Rebound (2 page)

He grinned, dropping his head to hide his smile. “Okay, I wasn’t expecting that.”

Comments like that always pissed her off. Just because she looked a certain way, men assumed she didn’t have a brain in her head. They stereotyped her… just like she’d stereotyped him. “What did you expect?” She pressed her finger to her full lips. “Let me guess. Model? Actress? Oh, I know, waitress?”

He laughed, raising his hands in surrender. “Okay, I get it. Now, it’s my turn to apologize.” He looked her up and down, stripping her with the heat of his gaze. “I’ve got to admit, I thought I was attracted to you before; now I’m…”

She licked her lips, waiting for him to define this crazy thing that was happening between them. Attraction didn’t begin to describe it. That was too tame a word to describe something so all-consuming.

“Intrigued.” He took another step toward her. “This thing with you and Morris…”

Her breath hitched as she watched his eyes travel over her breasts. “There is no thing with Morris. I just met him last night.”

“Nothing happened between you two last night?” he asked, his lips mere inches from hers.

She fought to keep her eyes open when they wanted to drift closed to invite his kiss. “No, of course not.”

He cupped her face in his hands, brushing the pad of his thumb over her full lower lip. “Not even a little kiss?”

She shook her head, unable to speak.

“He didn’t even hold your hand or caress your thigh or…”

“No, he never touched me,” she whispered. “Why?”

He smiled. “Good, not that it would’ve stopped me from doing this.” He dipped his head, brushing his lips against hers.

She whimpered, wrapping her arms around his waist as she tipped her head back. She was wearing flat sandals and he towered over her, but she wasn’t going to let a kink in her neck stop her from taking what she wanted.

“You realize once I’ve tasted you, there’s no going back, don’t you?” The words sounded like a veiled threat, but she was past the point of using good judgement. “Last chance to back out,” he whispered.

She flattened her palms against his chest as a mite of common sense permeated her sensual haze. “This is crazy,” she whispered. “I don’t do things like this with guys I just met.”

He chuckled, a low rumble deep in his chest that vibrated her sensitive nipples through the thin barrier of cotton between them. “I’m glad to hear that.”

“No, I mean it. I’ve never had a one-night stand.”

He stroked her lip with his thumb, his eyes fixed on the action. “That’s good, ‘cause I promise you that’s not what this is gonna be. I’ll never get my fill of you in just one night.”

His words sent a current of excitement through her. She couldn’t wait to find out what he had planned. “You don’t understand. I have a ten-date rule.” She laughed, a little embarrassed to be confiding in him. “Most girls have a three-date rule; mine is ten, ‘cause I know if I like a guy enough to spend that much time with him, he’s worthy of…” 

He grinned. “Rules were made to be broken, sweetheart.”

She had never been so tempted to strip naked and let a man have his way with her, but her inner angel always outmuscled her inner devil. “I can’t, Steve. It’s not that I don’t want to, I do, but…”

He took a step back, dropping his hands to his sides. “Okay, I get it. Say no more.”

“Do you always give up so easily?” she asked, slightly affronted.

He laughed. “Honey, when a woman says no, she means no, even when her eyes are telling me a different story.” He winked. “Will you come find me later?”

She reached out to grab his hand. “Wait.” She refused to leave this room until she got the kiss her lips were craving. She reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck, drawing his head down. She dipped her tongue into his mouth, tentatively at first, until he opened up to her.

He groaned, grabbing her by the waist and crushing her tits to his chest. He didn’t just kiss her, he devoured her, his tongue sparring with hers until she was shamelessly grinding her hips into him and moaning deep in her throat.

He boosted her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist as he caressed her ass, sliding his hands under her thin tank top to stroke her bare back.

“Oh God,” she whispered, trying to catch her breath. “Steve, I…” She didn’t know what overcame her, but she didn’t care about rules or consequences. She needed him, now.

He peeled her legs off of him, setting her down on her feet as he struggled to re-gain his composure. “I was afraid that might happen,” he muttered.

“What? What’s wrong?”

“If I start, I’m not gonna be able to stop.”

She reached for the hem of his t-shirt, trying to pull it up and over his head. “I don’t want you to stop.”

He grabbed her wrists. “Brook, listen to me.” His hands moved to her face. “I meet a lot of women, hell, let’s be honest. I sleep with a lot of women, but it’s been a long time since I’ve felt like this, if ever. I don’t want to rush it. I don’t want you to regret it, okay?” 

He doused her flame when he admitted he was a player, though she didn’t know why she should be surprised. He was rich, gorgeous, and a professional athlete at the top of his game. Of course women would be chasing after him, and she had no doubt he made it easy for them to catch him.

She pushed past him. “You’re right; this was a bad idea.”

He thrust his hands into his hair. “Brook, dammit, that’s not what I said.”

She walked out of the room to the sound of his muttered curses.  

Chapter Two
 

Mark Atwell, Steve’s friend and teammate, elbowed him in the ribs. “So, get this, that smokin’ hot chick Morris brought to the party is a partner in some big law firm downtown. Can you believe that? I would’ve bet a million bucks she was a centrefold in some porn rag. I mean, seriously, did you see you her in that bikini? That rack…” 

“Take this, Atwell,” Steve said, thrusting a tray of food at him.

