Strictly Business (17 page)

He
chanced a glance down at Nina and was gratefully relieved when he saw her closed lids and heard the soft pacing of her sonorous breaths. Although he felt the emotion, he knew she wasn’t ready to hear his confession. Lust she could accept. It was an undeniable force between them. Anything more would be met with doubt and suspicion. He knew she needed time and was willing to wait as long as it took to gain her trust. Holding her closely, he tucked her head under his chin and fell into a deep contented sleep.

It was a whole hour before Nina
felt safe enough to draw up her eyelids. Her body still hovered in the aftermath of bliss, but her mind was weaving a tangled knot of panic. She’d waited to be sure Wade was asleep. Shards of light filtered through the tall windows of his room and slashed across the large Aubusson rug. She inched cautiously out of his arms, and made her way towards the edge of his bed. Holding her breath she dropped her naked legs to the floor and tip-toed to the adjacent room, her heart pounding in her chest. Alone, she sank unto the foot of the bed and hung her head in her hands.

She’d wanted
him. Her core was still moist and throbbing from his loving. She was a big girl, responsible for her actions and would not regret assuaging her lust with him. It had been incredible. He’d known how to touch and tease her, expertly drawing out her latent passions. What caused her sudden panic was his spurious confession of love for her.
What was he thinking?
He’d lied to her once and she’d stupidly believed him, only to find out he was just using her. It was only a week ago that he was having an afternoon tryst with Marie Deluse.

She was already aiding him with his case so why the need to try to butter her up?
She pursed her lips. Men like Wade Connolly kept women hanging on. He was used to charming the opposite sex into getting what he wanted. Maybe he felt he needed to ensure her continued cooperation and support with words he thought she wanted to hear. She couldn’t let herself fall for his flowery words, couldn’t let her heart believe his lies.

This was sex and nothing else.
She almost laughed out loud at the thought. This was so uncharacteristic of her it was almost alarming, but the potent need she had for Wade was undeniable and addictive. Since meeting him she’d had to reconsider some of her rigid philosophies. She just needed to keep her heart shielded until this case was over, then he’d be out of her life forever.

Nina jumped out of Wade’s bed and crossed to the study. She pulled her red silk bathrobe over her nakedness, and tying the sash
, made her way to the living room. The delicious ache thrumming in her sex and the sore muscles of her thighs attested to a night of vigorous loving and mind-blowing ecstasy. She couldn’t help her smile when she came upon him on the couch, talking on the telephone. His blue eyes sparkled when he saw her, and he motioned her over. Nina curled up on his lap like a contented cat, wondering if she’d ever get her fill of him.

“It’s been crazy lately,” he was saying into the cell. “Forget golfing.”

Nina wrapped her arms around his neck and stole nibbles of his earlobe. She listened to him talk and smiled as strain warbled his voice.

“
Humm…a dinner party. I—I don’t know, Mike. It—It’s such short notice. What messages?”

His voice faltered as Nina rubbed her butt into the expanding lump in his jeans. “I’m…not sure.” His eyes widened when her hand slid down to slowly massage the
waking organ beneath her. She released the button of his jeans, and with a devilish grin, circled his hot shaft. There was an eclipse over his blue eyes when she freed him and slowly drew on the blunt tip with a finger. A bead of moisture appeared and she glided it over the smooth head, reveling when the flesh bucked and swelled.

“Um-hum…” His voice
rose in pitch and Nina wondered what he’d just agreed to. He seemed to have lost the power of speech. She looked up into the eyes staring down at her and they were flaming lapis. His bottom lip was caught between his white teeth.

Wade cleared his throat and spoke into the phone. “I—I’m not sure I can come…”

Hmmm…
  Nina almost giggled when she heard his words. She looked up and caught his floppy smile and knew he’d also realized the double meaning of his comment. Challenging his words she gripped his wide base and pumped slowly, ignoring the warning glance he shot her.

She increased her pace and rejoiced when Wade sucked a sharp breath into his lungs
. He sputtered and coughed to cover it up and Nina had to release him and cover her mouth with her palms to keep her giggles in. Wade’s chest heaved quietly, and he silently promised retribution.

“Yeah…I’ve been a little under the weather. I caught this bug in my …throat.” His laughing
gaze caught hers, and it became increasing difficult to hold back her giddiness. He coughed and cleared his throat for the satisfaction of the person on the other line and Nina almost burst.

“I have company. I’ll have to think about it.” Wade’s voice stretched thin when she gripped him again. She licked her palm and ran the slick surface over the ruddy head protruding from his pants, causing him to close his eyes and
flop his head back. She felt his entire body stiffen like a board.

“I—I’ve
got to go,” he breathed into the cell before he clicked it off and directed his full attention on her.

He growled and slid his hand beneath the hem of her silk robe, his eyes sparkling with mischievous vengeance
. He ran a palm up the length of her thighs and dipped a finger into her slick heat. Panting, she arched her back and squeezed hard on his shaft. A deep throaty moan exploded from his lungs.

“
Stop!
” He inhaled a jagged breath and grabbed her wrist, stilling her movements. “You’re gonna make me lose it.”

He nuzzled her neck and groaned as she ignored his harsh breaths and continued to stroke him.
She couldn’t believe how aroused she was. She loved pushing him to the edge.

“I can’t keep my hands off you. You feel
sooo
good.”

“Nina…”
he warned.

She startled when he grabbed her hands and locked them in front of her, her heated breaths coming in short gasps, her naked breast jutting through the opening of her robe.
She looked into his dark eyes and felt a prickle of excited alarm at the hungry look in his eyes.

“Let
’s keep these hands out of trouble, shall we?”

