Читать книгу A SEAL's Pleasure - Tawny Weber - Страница 11

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SOME WOMEN ATE when they were stressed, and why not? Who didn’t love the comfort of chocolate?

Others managed their stress by shopping. Because, well, one could never have too many pairs of shoes.

She’d used both tactics from time to time with varying degrees of success. But Tessa often said her favorite go-to guaranteed stress reliever was sex. It loosened the body, eased tension and, if done right—and she tended to do it right—emptied the mind of pesky thoughts and troublesome worries.

But despite her reputation as a man-eater, it’d been a while since she’d had sex, stress relieving or otherwise.

Besides, all things considered—all things being that sex itself was integral to the stress dancing through her system—she’d hit her second-favorite release reliever.

The pool table.

Tessa leaned forward, angling from the waist as she peered down the pool cue and lined up her shot. She wasn’t concerned with the minuscule length of her dress. Hey, she could feel the silky fabric against the back of her upper thighs. She knew she wasn’t sharing anything she didn’t want to. She never did.

Besides, the party was still confined to the main rooms of the manor. Guests likely wouldn’t break away into small pockets until after dinner. She’d have regained her usual poise and control long before then.

“Two ball in the corner pocket,” she murmured.

She had overreacted. A silly thing to do, and she was sure it was because she was worried about Livi. Maybe she was a little stressed because things were so crazy at the magazine right now, too. After a year of running around the country with Livi to promote one workout video after another, it was just weird to be home for so long actually working out of the Flirtatious offices instead of emailing her articles in.

She was just having a little trouble readjusting, getting back into the groove of her life.

That was why work was stressing her out.

Why she was getting all wiggy over seeing Thorne again.

That was all it was. Stress causing a little overreaction.

Because Tessa Monroe never, ever worried about a man.

A man. Tessa hissed between her teeth at the idea of a mere man shaking her confidence. It’d been months since she’d seen the guy. They’d only met the one time last Halloween and she’d taken an instant dislike. Not to the man himself, but to the power he seemed to have over her.

All he’d done was introduce himself and shake her hand on Halloween. His touch had sent a zing of desire through her, more potent than anything she’d ever felt in her life. With just that touch, she’d known he could take over her world. That he could bring her the most incredible pleasure, the wildest joy. And the deepest pain.

Something she refused to allow any man.

Yet here she was, hiding from him.

And all he’d done was flash his smile her way.

Ridiculous, she reminded herself as she watched the pretty white cue ball spin across the green felt. It smacked the blue ball with a loud crack, sending it in a fast diagonal slide into the corner pocket.

She’d overreacted earlier, like she had on Halloween. Just because Gabriel Thorne looked as if he could see all the way into her soul and knew her every secret wish and dream didn’t mean he really could. He might think she was going to fall at his feet simply by virtue of his gorgeous face and sexy body, but he was wrong. Tessa Monroe didn’t fall for any man. Especially not one so used to stepping over the bodies of his groupies to welcome the next conquest.

Who cared if he was the sexiest man she’d ever met in her entire life? The promise of incredible sex would never be incentive enough to give any man the kind of power Gabriel demanded with a single look.

“Three in the side,” she muttered through clenched teeth.

Hell, she made her living understanding the influence of sex appeal. The lure of engaging the opposite sex. The delight of flirtatious interplay. She was an expert. Well, sort of an expert.

At least expert enough to know that this...

She took a deep breath, trying to shake off the needy feelings clutched low in her belly as she attempted to put a name on whatever it was she felt.

This thing she was feeling for Thorne was just a chemical reaction. Not a big deal. After all, sexual sparks were as easy to come by as a good Wi-Fi connection. All it took was tapping in to the right signal, a password or a clever hack and voilà. A world of possibilities, right there at a girl’s fingertips.

