Chapter 3

Three

T he smell of pine hit her on a draft of warm air tinged with a hint of cinnamon and vanilla the second they were inside. Her favorite Christmas combination. Candles, the source of all the holiday scents, she assumed, scattered the parlor tables filled with memorabilia, their placements just as she remembered. He must have worked fast to bring a sense of cheer to the home. Did he do it for her?

Nathan sat her down and closed the door behind them.

A kaleidoscope of fond memories of her, her brother, and Nathan flitted across her mind in an array of vivid color, like no time had passed at all since their last gathering around Nathan's table for one celebration or another. The Grant family was vast and losing the patriarch wouldn't be easy for any of the people she'd come to consider her own family.

Tall wooden beams supported an open layout lit with low lights and a large fire in the hearth. How could he still live here and be sane? True, he was rarely home, but still… Everywhere she looked she saw her brother's wide smile and handsome face mingled in with the rest of the Grant family. How did Nathan find comfort where she only found pain?

No wonder he'd called her over tonight. He'd rather work than be alone.

A soft click of a lock brought her out of the inner thoughts. Her balance wobbled just slightly, and she bumped into a table. She shot out a hand and grabbed a photo before it could fall to the hardwood floor.

Willa zeroed in on the image. There he was—Adrian—all smiles and full of promise. Her chest tightened and tears broke loose to fall freely.

Damn the holidays. They always made her a little more emotional.

A little more heartbroken for all the things she didn't have.

Like Nathan and a warm home and lover to call her own.

Ugh. She needed to shove her heart into a vault and clamp that fucker shut already.

She shouldn't have come. Being here was a big fat mistake.

She sensed Nathan's strength a second before he wrapped his arms around her from behind.

Strong. Muscular.

Her heart jumped in her throat and refused to budge.

And then she did the one thing she shouldn't have done.

She hoped.

His strong arm slipped around her waist while he took the photo from her grasp. Solid muscle pressed up against her back and her body melted into him, welcoming his strong support.

Nathan set the picture on the table and gently turned her to face him.

She blinked quickly, dashing all the tears away.

Catching her chin in a firm but gentle hold, he forced her to look at him.

His warm, brown gaze caressing over every part of her face as if he was looking at her for the first time.

"He made me promise not to touch you, Willa." A gentle touch to her cheek sent a pulse of desire to rock through her. "I want you to know since the first day you walked into my life you're all I ever wanted. Adrian knew that. And you need to know I plan on breaking that promise to stay away from you tonight. I'm going to claim that virgin pussy with my fingers, my mouth and my thick cock. Part those beautiful silky thighs and watch as I stretch you and take what I've wanted since the first time I met you. I knew you would be mine one day. And Willa, today I'm tired of running. Tired of waiting. I want what's mine. You."

Me?

Claim me?

Her breath hitched in shock.

A good shock. A do-I-strip-right-now kind of shock.

Jesus, she couldn't catch her breath. It was like he wanted to make her come right then and there without even touching her all-too-willing body. She might be inexperienced, but her body had desired him long enough and her fantasies were fierce. Plus she did have the internet. Her body might not know the touch of a man, but her well-primed mind would fill in the gaps where she lacked experience.

Her gaze raised to his as he spoke. Heavy and thick with lust, each word struck a tingling nerve. Mentally stuck on the imagery that went along with his words, she was caught off guard when his lips crashed into hers.

Hungry, starving.

Minty with a hint of whiskey? Or was that tequila? Who cared—she was drunk on his taste already.

There was no denying the need, the lust, the deep-seated passion that thrived between them untapped for so long. His tongue parted her lips and she opened, matching his masculine moan with her feminine one. It fed into her through him. Each stroke of his tongue against hers. She wound her arms around his neck and he anchored her against his hard body with an arm around her waist.

Willa paused and her heart broke a fraction. "Why? Why would you make such a promise and why wouldn't he want me—us—happy?" Thoughts warred between his words and his actions over the past years.

Against her better judgment, she leaned into his warm welcoming body and soaked in his touch before he pulled away from her. A single tear slid down her cheek at the thought of letting go of him for good this time.

But he didn't pull away. Not in the way she thought he would anyway.

He stroked her jaw with the rough pad of his thumb and then swiped at a single stray tear.

He mumbled a curse and his eyes slipped closed for a moment.

She watched in fascination as he wrapped his lips around the digit and sucked. It was like he wanted to take all her pain and grief into himself for her.

He opened his eyes and that same hunger from a second ago hit her like a bomb.

"Tonight is about us, baby. No tears, no regret. Only pleasure." He paused and took a deep breath. "And definitely no guilt."

