by A. C. Arthur
But his fingers only continued to hover over the dagger. For all that his mind had seen him picking it up, his hand hadn’t moved. He pushed his arm forward, yet, his hand still didn’t move. In fact, it appeared the dagger was sinking further into the mattress. The more he thought about taking it, the more it seemed to distance itself from him.
“What are you doing? How did you get here?”
He spun around to see Ravyn standing in front of that now open barn door, light from the bathroom pouring out into the room, surrounding her so that she appeared ethereal.
“I’m here to save you.”
The words were true and pitiful as fuck all at the same time, which was probably why she lunged at him.
* * *
“I’ll repeat myself only because you’re standing there looking like you don’t comprehend English. How did you get in here?”
She trembled as anger mixed with fear coursed through her body, a feeling she despised. Her knife was on the other side of her bed, beneath a pillow. There was another one in the top drawer of her desk, but both locations were across the room. Past the man standing in the center of her most personal space in this world.
“I need to take this,” he said as simply as if that would make this situation cool.
Ravyn walked with intent steps toward him. Something inside said it wasn’t necessary for her to move fast, but to simply get closer to the dagger...her dagger.
“You cannot take what’s mine.”
“It’s not yours. It belongs to a man named Daron Robles. You stole it from his house and now he’s drafted every enforcer in the state, as well as private investigators, to find it and when they do, the plan isn’t to put you in a cell, but in a coffin instead.”
His brow furrowed as he spoke, and she could see the wrinkle in his forehead above the sunglasses he always wore. For some reason he looked broader, more muscular than he had earlier in the alley.
“I took what he didn’t need. The senator has more money than most families in Burgess, certainly more than we have down here... How did you know where I lived and who let you in?”
Panic suddenly began to spread and she turned, moving to the door. “If you hurt Cree or any of my residents, I’ll kill you with my bare hands!” She was yelling as she reached for the doorknob, only to be stopped when his palm flattened against the door inches above her head.
“I didn’t hurt anyone and it doesn’t matter how I got here. What matters is that I’m here to help and you have no choice but to listen to me.”
“Lies!” she yelled, because even though parts of what he’d said were true, trust still didn’t come easily to her. She turned around quickly, bringing her knee up to land in his groin.
He was faster, grabbing her leg midair and pushing her until her back slammed against the door. It didn’t matter that the air had momentarily whooshed out of her lungs, she knew he wasn’t being completely honest with her. He’d been lying to her since that first night on the roof.
“Don’t try that again,” he warned, his voice a low, deep rumble.
If she allowed herself to get past how he’d come to be here—which she would not—the way her traitorous body warmed at his touch was pissing her off. She pushed against his chest with all her might and he stumbled back. Pulling her with him, they both tumbled to the floor. Taking advantage of her position on top of him, Ravyn wrapped her hands around his neck, or rather, she placed both her hands at his throat—they weren’t big enough to wrap completely around his neck. But she squeezed anyway. His glasses slipped to the side as his head thrashed but before she could get a glimpse at his eyes, he flipped their bodies over while simultaneously grabbing her wrists and pulling her hands away from his neck.
She grunted as he pinned her to the floor and his glasses eased back into place. A slither of disappointment eased through her and she wondered why seeing his eyes made any difference to the fact that he’d just broken into her room.
“Keep still,” he told her between clenched teeth.
True to form, Ravyn didn’t listen and she squirmed to try and get him off her. It didn’t work. What the movement did was rub her center—the part of her body covered only by the thin cotton of her panties, because her nightshirt had ridden up above her hips in all the motion—right up against his now-thickening erection.
A deep, almost animalistic sound rumbled in his chest as his lips stayed closed in a tight line, his fingers flexing on her wrists. Heat shot down to her plump folds, causing the already stimulated flesh to throb, her essence pouring from her as if she’d just worked herself almost to the point of climax.
“Don’t. Move. Again.”
His words seemed forced and this time Ravyn listened. While she’d been thinking about him and the reaction her body was having to him most of the night, she’d never imagined actually being in this position with him. Who could have predicted he would show up here and straddle her with his thick arousal poking persistently against her juncture? She damn sure couldn’t have and she had no idea what to do about it.
“I want you to answer me. If you don’t, I’m going to scream and then I’m going to grab that dagger and slip it into your gut.” She could speak slowly and deliberately, as well.
“You’re not going to do either of those things,” he said without missing a beat. “And the reason you’re not is because you want to protect this Cree person and whoever else lives here with you.”
He couldn’t know about Safeside. Nobody knew and it was better that way. It was how they’d survived for the past four years and how they would continue to survive in a world that didn’t give a crap about them.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
His head tilted to the side, an act that had a few of his locks sliding over his shoulder.
