Hell and Back: The Protector Guild Book 4

by Holborn, Gray

  “I just, I understand if you wanted it to be a one off sort of thing. I know that you have a rep—”

  He swallowed the rest of my words and this time when his lips pressed against mine, there was no gentleness, no question of what it was that he wanted.

  “Do you want this, Max?” he asked, the question forming against my lips as he kissed the seam of my mouth, before trailing down to my neck, the pressure feather light and intoxicating. “That is all I need to know.”

  I nodded, my tongue tied up in knots from the sensation of his tongue pressing against my skin.

  I could feel his grin against my skin just before his teeth nipped my pulse point with a playful bite. “I’m going to need you to say it,” he said, his tone cocky and voice deep. He knew exactly the kind of effect he had on a girl. And while I would have thought the reminder that he was so experienced would have turned me off, it only heightened my excitement. I wanted nothing more than for this to continue for as long as he was willing. I wanted the distraction, to get lost in something fun and frivolous, if only for a few moments. I wanted the full Eli experience—wanted to know exactly what it was I’d been missing out on.

  He drew his fingers down my arm, light as a feather and pulled my wrist to his mouth. With eyes focused on mine, he kissed my wrist, the sensation sending a shocked jolt up my arm. Who knew that a wrist could feel like that? Then he drew my arm towards him and nipped and licked the inside of my elbow.

  I clenched my thighs with need as he brought his face up to my neck, his lips tracing a design into my clavicle.

  “What do you want, Max?” he asked, his voice a whisper that sent chills along my skin.

  “Right now, I want this,” I said, my words coming out as a pant as he slowly threaded his hand up my shirt before gently pulling it off in one graceful move. Even the sensation of the fabric grazing against my skin felt like playing with a delicious fire. That he could make my body feel like it wanted to explode from such a simple gesture, sent heat through my core in anticipation.

  He pulled back as the fabric fell away and studied me, eyes languid and reverent. The sight of him staring at me in nothing but a bra sent my pulse into overdrive. His eyes narrowed as his gaze met mine, his lips pulled up in that half-amused grin he wore so often.

  “And what exactly do you mean by this?” he asked, his hand wrapping around my back to unclasp my bra in a move so quick and deft that it fell away with far more ease than I could have managed myself. My breasts felt full, heavy under his perusal. “I want you to tell me exactly what it is that you want.”

  There was an authority in his words that licked at my insides like an impossibly dangerous fire. I glanced down at his lap and the realization that he was just as affected as I was filled me with a delicious power—and with a desire to let him take all of the control, at least in this instance.

  “I want to escape for just a little while. I want you,” I said simply, surprising myself with the honesty in my voice. Because while I knew that Eli was a fucking force to be reckoned with, and that we were in hell on a rescue mission that we quite possibly wouldn’t survive—in this moment, I wanted all of that to slip away, to just be a girl with a boy and enjoy it. Every last second of it. No more protector bullshit, no complications, just sensations. “That’s it. Just you.”

  His eyes flashed with heat as he studied me, his hands dancing excruciatingly slow up my stomach and then my chest as he lightly pushed me back until my head landed on the bed of clothes. “Then that’s what you’ll get. That, at least, I can deliver.”

  His deft fingers circled my nipple as his other hand held mine above my head with enough force to keep me still as my back arched towards him, like my body was possessed.

  He laughed against my skin, which felt like electricity was rippling through me, before moving to my other nipple, each breath making my nerves light up.

  He looked up at me, the sharp angles of his face and that look of confidence in his eyes enough to undo me right there. This time when his lips met mine, there was a sort of knowing in the gesture, a desire to draw the moment out as much as possible—no rush now that we knew exactly where this encounter was going. We’d done the work of ironing out the details, and now we could just enjoy watching them unfold.

  My tongue met his with a flash of sensations that already had my toes curling. And I realized then that while it was intoxicating being with him in our dream, it paled in comparison to being with Eli in real life, to feeling his body pressed against mine.

  Despite being in a grimy warehouse, in which we’d both almost been killed by a flesh-eating demon a few hours ago, all I could feel and smell and focus on was him. And for just this once, I was going to let myself do just that—no apologies.

  I slid my leg between his, until I could feel him hard as a rock against my thigh, grinning as he exhaled from the friction.

  He deepened our kiss, his tongue fighting against mine as he wound his hands to the base of my neck, his fingers tangling in my hair. I found myself happy to be lying back on the ground, because I knew with absolute certainty that my knees would buckle immediately if I was standing. It was like I was a puppet, my limbs made of jelly that he alone could support.

  It was strange, but even after hiking for miles over hell’s terrain and fighting a creepy demon, he still smelled great—the perfect mix of musk and spice.

  Slowly he dragged one of his hands down, his fingers teasing the skin of my neck briefly until he reached my left nipple and pinched. I gasped into his mouth as the sensation sent a wave throughout my body.

  He grinned against my mouth before playfully biting my bottom lip.

  Not wanting to give him all of the control just yet, I wrapped my legs around his lower body and twisted my hips until our positions were reversed and he was underneath me.

