Solving For Nic (13 page)

A girl never forgot her first pair of Jimmy Choos.

She reassured herself that the dress was not too short. At five three, dresses were always too long for her. This boutique specialized in ultra mini dresses designed for clubbing. She’d never worn anything so short before but when she paired the dress with the shoes, it gave her the illusion of long legs. She couldn’t seem to take the outfit off. She didn’t recognize herself. The plain, pale math major was long gone and the pretty but ditzy party girl who stared back at her was up to no good.

Perfect. She could be this girl for a week.

It would be like a mental vacation. She could worry about shoes, toenail polish and perfecting her tan. No functions, and calculations, or trying to prove that prime numbers could reveal the secrets of the universe…even if the answer to the universe wasn’t a prime number. No creepy professor making her feel like a complete failure. She shivered, stuffing Hatton back past the barrier of this week. This week was fun and sun and kissing. Lots and lots of kissing. Whatever was left of her when the week was over, could worry about the universe.

There was a sharp tap on the dressing room door and Nic walked in before she could respond. She spun around as he shut the door behind him, turned and stopped. Stunned, he didn’t move but his eyes swept over her with an intensity that lit small fires under her skin. He locked the door without taking his eyes off her. “Lizzie, you look…amazing.”

Warm color brushed her cheeks. “You don’t think it’s too short?”

His eyes slid slowly up and down as he approached. “No, it’s perfect. Keep it on. We’re having dinner.”

When he reached her, he surprised her by turning her toward her reflection. His eyes met hers in the mirror, then he leaned down to kiss the curve of her neck. Her eyes drifted shut and she leaned back into him, tilting her head to give him better access.

Warm fingers slipped into the draped opening at the back of the dress. She shivered as they traced over her rib cage to tease at the slight curve of her bare breasts. He stepped closer, his chest supporting her head so she could see them both in the mirror. She watched, fascinated, as his hand teased her under the soft layers of chiffon. Her nipples beaded into hard points that showed under the multiple layers of thin fabric. Color burned across her cheeks. He was watching her watch his hand.

“Soft.” He breathed the words against the back of her neck, making the soft hairs dance. “So...”

“Small?” she inserted, completing his sentence, trying to break whatever spell he was casting. She'd seen the women he dated. She was nothing like them.

“You know better.” His hand cupped the modest weight, his thumb teasing the tip. “You're perfect.”

She melted into him. She was a sucker for flattery. Who knew?

Flattery from Nic was deadly, the sincerity behind it burned her alive.

Her eyes fluttered shut and her skin ached as he continued to tease her. He pulled her back tighter against his chest, and his fingers skimmed along her thigh easing the hem of the too- short dress higher. She stopped breathing as those fingertips teased the sensitive skin of her inner thigh. She caught his wrist when he reached the edge of the lace boy shorts, but she wasn’t able to stop the lazy glide of his fingers across her skin. Or the release of liquid heat deep inside her.

“No, someone might come in.” She gasped the words out, appalled at herself for being more concerned about getting caught than stopping him.

“The door’s locked.”

His fingers slipped inside the lace and her lungs stopped working. Electricity charged the liquid heat building in her and shock burned down her arms. He wouldn’t. Not here. He couldn’t.

He did.

Her mind and body went white hot.

He groaned against her neck as he stroked her. “Lizzie, you’re drenched.”

Blood scorched her cheeks and she tried to wrench away from him. The hand on her breast moved down to flatten against her abdomen. He wasn’t going to let her go. The burn inside of her turned molten. Any minute now she would vaporize.

“I missed this,” he whispered, as long fingers stroked deeper. His other hand smoothed down her belly, then around her until his arm was a tight a band across her, keeping her from sliding to the ground. “Open your eyes.”

She struggled to process what was happening. Her knees threatened to buckle. Bones melted away. The crisp hair on his arm teased the sensitive skin on the underside of her breast. Was it possible to panic and die of pleasure at the same time? She was about to find out.

“Open your eyes,” he repeated, the edge back in his voice, making her do things she couldn’t admit she wanted to do. “Open them.”

Her eyes opened and shock lanced through her. His arm was through her dress and his dark hand was lost in the scrap of lace. Lizzie’s skin froze, melted, then froze again. Feeling his hands on her was one thing. Seeing it, seeing him and the hunger in his eyes, well… it was too much.

“I can’t.” She turned her face away, shutting out the overwhelmingly erotic image.

“Look or I’ll stop.” His teeth grazed across her shoulder, his fingers ruthlessly demonstrating what she had to lose.

“Nic, please.” She was begging now. She didn't know what she was begging him for. Not to make her watch? Not to keep turning her into this person she didn't know? Not to stop?

If he stopped, she would die.

He increased the pressure and rolled his fingers against her until she couldn't breathe. She gasped without making a sound, still unable to comprehend that anything could feel so good. His fingers continued until she coiled tight enough to break.

Then he stopped, dangling her over the edge. She writhed against his hand but it wasn't the same and she died as the gruff laughter warmed the skin of her neck. Was he punishing her?

“Look in the mirror,
bella
. See what I see. Just for a second. Look.” The last word was a definite command. It overrode all the embarrassment keeping her eyes clamped shut.

She opened her eyes again but didn’t recognize the girl locked possessively in his arms. That couldn’t possibly be her.

“See? Beautiful.”

