“Sleep with me.”
“Anything else you’d like to demand?” she asked, her voice sounding far away as he let himself relax into sleep.
“Only forever, Belle.”
“All right, but only because you asked politely.”
He smiled to himself. He didn’t ask. But that was okay. He could let her think she had the last word. As long as he had her, Belinda Riggs could have any damn word she wanted.
Epilogue
I am not going to whimper.
She groaned, thank you very much. She groaned and her legs fell open beneath the guiding hands of her husband. Absolute surrender had a way of turning her into a lump of jelly, something Lucas knew good and well. Not that he stopped, damn him.
Instead, she felt his smile against the wet lips of her sex. Then he delved his tongue inside again, a slow, devastating entry. He eased it into her, circling her internal walls with thorough swipes. When he’d laved every drop of moisture from her, he started all over again, slower than the last time.
Ah shit, I whimpered.
In response, he moved up again, swirling over her clit, surrounding it to draw it deep.
“Lucas!” Her body shuddered completely without her consent, her hands knotting into his hair to keep him exactly where he was while she rode the volcanic pleasure of her orgasm. Not that he seemed to have any interest in leaving. Why would he, when he was getting exactly what he wanted?
She let go, melting back onto their bed while he lapped lazily at her folds, easing her back down from possibly the biggest explosion she’d ever known.
“I think I like this game,” he rumbled. His voice sent another shiver through her, which seemed to make him chuckle. His big hand settled over the small swell of her belly, caressing gently and making shushing sounds. “Just take slow breaths. You don’t want to upset anyone down here.”
“Oh sure, think of that
now
,” she muttered into his pillow. Probably didn’t have enough bite, since she couldn’t wipe the stupid grin off her face. “And this isn’t a game. I’m not going, and no amount of seducing is going to make me, either. Tell your moron brother he doesn’t need me there.”
Lucas stretched out his long, long body behind her, warming her already hot skin. Couldn’t he hear her sizzling or was he just ignoring it? “Yes he does, you’re his best friend.”
Worse, he was stoking the heat up higher. She wiggled her ass against his cock, an invitation even he should have been able to pick up on.
His hands settled her hips, holding her in place so easy it was just ridiculous. He thought he was so in control here, did he? Just because he was turning her body to boneless mush.
“
Jessica’s
his best friend.” She blew her bangs out of her eyes in frustration.
Why isn’t he inside me already?
“She’s there. I don’t see where he needs me.”
“Jessica’s the
bride
. She has to be there. And let me remind you, it’s taken him three years to get her there. Stop being a spoil-sport. You lost. Pay up.”
Belinda fake-sobbed, yanking her own pillow out from under him to hold over her face. “I hate weddings.”
“You liked
ours
.”
“I got to
drink
at ours.” Thanks to the two little morsels he’d knocked her up with two months ago, tequila shooters were not going to be on the menu. “As cranky as these kids are, I’ll probably throw up all over the reception table.”
“Probably.”
She pulled the pillow off to look over her shoulder at him. “You could sound a little more sympathetic about it.”
“I sympathize.”
Sure he did. That’s why his hand had drifted from her hip to her bare breasts, which had expanded from a raisin smuggling operation to a grapefruit shipping company. Much to Lucas’s absolute glee, the pig.
“No. There’s going to be a whole legion of Lonnigans there. Everyone’s going to be feeling my stomach and giving me tips on morning sickness.” Which she didn’t need. If there was one thing a Riggs knew how to handle, it was morning sickness.
Lucas frowned. Then his fingers found her oversensitive nipple, earning a gasp. He squeezed it, making stars of sensation form in her eyes and her whole body arch. Her breast pushed into his hand and her ass lurched against his cock again, which slid against her folds like a tease. He made the whole thing worse by rocking back and forth against her. Sadistic bastard.
“You said if I made you come in less than a minute, you’d go. I held up my end. Since when do
you
renege on deals?”
Since pregnancy had turned her into an orgasm machine. The man barely had to breathe on her anymore and she was so hot to trot she practically exploded at the sound of his voice.
