Page 78 of Extraction
“I guess you just puzzle me. You try to be so commanding. I know it’s the way you have to be in your job. You’re attractive, a bit moody,” she smirked, “but kind when you want to be, and you’re a great kisser.” I looked at my plate. “Are you shy?”
I let out a laugh. “No, hardly shy.”
“Good, because shy guys drive me nuts.” She put a hand over her mouth. “That came out rudely. I just mean, in our world, there’s no room for shy, nervous men.”
“Your last boyfriend, what did he do?”
She leaned her arm on the table. “Justin worked a corporate job. Something I tried to get on board with, but—” She shrugged. “Let’s just say he couldn’t hang here, that’s for sure.”
“What attracted you to him?” I figured if she could dig, so could I.
She held a smile for a moment, then it fell, and I knew I hit a nerve. “At first, he seemed like he was a take-charge kind of man. Driven and knew what he wanted. Confidence is everything for me in a man, but over time that fizzled away. He didn’t like that I was always here, and he often had to attend his company’s work dinners and parties alone.
“He tried to do all the things to get me to marry him. He told me he loved me and that I’d never be without family again.” She looked away. “Then I found out he’d been cheating, so he obviously never did love me at all. There it was again. I was destined to be alone.” She pushed her plate away. “People like Justin use your most vulnerable insecurities to hit you with when you don’t do what they want. They want to control you.”
“Seems like a real ass.” I didn’t have anything more to say about the guy; she was better without him. “Why don’t you date soldiers?”
“Because there’s no future there. They do a job too close to mine. Always moving to the next place, no time to settle down.”
“So, you’ve never dated one?” She shook her head. “Never kissed any?”
A smile tugged at her lips. “Just one.”
“Well.” I drank some water as I dragged out the moment. I rather liked this conversation, and I enjoyed that she answered my questions. “Why me?” I leaned back in my chair and spread out my legs to get more comfortable.
“Why me?” she challenged and leaned back to mimic my movements.
I reached forward, grabbed the arms of her chair, and slid her silently across the smooth floor. I wedged her between my legs and leaned forward to rest my elbows on my thighs.
“Because you’re strong, assertive, smart, and painfully beautiful to be around.”
She arched her brow with intrigue. That hungry twinkle she got in her eye right before we’d kiss was back. “Painful, huh?”
I played along. “Excruciating.”
“I wouldn’t want you to be in pain around me.” She rubbed her hands up my forearms, and a rush of adrenaline coursed through me. “What should we do about this situation?” She pushed to her feet and moved forward to lower herself onto my lap.
“I can think of a few ideas.” My hands went up under her shirt then slid around to her smooth back. Everything inside me coiled tightly, and for a moment, I hesitated. I hadn’t been with a woman in well over a year, and Nicole brought a rush of all kinds of feelings to the surface.
I pulled her to me and kissed her neck while I pressed my erection against her. Her heartbeat pounded against my tongue, and all I could think of was I wanted to do the same inside her. Our hunger for each other intensified, and my hands ran up her sides to graze her plump breasts. I wanted to savor every moment, but at the same time, I felt the need to throw her on the bed and show her how hard these past few weeks have been.
“Nicole,” I gasped as I pressed my lips to hers, “I haven’t forgotten our earlier conversation.”
I heard her chuckle as I lost myself in her. “Why am I breaking my rules with you?” She moaned as I pushed her harder into my lap. “I hate that I know how this will end.”
“I want more,” slipped from my mouth as I controlled the kiss. “Give me more.”
“Mamá, mamá,” Chase suddenly cried and then gave a cough.
Nicole flinched and she broke contact with my lips. “He’s hurting my heart.” I felt it too. I hated that his mother was taken from him, and me too. I shook that thought out of my head, because it felt wrong to think of Talya when I wanted Nicole so badly.
As Nicole stood, my hands fell from her silky body. “To be continued.” She gave me a quick kiss as she moved over to my son. “It’s okay, little guy, you’re not alone.”
“Mamá, mamá,” he repeated and rolled onto his stomach. He began to crawl toward Nicole, and she scooped him up so he wouldn’t fall off the bed.
“Paul,” the tone in her voice made the hair on my neck stand, “he’s got a fever. He’s burning up.”
TWENTY-ONE
