Reviving Emily

by Becca Jameson

  The friction at her entrance alone brought her back to the edge. She grabbed his biceps and dug her fingers in.

  Gradually he entered her farther, his lips tucked between his teeth as if it took a great deal of strength to keep from slamming into her.

  She was grateful for his effort, though. For as much as she’d insisted she wanted to get the first time out of the way, his plan was much better and far less painful. Every thrust went slightly deeper, stretching her gradually and driving her arousal back to full-on crazed.

  “You okay?” he asked, searching her eyes.

  “So much yes.” She moaned around his next pass and then sighed as he pulled almost out before inching even deeper.

  “I’m not gonna last,” he gritted on the next thrust.

  “We have all night to try again,” she pointed out.

  He groaned and then thrust the rest of the way home.

  For a second she held her breath, accommodating his girth.

  His fingers were in her hair again, stroking her forehead. “You okay?” he asked again, his voice strained with either concern or arousal or both. Probably both.

  She smiled as she released a breath. “Yes. Move.”

  He cupped her face with both hands. “Look at me. I want to watch your face while I make love to you.”

  She met his gaze again, her vision a little blurry. And then he moved, pulling almost out and then sliding back in to the hilt. The next time he did the same thing her channel decided to relax and except him without complaint. By the third thrust, her sensitive walls were gripping his erection, milking him.

  He drew his lips in between his teeth again and picked up the pace. When he slid one hand between them and circled her clit, every sensation multiplied. His fingers brought her right back to the edge and kept working her while he stroked in and out. “Come again for me, baby.”

  Shocking her, another orgasm took over her body at his command. The moment her channel gripped his length in delicious spasms, he groaned out his own release, holding himself deep inside her, his body rigid, his eyes rolling back.

  She swore she could feel every pulse of his erection inside her. He was breathing heavily when he blinked his eyes back into focus and met her gaze, a slow grin spreading. “I’m gonna need to do that again in a few minutes.”

  She giggled, releasing his biceps with stiff fingers and circling his torso in her embrace. “I can’t wait.” The truth was this was the most amazing moment of her life. She’d witnessed a lot of exciting medical breakthroughs in the last few years before she was preserved, all of which left her giddy. None of which compared to this sexual encounter with Ryan.

  She was in so much trouble.

  She hadn’t meant to fall for him.

  Their lives were too complicated to consider a future at the moment. Why couldn’t she just enjoy a night of great sex?

  Instead, it clutched at her heart and scared the hell out of her.

  She shivered, partially from a chill and partially because her mind was racing.

  Ryan quickly rolled her to one side, tugged the covers out from under them, and tucked them both in. He held her close to his chest, still breathing heavily. “Better?”

  “Yeah.” She closed her eyes and inhaled his scent. Masculine. His soap. His aftershave. Ryan.

  “Stay.”

  She twisted her face to see him. “What?”

  “The night. Stay here. In my room.”

  “Mmm. My stuff is still by the front desk. I dropped it off and came to find you.”

  “I’ll go get it.”

  It seemed too…soon. On the other hand, they’d just made love. She didn’t want to leave yet. She wanted to snuggle into him and hold on a little longer. The thought of moving to another suite to spend the night alone in a cold bed didn’t sit well.

  “Okay.” She was still riding the high from two fantastic orgasms. “Do you need to go check on your dad?”

  He chuckled. “You want to talk about my dad right now?”

  She flushed. “No. Of course not. I was just…”

  He gave her a squeeze. “It’s okay. No. I spend a lot of time pacing outside that room. It doesn’t do anyone any good. It changes nothing. Each person needs to spend four weeks in the chamber. Watching is a waste of time. But I can’t seem to concentrate on anything else.”

  “Seems like I might have taken your mind off cryonics for at least a few minutes,” she teased.

  “Oh hell yes, you did. And I intend to forget the world again as soon as I catch my breath.”

