Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Ben pulled his SUV into Anne’s drive, parked off to the side, and jumped out. Hands in his pockets, he regarded the area. He’d never seen her home in the daylight. Hell of a place.
The two-story house was dark green with white trim and raised high enough to provide a slightly sunken carport beneath—not a bad idea considering how close to the shore this was.
From this angle, he could see a shoulder-high deck extended toward the water.
She’d had a balcony off the master bedroom, hadn’t she?
With beach houses, it was all about the ocean view.
As Anne watched him walk up the steps, her pissed-off expression made him long for a groin protector. He was in for it now.
“Choice A. You’re stalking me,” she said bluntly. “Choice B. Mama Z told you to shadow me home.”
He grinned. No flies on this woman. “B. Although I wouldn’t mind A, if it wouldn’t get me filled with bullet holes.”
His answer didn’t diminish the steam he could almost see coming from her ears. Damn, she was gorgeous when her color was up.
“Oh, honestly, Ben. That’s simply—”
“He knows you can take care of yourself in a fight. But you can’t lift a palm tree, and I doubt you carry a chainsaw in your trunk.”
“A chainsaw? Seriously?” She glanced at his Jeep Grand Cherokee.
“I’m in the wilderness a lot. Comes in handy.”
“Well.” She didn’t…quite…growl. “Right. Thank you then. This is a long way to come when you haven’t had any sleep.”
“You’re welcome, Anne.” He smiled slowly, thinking of Patton’s favorite quote, “Audacity, audacity, always audacity.” All right then. “I wouldn’t mind a cup of coffee if it wouldn’t be too much trouble.”
Considering they’d passed a myriad of stores and coffee shops, she knew he could find his own. His request was for something else, and being the woman she was, she knew that.
She crossed her arms and looked him over like a side of beef.
It took some work, but he stood his ground.
And then she smiled. “You are the pushiest submissive I’ve ever met. Why am I enjoying that?” She motioned him into her house. “Come on in.”
Submissive. The word—applied to him—made him pause, but only a second. And then he was right on her heels.
Inside, he caught a glimpse of her living room that seemed all sunlight and windows. She stopped in the foyer to remove her boots and went barefoot up the stairs.
After doing the same, he followed her. Three steps up, he paused to adjust himself. His jeans felt as if they were shrinking around his cock. Wasn’t it nice that he didn’t have to wonder how she’d react to a man’s hard-on? He’d never met any woman so straightforward about sex.
“You’re thinking too much, Benjamin.” Halfway up, she stripped off her shirt and tossed it down.
He caught the garment before it landed on his head—barely. His gaze had been occupied with the sight of her bare back. How her hips started to widen before being covered by her jeans. How her skin was so smooth and golden.
He took the steps three at a time and followed her into the bedroom. “Ma’am, I’d be delighted to serve, to help you”—strip naked—“with disrobing.”
“Aren’t you the generous one?” A dimple flashed in her right cheek, always the first one to show.
He intended to see both dimples displayed before the hour was over.
“Yes, Ma’am. That’s me.” He stepped closer and ran his hands up and down her arms, feeling the firm muscle beneath all that soft skin.
The slight tilt of her head told him to stop while he was ahead. She looked up at him, her eyes a clear blue gray, like a sunlit mountain lake. “I think we’ll take turns disrobing, so neither of us misses out on the fun.” And she proceeded to yank off his Hard Rock T-shirt.
“Mmm.” Her husky voice held only approval as she ran her hands over his pectorals, ruffling his chest hair before tracing the narrow line down his belly to where it disappeared under his jeans.
And fuck, the sizzle from her touch continued all the way to his dick. His cock surged upward, trying to burst from its confines. His shirt might be off, but he was radiating so much heat that he’d probably scorch her exquisite skin.
Smiling, she pushed one strap of her bra over her shoulder and smiled at him. Giving him permission.
The universe was looking favorably on him today.
With one finger, he teased her other strap off, and his pulse skipped a beat when her bra lowered far enough that he could see the edges of her pink-brown nipples. He might get eyestrain if he didn’t get her uncovered soon.
“I thought you were beautiful in the Shadowlands,” he managed to say. “In full daylight, you’re even more gorgeous.”
Her eyes lit. “You know, I think of you as Z’s guard dog, not one of my boys, so when you say something like that, it’s surprising and very effective.” She gripped his upper arms and rose onto tiptoes to kiss him, a generous, sweet kiss with tongue. “Thank you.”
