Chapter 17
Brian stood a few feet away in the soft lamplight of her bedroom, hands shoved into his pockets, shoulders tight like he didn’t quite trust himself to move yet. He looked different tonight—no badge, weapon, or professional distance. Just a man standing in her space.
Tess watched him quietly as she kicked off her slippers.
The room still carried the faint scent of the candle she’d lit earlier while getting ready for dinner—something warm and subtle—and beneath it, clean sheets and salt air drifting in through the cracked window.
And him.
Her pulse kicked up.
He didn’t rush her. Didn’t fill the silence. He just looked at her slowly, deliberately, like he was taking inventory.
Bare feet on the carpet. Her sundress brushing her thighs. The light sweater she’d slipped on before stepping back outside, still wrapped loosely around her shoulders.
She felt exposed anyway.
“This is the part where one of us says something smart.” She knew they were about to complicate everything. She also knew she didn’t care—not enough to stop.
He let out a breath that sounded like a laugh he hadn’t meant to make. “Yeah. I’ve got nothing.”
Her mouth curved upward.
He crossed the room then, stopping in front of her, close enough that she could feel his warmth. The air between them tightened—charged and heavy.
For several breaths, his gaze moved over her features with quiet focus, as if looking for hesitation.
She didn’t give him any.
Only then did he lift his hand, skimming his knuckles along her jaw and tucking her hair behind her ear. The caress was gentle, almost careful. Her skin tingled under his touch, and she leaned into it without thinking.
Need grew deep within her, but she wanted to savor every second of what came next.
His throat moved as he swallowed, drawing her attention.
Her own thoughts scattered when she noticed his carotid artery pulsating wildly. Practical things tried to surface—timing, complications, consequences—but then she placed her hands on his chest, right over his heart, and felt how hard it was beating beneath her palms.
“Tess,” he said quietly. “Tell me again that you want this.”
Her answer came easily. “I do want this. I want you.”
The words landed solidly between them.
His shoulders dropped a fraction, as something had finally loosened. He bent and kissed her slowly, deliberately, giving her a chance to pull back despite her consent.
She didn’t. She couldn’t.
Her hands slid into his hair, drawing him closer, and the kiss deepened. Not desperate. Not rushed. Just two people who finally stopped pretending.
His fingers clutched her waist, pulling her against him, and her body responded instantly. They fit together like two pieces designed for each other from the start.
He broke the kiss just long enough to rest his forehead against hers.
“This might complicate things,” he murmured.
She smiled softly. “Probably.”
“And I still can’t stop.”
“Good. Because I don’t want to stop either.”
Her hands slid from his hair to his shoulders, then down his arms, feeling muscle and warmth beneath the fabric of his shirt. Everything about him felt solid. Real. Present. And when his mouth found hers again, it was with a hunger that needed to be sated.
He guided her backward toward the bed, never breaking contact, never letting her feel unsteady.
He peeled her sweater off, dropping it to the floor before grasping the skirt of her dress and pulling it up and over her head.
It too fell, leaving her in matching navy blue panties and bra.
Her nipples strained against the lace, and she squeezed her thighs together, heat gathering where she ached for him.
She reached for the buttons of his shirt with fingers that trembled just a little.
He tugged the hem from his pants as she continued her way down.
Muscular, tanned skin appeared, teasing and tempting her.
When the last button was undone, he shrugged out of the shirt, letting it join the pile at their feet.
As he shed his shoes, socks, and pants, her gaze traced over him—broad shoulders, strong chest, the faint scars that told stories she didn’t need explained.
When he straightened, wearing only a snug pair of boxer briefs that did nothing to hide his arousal, she ran her hands up his obliques and over his pecs, learning every inch of him.
He sucked in a quiet breath at the contact, then bent down and nuzzled her neck, just below her ear.
Delicious shivers ran down her spine, and she moaned, canting her head to the side to give him better access.
She’d been alone for a long time.
She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed this.
