Silver Fire (Guardians)

by Victoria Paige

  “No it wasn’t,” Derek said. “That car chase was incredibly high-octane.”

  “I’m surprised you can stand to watch something like that after what happened to you on the Beltway,” Sophie said seriously.

  Derek shrugged. “I’ve been through worse scrapes.”

  “But honestly, Ben Wilken needs to retire that franchise,” Sophie said. “He’s getting too old. What is he, forty-one?”

  Derek glanced sharply at her before realizing she was teasing him. “He’s almost sixty, you little minx. C’mere.” He grabbed her by the waist as she tried to get away. She was laughing hysterically as he dragged her body against him, silencing her with a deep, searching kiss. His tongue probed the depths of her mouth, tangling with hers and stroking her intimately.

  Sophie pulled away. “Bedroom,” she gasped. Derek’s eyes darkened with lust. Without another word, he swung her up in his arms and moved quickly to the bedroom. He lowered her gently on the bed and stretched above her, propping himself with his elbows. Derek searched her eyes. “Are you sure, Sophie?”

  “I’m sure,” Sophie whispered back huskily. She was aching between her legs with her need for him. “But first, I want you to teach me something.”

  His eyes narrowed warily. “What, baby?”

  She pushed him away, forced him on his back and straddled him. “I want you to teach me to give you a blowjob.”

  His face flashed with guilt. “Angel, I don’t think—”

  “Derek, I’m not expecting to get it right the first time. But this is the first time I want to do it on a man willingly, and I want that man to be you.”

  Not waiting for him to respond, she quickly unbuttoned his jeans and lowered his zipper which was a bit difficult because he was already hard. She stroked him through his boxers and heard him hiss.

  “Sophie, I don’t think I’ll last very long.” Derek’s voice was strangled.

  “That may be a good thing,” Sophie mumbled. “Because I may do this all wrong.”

  “Baby, just watching you staring at my dick is enough to make me wanna come.”

  “Don’t be silly,” Sophie said as she gently eased his cock out of his boxers.

  “You can be a bit rougher with it you know, it can take it,” Derek said. His head was supported by his forearms and he was watching her with a mix of amusement and trepidation. Sophie stared at the smooth head and slowly wrapped her lips around it. She read somewhere that the tip was the most sensitive part. She heard Derek groan her name and that encouraged her, so she swirled her tongue over the head again. She looked up at him, his eyes were shut, but she couldn’t tell if he was in ecstasy or pain.

  “Derek, are you OK?”

  “Sophie,” he rasped. “Don’t stop.”

  “But I don’t know if you like it—”

  “Sophie!”

  “OK. OK.” Sophie muttered. Sheesh. She took in the head of his cock again.

  “Grasp my cock firmly and move your hands up and down.”

  “Like this?” Sophie encircled her hands around his girth. God he was so thick, her hand couldn’t even fully go around it. She started stroking.

  “Yes, but tighter. Yes,” He started pumping his hip upward, but Sophie was retreating, so she didn’t know if his effort was doing any good.

  “Can you take more of me?” Derek asked hoarsely.

  “I might gag.” Sophie’s words were muffled because she had his cock in her mouth, but he seemed to understand her.

  “That’s OK, can, um, you try? Relax the back of your throat.”

  Sophie opened her mouth wider and took more of him until she felt the tip hit the back of her throat, and tears stung her eyes. Oh god, she was going to throw up popcorn all over him. Sophie tried valiantly to get into the rhythm of swallowing his penis and pumping her fist, but she eventually gagged. She pulled her mouth out at the same time Derek cursed as he sat up and pulled her head away as semen spurted out.

  “Jesus. I didn’t last very long,” Derek muttered, breathing heavily. Noticing her watery eyes, his face flashed with sympathy. “Oh, Angel, did you gag?”

  Sophie wiped the tears from her cheeks and sighed. “I’m not very good at this.”

  “Sophie, I came didn’t I?” Derek said. Noticing her disappointment, he chuckled. “Baby, that was fantastic. And I don’t want you asking how you compare with others because you’ve got great potential. Your mouth is like silk. But you’ll have to try and take more of me next time though,” he added teasingly.

