Chapter 2
Kade’s heart jumped into his throat when he saw Shannon walking determinedly in his direction. She wore her hair up to show off her slender neck and the diamond earrings he knew Mal had bought her. God, she was gorgeous. He liked strong women, and that was definitely Shannon. All the feminine strength in that sexy package, he was having a hard time resisting her. Everything in his body, especially one particular body part, told him to go after her. But his brain wouldn’t let him. He couldn’t act on his attraction. Mal was his best friend, and one of the things he’d always believed in was you didn’t f*ck around with your buddy’s sister. Since Kade knew he wasn’t cut out to be involved for the long haul, he had to ignore the lust that was circling his gut right now.
Damn, as she neared, he saw she was coming after him for something. What had he done? With Shannon, you never knew what would happen. The woman ran a tight ship at work, and no one, not even her trained-to-kill Navy Seal brother, got away with jack shit with her.
“Hey, Kade,” she said just as the band started up with a slow country song. Even with the music playing, he could hear her accent. "Do you think you could dance a little two-step with me? I know you have to be one of the only guys here who knows how to do it right.”
The way she said it made him think of sex. Who was he fooling? Everything she said made him think of sex. But now, she was smiling, those green eyes sparkling up at him, and he couldn’t think again.
“What?”
She laughed. The sound of it sunk into his blood and made his pulse do its own two-step. "Dance. You, me. Two-step. You haven’t forgotten how to do it, have you?”
The memory of her teaching him to two-step filtered through his mind. It had felt like purgatory, stuck between heaven and hell. Her body had moved against his, her soft breasts pressed against his chest…he’d almost lost it. The only thing that had saved him was that Mal was on that very same dance floor and probably would have beaten the hell out of him if he had known what Kade was thinking.
“Uh...yeah, I remember.”
She didn’t wait for a yes or no. She just grabbed his hand and dragged him behind her to the dance floor. She stopped then waited for him to step closer. Kade hesitated, trying to get his brain back into the game. Of course, his little brain wanted to do most of the thinking. His cock twitched as he drew her into his arms. They started to dance, and he tried to keep her further away. She slipped closer.
Oh, shit. Just the little brush of her body against his had his cock hardening. He just hoped she didn’t notice.
“I thought you and Mal would be off having a good old time.”
He glanced down at her, wondering about the tone. There was a thread of irritation in it. She was smiling up at him as if there was nothing wrong, but he knew there was something she wasn’t telling him.
“Apparently your brother had a woman picked out already.”
She nodded. "He’s a slut.”
Kade couldn’t help it. He threw back his head and laughed. Shannon had a way of talking about her brothers, especially Mal, that Kade knew was to remind them they were still just her brothers.
“What about you?” she asked.
“I’m not a slut.”
She chuckled. “The jury’s still out on that one.”
“Your brother needs to learn how to be a little more picky.”
Her lips curved up at that comment, and he felt the moisture dry up in his mouth. God, he wanted to kiss that smile off her face—then move down her body, exploring every delicious inch of her. He knew her flesh would be sweet.
“I noticed you’re pretty picky.”
He nodded as he worked her around the dance floor. "I don’t fall for every pretty face that comes along.”
She said nothing. Instead she laid her head on his shoulder. The gesture was so natural it was as if she did it every day. He knew he should tell her not to. His brain said he should do it. But he couldn’t. It was too close to what he wanted, what he yearned for. For five long years he had wanted her, wanted to feel this way with her, her head on his shoulder, her soft, warm body in his arms. He had wanted that for so long, he just couldn’t bring himself to stop her.
It was bad enough he would probably have to take a five-hour cold shower when he got back to the room. Sweat slid down his back, and he had to fight the urge to lean down and brush his lips over her forehead.
He had talked himself into not doing more when she sighed and relaxed even more against him. Her breasts were pressed against his chest, and with every breath he drew in that sultry scent that was so unique to her. His head started to spin. His body started to duel with his mind. His brain was starting to lose when the music ended. The band swung into a fast-paced Hawaiian tune. His body protested when he had to pull back.
“Shannon?”
Even to his own ears, his voice sounded gruff. She raised her head and blinked as if coming out of some kind of daze. Her breathing hitched, and her breasts rose above the neckline of her dress. His gaze slipped down, he could see her hardened nipples through the delicate red fabric. He curled his fingers into his palms and counted backwards from ten. If he didn’t get away from her soon, he would definitely lose control. There would be nothing to stop him from tearing off her clothes and bending her over a banquet table.
The wind shifted, pulling a few strands of her hair loose from the complicated style.
He cleared his throat. "Well, that was...nice.”
F*ck. How lame could he get? She studied him for a second, her expression serious, thoughtful. Then in the next moment, her lips curved.
“You know where my room is, doncha?”
Lust soared. His body reacted at the direct question. Any doubts he had about her interest in him vaporized. She apparently thought there was no reason to hide her attraction to him anymore.
He nodded, unable to form a word.
“Well, then you know where to find me later.”
With that, she walked away, and he couldn’t help watching her hips and that magnificent ass of hers. He could just imagine having her on all fours in front of him as he took her from behind.
Kade drew in a deep breath. He needed to get a drink. He needed to go away, far away. He could not breach the trust his friend put in him. If another man had thoughts about his sister like he had about Shannon, well, he would kill him. Of course, his sister was married with five kids, so there was a really good chance his brother-in-law had those thoughts.
He headed over to the bar. After ordering another beer, he turned and found himself face to face with Kai Aiona, Shannon’s brother-in-law.
