Tainted Hearts (23 page)

“Ms. Fitzpatrick’s tainted lover.” David’s
lips curved in a cruel distortion of a smile. “While you’re
scouring the planet for Sinclair, he strolled into the lobby of
your stronghold.”

Fury blinded Job. He kicked the coffee
table, sending the contents flying across the room. “That bastard
will not make a fool of me! I need options and I need them
now.”

“Tuesday has a sister,” Elihu offered in a
rush, “and she is True Pure just like Tuesday.”

“What?” He stomped back to the traitor and
grasped his chin. “Tuesday is an orphan. The plague left her
so.”

“Both her parents died of Methuselah
Syndrome but her younger sister is still alive.”

Shoving Elihu away, he turned and glared at
David. “Did you know about this?”

“I keep no secrets from you.” David sounded
genuinely affronted. “I knew nothing of a sister.”

“Why have you never mentioned this
before?”

“I just learned about her, sir.” Elihu
licked his lips, desperation contorting his expression. “The
younger one uses their mother’s maiden name.”

“Shall I bring her to you?” David asked.

Job stroked his chin as possibilities rolled
through his mind. “I need you here. Send one of the female
recruiters with a security contingent. Make sure they understand
that the mission requires discretion.”

The gentle brush of warm lips against her
shoulder drew Tuesday from a peaceful sleep. She rolled onto her
back and sleepily blinked her eyes until Marc’s striking features
came into focus. Caressing the side of his face, she smiled as his
stubbly jaw abraded her fingertips.

“You’re even gorgeous in the morning,” she
murmured. “It really isn’t fair.”

He laughed. “At least you didn’t call me
beautiful. Though I’m not sure I’m comfortable with gorgeous
either.”

“Breathtakingly handsome? Knee-meltingly
sexy? Nope, sorry, you’re drop-dead gorgeous.”

“Well, I’d like to keep the drop-dead part
out of it, if it’s all the same to you.”

“Don’t worry.” She stretched up and planted
a quick kiss on his mouth. “I’ll protect you.”

He swept her beneath him, settling himself
between her thighs. “My hero.” His mouth returned her kiss with
much more intensity. “Do you realize we’ve never made love in a
bed?”

She chuckled, her nipples rubbing against
his chest. “That’s because the one time we made it to the bed you
answered your stupid vidcom.”

Sticky from the wine and their mutual
passion the night before, they had enjoyed a long hot shower, but
the silky glide of soapy hands and hot skin sliding against hot
skin soon had them wanting more. After he took her facing the
bathroom mirror, braced against the countertop, they showered
separately.

“We’re in bed now,” he whispered.

“I noticed.” She also noticed how hard he’d
grown against her belly and how easy it would be for him to shift
his hips and fill her.

“Do you want me inside you?”

She groaned. Of all the men on the planet,
why did she have to fall in love with a talker? Her thoughts came
screeching to a halt.
Fall in love with
? Her heart skipped a
beat and heat cascaded through her. She was in love with Marc
Sinclair!

“It’s a simple question.” He slid down along
her body. “Either you want me inside you or you don’t.” Cupping her
breast, he circled her nipple with his tongue, teasing it carefully
with his teeth. “Or maybe it’s not.” He moved farther down. “I
suppose you might be deciding what part of me you want inside
you.”

Oh, this was bad. His faintest touch
released sensual longing as if he’d conditioned her body for just
such a response. Her nipples tightened into aching little peaks,
while her breasts felt heavy and needful. The tenderness in his
touch moved her, stirred her emotions, made her want to laugh and
cry and shout for joy. He cared for her. He adored her with his
hands. He loved her with his body.

“Marc.” She touched his hair, drawing his
attention back to her face. “What’s happening to us? Why do I…”

He smiled, his gaze bright with
understanding. “Why does your heart feel like it’s going to burst
from your chest? Why does my touch make you tremble? Why do you
ache to hold me? I think fools call this love.”

“Love?” She gulped. “Do you love me?”

“Yes, Tuesday, I love you. Now, can I finish
showing you how much?”

