Morning Light: A Day of Pleasure, Book 1 (3 page)

For a moment she peered around. Setting the bowl down, she stepped to the left and sat on a bench placed a few feet away from the back steps. She sat perfectly still until a black nose appeared at the edge of the porch and sniffed.

She cooed nonsensical sounds as she pushed the bowl forward with a toe, encouraging the Lab to come closer. He sniffed the air again and tentatively climbed the stairs. He was a beautiful dog, with a golden yellow coat and amber eyes. He was too lean and had a few scars along his ears and haunches, but with some care and attention he’d be perfect.

Tenn was so exceptionally soft-hearted that Noah was surprised this was her first stray. She’d always claimed she’d bought the tiny little farm property on the edge of town so she could have a small zoo, plus escape apartment living. The property contained a small, two-story farmhouse on barely over an acre of land. It was enough for her to keep up with, but she still had room to grow.

Since she worked from home as a website designer, she needed a dedicated workspace, and after years of saving had exactly what she wanted in this little farmhouse. During the years he’d been in the military they’d kept up a steady stream of letter writing. He’d kept all of her letters, remembered every secret she had ever divulged, and offered up some of his own secrets to her.

In the years he was gone they’d become closer than he could have ever expected. She had always been Chris’s friend when they had been younger. Until he left for the Army he’d only known her as the slightly annoying little-sister type who spent all of her free time at his house.

Well, she had been a little sister until he’d spied her in a bathing suit at sixteen. Even then she’d had some very serious curves, and the bikini had left little to his imagination. He’d been nineteen and about to leave for the service, but in that exact moment he began seeing her as something more than his little brother’s friend.

Now Tenn was all woman, with even more curves than she’d had at sixteen. She was soft and curvy, with a generous chest. A chest currently on display in a tank top providing little more coverage than that bikini top long ago. It was ridiculous, but he could feel himself rise to the occasion. Willing his body under control, he half wished he’d headed back to his apartment after getting Tenn comfortable in bed.

Being here, in the early morning light, brought to mind what he’d missed out on last night. She had offered, rather drunkenly, to give him a taste of heaven. Instead, he chastely put her to bed fully clothed. She’d unceremoniously stripped out of her black thong and tossed it at his feet with a little huff before targeting the ties to her dress. He’d whipped around and faced the wall while she attempted to dress herself for bed. In the end she’d managed, and he’d spent the night
not
sleeping on her couch. He should have left, had even planned to do so.

Then she begged him to stay. She didn’t want to be alone and had to be up by eight to meet some guy named Bo. Which last night had made him a bit territorial, but now he understood who, or what, Bo was.

He was loath to admit it, but he was a bit territorial—not because of Bo, though. Now he had to figure out if Tenn and Chris had finally decided to break their friends-only rule and delve into a relationship. After last night he wasn’t sure where they stood. Surely if something had developed, Chris would’ve been the guy bringing her home. Instead he’d been more than happy to let Noah take the lead.

The dog finished his meal, lapped up the water left out for him and took a tentative step toward Tenn. He offered a little whine and she held out a closed fist for him to sniff.

“Good boy. You’re such a handsome boy. I’ve named you Bo. What do you think of that, buddy?” She hummed a low sound in the back of her throat and the dog leaned into her touch, starved for love. She rubbed behind his ears and turned her face toward Noah. “I thought I smelled you. Why don’t you come out here and meet my date Bo?”

Surprised, he said, “You can smell me? That’s disgusting.”

She smiled up at him. “I can smell your cologne. You spent the night?”

Noah reached the porch and stood in the doorway, letting Bo adjust to his presence before stepping out. “I brought you home. After you and Chris had your little argument I thought it best.”

Now she frowned. “We had a fight?”

“You don’t remember?”

She blushed a pretty pink before saying, “Not so much. I think most of the night is lost to the Jameson. Lord, did I do something terrible?”

Noah laughed, a loud, robust sound making her smile in return. “Well, after about the fifth time he laid a kiss on you, you hauled off and clipped him in the ear. He said something about your deal and you clipped him again, in the other ear. Does that constitute a fight for you guys?”

“Not really.” She turned away and began stroking Bo again.

He didn’t exactly want to have this conversation but decided he needed to know. “So, are you two an item now?”

She looked at him warily. “Did that loser tell you that? I swear I’m going to kill him.”

A low chuckle escaped him before he could stop it. “No, but he was all over you last night. Got a few people talking.”

“Given that I can’t remember much past nine last night, I’d guess Lexie was around all night?” Noah nodded. “Your dumb brother can’t break it off with her. Or can’t make her understand it’s over—I’m not sure which. Either way, he wanted me to rescue his sorry ass by pretending to be his date.”

Noah offered an arch of his eyebrows in response.

“He bribed me with the Camaro and free drinks. Which I obviously took full advantage of.” Her shy smile lit her face. Sitting on the bench with a mangy dog leaning against her legs, she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. She was rumpled and barely awake, but she glowed with contentment.

With a quick pat to the space beside her, she offered him a seat as Bo vacated the spot at her feet to explore.

Noah took the seat beside her and all but loomed over her smaller frame. He was so large and imposing. And dead sexy. How did a man who had slept on her couch still look so good? It was a crime against nature. She sat beside him, looking like something a cat had dragged in.

He’d obviously slept without his shirt, because his chest was exposed and she couldn’t take her eyes off him. She let her gaze slide down the length of his impressive frame, only to snag on a batch of scars scattered down his right side. The aftermath of an IED that had taken out his transport during his first tour of duty. Even though he’d explained about the attack and his recovery, it was altogether a separate thing to see the scars in person. She wanted to reach out and caress them and heal them with her touch.

