Rock Hard (Siren Publishing Classic) Read online

  Up close, she discovered his hair wasn’t brown at all. It was midnight black. The red highlights had made it look dark brown in the sun. Black hair and blue eyes were a warning she couldn’t ignore. Men with black hair and blue eyes always bruised her in the end. She knew she couldn’t trust him.

  Chapter Two

  Fear rippled down Wynn’s spine. Storms didn’t kill, she reminded herself. Why couldn’t she remember that when the fear struck her like a punch to the face?

  Wynn couldn’t hide her fear from her eyes. The ranger’s hold gentled, but he didn’t let go. Questions formed within that knowing gaze. He wanted to know what had her spooked. Well, too bad. She wasn’t going to tell him.

  “I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said.

  Big, fat drops of rain started falling through the trees. She shivered from the slump in temperature in the air and the crash of her adrenaline. He came in closer to shield her with his big body from the rain.

  Wynn untied her KEENs from the side of her chalk bag and slipped them on.

  “Are you parked down by Pebble Beach?” he asked.

  She couldn’t look up without getting hit in the face with rain. “Yes.”

  “We’re not going to make it back in time. Follow me. I know a safe place where we can ride this out.”

  Dominant men had a way of turning Wynn off, but she supposed it went with his job. He led the way, and she had no choice but to follow behind. It didn’t take long for the storm to turn violent.

  Runoff from the hillside quickly muddied the path. Wynn slipped and instinctively reached out to grab the first thing nearby. It turned out to be ranger Gentry’s ass. It happened so fast she didn’t have time to think. Gentry’s arms came around to lift her over the runoff. Wynn’s eyes widened as Gentry used his hard chest to maneuver her over.

  Heat spun out between them, taking Wynn off guard. Gentry slowly lowered her to her feet, and she slid down the front of him. The hard edge of his badge pushed open the folds of her pussy and made a direct hit to her clit. Wynn sucked in a hard breath as want spiraled through her core. Those long forgotten feelings made her feel entrapped. Her thighs locked onto his leg, making her suddenly feel wanted.

  “Steady now.”

  It was more statement than question. Could he see that she wanted to run from the heat of his embrace? He held her a few extra seconds longer than he should have, and it immediately had a wall of Antarctic ice forming around her body. Targets were not to be trusted.

  Wynn pulled away and led the way back down to Pebble Beach, but he stopped her with a hand on her arm. Wind kicked through the trees. The storm was getting bad.

  “Whoa...this way.”

  “We can make it to the beach. It’s not that far,” she said.

  “Not the way the runoff is going,” he countered. “Trust me.”

  She stared at him for several beats. She needed him to trust her if she was going to find out if he was involved in the drug running. “Okay.”

  They hit the south side of the trail where the cliffs weren’t as high. There was a cut in the cliff that stair-stepped downward. Kade led the way and instinctively reached back to help her down the wet rock. Wynn lost her footing and slid into Kade. Her hands held tight to his shirt as her body molded to his. He steadied her and moved down the next set of rocks. He turned at the bottom to grab her waist to aide her down over the craggy floor. Wynn’s hands went to his shoulders as she slipped through the rocks.

  There was a wide overhang for them to take shelter under. They ran for it. Wynn ducked under the small alcove and sat onto the sandy floor. There was a campfire ring with a pile of half-burnt wood.

  “Kade Gentry.” He offered his hand, and she accepted his.

  “Wynn.”

  “You’re freezing.”

  Both of his hands smoothed over her hand to warm hers. Their eyes locked, and Wynn pulled away when her heart started to beat a little faster for the wrong reasons. Kade immediately went to work on the fire pit. He pulled off the bark from a twig and made a pile of dried leaves and kindling. He lit it and got the fire going.

  It was then that she saw that he was buttoned down with a radio, too. He pressed the clip on his shoulder. “43-50, 10-12. I’ve taken shelter with a climber to ride out the storm near Arrowhead.”

  “10-4, be advised I have an update from the weather service. Expect wind gusts up to seventy miles per hour. They’re also indicating wind shearing south of Mountain Parkway. It’s headed your way.”