  Sophie glared at him and punched his arm. “You’re not exactly standard issue you know.”

  His face darkened. “And who are you comparing me to?”

  “Stephen and Beth talk,” Sophie said. When he raised an eyebrow, she said. “Oh quit fishing for compliments. Your penis is legendary.”

  Derek shook his head, color actually stealing up his neck. “Alright. Stop. Before I start having performance issues from all these expectations.”

  He got up and said, “Don’t move. I’m getting cleaned up a bit, and I’m taking care of you.”

  Sophie clenched her thighs in anticipation. Finally. It’s been too long since she had felt Derek between her legs. When he came back he was naked. He prowled to the bed, grabbed her legs and hauled her to him. “Can’t believe you still have your clothes on,” he muttered as he pulled her up and yanked her sundress off, leaving her in her panties.

  “How slow or hard do you want it?” Derek asked her. Sophie couldn’t tell what mood he was in. He wasn’t playful like earlier, he actually seemed serious.

  “Um, however you want to give it to me,” Sophie replied breathlessly.

  Derek pushed her deep into the bed, covering her body with his. He started kissing her slowly, teasing her lips, but before she knew it, his lips were scorching roughly across her, bruising her mouth deliciously. She felt his hand move between them as he cupped her sex, stroking her cleft maddeningly. “This is mine, Angel.”

  Sophie was so busy enjoying the sensations that were pulsing between her legs, she didn’t answer. Suddenly, she felt him slide down her body and raise her legs over his shoulders. Oh yes.

  A tentative flick of his tongue. She pumped her hips up impatiently and heard him chuckle. Argh, do it already. He started eating her through her panties. The silk crotch created serious friction against her clit.

  “Derek, more, please...”

  “You want it hard or slow?”

  “Hard,” Sophie gasped, realizing he was letting her control the tempo. “I want you to fuck me hard, Derek.”

  Her panties were gone. Ripped off. Then she heard the growl before the full assault of his tongue hit her dead center. Spreading her wide, he ate like a man who had been starved for weeks. She felt his teeth graze her tender flesh almost painfully, but in that pain there was also sheer pleasure. She fisted her hands in his hair as her orgasm started to hit her. The pulsing increased exponentially before she felt a warm gush flood her sex and felt him lap up the liquid greedily. She came hard, her back arching as she cried out his name.

  He quickly crawled up her body and slammed inside her. Hard. A low mewl of pleasure escaped her lips as he stretched her blissfully with his cock.

  “Sophie. Ah, god, you feel like heaven, baby,” Derek groaned above her. He began moving inside her, thrusting into her, pounding her to the mattress. He would withdraw almost to the tip before sliding back inside her, filling her where she needed him most. Her muscles clenched involuntarily around him as he hit a sensitive spot, triggering another orgasm.

  “Derek, I think, I think, I’m coming, don’t stop...”

  “Fuck, baby,” His eyes widened as he watched her come again. Then he tensed, did a series of frantic thrusts before he shoved one last time inside her and buried his face on the side of her neck and shuddered violently as he came. Sophie felt him bite down on her shoulder like the first time they had sex. Then he nuzzled her hair before relieving her of his weight and dragging her on top of him.
>
  He cupped her face, looked into her eyes deeply and murmured, “I love you, Sophie Marie Leroux.”

  What? Sophie thought in a daze. His words knocked the air right out of her lungs. Is this some post-coital pillow talk? Or did Derek really love her?

  She must have been frowning, because Derek’s brows drew together and he said, “Say something, Angel.”

  “Um.” Sophie thought it was best if she wasn’t on top of him, so she pulled away. At first he resisted, but he eventually slackened his grip. He did not look happy.

  She kneeled on the bed and sat on her heels, while he propped himself up on an elbow. His jaw was clenched.

  “I don’t know what you want me to say,” Sophie managed to squeak out.

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Derek said sarcastically. “Maybe that you love me too?”

  “I know I care for you, Derek, I really do,” Sophie said. “And maybe I love you, but I don’t think it’s fair for you to expect me to say it back if I’m not sure.”

