Demon Can’t Help It (14 page)

She kissed the tip of his cock, tasting the saltiness there. She lifted her head and grinned. “You were inside me.”

“But not inside where I want to be.”

“Oh really? Well, I can change your mind about that.”

Her mouth returned to him. She took him deep, his huge cock touching the back of her throat as she bobbed up and down on him. Taking him whole, tasting every inch of him.

She sped up her pace, taking him deep, then nearly releasing him, her tongue circling the tip with each near withdrawal. And with each lap over the soft, cushiony head, he groaned, his hips bucking.

“Jo,” he pleaded, his voice rough, raw with need.

In response, she took him entirely again, then kept her motions smooth and swift, her fingers curling around the base of his shaft, joining the fluid, fast strokes.

Then she felt him tighten, his muscles locking, his hips arching up. Warm liquid hit the back of her throat, salty, musky and a little sweet.

She swallowed, savoring the quivering of his body under her. Savoring the taste of him.

“Damn,” he said, his voice weak, trembling.

She looked up at him then, smiling smugly. He was sprawled on the bed, panting.

“Like that, huh?”

“Oh, yeah.” He remained still for a moment, then lifted his head, his eyes clouded with satisfaction like opaque green sea glass.

Her grin widened, the power she felt making her giddy.

“Don’t you look pleased with yourself?” he said.

“Mmm-hmm.” She didn’t even bother to look repentant. As if she hadn’t seen that same look on his face many times. “Why? Are you pleased?”

She knew the answer to that.

“Oh yeah. Very much so.” He fell back onto the bedding.

She laughed. She liked having the ability to make this gorgeous man dissolve into a big puddle of contentment.

She idly caressed the solid muscle of his thigh.

He elbowed himself up again. “Come here.”

Even though she liked her control, she didn’t even hesitate, raising up on her knees to lean over him.

She made a small noise of surprise as he kissed her fiercely, all his lazy fulfillment gone.

She pulled back to study him. Now he looked like a cat, wild and ready to pounce. Amazing. No man she’d been with could recharge that quickly.

She glanced down at his penis. It was thick and hard again.

“Holy cow,” she said aloud this time.

Now, he smiled with smug satisfaction. “I can go all night.”

And she didn’t even consider thinking that was just an arrogant boast.

“But you haven’t even gone once,” he murmured as if it was a terrible shame. “Let me take care of that.”

He touched her thigh, and she slid her knees apart, desperate for his touch. His fingers skimmed between her legs, teasing her, then parting her.

“Mmm, you are nice and wet, baby.”

Without preamble he slipped a long finger into her, entering her roughly, wonderfully.

She gasped, and it was his turn to smile.

He kept his finger inside and inserted another. She cried out as his thumb found her taut, hypersensitive clitoris, and he swirled.

“So wet,” he said, stroking her, inside and out.

She couldn’t control her hips; they ground against his hand.

A moan filled the air, and she wasn’t sure if it came from him or her. She was too caught up in the feeling of him, and his amazing touch. He shifted his fingers inside her, and suddenly everything got more intense, too intense.

She caught his wrist to stop him, to control the extreme sensation ripping through her.

“Just let go, baby.”

Just let go.
She shook her head. Danger always came with just letting go. But as he continued to massage that spot deep inside her, she realized he wasn’t going to allow her to do anything else.

The hand that pulled at his wrist now just gripped him, using him as an anchor in the wild, reckless release that threatened to suck her in completely.

“That’s it,” he said, his other hand coming around to hold her waist. “That’s it, darling. Come for me.”

She gritted her teeth, shaking her head. “I can’t. I can’t.”

“Yes, you can. For me, you can.”

He pressed the pad of his finger hard against her, and she exploded. A violent scream tore from her throat as pleasure so intense, so consuming it bordered on pain, rushed through her body.

Jo had no idea how much time lapsed as breaker after breaker of astonishing release washed over her, through her.

When the orgasm calmed to ripples, she realized Maksim held her limp weight. He sat up, one arm around her back, the other still inside her, stroking her easily, gently.

Warmth burned her cheeks at her unrestrained abandon. She’d never had anything like that happen. Ever.

He smiled at her, the curl of his lips lopsided, sweet. “Good?”

She blushed further, but nodded her head.

“Good,” he said and he leaned forward and kissed her.

To her complete shock, the touch of his firm, smooth lips rekindled reaction in her. After that, after the most intense orgasm of her life, she was becoming aroused again.

