Beast Untamed: Beasts of Bodmin Moor, Book 3 (10 page)

“Thanks.” She picked up her spoon and stabbed at the ice cream. “But I’m not diving right in again, just so you know.”

“Because you don’t know what you want? Or are you just plain scared, Erin?”

“Maybe both. Not that you’d know how that feels. I imagine you know exactly what you want, and you’ve never felt scared in your life.”

He dropped the spoon into the bowl and pushed it away. “I wouldn’t bet on that.” His eyes met hers. “There are many ways terror can strike your heart.”

What did that mean? Bloody hell. The man confused her, irritated her. “Why do you always manage to say things like that? Things that I can’t get my head around.”

He leaned back in his chair, much the way he had in the coffee shop. All arrogance and assurance. “You knocked me off balance from the start. You’re not the only one scared shitless here.”

“See? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I’m talking about how I planned to stay away. That after I realized you’d stood me up tonight, I told myself so be it. She doesn’t want to play, then it’s her loss. Plenty more where she came from. But you know what? That doesn’t cut it for me this time.” He raised his eyebrows. “And here I am, back for more.”

An unexpected thrill trickled along her spine, but she had to question his motives. He was a different-girl-a-night man, so why was he acting like this with her? Because she had got in first, and told him to leave before he could do it to her? Was he playing games? Testing her? She’d read that people could spot a weak, powerless person at a hundred paces. Was that how he saw her?

Nathan didn’t seem the type of man to exploit the weak, or be deliberately dishonorable. Except…

“What did Caroline Longworth do that was so bad you treated her like that on the night of Naomi’s party?”

Surprise flashed in his eyes, as if that had been the last question he’d been expecting, but then he shrugged. “Water under the bridge.”

“Not to me, it isn’t. I’d really like to know.”

He leaned forward and spooned up more ice cream. “The woman doesn’t understand boundaries.”

“And?” She sensed he didn’t want to speak out of turn but pressed him anyway.

“Caroline decided, after we’d hooked up, that we should be exclusive. Told her friends that I was with her now and they should stay away.”

Erin simply stared at him for long moments, then she let out a laugh. She couldn’t help it. “And that was bad enough that you embarrassed her in front of people?”

“She lied,” he said simply. “I don’t hold with that.”

“You led Caroline to believe we were together that night,” Erin felt compelled to point out. “Isn’t that a trifle hypocritical?”

“I said I was there for someone else. I didn’t say it was you. She was the one who joined the dots.”

Erin huffed. “Not especially hard to do, since you were standing up close to me at the time.”

“People see what they want to see.”

Heck. Sometimes he could be the most exasperating man. “Let me get this straight, then. You’re holding a grudge against Caroline because she effectively cut off a major supply of women you can call on. While that remains the case, does that make me an easy option?”

He shrugged again. “The supply wasn’t that major. And there’s nothing easy about you, sugar. Any coffee to wash down dessert?”

Since she imagined the topic wouldn’t yield any more in the way of discussion, Erin raised her eyebrows. “It needs washing down? Were my brownies that bad?”

He grinned. “Stop fishing for compliments. I already told you they were good. Where’d you learn to bake?”

“My mother. She was a great cook.”

“Was?”

Erin nodded. “She died three years ago. She and my father were on holiday in Thailand, and the boat they were in capsized in bad weather.”

“Shit. That’s tough.”

It had been at the time. Despite Erin never having had a close relationship with them, they were her parents. She often wondered if losing them had been a factor in sending her into Justin’s arms. Perhaps in an attempt to feel that she was important, that she was needed.

“What about you? Your parents.”

“Lost them both five years back. Within two months of each other. My father died of a heart attack, and my mother just went slowly down after that. She didn’t put up much of a fight to stay around, so I heard. I was in Afghanistan, so I didn’t get back in time to say good-bye.”

“I’m so sorry,” Erin said. “It’s really hard losing parents. Do you have any brothers or sisters?

“No. Only child.”

“Like me,” Erin said wistfully. She’d often thought how great it would have been to have siblings. “I don’t think my parents could have coped with any more children. Even I was one too many.”