If they’d told her that was a side effect of pregnancy, she’d have considered getting knocked up on their honeymoon. But no, dumb as she was, she’d waited until she was sure they wouldn’t kill each other with the day-in, day-out grind of being together. They’d had a few drag-out arguments—Lucas was just never going to learn how to give in gracefully—but so far, all the furniture was intact and the dog was alive and well. Then there was all that happiness she kept feeling. Didn’t seem fair to keep it to herself.
Of course, she hadn’t expected Lucas to hit double-trouble the first time out the gate. He was going to pay for that one.
“I’m not reneging,” she finally relented. Curving her back into his chest, she lifted her leg and slid it over the top of his, leaving herself wide open for him. It was his turn to groan, the broad head of his cock sinking just deep enough into her before slipping out of alignment that it counted as a kiss. “I guess I was just hoping for double or nothing.”
She wriggled for him again, smiling when his ocean-colored eyes darkened.
Got you.
“You sure you can take me?”
Her fingers slid down between her thighs, one nudging her clit while the others stroked his cock back where it belonged. Inside her. She smiled at the sense of completion. Knew by his answering grin that he felt the same way.
“Mm-hmm, Lonnigan. Any time, any place.”
He thrust against her, shuttling through her depths and sending her nerve endings singing. She gasped, already starting to cry out when he did it again, this time coupling it with a pinch to her nipple.
“Just remember, Belle.” He clutched her close, teeth at the sensitive cord of her neck, pressing even deeper. “You dared me.”
She was too busy coming apart around him to argue.
About the Author
Dee Tenorio is a sick woman. Really sick. She enjoys tormenting herself by writing romantic comedies (often with sexy, grumpy heroes and smart-mouthed heroines) and sizzling, steamy romances of various genres spanning dramas with the occasional drop of suspense all the way to erotic romance. But why does that make her sick?
Because she truly seems to enjoy it.
And she has every intention of keeping at it!
If you would like to learn more about Dee and her work, please visit her website at
www.deetenorio.com
or her blog at
www.deetenorio.com/Blog
.
Look for these titles by Dee Tenorio
Now Available:
The Lonnigans
All of You
Midnight
Midnight Legacy
Midnight Temptation
Midnight Sonata
Rancho Del Cielo
Betting Hearts
Burn for Me
Love Me Tomorrow
Love Me Knots
Kiss Me Again
Test Me!
Coming Soon:
Shaken
He found the right girl…too bad he’s the wrong date.
All Of You
© 2010 Dee Tenorio
The Lonnigans, Book 1
Kyle Lonnigan can’t say he hasn’t enjoyed the bachelor life. Good times and good money have always come easily to him. But now he wants something more, maybe even—gulp—a wife and family. Always the man with the plan, he consults the expert in boring, his identical twin Lucas, who suggests secretly switching dates for a night. Kyle never expected to meet his dream woman…and now
she
thinks he’s someone else.
Career-minded Jessica Saunders fully intends to break up with Lucas, but the man who meets her for dinner is soooo delicious, she can’t resist seducing him first. When she learns she’s been duped—worse, that Kyle wants more than a part-time lover— she sends him packing. Jessica doesn’t believe in happily ever after. If her early life taught her anything, it’s to trust no one but herself.
Yet for a man who’s done everything wrong, wants everything she’s not and drives her absolutely insane, Kyle is getting under her skin. And into her bed. And, if she’s not careful…into the heart she thought no longer existed.
Enjoy the following excerpt for All Of You:
Jessica let out a squawk when Dory suddenly shoved her inside the car with the force of a middle linebacker. It was all Kyle could do to catch her as the doors shut in front of Dory’s waggling fingers.
“I’m not sure who to kill first, you or her,” Jessica said into his shoulder. She found her footing and had just leveled him a dirty look when the elevator gave a sickening lurch and tumbled them into each other all over again. The lights flickered overhead and the bottom of Kyle’s stomach disappeared entirely.
“Her,” he heard himself saying, never afraid to throw an old lady under a bus when she had it coming. “Definitely her.” As last words went, they probably weren’t all too heroic, but he didn’t have much time to take them back. The lack of movement was registering in his brain and he expected the panic to follow as soon as it did. His throat was already tightening. He watched his hands claw around Jessica’s shoulders, denting the felt fabric of her coat. Against his will, he looked up at the sealed doors. Sealed. Like a tomb. Like the cold, metal box of death it was.
Dory wouldn’t lock him in an elevator, would she?
