Subject: Navy SEAL Gabriel Thorne

Mission: Initiate Operation: Romance...and prove that one night isn’t enough!

Explosives expert and Navy SEAL Gabriel “Romeo” Thorne makes his living tempting fate. Pushing the limits. So far, he’s never lost—especially when it comes to women. That is, until his best friend’s wedding, where Gabriel is suddenly face-to-face—and deliciously body-to-body—with the one woman hot enough to detonate his self-control.

Tessa Monroe is used to being in control with men. Gabriel, on the other hand, is pretty much her sex kryptonite. Hard, gorgeous, dark-eyed kryptonite. Even as her defenses whisper “danger,” lust demands she take her pleasure with him and then run. Now they’re skirting the edge of an explosive attraction...where one wrong move could mean disaster.

“What am I doing? I’m seducing you...”

Gabriel slid his fingers through the long sweep of Tessa’s hair, enjoying the silky thickness. “You’ve finally admitted this attraction we’ve got going on here. It’s time to see how far we can push it. How long we can play it out.”

“Oh, I’ll bet you’re good for at least a few long, hard hours,” she said in a husky tone, her fingers tiptoeing up his chest, leaving hot little trails.

“Oh, yeah, I could keep you panting and wet for hours,” he promised, leaning closer as if to kiss her. At the last second, he shifted so his lips brushed the softest whisper over her cheek. “But we could do better than that.”

Her breath hitched a little, her gaze blurred with pleasure. The fingers of both her hands were kneading his chest, nails digging in gently in a sexy rhythm that promised a superb sense of timing.

Gabe knew his limits, knew how far he could push this desire before he hit the point of no return.

Now to find out hers.

And, in a flash as powerful as his spiking desire, he realized what she was doing.

She wanted to spike this heat, accelerate it so it blew, hot, fast and furious. Then she’d turn on those sexy heels of hers and walk away without a glance.

Gabriel understood her strategy. He even admired it.

But it wasn’t going to happen...

Dear Reader,

Ahh, weddings. Don’t you love them? Since they are often the end result in a romance novel, I’m a big fan. But the wedding preparation? Oh, man, talk about stress! Especially when the bride keeps changing her mind. Which is why in A SEAL’s Pleasure, Tessa’s best friend’s wedding has become her biggest nightmare. For a woman used to speaking her mind and going after what she wants, simply smiling and going along is pushing the bounds of friendship.

Which made it even more fun to give Tessa a delicious distraction like Gabriel, aka Romeo to his SEAL team (a worthy nickname, as many a woman will attest). Not only is Gabriel gorgeous, sexy and fun, he challenges Tessa to learn what romance is. Pretty fitting for a wedding, right?

I hope you enjoy A SEAL’s Pleasure and that you’ll check out the rest of my sexy SEAL series. You can find them on my website, as well as insider peeks into this story and others. Visit tawnyweber.com or find me at facebook.com/tawnyweber.romanceauthor or follow me on Twitter @TawnyWeber.

Happy reading,

Tawny Weber

A SEAL’s Pleasure

Tawny Weber

www.millsandboon.co.uk

A New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of over thirty hot books, TAWNY WEBER has been writing sassy, sexy romances since her first Mills & Boon Blaze book was published in 2007. A fan of Johnny Depp, cupcakes and color coordination, she spends a lot of her time shopping for cute shoes, scrapbooking and hanging out on Facebook.

Readers can check out Tawny’s books at her website, tawnyweber.com, or join her Red Hot Readers Club for goodies such as free reads, complete first-chapter excerpts, recipes, insider story info and much more. Look for her on Facebook at facebook.com/tawnyweber.romanceauthor and follow her on Twitter @TawnyWeber.

To all of the bridesmaids, everywhere!

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

Dear Reader

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

Extract

Copyright

1

CHIEF PETTY OFFICER Gabriel Thorne had yet to find a challenge he couldn’t meet, beat or defeat.

And today’s game was no different.

Ignoring the noise, the intense stares and the heavy expectations, he assessed the field, making note of all of his options even as his mind calculated risks and probabilities. There were three easy shots, ones that would assure him an advance. But Gabriel had no need for easy.

A quick glance at the clock assured him that he did have a need for speed, though.

He leaned over the pool table, slid the cue between his fingers and, in a practiced move, placed a machine-gun shot right in the center of the waiting balls, sending them all flying home to clear the table.

“And that’s how it’s done,” he told his scowling opponent.

Gabriel easily read the fury in the guy’s face, but kept his grin in check while the other man yanked his wallet from his slacks pocket.

“Another round,” insisted Jase Jeglinski—otherwise known as Jackrabbit to the SEAL team.

“Another time.” Gabriel tilted his chin toward the billiard-ball-shaped clock on the wall, ignoring the mutinous set of Jackrabbit’s jaw and the guy’s clenched fists.

Even if he’d let one fly, Gabriel would have reacted with the same easy disregard. Because there was nothing Jackrabbit could dish out that Gabriel couldn’t take.

The easy confidence he’d been born with had been carefully honed to a razor-sharp edge in his years in the military.

“Dude, do you ever lose?” another of the men surrounding them asked in awe.

“Romeo? Never.” Scavenger laughed as he collected his own winnings from the other three men. “I warned you not to bet against him.”

Gabriel shook his head. Leave it to Scavenger—aka Petty Officer Shane O’Brian to anyone not on the SEAL team—to make sure the odds were as even and fair as possible. Sooner or later, he’d learn that it didn’t matter what he did—life just wasn’t gonna turn out fair. But Gabriel figured it was his job to watch his buddy’s back, not to offer up that particular lesson.

“You keep him around to carry your ego?” Jackrabbit asked with a laugh that held no amusement as Scavenger expanded his praise to include Gabriel’s legendary success with the ladies.

“Nah. I keep him around because he can turn a tin can, a pile of sand and a couple of rocks into a tactical communications device that will get our ass out from behind enemy lines,” Gabriel retorted, only half joking since he was sure the communications specialist could do just that.

He ignored Jackrabbit’s skeptical snort because he understood it. A SEAL team wasn’t a team simply because the group of men had been assigned together. They had to work together and prove themselves to establish real trust.

Gabriel, or Romeo as he was more often referred to, Scavenger and their pal Irish, aka Mitch Donovan, had been reassigned from Virginia to the West Coast less than seven months ago and had been otherwise deployed for most of that time. So while they were a part of the team on paper, until they’d deployed on a mission with the rest of the men, he knew they were still proving themselves.

“So that’s the shooting range, the pool table and what was the other one?” Tall and dark haired with a muscular build that leaned toward lanky, Lt. Taylor Powell gave Jackrabbit an amused look. “Beer guzzling, wasn’t it?”

“He can’t win them all.”

“Sure he can,” Scavenger disagreed with a friendly smile. “I’ve never seen him lose a bet.”

“All that means is he only takes sure bets,” Jackrabbit said with a growl, obviously still pissed.

Gabriel didn’t blame him. Losing sucked. Or so he’d heard.

“Ops, bets, women,” Scavenger said in a musing sort of tone. “We’ve served together for six years now and I’m pretty sure he’s won them all.”

To prove his point, he continued regaling the others with a few of Gabriel’s exploits.

Gabriel ignored the stories and the ensuing laughter as he racked up the balls for whoever wanted to play the next round. He didn’t need to defend himself. His record stood solid on its own. Jackrabbit would see that soon enough, since they were heading into training together next week.

He’d learn that Gabriel was used to winning.

Define your path, stand your ground. That was what his grandfather had taught him. That and to never let anyone else’s actions define his own. Simple rules that’d defined his life. Because of them, he’d survived leaving the reservation and living on the streets after his grandfather died. He’d got out of the slums, he’d joined the Navy, he’d become a SEAL. Because of those rules, he’d never met a challenge he couldn’t meet, beat or defeat.

It was what he did.

It was who he was.

Maybe it hadn’t always been that way, but it was now.

And now was all that mattered.

Gabriel glanced at the clock again, noting how fast time was flying by.

“C’mon, boys. We’ve got a party to get to.”

Not that Irish would be docking points for them being late to his little shindig. But Gabriel figured their commander’s bride-to-be might be a little put out if half of her fiancé’s team was late to their engagement celebration. And Gabriel made a point to never disappoint a lady.

As one, the eight men strode out of Olive Oyl’s bar with a wave here and a shout-out there to familiar faces. Outside, the cool air washed over them in welcome as they straddled their motorcycles. Not nearly as comfortable as they’d be in jeans or even in uniform, some of the men tucked their ties into their shirts, a couple of them stowing their suit jackets into their saddlebags.

Gabriel, who hadn’t bothered to put either on yet, simply unhooked his helmet. Before he could pull it on, the deceptively lanky guy on the Indian Chief next to him tilted his head.

“Watch your back,” murmured Mr. Wizard, as the team called Taylor. “Jackrabbit’s got a hard-on to take you down.”

“Ain’t gonna happen.”

“He’s just superstitious,” Scavenger remarked from the other side, his words pitched low enough that nobody beyond the three of them could hear over the roaring engines. “He figures your luck has to run out eventually and he doesn’t want to be on a mission with you when it does.”

