Covet (15 page)

Tessa told herself that it was probably all for the better that she wouldn’t have the opportunity to meet him during his upcoming visit. Knowing how shy and awkward she was around strangers – especially a man as virile and attractive as Mr. Gregson – it was of a certainty that she would only make a fool of herself around him. Rather than admire her as Mrs. Carrington had claimed, Ian Gregson would instead wonder how on earth someone as silly and foolish as Tessa Lockwood had ever been hired to work for his very prestigious company.

It was three nights later when the dream came to her again. But this time she sensed immediately that it would be different from the previous ones – more intimate; more detailed; more erotic
.

He stood behind her, the breadth of his hard, muscular chest pressed against her back as his strong arms circled her waist. Tessa’s eyes drifted shut, her head falling back in surrender against his shoulder as warm, firm lips caressed the side of her throat
.

“
Tessa
.”

The way in which he said her name felt like a caress – his voice deep and sensual, causing a shiver to travel up and down her spine with just the single word. His arms tightened around her, pulling her even closer against him, until she could feel the unmistakable ridge of his erection pressing into the cleft between her buttocks
.

“
Ahh
.”

The gasp escaped her lips in a soft, drawn-out breath as one of his hands slid up the side of her ribcage to fondle her breast. She was wearing a blouse of some silky fabric, and the sensation of his thumb rubbing over her nipple caused her to squirm in impatient arousal
.

He laughed softly, the sound tickling her ear and making her shiver anew. “You’re such a sensual woman, Tessa,” he murmured, his long fingers plucking her nipple through the fabric of her blouse. “So easy to arouse, to please
.”

She panted as he cupped a breast in each hand, his caresses growing bolder, rougher. “Only with you,” she confessed. “I’ve never felt anything like what you make me feel before
.”

“
Good,” he replied in that deeply sensuous voice, the one she’d always known but that was now spoken in a crisp, cultured British accent. “I want to be the only man who can touch you, kiss you, make love to you. The only one,” he added in a hushed whisper as his hand slid past her belly to cup her sex, “who can claim you for his own
.”

“
Yes,” she whimpered as he began to inch the fabric of her skirt up past her thighs. “You’re the only one. Just you. No one else – ever
.”

“
And who am I, Tessa?” he demanded. “Go ahead. Say my name
.”

She made a little sound of protest, even as his fingers brushed teasingly against the dampened crotch of her lacy underwear. “I – I don’t know,” she stammered shyly. “I – I can’t say it out loud
.”

“
Yes, you can,” he urged, his thumb whisking back and forth over the tiny, over-sensitized nub of her clitoris. “Say it, Tessa
.”

“
Ian,” she gasped, her hips moving in desperate, needy sync with the steady pump of his fingers as they slid in and out of her wet, clenching slit. “You’re Ian
.”

He grasped her chin between long fingers, tilting her head back as he kissed her savagely, his tongue sweeping boldly through her mouth. The fingers of his other hand kept up the steady thrusting motion in and out of her tight, greedy body
.

And then the most stunning, powerful climax she’d ever known hit hard, causing her to clutch Ian’s arms in order to hold herself upright. Her legs were trembling, and she was half-afraid she would either collapse or faint. But before she could do either, he was picking her up and carrying her determinedly to some unseen bed in a darkened corner of an unknown room
.

Her arms and legs felt weightless as he undressed her swiftly, stripping her until she was naked and quivering, feeling his hot gaze upon her as though it was a physical touch. He trailed a finger boldly down her body, lingering in the deep valley between her breasts before tickling her belly and drawing a giggle from her throat
.

And then her laughter quickly morphed into a groan as those same long, talented fingers continued their downward path, teasing the soft blonde curls at the apex of her thighs before sliding back inside of her
.

“
God, you’re so deliciously wet,” he breathed, his mouth at her ear as he bent over her prone body. “I love that I can excite you this way. Are you ready for me, Tessa?
”

“
Yes,” she whispered, her pelvis lifting off the mattress as he continued to pleasure her with his fingers. “So much. Please – come to me now
.”

“
Say my name first
.”

She gasped as his lips teased the corner of her mouth, lingered on her flushed cheeks, nibbled at her jaw. “Please – Ian
.”

He cupped her face between his palms, and even in the dim light of whatever room they were in she could clearly see the gleam in his eyes and the satisfied smile on his handsome face. “One day, Tessa, you’ll belong to me – body and soul. And when the time is right I promise that I’ll come to claim you for my own. Until then, dream of me. Dream of us
.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck as he kissed her again, this kiss speaking clearly of domination, of ownership. It was both a possession and a promise, and Tessa opened her mouth eagerly to him, surrendering both her body and her will to his sensual, masterful touch
.

In the dark Ian undressed with slow, careful deliberation, and even though he remained largely in shadow she still gasped as he removed each article of clothing, baring another part of his magnificent body to her hungry gaze. When he was nude he came to her, taking her into his arms and rolling her beneath him. She almost recoiled at the look on his face, at the possessive, hungry expression in his eyes as he held her gaze captive
.

“
You and I are meant for each other, Tessa,” he whispered almost harshly. “No other woman but you will ever do. And when I finally claim you for my own, there will never be another man for you. Do you understand?
”

“
Yes,” she cried out, trying to pull him closer against her, silently inviting him to take possession of her body. “From the first time I saw you no other man existed for me
.”

Ian smiled with satisfaction as he began to lower his sinfully handsome mouth towards her. “You’re mine, Tessa. And one day I’ll be able to claim what’s rightfully mine
.”

