Chapter Sixteen

The Big House’s corrugated-iron roof and hardwood floorboards whispered stories to Olivia as moonlight shone through her open window. Another day in the desert had flashed by, and she once again found herself peeking over the horizon at the real life waiting for her back in L.A. She sighed into the silent darkness and turned to watch the lace curtains dance on the cool breeze drifting into her room. One down, three short weeks to go.

Nothing seemed real in this magical world. The heat, the dust, the flies, the arid desolation, it should’ve been a nightmare. Yet the hardships this unforgiving place forced her to endure only lured her further into the fairy tale that had claimed Abi and was slowly seducing her.

She tucked her hands behind her head and breathed in the night’s scent as the smile that never seemed far from her face curved her lips. The family who’d adopted her was complete. Ethan had returned that morning with a small high-rise’s worth of titanium scaffolding bracing his fractured leg and a grin as vibrant as his tattooed arms.

They’d waited by the side of the dirt road that served as Baroona’s airport to greet him while he’d clambered out of the light plane Jarrah had chartered. Her patient had casually shepherded his siblings out of the way with one of his crutches before discarding the walking aids and wrapping her up in a hug that almost crushed the life out her. The Royal Flying Doctors and his surgeons in Brisbane had been the real heroes, but it had still taken most of the day for her feet to settle back onto the ground.

Naya hadn’t been far behind Ethan. After outwrestling the pilot for control of their bags, she’d promptly handed them over to Ryder and Jarrah before hugging and kissing her children. Olivia grinned as she remembered the choked and teary-eyed thank-you Naya had half whispered and half sobbed into her ear as Mother Harper had squeezed out what air Ethan had left inside her. The stress of the last few days spent watching over her son had dragged on Naya. But no sooner had the Harper matriarch returned to her kingdom than she’d proclaimed Abi and Ryder’s wedding would take place tomorrow evening.

Abi and Ryder couldn’t have cared less when or even if the wedding took place, since they’d pretty much been married from the moment they’d met. So they were the only people not stressing out over last-minute details. The rest of the Harpers had tried convincing Naya to postpone it a few days, but she’d calmly, if not completely politely, stated she’d waited long enough for one of her kids to get married and she wasn’t waiting one goddamned day longer.

The ceremony wouldn’t be a problem. Naya had completed the celebrant course and received her certificate the day after Ryder and Abi had broken the news of their engagement. Only the nine of them would attend the ceremony, so that wasn’t an issue. And the Wishing Tree was stunning enough without ribbons and bows. The reception, on the other hand, sounded as if it would involve the entire town. But even that was handled with the same bickering and laughter the Harpers tackled everything with.

Jarrah and Kira had been tasked with alerting Baroona’s gossip net, which by all accounts was quicker and more efficient than the interwebs, while Maddie and Ryder had marshaled the mustering crew to prepare the courtyard for the impending invasion. Olivia had raised the question of rain only to have the entire dining room fall silent before exploding with laughter.

Food and drinks weren’t going to be a problem, either, considering Wingarra’s pantries, fridges, and deep freezers overflowed with the spoils of her holiday doctoring, and the guests would bring platters of food and coolers of drinks with them. It had taken her a while to catch on, but unlike the L.A. weddings she’d attended, Outback weddings were more about friends and family coming together to party rather than to keep up with the Joneses. Everybody was invited. Dressing up was purely voluntary. Everyone brought their own chairs and tables and sat wherever the hell they wanted. Eating, drinking, dancing, and singing were mandatory. And expensive presents frowned upon. The whole affair appeared to have more in common with a huge barbecue than a wedding, and that only added to the excitement.

Olivia’s mind drifted to rusted utes, Wishing Trees, and a certain naked stockman; just like it had done whenever she hadn’t been helping with the wedding or seeing treat-bearing patients. Her heart rate spiked as sensations from the previous night pumped heat through the X-rated parts of her that still hadn’t calmed down: Jarrah dragging her out of the Land Cruiser and crushing her to his chest, his fingers clawing into her naked butt as he hoisted her onto the ute and pushed between her thighs, the moonlight glistening off the ridges and valleys carved into his torso, his steel cock sliding in—

She wrenched off the sheet and gasped in air. The orgasm that’d torn through her while she’d clung to him had been like nothing she’d ever experienced. Frantic, forbidden, exhilarating, magical, and terrifying all at the same time. Even as she’d shuddered and collapsed into his embrace, she’d known a few desperate stolen moments in the desert were never going to be enough.