Parting her thighs, he played through her
feminine curls, teasing her with featherlight hints of what she
needed.
He loved her.
The realization sang through her
spirit, heightening the pleasure of his touch. His middle finger
parted her folds, his knuckle rubbing against her sensitive clit,
making her squirm.

He pushed two fingers into her core and
lowered his head between her legs. “Marc. When do I get to—?”

The first flick of his tongue obliterated
her protest. She relaxed her muscles, accepting the rippling waves
of tension his stimulation unleashed. His fingers pushed in and
out, while his mouth escalated her arousal, rapidly building her
need.

“Now,” he directed and sucked the tiny knot
between his lips.

Her inner muscles squeezed his fingers
rhythmically, repeatedly, as orgasm claimed her.

Marc didn’t want to leave her warm body. The
distinct spasms of her release heightened his arousal to a fevered
pitch. “Do you really want to put me in your mouth?” he asked
carefully. She enjoyed oral stimulation immensely, but she also
seemed to be afraid of it. More ghosts from the bastard, no
doubt.

“If you want me to.”

“That wasn’t the question,” he said firmly.
“You asked when you got to do it as if it was something
you
wanted to do.”

She was quiet for a long moment. “I think
I’d enjoy it with you.”

“Did you ever do each other at the same
time?” Her luminous green gaze flew to his and he chuckled.
“Apparently not. It happens to be one of my favorite positions.
Ready for another adventure?”

Her brow scrunched up and her head tilted
this way and that. “But how?”

He generally liked to be on top, but didn’t
want her to feel trapped or coerced, so he spread out on his back.
“Up and over. I think you’ll figure out the rest.” She was sitting
beside him on the bed. With a few quick adjustments, he had her
straddling his face. “Now lean forward and do whatever you like. Or
do nothing at all.”

Her hot breath fanned his pounding erection,
but he shifted his focus to the delightful display directly above
him. Flushed and glistening already, he couldn’t resist the
temptation of her delicate flesh. Licking and gently sucking, he
worked his way up to her clit only to avoid the ultrasensitive spot
and descend along the other side.

She wiggled and moaned against his abdomen,
then the tip of her tongue circled his cock. Marc bucked, raising
his hips and shuddering. “Oh, Tuesday, please.”

The heated swirl came again and finally her
mouth closed around him. He groaned. This wasn’t going to last
long, unless she let him finish like this, and he knew she wasn’t
ready for that. He thrust up into her core with his tongue,
reaching as far as he could. She slid him deeper and deeper, until
Marc had to pull out or lose control.

“No more.” His voice growled.

“But I was just getting the hang of it.”

He shifted her forward, keeping her on her
hands and knees. “I don’t know if I can be gentle.”

“I don’t want you to be gentle.” She spread
her legs, making her desire clear. “I want you inside me. Hard and
fast!”

He couldn’t have given it to her any other
way if his life depended on it. Kneeling behind her, he grabbed her
hips and buried himself to the hilt in one violent thrust. His
movements jarred her forward with each new impact, until she
lowered her shoulders toward the bed and arched her back.

She muffled her cries against the bedding,
but her body gripped his, tight and rhythmic, demanding his
release. He threw back his head and came, shuddering over and over
as pleasure ripped through his system.

She collapsed across the bed and he followed
her down, immediately rolling them to their sides so she wasn’t
crushed beneath his weight. “I’m sorry, love,” he whispered into
her damp hair. “This isn’t what I meant to do when I woke you.”

Her body tightened around his cock when she
giggled. “Oh really? ‘Do you want me inside you’ seemed pretty
clear to me.”

Brushing her hair away from her neck, he
nipped her. “I meant to make love to you slowly and tenderly, not
like a ravening beast.”

Another giggle had him hardening inside her.
“I enjoyed being devoured by a ravening beast.”

“I’m relieved to hear it, because this beast
can’t get enough of you.”

Job sat behind his desk as David ushered
Tuesday’s sister into his office. He’d spent the past few hours
learning everything he could about Sydney Lanier. She was a bit
taller than Tuesday and not as pleasingly shaped, but her features
were delicate and her blood was Pure. His body hardened at the
thought, eager to initiate her into his kingdom.

