Aftershocks. Nancy Warren

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СКАЧАТЬ Patrick who’d spoken.

      “No?” She felt stunned, rejected. “What do you mean, no?”

      He stroked her hair, touched her cheek.

      “I want to make love to you right now, more than I’ve ever wanted anything. But—”

      “No buts.” Her body burned for him, her flesh felt as though steam must be rising from it. They’d obviously denied the powerful attraction of each other’s pheromones for too long.

      She kissed him, hard and deep, teasing his lips with her tongue, the sensations so much stronger in the dark.

      “But I—”

      A finger across his lips silenced him. “I believe in fate,” she told him. “Fate stuck us in this elevator and turned out the lights. What happens tomorrow doesn’t matter. Hell, Patrick, we almost didn’t have a tomorrow.”

      “I know, but—”

      “I don’t want to think about how long we’re going to be trapped here. I don’t want to think about how awful it would be to develop claustrophobia in the next ten minutes. The best way to fight boredom and fear is to occupy your mind.”

      “You think?” Reluctant humor threaded his tone.

      “I know.” She smiled in the dark, smug, knowing she’d won.

      “I…You’re still a female employee.”

      She loosened his tie. “So fire me.”

      That surprised laughter out of him. She felt it rumble up his throat beneath her fingers. “Fire you? You’re phenomenal. Competent, smart, hardworking. Hell, why would I fire you?”

      “So we can have sex. It’s temporary. You can rehire me whenever we get out of here.”

      There was a long pause, and she could almost hear him thinking. She held her breath. She hadn’t been entirely joking about needing to take her mind off their current situation.

      She wasn’t claustrophobic, but she knew that Patrick was keeping her thoughts and feelings more pleasantly engaged. As it was, the reality of being trapped in a warm black box tickled the edges of her mind. And that box was hanging from a cable that had sustained a major earthquake and some hefty aftershocks in the past month. Who knew how long it would hold?

      No. She needed a distraction. And sex with Patrick was about the best damn distraction she could imagine.

      “Briana?”

      “Yes?”

      “You’re fired.”

      A great rush of pent-up breath left her chest, and the next second she wished she’d saved a little, for Patrick was kissing the life out of her.

      Somehow she was on her back, the elevator tile hard beneath her spine, but as for the rest of her…oh my. Now that Patrick had let himself go, he was all over her.

      He kissed her hungrily while his hands roamed everywhere. She heard a small tear and then the bounce of a plastic button on the tile.

      “Sorry,” he said, his voice so husky with passion she barely recognized it.

      “It’s okay,” she murmured, loving his eagerness, finding the clumsiness endearing. He was so gorgeous and confident it hadn’t occurred to her that his technique would be less than smooth.

      Then his mouth found her breast again and she put all rational thought away.

      “Oh, yes.” Her body arched beneath him.

      His hand was warm, slightly leathery as it slid beneath her skirt and trailed up, up to where she was so very hot.

      Even as he cupped her through her panties, she felt everything tighten, all those wonderfully concentrated sensation centers started tuning up ready to sing.

      Her blouse was open, her bra gaping, but he was still dressed. She attacked his buttons with barely more finesse than he’d shown. She wanted to feel his naked skin against hers. Wanted the warm roughness against her sensitive skin.

      She got the buttons out of the way and parted his shirt, running her hands over the strong muscular planes of his stomach, the bulge of his pecs, lightly fuzzed with hair.

      She pulled him to her, rubbing against him like a cat against a favorite couch. He was fuzzy, warm, strong and so very alive.

      His fingers slipped inside her panties and she jerked her hips up against him, begging wordlessly and shamelessly to be touched.

      As his fingers played over her, she began to sigh, her breath coming in panting gasps.

      “I want you inside me,” she cried.

      His fingers slowed and he kissed her softly. “I don’t have anything with me.”

      “Hmm?” she murmured, feeling slightly muzzy.

      “Protection. Condoms. I don’t—”

      “Oh. Right.” She was on the pill, but still, a condom was sensible. That’s why she always carried a few. “I think I have some in my purse.” Once again she dug around in her bag.

      Briana wasn’t a promiscuous woman, but she believed in being prepared. She had a discreet little zip-up bag in blue Chinese silk in there somewhere.

      Trouble was, a woman as prepared as she was tended to have a lot of other junk filling her bag, as well. Cell phone…she paused with her hand on it. She could at least try to phone out, maybe get them rescued sooner. But then she’d miss her chance to make love with Patrick, and right now her body’s urges were overpowering her common sense ten to one.

      She dug deeper, fingertips searching for the touch of silk. She felt the tape recorder. Once again her hand stilled. Oh, lord. She’d forgotten all about the tape. She bit her lip in the dark. She should turn it off. After all, Patrick had fired her temporarily so they could avoid any hint of scandal.

      But…

      She’d think about that later. She could always erase the tape.

      She kept digging, feeling Patrick’s breath on her belly, his hands roving with growing confidence, warm and sure as they drove her slowly, but inevitably higher.

      He put his mouth on her nipple and she drew in a sharp breath. Longing rippled through her. She couldn’t hang on much longer.

      Silk. Purse. There it was, right at the bottom. She pulled it out, along with a travel pack of tissues, and handed it to him.

      She heard the zip as he opened the silk pouch. Then she heard the rustle of plastic tearing.

      “What the—”

      “What is it?” Briana asked.

      “I know I’m out of practice, but have condoms changed?” He sounded not only puzzled but mildly grossed out.

      “What СКАЧАТЬ