Authors: Michelle Major
The brilliance of the smile he bestowed on her would have knocked her on her butt if she hadn’t been sitting down already.
They continued to toast marshmallows until Kendall was stuffed into a blissful food coma.
He asked her more questions about her youth, to which she gave vague answers that satisfied his curiosity without revealing too much. They were the same ambiguous stories she’d been telling for years, but tonight they made her feel dishonest and guilty. Her parents had their problems, but they’d worked hard to overcome them, and they were good people. Kendall wished she felt comfortable enough with herself to reveal the truth about her trailer-park childhood.
The fire died down to a pile of hot embers. She glanced at her watch and stood. “It’s late. I should get going.”
Without warning, Ty grabbed her hand and tugged hard. She stumbled backwards and landed in his lap. His arms wrapped tightly around her. “Not hungry anymore?” he murmured against her hair.
“Are you kidding? I think I ate my weight in chocolate.”
He nuzzled his face against her neck, pressing his lips to her earlobe. Gently, he bit into the soft flesh. Kendall tingled right down to her toes. “Maybe a little hungry,” she said on a breath.
His soft laugh tickled the hair at the side of her face. “Good.”
She turned until her face was level with his. “What about you?”
His mouth curved into a wolfish grin. “Starving.”
CHAPTER NINE
He leaned forward and claimed her mouth with his. This kiss was not the soft seduction it had been earlier in the kitchen. It was hot and hard and demanding. She wound her arms around his back, her nails sinking into the smooth fabric of his sweatshirt, and hung on for dear life. Ty’s fingers combed through her curls as his tongue mingled with hers. The sweet taste of the chocolate and marshmallow contrasted with the intensity of his passion.
“So good,” he rasped against her skin, nipping at the pulse that thumped wildly on her neck. “You taste so damn good.”
“It’s the marshmallow,” she answered, her voice hoarse. She dropped her head back as his breath blew in hot swells against her skin.
“It’s you,” he corrected. Dragging his mouth back to hers, he moved his hands to the fleece’s zipper. He tugged it down and pushed the jacket off her shoulders. A cool night breeze cut into the thin fabric of her silk blazer. He undid the buttons at the front of the blazer as his lips fluttered along her collarbone. She wore nothing but a thin lace camisole and bra under her jacket. As the evening’s chill swept along her bare shoulders, an involuntarily shiver coursed through her.
She shifted position, trying to get closer to the heat that radiated off Ty’s body. He lifted her hips, positioning her so she straddled his lap, the folds of her knee-length skirt stretching across his thighs.
His hand fumbled for a moment on the seat next to her and then he drew the cotton blanket around her shoulders. His arms wrapped around her and pressed her tight to the muscled wall of his chest. The kiss he gave her was long and intense, his tongue gliding in and out in a rhythm that Kendall mimicked with her hips. She felt the length of his erection against her stomach grow harder beneath his cotton shorts.
“Jesus,” he groaned against her mouth, “you make me crazy.” He cupped her face in his hands and drew back. She gazed at him without really focusing, her vision clouded by lust.
After several moments, his steady blue gaze penetrated the fog that enveloped her. “I want you, Kendall,” he said solemnly. “I want to see you, I want to taste you. Every inch of you. I told you no pressure, only as much involvement as makes you comfortable. That still stands and we’ll stop right now if that’s what you want. Just say the word.”
She stared at him. Her heart hammered in her chest at the vulnerability she saw in his expression. The smart thing would be to walk away right now, before what was between them went any farther. She reached forward with both hands and tugged at the sides of his sweatshirt. “What I want,” she said with a smile, “is for you to get rid of this.”
Lightning fast, Ty ripped the heavy material over his head, tossing the sweatshirt into the darkness with the flick of one wrist. Just as quickly, the breath whooshed out of Kendall’s lungs as her eyes feasted on the hard contours of his powerful body.
It was the body of a man who spent his days working his muscles to a fine precision. Hesitantly, she touched one finger to the hair-roughened skin. A muscle jumped and she heard Ty’s sharp intake of air. The bronze expanse of his solid chest tapered into a flat abdomen, taut with muscles. His shoulders were broad, his arms strong.
He skimmed the skin at the neckline of her camisole with the tips of his fingers. He traced a path upward and hooked a finger from each hand under the straps that lay against her shoulders. Her gaze darted up to his when she realized his intent. With exquisite slowness, he dragged the straps of her camisole and bra down around her arms, revealing her breasts to the cool night air.
“Beautiful,” he whispered, his eyes fixed on her face.