That last declaration had to be for his own benefit because there was no way she'd regret loving him even if for only one night. With all the loss he'd suffered, she knew just how deep his wounds went. He couldn't hide his pain of losing the people he loved from her any more than he could hide how much he wanted her. She studied his soft expression and tender look in his eyes. Something had changed since she'd last seen him. But what?

He returned his hand to her face and pulled her closer to rest his forehead on hers.

"I've dreamed about slowly peeling away your clothing, kissing your body from head to toe and taking you by my fireplace. I want to see the warm glow of the light dance across your body as I slide my dick balls-deep into your sweet pussy."

"How dare you, Nathan Grant! Damn you!" She shot poisoned darts at the man with her heated gaze and shoved her hands in her pockets—that or risk breaking her fingers on the man's stubborn jaw.

Her gaze flicked over said fireplace and it didn't take any stretch of the imagination to picture them naked and making love in the glow of the fire.

Her anger simmered to a low boil.

"I want you, Willa. I don't care how fucked up it is or was. I've wanted you since you were barely seventeen. Your brother knew it and made it understood you were off limits. Hell, even I knew I couldn't touch you. You became hands-off when he made me commit to that fucking promise, but dammit, I loved him. So I did it. How could I not? We went into war with him covering my six. I couldn't disrespect that. But he's gone and I still love you. I have you here standing in front of me with love in your eyes. And you're definitely not seventeen anymore. What the fuck am I supposed to do?"

His words, a low husky whisper filled with promise, danced across her senses and she shuddered from their power. Embers burned in the depths of his eyes and she knew he meant what he said.

Damn him. She didn't know how she should feel now.

Stunned, that much she knew. As she peered up at him, her mouth went slack. Their dance around each other had just escalated to a completely new level. But she didn't understand. After so long of wanting him, why now? Why make her heart ache for him for so long?

Should she let this go? Slip into a lust-induced haze and let it all wash over her for the sake of having what she'd always wanted?

A part of her said yes. But the bigger part of her said it was time to break for answers.

Damn it. Why couldn't she just go the easy route for once?

She arched a brow and took a deep breath. A hint of concern creased his brow. Damn straight he should be worried.

Obviously, he tried to appear more relaxed than he felt. His eyes always gave him away.

He stood with his thumbs hooked in his jeans and a daring edge to his expression.

"Nathan Grant." She shook her head. "You picked a heck of a time to seduce me with your sweet, filthy and dark words and gentle touches. I've wanted you for God only knows how long, and you've pushed me away every time I've gotten close." It took a behemoth amount of control not to let the shudder in her muscles ripple through her body with the dark promise his eyes held the longer he looked at her.

Damn man. Arrogant as a bull. Stubborn as one too.

She threw her hands in the air, unable to make sense of anything.

Deep breaths, Willa. Long, deep breaths.

Anger tinted her words, sure, but she was more hurt than anything.

"Everything will be fine, Willa."

His words forced the sudden need to clutch something in her hands. Yeah, about the size of a cast iron skillet, in fact.

"Everything will be fine? Like you can erase everything with a kiss and a few promises?" In a soft pitch, she asked, "Tell me something, Nathan. Why does your family keep me around? Is it only because of you? Am I the guilty link to a past you'd rather forget? Or the pity fuck you want to get out of your system and then send me on my way?"

She searched his eyes for some kind of truth.

"Is it so you can keep an eye on me out of some promise to my brother?"

He took a step back from her, crossing his arms as if she'd slapped him in the face.

In a blink his expression switched from would-be-lover to full Marine mode. Her shoulders slumped. A brick wall would give her more answers.

"You know what, Nathan, never mind. That was Adrian's and your mistake. Thinking you knew what was better for me than letting me decide my own life. A mistake I'll correct." Heat rippled across her skin from the fire lacing her veins, constricting her sweater around her neck. She pulled at the hem for some needed air.

Maybe it was time for her to go before one of them made a mistake neither would forget or forgive.

But a lug of cocky muscle walled off the front door. Guess that left the back door. With one last glance over her shoulder at the warm fire, and the promises of wild Christmas Eve sex, she turned toward the kitchen, her dreams dying a little with each step.

She rolled her eyes at the sound of heavy footsteps behind her.

"Are you done?" The arrogance in his tone turned her on her heel.

"I'm not only done, Nathan, but I am out of?—"

He prowled close and didn't stop until his nose nearly touched hers.

He didn't stop there.

His lips claiming hers a split second before he caught her hips and pulled them into his. He walked until he had her pinned to the kitchen wall with his body, devouring her mouth with each step.

His heavy, thick cock pressed into the soft muscle of her stomach. It was like he wanted to drive her mad.

It was foolish to let him have so much control over her, but she liked it.

Still, foolish, nonetheless.