Despite his hand remaining locked around her thigh and his gaze never drifting too far from hers, she’d spent the silent drive back to Wingarra working through the five stages of grief while preparing for reality to crash through her afterglow. Denial, anger, and bargaining had been easy. She’d been living in denial from the moment she’d realized that more than just a playboy lurked beneath his cheeky grin. She’d also been bargaining lust against logic since she’d seen him working the heavy bag. Anger had even put in a brief appearance when she’d finally admitted to herself that the first man who’d ever actually rocked her world was the one man she couldn’t have.

What she hadn’t expected was the bone-deep sorrow. She’d experienced more than her fair share of lows, yet the prospect of only sharing a few weeks with him before starting her new job hurt more than she imagined. Especially when she should be jumping out of her skin at the prospect of working off some energy and living it up before starting the career she’d worked toward her entire life.

They’d barely exchanged more than a hesitant nod while she’d crawled home in second gear. By the time she’d parked in the courtyard and climbed out of the cabin, she’d grudgingly reached acceptance. If the frenzied erotic moments they’d just shared were all life threw her way, they’d still be some of the most unforgettable minutes she’d ever experience.

He’d already assumed the role of the sensible member of their whatever the hell it was when he’d somehow broken free of their naked wrestle to wrench on a condom. And with blood flow restored to her brain during the drive home, she’d prepared herself for whatever came. If he’d wanted to pretend it never happened, or put the brakes on before things got even crazier, she’d suck it up. Hell, she was a big girl with the world at her feet, and it wasn’t as if they’d ever had a chance of being anything more than workout buddies.

But instead of being sensible, Jarrah had pulled her into the shadows beneath one of Wingarra’s eucalypts and kissed her until she once again drowned in something way more powerful and foreign than adrenaline.

“This isn’t over.”

Her nipples pebbled beneath her T-shirt and heat pooled between her thighs as his whispered warning replayed over and over in her head. That’s all he’d said before he’d caressed her swollen lips with his thumb, gently turned her toward the Big House, and slapped her butt. He’d watched her stumble up the steps from the shadows like some sexy ninja stockman before disappearing into the night without another word.

They were two fully grown adults who’d experienced enough of life to know exactly what they were getting into. Which probably explained why they’d snuck home like a pair of wayward teens. Something had changed out there in the moonlit desert that was hard enough to deal with without their loved ones finding out and highlighting just how stupid and selfish they’d been.

She’d expected the inevitable questions about their run-in with Dean and his cronies. But after everyone had exhausted their anger on Jarrah for putting her in danger, they’d spent the rest of breakfast grilling them about what they’d gotten up to after leaving the Grand.

She and Jarrah had exchanged more moans and groans than actual words beneath the Wishing Tree, yet they were well and truly on the same wavelength when it came to their families. Thank God for Jarrah, who switched back into lawyer mode to handle the prosecution. The only problem was the more he calmly redirected the interrogation, the hotter she’d gotten remembering the body that came with the brain and charm.

She blew out a breath and mopped the sweat beading on her face with her T-shirt before flopping onto her stomach. If spending the day around Jarrah without attacking him hadn’t driven her insane, lying in bed reliving the strength and gentleness of his hands and his soft lips sliding over her slick skin sure as hell would.

Her phone vibrated to life and wrenched her from her fantasies. She snatched it off the bedside table and blinked at the message glowing back at her. “Get dressed.”

A dozen emotions hit her at once and she was too busy smiling to care.

Her phone buzzed again. “Something easy to remove.”

She shot upright and forced herself to count to ten. She wasn’t a giddy teenager, for Christ’s sake. She was a fully grown woman. She gave up after four and tapped in a reply. “Who is this?”

A muffled buzz outside her window followed by a whispered curse had her fighting back laughter.

“You’ve got two minutes before I’m climbing in after you.”

Her fingers trembled so much she almost gave up on her phone, but the sheer absurdity only excited her more. “What about the two guys I’m with?”

His growl shattered her self-control. She tossed her phone and scrambled in the half-light for her jeans and boots before sticking her head out the window.

It was probably the lust that’d been gnawing away at her brain, because he somehow looked even sexier as he glared up at her and extended his arms. She was already clambering out the window before she’d even comprehended just how stupid they must have looked.

As soon as her boots touched down, he wrapped his arms around her and captured her mouth with his. Clawing her hands into his back, she explored his mouth with her tongue and drove her hips against his. His erection hardened against her as she clung to him and ground up and down his length.

