Wyne and Dine (Citizen Soldier Series Book 1) (9 page)

The light dimmed in her eyes. “I see.
That was for show again.” She made to get up, but he caught her arm and waited
for her to meet his gaze.

“Lea.” His heart hammered an
unrecognized cadence in his chest. She was killing him. “I wasn’t acting.”

She studied him, caution clouding
her baby-blues.

“That was raw need,” he added.

With his admission, her smile
returned, and warmth rolled through his bewildered heart with the force of a
Humvee.

“Me, too.” She rose to her feet and
glanced down at him. “They’re starting another baseball game. Perfect for
channeling this pent up energy.”

Without waiting for a reply, she
turned on her heels and headed toward the others, not once asking him for any
kind of declaration.

Ah hell
, he was so out of
his league. 

A
s Lea got ready for
bed that night, she contemplated what had changed that day. Because something
most definitely had.

Last night, she not only made a
batch of comfort sangria, she’d made a vow. Today she would act her usual self
around Ben. She’d play it cool. Socialize with the others. Not hang all over
him. She was proud of herself for following through. She didn’t mislead him or
make the first move. All the warnings Lea had given him about being watched had
been truthful.

And fruitful.

Damn the man was hot.

The kiss they’d shared nearly caught
the blanket on fire. He’d initiated it. Devoured her. Curled her toes inside
her sneaks. He was the one who kept staring at her all day, and if he didn’t
have a quizzical expression on his handsome face, a frown creased his brow. It
was as if he was seeing her in a new light, but didn’t exactly know what to do.

She had a few yummy suggestions,
but knew the man had to come to them all on his own if she were ever to have
any shot with him. Now, if she could just find the strength to wait and not
make another fool of herself, she may just survive the weekend.

With that thought in her head, she
came out of the bathroom in her T-shirt just as
Sgt. Hotty
entered the
room. All the nerve-endings on her body stood at attention. His gaze was dark
and delicious, and when he closed the door behind him and started to walk to
her, nervousness set in.

“H-how was your meeting?” When the
women had headed upstairs for the night, the men had gone to the study to shoot
pool and talk shop.

“Too long.”

A giggle escaped without
permission. “But you’ve only been down there ten minutes.”

He stopped in front of her, gaze
deliciously dark with a determined heat that stoked her to a slow burn.

“Ten minutes I could’ve had up here
with you.”

She couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t
think. His presence was all consuming. Finally.
Finally,
the man was
saying things she’d longed to hear for forever, and here she was, a trembling
puddle of need, leaning against the wall for support.  If only one brain cell
would fire up and give her something witty to say.

She had nothing.

L
ea attempted to suck
in some air, but it clogged her throat the second Ben palmed the wall by her
head and lifted a finger to trace a path from her ear to her jaw.

“I was trying to keep from crossing
that friendship line, but you and I both know it is now so damn blurred it’s a
permanent smudge.”

With her voice still on hiatus, she
nodded.

“No matter how I calculate it, this
leaves us with a problem, Lea,” he said, voice deliciously low and oh so sexy
she shook.

“I-it does?” she squeaked.

He nodded, finger now skimming her
lower lip, sending jolts of heat straight to all her good parts.

“Yes. I can’t get your taste out of
my head.”

“Good.”

Oh, his eyes darkened on that one
and jaw clenched tight. “No, it’s not good, because I really want to take you
against this wall. Right here. Right now.”

“Do it.”

His other hand hit the wall as he
muttered a curse, closed his eyes and sucked in a breath. “You’re going to be
the death of me.”

What the heck did he think he was
doing to her? Proclaiming he wanted to take her against the wall, then doing
nothing.
He
was killing her.

Opening his eyes, Ben stared down
at her, gaze dark with need, yet clouded with restraint. “I’m not long-term,
Lea.”

“I know.” Finally regaining control
of her limbs, she lifted a hand to palm his solid chest while her other gripped
his hip. “You’re married to the military.”

He nodded, still making no move to
touch her. “And you still think this is a good idea?”

She smiled. The very fact he’d
asked that question signaled he was coming around to her way of thinking. “Yes.
I do.” And to prove it, she snuck both hands under his shirt and skimmed his
hot flesh all the way to his pecs, and was rewarded with a hiss of breath when
she grazed over his nipple. “You know I’m hoping to leave in a few weeks to
work in the city.”

 He nodded. “I don’t want to hurt
you.”

“I know. And you won’t. Unless you
leave this room again.” Her heart pounded out of control, taking her breath,
leaving her throat dry. He blinked as if trying to comprehend her words. Her
meaning. So she clarified, “Why can’t we have fun this weekend?”

A glorious palm touched her
shoulder, then skimmed down the front of her, brushing lightly over her breast.
“This weekend, huh?”

Heat rushed between her legs, and
heaven help her, she arched into his touch. “Yeah…” Her voice was soft and
breathy, but hell, at least she still had one considering his thumb lingered on
her peak, brushing it back and forth, exploding brain cell after brain cell.

