The Heart's Game (The Kelly Brothers, Book 4) Read online

  Confidence.

  And it gave her the gumption to say, “Just hurry up and get inside me already.”

  “Gladly.” He finished with her bra, and then followed by removing her panties before yanking off his boxers and unwrapping one of the condoms she’d brought. He settled his weight over her, the tip of his cock at the entrance of her sex. “Do you want it fast or slow?”

  “I don’t care. I just want you.” She raised her hips and dug her fingers into his shoulders, fighting the urge to flip him onto his back and take control.

  He chuckled and slowly slid into her.

  Jenny drew in a sharp breath. He was long and thick, so much bigger than her previous lovers, and she was grateful he gave her enough time to accommodate him rather than slamming into her all at once.

  “Let me know when you’re ready for me to continue,” he murmured, his expression tight with control.

  The stretching burn faded, and she nodded her head.

  A flicker of worry crossed his face. “First time?”

  A full-bodied flush rose from her toes into her face. She shook her head. “No, I’m just not used to men as big as you.”

  He gave her a cheeky grin. “I’ll still be gentle with you.”

  “Don’t.” She wrapped her legs around his waist and urged him to go deeper. “I want you to fuck me senseless.”

  “As you wish.” He pulled back and slid into her again, increasing the tempo until he found a rhythm they both enjoyed.

  Jenny followed his movements, her body rising to meet his in an instinctual dance known only to lovers. She ran her hands over the corded muscles of his back as they flexed and twisted with each thrust. She indulged in long, leisurely kisses that tasted faintly of whiskey and desire. She gasped every time his cock hit the sensitive spot inside her that sent an electric sizzle through her blood.

  And she never felt more alive.

  If this was her punishment for unleashing her inner bad girl, she’d gladly accept it.

  Dan’s strokes became faster, more erratic. It was a startling contrast with the ever-increasing tension coiling inside her. Her muscles stiffened. Her breaths grew sharp and shallow. Her pulse pounded in her ears. And then everything collapsed in a rush that hit her harder than a dozen shots of a hundred and fifty proof liquor.

  For years, she’d heard of the elusive female orgasm, but she’d never experienced one without the aid of a vibrator until now. Explosive was the only word she could use to describe it. Pleasure shot through her body with the force of jumping into warp five speed, followed by waves of smaller aftershocks. Her vision turned white. Her hearing dulled, but her other senses grew sharper. She could actually smell the seductive tang of arousal in the air and taste it when Dan gave her one final kiss before plunging into her and crying out her name. His cock throbbed inside her as he came, prolonging her own release until she was left in a dreamlike state of bliss.

  She had no idea how much time passed, but when she came around, Dan’s head was resting on her chest, his breaths still ragged. Her legs were tangled with his, and when she pressed her lips to his forehead, she tasted the salt of his sweat. A hum of satisfaction rose from her throat, and Dan lifted his head.

  “Enjoy that?”

  “Um-hm.” She raked her fingers through his hair and bit her bottom lip. “Hopefully, I can stick around for seconds.”

  His eyes crinkled from his smile. “I’d like that.”

  “Good, because what happens at Comic-Con, stays at Comic-Con, and I intend to enjoy every second of it.”

  “Then I’ll do my best to ensure that you do.” His grin widened, and he leaned forward to kiss her once again.

  ***

  The warm body beside him shifted, then vanished. Dan cracked open one eye to spy a slender figure moving in the dim light of dawn. “Leaving already?”

  “I have an early flight.” Jenny bent down to retrieve her bra from where he’d tossed it last night.

  “Where?” He blurted out the question before he could stop himself. He knew better than to get involved with a woman like her. A pretty face with a hot body and nothing between her ears was never a threat, but a fellow gamer would play him better than a level forty rogue. Cait had taught him that much.

  And yet last night was the first time in years where he’d enjoyed a woman’s company as much out of the sack as in it. None of the string of flings he’d had through med school and residency compared to Jenny.