“You’re going to end me, woman.” His guttural words tickled her ear as he nibbled his way along her cheek and down her neck.

With a groan, he broke free and tugged her through the shadows toward the stables. She was still catching her breath and stumbling after him when she caught sight of two saddled horses tied to a fence. “But I can’t ride.”

Of all the concerns swirling in her head that’d been the thing her brain had decided to broadcast.

“I’ll teach you.”

She’d had no shortage of volunteers to teach her what the stockwomen and men had turned into an art form. However, with Ethan’s accident and her pop-up medical clinic, the closest she’d come to an actual ride had been sneaking treats to the horses.

“Doc, Delores. Delores, Doc.”

Jarrah reintroduced her to the beautiful old girl he’d ridden the first day of the muster. Delores looked almost as happy to be saddled up in the middle of the night as Olivia was about her first riding lesson in the dark. Before Olivia had even begun to list off her objections he’d manhandled her into position, clamped her hand around the knobbly bit on the front of the saddle, and shoved her boot into the stirrup.

“On three.”

She was still reveling in the sensation of having his hand firmly cupping her butt by the time he’d reached three, and the next thing she knew she was sitting atop Delores and smiling into the night like a teenage Annie Oakley.

Her glory was short-lived because no matter how elegant she thought she’d been, there was no way in hell she could’ve looked anywhere near as graceful as he did as he vaulted onto his saddle without even using the stirrups. One instant the smart-ass was grinning up at her from the ground, the next he was sitting astride the huge horse he’d saddled for himself and smiling even harder as he picked up Delores’s reins and led them around the back of the stables and into the desert.

The peace that came with the desolation flowed over her as they walked silently through the scrub. The day’s iridescent reds, oranges, and yellows had surrendered to the night’s somber silvers, purples, and blues, and made the dreamlike scene even more surreal.

“It’s…it’s…” She gave up trying to come up with the right words and turned to him just as they cleared the shadows cast by the eucalypts guarding the Big Pond.

Her breath hitched, and her throat clamped shut as moonlight washed over him. He looked more ghost than man. His dark hair and features blended into the night, yet even through the darkness, the weight of his gaze cradled her. Two rows of white teeth shimmered as he gestured to the sky. She followed his finger and nearly fell off Delores as she tried taking in the magnificence exploding above them.

She’d read the articles, watched the YouTube clips, and listened to Abi’s stories, but nothing could’ve prepared her for the universe’s majesty unfolding above her in all its unpolluted glory. “It’s…it’s…amazing.”

Amazing. She felt almost as insignificant as the word that’d leaked out of her mouth and dribbled down her chin as she craned her neck back even further in a futile attempt to absorb it all.

“So are you.”

She’d been so captivated by the view she’d failed to realize how close he’d drawn until his voice caressed her. Men had called her amazing before, but the word had never caused her heart to race or her stomach to churn.

“Ditto.” The only thing more pathetic than her squeaky voice was the lameness of her response. Yet his widening smile had her feeling like a seductress. When had she ever been this nervous around a man? Normally, she’d have called the shots and done the flirting. The longer she spent with him the more uncoordinated she felt and the more balance she lost.

Time evaporated into the night as they approached an oasis of eucalypts that must have marked another one of Wingarra’s magical springs. She’d been dying to explore the wonders she’d heard so much about. However, the last few days had been as hectic as the next few promised to be.

“This aquifer’s much smaller than the Big Pond, but it has a surprise.”

She was pretty sure the surprise he referred to wasn’t a naked Jarrah thrusting between her thighs, but she couldn’t blame herself for hoping.

Sliding from his horse as effortlessly as he’d mounted it, he led them to the glowing white trunk of a fallen tree and tied up their horses before helping her down.

She made sure to rub every part of her over every hard bit of him before straightening and innocently studying the area. “What’s the surprise?”

He shook his head while eyeing her. “You’ll see.”

His smile had her wondering whether she’d unknowingly spoken her thoughts out loud or his legal success was purely due to his mind-reading abilities. A hefty dose of lust swamped her curiosity as he untied what looked like a blanket from his saddle and tucked it under his arm before gesturing to a gap in the trees.

She was a big girl. She knew exactly what they were doing out here. That didn’t mean she had to take it easy on him. “So, how many poor innocent stockwomen have you lured out here with your Romeo routine?”

He ducked beneath a low hanging branch before holding back another for her. “Counting you?”

“Yup.” She squeezed past and took the opportunity to grope the healthy bulge beneath his jeans before edging around a chest-high rocky outcrop.