Scavenger really believed that? Damn, the guy was gullible. In the act of unlocking his helmet, Gabriel exchanged looks with Taylor, who was rolling his eyes.

“Jackrabbit can keep his hard-ons and his superstitions to himself,” Gabriel stated, pulling his helmet on to put an end to the conversation.

But as he kicked the Harley to life and put it into gear, Jackrabbit angled his bike into the lead, deliberately cutting off Gabriel. Forced to admit that Mr. Wizard had a point, Gabriel bided his time. As soon as they hit the freeway onramp, he throttled hard, letting the bike fly around traffic. He kept it just under one hundred miles per hour, not needing to look at the speedometer to confirm since he knew the bike as well as he knew his own body. All it took was a glance in the rearview mirror to assure him that the team had accepted his challenge.

And the race was on.

Grinning into the wind as it beat against his face, Gabriel took the scenic route—off the freeway, along the beach, through every twist and turn he could find. Might as well make it interesting.

By the time they’d caught up in the parking lot of the fancy renovated manor house, he’d wrapped himself in a tie, pulled on his suit jacket and was adjusting his cuffs.

Gabriel waited until everyone had dismounted and they were all ready to head in to the party before clapping Jackrabbit on the shoulder.

“Why don’t you just accept it, bro? I always win.”

* * *

TESSA MONROE EASILY ignored the appreciative looks and heated stares as she crossed the elegant ballroom surrounded by the glitter of crystal, the sweetness of white roses and the tinkling melody of good cheer.

Her long brunette curls swayed over milky white skin, the rich purple of her silky dress perfectly fitting the posh ambiance of the ballroom.

The setting suited her.

Of course, she looked just as good in the gym wearing skimpy, yet breathable cotton. Or on the beach in a tiny bikini. On the slopes wearing layers, behind her laptop while she interviewed relationship experts for her latest column or on a date with the latest in her string of male conquests.

Simply put, she was a woman used to being admired.

So used to it that she barely noticed. Instead, she admired the huge manor. Lit up like a beacon, the chandeliers glinted as music played softly in the background. The ballroom was so filled with people that Tessa welcomed the cool March night air wafting through the open doors. She could see the torch-lit paths leading from the gardens to the beach beyond, but didn’t think anyone had ventured out yet.

It was a lovely party that suited Olivia Kane perfectly. And Tessa wanted her best friend to be safe and happy. But Livi was making a huge mistake. Tessa knew it; she was terrified of it. Yet she couldn’t do a damned thing about it. Not without putting her friend’s happiness—and more important, her health—at risk.

So Tessa did something so unusual, so out of character, that she had to focus on it with all her being. She ignored her instincts, put aside her personal prejudices and, God forbid it became a habit, for the first time in her life she tried faking it.

With her brightest smile plastered on her face, she pretended she was perfectly thrilled as she made her way to her dearest, oldest friend’s side to celebrate what could be a huge, painful mistake.

Marriage.

Tessa shuddered.

She had to say something. At least get Livi to consider what she was jumping into. Not just marriage. But marriage to a military man. A SEAL.

Her mind simply boggled.

“Livi...” Her voice trailed off as the rest of the words disappeared somewhere in her throat before they reached her tongue.

“Yes?”

Her blond hair twisted into a cascading crown of curls down the shoulder of her lipstick-red dress and her huge brown eyes dancing with happiness, Livi looked better than Tessa had ever seen her. Tucking her arm into Tessa’s, Livi offered a bright smile, hers as genuine as the sweetness shining from her face.

How the two of them were such good friends was baffling, since the only thing sweet about Tessa was her taste in desserts.

“About all of this,” Tessa said, waving her hand to indicate the party. But once more her words trailed off as she looked into Livi’s face.

She glowed, as if she were lit from within with happiness. Joy shone in Livi’s eyes, pleasure curved her lips and her entire being simply radiated delight.

Crap. Tessa sighed. She couldn’t do it.

“Can I get you more cider?” she offered instead, gesturing to Livi’s almost empty glass with her own champagne flute.

“Oh, no. I’m fine. Isn’t it lovely here?” Practically bouncing in her Louboutin shoes, Livi gazed around the beachside manor. “I’d so love to have the wedding here, but there aren’t spots available until November.”

Before Tessa could suggest she hold out, since November was only eight months away—didn’t it take years to plan these sorts of things anyway?—Livi continued.

“But obviously we can’t wait that long,” she said with a soft laugh. Rubbing her hand over her silk-covered, flat belly, she added, “Mitch’s mother would really like it better if we were married before the baby arrives.”

And that settled it.

Tessa offered a passing waiter a smile big enough to make him trip in his rush to bring her another glass of champagne. As soon as she’d exchanged flutes, she knocked back half of the bubbly to hide her grimace.

“Now, that’s a sight made to make women swoon,” Livi murmured with an appreciative sigh. “You know, we work with good-looking, incredibly built men all the time, but these guys give new meaning to the word fit.”

Ready to be distracted, Tessa put her worries aside. Because if there were one thing she made a point of appreciating on a regular basis, it was men. So much so that she’d managed to turn her enjoyment of the male species into a career writing about the games between the sexes.

Sometimes when she was alone late at night she wondered how long she could finesse her talent for flirting into a viable profession. When the clock ran out on that option, what would she do? Emulate her mother, who’d flirted her way through six—and counting—marriages so far?

Tessa shuddered at the thought.

More than ready to be distracted and play, Tessa followed her friend’s gaze in search of a worthy opponent.

And damn near spun on her five-inch Giuseppe Zanotti heels and ran the other way.

Her heart skipped, bouncing in her chest a few times before plunging into her stomach. It had plenty of company there, as it tangled up with a wild jangle of anticipation, nerves and lust. She tried to swallow but her throat was too dry. Her tongue, usually quite nimble, was glued to the roof of her mouth.

She shifted her gaze to the gardens beyond the French doors, pretending she found the sight peaceful. Fingers clenching and unclenching around the stem of her glass, she took a couple of deep breaths and focused on pulling the soothing air down to her belly until she found some semblance of calm.

Then she looked back at the group of men who’d just walked into the mansion.

Her heart raced again. Emotions spun through her, too fast to identify. It didn’t matter. She didn’t care what they were. Only that they spun right back out.

“Why is he...they here?” she asked, hoping Livi hadn’t caught her slip of the tongue.

“The team? You don’t think Mitch would celebrate our engagement without his SEALs, do you?” Livi asked with a laugh. Then, before Tessa realized what her friend was going to do so she could have grabbed her arm to stop her, Livi gave a big ol’ exuberant wave.

As one, the men looked their way.

But Tessa only saw one man.

Taller than the rest, his shoulders broad and tempting beneath a lightweight sport coat the same vivid black as his eyes, he wore a simple dress shirt under his jacket, yet managed to look perfectly elegant.

His gaze locked on her, sending a zing of desire through her body with the same intensity as it had the first time he’d looked her way six months before.

Tessa Monroe, the woman who’d flicked off movie stars, who’d written articles calling out misogynists and who always—always—came out on top when it came to any encounter with the opposite sex, wanted to duck behind her friend and hide.

“That’s so sweet of his friends to come all this way to celebrate your engagement to Mitch,” she said hopefully, watching Livi’s fiancé stride through the crowd to greet the group with back slaps and what looked to be laughing taunts. “Isn’t most of Mitch’s team stationed across the country?”

“They didn’t have to come far. They’re all based in Coronado now. Didn’t I tell you?” Livi asked, her eyes locked on Mitch as if she could eat him up with her gaze alone. “Romeo’s the best man.”

Romeo.

Tessa’s smile dropped away as dread and something else curled low in her belly.

Her gaze cut across the room, honing in on the man she’d secretly dubbed her personal kryptonite after just one meeting. And had judiciously avoided ever since.

Gabriel Thorne. Aka Romeo.

His eyes were still locked on her.

At least a hundred feet separated them, but Tessa could see the heat in that midnight gaze.

It was as if he could look inside her mind and deep into her soul and see everything she’d hidden away. All of her desires, her every need, her secret wants.

A wicked smile angled over his chiseled face, assuring her that he not only saw them all, but that he was also quite sure that he could fulfill every single one. And in ways that would leave her panting, sweaty and begging for more.

There was very little Tessa didn’t know about sex. She appreciated the act, reveled in the results and had long ago mastered the ins and outs of, well, in and out. She knew how to use sex, how to enjoy sex and how to avoid sex.

So if anyone had told her that she’d feel a low, needy promise of an orgasm curling tight in her belly from just a single look across a crowded room, she’d have given their cheek a pitying pat and laughed at them.

And now, she admitted to herself, she’d have had to apologize for her mistake.

“Shall we?” Livi murmured, making as if to hurry across the room.

“I’ll catch up later,” Tessa promised. At Livi’s frown, she added, “I want to check with your mother and make sure everything is on schedule. You know, maid-of-honor stuff.”

“Willingly seek out Pauline, who you know perfectly well has everything under control?” Livi’s frown deepened as she planted her fists on her hips. “What’s going on?”

