The Watson Brothers. Lori Foster
Читать онлайн книгу.
waited, but she didn’t open her eyes, didn’t reply. Sam smiled. “For a youngin’, you come with a lot of energy. I like it.”
Sweat glistened on her chest, the tops of her cheekbones. A rosy flush covered her body and her heart still raced. With an obvious effort, she licked her lips, swallowed, and said, “Shut up, Sam.”
He grinned, fighting off a chuckle. “You’re not supposed to talk.”
She cast him a wanton look that nearly did him in. “No? I’ve never been handcuffed before, Officer. What should I be doing?”
Sam lowered his hand to her belly and felt it hollow out when she dragged in a breath. “Rest. You’re going to need your strength.”
“I am?”
“Mmm. I’ll give you a few minutes before we start again.”
Her eyes widened, darkened. “Start…? Sam, no. I…I can’t.”
He pushed his hand lower until he cupped her mound. She was slick, very wet and pulsing with heat. “Yes you can.” All the teasing left him. “I’ll see to it.”
She squeezed her eyes shut. “Sam…”
“Crying uncle?”
A sob almost rose in her throat, but she managed to swallow it back. Sam watched her closely, waiting for the words he needed to hear, waiting for her to tell him to fuck off, to get out of her life once and for all.
“No. I’m not crying uncle.”
They watched each other, at a stalemate, until finally Sam cursed. “Fine. Have it your way.” His fingers curled against her, his middle finger sinking past her creamy wetness, into her up to his first knuckle—and someone rang his doorbell.
They both jerked to a breathless, astonished standstill. Their motions were frozen.
Ariel gasped, “You have company?”
Sam shoved himself off the bed and stalked to the window, barely moving the curtain aside to peer out. “Ah fuck.”
A loud knock sounded.
He turned to Ariel, took in the sight of her handcuffed naked to his bed and knew he’d just screwed up royally.
“Who is it?” she whispered in a fearful voice.
Sam rubbed his face. “It’s Pete.”
“Ohmigod.” She began jerking and twisting. “Let me loose!”
He walked past her. “No, just be quiet. I’ll get rid of him and be right back. I promise.” He snatched up his shirt and pulled it on.
“Sam!” Her face went white. “Don’t you dare leave me here like—”
He held a finger to his lips. “Shhh. You made a deal, Ariel. Now keep it. If you’re real quiet, Pete will never know you’re here.” He pulled the door shut, aware of her distress—and aware of his own regret. But she did fall silent, thank God.
He closed the door and trotted quickly down the stairs. His brain churned, trying to think of what to say, how to explain Ariel’s car in his driveway, how to get rid of his baby brother.
Pete knocked again, growing impatient.
“All right already, give it a rest.” Sam threw the door open. “What the hell is the matter with you?”
Pete, looking healthy and happy and in something of a hurry, burst in and said, “I need the keys to Gil’s boat.”
“What?”
His black hair was mussed, his shirt untucked and he had a hickey on his neck. “Gil’s out of town, but he said I could use his boat only I don’t have a spare key and you do.”
“Gil’s out of town?”
“Yeah. Business—don’t you remember? He’s been gone all week. Forget that part. Just give me the key.”
Suspicious, Sam leaned around Pete to look out the door. His brother’s sporty little Focus was at the curb, still running, and in the passenger seat was a cute blond. “Ah. Big plans?”
Pete bobbed his eyebrows. “Is she hot or what?”
Amazed that Pete apparently hadn’t even noticed Ariel’s car in the drive, Sam went to the kitchen for the spare key to Gil’s houseboat. “Yeah, she’s cute.”
“Cute? You’ve gotta be kidding me. She’s in my statistics class, smart as hell and sexier than that.”
“And willing?”
With a sly look, Pete said, “Oh yeah.”
At twenty-two, Pete was a good-looking kid with an athlete’s body that had yet to finish filling out, sincere brown eyes, and a sexual drive exclusive to young male animals of the human variety. Sam loved him so much that it sometimes hurt and in the three years since their father’s death, he’d felt more responsible for him than ever.
He held the key out of reach. “You got protection?”
“No, you wanna loan me a gun?” He grinned.
Sam didn’t take birth control lightly. “You know what I mean, Pete.”
“She’s got it covered.”
Scowling, Sam grabbed him by the ear and lifted him to his tiptoes. “She does? How many times do I have to tell you—”
Laughing and wincing at the same time, Pete pulled a condom from his pocket and waved it under Sam’s nose. “Hey, I was teasing, all right! It’s covered. Literally.”
Sam turned him loose. “That’s it? One?”
“With three more in the glove box.”
“Then don’t exceed four, you hear me?”
Pete snatched the keys from his hand. “Yeah, four.” He held his heart and pretended to stagger. “Four.”
Sam laughed and walked him back to the door. Not for a single moment was he unaware of Ariel upstairs, naked, waiting. “You like them blond, huh?”
Pete shrugged. “Or brunette or redhead or…”
“Well, I meant because both she and Ariel are blond.”
“She,” Pete emphasized, “is a lot more fun than Ariel ever tried to be.”
Sam’s knees locked. “Yeah? How so?”
“You kidding me? All Ariel could ever say was no, no, and no. No real dates, no kissing, and definitely no sex. Got to where I thought my name was No-Pete.”
Sam’s heart gave a heavy thump. “She cut ya cold, huh?” Now why the hell did that thrill him so much?
“She cut everyone cold, not just me. She told me she was waiting till she got married.” Pete rolled his eyes.
Dropping back against the wall, Sam said, “No shit?” His head started to pound.
“Yeah, real old-fashioned attitude, right? I think she just liked to lead guys on. You know, like a tease.”
Anger roiled up, making him want to take Pete by the ear again. He didn’t, because it shouldn’t matter to him what was said about Ariel. But as a big brother, he could say a few general things, and did. “I hope like hell you’re not repeating that to anyone but me, because if I hear of it, I’ll be royally pissed.”
“I know.” Pete winked. “Preserve a woman’s honor no matter what. I remember.”
Sam caught his arm. “I mean it, Pete.”
He looked down at the hand holding him with marked confusion. “No sweat. I liked Ariel a lot, still do as a friend. But she made sure it was never more than that, end of story.”
“You