Rescue Me Page 5

  He balanced his weight on one arm, his gaze locked with hers as his cock nudged at the entrance of her pussy, and he slid the tip inside, stretching her wide. Maya grabbed at his shoulders when his weight pressed her down in to the mattress, and she waited for him to slide in further. She opened her eyes again to find him watching her, and she sensed he needed to see her reaction. It took every ounce of strength she had left to hold Seth's gaze as his cock slowly filled her.

  When he could go no deeper and he was trembling almost as much as she was from the gentle spasms of her pussy clenching at his shaft, he placed a soft kiss against her open mouth and pulled out fast to plunge inside her again, this time without holding back.

  Maya's body convulsed around him, and she shut her eyes, unable to focus on anything but the way his cock was thrusting in and out of her.

  ****

  Seth grasped at Maya's hips, unable to hold her firm with her gorgeous brown skin covered in a glistening sheen of sweat. He wanted to hold her tight against him and plunge into her over and over, until she couldn't think of anything but him.

  The sense that he might never get so close to her again lurked at the back of his mind, even as her body claimed his and he knew the hardest orgasm he'd probably ever have was only a heartbeat away. Seth fought the sensation, determined to make her come while he was fucking her. He wanted to be buried inside her when she came this time.

  His hand slid between them, and he pressed his thumb against her clitoris, rubbing small, tight circles against her flesh. Maya cried out at his touch, her body going rigid when a spasm they both felt tore through her, and he knew she was close. Seth pushed harder, faster, intensifying his efforts.

  Don't tell her you love her. Not yet. It's too soon.

  "Seth! Oh, God..."

  She began to come just when he thought he could hold out no longer, moaning low in her throat as her pussy convulsed around him. The way her sweet body surrendered to his and the sound of his name on her lips sent him tearing into his own orgasm.

  Seth lost the ability to breathe, to think, to do anything other than mindlessly push his cock into her over and over again as the pressure in his balls increased until he ejaculated harder than he could ever remember. He bit on his lip, almost growling as he held back the words he wanted to shout, over and over.

  I love you, Maya.

  His ability to see, hear, feel, or sense anything but her came back slowly. Seth rolled away from Maya when he realized he must have collapsed on top of her and she was bearing most of his weight. She didn't rush to cover herself when he moved, and he took advantage of a rare moment to commit the image of her like this to memory. Her body was slick with perspiration and glistened in the gentle glow of the warm afternoon sun. She lay with her lips open and her eyes closed as her breathing slowed, her hair splayed across the pillow behind her. Seth reached for a strand that was stuck to her cheek, intending to pull it off her face, but Maya pulled away as soon as she felt his touch.

  His stomach clenched. Somewhere deep down, he'd known nothing had really changed. He'd caught her at a weak moment. That was all. He'd been a fool to convince himself it was something more.

  "You okay?"

  "Yes, thanks. Just tired." She laughed. "And hot."

  Seth rolled out of the bed, eager to do anything but lie and watch as Maya built another wall between them to keep him away. "I'll turn the air conditioning back on."

  He grabbed his running shorts from the floor and took a moment to freshen up in the bathroom. When he walked in to the bedroom minutes later, the bed was remade, and there was no sign anything had happened at all. Seth felt a breeze and turned to see the patio doors were open wide. He found Maya out on the deck, leaning against a rail, her back to him. She'd put on a beach dress made of a shiny white material that covered her from her neck to her knees in a glittering shroud of fabric.

  Seth watched her. He knew what she wanted, but he just couldn't disappear without at least trying to find out if she was upset.

  "What time is it?"

  Maya's back stiffened at the sound of his voice, but she didn't turn around. "About three, I think."

  He ploughed on, struggling to keep his voice neutral. "That explains why I'm so hungry. I've missed lunch. You wanna go grab something to eat?"

  She turned to face him, her eyes hidden again by a huge pair of sunglasses. "No, I've got work to do. You go ahead."