Tessa straightened, leaning on the pool cue as she inspected the table. The sound of laughter and chatter filtered through her focus, reminding her that the cocktail party was heating up in the rooms beyond. Figuring she had another three, maybe five minutes max before she’d be missed, Tessa bent low again, planted her feet in their five-inch heels and arched the small of her back in order to see the shot she wanted.

“Seven, side.” The words were barely a breath of air as she took aim. As the ball spun toward its target she felt a little more of her tension ease and control reclaim its place in her body.

She’d simply forgotten his appeal over the past five months. Out of sight and all that. Which was proof enough that she had nothing to worry about. If she could so easily dismiss a man’s sex appeal—and, oh, baby, did he ooze sex appeal—then he clearly wasn’t a threat to her peace of mind.

By the time she’d lined up the ten ball, Tessa’s nerves were as rock solid as her aim and her mind calm.

All she had to do was remember that she was in control. She didn’t have to make changes at the magazine if she didn’t want to. And as for Gabriel? Well, there wasn’t a man alive who’d gotten the best of her. So why should this one be any different? Before her mind could begin a litany of warnings of why he was already different, she took aim and sent the cue ball sailing.

Just because he oozed the kind of charm that promised to leave her grateful when he broke her heart didn’t mean she was going to let him. Silly man; he had no idea who he was dealing with. If he did, he’d know what every man had ever said about her since she’d turned fifteen was true—that Tessa Monroe’s body might be hot as hell, but her heart was as cold as ice.

Ice, baby, she reminded herself with a chilly smile.

By the thirteen ball, she was comfortably confident again. Damned if she wouldn’t enjoy putting Gabriel Thorne back in his place, she decided. She knew plenty of women who’d want a man like that at their feet, who’d want to make him into a pet just to prove they could. Not Tessa. If she wanted something slobbering on her feet, she’d get a bulldog. Nope, the only place for a man like that was away from her. Far away.

Back in control, enjoying the inner peace that came with it, Tessa added a little hip wiggle to her next shot, letting her body zing with the delight as the balls cracked together.

“There’s nothing prettier than a woman who’s mastered the art of body English.”

Damn it all to hell.

Tessa’s heart jumped. She couldn’t stop its silly reaction, but she made sure it didn’t show. She didn’t straighten. She didn’t let her expression change. She simply lifted her gaze from the soothing expanse of green felt to the disturbing view on the other side of the pool table.

Dear lord, Gabriel Thorne took tall, dark and handsome to unbelievable lengths. From the broad expanse of well-muscled shoulders to the tips of his size-fourteen boots polished to a high gloss, he exuded strength. The sharp angles of his face, with its knife-edged cheekbones and golden skin, contrasted against hair so black it gleamed blue, and his eyes were just as dark.

Why did he have to be so freaking perfect?

Good-looking guys were a dime a dozen. Tessa was so jaded that sex appeal barely registered anymore. Power? It still inspired a little ping of sexual awareness in her belly but it was easy enough to ignore if she wanted.

But all three in a single man?

Almost irresistible.

Almost.

Gabriel Thorne, or Romeo as he was more suitably called, had one irredeemable strike against him.

He was actually Chief Petty Officer Gabriel Thorne.

US Navy SEAL.

Her stomach churned.

And the only thing higher on Tessa’s off-limits list than a military man was a man so dedicated to the military that he devoted his life to becoming the best in order to serve in it.

“I came in here for a little privacy,” she finally said, slowly straightening. As she did, she knew the draped neckline of her dress gaped, most likely offering a clear view all the way down to her skimpy pink panties. She reluctantly gave Gabriel credit when his eyes didn’t shift from her face. Most men—no matter how well intentioned—couldn’t resist a peek at the goods. “Why don’t you be a doll and give it to me.”

She waited for him to barge through that opening with a tasteless comment, actually hoping he would so she could find a solid, pinpointable reason to dislike him.

Because the excuse that he made her edgy wasn’t working very well.

“C’mon, angel, don’t you want to say hi after all these months?” he invited, his palms wide as if to invite her to c’mon over and do just that. Probably by wrapping her legs around his hips and planting a hot, juicy kiss on him. Or maybe that was just her little fantasy hello.

