In His Arms Page 2

  Nate stared at the screen without realizing what he was seeing. He was too busy trying to figure out what his problem was. He was cold and calculated when it came to his men. He demanded unquestioning authority and meted out club justice with an iron fist. And yes, okay, he was a bit softer with women, but not much softer. But then, most of the women he had known weren’t really that soft. They were hard and brash and had seen too much of the world. Haley, by contrast, was soft and sweet and ridiculously innocent. He was drawn to her in a way he’d never experienced before.

  The steam from the shower seemed to clear Haley’s head of the bourbon-induced fog, but it couldn’t chase Nate out of it. She thought of him as she soaped up her body, wondering what it would be like to feel his hands against her skin. She slid soapy hands over her breasts, teasing her nipples up into fine peaks, and down over her water-slicked stomach.

  In Haley’s mind, the hands that touched her so intimately were Nate’s. She pictured those strong, capable hands and wondered again how they would feel. Would he press his lips against the nape of her neck and pull her against him? Lift her up and push her against the wall so she could feel him hard against her?

  She stepped out of the tub with the thoughts of Nate still swimming through her mind and a decided warmth between her thighs. She toweled herself off and dressed in the yoga pants and a tank top she’d packed as pajamas. She had grabbed a bra, too, but decided against putting it on. She felt a little reckless as she smoothed her tank down over her stomach, liking the way it accentuated her curves. She partially dried her hair and, after a second of doubt, decided she needed another drink.

  Haley stopped in the hallway just out of his line of vision and watched him as he sipped a sparkling amber liquid and flipped through an endless cycle of channels on the television. She studied him surreptitiously from her vantage point as he sprawled out on the couch. His t-shirt was tight and molded to his well-defined chest and stomach, and his faded blue jeans fit smoothly over muscled thighs. His long, tapered legs were stretched out in front of him, and she couldn’t stop her eyes from wandering down the length of them and back up the generous bulge at the apex of his thighs.

  Her eyes wandered back up to his face and she wondered what it would be like to be kissed by him. Would his kiss be hard and forceful, bruising her lips, or soft and sensual, making her knees weak? He took another sip of his drink and she watched the motion of his throat as he swallowed and wondered what he tasted like.

  Her nipples tightened at that thought, and she saw with a glance how they stood out in stark, hard peaks through her tank top. If she stood there staring at him much longer, she’d have to sneak into the spare room and go to bed or risk embarrassing herself.

  Feeling uncharacteristically bold, Haley chose instead to walk out of the hallway and into the kitchen without a backward glance. She rummaged through the cupboards until she found what she was looking for, and then moved into the living room to sit beside him on the couch. She could have sat down anywhere, but deliberately settled onto the cushion right next to him. “Can I have some of that?” she asked, holding out the rocks glass she’d retrieved from the kitchen.

  He had watched her from his seat as she had moved through the kitchen, quietly sucking in his breath when she had reached up to retrieve the glass from the cabinet. He savored the view of the profile of her body silhouetted against the light over his sink. Her breasts jutted out enticingly, each one ending in a hard, tight nipple. He could feel his jeans become uncomfortably snug as he let his eyes roam over her body. When Haley reached into the cabinet above the sink, a generous swath of flat, toned belly was revealed. He licked his lips, wanting nothing more than to press them against the soft, white skin.

  Now, as she sat beside him, the mingled scent of flowers and clean, fresh air wafted up to Nate even stronger than it had back in his office. He looked down at her, taking in her still damp and tousled hair and her smooth, unblemished face and thought again how innocent she looked. He looked away in an effort to stem the rushing tide of desire rising up in him and poured two fingers of bourbon for her. He held the glass out to her, but as she moved to take it, he pulled it back, saying, “Remember, sip it.”

  “Got it.” She smiled, taking a small sip and rolling it around on her tongue before finally swallowing it. After taking a bigger sip, she made a noise of contentment as warmth spread throughout her body.

  Those wide chocolate eyes met his again and he felt his resolve melting. He realized that by not trying to seduce him, she was having more success than any woman ever had. She took another drink and set her glass down on the coffee table. Without looking away, Nate followed suit and after the slightest hesitation, he angled his body toward her.

  He just looked at her for a moment, unable to form the words he thought he had to say. He wanted to establish domination the way he always did when he was with a woman. He wanted to make sure she knew he was only interested in one thing. But the words wouldn’t come. His brain struggled to make the simplest sentence come together because he felt like he was drowning. He was drowning: in her eyes, in her scent, in her mere presence.

  Instead of speaking, he reached out and lifted a lock of her hair and pressed it against his lips, inhaling the clean, pure scent of it. He watched with fascination as a shiver rippled through her body at his touch, and he allowed his eyes to drift down to her lips. His free hand cupped her chin, his thumb caressing the soft line of her jaw before moving to her lips. She pursed them slightly when he outlined them with a touch so soft she shivered again.