“Okay, I had to be sure.” He
pressed her against the wall with his rock hard body before he shoved his hands
in her hair and kissed her without restraint.

A real honest-to-goodness Benjamin
Wyne kiss.

Long and deep. Thorough and
complete. 

Holy smokes, the man could kiss.

Her mind was fogged and body
throbbed with need. Gone was his self-discipline. She sent up a silent
Allelluia
to the proof he no longer saw her as a little sister. He kissed away her
sanity. She couldn’t even pick out a Picasso from a caricature at the moment.

On and on, he devoured her
strength, his tongue stroking hers, his hands skimming down her torso in a
blaze of heat. When they came up for air, she stared at him, trying to grasp
onto a coherent thought, but they dissipated in the steam need created in her
head.

Dragging in air, he cracked a sexy
smile she caught with her heart. Damn, he looked scrumptious. Shirt undone and
hanging open to reveal the dusting of hair her fingers were still stroking. The
sight of the ridges in his abs did funny things to her breathing, which wasn’t
steady to begin with, and the fact she’d somehow managed to unbutton his shirt
and unbuckle the top of his jeans without realizing proved she’d lost her
equilibrium.

Off kilter and out of her league,
she was loving every damn minute of it. He pushed her boundaries, took her out
of herself, just as she’d always known he would. With luck, she was doing the
same to him.

She set her forehead against his
collarbone. “Wow. I’ve been missing out.”

He slipped a hand under her shirt to
stroke her back and the other into her panties to cup her ass. “So have I. But
no more.”

His hand dipped lower, and fingers
brushed the part that ached the most for his touch.

“
Ben
.” His name ripped from
her throat in a voice full of hunger and need as she spread her legs in a
welcomed gesture.

He needed no instruction. “Wet and
sweet.” He caught her mouth in a hot, hungry kiss as he stroked her again.

Lea saw stars and every damn planet
in the universe. Possibly another galaxy. But she really needed to have him
naked. And in her. She pushed his shirt all the way off, then stood there
trembling as he bunched hers up to her ribs and stopped to gaze at her purple
zebra printed panties. Thank God she’d had the foresight to only pack the
bikinis that made her feel sexy.

The raw need deepening his gaze to
moss green made her sweat in secret places. 

Ben lifted her shirt higher, and
she watched mesmerized as his gaze darkened further at the sight of her bared
breasts.

He let out a rough groan. “Killing
me.”

That was good. She hoped. Because
she was dying.

“I need—Oh…that.” She moaned when
he drew her nipple into his mouth and teased with his tongue. “Yeah, that
works—” He transferred his delicious attention to her other breast, and she
gripped his arms, closed her eyes and sucked in a breath. “That—works
really—well.”

Whether it was her hitched breathes
or rushed words or both, something spurred him on because he had her shirt up
and over her head and panties off before she opened her eyes.

“Beautiful.” He stared at her
nakedness with the same hunger scorching her veins.

His turn. She unzipped him, then
tugged until his clothes fell to his ankles where they caught on his boots. But
his fundamentals were free. And,
oh Lordy
, she was going to have
fun
with his
damentals
.  Inches more than she’d ever had, he was big and
hard and thick, and she needed to touch him pronto.

But he dropped to his knees and
gently spread her legs. Before she could blink, he leaned in and put his mouth
on her, stroking her with his tongue.

She sucked in a breath that sounded
strangled and needy to her ears, but she didn’t care. He was magic and on a
mission because he added a finger, sliding it inside her as he flicked his
tongue over her aching center.

Her gasped turned into a moan, and
both echoed around them. This seemed to spurn him on. He upped his pace and
zapped her strength. With legs reduced to liquid, she dug her fingers into his
head and used him as an anchor as he continued to take her out of this
hemisphere. Unable to control her hips, they rocked against him in slow, erotic
circles. She was on the edge, teetering.

“Ben,” she said, half-questioning.

He glanced up, gaze delectably dark
with a fierce hunger and determination that was nearly her undoing. He
responded by sucking her gently into his mouth.

That was it. She was done. All
those years of wanting, wishing, waiting to be with him came to fruition at
that very moment. Lea burst, and Ben used his expertise to prolong her pleasure
as he held her hips and kept her from falling to the floor.

When the ringing subsided in her
ears and her vision returned, she rediscovered her legs. She let out a sigh and
smiled down at him. With eyes blazing pure male satisfaction, he released her
to dig a condom from the pocket of the jeans bunched around his ankles. His
body vibrated with a tension she felt clear to her core. Needing to have him
inside her, she reached out and helped roll the condom over the length of him.

He uttered a curse, breathing
heavy, a sheen of sweat breaking out across his brow. “Killing me.”

Feeling inspired, she smiled and
leaned in to flick her tongue over his nipple. He cursed, lifted her up and,
thunking her against the wall, entered her in one, delectable thrust.

