He almost whimpered too.

Another smile lifted the corners of his lips. He couldn’t wait until morning to see her reaction to his invasion of her bed and person. There was no doubt her irritation would keep him on his toes.

He pressed his lips to a bare shoulder and closed his eyes.

Yep, seeing Olivia in action tomorrow was going to be a treat.

Chapter Eleven

“I
’m going to kill the son of a bitch,” Olivia muttered as she sauntered back to the couch with an apple martini in her hand held high.

Maneuvering in the crush of people while trying not to spill her drink or fall on her ass and show off the aforementioned body part was difficult. Collin had been no help by insisting that she wear the strip of shiny material she’d scorned the night before. She made sure to use her stilettos on tennis shoe–covered feet, maybe more out of spite since she wished she was wearing a pair at that very moment.

“What did you say, doll?” Mason asked over the pounding music.

He scooted over and patted the seat next to him. His gaze skimmed over the roomy hotel suite slammed with NASCAR drivers and their wives or girlfriends, race team owners, and all the people who supported or sucked them dry. Those beady pale blue eyes returned to her but as always landed on the dark depths of her cleavage and didn’t move no matter what she said or did in an attempt to bring his attention to her face.

“Nothing much, sugar.” With a slight wiggle, she scooted into the spot the tall, rawboned redhead indicated. With any luck her thong wasn’t showing to the rest of the room. “Mostly about how crowded it is. I really wish we could go somewhere private and have some fun.”

She hated this part of Collin’s asinine plan. Her abhorrence of parties, especially crowded ones where bodies rubbed against strange ones wasn’t helping her attitude. Just as her stomach rolled whenever Mason caressed her arm or leaned on her.

She understood Collin’s plan but that didn’t mean she had to like any of it. So far the entire day had been a slice of hell.

Waking up with Collin’s hand playing with her clit almost guaranteed her being in a good mood until she caught the look in his eyes. He’d only amused himself, to see her reaction. She’d rather he’d done it to start a mutually satisfying moment, yet again, he held back.

What was the man? A sadist? No. Wrong one, but probably that too. A masochist. Yeah. He must get off abusing himself. She’d never known a man to hold off his satisfaction for so long and he was showing his expertise at it. Well, except for his release on her back. Later he’d pay for teasing her and then placing her in the present position of dodging this slime ball’s octopus hands.

Then he informed her, Mason had disappeared, and they would prepare for the party that night by skipping the race. Mason never missed the party.

Skip the race? Well, hell. Collin refused to have sex with her and continued to tease her, and he stuck her in a stuffy hotel room. And then to take away the opportunity to experience powerful motors revving in testosterone-laden air, well, that was cruel. A sadist, masochist, and an asshole.

For now, the plan was to find a way to separate Mason from his bodyguards. As she’d told Collin and Rex, the man loved to fuck married women while the husband hung out nearby and clueless, and then later, convince the husband to fuck the wife in front of him. Collin instructed her to encourage Mason’s interest and not kill him.

She wanted to kill both of them. Men!

Instead she’d found out more. Yes, Mason loved screwing married women, but not while the husband was in the other room or stood by and watched. Turned out their psycho was bisexual and loved for the other half of a relationship to join in. Talk about an interesting turn she looked forward to telling Collin. Would he go through with a three-way? He always acted like he had a stick up his ass, maybe there was a reason. Then again, Collin might kill Mason if he tried. So here she sat, trying to find ways to keep his hands off her goods and still keep him happy. And figure out a way to get back at Collin.

“Where’s that good-looking husband of yours?”

“Why, sweet pea, don’t you worry a bit. My little ol’ husband will be back any moment now.” She was laying on the southern accent thick, but from the way Mason, a city boy from Chicago, was drooling from the corner of his mouth, he loved every minute of it.

“You’re sure he would like to play with us?” he asked as he placed an arm around her shoulders and leered at her breasts. She grabbed his dangling hand and threaded her fingers between his, more to keep him from grabbing than anything to do with closeness. He licked her ear—yuck! Collin owed her big time—and whispered, “Wouldn’t you like me to have one of the drivers join us?”

She really wanted to teach the creep a thing or two about manners, but Collin needed time to find an empty suite at The Phoenician. Many of the fans had left after the race and the rumor ran through the crowd a big dog who had reserved one had left an hour ago. The suite played a part in the plan of setting the stage for the creep’s expected seduction of Olivia. Only Collin didn’t know Mason expected a ménage à trois.