  Haley melted at that soft, gentle touch to her lips. She turned toward him, wanting nothing more than to feel his lips pressed against hers. Her hand covered his as she pulled his palm against her lips and placed a soft, warm kiss in the center of it, sending a rush of heat through his body. Never had a woman affected him like this before. The mere touch of her lips sparked a desire in him so powerful it shook him to his core.

  Without another thought, he replaced his hand with his lips. The sweet flavor of her lips as she parted them to allow his tongue to tease hers took him beyond the bounds of self-control. Gathering her hair in his fist, he pulled her head back, exposing the white skin of her neck to his hungry mouth. Her soft skin and the fresh, pure scent of her nearly drove him over the edge.

  He leaned into her, pushing her back onto the couch, covering her with his body. Haley stretched out beneath him, allowing Nate to mold his body into hers. She shivered deliciously when his lips tickled her neck, and she wrapped her arms around him, pulling him closer. She found her hands were shaking when she stroked him across his back. Whether it was from fear or anticipation, she didn’t know. Maybe it was a little of both.

  When exactly had she lost her mind and decided that this was a good idea? She’d spent years earning her Master of Culinary Arts. She had been so focused on her goal, she hadn’t spend much time socializing. She’d had no time for dates, let alone a boyfriend. The cold fact was that she’d never done this before. She’d never gone further than a kiss with anyone, and now, tonight, Haley was ready to let this man, this stranger, do whatever he wanted to do.

  Nate kissed his way from her neck to capture her lips with his once again, teasing her with his tongue. He slid his fingertips up her arm to her shoulder, leaving a trail of goose bumps in his wake. His hand slipped lower as he cupped one breast in his palm briefly before allowing it to continue its journey to the soft skin of her belly. He easily found his way under her thin tank top to cover her cool flesh with the warmth of his hand. She arched her back toward him, and in one deft motion he lifted her shirt up over her head and discarded it by the couch.

  Haley was stunned for a second at how quickly she had become half nude, but forgot her surprise in the next second when his lips closed over one pert nipple. The yearning she felt was a new sensation for her, and a small moan escaped her lips as he flicked his tongue over her sensitive flesh. He kissed her again before lavishing the same attention on her othe
r breast.

  She roughly tugged at his t-shirt, desperately wanting to feel his skin against hers. He obliged her by yanking it up over his head and pulling her against him. Her lips opened to his once again as she welcomed him, welcomed the heat of his flesh against hers. He shifted against her, trying to find a comfortable position, a way to explore more of her body without resting his weight on her.

  Finally, with a frustrated groan, Nate reluctantly pulled himself off of her. Abruptly picking Haley up in his arms, he turned toward his bedroom. It was her turn to kiss his neck and inhale the masculine scent of him. Nate stopped at the foot of the bed and turned his head to kiss her briefly before lowering her onto the comforter. Before she could have another thought, he had her pants stripped off and was pulling his own jeans off.

  He took a moment to admire the perfection of her body. She was thin, but not too thin, which made her breasts seemed large and round in comparison. His eyes flitted over her long, shapely legs before traveling back up to the top of her thighs. He swung his gaze back up to her face for a brief second, then knelt down and pulled her to the edge of the bed. Haley squirmed with pleasure as Nate peppered her legs with soft kisses and caresses, slowly working his way up to the inside of her thighs and beyond to the very center of her.

  He teased and kissed and licked until she cried out with pleasure and her thighs quivered against his cheekbones. He had his boxers down and kicked away before he stood up. He pulled her to the top of the bed and held himself over her. He leaned down to kiss her, sliding his knee between her legs, nudging them open. He rubbed the head of his cock over her, positioning himself at her now-slick opening. He watched her face as he plunged into her in one fluid motion. He saw the pain flicker across it and asked, “Did I hurt you?”

  “Um...well...it’s just, I never…” Haley found it impossible to form a coherent thought with him resting inside her. He filled her so completely, and what was at first painful was now becoming something so pleasurable she couldn’t think. She involuntarily tightened around him, clamping onto him like a vice. Now she watched something that looked like regret, but not quite, flicker over his face.

  “This is your first time?” Nate asked, incredulous.

  Haley could only nod as she squeezed him again, this time on purpose.

  “You should’ve told me,” he continued, looking a little desperate. “I wouldn’t have been so quick.” He was trying to hold himself in check but was quickly losing the battle of self-control. “I would’ve gone slower.”

  “No,” she gasped, her own need for satisfaction taking control of her. “I’m good. Just...just fuck me now.”

  Hearing that word come out of her mouth, out of those sweet innocent lips, took the last of his restraint, and he nearly pulled out of her delicious warmth. He watched her face again as he immersed himself in the soft depths of her once more. This time she looked back up at him and said, “Don’t be gentle, don’t take your time. Just fuck me.”

  Nate rewarded her with yet another hard thrust, followed again and again by harder and harder thrusts until he filled her so fully, so completely she was crying out from the sheer pleasure of it.

  “Say it again,” he whispered in her ear as she pulled her legs up and wrapped them around him.

