Into the Fire (Bridge Book 2) (8 page)

“Did you talk to Cam?”

She smiled widely and happiness glittered in her eyes. “He came to my room last night. You were right, as usual. He was over the moon. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so happy.”

Suddenly the news hit me all over again. I leaned in and hugged her tight. “I’m so happy for you, Maya. I truly am.”

She pulled back and held my hand. “Thank you, Vanessa. For being a true friend, through everything. I know I haven’t been around as much lately.”

“Totally understandable. And for the record, I’m not going anywhere.”

“I want this for you too.” She gestured to the room that was alive with celebration for her and Cameron. “One day.”

I smiled and cast my gaze to the floor. I wanted that too, but I had a long way to go.

“Eli told me about Darren,” she said quietly.

I rolled my eyes, annoyed that he’d mentioned it. But among the three of us, few secrets were ever kept.

“Don’t be mad. I asked him about it. He said you didn’t really seem like yourself this morning. Is everything okay?”

I sighed. “Everything’s fine. I’m just not sure what to expect. There’s chemistry between us. No doubt about it. And he says things… Sometimes it feels like this could be more than just a fling. But it’s hard not to be guarded with him.”

“I know his reputation isn’t promising. But maybe you should give it a chance.”

She had no idea how much I wanted to, especially after my encounter with him this afternoon. Before I could say more, Cameron came up to her. He stood tall, towering above us both. She gazed up at him, stars in her eyes and glowing with love.

“Can I steal you away for a dance?” He held out his hand.

With that wordless gesture, she rose. “Of course.” She glanced back to me. “I’ll catch you later.”

I waved her off and tipped back the last of the bubbly in my glass. I was ready to make my way to the dance floor, shake these thoughts, and have some fun. The party guests were starting to loosen up, and I was too.

Diane came up beside me as I rose. “Having fun?”

“Of course. What an amazing day.”

She drifted her gaze to where Cam and Maya now danced. He was whispering something in her ear, grazing the slight swell of her belly. My heart swelled for their newfound happiness.

“Assuming you knew about the pregnancy?” Diane did a poor job of masking a grimace. “Cameron told us the news this morning. Makes sense now why they were in such a rush to get married.”

“I think marriage has been on their minds for a long time.”

“True enough. He’s been lovestruck over that girl for years. I have to admit, I never understood the infatuation.”

The way she said
that girl
grated over my nerves. How could she talk about Maya that way, especially on the day she became a true part of her family? This woman was cold beyond comprehension.

“I suppose they’re the only ones who really need to understand it. It’s their relationship.” I seethed under my forced politeness.

She narrowed her eyes and then relaxed. A crooked smile curved up the corner of her mouth, and she glanced over at Darren sitting at the other side of the long table set for the wedding party.

“Darren will never make that mistake. He’s not like Cameron.”

“How is that?” I couldn’t hide the edge in my tone. Somehow, the conversation was beginning to feel very personal.

What if Darren could fall in love? What if he fell in with someone like me? Would this witch still look down her nose at me the way she did Maya? What would that do to her high hopes?

“He’s never let himself get swept away.”

“Don’t you want him to be happy?”

“Believe me, marriage won’t make him happy.” With that she turned, moving swiftly in the opposite direction away from me.

Relief and rage coursed through my veins. One day someone would make Darren happy. Who cared if I entertained a little fleeting fantasy that it could be me? I wanted Darren to find love even if it wasn’t with me. I wasn’t sure who or what had warped this woman’s heart, but if any of the Bridge siblings had trouble finding love and keeping it, I wouldn’t hesitate to place a fair share of the burden on the example she’d set for them.

Emboldened, I walked to Darren. He shifted from his conversation with the man who’d interrupted our almost-kiss on the beach and looked up at me from his seat. Heaven help me, one look at the man made my skin tingle.

His lips curved into a grin as his friend chatted away, and all the pleasures from the night before seemed to flicker in those beautiful brown eyes. Something had passed between us beyond ecstasy. Whatever that was had thrown us both off, and as long as we were here, together, I was going to live it and feel it.

“Want to dance?” I mouthed, not wanting to interrupt the conversation that was looking a bit one-sided.

He turned to his friend. “Hey, Jeffries, this is Vanessa.”

The man had big eyes and a genuine smile. “Nice to meet you, Vanessa. You keeping this in guy in line?”

