by King, Asha
Adam sat next to her, a noticeable few inches between them. “Tash helped.”
When silence took up between them, faint music could be heard outside—carolers, probably from one of the many churches in town. Dani pulled her feet up to rest on the edge of the couch and tugged a throw pillow to hug against her stomach while she listened to “Do You Hear What I Hear?”
I hear a whole lot of off-key singing and nothing from my sort-of boyfriend. She gazed at the palm tree, from the blinking lights to the off-kilter star on top, and smiled absently. No matter what, she was glad he was here tonight, but it was hard to enjoy his company when she didn’t know what it meant.
“You don’t have to stay here,” she offered. “I mean, if you’d rather be with Gus and everyone...I’ll be okay.”
He avoided her eyes when she looked over at him, instead staring thoughtfully at the tree for a moment. At last he rose and went to kneel where the stack of gifts were. “I want you to open one of your presents.”
That didn’t particularly answer her question, but she said nothing, and simply waited while he rose again and brought the gift to her. It was the width and length of a shoebox but half the height, wrapped in silver and blue paper with a simple silver ribbon around it. A tag had her name and “Love, Adam” on it.
Dani held the box for a moment, running her hands around the edges. It was very light and she hadn’t a clue what was in it, but something rattled softly when she gave it a slight shake. She gently slid the ribbon down and off, then slid her nail beneath the tape on the end and peeled back the paper to reveal a plain white box.
Though she gave Adam a curious look, his expression was indecipherable and he said nothing, just watched as she opened it, so she returned her gaze to the box. The lid lifted easily and inside was a layer of tissue paper.
After sliding the paper back, she found...brochures?
Dani frowned and pulled the stack of colorful folded paper out, casting aside the box. “Um...” She fanned through the brochures and flyers with different country houses. “You want me to become an architect?”
“I bought some land from Gus, not far from the farm,” he said carefully. “I’m having a house built next year.”
Her fingers tightened on the stack of brochures and as her heart leapt, she tried to calm it down again—they were on too unsteady ground and she didn’t want to get her hopes up only to have them dashed. “And...?”
“And...I want you to live there with me. I want it to be our home.”
She waited, near breathless, but he didn’t say anymore. Still, she braced for it. “But?”
Adam gently took the house brochures from her hands and set them aside, then drew her hands into his. “Dani...”
She chanced a look up at him.
His rich dark eyes searched hers, darting back and forth. “I want my life to be with you. But not if you don’t want it, too.”
She swallowed hard. “But you don’t think I take us seriously.”
“I...” He sighed. “Going into that hospital...” He squeezed her hands, his skin warm and comforting. “It felt like a repeat of the worst day of my life and more than anything, I don’t want to lose you. You go on your trip for your book and I’ll still be here waiting. I’m still...afraid that you’ll feel trapped, but I trust you to tell me if that’s the case.”
Dani drew him closer, shifting on the couch to fully face him. “We still have issues and one night of semi-trauma isn’t going to fix them. I might’ve had a concussion but I still know that much.”
“Then we discuss compromising. Unless you...want out?”
She so, so didn’t want to say it—the mere thought of speaking the words was freaking her out. But as he watched her, oddly vulnerable and raw... If he could lay himself on the line, so could she. Her pulse fluttered and she sucked in a deep breath. “I don’t want out. I would like to convince you that I’m not going anywhere permanently and that I’m serious.”
“Maybe you don’t need to convince me—maybe I just have to accept it.”
“Maybe I can give you a little nudge...in the bedroom?”
He cocked a brow but didn’t respond, probably assuming she was falling back on sex again but having the sense not to outright accuse her of it. Instead he stood from the couch and gripped her hands, drawing her to her feet as well.
Trepidation had her nearly trembling but she stepped boldly at his side, heading toward the bedroom—and truth—at last.
Chapter Seven
Dani hadn’t gone three steps into her bedroom when she was tearing at Adam’s T-shirt, pulling it off of him while she rose on her tiptoes to kiss him. She felt his uncertainty and hoped that, by the time they were done, she’d banish it for good.
He followed her lead, obviously still not sure what was going on but trusting her. She let out a shuddering breath, her fingers splayed and running over his bare chest, muscles firm and skin smooth beneath her palms. With a teasing grin, she urged him back until he hit the edge of the mattress and sat.
Dani slipped her yoga pants off and let them puddle in a heap at her feet. “Lie down.”
Adam did, still saying nothing—this wasn’t generally how they played things, but he’d seemed to have adopted the “wait and see” attitude. He stretched out, his head on her pillow, and she climbed on the bed to straddle him. As she leaned down to trail her lips over his throat, she grasped his hands and drew them up to the cast iron head board.
“Uh, Dani—”
She reached to the bedside table for the pair of handcuffs tucked behind the lamp and snapped the first cool metal cuff onto his wrist with a wicked grin.
“So I know you’re coming back after your trip because otherwise I’ll be bound to your bed forever?” he asked as she locked the other wrist in place as well.
