by Lora Leigh
It wasn’t smart. Holding her heart back from him would be the hardest thing she had ever done in her life. But she needed this. She needed him. Once and for all she needed to exorcise the ghosts of her own fantasies. She had known since she was no more than a teenager that Reno was her greatest weakness. And now she knew he could destroy her.
She moaned in protest as his hands pulled at her arms, bringing them from around his neck as he gripped her wrists in one hand and stretched them over her head, his eyes lifting as he watched her with narrow-eyed hunger.
“Stay.” His voice was impossibly dominant as he issued the sensual order. “Keep your arms up, your hands right there. Don’t make me tie them, Raven.” Then he smiled, a slow, intensely erotic curve of his lips that had her fighting to breathe. “Or is that what you want?”
To be tied up? Hell no! But she couldn’t get the thought out of her head. As she clenched her hands, keeping her arms in place, she could almost feel the restraints holding her, sending her imagination flying until she felt him move.
“Oh God. Reno . . .” His fingers released the little purse at her side, then slid the zipper of her skirt down.
“I want you naked, Raven,” he told her firmly. “If you intend to say no, baby, you better do it now.”
No. No. No. No. Her head was screaming the word, but it wouldn’t come to her lips. Instead, she gripped the armrest of the couch, shuddering as he eased the skirt over her thighs, moving away from her to strip the material completely off her body.
“Sweet mercy,” he whispered as he stood by the couch, staring down at her.
Raven knew the point of no return had already been reached. There was no turning back now and she knew it. She didn’t want to turn back.
She watched, breathing harshly as he toed his sneakers off, and his hands went to the waistband of his jeans. As though in slow motion, she watched, the metal buttons were flicked open, the jeans parting, revealing the dark material of his snug boxer briefs.
Seconds later, hooking his fingers in the waistband of the briefs, he peeled off both jeans and underwear, the thick length of his erection, the purplish head bulging, heavy veins straining against satiny flesh, was free.
“I want to touch you,” she whispered, her gaze locked on his cock. “Please, Reno. I need to touch you.” Her mouth watered with that need.
“Later, baby,” he groaned. “If you touch me now, I’ll lose it.”
He knelt on the floor then, spreading her legs until one rested on the floor, the other, knee bent, still on the cushions of the couch. Leaning forward, his tongue flicked out to lick over her nipple before drawing it into the incredible heat of his mouth.
“Reno. Oh God. Reno. It’s so good. . . .” She writhed beneath him, unable to keep from watching, her eyes locked on his lips as he drew her nipple into his mouth. His tongue rasped it as he sucked it deep, sending sharp fingers of lightning-hot sensation rushing straight to her cunt.
It was incredible. Unlike anything she had known before. Anything she could have imagined.
He growled, the sound vibrating through her, throbbing through her clit and causing her hips to arch with an involuntary violence.
“Easy, baby,” he whispered, kissing his way to the other mound, his tongue licking over the tip before he drew it in as well.
“So good,” she whimpered. “Reno, I don’t know if I can stand it.”
She was arching to him, trying to press her flesh deeper into his mouth, willing to beg if that was what it took as she watched him tug at the peak, his cheeks working rhythmically with his tongue to make her crazy.
“You can stand it, baby.” His voice was deeper, more sexual as his lips began to drift down her stomach. “I’ve dreamed of eating you like candy.”
He was going to kill her. She was certain of it. She stared at him, dazed, out of her mind with the sensations spearing through her like wicked fingers of fire as his lips trailed to the elastic band of her minuscule thong.
“So pretty,” he whispered as his head lifted, his hands moving to her inner thighs, spreading her legs further as his lips smoothed over the crease between her leg and the heated flesh of her cunt. “So sweet and hot.”
“Oh sweet God . . . Reno . . .” His lips capped over the hot mound, covered by the silk of her panties as his tongue pressed against the tortured nub of her clit.