“That’s the funny thing about distance. It doesn’t always make the heart grow fonder,” Tessa mused, leaning one hip on the pool table and swinging her foot. The move hitched her short skirt a little higher on her thigh, catching Romeo’s eye. This, apparently, was on his approved list to ogle because his gaze heated as it skimmed over her smooth skin from the edge of her skirt to her hot pink toenails and right back up again.

“Now you’re going to break my heart,” he teased when his eyes met hers again. “Are you trying to say you didn’t miss me?”

Despite his almost overwhelming appeal, Tessa was able to say quite honestly, “Nope, sorry. I didn’t at all.”

He gave her a long look, his eyes dark and almost spookily intense, as if he had some sort of power to see into people. Tessa lifted her chin, daring him to accept what he saw.

And waited, as her stomach clenched, to hear his opinion.

“I never took you for the type who hid at a party,” he said instead, leaving Tessa to ignore the weird disappointment clenching her belly. “If I’d have had to guess, I’d figure you’d be front and center out there. A drink in hand, that gorgeous smile flashing as you flick off admirers and break hearts left and right.”

“Isn’t that an appealing visual?” Tessa mused, ignoring the reality of it. “Maybe I’ll give it a try after I finish this round.”

His eyes only left her for a moment, long enough to see that she only had two balls left. Instead of leaving, though, he leaned against the wall and gestured with his chin toward her hand.

“You seem to know your way around the stick.”

Tessa made a show of sliding her fingers up the cue, skimming suggestively around the tip before sliding them right back down. Gabriel, being a man, watched the move and smiled. She just wished that smile wasn’t so wickedly appealing. As much in defense against it as to replace the needy images flashing through her mind at the sight of him, she tapped the cue against her free hand a couple of times, then tilted the tip toward him in a mocking salute.

“Anytime you want me to take aim at your balls, you just give a whistle,” she said, putting a little extrahusky suggestion in her tone. “You do know how to whistle, don’t you?”

Gabriel’s smile was pure appreciation, either for the movie quote or for her not-so-subtle threat. Knowing him, probably both.

“Angel, you want to play, I’m your man.” He moved around the table so fast Tessa didn’t have time to steel herself against the intense need that hit her when he reached her side. That was her excuse and she was sticking to it, dammit.

“I’ll bet we’d have a fascinating game between us,” he told her in that midnight voice of his. His fingers curled loosely over hers on the cue, guiding her hand back down toward the shaft. A zing of desire shot through Tessa’s body, her knees shaking as heat, needy and intense, curled in her belly. Had she ever gone wet and weak with just a touch?

Only once, she admitted to herself as she tried to clear her head. Only once—the last time he’d touched her.

She stared at Romeo. His pitch-black eyes were bottomless. Not cold—just the opposite, in fact. They were so hot that Tessa was terrified she’d burn before she lost herself in those depths.

Since terror wasn’t a feeling she was familiar with—or planned to experience long enough to get used to—she tilted her chin in challenge.

“Fascinating?” She put every bit of disinterest in her tone she could muster, keeping her expression amused. “Maybe. But it takes two to play, and I’m really not interested.”

Arching a brow, she slid her hand out from under his and left him gripping the stick alone.

There.

She knew that comment would slay a lesser man. Send him falling to the floor with his hands over his assets—metaphorically speaking.

Gabriel wasn’t a lesser man, but the refusal should still take care of him, she decided as she sashayed from the room.

A quick glance in the mirrored wall as she left gave her the perfect—and unobserved—look at his smile. Tessa tried not to groan.

Because that wicked grin said she’d been way too optimistic.

* * *

GABRIEL GAVE THE pool cue in his hand a light shake, absently checking the balance as he watched Tessa stride out, her hips swaying with enough temptation to send her skirt swirling around legs that had helped sell a million fitness videos.

