Concrete Evidence (30 page)

“Lee—”

“If it’s not about baseball, I don’t want to hear it.”

She sat up and looked around the room. She didn’t know she was getting her first glimpse of his world. He was suddenly nervous, wondering what she thought of the paintings that faced the bed, ones he’d spent far too much money on because they touched his soul.

Her shoulders relaxed, and she smiled.

It was the sexiest, most earth-shatteringly seductive smile he’d ever seen. She crawled toward him across the big bed. “Why are you still dressed?”

Damn, if only this moment could have come about without being paved by lies—on both their parts. But he refused to entertain those regrets and began to unbutton his shirt.

She tugged his shirt from his pants. “Since you’re only twenty-five, I expect a high-scoring game.”

There it was, another lie, this one his. “You can count on it.” That, at least, was true.

She unbuckled his belt, then reached for his fly.

He sucked in a breath. “Damn, you don’t waste time when you make up your mind.”

She kissed him while tracing the outline of his erection. Intense pleasure rippled through him. She freed him from his pants and briefs and her cool fingers closed around his hard penis.

He closed his eyes and sucked air through his teeth. He was so turned on, he was liable to embarrass himself. Only a young, inexperienced man would bunt at this point in the game.

He reluctantly scooted off the bed, and she let out a feral groan as she let him go. He quickly shucked his clothing, then grabbed her foot and dragged her to the edge of the mattress. He undid her slacks and slid them off, tossing them over his shoulder. Her skimpy underwear was all that remained.

She rose to her knees on the edge of the bed. The longest strands of her hair reached her butt. Nearly nude, she far exceeded his fantasies with her smooth skin, full breasts, trim waist, and curvy hips. He cupped her ass, pressing the length of her against him as he stood on the floor. His mouth covered hers as he willed his resisting mind to forget the lies.

Later she would realize making love had been a means to an end, but he’d deal with her fury when the time came. Whatever deceptions lay between them, the one truth was he wanted her. Desperately.

He tugged on the thin elastic of her underwear. “Why are you still wearing this?” he murmured against her lips, then ripped the panties apart.

“Lee! I’ve only got ten items of clothing to my name, and that includes underwear!”

“Now you’ve got nine.” He ripped apart the other side and tossed the satin fabric behind him. “I’ll buy you more.” He dropped kisses along her perfect body as he descended to his knees. “I won’t be able to concentrate tomorrow, knowing you’re going commando.”

She pulled back, but he put an arm around her and held her in place so he could kiss her center. “Do you like this?” His tongue found her clitoris.

She arched backward and gave vocal praise to God and him.

He took that as a yes and continued to explore her with his mouth and hands. Her fingers twined in his hair while she whimpered his name. He slid a finger deep inside while he tasted her. God, she was magnificent as she arched against him and made a sexy mewing sound that turned him on as much as the scent and flavor of her arousal.

What was happening to him? As much as this moment was what he wanted, he feared making love to her now would make it impossible for her to forgive him later. But he couldn’t stop, even if he wanted to.

He brought her to the edge of orgasm. “Do you want to come now?”

“No. Yes. No.” She leaned away and tugged at his shoulders. “I want you inside me.”

He stood up and leaned into her, tipping her backward. Lying next to her, he dragged her into his arms and kissed her deeply, then looked into her eyes. He’d pushed her to the brink, then stopped, and she squirmed against him, anxious for him to be inside her, but he wanted to savor this moment. What was to come might ensure this was all they would ever have.

He’d spent hours wondering if her slate eyes would darken when aroused. His grin started dangerously close to his heart as he looked into smoky gray irises.

“What?” she asked.

“You’re breathtaking.”

She smiled. “Do I turn you on?”

He slid a hand down her side, resting it on her luscious hip while he sucked on a nipple. “So much I’m in pain right now, Shortcake.”

“Poor baby.” She rose on all fours and kissed him as she slid down his body. She stopped, her head level with his crotch. She teased him cruelly, licking and nibbling the inside of his thighs, touching everything except his hard cock. She finally showed mercy and took him into her mouth.

She was an erotic vision with her ass in the air as she knelt over him. Her shimmering hair pooled over his legs while his hard prick disappeared inside the velvet softness of her mouth. He’d lost sleep imagining her silky hair draped over his thighs. He had a good, healthy imagination, but he hadn’t done the moment justice.

“Oh God. Erica. Stop.” He gasped. “I want to be inside you.”

She massaged him with her hand. “We need a condom.”

He reached for the nightstand and pulled a box from the drawer. “This should last us tonight, at least.”

She laughed and grabbed a strip of condoms. She ripped one off, removed the wrapper, and slid it over him.

Sheathed, he took over, flipping her onto her back and moving on top of her, settling between her thighs. “You said something once about lack of finesse.” He slid two fingers deep inside her. “You’re ready now, but I’m tempted to make you pay for those words by torturing you with endless foreplay.”

She grasped his penis and guided him toward her opening. “Don’t even think about it. You’ve hit an inside-the-park homer, but you’ve got to run the bases to score. A cocky walk now, and you might get stopped at third, or worse, get tagged out.”

He pressed against her. “No chance you’d tag me out now.” But she should. If she knew what was good for her, she would.

She cupped his face between her hands. “I want you inside me, Lee. Now.”

“We’re playing for the same team then, ’cause we’re both about to score.” He slid inside her.

Her eyes closed, and she let out a sharp breath and clutched him tightly to her.

“Open your eyes,” he said against her lips.

She shook her head.

“I won’t move, then.”

She scoffed. “As if you could stop now.”

He laughed and pulled back slowly, nearly pulling out of her.

Her eyes flew open. She locked her legs tightly behind him and grabbed his butt.