“Hey, man. I saw you out there with Shannon.”
“Yeah. I’ve known all the Duprees for a long time.”
He nodded. "Those two women, though, they melt a man’s brain.”
He didn’t know what else to say, so he just nodded and took a shallow sip off his bottle.
Kai laughed. "Don’t worry, bra. I won’t be bugging you about your intentions. The one thing I understand about the Dupree women is that they have their own minds. Just make sure you know what you’re about. I’d hate to have to beat the crap out of you to make Jocelyn happy.”
“I’m a Seal.”
Kai laughed in his face again. "And I’ve been working on the docks since I was a teen.”
They eyed each other, and Kade realized he’d come up against an adversary he might not be able to beat. He wasn’t as muscular as Kade, but there was something to be said about a man who knew how to fight dirty.
“Now, speaking of my bride, I need to hunt her up. We have a big suite to use for the night.”
He left Kade alone to his thoughts. He didn’t have to look for Shannon, he knew where she was. It didn’t matter if he tried to ignore her, he could always sense where she was if she was nearby. He could find her in a crowd of a thousand. He watched as she pulled May and Kai’s father out onto the dance floor and tried to teach him to two-step. It was silly that his heart turned over just at the sight of her. She was smiling as usual, her joy easy to see. Shannon enjoyed life, every little bit of it, to the fullest extent. Out of all of the Duprees, she was the one who could always find a silver lining in any cloud. And now she had pulled away the barriers he’d thought were there. She had made her interest clear.
As he watched her dance, he felt his resistance melt. He might not have the right, but the lady had given him an invitation, and even if it was for just this one night, he would taste a little bit of paradise.
With his job, there were few opportunities for it. Once—just this once—he would take the chance.
· · · · ·
Shannon looked at herself in the mirror and drew in a deep breath. She looked good. No, correct that. She looked damned hot. The dress Cynthia had picked out for her had been fantastic. Red was definitely her color, and the design suited her fuller figure. Best of all, it was a dress she could wear again. And she would. Either to remind her of a great night, or remind her not to have stupid yearnings that would never come true.
She groaned and grabbed a bottle of water. After taking a swig, she hoped that it helped cool off her raging libido. If history served, nothing would help. Not even her battery-operated boyfriend could relieve the fire that man started in her. She closed her eyes and tried to calm her heart. Just thinking about Kade had her body humming with anticipation. She was already driving herself crazy, and she had only been in her room twenty minutes. It took all of her control not to pace the room. It would be stupid to worry herself over the invitation she’d given Kade. Seriously, she didn’t expect him to show. Hoped, but didn’t really think it would happen.
Oh, there was no doubt he wanted her. A man didn’t get that hard by just dancing unless he wanted a woman or had just had a handful of the blue pills. Shannon was pretty damned sure that Francis McKade didn’t need them.
She stepped out onto her balcony and looked out over the water. The scent of salt filled her senses. She loved it in Hawaii. She would never be able to leave New Orleans, but she definitely liked it in Chris’s adopted home. While her hometown was always abuzz with activity, something she loved, she did like the slower pace of the islands. She liked to come here and gaze out over the water and just…breathe.
But even that didn’t work. Being in the same hotel as Kade, she couldn’t think of anything else other than seeing him in her room, preferably naked. She needed something to occupy her time. If she didn’t, she would definitely tear into the bag of chocolate macadamia nuts. Her ass didn’t need that.
She watched the surf as it rolled in, and she could see why her brother and sister had been drawn to Hawaii. This was a soothing place. Oahu could be a jungle, that was for sure, but there was something so...relaxed. She could never live here. It would take an act of war to get her out of New Orleans. She had rebuilt her bar after Katrina, and she wasn’t leaving any time soon. But she needed to find time to return to Hawaii. She had a niece or nephew about to make an appearance, and she was sure Jocelyn and Kai would have children soon.
A little ping hit her heart harder than it ever had before. Thinking of her sister, her confidant, having a baby brought about yearnings she never thought she would have, not now. She thought they would come after marriage, but it was probably because the first Dupree grandchild would be arriving in five months.
Shannon shook herself free of her funk. This wasn’t like her. She had men. Not a constant stream of them, and she did have the problem of her career. Her business took up a fair amount of her time, so it had been a long dry spell between men. But for some reason, she hadn’t felt the need to scratch the itch. Not until she saw her brother coming down the escalator at the airport with Kade.
She closed her eyes and shivered. Damn, the man got to her. And if he didn’t take her up on her offer, she would write him off. His loss. She opened her eyes and glanced at the ABC Drugstore bag. She would throw away the condoms she bought and drink whiskey and eat the chocolate.
There was a knock at the door, pulling her out of thoughts of rebellion by gorging herself. She drew in a deep breath and approached the door. When she looked through the peephole, she sighed. It was an older Asian man. She opened it, and he looked confused.
The door across the hall opened, and a woman who was apparently his wife frowned at him.
“Sorry,” he said with a smile.
“No problem,” Shannon said, trying to fight the disappointment that now swamped her as she watched his wife usher him into their room. She was closing the door when a hand braced against it and stopped her. She looked up and found Kade staring at her.
“I told you I knew where your room was.”
His voice flowed over the words. He had been born in Australia, but his parents had moved to the US when he was younger. That accent still tinged his voice. It sent little tingles of heat racing through her blood.
“You didn’t change your mind, did you?”
He actually looked worried. The fact that he would think any woman in her right mind wouldn’t beg him to come to her room made him even more attractive.
She smiled and stepped back. “Come on in, Kade.”