Nathan frowned. “They didn’t want kids?”

“I think they’d have been happy enough without me. They were really into each other, their careers.” She inhaled, realizing she’d told him more than enough. “Did your parents want any more children?”

“They couldn’t have any. Period. I was adopted.”

“Oh.” For some reason, Erin hadn’t expected that. “They must have really loved you.”

“Yeah. So, your mother, did she teach you to cook anything else?”

Another skillful change of direction. Erin let it go. She knew how painful it could be to dwell on certain subjects. “She tried. But I do best with baking. I’m going to make some cakes for the café, see how they go. Sandie, my boss, says her supplier is getting more and more expensive, so it could be a win-win.”

“If you want a tester, I’m your man.”

Erin laughed. “You’ve got a sweet tooth by the looks of things. The way you enjoyed that ice cream…”

“Yeah. I’ve got a sweet tooth.” He grinned, slow and sexy. “I remember how good you taste, don’t I?”

Damn it. Now, with all her earlier nerves abated, she was starting to break out in a hot sweat remembering how it felt having him lick her, taste her. “We’re not going upstairs again, Nathan.”

“Then we’ll stay here. Clear the table.”

God in heaven, how was it that she could give herself all manner of promises to keep him at a distance, then, with a few choice words and a sexy look, he could make all those promises extinct?

She shored up all her remaining defenses for one last push. At least then she could console herself that she’d tried her hardest to keep him away. “I’m not sure what you expect,” she said, trying to keep her hands steady. “Is this because I blew you off before you could do it to me?”

“A man doesn’t like to be shown the door, sugar.”

“That’s a yes, then.” Disappointment rippled through her. This was one time when his honesty wasn’t entirely welcome.

“You didn’t let me finish. I was about to add that a man doesn’t like being shown the door when he had no intention of closing it himself.”

“The thrill of the chase, you mean. I’m simply a loose end.”

“There’s nothing loose about your end, sugar. It’s tight and just about perfect from where I’m sitting.”

He grabbed her hand and tugged her onto his lap so fast, her breath came out on a whoosh. “Hey!”

It felt so good to be this close to him again. To enjoy his warmth, draw in his masculine scent…feel his erection pushing against her backside.

“Put your arms around my neck, Erin.”

No sooner had she done so than his mouth came down on hers, surprisingly gentle. His tongue teased the seam of her lips and she opened to him. The kiss wasn’t tentative for either of them, and in its depth was a need that couldn’t be denied. Erin knew she still wanted him. Any doubts or warnings she had faded beneath his kiss.

His arms tightened around her, his erection prodding with more intensity against her ass. She wasn’t going to deny him, and she sensed he knew it as well as she did.

“What’s it to be?” he asked, waggling his eyebrows. “Table or bed.”

Erin laughed. “Bed. I don’t think my table will stand the strain.”

He stood with her in his arms as if she weighed nothing at all. On his way to the door, he stopped at the counter and reached one-armed for Willa’s treat tin. He flicked open the lid and grabbed a small handful of biscuits.

“There you go, girl,” he said tossing them down to Willa who promptly set about devouring them. “Don’t say I don’t give you anything.”

“You need to put the lid back on,” Erin said, watching in fascination. “Otherwise she’ll be up on the counter with her head in the tin. Then I’ll be up all night with a sick dog.”

“Don’t want that,” Nathan agreed, thumping the lid back on. “I’ve got plans for you that won’t have you on your feet for a good few hours.”

He closed the door on a happily munching Willa, and Erin tightened her arms around his neck as he thundered up her narrow stairs.

In the bedroom, he lowered her to her feet and turned her so her back was to his chest. Holding her hips steady, he proceeded to nuzzle her neck. “You smell so good.”

She wanted to tell him it was just soap but didn’t want to ruin the mood by stating something so banal.

He slid his hands up to her waist, clutching the edge of her baggy top. Seconds later, he divested her of the top and threw it on the floor. His hands cupped her naked breasts. “Glad you took my advice.”

“What advice?” Erin placed her hands over his, loving the feel of his warm flesh molding her tender breasts. She loved the feel of his mouth on her neck, the way he seemed to hover over one particular area, as if it held some secret attraction.