  She stilled, her face drawing as tight as her shoulders as she crossed her arms across her chest. “Listen, Dan, I had a great time last night, but let’s just leave it at one night.”

  A fist of doubt punched his gut. “Shit, you’re not married or something, are you?”

  “No, no, no.” She shook her head and seemed to shiver at the end. “I’m not involved with anyone. And to be honest, I’m not in a place where I could be.”

  “Why?”

  She turned to the side and rubbed her upper arms. “It’s complicated.”

  “Are you some secret spy like James Bond or Sydney Bristow?”

  That got a laugh from her, and she sank onto the edge of the mattress. “I only wish my life were that interesting.”

  “Then why the secrecy?” When she didn’t answer, he pulled her back into his arms. He buried his face against the hollow of her neck, breathing in her exotic scent that reminded him of a Japanese tea garden. “Are you trying to tell me I suck in bed?”

  “If you’d sucked, I wouldn’t have gone back for seconds. Or thirds.”

  He pressed his lips to her neck, leaving a trail of kisses down it until he came to her suprasternal notch. Just talking about last night had him hard and aching for more. “Then how about fourths?”

  “We went through all the condoms.” But her body arched underneath him, undermining her words. She wanted him as much as he wanted her.

  And her response to his touch almost made him forget about her warning. He needed to have her one more time before she disappeared completely. “Not all of them.”

  Her breath caught, but he couldn’t tell if it was from his reply or that he’d just nipped her shoulder. “You were holding out on me?”

  “I have an emergency condom in my wallet. Want me to fetch it?”

  She licked her lips and nodded, desire darkening her already deep brown eyes.

  He crawled out of bed and fumbled around in the dark until he found his pants. The condom in the back of his wallet had been there for months, but the wrapper still looked intact. He opened it up and slipped it on. “Thank God for backups.”

  She grabbed him and kissed him with a ferocity that stunned him. The next thing he knew, he was flat on his back, and she was straddling his lap. “Then one more time.”

  “Gladly.” He guided her hips so she was just about sitting on his dick and then lowered her onto him.

  His breath entered with a hiss. The ultra-thin condom made it feel like he had nothing on at all, but a brief moment, he wished he could risk going without one. Then he could completely revel in her silky heat, savor the friction of every stroke, enjoy a woman in the most natural way possible.

  And Jenny was a woman meant to be enjoyed. She pressed her palms against his chest as leverage while she rode him. Her head tilted back, giving him an uninhibited view of her breasts. They tempted him, called to him, and he sat up to take one in his mouth. A moan rose from her chest, and her slick walls tightened around him.

  Dear God, he almost came right there. It was bad enough that he needed to remind himself she’d leave as soon as he did. These precious moments were a form of sweet torture, just enough to have a taste of paradise only to know it would be gone before he knew it.

  “Dan.” His name came out as a whimper accompanied by frantic rolls of her hips. She was so close to coming.

  He reached between them and pressed his thumb against her clit, using the same rhythm she’d set as she ground against him. She gasped and clamped her hands around his cheeks, pulling
him to her mouth for one more hungry kiss.

  The burning at the base of his dick signaled the point of no return. He couldn’t wait to come inside her, but not until she came first. He pushed hard, faster, deeper until she clenched around him and cried out with her release.

  Fire rushed through his veins, followed a moment of panic. Everything felt too hot, too tight, too wet, as though the condom had vaporized. Jenny slumped against him, lost in her orgasm with his just a split second away. He cupped his hands around her ass and lifted her up as the first wave of cum shot out from the tip of the broken condom.

  He’d gotten out in time, but just barely.

  The panic faded, leaving behind the languid bliss that turned his muscles into Play-Doh. He fell back onto the pillows with her still in his arms. Her silky black hair fanned out across his jaw while her body trembled against him in a way that mirrored the quivering inside him. Yes, it had been risky to use the old condom with her, but in this moment, it was so worth it.

  A few minutes passed before she lifted her head. “Now I really need to get going.”

  “I know.” He cradled her face in his hands. “Are you sure you don’t want to give me your number? We could maybe arrange for a little weekend getaway—no strings attached.”