He didn’t need anyone to draw his attention to Brooklyn. He hadn’t been able to take his eyes off of her all day. The sight of her prancing around in that bikini was driving him crazy.

“Every single guy here has struck out with her today,” Mark said, popping a cracker into his mouth. “How ‘bout you? Have you taken your turn at bat?”

“None of your goddamn business,” he said, taking a long pull from his bottle of beer.

He was
not
going to tell anyone what had happened between him and Brooklyn in his wine room. He couldn’t even make sense of it himself. One look at her and he was hooked. She touched him, kissed him, and he couldn’t stop thinking about getting her into his bed. But if her attitude since that kiss was any indication, that fantasy wouldn’t be fulfilled anytime soon. 

“So, what do ya say, can I borrow your boat for a couple of hours?” Mark asked, setting the food tray down on a nearby table.

Steve hadn’t heard a word Mark said. He was too busy watching Brooklyn cozy up to his buddy, Lee. He was a cop and Steve’s lifelong friend, but if Lee didn’t put some distance between himself and Brook, Steve was going to kick him out on his ass. “Yeah sure, have fun.” Steve reached into his pocket and handed Mark the keys to his new twenty-two foot fishing boat.

“Awesome, I told her I’d take her out to that little island. I thought we could drop anchor and go for a dip.” He laughed, lifting his eyebrows. “With any luck, it’ll be a skinny dip.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“Brooklyn, that hot little lawyer. I told her I’d take her out on your boat for…”

Steve snatched the keys back and scowled. “Fuck that.”

He crossed the room, edging his way between Lee and Brooklyn. “Hey, buddy,” he said to Lee. “Mind if I steal her for a minute?”

Lee frowned, obviously not happy about the prospect of giving up center stage. “Uh, yeah, sure.”

He smiled at Brooklyn. “I’ll catch up with you later, okay?”

She tapped her wine glass against his beer bottle. “I’d like that. It was nice talking to you, Lee.”

She reached into the bag at her feet and withdrew a business card. “Give me a call on Monday. I’d like to pick your brain about that case we were talking about.”

He looked at the card and smiled. “Yeah, sounds good. Maybe we can talk about it over dinner.”

She glanced up at Steve. “Sure, why not?”

Before she could say another word, Steve seized her hand and led her out the door.  

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she demanded, trying to shake him off.

“I heard you wanted to go out for a boat ride. I’ll take you.”

She pulled free of his grip and walked ahead of him, down the forty foot cedar dock toward his boats. One was a fishing boat, the other a cabin cruiser. “Which one?” she asked, folding her arms as she tapped a sandaled foot against the hot cedar planks.

He nodded his head toward the cabin cruiser, that one had a bed. She stepped onto the boat without waiting for him to board first so he could assist her. He boarded the boat and glared at her. “What the hell was that back there?”

She feigned innocence, shrugging her shoulders. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“All those guys back there hitting on you and you were eating it up, weren’t you?”

She pulled her tank top off to reveal two turquoise triangles that barely covered her tits. She’d obviously snuck into the powder room to change out of her wet bikini into a dry one. “It’s my business who I flirt with. Deal with it.”

He suppressed the urge to growl in frustration. The woman was maddening. And outrageously sexy. “You made it my business when you stuck your tongue down my throat.”

She slipped her tight denim shorts over her hips to reveal two scraps of fabric secured by strings. “You think just because I kissed you it means you have the right to stake your claim? Give me a break. I just met you.”

“What if I fucked you right now? Would that give me the right to stake my claim?” he demanded. He had a high tolerance for bullshit, but she finally pushed him to his limit.

She set her hands on her hips, glaring at him. “No, just because I sleep with a guy doesn’t mean he owns me. I do what I want, when I want, with whom I want.”

He reached out to grab her arm, pulling her into the solid wall of his bare chest. “That’s where you’re wrong. ‘Cause if you even think about fucking some other guy while you’re sharing my bed, I’ll hunt him down and make him wish he’d never laid eyes on you.”

She trembled in his arms, and he knew that, despite her cool façade, she wanted a man who wasn’t afraid to take control in the bedroom. Fortunately, he was just the man for the job.

“You like the sound of that, don’t you, baby?” He grabbed her wrists, pinning her hands behind her back. “You’ve never had a man take the lead before, have you?”

Her blue eyes were wide, the pupils dilated, as she shook her head.

He smirked. “I didn’t think so. I’m willing to bet you usually choose guys who are too classy to get rough in the bedroom. Am I right?”

Her gaze dropped to his chest, but she didn’t respond.

“You think you like being in control in the courtroom and in the bedroom, but I’m willing to bet you’re curious what it would be like to really let go.”

She gave him a barely perceptible nod, as though she was ashamed to acknowledge a weakness.  He cupped her chin, forcing her to look at him. “Baby, it’s okay. Relinquishing control doesn’t make you weak.”

She drew a deep, shuddering breath. “I’m not weak. I’m strong, in control...”

He kissed her gently on the lips. “Wouldn’t it be nice to trust someone enough to be able to let go without worrying about the consequences?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never, I mean…”

He knew she was terrified of confessing a need that had been buried forever, especially to a stranger. “It’s okay, sweetheart,” he whispered. “I’m not going to judge you. But I want a woman who isn’t afraid of the kind of relationship I need.”

She sunk her straight white teeth into her bottom lip, looking uncertain. “What kind of relationship do you need?”