Suddenly, her wrists were shackled. “You have a real control issue, don’t you?”
That shocked her. “What?” she asked, and then laughed. “Me?” Another laugh only this time it held disbelief. “I don’t have control issues.”
One dark brow inched upward. “No?” he asked. “Prove it.”
“I don’t have control issues.” This time the words came out sharper.
“Stand up,” he said, and it was an order.
“What?” she asked again. “Stand up? No, I—”
“Thought you didn’t have control issues?” he challenged.
She gave him a frustrated look. “I don’t.”
“Then stand up.”
Zoe stood up. “Happy?”
“Getting there,” he said. “Hands on the wall behind me.”
She stared down at him. His eyes dared her to say no. The thing was, she wanted to do what he said. It just felt so…so something. So out of…damn it. Out of control. The guys she normally slept with were easygoing in bed. They did her bidding and she liked it. This was different. Yet, it was really, really sexy.
“Hands against the wall,” he repeated, this time louder.
She bit her bottom lip and did what he said. His palms went to one of her ankles urging it to the other side of his hip. Then he did the same with her other foot. With her legs spread, the vee of her body now lingered directly in front of him. Slowly, with a gentle touch, his fingers played on her calves before his palms flattened on her legs. Inch by inch, his hands moved upward, past her knees. Anticipation made her shiver as his warm breath blew across her nub. By the time he touched her ass, caressing it in a whisper-light way, she was ready to beg. And then in one hot moment, he half smacked her ass as he claimed her sensitive clit between his lips.
She gasped from the shock of the actions. And before she fully recovered he was licking, touching, and tasting in a way that had her knees ready to buckle. With a slide of his fingers, he teased her inner wall. All the while, he caressed her nub with his mouth, holding her up with a firm grip on her butt. Much to Zoe’s disbelief, her orgasm came within only minutes, ripples of ecstasy taking over her body and leaving her limp and mindless.
Declan maneuvered their bodies and stood, lifting Zoe with him. Seconds later she faced the bathroom mirror, his arm around her waist. His cock slid into the slick folds of her sensitive flesh, lingering with a long slide. Then he opened her cheeks and positioned his cock, sinking deep.
Once he hit her core, he leaned forward, mouth against her ear, chest pressed to her back. “Is giving me control so bad?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said, unwilling to admit differently.
He palmed her breast and pinched her nipple. “What about this? Does it feel good?”
She moaned at the sweet sensation of his fingers plucking her hardened peak. “No,” Zoe lied.
His breath brushed her lobe just before his teeth. “It sure sounds like it feels good.”
“No,” she murmured, but he flattened his hand on her stomach and pulled her hips against his as he thrust hard into her. Zoe made a loud sound of pleasure, feeling the impact of the contact in every nerve ending of her body.
Declan leaned back and ground into her again. “So what do I do, Zoe?” he half grunted as he again thrust. “Should I stop?”
With the words, he stilled and she felt the loss of movement as if her breath had been stolen. “No. Don’t stop.”
He didn’t move. “You’re sure?”
She looked over her shoulder at him. “Damn you, Declan, no. Don’t stop.”
A bark of laugher later, he didn’t hesitate to comply. With one hard lunge after another, he pounded her core. Each hit felt like heaven. Each contact brought more satisfaction until she shattered, feeling the shudder of his body as he spilled himself inside her.
When he used a towel to dry them off, turning her to lean on the counter, she didn’t fight him. She felt drained in a really good way. Her limbs felt relaxed. Again, he scooped her up in his arms. No man had ever carried her, let alone done it three times in one night. And as he slid into the bed with her and pulled her close, she knew she should tell him to leave. He had managed to manipulate her and make her submissive. Something she didn’t ever want to be. But his strong arms surrounded her and pulled her close. She was tired and he felt so…warm.
She’d make him leave in a minute.
* * * * *
Zoe blinked into the darkness and reality slowly eased into her mind. A hard chest beneath her palm and a warm leg wrapped with hers were the first things she brought into focus.
Declan.
She didn’t allow guys to stay the night. The fact that she’d fallen asleep with him amazed her. No. It alarmed her. She had junk going on in her life and having a fling had been a dumb idea. Vulnerability spelled trouble with a capital T. She inhaled, determined to gain her resolve and get the hell out of his arms. Instead, she found his scent, masculine and natural, storming her senses. Making her want to stay in his arms. To touch him again.
No. She said the word in her head and forced herself to sit up. One glance at the clock and she scrambled, kicking the sheets aside. “It’s five in the morning,” she announced, standing now, naked and not caring. “You need to leave.”
Patting the bed, Declan ignored her words. “Come back to bed. I have another hour.” His eyes drifted down her body, heavy with their caress.
She grabbed his shirt from the floor and put it on, covering herself. She’d give it back in a minute. Right now she was desperate to keep control. “No, you don’t. I have to…to be early to cover a story.”
He rose up on one elbow. “In other words, you want me to leave.”
Was she not clear? “Yes.”
Laughing, he shoved aside the blanket and stood. Naked. Damn him. The next thing she knew he was in front of her. “I’ll need my shirt.”
“Put on your pants first.”
Looking down and then back up, he said, “I think that might be difficult at the moment.”
Without meaning to, Zoe’s gaze slid below his waist to his now erect cock. “Oh,” she said. Not a brilliant statement but all that came to mind. And before she could form a better answer, he was holding her, kissing her, and making her forget why she wanted him to leave.
Maybe he could stay…a little longer.
* * * * *
Midmorning, Zoe stood at her desk in the midst of a bullpen setup and stared down at the paper’s headlines. Her father was the main event. With shock, Zoe eased into her chair feeling a rush of sickness take over. He’d been accused of securities fraud. Denial raced through her mind. It couldn’t be. Not her father. He could be a bastard but he wasn’t a thief. Worse, his associate, Ray Ryder, a man Zoe knew so well she called him Uncle Ray, was also involved. She skimmed the words on the page. Her father and Ray were pointing the finger at each other.
“You look shocked. I would have thought Daddy would have told you he was in trouble.”