“Have a seat, Ms. Lanier. I’m glad you
agreed to meet with me.”

Tucking a strand of blue hair behind her
ear, she glanced at David. Job motioned him from the room. “Is he
always so…creepy?” She sat in one of the chairs in front of his
desk and crossed her legs.

“David finds most social conventions
tiresome. We’re in the midst of a global crisis. Many of my
disciples get caught up in the urgency.”

“Why did you want to see me?”

He was unable to read emotion in her
vanity-enhanced eyes, but research had shaped his strategy. “Rachel
came to your office at my request. I’ve wanted to meet you for some
time.”

“She came to my office twice and my
apartment this morning. Some would call that stalking.”

She smiled, and longing squeezed Job’s
heart. He knew that smile, had admired it on her sister’s face. “Do
you feel threatened by my interest?” He folded his hands on the
desktop and studied her features more closely. Without her garish
hair and designer eyes, she would look very much like Tuesday.

“I haven’t decided yet.” Her subtle
fidgeting belied the calmness in her tone.

“I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable.
That’s not why I asked you here.”

“Why
did
you ask me here?”

“True Pure females are rare. It has forced
me to adopt some unconventional approaches to evangelism.” He
paused as his gaze caressed her face. “I want to make sure you
understand what the Controlled Community has to offer someone like
you.”

One of her blue eyebrows arched in
challenge. “Someone like me? What does that mean?”

“Someone young and beautiful, intelligent
and ambitious.”

She laughed. “I’m a data security officer,
one of hundreds in my building alone. There’s nothing special in
what I do.”

“You’re being modest.” He leaned forward, a
smile curving the corners of his mouth. “You were promoted to
section leader after only two years of employment. The head of your
department is due to retire next month and you are one of three
people being considered for the position.”

“Is this a job interview?”

“No. I’m impressed by all you’ve
accomplished. Skills such as yours will be important in the
Controlled Community, but only those who resisted Methuselah’s call
will be admitted to our paradise.”

Scooting to the edge of her seat, she
narrowed her gaze and raised her chin. “It was never a matter of
resisting temptation. Methuselah Syndrome killed my parents while I
was too young to worry about growing old.” She paused, her gaze
boring into his. “What do you really want?”

Her spirit reminded him so much of Tuesday
it was all he could do to keep his hands off her. He imagined
dragging her across his desk and tangling his hands in her
ridiculous hair. After he’d kissed her into silence, he’d begin a
slow, aggressive seduction of her strong, young body.

“Did you read any of the literature Rachel
distributed at your office?” He pushed back from his desk and
stood.

“I skimmed through some of it.”

“None of the concepts appealed to you?”

“Do you know who my sister is?” she snapped,
standing as well.

“I was unaware you had a sister.” He halted
his approach, leaning his hip against the desk.

She crossed her arms over her chest and
glared at him. “Bullshit.”

Anger trampled his fascination. Spirit was
one thing. He never tolerated insubordination. “Who is your sister
and what made you ask me about her now?”

Her brows drew together over her eyes, then
she looked away. “You honestly don’t know who my sister is?”

“According to public records you were
orphaned by your parents’ death.”

Her pink tongue appeared, wetting her bottom
lip and he clenched his hands. He could imagine all sorts of uses
for that moist tongue and ripe red mouth. Perhaps he’d train her
himself.

She shook her head as if to dispel a
troublesome thought. “You still haven’t told me what you want.”

“I want you to listen to our entire
orientation with an open mind. Once you have all the facts, I want
to speak with you again.” He took a step toward her, lowering his
voice as he added, “You’re exactly the sort of woman we need,
desperately.”

“If I don’t want to stick around?”

He fought back a triumphant smile. She’d
already surrendered. “I don’t know what harm there could be in
listening to our presentation, but if you insist, I’ll have someone
escort you home.”

She hesitated for another moment, then
manufactured a nonchalant shrug. “Why not. I already called in sick
to work.”

Tuesday reluctantly slipped away from Marc’s
warmth and crawled out of bed. “Let me check in with Vonne, then we
can take a shower.”