Through the Night (6 page)

“Oh, joy,” she said without an ounce of humor. “The infirmary and solitary confinement, which means I’ll be surrounded by insanity, sickness, and death.” She rubbed her fingers across her forehead, already preparing herself for the horrendous hangover headache she’d be dealing with after her trip to Alcatraz.

“Yeah, I’m sorry about that,” he said, more sheepish than contrite, which told her that there was nothing she could say to change his mind about the trip to Alcatraz.

“We can talk about this more on the plane ride to San Francisco tomorrow,” he said, and stood, clearly done discussing business. “Come over here and check out this view.”

She followed him along the balcony, which curved around the side of the hotel and penthouse suite until they were facing the Las Vegas Strip. With the sun almost set in the distance, and the bright neon lights from the marquees and huge flashing hotel displays along the main boulevard lighting up the town, the scenery was impressive and magical.

Valerie had seen this view at least a hundred times, but never from this high up, from the forty-second floor of any hotel. She leaned against the railing, taking in the breathtaking sight.

Chase settled in beside her, his bare arm brushing along hers as he shifted closer. “Pretty amazing, huh?”

She knew what appeared to be a casual touch was actually a calculated move on his part, but that didn’t stop the snap and crackle of instantaneous awareness from rippling through her entire body, the sensation much like the ebb and flow of an impending orgasm. Just as she’d experienced with him earlier that afternoon. The intensity was shocking, as was the throb of desire settling between her thighs.

Face heating with embarrassment, she tried to remember what he’d just said, but couldn’t think beyond the feverish heat starting a slow burn of need deep inside her. Unable to stop herself, she glanced at him. His face was close to hers, his stunning green eyes mesmerizing her, the warm, woodsy scent of his cologne seducing her senses.…

“Are you okay?” he asked, his expression more amused than concerned as he slid his thumb along her jaw. “You look flushed.”

His skillful fingers skimmed down the side of her throat, light and teasing, and she swallowed back a strangled moan of pleasure as she felt that caress across her breasts. Her nipples peaked and hardened, as if his palms had just swept over the sensitive tips.

I want to touch your soft breasts, feel them swell in my hands, my mouth.…

She shivered, realizing that his thoughts had invaded her head once again, and this crazy thing between them, whatever it might be, was starting to get out of control.

“I’m … I’m fine,” she said, though the breathy quality of her voice told the truth: that she was completely turned on by him and their strong, undeniable connection. “It’s getting late, and I should go.”

Just as she started to move away, he reached out and gently grasped her wrist, sending another sizzling current of attraction and lust spiraling to intimate, feminine places. She gasped audibly, and a slow, shameless smile curved his full lips, drawing her attention to his beautiful mouth before she forced herself to meet his avid gaze.

His thumb glided across the pulse point in her wrist, then added a subtle pressure, testing the rhythm of her heartbeat, which in her chest was pounding hard and fast. A look of pure male satisfaction passed across his too-handsome face.

“Considering how much time we’re going to be spending together, don’t you think we should talk about this thing between us and get it out in the open?” he asked, his voice a smooth, sexy drawl.

She swallowed hard, not sure she was ready or willing to admit to anything just yet. “What thing?”
The blatant sexual chemistry, the fact that she melted whenever he touched her, or the arousing mind sex?

“You know, the
static electricity
between us whenever we touch,” he said, teasing her about the excuse she’d come up with in Caleb’s office when she reacted to their handshake in front of her boss.

She managed an indifferent shrug, wishing he’d let go of her wrist. She refused to be the one to pull her arm away and let him know just how much power he wielded over her physically, and mentally. “I’m sure it’s nothing.”

“Oh, it’s definitely
something,
” he murmured, grinning like the incorrigible bad boy he was as he shifted closer, moving ever so slightly until her back was against the railing and he was standing in front of her, preventing any kind of hasty escape. “Aren’t you the least bit curious to find out what would happen if we, say, kissed?”

