Free Aegis 01 - First Exposure by Elisabeth Naughton

beck-and-call girl.”
    Something dark flashed in Avery’s eyes, but Cade couldn’t read her thoughts. “I didn’t realize we were here solely for your fun.”
    Red flags went up. She was speaking loudly enough for people to hear them. He worked up a smile and reached for her hand. “Sweetheart, we’re here for all kinds of fun.”
    Her jaw clenched, and she jerked her hand from his, then dropped her napkin on the table and pushed to her feet. “Then don’t let me stand in your way. By all means, beck and call all you want.”
    She turned to leave. Voices quieted in the restaurant, and heads swiveled their way. One look and Cade realized they were about to lose their cover.
    He surged to his feet, caught her fingers in his own, and whipped her toward him. One hand snagged her around the waist; the other slid into the silky hair across her scalp. Startled, Avery’s mouth dropped open, but he pulled her close, then lowered his lips to hers before she could protest.
    Soft. Sweet. Perfect. Just like he remembered from the plane. Only this time the kiss was filled with fire and an animosity that went deeper than he expected. This wasn’t acting. Something was bugging her. Something more than just that employee’s harmless flirting.
    He swept his tongue along hers, felt her body stiffen against his and then still. One hand curled into talons in the shirt against his chest; the other fell near his hip. He kissed her deeply, not letting her get away, knew he was walking a fine line but didn’t care. Twelve years ago, he’d been a stupid kid, but after a full day together, she should be able to tell he wasn’t the same person he’d been then. That things had changed. That he had changed. Couldn’t she see she was the only woman here he had eyes for? Where did the anger come from? And why couldn’t she seem to let it go?
    He changed the angle of the kiss, kissed her deeper, slower, and not just for show. Her scent made him lightheaded. The heat radiating from her skin reminded him what it felt like to be wrapped tight in her body. He wanted to reach her on a completely different level. Wanted to know if what she was hiding was truly anger or something deeper. Something more real. Something that would give him a hint as to whether or not there was anything left between them. And he needed to know. Craved it more than air. If there was still a chance for them…
    Glass clinking and silverware clacking brought him back around. Remembering where they were, he loosened his hold, gentled the kiss, started to pull back. But the moment his lips lifted from hers, she groaned, stepped into him, and lifted her mouth to his all over again.
    Yes. Yes, yes, yes… He clasped both sides of her face and dipped inside for another sinfully wicked taste. She answered by moaning and tangling her tongue with his in a kiss that left him breathless.
    Time seemed to stand still. The restaurant went silent. It was as if they were the only two people for miles. Her fingers relaxed their grip on his shirt, spread, and then flexed as if pulling him in. Their tongues licked and twisted—a wild mating of warmth and wetness and desire. His hands slid from her face to her shoulders, then down her sides and around her back. She groaned again and rocked her hips into his. Against her belly, he grew hard and thick, and visions of dragging her back to their room, of ravishing her on that giant bed, filled his mind, overpowering everything else.
    Someone coughed. Whispers and muffled laughter met his ears. The restaurant, the people around him, where they were came back full force. As did why they were here. And what had originally caused him to keep her from running away in the first place.
    Reluctantly, he dragged his lips from hers, wrapped his arms around her, and caught her just as she swayed. Her eyes were shut, her body limp against his, but her fast and erratic pulse told him she was just as turned on as he.
    “Easy,” he whispered in her