The bedcovers were a tangled mess when she woke, sheets and blankets twisted hopelessly around her legs and hips. It was still dark outside, and Tessa reluctantly opened one eye to gaze at her little bedside clock. She was relieved to notice it was barely three a.m., still a few hours before she had to get up for the day, and she wasn’t all that surprised to realize Peter’s side of the bed hadn’t been slept in as yet.

But what did surprise her was the discovery that her entire body was covered with a fine mist of sweat, something that hadn’t been caused by the comfortable temperature of the room. Her little cotton nightgown was also soaked with perspiration, and she grimaced as she slid out of bed and quickly pulled the garment over her head. She knew instinctively that she’d been having another of those eerily realistic erotic dreams, the ones she could never quite remember specific details about, but where a lingering sense of
his
presence always existed.

And then, as she hastily washed up and pulled on the clean nightgown, she gasped again as a fleeting image from her dream taunted her – the stunningly handsome face of her until now unseen dream lover. She was horrified beyond description to realize that his face was that of Ian Gregson, one of the owners of the company she worked for, and whose photo she’d been practically salivating over a few days ago.

She’d never been one to indulge in schoolgirl crushes on movie stars or musicians, largely because she’d rarely had the opportunity to experience any sort of normal adolescent or teenage behaviors. Her life had been too chaotic, too difficult, to allow for such little indulgences. Instead of poring over celebrity magazines or listening to music, she had been balancing the checkbook or doing the laundry or worrying about her mother’s latest bout of depression. Tessa had always been practical, realistic, and had rarely allowed herself to fantasize about things that could never be.

As she straightened the rumpled sheets before sliding back into bed, Tessa was grateful that Peter hadn’t been in the room during this latest episode of hers. Not that he would blame her in any way for dreaming about another man, but she still couldn’t help feeling guilty over these increasingly detailed dreams. Despite their dysfunctional sexual relationship, and Peter’s repeated urges for her to find satisfaction elsewhere, Tessa knew she would never be able to betray her marriage vows. Even if it was with a man as sexually compelling and heart-stoppingly handsome as Ian Gregson.

Ian glanced up from the report he’d been pouring over as his cell phone buzzed with an incoming call. And since it was his personal phone – the one a scant handful of people in the entire world had the number for – he knew it would be a family member calling. He grimaced, though, when he saw on the caller ID that it was his younger – and highly irritating – brother Colin on the other end.

“What is it?” asked Ian, not even attempting to hide his annoyance. He had far too much work to get through this morning to listen to another recap of Colin’s most recent date. He’d truly believed he had left all of that behind when he had moved out here to California almost a year ago, confident that no longer sharing a residence with his younger brother meant that the stories of Colin’s frequent and wild hook-ups would remain solidly in London. Thus far he’d been proven wrong on a regular basis.

Colin’s chuckle only served to annoy Ian further. “What’s wrong, old man? Wake up on the wrong side of the bed again? I’m just assuming – as usual – that you woke up alone. And that’s the crux of your problem, Ian. You aren’t getting laid anywhere near enough for a bloke your age. If you were, you’d be in a much better mood.”

“Like yourself, I suppose?” muttered Ian darkly, wondering how much of a ruckus it would cause in the family if he decided to block Colin’s number from his phone.

“I’m
always
in a good mood. Largely because I’m always getting laid. Wait until you hear about the redhead I met last night. Bit of a crazy bint if I’m being frank, but the things that girl could do with her tongue were unreal. Licked me up like my dick was covered in melted chocolate and she couldn’t bear to waste even a drop. And that was just for starters. We wound up - “

“Enough.” Ian’s retort was sharper than he intended it to be. “I don’t need to hear any more details, Colin. Trust me, I’ve heard enough about your exploits for three lifetimes. And I’ve got about three days worth of work here on my desk at the moment, so why don’t you tell me the real reason for your call?”

“My bet is on six months – at
least
– since you’ve had any,” declared Colin brashly. “Better be careful that stick you’ve got wedged up your arse doesn’t break off one of these days, brother. You know, Ian, you’re only thirty-five, not seventy, so stop acting like a creaky old bachelor uncle.”

“I
am
an old bachelor uncle,” Ian replied dryly. “And likely to remain so for the foreseeable future. I made the mistake of getting engaged once, and unlike you I actually learn from my mistakes.”

“And that’s one of the reasons for my call. I ran into your former fiancée this afternoon at the Dorchester. I was finishing up a business lunch when the lovely Davina arrived with her new man in tow. Not to mention her new engagement ring.”

Ian thought briefly that he ought to feel something at hearing the news that the woman he had once asked to marry him would now be exchanging wedding vows with another man. But instead of feeling jealousy or bitterness or regret, he only felt a sense of relief that Davina had apparently found happiness with someone else.

“Good for her,” replied Ian sincerely. “I’m happy for Davina, happy that she’s evidently found someone more suited to her than I was.”

Colin made a rather undignified sound, something resembling a snort. “You were perfectly suited to her, old man, and you know it. She would have made you a good wife, given you a couple of kiddies, done the family name proud. But that wasn’t enough for you, was it?”

Ian sighed. “We’ve had this conversation before, Colin. I broke off my engagement to Davina because it simply wasn’t fair to her to have a fiancé who was away on business trips three weeks out of four. And I knew that in spite of her protests to the contrary she wouldn’t have been at all happy to leave her family and friends behind in England to move to San Francisco with me.”