In a few swift moves he slipped the belt from her robe and secured her wrists with the red silk. Nina’s lips parted in protest, but it stuck in her throat as a heady lust shot
through her. She felt vulnerable and uncertain, yet at the same time sexually charged, wondering what would happen next.

His large body shifted her off his lap and he stood behind her as she faced the couch
. Her heart pounded, the tension between her legs an unbearable ache. The points of her nipples were hard like bullets. His large hand cradled the back of her head, bending her forward and over the arm of the couch. Her bound wrists shot out, landing against a pillow as she braced the weight of her body.

He
had maneuvered her in strained silence, and she took a chance at glancing back at him. Her legs trembled at the fierce intensity on his face. His gorgeous blue eyes were shuttered and his jaw locked squarely. The tight slash of his lips told her how much he battled for restraint. Cool air whispered across her exposed bottom as the silk glided up and hung around her waist. She heard the soft
whoosh
of his pants falling and essence seeped from her body in anticipation. A gentle caress traveled over her hips and back, and she moaned.

When she thought she could wait no more, he gripped her hips and tunneled into her hard
. Nina gasped and clutched a pillow, a luscious bolt of sensation shooting through her, the next on its heels before she had time to recover. Wade powered into her roughly, a deep grunt punctuating each fiery thrust. His large hands girded her hips, drawing her back to his unceasing rhythm. The silky feel of the fabric across her back and around her wrists, the cold leather of the couch kissing her nipples, the fierce heat and relentless driving of his hard body, was overwhelming. She squeezed her eyes shut, white-knuckled a cushion, and screamed as pleasure blasted through her.

She felt a shudder course over him
, and with a savage shout, his damp body collapsed on her back.

He pulled her up against his chest and nuzzled his face into the warmth of her neck. The air from his lungs was hot as it rushed out against her skin.

“Are you ok?”

She nodded, still stunned by the force of their love making. He lowered himself unto the couch and pulled her on top of him. A palm cradled her cheek as his concerned gaze searched her face.

“I wasn’t too rough?” he asked, loosening the silk at her wrist.

In response she leaned forward and captured his lips for a long slow kiss, letting him know she’d take whatever he had to give. Nina sighed inwardly. She’d decided to enjoy his body and explore this unbelievable chemistry between them
for whatever time they had together.

“So,” s
he said finally, “what time’s your dinner party?”

His eyebrows darted high. “Nine. You
wanna go?”

“Sure,” she shrugged. She kissed the smile that spread across his handsome face and noticed that desire still swirled in his eyes.

“I thought that we’d stay here and make our own party.”

She grinned, liking the idea
, then she frowned. “I don’t want to take you away from your friends. You don’t have to baby-sit me.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.” He dismissed her statement with a kiss. “If you’d like to go to the party, then we’ll go.”

“Okay,” she answered “I hope it’s not formal. I only have jeans.”

He issued a low chuckle. “Formal? No way. Mike and Lisa have a one-year-old
. They gave up formal a year ago. We’ll be lucky if we’re not all sitting in high chairs and drinking out of sippy-cups.”

“Sound like my kind of gig.” She laughed and pecked his cheek.

He turned his head and captured her bottom lip for a nibble. Her heart kicked hard in her chest, and she pulled away, feeling a sudden breathlessness. She rebuffed him playfully then scampered away to catch her breath.

Mike was tall, almost as tall as Wade. In fact, she guessed that they might be the same height except that Mike hunched his shoulders and that cheated him out of an inch or two. He gave Wade a bear hug, clapping him on the back, then turned to Nina and smiled. Wade made the introductions
, and Mike shook her hand, adjusting his round glasses with the other. His eyes inspected her, and she knew instantly that that was the way he approached life, analytically, dissecting everything in an attempt at understanding it.

“Glad to meet you.
” Mike smiled brightly, ushering them into the large living room where another couple perched on pillows on the floor around a rectangular coffee table. A pretty blonde woman stroked a large white tabby cuddled next to her.

Wade introduced Nina to his friends Mark and Veronica, and they stood to greet her, smiling warmly
.

“Is that Wade?” A loud feminine voiced boomed from another room.

Mike looked at Wade and smirked. “You’re really in for it now, buddy,” he warned.

Wade’s look of foreboding was amusing as he shook his head gravely.

“We could hide you under the coffee table, but I’m afraid those long legs of yours would stick out,” Veronica mused.

“No aiding and abett
ing. He’s got to face the music,” Mike said grimly, mirth tugging the corner of his lips.

Nina was wondering what the trio were talking about when a petite woman burst into the living room, her hands wringing around a dish cloth. She marched right up to Wade
, and standing on her tiptoes, grabbed an ample portion of his cheek and squeezed. Nina laughed as Wade’s face wobbled crookedly.

“I ought to give you a good tongue lashing for not visiting us recently! Your
god-daughter has been just furious!”

Nina watched as the person whom she assumed was Mike’s wife, Lisa
, finally released Wade’s face and gave him a giant hug.

“Well, considering that you almost broke your arm on our floor, I’ll go easy on you—this time!” Lisa warned
, then turned to Nina with a beaming smile. She introduced herself, and her eyes narrowed critically. “Are you a model?” she asked, scanning Nina’s face.

Nina laughed. “No. I’m a physician.”

Lisa turned to Wade, the height of her eyebrows showing she was obviously impressed. A grin cracked her pretty face. “Wow, Wade, beauty
and
brains. That’s a change for you.”

“Ouch.” Mark winced and chuckled.

Wade smiled and shook his head slowly. “I think I’ve come to the wrong apartment. I was looking for my
friends
,” he teased then looked to Nina. “Don’t believe a word they say about me tonight. All lies.”