I shifted over the top of her. My shaft glided over her wetness and rested flat against her belly. A shiver ripped through her legs when I grazed her clit. Her eyes widened. There was no doubt in my mind that she wanted it to happen, but I could sense fear in her too. I moved back down and lightly pressed my mouth to hers in an attempt to ease some of her tension. Her hard nipples pressed into my chest. She ground her hips up into me, and I pinned her hands above her head and lined up with her entrance.
“Take it. Take me.” Her legs spread wider, offering herself. A precious gift that only I could have.
I slid the tip inside her. Her body opened up to me and I squeezed through her tight entrance. As I inched farther in, she became hotter. Wetter. Tighter. This was going to hurt her. And even with that knowledge, it took a ridiculous amount of self-control not to shove into her on the most primal level of instincts.
I inched inside a little farther, just barely. It was so tight and hot, like fucking heaven. A groan rattled around in my throat. I wanted her wrapped around me. I wanted to live with my cock buried in the depths of her.
She winced as I eased into her farther. I stopped once I was halfway in. She must’ve seen the worry on my face.
Her hands reached down, and her sharp nails dug into my thighs. “Fuck me. I don’t care if it hurts.”
God, her words. The pain with which she wanted me. The pain that her nails sent through my thighs. I thought she might split into two if I pushed any farther.
Her teeth gritted. Her fingers drew blood from my leg. “Fuck me,” she growled. “I want it. I want you.”
I pushed my cock into her and she cried out in pain and sucked in a huge breath. My heart nearly stopped, but her fingers dug harder into me, telling me to keep going. I glanced down as I eased halfway out and my cock was coated in a faint shade of pink that mixed with her arousal. I thought it’d make me stop, make me weak for her, but I only wanted more of it. I wanted more of her. My brain cringed at my sadistic thoughts, but the sight of her blood only amplified my need.
I went slow and pushed in again and she yelped, but it wasn’t as loud this time.
“More. More.” Her hands were needy as she clawed at my hips and thighs like she enjoyed the pain. My cock somehow grew harder at her words and I crushed her with a kiss. Swallowed her moans, her pain, her want, and I started a slow pace, in and out. Her pussy wrapped around me so tight and squeezed so hard I thought I might pass out from the euphoria. Her nails yanked me harder into her again.
I wiped a few sweaty strands of hair out of her face and stared into her eyes. Her hands came up and her arms wrapped around my neck. Her nails drilled into my shoulders, and I wanted to wear the marks for her, like I was as much hers as she was mine. Adorn them with pride and glare at anyone who threatened her.
She yanked me harder into her, spurred me on with her hands, told me to keep going with her eyes. I swallowed down every one of her moans, like even the sounds uttered from her lips were my possessions. I owned her mouth and every inch of her body. I was where nobody had ever been, and where no one but me would ever explore. Staked a claim on her. Conquered her. It was all mine. She was mine.
Cora seemed to handle each thrust with less pain than the last, and I was about to explode inside her. I raked a hand through her hair until it was tangled up in her locks and reached down with the other. I stroked her clit with my forefinger in lazy circles, hoping she could get some kind of pleasure while she writhed beneath me. An orgasm boiled inside of me, and she clenched her slick walls around my cock. It was like flint to a torch and stoked the animalistic flames even higher, until I was immolating from within. My balls lifted and tightened. Her chest arched up into me, and I wanted to be as deep inside of her as possible, as close to her soul as another human being could get. Her pussy clamped like a vise around my shaft and I couldn’t hold back any longer.
I groaned and rutted like a wild animal marking what was his. Her fingernails clawed into the back of my shoulders and yanked me toward her. Something about her, that moment, needing me so bad she pulled me into her despite her own pain. It sent me reeling over the edge of the cliff. My cock kicked and hot jets of come shot into her. I groaned her name against her neck over and over “CORA, CORA, Cora—” until it faded into nothing but a distant echo. My whole body stiffened, and my shaft clenched once more as her pussy greedily milked every last drop I had to offer.
I exhaled and gasped, frantically trying to suck in the air between us, totally spent. It took everything I had not to collapse, but I balanced my weight over her and kissed her. Tried to kiss every ounce of pain out of her body from the heartbeat on her neck to her flushed cheeks, and then I kissed the tears at the corner of her eyes. Her lips curled, and I moved down and brushed my mouth across her smile.
I wanted to stay there forever and just watch her, kiss her, love her—but eventually, I rolled over to the other side of the bed. Both of us lay flat on our backs, staring up at the ceiling fan, panting. As a soldier, I’d been pushed to the brink physically, to the point of total exhaustion, but Cora lifted me to a whole new plane of emotional existence.
I glanced over, and she had my blood and sweat all over her cheeks. Her eyes were wide open, and I couldn’t tell if she regretted what we just did, or was basking in it. I moved my gaze down to the faint red streaks on her thighs and my still-hard cock.
I shuddered a little at what I’d just done to her. I wanted to regret it, but I didn’t. I silently hated myself for loving every second of her pain, because it brought us that much closer together. Because I’d just marked her for eternity as her first. Just as the guilt swirled through my stomach and threatened to tie it in a knot, her hand reached over to my arm.
