Summer Nights (16 page)

I stopped, frowning at him. “You’re
still fighting it.”

“Mi amor
, your sweet pussy, the sexy noises you make and the way you
press those luscious curves against me makes me lose control every
time. Whether you realize it or not, each time I come inside you,
I’ve let go.” His words warmed me.

“So what you’re saying is you want to
be on top again?” I chuckled.

“Yes,” he growled, flipping us
immediately. I barely took a breath before he started moving. He
drove hard and fast. I cried out as my body sizzled with awareness,
his cock teasing my inner flesh. My muscles constricted, my breasts
swelling with need as I lifted my hips to meet each of his strokes.
“This is much better.” He sucked my nipple into his hot mouth, his
tongue circling the tip.

Sweet lubrication oozed around my lower
walls as his touch thrust my flesh into sweet surrender.
Anticipation licked my skin, tension furling my body with each
flick of his tongue over my percolated peak. I couldn’t get enough
of him. I didn’t think I could ever get enough of him. His arms
surrounded me, his mouth covered me, his breath exhilarated me and
his cock pushed me to the brink of pleasure every time.

“I want you to rub that beautiful
clit.” His tone was rough and aroused, fully male.

I seductively slid my hand down my
body. My fingers splayed my lower lips. I pressed a single digit to
my aching nub. Pleasure shot through my core as I rubbed my
clit.

He looked down between our bodies. “So
damn sexy.”

I wrapped my legs around his waist. I
gasped as he lifted his upper body into a push up. He began to
pound into me. Sweet friction drove my body abruptly into orgasm.
My pussy quaked in response to his new attack position; my clit
pulsated beneath my own touch as I was overtaken by pleasure. All I
could see was him; all I could hear was our cries mixing as they
carried throughout the room. All I felt was him; and he felt
amazing.

My skin tingled with awareness, my
nipples further pebbling as he lay against me. Sweat tickled our
skin, the air conditioning doing little to cool us. He pulled me
onto my side as he moved over.

“I’m going to miss this.”

“Oh? You’ll miss sex but not me?” I
lifted my chin in defiance.

“You know that’s not fair.” He tickled
me. I squirmed, jerking underneath his new assault. “Take it back,”
he commanded.

“No!” I laughed, rolling onto my back,
trying to escape his feather light fingers as they skated over my
sensitive skin.

He climbed over me, locking me in place
with his legs around my upper thighs. “Take it back, and I’ll
stop.”

His hands roved beneath my arms, over
my neck and along the side of my stomach. My cheeks hurt from the
permanent grin that came along with my laughter; my abdominal
muscles aching from this new attack.

“I’m giving you a way out. Take it,
woman.” He swung his arms back and attacked my inner
thighs.

“Okay! Okay! I take it back,” I
cried.

“Stubborn woman!” He kissed my lips
before rolling to my side again. He lifted his head, peering over
me at the clock on the nightstand. “I should let you sleep.” He
sounded sad.

“I’m actually not tired.” I looked at
the clock. It was already 2 AM.

He studied me for a minute. “How about
a shower?”

“With you?” I leaned into him, running
my hand along his chest.

“I’d never let you take one alone.” His
eyes darkened with fresh desire.

Chapter 15

CRUZ

I hated leaving her, but after last
night, there was something I knew I needed to do. We’d made love in
the shower before curling up on the couch together and watching an
action movie. She ended up falling asleep around 4 AM. I was too
worked up to sleep though; my heart in a frenzy knowing she was
leaving today.

I held her in my arms for a couple
hours, flipping through channels as she slept. I’d never felt such
peace. My life was going to be empty without her in it every day. I
didn’t know how I was going to survive without seeing her beautiful
smile light up that gorgeous face or her curvy physique wrapped in
my arms as I drifted off to sleep. Today was day four, but it
seemed like I’d know her forever, as if our souls had been meant to
find each other.

Damn.
Tio
was definitely going to die in a
fit of laughter over this one. I called in an old favor from Mario
Bucelli. I’d saved his store from being robbed by de-arming the
thief and detaining him until the police arrived. I was ready to
cash in that favor; I had him meet me at his jewelry store before
it opened. I planned to find a ring and propose. I didn’t want her
going back questioning where we stood. I wanted her to know. We’d
work out the details later, but somehow, some way, we would be
together.

SUMMER

I stretched and rolled. My eyes flew
open, my heart lurching as my arms flailed out; I caught myself on
the coffee table, stopping my body from plunging off the couch onto
the tile floor. I looked around. Sunlight filled the space, but
there was no sign of Cruz. I smiled when I realized a sheet covered
me and a pillow had been placed beneath my head. Even in his
absence, he made sure I was taken care of.

I stood up, extending my limbs to
loosen my stiff muscles. I wrapped the sheet around me. Picking up
my clothes that had been scattered around the condo, I headed to
the bathroom to put myself together. I was pleasantly surprised to
find an unopened toothbrush on the counter along with a
note.

Summer,

Stepped out to grab coffee.
I’ll be back soon.

I love you,
Cruz

A smile spread across my face, my heart
gushing at his thoughtfulness. I was going to miss him. I wished
that I had more time here, but knew I would have to face my normal
life at some point. I grabbed the toothbrush and brushed my teeth
before getting dressed. I threw my hair up into a messy bun, unable
to do much else without a brush. I folded the sheet.

I walked into Cruz’s closet to put away
the coverlet, but froze at the sight before me. Reality smacked me
in the face. An array of guns hung on the far wall. Handcuffs, cans
of pepper spray and mace, a few compasses, some other accessories
and a floor to ceiling shelf, lined with ammunition. Three
bulletproof vests hung on hangers at the far end closer to the
guns. One of them caught my attention though.