The tiny purple dress was the same color as a breathtaking sunset he’d watched from a beach in Costa Rica a while back. Her long black hair tumbled in waves over her back and, despite the heels—damn, those had to be at least five inches—she was still as tiny as one of the Little People his Cherokee grandfather used to weave into stories around the campfire.

Shaking the memory away, Gabriel’s easy smile faded into a frown. What was it was about Tessa Monroe that made him think of his past? Stupid, since he’d never met anyone like her before. Crazy, because the only place he had in his life for women was the present moment. And useless, since nobody knew better than Gabriel how important it was to defuse explosives before they blew up in his face. And there was nothing with more potential to detonate than the past.

And nothing more explosive than a sexy woman with an attitude.

“Yo, Romeo.”

Gabriel blinked away his unusually deep thoughts and gave his buddy an easy smile.

“Yo, Scavenger,” he drawled, watching the tall man move into the room with an air of someone escaping a torture chamber. “Had enough of the party already?”

“I’m not the one hiding in an empty room,” Scavenger laughed, humor lighting his usually intense features. A first-class medic with recon skills that were nigh on magic as far as Gabriel was concerned, Scavenger tended to be on the quiet side. But he saw everything.

Something that Gabriel valued on the SEAL team.

But not in his private life.

Not that he had anything to hide. Hell, he was an open book. As long as the book opened to the page he was on today.

“What’s up?” Gabriel asked, knowing that look in his friend’s eyes. Part assessing, part caution, it meant the other guy was debating whether he wanted to share his thoughts or not.

“Jackrabbit’s gonna be a pain in the ass,” Scavenger finally said quietly, the words accompanied by a loose shrug.

Gabriel considered the warning. Because as casually as it was offered and as few words as it contained, if Scavenger had sought him out to say it, it was definitely a warning.

“There’s always a period of adjustment when we join a new team,” Gabriel pointed out, even though they’d been assigned to the team for six months already. Until they trained together, deployed together, they wouldn’t feel like a team. “He’ll get used to me.”

“Don’t think he’ll get used to losing, though,” Scavenger offered with a quick grin. “Watch your back. He’s looking for an edge.”

With a nod to acknowledge that he’d received the warning and would heed it—probably—Gabriel took aim at one of the last two balls on the table, letting it ricochet off the other to send both into different pockets.

“Thanks for missing the party out there to let me know,” Gabriel said, meaning it. He might not care that some guy had issues, but he knew Scavenger’s concern was the good of the team, which meant those issues would have to be dealt with. “You have to beat the women off with a stick yet?”

It was a source of never-ending amusement to Gabriel and most of the team that Scavenger, in all his shyness, was consistently hit on wherever they went.

“They wouldn’t be all over me if you were there. Isn’t that part of your rating? To take point on all social excursions, engage the female predators in order to allow the team to carry out their mission unmolested?”

“Is that what this is?” Gabriel laughed as he put the cue back in its stand. “You want me out there as a shield?”

“Nah, Irish was looking for you,” Scavenger said, his cheeks a little toasty. “You were supposed to help him with something?”

Oh, yeah. He’d been on his way, then he’d gotten distracted by the vision of an angel. One look at Tessa Monroe’s sweet little body curved over the pool table and his brain had straight-up fizzled. He’d been lucky he’d remembered his name when he’d stood across from her.

It was shaming for a man with his reputation to admit—even to himself—but if she’d crooked one of those sexy fingers of hers and led the way, he’d have followed her anywhere. Which meant she was dangerous. To his reputation, to his ego and to his peace of mind. All three of which Gabriel protected fiercely.

Gabriel had learned young to recognize trouble, a talent honed to perfection by his years in the military. But recognizing or not, he never ran from a fight, and he didn’t back down from trouble.

But trouble like Tessa Monroe? An angel’s face wrapped in a body that’d tempt the devil?

A wise man stepped carefully.

A wiser man plunged deep, reveled in the delight and found a way to walk away unscathed.

