Climbing the ladder in the bureau was beginning to look next to impossible. Her godfather’s position as head of the federal offices held her back in ways she hadn’t anticipated. She was protected and watched over, and then Deerfield had the nerve to accuse her of “crying” to Zach when things didn’t go her way.
The wall to advancement that she was facing at times seemed insurmountable.
The private security firm, on the other hand, looked promising. She had no blood relation working there, no friends, and, even better, her father and godfather weren’t involved in any way. She would have a sense of freedom, fewer rules and regulations, and more action and satisfaction. It seemed like a win/win situation so far.
So far.
She hadn’t told her fathers about it yet, she hadn’t discussed it with her mother, and every time she considered doing so, something stopped her. As though the thought of it were suddenly abhorrent. But she was an adult; she wasn’t going to feel like she had to ask permission to play on the other side of the playground.
And while she was considering options, was she going to pull her towel over her naked body sometime before Khalid Mustafa stepped from the family room to the patio where she lay?
Peeking from beneath her lashes, she watched as his shadow lingered for long seconds at the French doors before he stepped into the brilliant rays of the sun.
Like a shadow come to life. Black eyes, black hair, deeply bronzed flesh. The man was like a living sex god. Hard muscle shifted beneath the white silk shirt he wore, just as lean, powerful legs flexed inside the form-fitting jeans that covered them.
“You’re going to burn.” His shadow eased over her, dulling the heat that had been sinking slowly into her back.
“I never burn.” She fought to keep the arousal that whipped through her out of her voice as she lay beneath his gaze. “What are you doing here? Zach’s at Dad’s house. Next house down the street, if you’re not sure where that’s at.”
“I know where it’s located.” Deep, dark, his voice washed over her senses with a velvety rasp that shouldn’t have had the power to send her juices spilling from her vagina.
“Then why are you here?” She lifted herself up on her elbows and raised her head as he squatted in front of her, his dark head tilted, his thickly lashed eyes narrowing on her.
“You look like a virgin sacrifice. Laid out, naked, and tempting the sun to ravage as it chooses.”
Wow. He sure as hell had a gift for words. She had known that about him; she just hadn’t expected to have him use it to pay homage to her in quite that manner.
“It hasn’t ravaged me yet.” She looked up at him. “No matter how much I tempt it.”
What was that flaring in his gaze? There was more than simple lust there, though the lust was there in spades. A hunger echoed through her body, tightened her nipples, and caused her abdomen to clench in anticipation of pleasure.
And how the hell was she supposed to know it would be pleasure? She had to be the only twenty-seven-year- old virgin left in the country. A woman who knew more about sex than the highest-paid call girl and yet had never known the touch of a lover, because she had to be the most stubborn woman in the world, too. She wanted Khalid. She had wanted him since she was fifteen, and no other man was going to do.
“Some would say you’re tempting it as you speak,” Khalid stated, his gaze flickering down to the rounded curves of her breasts.
Marty swore she could feel the swollen mounds hardening further, her nipples aching, throbbing with the need for his touch.
This was what he did to her. What he had always done to her. “Tempting it as I speak?” She glanced up at the clear blue sky before turning her gaze back to him. “So far, it hasn’t responded.”
His lips lifted in a half-smile. “You might be surprised.”
“I rather doubt it.” Rolling over she sat up, drew the light robe from her side, and pulled it over her as she rose to her feet.
Turning to face him once again, she reminded herself that this man was way out of her league and a damned sight more male than she might be able to handle. That didn’t keep her from wanting to try.
“So why are you here if you know Dad and Zach are at the other house?” she questioned, as she gathered up the towel and her gun and the tanning oil beside her towel. “Shouldn’t you be there?”
His gaze flickered to the holstered gun before coming back to her.
“I didn’t say I knew they were there. I said I knew where it was. Your father is scheduled to meet me here soon. He did not mention the meeting changing to his home.”
“You’ll have to wait, then.” She shrugged.
“I can see this becoming a problem.”
Response slammed through her. The rough edge of his voice was just enough to slice through any doubt she may have had that for the moment his attention was focused solely on her.
“It looks like you’re stuck with me until he returns then.” Her heart was racing, and excitement was building inside her until it felt almost impossible to contain.
“That it does,” he agreed.
“No objections then?” Stepping through the French doors, she turned and headed to the kitchen. “That’s quite an about-face. The last I noticed, you enjoyed making certain there was an absurd distance between us.”
He rarely spoke to her, especially during the past two years while she had been following him on her rabid boss’s orders.
“It could be well measured,” he chided her, as she stepped to the fridge and pulled it open. “And perhaps that distance is best for both of us.”
And he had stated that several times. As they danced at the parties they both attended. Or during her visits to Courtney Sinclair’s home on the Sinclair estate that housed the men’s club he was a member of. Each time they had come in close contact, he had warned her against it. Warned her until she did no more than roll her eyes at the warnings now.
“Fine. It’s not wise. You can leave now.” Pulling a pitcher of sweet iced tea from inside the refrigerator, she shot him a look that dared him to go.
Did she have the courage, she wondered, to be the woman she wanted to be? Seducing him was her dream, but did she have the courage to face possible rejection? More than once?
Pulling two glasses from the cupboard, she poured the tea before setting the pitcher on the counter and giving the glass to him.
“Thank you.” His eyes locked on hers as he lifted the glass to his lips and sipped.
There was pure sexual hunger in his gaze. Lust filled it, shaped his sexy lips, and tightened the skin over his cheekbones. He watched her like a hawk watches its prey: narrow-eyed, intent, hungry.
“How much longer are you going to wait, Khalid?” She set the glass on the counter as she confronted him. “Forever?”
He stared back at her silently for a long moment.
“What do you want, Marty?” he finally asked, his tone darker now. “You can’t know what you’re getting into here. You can’t know what you’re actually reaching for.”
“I want you.”
Yes, she knew exactly what she wanted, who she wanted. Just as she knew he wanted her. He could deny it until hell froze over, but the truth was there in his eyes, in the hard contours of his face and the sensual fullness of his lips. He seemed to freeze. Like a predator suddenly catching scent of prey, his nostrils flared, his gaze narrowed as it flickered over her and seemed to reflect an intent, dangerous hunger.
He wasn’t a man to play with; she had known that for years. There was something intrinsically predatory about him, a silent warning that nothing about him was as it seemed. Unfortunately, that something drew her in ways she couldn’t fight.
“Stop tempting me, precious. You may not like what you find on the other side,” he said harshly.
Marty inhaled slowly, allowing her tongue to run slowly along her lower lip, as though hesitant, as though considering his warning.
