Read The Billionaire's Bauble Online

Authors: Ann Montclair

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The Billionaire's Bauble (9 page)

BOOK: The Billionaire's Bauble
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Sloane stopped her romantic musings. The man didn’t believe, and belief was Sloane’s foundation. It seemed she’d wasted her time staying in Alaska, trying to find her “mystery man.” Well, she tried.

Sloane exited the bathroom and was surprised to hear voices coming from the terrace. She approached slowly, tentatively, suddenly feeling suspicious.

When she identified the voice, she almost fell over. Dr. Traynor tittered, clearly divinely amused. What was she doing here? Did she have a late date with David? Sloane couldn’t believe the viper had the nerve to show up while Sloane was still visiting.

Everything in Sloane’s body yelled run, but she resisted the urge and compelled herself toward their animated voices.

When she charged onto the deck, she must have surprised them because they stopped talking mid sentence. David said, “Sloane, are you well?”

“Quite,” she said and choked down the scene.

David had his arm around Maya’s tiny waist, and their heads were tilted together, perusing a paper David held in his hands. Maya’s purple silk dress accentuated her dark eyes and showed off her small, perfectly formed breasts. David certainly looked like he was comfortable with his hands on the doctor’s body. Sloane saw crimson, and her heartbeat pounded in her ears.

David gave the paper to Maya, and his arm fell from her waist. He looked at Sloane, and a puzzled expression flashed across his face.

“Maya stopped by to make sure you were okay,” he offered.

“I said I was,” Sloane said tersely.

David’s eyebrows raised and then a smile spread across his face. He must have guessed she was jealous. Sloane wanted to crawl under the table.

Luckily, Tony Forster came onto the terrace and said, “Here she is. Good to see my newest employee is feeling better.” Tony smiled broadly, oblivious to the tension in the air. He carried two beers in brown bottles and walked over and handed one to Maya.

David left Maya’s side and came to Sloane. He slipped his arm around her waist, and said, “Sloane, Maya and Tony stopped by to say hello, to check on you. Nice surprise, isn’t it? They are my dearest friends. I was best man at their wedding.”

“Oh, oh,” Sloane stammered, and David squeezed her reassuringly.

“Sloane took a nice, long nap upstairs, and we recently finished a delicious dinner. I’m doing my best to take excellent care of your patient, Dr. Traynor.”

“So I see,” Maya smiled. “Sloane, you look beautiful this evening.”

“Thank you,” Sloane squeaked. “I didn’t know you and Tony were . . . here,” she finished lamely.

“That’s my fault,” Tony laughed, “Maya wanted me to call first, but I wanted to make sure David didn’t brush us off and try to keep you all to himself. He can be a pretty selfish guy, you know?”

They all laughed, and David took the opportunity to pat Sloane’s rear, scooting her toward the table.

“Tony is a real jokester. I’m sure you two will get along famously,” David teased as he held out her chair.

Sloane sat down, and Maya asked, “How does your head feel, Sloane? Are you still very sore?”

David pulled out the chair closest to Sloane and sat down. He grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips. “She hasn’t complained once,” he answered for her. “She’s pretty tough.” His eyes twinkled into hers, and Sloane felt the corner of her mouth lift in a wry smile.

“Yes, I am,” she agreed.

“Well then maybe this one can handle your bull,” said Tony.

“Let’s hope so,” concurred Maya as she sipped daintily from her bottle of beer. “David has a terrible track record, but that’s because no one’s been able to put up with his insane work ethic.” Maya’s tone taunted as her dark eyes appraised the way David and Sloane’s fingers twined together.

Tony took the opening and asked, “David, how’s our deal?”

“I took the night off.”

Maya and Tony nearly dropped their beers, and then they shared a look Sloane had seen her mother give her father. The look could mean almost anything, but one thing seemed certain, David had boggled them both.