  He smiled and tried to reach for her hand. "Come on now, surely you're not gonna make me eat alone?"

  Maya folded her arms and walk past him to go back inside her room, sliding the door almost closed behind her. "Seth, please just go. I'm sorry. This should never have happened."

  Seth grabbed the lip of the door, stopping her from sliding it closed, and followed her in to the room.

  "What the fuck is your problem?"

  Maya spun on her heel to face him. "Don't swear at me. Do I have to remind you, I'm your boss?"

  Seth grabbed her shoulders, stopping her from walking away again. "So who was it in bed with me just now? Was it my boss, or the woman who has driven me crazy for two months and can't make up her damned mind just what it is she wants?"

  Maya put her hands on his chest and shoved him away, letting out an angry grunt from the effort of moving him. "What I want is for you to stop messing with my head and my life and stay the hell away from me."

  "I was staying away. After you cut me down to size on our first day here, have I so much as spoken to you or bothered you even once? Hell, I wouldn't have known you were here today if you hadn't called me over."

  Maya's shoulders dropped, and she looked down at her feet. After a couple of steadying breaths, she took off her glasses and met his gaze. "I'm sorry. You're right. This is my fault. I know you deserve an explanation, and I promise I will give you one, but I just can't handle this right now. I need time to think. You probably hate me, and I don't blame you for it, but right now, I want you to leave."

  Seth let her go when she pulled away again. He wanted to argue with her, tell her he wasn't crazy and that he knew there was something big happening between them, but her lip began to tremble and he could see she was going to cry.

  "Okay, I'll go, but don't call me next time you're bored and feeling like fucking with my head."

  He turned his back on her then, too angry to trust himself to say any more. Maya called him just as he was about to step through the door, and he stopped without turning around.

  "I'm so sorry, Seth. I really am."

  Seth couldn't look at her. "Don't worry about me, boss. I'll be doing my best to put this and you out of my mind."

  Chapter Eight

  Seth's mood hadn't improved when he woke up alone in his own bed the next morning. He'd barely slept, and for the first time since they'd met, he didn't cherish the thought of seeing Maya again.

  He showered and shaved and went to find Alice, but she wasn't devouring most of the breakfast buffet as she did most mornings. He'd never met a woman, anyone come to that, with such a huge appetite. Seth had warned her more than once that she would be as fat as a house if she ever stopped training so hard. After grabbing a couple of muffins from a platter and accepting a cup of coffee from the waiter, he went looking for her.

  He found her an hour later after searching high and low. She was still in her room and crying her eyes out. Seth's presence seemed to set off another wave of uncontrolled sobbing, so he sat with her until her tears ran out and she could talk without hiccupping.

  "I've fucked things up, for both of us."

  "What do you mean?"

  "I had a few drinks at a club last night, and that girl was there, you know the one I was talking to on the beach the other day? Well, one thing led to another, and I kissed her."

  Seth shook his head in confusion. "Isn't that a good thing? You've done nothing but talk about her for the last few days. She didn't reject you, did she?"

  Alice cocked an incredulous eyebrow and looked a little more like the ba
llsy, take no prisoners, tough New York cop he'd become pretty fond of. "Please! Like that's gonna happen."

  "So what's the problem?"

  "We came back here and had an incredible night. I mean, really special. About three in the morning, I walked her to my door and I could have sworn there was nobody in the hall outside my room, so I let her kiss me goodbye. When she walked away, I heard a cough behind me and found Ben letting himself into her suite."

  Ben Richards was Chief Executive Producer on the show and a cold bastard motivated only by ratings and money. Alice couldn't have made a more formidable enemy. Seth tried to play it down.

  "Look, I doubt it will make much difference at this stage. The show is already airing. It's not like they can kick you off for being gay, at least not without causing a lot of controversy."

  Alice wasn't convinced. "Yeah, but he could ensure we get voted off this week. I'm pretty sure he could rig it if he wanted."