I closed the gap between me and the
protective vest. I dropped the sheet on the floor, my fingers
seeking the bullet holes. The multiple indentions across the piece
ignited a fierce protective feeling inside me. I was angry that
anyone would shoot at him. If I lost him to a gun, the shooter
better start running right away because I would move mountains for
revenge.

I took a step back,
gasping.
Oh my gosh. I really love
him.

CRUZ

The look on her face as she jumped back
away from the vest hit me hard. It was one thing to say you
wouldn’t run but completely different when you came face to face
with the beast. My heart thundered in my chest. I had to
know.

“Ready to run?”

She shrieked, leaping into the air as
she turned to face me. Her hand sought her heart, which probably
matched my own heart’s rapid beat at the moment. “Oh my God. You
scared the crap out of me. I’ll never be able to surprise you with
anything if you keep up those stealth moves.”

“It’s part of the job. Can’t let the
bad guy know I’m coming.” I crossed my arms over my chest, watching
her intently and waiting for a true reaction to my stash to come
through.

She met me eye to eye. “For the record,
I’m not ready to run, but the asshole that shot at you better have
a three hundred horse power engine to get away from me if he does
it again.”

I couldn’t stop myself from smiling.
Sexy and feisty. I knew there was a strong woman inside her begging
to reach the surface. She most definitely was the perfect woman for
me. “I brought you Starbucks. I called Stella for your order.” I
reached into my pocket and pulled out the jewelry box. “I also
bought you this.” Her eyes widened at the box.

I opened the blue velvet case. Her
hands flew to her mouth, containing her gasp; her eyes flooded with
tears. I got down on one knee, my heart pounding in my chest. “I
know this has all happened so fast, Summer, but I’ve never been
more sure of anything in my life. I want you to be my wife. It
doesn’t have to be right away, but I can’t picture a future without
you. So will marry me?”

SUMMER

I could barely see through the tears
that muddled my vision, but I knew he was there, just like he said
he would always be. Not trusting myself to speak, I nodded my head
profusely.

He smiled wide as he sprung up and
pulled me in for a kiss. “I’m glad you said yes. I was planning to
handcuff you to my bed until you agreed, if you had said
no.”

“I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that
I’m a little afraid, but I trust you, and I believe in us enough to
know we can make it work.”

He kissed my hand before he slid the
ring on my left ring finger. The ring’s design was breathtaking.
Quarter-carat diamonds surrounded a show-stopping 4-carat blue,
emerald cut sapphire; the diamonds trailed the full circumference
of the band. I knew this ring wasn’t cheap. It was
gorgeous.

“I love it.” I gazed down at the ring
on my finger.

“I’m glad you like it.” He
kissed my head above my stitches. He wrapped his arm around me,
hugging me to him. “Come eat your breakfast before it gets
cold,
mi amor
.”

I wrapped my arms around his waist,
kissing his chest. “I love you.”

He smiled down at me. “I love you
too.”

Chapter 16

We arrived back at the hotel with
fifteen minutes to spare before check out.

The moment Stella saw me, she yanked my
hand towards her. “Holy shanoonigans. Is this what I think it
is?”

I blushed. “Yes. Maybe. Probably. What
are you thinking it is?”

She looked at Cruz behind me, then back
at me. “Did Ernesto Lorenzo Cruz propose to you?”

My head shot to Cruz. “Ernesto?” I
asked in fake disgust.

“She does not get an invite after that
betrayal,” he said.

“Oh please. You can’t get rid of the
maid of honor.” She focused on me. “I am going to be your maid of
honor, right?”

“Of course, but I’m really not in any
rush to get married.”

“Uh huh. Just like you weren’t going to
find a man while on vacation?”

“Can we discuss this later? We have
less than ten minutes to check out before they charge my credit
card for another day. Paying this much when I only slept here for
one night is a crime as it is.”

“Deal.”

We finished gathering our stuff. Ramon
returned to the room at the tail end, joining in the
congratulations going around.

“We’ll take these to the car, ladies,”
Ramon offered.

“Thanks.” I gave Cruz a quick kiss
before they took off. I did one more quick check of the room.
Gazing out at the ocean one last time, the reality of saying
goodbye was beginning to hit me.

“You’ll come back, girl. I’m not sure
how much time they get off with work, but you’ll make it work.”
Stella wrapped her arm around me. “Now let’s get going before the
sun reflecting off that rock blinds me.”

“I love it, and I love him.”

“I know you do.”

We grabbed our purses and went
downstairs to the front desk.

“Did you enjoy your stay, Miss
Carrigan?” the clerk asked.

I looked at my ring, smiling. “Very
much, thanks.”

“Wonderful.” She took our key cards.
“You’re all set. Have a safe return home.”

“Do you mind printing out a list of the
charges to my card?”

“There weren’t any.”

I shook my head. “You must be mistaken.
They pre-authorized my card at check-in.”

“The funds have been released. It
appears your room was paid in full with a new card on Saturday
evening with any additional surcharges being sent to this new
account as well.”

“Saturday?” I tried to think back. “You
and Ramon went to dinner that night, and Cruz… Cruz!”

“Ooh, girl. I like him a little more
already. I was dreading having to pay you back my half of the
bill.”

I stared back at the clerk. “Was the
new card provided by someone named Ernesto Cruz?”

She winked, giving a quick nod. “I’m
sorry miss, but I’m not at liberty to provide that
information.”

I chuckled. “Thanks.”

When we arrived outside, the guys were
waiting by Cruz’s Lexus.

I walked right up to him. “You sneaky
bastard.”

He laughed. “I can’t believe they told
you. Can’t a man get a little anonymity these days?”