He just had to find his opening.

And he wasn’t going to find it in here.

“I guess I’d better help Irish, and let you get back to the waiting ladies,” Gabriel said.

The two men moved easily through the crowd toward the far side of the room, where it looked as if an entire platoon had gathered. Seeing the groom-to-be talking to an older woman who was the spitting image of Mitch’s fiancée, Gabriel tapped Shane on the shoulder before tilting his head to indicate he was gonna do his duty.

“Chief Petty Officer Thorne, reporting for duty,” Gabriel said when he reached Mitch and the woman who was apparently going to be his friend’s mother-in-law.

Interest flashed in the blonde’s eyes as she smiled. Mitch just shook his head in resigned amusement.

“Pauline, I’d like you to meet Gabriel Thorne. Gabriel, this is Livi’s mother, Pauline.” Waiting only long enough to finish the introductions, Mitch made his excuses to escape.

Leaving Gabriel alone with a cougar who looked as if she’d enjoy lapping him up for breakfast.

“Gabriel, thank you for your willingness to help make Mitchell and Olivia’s wedding a beautifully memorable event. I’ve created a list for you,” she said, unsnapping the tiny seashell-shaped purse dangling from her wrist to pull out a slip of paper. Gabriel was encouraged by its small size until she unfolded and unfolded and unfolded it again.

“That’s quite a list,” he observed, noting that the computer-generated printout had multiple bullet points and appeared to be color coded.

“Read through it carefully, please, and let me know if there are any issues with the duties or timing.” She handed it over with a smile that said she didn’t care what he objected to.

“The ceremony will take place on Catalina Island in six weeks. Since it’s a destination wedding, the events will span the entire first week of May. You’ll need that entire week off. But if you could get time off beforehand to help with preparations, that would help, of course.”

Gabriel squinted a little to see if she was joking. Seeing she wasn’t, his lips twitched.

“Of course,” he repeated, giving her the words she wanted to hear, but not the actual agreement. Because everyone knew how easygoing Uncle Sam was about letting entire SEAL teams go off the grid at the same time.

He glanced at the list, his eyes widening at the extent of duties listed. He’d executed complicated hostage rescue missions that hadn’t required this many steps.

Then he gave those steps a closer look.

And saw how many of them had him paired with a certain angel-faced seductress. Gabriel’s expression eased into a natural smile; that was to say, one that was filled with a whole lot of wicked.

Host beach bonfire, he noted.

Collaborate on romantic moonlight dance.

This could get interesting.

“Tessa Monroe is the—” he glanced at the top of the page, where it listed all of the players and their assigned roles “—maid of honor?”

“Mmm, yes. Tessa and Olivia have been friends for years, all the way back to college.” When Gabriel gave her his most charming, do-tell-me-more smile, her own expression softened and she started chatting about Livi’s time at San Diego State. Barracuda or not, the woman had good feelings for her kid. That brought her up a few notches in Gabriel’s estimation. He knew firsthand that mother didn’t mean maternal.

“When Livi launched her fitness videos, she brought Tessa in. I’m not sure Olivia could have achieved the level of success she did without her friend. Not only is Tessa a beautiful woman who has great camera presence, her being there made the touring and live events so much easier on Olivia.”

“So Tessa’s a trainer, too?” Gabriel asked, finally voicing one of the thousands of personal questions he hadn’t let himself ask before.

“A trainer? Oh, no. Tessa doesn’t have the patience to teach. She’s actually a writer. Journalist?” Pauline frowned, then waved the distinction away as if it didn’t matter. “She writes for a very successful digital magazine. I think she’s also in charge of editorial, among other things. That enabled her to work from her laptop for weeks at a time while traveling. And, of course, her travels gave her so many new article ideas and contacts. I think two of the pieces she wrote on the road went on to win national attention.”

Not sure why he felt so proud since it had nothing to do with him, Gabriel still smiled. Maybe because it proved what he’d already known. In addition to being gorgeous and sexy, Tessa was savvy and smart.