He kissed her and thrust deeply. Pleasure rippled through him. “Thank you,” he murmured as her eyes drifted closed again. “Your eyes”—he moved in a slow, even rhythm as she clung to him—“are so damn sexy.”

She let out a low moan. “Oh God, Lee. I was so close before…I’m going to come already.” She kissed him, her mouth clinging to his with the same ferocity as her legs wrapped around his hips.

He wanted to slow down, but his own orgasm slammed into him. He captured her moans in his mouth as their bodies shuddered together.

He wanted this moment to last forever. He didn’t want the harsh reality of the roles they played to intrude. But he had a job to do. And he would see it through.

Before he caught his breath, before his heart rate slowed, as the very last ripple of orgasm pulsed through him, he said, “So, is the proof the Aztec artifacts were stolen inside the box of Jell-O?”

C
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HOCK AND DISBELIEF SPREAD
through Erica. Had Lee really asked her about the Jell-O box as she was feeling the last waves of pleasure?

He looked down at her, expectant, waiting for her answer.

Horror surged past shock, and she shoved at him, wanting him out of her body, out of her life. He slid from inside her, but she was still trapped beneath him.

“Damn you! Get off me.”

“Answer my question.”

How could she have been so stupid as to end up here, now? “I can’t breathe.” It was true, but due to panic, not his body pressing on hers.

He shifted his weight, but she couldn’t escape from under his six-foot five-inch form. His hips still rested between her thighs. She scratched at his chest.

His full weight dropped on her as he used both hands to catch hers. He lifted her arms above her head and held them pinned. “I won’t hurt you, Erica. I want to help you.”

If his balls weren’t safely nestled against her crotch, he’d be on the receiving end of her knee right now. He must have planned that too. “Sonofabitch. Let me up, now!”

“No.”

Who was this man? “What do you want from me?”

“What I’ve always wanted. The truth.”

She didn’t even know what the truth was anymore. Would he condemn her because she’d violated her own ethics and taken a job from Jake? This situation was her own doing.

Stupid, stupid Erica for trusting Jake.

Stupid, stupid daughter for feeling a rush of needy joy when her mother suggested Erica use her apartment as a permanent address while she was in school.
“You’ll be traveling so much doing fieldwork. I can handle your bills for you.”

Stupid, foolish child, so pleased her mom was acting like she loved her, at last. She’d never know if stealing her credit had been her mother’s intention from the start, or if the preapproved credit card mailings were too good for a financially strapped drunk to resist. She felt the tingling sensation that preceded tears and took a deep breath. She’d never cried over her mother’s betrayal and wasn’t about to start now.

No. She had a whole new betrayal to deal with.

Stupid, foolish woman for opening her body and mind to Lee. He’d given her an incredible orgasm, yes, but all she’d gotten was screwed.

He spoke, his voice soft but carrying a note of anger. “You have a history of bolting. You tell me your password is Riversong, and you’re out the door before I can form a question. I call you Cream Puff, and you storm away. I ask you about Novak, and you take off down the street. I had no choice but to wait and ask you when you can’t flee.”

“Why do you even care? You’re a frigging intern, for Chrissakes!” She tried again to push him away, but their bodies remained pressed together from shoulder to thigh.

“Whatever is going on with you could hurt the company and the campaign.”

“What makes you think that?”

“Shortcake, since I’ve met you, you’ve twice gone to see Sam Riversong. The first time you threatened to force an issue that would put the tribe’s land in jeopardy. The second time we met with Riversong, he was with Novak, a treasure hunter you’re terrified of who is also trying to team with Talon & Drake. I know treasure hunting is bad news in your line of work. Then there’s the fact that your office and apartment were trashed, and someone tried to kill you. It doesn’t take a brain trust to deduce something is up, and it involves you, the company, Novak, and the tribe. Joseph Talon’s tribe and Joseph Talon’s company. You bet I’m worried.”

She’d been so transparent, taking comfort in the fact he was an intern, hoping he wouldn’t clue in to her abnormal handling of the Thermo-Con project. But he’d seen it all, put it all together, all while flirting and touching, enticing her into his bed. “So you fucked me so you could question me.”

He cupped her face between his hands. “I made love to you because you’re all I’ve been able to think about since the first moment we met.” His eyes were earnest. “I wanted you then. I want you now. I can’t explain why I want you so badly. It just is. Like the need to breathe.”

Her breath hitched as her nipples hardened and her pelvis clenched. Hurt. Anger. Desire. They all boiled inside her until something snapped. Tears broke free and slid down her cheeks.

She swiped at the tears and pulled herself together, halting both the tears and accompanying sobs. Jake had broken her with torture and threats. But Lee had broken her using her own fragile need for affection, her unfathomable but undeniable attraction to him.

He wrapped her in his arms. “Sweetheart. Tell me the truth. Please.”

“I can’t.” He might be friends with the Talons, but he was still just an intern, a twenty-five-year-old career student. He couldn’t protect her from Marco.

“You need to tell me what’s going on.”

She began to shiver uncontrollably. He reached across and pulled the comforter over them, wrapping them both in a silky down-filled cocoon. She was still trapped, but the thick bedding was aptly named.

“Tell me why you worked for Novak.” He caressed her back, then slid his hand along her shoulder and behind her head, where he threaded his fingers through her hair. Here at last was the affection she’d craved, the postcoital tenderness she deserved.

She pulled away from him as far as she could, which meant a meager half inch separated their naked bodies.

Was that compassion she saw in his eyes? “Tell me.”

She had no choice. “Fifteen months ago, I was in graduate school at the University of Hawaii, working towards a PhD in underwater archaeology, when my mother died.”