Storm of Desire (6 page)

“Aiden,” she whispered.

The green fire in her eyes burned him from the inside out. His cock felt ready to burst. When he thrust inside her, she groaned her pleasure and wrapped her legs high around his hips. He rode her hard and fast until all thought fled his mind and he knew only Sam and only this moment.

They came together in a climax that left them both shaking. When his breathing slowed, he rolled off her and pulled her to him, placing a gentle kiss on her lips.

“That was incredible,” she said in a husky whisper. “I’ve never—”

He took her lips in a quick kiss, stopping her words. He didn’t care about other men. He cared only that this wonderful, sexy woman gave herself to him so freely.

After long moments in each other’s arms, she moved away and propped herself on her elbow. He tangled his fingers in the soft strands of her hair and pulled her down for another kiss.

When the kiss ended, she looked into his eyes. “We didn’t use protection.”

He skimmed his fingers over her defined cheekbones. “I’m sorry. I wanted you too badly to think of anything else.”

“That makes two of us.”

“Are you on anything?”

She shook her head. “It’s a good time. We should be all right.”

A twinge of disappointment hit him. What would it be like to see Sam carrying his baby? He tamped down the thought. A baby would bind her to him in ways unimaginable.

He wanted her to come to him willingly or not at all.

<><><>

Aiden watched Sam as she stood in front of the stove making breakfast. He couldn’t let her go. But he wouldn’t beg her to stay. She had to want him as much as he wanted her.

He strode into the room and put his arms around her waist. Murmuring little sounds of contentment, she leaned back into him. He swept her hair off her neck and placed tender kisses on her nape.

“That feels good,” she said.

He turned off the burner and edged her away from the stove, then loosened the ties on her terry robe and cupped her breasts. “These feel good too.”

She laughed softly. “I get that you really like them.”

“I really like you.” He pressed her against him. “Feel how much I like you?”

“Yes,” she said on a husky breath.

“I want you again.”

He had her stripped and up against the kitchen wall in seconds. Wild and frantic, she clung to him as he plunged into her.

<><><>

Later, they sat at the table and finished their eggs and coffee. The storm had slowed down. It would end soon and the Coastal would open. They’d go their separate ways. Aiden refused to dwell on that.

He watched Sam, wanting to imprint her image on his memory. Her face was flushed from their lovemaking and her hair brushed softly around her shoulders. She looked sexy and warm. No sadness reflected in her eyes, only contentment. He wanted to keep that contented look in her eyes forever.

“What?” she asked. “Do I have egg on my face?”

“I was thinking how gorgeous and sexy you are.”

Her face reddened. “You’re gorgeous and sexy too.” Then her expression turned serious and she set down her mug.

A rock seemed to settle in his chest. “What’s wrong?”

“I’ve been wondering about something. I have to ask you.”

“Shoot.”

“Tell me about your engagement.”

He raised his eyebrows. Sure wasn’t expecting that. “How did you know?”

“Carly Madison posted it on Facebook.”

“Carly has a big mouth.” He shrugged. “What do you want to know?”

“Who was she and why didn’t it last?” The slight hesitation in her voice belied the bluntness of her question.

Aiden cradled his coffee mug and looked at a spot above Sam’s head, remembering. “I met her the summer after you left. Her parents bought a house in one of the new, exclusive developments in Bethany.”

“The multi-million dollar houses?” she asked.

He returned his attention to Sam. She studied him, waiting. “One of those.” He gave a self-deprecating laugh. “I was at a crossroads, questioning everything. The first time I met her, she came onto me strong. Not only was she beautiful, but the way she carried herself, the way she dressed, shouted money, and lots of it. She was so different from the other women who came into the bar. I’m ashamed to admit it, but her sophistication and her obvious wealth threw me for a loop. She was generous with her body too. And she pursued me.”

He shook his head. “I thought I could handle her and her money. I didn’t know what hit me.” He barked a laugh. “I didn’t stand a chance.”

Sam blinked. “She was beautiful?”

Not as beautiful as you
. He couldn’t say that. Instead, he said, “Blonde hair, green eyes. Good figure.”

“No wonder you were thrown for a loop.”

“Looks can be deceiving.” He shrugged. “I didn’t know it at the time, but she wasn’t a nice person.”

“What happened?”

“It’s not much of a story. Her father owned a chemical supply company in Baltimore. When we got engaged, her father offered me a job as head of their marketing department. Celia begged me to take the job. I had a marketing degree, so it made sense.” He drew a deep breath and leveled his gaze at Sam. “Later I realized I wanted to stay in Rehoboth and run the bar. This is my home, my life, and where I’m comfortable, but Celia didn’t want to live in Rehoboth year round and she didn’t want to be married to a bartender. To make her happy, I took the job in Baltimore.” He shook his head. “Worst six months of my life.”

Sam sipped her coffee and watched him over the rim of the mug. “I can’t see you stuck in an office all day.”

“I couldn’t see it either, but I tried to please her.”
And I didn’t want to end up like Uncle Sean, pining for a woman who barely knew I existed.

“But she wanted more,” Sam said.

“She wanted me to aim higher, to be CFO. More money, more prestige.” He rubbed a hand over his face. “It wasn’t long before I realized I’d made a huge mistake. I hated Baltimore. I hated my job. I missed the ocean, missed the bar, even missed the customers.”

Aiden looked toward the window and finished his coffee, then set the mug back on the table and faced Sam. “When I found she was cheating on me with a guy who was as ambitious as she was, I left.”

Sam laid her hand over his on the table. “I’m sorry.”

“There’s nothing to be sorry for. It wasn’t all her fault. To be fair, I should have thought things through. She wasn’t what I wanted, and I wasn’t what she wanted. It was a hard lesson, but I learned who I am and what I really want.”