She ground her teeth and waited while he looked to the canopy and slowly counted off on his right hand. She gave up and shoved him when he swapped the blanket to the opposite armpit and started counting off with his left.

She was still muttering curses when she cleared the trees and rocks and stumbled into a shaft of moonlight plunging into a glimmering pool that exploded at her feet like a huge iridescent opal. The glowing beam must have come directly from God, or whoever the hell was in charge up there, because it transformed the water into a bottomless rainbow that appeared to descend forever.

She slowly turned and found him gazing at her. The sly grin he’d teased her with had disappeared, along with the confidence that was as much a part of his arsenal as his charm. He looked lost, almost fragile, as he opened his mouth, only to close it again without breaking the silence that had closed in around them.

…

Jarrah stood frozen in the shadows as Olivia tilted her head and studied him. Her blond hair cascaded over one shoulder and shimmered in the moonlight like a golden halo while the playful smile she’d tortured him with slowly faded.

The smooth line he’d been about to deliver tripped over his tongue and fell arse-backward down his throat as the magnitude of what stood before him finally sank in. He’d convinced himself lust had driven him to bring her here, but that was bullshit. If he’d just wanted a slow-motion replay of what they’d done to each other the previous night, he could’ve lured her back to his makeshift bachelor pad or one of the other secret hideaways he’d used to corrupt women in the past. Something other than his addiction for her had brought him to this magical place and he only now understood why.

He wanted to show her how special she was. He needed her to understand this wasn’t just sex between two consenting adults. His throat had choked on the words as surely as his balls had crawled up into his gut. He’d spent the better part of his adult life honing his brain and mouth into weapons only to have this creature with the indestructible spirit disarm him in less than a week and turn him into a blubbering idiot. He raised one finger and prayed she understood.

Her gaze slid to his finger before a smile exploded across her face. “One dozen or one hundred?”

He slowly shook his head and raised his finger higher as her nervous laughter rippled through the silence. With each chuckle, her humor faded and her eyes darted between his hand and his face as if she were waiting for the same punch line that had slammed into his chest a few heartbeats ago. The tiny part of his mind that wasn’t completely captivated by her threw strategy after strategy at him to enable him to escape with his self-esteem intact. He didn’t need self-esteem; he needed her, in ways that had him scrambling for a distraction so he could get his stalled brain to kick over.

He gestured to the pond as casually as he could and hoped the shadows would conceal his trembling fingers. “The colors come from the moonlight reflecting off the algae growing on the pond’s banks.” He tried swallowing only to discover his mouth had become as dry as the ground beneath his boots. “You can see the colors in the daylight, but they’re nowhere near as vivid.”

Instead of bursting out laughing at his lame-arse David Attenborough impersonation, she lost herself in the kaleidoscope shimmering beneath the pond’s surface. “I-I’m glad you brought me here.”

Her voice was just above a whisper, yet he’d heard every word. His senses were so tuned to her he’d also picked up the most un-Olivia-like stutter, which he wasn’t too proud to admit made him feel a hell of a lot better.

“Last night meant a lot to me.”

She flinched even though he’d whispered. Instead of turning to face him, she steadied herself and continued starting into the luminescent rainbow glowing at her feet like it was a window into the future. “Ditto.”

He had no idea why he was still holding his breath. Her admission should’ve eased the tension in his chest enough for him to suck in a breath. Yet he remained rooted in the dust like the ancient eucalypts surrounding them.

“Have you ever felt anything like this before?” He could almost see his words drifting through the moonlight separating them on the tattered remains of his pride. He’d spent the day trying to figure out what the hell was happening to him. He’d even considered consulting his oracle mother. But that would’ve filled her with hope that time and reality would eventually squash. And for once he doubted even his mother and all her indigenous voodoo could’ve helped. There was only one person who might have had any idea what he was going through, and she stood like a dream before him in a shaft of moonlight that somehow made her even more mesmerizing.

Silence once again fell over the pond like a heavy blanket as his mind thudded almost as hard as his heart. Even the insects that had been serenading them paused their nighttime make-out sessions to watch him make a fool of himself. His heart stopped mid-hammer as she slowly turned and locked her gaze on him. A smile flickered across her face as if she was searching his features for the hidden joke before she sobered and rocked back on her heels.

Fear allied with the panic clamping around his chest to squeeze what air remained from his lungs. He wasn’t sure whether he was scared she’d burst out laughing or she’d slowly shake her head and introduce him to a world he knew nothing about. He’d cared for every woman he’d slept with, but this was different; she was different.