“Doing my best. He doesn’t make it easy.”

He laughed. “I bet.”

“Can I steal him away for a few?”

“Sure thing.” He slapped Darren on the back and winked in my direction before leaving us alone.

Darren rose and took my hand, gently tugging me to him. “This is a slow song. You know what that means, right?”

I lifted an eyebrow.

“Means as long as that song plays, I get to put my hands on you, and I can’t guarantee I’m going to be a complete gentleman about it.” The way he looked me over, I guessed he was only half joking.

I ran a finger down his teal tie and smirked. “Well, we’re not in middle school. I think you could probably cop a feel without serious consequences.”

The edge of his teeth dug into his bottom lip, and he brought his arm around me. I closed my eyes a moment, tempted to skip the dancing part and get right to the ungentlemanly part…in his hotel room.

But the night was young.

I took his hand and pulled him toward the filling dance floor. “Come on, Casanova. Let’s dance.”

Once there, he pulled me into his arms. I melted into his embrace, one I was soon becoming addicted to. I rested my cheek against his solid chest and breathed him in. The cool and uniquely male scent that hit my lungs became a sixth sense. No doubt about it, I was attracted to this man on a level that felt primal and beyond my control.

He roamed his hands over my back, along the edge of my dress where satin hit bare skin. “Good speech,” he said against my ear.

“Thanks, you too. Where did you dig that up?”

“The speech?” He arched an eyebrow and a knowing grin curved his lips. “That was all me. Trust me, I surprised myself.”

“I’m impressed. Love isn’t the easiest thing to talk about in front of an audience, I guess. But it was beautiful.”

“Thanks, red.”

He stared down into my eyes, making my heart hammer the way it always seemed to when I was around him. Would that ever go away? Would a day go by when I was with him and didn’t feel that addictive pull? No matter if my brain knew better, my body wanted him. A kind of unseen magic lit up under my skin and made me want to take chances with this man.

The song changed, and the slow sway of our bodies seemed out of place. Darren spun me away, pulling me back close. We moved together to the faster dance beat, and I giggled, loving the way my soul came alive around him.

If I was being honest with myself, I didn’t care enough if this tryst with Darren only lasted one more night. I wasn’t going to let a minute pass me by without making the most of this time. Who knew what real life would throw at us back home? For the first time in a long time, I was really happy.

We danced until we were out of breath and I was nearly boneless from keeping up with his crazy moves. We finally took a break and grabbed some water at the bar. He loosened his tie, and I fanned myself.

“You’re quite the dancer, Darren Bridge.” The cool water slid down my parched throat.

“What can I say? You inspire me.”

I laughed, unable to keep from smiling like a fool.

“You do. You’re an amazing woman, Vanessa.” He reached up, softly touching the flowers in my hair. Emotion flickered behind his light brown eyes. “I don’t want this trip to end.”

I closed my eyes because I didn’t want him to know how true that was for me too. I took a snapshot in my mind. The music, the noise of people laughing and talking, the periodic whoosh and clinks of the bartender filling drinks behind us. I wanted to stop time. Make this day last forever. Make the trip last long enough to know if this fling with Darren was just that, a fling, or something that could take root.

“And I hate that I lost your trust last night. I want to show you that I can be better than that. I messed up. And I’ll spare you the suspense, I do that occasionally.”

“And I’m supposed to…what? Forgive you every time you pull some douchebag move on me?” I joked, trying to keep the mood light. Last night seemed like a distant memory, and the more time we spent together, the more ready I felt to move on and try again.

The light in his eyes darkened a bit. He lowered and took a less than chaste kiss. I sucked in a breath, and the cool scent of his cologne filled my lungs.

“People are watching.”

“You’re not my dirty little secret, red. I don’t care if the whole world knows you’re mine tonight.”

“Who said I’m yours?” The challenge was baseless because I wanted nothing more than to be his. Claimed, possessed, if only for a night.

He kissed me again, softer, his breath sweet like champagne against my lips. “I say. And I’m not taking no for answer.”

“You asked for one night, Darren.”

“And now I’m asking for another one.”

Every night I spent in Darren’s bed was a night that brought me closer to falling for him. Still, I couldn’t bring myself to care enough to say no. “Then what?”

