Her body ached for him. For the contact that never came.

“I broke the rules to find you,” he said in a low voice. “I wanted to see you that much. But make no mistake, Jessica Montgomery. This isn’t the only time I’ve broken the rules nor will it be the last. I’m no angel.”

At that moment, all she wanted to do was kiss him. To taste that spicy maleness so unique to him. But she sensed the importance of his words. He was looking for something from her. Perhaps she held back because she wanted something from him too.

But what? She didn’t know. Only that a line was drawn in the sand and it somehow, someway, had to be crossed. And she wanted to do it now, not later. To tear down the barriers.

She didn’t even know this man, but what she’d shared with him had felt far more exposing and intimate than anything she’d ever experienced with her ex. Everything inside her wanted to trust him.

“These rules you break,” she asked, forcing herself to be cautious, to act as she normally would. “Are they for the right reasons?”

One second. Two. “Is there a right reason to break the rules?” he asked.

There had been a time when she would have said no. Not anymore. Right and wrong weren’t always black and white. She’d learned that after years of seeing criminals walk free on technical issues.

Besides, how could she convict Dominic for finding her when being found felt so…exciting? “Breaking the rules brought you here,” Jessica said, not willing to say more, implying her meaning rather than speaking it out loud.

He didn’t so much as move a hair, but the air crackled with the impact of her words. With his reaction. “Which means what?”

“I’m not sure,” she said, and that was as truthful as it got. She was as scared as she was pleased to see him. “I’m…surprised.”

“I needed to know,” he said in a low voice.

“Know?” she asked, her stomach fluttering with nerves, anxious for his response.

“If what I felt back in that room was real.”

He barely finished speaking the words when he reached out and brushed her cheek with his fingertips, and she felt it clear to her toes. Every inch of her body went warm and then turned hot. His palm settled on her face, and she found herself leaning into the touch, her lashes fluttering.

The way this man impacted her was as amazing as it was frightening. It also excited and aroused. And most of all, it left her wanting more.

“Mi Hermosa,” he whispered.

She forced her eyes open, looking at him with what she knew had to be lust. “And what did you find out?” she asked. “Was it real?”

“I know how to be sure,” he said.

His thumb brushed her bottom lip, and though Jessica knew her sister could walk outside any minute, she couldn’t stop her reaction as she pressed her hand to that rock hard chest. Her panties were wet. Her body burning.

“How?” she whispered.

He looked down at her hand and then covered it with his own. After several seconds, he fixed her with a tormented look, and then, abruptly, stepped away from her, far enough to break contact, but close enough to speak for only her ears.

“I’ll be in room 112 tomorrow at noon,” he said. “If you show up we’ll find out.” With the words, he turned and started for the door.

Jessica wanted to call him back, but she didn’t dare bring attention from her sister. Instead, she stood there, staring after Dominic, her body scorching hot from his touch. His presence. His promise of more than one night.

The soft breeze the only thing offering any relief from the loss of the man who set her on fire like no other.

Nine

In front of 112 sat a motorcycle.

Jessica smiled, knowing it belonged to Dominic. Sleek and silver, it screamed of sex and power. It fit her image of her sexy Zorro lover like a glove. Just as her body had fit to his as if made for his.

Slowly, her eyes went to the cracked door leading to the room she’d shared with Dominic so recently. Her stomach fluttered with nerves. She’d called her contacts in Austin, and had Dominic check out. She assumed he’d expected as much. Only a fool would show up here, today, without such actions.

Dominic’s parents were dead, his grandmother raising him from his teens to college years, before she too passed away. He had no siblings. He’d spent most of his adult life undercover.

Dominic was alone.

And deep inside, she knew he didn’t want to be anymore. She had seen it in his eyes, and felt it in his touch.

As she walked toward the door, her boots scraping on the gravel, Jessica smiled. Dominic was nothing like her conservative attorney ex-husband.

And she loved it.

The idea of playing a little, and enjoying both Dominic, and life, felt exciting. And so did the continuation of her sexual exploration. She wanted to start there. She wanted to release her inhibitions and charge toward the future.

She eased open the door and found Dominic standing in the center of the room. Jessica stepped into the room and pushed the door shut. She leaned against the wooden surface.

Her eyes locked with Dominic’s, and they stared at each other, the air sizzling with implication. With heat and desire.

Her gaze traveled his body. He wore faded jeans and a tight white t-shirt. Boots. Hair down around his shoulders. She pushed off the door and walked toward him, seeing the surprise register in his eyes at her forward action. She forced down the nerves that threatened to destroy her plan.

Stopping only inches from where he stood, she pressed her hand on Dominic’s chest, feeling his muscle flex beneath her palm. Fighting the urge to explore his body. The time would come…just not yet.

Jessica started walking again, urging him backward until he hit the wall. He reached up to touch her and she waved off his hand. “Hands at your sides and against the wall.” He hesitated. “Do it or I leave.”

His brown eyes turned almost black. Potent. Hot. She could see the burn of desire in them. Feel the way her aggressiveness turned him on. She could even smell his arousal.

And she liked it. Really, really liked it.

Giving him a sultry look, she threw out her challenge. “You asked me what I wanted last night. In fact, you demanded I tell you.”

“And then I made your wants and needs reality,” he said, his voice husky with desire. “Did I not?”

She ignored his attempt at seduction. She’d come this far, Jessica wasn’t about to hand over control now. “I want to know what you want, Dominic,” she said.

“You,” he said. “I want you.”

She slid her hand down his body and palmed his cock, now hard and more than ready to be inside her. “I know that much.” Her fingers traced the tip of his erection. “You don’t really think I’m going to let you get off that easy, do you?”

A slow smile slid onto his lips. “I was hoping you wouldn’t.”

“What do you want, Dominic?”

“Everything you’ll let me have, mi Hermosa,” he responded. “All of you.”

Lost in the game, the lust, the desire to simply feel his body against hers, she still didn’t miss the implications of his words. “And what do I get in return?”

“Anything you wish,” he whispered.

“Anything?” she asked, a coy smile slipping onto her mouth.

“Your wish is my command.”

Jessica stepped away and took a seat on the bed. “Start by getting naked.” She paused. “Slowly.”

As Dominic reached for his shirt, prepared to do her bidding, Jessica inhaled, feeling the power. Loving the inner vixen come to life. She couldn’t wait to see where it would take her.

Nor could she wait to see just how far Dominic was willing to go. Today and in the future. But whatever the outcome, she was going to enjoy the ride.


***

Prior to realizing her dream of becoming a writer, LISA RENEE JONES owned and operated a multi-state staffing agency, with sales as high as sixteen million dollars a year. She was recognized by many publications, including the prestigious Entrepreneur Magazine. In 2003, she sold her business to focus full time on her writing.