Her chest rose beneath her T-shirt as she nibbled her bottom lip and drew in a deep breath. Even the sight of her breasts stretching the thin cotton couldn’t shift his focus from her wide, searching eyes. She took a hesitant step toward him. Time stood still as she stopped in the epicenter of the moonlight, as if she’d been sent to him from the heavens before she shrugged and slowly shook her head.

He had no idea whether that was good or bad. He returned her shrug like the fool he was because he was powerless to do much else. Releasing the breath he’d held, he eased into the moonlight and inched toward her. “I guess it’s too late to take things slow?”

Seconds dragged by before she nodded and took a step closer. “We could pretend last night never happened?”

A decade of corporate law and social networking had turned him into a Jedi bullshit artist. He could fake enthusiasm in his peers’ status and possessions, impersonate the corporate and social elite when he had to, and ignore the homesickness gnawing away at him when he fell asleep at his desk. His chances of pretending last night never happened ranked right down there with convincing himself their way-too-brief escape from reality had just been lust.

The dirt beneath his boots turned to quicksand with each hesitant step. “That’d be the smart thing to do.” He’d passed smart days ago and rocketed past the exit to stupid last night. That only left the exits to regret, pain, and misery before insanity.

The life seemed to drain out of her as she slowly waved a hand between them and sighed. “Better to end this now before things get out of hand.” She chuckled and shook her head. “I mean, it’s not like we don’t know where this road’s headed.”

Yeah, off the end of a freaking cliff. Dragging in a steadying breath, he unclenched his fists and rolled the tension from his shoulders. His childhood may not have been all sunshine and rainbows, but what it had taught him was that if given the option of giving up or facing your fears, it was always better to come out swinging.

“What’s—” Cursing the chicken-shit squeak in his voice he cleared his throat and shrugged as if he wasn’t standing just a few meters away from the most terrifying creature he’d ever faced. “What’s the matter, Doc? Afraid you won’t be able to control yourself around me?”

The fire that had set him ablaze the first time he’d tumbled into her eyes erupted to life as she straightened, folded her arms across her chest, and glared at him. “I’m not the one whose voice just cracked.”

Damn, what a woman. He suppressed a smile and used the time to ensure his puberty held. “What did you have in mind?”

He was strung so tight he was ready to snap clean in half, and she plucked him like a five-dollar ukulele as she nibbled her bottom lip and inched her gaze down and up his body. “Rumor has it we’re two fully grown adults who’ve played this game long enough to know the difference between reality and make-believe.”

If he hadn’t spent so much time studying her over the last week, she might have fooled him with the tough talk, but something foreign had leaked into her opening argument: uncertainty, regret? The part of him that wanted to protect her from the world screamed for him to say something, to ease her apprehension, to comfort her, yet a lifetime negotiating multimillion-dollar contracts had taught him when to shut up. And this deal was a shitload more important than money.

She shrugged and lowered her arms. “I’m sure we can come to some sort of understanding.”

The air separating them grew thicker with each word as he forced himself to smile. He’d lived his life floating from one friend with benefits to the next, and he was proud to still call most of them friends. The problem was he didn’t want to be just her friend. Then again, no one ever said life was fair, and sometimes you just had to man up and play the hand you were dealt.

He dragged himself out of the quicksand that’d almost drowned him and closed the distance between them. “Sounds like we need a contract. I might know a pretty good lawyer.”

The tension eased from her shoulders as she shook her head. “I don’t trust lawyers.”

A meter of moonlight separated them, but her presence embraced him as surely as if she’d tackled him. “Me neither.”

A hint of the smart-arse grin that drove him nuts curved the corner of her mouth as she extended her hand. “One casual, private vacation fling between two consenting adults before they both return to their careers and real lives.”

There was nothing casual about the electricity crackling from her fingertips. And this so-called vacation fling had enough strings and trip wires hanging off it to capture a ninja.

He ignored the huge countdown timer ticking above their heads and captured her hand. “We fling each other around for a few weeks before shaking hands and returning to our real lives. No commitments, no regrets, no awkward family gatherings in the future.”

He couldn’t figure out whose laughter sounded faker. And if he hadn’t been so preoccupied playing it cool, he might’ve realized what a huge freaking mistake touching her was. Because now that he had hold of her he never wanted to let her go.

