Wrath's Storm: A Masters' Admiralty Novel Mari Carr (great books of all time .txt) 📖

And just like that, Annalise laughed, Jakob grinned, and once again, Walt had managed to break the tension, to pull them out of their heads and into the moment.

“Are you trying to get us drunk, Dr. Hayden?” Annalise asked, though Jakob didn’t miss the big gulp of wine she’d taken before her question.

Walt quirked an eyebrow, his face pure mischief. “Absolutely. And then I fully intend to take advantage of both of you. With any luck, the wine will loosen Jakob’s tongue and we can get him to serenade us in bed with some more of that dirty talk of his. God, I love a kinky bastard.”

Jakob liked the way Walt said his name, with a slight American accent. He’d been named after his paternal grandfather. He’d never met his Opa—he’d died before Jakob was born—but from his Oma’s stories of him, he knew his Opa had been a prominent man in their city, a judge and a politician. The name had always felt too big for him.

However, hearing it from Walt didn’t feel ridiculous at all. It felt right.

Suddenly, this Jakob—Walt’s Jakob—felt like the sort of man who went to a football match with his friends, who drank a pint of Krombacher in the pub, who laughed and joked and fell in love easily. He wasn’t the kind of man who stood by the door all night, silently pining for a woman he knew was too good for him, but still wanted.

“I like the way you say my name.” Jakob inwardly cringed when he realized how weird that probably sounded, but he found it harder and harder to conceal his thoughts from them.

No. It wasn’t hard. He could do it if he wanted to.

Walt tilted his head. “Am I saying it wrong?”

Jakob shook his head. “No. Just sort of American. Makes me feel less like my Opa’s namesake and more like my own man.”

“You’ve got a cool name,” Walt said. “Guess you could figure out I’m Walter, but no one except my mama called me that. And only when I’d pissed her off but good.”

“But good?” Annalise asked with a giggle. Jakob laughed as well, enjoying the playful way Walt liked to deepen his American—Southern, he called it—accent to amuse them.

Walt gave him a cocky grin. “I have to admit I was hoping you’d pick up on the two more important words in my comment earlier. Kinky and dirty.”

Annalise made use of the feet in Walt’s lap, flexing them against the crotch of his pants. It didn’t take more than a few strokes before Walt’s erection became evident. “Dirty and kinky, you say?” she teased.

Jakob threw back his glass of wine, swallowing it all in one long drink, before placing the glass on an end table. “I’m not sure your body is ready for that, Annalise.” She’d taken quite a beating yesterday and the effects were written too clearly on much of her body, from her bruised and swollen shoulder and shins to the black eyes she’d attempted to conceal with makeup. “And I don’t think…”

“What do you want?” she asked Jakob.

He glanced from her to Walt, then back again, trying to decide if he should speak what was truly on his mind…no, in his heart.

Walt lifted her feet from his lap and stood, reaching down to help her rise as well. Holding her hand, the two of them walked over to Jakob, the three of them standing so closely, Jakob could feel the warmth of their breath on his face.

“Say it, Jakob.”

Walt was using his name, saying it with that American accent on purpose, offering Jakob the opportunity to be his own man tonight, with them.

“I want to make love to you, Annalise. I want to make love to both of you.”

Jakob only caught a glimpse of her smile before she moved even closer, their lips touching in a kiss that was more powerful than he could have imagined.

Her lips parted and he tasted the wine on her tongue, savored it. Her hands rested on his hips, pulling him closer. Had her shoulder not been so damaged, he suspected she would have lifted her hands higher, wrapped them around his neck.

Jakob broke the kiss when he felt Walt’s hand on his back, his hand fisting his shirt. Opening his eyes, he saw that Walt had a similar grip on Annalise. He was embracing both of them, as much a part of the kiss as they were.

Annalise turned toward Walt, who gave her his own gentle kiss. Both of them were cognizant of her injuries, of the need to take care with her.

Jakob watched as they kissed until he couldn’t wait a moment longer. “My turn,” he all but growled.

Annalise smiled when Walt turned toward him. The kiss he shared with Walt was completely different from the one he’d just given Annalise. There was no need for softness, gentleness. With Walt, he could unleash all his darkest, roughest passions without fear.

Walt gave as good as he got, biting Jakob’s lower lip as they pulled apart.

“I want both of you to go to the bedroom,” Jakob commanded. “And take off your clothes. Nothing is stopping us tonight. I don’t care if the building burns down around our heads.”

Walt grinned. “I suspect we’re going to be the ones setting this place on fire.”

Annalise led the way to the bedroom, glancing over her shoulder with eyes that reflected pure seduction.

As they entered the bedroom, Jakob took in the large king-size bed. Obviously, they hadn’t done a very good job hiding their attraction from Nikolett. Despite the fact she was angry at them for not telling her about Eric’s return, she’d still gone out of her way to offer them comfort and time to be alone together.

Annalise twisted to face them as she slipped each button on her blouse free.

Neither he nor Walt looked away as she slowly parted the material and slipped it over her shoulders. Jakob’s gaze slid to her shoulder once more,