Her nipples puckered, more from the reverence in his voice than the crisp breeze that floated against her heated skin. Her lids drifted closed as his work-roughened palms grazed the sensitive tips. He circled his hand around the tender points, spinning her farther into a heated fervor.
Moisture pooled between her thighs as his head bent to capture one of her nipples in his mouth.
He rubbed his hands down the side of her body to her thighs. Pushing away the satiny fabric of her skirt, he pressed his palms along the curve of her inner thighs. He traced his thumb against the damp lace of her underpants.
Oh, my god. Whether she said it out loud or to herself, Kendall didn’t know. Her mind was beyond reason, beyond rational thought. She was too turned on to care about the moans of pleasure that escaped her lips. Her body arched against his hand, silently urging him to touch her more deeply. He hummed his pleasure at her demand against the swell of her breast.
Gently, he moved aside the barrier of fabric. One finger slipped into her slick wetness, and she rocked with desire. Her breath came in short, ragged gasps as he delved deeper with his finger and pressed his thumb against her, stroking the tender spot in hypnotic circles. He captured her mouth for a soul-shattering kiss until she cried out her pleasure, the air whooshing out of her lungs and into his mouth.
The intimacy of the moment rocked her as hard as the sensations skittering through her body. Dragging her lips away from his, she buried her face in the warm skin of his throat. She shuddered uncontrollably as her body reeled from the force of her orgasm. His chest was heaving almost as hard as hers but the rest of his body remained rigidly still beneath her.
Her limbs, on the other hand, felt as soft as warm candle wax. She was afraid she might melt right onto the wood deck. After several minutes and with great effort, she lifted her head from Ty’s shoulder. “Why did you stop?”
He gave her a crooked smile. “I may not be a rocket scientist, but I was pretty sure you—”
“No,” she interrupted, heat coloring her cheeks. “I mean, yes. I did. It was very nice.”
“Very nice?”
Her face felt like it was on fire. “Better than nice. Fantastic. Unbelievable. Mind-blowing.”
“Mind-blowing.” He grinned. “That’s more like it.” He wrapped the blanket tight around her shoulders and shifted her onto the bench next to him.
Set apart from the warmth of his body, the brisk night air chilled her damp skin. Holding the blanket closed with one hand, she readjusted the straps of her bra and camisole onto her shoulders.
Ty stood and collected his sweatshirt and her blazer. When he handed her the jacket, Kendall took it without meeting his gaze. “But you didn’t, uh, you know . . .” she stammered, gesturing with her free hand. “So why did you stop?” Her ex-boyfriend’s accusations about being cold and aloof rushed into her mind. She forced her lips to form the question, “Did I do something wrong?”
Ty let out a gruff laugh. “Are you kidding? I haven’t been that close to losing control since high school. And I don’t think it was the marshmallows. Look at me, Kendall,” he said, tucking her hair behind her ears.
She shifted her gaze to meet his, swallowing hard at the latent desire burning in his eyes. “Being with you,” he said, “holding you in my arms is fantastic, unbelievable, and
completely mind-blowing
. You are the sexiest, most responsive woman I have ever met.”
Take that, slimy ex-boyfriend.
“Really?”
“Really. But when we make love for the first time, it won’t happen with me, pardon the expression, going off half-cocked on a lawn chair in the middle of my deck. You deserve better than that.”
How much better could it get?
He’d made her body feel things she hadn’t known were possible. But the way he was looking at her now, all sweet and tender, made her heart zing. And that was a complication she didn’t need. “Have sex,” she mumbled.
“What?”
“You should have said when we have sex.” She pulled the blanket from around her shoulders and quickly shrugged into her blazer. “The phrase ‘making love’ implies, well, an emotional connection between the two people involved. Our relationship, if you could call it that, is not about emotions.”
Ty stood and his tone turned as cool as the night breeze. “What is it about?”
She took off his wool socks and slipped her feet into her heels. Her feet felt cold and cramped against the smooth material. “I don’t know exactly. But now that you mention it, we should probably keep this professional.”
“I didn’t mention that, and I don’t think it’s what you want.”
“Maybe not.” She bundled up the socks and set them on the chair before glancing at him again. “But I can’t get distracted. This story is too important.”
He continued to study her, as if he could see how much more she wanted from him. A buzzing started low in her belly at the look in his eye. “Stop doing that.”
“What am I doing?”
“Looking at me.”
He smiled. “We’re having a conversation.”
“I can barely form a sentence when you’re looking at me like that. It’s not fair.”
