Chapter 10
Jordan was dreaming.
The best sort of dream. One he dreamed regularly.
About her.
She was pressed up against him. Her scent engulfed him, and her warmth felt like the sweetest gift to his cold, cold heart.
He moaned as he found himself growing hard.
Wrapped his hand around himself and stroked.
Unable to resist, he slipped his hand under her T-shirt and found her nipple beneath the cup of her bra, pinching and rolling the sensitive tip.
She pushed her breast eagerly into his palm.
She kissed him, and he took her lush lips and dove in deep, tasting her unique flavor.
God, everything about her was perfect, especially the fact that she loved what he was doing.
He slipped his broad palm slowly down the smooth skin of her stomach, under the waistband of her jeans and into her panties.
She parted her thighs as he slid a finger through slick folds and sank it deep inside her.
She was wet and arched against him, capturing his mouth with hers and pressing her hand over his, urging him deeper inside her.
He forced in a second finger and felt her muscles quiver around them.
He burned for her. “Daisy.”
In his dreams, she burned for him too.
Small, deft fingers snapped open his jeans and lowered the zipper carefully over his swollen flesh, wrapping around him, strong, demanding.
“Daisy…” He wanted to whimper. God, yes, like that. Just like that. He wanted to sink his cock into her velvet heat, but even in his dreams he never crossed that line.
But this, driving her up, her thighs spreading wider for him, her breath gasping his name. This was safe. Safe because it was secret. It was his and his alone. His favorite dream.
He rubbed her clit with the heel of his hand every time he rocked into her. Her body tightened, and he growled, knowing she was close. “Come on, Daisy. Come for me, baby.”
In dreams, unlike in real life, she always did as she was told, and she did it again, now, giving a sharp cry as her whole body shook with orgasm. But she didn’t release her grip on his throbbing dick, and he knew it was too late for him.
He’d wanted her to take him into her mouth.
Delighted in the idea. Knowing even subconsciously that the dream could never come close to the reality, he imagined how good it would feel with her lips closing around him.
Someone started tugging his waistband lower and jarred him out of sleep.
His eyes sprang wide, and he found himself staring into Daisy’s ocean-blue gaze. Her mouth formed a pretty bow as she stared at him. His fingers were still buried deep inside her slick heat.
Her hand stroked him, and he was toast.
“Oh fuck.” He closed his eyes and strained back against the mattress as he came in a rush all over his own stomach.
Christ.
He closed his eyes as horror and humiliation crawled over him.
This wasn’t a dream. This was a nightmare.
He couldn’t believe what he’d done. He quickly withdrew his fingers, covered his face with his hands, tried desperately not to smell her all over his skin.
His throat went dry. After his last disastrous sexual liaison, he’d begun to worry he was a sex addict. This proved it.
She gave a low satisfied hum. “Do you always wake up horny?” Her tone was light.
He stared at her in shock.
Her eyes sparkled as if this was no big deal. “I don’t know whether to be insulted or grateful. I haven’t gotten off like that in forever, so I’ll go with grateful—although, I was hoping for a little more…”
Her gaze moved over his body, obvious appreciation lighting her features. His dick twitched optimistically, and he grabbed his shirt from the floor beside the bed to cover and clean himself.
“I don’t know what to say.” His voice was hoarse. “I’m so sorry. I was asleep, dreaming. I basically assaulted you—”
She snorted. “If I hadn’t wanted to have sex with you, you’d be bloody and crying on the floor.”
“We didn’t have sex.”
She hiked a condescending brow. “Fingering isn’t sex? Or the handjob? Coming all over each other isn’t sex?”
It was definitely a type of sex. He swallowed with difficulty. “I didn’t get your consent. For all I know, you were asleep too.”
Her expression sobered. “I gave you all the access you needed, Jordan. I’m the one who touched you even though you apparently were asleep.” Her teeth caught her bottom lip. “I thought you were pretending so you didn’t have to deal with the guilt about the whole thing. Sorry.”
She went to climb off of him, but he held her in place.
“None of this was your fault.” His intensity startled them both. “How were you to know I’m some sort of sex freak? I’m genuinely sorry.”
“Don’t be.” Her upbeat tone sounded forced. “If that’s not enjoying the journey, I don’t know what is.”
“I—”
“Shush, Jordan.” She traced a finger over his lips, and he couldn’t move. “You’re not a freak. It’s just sex. Chill.” She smiled. “There are few enough upsides to hanging around alpha males. Let me at least enjoy some of the perks.”
Alpha males? He frowned. “Perks?”
“I told you what I wanted. No strings. No expectations.”
Apprehension filled him because she had been talking about having sex with him. “This can’t happen again.”
Ignoring him, she took his shirt out of his hand and finished cleaning him up. “Do you often have sex dreams?”
He gave up, covered his face with his forearm. Nodded. “Yeah.” Lately.
The last thing he needed was for her to figure out she was the only one who affected him this way. No one else. “This is the first time I’ve had sex while asleep, although…”
“Although, what?”
He held her gaze as he zipped up his pants. Forced frost into his tone. “I never usually sleep with anyone, so how the hell would I know?”