Over Livi’s shoulder, Tessa could see the men starting to make their way through the crowd toward them. Something clenched tight in her belly and it took her a second to identify it as panic. Desperate to get away but still not willing to upset Livi, her mind raced for an out. Wetting her lips, she shifted her smile from friendly to sultry and leaned toward her friend in a confiding way.

“There’s a very yummy model here I’ve been wanting a taste of ever since I saw how he could hold up a pair of jeans with his stuff alone. He’s over by the buffet,” she murmured. “You play hostess. I’m going to get a nibble before someone else dishes him up.”

“Stuff?” Livi’s laugh pealed with delight, her quick hug filling Tessa with enough guilt that she told herself she’d find a model somewhere tonight to flirt with. “Go, taste, nibble, enjoy. Just remember you have to sit at the head table for dinner.”

The head table. With the bride-and groom-to-be, and most likely their erstwhile best man.

Tessa offered a weak smile.

It was enough to make a girl lose her appetite.

* * *

WELL, WELL.

When a party was thrown by a woman who made her living as a fitness trainer, the guests were bound to be hot and gorgeous, with bodies to match. And Livi’s party proved that Southern California had a vast variety of gorgeous to choose from.

But Gabriel’s body hummed for just one particular woman. Petite perfection, Tessa Monroe was like something out of a dream. A very wet, sweaty, lust-filled dream. With long dark hair that called to a man’s more prurient fantasies and a face made for bad poetry and deep sighs, she was gorgeous even from across the room. Wrapped in a tiny bit of purple silk, her body was fifty shades of amazing, with curves and angles that promised almost more than a mere man could handle. Almost.

Gabriel had no doubts about his ability to handle her. But he was getting impatient. He’d been waiting to get his shot at the sexy little angel for more months than he cared to admit. And tonight was it. His chance to finally start making good on every hot dream he’d had about Miss Tessa Monroe since their first meeting last Halloween.

He’d never figured out why she’d taken an instant dislike to him. He hadn’t gotten further than introductions that night before she’d shot him down. A first, and not one he cared to repeat. Gabriel still didn’t know what’d caused her instant animosity. His cologne? His Native American brave costume? A hideous past life experience where he’d kidnapped her from her wagon-train adventure, carried her off into the woods and introduced her to the carnal delights of the flesh?

Whatever it was, it was standing in the way of all the great sex they should be having. And tonight was the night to see it gone.

Even as he exchanged greetings with Mitch, clapped hands with his friend’s father, Captain Donovan, and shared friendly nods with various brass surrounding them, Gabriel watched Tessa flee. She’d probably claim that she was simply showing her disinterest in his presence. But he’d seen the look in her eyes. That flash of desire so hot it came with a mind-blowing guarantee. The dismay, reluctance and anger that had followed told him she wasn’t quite ready to see that guarantee through, though.

Not yet.

Rocking back on his heels, he assured himself that it wouldn’t take much to push her over.

“Gabriel.”

His smile shifting from predatory to friendly, he opened his arms to Livi, giving her a gentle hug. She was a total sweetheart and it was easy to see why his friend had fallen for her. Gabriel was still having trouble with the concept of Mitch actually marrying—some things just didn’t mix. Oil and water, fire and ice, military and marriage. Hence Gabriel’s relationship rule—keep it light and easy, walk away early, leave them with a smile. He’d never ask a woman to make the sacrifices necessary to be with a military man, and he refused to let any woman be a distraction from his number one focus—his career.

But that was him. Irish was different. So even knowing his friend was probably making a mistake, Gabriel still understood the motivation behind his friend’s decision. Irish was gonna be a dad, so this was the right thing to do. And Irish was nothing if not right.

And lucky, given that his baby momma was a doll like Livi.

“You’re gorgeous,” he told her in greeting.

“I was just going to say the same thing to you,” she said with a soft laugh. “How do you get better looking every time I see you?”

“Clean living and fresh sea air,” he joked, since he’d spent a large part of the past three months on an aircraft carrier. “How about you? Don’t tell me it’s Irish that’s put the glow in your smile.”

“In my smile, in my heart,” Livi murmured with a sheepish grin.

Her gaze cut to Mitch, and Gabriel had to admit, the emotions shining in those eyes were enough to make him wish for a second that he believed in marriage. Because if anyone deserved a happy one, it was the pretty blonde and his best pal.

“Enough with this guy,” Mitch said as he joined them. “He already knows how fabulous you are. Ready to meet the rest of the team so they can know, too?”

Gabriel saw the nerves in Livi’s eyes, felt her take a bracing breath and knew she was battling her instinctive shyness as she was introduced to the large group of men. What must that be like? Gabriel wondered. Not shyness. That was a concept so beyond his comprehension that it wasn’t even worth considering.

But the idea of having a woman put her own fears, her own issues, aside for you... Gabriel was used to women wanting to do a lot of things with his body, and there were just as many who’d be happy to lay claim to his emotions. But he’d never known a single one—his own mother included—who gave a damn enough to put him ahead of anything in their little world.

Once the introductions were through and everyone had offered their wishes, Mitch tilted his head toward the room, indicating the men were on their own. Livi, easily reading him, offered to take the team around and introduce them.

“We’re fine,” Gabriel assured her. “I’m sure we’ll find plenty to entertain ourselves.”

And so they did.

By the time the team meandered through the party, exchanged greetings, snagged beers and commandeered a table in the back, Gabriel had plenty of entertaining options.

What he didn’t have, though, was a clue as to where his quarry had scurried. Because as intriguing as the many offers he’d received were, there was only one woman he was interested in tonight.

The only one who’d ever turned him down.

Tessa Monroe.

His very own angel.

2

SOME WOMEN ATE when they were stressed, and why not? Who didn’t love the comfort of chocolate?

Others managed their stress by shopping. Because, well, one could never have too many pairs of shoes.

She’d used both tactics from time to time with varying degrees of success. But Tessa often said her favorite go-to guaranteed stress reliever was sex. It loosened the body, eased tension and, if done right—and she tended to do it right—emptied the mind of pesky thoughts and troublesome worries.

But despite her reputation as a man-eater, it’d been a while since she’d had sex, stress relieving or otherwise.

Besides, all things considered—all things being that sex itself was integral to the stress dancing through her system—she’d hit her second-favorite release reliever.

The pool table.

Tessa leaned forward, angling from the waist as she peered down the pool cue and lined up her shot. She wasn’t concerned with the minuscule length of her dress. Hey, she could feel the silky fabric against the back of her upper thighs. She knew she wasn’t sharing anything she didn’t want to. She never did.

Besides, the party was still confined to the main rooms of the manor. Guests likely wouldn’t break away into small pockets until after dinner. She’d have regained her usual poise and control long before then.

“Two ball in the corner pocket,” she murmured.

She had overreacted. A silly thing to do, and she was sure it was because she was worried about Livi. Maybe she was a little stressed because things were so crazy at the magazine right now, too. After a year of running around the country with Livi to promote one workout video after another, it was just weird to be home for so long actually working out of the Flirtatious offices instead of emailing her articles in.

She was just having a little trouble readjusting, getting back into the groove of her life.

That was why work was stressing her out.

Why she was getting all wiggy over seeing Thorne again.

That was all it was. Stress causing a little overreaction.

Because Tessa Monroe never, ever worried about a man.

A man. Tessa hissed between her teeth at the idea of a mere man shaking her confidence. It’d been months since she’d seen the guy. They’d only met the one time last Halloween and she’d taken an instant dislike. Not to the man himself, but to the power he seemed to have over her.

All he’d done was introduce himself and shake her hand on Halloween. His touch had sent a zing of desire through her, more potent than anything she’d ever felt in her life. With just that touch, she’d known he could take over her world. That he could bring her the most incredible pleasure, the wildest joy. And the deepest pain.

Something she refused to allow any man.

Yet here she was, hiding from him.

And all he’d done was flash his smile her way.

Ridiculous, she reminded herself as she watched the pretty white cue ball spin across the green felt. It smacked the blue ball with a loud crack, sending it in a fast diagonal slide into the corner pocket.

She’d overreacted earlier, like she had on Halloween. Just because Gabriel Thorne looked as if he could see all the way into her soul and knew her every secret wish and dream didn’t mean he really could. He might think she was going to fall at his feet simply by virtue of his gorgeous face and sexy body, but he was wrong. Tessa Monroe didn’t fall for any man. Especially not one so used to stepping over the bodies of his groupies to welcome the next conquest.

Who cared if he was the sexiest man she’d ever met in her entire life? The promise of incredible sex would never be incentive enough to give any man the kind of power Gabriel demanded with a single look.

“Three in the side,” she muttered through clenched teeth.

Hell, she made her living understanding the influence of sex appeal. The lure of engaging the opposite sex. The delight of flirtatious interplay. She was an expert. Well, sort of an expert.

At least expert enough to know that this...

She took a deep breath, trying to shake off the needy feelings clutched low in her belly as she attempted to put a name on whatever it was she felt.