  He regarded her for a moment and sighed. “Yeah, you’re right.”

  “Maybe it’s the post-coital effect—”

  “Don’t, Sophie,” Derek cut in. “I’m not telling you what you feel, stop telling me what I feel.”

  “Come here.” He nodded to his side.

  “I’m not sure—”

  “Come. Here,” he bit out, so she scooted back into his arms. She was lying on her back, he was still propped up on an elbow, staring down at her with a tenderness she had never seen in his eyes. “I’m in love you. I’ve known for a while. If it’s possible to love a person to the brink of insanity, then that’s what I feel for you.” He paused, searching her face as if contemplating whether he should say more, then he added, “I have never been in love before. I know it’s a lot to process, but I’m willing to be patient. Don’t pull away. Stick with me. And maybe you can love me even half as much as I love you. I’ll be happy with that.”

  “Oh Derek.” Sophie’s eyes filled with tears. “That’s the most beautiful thing anyone’s ever said to me.”

  “Thank fuck!” Derek muttered.

  “You swear too much,” Sophie scolded him lightly.

  “You love me for it anyway,” Derek deadpanned.

  “Trying to get me to say it, Mr. Lockwood?” Sophie teased.

  “Every time I could.”

  ***

  Seriously, he was pussy-whipped. Sweat trickled down the side of his neck as Derek reclined on a picnic blanket under an old oak tree at one of the more popular New Park City public parks. People walking their dogs, road bikes navigating the bike trails, runners pounding pavement; it all seemed like a leisurely endeavor on a Sunday afternoon, but it was absolutely not his scene. He’d probably prefer playing basketball or soccer with the guys and have Sophie cheering him from the bleachers. Unfortunately, they were lounging around lazily and she was reading a book while he was pretending to nap. Hard to nap when the humidity was almost a 100 percent. What was Sophie thinking?

  He glanced over to where she was concentrating on the latest paranormal romance she had picked up for her eReader. Her brows were furrowed and she was chewing on her bottom lip and he would give anything right now to be the one chewing on those plump kissers of hers. His gaze drifted lower to the neckline of her sexy white spaghetti top, revealing damp skin. Her long lean legs were dressed up in the skimpiest of shorts.

  Yeah, on a day like this, he’d rather take her on the back of his bike, find a secluded area off the beaten path and take her against a tree, in an alcove, or on a field of grass and have their heated bodies combust with the intensity of their fucking. And now he was hard. Adjusting himself discreetly, Derek crawled up to Sophie, sat down beside her and nuzzled her neck.

  “What chapter are you on? Is it interesting?”

  “Uh-huh, ” Sophie said with a hint of irritation.

  “I could make it more interesting,” he murmured as he nipped her ear.

  “Derek! We’re in public,” Sophie hissed, pulling away. “There are kids around.”

  Derek sighed. “You’re right. You just look so darned sexy with your gorgeous eyes all squinty.”

  She flashed him a grin before giving him a chaste kiss on his lips. “Later, lover.”

  “Derek?” A female voice said. “Derek Lockwood?”

  Derek saw Sophie’s eyes narrow at whoever was behind him. And this was another reason he had not wanted to be lying around in a public park on a Sunday afternoon. He turned around to face a tall, beautiful brunette dressed in a runner’s bra and ruffled running skirt.

  “Derek?” Sophie nudged him.

  “Ah, I don’t,” Derek began sheepishly, fumbling in his brain for the woman’s name. It was probably panic, but he couldn’t remember what it was even if his life depended on it.

  “It’s Catherine Davis.” The brunette was now glaring at him. Her eyes raked over Sophie. “Is she your flavor of the week?”

  “That’s enough, Miss Davis,” Derek warned. No one spoke about Sophie that way.

  “Or what?” Catherine returned acidly. “And how is it Miss Davis now? It was Cat when you were fucking me for a week a couple of months ago.”

  A couple of park goers turned to look at them curiously.

  Someone please shoot him now, Derek thought frantically. His past had a funny way of catching up with him. He kept his mouth shut.