“Then give me the next one,” he whispered. “And the next. Call me crazy, but right now I want them all.”

Beautiful, intoxicating words. “I’m pretty sure that’s the champagne talking.”

“No.” He shook his head, his gaze steady on me. “I can hardly believe it either, but I want you like I’ve never wanted anyone before. I can’t promise you forever, but I can’t walk away from this either.”

“I want to believe that’s true.”

“I can try to tell you everything you want to hear right now. I could search for the right words and hope they’d be enough to convince you of how I feel, what this craving feels like gnawing inside of me. But I’m all through with words today. All I want to do is touch…and taste…” he whispered against my lips through another kiss. “I want to feel and fuck. And I’m ready to take you upstairs and show you what you do to me until the sun comes up.”

The heated look in his eyes left no doubt.

“Then take me upstairs.”

I
devoured her
, and heaven help me, she tasted like apples and champagne. I kissed her until her lips were swollen. Until her nipples were so hard I felt them through her dress. I explored every sweet crevice of her mouth until my cock was ready to explode if it didn’t get some relief inside her.

We were on the bed, necking like teenagers. I loved her taste. I sucked at her skin, restraining myself not to make marks. I wanted the whole goddamn hotel to know she was mine, but she probably didn’t. I trailed my mouth everywhere her dress didn’t cover. Over the graceful curve of her shoulder, to the tops of her breasts, to the tips of her fingertips.

The little moans she offered up seem to short-circuit my brain every goddamn time, like I was wired in to her pleasure in a way I’d never experienced before. Suddenly nothing was more important than eliciting more of those sounds until she was screaming my name.

I exhaled slowly, trying to get a handle on my desire. Every instinct wanted to fuck, to rut so deeply inside her she’d never be the same. But tonight had to be different. I didn’t want to leave her with the memory of a good fuck. I wanted to get under her skin and make her see me as someone different than anyone else had. Maybe even as someone different than I saw myself.

I found the zipper on her dress and dragged it down, appreciating every inch of skin the motion revealed. I forced myself to go slow, stripping her down only to claim her in new places with my lips. I moved down the bed, taking her panties off as I went. She kept her legs together, and I fixed my gaze there. I wanted to spread her, tease her, lose myself in the beautiful body laid out before me.

She arched her back off the bed and unclasped the strapless bra she wore, tossing it away. I stood before her in complete fucking awe. Her deep auburn hair lay in a stark mass against the white sheets. She was stunning.

“Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?” I couldn’t hide the raw appreciation in my voice.

“You have a way of reminding me.” She slid her legs against each other seductively, revealing nothing. My cock ached to be between them.

I undressed swiftly, never taking my eyes off her. God, she was a fucking sight. I thanked my lucky stars that she’d agreed to give me another chance, because I wasn’t even close to tired of this view. I wasn’t sure I ever would be. I grabbed a condom and rolled it on.

Wasting no time, I crawled over her, kissing my way to her mouth. I delved deeply, unable to harness the lust that had built up. I sucked her tongue, her lips. I tasted her desire, silently promising her what was in store.

She tangled her fingers through my hair, tightening her grip. I repressed the urge to thrust into her right then. Her legs were parted around my hips, but I only grazed her. I shifted my hips so my cock slid through her wetness, up against her clit. She moaned into my mouth, and my vision went nearly white.

“Do you like that?” I asked.

“God, yes. There’s no way you can touch me that feels wrong. It all feels right.” She skimmed her hands lightly down my chest before she stopped and looked up at me. “Do you want me to touch you?” Her voice was breathy.

I lifted her hand to my mouth and pressed an openmouthed kiss to the well of her palm. “I’m going to put my hands on you, Vanessa. Everywhere. No restrictions. It’s only fair I let you do the same.”

I guided her arms around me and settled low so our bodies molded hotly together. Chest-to-chest, skin against skin.

I put my hands on her everywhere I could reach. Memorizing her. Worshipping every curve and freckle. Because in another minute I was going to be lost to instinct, completely at the mercy of the moment. I was ready to take her to the stars and then drown in the depths of her body.

“I want to worship you. I’ve thought of nothing else all damn day. But the savage in me wants to fuck you, Vanessa. I don’t know if that’s what you really want, and I don’t want to scare you off again.”