Her eyes twinkled. “FYI, I’m giving you advanced consent for any future shenanigans. If I change my mind, I’ll be sure to let you know.”
His hands started to shake. “No. Daisy, this can never happen again.” He sounded desperate even to his own ears. “I don’t consent.”
She climbed off him, picked up her shoes, and went to the door. “So, I’ll have to make sure you’re awake first.” She pouted. “Which is a shame because I could think of several very satisfying ways to wake you up, but if I don’t have permission…”
The visions her words sparked…
“It’s not a joke, Daisy,” he snapped. “It’s serious. I’m not interested in you that way.” He made himself say words that would convince her even though he knew they’d hurt. “It was situational—you happened to be here. This can never happen again.”
“Hmm.” Amusement danced in her eyes, and a smile twitched the edge of her mouth as she canted her head to one side and tapped her pointer finger against reddened lips.
Not the reaction he was expecting.
“You know, I might actually believe you except for one small detail, Mr. Sleeping Beauty. And now I have to wonder what else you’ve been lying to me about.”
His heart contracted in dread. “What are you talking about?”
“Did you know you talk in your sleep?”
His eyes bugged, sweat formed on his brow. What the hell had he said?
“Coffee?” she asked jauntily.
When she closed the door, he sat up and cradled his face in his hands. What the hell had he done this time?
Disappointment that Jordan had apparently slept through their sexual encounter was tempered by the fact that, unless there was another woman in his acquaintance called Daisy, he’d definitely called out her name in the throes. And what was more, he knew it.
Ironic that she had better sex with Krychek when he’d been asleep than she’d had the whole time she’d dated her ex.
That little hint of dominance had been such a turn on.
It had tipped her hard and fast over the edge.
Possibly the only upside to being with a domineering man—a type she’d actively avoided dating in the past because she was intimately acquainted with their flaws.
She grinned with satisfaction as she made coffee.
Tormenting Jordan would serve him and her dad both right for interfering in her life without permission and hopefully make them hesitate to treat her like a child again in the future.
Didn’t matter that their paranoid hearts were in the right place.
The rest of the world had to get on living their lives without highly trained bodyguards watching their backs.
Not to mention, the danger in her field was generally invisible and no amount of weapons or muscle could neutralize radiation poisoning.
Science, safety measures, rigorous accountability, and common sense, that was what would keep her safe on a day-to-day basis.
How did her dad think this was going to play out long term anyway? Was she supposed to get permission to travel? Curtail certain opportunities presented to her throughout her career because it might be too dangerous when he’d always done whatever the hell he pleased?
It was infuriating even though she understood his reasoning.
He had to let go.
Her new goal was to get Jordan to admit that, despite his almost desperate denials, this attraction was entirely mutual. That was all. No hearts. No flowers. No mad declarations of undying love.
And, knowing Jordan was so uptight about having sex with her because of who her father was, getting him into bed would be revenge enough for the things he’d done to her in the past. They’d be even.
A few more excellent orgasms, and she could get him out of her system and go back to concentrating on her thesis.
If he felt he had to somehow “deal” with his relationship with her father because of it, that was his problem. She had no such hangups.
She heard the shower turn on and grabbed his mug and took it in to him. Placed it nonchalantly on the sink as he’d done for her. “Coffee, babe.”
She heard his strangled groan but left without taking a peek. She already knew what he looked like—almost—naked. Which made them almost even.
She grabbed her coffee and went to sit back in the comfy chair, first putting her dirty laundry into her case and pulling out her phone charger.
She thought about getting a clean shirt for Jordan and decided that going through his stuff was too much of an invasion of privacy, though she doubted he’d hesitate to search through her things if he deemed it part of the mission—in fact, he already had, back at the hotel.
She clenched her jaws.
She so totally understood the breed.
Her cell was completely dead. She plugged it in and left it on the table to charge.
She heard the door open behind her and waited for the man of the moment to pad into view.
He shot her a look as he bent, bare chested, to retrieve his backpack.
She watched the muscles play in his six-pack abs as he rooted out and then pulled on a T-shirt that molded his chest like a coat of paint.
She raised her eyes to his angry ones. Tried not to smile. Ah. They truly were balancing the scales.
“Can I text my boss now, oh majesty?”
He dragged his hand through his damp hair and checked his cell. “Sure. Don’t give him any details. Just say you’re making your own way home and will be talking to the FBI ASAP. Tell him you’ll be,”—he swallowed audibly—“staying with me for a few days until it’s all sorted out.”
A smile spread over her lips, despite her best efforts to contain it. “Yes, sir.”
His gaze narrowed, and her smile widened. But he stayed quiet. Withdrawing and reevaluating. That was fine with her. She knew how to wear people down. She’d grown up being fed battle plans and strategy for breakfast, right alongside feminism and female empowerment for dinner. She was good at both.
“Daisy…”
“Yes, Jordan?” she asked brightly.
He stared at her, unspeaking, for five whole seconds. “Never mind.” He shook his head and stalked back to the cabin with his belongings.