But when she reached her arms out to him in a silent invitation to join her, there was no way in hell he could deny her or himself. Consequences be damned. Yes, this started with the scrolls, but the moment she’d walked into his office he’d wanted her, and he refused to feel guilty now. Allowing feelings to override what he was literally aching for would just leave a void that only Zara could fill.
Braden reached for her hand and settled down beside her, propping himself up on one elbow. While he wanted to devour her all at once, he also wanted to take his time, because this was a one-time thing and he wanted to savor every single second.
Trailing his hand up and down her abdomen, watching her muscles contract beneath his touch and hearing her swift intake of breath, had him appreciating the fact he was practicing that self-control now. He had a limited supply of it and was using it all up on her, on this moment.
Braden watched her, studied her. He wanted to know what she liked, what she responded to. The moment his hand started trailing down her stomach, her lids fluttered closed, her legs shifted in response and he was damn near crawling out of his skin.
As his fingers found her most intimate spot, he captured her lips, swallowing her moan. Zara’s arms wrapped around his neck, her hands sliding up into his hair, holding him still...as if he would be anywhere else.
Braden eased back, enough to get protection in place, before he settled between her legs.
“Don’t look away,” he commanded. “Your eyes are only for me.”
Why the hell did he want her to be so focused on him? Why did he have that overwhelming primal feeling to keep her all to himself?
Because he was selfish. Plain and simple and for right now, Zara was his. He wanted to leave an imprint in her mind of this moment and have her compare every single man to him. He wanted to ruin her for others...and if he thought too much about that, he would scare the hell out of himself.
Braden pushed all other thoughts aside as he joined their bodies. When her eyes closed, he shifted to his elbows, using his hands to frame her face as his lips hovered over hers.
“Only me, Zara.”
When he started to move, she held on to his shoulders, keeping her gaze on his. “Braden,” she whispered.
Hearing his name on her lips as he filled her only exacerbated this unwanted emotional ache.
The second her body started pumping against his, her face flushed, and Braden slid his mouth over hers, pushing her even further. Her fingertips dug into his shoulders as her body tensed. Braden lifted his head, wanting to watch her as she peaked. With Zara’s head thrown back, a sheen of sweat covering her face and neck, Braden couldn’t resist gliding his lips over her heated skin as she came undone around him. As he gripped her hips and tasted the saltiness of her skin, his own body started to rise.
Her trembling slowed, and Braden rested his forehead against hers. “Zara,” he whispered, wanting her name to be the one he cried out, needing her to know he was fully aware of the woman he was with, that she mattered.
Before he could delve into that too much, his control broke. Braden covered her lips with his, wanting to join them in all possible ways. Her tongue met his as he shattered. Wave after wave washed over him, leaving only one thought, one thing that mattered at that moment...and it wasn’t his family or the scrolls.
It was Zara.
* * *
Zara didn’t do regrets, and there was no way she was going to start now. How could she when her body had lit up and was still tingling? Was tingle even the proper verb? She couldn’t pinpoint what her body was doing, but the thrill that kept pulsing through her had everything to do with the man whose body still covered hers. Those long, lean legs rubbed against hers, the coarseness of his hair tickling her, sending new sensations throughout.
Part of her wanted to get out from under him, to get dressed and go on like nothing happened. He was her boss, for crying out loud, and she’d been so clichéd as to sleep with him.
But the other part, the part of her that was still lit up with passion, wanted to lie just like this wearing nothing but the weight of a powerful man.
“I can hear you thinking.” Braden’s warm breath tickled her ear. He eased up, propping himself on his elbows on either side of her face. “Maybe you need a replay so you can relax.”
There was no way she could replay anything that just happened because then she’d want more. She’d want him. Sex was one thing, but wants were an entirely different matter she couldn’t afford right now...and not with this man.
Zara pushed on his shoulders and slid out from under him. “No replays,” she told him as she gathered her clothes. She tried like hell to not think about the fact she was walking around naked in front of her boss, but after what they’d just done...
“Already running, Zara?”
She risked a glance over and wished she hadn’t. With a wrist dangling over one bent knee and his other hand holding is body upright, Braden’s intense gaze pinned her in place. She clutched her sweats to her chest as if she could use them as some sort of defense against feelings. Damn emotional womanly feelings. Why did this have to be the man to stir something within her?
“I’m not running,” she said. “I’m getting dressed and checking on the cat that’s probably peed all over my floor.”
“The cat is fine, and there’s no rush to get dressed.” He came to his feet and crossed the space between them. Just like he had before they’d gotten intimate. Only this time, Zara backed up.
“Braden.” She held up a hand, thankful when he stopped. “I don’t regret what just happened, it was amazing, but we can’t do that again.”
“If you’re going to pull the whole boss/employer card, we’re past that.” His kissable mouth quirked.
“Yes, we are,” she agreed. “But we’re done. Nothing more can come of this.”
There. She’d had a fling, she wasn’t having regrets and now they could move on.
Crossing his arms over his broad chest as if he hadn’t a care in the world, Braden shrugged. “I’d had the same thought, but then I decided that wasn’t right. Why should we deny ourselves what brings us pleasure?”
Zara listened to him, processed the justification, but in the end, she knew she’d get hurt because Braden was the type of man she could fall for...if she would ever let herself fall. One and done was the only way she could justify this encounter.
“It’s best if we stop here and try to live with each other until you are able to leave.”
The muscle ticked in his jaw, and Zara wanted to take back her words, ignore all the warning bells going off in her head and wrap her arms around him and have him give her that replay he’d suggested.
“I’ll do what you want, Zara.” He stepped closer, so close she could see the flecks of black in his deep brown eyes. “I’ll honor your wishes, but that doesn’t mean I’ll stop trying to convince you that we were good together, and now that we know all about each other’s bodies, we could be even better.”
Those promising words delivered by a low, sexy tone did not help her cause. She clutched her clothes and watched as he wrapped up in that damn comforter again. He picked his cell up from the accent table and threw her a smile.
“I’m going to call the sheriff’s department and see when travel is expected to resume.”
And he walked out the door. Now the cat darted from beneath the bed and slid across the hardwood, bumping into her feet, but Zara remained frozen in place, still naked, still holding on to her clothes.
Still wanting him just as much, if not more than she had before they were intimate.
What had she gotten herself into? Because now she had a sense of what it meant to belong, just an inkling of how powerful a bond with someone else could be.
Ten
“You’ve got to be missing something,” Mac stated.
Yeah, common sense.
“I’ve searched the hidden areas,” Braden explained for the third time. But Mac was understandably frustrated, as was Braden.
He felt utterly foolish with this damn comforter as he stood at the base of the steps. He watched the landing for any sign of Zara, but she was most likely still up in her room replaying everything that had just happened between them.
“I’m telling you, if they’re here, they’re well hidden.”
Mac’s sigh carried through the phone. “Maybe her grandmother sold some things before she died. Hell, I don’t know. Put more pressure on Zara. We need this, Braden.”
Yeah, like he wasn’t aware of that. “I’m doing what I can. Pressuring Zara will only make red flags go up.”
“Is she suspicious of you?”
“No.”
How could she be? He’d snooped either in plain sight of her or when she’d been sleeping. And the fact that he still needed to do more searching and his time was running out only irritated him even more because, while he wanted to find the scrolls, he wanted to go back upstairs and talk Zara into spending the entire day in bed.
“Damn,” Mac muttered. “Tell me you’re not actually falling for this woman.”
Braden gripped the wad of comforter and sank down on to the bottom step. “I’m not.”
“You don’t sound convincing.”
Braden gritted his teeth. “I’m not trying to convince you, so drop it.”