All of You (54 page)

Ben barked out a loud laugh. “Okay, that’s a low blow, Kat.” He shook his head, grinning. “But I refuse to let you shame me. One of my tech assistants lent it to me. And she says there’s some really good acting in there.” At Kat’s skeptical brow quirk, Ben laughed again. “Fine. You caught me. I-”

“Well, isn’t this fucking cozy?”

At the sound of Danny’s deep voice, Kat jumped, nearly falling off her stool. She braced her right foot on the ground and leaned left far enough to see Danny standing – in full uniform and holding a Dunkin’ Donuts cup – behind and to the left of Ben…

Who had wisely chosen to turn around and slowly start side-stepping back and away from Kat.

And Danny.

Kat soaked in the sight of him, feeling a hundred things at once…

Happiness, despite the circumstance, because it felt like an eternity since she’d last seen him.

Concern at the dark circles under his eyes.

Gut-wrenching guilt at the look of betrayal and confusion on his face.

And legitimate alarm at the way he was now staring at poor Ben.

“Um…” Kat began, without having a single idea of what to say or do next.

She looked between Danny’s hard, inscrutable face and Ben’s surprisingly unconcerned expression.

Ben was just standing there, hands shoved into the front pockets of his khaki cargo pants, like he didn’t have a care in the world. As if Danny didn’t look 1.1 seconds away from removing Ben’s head from his shoulders with his bare hands.

With a brief nod and terribly foolish half-smile, Ben pulled his right hand out of his pocket and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “It was nice to see you again, Danny, but I’m gonna head back to my lab.”

The way Danny’s lips curled tightened Kat’s chest.

“Well, don’t leave on my account, now, Ben. I was just coming to bring my girl a coffee…” Danny met her eyes, the coldness in his making her stomach lurch. “Seeing as she had to
work
so early today.” He glanced back at Ben, that hideous smile still on his face. “I would have brought you one too, if I’d known you were going to be here. My apologies for being so rude.”

The way Danny rested his hand on his holstered gun sent a shiver down Kat’s spine.

Of course, she knew Danny would never shoot Ben, but that Danny would even perform such a blatant power play
did
have her concerned about his state of mind.

Ben, however, still seemed blissfully unconcerned as he lifted a hand toward Danny, backing up toward the front of the lab. “No worries. Have a nice day.” He shot Kat a pointed look and said, “
Tell him
,” before turning and walking away.

Danny watched Ben’s every movement like a hawk until he disappeared from view.

Kat held her breath, gripping the countertop for support, as he slowly turned back to face her.

‡

“T
ell me what?”
he asked with a calm evenness that freaked Kat out way more than any demonstrative anger or agitation she’d seen from him before.

When she just shook her head a few times, Danny nodded slowly, as if taking her silence for an answer.

Fickle Bitch Brain screamed:
Tell him everything! Put his mind at ease and relieve yourself of all this!

Better Judgment:
Let him jump to conclusions. It will only make what’s to come easier on him. You know what you have to do, Kat…don’t make any of this harder on him than it has to be. Stop dragging things out for your own selfish reasons!

Danny set the coffee cup down, braced a hand against the counter, and dropped the other hand onto his waist. The pose was deceptively casual, but the ghastly expression on his face was anything but.

“You know, Kat…” Danny began quietly, his intense gaze latched firmly onto hers. “I spent all night and all this morning wondering…trying to figure out what could have happened between six and eleven o’clock last night…” He shook his head, looking around, as if for answers. “What could have possibly gotten into you to make you turn so fucking cold on me.”

The short, hard scoff he exhaled sent another shiver down Kat’s spine.

“I was so sure something had happened to upset you. I thought maybe something happened at work yesterday…that maybe someone here had said or done something to freak you out like that.” Danny tilted his head toward the coffee. “So I decided I’d bring you a coffee and check everything out. Make sure you were okay. Maybe give you a hug and a kiss to make you feel better.” His Adam’s apple worked his throat like crazy as he slowly, thoroughly searched her face. “But now I’m thinking maybe you don’t need me here after all, huh, Kat?” The flippant mask slipped just enough for Kat to see the raging uncertainty and fear in his eyes. “That maybe you don’t need me anymore, period.” His voice lowered and tightened adding, “You decide Ben’s a better fit after all, Kat?”

Kat felt the tears welling, but she couldn’t let them fall.

This is perfect. Let him think something is going on with you and Ben.

You will accomplish your goal of pushing him away and setting him free.

Just tell him you are having sudden, unexpected feelings for Ben.

It will do the trick.

Danny is over-reactive and insecure. He will fall for it hook, line, and sinker. It will hurt him so badly that he’ll walk away, none the wiser.

Say it.

Say it!

Kat opened her mouth to confirm Danny’s ridiculous – but obviously very real-to-him – fears.

Unfortunately, instead of coolly declaring the non-existent, totally nonsensical transfer of affections, Kat burst out crying. She buried her face in her hands, loud, hard sobs wracking her body.

“Does this mean I’m right?” When Kat shook her head, Danny asked, “Then why did you shut me out last night, Kat? Why didn’t you want to see me?” He paused and when he spoke again, his voice was so tight it hurt Kat’s heart. “Why didn’t you say you loved me?”

When Kat just lifted her head, tears still streaming, and stared back at him, Danny pushed off the counter and stepped closer. She caught a hint of his scent, warm and familiar, and it wreaked utter havoc on her body and brain.

Danny took another step closer…so close Kat had to tilt her head back to maintain eye contact. He gently gripped her knees, making Kat’s breath catch and her body ache.

