“Is that where I get to tie you up?”
“If you want to.” He grinned. “Shit, I got a twinge. Definitely, if you want to.” He looked at her—was he taking things too fast? “You were sore—I’m supposed to be gentle.”
“Just a little.”
He rolled her over and kissed his way down her spine, licked the reddened flesh of her ass, massaged her buttocks, until the tension drained from her. He grabbed one of the cushions from the chair by the bed and pushed it under her, raising her hips. And felt his dick pulsate. Then he lowered his face between her legs, pushed his tongue inside her, and proceeded to show her in no uncertain terms just how much he wanted her around.
“You taste fucking delicious.”
…
She might never move again.
Sprawled across his body, her head rested on his chest, his hand on her butt. Little shivers of pleasure rippled through her body. She could feel the skin of her bottom smarting where he’d smacked her. The memory was enough to send another orgasm shuddering through her body. Who would have thought it?
She was a bona-fide pervert.
She’d been so furious when Jess had told her Zach wanted her off the job. And if she was honest with herself—hurt as well. She’d presumed he wanted her out of the way and hadn’t stopped to think. Just come marching in here and… Had she really knocked her employer to the floor? Well, now he had legitimate grounds for getting her ass kicked off his detail.
But that didn’t explain why he wanted her fired. Unless he really didn’t think she was good enough.
“So why did you want me off the job?” she asked.
He released an audible sigh but otherwise kept quiet.
“I’m a highly trained professional and quite capable of keeping you alive.” She pushed herself up, with her palms against his chest so she could look down into his face. His eyes were closed. “And I know you’re not asleep.”
He sighed again, and his thick lashes flickered open. “I don’t want you risking your life to keep me safe.”
“You don’t seem to have a problem with Gary or Simon.” She hated that—she’d worked so hard to get herself seen as an equal with the guys. And she thought she’d succeeded. She tugged free and sat beside him, wrapping the sheet around her. This was no conversation to have naked. “It’s because I’m a woman, isn’t it?”
He frowned, then shifted beneath her, pulling himself up so he leaned against the headboard. “It’s because you’re my woman.”
Dani opened her mouth to snap back, then closed it again as his words sank in. She turned away for a moment and ran a hand through her hair, lifting it off her neck. “Your woman? What does that mean, exactly?”
The smallest of smiles curled his lips. “I’m not actually sure.” He studied her, his head cocked to one side. “But I do know that I don’t want you out of my life right now. And I also know that I hate the idea of you being in danger, that I don’t want you protecting me. If there’s any protecting to do, I want to be the one doing it.”
“That is so—”
“I know.”
She nibbled on her lip. “So you want to continue with this…” She waved a hand in the general direction of his groin. Then paused to look again.
“Hell, yes.”
“Why? You could have any woman you wanted. I saw them watching you yesterday. Why me?”
“The truth—again I don’t know. Maybe I like a challenge.”
“I’m hardly a challenge.”
“You’re the first woman to ever knock me on my ass.” He ran a hand through his hair. “You’re overthinking. Why not enjoy what we have while we have it? Neither of us is into commitment. One day soon, I’ll be in the clear and I’ll go back to my real life. And you’ll get your physical and go back to yours. Right now, we’re both in a strange place. Why can’t we share it?”
It sounded logical, and so like her own thoughts yesterday, but still a little twinge of doubt niggled her. She studied him, trying to unearth the source of her unease. He was so beautiful, so perfect, and she was as far from perfect as you could possibly get. But it wasn’t only his physical looks that drew her; she liked him and that scared her. She didn’t want to like him as a person. She wanted to be able to walk away from this with no regrets. And maybe she should be doing just that before she got in too deep. But at the thought of walking away, something inside her rebelled.
This might be her one chance to explore physical passion. And maybe afterward they could be friends. He’d obviously stayed friends with Lauren, his accountant, and she was guessing with the vast numbers of other women he’d slept with. He was such a friendly guy.
“You won’t try and get me fired again?”
“I’ll make you a deal. I’ll try and shut up about it, but from now on, you stick to working the dogs. No more guarding my back.”
She could live with that. “Okay. It’s a deal—until the real world intrudes.”
Chapter Twelve
Gary and Simon were both waiting on the tarmac when she descended from the plane. Both dressed in dark suits and in serious business mode.
This time she and Zach had had the plane entirely to themselves, apart from the exceptionally discreet flight attendant. Dani wondered whether it was obvious to the two men below that they’d spent the entire flight in bed, guzzling champagne and giggling like teenagers. She’d never thought that sex would be so much fun. But now she felt as though her indiscretions were branded across her forehead in big red letters.
She was totally conscious of Zach behind her. They hadn’t discussed what they would say—if anything—about their…relationship. She’d sort of presumed they’d be discreet. Or maybe she’d just hoped. But as they stepped off, Zach’s arm came around her waist and he drew her to his side in a blatant show of possession.
She twitched with the need to pull free. His grip tightened, and she closed her eyes and counted to ten.
Gary and Simon were still there when she opened them. Simon’s face twisted into an expression of disapproval, but Gary appeared resigned. “Jess called me,” he said.
“Oh.”
“I don’t approve.”
“Neither do I,” Simon added.
“Get over it,” Zach snapped.
Gary nodded. “Jess says it’s not a conflict of interest, and she’s in charge. Just don’t make me trip over the two of you every few minutes.”