But this time, he didn’t rush her toward ecstasy, he eased her. Kissing her slowly, sweetly. Sucking and teasing her breasts, stroking her like a treasured pet. His hand cupping her mons, circling the hard nub at the top of her sex unhurriedly. Each caress arousing in its leisurely enjoyment of her body.

She touched him, too. The hard muscles of his shoulders, his back. His taut, perfect stomach. His straining erection.

“You feel so good,” she murmured against his mouth as she ran her hand up and down his imposing length.

“Thank you. You too. You too,” he said. He nipped her beaded nipple.

She gasped, feeling the bite throughout her body, until it pulsed where his thumb rubbed her clitoris.

He eased her back on the mattress then, parting her legs. She let them fall open, easily, willingly. Wanting him inside her. That thick, hard length filling her, stretching her.

But instead of coming down on top of her, he remained sitting between her spread thighs.

“You are so beautiful.”

She gasped as one of his large fingers entered her. Then he bent forward and his tongue replaced his swirling thumb. And immediately the gradual, steady build to complete arousal was catapulted into powerful, overwhelming passion.

He licked her, teased her, suckled her until she was mindless with need.

“Please, Maksim,” she begged, tugging at his short hair, yanking him up her body in her desperation to have him inside her.

He slid up her, skin to skin, a glorious friction. She arched and moaned, cradling him between her thighs.

The touch of their body seemed to ignite his passion, too. He positioned himself and entered her in one swift thrust. She writhed under him, the heavy feeling of him deep inside her more thrilling than she could have imagined.

Then he started to move, and time lapsed. All she could do was follow his rhythm, and feel. His muscles undulating over her, his magnificent weight pinning her to the bed, his large cock filling her completely.

“You feel so good,” he breathed, plunging over and over into her.

She curled her legs around his back, straining against him. Taking all of him over and over. Then his movements became faster, harder, more demanding.

And she gave into him, shouting out her climax. He followed her, his own yell of release filling her ears.

Then she fell into blissful oblivion.

S
ometime during the night, Jo was aware of Maksim lifting her up to the pillows and tucking the covers over her. But she didn’t rouse enough to speak or even know what he did after that.

When she woke in the morning, she found the other side of the bed empty, and she realized he must have left. She sat up, still disoriented from her deep sleep. His clothes were gone and she heard no sound of him in the apartment. The destroyed bedding and her scattered clothing were the only signs that last night had ever happened.

Disappointment filled her, then she pushed the feeling away. They hadn’t agreed to anything more than sex. So she couldn’t very well expect him to be cuddled in beside her in the morning. And in truth, she didn’t want their arrangement to be different. Anything more would be too complicated.

Complicated was something she already had plenty of in her life.

Telling herself everything was good, she fell back against her pillows and stretched. She glanced at her alarm clock. It was 7:00
A.M.
She smiled slightly and sighed.

She couldn’t recall a time in the past two months when she’d slept that soundly. Or for that long. She’d been functioning on two-hour intervals of sleep every night, usually never making it more than six hours before giving up and getting out of bed to wander around in a dazed exhaustion.

Who knew that the perfect treatment for her insomnia was good sex? She stretched again, her muscles aching, but in a very satisfying way. Good? Okay, she’d give Maksim credit where credit was due. Great sex. Stupendous sex. The best sex she’d ever had.

She lounged amid her fluffy bedding for a few moments longer, then groaned, forcing herself to get out of bed. Enough basking in the fond memories of last night. She padded to the kitchen and forced herself to drink a glass of milk.

She shuddered and grimaced as she set the glass in the sink.

Yuck.
She really hated milk.

But a shower. Now that she could really enjoy. She stretched again; muscles she didn’t even know she had were protesting.

She stopped in the hallway to open a small cupboard that she used as a linen closet. She grabbed a towel and a washcloth, then continued to the bathroom. The small room, which was only big enough for the shower/tub, toilet, and pedestal sink, was dim. The one small window was covered with a curtain decorated in big colorful daisies.

She walked into the room, not bothering with the light. She set her towels down on the closed toilet seat, then turned back to flip the light switch. But as she took a step forward, her foot landed on something.

Quickly stepping away from the unknown object, she flicked on the light and looked down to see what felt both hard and squishy at the same time under the ball of her foot.

There in the middle of her daisy-covered bath mat, which matched the curtain was…

She leaned forward to pick the item up, certain she was seeing things. As her fingers curled around it, feeling the rubbery texture, an icy chill stole over her still bed-warmed skin.

She stared at the object, telling herself there was nothing to get nervous about. She shouldn’t make a big deal over this. It wasn’t that weird. But even as she told herself that, she knew she didn’t have one of these. Even though she’d seen the object before. In fact the last time she’d seen one of these up close was burned indelibly into her mind.