  His expression was filled with surprise as I wrapped my fingers around his wrists and pinned them against the floor. I might not have a ton of sexual experience, but I was excellent at sparring—and if the thick bulge pressing against my core was a sign of anything, the two methods of contact weren’t all that far from each other.

  Keeping him pinned, I brought my lips down to his, biting his bottom lip in an echo of his move, before kissing down his jawline and neck.

  “I’m not used to giving up control in the bedroom.” Even though I couldn’t see it, I could hear him smiling. I bit softly down on his pulse point, smirking as the move caused him to throb with excitement. “But clearly it’s worth considering every now and then,” he whispered, his words sounding almost like a hiss.

  I let my weight fall down on him and let out a gasp. He was hard as a rock and larger than I’d realized—and the feel of him against me sent a wave of uncontrollable desire through my body. My core tightened as I rubbed up and down against him. Letting go of one of his wrists I unbuttoned his jeans, my fingers a tangled mess from the anticipation and nerves.

  Just as I finished unzipping him, I found myself on my ass, staring up at the ceiling. Eli’s hands grabbed my hips and dragged me back toward him so that my knees were bent and his head was planted between my thighs. Memories flooded back to the last time he’d been in this position in my dream.

  He cocked an eyebrow, not breaking eye contact as he bit my inner thigh. The mix of pleasure and pain made me feel dizzy with anticipation—every move he made as deliciously unpredictable as the last. “You’re not the only one who knows how to blur the boundaries between fighting and fucking, love.”

  With far more composure and grace than I’d managed, he pulled my pants and underwear down, until I was completely bare before him. The cool air against my skin made my body erupt with goosebumps.

  My body hummed with excitement as I waited for him to close the distance between his mouth and my clit. And once he did, I almost fell apart right there. Every sensation was amplified so that the dream felt like an echo of reality. How could I have even once thought that I had had him in that dream—it was nothing but a
shadow.

  His tongue moved with slow, teasing movements, his eyes taking me in with greedy excitement. “You’re delicious,” he murmured, his words a low growl that added to the already dizzying feeling of his tongue against me.

  I heated at his words, but before I could get too self-conscious, he slid a finger inside of me and I bucked against him.

  “Jesus,” he said, his expression filled with awe as he watched me, his mouth and his finger working together in a perfect cadence. “So fucking wet.”

  My breathing picked up as he inserted a second finger. I could feel my walls tightening around him, like my body was trying to keep him inside of me, terrified that he would stop doing whatever magic he was doing.

  His lips trailed along my thigh, alternating between long, languid kisses, and soft nips. When his mouth made its way back to my opening, I wound my fingers into his hair. He pulled his fingers out and replaced it with his tongue, drawing a loud moan from my lips as his fingers rubbed along the sides of my clit.

  “I want you to come for me,” he said, his eyes on mine and filled with challenge. He pinched my clit lightly between his lips and grinned. “Now.”

  As if my body was his to command, an orgasm went rippling through my body. I’d come before. It wasn’t a new thing for me. But this? This was something else. I was half convinced that my body was growing addicted to Eli. That I’d never be able to do anything ever again other than fuck him on this floor.

  His tongue drew lazy patterns as the convulsions ran their course. His expression was smug, that cocky grin I was growing frustratingly fond of plastered on his face.

  With a smooth movement, I yanked on his hair until he got the hint and crawled up my body.

  “Eli,” I said, my voice hoarse with need, “I want you inside of me. Now.”

  Whatever he was expecting, that wasn’t it, because the arrogance on his face melted away until all that was there was pure need, and maybe a little fear.

  “You’re sure?” he asked, his voice husky as his eyes bored into mine, his arrogance drying into something softer, more serious. “We don’t have to.”

  “I’m sure.”

  He nodded, his hand sliding into his pocket. He pulled out a shiny wrapper and peeled it open. Leave it to Eli Bentley walk into hell prepared to fuck.

  With quick, studied fingers, he pulled off his boxer-briefs, finishing the job I’d started in my frantic excitement, and slid on the condom.

  He lifted my head slightly and brought my lips to his. He tasted sweet and a little like salt, and a wave of heat flooded me as I realized that what I was tasting was me. While I would have thought it would gross me out, tasting me on his lips just turned me on. I could feel my own wetness coating my thighs. His kiss was gentler than it had been, almost reverent, as he slid himself between my legs.

  There was pressure, but it didn’t hurt like I thought it might when he pushed into me. His movement was slow and steady as he waited for me to adjust to his size, until, with one small thrust he was buried all the way in.

  He stilled, his body tensed as my walls closed around him.

  “You okay?” he asked

  I nodded and deepened our kiss until our tongues were just as entangled as our bodies were.

  He groaned into my mouth and started to pull out until the tip of his dick was at my opening, and then he slammed back into me. The feel of his cock sinking into me made me feel dizzy with need.

  He repeated the gesture, groaning into my mouth as I bit down on his lip.

  I wrapped my legs around his waist, pulling him closer to me as he pumped in and out, my body climbing with each thrust towards another release.

  “Jesus,” he whispered, as I met his eyes. The brown depths were filled with a desire so hot, I was half convinced I’d melt into a puddle from it.

