Jonah waved dismissively. "I want to spend time with you. With other women, sometimes it was too much trouble. I don"t feel that with you."
"I don"t want you to, either. Jonah, I"m not looking for 24/7 domination. I"ve never wanted that. When we were together and there was no domination at all, I enjoyed that, too."
Jonah rubbed the back of his neck before sheepishly answering, "I feel a little foolish now."
Anna embraced him. "No," she whispered in his ear. "Don"t feel like that. I want you to tell me."
Jonah cradled her close. "I guess I built it up in my head into something it wasn"t."
Anna blinked in confusion. "I think I followed that."
"Marcus was right."
Anna pulled back. "Marcus?"
"I asked him for some brotherly advice," Jonah revealed.
"Oh?" Anna took a step backwards. She wasn"t sure how she felt about Jonah discussing their relationship.
"Yes," Jonah continued. "Just in a general way. His advice was to talk to you instead of him."
"That sounds like good advice," Anna replied.
"It was." Jonah reached for Anna, pulling her into his arms.
Anna shook with relief. Another hurdle navigated, she thought. He"d surprised her. She hadn"t realized Jonah"s struggle regarding their relationship. She supposed she owed Marcus thanks for his brotherly guidance. Had it been Jonah"s habit to move on instead of working things through? She hoped not.
Jonah"s fingers found their way inside her blouse and caressed Anna"s soft, warm skin. Anna trembled as he stroked her, and she arched closer, needing the rea.s.surance of physical contact. She wanted to soothe him and bring him ease as well.
He swept her hair behind her shoulder and whispered, "I need you."
Anna"s body responded to the demand in his voice. "Yes. Oh yes."
Jonah undressed her slowly, savoring it like a treat as he unb.u.t.toned and unzipped each piece of clothing.
Naked before him, Anna shivered with antic.i.p.ation. She reached out and cupped his jaw tenderly. "Are you going to join me?" Anna"s hand fell back to her side.
"Yes." He stood and removed his clothes as Anna watched, her eyes sparkling with appreciation for his male form. Jonah grasped her hand, then led her down the hall and into the bedroom.
Anna brought his hand to her mouth and kissed each finger. "Tell me what you want."
Jonah gestured toward the bed. "Kneel."
Anna"s palms were moist as she crawled onto the mattress. She knelt in the middle of the bed, crossing her ankles behind her.
Jonah climbed onto the bed behind her and pulled her to his chest. He surrounded her as he spread his hands over her abdomen and slowly moved up to cup her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Anna"s nipples stiffened under his touch. Jonah released one breast and traced his fingers down over her hip and around to her a.s.s. He continued his foray across the soft skin of her hip and thigh. Reaching between her legs, he parted her folds with his finger.
Jonah kissed her shoulder. "I can feel you"re ready." His slick fingers dipped inside.
Anna gasped.
"Bend over. Get on your hands."
Her whole body quivering, Anna leaned forward and placed her palms on the mattress. Heat suffused her skin as Jonah"s hands spread her legs. He pressed against her, hard and urgent. Jonah rubbed his hand up her spine and Anna"s back arched. He followed his hand with his mouth, kissing his way up to her neck.
Jonah nudged her open. "Are you ready?"
Desire twisted in her belly. "Oh please. Yes."
Jonah grasped her hips and penetrated with one smooth, slow stroke. Buried to the hilt, he waited as she relaxed around him.
Stretched, filled, Anna gloried in their joining. She ached for the burning friction that would propel her toward completion, but Jonah didn"t move. Impatience clawed at her and she drove back against him, driving him deeper.
Jonah playfully slapped one a.s.s cheek. "Yes. Do it, Anna."
Anna rocked forward and back again, moaning as he entered her, awakening every nerve ending. She thrust back and forth, pushing him inside repeatedly as she set the pace. A spasm inside signaled her imminent explosion and her tempo slowed.
Jonah spanked her again. "No. Keep going. Make me come."
Determination rose within her. She tightened and lunged against him. Shaking with need, she swayed forward and back again. Muscles twitched, but she held back, waiting, wanting. "Jonah ..." She whimpered his name.
His hands stilled her as he reached his climax. A satisfied moan escaped his throat.
Elation filled Anna. She"d done it. She given him the fulfillment he"d demanded. The knowledge shoved her over the edge and she flew into a carnal mist, her mind and body filling with delicious pleasure.
As the aftershocks faded, they collapsed onto the mattress, snuggling close.
Jonah brushed Anna"s hair off her face. "That was wonderful."
"It was. I don"t want to move from this spot. I"m not sure I can." She laughed.
Jonah kissed her forehead. "Don"t worry. You don"t have to."
Chapter 10.