Yes. Oh, God yes.
“No.”

He chuckled and shook his head. “You are such a liar, Valerie. What’s the matter? Afraid you might
like
kissing me?” He followed up that question with a slow stroke of his thumb against the palm of her hand that sent shock waves up her arm.

“You are so full of yourself.” The husky note of her voice made her attempt at nonchalance fall flat. No big surprise there, considering the sexual tension vibrating between them was near full throttle.

“Yeah, I kinda am,” he agreed, his gaze flickering with a charming amount of arrogance that few men could pull off—and he was one of them.

Much too smoothly, he brought her palm to his chest, then slowly slid her hand up and around his neck, until her fingers curved around his nape and tangled in the unruly strands of hair that fell over the collar of his shirt.

Too late, she realized the intimacy of their position, as well as the fact that he’d just brought his body flush to hers and one of his very large hands was now resting on her hip. Through their clothes, she could feel his taut stomach pressing against hers and his hard, muscular legs bracketing her thighs, keeping her firmly in place.

“Just one kiss,” he said in a low, cajoling tone that tempted her to do bad, naughty things with him, as did the hand that slowly skimmed upward to the indent of her waist. “If you hate the kiss, it will never happen again. And if you like it … well, then, we could have all sorts of
fun
together.”

Spoken like a true player,
she thought, which should have fueled her resolve to turn him down flat. But it was the direct challenge in his gaze that changed her mind and made her want to prove to him, and herself, that she could kiss him and remain in control of the situation. And keep a tight lid on her response to this seduction of his.

As a bonus, they’d get this crazy attraction out of their system, defuse the sparks between them—literally and figuratively—and be able to work side by side without any further distractions.

Realizing he was waiting for her to make the first move,
daring her
to go for it with that cocky quirk to his lips, she tightened her fingers around his neck and pulled his head down to hers.

He came all too willingly.

The second her lips touched his, she instinctively knew she’d never be the same, because this kiss, this
man,
was like no other she’d ever met. Immediately, an indescribable surge of electricity jolted through her, stealing her breath and igniting a burst of hunger and need she couldn’t deny. Instinctively, her lips parted, inviting him inside, and with an answering groan he took the kiss deeper.

The decadent taste of him intoxicated her, and the silky, hot stroke of his tongue provided an erotic prelude to more hedonistic pleasures. The sultry scent of aroused male filled her, increasing her desire for him, making her dizzy and weak, and totally under his command. She struggled to keep a sense of self, but everything about Chase Pierson overwhelmed her.

Suddenly, his thoughts invaded her mind, and she was helpless to stop them.

God, you taste good. So hot and sweet. I could kiss you for hours, lick your neck, suck on your nipples, and oh, yeah, between your thighs.…

A whimper escaped her throat as she
felt
those intimate touches, whisper-soft over her skin, tantalizing teasing caresses that seemed so real. Yet, he hadn’t moved his hands at all, nor had his mouth left hers. His body was so hot and muscular, and she felt a sudden pressure against her thigh, a hard, thick fullness that hadn’t been there moments before. In a startling quick response, she grew damp, the slick cleft between her legs throbbing, aching for release.

As his lips and tongue continued to plunder her mouth, more images flooded her mind … Chase moving over her, his lower body grinding against hers, his erection filling her full, stroking slowly, so deeply, so perfectly.…

Heat and lust arced through her like a bolt of lightning, overloading her system, dissolving her control completely. Her pulse raced and she moaned softly, desperately, against his lips as suddenly she was
there,
teetering on the shocking edge of release.

Seconds later, there was absolutely nothing she could do to stop the thrilling rush of pleasure coursing through her, or the way her body quaked and shuddered from the impact of the startling orgasm.

Oh. My. God.
Unable to believe she’d just climaxed with nothing more than a
kiss,
she placed a hand on Chase’s chest and pushed him back, so that he had no choice but to lift his head and lean back a few inches.