Her breath caught and her lips parted as he resumed taking total control of her body, hell, her entire existence with each dangerous roll of his fingers. She didn’t recognize herself in the wanton creature leaning back against the tall dark man who was doing wicked things to her. She couldn’t tear her eyes away as he built the small nuclear explosion inside her. Her muscles seized then broke loose in a shattering wave of white hot pleasure as she watched herself fly apart like lightning in his hands.

Nic caught her before she collapsed. He sat down in one of the armchairs and pulled her into his lap, refusing to admit to himself how good it felt when she curled into him. He held her, while reaction shivered through her.

She hadn’t made a sound. How could she be so quiet and come that hard? Amazing. “Okay?” A strange protective urge swept over him.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be okay.”

The instinct to lose himself inside her right then was staggering, but Nic had never been controlled by his emotions or his sex drive.

“Don’t make me do that again.” She melted against his chest, pressing her head under his chin. Technically it might have been a cuddle, except Nic didn’t cuddle but he liked how she felt curled against him, and he pulled her tighter against his chest, and rubbed his cheek against the top of her head.

“I’m going to make you do that a lot, beautiful girl, but I’ll make sure we’re at home next time.” Nic shut his eyes hoping she didn’t realize he’d said home…he’d meant alone.

She nodded. “Kay.” The word whispered across his overheated skin.

“I couldn’t help myself.” He hurried to cover his slip. “It’s these shoes. When I do lock you up, you’ll be wearing these. They are spectacular.” He'd meant it as a joke, but there wasn't a shred of humor in his words.

No, he meant them. He wanted to carry her off and lock her away and keep her all to himself. He didn't want anyone else near her.

She laughed. The sound played around in his chest, teasing at his heart, making it feel strangely light. “You haven’t gotten the bill yet.”

She slid away from him, unsteady on the five inch heels. She turned around, dazed and vulnerable. “What is this, Nic? What are we doing?”

Another protective instinct swelled inside him. Maybe he was getting in way over his head but instead of backing off, he did something he’d never done before. He tried to reassure her.

“Let’s see, I’m taking you out to dinner.” He kept it light and gentle. “We’ll have some interesting wine. Talk about all sorts of unimportant things. Then I’ll take you home and kiss you good night. I think you call that a date.”

He wanted to see her smile all the time, except when she was screaming out his name the way he planned for her to as soon as he got her home…no, he meant alone.

“A date?” She wished the amusement in Nic’s eyes wasn’t turning her insides back into mush.

“Yes, what did you think?”

“That we’re having fun.”

“If you consider going insane fun, then I guess I’m having a lot of fun. Take your time. They’ll hold our table as long as it takes.”

She watched him leave in the mirror, the door closing behind him. Her legs were weak and her arms were too heavy. Curling up in the armchair he’d been sitting in and going to sleep was way too tempting.

A date. Really? A date meant possibilities, not a stolen week she’d already labeled a fling.

A week, she reminded herself. She could handle a week. A fun week to get him out of her system. She had to remember this was temporary. She couldn’t let herself get so caught up in him that she forgot who she was. Or what she had to do.

When she stepped outside the dressing room a few minutes later, his eyes skimmed over her. The approval in his smile didn’t quite match the admonition in his words. “You didn’t follow my instructions.”

She stopped short, her forehead creasing in concern as she frowned. She couldn’t tell if he was teasing or not. Who did he think he was anyway? She wanted to tell him that he had no right to give her instructions then she remembered that arm candy probably always did as instructed. Still she wasn’t playing dumb when she asked. “What instructions?” She honestly didn’t know what he was talking about.

“Two dresses and a pair of shoes doesn't equal a lot.”

“Oh.” The word escaped. Was she supposed to apologize for not going crazy in the boutique? They were only here for a week and he knew she didn’t want him buying her a bunch of clothes. “Wait.” She stepped forward when he brushed past her toward the racks of hideously overpriced designer wear.

She watched, equally excited and horrified as he added more dresses, a teal silk robe with a huge poppy on the side, and a few outfits she had been drooling over earlier. Then he found the lingerie and Lizzie discovered she could turn multiple shades of pink and purple at the same time. Grateful there was no one else in the dress shop, she could hardly breathe until he told Anna he was satisfied.

“Nic.” She leaned closer, lowering her voice. “Don’t get all this. It’s too much.” She glanced down at her feet and tried to feel guilty. But the shoes were fantastic and there was no way she could feel anything but sexy in them. Oh, she'd have hell to pay later if her father or brother found out, but she would make sure that didn’t happen.

“Humor me,” he said, as they left the shop.

She leaned against him, balancing on the heels. “You're spoiling me.”

“That's the idea,” he said, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

“I could pay for this if I had my purse. I couldn’t find it back at the house and my cell phone is in it too.” She stopped talking when she saw his expression turn slightly guilty. Shock rippled through her “You didn’t take it, did you? Because that would be a little scary.”

He leaned down to kiss her forehead. “Paradise. Remember? No cell phones allowed and you don’t need your wallet while you’re with me.”

“You have your phone.”

“I’m not on vacation. Relax, Lizzie. It’s safe.”

Well, that was something. At least her cell phone was safe, because she certainly wasn’t. She was trying to decide what she thought when Anna handed her the small bag that matched the Jimmy Choos. “I added a few things you might need,” the lady confided.