by Alexa Riley
“I guess what I’m asking is…” I look around the room, feeling a little unsure of myself. I’m insecure because this man looks like a Greek god below me, and he’s between my thighs. He’s the definition of perfection. I don’t know where to begin with a man like him in my bed. I let him take the lead, and I gave up all control.
“Eyes on me.”
I snap my eyes back to him. “Have you been with anyone recently?” I finally spit the words out. I hate the idea that he wanted me, but might have still been with someone else while he waited. The thought of him with someone else makes me sick, but even more so as I think about how he felt about me. The idea of him harboring those feelings, but still being with someone else, nauseates me.
The moment the words are out of my mouth, I want to snatch them back. I realize that I don’t want to know the answer. I start to dig my fingers into his chest, but Captain moves. He sits up, coming face-to-face with me.
“It was me who came up with the idea that you wouldn’t be allowed to date when you were watching over Mallory in college. I told Miles it might distract you, but really, I knew it was the only thing that would keep me from coming for you.”
My mouth falls open at his confession. I never really wanted to date. I’d always had a little crush on Captain. He’d been the only man to spark my interest, after watching how my father treated my mother for years. I wanted nothing to do with men before Captain came along. Going to a college full of privileged males didn’t help, either. Rich men thought they could do anything and get away with anything. I think that’s part of why I’d always had a crush on Captain―because he seemed so good. Like a man who would cut off his own arm before he’d ever hurt a woman. He’s a protector, and I crave that, deep down.
I didn’t want to date anyone, but it didn’t mean he had any right to stop me. Especially if he was dating. The thought makes my blood boil. I dig my fingers into his chest more, wanting him to feel the bite of my nails.
“Retract the claws, kitten.” I feel his hard cock jerk under me, and I narrow my eyes at him.
“It’s been a long time.” Still, I keep glaring at him, giving him the look that normally sends people running. But not him.
He smiles the stupid, perfect smile that melts me, the one he gives me when he thinks I’m being cute. “For years, there’s only been one woman in my bed, shower, at my desk, maybe a few times in my kitchen.”
“Ryan.” I growl this time.
“You. If you only knew of all the things I dreamed about doing to you, you might run.” He rests his forehead on mine. The teasing smile drops away. “Paige, you’re the only woman I’ve touched since I laid eyes on you. There was no way in hell I’d give someone else even a small piece of me, knowing what I felt for you. You’ve owned me for years. All of me.”
I tilt my head up a little, giving him a soft kiss. Then I bite his lip, making him jerk. Before I know what’s happening, I’m on my back with him looming over me. His big body hovers over mine.
“Just giving you a taste of what would happen if I get jealous. You know, so you make sure it doesn’t happen,” I say, raising my chin in challenge.
“Hmm. You might want to rethink that, kitten. I like your teeth on me, if you haven’t noticed.” He grinds his erection against me, and the friction is delicious. I wrap my arms around his neck, wanting to stay connected.
“I’m sorry. I’m finding myself very territorial with you all of a sudden. Maybe because I’ve never really thought of anything as mine but you. I think you’re mine,” I tell him, wanting to put it all out there. “I don’t think I could bear to lose you. When I thought I did last night, for a moment—”
“You’ll never lose me.” His words cut me off. They hold so much confidence.
“It’s wrong for me to let you get mixed into my mess with me.”
“It’s wrong for you to not let me,” he throws back. “You think I’m going to let you kill him?” His words are low and challenging.
I thought about it for so many years. I’ve implied what I want to do, but the words have never come out of my mouth. They’re always right there, but never slip free. It’s like if I voice it, then I’m bringing them to life and becoming like him. The day my mother died, I just stood there. Then when I saw my father again, for the first time in ages, I stood there once more. Paralyzed. Maybe I don’t have what it takes.
“You don’t think I can do it.” It’s not a question.
“Paige, you can do anything you put your mind to. Your strength was one of the first things I noticed about you.”
“Then why?” I ask, looking up at him. He looks like a warrior ready to go to battle for me. My warrior.
“You’ve had enough darkness touch you. I know you want your piece of payback, and I’m going to help you get it. But I’m going to shield you as much as possible while we do it. When it’s over, it’s over. And I’ll spend the rest of my life filling that beautiful brain of yours with memories you’ll want. There’ll be so many, and they’ll be so beautiful that they’ll block out the ones you can’t let go of. I’ll give you so many you’ll have no choice but to replay those in your mind.”
“You’re already doing that,” I admit.
“You’re going to let me shield you? Help you get where you’re going? Be a team?” he presses, always wanting my words. He needs to hear me say what he wants. “Let me take care of you, kitten. Let me make everything right. I can give you everything you could ever want.”
God, that sounds good. Not even my mother took care of me like Captain wants to. I was always the one taking care of her and picking up her broken pieces. The thought of a life where I have a partner, someone to stand beside me through the storm, is a welcome relief I didn’t expect.
“If I let you do this, then you have to do something for me.”
“Anything,” Captain agrees, without a second of hesitation.