  She was one step ahead of him. As long as she was having the boldest night of her life, she might as well pull out all the stops. She smoothed her hand down his body from his chest to his waist and then lower. Holding his gaze, she bit her lower lip as she wrapped her fingers around his stiffening erection.

  Chapter 15

  Ryan inhaled sharply, gripping her shoulder with the hand under her. He worried she would be sore from earlier. No matter how long it had been since she last had sex in her conscious mind, they had no choice but to tack ten years onto that. Her body would need to recover.

  Before he could form words, she kicked off the covers and slid her body down his until her face was level with his renewed erection. She eased her hand gently up and down his shaft, grazing over the tip and then cupping his balls. When she repeated the action, he moaned, threading his fingers in her hair.

  “Baby…”

  When she licked her lips and then flicked her tongue over the tip of him, he stopped breathing.

  “Emily. God. You don’t have to…”

  “Mmm. I want to.”

  He couldn’t argue even if he wanted to. His brain wasn’t firing right. Instead, he watched as she wrapped her lips around the head and slowly sucked him into her mouth.

  Heaven. He could die right now and be perfectly content.

  His eyes rolled back when she increased the pressure, sucking him deeper, grasping the base in her small fist. She moaned around his shaft, shooting his arousal through the roof.

  He wanted to warn her he was about to come. She didn’t have to swallow him. He didn’t want her to feel pressured. But as it turned out, it wasn’t necessary because she suddenly released him, threw her leg over both of his, and climbed up his body.

  Before he could wrap his mind around her intentions, she was poised over him, thrusting down over his throbbing length.

  He gritted his teeth, fighting hard not to come instantly at her fucking hot boldness. He grabbed her hips to hold her steady, somehow managing to murmur. “Stay still, baby.”

  She obeyed, thankfully, as he met her gaze. Damn, she was beautiful. Her dark hair was a mess of waves around her face, falling over her shoulders. Her cheeks were flushed, and her expression told him she was as turned on as he was by her own actions. “Let me ride you,” she whispered.

  He forced a small smile. “Oh, baby, you can ride me any time, but give me a second so I don’t come on the next stroke.”

  She leaned forward, kissed his lips, and then hovered over him, her hands at the sides of his head. “Now?”

  He groaned.

  There was no stopping her. She lifted almost off him and thrust back down. Again. Again.

  His ability to hold back was completely obliterated. It had been way too long since he’d last had sex. He couldn’t even remember when it had been. A woman he’d met in a bar years ago. Even though he’d come less than half an hour ago, his body wasn’t sated enough for this second joining to last any longer than the first. “Damn…” he muttered as he gave up the fight, gripped her hips to hold her down, and came hard while deep inside her.

  It took a bit for his vision to focus on her again, and he found her expression pleased. “That was hot,” she said as she righted herself over him, setting her hands on his chest.

  He wanted to kick himself for not having the ability to see to her own orgasm while his raced to the finish line. But he would fix that immediately.

 
; Still holding her hip in place over him with one hand, he slid the other to her clit and flicked the tip.

  She whimpered, her body shuddering.

  Yes.

  Through her squirming, he continued to circle the swollen nub, and then he increased his efforts by switching from circling to flicking to rubbing to pinching.

  She tipped her head back, elongating her graceful neck and causing her fantastic tits to lift and sway. He wished he had another hand or some way to wrap his lips around her stiff nipples, but this position was so hot to watch that he didn’t want to switch it up.

  Her thighs gripped his as her fingers dug into his pecs. “Ryan…”

  “Come for me, baby. While I watch.”

  Her mouth fell open at the command, and she moaned loudly as her tight channel gripped him hard.

  He’d been wrong before. Watching her come while he was still deep inside her was heaven. Before he’d simply been waiting in line to get into heaven.

  * * *

  Emily woke up confused, just like every night. It was becoming a habit. She’d at least gotten accustomed to the sensation so that it no longer made her heart race.