…

If Olivia’s heart hadn’t been beating so fast, she might’ve laughed at the extraordinary measures Jarrah took to avoid her gaze. It was just as well he hadn’t looked at her, because she’d tried letting go of his hand twice already and only succeeded in clinging to him even tighter.

She didn’t want to let him go. Hell, she wanted to drag him down into the dirt and lick every rock-hard inch of him. The longer she lingered in this fairy tale, the deeper she tumbled, and the harder and more painful the journey back home would be.

Three weeks was way too long for a casual fling. And somehow nowhere near long enough. But what would she regret most when she returned to L.A. and dove back into eighty-hour weeks and an all-consuming career? An exhilarating—if unwise—affair with an incredible man, or holding something back because she was too scared to live? Ignoring the consequences lurking on her horizon, she tightened her grip and pulled herself deeper into the dream.

She splayed her free hand over his chest and released the bottom lip she’d been chewing. “So when do we start flinging each other around?”

His body turned to stone beneath her touch while the night swallowed her words. Long seconds passed before a sigh seemed to drain the strength from his body as he stared up into the heavens. It was as if he’d been fighting the same gravity that’d dragged her through the moonlight toward him. Her pulse raced to keep pace with the heart thudding beneath her palm as she leaned closer and breathed him in.

Inch by agonizing inch, his gaze dropped. Sliding free of her grip, he whispered a curse and caressed her cheek with his fingertips. “You sure?”

She inched her hands up his chest and locked them around his neck. “Are you?”

Hesitant, soft, gentle, the kiss was nothing like the ones they’d assaulted each other with the night before. They couldn’t blame bar fights, fatigue, or adrenaline for their actions. This was premeditated insanity, and the longer his lips lingered on hers and the more her tongue danced with his, the further tomorrow and whatever the hell it brought drifted away.

He eased out of her embrace just long enough to spread the blanket on the ground before pulling her against him and exploring her body with his lips, his tongue, and his hands. Surrendering, she melted against him and savored every caress, shared breath, and gentle rock of their hips.

Her threadbare T-shirt and bra provided little protection against the impact of his touch as he trickled fingers over her breasts. He slowed just long enough to torture her nipples through the cotton and have her groaning into his mouth before capturing her waist.

She nibbled his bottom lip before trailing her teeth along his stubbled jaw toward his ear. “You’re going to pay for that, cowboy.”

His whispered chuckle rumbled through her as she slid her hands beneath his shirt and scaled his torso with her fingertips. His hands kept pace with hers until he cupped her breasts and gently massaged her nipples through the very practical, if not sexy, bra she’d thrown on in her haste to escape her room. With every moan leaking out of her, and every thrust of her hips, his delicate torture intensified until she wrenched off her top and clawed at his shirt. Breathless sighs transformed into groans, whispered moans to curses, and delicate caresses into a wrestling match that had buttons popping, cotton tearing, and zippers grinding open.

The tension that’d turned her into a jittery mess finally gave way as he battled her bra strap and she fought his belt. What started with a choked splutter morphed into a chuckle before descending into uncontrollable laughter as she gave up on his belt, dropped her head into the delicate forest of hair covering his heaving chest, and threw her arms around him to keep from collapsing.

He launched one more assault on her bra before cursing and trapping her against his torso. “I swear I’m smoother than this.” He broke free of her embrace and captured her face before dropping his forehead to hers. “Christ, you’ve turned me into a bumbling idiot, woman.”

He could’ve taken her to a fancy restaurant, booked a five-star hotel’s penthouse, bathed her in Dom Pérignon, and rained rose petals and diamonds down on her while Usher did his thing in the background, yet nothing could’ve made her feel sexier or more wanted than the frustration, embarrassment, and lust warring for control of his features.

She considered adding to his humiliation by unclipping the bra herself, but her racing heart made controlling her own hands impossible. Without shifting her gaze from his, she hitched her trembling fingers beneath her bra and slowly peeled the Lycra up and over her head. The move was far from sexy yet completely necessary given her desperation for the man standing just beyond her reach. A pained groan echoed through the silence as her breasts spilled free. The cool night air hardened her already aching nipples, yet all she could focus on was the bulge straining against his jeans and the memory of coming all over that cock as he plunged deep inside her.

“No.”

She froze with her fumbling fingers trapped inside her jeans and looked up to find him jutting out his hands and shaking his head. For a terrifying instant she feared the madness she’d planned had ended before it’d begun. The panic constricting her chest was almost as overwhelming as the heat pooled between her thighs and made it impossible to suck in enough breath to open her mouth.