She tried to close her legs, to clench against his head, to hold him in place while she rubbed against him and rocketed through space. His brief chuckle was her warning that he wasn’t going to allow that. His hands tightened on her legs, holding them in place as his tongue prodded at the tormented, nerve-ridden flesh.
“Reno, really. I swear. I don’t think I can take it,” she cried out desperately. “I’ve waited too long. Fuck me now.”
He jerked up as he stared back at her, his eyes nearly black as his gaze clashed with hers. The groan that tore from his throat was tormented as his hands ripped the panties from her and he moved quickly over her.
She felt the broad head of his cock part the swollen folds waiting below. She was slick, incredibly wet as he pushed against the hungry opening of her vagina.
“Damn, you’re hot,” he whispered as he lifted her legs, bringing them to his hips, holding her still as he pressed closer, grimacing as the crest penetrated the snug opening.
“Now, Reno,” she begged shamelessly, her nails digging into the couch as she strained closer. “Please. Now.”
A throttled groan left his chest as he surged inside her, hard and deep, forcing his way past unused muscles as the fierce, thick length of his cock impaled the tight sheath.
Raven’s eyes widened as a shocked cry of pain left her lips. She struggled beneath him, her hips writhing as her hands flew to his chest, pressing against him as she fought to adjust to the fiery, involuntary stretching of her vagina.
“Fuck!” He stared down at her in shock, his hands at her hips, flexing, gripping her tight as his erection throbbed almost violently inside her.
“Reno.” She tried to smile as she forced herself to relax. She had read about this. It was supposed to hurt the first time. She knew it would hurt the first time. Everyone said it would. She had to relax.
She felt her pussy ripple around him as she concentrated on the muscles there, forcing herself not to clench tighter around him, but to allow the flesh to accommodate him, to clasp him snugly rather than fighting against the penetration.
“You should have told me.” He was panting above her, the struggle for control obvious on his face. “Dammit, Raven, you weren’t supposed to be a virgin.”
Her eyes narrowed. She could feel the pleasure building now, the tension gathering in her clit, in her womb, the release that had tormented her since his first touch.
“And you’re not supposed to be an asshole, but you are,” she gasped. “Now finish it, dammit.”
She flexed around him, moaning at the incredible sensation, the snug fit, the feel of him inside her, a heavy thick weight pressing against delicate, sensitive nerve endings.
A strangled scream left her throat as he began to move. The short, incredibly firm strokes made her crazy. She couldn’t stand it. She strained against him, her hips meeting his as she fought for breath.
He was being careful. Dammit, she didn’t need him to be careful. This was her first time, her first real climax, her first everything. She wanted it all.
“Harder,” she panted, twisting against him as her fingers gripped his shoulders. “Do it harder.”
“I don’t want to hurt you, Raven.” His voice was more an animal growl than a groan. “Dammit, wait.”
“No.” Her head thrashed against the cushions. “Harder, Reno. Fuck me. Fuck me like we both need it. Do it now.”
As though her words triggered the desired response, he moved over her, bracing one elbow at her head, tucking the other beneath her rear to lift her to him as he nearly pulled free.
The hard stroke of his cock over the tender nerve endings
had her arching closer, eager for more, a second before his control disintegrated.
Raven held on to Reno as he began to ride her hard and deep. She was shocked at her own cries, primitive, desperate—but even more shocking was the pleasure ripping through her.
The pressure building in her clit as his pelvis stroked against it was almost painful. His hips lunged against hers, driving his erection to the hilt inside her over and over again as she felt her mind begin to unravel. She couldn’t survive it, surely no one could take such pleasure and ever be the same again.
The sensation built in her womb, her clit, the overfilled recess of her pussy as she felt the muscles there tightening, the tension coiling. . . .
“Raven.” His head lifted, his gaze spearing hers as her eyes drifted open. She was so close. So close. “Are you protected?”
The words barely registered; the meaning was lost to her.
“What?” she gasped. She needed more. She tightened further as his cock surged inside her with a rhythm that left her fighting just to hold on to her sanity.