“Mmm,” she mumbled, kissing her way down his body. “I want you holding still for a minute.” Her tongue traced circles around his nipple and he arched into her, his hips pressing upward and erection prominent through his jeans. He was impatient and not used to giving up control, she knew, so this might not go well. Still, she wavered between nervousness and wanting him nice and pliant for this.
Her mouth followed the trail of downy dark hair between his pecks and lower, a path that directed her attention to the waistband of his jeans. She popped the button and dropped the zipper with nimble hands, grasped both his jeans and boxers at once, and dragged them off. Once more she straddled him, this time his knees, and lowered her lips to his thick erection.
She knew him well—every inch, literally—but when she dragged her tongue from the base to the tip of his cock, the groan of pleasure she expected and received from him elicited a thrill nonetheless. The experiences of learning a new body and the rousing uncertainty could never replace this feeling of pride, knowing what he liked, knowing what tricks with her tongue could leave him panting, hips bucking impatiently.
Her lips glided up and then down, taking him fully into her mouth. He thrust upward and the headboard groaned, squeaked, as he tugged on the cuffs. Though Adam would put up with a number of tortures from her, there was only so much control she could take from him before he grew frustrated with her.
Still, she decided to push him as far as he’d go.
Briefly, her mouth left his cock, enflamed and glistening with her saliva, to slip off her T-shirt and angle out of her bra. Strands of hair fluttered around her face but the clip held most of it back. Her breasts fell free and grazed his hips, framing his erection.
Dani glanced up to meet his heated eyes, half-lidded and glassy with lust. His lips parted but whatever he’d been about to say was lost as she gripped her breasts and pressed them against him, cocooning his cock in soft warmth. Still slick after being in her mouth, he glided easily between them. His moans of pleasure drew her attention to his face again; his jaw was taut, sharp breaths leaving his lips. Emotionally, she ached like he did physically and neither of them could take much more, she didn’t think.
She rose onto her knees again and climbed over him. Still in her panties, she eased her pussy down, rubbing against him. His hardness pressed into her, their juices mingling in the drenched cotton covering her.
“Dani,” he whispered, his voice low and guttural.
Her nipples tingled as she dragged them up his chest and settled against him, mouthing his skin.
“I trust you.”
“This wasn’t to convince you of anything...”
“Just for kicks, then?”
“I wanted you to be in a good mood for this.”
His hips were moving beneath her, sensation driving her mad as the tip of his cock brushed her clit, and she desperately wanted to hold off telling him until afterward.
But she’d waited too long. Dani took a deep breath, looked directly in his eyes, her lips nearly brushing his. “I’m pregnant.”
His body froze under hers and she iced over head to toe, suddenly terrified. He said he wanted her, he wanted them to live together, to be together, but maybe—
“Dani, uncuff me.”
Shit, shit, shit—
“Dani, now,” he said when she hesitated.
Fingers trembling, she climbed onto her knees again and fumbled around the lamp on the nightstand until she felt the tiny key that opened the cuffs. It took two tries but eventually she got the cuffs open and scrambled back as he sat up.
“I can explain,” she started but couldn’t back up farther; he had her trapped in moments, one arm around her and pressing against her back, his other hand brushing hair from her face.
“Are you okay?” His brows dropped low, frowning with concern as he scanned her body once, then looked in her eyes again. “When you were knocked out—”
“I’m fine.” Her hands folded over his, drawing his fingers down between her breasts to press his palm over her abdomen. “I asked the doctor and everything checked out.”
He stared down at their entwined fingers, dark and light over her belly, then glanced up, met her eyes, lips parted. “When?”
“I’m almost eight weeks, so I think it was Melanie—”
“—Wesson’s Halloween party,” he finished for her, lips quirking in a grin. “Of course.”
A drunken night where they’d slipped from the house for his truck not to drive home but because they were going at each other and too eager to make it back to her apartment. The condom box in the glove compartment was empty but both had been formally tested just after she moved to town, knew they were clean, so went for it anyway.
“Look, I’m keeping it, no matter—”
“Dani—”
“Just listen.” She squeezed his hand and tried to smile. “I lost my mom young and I want this, no matter what. Even if you don’t—”
“Of course I do.” His hand on her back slid up her spine, splaying between her shoulder blades and pulling her close.
“I know. And I’m telling you, I’m not going anywhere permanently. I have to blog and I have to write, and I may need to occasionally travel. I’ll work on respecting our privacy if you’ll stop acting like you think I’m going to get bored and run. I want you, the house, the baby—I want everything.”
He captured her mouth, kissing her deeply. Still hard, still ready, he groaned when she rolled her hips and rocked against him. She gripped his shoulders, bracing herself so she could ride him, and his hand that had been on her abdomen slipped lower, delving past her waistband. Soaked, throbbing, she shuddered as his finger brushed her clit.
His lips were more gentle than she was used to, touches careful and restrained. And though she tightened her grip on his shoulders and pressed herself firmer against his fingers, he still held back.
“Hey cowboy,” she whispered against his mouth, eyes searching his. “I’m not going to break.” She caressed his lower lip between his, sucking gently then firmly, her teeth grazing. “Take me.”