“You ditched the bra. Makes for easier access to these.”

He gave her flesh a squeeze, then rubbed his thumb over her nipples. Erin dropped her head back against his shoulder, easing her hips back and forth over his erection. “I wasn’t expecting company, so I thought I’d make myself comfortable,” she offered. “You just happen to be a bonus.”

He pinched her nipples lightly between his thumb and forefinger. “Is that so? Then maybe I’d better make it count.”

He slid a hand down over her waist, her stomach, and dipped his fingers inside her sweatpants. Erin knew she was already slick, so the rumble of his laughter against her neck came as no real surprise. “No panties either. You’re a real surprise tonight, Erin.”

She clenched around the finger he slid easily inside her, all the while his hot breath whispering over her neck. Her legs had already given up the plot, and she could barely feel them. She thanked providence that he was effectively holding her up.

Headily, she reached back and grabbed his hips, holding him tighter against her so she could feel him firm against her crease.

His low groan resonated in her ear, and he eased her away from him. Air whisked across her lower half as suddenly her workout pants were around her ankles and she was once again naked in his arms. He turned her and she reached to his waistband and tugged his polo shirt from his jeans. “This time, you’re going to be as naked as I am.”

He raised his arms when she slid up the shirt. “No argument here.”

His shirt joined her clothes on the floor, then she began unzipping him. “I’ve been telling myself, trying to convince myself, that this is a bad idea. But right now? I don’t seem to have any argument with it.”

He toed off his shoes. “Amen to that.”

Erin yanked his jeans and boxers down over his hips, and seconds later, he stepped out of them. He caught her up and carried her to the bed. Laying her down, he flipped her over onto her stomach. Surprised, Erin tried to sit up, but his weight eased her back down to the mattress. “I need to touch you,” he said, kissing across the back of her shoulders. “Need to touch every fucking inch of you.”

Seeing as she felt the same about him, she didn’t argue, but turned her head to the side and gave herself up to the pleasure he offered.

He ran his hand down her back, trailing along the side of her spine, causing tiny shivers to break out wherever he touched. His hand covered her ass cheeks, slid over them with carnal intention. He reached beneath her hip and slid his finger between her pussy lips.

Erin gasped. The feel of it was amazing with the weight of Nathan’s body pressing down and his finger pushing up inside her. She writhed against his hand while he rained kisses over her lower back. She clenched her fingers around the sheet, searching for something to hold on to as the intensity grew. She was going to come. Already.

“Nathan…”

He didn’t respond, just continued with that long slow rhythm of push and retreat. His length prodded against her, and she wanted him inside her so much that she tried to lift up. He only pressed her down. “Come like this,” he said moving over her, his breath sliding against her ear. “Let me feel you pulse against my fingers.”

He’d no sooner finished the sentence when she obliged him. She pressed her head deep into the mattress, gripped that damned sheet and just flew. She couldn’t catch her breath, and his weight against her made it impossible to move, which meant all she could do was lie there and let the storm power through her.

Coming down, she grabbed for air, but she’d no sooner released the coiled-up tension when Nathan’s hands wrapped around her hips, and he tugged her down until she was straddling the lower corner of the bed. He knelt behind her, adjusting her legs to his liking.

With one hand on her ass, he reached behind for his pants and grabbed a condom from the pocket.

She turned her head to watch him sheath himself, but he coaxed her head down to the mattress. His fingers slid into her hair. “I thought this would make things difficult,” Nathan said, his voice incredibly low and husky.

“What?” Erin managed.

“Can’t grab hold of you,” he said, working to fist her hair. “Your hair’s too short.”

“You’re doing pretty well,” Erin grated when he drew her head back, exposing her throat.

He used his free hand to fist himself and touched the head of his penis to her entrance. He slid along her labia, the movement aided by her wetness. Releasing his hand, he reached beneath her and circled the tip of his finger around her clit.

Erin felt the heat rising again, amazed at how easily he could get her to boiling point so soon after she’d just had an amazing orgasm. She moved her hips against his finger and cock. He slid in slowly, and she almost screamed in frustration when he removed his hand from her clit.