Heat of the Moment (13 page)
T WAS SEVERAL HOURS
before the sheriff left with the intruder, and even after intensive questioning, the man had refused to divulge his name or his reason for breaking in. In fact, he’d been stoically quiet, refusing to provide even the most basic of information. Shane would have been happy to spend the rest of the night interrogating the man the good old-fashioned way, but the sheriff had decided it was time to get him to a hospital and have his head injury treated, after which he would be transferred to the county jail. Shane had pulled the sheriff aside and had repeated what the man had said about there being additional men who would come after Holly if he failed in his mission to kill her.
After they were gone, Holly poured herself a small glass of whiskey and Shane watched with a mixture of amusement and concern as she quaffed it in a single, long swallow.
“I didn’t know you drank this stuff,” he observed, accepting the glass she offered to him and tossing it quickly back.
“I don’t,” she said, shuddering lightly. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t, when the occasion calls for it. You don’t go through the academy without learning how to handle the hard stuff.”
Setting the glass aside, Shane drew her carefully into his arms. “Are you okay?”
She tipped her head against his chest. “I’ve never been so frightened in my whole life. Not even that day in Iraq.”
Shane felt his chest tighten. She’d been through too much, and he didn’t want to cause her more worry and distress than she was already feeling. As soon as it was light, he’d bring her back to Chatham. Because as much as he hated to admit it, he couldn’t keep her safe, and the lake house was too remote for the police to effectively patrol the property.
“It’s almost dawn,” he murmured against her hair. “We’ll head into town tomorrow, but right now you should try to get some rest.”
They would need to file a formal statement at the sheriff’s office later that morning, but Shane could see that Holly was swaying on her feet with exhaustion. The events of the night had taken a toll on her, both physically and emotionally.
“I don’t think I can sleep,” she protested. “What if another of his henchmen comes? If this guy got through the security system, what’s to say another one won’t?”
“Because there are two deputies on the property right now. One at the front of the house and one at the back. They won’t leave and nobody is going to disturb us.”
She shivered in his arms and then yawned hugely. “Okay, but just for a few hours.”
Shane steered her toward the stairs, determined that after they visited the sheriff’s office, he would insist that she return to her father’s house in Chatham. The sheriff had been correct. It would be easier to protect her there than it would be at the lake house.
At the doorway to her bedroom, Shane stopped. Every cell in his body urged him to stay with her, but after what she had been through, she needed rest more than she needed him.
Holly paused and turned to Shane with a questioning look. He took a step back, when all he really wanted to do was to haul her against his body and never let her go.
“Shane.” Her voice was so soft and low that he had to bend his head to catch her words. “Don’t leave me tonight.”
“Holly…”
“I need you, Shane. I swear, I won’t sleep a wink unless you stay with me. I’ll jump at every noise and shadow. Please.”
He looked into her dark eyes and knew he couldn’t resist her pleading. But he wouldn’t take advantage of her vulnerability. He could stay in her room without sleeping in her bed.
“Okay,” he relented. “But I’ll stay in the chair.”
To his surprise, she capitulated. “Okay. Just don’t—” she yawned “—leave me.”
“I won’t.”
Shane realized it was the truth. If he had his way, he’d never leave her again. But even if he was the kind of guy who could give her what she needed—which he wasn’t—there was still the issue of their disparate ranks. If the brass knew just how friendly they had become, he and Holly could face formal charges. He might lose a few stripes, but Holly’s career would be permanently ruined. Shane knew Holly well enough to guess that she might consider herself too damaged to return to active duty, but he’d seen soldiers who had lost legs and arms return to service. She was intelligent and hard-working and the Navy would be fortunate to have her. Eventually, she’d come to the same realization. He didn’t want her to throw a promising future down the toilet because of him.
If he was smart, he’d haul her ass back to Chatham right that minute and leave her on daddy’s doorstep, while he high-tailed it back to Camp Lejeune.
But he wasn’t smart.
He was a complete dumb-ass, because he fully intended to stay the night in Holly’s room. And then he intended to give her the three weeks she had asked for.
