Seductive Illusion Read online

  The first lick of his tongue nearly sent her over the edge, but he kept his strokes light enough to keep her hovering but never able to make the leap. Raising her knees, she planted her feet firmly on the bed and lifted herself to meet his mouth. A low moan rose from the back of her throat.

  Chase continued to lap at her dripping pussy, his tongue flicking in and out of her vagina, teasing at the nerves inside. When he added a second finger, then a third, her inner muscles flexed against them, pulling them deeper inside her greedy channel. She threaded her fingers though the thick silk of his hair, pulling his head closer to her.

  When she felt his little finger trailing down between the cheeks of her ass to the tiny puckered opening of her rectum, a combination of cold and hot raced through her body. Without even thinking about it she reached up with her hands and cupped her breasts, pinching her nipples.

  She cried out in protest as he rose to his knees, pulling his hands away from her.

  No, please,” she begged. “Please don’t stop.”

  He pressed his mouth against hers, shutting off further protest, painting her lips with the taste of her own tart-sweet juices. His tongue thrust between her lips, mingling his taste with her own and sending shock waves all the way to her toes.

  Then that contact was gone, Chase shifted again and Sonia heard the unmistakable sounds of a condom being unwrapped and rolled onto the hard shaft of his cock. In seconds the head was probing at the entrance to her pussy, nudging inside a little. A little more. A little more.

  He rolled his hips and plunged fully inside with one stroke, seating himself to the balls, cock nudging the mouth of her womb. Cupping her buttocks, he lifted her slightly and pulled her body in more tightly. Sonia wrapped her legs around him, arching upward, and then he was moving, in and out, in and out, driving her with the rhythm of his strokes.

  “That’s it,” he rasped, body taut with tension. “Ride with me, Sonia. Clench those tight cunt muscles around me. God, if I’d known it would be this sweet I would have found a way for us to be together a long time ago.”

  His body moved faster and faster, driving her forward to that elusive peak shimmering before her just out of reach. Then, as her climax crested and broke over her, he stiffened, a harsh groan ripped from his throat and he gave himself up to his own release.

  They shook and shuddered together, his cock flexing inside her, the muscles of her pussy tightening around him and milking him. On and on they went, sparks flashing against black velvet beneath her closed eyelids.

  Chase rode her through the aftershocks, crooning to her, murmuring erotic words to her, brushing his mouth against her until they were both fully spent.

  The impact of the floor on her body brought Sonia jarringly awake. Her eyes flew open and she realized she had been so gripped by the dream she was hunching alone on the couch, riding the imaginary orgasm, and had fallen off the couch.

  Great. Just great.

  Pulling herself up, she rubbed her elbow and hoped she didn’t fall asleep on the sun deck of the ship and do the same thing.

  Chapter Two

  Sonia drew in a deep breath and let it out as she looked around her cabin. Stateroom would be more likely, she thought, checking out each luxurious inch of it. The huge bed was covered with a hand-worked nautical quilt, its colors picked up in the two small armchairs and the built-in dressers. A sliding glass door led out onto a balcony, and the bathroom had items even a queen would find sufficient. Delicate jars of lotions, face creams and expensive exotic-smelling perfumes lined the marble counter.

  When the steward carried her bags from the deck and placed them on luggage racks in the long closet, he handed her a square ivory envelope with a red heart on it and a red and white shopping bag. Everything on this ship, it seemed, from the red and white streamers to the showers of heart-shaped confetti that greeted the passengers, was geared to celebrating Cupid’s day. If only his arrow would pierce her.

  “Your invitation for tonight’s event,” he told her with what she swore was a knowing grin, “and your mask. Remember. The purpose of this cruise is for everyone to forget themselves and have fun.” He winked at her as he closed the door behind himself.

  Sonia stood for a long time just running her fingers over the expensive paper and thinking about the steward’s words. Forget yourself. Have fun. Okay. She could do it. Take a chance on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If it failed miserably then only she would know.

  Sitting on the edge of the bed, she opened the envelope and slid out its contents, carefully reading the engraved invitation.