Danny slowly turned her on the stool until Kat’s back faced the counter. He braced a hand on either side of her, on the edges of the counter, and leaned in so far Kat had no choice but to lean back, too, or have his lips land on hers.

Which she wanted with a greater passion than she’d ever wanted anything in her life.

His lips on hers, his hands on her body, and…

No!

Don’t you even
think
about it!

Don’t you dare do it, Kat!

Kat’s fingers curled into her palms as her gaze dropped down to the discernible bulge just below Danny’s utility belt.

Suddenly, all thoughts were squarely centered on getting him inside of her as quickly as possible.

Right here.

Right frickin’ now.

She started panting.

I love him.

I need him.

I’ll always need him.

And I want him so badly I can hardly see straight.

God, I’ve missed him so much…

“Kat?”

She lifted her eyes to his and was somewhat surprised to find his smoldering as hard as she knew hers were.

The corner of his mouth ticked into the smallest of grins. “Seeing that look on your face has me feeling a million times better, sweetheart.”

Kat was feeling a million times better, too. Just being close to him made all the rest of it fall away, leaving only the love she had for him…

Although the rabid lust she was currently feeling seemed to be trumping even that.

Not able to keep her hands off him for a second more, Kat grabbed his face and pulled his mouth down to hers, moaning loudly when Danny’s hands grabbed her butt and pulled her – still on the stool – between his splayed legs…

Which positioned them so his erection was now pressing into her stomach.

With a quick nip to his lower lip and slip of her tongue into his hot, wet mouth, Kat reached down and gripped his erection. Hard.

The deep, low moan she was rewarded with only spurred Kat on.

Danny groaned when she released him, but then moaned, again, when he felt Kat fumbling with his belt buckle. A few seconds later, Kat had it undone and the zipper pulled down enough to slide her hand into the front of his pants.

The moment her hand made skin-to-skin contact with his rock-hard erection, they simultaneously moaned into each other’s mouths. Kat wrapped her hand around it, gripping it firmly, and then pumped up and down on him a few times.

Danny broke away from their kiss, panting hard against the top of her head as Kat continue to stroke him. “Oh, Kat…
shit
…that feels so fucking good…”

Danny grabbed her by the waist, lifted her off the stool, and kicked it aside with a loud crash as it slammed into the wall. He dropped Kat onto the counter, stepped back far enough to yank her pants clean off with one good, strong yank. Danny shoved at the top of his own pants until they were down around his knees and then wrapped his hand around the back of Kat’s neck, bringing their mouths back together as his other hand grabbed her butt and pulled her to the edge of the counter.

Kat wrapped her legs around his waist as best she could and Danny grabbed her ass hard, pulling them right up against one another. Danny leaned them back, grabbed Kat’s right leg, and – his eyes boring into hers – very slowly and very gently lifted it over his shoulder.

“This okay, Kat?” he asked hoarsely.

Kat had never been so grateful for MS related numbness, because, despite the odd stretching of muscle, she couldn’t feel a thing but the tip of Danny’s erection pressing up against the aching opening of her body.

Kat dipped her pelvis down, then tilted it up, causing the tip of his erection to drag along her swollen, slick folds. She exhaled a hard pant that morphed into a moan and Danny…

Well, his gaze had dropped to where Kat was rubbing herself against him, his eyes hooded and mouth dropped open as he watched her movements. Kat caught the head of his erection at the opening of her body and pushed at him slightly…

Danny bit his lip, closed his eyes, and hung his head. “Kat…
shit
…” he breathed out, his movements growing harder and faster each time he thrust himself deeper. “You feel so fucking good…”

Danny’s movements grew more frantic.

“
Oh, God, yes…
” Kat lifted her mouth, Danny lowered his, and their mouths fused, again.

Danny tightened his hold on her and, in one, hard, fast motion, pushed himself inside of her fully, causing them both to cry out.

And Kat to shatter apart.

“
Danny!
”

One of Danny’s hands came up to hold the back of her neck as his face buried in it. He continued to slam into her again and again – his movements growing more and more frantic – allowing Kat no relief before her body was already craving more.

“
Kat, I love you…
” he breathed out, panting against her neck. “
Fuck…I missed you so goddamn much last night…
” His hand moved to the small of her back and pressed her into him as he drove himself deeper and deeper into her. “
Don’t ever do that to me, again, please…
” Danny nipped, licked, and sucked at her neck. “
God,
I need you so damn much…
”

He pulled out of her suddenly, eliciting a desperate whimper from Kat.

She registered the sound of clanking, rustling, and, eventually, glass breaking, but she was far too caught up in Danny’s words and her body’s needs to give a single thought to the mess they were making or the crap they were breaking as he laid her flat on her back across the lab counter.

Danny positioned himself above her, pinning her arms above her head with one hand, while the other found the back of her right knee. Very slowly, his eyes once again boring into hers, Danny gently pushed her right leg to the side, baring her completely to his gaze.

He looked down and then back to meet her eyes, his smoldering. “
Mine.
”

Kat’s heartbeat began tripping over itself, racing and thumping and beating against her ribcage so hard it almost hurt. Her lips parted to allow her now equally as hard and quick breaths to escape.

It ached…worse than it had ever ached before. It ached and felt empty and the crazy, possessive way he was staring at her – and
it
 – did nothing much but fan the amazing, awful, needy flames.

“
Please, Danny…
” Kat lifted her pelvis off the counter, desperate for his touch. She latched onto his eyes, willing him to put her out of her misery, “
Please…
” Kat dug her heels into the counter, squirming and lifting her pelvis in wild, desperate movements she couldn’t have controlled had she tried. “
Touch me…please…
”