Ńo, Wil iams,µ he whispered as he started down the companionway, tuggin g her behind him like a pul toy. Í do
not
.µ
They passed the Berlands· cabin. ´Maggie ³µ
Śleeping,µ he snarled. ´Wanna wake her up so she can witness this display of obstinacy?µ
She made sure her voice was as low as his. ´Wouldn·t bother me.
I·m
not the one³µ
He swung her into the open doorway of his cabin and shut the door with a heavy and final snap, pausing only long enough to lock it.
* * *
Rumpled sheets and al . Teal crossed her arms and glared at him. ´Yay. Back to the freaking scene of the crime. Fine. I·m here. Let me³µ
Śit there, and shut the hel up until I·m finished.µ His voice was at a normal level, but his skin was pul ed taut over his cheekbones, and his Cutter blues glittered dangerously. ´When
I·m
done, I·l be happy to listen to what
you
have to say.µ
She had nothing to say. Her gaze swept the room dismissively and hooked for a second on the crumple of white on the carpet a few inches from his right foot.
Her panties. She brought her attention back to him, leaning back on her hands.
´You have the floor. And when you·re done, I·m going to use you to wipe it. Talk away.
Ace
.µ
He speared his fingers through his hair and took a deep breath. Ćat Berland has been a good friend since I was in high school ³I·m not done yet,µ he snapped when she started to rise. Teal flopped her butt back on the corner of his bed.
Í love her.
Like a sister
. Cat is über intel igent, beautiful, and happens to be gay. I gifted my sperm to her and her partner, Liz. Jessie is their child.
Not
mine.
Liz is now pregnant. Also my gift. That child wil be their second daughter.
Not
mine
.µ He fired each word like a bul et.
Óh,µ she said, not sure what to do with the information that was so far from what she·d thought to be the truth. It left her feeling smal and petty. Of course, if h e·d bothered to mention, however casual y, what their relationship was « And why would he? Clearly, he figured it was none of her freaking business. She brought her thumbnail to her lip, then dropped it to fold her hands in her lap.
´Yeah.
Oh
. She came to see her mother because she·s worried about Liz.
Maggie and I both reassured her that Liz·s hormones are out of whack « Shit.
Never mind that. She was upset. I gave my friend a hug.µ
Teal got to her feet, wishing she could disappear. Determined to take her humiliation and run. Í·m sorry I jumped to conclusions.µ She automatical y tried to shove her hands in her pockets. Not only did she have no freaking pockets, she had no pants or panties on. Under Zane·s too-large T-shirt, she wore nothing but an unfa stened bra and a bleeding heart.
´
Really
sorry. I had no right to³µ
Zane took the two steps to confront her up close and personal. Since his bunk was behind her knees, there was nowhere to go. He glowered at her, his mouth taut, his expression thunderous. Yet, when he threaded his fingers through her hair and held her head in his palms, his touch was incredibly tender. One snap and he could break her neck. Or her heart.
He lowered her onto the crumpled sheets. She·d expect black silk. But no.
Crisp, white cotton. Smel ing of sunshine, not sex. He was very heavy as he kneed her legs apart and settled into the cradle of her thighs, his fingers stil holding her head. Heat emanated from his body as his erection pulsed against her delta through the thin fabric of his swim shorts, turning her girl parts to liquid fire.
Át the party, I flirted with al those big -boobed, no-brain women to make you
jealous
. You saw what I wanted you to see, but you·re too damned contrary to get that I was trying to manipulate an emotion from you that came straight out of junior high.µ His forehead touched hers, and she felt the warm rush of his breath as he sighed against her mouth. Ít was a stupid thing to do. I get that. But, sweetheart, you can·t hold stupidity against a guy who is doing everything in his power to make the girl he likes like him back.µ
The tension in her chest ratcheted a little tighter. Í·m a woman. Not a girl,µ she said, but there was zero heat behind it. His words kick-started her heart as if he·d used a jumper cable.
´Jesus, give me a break here, would you please?µ One hand moved from her hair down her shoulder, fingers trailing down the sensitive skin on her arm then slipped under the edge of her T-shirt³
his
T-shirt³to the bare skin of her midriff.