A growl rumbled his throat, his muscles bunching against her palms and his grip turned rougher as he grasped the front of her panties and jerked them. Cotton ripped between them, shredding in his large, strong hand, and he cast the material aside. She slid forward immediately, the tip of his cock teasing her opening, but before she could take him in completely, he moved, depositing her on her back on the bed so she took the place previously vacated by him, straight down to the handcuffs he snapped around her wrists.
She panted and shivered, pressing her feet into the mattress and raising her hips to urge him inside her, but he merely grinned and moved down. His hands cupped her breasts, thumbs and forefingers rolling the hard peaks of her nipples until she was shaking and jerking on the metal restraining her wrists.
“You were going to tell me the same time as the book?” he asked.
The wrought iron above her groaned as she tugged on her bindings but she knew she wasn’t going anywhere. “Yes.”
“This is much better than the moose.”
Her chuckle was lost as his head moved lower, between her thighs. There was no precursor, just his tongue darting out to slide along her slit, lapping at the wetness. Heat gathered in her belly, the waves of her impending orgasm drawing close.
“Take me, please,” she cried, bucking her hips.
But perhaps he was enjoying her impatience, because he made no move to do so; instead he abandoned her breasts and his arms came down. He urged her thighs apart and she felt his breath there against her flesh while the fingers of one hand held her open and the other slid between her pussy lips to slide two digits into her slick heat.
Dani gasped, rocked her hips up, as he licked and fingered her with hard strokes. The mingle of sensations was overwhelming, pleasure becoming almost painful and to the point she didn’t think she could take anymore.
“If you don’t”—she drew in a swift breath, her lungs starved for air—“fuck me soon, I’m going to come without you.”
When his tongue flicked her clit again, she nearly fell apart completely. Sweat slicked her forehead, tangled with her hair, and the ceiling above her went blurry as pleasure threatened to overtake her.
Then he abruptly released her, sitting back and leaving her pussy aching and clenching in the absence of his touch. Slowly she came back down, blinking and panting, struggling to calm the pounding of her heart, letting out a frustrated whine.
Adam grasped her hips forcefully and turned her onto her belly. The chain connecting the cuffs sang against the wrought iron bar of the headboard, twisting and restricting her movement further from this position. Hair cascading down over her shoulders, the clip lost from sight. He palmed her ass until she was bracing her knees against the mattress and lifting herself, begging without words.
And he answered, thighs brushing hers, hands moving to her hips again, and she felt the broad head of his cock part her opening. She gripped the headboard and held on as he sank his full length into her.
They easily fell into rhythm, the slaps of skin on skin echoing in her ears. Her head tipped forward, pressing into her forearms, hair a tangled mess falling around her while he pistoned in and out of her.
“God,” she mumbled, the sound muffled by her arms, rapture approaching. She felt his hands running up and down her back, lips sampling the flesh over her spine, his heat touching her everywhere. His fingers came under her, lifting her up, molding her to him, sliding them forward on the bed until she was sitting on his lap, her knees on the outside of his.
His pace never wavered, driving in and out of her, and she held on, arching her back. Teeth grazed her shoulder from behind, tongue gliding over her flesh, and his hands roamed her front. One claimed her breast, the other her pussy to draw circles around her clit. The tiny bundle of nerves there screamed for release.
“Dani,” he rasped against her ear. “Let me hear it.”
Just as he spoke, she lost it. Her head slammed back against his shoulder, body seized, and she cried out as she came. White stars played over her eyes as bliss exploded, starting low in her belly and radiating outward.
And he was right there with her, thrusting a final time before his groan of release sounded by her ear.
His arms wrapped around her torso, holding her close while they both came down.
The wall rattled suddenly as a neighbor pounded.
Dani blinked, just remembering where they were, and burst into laughter. “A bright side of living in the country is that, much like space, no one can hear you scream.”
Adam found the key and unlatched her cuffs. “Looking forward to it.”
Epilogue
Christmas morning, Dani was bundled up in her winter coat, long purple scarf, hat, and gloves. Adam insisted, like if they walked from her apartment to his truck, she was going to get pneumonia and die. He locked up behind her while she walked carefully on the salted path from the building toward the parking lot. The sun on fresh snow was pure white, almost blinding, so she went slowly and squinted the whole time.
Exactly ten paces into the lot and she stopped dead, staring.
An enormous, red and green moose—in a goddamn Santa hat—waited in 2-F, her parking spot.
She was still gaping at it when Adam stopped behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders.
“Merry Christmas, princess,” he said against her ear.
About the Author
Asha King likes good-looking men and hot books, and often strives to combine the two in contemporary, paranormal, and suspenseful romantic stories. She lives in the exotic land of Alberta, Canada, where she doesn’t ride a polar bear to work but does drink vast amounts of locally brewed beer and watches hockey.
She loves connecting with readers and you can email her at [email protected], visit her on the web at www.midnightkisses.com/asha.html, and check out her blog at www.ashaking.blogspot.com for a list of her books.
Now Available from Asha King...
Wild Horses
(A Stirling Falls Novel)