Anna walked into the lab with trepidation. Since the break-ins, the atmosphere hadn"t felt the same. Usually she was eager to get started, but today worry crowded into her thoughts. She slipped on her lab coat and entered the inner lab. Cabinets were open and drawers ajar. Papers and objects littered the floor and counters.
Not again. How could this happen? She walked back into the outer area and found Jonah making coffee. "Jonah, you will not believe this."
Her tone put him on alert. "What?"
Anna threw up her hands. "Someone"s been in the lab. It"s a mess."
Jonah bit off an expletive. He called Damon"s office and then herded Anna into the inner lab. "What"s missing?"
"I don"t know. With this mess, it will be hard to tell."
"You"re right," Jonah conceded. "I wonder if that wasn"t the point. We"ll need to inventory ... again. This is ridiculous."
Anna shook her head. "I don"t need to inventory my stuff. Nothing important was taken."
Shocked, Jonah turned to her. "What? How do you know?"
Anna climbed up on the counter and gingerly approached the corner. She reached up and slid a ceiling tile aside. Stretching on her toes, her hand fumbled around until she found her target. Anna pulled down a black duffle bag and placed it on the counter. She bent over, placed her hand for balance, and jumped to the floor.
Jonah reached out and steadied her. "What the h.e.l.l?"
"I put everything of importance in the bag. The samples, notes, files - everything."
Jonah laughed. "You aren"t going to believe this."
"What?"
"My stuff is in a box in the corner of Roberts" lab. I figured no one would be able to find it in there."
Anna"s surprised smile held teasing accusation. "Why didn"t you tell me?"
"Why didn"t you tell me?" Jonah shot back.
Anna bit her lip. "It wasn"t because I don"t trust you. I actually felt a little foolish after all the extra security measures Damon put in place."
"I can"t blame you since I did the same thing. I don"t know what"s going on, but I"m beginning to think someone inside might be involved. Otherwise, I don"t see how the additional security didn"t stop the problem."
Anna gasped. "Are you serious? That didn"t even occur to me."
Jonah grimaced. "I don"t like to think about the possibility, but nothing else is making sense."
Anna nervously fiddled with the b.u.t.tons on her lab coat. "If what you say is true, I don"t know how we can protect our research."
"Marcus and I discussed the possibility of outside security consultants. I"m going to proceed with those plans."
"What would that entail?"
"There"s a group we"ve used for other things. I just need to make a phone call. However, it"s important that you don"t say anything to anyone - even Carrie. Unfortunately, everyone is a possible suspect and we don"t want anyone tipped off inadvertently."
Anna nodded. "I understand."
Jonah reached for Anna and gathered her into his arms. "Don"t worry. We"re going to get to the bottom of this."
Anna flopped down on the couch utterly exhausted. "What a day. Please tell me tomorrow will be better."
Jonah stacked his files on the coffee table. "It will be."
Anna smiled. "I"m glad you think so."
"I know so."
Anna laughed. "How do you know?"
"Because you"ll be there," Jonah said with utter seriousness.
Anna closed her eyes and leaned back into the cushions. "Jonah, that"s so sweet. I knew there was a closet romantic hidden inside you."
"I guess you bring it out in me," Jonah confessed.
Anna opened her eyes. Jonah had an expression on his face she hadn"t seen before. "Jonah?"
"It hasn"t been that long, but I know. I just do." His voice conveyed his certainty.
"You know what?" Anna flexed her feet, stretching her tired muscles.
"It"s you. You"re the right woman." Jonah caught her foot and slipped off her shoe. He ma.s.saged his thumbs into the arch.
Anna groaned. "That feels wonderful." His statement finally penetrated her tired mind and she asked, "The right woman for what? I"m not following you, Jonah." Anna"s brow creased in confusion.
"The right woman for me." The statement hung in the air.
Anna"s shock paralyzed her momentarily and she didn"t answer. What did he mean?
Jonah continued, "It isn"t just that you"re beautiful without being vain, which you are. It isn"t just that you"re s.e.xy as h.e.l.l, smart, and interesting all rolled into one. You feel right."
Anna put her hand to her chest as her breath stopped.
"I want to be with you. All the time. It never crosses my mind to avoid you. I"m happy in your company. I can"t imagine that changing."
"You avoided your other girlfriends?" She"d known he sometimes ignored them, but it never occurred to her it was more than that.
Jonah grin turned sheepish. "Well, sometimes. It wasn"t that I didn"t like them, I did. I apparently didn"t like them in the right way. I didn"t even know it until you. You fit. You fit my life. You fit me."
"Jonah, I ..."
He stopped her. "You don"t have to say anything. It"s okay. I just wanted to let you know. I"ve wanted to tell you."
Anna smiled serenely. "Jonah, I love you. I"ve loved you for a long time."
"You have?"
"Oh yes."
Jonah looked surprised, bewildered, and befuddled all at once. "Why didn"t you say something?"