´Thank God for smal mercies,µ he laughed unsteadily. Śtop thinking so hard for once.
Lower your drawbridge, sweetheart. Let me love you.µ
If only
. Goose bumps rose on her skin at the cat·s tongue rough glide of his cal used palm on her sensitized skin. Teal·s nipples pul ed into hard tight peaks against the unyielding muscles of his chest. They were breathing the same inch of air.
Í like you,µ she said a little unsteadily. ´Most of the time.µ
He huffed out a laugh. ´That·s a start.µ His hand glided up her ribcage too close around her breast, and her eyes fluttered shut.
Ám I too heavy?µ
Ńo,µ she lied. She could barely breathe, but she didn·t want him anywhere else. That night almost two years ago rushed into her addled brain. The darkness, the feverish coupling. This was nothing like that. It was exactly the same, but completely differen t. Not quick and desperate, but gentle. As if they had al the time in the world to explore, and taste, and relearn each other.
He shifted his hips slightly, taking some of his weight on his elbow, and nibbled her lower lip, making her body ache. Deep insi de her, a pulse throbbed unevenly.
Her hips shifted to accommodate him. Sliding his hand to her nape, Zane whispered against her mouth, ´Kiss me like you mean it.µ
I mean it. I·ve always meant it
. Slowly, she opened her mouth, inviting him in.
Her tongue explored the inner softness of his mouth as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders.
Don·t go. Don·t go.
Zane al owed her to take the lead. The novelty went to her head like fine wine.
He tasted wonderful. A combination of after dinner coffee and something indefinably Zane.
While she used her tongue and teeth on his mouth, he caressed her breast, his fingers tugging at the engorged nipple until her back arched and she had to pul her mou th from under his to suck in a life -sustaining gasp of air.
The bedside lamp shone into her eyes, and she closed them as she wrapped her legs around his waist and pul ed him hard against where she wanted him.
´You·re so soft here.µ His fingers cupped and stroked across her breast. His other hand tightened against the base of her skul . Ánd so fucking hard here. You are, Teal Wil iams, absolutely perfect.µ
´The prospect of sex is making you delusional,µ she whispered unsteadily against his damp mouth. She couldn·t get enough of kissing him and went back for more. She didn·t think any further than her body·s prime directive.
It was minutes or hours later when Zane managed to speak. His breath was gratifyingly ragged. ´The prospect of sex with
you
is making me irrational and so horny I can·t think straight. You·re « damn. I can·t explain this; you·re like coming home.µ
Her heart went into overdrive, and she was about to strip her gears with pure, unadulterated lust. Her body was on fire from the inside out . ´More,µ she demanded in a voice she didn·t recognize.
His mouth came down on hers in a punishing kiss that shot her already manic heartbeat into overdrive. The man knew how to kiss and Teal drowned in the sensation. Her nervous system was on overload with his hand on her breast, his erection at the juncture of her thighs, and his tongue sweeping hers. Who needed to breathe? She felt her way down his side to the waistband of his trunks.
He sucked in a ragged breath as she touched his penis through the co tton. He was huge, thick, and hot to the touch. Teal circled the hardness with her fingers.
Stil kissing her, he groaned, his hips pushing against her grip.
She let go, flattening her hand to slide it inside the waistband. It restricted her wrist, but sh e was able to touch his bare, silky, hot flesh. Touching him so intimately sent little shockwaves up her fingertips. Using her finger, she spread the bead of liquid across the head. With a ful body shudder, Zane wrenched his mouth away from hers. His hand leapt from her breast to the button on his shorts, and instead of feeding the button through the hole, he just ripped at the fabric with a feral growl that made the hair on Teal·s nape tingle. Then there was nothing between them but intent.
He shifted over her, his skin burning hot. The rough hair on his chest abraded her sensitive breasts, and she realized that somehow, sometime, he·d stripped her T-shirt off without her even noticing.
Holding her hips, he slid down her body, his mouth soft, his skin rou gh as he loved every inch of her until she couldn·t remain stil . He licked one nipple, then rol ed it gently between his teeth as he laved the hard nub with the rough slickness of his tongue and the cool hardness of his teeth. He moved across one breast to the other, feathering his tongue lightly across the distended bud until she was pure, pulsing sensation.