This thing she was feeling for Thorne was just a chemical reaction. Not a big deal. After all, sexual sparks were as easy to come by as a good Wi-Fi connection. All it took was tapping in to the right signal, a password or a clever hack and voilà. A world of possibilities, right there at a girl’s fingertips.

Tessa straightened, leaning on the pool cue as she inspected the table. The sound of laughter and chatter filtered through her focus, reminding her that the cocktail party was heating up in the rooms beyond. Figuring she had another three, maybe five minutes max before she’d be missed, Tessa bent low again, planted her feet in their five-inch heels and arched the small of her back in order to see the shot she wanted.

“Seven, side.” The words were barely a breath of air as she took aim. As the ball spun toward its target she felt a little more of her tension ease and control reclaim its place in her body.

She’d simply forgotten his appeal over the past five months. Out of sight and all that. Which was proof enough that she had nothing to worry about. If she could so easily dismiss a man’s sex appeal—and, oh, baby, did he ooze sex appeal—then he clearly wasn’t a threat to her peace of mind.

By the time she’d lined up the ten ball, Tessa’s nerves were as rock solid as her aim and her mind calm.

All she had to do was remember that she was in control. She didn’t have to make changes at the magazine if she didn’t want to. And as for Gabriel? Well, there wasn’t a man alive who’d gotten the best of her. So why should this one be any different? Before her mind could begin a litany of warnings of why he was already different, she took aim and sent the cue ball sailing.

Just because he oozed the kind of charm that promised to leave her grateful when he broke her heart didn’t mean she was going to let him. Silly man; he had no idea who he was dealing with. If he did, he’d know what every man had ever said about her since she’d turned fifteen was true—that Tessa Monroe’s body might be hot as hell, but her heart was as cold as ice.

Ice, baby, she reminded herself with a chilly smile.

By the thirteen ball, she was comfortably confident again. Damned if she wouldn’t enjoy putting Gabriel Thorne back in his place, she decided. She knew plenty of women who’d want a man like that at their feet, who’d want to make him into a pet just to prove they could. Not Tessa. If she wanted something slobbering on her feet, she’d get a bulldog. Nope, the only place for a man like that was away from her. Far away.

Back in control, enjoying the inner peace that came with it, Tessa added a little hip wiggle to her next shot, letting her body zing with the delight as the balls cracked together.

“There’s nothing prettier than a woman who’s mastered the art of body English.”

Damn it all to hell.

Tessa’s heart jumped. She couldn’t stop its silly reaction, but she made sure it didn’t show. She didn’t straighten. She didn’t let her expression change. She simply lifted her gaze from the soothing expanse of green felt to the disturbing view on the other side of the pool table.

Dear lord, Gabriel Thorne took tall, dark and handsome to unbelievable lengths. From the broad expanse of well-muscled shoulders to the tips of his size-fourteen boots polished to a high gloss, he exuded strength. The sharp angles of his face, with its knife-edged cheekbones and golden skin, contrasted against hair so black it gleamed blue, and his eyes were just as dark.

Why did he have to be so freaking perfect?

Good-looking guys were a dime a dozen. Tessa was so jaded that sex appeal barely registered anymore. Power? It still inspired a little ping of sexual awareness in her belly but it was easy enough to ignore if she wanted.

But all three in a single man?

Almost irresistible.

Almost.

Gabriel Thorne, or Romeo as he was more suitably called, had one irredeemable strike against him.

He was actually Chief Petty Officer Gabriel Thorne.

US Navy SEAL.

Her stomach churned.

And the only thing higher on Tessa’s off-limits list than a military man was a man so dedicated to the military that he devoted his life to becoming the best in order to serve in it.

“I came in here for a little privacy,” she finally said, slowly straightening. As she did, she knew the draped neckline of her dress gaped, most likely offering a clear view all the way down to her skimpy pink panties. She reluctantly gave Gabriel credit when his eyes didn’t shift from her face. Most men—no matter how well intentioned—couldn’t resist a peek at the goods. “Why don’t you be a doll and give it to me.”

She waited for him to barge through that opening with a tasteless comment, actually hoping he would so she could find a solid, pinpointable reason to dislike him.

Because the excuse that he made her edgy wasn’t working very well.

“C’mon, angel, don’t you want to say hi after all these months?” he invited, his palms wide as if to invite her to c’mon over and do just that. Probably by wrapping her legs around his hips and planting a hot, juicy kiss on him. Or maybe that was just her little fantasy hello.

“That’s the funny thing about distance. It doesn’t always make the heart grow fonder,” Tessa mused, leaning one hip on the pool table and swinging her foot. The move hitched her short skirt a little higher on her thigh, catching Romeo’s eye. This, apparently, was on his approved list to ogle because his gaze heated as it skimmed over her smooth skin from the edge of her skirt to her hot pink toenails and right back up again.

“Now you’re going to break my heart,” he teased when his eyes met hers again. “Are you trying to say you didn’t miss me?”

Despite his almost overwhelming appeal, Tessa was able to say quite honestly, “Nope, sorry. I didn’t at all.”

He gave her a long look, his eyes dark and almost spookily intense, as if he had some sort of power to see into people. Tessa lifted her chin, daring him to accept what he saw.

And waited, as her stomach clenched, to hear his opinion.

“I never took you for the type who hid at a party,” he said instead, leaving Tessa to ignore the weird disappointment clenching her belly. “If I’d have had to guess, I’d figure you’d be front and center out there. A drink in hand, that gorgeous smile flashing as you flick off admirers and break hearts left and right.”

“Isn’t that an appealing visual?” Tessa mused, ignoring the reality of it. “Maybe I’ll give it a try after I finish this round.”

His eyes only left her for a moment, long enough to see that she only had two balls left. Instead of leaving, though, he leaned against the wall and gestured with his chin toward her hand.

“You seem to know your way around the stick.”

Tessa made a show of sliding her fingers up the cue, skimming suggestively around the tip before sliding them right back down. Gabriel, being a man, watched the move and smiled. She just wished that smile wasn’t so wickedly appealing. As much in defense against it as to replace the needy images flashing through her mind at the sight of him, she tapped the cue against her free hand a couple of times, then tilted the tip toward him in a mocking salute.

“Anytime you want me to take aim at your balls, you just give a whistle,” she said, putting a little extrahusky suggestion in her tone. “You do know how to whistle, don’t you?”

Gabriel’s smile was pure appreciation, either for the movie quote or for her not-so-subtle threat. Knowing him, probably both.

“Angel, you want to play, I’m your man.” He moved around the table so fast Tessa didn’t have time to steel herself against the intense need that hit her when he reached her side. That was her excuse and she was sticking to it, dammit.

“I’ll bet we’d have a fascinating game between us,” he told her in that midnight voice of his. His fingers curled loosely over hers on the cue, guiding her hand back down toward the shaft. A zing of desire shot through Tessa’s body, her knees shaking as heat, needy and intense, curled in her belly. Had she ever gone wet and weak with just a touch?

Only once, she admitted to herself as she tried to clear her head. Only once—the last time he’d touched her.

She stared at Romeo. His pitch-black eyes were bottomless. Not cold—just the opposite, in fact. They were so hot that Tessa was terrified she’d burn before she lost herself in those depths.

Since terror wasn’t a feeling she was familiar with—or planned to experience long enough to get used to—she tilted her chin in challenge.

“Fascinating?” She put every bit of disinterest in her tone she could muster, keeping her expression amused. “Maybe. But it takes two to play, and I’m really not interested.”

Arching a brow, she slid her hand out from under his and left him gripping the stick alone.

There.

She knew that comment would slay a lesser man. Send him falling to the floor with his hands over his assets—metaphorically speaking.

Gabriel wasn’t a lesser man, but the refusal should still take care of him, she decided as she sashayed from the room.

A quick glance in the mirrored wall as she left gave her the perfect—and unobserved—look at his smile. Tessa tried not to groan.

Because that wicked grin said she’d been way too optimistic.

* * *

GABRIEL GAVE THE pool cue in his hand a light shake, absently checking the balance as he watched Tessa stride out, her hips swaying with enough temptation to send her skirt swirling around legs that had helped sell a million fitness videos.

The tiny purple dress was the same color as a breathtaking sunset he’d watched from a beach in Costa Rica a while back. Her long black hair tumbled in waves over her back and, despite the heels—damn, those had to be at least five inches—she was still as tiny as one of the Little People his Cherokee grandfather used to weave into stories around the campfire.

Shaking the memory away, Gabriel’s easy smile faded into a frown. What was it was about Tessa Monroe that made him think of his past? Stupid, since he’d never met anyone like her before. Crazy, because the only place he had in his life for women was the present moment. And useless, since nobody knew better than Gabriel how important it was to defuse explosives before they blew up in his face. And there was nothing with more potential to detonate than the past.

And nothing more explosive than a sexy woman with an attitude.

“Yo, Romeo.”

Gabriel blinked away his unusually deep thoughts and gave his buddy an easy smile.

“Yo, Scavenger,” he drawled, watching the tall man move into the room with an air of someone escaping a torture chamber. “Had enough of the party already?”