“Protected, Raven,” he groaned, his hand tightening in her hair as he forced her attention to him. “The pill. Goddamn, anything. Are you protected?”
Protected. The pill. Thank God her doctor had prescribed them to regulate her monthly cycles. “Yes . . . ,” she wailed as the pleasure began to clash and careen inside her. “The pill. Yes. Oh God, Reno, harder. Harder . . .”
He gave it to her harder. Bracing his knees on the couch, the hand at her hip clenching with bruising strength, he gave her what she needed.
“Fuck. Come for me, Raven. Come now, baby. . . .”
There was no need for the harsh command. She was holding on the edge, desperate to fly to the center of the shocking heat consuming her. She didn’t come. She didn’t release. She dissolved. She fragmented. She exploded. She lost herself as the pleasure became a white-hot conflagration that ripped through her soul and sent her flying to space and beyond.
She was only distantly aware of him looming over her, driving harder, deeper, as a new, surging flood of heat inside her sent her higher. All she knew was perfection. Merging. A complete, terrifying release that kept her floating as the pleasure slowly receded, leaving her limp and wasted beneath him. And certain that nothing would or could ever be the same again.
Chapter Three
It was one o’clock in the morning, there wasn’t a chance in hell Morganna was conscious enough to even answer the phone, let alone understand Raven’s bitching. And the man slowly easing from her body looked like a sated demigod as he sat on the couch at her feet.
Uncomfortably aware of her nudity, Raven hauled the thin blanket from the back of the couch as she sat up herself, pulling it around her almost desperately. She could feel his eyes on her, watching her with that eagle-like glare of his.
“You should have told me.” He sighed then, running his hands over his hair as he breathed out roughly. “You weren’t supposed to be a virgin, Raven.”
She turned and gaped at him in disbelief, nearly speechless at his comment and the irritable tone of his voice.
“Well, excuse me, Mr. Experience,” she snapped in reply. “What does my being a virgin have to do with anything anyway? What was I supposed to do, excuse myself and go get fucked by someone else before you had your turn?”
He grimaced before turning his head to look at her. And she really wished he wouldn’t look at her that way. All satisfied and sated and considering another round.
“I wouldn’t try it now if I were you,” he grunted, reaching out to touch her hair as she pulled back from him. “I wouldn’t be happy.”
“And your happiness matters, of course.” She rolled her eyes at that.
She ached in places she had never known existed. A deep, pleasant ache. She wanted to curl up on the couch and sleep for a week, to relish the bone-deep feeling of completion that she couldn’t extinguish. Damn him, he should come with a warning sign.
He didn’t answer, merely watched her. And that was more nerve-racking than the sound of his voice. He could always do that to her. Look at her as though he saw into her soul, or he was a part of her soul. She shivered at the thought.
“I’m going to bed.” She pushed herself to her feet, wondering if she could actually walk now. “God, I must have been insane.”
She wavered as she stood, forcing her legs to steady, wishing she could force the ache building in her chest to go away as easily as she made her legs obey her. Holding the blanket to her tightly, she made it the first step.
“I don’t think so.” He stood up, placing himself in front of her, giving her an up-close view of that gorgeous chest as he did so.
She could feel their combined juices easing from her pussy now, dampening her thighs, reminding her of the pleasure of moments before. That memory sent a shiver racing down her spine and a coil of heat building in the pit of her stomach again.
His hands gripped her upper arms, his fingers caressing her sensitive skin as she lifted her gaze to his.
“Reno.” She swallowed tightly. “We need to think about this. I need to think about it.”
She couldn’t deal with him now, she had to make sense of this, she had to find her bearings. This was Reno, for God’s sake. She had known him all her life, lusted after him since she was fifteen and shed tears for him while he was on assignment. This was the only man who could break her heart, who could destroy her soul.
He snorted in reply to her desperate words.
“Yeah, like I’m going to give you a chance to come up with excuses to run from me.”