  I used the momentum to push us towards the side until I was the one on top now. My hands pressed into his firm chest as I rode him, hovering a few inches above until his hands dug into my hips and impaled me. I could feel each finger leave a soft indentation against my hips as he lifted me up and down, over and over again, guiding me, building the pace up. I was jelly now, no longer able to even act under the illusion that I had control of the situation.

  I bent down and kissed him, as he pulled me closer and closer to the edge. He held me against him and flipped us until my back was against the pile of clothes on the floor. With one final thrust, I exploded, my nails digging into his back as he swallowed my moan with his lips, following me over the edge himself.

  For a long moment, we laid there, both of us throbbing from the aftershocks, until he finally regained the ability to move his limbs and lifted off of me. With a loud, satisfied exhale, he leaned back down and pulled me into his side, my head resting against his chest.

  “I can see why you’re so fond of that,” I said, my words breathless and relaxed in a way that sparring never quite managed, though it often came close.

  He stiffened below me, his arm tightening around my body like he was pinning it to him.

  “Yeah,” was all he said, though I could tell that there was more there, beneath the surface.

  Instead of pulling it from him, I closed my eyes and fell slowly into a peaceful sleep, feeling somehow safe and sated, despite the fact that we were in hell, surrounded by the remnants of a wendigo nest.

  15

  Eli

  “Umph, go away,” I said, my body relaxed and fighting its way back to sleep from whatever the hell disturbed it in the first place.

  I curled my head back down until it was met with that intoxicating vanilla scent again. I breathed in deeply, grinning as the scent tickled my nose. My body seemed to relax as it washed over me, like a peculiar sort of magic. My back hurt like bitch and there weren’t enough blankets, but I couldn’t remember ever being this comfortable, this relaxed.

  The soft nudge in my side grew into something less gentle. I opened my eyes and found Max curled up against me, her head resting on my chest. I watched her form lift with each of her breaths as panic filled me.

  I’d never actually slept with a girl before. I mean I’d slept with more girls than I could count, but we never actually did any sleeping. Usually after I fucked, I either went home or sent them packing back to theirs. There was something wildly intimate about sleeping next to someone—it was a sort of vulnerability I was never comfortable with. Ever. It was the sort of thing that was a breeding ground for…feelings. And I was not reckless enough to head down that path.

  Or so I thought anyway.

  As if in a rush, images of Max tangled up against me came rushing back. That was new too. I’d fucked a lot of girls, but I’d never once done that—never once came at the same time as one of them or been so fucking mesmerized by watching them fall into a million pieces beneath me. Hell, I’d almost come just from watching her body spasm while I was going down on her. My body reacted to hers like a finely-tuned instrument, and the second I was inside of her I’d almost lost it.

  It was like I was a damned teenager all over again and I had to actively try not to come instantly.

  My hand ran over her hair, soft enough that I wouldn’t wake her. Lazily I dragged my fingers down her back, feeling the dips and wells of her curves, lingering against her impossibly-soft skin. I needed to find out what kind of lotion she used, because damn if I wasn’t addicted to it already.

  We’d been gentle this time, softer than I usually was, but just the thought of her on top of me, riding me until she found her release—or the image of me ramming into her from behind with her wrists tied to my headboard was enough to get me hard all over again. I was ready for round two. Which was a huge fucking problem, because I had no idea how the hell I was supposed to survive this place if all I could think about was getting lost between the sheets with her body tangled against mine.

  “Get up you asshole,” a voice whispered next to me, “Atlas is ready to murder you and, for once, I can’t even blame him.”

  I j
umped from the sound and instinctively covered my erection. My head snapped as I turned my attention from Max and saw Declan’s black boot inches from my face. When my eyes drew up, I saw that hers were narrowed and glaring daggers at me—like bright green pricks of light that wanted to peel my skin back layer-by-layer.

  Fuck.

  I nodded, and slowly crawled out from underneath Max, lifting her head so that I could gently rest it down on some of our makeshift bedding. Declan had seen me naked often enough that I didn’t sweat her stare too much as I fished around for my clothes. And right now, it was easier to let her stare at my ass rather than meet her judgy little eyes.

  This was not supposed to happen. I was not supposed to fuck Max. And I was definitely not supposed to get caught if I did.

  With one last glance down at Max, Dec spun from the room, her mouth set in that firm way of hers that let me know instantly that this was no joking matter—she was livid. Fan-fucking-tastic. If she was that pissed, I didn’t even want to think about how Atlas would react.

  My limbs were drained as I stuffed one leg and then the other into my pants. I could feel my pulse thumping like a jackhammer and I simultaneously wanted to get as far away from Max as I could, all while bringing her with me in the process.

  What the hell was that about?

  I looked at her, at the way her dark hair fanned out around her head, a few strands covering her face as each of her exhales blew softly against them. I bent down and carefully swept them off of her cheek, my fingers lingering near her mouth. Her lips were impossibly soft and all I wanted to do in that moment was press them against my own, to taste every atom of her.

  She shifted slightly so that her face pressed against my palm. The movement shifted the fabric scraps and I damn near lost it all over again when I saw her chest.