“Oh, no. True, I love a man in a jumpsuit, but I’m not a helmet licker by any means. It’s the man out of the uniform who counts.” She patted his bony knee. “My hubby likes men as aggressive as he’s shy.” She had to bite the inside of her mouth to keep from laughing. Wait until Mason and Collin were alone together. He deserved everything Mason dealt out for leaving her to be ogled and pawed.

“Is that right?” he asked as he leered down her blouse. She caught his other hand before he slipped it between her legs. His head jerked up. “There’s your handsome husband now.” Mason nodded toward the entrance.

Dressed in black jeans and a white shirt unbuttoned far enough to see a little chest hair and plenty of tanned skin, Collin craned his neck looking for them in the crushing crowd.

She waved her hand. “Yoo-hoo!”

Collin strode across the room as the partygoers moved out of the way. His eyes appeared to be on her and Mason, but she could tell he was aware of all the people surrounding them. Did they sense the danger walking near them?

“Who’s your new friend, sweetheart?” Collin asked as he leaned down and kissed her.

She grabbed the back of his neck and took advantage of his mouth. He’d probably planned for the kiss to be perfunctory, but no way could she pass up the opportunity to aggravate him. Instead she found heat racing through her body with his answering thrust of tongue.

“Hey, you two, get a room.” Mason cackled.

Collin pulled away and used his thumb to wipe off her Luscious Pink lipstick from his bottom lip. The man had a gorgeous mouth even if he was wearing a smirk. His eyes met hers. Did she see a flare of anger? Or had he gotten carried away with the moment too?

“Speaking of rooms, darling, I just got us the Presidential Suite. Let’s check it out.” Collin’s smirk changed to the breathtaking smile she’d seen him give Doctor Blondie her first day in the OS.

She had to keep reminding herself he was acting, playing a part for Mason’s benefit. Her confusion confirmed she was not good at working with a partner. His eyebrows rose, waiting for her to continue the act.

“Then let’s go and check it out.” Pretending she’d forgotten the man soaking in Collin’s presence, eyes wide she looked over at Mason. “Oh, honey, would you like to see the suite too? I’ve heard it’s gorgeous though not as big as the one in the main building.” A part of her wished he would say no. Sure, it would hamper their plan, but she might wangle a couple interesting minutes with Collin.

Mason grinned big. “I’d be honored.”

Disappointed but hiding it, she moved toward the door with the men close behind as two mammoth-sized shadows came out of nowhere and followed them into the hallway. She could think of several ways to get rid of the bodyguards but every method was loud and messy. So she tried a different tactic.

She turned to Mason. “Sugar, don’t you think your boys are really unnecessary. They would cramp our style, you could say. You know two’s company, three’s a ménage à trois, but four or more is a messy orgy, and we don’t want that. This time.” She raised her eyebrows in promise for the future.

Mason stopped and narrowed his eyes at her. Had she gone too far and was he on to her? When those pale eyes centered on Collin, she knew they had him.

“Boys, you can go back to the party and have the night off,” Mason ordered.

The one with the shaved head raised a hand to plead. “But, Boss, you don’t—”

Mason interrupted. “Did I ask your opinion?”

They shook their heads and turned back to the party.

“Fuck. They have a room full of horny pit lizards and they want to argue.” Mason leered at her breasts. “How much further?”

“We’re on the floor above this one.” Collin held the elevator door open as they entered. In seconds after they stepped off, he unlocked one of the double doors. The suite was immaculately decorated and opened onto a large terrace, giving the main room an airy feeling.

“Oh, honey, it’s beautiful.” Her hand glided over the back of a puffy sectional couch. “Would you gentlemen like a drink?” She headed for the bar.

“Wait!” She stopped in her tracks with Mason’s bark. “Let’s skip the unnecessary pleasantries. I want to see you kiss her again and make it hot.” His demand was directed toward Collin.

Oh, ho, her boss man didn’t like that but what reason could he make up to say no? To save the situation, she stepped between Mason and Collin.

“Show Mason how good of a kisser you are, sweetheart.” She skimmed her hands over his chest and then around his neck. At first, his lips were unyielding as she savored the opportunity to kiss him again without fear of rejection.