“Speaking of work, Tony, I need to swing by the hospital and get some files before we head home. We better leave these two love birds to their privacy. Sloane, please continue to rest. Tony gave you the rest of the week off, right?”

She poked her husband in the ribs, and he said, “Whatever you say, my love. Doctor knows best.” Tony rolled his eyes and then gave Maya a quick peck on the cheek. Maya looked adoringly at her husband.

“Let’s go, babe,” she said, and they set their beers on the table.

Sloane and David said nothing. The words “love birds” had probably shocked him as much as they thrilled Sloane.

Tony reached across the table and pumped David’s hand.

“Have a great evening, David. See you soon, Sloane. So glad you’re looking and feeling so well.”

“Bye,” said Sloane, “and thanks so much for the position, Tony. I look forward to returning to Forster soon.” The she added, “And thank you, too, Maya, for your care and understanding.”

Maya looked at her, nodded and winked. Sloane felt a rush of gratitude and relief that her uncharacteristic rudeness toward the doctor had been forgiven.

David waved his goodbye and whispered into the shell of Sloane’s ear, “I absolutely love a jealous woman.”

Chapter 7
 

What he meant to say was, “Jealousy is a huge turn on.” What he meant to do was kiss Sloane until she begged him for sex. David’s confusion was only surpassed by the tenderness he felt creeping like the long tendrils of Sloane’s hair, into his heart, into his mind. His flesh, his blood, his bones seemed unfamiliar to him. The disconnection to himself only intensified the feeling of connection he was experiencing with Sloane.

“I’m not typically jealous,” Sloane said, and she leaned her ear into his words. “But then I’m not usually replaced with another woman when I leave a date at the table.”

“So this is a date? Good. I dressed up for you and everything.”

“I like your jeans and your T-shirt. Casual looks good on you.”

“It’ll look even better off.”

Sloane laughed, and the sound was music to his ears. David said, “I want you to spend the night with me.”

She sighed heavily and bit her lower lip, before stating, “I’m not a one night stand, and I don’t sleep with a man on a first date.” David could hear resolve in her now husky voice.

“I expected nothing less, even after everything we’ve shared tonight. But certainly, you could stay until morning in the guest room. After all, it’s late, and you could use a good night’s sleep. I promise to keep my distance, no matter how much I want to be with you.”

He pulled her chin around and kissed her lips softly. Sloane wrapped her hands around his head, laced her fingers into his hair and opened her mouth to deepen their kiss. Her tongue tortured his mouth, and a moan escaped her throat and became his own. David’s tongue responded avidly, and groaning, he allowed his hands to caress her strong back, her shoulders, the curve of her generous hips.

Sloane broke away from his kiss and stared into his eyes. The brilliant emerald orbs revealed a growing desire, a dense need. Every ounce of his body throbbed for Sloane.

“Take me to bed, David.”

Sloane leaned heavily against his chest, and David held her there, breathing in and out quickly, unsure if she meant her own bed or his.

He said, “Let’s go upstairs.”

She nodded, and David took her hand in his and led her toward the terrace doorway, leading her toward the giant staircase that led to the second floor. Her hand felt like a delicate butterfly, and he didn’t want to let her go, afraid she might fly away from him, that he might lose this intimacy that so surprisingly enveloped him.

When they got to the top of the stairs, he made a rash decision.

“Sloane, I want you to stay here, to feel that you have nothing to fear in my home, in my presence. I am going to go to Grant Oil, and I’ll see you in the morning.”

She looked up at him, regret apparent in her down-turned mouth.

“If you want me to take you home, I will. I want you to know I‘m hoping you’ll stay. I don’t want you to leave.”

“I don’t want you to leave either,” she said and her beautiful mouth shook, as if she might cry.

David understood he could take her to his bed right then, that all her objections could be wiped away by the power of their mutual desire. David knew if he stayed near her one more second he would lose his self-control, would take their longing and dial it to lust. The electricity between them almost overwhelmed him into breaking his resolve. He brought the palm of her hand to his mouth for a moment and then let it drop.