“I want you to make love to me while wearing the Captain America costume. Complete with shield.”
The intense moment is broken as he smiles and puts his weight down on my chest. I can feel his body shaking with laughter, and I wrap myself around him and close my eyes. If this is what love feels like, then I never want it to end.
Chapter Twenty-One
Ryan
* * *
A KNOCK ON the door startles me awake, and I realize that I’ve somehow fallen asleep with Paige on top of me. I squeeze her lush ass with both hands and grind my erection into her stomach before I roll us over. I kiss her cheek and pull the covers over her, then grab my pants and tug them on.
I make my way to the front door, look through the peephole and smile. Mallory is standing there with a basket in her hands, so I unlock the door and swing it open.
“Morning,” she says over her shoulder as she comes in. Miles is out in the hallway, talking on his cell, and he waves to me. I give him a chin lift in hello and leave the door slightly ajar. “I brought you guys brunch. Miles and I went out early and thought we would drop this off on our way back up.”
“Do I smell food?” Paige walks out of her room with a blanket wrapped around her and her hair all on one side. She would look comical if I didn’t want her so badly.
“You’ve got the nose of a bloodhound,” Mallory says. “Looks like everything worked out last night.”
She looks at me in my shirtless state, and I bring my hands up to cover my naked chest. Mallory glances over at Paige, who laughs and rolls her eyes.
“We’ll leave you two alone,” Miles says from the doorway, dragging Mallory behind him.
“Wait, I want girl talk!” Mallory pouts as she exits. She yells for Paige to text her as I close the door behind them and lock it for good measure.
“What happened last night?” Paige asks as she digs into the basket of food.
“Do you need a reminder?” I walk up beside her and kiss her bare shoulder.
“Yes.” The word is breathy, then she clears her throat. “Maybe in a second. Tell m
e what happened. Before you found me.”
“I knew something was off with you last night. I went home and I debated about what to do, and then I decided to come check on you. I had this feeling that you were going somewhere, and when I got to your door and Mallory answered, I knew. She didn’t even open her mouth. I took one look at her and guilt was written all over her face. I told her if she went straight home, I wouldn’t tell Miles.”
“Bet she hated that,” Paige says, pulling the containers out of the basket.
“He found out, anyway. He was walking in just as I was leaving. He always knows where she is. But I didn’t stay to listen to what happened. I knew my badge was missing, and I knew you had plans to sneak back in. You’re the only person who gets close enough to me to be able to take it from me.”
“How did you know?” she asks, pulling down plates and serving us food.
“Kitten, I keep telling you that I know you better than you know yourself. You gave me the slip, but not for long.”
“I’m surprised Miles isn’t pissed,” she says, looking down at her plate.
“Nah. He knew where she was the whole time. There’s enough security in this building to guard the president. It’s not like you asked her to go to a bar so you could hit on men.” I give her a smirk, and she throws a grape at me.
“I only did that once. And it wasn’t to hit on men.” No, maybe it wasn’t, but half the bar was eye-fucking her by the time I showed up.
“Get over here and make it up to me.” I grab her by the waist and put her up on the counter of the kitchen. Pushing her blanket off her, I let it pool around her hips. I spread her legs, exposing her fully, and look at her sitting naked in front of me. “Delicious.” I still can’t get over that she’s here naked in front of me for my taking. For so many years I’ve wanted this. Worked toward it. I thought it would never come.
“What do I have to do to make it up to you?” Paige looks at me with hooded eyes, her dark auburn hair flowing down one shoulder. She smells like lavender, sex and me. My mouth waters to taste her again. She might have been a virgin last night, but Paige isn’t shy. Even better, she likes it dirty, something I didn’t know I liked until her. She brings out a barbaric side of me.
“I think you’re probably ready to take me again, aren’t you?”
She bites her lip, but spreads her legs wider, scooting to the edge of the counter.
“That’s what I thought, kitten. Always ready for me.” I unbutton my pants and kick them off. As I stand naked in front of her, my hard thick cock points angrily at her pussy. It’s the place he wants in most, and he’s dripping for her.
I grab one of her ankles and prop it up on my shoulder as I press my aching head to her opening. I thrust in firmly, letting her take all of me in one long slide, then give her a second to adjust.
“Relax, kitten. I’m going to take you deep like this. I want your eyes on my cock as it goes in and out of you. I want you watching me take you, and I want you to see it pulse when I come inside your pussy. Sucking every drop of me into you, where it belongs.”
I feel her clench around me at my words and watch as her eyes drop to our connection. I slowly drag out of her, and then thrust back in quickly. We both moan at the sensation of me taking her. As I pump in and out in even motions, she pants with need. I keep rocking at the same tempo while I bring my thumb up to her exposed clit. At the first touch she cries out my name, but doesn’t orgasm. She’s overly sensitive from my mouth, but she doesn’t tell me to stop.
My cock is slick with her passion, and my entry is so easy. She’s unbelievably tight, even after taking her cherry, and I don’t know how much longer I can last. I grab her other foot and put it on my shoulder so both her legs are up in the air. Her ass is on the edge of the kitchen counter, and she’s got her palms braced behind her for support. But she’s not going anywhere. I’ve got a grip on her hips, and we watch as our bodies become one over and over.