“If that’s the way you kiss your wife, no wonder she’s looking at other men like they’re all-day suckers. And I have a man-sized sucker here for her,” Mason said as he rubbed his quite noticeable erection.

Crude as it was, Mason’s derision was the kick Collin needed. He turned her head back to him and his mouth sunk onto hers as he thrust his tongue, taking her breath away by the forcefulness.

“Yeah, man, fuck her mouth good with your tongue. Give it to her.” Mason moved in closer and Olivia really wished he would disappear. She needed more from the man kissing her and without an audience. Who knew how long Collin would play along with Mason?

Hands came up and cupped her breasts, but she knew Collin’s hands were on her waist. Mason was getting impatient and Olivia wanted to throw up.

Collin released her and pushed her away. She stumbled back and laughed, wiping her mouth, pleased that the move caused Mason to drop his hands. Collin turned from her as if the kiss meant nothing. Maybe it hadn’t. So much emotion, anger was behind the kiss and she liked it. A lot.

It was time for the boss man to be brought down a peg or two. “Which way to the ladies’ room?” she asked with as much casualness she could muster.

Collin gave her a questioning look but pointed down a dark small hallway on the right.

“I’ll be back,” she said and then added, “You and Mason have a good time and I’ll be back before you know it.” She blew him a kiss and quickly stepped into the shadows. Not wanting to miss a thing, she peeked around the corner into the living room she’d just left.

Mason didn’t waste any time. He grabbed Collin’s crotch, massaging the shaft she loved feeling against her body and said something Olivia bet was even cruder than before. Instead of cussing and jerking away from Mason, Collin grinned in a way that sent cold chills down her spine and then his hand chopped the side of the man’s neck. Mason dropped like a piano from a high-rise.

“Olivia, you can come out now.” His voice sounded calm, even like he was unperturbed by her trick.

Not until she stood in front of him did she see his cold, furious look. Oh, damn, had she pushed him a tad too far? Then Mason groaned and a flash of embarrassment crossed Collin’s face. Priceless. She burst out laughing.

Collin did what he’d become good at, he ignored her and bent over the man, rolling him onto his stomach. With a knee on Mason’s back, he grasped his wrists. “Get the satchel behind the bar and hand me the handcuffs and rope.”

Less than five minutes later, Mason was tied up. After a quick call by Collin, Rex and several other operatives entered from the terrace, wearing uniforms that proclaimed the best rug cleaners in Scottsdale. They rolled the man in one of the rugs and simply walked out of the hotel.

“Kind of like Cleopatra. Hey, why didn’t you do that to me instead of that crappy drug and stupid stretcher?” Olivia poured herself a snifter of fine brandy from the bar and raised it to her lips as her gaze followed his movement across the room. Watching him had become her latest hobby.

“You were unplanned and there wasn’t a rug in the hotel room.” He stopped in front of her and glowered. “Your little fun and games could’ve ruined the operation.”

She tossed back the drink. The smooth liquor burned in a good way down her throat. “I knew you could handle it.” Then she realized what she said and giggled. “Handle it! I guess Mason handled it too.”

His impassive look bothered her more than she liked. She’d rather he stayed mad at her.

“Olivia.” He lifted the glass out of her hand and sat it on the bar. “Your life depends on your following my direction.”

Heat from his body drew her one step closer. “You’re fond of threatening me.” Her breasts flattened against his chest. “I think I intrigue you, make you want to find out what makes me tick.” The last few words she said in a whisper near his ear. Her tongue gilded across the pulse at his neck and along his jaw line.

He smelled and tasted so good. Her heartbeat felt like it had stopped.

Then his fingers clutched her shoulders and held her away as he glared at her. He was always glaring at her. She tried her best to hold back the grin but one corner tilted up. The flare she loved seeing in his sinfully dark eyes burned with emotions he kept tightly in control. Then his mouth covered hers, tongue dipping and exploring. Her belly flipped and a tremor shot between her thighs, moistening their depths.

He released her so fast, she stumbled.

“Fuck you,” he spit out. His chest heaved as he backed away.

Using one hand on the bar beside her, she regained her balance. “That’s what I’ve been trying for days to get you to do.” She couldn’t manage a grin this time. She was dead serious. Never had she wanted a man so bad.