“I’m not the one hiding in an empty room,” Scavenger laughed, humor lighting his usually intense features. A first-class medic with recon skills that were nigh on magic as far as Gabriel was concerned, Scavenger tended to be on the quiet side. But he saw everything.

Something that Gabriel valued on the SEAL team.

But not in his private life.

Not that he had anything to hide. Hell, he was an open book. As long as the book opened to the page he was on today.

“What’s up?” Gabriel asked, knowing that look in his friend’s eyes. Part assessing, part caution, it meant the other guy was debating whether he wanted to share his thoughts or not.

“Jackrabbit’s gonna be a pain in the ass,” Scavenger finally said quietly, the words accompanied by a loose shrug.

Gabriel considered the warning. Because as casually as it was offered and as few words as it contained, if Scavenger had sought him out to say it, it was definitely a warning.

“There’s always a period of adjustment when we join a new team,” Gabriel pointed out, even though they’d been assigned to the team for six months already. Until they trained together, deployed together, they wouldn’t feel like a team. “He’ll get used to me.”

“Don’t think he’ll get used to losing, though,” Scavenger offered with a quick grin. “Watch your back. He’s looking for an edge.”

With a nod to acknowledge that he’d received the warning and would heed it—probably—Gabriel took aim at one of the last two balls on the table, letting it ricochet off the other to send both into different pockets.

“Thanks for missing the party out there to let me know,” Gabriel said, meaning it. He might not care that some guy had issues, but he knew Scavenger’s concern was the good of the team, which meant those issues would have to be dealt with. “You have to beat the women off with a stick yet?”

It was a source of never-ending amusement to Gabriel and most of the team that Scavenger, in all his shyness, was consistently hit on wherever they went.

“They wouldn’t be all over me if you were there. Isn’t that part of your rating? To take point on all social excursions, engage the female predators in order to allow the team to carry out their mission unmolested?”

“Is that what this is?” Gabriel laughed as he put the cue back in its stand. “You want me out there as a shield?”

“Nah, Irish was looking for you,” Scavenger said, his cheeks a little toasty. “You were supposed to help him with something?”

Oh, yeah. He’d been on his way, then he’d gotten distracted by the vision of an angel. One look at Tessa Monroe’s sweet little body curved over the pool table and his brain had straight-up fizzled. He’d been lucky he’d remembered his name when he’d stood across from her.

It was shaming for a man with his reputation to admit—even to himself—but if she’d crooked one of those sexy fingers of hers and led the way, he’d have followed her anywhere. Which meant she was dangerous. To his reputation, to his ego and to his peace of mind. All three of which Gabriel protected fiercely.

Gabriel had learned young to recognize trouble, a talent honed to perfection by his years in the military. But recognizing or not, he never ran from a fight, and he didn’t back down from trouble.

But trouble like Tessa Monroe? An angel’s face wrapped in a body that’d tempt the devil?

A wise man stepped carefully.

A wiser man plunged deep, reveled in the delight and found a way to walk away unscathed.

He just had to find his opening.

And he wasn’t going to find it in here.

“I guess I’d better help Irish, and let you get back to the waiting ladies,” Gabriel said.

The two men moved easily through the crowd toward the far side of the room, where it looked as if an entire platoon had gathered. Seeing the groom-to-be talking to an older woman who was the spitting image of Mitch’s fiancée, Gabriel tapped Shane on the shoulder before tilting his head to indicate he was gonna do his duty.

“Chief Petty Officer Thorne, reporting for duty,” Gabriel said when he reached Mitch and the woman who was apparently going to be his friend’s mother-in-law.

Interest flashed in the blonde’s eyes as she smiled. Mitch just shook his head in resigned amusement.

“Pauline, I’d like you to meet Gabriel Thorne. Gabriel, this is Livi’s mother, Pauline.” Waiting only long enough to finish the introductions, Mitch made his excuses to escape.

Leaving Gabriel alone with a cougar who looked as if she’d enjoy lapping him up for breakfast.

“Gabriel, thank you for your willingness to help make Mitchell and Olivia’s wedding a beautifully memorable event. I’ve created a list for you,” she said, unsnapping the tiny seashell-shaped purse dangling from her wrist to pull out a slip of paper. Gabriel was encouraged by its small size until she unfolded and unfolded and unfolded it again.

“That’s quite a list,” he observed, noting that the computer-generated printout had multiple bullet points and appeared to be color coded.

“Read through it carefully, please, and let me know if there are any issues with the duties or timing.” She handed it over with a smile that said she didn’t care what he objected to.

“The ceremony will take place on Catalina Island in six weeks. Since it’s a destination wedding, the events will span the entire first week of May. You’ll need that entire week off. But if you could get time off beforehand to help with preparations, that would help, of course.”

Gabriel squinted a little to see if she was joking. Seeing she wasn’t, his lips twitched.

“Of course,” he repeated, giving her the words she wanted to hear, but not the actual agreement. Because everyone knew how easygoing Uncle Sam was about letting entire SEAL teams go off the grid at the same time.

He glanced at the list, his eyes widening at the extent of duties listed. He’d executed complicated hostage rescue missions that hadn’t required this many steps.

Then he gave those steps a closer look.

And saw how many of them had him paired with a certain angel-faced seductress. Gabriel’s expression eased into a natural smile; that was to say, one that was filled with a whole lot of wicked.

Host beach bonfire, he noted.

Collaborate on romantic moonlight dance.

This could get interesting.

“Tessa Monroe is the—” he glanced at the top of the page, where it listed all of the players and their assigned roles “—maid of honor?”

“Mmm, yes. Tessa and Olivia have been friends for years, all the way back to college.” When Gabriel gave her his most charming, do-tell-me-more smile, her own expression softened and she started chatting about Livi’s time at San Diego State. Barracuda or not, the woman had good feelings for her kid. That brought her up a few notches in Gabriel’s estimation. He knew firsthand that mother didn’t mean maternal.

“When Livi launched her fitness videos, she brought Tessa in. I’m not sure Olivia could have achieved the level of success she did without her friend. Not only is Tessa a beautiful woman who has great camera presence, her being there made the touring and live events so much easier on Olivia.”

“So Tessa’s a trainer, too?” Gabriel asked, finally voicing one of the thousands of personal questions he hadn’t let himself ask before.

“A trainer? Oh, no. Tessa doesn’t have the patience to teach. She’s actually a writer. Journalist?” Pauline frowned, then waved the distinction away as if it didn’t matter. “She writes for a very successful digital magazine. I think she’s also in charge of editorial, among other things. That enabled her to work from her laptop for weeks at a time while traveling. And, of course, her travels gave her so many new article ideas and contacts. I think two of the pieces she wrote on the road went on to win national attention.”

Not sure why he felt so proud since it had nothing to do with him, Gabriel still smiled. Maybe because it proved what he’d already known. In addition to being gorgeous and sexy, Tessa was savvy and smart.

“It’s a fitness magazine?”

“Flirtatious? No, it’s more of a relationship magazine for singles. A lot of emphasis on sex, the mating games, bedroom games, how to use it all to get ahead.” Pauline’s voice dropped to a husky timbre as she reached out to trail her fingers along the back of his hand. “I’ll be happy to share some of them, if you’d like?”

Gabriel blinked, surprised at how fast she went from businesslike to motherly to amused to cougar with barely a blink. Talented lady. But as attractive as she was, he didn’t figure he’d be offering up more than his respect.

With that in mind, he lifted the list in a modified salute and suggested he find the groom and discuss the details.

“If you need anything, just call. My numbers are all there,” Pauline instructed. Then she leaned forward and whispered a creative suggestion in his ear that made Gabriel’s brows arch. Before he could refuse, she patted his ass and went on her way.

Amused, Gabriel headed in the opposite direction through the crowded ballroom. Figuring he’d earned it, he grabbed another beer on his way to where Mitch was seated.

“Did I offer my congratulations yet?” he asked, grabbing a chair, then straddling it before tilting his beer bottle toward his friend in a salute.

“So far you’ve offered three warnings, two enigmatic stares and the suggestion that I see a counselor,” the groom-to-be mused with an easy smile. “You finally going to add a congrats to that?”

“On finding a sweetheart like Livi? Sure. But how about a word of advice?”

Mitch gestured with his own beer for Gabriel to go ahead.

“That was quite a chat with your future mother-in-law.” Gabriel gave a silent whistle and shook his head. “You might wanna give thought to running.”

“She’s not so bad,” Mitch responded, looking around. His gaze didn’t land on the blonde barracuda who’d just propositioned Gabriel, but rested instead on her daughter.

“Not so bad?” Gabriel scoffed. “Did you get a load of my assignment list? I’ve served under admirals with less balls than she has.”

Following Mitch’s gaze, Gabriel glanced at his friend’s fiancée. His eyes automatically shifted, though, to the dark-haired angel on the other side of the room, heat speeding through his system at the sight of her. A good-looking woman offering to ride him like a bronco got zip for reaction, but one look at Tessa and he was rock hard.

Damned if he could figure out what was going on.

He deliberately shifted his gaze away.