Could
she? She wouldn’t do that to him. Not that he’d gotten around to telling her about his problem. His usually insignificant, fairly-easy-to-ignore problem.
“Kyle, you’re hurting me,” Jessica said quietly. Or maybe she just sounded quiet. Distant. It was hard to hear anything over the blood rushing through his ears. “Kyle!”
“What? Oh…sorry.” He pried his fingers off her and took the two steps backward he could. Her frown reshaped into a softer expression. He wedged himself into the corner of the car, finding small comfort in the cool mirrors at his back and even less in the decorative handrail. It was so thin it wasn’t going to do any good should the car suddenly plummet to the…not a positive thought. Was it Dr. Rosen who’d said to think positively? Positive thinking wasn’t going to open those doors until the power came back on.
“Does this happen often?” They wouldn’t be in here long. Five minutes, tops. Right?
“Does what happen? Timed abductions of lawyers?”
“Wouldn’t I have to get you out of the building to abduct you?”
“I’m not sure. I’ll have to check with our criminal department when the doors open.”
She didn’t sound terribly put out. He, on the other hand, could feel that cold tingling at the base of his spine. Soon, his throat would close entirely and the edges of his vision would turn black. But not before his lungs turned leaden. Air would stop coming in and then there’d be that embarrassing hyperventilating scene. If he was lucky, he’d pass out before she realized he was a frothing, lathering idiot.
“Well, point me to your best guy.” He forced himself to keep talking. Stave off the humiliation a little longer. “This is a double ambush, as far as I’m concerned.”
“Oh, I don’t doubt that,” Jessica grumbled, her tone dark and foreboding.
Not wanting to think what that could mean, Kyle concentrated on the carpet. If you focused your attention intently on one thing, breathing carefully, you could maintain control. Frowning, he stared down until he could see the faint repeating pattern of the carpet loops. He focused tighter, counting the number of loops before it began to repeat.
Amazingly, the trickle of cold sweat felt less like acid and his throat stopped squeezing itself so tight. Air swept into his lungs as he saw all the space between the loops. Tons of space. Miles and miles and miles—
“You should really sit down. It’ll help.”
“Help what?” Smooth, smooth. She’d never guess he was hanging on to the railing as if it were supplying his life’s blood.
Her mouth quirked. “I had a brother once who hated small spaces.”
Just once? You mean you can trade them in?
“Who said I hate small spaces?”
“Considering you broke into a sweat the second the car stopped and you’re barely looking me in the eye, I put it together. My brother used to throw up. You’re not going to do that, are you?”
God, he hoped not. “I won’t if you stop talking about it.”
“Sounds fair.”
His breaths were coming in short pants. “You’re being awful calm for someone who just got knocked into a metal box with a man she hates.”
“I don’t hate you.” Kyle decided not to get his hopes up. “When I’m not absolutely enraged with you, I actually think you’re funny and interesting. Since I have no idea how long we’re going to be stuck together, I see no reason to waste energy being angry.”
Yup. Smart conservation of optimism. “Not until you know you can walk out sometime soon.”
“Exactly.” She scrunched her nose and dropped her heavy bag to the ground. She sat next to it, her long legs extended in front of her, crossed at the ankles. She couldn’t have looked more comfortable if she were on a pillow. “By the way, that counting thing you’re doing will only distract you from your problem for so long. If you don’t find a way to get past it, eventually, you’ll run out of spots in the ceiling or cracks in the wall. Then it’ll just be you, three walls and two locked doors.”
“If you’re looking for revenge, you’re getting it.”
“This isn’t revenge. Revenge would be telling you we don’t have one of those state-of-the-art braking systems that keeps us from skidding down the shaft to our fiery doom.”
Kyle swallowed at her cheerful tone.
“I’d be lying, but that’s not the point. It’s no fun if you don’t faint, Kyle.”
“I’ll have to do better the next time we get hijacked in an elevator.”
“Careful what you wish for. Apple slice?” Jessica flipped open her satchel and pulled out a plastic container. He shook his head as she opened it, snitched a fruit slice and crunched into it without batting an eyelash. “How’d you end up this way, anyway? You’re usually so easy in your skin.”
Which didn’t sound like a compliment. But it
was
interest. “Spend nine months in a small dark place with Lucas and no way out, and you’d be permanently scarred too.”