Her finger traced the length of my bicep and came to rest on my forearm. Cora’s palm moved back and forth, stroking gingerly, like she sensed my guilt and wanted to assure me that it was okay. That she wanted it too.
Then her hand went down to my thigh where she’d dug her nails into me. Her fingers traced across the wounds where she’d broken my skin. “I don’t know what came over me. I’m sor—”
I whipped my head over. Stared into her eyes. “Don’t.”
“I know but—”
I stared down at the wounds on my leg. “Don’t ever apologize for loving me hard enough to draw blood.” I caressed the edge of my hand along her cheek.
“Same for you, okay?”
I glanced between her legs once more and then back at her. “Sit still.”
She frowned when I moved from the bed, but I jumped up and grabbed another plain white tee shirt out of my drawer. I carefully wiped her cheeks and neck until all my blood was gone from her face. Her eyes remained locked onto mine the entire time like magnets. I gazed down at the streaks of blood on her inner thighs. I couldn’t pry my eyes away from them.
“Landon.”
I looked up at her, and she smiled. Completely exposed, hurting, legs open to me, and she was smiling. It only confirmed what she’d already told me, that she definitely loved me. I felt it in every cell, every double helix of DNA, like both of our souls were somehow quantumly entangled. I caressed her face in my palm. “You’re gorgeous.”
She blushed and turned away. “Thank you.”
“I mean it.”
I scooped her up slowly, around her neck and under her knees. She winced when I lifted her up, even though I’d been as gentle as possible. My heart constricted. She tried to downplay it like it was nothing.
“What are you doing?”
“Shh, just let me take care of you.”
I carried her into the bathroom and leaned against the wall with her cradled in my arms, then used one foot to turn on the water in the tub. I brushed my lips across hers and slowly made love to her mouth while the water warmed—anything to take her mind off the pain until I could get her in a bath and take care of her. I checked it with my toe and then sat her down in the tub. For a moment, I wondered what Joe would think if he walked in
the bathroom and saw what was taking place. Me bent over naked, wiping the blood from Cora’s soft skin.
“Pinch my arm if anything hurts, or if you need me to slow down or stop.”
She nodded.
I rested a rolled-up towel behind her and propped her head on it. She closed her eyes as I sponged her gently from head to toe, learning even more intimately every curve of her body. I started at her neck and worked down as the tub filled with more water. When I got to her waist, I skipped down to her feet and then worked up each of her legs.
“You ready?”
She nodded.
I put her hand back on my arm. “Don’t open your eyes, I want you relaxed.”
She nodded again.
I was as delicate as possible as I dabbed the sponge along her inner thighs. I moved up toward her pussy and she started to wince, but stopped herself. I logged every one of her reactions, and I grimaced when I thought about how hard I’d fucked her. How forceful I’d been while her nails clawed into me. She didn’t pinch me, but I knew it had to hurt like hell, and she was trying to ease my regret. She opened her eyes against my wishes and stared at me, watched me as I cleaned her.
“You don’t have to do that.”
I glared up at her. “Yes, I do.”
“Why?”
I gazed down at her pussy. “Because that—” I glanced back up into her eyes, “—is mine.” I leaned up to her mouth and kissed her on her lips. “I protect and take care of what’s mine.”
She stared at me, eyes wide and full of love. “Okay.”
“Say it.” I growled my words. “Say it’s mine.”
“It’s yours, babe.” She smiled against my lips.
Babe.
My heart exploded on the inside. Everything, the way she called me babe. Nobody had ever called me that before. The whole scene in front of me, her. This was what I wanted. Cora Chapman. Forever. Her and Logan were my life.
I cradled her face in my palm. “I love you always.”
Her eyelashes fluttered, and her cheek pressed into my palm. “Always.”
I drained the water from the tub, and toweled off most of her body, skipping the extra sensitive areas. Then I went and gathered her clothes. Her jeans would be painful for her, so I grabbed her panties and one of my tee shirts. It’d swallow her whole, but she wouldn’t hurt as much.
She waited by the tub and I stood her up and got her dressed, then carried her back to the bedroom. We lay down on the bed and I pulled her in close and held her. Just held her in my arms for probably twenty minutes. One arm around her shoulder. My other hand explored her body. I couldn’t stop touching her—the curve of her hip, the side of her knee, the swell of her breast, along her ass. She was mine. All of her. No matter what. Nobody was taking her away from me.
I pulled her in close for another kiss. I could’ve sat there for hours, but there were pressing matters.
She cocked her head to the side and returned my stare. “What?” Her face was bright pink.
“Happy you’re here. With me.”
She grinned. “Get used to it.”
“TAKE THE AFTERNOON OFF.” I yelled at Joe out the front door.
“What the hell am I supposed to do?” Joe was standing on the front porch.
“Don’t care.”
I walked back inside and picked Cora up from the bed. Carried her out to the sofa. “Will this be too rough for you to lay on?”
She shook her head. “I’m fine. I promise.”
“You want something to eat? To drink?”
She chuckled a little, but I could tell she appreciated my attention to detail. That I wanted to make her as comfortable as possible. “I’m fine, thank you.”