  She knew she had been brought back from preservation. She knew who she was. She simply needed to figure out where she was.

  As her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting, she slowly breathed in through her nose and concentrated on the possibilities until she caught the scent of Ryan in the air and smiled. She slid one hand out from under the covers to reach for him.

  He wasn’t there. His side of the bed was warm, but his body was gone. She didn’t sense him in the room either.

  Pushing to sitting, she took in her surroundings. He’d left a nightlight on in the bathroom. He’d bought her the nightlight two days after she first awoke to help her orient in the dark. It was a blessing. She kept it in her bags and took it everywhere she went.

  He had retrieved her bags and suitcase from the front desk before they fell asleep. At some point, he must have fished the nightlight from her carry-on and plugged it into the bathroom wall. It illuminated the room enough for her to get her bearings. His suite was identical to the one she’d stayed in the first few weeks. Standard queen-sized bed, nightstands, dresser, television, closet. All in the same orientation as her previous suite.

  Ryan’s was even decorated in the same beige tones too. There were little touches that made the room his. A picture of him with his parents on the bedside table. A navy, oval rug on top of the beige carpet on the floor. A throw blanket in shades of red folded at the end of the bed.

  She was tired. Heavy. Exhausted. Dealing with the media and then traveling the previous day had wiped her out. Not to mention several hours of sex after she arrived.

  She smiled inwardly, not the least bit sorry about finally sleeping with Ryan. Where was he now?

  A glance at the clock on the nightstand told her it was two in the morning.

  She slid from the bed and padded to the bathroom. After splashing water on her face and freshening up, she went in search of her suitcase. It was in the corner of the room. Ryan had thought of everything.

  She found a pair of pajama pants and a tank top and then headed for the bedroom door, hoping Ryan was inside the suite. If he wasn’t in the living area, she would give up. She didn’t want to wander around the bunker in the middle of the night, and she wasn’t dressed for it either.

  Luckily, Ryan was sitting at the two-person kitchen table, laptop open, fingers tapping away at the keys. He glanced up when she entered. “Did I wake you?” He turned his chair toward her and reached out a hand.

  She came to him, sliding onto his lap as he wrapped his arms around her. “No. I don’t think so. It just happens sometimes. I jolt awake.”

  He nuzzled her hair. “Is it still jarring? I found your nightlight and plugged it in.”

  “I saw that. Thanks.” He was so damn thoughtful. Always. As his lips began to nibble the base of her neck, she shivered. “You okay?”

  “Yeah. I don’t sleep long. I like to check on my dad every few hours. It’s not reasonable, but I get anxious.”

  “I can understand that.” She couldn’t imagine having a parent reviving in the same building where she paced and ate and slept and waited for weeks.

  “It’s not just him. I did the same for you,” he murmured. “It’s my project. I’m invested in every one of the souls in this bunker. I won’t rest easy until every person is walking on two feet.”

  Her breath hitched. “You paced outside my room while I was being reanimated?”

  “Yep.” He lifted his lips and met her gaze, giving her waist a squeeze. The corner of his mouth quirked up. “It wasn’t even personal yet. I simply wanted you to live.”

  She understood. He wasn’t simply invested in the project because he wanted it to succeed for purely professional reasons. He wanted his parents back. Also understandable.

  If Emily’s reanimation had failed, his hopes would have sunk.

  “I’m here,” she whispered against his lips. “I’m back. They will both be laughing and crying and hugging you in no time.” God, she hoped she was right.

  “Mmm.” His eyes slid shut. “I need to go check on him. Why don’t you go back to bed? You must be tired.”

  Probably not half as tired as him, but she wouldn’t balk at the idea of climbing back under the covers. It sure beat pacing the hallway with him watching a machine. Was she being unfair? Maybe she should go with him. Hold his hand. Moral support.

  His hands trailed down her bare arms, sending a shiver across her shoulders. He kissed her forehead. “Sleep. I’ll join you in a bit.”