With a single caress of his tongue along the seam of her lips, the pain of not having him close receded, replaced by the urge to fall into the passion he provoked deep within her. Was it so bad for her to crave him so strongly? That he had the power to heal the hurt with a kiss, a touch here or there?

She ached to return the attention, to nuzzle closer, to wrap her fingers around the girth of his dick and stroke his hard, silky steel length until he released masculine groans of pleasure for her.

Willa let her head fall back against the wall and relented control over her senses, her thighs clenching around his waist as he brought her legs up to wrap around him.

She panted softly as he broke the kiss and pulled back far enough to gaze into her eyes.

"Every time you touch me, Nathan, you make something come to life. Something I thought died when I buried my brother—my heart. And here we are again, dealing with the loss of another loved one. Yet, through the pain I see the desire in your eyes when we touch. Stop trying to hide it behind some promise that means nothing." She took a deep breath. "Are my words falling on deaf ears?" She raked her fingertips through his thick brown hair. "I don't want to close my mind and body against what we could be. But I'm scared. Scared you'll fuel this wicked fire in me and leave me to burn alone until it consumes me whole and leaves me nothing but a shell."

She slid down his hard, enormous body and came to stand in front of him. He gathered both of her hands in one of his and spun her around to face the large meadow beyond the deck that lined the outer part of the house.

He eased his hands down to her hips, his grip tight against her jean-clad skin. Her eyelids dipped and she welcomed warmth that cocooned their bodies together.

In the background, pops and cracks from the fire filled the silence that settled around them. Small flakes of white glistened in the soft light outside the window. All the makings of a romantic Christmas.

She threw a quick glance over her shoulder. God, she was getting high just being this close to him. How pathetic did that make her? Did she really care? This was her Heaven anyway. No one outside this room mattered right now, if at all.

Instead of answering her question, he eased his free hand beneath the hem of her sweater. Shockwaves of lust took over her senses the moment his callused fingers encased her sensitive nipple through the thin silk of her bra and tugged.

"How about we let my actions speak for now?" He dipped his head and she fell into his embrace as he licked and nibbled the tender flesh of her shoulder.

Actions. Right. Yes, she could do that.

Kiss me.

Lick me.

Eat me.

Fuck me. And then do it alllll again.

She chanted her desires like a wish in her head.

Instead of giving voice to her thoughts she managed a soft whimper, only nodding her consent. He chuckled warmly in response. "Show me what you want me to see, Nathan."

To contrast the squeeze and tug, blunt teeth nipped her shoulder, swiftly followed by warm kisses. Pain-pleasure rocketed her libido past mere want, landing her dangerously near instant combustion. They were both in danger of burning alive tonight.

He moved his right hand downward with slow, tender caresses across her abdomen, pausing to swirl a single digit around her navel before continuing further south. He pushed past the clasp and zipper of her jeans and didn't stop until he found her clit.

She gasped, arched to give him better access and that was all he needed.

"Is your pussy wet for me, baby? Ready for my big cock?"

"Another inch further, Captain, and you'll find out."

Warmth pooled between her legs when his thumb brushed against her clit and his other finger stroked along the seam of her entrance.

He growled, long and low.

Her eyes fluttered shut and her body grew warm.

With a gentle flick of his free hand Nathan moved her hair forward and over her shoulder. "If I have to go another night, my balls might explode with all the need I have for you. I've dreamed of sinking my cock into you, claiming that virgin pussy and feeling you clench around my cock, milking me."

His explicit words brushed against her ear in a warm caress of promises. Thunder roared through her with every beat of her heart. Her body wanted him, but through her lust-filled haze she couldn't ignore one detail. What about tomorrow? Could she go through with this and live with what the morning would bring?

Breathless, desperate to throw on the brakes to the runaway train, Willa managed a few words between each soft pant he lured from her throat. "A one-night stand isn't my style, Nathan. And come morning, you'll regret throwing away my brother's warning and the promise you made."

He dipped his fingers between the wet folds of her pussy, causing her words to hitch. His lips trailed the length of her neck while his left hand sought out her breasts, his thick cock teasing her jean-clad ass.

Electricity shot through her body, eliciting a gasp as he rolled her nipple between her fingers. "Nathan," she moaned, unable to hold back from the pleasure.

"How can I regret loving you? We're all older now and if your brother was here, he'd see how much I cherish you. I—we—knew him well enough to know he wouldn't stand in the way of our happiness."

He was right. She knew it in her heart Adrian only wanted to protect her younger self from making a mistake with an older man. Now she was her own woman.

He popped the button to her jeans and nothing else registered until cool air hit her exposed skin.

"Strip for me, baby, show me that beautiful ass. I'm going to make you scream my name before giving you my cock."

"Annnnd?" she teased, wiggling her ass in his hands.

"And then I'll make you scream it again."