I sat down near her legs and pulled them up into my lap. Rubbed her feet almost on instinct, anything that might make her relax and feel at home. This was her life now and the way it would be—me taking care of her. I knew what I had to do, what I needed to say. Gave her the sternest look of my life.
I think it threw her off guard a little. She sat up a bit. “What is it?”
“Once you go down this rabbit hole, there’s no going back.”
Her face tightened and her neck tensed. She nodded. “I’m ready. My decision. Mine. And it’s a yes.”
“You didn’t know what you were getting into before, though.”
She reached for my hand and I moved so that she didn’t strain herself. “I tailed Janet home. I followed you in the supermarket. I pressed and pressed.”
“You still didn’t know.”
Her hand squeezed on my fingers. “I’m in. Let’s leave it at that. Nobody is to blame.”
I nodded. Saw the conviction in her eyes. I couldn’t change her mind if I wanted to, and it set me at ease. I took in a huge breath and stared right at her.
“I was born in a place called Hell’s Island.”
CHAPTER 16
Cora Chapman
I WINCED A LITTLE WHEN I moved. The pain and soreness wasn’t going away anytime soon, but I didn’t mind it. It would be a constant reminder of how much Landon loved me, and the way he’d taken care of me after—I wanted to melt into a puddle at his feet. It was also a reminder of how big his cock was too. Jesus. I still couldn’t believe it fit inside me.
The hurt written across his face while he took care of me sent a shudder through my body. I wished he could be inside my mind, and see how beautiful that moment was to me. It was a gift I wanted to give him. Even though it hurt, I was elated that it was him. And nobody could ever take that away from us. Ever. I couldn’t have cared less about the pain at the moment, anyway. I wanted information. His story. I wanted to know everything there was to know about him—every last detail.
I stared back at Landon. “There’s a place called that?”
He nodded. “It’s an active volcanic island near Antarctica. Straight south from New Zealand.”
“Your parents lived there?”
“I don’t have parents.”
What the hell?
I leaned back against a cushion and shook my head. “I’m not a biology expert, but—”
“I was created in a lab. From an egg and a sperm.”
I don’t know what I was expecting, but created in a lab definitely wasn’t it. I canted my head slightly to the side, trying to make sense of everything at once. “Umm, okay. Well, was there a surrogate mother?”
He shook his head. “No, it was some kind of incubation chamber. That’s what I was told. I’m not sure because—”
“You were an embryo.”
“Exactly.”
“So why are babies being grown on a volcano?”
Landon smiled. “It’s classified. And not by the U.S. government either. Not even Janet knows all of this. Not even the president knows this, okay?”
I nodded and grinned. “Okay.” It was kind of awesome knowing something not even the president was important enough to know about. I’d gone from coward earlier in the day to losing my virginity and learning top secret things. I was on a roll.
“Someone or something named Titan ultimately controls everything. You probably heard the name the other day with Edmon. I’ve never met him—or it—or whatever.” He paused. “But I’m going to tell you what I’d pieced together before I left.”
I stared. It was all so fascinating and so much to try to process all at once. And it seemed like he hadn’t even started.
“The why question—they weren’t growing normal babies.”
I pinched his massive bicep, then looked down at his cock and smiled. “Obviously.”
Landon grinned. It was good to see him at ease and opening up. I knew this was hard for him, so I wanted to make it as light-hearted as possible. It had to be killing him inside.
“The guy you met, Edmon. I called you down because he’s not a threat, physically. You could probably kick his ass.”
I nodded. “Probably.” I didn’t want to push too much with the humor. I reached out for Landon’s hand again. It felt like
everything was right in the world when it was in mine or mine in his.
“Not physically. But mentally, he’s probably the most dangerous man in the world. He’s a scientist. They did something. Modified things at the molecular or cellular level. Grew us to be soldiers. Assassins, basically. We were a big experiment. They didn’t teach us the science.”
“Have you killed people?”
Landon nodded.
My heart jumped. I gulped. I knew that’d be the answer, but it still took me by surprise for some reason. Maybe because he could be such a gentle giant. “And later you escaped?”
“Yes.”
I closed my eyes for a second and then willed the next question from my lips. “What about Logan’s mother? Is that when you met her? Did you love her?”
Landon stared at me for a second.
I felt myself leaning toward him in anticipation. The door burst open.
“Ms. Chapman!” Logan sprinted over and nearly tackled me on the couch. Landon shoved a blanket up over me before he got there. His reflexes were like lightning. Logan hugged me around the shoulders.
Talk about timing.
I didn’t have much time to get upset that I hadn’t gotten an answer. Logan squeezed me tight, and I smiled back at him.
“Take it easy on her, buddy. She’s not feeling super great.”
I glanced over at him, but then realized I was in one of Landon’s shirts and covered up in a blanket on the couch.
“To be continued?” Landon smiled.
“Yeah.” I reached out for his hand and grinned back. “Please.”
CHAPTER 17
Landon Lane
CORA’S HEAD NUZZLED INTO THE crook of my neck early the next morning. My alarm clock read four thirty a.m. The moment was perfection. She was perfection.
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