Teal speared her fingers through his hair to hold his head against her breasts, but Zane had other ideas and broke her hold as he kissed his way across her rib cage, kissing and licking a hot, damp trail as he went. His shoulders spread her thighs even wider, and he slid his hands under her to hold her steady, his fingers gripping the firm globes of her ass. Head thrashing as the shock of pure sensation raced like wildfire through her veins, she brought her knees up instinctively. Źane
³µ
He buried his tongue between her wet folds, licking her like an ice -cream cone until her head pressed deeply into the mattress, and her hips strained up to meet his hungry mouth.
She gripped bunches of his hair in both hands. Holding him there, yet so sensitive that she could barely tolerate the persistent stroke of his tongue on her most intimate flesh. She came while his mouth was on her. Her hips bucked in the vis e of his hands, and his fingers tightened on her ass, his face buried between her legs.
While her body caved in on itself, while she shook and her everything gathered and strained, he slid up, his body heavy as he flexed his hips and then plunged inside h er to the hilt. She cried out at the sweet, sharp, achingly familiar sensation of him inside her. Her body spasmed in an orgasm so powerful it made her deaf and blind.
Zane wrapped her in his arms as her entire body shuddered, and her internal muscles milked him dry. He was spent, exhausted, and exhilarated at the same time. He had an insane urge to stake his claim in some caveman way that would mark her as his. He didn·t remember ever feeling this way about a woman, no matter how spectacular the sex had been.
She lifted her face against his shoulder, and he kissed her softly, sweetly, drawing the arm supporting her head up so she rol ed further against him. He tangled his fingers in her silky hair, his chest ful , and his mind fil ed with a kaleidoscope o f images of her.
No. I won·t.
Arms akimbo, chin out.
Narrow-eyed as she demanded,
What is this? Twenty questions?
The prospect of sex is making you delusional.
You have no idea how much I love you, Zane Cutter³
No. She hadn·t said that. Wishful thinking, Zane knew, combing his fingers through her hair. He had an unfamiliar flash ³just a second³of her lying under him, her eyes fil ed with love, long blond hair tangled across her breasts as he pumped his anguish in to her body.
Then the image was gone as he let his eyes take in
Teal
·s flushed cheeks, and the way her short, choppy, black hair curved around her stubborn jaw.
She stroked a hand across his chest, then curved her arm over his body as if to hold him there.
God. He wasn·t going anywhere.
She slid one leg over his flank, positioning herself over him, and straddled his hips. He loved that cat-got-the-cream, sultry smile, and the naughty gleam in her stil slumberous brown eyes.
He lifted his hands to cup h er breasts. Watched the puckered response, saw how dark and large his hands looked on her as he slid his fingers to rest on her slender rib cage. ´For such a fierce warrior, you·re made like a sylph. Delicate and strong at the same time.µ Forged by fire and as elusive as a magical mermaid, hiding shyly among the seaweed.
He steadied her hips with his hands, helping her find her rhythm. Frantic to get even closer, a sheen of sweat on her pale skin, Teal flung her head back, her nails digging into his chest.
Zane gritted his teeth, the tendons in his neck straining as he held off his own powerful climax. Waiting for her « Her back arched, and her short fingernails dug into his chest until he felt the tightening of her internal muscles around the spar of his cock.
The orgasm swept over him, taking him far out to sea, and deep into the blackness of uncharted waters. His entire body shuddered as he drained himself inside her. Drowning.
Wil ing to remain where he was, as emotion fil ed him to the very brim. Only his mermaid could save him, and she was as saturated and overwhelmed as Zane was himself.
With Teal tightly wrapped in his arms, his nose buried in the silky fragrance of her hair, he fel off the edge of the world into sleep.
The storm was heading right for them. After waiting to see if it would veer south or continue on its current path, Zane knew that they were going to take a hit.
Normal y he wouldn·t risk staying on the open sea and getting hammered, but a handful of boats were stil hanging around. He didn·t like the idea of leaving the
Sea
Witch
or the
Good
Fortune
or any of the other boats out here alone with the
Vrijheid
while he went into port, his tail between his legs.