Her half-lidded gaze spoke of her approval. She touched my lips lightly, dragging her finger over the top and then the bottom. “I like the way you fuck,” she said softly.

The way the last word rolled off her tongue made me want to come, made me want to stop talking and claim her body with one violent thrust after the next.

But… “I don’t want you to leave again.”

“I won’t. I promise.”

I hoped it was true, because my need for her was bordering on frantic.

Any patience I’d been able to hang onto disappeared. I spread her thighs farther apart and pressed the head of my cock to her heat—slowly, painstakingly, until we were completely joined, my cock nestled deeply within her.

A desperate sound left her trembling lips.

I wanted to say something, but I could only think in sensation. Her heat, her surrender. She was so tight around me already.

I kissed her and thrust again. “Vanessa. Beautiful Vanessa. Your body is heaven. There are no words…”

My head was spinning, and I resisted the urge to unleash hell on her.

The energy had built up to a frenzy, and I felt it in every limb. A fever on my skin, an unexplainable ache in my chest. I stared into her and set a pace that spoke of my restraint. She coiled her legs around my waist, holding me to her—as if I’d had any intention of letting her go.

I could have come at any moment, but I had to see her let go. I had to hear her cry out again. Over and over until she was right there with me. The sensation wasn’t complete without her.

Maybe this was more than fucking. Maybe for the first time in my life I was making love to someone, and I’d been too ignorant up to this moment to realize what that really meant.

Already tonight wasn’t anything like the night before. Darren seemed to be hypertuned in to my needs, reacting to every sound, every touch. Minute by minute, he overtook my senses. Nothing existed outside of this moment.

The welcome weight of him against me was heaven. The way my whole body tensed around his thick penetration. The heat that rolled over me in waves.

He brought his lips to mine. Hungry and rough, like the way he was making love to me.

Because this wasn’t just sex. Not now, at least not for me. This man was under my skin.

I held him to me. His muscles, damp with sweat, flexed with every motion. I slid my hands lower, gripping his ass as he pumped.

His teeth met my skin, and he bit gently. I sucked in a breath and tightened around him.

We climbed higher. He went deep, withdrawing fully and shoving harder with each stroke, again and again. I felt everything. No one had filled me this way, made me so aware of the act.

“Darren…you’re so deep.”

“I can be deeper.”

He caught me by the knee and pushed my thigh up against my chest, hitting me deeper and harder. I gasped and held his muscled shoulders as he took me over and over. No one had ever been this deep. As badly as I didn’t want this moment to end, I couldn’t stop the climax rapidly taking over.

“That’s it. Come apart for me, Vanessa. I need to feel it, baby.”

The words and the husky way he said them hurtled me straight over the edge. I bowed against him, flying toward the phenomenal feeling. Everything seemed to spin. Time suspended as the orgasm took over like a storm, thick and sweet and heavy in my veins. I shattered against him.

He hauled me against him tightly, sheathing his cock with one last powerful thrust. The cry that tore from his throat mimicked my own.

Seconds passed, only the sound of our ragged breath in the air. No words but an echo of those we’d spoken in the heat of the moment.

“That was incredible.” He exhaled a shaky breath. “You’re incredible.”

He brought his lips down to mine with a kiss so soft my heart ached from the tenderness of it. I swore in that moment something passed between us. Something I’d never felt before. Something I didn’t want to let go of…

“I have to take care of this condom,” he said quietly.

“Okay.”

He shifted off me and sat at the edge of bed. “
Don’t
leave.” He reached over and touched my hand.

I laughed lightly. “I won’t.”

Truth was, I was too boneless and wiped out to leave this time, even if I’d wanted to. And I didn’t want to. I could drown every day in this kind of bliss and never come up for air. I melted into the sheets, warm and sated, the memory of Darren still pulsing inside my tender flesh. Heaven, indeed.

A few minutes later, he was curled up behind me, nuzzling my neck. I smiled in the dark, taking his arm and hugging it around my chest.

I drank from a bottle of water and watched her sleep across the room. She was lying on her side, the sheet spilling off at her hips.

Last night had been…exceptional. No,
she
was exceptional. I’d replayed the night in my head a half dozen times since waking up to her. I was half-hard already but forced myself to let her rest.

I hadn’t let anyone sleep over in a while. Of course, this wasn’t home. Even if it were, I could picture her in my bed, tangled up in my sheets. Making everything smell like her.