  * * *

  The next time Emily woke up, sun was streaming through the edges of the blinds, leaving lines of orange across the room. She had been aware of Ryan joining her at some point. He’d hauled her against his body and held her for a long time, but he was once again gone now.

  After making her way around the silent suite to find an apple and a bagel, she showered and dressed for the day. Jeans. A soft maroon sweater. The cute low boots she’d purchased a few weeks ago. She had been pretty much a minimalist in the area of makeup and hair before her preservation. That hadn’t changed.

  When she stepped into the hallway, she found people rushing around. Everyone who spotted her smiled and offered a quick greeting. They had jobs to do. It was after ten in the morning. They were well into their business days.

  “Oh, Emily. Glad I caught you.” The voice from behind her made her spin around to find General Levenson approaching. Her brow was furrowed in concentration, and she held a pile of folders. “Can you come to my office?”

  “Of course.” Emily followed her down the corridor that led away from the living suites and down a set of stairs to the older section of the bunker she had known intimately for many years. It was odd to see the subtle changes. New paint beside worn gray Berber carpet that hadn’t been replaced in the last decade. She smiled as she noticed a poorly repaired section of drywall that had accidentally been punctured when a piece of equipment arrived one day twelve years ago.

  In a way this was her home. It was soothing. She knew this world. The rest of the planet was a bit of a mystery to her, but not this bunker.

  She followed Temple to her office and took a seat across from her desk when the tall, distinguished woman pointed toward the chair. The office hadn’t changed in a decade. Gray walls and carpet that matched the hallways. A gray metal desk. Standard gray fiberglass chairs. The only nicer touch was the desk chair Temple probably brought herself for comfort.

  “How are the vultures this morning?” Emily asked, rubbing her thighs with both hands.

  “Well, it didn’t take long to figure out how that reporter found you. Before the end of the day yesterday we had a man in custody. He was wandering around outside the gate selling you out to anyone willing to buy the information. Aaron Danforth had taken the bait.”

  “Too bad for him. Wonder how much he lost,” she mused.

&
nbsp; Temple chuckled. “I’m sure he’s used to the gamble. He’s a reporter. Unfortunately the guy we caught at the gate is useless. He was hired by a bigger fish to figure out who you were and find you. It didn’t take long to get him to spill the details of his arrangement. Tossing around a lot of legal terms like ‘national security’ and ‘classified information’ made him take notice.

  “Turns out this guy followed Ryan on a hunch when he went to meet you in Omaha. He got lucky.”

  Emily cringed. “Ryan’s going to be pissed at himself.”

  Temple chuckled. “Yeah. You already know him well. But it wasn’t his fault. He didn’t drive himself to the airport. This guy followed him from the moment he left the gate.”

  “Nevertheless, Ryan never caught on. That guy had to have followed him all the way to the base in Omaha.” Yeah, he’s going to blame himself. Not a doubt.

  “It doesn’t really matter. Your personal information wasn’t going to be a secret forever. We were living on borrowed time from the moment we released the fact that someone had been reanimated.”

  This was true. Everyone knew it. Eventually as word spread around her friends and family, someone would have found out. Probably dozens of people already knew who she was simply from reuniting with her family. From now on Emily would be a circus attraction. She shook the thought from her head. “And you don’t know who hired him?”

  Temple shook her head. “The guy claims he never had a name, and he never met with whoever hired him in person. His communication was all through incoming calls.”

  “What do you think his plan was?” It made Emily’s skin crawl to think some guy had been following her.

  “Most likely his only goal was to make money by finding you and selling the details to anyone who wanted to pay him. I’m sure he’s not picky about who he takes a payment from.”

  “Jesus.” Emily leaned back.

  “And God knows how many other people bought information from him.”

  “Which means there are a lot of people who know who I am now.” She sat up straighter. “I need to call my parents.”