A shiver racked her body as she continued to stare at it.

A swimmer’s nose plug, the kind with a clip that fit over the nose with a band that wrapped around the swimmer’s head. Made out of pale blue rubber.

Like the one that had been around Kara’s neck when they’d pulled her out of the water.

How had it gotten there?

Maksim wasn’t surprised to see Jo walk into the daycare room, clearly looking for him. After all, she’d been a very satisfied lady last night, and he knew she’d be back for more.

Of course, he wasn’t going to analyze why he’d been checking the door every five minutes since he arrived here an hour ago. He also wouldn’t analyze why he’d shown up so early this morning. He avoided the topic when Cherise asked him about his premature arrival.

But now that Jo beelined straight to him, he waited with a wide, contented smile on his face, showing no signs that he’d been waiting.

“Hey,” he said easily, walking over to meet her.

“Hello. Did you drop this?”

Maksim blinked as something swung back and forth inches from his face. Well, that wasn’t the greeting he expected.

“What?” He frowned, not able to make out the item, because it dangled so close to him.

“Did you drop this?” she asked again impatiently. She shook the swinging thing closer to him. He stepped back and took the item from her hand. He stared at it.

“I don’t even know that the hell it is.”

She studied him, her eyes narrowing. “Are you sure?”

He looked at the blue rubber strap with a clip at one end. Then he smiled. “Is this a sex toy?”

Jo glanced around them, clearly concerned the kids or Cherise had heard him.

Not likely. Nothing could be heard over the constant jabbering.

Jo glared at him. “No, it is not a sex toy.” Her voice dropped to a whisper on the last two words.

Maksim shrugged. “Well, I’ve never seen it. Why?”

He held it back out to her, and for a second, he got the feeling she didn’t want it back. She eventually took the odd little strap and tucked it into the pocket of her black capris.

Clearly, whatever that thing was, she found it upsetting in some way.

He studied her, wanting to understand. He also wanted to know how she felt about last night, but her gaze wasn’t on him anymore. She was distant, her thoughts clearly not on him or last night.

“Are you okay?” he asked. What was that innocuous little thing and what did it mean to her? Aside from her agitation about that, she looked better than she had in days.

Of course, he knew when he left her, she’d been sleeping soundly. Which he knew she needed. He’d been tempted to stay, but decided waking up together might imply more than he was willing to give.

Jo frowned now, her mind miles away from this room, from the kids chattering around her. From him.

“Jo?”

Her attention didn’t return to him immediately, but after a moment, she shook her head as if physically casting off whatever was plaguing her.

“What?” She blinked, clearly confused by his question.

“What’s going on? Are you okay?”

“Yes. I—yes.”

He couldn’t help himself. He touched her, his hand coming in contact with the warm skin of her bare arm. A charge of electricity shot through him. Just from that innocent touch. She met his gaze, and he could tell she felt the energy, too.

“I’m fine,” she assured him, offering him a tentative smile. Then, surprisingly, she touched him back, moving her arm out from under his hand to catch his fingers, squeezing them.

For a moment, their eyes locked. More energy passed between them.

He smiled. “Good.”

She stared at him for a moment longer, as if she wanted to say something more. He wanted to say more as well, to question her about her obvious anxiety, but he didn’t. In part because he didn’t quite know what he wanted to say, and in part because he was afraid if he did know what to say, it wouldn’t be the words she needed or wanted.

“I should go to work,” she finally said.

He nodded. “Okay.”

She walked back toward the hallway, and he remained in the center of the room, watching her go. That was until a tug came on the back of his shirt.

He turned to see Damon regarding him with those wide dark eyes.

“Mr. Maksim, is you a player?”

Maksim frowned, wondering where a kid that age even learned such a word, much less the proper usage of it. And apparently, the kid hadn’t missed the interaction between him and Jo.

“Is you?” he asked again when Maksim didn’t answer.

Maksim glanced back at the doorway to the hall, now empty. Jo shut away, out of sight, in her office. And again, he wondered what he’d wanted to say to her.

Something too personal. Something that he normally wouldn’t even think of saying. Which was ludicrous. The ground rules of “just sex” were perfect. Exactly what he wanted. He couldn’t ask for a better arrangement.

He looked down at the four-year-old who was an odd combination of innocence and savvy.

“Yeah, Damon, I’m a player.”

The boy nodded, his reaction holding no disappointment, no approval. No judgment at all. Then he scampered back to the table to work on his coloring.

And Maksim looked back to the empty doorway.