“Then tell me what’s going on here, Ravyn. Explain to me why I’ve watched you stealing everything from medical supplies from a delivery truck to an ancient artifact in the past few weeks. And while you’re at it, tell me why you live underground when there’s ample housing in the city.”
The light from the bathroom poured into the otherwise dark bedroom area, creating a slash of gold across sepia-toned skin. He’d chucked the jacket he normally wore, so now his muscles were only separated from her touch by the thin layer of his dark T-shirt. His hair looked soft and her fingers would have reached to touch it—if they weren’t being held down by him at the moment. And why was he holding her down? Why wasn’t she screaming or fighting harder against him? Every time she was near this man things went wrong.
“I live here because those asshole enforcers made it impossible for me to live in peace anywhere else. Are you satisfied now? Will you run back and tell your colleagues they succeeded in running me away?”
The words burned her throat as her body once again vibrated with the force of her anger and the impossible fear she thought she’d pushed back a long time ago.
He stared down at her a few seconds longer than she thought was necessary. Or at least she thought he was staring at her, it was hard to tell since his eyes were still shielded.
“I’m not an enforcer. What did they do to you?”
She shook her head. “No. It’s your turn. How did you get here?”
If they were going to have a question and answer session it damn sure wasn’t going to be one-sided.
“I’ve known where you go at night for weeks.”
“That doesn’t explain how you got in.”
“It’s my turn,” he said with a shake of his head. “What did the enforcers do to you?”
Ravyn snapped her lips shut and stewed for a moment before accepting that she’d started this little game, so she had no choice but to play along. It was becoming more difficult to focus on either of their words with his arousal steadily pressing into her, staying still was almost becoming impossible.
; She sighed, a little more from frustration than irritation that she was about to talk about something she’d never talked about with anyone other than Cree before.
“They stole money from me. Every month they came into my bookstore demanding payment for protection. They’re public servants who earn a salary based off my tax dollars. I didn’t owe them anything more. When they grew angry at my continued refusal, they burned my store down.” But not before beating the crap out of her and permanently injuring Cree.
A muscle in his jaw twitched. It was visible through the low-clipped beard, and her fingers moved again as she thought about touching him there.
“No. I’m definitely not an enforcer.” This was the third time he’d told her this, and still she had doubts. There was definitely something this guy wasn’t telling her, and at the same time there was no denying his body was making her feel things she hadn’t wanted to feel in a very long time.
“Then, what do you want with me? Why do you insist on following me talking about how you’re trying to protect me?”
“Because I am.” He turned his face away from her and cursed when he moved, pressing his erection against her panty-covered mound and then groaning.
Dammit, she felt like moaning too, but instead closed her eyes to the rush of sensation filling her body. It wasn’t a foreign sensation, because she was more than familiar with finding her own pleasure. But there’d never been a man who could give her this feeling. The only ones she’d ever had—four years ago—were in and out by her insistence. So, why this guy and why now? Maybe because he wasn’t like any man she’d ever known. Whether that was good or bad, the jury was still out.
Something wasn’t right here, outside of her not trusting everything he said. And it wasn’t just that he’d somehow managed to break into her private and supposedly secure location. No, it was more than that, something that had been simmering on a slow boil between them since the first day she’d noticed him.
“This is a, um, strange way of protecting me.” Her words were a low whisper, but that was okay since his face was only inches away from hers now. He’d leaned in closer after moving over her and she just lay there, not doing a damn thing to stop him.
His expression appeared tight, almost painful, as he held his body still over her. She wondered what he would do if she moved at this moment? How would it feel? Would they both combust? It was foolish and Ravyn didn’t tout herself as being a foolish person, but she’d never been in this position before. She’d never felt this aroused and had a hot guy between her legs at the same time.
“I’m gonna do better,” he said and then shook his head. “Damn! You’re so hot down there.”
He wasn’t lying. Her vulva felt swollen and the crotch of her panties were damp with all the essence that had dripped from her since he’d been on top of her. His voice sounded so tortured, but she didn’t know how to stop being aroused. She moved only the top half of her body, trying to inch away from him, but his knees trapped her lower body and the movement only succeeded in rubbing her throbbing juncture against the hard bulge in his jeans.
“If you don’t want to get fucked right here and now, I’d suggest you not do that again.”
“That’s not an option.” She had no idea when she’d made that decision or why, but the words tumbled out of her mouth without a second thought and now her body protested, with her nipples hardening to painful peaks and her thighs beginning to tremble.