Lips twitching, he used his chin to indicate Mitch look that way, too.

“Your future mother-in-law has Scavenger in her sights.”

Mitch followed his lead to where Pauline had the tall, quietly shy SEAL cornered. From the look of it, she was actually petting his chest.

“She’ll eat him for breakfast,” Mitch proclaimed, looking both amused and a little worried.

Over their friend’s pending sexual education? Or the weirdness of watching all of the elements of his life mix together? Yet another reason to keep life to a single element, Gabriel figured.

“We should rescue him,” Mitch said, starting to rise.

“Nah.” Gabriel shook his head before Mitch could get to his feet. “It’ll be good for him. A guy needs to push his comfort zone now and then.”

“She might suck the comfort right out of him,” Mitch muttered with a worried frown.

“Some women do that,” Gabriel mused, his gaze cutting across the room to lock on Tessa again.

She was so damned sexy, her smile wide and bright in a way it never was when she looked at him.

Time to change the game, he decided.

He’d played it with amused distance already, and all that’d done was let her get a hold somewhere in the back of his mind.

As he listened with half an ear to Mitch talking, he realized that since Tessa was like no woman he’d ever known before, he’d have to take a different approach in dealing with her.

He was simply going to have to pursue her. That he’d have her went without question, since it was obviously the only way he’d get her out of his system.

He was a man who knew how to strategize, how to plan and how to win.

And he never, ever gave up.

Since Tessa wasn’t on board with his plan, he’d see her as a mission.

A target to be assessed, evaluated and overcome.

He’d figure her out.

He’d have her—on his terms.

Then he’d do what he always did.

Walk away, leaving both of them satisfied.

3

TESSA DIDN’T CHECK to see if Gabriel was looking her way. She didn’t have to. She knew his eyes were locked on her. She felt the heat of his interest all the way to her belly, where desire curled, unwanted, in a tightly coiled fire just waiting to explode.

Ignoring the edgy call of desire, she smiled and dished out friendly greetings and easy small talk as she worked the room. This was what she did. Socialized, flitted and fluttered, leaving a trail of lust and smiles behind. And if she did it with a little stress still weighing her down, well, hey, nobody else had to know that.

Not that anyone would. Nobody ever looked deep enough to see more than the outer package anyway.

Except Livi.

Still, Tessa gave it her best shot by amping up her smile and focusing on keeping her body at ease as she slid into the chair next to her best friend.

“Hey, you,” Livi greeted. “I was starting to wonder where you were. Pauline was talking about sending out a search party but I convinced her to wait until appetizers.”

“Thanks for saving me that.” Tessa pulled a face at the idea of Livi’s über–control freak of a mother coming in search of her. She wasn’t sure if that would have been better or worse than Romeo.

“Champagne?” a waiter offered.

After a quick glance at the glass, Tessa gestured to Livi’s flute of sparkling cider.

“I’ll have what she’s having,” she decided, giving him a warm smile that almost made him fumble the tray.

“What’s wrong?” Livi asked, her brows drawing together.

“Wrong? Why is it wrong that I’m keeping my pregnant friend company in her drinking choices?” Tessa said with a shrug.

That sounded much better than admitting that she couldn’t quite bring herself to celebrate what she was sure was going to be a painful mistake on Livi’s part. Marriage itself was bad enough. But marriage because she was pregnant? To a military guy?

“Since when do you drink the same thing I do? You’re upset. I can tell,” Livi said with a worried frown. Then her gaze slid past Tessa, the striking blonde’s eyes sharpening a little. Tessa didn’t need to turn around to know that her friend had just spotted the reason for her irritation.

“Are you and Gabriel at it again?” Livi asked, her frown deepening as she shook her head. “I don’t get it. I’ve never seen anyone argue with Gabriel except you.”

“But he’s so easy to argue with,” Tessa intoned. At Livi’s impatient look, she gave a dismissive wave of her hand. “I wasn’t arguing with him. Really. An issue blew up at the magazine this afternoon that has me a little edgy is all.”

Not all a lie, Tessa mentally defended, since she hadn’t actually argued with Gabriel. A covert threat to whack him with the pool cue didn’t an argument make. And she had ended her workday with drama.

Usually, Flirtatious was a source of pleasure for Tessa. The magazine she’d founded with Jared Welch and Maeve Bannion was a huge success not only for her ego, but for her bank account.

But like sexy men, even a great career had its irritating moments.

“What did Jared do?” Livi asked, correctly honing in on one of the sources of Tessa’s troubles. “You need to watch out, Tessa. I know you think you’ve got a handle on him, but he’s a snake.”

“Please.” Tessa laughed. She wasn’t worried about Jared. Between her and Maeve, they kept him in line. Mostly. “When has a man ever got the better of me?”

She deliberately kept her gaze locked on Livi instead of searching the room for Romeo. Talk about ruining her reputation. She didn’t want anyone thinking she was nervous over a guy, even a guy like him.

“Jared would like nothing more than to ride on the tails of your success until he found a way to shove you out of the equation,” Livi said slowly, her eyes locked on Tessa’s face. “You’ve been getting more and more attention, syndication of your articles is picking up and you’ve had some amazing interviews.”

All true. Tessa was one hell of a writer. Oh, she knew Jared liked to tout her as a journalist, but she had no illusions. She wrote very fun, sassy and sexy pieces that all centered around the games between women and men. Flirtations, as the magazine’s name suggested. One Hundred and One Ways to Flirt Your Way to Success, Top Five Pick-up Lines for Savvy Women and The ABCs of Mastering the Sexual Playground were just a few of her recent submissions. Hardly Pulitzer-worthy topics, but they suited her talents and personality, they were extremely popular and they were fun to write. All key reasons why she loved her job.

Jared wouldn’t mess that up. Would he?

Tessa rubbed a finger against the throbbing in her temple, wondering when men had shifted from being a delightful pastime to being a pain in her butt.

“I’m filming a yoga segment tomorrow,” Livi said. “Why don’t you join in? A little balance, a little positive energy, it’d be good for you. I could use a toned body in belly-baring workout gear to bump the ratings.”

Tessa considered it for a moment. A nationally renowned fitness celebrity with a string of successful videos, Livi had just secured a contract with a fitness cable channel to air her new live workout program that she’d titled Stages, for women at every stage of life.

If there was a frustrated, irritated and inappropriately horny stage, Tessa was the girl to represent it. She was also the woman who knew better than to give in to that particular cocktail of emotions since it only led to trouble.

“You’re focusing on pregnancy workouts right now, aren’t you?” Tessa remarked with a laugh. “I’m not sure breathing positive energy to my uterus is going to relax me a whole lot.”

“I’m the only pregnant woman in the crew,” Livi countered with a wave of her hand. “There’s a new mom, a retired nurse, a teen and an older man, too. That’s the point of these workouts. They work for everyone. But if you don’t want to work out, why don’t we do a spa day? Massage, facial, mani-pedi. The works.”

“It sounds great, but I should probably go into the office. I’ll chat with Maeve, see if she’s got any idea what’s going on,” she said.

“Work over pampering,” Livi said, pretending to be shocked. “That doesn’t sound like the Tessa Monroe I know.”

Tessa grimaced. It didn’t, did it?

A rare and unwelcome feeling of uncertainty washed over her. Was it her life that was in turmoil? Or was it her that didn’t fit her once-perfect lifestyle?

The worry that’d been following her around like an itchy backpack took on yet another layer. Tessa leaned in to ask Livi’s advice. Before she could say a word, though, she felt a chill over her shoulder.

“What’s this I hear?” Pauline said as she slid into a seat next to them. “Our wild child is losing her edge?”

Tessa’s urge to confess disappeared.

If she’d learned one lesson good and well at her momma’s knee, it was to never show weakness. Especially not to a woman like Pauline. Or the blonde barracuda, as Livi’s video crew called her.

With just a twitch of her chin, Tessa’s confidence was back. Her smile turned sharp, her body language sliding into sassy as she turned to greet Livi’s mom.

“I’m as edgy as can be,” she claimed, lifting her glass of sparkling cider to toast the older woman. “How about you, Pauline? Now that Livi’s off the market, are you going to hit the clubs with me?”

“You won’t have time for clubbing,” Pauline said, waving the invitation away with the same lack of enthusiasm as it was offered. “The wedding is going to take a great deal of time and energy. As maid of honor, a lot of the work is going to fall to you. I hope you’re capable of handling it, Tessa. I’d hate to see Olivia having to pick up the slack if you’re out playing games. Or worse, to have her dream wedding turn into a disappointment.”

“Mother,” Livi growled, her sweet face turning ferocious.

As much fun as it would be to see her friend stand up to the woman who until a couple of months ago had run her life, Tessa knew the stress wasn’t good for Livi, or for the baby.

She laid her hand over Livi’s clenched fist and gave it a squeeze before angling her body just a little. Enough to put herself between daughter and mother.

“Please,” she told Pauline with a dismissive laugh. “When have I ever left anyone disappointed? I’ll do everything in my power to give Livi the wedding of a lifetime.”

