She set her gaze to the rest of the room. Just before they entered the hallway she caught a glimpse of Reaper. He was standing in the far corner of the bar away from everyone. His eyes seemed to be on her for only a second before he returned his attention to his drink. As he lifted the bottle to his lips Nikki was sure she caught the slightest tremor in his hand. Then they were out of sight.
Trace led them to her room and closed the door behind them. Nikki watched as he removed his boots and his cut laying it on the dresser. He threw her that dazzling hundred watt grin and in spite of everything it still had the power to still her heart. She couldn't help but grin back at him. Then his shirt was gone and her gaze was refocused on the lean muscle of his chest and stomach. He had the physique of an athlete. Sleek and toned with the ripple of abs and a hint of the v.
Trace stepped forward and swept her hair back from her face. With one hand cupping her cheek and the other at her waist he resumed his gentle slow kiss from earlier. Nikki let her eyes close as she began to respond to Trace. He guided her backwards gently lowering her to the bed. As her head hit the soft cushioning of her mattress she felt her shoes disappear and Trace's mouth disengaged from hers.
"Lay back and relax baby girl."
He nuzzled at her neck as he slowly began to unbutton her shirt. His mouth traced a path down to her cleavage where he nibbled at the swell of her breasts. Nikki could feel the warmth of his breath through her lace bra as his mouth hovered over her. She knew if she opened her eyes he'd be watching her face intently with those baby blues. He'd be waiting for her to react, to give him an indication of the right path. Nikki took a deep breath forcing her breasts to rise up towards Trace's waiting mouth. That was the indication he'd been waiting for. His mouth latched onto her nipple and suckled at it through the lace.
As the wet lace rasped across her nipple Nikki let out the breath she'd been holding. The rush of air was accompanied by a slight moan.
"Music to my ears," she could hear the smile in Trace's voice.
His mouth travelled down her stomach while his fingers busied themselves with the button and zip on her skirt. He slid the material down her legs discarding it somewhere on her bedroom floor. Trace began to massage her tired muscles starting at her calves and working his way up. The movements of his hands were accompanied by light teasing kisses.
Nikki's body began to soften under Trace's touch. Some of the tension she now carried with her every day began to leach out of her. She forced her mind to empty and to concentrate on his touch alone. His mouth made contact with her inner thigh in a warm wet teasing kiss and began to make its way up. The ache inside her built as he teased her. His warm breath caressed her moist heat and she sucked in a breath anticipating the contact she was craving. His mouth moved away over to her other thigh to start the climb again.
Nikki's breaths came quicker as Trace's kisses moved closer to their target. His fingers teased the edge of her panties finding purchase on her skin and opening her up. She waited for him to sweep the material aside but he didn't. Instead his mouth locked onto her over the lace. His lips and tongue sought out her steadily throbbing knot of nerves. Trace used his mouth to drag the lace across her clit. The rough sensation added a little sting to his movements. Something caught in her mind, something about that sharp sting.
Nikki rocked into his mouth forcing more pressure and friction between her clit, the lace and Trace's mouth. He moaned against her. A sound like that of a man enjoying a well-earned meal. It drove her to move her hips more urgently, seeking the relief she desired. Trace's hands shifted to her hips in an effort to still her movements
"Slow down baby girl. We'll get there. Just relax and let it happen."
Nikki held still but Trace didn't return his mouth to its former task. Instead it travelled back up her body till it found her own. Trace gently lifted her into a sitting position and he reached for her shirt pushing it off Nikki's shoulders. She felt the material slide down her back. God her back. The scars. Her mind flicked back to that moment and she instantly stiffened.
Trace felt Nikki freeze up on him. He had no idea what he'd done wrong. Suddenly she moved pulling her shirt back on.
"Whoa slow down Nikki. What's happening here?"
He grabbed both her arms halting her hasty movements.
"The shirt," her words came out in barely a whisper.
What the hell was she worried about her shirt for?
"What about it?" he prompted her gently.
"It needs to stay on", she paused, "My back. I don't want you to see it."
Trace's blood began to boil. Her scars. That sick bastard. Trace wanted to rip the guy limb from limb, whoever he was, for making her ashamed to share her body with him. He stared at Nikki as she looked everywhere but at him. Trace didn't care about the scars. All he cared about was giving her the love she needed, that she deserved.
"I don't care about the scars Nikki."
She continued to avoid his eyes. "You always talk about my skin. How perfect it is and now," her sentence broke off.