  "I think you're worrying over nothing."

  "It's not me I'm worried for. It's you. I will hate myself if you lose out on a chance at winning the money you need because of something I did."

  The thought had occurred to him, but he had no intention of making her even more upset by letting her know. The show was set up so one pair was eliminated each week. The pairs with the lowest score after a series of events were nominated for elimination, and then they were at the mercy of a public vote. The last surviving couple at the end of the six week show would have to compete against each other for the grand prize.

  Seth hoped Maya wasn't one of those who’d come up with the idea of a show that encouraged contestants to fall for each other just so it would make better TV when they turned on each other for money at the end.

  "We've won most of the challenges so far. If we carry on the same way, we won't even make it into the vote."

  "He's gonna be watching us closely, Seth."

  "Then we'd better give him a show. Come on, get your butt in the shower. We've got to meet the rest of the crew down in reception in less than an hour."

  Early afternoon found them on the east coast of the island, where the Caribbean Sea gave way to the Atlantic Ocean and the waves formed big rollers, ideal for surfing. The teams were deposited along the beach half a mile from each other. From there, they had to construct a raft from the supplies provided, paddle out to a buoy moored a mile off the coast and bring back a team tag hidden inside. The next stage would require them to jog to a point on top of the hill and attach their tag to the leader board before anyone else.

  Seth and Alice got down to the task, their confidence high, but things didn't go to plan. Neither of them had slept very well, and it showed. Seth had half his usual strength and stamina, and Alice was having trouble concentrating and spent most of the challenge on the verge of tears. Constructing the raft took a long time, and Seth was sure they were way behind the pace by the time they'd retrieved the tag and started the short run to the finish line.

  They came in fourth in a field of five teams. Seth wanted to laugh but couldn't muster the humor or the strength. They'd been worried about Ben sabotaging their chances, but they'd done it to themselves.

  Alice walked away as soon as they crossed the line. He saw her shoulders slump and knew she was probably upset and blaming herself. He followed her, aware that the cameras were still rolling.

  "Alice, wait up."

  Seth caught up with her and pulled her into his arms, intending only to comfort her, but Alice had other ideas. Her lips found his before he knew what she was planning. The kiss wasn't intimate or even very nice, but he couldn't shove her away in front of everyone and make it obvious they were nothing more than friends. Alice broke the kiss and hid her face in the crook of his neck.

  He wanted to ask her what in the hell she thought she was doing, but he still had an open mic clipped to his vest and couldn't risk being overheard. Alice slid out of his arms and turned to walk back to the rest of the crew.

  Seth turned to follow her down and spotted Maya standing beside one of the bright yellow Mini Mokes the crew had driven up to the location, staring right at him. There was no way she'd missed the little show Alice had just put on for the benefit of everyone watching.

  She must have been hiding from him because it was the first time he'd laid eyes on her all day. Guilt crawled up his spine, and the urge to explain what she'd just witnessed before she got the wrong idea almost overwhelmed him. He took a step toward her then stopped dead in his tracks, remembering that she probably didn't give a damn who he kissed anyway. He held her gaze and shrugged, letting her think whatever the hell she wanted.

  Maya climbed into the jeep and drove away without even acknowledging his presence. Seth watched her drive off, angry that he was still so crazy about her that he cared if she got the wrong impression, even after all that had happened between them.

  That anger hadn't left him by the time he got a chance to talk to Alice alone later that evening.

  "Do you mind telling me what the fuck possessed you back there?"

  "Calm down. The idea just came to me. I couldn't warn you before because we were still filming."

  "Well you should have checked with me first."

  "What's the big deal? I did it for you as much as me. After that crappy performance today, I thought we'd better pull something out of the bag to keep us in the game and get Ben off my back."

  "Problem is, Ben wasn't the only person watching."

  "So?"

  "Maya was there."

