One of a Kind Page 9

  Dana didn’t appear affected by the atmosphere. From her meeting with the division heads to now, she had assumed an air of confidence, or maybe it was defiance. Her new no-nonsense demeanor included him in its net.

  But it was more than that. Her greeting had been frosty. When he’d tried to have a conversation, she dismissively cut it short and walked away. He didn’t like it one bit.

  He’d been an idiot for not acting upon her implied invitation. But he didn’t operate on impulse. He preferred contemplation. Weighing the pros and cons. His style was to take it slow.

  At the business level, he was excellent at information retrieval, the processing and synthesizing of information. He treated his relationships as if they were his business techniques. So far, it worked for him. Risk-free. Low tolerance of failure.

  “We’ll take a break.” Dana picked up the meeting agenda and flipped through it. “We’ll meet back here at three o’clock.” Without waiting for any response, she exited the room.

  Kent grabbed his materials and chased after her. He didn’t say anything until he caught up. “What’s the problem?”

  “What?” She looked exasperated, but kept moving.

  “Why are you on the run?”

  “Although we have a break, I still have work to complete,” she answered.

  “Up for lunch?”

  She shook her head. “I have reports to read.”

  “I need to eat.”

  “Then go do that.” She pushed past him. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

  “I wasn’t done talking.” Kent followed her toward the elevator.

  “Well, I’m done listening.”

  The elevator doors opened and he swore that she increased her speed into the cab that was depositing noisy tourists into the lobby. She turned and pressed the Door Close button. Her cool smile said it all.

  He ran and placed his arm between the doors, willing to let them slam it if it would impede her retreat.

  “What do you want, Kent?” As he boarded the elevator, she stepped to the corner of the cab that was farthest away from him.

  “You’re angry.”

  “Aren’t you the smart one?” She pushed the button again. “Which floor?”

  “I’m going to your room.”

  “No, you’re not.” She crossed her arms, eyes blazing.

  The doors opened on her floor. She stepped out, but she pushed him back into the cab.

  “Whatever I did, I’m sorry,” Kent offered.

  “Maybe it’s what you didn’t do.”

  The doors shut and the elevator rose. Kent pushed the button to send the elevator back down to Dana’s floor.

  He stepped onto the floor just as she was entering her room. “Dana, wait.” He knew better than to wait for her to acknowledge him, so he ran down the hallway and pounded on her door. “Dana, please open up.”

  Kent couldn’t stop kicking himself for not going after Dana last night. His conscience, the moral high ground, his professional code of ethics had derailed the impulse to follow through with what naturally had arisen.

  More than physical attraction kept him pounding on the door. More than his job to coach a new leader had him ready to cross the professional line. He recognized a kindred spirit who was independent, risk-taking and bold. And yet, her compassion, thoughtfulness and sense of duty spoke his personal language. They could fit together like perfect puzzle pieces, if only he hadn’t screwed up.

  From other rooms, heads emerged at his loud appeal. But the one person he wanted to talk to didn’t respond. After a few minutes, he gave up knocking. “What didn’t I do, Dana?” he said softly.

  The door swung open and he almost fell in. “You didn’t man up to your feelings. I know something sparked between us. I felt it.” She brushed his hand from where it had come to rest on her shoulder. “You acted like nothing happened.”

  “I acted like someone who wanted to keep his job.” Kent raised her chin with a finger and looked deeply into her eyes. “I acted like someone who didn’t want to be mistaken for someone who acts disrespectfully with his client.” He sighed. “I behaved like a coward.”

  Dana pulled him toward her. “Even the Cowardly Lion was cute.” She pinched the air with her fingers to indicate a small amount. “A little bit.” She planted a tantalizingly wet kiss on his mouth, then asked, “Why are you here, Kent?”

  “I want to finish what we started.”

  “Really? You want a one-time quickie so you can write ‘Task Accomplished’ on my evaluation?” She squinted at him. “You didn’t strike me as the type.”

  “You don’t want a relationship?”

  “No. But I’m intrigued enough to play along.”

  Kent had never had such a casual arrangement thrust upon him. He remembered the feel of Dana in his hands, on his lap, against his hips. Even now, his body and mind became aroused together. “Again, why are you here, Kent?” Dana leaned in to the point where the tips of their noses touched. “Don’t step into the ring if you’re not willing to play the game.” A soft kiss brushed his cheek.

  “No rules?”

  “We’ll make them up as we go along.” She started unbuttoning his shirt.

  “Grace?”

  “She’s not invited.”

  Kent laughed. The hilarity diminished as Dana deposited a series of small kisses along the path from his cheek to his ear. Her tongue bathed the coil of his ear, tickling and inciting spastic muscle responses.

  He held her, still meaning to break contact. “This doesn’t mean that I’m going to roll over on my job.”

  She blew in his ear before nipping at his earlobe.

  “I may have to be firm.”

  She cupped his crotch and softly squeezed. “I’d say you’re all the way there.”