  “10-4. We’ll stay put.”

  The storm was getting wild. She shivered and moved closer to the fire. Kade came around to sit beside her, blocking out the wind blowing the rain under the archway. The trees whipped. They were really well protected under the half cave. The drum of rain had them moving closer to talk.

  “Do you normally climb alone?” he asked.

  “Lately I do.”

  Wynn looked at his calloused hands and knew he was a climber, too. He stoked the fire, getting the flames to go higher.

  “You shouldn’t.”

  “No one to climb with,” she said.

  “You’re local?” he asked.

  “Yeah, I’m off Mountain Parkway, in the Barrens,” she lied.

  He nodded. “I haven’t seen you around before. I tend to know everyone who climbs around here.”

  “I’m new to the area.”

  “That must be it.”

  Wynn stared at the way his muscles flexed with the veins in his forearm. Slowly, she moved her eyes upward over his uniform to his face. He was watching her closely. Wynn didn’t know what to make of the sexual tension spiraling between them or the fact that she couldn’t look at Kade for very long without getting nervous, so she looked away. What was wrong with her? She was on the job.

  She stood up to walk to the edge of the alcove. “My car isn’t far. I can probably make it with the rain easing up.”

  “Not a chance. Sit down.”

  A zip of annoyance flexed over Wynn’s mind. “Do you get off on telling people what to do?”

  “Actually, no. It’s the keeping people safe that kicks it into high gear for me.” The corner of his mouth lifted as he looked at the fire.

  The slow taper of rain wouldn’t last long. Off in the northwest, purple clouds were headed their way. Wynn took a step out into the rain, then another. She glanced back to see if the ranger was taking note of her defiance. He wasn’t. She took one more step. His dark hair spilled over his forehead as he looked up.

  “It is a free country,” she said.

  “Wynn…”

  “It was nice meeting you, Kade!”

  She took off running down the trail. She heard the ranger curse as he gave chase. She ran harder but didn’t get far. She yelped when Kade snatched her around the waist, taking her feet from the ground. Both were breathing hard. Lightning struck nearby, cracking open the sky with another downpour. Wynn jumped within his arms, pressing closer to him. His lips were pressed hot against her ear as though he wanted to savor the moment of connection.

  “Are you going to behave, or do I have to cuff you to my wrist to keep you safe?”

  She swallowed hard. The thought of being tangled with a man like Kade for personal reasons gave her pause. “Let go of me.”

  “So you can break your neck getting to your car two miles away? I don’t think so. We wait until the storm passes.”

  Wynn was settled onto her feet, and she took off again. She made it two steps before Kade spun her around and backed her up until she was pressed against the cliff. She looked away. A flash of something dangerous echoed in the erotic set of his dark-blue eyes. Tension shivered through her belly. His full lips were inches from hers. Kade ran his hand up the side of her neck and used his thumb to tilt her chin.

  “Why are you running?” he asked.

  “I don’t know.”

  “Are you frightened of me?”

  She was. Deep down she knew that there was something dangerous and forbidden
happening between them. There were clear boundaries when working undercover. Right now, she couldn’t even remember what the rules were. This was something she knew she shouldn’t explore. It was searing hot, and in the end she knew she’d get burned. Lightning splintered across the sky. Wynn saw the hair on Kade’s forearm stand on end.

  “I’m not,” she said.

  “Good. We wait this out. Okay?”

  “Do I have a choice?” she asked.

  “Not today. You’re stuck with me.”

  He took her hand, and they rushed back to the alcove. Browynn went to the fire, where she warmed her hands. “I don’t like storms…I’m usually better about checking the forecast.”

  “It happens. I guess we’ll be here for a little while. I’m not so bad to hang with, am I?”

  She could hear the playful tone of his voice. “No. You’re not so bad.”

  Her teeth started to chatter, and she jumped when another crack of lightning struck nearby. Kade put his arm around her to warm her up. “You really are terrified.”

  She nodded, biting her lip. “Yeah.”

  Kade pulled her in closer. “It’s going to be okay. I’ve got you.”