After another few seconds with that assessing stare, Pauline gave a slow nod.

What the hell? Tessa wanted to ask. Since when did she merit doubt?

A tight, aching ball of doubt knotted in her stomach, all of her worries from the evening feeding the pain.

Was Pauline inadvertently right? Was she losing her edge?

A couple stopped at the table to congratulate Livi. As the bride-to-be and Pauline fell into conversation with them, Tessa’s worried gaze wandered the room.

When her eyes landed on the sexiest man she’d ever known, the only man who might possibly be more than she could handle, her frown deepened. Instead of backing up Gabriel Thorne against that poolroom wall, stripping him naked and riding him like a bucking bronco, she’d run away. Why? Was she afraid she couldn’t handle him?

Tessa exchanged her cider for champagne and took a contemplative sip. Wetting her lips and letting the taste of the sweet bubbles coat her tongue, she shoved aside her earlier fears. Being worried about not handling any man—even a man like Gabriel Thorne—was about as crazy as being afraid of having body-melting, pleasure-screaming multiple orgasms. Something she was quite sure he could provide, with a few interesting twists thrown in.

A shot of lust speared straight through her, landing low in her belly with a familiar sexual zing.

That was the perfect answer, she realized.

She was going to seduce Romeo.

Not only would it get him out of her system, but it would also prove that she was just as edgy and in control as ever.

And then, emotionally steady, mentally refreshed and physically sated, she could do what she always did with men.

Thank him for the good time, consign him to her been-there-done-that list and, more important, move on with making her life exactly what she wanted it to be.

Fun and easy.

* * *

WELL, WELL.

Gabriel wasn’t sure what’d changed.

Maybe it was a couple of glasses of wine.

Maybe the sun had fully set.

Hell, maybe it was the spices on the grilled-prawn appetizers circulating around the room.

Whatever it was, Tessa had gone from icily pretending he didn’t exist to giving him assessing looks that were hot enough to melt his shorts from twenty yards away.

She hadn’t approached, nor had she done more than look. But a woman like Tessa? She knew how to say one hell of a lot with just a glance.

He kinda liked it.

He just wasn’t sure what he wanted to do about it yet.

Oh, sure, his melting shorts and their happy contents knew exactly what they’d like to do.

But a man didn’t live through countless missions, a war and a childhood that put both to shame without learning to carefully question a gift horse before sticking anything in its mouth. Even if the gift horse was the sexiest filly he’d ever seen.

Her big blue eyes were even more appealing filled with sexual speculation. Not to dis the chilly disdain from before. That’d been kinda sexy, too.

“You ever notice how parties like this tend to have rumors flowing right along with the booze?”

Gabriel tipped back his beer bottle for a drink before slanting Jackrabbit a sideways look. He didn’t say anything, though, figuring the guy could bait his own hook for this little fishing trip.

“Rumors like the one that says that your success with the ladies is nigh on legendary,” the other man continued in a musing tone. “Can you believe it? Legendary.”

“Well, you know what they say about rumors, don’t you?” Seeing where this was going, Gabriel’s grin was as sharp as his tone was casual. “They’re like smoke.”

Jackrabbit pulled a face before nodding. “And where there’s smoke, there’s fire.”

“I like serving with a guy who thinks fast.”

“I heard a lot of other rumors tonight. Wonder how hot they are.”

“You looking to start your own gossip site specializing in Navy news?”

“Nah, just getting to know the guys I’ll be serving with. It pays to have a good handle on the team’s successes, right? And on their failures.”

“You keep digging around in those rumors, you’ll hear one sure truth.” Gabriel’s smile turned deadly. “I don’t fail.”

“Then you won’t mind a little bet based on one of the rumors I heard?”

His instincts said to tell the guy to get a different hobby.

But Gabriel’s entire world revolved around his service to the SEALs. Which meant he put his team ahead of everything. So making peace with this idiot for the good of morale before they went into training was the right thing to do.

“What’s the bet?”

“I heard that for all your legendary prowess with women, you’ve been shot down in flames by one particular lady. Tessa Monroe, who, if I hear right, is as wild as she is sexy.” Jeglinski’s smile turned mean. “That had to bite, being turned down by a woman like that. Even worse to have her blowing you off like I saw earlier. Damn, man, those were some cold looks she was sending your way.”

Not bothering to wonder who had spread that bit of news, or resent that it was true, Gabriel focused instead on keeping his expression amused as he waited for the rest.

“So here’s the wager. I’ll bet you can’t get the sexy Tessa Monroe into bed. Given that we’re gonna be busy for the next few months training in the Pacific, I’ll even give you until Irish says ‘I do.’”

So pissed he actually saw little red spots dancing through his vision, Gabriel had to call up every bit of control to keep from grabbing the guy by the throat. He wanted to pound the guy so hard they’d have to change his call sign to Flatrabbit. Who the hell was this idiot, objectifying women that way? Talking about Tessa as if she was a piece of tail or trampy frog hog who chased SEALs for sex.

“Bro, you might want to do a little studying. One of the reasons for my legendary success with the ladies is probably beyond your comprehension, but it’s rather simple.” Gabriel stepped forward, getting into the other man’s space with a chilly smile made all the colder by his icy tone. “It’s called respect. I never offer them anything less.”

“Does that mean you’re backing down?”

Disgusted, Gabriel turned on his heel and strode away without bothering to answer.

A quarter hour later, he stood on the beach at the base of the mansion’s steps, hands shoved in his pockets as the sight of the ocean soothed away his anger.

He’d learned young the dangers of losing control. Whether it was because of anger or alcohol, the damage was the same.

Jackrabbit was an ass, but Gabriel recognized his type. A small dog protecting its territory did the same thing. Yapped challenges it couldn’t meet, trying to look tough. He’d back down once he’d accepted the new order of things. And now that Gabriel and Scavenger were assigned to Coronado permanently along with Irish, that new order could begin.

“Look at you, out here all by your lonesome.”

The ocean washed over the words, the evening air trying to carry them away. But it didn’t take his SEAL training to recognize a female voice.

His mouth almost dropped open when he saw who it was.

“Tessa?”

“Hey there,” she said with a smile that sparkled with more than just a greeting. “It’s so pretty out here. Much nicer than all that stuffy air in there.”

Tessa tilted her head toward the manor, but her eyes didn’t leave his face as she descended the last few steps to join him in the sand. As soon as she did, her feet sank and she grabbed hold of his arm as if she were keeping her balance.

“Mmm, you are in peak condition, aren’t you?” she said as her hand wrapped around his biceps and squeezed. “I don’t think there’s a bigger turn-on than a man with a rock-hard body. And you are quite...hard.”

She let the last word drop off her lips on a sigh, her expression appreciatively seductive.

Gabriel frowned.

What the hell was she doing?

“Is everything okay?” he asked.

Still holding on to him, she bent one slender leg to slide off her shoe, then, the sky-high heel dangling from a strap, she shifted hands to remove the other one.

Gabriel watched the moonlight skim over her bare legs, whimsically wondering if she’d turn into a mermaid if she got too close to the water. Or, more likely, into a siren.

“Everything is just fine,” she said once she’d carefully set her shoes, one upright next to the other, on the bottom step.

This was the first time he’d seen her barefoot. A wave of protectiveness washed over him when he realized how tiny she actually was. Her personality was so big, her sexuality so intense, that it was easy to overlook her size.

Then she smiled, her lips curved and enticing, her eyes glinting with sultry amusement as she speared her fingers into her hair, lifting the dark curls before letting them fall to her shoulders again. Her pleasure at such a simple, yet sensual act sent a shaft of heat straight to Gabriel’s dick.

With any other woman he’d figure this was an invitation.

But Tessa wasn’t any woman.

“So what’s the deal? You were bored in there?” he mused randomly.

“Actually, I’m here to see if you wanted to play,” she said in a sexy tone. She slid her hand over his arm again, the brush of her fingers echoing her words’ husky caress.

“Play?” he repeated, his eyes narrowed.

“Play,” she confirmed with a teasing smile.

Sure she was.

And he was the one being played.

Even if the board was being run by a master he could still see the signs.

And Tessa Monroe was most definitely a master. At games of all kinds. And at running.

He debated calling her out on the move. But the deliberation only lasted a moment before he acknowledged that the risk was high and the payoff low. If he pointed out that he could see the game, she’d probably skip out again. It was probably what she was expecting.

As he stared down into her face, so delicate, yet so vivid, he realized that he was starting to understand her.

Gabriel knew the minute Tessa could pigeonhole him, she’d dismiss him. That was what she did with men. He understood her, since in many ways she was his own mirror image.

Just sexier.

She was also wickedly protective of her friends, appeared to value nothing more than loyalty and had a sweet streak he was sure she’d deny. And since despite her obvious misgivings, she’d agreed to be Livi’s maid of honor, she clearly put her friends’ feelings over her own.

The woman was a study in contrasts and spelled trouble for any man looking for peace and tranquility.

Good thing for him he wanted neither.

“So?” Tessa said, wetting her bottom lip with her tongue and sending a shaft of passion spiking through his system. “What do you say? Want to play?”