The man filled her so completely
she was nearly brought to tears.
This
was what she’d wanted for so long.
But since she knew tears were a no-no when it came to sex, she blinked them
away.

“You okay?” He stared, concern
replacing some of the heat.

“Yes. Absolutely. Please, don’t
stop.” And to prove she meant it, she wrapped her legs around his back and
locked her ankles.

This drew him in farther, and their
sounds of approval mingled in the air.

“Damn, you feel so good.”

He began to move, and she moaned
again, clutching at his shoulders. Over and over, he withdrew and returned,
holding her against the wall for his slow, exquisite thrusts.

There was no doubt now, he was
killing
her
. He had control. His grip on her hips prevented her from
upping the pace. He was in command, and heaven help her, she loved it.

As if his vigilant, purposeful
thrusts weren’t enough to drive her out of her ever loving mind, he bent
forward to capture a nipple in his mouth. She cried out, her eyes rolling in
the back of her head as he made his way to the other. The incredible, mindless
pleasure took her right up to that blissful edge, again.

“
Ben
.” She clutched his
shoulders.

“I know,” he said, voice rough as
he kissed her neck and continued to stroke her with those fierce thrusts. “Me,
too.”

Knowing he was just as lost in the
mindless pleasure was all it took to send her off the cliff into her second
foray with the man who’d so often ruled her dreams. But dreaming of him and
being with him were two entirely different things Lea discovered as she clung
to his heated body while their shared release shook them to their knees.

Nothing could compare to the real
deal.

T
he weekend had been a
success.

As Ben drove them home from the
colonel’s on Sunday afternoon, he breathed a sigh of relief. He’d dodged the
bullet that was Mrs. Dankirk. He’d also been privy to information from the
higher ups on upcoming moves. It was always good to have advance warning rather
than have work sprung on him and told to make it happen.

Yeah, the weekend had definitely
been a success.

Then there was Lea.

He glanced sideways at the silent
woman who sat staring out the passenger window in a pretty, frilly, purple
sundress. Silky hair fell past her shoulders to settle on the ample chest he’d
had the pleasure to taste hours before. She’d been an unexpected surprise. He’d
only wanted her to pretend to be his girlfriend to deflect the colonel’s wife.
But he’d gotten a whole hell of a lot more.

More than he should have…more than
he deserved.  

His gut tightened.

Last night, he’d woken up,
exhaustion still weighing down his limbs, thanks to the woman curled into him
like a pretzel. Her head had rested in the crook of his arm while she tossed a
leg across both of his and placed a hand on his chest. When he realized his
hand covered hers, and the other covered the sweet curve of her ass, his body
had gone hot…then cold.

The urge to leave, to carefully
untangle himself from the sleeping beauty and retreat to his spot on the floor
had been strong. He never went to sleep with women. Sure, he went to bed with
them, just never fell asleep. That was asking for trouble, showing the
slightest bit of commitment, which he never did. Not even with Charisse. They
never slept together. Ever. Just had sex, then depending on where they were,
one of them left.

No strings. It was all good.

With his chest tight and breathing
a chore, he’d needed to leave the bed, put things into perspective. Interject a
distance so she didn’t get attached. But then the beauty had moved, and opened
her eyes, and smiled a sleepy smile.

“Hi,” she’d said, hugging him
closer. “Mmm…If I could feel my legs, I’d so do you right now.”

His heart had cracked opened, just
a little, just enough for him to kiss her nose, tighten his hold on her
succulent ass and tell her he’d take her up on it, but his legs seemed to have
waltzed out with hers.

She’d laughed, yawned then fell
back to sleep.

And he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t
hurt her by leaving her bed to sleep on the floor. No. Because she was a
friend—a good friend—there was no way he would’ve hurt her like that. The impersonal
act would’ve been a slap in the face to the woman he’d known most of his life.
If he’d ever found out a guy had done that to her, he would’ve kicked the
sorry-sonofabitch’s ass. Since it was his ass that would’ve needed kicking, he
stayed right there in her arms.

Besides, he really couldn’t feel
his legs. Ben had never been so relaxed, so spent, so completely satisfied in
his whole life. She had been incredible. All three times.
Jesus,
he
couldn’t believe they’d had sex three times in three hours.

The woman
was
trying to kill
him.

Not really
.
He knew she’d
acted on impulse like he had, which led to an incredible night. The first time,
the sex against the wall hadn’t been just for her. Sure, he’d wanted to fulfill
her request from the previous night, but it had also been for him. No way in
hell could he have waited to carry her to the bed. After having his mouth on
her, and she gave herself over to him so completely and without question, he
couldn’t get enough of her taste, couldn’t back off. He had to lap up every bit
of her. She was exquisite. She’d also had him wound so tight he’d been ready to
burst if she even looked at him the right way. Yeah, the bed was never a
contender that first time.