Code Name: Nina's Choice (Warrior's Challenge) (9 page)

“Gabbs, why don’t you
go get out of these wet clothes? I’ll help Mace clean up.”

“Okay,” she said as
Mace lowered her to the floor.

She and Mace stood
only inches apart. Who would speak first? She didn’t know
what to say.

“It’s too fast, isn’t
it?” Mace took the helm with the question.

“No,” she said
quietly. “You’re perfect.”

“Baby.”
He cuddled her in his arms, and she
breathed in Mace, needing him like air. “Every second I’m with you, I fall
deeper in love. Y
our daughter is amazing, just like
her mom,” he whispered on her lips.

“I’m getting lost in
you, Mace,” she breathed onto his lips.

“I hope you never find
your way out.” His mouth met hers, their lips touching with sweetness at first,
and ending in breathl
ess. Her hips pressed against
his, and she felt the bulge. With a gentle push, she rotated just enough to let
him know she wanted him.

“Too many people
around here,” he warned, his forehead resting against hers.

“The door locks.” She
sucked on his lip, str
etched it just a little then
let it go.

His jaw tightened with
a grin. “Later, baby, we have a mess to clean up.”

“You’re no fun at
all.”

He made her shiver
with a burning kiss. His eyes seared her with meaning. “I’ll make it up to you.
I won’t stop until
your body trembles with
exhaustion. Everything from your mouth to your sweet sex will be mine to taste
until I want to stop.”

A low groan rolled up
her throat.

“After I see the doc
today, you’re going to help me take the last step.”

Her hands wandered
down
his hard chest, pausing on the bands of muscle
across his stomach and gently brushing against what couldn’t be mistaken for
anything but need for her. Mace’s eyes closed and he took a deep breath. “I can
be pretty persuasive, Mr. Callahan.” She’d had to b
ite
her tongue many times since he’d come home. Every time she’d tried to touch
him, he’d stopped her. She worried he was embarrassed about his condition, but
enforcing the six-inch separation rule wasn’t helping.

“I hope so, Nina.” He
threaded his fingers
through her hair, and drew her
mouth to his. “It’s you or no one.”

“Ahem…”

They didn’t bother
turning around until they finished a lingering kiss. Mace’s brow
rose,
and he kept his arm snugly around her
body as they pivoted to find her father filling the
doorway.

“I’m heading off to
the office. I’ll see you at two, Mace.”

“I’ll be there, sir.”

Her father eyed both
of them and nodded. “Your sister has made breakfast, by the way.”

Nina growled low in
her throat and Mace snorted out a laugh at her response. “
That’s really nice of her.” He pinched off a toothy smile.
“Or not,” he added, winking at her father.

“No, it’s not,” she
spit out. When she looked to the door her dad had already vacated.

Mace swung her around
by the waist, and his fingers dug into her si
des,
tickling the hell out of her. “Maybe I should call Tinman and tell him to get
his ass on a plane.”

“I wouldn’t do that to
Tony, he’s too nice.” She broke free and scooped up a towel. Mace used a foot
to close the door, and with sure steps crossed the
bathroom.
He pushed her against the counter in front of the mirror, his body gently
pinning her against it. His fingers slid beneath her shirt, palming both
breasts from behind, his thumb and forefinger squeezing her nipples. “I don’t
know why you being je
alous
makes
me so hot, but it does.” With firm
circles he teased her
,
 
and
her folds moistened. Squeezing her
nipples, he worked them into hard points.

“Baby, are you wet?”
One hand glided down her belly and inside her jeans. “Oh God, yeah,” he moaned
into
the back of her neck. “Take them off.”

“What happened to
later?” she whispered as his finger strummed her nub with a beautiful rhythm,
teasing it and making her body sing. From the first time they were together he
knew how to touch her.

“Off.”

Her jeans r
umpled like an accordion on the tiles. “Try not to cry out
too loud, sweetheart,” he said, as he positioned her hands on the edge of the
counter,
then
kneeled behind her. His tongue stroked
from her bundle of nerves to her channel. The sink sat on the top
of the counter instead of flush, and she grabbed the edges
to steady herself, wary that her grip was enough to crack the porcelain. With
her legs parted, she felt open and wild. He moaned, and it was such a turn on,
her moisture streamed from her. Mace lap
ped at her
like he needed to quench a deep thirst. A quiver ran through her knees as his
palms rode up the back of her thighs. With no barriers, his fingers slid into
her wet channel, and he stroked her G-spot until she thought she’d pass out
with ecstasy.

“Turn around,” he
ordered. With slow kisses he worked his way to her sensitive folds and covered
them with his mouth, then sucked hard. A flash of brilliant light exploded
inside her as her body tensed and convulsed. He kissed her flesh, and gently
blew a
warm breath across her skin. One last, long
lick made her legs tremble. She slipped to her knees and Mace caught her on the
way down, kissing her mouth, sharing her taste.

“Guess I’m an
impatient man after all.”

She brushed a wave of
hair from her cheek a
nd clambered on his lap. “You
are in so much trouble. After your appointment we’re going out. Mom can
babysit.”

“Going where?” he
asked, giving her an inquisitive look.

“A
special club.”
She had an idea that might just help Mace rejuvenate his stubborn bod
y part.