  Tonight is Masked Ball #1

  Please note your table assignment

  You may not leave your cabin unmasked at any time during the cruise

  Remember

  The object of the cruise is to have uninhibited fun

  With a mysterious partner

  You are assigned to Table Four

  Beneath your napkin is a colored star that will match one your chosen partner has

  For tonight we have done the choosing

  After that it’s up to you

  Happy Valentine’s Day and may Cupid’s arrow pierce you and bring you untold pleasure

  Sonia lay back on the bed, reading the invitation again. Uninhibited fun with a mysterious stranger. Wow! Did she dare? Could she be that bold? Let herself go with someone she didn’t even know?

  She pressed the invitation to her chest, feeling her heart accelerate its beat in anticipation. As she sat up, she spotted a white rectangle that had fallen on the floor, apparently from the envelope the invitation was in. This was an invitation to the captain’s cocktail party at five o’clock. Wow again! Had everyone been invited? Would they be in costume?

  But then she read the last line. “Please do not wear your evening clothes and give yourself away. This will be the last time you will appear unmasked.”

  Shaking from a mixture of anxiety and anticipation, she ran her finger over the engraved printing. Well, she told herself, if you hide in your cabin you’ll miss the whole point of the trip.

  Get your act together, girl. This is your chance to have fun! To shake off the boring good-girl image.

  Glancing around the stateroom again, she spotted a silver cooler with a bottle of white wine resting in a nest of ice cubes. Next to it stood a crystal goblet. The wine had been opened, and next to it was another white card that read simply, Enjoy!

  “Oh I could so get used to this.” She sighed and grabbed the bottle and glass.

  Sonia filled the goblet and took two quick swallows of the chilled liquid, enjoying the way the bubbles teased her nose and tongue. With two quick flicks her suitcases were open. Time to pull out the hot new wardrobe her friend Ginny had helped her shop for and dress what she called “the new Sonia”.

  Pleasantly buzzed from the champagne, she stepped into the shower and felt the hot water rain down on her. She’d invested in jasmine shower gel and took the time to rub it over every inch of her wet body. When she reached her pussy, she closed her eyes and tried to imagine that the fingers were Chase’s, not hers.

  “I dream about showering with you,” she whispered, as his fingers stroked over her body. “I want to touch you. Now.”

  “Not yet. My turn first.”

  He rubbed the scented gel everywhere on her body, stroking her breasts as his hands drifted over them, rubbing and pinching her nipples until they stood out in tight peaks. When he reached her pussy he soaped the curls covering it lavishly before pushing two fingers inside her sheath. She rocked forward against his touch, silently signaling him not to stop, to fuck her with his fingers.

  A sound of protest burst from her lips when he suddenly left her empty, to move down her legs to her ankles and her feet. His touch was so gentle, so perfect, that every part of her body became an erogenous zone. Then he turned her around to do her back, using the same feathery touch, down the slope of her buttocks to her thighs and ankles.

  When he spread the cheeks of her
ass and drew a line with soap the length of the cleft, heat shot through her that even the water couldn’t cool. But when he probed at her anus, the tip of his finger breaching the entrance to her rectum, a tiny orgasm raced through her, making all her muscles clench and convulse, her pussy throb and her knees nearly buckle.

  Chase wrapped an arm around her from behind, but no sooner had the last little ripple died away then he took one of her hands and squirted gel into it. Turning her around, he guided that hand to his cock, folding her fingers around it.

  “Wash it for me,” he growled in her ear.

  Sonia needed no further encouragement. Her hand moved up and down in a steady rhythm, his cock growing even thicker and harder in her hand.

  “My balls. Squeeze my balls.”

  She reached for them and cupped them in her other hand, kneading them as she continued to pump his shaft. In what seemed like seconds the erection flexed in her hand, Chase groaned again and his semen erupted in thick spurts, flooding her hand.

  Sonia kept the rhythm until the last spasm had subsided. Chase braced himself with his hands against the shower wall, his breath…

  The now-cold water shocked Sonia out of her reverie. Oh god, she’d done it again. She really, really needed to get hold of herself before venturing out of the cabin. Whoever she ended up with tonight it wasn’t going to be Chase so she’d better get every thought of him washed out of her brain.