She hadn’t even released the waistband of the panties she’d been about to tug down when he attacked.

The nervous teenager who’d disarmed her anxiety with his own desperation had been replaced by the smooth operator she’d heard so much about as he claimed her. He made love to her tongue, her lips, and her throat with his mouth and left a trail of smoldering ruins as he trickled liquid fire over her breasts with his fingertips. She tried escaping the exquisite torture to create some havoc of her own only to discover the hands that’d battled her bra just moments ago worshipped her with a gentleness she couldn’t bring herself to escape.

The symphony his hands played over her had her debating whether her feminine charms had turned him into a nervous wreck or his earlier clumsiness had been just an act to ease her fears. Before she’d figured out which scenario melted her heart more, he dropped to his knees and her brain checked out for good.

The path of destruction he’d carved over her breasts and stomach cooled as he nuzzled her belly and slid her jeans and panties over her hips and down her legs. He braced one arm around her butt while parting her thighs with the other. His whispered groan caressed her sex before he gently brushed the backs of his fingers over the pubic hair that had survived that evening’s manic grooming session. She made the mistake of looking down only to find him staring back up at her from between her breasts as he nuzzled her sex and flicked her clit with his tongue. Soft and delicate, his mouth was the complete opposite of the steel muscles encasing her legs.

With each gasped breath and helpless moan, she surrendered to him until he supported her entire weight. He continued kissing, licking, and sucking until the only things keeping her upright were the limp fingers tangled in his hair and the male worshipping her pussy.

Caress after caress, pull after pull, thrust after thrust, she slid deeper into the abyss until her body surrendered to the delicious pressure between her thighs. She clawed her fingers into his scalp and drove her clit into his mouth as shockwaves tore through her and she cried out into the night.

…

Jarrah clamped his arms around Olivia’s waist and savored every shuddering convulsion. Her scent was almost as intoxicating as the taste of her, and if it hadn’t been for his desperation to slide inside her, he’d have spent the rest of the night with his face buried between her thighs and his hands exploring every crest and valley of her body.

She gasped in between groans and slowly eased her death grip on his hair while she melted over him. The feel of her hanging limp and sated in his embrace made him feel like the king of the freaking universe. Supporting her lower back with one arm, he slid the other behind her thighs and scooped her into his arms. She squeaked in shock and stiffened before her dazed eyes found his.

“I got you.” He still had no idea what he’d done to deserve her, but for however long this roller coaster ride continued, he had her, and he was wasn’t letting go anytime soon.

She curled around him and claimed his mouth. Her eyes never left his as she captured his cheeks in her hands and licked herself from his face. With every one of her evil grins, his intentions of taking it slow grew more ludicrous. She knew exactly what she did to him, and that only added to his desperation.

He’d felt like a grade-A sleazebag for the depraved things he’d imagined doing to her. He wanted to fuck her forever, but if she rubbed herself over his crotch one more time, either his cock would split apart or he’d embarrass himself.

He laid her down beside him and braced his arms on the blanket to prevent her from dragging him down on top of her. He needed space to pull himself together, yet as soon as that creamy expanse of fantasy and mayhem stretched out beneath him he realized his mistake. He’d never met a breast he hadn’t liked, and as far as the female form went, he’d considered himself bloody lucky to have any woman share her body with him, but the woman splayed out before him was something else.

Unable to figure out what the hell to look at first, he lowered his gaze from her teasing eyes to her seductress’ smile before lingering on her chest. It was as if her breasts had been created to fill his hands alone, yet it was her taut, pink nipples that had him licking his lips like some rabid mongrel.

“Like what you see, cowboy?”

He tried getting his mouth to work and gave up after the third attempt. Nodding pathetically, he watched on in paralyzed silence as she toed off her boots and socks and slid free of the panties and jeans scrunched around her calves. Her skin glistened in the moonlight as she rose to her knees before him and trailed a finger along his parted lips, down his chest, and over the bulge in his jeans. “My turn.”

He captured her hand and shook his head. “I can’t— I mean— I haven’t got long.”

“Toughen up, cowboy.”

Her husky chuckle distracted him long enough for her to escape his hold and drag him down onto the blanket. While she yanked off his boots and jeans, he stared up at the universe unfolding above him and wondered what the hell he’d gotten himself into. He’d gone from predator to prey in a week. God only knew what she’d do to him in the time they had left. He only hoped they’d survive the inevitable crash landing.