  Alice groaned and put her head in her hands. "Don't tell me you're still carrying a torch for her. I thought you were over that. You haven't mentioned her in days."

  "There wasn't much to say."

  "Well, then you've got to go find her and explain."

  Seth let out a harsh laugh. "I can assure you, she doesn't give a damn."

  "Yeah, but you do."

  "What can I say? I'm an idiot."

  Alice patted the bed. "Come sit down so we can compare notes on our fucked up love lives."

  By the time Seth headed back to his room just before midnight, he'd told Alice everything. Some of what he'd said had earned him a punch in the arm for being "dumb as a box of rocks". She seemed convinced Maya wouldn't need to be such a bitch to him unless he was getting under her skin. Alice didn't buy any of Maya's lame excuses and told Seth that, in her opinion, the woman was as crazy for him as he was for her. She wouldn't let him leave her room until he promised to go speak to Maya first thing and tell her why she'd caught him kissing another woman.

  Sleep didn't come easily. Seth lay staring at the ceiling, trying to force his brain to shut down and stop weighing the pros and cons of talking to Maya. The urge to run the few miles up the beach and get it over with tonight got him out of bed and into his running gear. But when he looked out of the window and saw the hotel compound was silent and dark, Seth remembered how late it was. He undressed again and flopped back on to the bed.

  Alice seemed sure Maya was in love with him, too, and was probably alone in her room crying her eyes out over what she'd seen. Seth still wasn't convinced, but he couldn't take the chance of ignoring the advice in case it was true. No matter how she might react when she found him back at her door, Seth had to make sure Maya knew the truth. If she was just afraid of her feelings for him, as Alice had claimed, he sure as hell didn't want to give her another excuse to push him away.

  He woke just after dawn and dashed to the bathroom before throwing on his running clothes and heading out into a bright, peaceful morning.

  Seth started his jog up the coast along a network of beautiful beaches that were all open to the public. The sea had shared its riches during the night, and the beachcombers hadn't yet had a chance to collect the seashells, sea-fans, and driftwood dotted along the crystal white sand. A small, purple shell caught his eye, and he scooped it up. Maybe Maya will like it?

  He tried to keep his emotions under control, but as the blood starting pumping through his veins and his a
drenaline levels rose, he couldn't wait to see her again. If Alice was right, and he prayed she was, he wasn't leaving until Maya listened to what he had to say.

  When he got to her door forty minutes after setting off from his hotel, he found her patio doors open wide. Seth tapped on the glass, scaring the maid who was changing the sheets.

  Seth smiled in apology. "Sorry. I didn't mean to sneak up on you. I was looking for Maya Franklin, but I guess she must have left for the day."

  The maid eyed him up for a moment. "Miss Franklin checked out last night."

  Maybe she's decided to move into the hotel with the rest of the crew?

  Seth raised his hand in thanks and ran around to the front of the building to flag down a passing taxi. After a hair-raising ten minute death race down the seacoast road, he got back to his hotel just as the crew were finishing up breakfast.

  He looked for Maya but saw no sign of her in the dining area and headed over to join Alice at their regular table.

  Seth dropped down on the seat opposite her. "Jesus! I hope you feel better than you look."

  "Don't worry about me. I'm just tired. Where the hell have you been?"

  "I went to speak to Maya, but she'd checked out."

  Alice went even paler under her tan. "I know."

  "How?"

  She leaned forward, gesturing for him to come closer so they wouldn't be overheard. "The crew have had their heads together whispering about something since they got up. I knew something was going down, and I was worried it was about me and that girl. Turns out, Maya went to see Ben last night and resigned."

  "What?" Seth leapt to his feet, sending his chair clattering across the terracotta tiled floor. "I've got to speak to her."

  Alice grabbed his arm and forced him to sit down in the remaining chair.

  "Texas, I'm sorry. There's nothing you can do. She's already on her way back to LA."

  Chapter Nine

  "Thanks, come again."