“Um, yeah, you—you’re
talking about a BDSM club, aren’t you?

“It’s very private.”

“Babe, I’ve never
been, and I’ll try just about anything, but I can tell you right now, it’s not
going to work.”

“Why
not?”
Mace adjusted her on his lap and caressed
her face
with a loving gaze.

“Because
it’s not just sex.
You and I have something that goes beyond that. When
you’re in my arms it’s like being underwater, but I can still breathe.” He
brushed her bottom with a tender hand. “I know some people get off on w
atching kink, but it doesn’t mean anything to me. It gets
me hotter than hell when you’re submissive for me, but it’s because it’s you.
Tying you to a cross is not going to make a difference.”

“How do you know, if
you don’t try?”

“Some things aren’t
transferable, Nina. I promise I’ll talk to the doc about
it, but I already know nothing can make me hotter than having you sit naked on
my lap like you are now. If that doesn’t get a response, we have to look
elsewhere. Watching other people in a club is t
he
same as watching po
rn
and we’ve tried that with nil response.” He pressed a deep kiss on her lips.
“I’m sorry, baby.”

She squished herself
against his hard chest. “Don’t give up, Mace. Please.” His strong, tender
embrace made her heart swell. “We have o
nly begun to
fight,” she said giving him a look from beneath her bangs before she pulled
away and reached for her pants.

“Sooo, ah, how often
did you go to this place, Nina?”

His question came with
an underlining statement. Stuffing a leg in her pants, she faltered.
“Never.”

“Never?”
His gaze followed her movements.

She clasped the button
at her waist and reached for the towel to start mopping up, then stopped and
gave him a ra
ised brow. “Just because I like things a
little different, doesn’t mean I hang out at those clubs.”

“Nina, is what we do
enough? Or should I say what we did?” He grasped her arm, halting her
movements. “I don’t want you to hold back from me.”

She shook her
head. “No, that’s not me.” Maybe she wasn’t enough for
Mace. That was a huge concern. “But I’ll try anything for you.”

“You didn’t answer the
question. Is what we do enough?” The alpha in Mace thrust its head up with
concern.

“You’re enough. I
turned into
a trembling, quaking mess when you kissed
me on the beach, if you want the truth, but when you tied me up the first time
and went all
warrior
on me, I had never felt anything so
earth-shattering in my life. You are definitely enough.”

He nodded, surveying
her, then slid the towel from her hands and threaded his
fingers through hers as he backed her up against the wall, stretching her arms
above her head. The intensity in his eyes made her tremble. “If you want more,
I have more to give.” Slowly, he brushed
his lips
over her mouth? “Truth is—” His gaze pierced her and a flash flood let go
between her thighs. “I love what we do. I love the trust and passion you show
me. Tell me the truth, Nina. Does my mate want more?”

The squeeze in her
core made her squirm
. “Yes,” she said weakly.

Mace grazed his
clenched jaw against her cheek, his lips brushing her lobe. “I want to fuck you
so hard you scream.”

Oh God, not the dirty
talk. He rarely did it and because it was so unlike him it started a lightning
storm betwee
n her thighs. “Yes,” she squeaked when
Mace’s lips kissed a trail under her arm. Bracing her against the wall, he
removed her shirt, and burned her skin with the stubble on his cheek. He
pinched her nipples, and then tongued her peak. With deft fingers, he
made quick work of removing her pants. Mace ran his index
finger from her shoulder across her nipple, circling it once and continuing
down her body. “How hard do you want it, baby?” Mace’s thumb circled her nub of
nerves while he laved her breast with his
mouth.

She sucked in a wanton
breath when his fingers slid inside her, and his thumb strummed her. “Hard,”
she breathed, closing her eyes. Mace unhinged something inside her, and the
door always opened when he touched her. He shuddered when she released h
is zipper. “Please.” She couldn’t finish when his mouth
took absolute possession of hers. His shaft pressed against her hand and she
wrapped her palm around his smooth skin, stroking it, her heart growing as he
allowed her to touch him. It wasn’t firm, but
it was
still thick, even in a relaxed state. Mace could make most men jealous. She
guided his length to her folds, rocking her hips to cover him with moisture.

Mace drew back just
enough to breathe his words on her lips. “Am I being possessive if I
say
yo
u belong to me? That no other
man will touch you like this again. Only my hands, my heart will love you,
every cell of you.”

She squeezed her
thighs closed around him, and rocked. Her breath became choppy as his shaft
rubbed against her sex. “No, no one,”
she stuttered.

Mace’s finger thrashed
her nub. His tongue flicked against her nipple and he bit down with his lips,
sucking hard. She came unraveled, her body shattering and quaking in his arms.
His low voice growled against her ear. “Even if I never cum a
gain, I’ll give you my share, but I’ll never share you,
Nina.”

“Mommy, Mace?” Gabbs
knocked on the door. “Are you still cleaning up? Mom, I need help with my
hair.”

Nina chuckled and
popped her brows. “Get used to it. You’re still going to have to share.”

At the same time he
brushed her cheek, his piercing eyes swallowed her whole. Mace had a smile that
made her all squishy inside, and he knew it. “I have the two prettiest redheads
in the universe in my life. No man could be happier.”