HANE LOUNGED IN THE
chair with his foot up on a small stool while Holly slept. She’d come out of the bathroom about an hour earlier wearing a T-shirt and a pair of shorts and had climbed into bed with a blissful sigh of relief. She’d patted the mattress beside her, insisting that Shane could at least recline on top of the blanket while he kept vigil, but Shane had refused. He didn’t trust himself to be in the same bed with Holly. He’d be fine as long as he was awake, but if he fell asleep, he’d be drawn to her feminine warmth and scent like a magnet.
“No, please,” she whimpered, and her voice was so small and un-Holly-like, that Shane’s chest tightened.
Debating only a moment, he eased himself onto the mattress beside her and carefully gathered her against his chest. She resisted for a fraction of a second, until he murmured soothingly to her.
“Shane,” she breathed, and relaxed against him. “I had a terrible dream…”
“Shh,” he soothed. “Go to sleep. I’m here.” He lay back on the pillows with her face cushioned on his shoulder and her body soft and lax against his. She drew in a shuddering sigh and murmured something unintelligible.
“Everything’s okay,” he murmured. “Go back to sleep.”
She burrowed closer, and he waited as her breathing deepened. After several moments, she gave a soft snore. Her silky hair tickled his jaw, and her warm breath fanned his neck. The pressure of her breasts against his side was torture, so he concentrated instead on the small, illuminated clock on the bedside table, watching as the minutes clicked by and wondering how in hell he would make it through the rest of the night.
He had only to turn his head to inhale her fragrance, and when she shifted closer and drew a leg up and over his thigh, he almost groaned in despair. Despite his resolve not to touch her in anything other than a platonic fashion, he was rock hard for her.
He drew in several deep breaths and willed his body to relax. The events of the day had left him completely jacked, but he didn’t need physical release as much as he needed to just hold Holly and reassure himself that she was safe. He tightened his arm around her, and eventually drifted into sleep with the sweet weight of her body pinning him to the bed.
OLLY DIDN’T KNOW
how long she’d slept; she was only aware of the long, hard length of fully aroused male pressed against her backside. Her head was pillowed on Shane’s bicep and his other arm was flung across her body. Beneath the sheet, her bare legs were tangled with his, and his cast was hard and scratchy against her skin. She could tell by his breathing that he was still asleep, and she shifted experimentally against him. He muttered something incoherent and his hand curved possessively around her breast.
He stopped breathing.
Smiling, Holly arched her back and rubbed her bottom sensuously against his erection. He groaned on an exhale of breath and his hand began to caress her breast, fondling and plucking at the nipple beneath her shirt. Holly stroked the length of his good leg with her foot, reveling in the light furring of hair and the hard muscles of his calf.
“Mmm,” she sighed, pulling his hand to her other breast, “that feels so good.”
He nuzzled the nape of her neck and then caught her earlobe with his teeth, biting gently before soothing the area with his tongue. Holly shivered in pleasure.
“Do you like that?” His voice was rough with sleep and arousal.
In answer, Holly pushed his hand down to the hem of her T-shirt and then helped him to drag it upward, exposing her breasts to the cool air and his warm hand.
“Touch me,” she murmured.
With a small noise of defeat, Shane rose over her and captured her mouth in a kiss that she felt all the way to her toes. At the same time, he covered her bare breast in one big hand. She could feel the hard calluses on his palm, the rough whiskers on his jaw, and she reveled in the sheer masculinity of him. She kissed him back, stroking her tongue against his as she tunneled her fingers through his hair, enjoying the velvety texture of the short strands.
Shane broke the kiss first to dip his head and kiss her breast, flicking her nipple with his tongue until he drew it into his mouth, suckling her hard. Holly gasped as the insistent pull of his hot mouth caused an answering throb of arousal deep in her sex. She curled her legs around his and reached down to cover him with her hand. Even through the fabric of his shorts, she could feel his heat and ached to have him inside her.
“Take these off,” she whispered, caressing the back of his head with her other hand.
Reaching down, Shane pushed her hand away and with one flick, unfastened his shorts, pushing them down over his hips as Holly used her feet to push them completely free. And then there he was, throbbing and hot against her stomach. She took him in her hand and stroked her thumb along the sensitive underside, before smoothing her finger over the blunt cap. He gave a low growl of pleasure and released her breast to slowly work his way down her body, planting moist kisses along her ribcage and stomach, until he reached the waistband of her shorts. Without pausing, he undid the snap and swept both the shorts and her underwear down over her hips in one smooth movement until she was naked beneath him.