“It’s a fitness magazine?”

“Flirtatious? No, it’s more of a relationship magazine for singles. A lot of emphasis on sex, the mating games, bedroom games, how to use it all to get ahead.” Pauline’s voice dropped to a husky timbre as she reached out to trail her fingers along the back of his hand. “I’ll be happy to share some of them, if you’d like?”

Gabriel blinked, surprised at how fast she went from businesslike to motherly to amused to cougar with barely a blink. Talented lady. But as attractive as she was, he didn’t figure he’d be offering up more than his respect.

With that in mind, he lifted the list in a modified salute and suggested he find the groom and discuss the details.

“If you need anything, just call. My numbers are all there,” Pauline instructed. Then she leaned forward and whispered a creative suggestion in his ear that made Gabriel’s brows arch. Before he could refuse, she patted his ass and went on her way.

Amused, Gabriel headed in the opposite direction through the crowded ballroom. Figuring he’d earned it, he grabbed another beer on his way to where Mitch was seated.

“Did I offer my congratulations yet?” he asked, grabbing a chair, then straddling it before tilting his beer bottle toward his friend in a salute.

“So far you’ve offered three warnings, two enigmatic stares and the suggestion that I see a counselor,” the groom-to-be mused with an easy smile. “You finally going to add a congrats to that?”

“On finding a sweetheart like Livi? Sure. But how about a word of advice?”

Mitch gestured with his own beer for Gabriel to go ahead.

“That was quite a chat with your future mother-in-law.” Gabriel gave a silent whistle and shook his head. “You might wanna give thought to running.”

“She’s not so bad,” Mitch responded, looking around. His gaze didn’t land on the blonde barracuda who’d just propositioned Gabriel, but rested instead on her daughter.

“Not so bad?” Gabriel scoffed. “Did you get a load of my assignment list? I’ve served under admirals with less balls than she has.”

Following Mitch’s gaze, Gabriel glanced at his friend’s fiancée. His eyes automatically shifted, though, to the dark-haired angel on the other side of the room, heat speeding through his system at the sight of her. A good-looking woman offering to ride him like a bronco got zip for reaction, but one look at Tessa and he was rock hard.

Damned if he could figure out what was going on.

He deliberately shifted his gaze away.

Lips twitching, he used his chin to indicate Mitch look that way, too.

“Your future mother-in-law has Scavenger in her sights.”

Mitch followed his lead to where Pauline had the tall, quietly shy SEAL cornered. From the look of it, she was actually petting his chest.

“She’ll eat him for breakfast,” Mitch proclaimed, looking both amused and a little worried.

Over their friend’s pending sexual education? Or the weirdness of watching all of the elements of his life mix together? Yet another reason to keep life to a single element, Gabriel figured.

“We should rescue him,” Mitch said, starting to rise.

“Nah.” Gabriel shook his head before Mitch could get to his feet. “It’ll be good for him. A guy needs to push his comfort zone now and then.”

“She might suck the comfort right out of him,” Mitch muttered with a worried frown.

“Some women do that,” Gabriel mused, his gaze cutting across the room to lock on Tessa again.

She was so damned sexy, her smile wide and bright in a way it never was when she looked at him.

Time to change the game, he decided.

He’d played it with amused distance already, and all that’d done was let her get a hold somewhere in the back of his mind.

As he listened with half an ear to Mitch talking, he realized that since Tessa was like no woman he’d ever known before, he’d have to take a different approach in dealing with her.

He was simply going to have to pursue her. That he’d have her went without question, since it was obviously the only way he’d get her out of his system.

He was a man who knew how to strategize, how to plan and how to win.

And he never, ever gave up.

Since Tessa wasn’t on board with his plan, he’d see her as a mission.

A target to be assessed, evaluated and overcome.

He’d figure her out.

He’d have her—on his terms.

Then he’d do what he always did.

Walk away, leaving both of them satisfied.