“I’m going to move off of you,” he said, but his face was going lower, until his mouth was right at her ear. “It’s going to feel like I’m sliding over you, my dick easing over your pussy, but I’m gonna get up. I promise. And then we can finish talking about the dag—”
Before he could finish that last word his body was moving. It seemed of its own volition, because he cursed under his breath and she could swear she felt his arms tremble as he continued to lean most of his weight on them. Her legs spread a little wider. There wasn’t much room before they were bumping against his knees, but as they spread he eased down farther, groaning as the action pressed his erection farther between her legs. Encouraged, she wiggled her hands and almost smiled with glee when he released them.
With quick motions she brought her legs up to press against his groin and extended her arms forward to chop against both sides of his neck. That was supposed to send him reeling back in pain, at which time she would roll from beneath him and get to the dagger he’d so helpfully reminded her of, but it didn’t work out that way.
Steele was even faster than Ravyn thought she was. He moved his arms to wrap around her waist, rolling over onto his back and pulling her on top of him. But it was what he did when she was there that shifted everything that had transpired between them so far. It jolted her senses and sent some sort of sparks shooting throughout the room the moment he locked a hand to her nape while the other arm held her tightly and securely to him. He brought her head down and before she could think of whether she wanted to scream, curse or bite him as a last-ditch effort to get free, he kissed her.
His lips were warm and powerful, taking her mouth expertly while his hand tilted her head and his tongue slipped easily inside. She hadn’t wanted to open her mouth and join in the kiss. Oh hell yes she did and she was glad of it! The warmth she’d felt when he’d first fallen on top of her was nothing compared to this sensual takeover. His tongue slid alongside hers as if he were actually drinking her. He hungrily gulped and she readily reached for more. The hand around her waist moved until his palm was gripping her ass. Her entire body quaked at the sensation and a moan escaped when that hand on her ass slid down until his fingers were pressing between her legs.
Ravyn cupped his face with her hands—just in case he tried to end the kiss, because she wasn’t having that, not now. And she spread her legs wider, a little whimper escaping her chest that for an instant made her feel as if she were begging. It didn’t last long and if he heard it he was acquiescing, because he slipped his fingers beneath the waistband of her panties to find the waiting heat of her center. Pressing past her thick, wet lips, he thrust deeply. With his fingers inside of her and his tongue orchestrating some dangerously sexy duel with hers, Ravyn felt like she was drowning. Like at some point this room had started to fill with water and she was now floundering to keep afloat.
She took that moment to suck his tongue into her mouth, then pulled back slightly and did the same with his bottom lip. All the while he had two fingers pressed deep inside her, moving them in and out until her hips began to undulate with his motions. Moaning echoed throughout the room and it took her a few seconds to realize it was her making that keening sound. The blunt tips of his fingers ran along her scalp as he wrapped long strands of hair around his fingers and pulled until there was a tingle of pain. But that pain didn’t last long, as it was immediately engulfed by the pleasure of his finger that had slipped from her opening to circle around her clit. She couldn’t think, couldn’t see, couldn’t move, it felt so good. Her thighs trembled and she pulled her mouth away from his to clench her teeth.
“Come for me, little hellion.”
His words were husky and he didn’t sound like the same man who’d been asking her fifty questions just moments ago. She wanted to come, oh damn did she want to and she was going to, all he had to do was keep doing what he was doing.
“Yes,” she hissed. “Right. There.”
He circled his finger a little faster and she felt her hips bucking over him as spurts of pleasure penetrated her deep down inside.
“Come, right in my hand,” he said. “Next time it’ll be in my mouth.”
Her eyes closed so tight Ravyn feared they might never open again. She had to release the tension on her teeth before she got lockjaw or something, but her hands tightened on his face as she lowered her forehead to his. “Yes. Yes. Yes!”
The moment she began to shake all over, he flattened the pad of his finger over he
r clit, circling until she was drained of every ounce of essence she possessed.
“Damn,” she whispered.
“Yeah,” he replied, looking at her like a man who knew he wasn’t finished with her. “We’re both damned now.”
Chapter Seven
“So, you need money?” he asked after another few moments of silence, when they were both getting up off the floor.
He was back to the dagger because that was all he should be focused on here. There should be no thoughts about how good it felt to bring her to release and feel that warmth flowing into his hands. No matter how blissful those things were.
Watching her out of the corner of his eye as he made his way to the bathroom, he saw her pulling down the nightshirt that was still too short. He switched on the water, washed his hands and came back to ask yet another question. “How much do you need?”
“As good as ‘this’ was,” she said with a wave of her hand toward the floor. “You can’t afford my price.”
All he could do for the first few seconds was stare at her. She was sitting in the center of the bed, legs crossed, hands resting in her lap. It was such an innocent pose and she looked so unassuming and pure, but there was more beneath the surface. He shouldn’t feel the urge to peel back those layers to learn about the real Ravyn Walsh, because it didn’t matter. He just didn’t want her to die, not like Opal had.
“Don’t be coy, you’re better than that. If you have a price in mind, name it.”