“Oh man,” Shane breathed, using his hands to push her thighs apart, “you really are gorgeous down here, all pink and pillowy-soft.”
In answer, Holly slid her hand over her stomach and through the small cluster of curls to where she ached for him. She parted her folds, watching Shane as he watched her. His expression was one of rapture, and she felt herself pulse hotly in response. But when she would have swirled her fingers over her clitoris, he grasped her wrist and pinned it to her side.
“Oh, no,” he rasped, “that’s my job.” And he bent his head and swept his tongue over her, causing her to cry out in startled pleasure. He licked her relentlessly, lapping at her until she gave a strangled moan and pushed helplessly at his shoulders.
“Stop,” she panted. “I can’t take any more.”
In answer, Shane released her, reaching over, he opened the bedside drawer and withdrew a small packet from the stash of condoms she’d appropriated from Mitch’s room. Covering himself, he came up to lay alongside her. He ran his hand almost reverently over her breasts and stomach, and Holly knew her entire body was flushed from his lovemaking. She thought he would come over her, settle himself between her thighs and finally ease the relentless aching need, but he didn’t.
Lying on his side, he pulled her close and then raised her leg and bent her knee back. She felt him, heavy and hot, at her opening, and she shifted to grant him better access. Slowly, with his gaze fixed on her, he began to ease himself into her, stretching her and filling her. The angle of his penetration caused her mouth to open in wordless surprise, and when he began to slowly thrust, she clutched his arm and lifted herself mindlessly into the intense pleasure.
Shane hooked her knee over his arm and opened her wider, his movements growing stronger. Holly watched in wonder as his face grew taut and his breathing changed, and still he studied her, as if he was attuned to everything she felt. His eyes glowed faintly green in the pale sunlight that filtered through the skylights.
“Good?” he asked, his voice husky with strain.
“Oh, yeah… So good…”
As if to disprove her words and show her that it could be better still, Shane gave a subtle rotation of his hips as he thrust. Holly gasped, her inner muscles clenching greedily at the pleasure he provided, feeling her orgasm building and gathering in on itself. She was so close, but she didn’t want to let go yet, not when Shane was watching her with an expression that made her heart stop, and then explode into a frenzied rhythm in her chest. But when he let out a low groan and thrust deeply, the cords in his neck standing out, Holly couldn’t hold back any longer and convulsed around him, splintering into a billion glittering bits, following him into the vortex of pleasure.
As Holly struggled to control her ragged breathing, she realized one truth; whatever she thought she’d felt for Shane before was nothing compared to how she felt about him now. She wanted to stay with him like this forever. She wanted to bottle the moment and tuck it into her pocket.
Withdrawing carefully from her, Shane pulled her against his chest and kissed her with a sweetness that made tears prick behind her eyelids. Pulling away, he gazed down at her as if he would memorize each feature.
“Holly…” He swallowed hard. “I just want you to know that I—”
From downstairs there came the sound of someone knocking on the front door of the house.
Shane swore softly and then gave a huff of laughter. “My timing sucks.”
“I don’t think so,” Holly responded, pressing her lips against his shoulder. “After all, whoever is knocking could have showed up ten minutes ago. Now that would have been bad timing. What were you going to say?”
The knocking came again, more insistent this time. With a groan of frustration, Shane pulled away.
“Nothing.” But when Holly would have sat up, Shane forestalled her. “I’ll get the door. You stay.”
Holly tamped down her own frustration and rolled onto her stomach as she watched Shane clean up and then hunt for his discarded clothing. What had he been going to say? Holly, I want you to know…what? That he loved her? That he didn’t love her? The not knowing would drive her nuts.
Shane glanced at the bedside clock. “Christ, I didn’t realize how late it is. That’s probably the sheriff downstairs.”
Holly grimaced. “I’m almost afraid to hear what he has to say about our unwelcome visitor. I’m just going to take a quick shower and get dressed, and then I’ll be right down.”