She kicked him in the cheek, and he rolled over onto his back with the woman standing up by his head.
He saw stars. Manacling her ankles, he pulled so hard she flew forward. Then he yanked her down.
She landed on him, and he spread his legs to keep her face from smashing into his knees. She landed on her hands and knees, her butt toward his face. Without any thought, he let instinct take over, shooting an arm between her legs to flatten on her abdomen. He shoved up and rolled, effectively forcing her onto her back next to him. Then he rolled on top of her.
Swearing an impressive litany of insults, she bucked and squirmed beneath him. Her nails raked his neck.
Pain lanced through his skin. He grabbed her wrists and pinned them above her head. With all the fighting, her sweats had ended up by her ankles. He kicked them out of the way, leaving her only in the thick sweatshirt and what looked like wild pink panties.
The woman didn't give up. She kicked and squirmed, her eyes ablaze.
He settled more comfortably against her, letting her fight it out. The more she struggled, the calmer he became. God, she was something. Finally, she stopped moving, glaring at him. "I'm stronger," he said mildly.
She blew a piece of hair out of her eyes, fury spinning a glorious red across her cheekbones. "At the moment, only. I'm exhausted."
So was he. Yet he was suddenly appreciating their positions.
Her eyes widened. "You're aroused."
"Yep." He shifted to the left and put his raging cock right where it wanted to be. Or rather, close to where it wanted to be. His jeans and those panties kept him out of pure heat. "So are you."
The uptight little accountant had a few layers to her. He liked that, damn it.
She opened her mouth to deny it, to lie, and he just gave in. He took her mouth like the animal he was, hard and fierce, letting the hunger ripping through his veins free. The fight she'd just given him, the scratches on his neck, were all foreplay in his world. An invitation to take and tame.
White-hot lust coursed through him. He pushed her wrists up more, stretching her out, forcing her breasts against his chest.
She moaned deep, and her tongue swept against his as she kissed him back. His heartbeat thundered in his ears. She was the only thing in the world. The only thing he wanted. When she lifted her knees to the sides of his hips, he rocked against her.
"God," she gasped against his lips, arching up into him.
A brisk knock on the door shocked him into awareness. Fuck. He'd totally forgotten where they were. Who they were. He jumped to his feet and took her with him.
She sagged against him for a moment and then pushed him away. "Room service." She started toward the door, staggering a little.
He stopped her by hooking the back of her panties. The second his fingers slid past the waistband and brushed her smooth skin, he nearly came in his pants. "You're not wearing enough. Go to your bedroom, get some clothes that'll stay on, and I'll open the door." He twisted his wrist and nudged her toward the bedroom. "We'll eat something and talk." His body, even on fire for her, suddenly felt a thousand years old.
She obeyed him. This once. "I'll be right back."
Yeah. Then they really had to talk.
Chapter 9
Morning light cascaded into her sprawling bedroom, highlighting the antique oak furniture. The hotel really had put some time into perfecting the feng shui. Nessa hustled to dress casually in a pink pencil skirt with a ruffled blouse. Her earrings were small and gold, her lipstick muted, and her hair up and out of the way. After she and Bear had eaten the previous night, or rather in the morning, they'd been too tired to fight.
But after five hours of sleep, she was raring to go. If he wanted another round, she'd give it to him.
This time she'd win.
First, she had work to do. Opening her laptop, she quickly typed in a series of codes. Then she initiated a string of fail-safes that sent out signals from her computer so nobody could listen in-especially not the nosy shifter with super hearing in the other room. Soon, a handsome face came into view.
She smiled. "Morning, Jasper."
Jasper Marks took shape on the screen from Guard headquarters. Brown hair, green eyes, hard jaw. "Nessa. I was about to send out a search party."
She rolled her eyes. "I'm fine and still in Seattle."
"News?" the Guard lieutenant asked quietly.
"None yet." She made the decision on the spot to keep silent about George Flanders and the kidnapping bounty he'd put on her head. This was a mission, and she didn't need any more complications. She could handle George. "There were at least two deaths from the Apollo drug last night, and distribution seems to be flowing again."