  “Fuck me, Nate,” Haley moaned. She had never felt so wanton in her life. “Oh yes, just fuck me; you feel so good.”

  Before long, Haley felt a tightening like a coiled spring deep within her. The friction of his body rubbing against hers created a nearly unbearable tension within her. She clamped her legs around him tighter, calling his name as the spring uncoiled with a force unlike anything she had ever known. She came with a ferocity he had never seen in a woman before, driving his desire for her even higher.

  The moment she loosened her legs, he pulled out of her and abruptly flipped her onto her stomach. He whispered to her to get on her knees, and she did as he asked, although she doubted her legs would hold her. She didn’t regret it a second later when he slid into her again, filling her even more completely than before.

  He found his rhythm, and she moaned in time to each thrust until her arms betrayed her and she collapsed halfway to the bed. He followed her down, pulling her legs gently out from under her. Never leaving her warm, moist depths, he nibbled the back of her neck and earlobe as she pushed back against him. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her as close to him as possible and relishing the feel of her soft skin against his chest. She lay pliant in his arms, unable to function as the now familiar feeling overtook her again and she cried out her pleasure once more.

  Unable to hold back any longer, he breathed her own name in her ear as he came deep inside her. Pulling her even closer to him, he buried himself as deeply in her as he could and moaned “Haley” over and over.

  He stayed on top of her for a moment before realizing he was probably crushing her. He sighed when he rolled off of her, regretting the loss of contact with her body. He stretched out on his side, watching as she caught her breath.

  Her eyes were closed for a moment before they fluttered open and she focused on him, sighing, “I never expected it to be like that.”

  Nate reached out and stroked her back. “You should have told me.”

  “Why?” she asked as she turned to face him. “I hadn’t even decided to do this until we did this.” Haley paused, considering. “Would you have stopped? Would it really have made a difference?”

  He looked at her for a long moment before pulling her closer and kissing her. “I don’t know,” was his answer. “I just don’t know.”

  “I’ve never felt…” They began in unison, only to be interrupted by Nate’s cellphone.

  “Yeah?” he said gruffly as he answered it. “What? I’ll be right there.” Turning to Haley, he said, “Boys are back, gotta go.”

  Haley watched him as he slid his jeans up over his legs. “I’m sorry,” he said, his voice muffled by the t-shirt he was yanking down over his head. “I wouldn’t…but I have to…” He stopped and looked at her.

  “I get it,” she said, somehow managing to smile up at him. “Leader of the pack and all that.”

  He gave her a quick kiss and disappeared out the door. Smiling, Haley fell into a deep, relaxing sleep.

  ****

  “Mom, I promise, I’m fine.”

  Haley’s mother was worried because she had abruptly halted her trip around the country to stay in Virginia with Nate. She understood that, she really did, but she couldn’t seem to make her mother understand that she had to live her own life. She had to see how this panned out. Besides, every time she had it in her head to leave, he easily convinced her to stay.

  “But honey, you’ve been there nearly five weeks!” Anna Jones could not hide her concern for her only child. Yes, Haley was an adult, but a parent never really stops worrying about their child. It was just so hard to let her go.

  “Mom, I’m fine. I swear.” Haley’s voice softened. “I like it here.”

  Anna could hear the little girl she raised in Haley’s voice and found she was unwilling to dampen her enthusiasm with a dose of reality. Haley would just have to learn on her own whether or not this was the right choice for her. “Okay, honey. Just remember that Dad and I are always here for you.”

  “I know, Mom. I’ll call you next week.” Haley ended the call and lay down across the bed just as the bathroom door opened. Nate stepped out wearing only a cloud of steam and a towel draped loosely across his hips. Propping herself up on her elbows, Haley beckoned him to her with one finger and watched with hungry eyes as he stood at the end of the bed and dropped the towel.

  “Did she convince you to go home?” Nate dropped to his knees, grabbing her by the ankles and pulling her toward him. “Do I have to convince you to stay?” He kissed his way up her legs and body until he finally reached her mouth.

  Haley wanted to tell him that she had been thinking about leaving, but not to go home. She wanted to continue on her trip. She needed to make gum
bo with a real Cajun chef and learn how to make genuine Texas chili. She was falling for Nate, falling hard and falling fast, but she was afraid of someday looking back and regretting not finishing this trip, not following her dream.

  She wanted to tell him all these things, but his lips were so warm and his body was lean and hard against hers. He had a way of making her forget about anything but the pleasure of being in his arms. They’d fallen into an easy routine in the last five weeks, and it scared the hell out of her. But now, at this moment, she couldn’t help but relax into him, relax under him. She couldn’t help herself. She let him make her forget wanting to leave at all.

  They made love slowly that morning, savoring every moment together, as though imprinting the experience on their memories. Afterward, they lay curled around each other in silence, each wrapped up in their own thoughts.

  Nate absently stroked Haley’s hair as he allowed his mind to drift into the abyss of the problems he was facing right now. A new biker club had rolled into town a few months ago and a few of Nate’s less loyal men had abruptly left for more lucrative opportunities.