Until she noticed his pants were unsnapped and hung low on his narrow hips. A glimpse of his black boxer-briefs drew her gaze even lower. She watched his erection visibly grow under her scrutiny until the tip of his cock pushed against his flat abdomen, escaping the confines of the soft cotton encasing him. It was the most erotic sight she’d ever seen.

He shifted his weight and she could smell his cologne again. It was intrinsically
him
,
a soft woodsy scent with a hint of the man underneath. If she had been wearing any panties they’d be wet right now. She licked her lips, drawing his gaze to her mouth.

Instead, she sat beside him in her ragged—and damp—boxers and a plain tank. Which reminded her she wasn’t wearing a bra. Or panties. She was practically naked, next to the hottest man in her world. She was going to combust shortly.

Shifting her weight, she put a little distance between the two of them. She felt conspicuously naked now and fully aware of how mussed she looked. Of course, now she was flushed again. It couldn’t be helped.

He placed a hand on the back of the bench and closed the limited distance she’d put between them. Glancing up at him she suddenly felt like a small animal being stalked by larger game. The gleam in his ocean-blue eyes was startling as he gently removed the sunglasses perched on her nose.

When he touched a hand to her upper thigh and slowly skimmed his fingers up her limb, she sucked in a deep breath. It was like there was a fire burning under his touch, spreading through her system like an inferno, raging out of control.

He was going to kiss her and she hadn’t even bothered to brush her teeth yet. She probably reeked of alcohol and that dead, furry thing in her mouth. If it had been possible she would have blushed deeper, but she was already going up in flames.

He brought his mouth dangerously close to her lips. For a heartbeat she almost let him close the final distance. With a jerk, she covered her mouth and mumbled, “I need to brush my teeth.”

Noah laughed and her mortification was complete. Instead of pulling away as she expected, he leaned closer and nuzzled the sweet spot behind her ear. He placed a warm, deliberate open-mouthed kiss to the spot and bit her lobe with a gentle, teasing laugh.

Without thought, Tenn leaned into his frame and let her hands roam across the wide expanse of his broad chest. His hand skimmed from her thigh to her hip and his grip tightened there, holding her in place as he trailed kisses down her neck to the strap of her tank top. He brushed it aside with his mouth as his free hand softly caressed her breast through the thin cotton.

She was going to come from his feather light touch to her nipple. Her entire body flamed as he relentlessly caressed all her curves. Palming the weight of her breast in his massive hand, every part of her pulled taut.

She was so consumed by burning desire, she barely noticed as he easily lifted her full weight to his lap, placing her core-to-core with him. His erection nudged her cleft and she couldn’t stop from rocking against the length of him, letting her eager body find the spot where his hardness met her softness.

With a groan, Tenn’s body rocked into him. Her new position in his lap put her breasts exactly where he needed them. He pulled them free, enabling him to finally feast on the delicate skin. Holding them in place with both hands, he ran his tongue across her nipples and a shudder rippled through her. On the second pass with his tongue across her rose-colored peaks, her entire body shook as she began a long, slow grind against his cock.

He slipped two fingers into her loose boxers. Noah found her wet and bare. His fingers glided over her perfectly waxed skin.

It was the sexiest discovery, to have her smooth and bare under his fingers. He wanted to lay her before him and lap at the delicate folds. The mere thought of feeling her roll into an orgasm as his tongue delved into her caused his every muscle to tighten and strain. He was near his breaking point.

Intending to caress her clit, he found his fingers slipping into her instead. Tenn gasped and rocked into his hand, forcing him deeper and deeper with every move she made.

“Come for me, baby. I want to feel you.” His words came out in a low, possessive growl. In an instant she was coming, her inner walls contracting around his fingers with a greedy grip.

“Oh.” With a soft sigh, she collapsed in his arms as he pulled from her body and tightened his grip on her hips. Kissing her neck and shoulders he gentled her as he willed his own body under control. She breathed one last sigh and he tugged her tank back into place, hiding her breasts from his view.

It was on the tip of his tongue to say her name and tell her how perfect she was to him when the telltale creak of someone joining them on the porch met his ears.

“Tenn?” Chris looked pissed.

Chapter Four

Tenn’s body snapped rigid as Chris spoke from behind her. She was wrapped around his brother like a crazy woman, completely hung over, and had experienced the most delicious orgasm of her life.

Peeling herself off Noah was a feat in and of itself, since her entire body was lax and unresponsive. He offered her a steadying hand as she got to her feet and wobbled for a second before finding her balance. He stood with her, laying a protective hand at her waist. Chris zeroed in on the movement and his face went stony.

Unsure of what to say, Tenn moved forward, stepping away from the protective shelter of Noah’s body. Chris looked angry, but hurt as well. Reaching out to him, she gripped his hand and started to speak. “Chris, I—”

He cut her off with a curt nod and stepped closer to her. Reversing their grips, he now held her by the wrist. With an angry whisper, he leaned into her face. “What are you doing? You’re not exactly Noah’s type of woman.” He raked his eyes down her disheveled appearance and when his gaze reached hers again, it was flat and full of hate. His grip tightened at her wrist as she tried to jerk free. “Was this your whole plan last night? Get trashed, throw yourself at my brother, and finally get laid?”

Tenn finally jerked her hand free, but not before the hateful words penetrated her heart. Tears sprang to her eyes, but she refused to cry in front of him. Instead, she looked him in the eye and said, “You are such an ass.” Turning to look at Noah, she included him. “You both need to leave.”

Chris hadn’t come right out and said it, but after nearly twenty years of friendship she knew him better than anyone, and it had all been there in the way he’d looked at her. Her best friend had looked her up and down and found her lacking.

It hurt more than she could have ever expected. Only Chris would know what would wound her the most. He had used her insecurities against her. It was the ultimate betrayal of their friendship, and he had used them to offer a killing blow.