The landing seemed like a mountain plateau, so wide and empty, and as Sloane walked away from him, to her guest room, David longed to traverse the distance, to claim her as his own, to plant his flag and tell her he would never let her go. Instead he turned on his heel and descended the staircase.

He grabbed his car keys from the hall table and walked out the front door, just as the clock struck midnight. He thought a drive might ease the tension collecting in his back. He slung himself into his sleek sports car and turned the engine over. It roared to life, and he flipped on his headlights even though it wasn’t truly dark outside despite the late hour. As he swung the car toward the long driveway, his lights illuminated the mansion’s open front door.

Sloane stood in the doorway. Her dress pressed against her in the soft, evening wind, and it appeared transparent in the light cast by his car’s headlamps. David could see the lines of her hips, her long legs, her voluptuous breasts, and as much as her physical appearance moved him, it was the look on her face that made him skid to a stop.

 

Sloane stood breathless as David’s wheels ground to a standstill and the car door flew open. He was beside her within the blink of an eye. He grabbed her around the waist and brought her close. He kissed her hard, long, deeper than he ever had. Sloane clawed at his shirt as he slammed the door shut and pushed her against it. His mouth moved from her lips to her neck, and she worked at unbuttoning and unzipping his jeans.

David took her hands in one of his and put them above her head. Her back arched against the doorframe, Sloane felt David’s teeth against her flesh as he opened the tiny buttons of her dress. It fell open to reveal her lacy bra and panties. The bra had a front hook and David artfully unsnapped it. As her full, round breasts burst from her bra, David put his mouth on first one nipple then the other, licking and teasing the turgid peaks until Sloane was gasping.

He released her arms, and she grasped his thick neck as he continued to kiss her breasts, her stomach, her navel. They slid to the floor atop their own clothes, and Sloane wrapped her legs around his hips. She kissed his hairy chest and found her hands exploring the silky brown hair.

Sloane felt David hook his thumbs into her panties and she wriggled out of them. She lay there naked and panting as he brought himself down onto her body. His eyes were wide open, searching her face, and she pulled his lips to her own and said, “Yes.”

He entered her then, all at once his steely manhood filling her, fitting in as if her body and his were made for this act, and she cried out. Slowly he slid in and almost out of her body, back and forth, again and again what seemed a hundred times before she clutched at his back and felt a wave of pleasure so intense she thought she might lose consciousness. Stars speckled her vision as she rocked and bucked against his body, “David, David,” she moaned, and he smothered his name with kisses.

When he came inside her, she felt his heat course into her, and she clasped him as tightly as she could, reveling in their total union. She loved the feeling of his body inside hers, of his exhaustion as he lay on top of her, spent. His tongue played at the tip of her chin, at her ears, on her collarbones, before he put it in her mouth and she thought she might melt beneath his fiery kiss.

“This is just the beginning,” he whispered when he finally broke the kiss. He searched Sloane’s face as she traced her fingers along his lips and his jaw.

“I never doubted it,” she answered.

Sloane had never felt such excitement, such release, such abandon.

“Let’s go upstairs,” he said, and he rose from atop her and held out his hand to help lift her to her feet. She had never been so naked and exposed in front of a man before, and the shyness she had forgotten to feel suddenly crept up on her. David must have seen it in her eyes, in the awkward way she stood, and he lifted her chin and spoke directly into her eyes.

“You are the most magnificent woman ever created. You’re more than beautiful. You are like a goddess, Sloane, come to earth just for me.”

She saw the reverence softening his eyes and believed him.

She threw her shoulders back and nodded her head, showing him she trusted his words. His eyes raked her form, and she felt her nipples harden. She looked at his body then: his capable shoulders, his broad hairy chest, the flat muscled stomach. She stopped there, and he laughed, pulling her toward the stairway.

“What about our clothes?” she asked.

BOOK: The Billionaire's Bauble
6.1Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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