Jo closed her office door and moved around her desk to her chair. Sitting carefully, she leaned back a little, rooted around in her pocket, and pulled out the nose plug. She dropped it on the desk and it naturally coiled like a pale blue snake ready to strike. At least that’s how she stared at it.

It was just a strange coincidence. Not anything scary. Not anything paranormal. Just a weird…

She shook her head, unable to find any legitimate, plausible explanation for that nose clip being in her bathroom. And unlike the glimpses she’d had of the girl in the rainbow bathing suit, she couldn’t write this off to her imagination. If it was her imagination, then Maksim had just held the figment in his hand and denied knowing anything about it. He didn’t even know what it was.

She opened her desk drawer and brushed the clip inside, closing the touchable figment out of sight, praying it went back to wherever it came from.

To Jo’s surprise, she managed to push the strange discovery on her bathroom floor out of her mind. She’d like to say it was because she was so busy working, but that would have been a lie. Instead she’d spent the morning alternating between trying to work and fixating on Maksim. Another typical day.

Last night had been…

Well, it had been wonderful. And that was so very dangerous. It was especially precarious, because not only did what happened between them make her skin tingle—along with other parts of her body—but also she found herself wanting to confide in him.

She’d actually considered telling him what she thought she’d seen over the past few days. But she couldn’t do that. She couldn’t get close to him in that way. That reaction was, in many ways, more risky for her than just straight lust.

And frankly, he was more likely to accept that she thought she was seeing her dead sister than the other truths she was hiding about herself.

She had to play it cool. But several times, when she heard the kids’ laughter, or the rumble of a male voice, which she knew could be no one else’s but Maksim, she had to fight the urge to go see him.

Dangerous. Dangerous. Maybe she should just call off the physical thing with him, too. It was too risky.

Just then her cell phone rang, forcing her to focus on business. A woman wanted to set up a course teaching quilting. Jo leapt at more chance to get people into the center.

After she agreed to meet with the woman later that afternoon, she flipped her phone shut, only to realize she had a voice mail.

“Hey girl,” Erika’s voice greeted her, “I’ve been trying to call you all evening. I hope you are okay. I wanted to see if you’d like to come over tonight. Maggie’s taking the night off from playing with The Impalers, and we thought we could have a little impromptu get-together. Hope you are okay, and you feel up to coming over. Call even if you can’t come, I’m worried about you. Talk to you soon. Bye.”

Jo erased the message. She dialed Erika back, knowing she’d get her voice mail, too, and left a quick message telling her that she was fine and that she’d be there.

Then she hung up, feeling better. If she kept busy, she wouldn’t be tempted to go there again with Maksim.

Great. Another thing in her life that made her feel like she had to keep busy. To keep ahead of her thoughts, her worries, her truths.

A rap on the door snapped her out of those thoughts. Saved again.

“Come in,” she called.

But she was only saved for a brief moment as the door opened, and the main topic she shouldn’t be thinking about stuck his head in the door.

“Hey there,” he said, the simple sound of his voice sending ripples of desire through her.

“Hi,” she said, keeping her calm. This man was too much for her. She had to put things back onto a…

Well, she didn’t know what kind of footing they’d had before last night. It had always been precarious at best. But she needed to take it to a safer level. And she supposed any level was safer than where they were last night.

“I was wondering if you’d like to join me for lunch.” He smiled, tilting his head slightly with inquiry.

God, he was so cute—cute, of course being the most understated description she could have given him. He was cute, to be sure, but he was so much more than that. Sexy, charming, breathtakingly handsome.

She actually had to suppress a sigh.

See, she told herself, that was why she needed to let last night stay what it was—a great time with no strings. And if she was smart, leave it at a one-time event.

“I can’t,” she said, keeping her voice level, feeling like even lunch would be too tempting for her. “I have a meeting.”

So what if the meeting with the quilt lady wasn’t until three this afternoon?

He frowned, his eyes narrowing as he tried to read her reaction. She gave him a brief regretful smile.

He finally nodded. “Okay. Well, I guess I will head out for the day.”

“Okay,” she said readily, trying to stay as cool as she could.

He nodded, his smile disappearing behind a composed look of his own, but he did ask, “I’ll see you later?”

She couldn’t miss the longing in his tone. She also couldn’t ignore the yearning that rose up in her instantly in response. She squashed the feeling down.

“I’m actually going over the Erika and Maggie’s tonight.”

His expression grew almost grim, his beautiful sculpted lips compressing into a line.

“Okay, then.” He lifted a hand in salute, then left.

She watched the door being pulled closed behind him and fought the urge to call out to him. To stop him.