  Thunder clashed with lightning, and she moaned. Rain beat the earth hard. “It sounds like the cliff is coming down on top of us.”

  He chuckled. “It won’t.”

  She whipped her head up. “This is not funny.”

  She went to move away, and Kade kept her body locked down tight next to his. “No running.”

  She groaned. “I can’t stay here. I’ve got to get out of here.”

  “Yes, you can. It’s safer,” he said.

  “You can’t make me.”

  “Yes I can,” he said.

  Wynn felt the shock of his hard-muscled legs pressing into her thighs as she was dragged across his lap. His arms locked around her body, putting his face a whisper away from hers.

  “Your heart is racing,” he said.

  “The storm…I’ve always been terrified of them.”

  “You need a distraction,” he whispered.

  She chuckled, and the low tone made her voice sound smoky. “What kind of distraction?”

  “The physical kind to distract your fear.”

  Thunder rumbled through the gorge, and her heart hammered wildly. She shivered. “I don’t know why I’m so frightened of storms.”

  “Were you ever caught in one as a child?”

  She looked away. She didn’t like feeling so vulnerable in front of someone she’d just met. She was stronger than that. “They were bad where we grew up.”

  “Look at me.”

  She did. He brushed her hair away from her face. He searched her eyes for things she couldn’t begin to confess to him.

  “I feel like I know you, or I’ve met you somewhere in passing,” he said.

  Guilt fluttered through her body, and she looked away. “We’ve never met.”

  “You feel it, too?” he asked.

  Sensations spiraled through her body. She felt wanted, and she liked feeling wanted by him. It was so wrong to feel this for a man she was investigating. She took a long blink, trying to get her conflicting emotions in check.

  “Yes.” Her confession slipped out before she could stop it from happening.

  “Trust what you’re feeling...trust me,” he said. “Close your eyes.”

  The command came from a man who was probably used to giving orders and having them obeyed without question. His hand slid up to the back of her neck, and awareness vibrated through her body. He rubbed his fingers in a sensual circle at the top of her spine.

  “Trust me, Wynn. Close your eyes for me.” Slowly, her lashes fluttered down.

  Under his touch, she swayed closer. His fingers caressed erotically. It’d been so long since she trusted anyone enough to let them get within touching distance. The thought of handing her body over to Kade, even for a few stolen moments, made her feel breathless and out of control. This was so wrong.

  “Forget about the storm.”

  There was so much more than the storm she needed to forget about. His voice was a seductive whisper against her ear that she couldn’t resist. The heat of his breath simmered over her skin. The fabric of her cotton climbing pants had gotten pushed up tight against her pussy. The thin fibers rubbed against her clitoris, sending sensations over her sex. Wynn tightened her fingers into Kade’s shirt.

  “I can’t.”

  “You can.”

  Rain punished the ground and the cliffs for being in the way. “We’re not in the middle of a storm.”

  “Oh? Where are we?” she asked.

  “Outside a shower. You’re waiting for the water to warm up.”

  His lips brushed accidentally against her ear, causing her to turn into his touch. She pressed her cheek to his and then shyly brushed it away. What was she doing getting so close to him? She shouldn’t. It was then that she realized she was more frightened of what was happening between them then of the storm lashing around them.

  Lightning flicked off the sky, and thunder grumbled in the distance. He nipped at her ear with his teeth, sending erotic shivers down through her breasts. Tingles pulled her nipples into tight buds against her wet clothing. Again, his teeth rolled over her earlobe, and his tongue swirled over the scrape.

  They shouldn’t be fooling around. Wynn knew she was walking a dangerous line with a man she didn’t know. How could she do this?

  “The water’s still cold,” he said.

  “What color is the tile?”

  “Blue art deco from the sixties. It’s a small shower. The kind you find in cheap hotel rooms.” She moved her head closer to his, losing herself in his story.

  “Am I getting in by myself?” she asked.

  “Do you want me in there with you?”

  “I don’t know what I want.”

  “It’s just a story,” he whispered. “Please let me come in the shower with you.”