The clock on the desk read ten o’clock. Sunshine streamed in through the cracks between the curtains. I stood and opened them a little wider.

I plucked a flower from the vase on the bedside table. The bed dipped under my weight. I ran my nose against her soft skin, still warm from sleep. I trailed the flower’s silky orange petals across her shoulder and down to the small of her back.

She moaned and turned, giving me a glorious view her perfect breasts. Soft nipples that I wanted to suck until they were firm under my tongue. I licked my lips.

“Good morning, red.” I continued to take her in, making no effort to disguise my lascivious appraisal of her.

“Good morning,” she murmured. Smiling, she reached for the flower. She brought it up to her nose and sniffed. “Mmm, I love these.”

“What are they? I see them everywhere.”

“Plumeria. One of my favorites.”

“I’ll have to remember that. I’ve started a mental list of your favorite things.”

“I think last night makes the list.”

I moaned softly, remembering how good she’d felt under me. “Last night might have been at the top of mine.”

She brought the sheet over her chest and rolled to her side. Had a woman ever looked more gorgeous straight from sleep?

I could have ravaged her again, but as addicted as I was to her body, I was more and more intrigued by the woman underneath. Her heart, her past, her quirks. I wanted to know what made her tick, as if somehow collecting all of those little things could make her a little more mine. Vanessa had given me another chance last night. I wasn’t sure I deserved it, but I wasn’t going to make the mistake of letting her slip away again.

I took the flower and inhaled its sweet fragrance. “I want to know more of your favorites. Dirty martinis, plumerias, me, of course.”

She laughed, a musical sound that filled the room and made me smile. “Of course.”

“Let’s see. What else? Favorite food.”

She hummed. “I love comfort food. Chicken and biscuits for me.”

“I keep forgetting you’re a Southern girl. Which begs the question, where is your accent? Sometimes I hear a hint of it.”

“I think I lost it in my travels. Only comes out when I’ve had a few drinks.”

“Okay. Favorite song.”

“Impossible question. Far too many to pick just one.” She took the flower and traced it down my chest. “Enough about me. Tell me about you. What’s the best thing about being a firefighter? I’ll admit I’m fascinated that you run toward danger when everyone else is going the other direction.”

“That’s part of the appeal. Every day is different. I never know what to expect. Bringing people back to life is pretty great too.”

Her gaze flickered up to mine. “You like to live on the edge.”

I shrugged. She wasn’t wrong. “You can probably tell by now I’m a little impulsive.”

“I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.” Her voice was playful and light.

“No?”

She smirked. “No. I haven’t decided just yet.”

“Maybe I can make up your mind for you.”

“I have my own mind.” She lifted her chin.

I warmed at the challenge, that little spark of fire that drew me to her. “You do. But I think I know a thing or two about your body.”

I tugged the sheet down, baring her breasts to me again. Her eyelids lowered, and she made no effort to cover her nakedness. I swept in, taking her nipple in my mouth and sucking until it was hard. I grabbed her other with my hand and squeezed firmly.

She gasped as her body shifted under the sheet.

Goddamn. My willpower shattered.

I’d asked for one night and taken two. Still, it wasn’t enough. I wasn’t nearly satisfied, and I wasn’t certain when I would be.

I shook my head slightly, terrified and completely intoxicated by the way being in her presence made me feel. How could one person take control of me that quickly, without even meaning to?

I skated my palms down her torso like I was claiming my domain, taking away the sheet to clear my path. Down her thigh, over the handful of freckles on her knee, down her calf to her manicured little toes. I pushed her knees apart, and she relaxed, giving me the best view on the island. Her smooth pink pussy.

I brought myself closer, like a starving man desperate for a taste. Tugging at the little patch of auburn curls above her sex, I slid my tongue lightly over the slit that led to her opening. The taste of Vanessa. Apples and vanilla, sweet and addictive, just like her.

She gasped when I traced her slit with my fingertips. With her taste on my tongue, I inhaled her essence. My cock turned to stone, and every thought that didn’t center on her went fuzzy. Fuck me, the things I wanted to do to this woman.

I grabbed her thighs, spreading her as far as she would go, preparing to lick her until she begged me to stop. I imagined diving in, fucking her with my tongue and then my cock. Making her cry out, over and over. All damn day straight into the night.