  Her brows drew together, and her bottom lip jutted out ever so slightly. “No, I can’t.” She sat up and closed her eyes. “I’m sorry.”

  Her rejection stung harder than he thought it would, but he managed to nod and push his hurt into the pit of his stomach. Now came the awkward part of the conversation. “You wouldn’t happen to be on the pill, would you?”

  “What do you mean?”

  He peeled off the ripped condom and held it up. “It seems we had a defective piece of equipment. I managed to pull out in time, but just as a precaution, I’d recommend picking up some Plan B as soon as possible. I got tested just last month, and I’m clean, but still…” And even though she didn’t appear to be risky, he’d be getting tested again in a few weeks. One of the perks of being in the medical field—mandatory HIV and hepatitis testing.

  She paled and nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind. Do you mind if I use your bathroom before I go?”

  His confidence took a blow. He’d fucked up, and his chances of making it right seemed almost as impossible as completing the Kessel run in twelve parsecs. “Help yourself.”

  Jenny gathered her things and dashed into the bathroom before he could stop her again.

  Dan remained in bed, staring at the frame of light created by the closed door and wondering where things had gone wrong. He hadn’t come to Comic-Con looking to score. Hell, he hadn’t even considered taking Jenny back to his room when he’d first spotted her at the bar last night. And now she had him wanting to break all his rules and wishing he could have more than just one night of hot sex.

  It was a dilemma that could only be resolved by one thing—a roll of his lucky die.

  He found his pants and pulled out the twenty-sided piece of plastic. If he rolled high, he’d push one more time for her number or e-mail. If he rolled low, he’d let her go. He closed his eyes, asked his question, and tossed it onto the nightstand.

  Ten.

  Dan frowned. He wanted a clear indication one way or another, not a neutral response. He picked up the die and rolled it again.

  Ten.

  Fucking piece of plastic.

  The bathroom door opened, and Jenny emerged, fully clothed. “Thanks again, Dan, for everything.”

  An uncomfortable ache formed in his chest, and he glanced at the lucky die one more time in vain hope it had changed to a twenty when he wasn’t looking. “You, too, Jenny. And who knows—maybe we’ll see each other at Comic-Con next year.”

  A weak smile formed on her lips. “Maybe so. But remember—what happens at Comic-Con, stays at Comic-Con.”

  A lump formed in his throat. His mind was screaming at him for letting her go like this, but he had to respect her wishes. He swallowed hard to shove the lump into his stomach. “Exactly.”

  She took a step toward him like she was about to change her mind, but then spun around and ran for the door like she was being pursued by a pack of direwolves.

  The bang of it closing behind her echoed longer in his mind than it did in reality. He picked up the die and asked, “Did I do the right thing letting her go? High yes, and low no.”

  He let it go and checked the answer.

  Twenty.

  Shit.

  He flopped back on the pillows and stared at the ceiling. His lucky die had never been wrong before. He just had to trust it and hope he hadn’t made a huge mistake by not chasing after Jenny.

  Chapter Two

  “Wake up, sleepyhead,” a deep, masculine voice cajoled.

  Jenny opened her eyes and glared at the handsome black man leaning over her bed in the early morning light. “What are you doing here, Mike?”

  He held up a rectangular box containing a pregnancy test and shook it like a child trying to guess the contents of his Christmas present. “It’s been over two weeks. Time to see if we’re having a baby.”

  Her pulse jumped, and she reached for a pillow to cover her face before he caught a glimpse of her panic. She already knew she was three days late, but she wasn’t quite ready to confirm that she was pregnant. “I don’t get out of bed before noon on Sundays.”

  “Well, tough, because your brother and I have an appointment with the interior decorator at ten for the nursery.” Mike tugged on her arm until she sat up and then he shoved the test into her hand. “Now get in the bathroom and pee on the stick.”