My fucking pleasure. She was near enough he could reach around her, unfasten her bra, and slide it off. Her breasts were high and full—a man’s finest fantasy, up close and touchable.
Touch he did, filling his palms. Her breasts were probably about the same weight as navel oranges, and yet that was like comparing the satisfaction in playing tennis or fucking. Nothing in the world could feel as sweet as her breasts.
She made an approving sound as he rubbed his thumbs over her nipples. When he squeezed slightly and then tugged lightly on the peaks, he felt her quiver.
He needed more.
But, with desperate control, he lowered his hands, forcing himself to let her take the next step. She could lead him wherever her heart desired.
Her eyebrows rose. “You keep surprising me.” To his delight, she undid his jeans and released him.
As the cool air from an open window hit his overheated cock, he drew in a steadying breath.
“Yes, you’re just as magnificent as I remembered,” she murmured.
The sheer satisfaction at hearing that was almost as fantastic as the way her hands gripped him, as the way she varied her hold from a firm stroke at the base to a feather-light grazing of the head.
She shoved his jeans down until they tangled at his ankles. “Part your legs as far as you can.”
Setting a hand on her shoulder for balance, he moved his feet apart.
Her free hand cupped his balls, pulling and teasing, while her other hand played with his dick. With uncanny skill, she drove him up until he was too damn close to coming.
“Mistress.” The sound emerged despite his clenched jaw. “I’d rather—” fuck you.
Her gaze was a laser beam of incandescent blue light. “I’d rather too, for that matter. And it is your turn for the disrobing, isn’t it?” She stepped back. “On your knees, please.”
He went down on one knee, leaning forward to kiss her bare stomach. Kneeling didn’t bother him—not if he got to remove her clothes. Hell, he’d even use his teeth if that were what she wanted. He wouldn’t have minded one fucking bit. With careful fingers, he unbuttoned her jeans.
Setting a hand on his shoulder, she lifted her foot.
Her skin was distractingly smooth as he pushed the material off her calves and feet. His gaze ran up. Curvy calves, long sweet thighs that led to… Yeah, he was going to die. Last time he’d been here, he’d thought…maybe…that she shaved. Now he knew.
Her pussy was completely bare of hair. Damn, that was sexy.
She made a sound, and he realized his fingers had tightened around her ankles. He managed to loosen them for a second, but with one inhalation, he was lost. First, the scent of something spicy—like cinnamon and cloves, then a lightly delicate feminine musk.
Her hand smacked the top of his head, breaking the spell. Painfully.
He released her, seeing the marks of his hands on her ankles.
“Benjamin, you’re not just back from the wars—and I doubt this is the first time you’ve seen a woman.”
He cleared his throat. “Not a woman like you, Ma’am.” There’d never been a woman like her in his entire, fairly exhaustive experience. He stayed where he was and dared to run his hand up and down her legs, wanting nothing more than to bury his face between her thighs. “Ma’am. May I—”
Her eyes narrowed. “No, I don’t think so.” One finger, the elegant nail with a white flower on pink polish, pointed to the bed. “Put yourself there. On your back, so I can sample the wares at my pleasure.”
He wasn’t sure whether to protest, to grab her, or to cheer.
Sampling meant she’d touch. He was down with that.
And even if he hadn’t been, the oddest satisfaction came from obeying her orders.
Maybe he could overpower her physically, but in matters of the spirit, she had a will that might be stronger than his own. “Yes’m.”
Now that was one of the finest sights she’d ever seen, Anne thought as Ben ducked under the canopy and stretched out on her king-sized bed.
The ultimate in darkly tanned masculinity provided a startling contrast to her feminine floral bedspread.
His shoulders were wide and strong, his chest hugely muscled, his stomach ridged.
His cock sprang up, thick and long, from a nest of light brown curls.
His thighs showed the long divide between the muscles.
She sauntered over, his gaze on her like a scorching sun. He made her feel beautiful, which was always nice. Nicer than normal because she…respected him and valued his opinion.
With a shake of her head to dislodge stray thoughts, she leaned over the bed. “And what have we here? This seems to be quite the odd protuberance.” She grasped his cock with a firm hand and twisted just enough to lift his head off the pillow with a gasp. The shaft palpably thickened.
His eyes burned golden.
“You have tiger’s eyes.” They reminded her of one of her favorite bracelets. “Are you going to lie there and take what I do to you?” she asked softly.