She laughed, this time with none of the underlying anger. This could be positive. His chest lightened a little. “Yes, but I doubt that’s what caused your problem.”
“Why are you so interested in my psychological problems?”
“I’m not, but it passes the time. So, what happened?”
She waited, as if he were actually going to tell her. “I don’t think so.”
“If I promise not to tell your brother, will you tell me?”
“Isn’t that extortion?”
“Yes. Don’t look so surprised. It’s not as if you really know me. We had a nice night together, but good sex doesn’t mean I’m not capable of eating a man alive.”
Even in his strained state, Kyle had to smile as she realized what she’d just said. Her hand stuttered on its way to her mouth. She popped the remaining apple bit into her mouth and with wide eyes began chewing as if her next breath depended on it. She’d almost had him for a second there. Right up until she choked on her double entendre.
Why was she working so hard to make him think she was unfeeling? She was right, he didn’t know her favorite color or why she ate in those tiny, nibbling little bites. But did she think he didn’t remember those hours they’d spent before trying to devour each other in her bed? She hadn’t wanted to, but she’d shown him her personality, her interests, a tantalizing peek of the woman behind the professional mask.
Enough to make him want answers to those other questions.
He wanted to understand why just looking at her made him feel like the world stopped spinning. Or why sparring with her verbally gave him such an adrenaline rush. Why touching her felt better than touching anyone or anything else in the world.
Why she was so damn scared of him. “We could always talk about us.”
“Oh no. Every time you talk about us, it’s a new approach to get back in my bed.”
He slid down to the ground, still holding on to the rail but feeling less desperate. “You have a nice bed.”
“I know. And I don’t plan to share it.”
“Ever?”
“Allow me to rephrase. I don’t plan to share it with
you
.”
“Why not? You didn’t have any complaints last time.”
She made a choked, incredulous sound. “I’ve had nothing but complaints!”
“Not about the sex.”
Her mouth pursed tightly, but rather than admit the truth, she shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. I’m not going to sleep with you again. So all your elaborate plans, the meals, the plants, the ambushes…there’s no point. Set your sights on easier game.”
“Hey, I don’t
hunt
women. The women I sleep with know what’s going to happen and they’re equal participants. Even you. And they all knew there weren’t any promises. No commitment. No happily ever afters.”
“What about the last few days? What do you call that?”
A change of heart
. “You’re different,” he finally said with a shrug, not wanting to lie, even in this. Maybe especially in this. “I’ve never been with a woman who challenged me on so many levels. A woman like you brings a whole other dimension to the word stimulation.” He paused, watching her until he was sure she was taking him seriously. “The truth is, one night with you just wasn’t enough for me.”
She stared at him, her blasé mask finally gone. But she didn’t look happy. “It was hardly a
night
.” He made an effort not to raise his brows, but one might have gotten away from him because she sighed. “Fine, since you’re never going to let this go, yes, I liked what happened between us. But all I want in a man at this point in my life is one who can be good in bed and good enough to leave when we’re done without taking it personally.”
“I can do that.”
She rolled her eyes. “It wasn’t an invitation, Kyle.”
“Wasn’t it?”
She was cute when she stumbled through an attempt to speak. Her cheeks colored a soft rosy shade and she puckered her mouth over and over again, trying to find a word.
It was impossible to ignore.
He leaned over, letting go of the rails, and pressed his mouth to hers. He felt her gasp and was careful to keep the kiss gentle. Caressing. He could easily push too hard, move too fast, because of how hungry he was. He let himself breathe in her honeysuckle scent, savored the softness of her lips and felt pure relief that she wasn’t pushing him away. He smoothed his hand over her jaw, gliding his thumb over the silk of her cheek, tipping her chin closer. Her lashes fluttered closed, but she didn’t return the kiss. No matter how much it pleasure there was in just touching her, it wasn’t enough.
He needed more than acquiescence. He needed her to want him back.
“Say yes, Jess.”
Her heavy-lidded gaze met his.
He licked her bottom lip, almost a nip. “You know you want to.”
The dreamy haze in her eyes cleared in an instant. Too fast, damn it. He knew it. Too eager. He braced himself for her retreat.
Instead she slid her arm over his shoulder and pulled him down for her kiss.