The man he was...was everything to her. His strength, his sense of purpose, his confidence. His loyalty to the company. His aura of competence and power that made her feel like she could always count on him.
The man he’d been when he’d rejected her all those years ago. Though it had hurt her, she knew now he’d done the right thing. Because that was who he was. The man he was now, who’d let her have a chance in managing Cedar Mill when she’d thought he was going to try to shut her out. The man he was to follow her to Matagalpa because he was worried about her. The man he was, driving her crazy with his bossy protectiveness, even though deep down inside...she loved it.
She watched, entranced by the molten heat in his eyes, the sensuous curve of his mouth, the muscles rippling over his body as he moved against her. His cock inside her hit every nerve ending, hit tender places so deep inside her it hurt. So good.
He lowered himself on her again, his body hot and heavy, though again he was on his elbows. One arm curved around the top her head, his hand caressing her hair, stroking her forehead, tipping her head back so he could kiss her throat. He suckled her flesh gently then licked there. “Sam,” he murmured. “Sam.”
He whispered words against her hair, his mouth burning a trail on her skin. Their soft sighs of pleasure mingling, he pushed into her again and again. Flames burned hotter in her womb, and pressure built, pleasure vibrating through her. She strained up into him, and one more time, he rose to his knees and found her clit with his thumb. Their eyes met and held, his so full of tenderness and worship she had to close hers as emotion rose up inside her in huge swamping waves.
He touched everything inside her—including her heart.
Sensation inside her spiraled up, tightening into a sharp point of need, so tight, so high she was almost scared of what was going to happen, and then he took her higher still, higher than she’d ever been, and she shattered, sweet sensation cascading over every nerve ending, sparks flashing in front of her eyes. She cried out and reached for him, and he fell over her, pressed the side of his face to hers, and found her hands again with his, his fingers clutching hers like he’d never let go. His body went tight and still against hers, and he pulsed into her.
“Sam.” He kissed her, over and over, his mouth on her forehead, her eyebrow, her cheek. His nose rubbed against hers, and they breathed in tandem, sharing air. Her heart thundered, and her body pulsed around his cock, still buried in her.
It all became so beautiful in that moment, so exquisite, so important she knew everything in her life had changed.
Chapter Eighteen
“Do you really think I’m spoiled?”
They lay twined together on top of the bed covers in the quiet darkness, the ceiling fan sending air stroking over their damp skin in soft, rhythmic waves. He dragged his fingers through her long hair.
“No.”
She lifted her head from his chest to look at him. “You said that, though.”
“Yeah. I did.” He pursed his lips and expelled a breath. “When you were a teenager, I thought you were spoiled because you had such an easy life. Compared to what I had.”
She gazed at him, eyes full of warmth and gentle curiosity in the moonlight. “Tell me about it.”
He told her. Told her about the father who’d knocked up his mother, never to be seen again, his mom barely able to take care of herself, never mind a kid, all the odd jobs he’d taken from the time he was ten years old to try to help, including the job in a coffee shop that had sparked his interest in coffee. He told her about dropping out of college because his mom got sick and he’d had to look after her, how he’d had to get a full-time job —okay, two full-time jobs—to try to pay the medical bills, and how she’d died when he was only nineteen, leaving him alone in the world.
He told her how Parker had filled a hole in his life when he’d caught Parker’s attention after winning all those barista competitions while working for Cedar Mill and how Parker had been both a friend and a father figure to him. And how he’d felt when Parker and Dayna had invited him into their home to become a part of their family, a family like he’d never had.
“I guess I was envious,” he finally said, sliding his hand down the curve of her back. “It seemed like everything was just handed to you like a princess, when I’d had to work my ass off to get where I had. The truth is you never were spoiled. I’ve seen how hard you’ve worked. How you’ve worked your way up in the company. Nothing’s been handed to you just because you’re Parker’s daughter.”
Her radiant smile sucked the air out of his lungs. “Thank you,” she whispered, and touched her lips to his. When she drew back, her smile faded. “Is that why you don’t want me to be CEO?”
He gazed back at her, his thinking fuzzy. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, you don’t think it should be handed to me.”
He let that idea circle around in his head. He hadn’t thought of it that way, but maybe she had a point. Maybe his belief that goals were accomplished with hard work had influenced him. But it wasn’t the only reason.
“When Parker and I had that falling out and I moved to Los Angeles, I felt like I’d lost my family,” he said, remembered pain lancing through him. “The only real family I ever had. Parker was adamant that he wasn’t involved in anything illegal, and I felt like an asshole for even thinking it. I was afraid I’d screwed up my career, the business I’d worked my tail off for. It was a shitty time in my life.” He searched her face. “I buried myself in work. When I said I helped grow the company, I meant that, Samara. It’s been my life ever since I started there, and even more so after that happened. I had to prove myself all over again to Parker. I was desperate to get back his approval, his trust. So I threw myself into work. That’s why it’s so important to me to not lose the company. That’s why I want to run it. And yeah...I’ve worked for it.”
He asked for her understanding with his eyes, and relief rolled through him when she nodded.
“I get it,” she said softly. “But surely you can understand why it’s important to me too?”
He sighed. “Yeah. I do, Samara. I do. I was never trying to shut you out. At first I just wanted to make things easier for you when you were planning the funeral, with everything you were going through. Then I honestly didn’t think you were ready, and I was worried about what was best for the company.” Her eyes narrowed, and he smiled. “Then you stepped up and showed how smart you are. Jesus, when you came up with that idea to change our traceability system, I...” He searched for the words to tell her how much he’d admired her and respected her, and once again, her face softened. She nodded and pulled his head down for another kiss, this one full of mutual respect and understanding and...yeah...love.
The next day, the drive to the coffee estate belonging to Javier Alvarez took nearly two hours. Two hours of bouncing over potholes in the road. They’d driven through a sudden downpour, the wipers on Travis’s rental Jeep barely able to keep up. Then the sun had come out again, and the jungle turned steamy.
They climbed in altitude, and Samara felt the effects of it. When she’d arrived in Matagalpa, she’d felt a mild nagging headache at her temples and a slight fatigue. It had disappeared after yesterday’s sexual activity but returned now.
The air grew cooler as they ascended. Samara kept a lookout behind them, only a little paranoid after what had happened the day before, but it didn’t seem they were being followed.
“I still think this is a bad idea,” Travis muttered, steering around a particularly large hole in the rustic road. “Don’t you wonder why we could never get hold of Alvarez?”