He leaned back on his heels, considering her face. It was a study in seduction. The full, pouting lips, the sweep of her lashes. But he could see the calculation in the blue depths of her eyes, there beneath the desire.

And in a flash as powerful as his spiking desire, he realized what she was doing.

She wanted to fan this heat, accelerate it so it blew hot, fast and furious. She figured the faster it blew up, the quicker it blew out, the sooner it’d be over. Then she’d turn on those sexy heels of hers and walk away without a glance.

Without giving him another thought.

Gabriel totally understood her strategy. He even admired it.

But he’d be damned if he was going to make it easy for her.

He didn’t know why.

It was stupid to worry about dragging out this thing between them. It was obviously hot enough to set off fire alarms already. Could it really get any hotter? Any wilder?

And then there was his personal policy to live for the moment. Today was the only day he was guaranteed to have, so today was to be lived to the fullest.

But whatever this was between them, and he had no idea what it might be, Gabriel was damned if it was going to be finished until he was ready.

It might take weeks.

Maybe months.

He might be finished after one orgasm or it could be dozens.

But hey, it didn’t matter if it was on the battlefield, behind covert cover or between the sheets.

He was a man used to giving his all.

And when it was done, she might walk away.

But she’d never forget him.

He’d make damned sure of that.

It was time to put Operation Romance into play.

With that in mind, Gabriel took Tessa’s hand, and in a move he’d never made before but felt completely natural, he lifted it to his lips.

“What are you doing?”

Underneath the surprise, he heard the nerves dancing there, just beneath the surface. And he reveled in them.

He’d thrown her off.

Which was a great first step.

“Doing? I’m seducing you,” he said quietly, taking his time as he slid his hands through the long sweep of her hair, enjoying the silky thickness weighing against his fingers. “Since you’ve finally admitted this attraction we’ve got going on here, I figure it’s time to see how far we can push it. How long we can play it out.”

“Oh, I’ll bet you’re good for at least a few long, hard hours,” she said in a husky tone, her fingers tiptoeing up his chest, leaving hot little trails wherever they touched.

“Oh, yeah, I could keep you panting and wet for hours and hours,” he promised, leaning closer as if to kiss her. At the last second, he shifted so his lips brushed the softest whisper over her silken cheek. “But I was thinking we could do better than that.”

Her breath hitched a little; her eyes blurred with pleasure. Her fingers were kneading his chest, nails digging in gently in a sexy rhythm that promised a superb sense of timing.

For a second, Gabriel wanted to say to hell with dragging this out. It wasn’t ego reminding him that he’d never had a woman who didn’t want more when they were done. The simple truth was that he was damned good at sex.

The problem was, so was Tessa. He was sure of it. And she was a woman with exquisite control. He had no doubt that while she might, if forced, admit as she left his bed that it’d been the best sex of her life, she’d still leave.

He had to hook her good and solid first, so she’d be there until he’d had his fill.

“See, real seduction is an art,” he continued, making it up as he spoke. “There’s a smooth buildup, layers of needs and awareness. There’s discovery, finding out if we have the same turn-ons, exploring each other’s secret delights.”

Her eyes sharpened to a blue so deep it was almost purple, those full lips parted just a little as if ready for him to dive in. Damn, she was intoxicating.

He was halfway there, his mouth craving the taste of hers, before he yanked himself back.

To hide his slip, he rubbed his thumb over the soft cushion of her bottom lip instead.

“All of that should come first, don’t you think?” he said with his most charming smile.

Watching the play of emotions flash through Tessa’s eyes, excitement melding with fear, worry with passion, he gave himself a mental pat on the back.

Damned if this wasn’t going to beat the hell out of fast and furious.

Figuring he deserved a little reward for outmaneuvering her, Gabriel pulled Tessa closer. Pleasure pounded through him as the delicious curves of her body aligned tightly against his hard planes.

He knew his limits, knew exactly how far he could push this desire before he hit the point of no return.

Now to find out hers.

4

HER BODY WAS on fire.

Hot, molten pleasure radiated out from every point it came into contact with the deliciously hard planes of Romeo’s body. He towered over her, his eyes as dark as the sky above as he stared down at her. His fingers were a whisper as they skimmed over her cheek before sliding into her hair, rubbing a strand between them before tucking it behind her ear.

With a focus that held incredible promise for things to come, he leaned closer.

Tessa’s heart clenched, anticipation coiling tight around desire as she waited to see what he would do. She’d been secretly dreaming about his lips for months. Wondering what they’d feel like. Would he be forceful and take her mouth? Or would he gently seduce?

Their eyes locked on each other’s, Gabriel’s smile flashed for just a second. The closer he came, the more excited she got. At the last second, before he reached her lips, he changed direction. Tessa shivered as his breath whispered over her ear a heartbeat before his lips.

Oh. As his mouth brushed her flesh, anticipation uncoiled, sending that desire shooting through her system.

Holy screaming orgasms.

With one hand pressed to the small of her back and the other curled into her hair and just the sweetest brush of his mouth, Romeo sent her from intrigued and cautious to wet and needy. She sank her fingers into his biceps, delighting in the sensations.

Tessa was a woman exquisitely in tune with her own body, brilliantly aware of the nuances that played out between women and men and fiercely sensitive to the potentially emotional missteps.

Which, she remembered as a knot of panic balled in her belly, at odds with the feeling of throbbing desire, was why she’d determined so many months ago that Romeo was off-limits.

Because he was dangerous on so very many levels.

She gave an involuntary hum as his teeth nipped at her earlobe, the sharp pleasure shooting through her body like a wake-up message to her erogenous zones.

Tessa was also a woman of fierce pride.

She’d come out here to seduce Romeo for a very good reason.

And just because it was a mistake—probably a huge mistake—didn’t mean those reasons weren’t still valid.

She pressed her palms against the rock-solid walls of his chest, her fingers kneading before she skimmed them down to his waist and around to cup his sexy butt. The move pulled his body closer to hers. Since she was barefoot and he was at least six foot tall, the evidence of just how huge he was pressed temptingly against her stomach.

Oh, yeah, baby.

What better way to prove her power than to take on something so huge, so big, so overpowering—Tessa’s thighs trembled as images, mostly naked, flashed through her head.

As if he were reading her mind and had decided to reward her for coming to the very decision he wanted, Gabriel’s mouth slid over her cheek again. Whispering kisses trailed from her ear to the corner of her mouth.

She parted her lips, keeping the invitation subtle. But smart guy that he was, Romeo grabbed the invite and ran with it. Whisper soft, he rubbed his lips over hers. His kiss was as gentle as the breeze dancing around them and just as innocuous. She breathed in his scent, fresh like the ocean beyond, and Tessa’s heart sighed at the sweetness of his kiss. Her mind was a little amused that she’d gotten all worked up and worried over something this, well, nice. But hey, better to overreact than underestimate.

Who said sexual chemistry led to explosions? She laughed in the back of her head. Not minding that this was one of the few times she’d misread sexual potential, she skimmed her hands from his arms to his shoulders, then comfortably linked her fingers behind his neck. Relaxed and ready to enjoy the warmth, she loosened her guard and leaned a little closer.

Later, she’d wonder if Romeo had some sort of triggering device that told him when her defenses had hit their lowest. Because that was when he made his move.

Romeo’s hands shifted from her hair to cup her butt, pulling her tight against his body. His mouth angled, lips widening as he shifted gears from sweet to sexy with the slip of his tongue.

Before she could do more than gasp, he plunged.

His teeth scraped over her bottom lip, his tongue sweeping her mouth, luring hers into his before tangling them together so tight, so close, that her brain didn’t even have time to send up warning signals.

It was too busy exploding.

Right along with her body.

Tessa felt as if she were melting, floating on a sea of sensations.

As Romeo’s mouth moved over hers, her entire being leaned into the kiss.

Amazing.

Deliciously, mind-bogglingly, warning-signal-worthy amazing.

Every single portion of her being was focused on him.

On his mouth as it slid over hers.

On the taste of him coating her tongue, rich and addicting.

On the feel of his hands, rough and demanding on her hips.

On the intensity of his body as it pressed tight against her soft curves.

Mmm, he was delicious.

Her fingers skimmed over the soft cotton of his dress shirt, over the hard breadth of his shoulders, delighting in the powerful muscles there. She scraped her nails down his chest, giving a low purr deep in her throat at his body’s instant reaction. His hips thrust, his hands tightened on her hips and his tongue stabbed deeper into her mouth, demanding even more.

She hummed low in her throat like a satisfied cat, reveling in the pleasure of their passion.

She’d known it’d be like this.

That he’d feel like the answer to her every sexual fantasy.

That he’d know just where to touch, just how to move, to make her ready to beg for more.

Tessa’s head fell back, inviting Gabriel to have more.

His lips skimmed over her flesh, soft as air until he unerringly found the spot there, just beneath her ear, just above her shoulder. He scraped it with his teeth, tongue sliding hot and molten over her flesh.

Tiny tremors rocked through her body, her panties damp with passion as Tessa pressed her thighs together tightly to intensify the feeling.

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