  Kent rested his forehead against the top of her head. Suddenly, his breath hitched as if he’d run a mile in five minutes. His pulse ratcheted several beats up the pressure gauge. She wouldn’t stop kneading his crotch and kissing the nape of his neck.

  “I’ve never been tempted like this,” he croaked.

  “That’s good. Wouldn’t want you to be an easy lay,” she teased

  “I’m feeling like the sensitive one.” Her hot kisses had him ready to spout gibberish.

  Dana covered his mouth with hers and he accepted her invitation to lead this dance. His tongue swept over hers, stroking as he pulled his shirt off and tossed it to the side. He craved the feel of her soft skin sliding against his.

  She matched his movements, undressing from the top down. Each layer of clothing removed revealed more smooth brown skin. Once naked, she had the body and feminine grace of an earthly goddess, all of which supercharged his feelings from longing into rabid need.

  As Kent picked her up by her hips and carried her to the bed, she wrapped her legs around him, her breasts pressed against his chest. Her arms wound around his neck as she arched herself back, offering herself up to him. Never one to refuse a delicious treat, he kissed and sucked on her neck.

  “Don’t you dare leave me with a hickey.”

  He laughed at the visual of her heading back to the meeting in the afternoon with a deep red, telltale bruise. “You taste so good,” he moaned. He halted momentarily and laid her on the bed, his torso still trapped between her legs.

  “My pocketbook. I have condoms.” She addressed his pause. “Always prepared for the unexpected. Safety first.”

  He retrieved the protection and slid it on himself. “Ready?”

  “Since last night.”

  Kent sat back to survey the beautiful landscape spread out before him. The long, shapely legs opened in an inverted V on either side of him. At their apex, he admired the trimmed curls, under which lay moist inner trappings he just had to taste before diving in.
But there were other parts to explore first. With reluctance, he tore his gaze from her mound up to her flat stomach. His fingers didn’t want to be left. As his fingertips touched her skin, and she twitched, he followed the lines of her ribs, running over their ridges toward the swell of her breasts.

  Now, his mouth took over, latching over the tight bud of her nipple. He sucked, pulling and teasing with his tongue. Her moans grew labored and guttural.

  “Now...” Her pelvis bucked for his attention.

  “Stop calling the shots.” A long kiss from him quieted her protests. Her mouth was pure honey that he couldn’t get enough of. Dana’s arms tightened around him, her nails pressing into his back. As pain mixed with pleasure, his own grunts intermingled with her soulful moans.

  She had no idea how much he stood on the edge of an orgasm, without even entering her. The momentum to fall and succumb to whatever fate had in mind pushed past the last strands of reason that he held on to. As he licked her body from north to south, he surrendered to the call.

  He wanted to touch her everywhere. His lips did the work. Heading due south, he dived in between her legs and buried his tongue in her. Her juices bathed his tongue like a honeyed trail. He kissed outer and inner labia, branding them with his kisses. He learned every inch of her body, committing it to memory. Already, he told himself that it was all only temporary.

  Her engorged clit suffered under his onslaught. He made no apologies for the rough attention. His tongue painted her with fierce brushstrokes and swirls around her opening.

  “You can’t make me wait.” She grabbed his head.

  “Bossy woman.” His accusation came out muffled as he fluttered her clit with his tongue. More juice flowed, wetting his lips further.

  He heeded her body’s signals. Slowly he entered, sliding along her lubricated walls that hugged his shaft.

  Her hips tilted up, coaxing him to reach farther, deeper into her. Her eyes were closed. She bit her bottom lip. Her hands slid up his chest. Fingers curled over his pecs, pressing into his flesh.

  “Harder,” she demanded between gritted teeth. She twisted his nipples and clawed at him. “Oh...harder.”

  Kent never had a problem following directions. Now was no different. He pumped hard, like his life depended on it. Her walls answered with their quivering response. His hands were occupied with pinning her to the bed, holding her wrists above her head. Desire rolled over him like the incoming tide, one wave folding into another, building with frequency and intensity. His butt clenched as his climax built.

  “I can’t hold on.” Her body almost lifted off the bed, arced as if in pain.

  Kent didn’t mean for Dana to be deprived of more pleasure. He reared back on his haunches, lifting Dana onto his hips. He gave her the ride of her life.

  With her arm wrapped around his shoulder, she held on as if she was riding a mechanical bull. Her head and arm whipped back and forth. Every movement, no matter how slight, rubbed the tip of his shaft tantalizingly.

  Now it was his turn to savor the muscles moving under his fingers. He raised her off his hips and brought her down, repeatedly pounding into her. Her mouth opening into a soundless O turned him on to a point even higher than where he was before.

  There. That twitch of her hips unhinged him. No longer able to hold back, he released himself. She didn’t penny pinch on her reaction, either.

  It was as if they jumped off a cliff without a parachute, soaring, flying, floating on a current that was in tune with their vibrations. It didn’t matter if one came first because hand-in-hand, each climaxed with a ferocity that only Mother Nature could create.

  Chapter 8

  “Ready to face the world?”