  His right hand moved up her leg and settled on her hip. She felt his fingers flex tight. She tried to move away, but he wouldn’t let her go. She should push him away, but her body wanted and was now in control. “Kade...”

  “I want to kiss you.”

  His tongue swirled over her ear, making her forget how wrong it would be to kiss him. “We shouldn’t.”

  “You need a good tongue lashing.”

  “How do you know what I need?”

  She sensed his smile rather than saw it. “A man knows what a woman needs when it comes to loving.”

  Loving? This was pure, raw animal lust spiraling between them. Before she could even deny him, Kade brushed his mouth over hers to steal a kiss. A gasp of surprise had her mouth opening to him. The slight part of her lips had him taking advantage of the situation. Kade’s tongue flicked over her lips and rolled seductively against hers. His hand moved around her neck to tilt her head, taking their kiss deeper.

  Wynn reached up and ran her fingers through his silky, black hair. His kiss was full of hard-bitten experience that came from a man kissing a lot of women. The thought of Wynn just being another had her pushing her palms on his firm chest, but he wouldn’t move.

  His tongue pushed in and out as though he were sexing her pussy. She moaned. His hand moved up between her legs, brushing the back of his fingers against her sex. Wynn’s reaction was fast and shocking. She let her legs fall open, giving him what he wanted. Kade rubbed her pussy into a frenzy. Wynn felt her sex wet her climbing pants as her hip slid over the edge of his hard cock.

  Wynn’s heart was pounding in her ears as her body climbed higher, reaching for release. It’d been so long since any man wanted to get her off. Most of the men she worked with couldn’t get past the fact that she worked with internal affairs. They just stayed away from her like she was Typhoid Mary.

  His thumb padded up to circle her clit. Her moan of pleasure echoed through the alcove, and Kade groaned in encouragement. He was keeping her balanced on a sharp edge of wanting to orgasm
all over him. He would go fast and back off, changing the tempo so that her body was being strummed hard. His knuckles pushed between her pussy lips, sending the cotton erotically deeper. His pinky knuckle played over the rim of her anal pathway, sending sensations over her sex. Wynn felt totally out of control, and she didn’t care. Kade broke his lips away and pressed his lips to her ear. His heavy breathing brought her closer to falling off the mountainside. Her hips bucked roughly against his big hand.

  “Let go, Wynn. Let go for me. I want to feel you come.”

  His breathing was heavy, matching her own. Her orgasm started in her toes and raced up to hit her hard in her pussy. Spasms rocked through her body. Kade groaned his approval. He whispered sexy words she didn’t understand in a language she couldn’t place. It sounded almost like Dutch.

  “Central to 43-50.” The crackle of his radio in her ear had her orgasm vanishing away.

  Their eyes locked. “Don’t run from me.”

  Kade reached for the radio on his shoulder. “43-50, go ahead.”

  “43-50, be advised we’ve got reports of downed power lines off exit 33 Williamson rest area. State Highway is on the scene.”

  “10-4, copy that. We’re still taking shelter up at Arrowhead.”

  The worst of the storm was pushing off to the east. Wynn eased off Kade’s lap and found a stick to poke at the dying embers of the fire. She couldn’t meet Kade’s gaze as he went to stand at the edge of the alcove. She closed her eyes at the memory of his thick cock pressed against her thigh.

  He lifted his hands at the mouth of the alcove and pressed the heels of his palms against the stone. Wynn took the opportunity to look at him from behind. He was all thick muscle. She’d been wrong about how lean he was. Kade’s thighs were thick, cords of muscle that led to an athletic backside. She was staring at his ass when he turned around.

  “I don’t usually kiss women I’ve just met when I’m on duty,” he said.

  She felt like saying the same, considering she was on duty, too. Wynn wasn’t a woman that spoke of her feelings so openly. Often times, she didn’t know how to express how deeply she felt to those around her, so she usually didn’t. She lifted a shoulder and let it drop as she kicked sand over the fire to put out the embers. Both knew this wasn’t ever going to happen again, and she was okay with that. Kade stamped the dirt into the embers.