  If only I could.

  By the time she’d dried off and redone her hair and makeup three times it was five o’clock and time for the cocktail party. She pulled her thick, sable-brown hair high on her head with a painted ceramic clip that matched her red silk tank top and navy silk slacks. She checked herself from all sides in the full-length mirror.

  Lush, she thought, remembering Ginny’s words of praise. That’s what I am. And if you’ve got it, flaunt it. If someone doesn’t like it, too friggin’ bad. This was her chance to let herself go.

  When she entered the main salon where the reception was being held she was immediately assaulted by the loud buzz of conversation. Smartly dressed waiters circulated around the room taking orders and serving guests. Ice clinked in glasses and a ripple of laughter punctuated the noise here and there. It did, indeed, seem as if everyone on the cruise ship had been invited to this welcome event.

  And Valentine’s Day decorations were everywhere. Hearts hung on red wires and spun lazily in the air-conditioned breeze. Posters of Valentine’s Day movies decorated the walls. The waiters wore red jackets and the cocktail napkins were red with white hearts.

  “You won’t have any fun if you spend all your time in the doorway.” The voice was hot and rough-edged. A warm finger trailed the length of her spine.

  Sonia turned and looked up into a granite face softened by blue eyes and thick lashes. His smile sent a slight tingle through her. Would this be who she met at dinner tonight? Was she assigned to sit with him? Did he turn her on the way she’d dreamed about? Well, maybe a little, but certainly not the way Chase Morgan did.

  But Chase wasn’t here and this man was. And apparently he liked curvy women. She gave him a wide smile. “You’re right. I guess I need to mingle.”

  “Let me show you the way then.” He cupped her elbow with his palm and led her through the crowd to a corner of the room, heat spread from the touch of his fingers to all her nerve endings. Just a touch and already her pulses were throbbing and her cunt quivering in anticipation. He lifted his other hand to signal a waiter. “What are you drinking?”

  “Oh. White wine, please.”

  “So.” His eyes raked over her, lingering on where her nipples poked at the silk of her top and the way the slacks fit the curve of her hips. “I guess we should introduce ourselves. I’m Mark.”

  She felt his gaze still burning on her. Her body was definitely reacting to this man, her breasts tightening and the folds of her pussy dampening.

  It doesn’t matter that he’s not Chase. And apparently my body doesn’t care either. I’m here for fun and I’m going to have it. And maybe the hottest sex of my life. I hope.

  “Sonia,” she told him. “Nice to meet you.”

  “I could say the same in spades.” He took their drinks from the water’s tray. His fingers pressed against hers when he handed her the wine. His eyes travelled over her again. “You are here by yourself, right?”

  Sonia nodded. “Yes. And it’s my first cruise.”

  “Well then.” He took a healthy swallow of his drink. “Let me offer my services as your personal cruise director. To make sure you don’t miss anything.” He leaned closer, his breath fanning her cheek. “And I mean anything.”

  Wow! He was definitely interested. In her, plain round boring Sonia. Mark was the epitome of the alpha male and as he all but pressed his body to hers, she had a sudden image of him naked and more liquid soaked her crotch. Again she wondered if they would be seated at the same table tonight. Was he the one she’d be paired with? There was something deliciously wicked about having your partner preselected for you.

  But then she thought, if we’ve already seen each other, where’s the disguise?

  As if he read her thoughts, Mark said, “I guess this is our one chance to look each other over. Tonight everything will be different. We could be seated next to each other and not even realize it.”

  Sonia nibbled at her bottom lip. “I guess that’s true. A mask changes everyone’s appearance.”

  “Just in case we don’t find each other tonight,” he went on, “maybe you’d like to have breakfast with me in my cabin tomorrow morning.” His mouth was close to her ear and his tongue flicked out just to trace it lightly.

  She shivered at the touch, but before she could answer, a hand cupped the bare skin of her shoulder and an even deeper voice said, “Don’t tell me you’re hogging this beauty all to yourself, Patterson.”