The world spun around her as he lifted her into his arms, turned and headed for the staircase. She clutched his shoulders, fighting to force back the melting sensation in the center of her chest. He was carrying her, with little or no effort. Taking the stairs quickly and moving into her bedroom.
“I’ll help you shower.”
“I don’t need any help showering.” The panicked sound of her own voice shocked her.
He moved into the bathroom. “Then I want to sleep with you Raven. Just sleep. I want to hold you close and feel you breathing against me.” He sat her on her feet, his hands cupping her face, lifting it until he could stare down at her intently. “I’m not going to let you go tonight.”
She shivered. She tried not to, but she couldn’t help it. She had known he was bossy, dominant, a man who knew what he wanted and how to get it. She just hadn’t expected that phenomenal will of his to turn on her in quite this manner.
“You forget, I’ve run for a reason.” Her hands gripped his wrists as she stared up at him. “We’ll break each other’s hearts, Reno.”
She could see the exhaustion marking his face, clearer now than it had been before. A haunting hunger filled his gaze, and Raven knew in the bottom of her soul that she wasn’t going to deny him. For now . . . for this moment . . . he needed her. Surely, for the short amount of time he would be here, she could protect her heart. Couldn’t she?
“This is a good idea, Raven.” He lowered his head, his lips whispering over hers. The kiss was soothing, calming. Emotion raged just beneath it, subtle, but intense. Emotions she refused to delve into.
“One of these days, your bossiness is going to get you into trouble,” she warned him as he pulled back, a small smile playing about his passion-swollen lips as he moved away from her to adjust the water in the shower.
She could do it. She took a deep, fortifying breath. It was too late to turn back now anyway. She could have tonight, enjoy his touch, his laughter, the qualities that made him so very unique to her. And when he left, she could let him go without the tears or the rage or the fear. She was strong enough. She didn’t have to love him.
“Come on, baby.” He stepped into the shower, his hand catching her wrist as he pulled her in after him.
“Do you ever ask for anything?” she asked as he sheltered her from the spray and began soaping a washrag.
His smile flashed, filled with am
usement and warmth.
“When I have to.”
Raven frowned at that.
“All of you macho SEAL-types are so damned bossy. Reminds me why I steered clear of them.”
Her brother Clint was a SEAL; most of her friends’ brothers were in one part of the armed forces or another. They were all bossy, domineering men who forged their own paths, whether in life or in love. They left, and sometimes they never returned.
“You weren’t steering clear of me, Raven,” he told her then, his hands incredibly gentle as he pressed the washcloth to her chest and began to wash her. “I just let you think you were.”
She snorted mockingly. She would argue, but that washcloth felt so good, rasping over her flesh, washing away her thoughts as easily as it did the sweat from her body.
She tilted her head back, allowing him to have his way. She had fantasized about this too much, and unfortunately, he was better than the dreams had ever been.
“You should be falling on your feet,” she whispered, the sound of her voice punctuated with a gasp as the cloth moved between her thighs, cleaning her slowly.
“Maybe,” he growled, “I should rest.”
He knelt in front of her, spreading her legs as he lifted one, propping it on the small shelf at the side as the washrag moved over the bare flesh of her pussy.
“Damn, Raven. Do you know how pretty you are? Silky and soft, and so responsive to my touch.” He shifted, allowing the spray to rinse her as he dropped the cloth, using his hands to help dispel the suds there.
Arousal built within her quickly. She knew what he was going to do and she didn’t know if she could bear it.
His fingers moved over the narrow slit, parting her swollen flesh as she fought to get her bearings, to breathe. If she could just breathe, she could maintain her control.
“I’ve dreamed of tasting you . . .”
Oh God.
“Fucking you with my tongue, sucking that pretty little clit into my mouth . . .”
She felt her juices gathering, weeping with sensual abandon from her sensitive cunt as her head rolled against the wall of the shower. The explicit, diabolical words made her weak, made her long for him to do it with every fiber of her being.