He gritted his teeth and crushed the blanket in his fists as her fingers sank beneath the waistband of his briefs and carefully peeled the soaked cotton over his erection. He could almost hear the comical twang as his cock sprang free.

“My, my, I guess you did like what you saw.”

He looked down to find her grinning at him over the glistening head of his cock as the cool night air quenched his naked manhood. She dipped her finger in the pre-come oozing from the tip of his cock before sliding her glistening finger between her swollen lips. While she sucked and licked her finger clean and slowly pumped him with her other hand, he clawed at the blanket in a desperate attempt to stay in the game.

The pitiful shake of his head was almost as pathetic as the choked plea leaking from his mouth. She shook her head, winked, and engulfed his cock with her smiling lips. He cursed into the night and bucked off the blanket only to have her tighten her hold on his hips and ride out his protest before circling the head of his dick with her tongue.

He froze beneath her and heaved in air while trying to disarm the countdown timer she’d kicked into overdrive. His futile attempts to delay the inevitable by focusing on the emails clogging his inbox and the case files piling up on his desk crashed and burned as she sucked him into complete and total surrender.

And just like that, the wet heat she’d been slowly killing him with vanished and the cool night air quenched his cock. Looking down, he once again found her smiling at him while absently trailing the tip of her tongue up and down his glistening shaft. “I told you you’d pay.”

It could’ve been the mischief in her voice or the challenge in her eyes. It could even have been the simple truth that she was the most incredible woman he’d ever met, but something snapped inside him, something primal. Shoving upright, he grabbed hold of her and flipped her onto the blanket. He didn’t want to come in her hand, or even in her mouth. He wanted to come inside her, he wanted to claim her, he wanted to feel her body clenching around his cock and watch those eyes roll back in her head as she gave in to him over and over again.

Snatching a condom from his jeans, he ripped open the plastic and yanked the latex over his cock just as she sprang onto her knees. With a feral grunt, she shoved out his hips with her knee and hauled him onto his back before straddling him and locking her forearms around his head.

Her breath poured over him as he gasped in air and stared at the woman glaring back at him. Tightening her thighs around his, she sank her weight onto his waist and pressed her forehead to his. “You’re mine.”

…

Olivia melted into the warm muscle encasing her and grinned up at the universe smiling down on her. Jarrah’s heart thudded beneath her ear and counted down the seconds before they’d have to find their clothes and sneak back home. Home. She’d been here just a week, and this magical place already felt like a home.

She’d scrolled through the action replay of what she’d done to him while her heart rate had settled back into something resembling normal and still had no idea what had come over her. She’d never been one to lie back and let her partner lead, but she’d never mauled someone before, either. Then again, she’d never wanted a man as much as she’d wanted him. And the fact he seemed to enjoy relinquishing control to her as much as she enjoyed attacking him only intensified her addiction.

She bit him again while toying with the fluffy trail of dark hair leading to his exhausted manhood. The evidence of his release glistened in the moonlight and she couldn’t help herself. Wrapping her fingers around the shaft, she slowly pumped while circling his nipple with her tongue.

He groaned and licked her ear. “I can’t get enough of you.” As if backing up his whispered threat, he stiffened in her hand.

Her body responded as she knew it would while memories of what she’d just experienced replayed over and over in her mind. His contorted features gazing up at her, his body convulsing and thrusting her into the air, and his cock impaling her as he groaned her name into the night and shattered beneath her. The sound of her name pouring out of him while he’d emptied himself inside her had dragged her over the edge and had her plummeting into her own madness.

He fumbled for his jeans and yanked out another condom before rolling it over his erection. She helped as best she could, rubbing here, squeezing there, massaging this, stroking that. However, her assistance only seemed to fluster him even more. Then again, that might have been her plan all along. Driving him crazy was very quickly becoming one of her favorite pastimes. Right up there with arguing with him, laughing with him, and now making love with him.

He cursed and rolled on top of her, effectively pinning her body with his. She considered fighting for her freedom, but there were a hell of a lot of worse places to be than trapped beneath a man who turned her on as much as he melted her heart. A warrior, a scholar, a friend, and now a lover, Mereki the Guardian, who’d flipped her life upside down in just one week.

He cradled her face in his hands and pushed between her thighs as he trailed kisses across her forehead and down her nose. She opened her thighs and mouth for him before capturing him in her arms and legs and pulling him close.

With each delicate kiss, he sank deeper until he joined their bodies. “This isn’t over.”

She gasped and shook her head as she dove into the black pools staring down at her. “Ditto.”