His mouth moved to her jaw, inching down to her chin. His lips were warm against her skin, his touch purposeful and tender in equal measure.
“Tess.” Her name was whispered like a prayer.
She threaded her fingers into his hair again. “I’m here.”
That seemed to be what he needed.
He eased her back onto the mattress, following her down.
His body braced over hers without pressing, giving her space even now.
She wrapped her legs around his waist instinctively, not wanting the narrowest of spaces between them.
His hard cock was cradled against her, and her clit demanded friction.
She lifted her hips and rubbed against him.
A rough breath and a muttered curse left him before his mouth claimed hers again, deeper this time. She met him with equal urgency, kissing him back as their hands moved everywhere—stroking, gripping, and learning.
He shifted lower, his mouth tracing a slow path along her neck, across her collarbone, and down to the sensitive curve just above her breasts. Each lingering kiss sent a ripple through her.
His fingers found the clasp at the front of her bra. A subtle twist, practiced and unhurried, and the fastening gave way.
The cups loosened, slipping apart as he eased the fabric back with deliberate care, his gaze lifting briefly to hers as if checking her reaction before continuing.
Her breath caught. The cool air brushed her skin where the lace had been, but the lust in his eyes made her shiver for an entirely different reason. He dragged the bra straps down her arms until she was free of the garment.
Her breath caught when his lips closed around one nipple.
He sucked it then flicked it with his tongue, eliciting a moan of delight from her.
She arched her back, overwhelmed by the way he worshiped her body.
He took his time, shifting his attention from one breast to the other, his mouth claiming her while his fingertips traced slow, teasing paths over her skin.
When her legs spread further, seemingly of their own accord, he moved down her body, raining soft kisses over her ribs and abdomen until he reached the waistband of her panties. Grasping the sides, he slid them down and kissed every newly exposed inch of skin.
Tess gasped as his tongue licked the crease between her hip and thigh, and a flush of wet warmth flowed between her legs.
Before she knew it, she was utterly naked, wondering what he thought as he stared at her.
His hands slid up and down her outer thighs, from her hips to her knees, and she wished he would do the same to the inside.
“You’re beautiful, baby. Just like I knew you’d be.”
A feverish blush spread from her chest and neck up to her cheeks. She let her gaze roam his chiseled body. “You’re not so bad yourself, but you’re a little overdressed.”
She wanted to see what his black boxer briefs were desperately trying to contain.
He slid off the bed and shed them before retrieving a condom packet from his wallet.
As he returned to the bed, he lifted her leg gently before kissing his way from her ankle to her knee and higher, each touch deliberate and unhurried.
By the time he finally positioned himself between her thighs, she ached for him, whimpering with need.
He paused there for a moment, looking up at her, his hands warm and steady on her hips.
Tess met his gaze, her breath shallow, her heart racing.
“You okay?” he murmured as his thumbs rubbed along the creases at the tops of her thighs.
She nodded, threading her fingers through his hair and urging him down to where she wanted his mouth the most. “Yes. Please, I need you.”
He leaned in, and his tongue traced slow, lingering circles along the inside of her thigh, each one drawing a soft sound from her. Her hips shifted instinctively, her body already anticipating him, already opening to the attention.
She watched him, felt him, every nerve ending lighting up as his hands spread her gently, reverently, like she was something precious instead of something he meant to take.
Her head tipped back against the pillows, as his mouth drove her crazy, inching closer to her core at a snail’s pace. Her eyes fluttered shut, then flew open when his tongue dragged up her slit. She writhed on the bed and cried out her pleasure as he feasted on her.
He lifted her thighs and settled them on his shoulders. When his tongue lashed at her clit, her pelvis thrust upward at the blessed shock wave that coursed through her, and she begged for more.
One of his fingers entered her drenched core, and a second quickly joined it. Tess squirmed, panted, and pleaded as he drove her desire higher and higher. Every so often, his heavy eyelids would lift, and his gaze would meet hers. Heat burned in his eyes, raw and unmistakable.