  “Wish I didn’t have to.” Dana snuggled deeper in the crook of Kent’s arm, where she had rested for the past hour. She wanted to stay in the afterglow of their fantastic sexual interlude. But the longer they stayed in bed, the more likely they’d have to talk and rationalize their behavior. And she didn’t want to face consequences or reason her way through her impulsive need to sleep with Kent. He hadn’t wanted her that way last night. Today, he didn’t disappoint. Why? She wasn’t that beguiling.

  “You know, you’ve only got forty minutes before you head back into the meeting.”

  “Guess I need to get on my game face.”

  “I’m not complaining.”

  “Well, you might when you hear what I have to say.” Her decision solidified as soon as her heart rate returned to normal. That time allowed for her to separate emotional reaction from necessity.

  He didn’t respond right away. “Talk to me.”

  “The second half of the meeting will be highly confidential. I know you’ve signed an agreement, but we’re heading into territory that’s beyond your...clearance—so to speak.”

  Kent didn’t respond. He didn’t have to. She felt his body stiffen next to her and, this time, it wasn’t about sexual urge.

  “Let me explain.” She resisted kissing his flattened nipple, though her tongue so wanted to trace the circle. She balled her fist and kept her hand tightly against her body, instead of reaching for him and enjoying the way his arousal was currently transforming into a rigid rod.

  “No, it’s okay,” he said. “It’s your family’s company and it’s not as if I can’t do my job without being your shadow. As things go, I do have to make a trip back to England.”

  She turned over onto her stomach and propped her chin on his chest. “For how long?” That whining voice. Gosh, she didn’t mean to sound wanting. But England was more than a few hundred miles to the next state. Distance didn’t bode well for relationships, no matter how sincere the desire of the couple. Her mother’s moving from India to Jamaica to Europe, while Dana stayed with Grace, proved that point.

  “I’ll be gone for a week, maybe two. Not long. Some legal work has to be completed so I can begin opening an office here.”

  “You’re serious about conquering the U.S.” Now she had hope ringing clear in her voice. Kent nodded with a wide grin. “Did you get your invite from Grace?”

  He shook his head.

  “She’s hosting a command performance at the house. I’m sure she expects you to be there.”

  “The Meadows women, once again bossing someone.”

  “Look, I didn’t say you have to be there. Nor am I expecting you to do anything for me...after this.” His criticism stung.

  “I didn’t say it was a bad thing.”

  “You’re not making it sound like it’s a good thing, either.” She held his chin and fixed him with a stare. “I’m not the kind of person to make you feel like you’ve got to hang on. I’m a grown woman.”

  “You don’t let the dust settle, do you? Always ready to do battle and then investigate the aftermath.”

  “You talk funny.” She pulled away and sat with her back to him. Receiving a diagnosis didn’t sit well with her. She pulled the top sheet around her shoulders as her gaze spanned the room, but she saw nothing. Too many wishes filled her mind with what-if scenarios. She turned her head, but didn’t look at him.

  What if her feelings were one-sided? She slid off the bed and reached for her underwear. Not since her college days had she felt this pliable and emotional. Not since then had she wanted to believe in a future, in what might come on the day after. Trust was hard to bank on, hard to hold on to, a tiny grain with so much impact that often slipped through her fingers. If she turned and looked at him, right now, she would crumple and believe.

  “I’m not going anywhere, Dana.” His declaration shot down any of the objections that she was lining up, ready to fire. Having men drape themselves around her because of her family name was a frequent occurrence. Their presence, she admitted to herself, was as much a reflection of her life choices as it was of the men choosing her as their target.

&nb
sp; The bed shifted under his weight as he moved closer. She felt him position himself to sit behind her. Gently, he laid her back against his chest, one hand intertwining with hers.

  “I want you to stick around,” Dana said.

  “You sure?” He kissed the back of her head.

  “I don’t want to say no. I’m not entirely sure about yes.” She stopped talking because to her ears, she sounded wishy-washy. “I can’t help looking forward to the next minute, the next hour, the next day, with you.”

  “A hopeless romantic.”

  “No. I’m a hopeful romantic.”

  Dana wanted to float on the bubble of giddiness. He kissed her temple, and a key unlocked another wave of desire in her. This man had no idea how much she craved his touch. If she couldn’t stop moaning, he’d know her weak points.

  Kent turned her around to face him. As soon as her lips could reach his, she kissed him.

  He gently brushed her hair off her face. His palm rested against her skin, making her feel warm and safe.

  “Since you’re banishing me, I must have you once more.”

  “No objections there.” She loved the feel of his mouth, soft and firm, coaxing and speaking to her in its intimate language. No translation was necessary for what they both wanted. She kissed him and then slipped a condom onto his shaft.

  This time, she lingered over each thrust, pushing against his hips, squirming to an internal beat. Together, they bonded, tight and fierce. Each wave of longing, every rustle of her senses, every smidgeon of lust—she wanted to savor them all. Until now, her life had gone by at such a frenetic speed that grinding on her man’s hips seemed like a delightful way to spend the afternoon.