  Jenny crawled out of bed and lifted her chin to make herself appear a few inches taller than five foot one, but Mike still had a good foot of height and then some over her. Her brother’s husband was built like an NBA player, but the intelligence gleaming in his eyes reminded her the man was as dangerous in the courtroom as he was on the basketball court. “Fine, but afterward, will you let me go back to sleep?”

  “Of course.”

  She didn’t bother tugging her T-shirt down to hide her Wonder Woman panties as she went to the bathroom. Mike had absolutely no interest in her as a woman unless it came to her uterus. After quickly reading the instructions, she took the test, set the timer on her phone, and waited for the results.

  Sweat covered her palms, and her stomach jumped like she had a village of Ewoks dancing inside it. For only the second time since she’d agreed to be a surrogate for her brother and Mike, she questioned her sanity. The first time was when she forced herself to leave Dan’s hotel room last weekend at Comic-Con.

  The timer beeped, and she glanced down at the digital reading on the test.

  Pregnant.

  Her knees buckled, and she almost hurled on the spot. She sank to the floor and pulled her legs up to her chest, but that barely dulled the shaking that consumed her body.

  Pregnant.

  Shit.

  A knock at the door kept her from falling into a full-blown panic attack. Her older brother, Jason, poked his head into the bathroom. “Jenny, are you okay?”

  She blinked back the tears forming in her eyes. “Yeah, just a little shocked.”

  Jason opened the door all the way and approached the test beside the sink. “It’s positive?”

  She hugged her knees tighter and nodded.

  “It’s positive,” he shouted behind him.

  A whoop of joy came from the bedroom, and Mike ran into the bathroom. “We’re having a baby?”

  “Yes, we’re having a baby.” Jason grinned like a new father and hugged his husband.

  Jenny stayed where she was, wishing she shared their excitement. Instead, all she could think about was the life growing inside her and how she was responsible for it. What if she did something wrong and caused a birth defect or a miscarriage? What would she say at work when she could no longer keep her pregnancy a secret? And when the time came to give them their baby, would she be able to let it go?

  Jason k
nelt beside her and threw his arms around her shoulders. “What’s wrong, sis?”

  “It’s just not real to me yet.”

  “Aw, Jenny.” He pulled her into a hug and soothed some of her worry. “Don’t worry about a thing. We’ll be right here for you.”

  Mike mirrored his husband on the other side, sandwiching her in a matching embrace. “What Jason said. You’re giving us the one thing we can’t have, and you have no idea how happy you’ve made us.”

  A choked sob broke free. “But what if I do something wrong?”

  “Why on earth would you think that?” Jason stroked her hair and let her cry on his shoulder. “You’re the smartest, most responsible woman I know. Why do you think we asked you to be our surrogate?”

  She lifted her head and sniffed. “I don’t know. Maybe because we share the same DNA.”

  “That’s an added bonus.” Her brother grinned and pinched her nose. “But seriously, there’s no one we trust more to have our baby, and we are so grateful that you agreed to do this for us.”

  “So grateful that if you need anything these next nine months, all you have to do is ask,” Mike added.

  “Even pickles and ice cream at three in the morning on a Tuesday?”

  They both laughed, and Mike nodded, giving her one more bear hug. “Yes, even pickles and ice cream at three in the morning.”

  An alarm interrupted their conversation. Jason pulled his phone out of his pocket. “Speaking of time, it’s nine-thirty. We need to get going if we want to make our appointment in Belltown.”

  “I can’t wait to start picking out things for the nursery.” Mike placed a kiss on her cheek before standing. “I can’t thank you enough for this, Jenny.”

  “That goes for me, too.” Jason kissed her other cheek and squeezed her hand. “We’ll see you at Mom and Dad’s tonight and give them the happy news over dinner.”

  Oh, joy. She could only imagine what her mother would have to say about this. A wave of nausea rolled through her stomach. “See you then,” she managed to say before her brother left the bathroom.

  Mike and Jason left her condo in a flurry of excitement, but after the door closed behind them, she was left alone to digest the news. Her hand flew to her flat stomach. It seemed unreal there was a child inside there.