His hands grasped her hips as he drew her against his hard body. He held her in place, letting her feel the pressure of his erection, stiff and unyielding against her stom
ach. She steeled herself against the waves of longing inside her, but they came hard, stronger and more insistent than the crashing of swells lapping at her feet.
“Is a challenge the only reason you’re here?” he asked.
A snappy retort sprung to mind, but she squelched it. The challenge may have given her the excuse to accept the invitation but she was here for many more reasons than a dare.
She glanced up at him. “I’m here because you invited me.”
“That I did.” A teasing glint lit his gaze, but behind the dark depths Mallory saw deeper emotion, a yearning she couldn’t name, but one she understood because it existed inside her, too, in a place no one saw and especially not in daylight.
But it was nighttime now and she felt free to indulge her desires—and Jack’s as well. He smiled and deep grooves etched the corners of his mouth, dimples she hadn’t realized he possessed.
Mallory didn’t know what overcame her, but she leaned forward, inhaling the scent of salt water and pure man before she touched her lips to first one dimple, then the next, pausing only to dart her tongue into the intriguing crevice of the stubble-roughened skin of his cheek.
His reaction was a purely masculine groan, one that reverberated inside her and set off an explosive, toe-curling burst of arousal.
“Do you have any idea how hot you make me?” His grip on her waist tightened and his hips jerked forward in an instinctive motion.
He was hard and masculine and felt oh, so good. She sucked in an unsteady breath. “I can feel that I do.”
His hands came farther around her back until his palms rested firmly on her behind. She felt herself straining against him, seeking deeper contact than their bodies and positions allowed.
“Relax.” His warm breath blew into her ear. The erotic wisp of air tickled her neck and the excitement caused her nipples to tighten and pucker beneath the constraints of her bathing suit.
He held her in place, his hands gently stroking her behind until her lower body, strung tight, did as he asked. She relaxed and molded to him, fitting herself snugly into his erection.
“Much better.” His hips swayed seductively against hers. With each rocking motion, a wave of tormenting desire shook her. And with each surge came the ridiculous hope that like herself, he was here with her for more than just a dare.
It had to be the magical, mystical moonlight that allowed her to even consider such foolishness. They were lawyers in the same firm, both thriving on competition and one-upmanship. They had that much in common, yet they had no possible future no matter how hot the chemistry.
They were co-conspirators in this seductive game and that diminished the risk and leveled the playing field. At least, she hoped. There was no denying that with this invitation they’d reached the point of no return. She had no choice now but to believe in his integrity, knowing her career was in his hands. There was no turning back.
Not in the midst of this heated game. And it was hot. With deliberate precision, she mimicked his movements, placing her hands on his backside and pressing him more firmly, more intimately against her. His deep groan of satisfaction caused a trickling of damp desire to settle between her legs. The hard planes of his chest brushed against her aching breasts and relief seemed so close yet so very far away.
IT WAS HOT, Jack thought, this wicked fling beneath the moonlight that mimicked hot sex yet fell short of mutual satisfaction. He didn’t know how much longer he could rock against her willing body yet get no relief against the crescendo of need building inside him.
He’d meant to give her sweet torment and take her further than she’d taken him last night, but she’d turned the tables, torturing him instead, and imminent release was building fast and furious inside him.
At least he wouldn’t be alone if he took that plunge, but it wasn’t the ending to the night he’d originally envisioned. He had no intention of embarrassing either of them when all he wanted was to take her to the edge and give her a night to remember.
Without speaking, he swept her into his arms and began a lazy walk into the ocean.
“What are you doing?” She shrieked and wrapped her hands firmly around his neck.
“Cooling us off.” He paused as the water reached his knees and when the next surge swept toward the shore, he treated them to a thorough dunk in the ocean water.
The rush of cold water should have shocked his system, but with Mallory in his arms and heat arcing between them, all it did was get him wet.
She was laughing as he carried her back to the large towel he’d set out on the sand. He placed her onto her feet and handed her a smaller hotel towel to dry off before settling himself besides her.
“Did it help?” she asked, as she ran the white terry over her hair and arms.
His body still throbbed with unslaked need and watching her movements beneath the sleek, wet suit, renewed desire hit him all over again.
He settled himself on the towel. “Didn’t help a bit.”
“I didn’t think so.” Without warning, she walked over, swung her leg around his waist and climbed into his lap.