A Dangerously Sexy Christmas. Stefanie London

gasp sending a jolt of excitement through him. Her nipples pebbled against his palms and he tugged on them, gently at first and then harder when she urged him on.

      “Please,” she begged.

      “Ladies first.” He slid one hand down her stomach and found the hem of her thong.

      Not being able to see her face, he was forced to listen for her cues, to feel her reactions instead of relying on his eyes. He slipped a hand down her panties and found the tight bud of her clitoris, slick with arousal.

      “You’re such a gentleman,” she quipped pressing against his hand with a sharp moan.

      He circled her, dipping his fingers inside her and then pulling back out. She moved against him, whimpering each time his fingers left her, her nails digging into his thighs. Controlling her orgasm, knowing he was in charge of her pleasure made him even hotter, even harder.

      When she shattered, he pressed his mouth down on her shoulder, scraping his teeth against the skin while she shouted his name. He couldn’t wait any longer. As she rode the last waves of her orgasm, he tore her panties to the side and pushed into her with a long, hard thrust. Tightness and heat enveloped him, fogging his mind and stealing his breath.

      He wound his arms around her waist and thrust into her over and over. She braced herself against the back of the couch, her hips bucking to meet him stroke for stroke. Sweat beaded on her skin, dampening him as he pressed against her. The heady scent of sex filled his nostrils, pushing him closer to nirvana.

      “Harder, Max.” She turned so that her cheek pressed against his face. “Don’t hold back.”

      Heat colored her cheeks and her full lips parted. Brushing a damp strand of dark hair from her forehead, he kissed the shell of her ear. As his orgasm slammed into him, he pressed her hard against the back of the couch, relishing the skin-to-skin contact.

      Silence engulfed them, the echoes of their pleasure reverberating in his mind. Rose stilled beneath him, falling back so that he supported her weight completely. Sighing contentedly, she lolled her head against his chest.

      “See,” she said, her breathing labored. “No more tension.”

      He didn’t believe her.

      He eased her down onto the couch, her legs dangling off the edge, before he jumped up to dispose of the condom. When he came back to her, he gathered her in his arms and they stretched out on the couch together.

      She turned, half curled into his side, half draped across him. Her breasts pressed into his rib cage and her hand traced a swirling pattern in the hairs that dusted the tops of his thighs.

      “I guess I was right when I said you always get what you want,” he said.

      Guilt swirled in the edge of his consciousness as reality dawned that he’d broken the rules with her. But the total satisfaction that fatigued his body overrode the rule follower within him.

      Rose made him feel freaking incredible.

      “I’m a persistent woman.” She tilted her head to look up at him. “But you wanted this as much as I did. Don’t try to deny it.”

      “If I didn’t want it, it wouldn’t have happened.” His hand ran over the curve of her hip. “I do have some control.”

      “I get the impression you have too much control.” Her eyes assessed him, and it was as if she could peer straight into him and read the pain etched on his soul.

      He didn’t like it one damned bit.

      “Want to test that theory?” he asked, moving his hand up to cup her breast, weighing it in his palm.

      Since he’d already broken the rules tonight, how could it hurt to take full advantage of the situation? He’d be good tomorrow.

      She shivered as he brushed a thumb over her nipple. “Is that your way of asking for round two?”

      A throaty hum of pleasure filled the room as he pressed his lips to the spot between her neck and her shoulder, continuing to tease her nipple with his thumb. Redness marred her skin where his stubble had chafed against her. The sight filled him with a primal desire, and he hardened.

      Her hand traced his cock from root to tip, squeezed him. Pleasure blinded him for a split second.

      “As much as I would love to continue, there’s a slight problem,” he said, unable to stop his hips from pressing forward into her hand.

      “What’s that?”

      “We’re out of condoms.”

      A cheeky smile passed over her lips. “Luckily you’re not the only one who came prepared.”

      She reached down to the puddle of white fluff on the floor and fished around in the robe’s pocket. A flash of silver caught the light as she produced the foil packet and tore it open without hesitation.

      Thank. God.

      “You’re a regular Girl Scout,” he said, allowing his eyes to shut as she rolled the condom down onto him, slowly and deliberately.

      She straddled him, easing herself down onto his cock and pulling his hands up to her hips.

      “I might be prepared—” she placed her hands on his chest and lowered herself until her lips came to rest by his ear “—but a Girl Scout I am not.”

      Turning his head to capture her mouth, he wrapped his arms around her and forced the last sliver of space to close between them. Skin to skin, they were fused from the mouth down. Her weight pressed him gently into the couch, her thighs locked against his hips. Holding him in place. Controlling their rhythm.

      There was nothing sexier than a woman who knew what she wanted. And by the way she ground herself against him, Rose must have a clear picture of where she was going. But he could help things along.

      Gripping her hips, he thrust up against her, brushing his pubic bone against the core of her sex. A shudder shot through her and she gasped into his mouth. Yes, he knew exactly what spot to hit.

      She clenched around him, her body jerking away.

      “Oh, no, you don’t,” he said, holding her down against him.

      “Max,” she moaned, her face pressed against the side of his neck. “It’s too much, it’s too soon. I—”

      He slipped his hand between them and found her clit, swollen and needy. “There’s no such thing as too much.”

      She started to protest but her words turned into a garbled mess as she rocked against him, seeking her release. With her facing him this time, he watched her beautiful features contort as she came hard against his hand. Her sex clenched around him and her eyes squeezed shut.

      He drank her in with greedy eyes, feasting himself on her pleasure until he followed her over the edge.

      Satisfaction rippled through him, weighing down his muscles.

      Rose was not a woman to be underestimated. She liked to be in control, and he’d have to keep a close eye on her. For some reason, the thought of doing that felt a lot more enticing to him now than it had this morning.

      Curled up against his chest, she seemed small all of a sudden. The bruise on her cheek had morphed to a deeper shade of purple.

      He would protect Rose. She may not want a bodyguard, but he would do everything in his power to keep her safe.

      He brushed the hair from her face as if out of habit.

       She is your job, nothing more. You will protect her but you will not let her in. Got it?

      It would be easier said than done.