Dear Lord, what was it about this man that affected her so strongly? She’d never,
ever,
responded to a man the way she did with Chase, and the intensity between them was both exhilarating and frightening. So much for defusing the situation, and their attraction, with a kiss. Instead, her bravado had backfired. She felt as though she’d been injected with an addictive narcotic, and now she craved
more
of him, as if that kiss was just a prelude to a deeper, more powerful intimacy.

A dangerous, alarming prospect.

Light-headed and feeling more than a little bewildered and confused, she forced herself to meet Chase’s dark, heavy-lidded gaze, wondering if he had any idea what had just happened to her. If he’d been inside her head the same way she’d been in his.

If so, he kept that particular secret to himself, and she wasn’t about to ask and risk embarrassing herself.

A sinful smile curved his damp lips, and he stepped back so that their bodies were no longer touching, giving her some much-needed breathing room. “You liked that kiss,” he said, his expression much too self-assured.
“A lot.”

She had no idea if he was referring to her physical reaction, and decided to take a more playful approach. “Don’t flatter yourself, Romeo.”

He chuckled, the undertones in his laughter wickedly sexy and downright delicious. “That sounds like a challenge to me, sweetheart,” he said, his eyes dancing with an irresistible allure. “Let the fun begin.”

Chapter Four

The dream came again, slipping through her mind with images of broad shoulders; tan, taut skin; and skillful male hands that created pure magic as they slid lazily along her bare thighs, her quivering stomach, and over her naked breasts, leaving a trail of sizzling lust in the wake of his beguiling caresses. His touch was smoldering hot. The slow, deliberate stroke of his fingers electrified her nerve endings and increased the promise of exquisite pleasure building between her legs.…

Valerie awoke with a startled gasp, her entire body quivering with a feverish arousal that left her physically aching. Then there was the overwhelming and persistent soul-deep hunger that had nothing to do with the relentless desire coursing through her, and instead tugged at something more elemental in her—a need that grew stronger and more powerful with each ensuing dream.

Sitting up on the bed, she dragged her fingers through her tousled hair and willed her galloping heartbeat back to normal. It would be so easy to blame the sleep-induced visions on a residual effect of last night’s heated kiss with Chase and their wild attraction, but the truth was, the tantalizing dreams had started a few months ago, and she’d written them off as a result of being without a man’s touch for nearly a year.

Heck, more than a few times she’d used those stimulating dreams as a source of sexual release, but lately, her fantasy lover’s visits were increasing in frequency. Not only that, but she was starting to feel an emotional connection to
him,
as well—protected, cherished, and accepted—as if he could quite possibly fulfill all the hopes she’d once had for a normal future with a man.

Which was ridiculous, since he wasn’t real.

As to who the mystery man in her dream was, she hadn’t a clue. She never saw a face, and the only distinguishing mark she’d seen glimpses of was some kind of symbol tattooed somewhere on his body—a design featuring two intertwined jagged lines in what she could only describe as tribal art. She’d never seen the pattern before, and she didn’t know the significance of the inking, but she had a gut feeling that she was having this recurring dream for a reason that had nothing to do with her current celibate state.

A glance at the clock on the nightstand told her it was past eight in the morning. Too wired to go back to sleep, she got out of bed and changed into a tank top and running shorts for her morning jog. Hopefully, the run would help her think things through, as well as burn off the restless energy left in the aftermath of her erotic dream before she had to get ready for her trip to San Francisco with Chase that afternoon. More than anything, she needed a clear head to deal with Chase on a business level, and to figure out what to do about her attraction to him.

Leaving her apartment, she headed toward the jogging trail built along the greenbelt that ran through the community she lived in, three miles outside the city of Las Vegas. While the main Strip provided a constant hubbub of activity twenty-four hours a day, out here in the suburbs it was blessedly quiet and low-key. And on an early Sunday morning, the jogging trail was nearly deserted, which Valerie appreciated.