“What do you want, Aiden?”

You
he wanted to say. “My life here, running the bar, being with my family. Hopefully someone to share it with.” He hesitated, then went on. “I allowed myself to be fooled by a beautiful face, seductive words, and money. If I marry, the woman would have to want to share my life, would have to want the same things I do.”

“Do you think you will marry someday?” she asked softly.

He looked at her directly. “Only if the right woman comes along.”

CHAPTER EIGHT

SAM OPENED THE
living room curtains and peered outside, watching Aiden as he fought his way around the house, searching for the loose shutter that was flapping against the siding. He needed to secure the shutter before it did any real damage.
Please be careful
. She pressed her hand against her mouth as she watched him struggle against the wind.

She’d begged him not to go. What if something happened to him? He could be hit by flying debris. He could slip on the icy ground. She didn’t want to think about his getting hurt.

Or about leaving him.

Hugging herself, she turned from the window. She’d come to Fenwick for a long weekend of peace and quiet, to make a decision about her career and her life. A transfer to London would be the opportunity of a lifetime. It would also solve a problem or two on the home front.

But somehow London and Richmond and her career seemed very far away right now. Like the storm outside, her life was a tempest.

A faint “meow” pulled her from her thoughts. Sam looked down to see Casey staring up at her, his big green eyes questioning. She picked him up and cuddled him close. “I know, Casey. I have a problem. What should I do? What do I want?”

Holding the purring cat, Sam paced the living room. She wasn’t sure how she felt about Aiden. All she knew for certain was that he somehow made her feel safe. And sexy. Very sexy. With him, and only him, her inhibitions fell away at a touch. Was it because she trusted him? Was it something deeper?

She sank onto the couch and released the now-squirming Casey. The cat scooted to the other side of the sofa and began grooming himself. Sam wished she could be as calm and content. She wondered if she’d ever know true contentment.

Grabbing a small pillow, she pressed it against her stomach. After a fatherless childhood spent with a mother who changed jobs as often as she did men, a childhood marked by long periods of little money, Sam craved stability. Thankfully her grandparents had left this house to her mother. Otherwise, she hated to think where they would have lived. Consequently, all Sam had wanted was to make partner in her law firm. Then she’d have had money, prestige, security—and the stability that came with them.

But now there was Aiden.

He made her question everything she’d thought she wanted. Aiden was rooted here. He loved his work, loved living at the beach. Despite her career problems, she loved her work. She could choose to stay in Richmond and fight for what she wanted, or take the job in London.

Or could she come back here, to this place that held such painful memories? Sam straightened. Come back here? For what? Aiden hadn’t asked her to stay.

Sure, they’d had hot sex, but that was all it was. She couldn’t read Aiden, couldn’t guess how he felt. For all she knew, they could be having revenge sex. They were stuck here together, two people hot for each other. They were having a stormy fling, nothing more. Aiden was a red-blooded male. Very red-blooded. Very male. The thought of his body, his mouth, his hands and what they could do to her made her melt.

She couldn’t deny she wanted Aiden. Wanted him badly. All the time. All ways. She settled back on the sofa and willed herself to relax, then glanced at Casey. The cat stared at her as if he understood her inner conflicts. Sam rubbed away tears of frustration that pooled in the corners of her eyes.

The front door opened and shut with a bang. Aiden stepped into the living room. His hair and clothes were dripping wet, leaving a small puddle on the polished floor. Sam jumped up.

“Are you okay?” she asked, searching his face, assuring herself he was all right.

He smiled, showing the dimple she’d always loved. “It took some doing, but the shutter’s secure.”

She needed to touch him somehow. “Take off your wet clothes before you get sick.”

His smile widened as she tugged on his coat, helping him to remove it. “It’s nice to have someone fuss over me.” He kissed her lightly on the lips.

Sam paused, realizing she suddenly wanted to worry over Aiden forever. To greet him when he came home from work, to spend every night in his arms.

“Sam?” He furrowed his brow.

She shook her head to clear it. “Go get changed and I’ll make some hot chocolate.”

He kissed her again. “You’re the boss.”

Later, sipping hot chocolate, they reclined on pillows on the floor in front of a blazing fire. The sweet scent of the chocolate, soothing and sensual, wrapped around Sam, and the rich liquid warmed her as it made its way down her throat.

But she didn’t need the drink to warm her. Just looking at Aiden sent heat through her veins. He’d changed into black jeans and a black T-shirt, compliments of Uncle Sean. Dressed in black, with his hair slicked back, and clean-shaven, thanks to Uncle Sean’s razor, he looked sexier than any man had a right to.

A rush of moisture dampened her panties. She squirmed.

“Are you okay?” Aiden asked.

“Very okay.” The huskiness of her voice surprised her, and she felt a blush creep up her face.

“Sam.” Aiden set his hot chocolate on the coffee table and took the mug from her, setting it next to his.

He reached for her. She went willingly into his arms. He pulled her across his lap and sat her on the floor in front of him, nestling her between his thighs. She scrunched closer and he wrapped his arms around her. Her head fit under his chin.

The cats, purring loudly, lay on the marble hearth, warming themselves. Sam wanted to purr too. She couldn’t remember ever feeling so peaceful, especially not here in her mother’s house. She had to admit Lisa had tried to make a comfortable home for her. Yet, there’d always been tension between them, tension brought on by their recurring money problems and her mother’s endless parade of boyfriends.

Sam had wanted a mother like the ones her friends had—mothers who baked cookies and drove their kids to hockey practice or dance class. To be fair, her mother, a cocktail waitress, had worked two, sometimes three jobs. She’d even worked at Rourke’s Bar in the summers.