Page 34 of Grant’s Flame

Harder.

I almost gave her a double take. Had she really just…

Oh, hell yes, she had.

And Rio proved as much with her follow-up. The woman blew the doors off my mental brick house by lightly placing her hand on top of mine. The exact hand still clutched around the slender column of her throat.

Well, that was all it took. That one gorgeous gesture. With one silent word, she’d stoked the flame to a full, phenomenal blaze.

Though if I were honest, the fire that burned inside me for this intriguing, infuriating, captivating woman…had a new ground zero. My hot interest for the sassy, sexy little imp beneath me had started months ago, where most heat does in my world—in my dick. But over the days, and through the harrowing experiences she’d endured, feelings sneaked their way up through my body and now simmered in the center of my chest. In my heart. And Rio fanned the emotion with every breath she took. I could openly admit now, those feelings had been building from the moment I met her. And ever since I’d been inside her scorching hot body? My feelings were careening toward alarming. The clanging five-bells-and-a-scream kind.

I never wanted the fire drill to end.

Especially now, as I flexed my fingers to add more pressure to her neck instead of her windpipe. At the same time, I thrust my hips forward.

“Put your hands on the pillow above your head, Blaze. Both of them. Now,” I growled. With a deeper groan, I watched her nostrils flare. I reveled in the feel of her pulse that thundered through her carotid, tripling in time beneath my commanding touch.

“Nice,” I praised. “Very nice, baby. Breathe and let me do what I want to this tight little body.”

My pelvis smacked against her, and I taunted my girl with each thrust. “Does that feel good? Can you feel me deep inside you?”

“Yes. Grant! God, yes!”

“Are you going to come for me again, Rio?”

“I don’t…I don’t…”

“Is that a yes?” I goaded with a wide grin. As she fumbled for an answer, I released her from my grasp. Just as quickly, I flipped her over to her stomach. She let out a sound, a delicious mix of a whimper and a moan, as I snaked an arm under her, hoisting her ass up to meet my downward thrust. As we rejoined, I meshed my groan with her loud cry. Her pussy was so slick, I slid all the way into her heavenly body in one aggressive motion.

“Fuck! Grant!”

“So good, baby. Christ, you’re always so wet for me.”

“Mmmm.”

She was back to the half moan, and it had never sounded better with the blood that hammered my ears. But it didn’t match the stuff filling my dick as she propped herself up on her forearms and looked back over her shoulder to watch me fuck her. Goddamn. Of all the ways I’d envisioned dying, keeling over from an arousal overdose didn’t crack the top hundred. But this threat was gloriously real, and I didn’t give a single flying fuck—especially as I drank in the glory of Rio pushing back into every one of my forceful strokes. Oh, hell yes—I was so close—and it was so perfect.

Until her whiskey-colored eyes fluttered closed. Oh, hell no!

“Look at me, Blaze. It’s now or never, girl. I can’t hold back. Come with me, baby.” I encouraged her with words and then spanked her ass over and over until the sounds of our slapping flesh and her cries of passion mingled together in a chorus so sweet, I wanted to record the whole thing and save it for my phone’s ringtone.

I groaned low in my throat while semen spurted from my cock. I continued to jerk and throb inside her channel even as she expelled an exhausted sigh and surrendered her whole weight into my hands. Supporting her petite frame wasn’t an issue. Refraining from using the moment as a great teaching lesson? Not so easy. Because if she would let me help with other things just as easily…like her heartaches and struggles and pain…

But we’d already been there. A hundred times now. She’d have to connect the dots to the conclusion on her own—if it were to happen at all.

After I was sure I had emptied every last drop I had into her, I eased her down onto the bed and rolled off to her side. She nestled into my open arms, and I pulled the covers over us, and we were lost to sleep.

By the time I woke the next morning, the space beside me was empty. I strained to hear the shower running, but no luck there either. Disappointment set in, and I wanted to kick myself for thinking I’d finally made progress with the woman.

I ran my hands over the whisker growth on my cheeks and across my jaw. I was an idiot to think that a pretty moon, a sky full of stars, and a couple of orgasms—even if they were epic—would actually make headway in deciphering this woman’s code.

Rio wasn’t like any of the other women I’d taken to bed before. Not even close. I was so far out of my league with her. Strange and heavy feelings were sitting right in the center of my chest, making it difficult to breathe.

Shit. Maybe I was just coming down with something. That wasn’t a great theory either. Not now, when the best part of our trip was still ahead of us. The Aloha State. I’d made reservations at all the best restaurants in Honolulu and even planned a spa day for Rio at the island’s most renowned resort. We would be staying at the luxury complex for one of the nights while the crew cleaned and replenished the yacht before we made our journey back to California.

Today, I thought I’d check out a few more activity ideas—after getting Rio’s input, of course. The thought made me laugh out loud. It was like I’d been abducted by aliens in my sleep. Checking out activities? And I wasn’t using the word combination as a witty, covert euphemism for fucking in front of a G-rated audience. No wonder I was feeling so confused. All this shit was really starting to sound like a relationship, and God fucking knew I had no experience in that department. The closest I’d come to having a relationship with a woman was knowing how she took her morning coffee while I called a car to drive her off my property in the quickest, tidiest manner.

But that was just it. I wanted to do more than navigate a morning after with this amazing, confusing, creative creature. I wanted to linger in bed and drink our coffee from the same cup. I wanted to feel her hair tickle my chin while she snuggled in my arms and we checked our morning emails. I wanted to roll her onto her back and sink into her for a lazy morning fuck session and then take a long hot shower together before we set off to work. Then meet back at home after a long day at the office to do it all over again.