Turning my face to the side, I lick her ankle and bite down on the inside of her foot. She cries out my name, and it turns me on even more. I do the same to the other foot, and I feel her clench around my cock.
“I love you, kitten. I love you so much.”
Her back arches, and she screams as she comes on me. It’s the green light I’ve been waiting for, and I thrust into her hard one last time, filling her up with every drop I have. Marking her deep inside her body.
I take her legs off my shoulders and wind them around my hips. I pull her upper body to mine and hold her as we both try to catch our breath. It’s fast and intense, and it’s the best fucking thing I’ve ever felt.
“Every time I touch you, it’s better than the last,” I say, kissing the top of her head.
She looks up at me with eyes glazed with a lust-filled fog, and she smiles. “You’re not so bad yourself.”
I kiss her lips and take my time tasting her sweetness. When I’ve decided I need to feed her before I fuck her again, I pull out of her and take a step back.
“Why is that so hot?” she asks, looking down at my cock and seeing our mixed pleasure coating me.
“I love hearing you say I’m hot, but to which part are you referring?”
My cock bobs between us, and she licks her lips “Seeing my come on you, mixed with yours. Your cock covered in us. I don’t know why, but seeing it makes me want you all over again.”
“Because you like seeing that you marked me, too,” I tell her.
She slips off the counter and slowly drops her to knees in front of me.
“Paige,” I say through gritted teeth. I hold out my hands to keep her from getting closer, but I’m backed into the counter. “What are you doing? Get up off the floor.”
“I think you know what I’m doing.” She runs her hands up my thighs, and they tremble under her touch.
“Get up, Paige. You don’t need to do this.” I don’t know why, but her on her knees in front of me isn’t something I want. She should kneel for no one. “I mean it.”
“Just a taste,” she says, looking up at me. The sight of her below me has my cock flexing with need, but my heart aches to pull her off the floor. “One little lick.”
I clench my jaw and fist my hands, not wanting her to think she has to do this. My woman should be worshiped. And I don’t know if I can control myself like this.
The heat of her tongue on my cock has me closing my eyes. It’s like fire running along my shaft, and then I hear her moan. The sound goes straight to my balls. Her mouth opens around the head of my cock, and I have to look. I glance down at her and see her mouth stretched wide around my girth. I unclench my fists and reach out, grabbing her hair with both of my hands. I hold her head still while she sucks on my cock, and fuck me, it’s the most erotic thing I’ve ever seen.
“You want to suck my dick?” I ask her, and she nods. Her mouth is still full of cock, and I feel her tongue graze the tip. “Take it all the way to the back of your throat then, kitten. Clean it off.” She takes as much of my length as she can, breathing through her nose when it goes as far as she can reach. “Fuck.”
She hums in delight, as she nearly has me coming undone.
“You get this one pass, so you better enjoy it. I don’t like seeing my woman on her knees. Not even for me.” She rubs up my thighs, to my balls, rubbing them and cupping me. “Suck me off, and then I want to come on you.”
I see her slip her hand between her legs at my words, and I hear how wet she is. The thought of me marking her has her turned on, which only makes me want to do it faster.
“Deep breath,” I say, as I grip her hair tighter and pull her down on my dick. I move in and out of her mouth, and it takes only a few pumps before I’m ready. “Sit back on your feet.”
She does as I ask, her hand still between her legs, as I pull out of her mouth and jerk my cock off. Thick spurts of come shoot out and land on her chin and neck. I see a drop land on her breast, and I reach down, rubbing it in. I fall to my knees in front of her, rubbing
the come all over her with one hand, while the other goes to her pussy to help her get off.
“You’re mine now. Come on my hand, kitten. I want to smell your pussy on me all day.”
Her wetness clenches around me, and I lean forward, kissing her. My tongue sweeps into her mouth, and I can taste my own pleasure. She’s coated in me, and it’s the biggest turn-on of my life. She whines into my mouth as she comes for me, the sticky sweetness covering our entwined fingers. When the last tremor is released, I bring my finger up to her mouth and wipe the wetness on her bottom lip. I taste the two of us together, and it’s fucking perfect. Just like my Paige.
“Good girl. Now let’s eat.”
She blushes, but melts into me, and I have to bundle her up in the blanket and carry her to the couch.
We lie there all day, eating, kissing and petting each other. I take her off and on, unable to get my fill. There are conversations that we need to have and plans we need to make. But today is for loving my kitten. And if there’s one thing I do well, it’s love her.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Paige
* * *
MY PHONE BUZZES in my bag, and I lean down to grab it. It’s Monday, and Captain and I are back at work. He’s been giving me glances all day that have me squirming in my seat, so I wonder if he’s decided to send me a dirty text.
I’m surprised when I see Patrick’s name on the screen. With everything that’s happened lately, I’d completely forgotten about him. I feel like an asshole for not getting in touch when I said I would. I slide my thumb on the screen and read his text.