His gaze dropped and her nipples hardened.
“Don’t look there either.”
He laughed, a slow sexy sound, then made a show of covering his eyes with his hands. “You may need to lead me into the house.”
She groaned. “Never mind.” Pulling his hands away from his face, she tried not to notice the way the muscles of his arms tensed under her fingers. “But no more looks like you’re imagining me naked.”
“How do you know what I’m imagining?”
Her response lodged in her throat as her own imagination ran wild.
“Are you thinking of me naked?” Ty asked.
She swallowed. “Of course not. I need to go. Now.” She picked up the socks and blanket.
As she turned for the door, Ty rounded on her without warning, dragging her against him and sliding his mouth over hers. Of their own volition, her arms wound around his neck.
They stayed that way for several minutes, teasing with their tongues, taking turns commanding the kiss. With a shake of his head, Ty dragged his mouth away from hers. “I guess that’s the trick,” he rasped, dropping his forehead to press against hers.
“What trick?” she asked, still dazed from the embrace.
“When your hackles rise, I’m going to have to kiss you into submission.”
She lifted her head and threw him a glare.
“Or be kissed into submission,” he amended.
“That’s more like it. About this crazy chemistry between us . . .”
He touched a fingertip to the center of her lips. “We’ll handle it, Kendall. We’re both adults. You’ve told me you’re leaving, and I don’t do complicated. Let’s enjoy the ride and not worry about the destination.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Letting things ride isn’t really my strong suit.”
“This is a break from the norm, remember?
“I knew that would come back to bite me.” She groaned, thumping the heel of her hand against her forehead.
Ty wiggled his eyebrows. “That’s not the only thing that may come back to bite you. But right now, you need to get home. Beauty sleep and all that.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“It’s the upside of working off camera. We laborers can just throw on a baseball cap and be done with it.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m not even going to go there. Speaking of on camera, we got some great interviews yesterday with the Silver Creek residents. There are several inspiring stories of families rebuilding their lives that the viewers will love, but the land development plan I told you about is shaping up to be a real hot button.”
Ty’s shoulders tightened as he led her to the front door. Pulling it open, he turned to face her. “What’s the consensus with the locals?” he asked, his casual tone at odds with the muscle ticking in his jaw.
“As far as I can tell, it’s a mixed bag. Some people feel like it’s not right to turn over any of the forest for development, but a few of the homeowners I spoke with thought it would be worth a small sacrifice if it meant money for their families and future wildfire prevention efforts. There was one woman in particular, Helen Bradley, who has close to fifty acres backing up to the restoration site. The land has been in her family for years, and she’s really struggling with her decision. If she sells to GoldStar, most of her neighbors will follow suit.”
Ty mumbled something Kendall couldn’t understand.
“What did you say?”
“Those residents will never see a dime of the money that’s being dangled in front of them. GoldStar is as crooked as they come. Trust me, the company will find a way around any financial obligations they make to the locals.” He flipped on the porch light. “I’ll walk you to your car.”
“Whoa, there,” she said, trying to read his hooded features in the dim light. “That’s a bold accusation, and you sound very sure of yourself when you make it.”
“I am.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders as they walked down the front steps. “Let’s not talk about this tonight. I’m still savoring the fact that you showed up on my doorstep. I don’t want anything to ruin that.”
Kendall relished the feeling of being pressed so cozily against him, but the reporter in her couldn’t resist digging for more information. “I can’t let this go after a bombshell like that. I’ve done my homework on GoldStar, Ty. They’re a big player in land contracts around Colorado, but there’s nothing shady in any of their deals.”
“Have you researched the company’s owners?”
“According to public records, GoldStar is run through a holding company, ERB Investments. The proposal for selling the land is a recent development. Silver Creek isn’t an investigative report, unless you’re willing to give me some facts to back your insinuations.”
“Not tonight.” He opened the driver’s side door, and gave her a gentle push.
She inserted the key into the ignition and rolled down the window. “Fine. If you’re too chicken to tell me what you know, I’ll go to the source.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked, eyes narrowed.
“I’ve been dealing with GoldStar’s media contact. My next step is to see what the CEO of ERB Investments has to say.”
“Don’t bother,” he said through clenched teeth.
“You don’t think some big shot owner will talk to a local reporter? I’ll have you know—”
“You’ll meet him on Sunday.”
“What do you mean?”
His voice was hard and flat. “The crook who owns ERB Investments and GoldStar is my father.” He turned on his heel and stalked toward the house. “I’ll pick you up at three,” he called over his shoulder.