  “Um. I think this is not the time or the place,” Sophie said quietly, but her cheeks had turned scarlet and Derek was pissed at himself for putting her in such an embarrassing situation.

  “Advice, Sister,” Cat said to Sophie. “This man might be the best fuck you’ll ever have. But don’t get too attached because he doesn’t stick around.”

  “That’s hardly fair—” Sophie began.

  “Fair? I’ll give you two of my friend’s numbers and they can tell you the same.”

  “That won’t be necessary.”

  The woman smirked, then looked at Derek. “My work is done here.”

  “Fuck,” Derek mumbled, not daring to look at Sophie. He could feel her eyes boring into him like a laser.

  “I gather that was one of your harem?” Sophie said after a beat.

  “Maia has a big mouth,” Derek muttered. “I did not hide anything from you, Sophie. You knew my reputation. Hell, all of DC and New Park know my reputation. That lifestyle worked for me then, and I’m not apologizing for it.”

  “How could you treat women that way, Derek?”

  “I did not promise them anything!” Derek said furiously. “It’s not my fault if they expected more than sex. I never dated them, never watched a movie with them, and never sat stupidly in a damned park, sweating in this infernal heat WITH THEM!”

  “So sitting in this park is stupid?” Sophie asked, and there was hurt in her eyes, but Derek was too pissed off to filter what came out of his mouth next.

  “Yes, it’s damned stupid to be sitting in this park. I’m drenched and uncomfortable, and I don’t know why the fuck you find this relaxing.”

  “You didn’t have to come with me, I would have been perfectly fine on my own.”

  “Don’t be silly, you knew I wanted to spend the afternoon with you,” Derek said in exasperation.

  Sophie lips twitched, wiping away the uncertainty that clouded her face when Cat showed up. “So you’re willing to brave this sweltering heat just to spend time with me?”

  “Don’t push it, Angel,” Derek warned. Then he sighed. “These are things we men do for love.”

  Sophie snorted and then belly-laughed at her snort. “Oh my god that was so unladylike.”

  Derek quickly knocked her on her back and loomed on top of her. “That was cute.”

  “Pretty slick, throwing the ‘L’ word in there, mister.”

  “Well, I figured I haven’t told you I love you since this morning. I plan to wear you down.”

  “Tell me something. Is running into your exes going to be a standard occurrence whenever we’r
e in public?”

  Derek groaned and buried his face into her hair, mumbling indistinctly “Probably.”

  “What?”

  He raised his head. “Probably.”

  Sophie pushed up on her elbows, dislodging him from her. “Ballpark, Derek, how many women are we exactly talking about?”

  Derek preferred to plead the fifth on that one, but apparently Sophie quickly did the math in her head. “Three women a week, that’s 52 weeks a year—”

  “Hey, sometimes they last longer than a week and I might take a break a week or two,” Derek said defensively.

  “—multiplied by how many years—”

  “That’s not even an accurate accounting —” Derek stated darkly.

  “It’s the population of a small town!” Sophie shrieked incredulously. She eyed him curiously, like he was a lab rat. “How has your penis not fallen off? Seriously.”

  Her eyes were sparkling mischievously.

  “I take it you’re not mad?” he asked warily.

  “No. A bit bewildered maybe—Beth and I never did the math. Oh my god, let me text her—”

  “Sophie!”

  “Just kidding.”

  Derek turned serious as a thought occurred to him. “Angel, is my reputation what’s causing you to hold back?”

  “I won’t lie. Subconsciously? Maybe,” Sophie answered honestly. “I’m afraid if I fall in love with you and you walk away, I won’t survive it.”

  “My life has been a series of meaningless fucks,” he admitted. “I won’t deny that some were better than others, but none, absolutely NONE compares or even comes close to how I feel when I’m inside you. Or just being with you. It’s not just about the sex, which is how I know...guess I’ve always known.”

  Sophie’s brows arched quizzically, so Derek continued, “When I saw you during our first business meeting, I knew you affected me in some way, but I was too chickenshit to do anything about my attraction to you.”

  “You’ve been interested in me for months?”