Once she’d found that out, she hadn’t been surprised that he’d dumped her as a friend. She hadn’t been up to his standard of living at all. So to hear him say his life hadn’t been easy didn’t make sense at all.
“I have a hard time believing that,” she said.
He turned to gaze at her. “Believe what you need to, Elena. I know it’s your way of holding yourself back, and I’m not going to convince you I’m somebody other than what you’ve prejudged me to be, but there’s more to a person’s character than what first meets the eye.”
“Maybe I have made snap judgments, but you have to admit that you have the party-boy reputation going for you,” she reminded him. Not to mention that he enjoyed screwing a woman and then tossing her out.
“I worked hard to cultivate that image,” he said with a laugh. “In reality, I’m actually pretty dang boring.”
She waited for him to add to that. When he didn’t she countered him. “I don’t think so, Tyler. No one would ever describe you as boring.”
“I used to get out a lot more, travel the world, go to places not too many others got to go, had no fear. As my life has progressed, I’ve had less desire for cheap thrills. Or even expensive thrills.”
“That doesn’t mean you’re boring or that you have one foot in the grave. It means you’re growing up and appreciate what you have, and that you don’t feel the need to desperately seek out adventure at every turn.”
“If you despise me so much, why are you trying to make me feel better about my decisions?”
“I don’t exactly despise you…” She had to trail off. The things she’d said to him so far pretty much meant exactly that.
“You might have before you got to know me, but it’s not too easy when you spend time with me. I’m a likable guy.” And with that, the cocky smile and his naturally vibrant personality came right back to the surface.
“When you say things like that, Tyler, it doesn’t make you too likable.”
“Admit it, Elena, you can’t live without me.”
The problem with his statement was that it might be true. In her short amount of time with this man, he was almost becoming a necessity for her. She knew better than to get attached. That could only mean certain heartbreak.
But what was she going to do at this point? It wasn’t as if she could distance herself from him. He was a huge client for her firm and she was a peon who had to do what her boss said. Still, knowing that she had no control over the situation made her feel a little better about herself. Sure, she didn’t have to sleep with the guy — but she’d rather not think too much about that.
“You aren’t necessarily bad company,” she conceded after an absurdly long silence.
Tyler laughed before moving from where he was and picking her up, then sitting down with her straddling his lap.
“Let’s see if I can get an upgrade to great company,” he told her.
Before Elena was able to reply, he kissed her, knocking all thoughts from her brain except for how much she wanted him. His lips caressed hers, and she voluntarily opened to him, the warmth of the fire on her back, the heat from his body engulfing her.
“I can’t get enough of you, Elena. Even after I have you — several times — I want you again. Tell me it’s the same for you.” His voice was thick and rough.
As he spoke, his hips surged upward, his jean-clad arousal pushing into her, making her curse the clothes between them.
“Tell me, Elena,” he commanded her before gently biting down on her bottom lip and sliding a hand up the front of her shirt. He cupped her breast, and she moaned.
She wriggled against him with abandon. Why should she care anymore that he knew the power he held over her while she was locked in his arms?
“I want you, Tyler,” she gasped. “I want you all the time.”
Her reward was a renewed assault on her lips while he squeezed her nipple through her bra and rolled it between his forefinger and his thumb. This time their lovemaking was different. She felt a desperation in his touch, in his possession of her. She felt as if he were claiming her — heart, body and soul. And she loved it.
He trailed his hand down her back, then moved it between them. He unclasped her jeans and slid inside. She pushed against his fingers as they found her moist center and began moving in steady circles around the part of her pulsing with the greatest need.
She didn’t care that they were outside, in the open. She didn’t care about anything but what she was feeling. Satisfaction was coming; he was building it with his brilliant strokes. While his fingers worked their magic, he continued caressing her mouth with his lips, and she moaned into them.
As she reached her peak, Elena bit down on his bottom lip to keep from screaming out, and she shook in his arms. When the initial waves of pleasure had passed, she pulled back and looked into his burning eyes.
“Your turn,” she whispered, enjoying the jolt of hunger she saw in him when she said those words.
She began to slip off his lap when a noise stopped her. Tyler heard it at the same time, and he locked his hands around her back.
The sound grew clearer — footsteps approaching, coming closer and closer.
“Busy, bro?”
Elena was mortified when she heard the sound of Blake’s voice.
“I thought you were leaving an hour ago,” Tyler growled.
“Got held up at the lodge. We were just coming out to say goodbye,” Byron piped in. “We aren’t interrupting anything, are we?”