  Sonia turned her gaze to see a tall, tanned muscular body in a shirt of some soft material that matched the green of his eyes. His face, as rough-hewn as Mark’s, was topped with sun-streaked, light brown hair. Where his hand touched her shoulder her skin burned with excitement. Holy shit! Maybe this cruise was really what she needed to get over her hang-ups. She’d barely arrived here and now she had two men interested in her? Was this really happening?

  When she looked back at Mark his face was tight with irritation.

  “Remind me never again to go on one of these cruises with a friend,” he commented.

  “That doesn’t seem too friendly.” There was laughter in the stranger’s tone. “Aren’t you going to introduce me to this gorgeous creature?”

  “Not willingly. But never let it be said I don’t have manners. Sonia, meet Trent Hayes. World-class poacher of other people’s women.” He gave the other man a hard look. “And I found her first so back off.”

  Trent’s grin had a devilish quality. “But maybe I’ll be the one at her table tonight. Remember, it’s the luck of the draw.”

  Mark draped an arm casually but possessively around Sonia’s shoulders. “But I’ve got dibs on her free time.”

  “Listen, guys.” Sonia loved the fact that she’d drawn the attention of both of these men, but she didn’t want to get in the middle of a testosterone battle. Not yet, anyway. Not until her confidence had gotten a bigger shot in the arm. Already she worried how she’d handle one total stranger, let alone two. Extricating herself as gracefully as she could, she took a step away from both of them. “I would hate to have to choose between the two of you, so why don’t we see what happens tonight?”

  “Maybe you wouldn’t have to choose.” Trent moved closer again, lowered his head and brushed his mouth against hers. “Haven‘t you heard three can be more fun than two?”

  A ménage? Holy shit! In her wildest fantasies maybe she’d be up for a threesome, but in reality Sonia knew these men were way out of her league. Time to get back to the kiddies pool before she went deeper over her head.

  Sonia took another step backward, bumping
into the person behind her. “Sorry,” she apologized, then turned back to Trent and Mark. “That sounds very intriguing, but shouldn’t we be mixing and meeting more people? And paying our respects to the captain?”

  “If you say so, but first a little sample to tide me over.” Mark pulled her back against his body with one arm and pressed his mouth to hers.

  His kiss was more predatory than Trent’s. She was so startled by its intensity she opened her own mouth without thinking and Mark’s tongue probed the hot, wet cavern. He swept the inside of her mouth with broad strokes, his arm pulling her against his body so his erection pressed against her. As if waiting to pounce, her underlying anxiety pushed to the surface. Forcing herself to focus, she pushed away and looked from one man to the other.

  “Maybe I’ll see you both later?”

  “Don’t forget breakfast,” Mark reminded her. “Cabin one twelve on the Aloha deck.”

  “I’ll be there too,” Trent added in his deep sexy voice.

  “But that wouldn’t be fair,” she protested. “We’ve already seen each other. Know each other now. The masks would be no good. No, I think we need to keep to the spirit of the cruise. Always wear our masks and have encounters only with mysterious strangers,” she babbled quickly, wanting to get away from these men and their blatant sexuality.

  Her heart thudding slightly at the thought of what she’d just turned down, she was still convinced she was right. The masks provided an illusion of mystery, of anonymity, that allowed everyone to cast aside their inhibitions.

  Holding tightly to her wine goblet, she wiggled her way through the crush of people to shake hands with the captain and thank him for the party.

  “Just the beginning,” he smiled at her, his faded blue eyes both kind and knowing. “We want this cruise to be nonstop fun for everyone on board. Be sure to enjoy yourself, Miss Caffey.”

  Sonia was sure that would not be a problem.

  * * * * *

  He watched her enter the cocktail reception, spotting her the moment she appeared in the doorway. The tank top she wore emphasized luscious breasts, the nipples barely concealed by the bra she was wearing. Or maybe she wasn’t wearing one at all. The thought of it made his mouth water. How he’d love to take one of them in his mouth, graze his teeth against it and suck it until she moaned with pleasure.