Didn’t that just make him feel like an asshole. She was right. He had always made a big deal about her beautiful, flawless creamy skin. But the scars didn't change how he felt about her or how he felt about her body.
"Your skin is still perfect,” he ran his fingers down her thigh.
"It's soft and delicate," he leaned in to her neck, "and delicious."
Trace tasted her skin with warm wet nibbling kisses and he felt her soften slightly.
He eased back from her and placing his hand under chin he forced her to look at him.
"I don’t care about the scars Nikki. I want to touch every inch of your skin but if you want to we can leave the shirt on."
She relaxed a little more.
"But I want you to take the bra off. Can you do that for me?"
She nodded and slowly removed it without taking the shirt off. How women managed that he'd ever know.
His gaze caught on the rise and fall of her beautiful breasts. Her dusty pink nipples stood at attention begging him to suck them. He wanted so badly to latch on to one sweep her panties aside and bury himself deep inside her. For her sake he needed to take it slow. He wanted to show her that she didn’t need what that bastard had done to her. This was what she needed. He wanted to prove that they could be together like this again. Trace brought his mouth back to hers gently coaxing her to succumb to him with gentle strokes of his tongue against hers.
He lay her back down onto the mattress and as she began to respond he broke off the kiss and went in search of those rosy buds that begged for his attention earlier. Trace slowly began to stroke her body his fingers working her muscles. He licked her nipple then blew a cold breath across it, watching as it hardened further. Nikki sucked in a quick breath. As he covered it with his mouth he had to remind himself to take it easy, treating it to lazy licks and soft sucks.
Nikki had to work harder to relax. The lingering memory of her scars stirred the monster and it pushed at the edges of the box she'd trapped it in. She pushed back desperate to keep it locked up tight inside her. She managed to force it back down into its little enclosure. A small victory in a world full of losses.
Her mind refocused on his mouth and the alternating slow circle and quick flick of his tongue on her nipple. She sighed and closed her eyes. Her hands found their way into Trace's hair where she stroked his scalp and played with his soft thick locks. They followed his head lower. Her panties finally disappeared and his mouth pressed against her naked sex. His tongue continued a similar pattern of slow circles and quick flicks. Trace stoking a slow burning fire that warmed her from the inside. Her body tingled all over and her chest swelled with emotion. Nikki hadn’t felt this in a long time. The way Trace could work her emotions along with her body had always perplexed her.
Trace listened to every sigh and whimper t
hat came from Nikki's mouth. He felt each and every one of them in his cock. He lapped at her slowly reveling in the taste of her. It had been so long since he'd had her like this, since he'd had her in any way, and he was not going to waste the opportunity. He slid his tongue down away from her clit dipping it inside her. Her fingers dug into his scalp and he knew what she wanted. He slid two fingers into her slick passage and returned his tongue to her slippery nub. She moaned and clenched around his fingers. God he wanted to slide his cock inside her and feel that clench.
Trace worked his fingers in and out in time with his tongue increasing the speed and pressure of both, just enough to push her higher.
"Trace," his name came out of Nikki’s mouth half husky moan half pleading demand.
He knew it was time. He found that knot of nerves inside her and massaged it while pressing his tongue flat against her. He felt the quaking start, her muscles fluttering around his fingers. Unconsciously his hips began grinding into the mattress mimicking the movement of his fingers.
Her body squeezed tight then exploded in a series of tremors. A flood of liquid flowed around his fingers. Trace didn’t stop. He continued working her drawing out Nikki's orgasm till she was out of breath and barely lucid. Then he withdrew his fingers and knelt up spreading her fluids over the head of his penis. He was about to slide inside heaven and the knowledge nearly had him coming in his hand. As he took in the beautiful broken women laying before him his heart stuttered. The love he had for her was so intense he would do anything for even share her if he had to.
Nikki floated on a cloud of ecstasy barely aware of her own body. That familiar sweet burn had become a fierce fire at Trace's hands and mouth. When it burned through her it left not a piece of her untouched. Not a piece of her except that box hiding away the darkness inside her. Suddenly she felt Trace slide inside her incredibly wet entrance. He hissed out a breath through his teeth as he advanced further into her. The sound went straight from her ears to her clit causing her muscles to clench suddenly.
"Uunnhh. Christ baby girl don’t do that to me."
She wished Trace's request were that easy to follow but it felt too good to have him inside her. Familiar, beautiful, right and oh so fucking sweet. This is what she'd been missing, what she'd been depriving herself of. His body came down on top of hers and her arms went around him. His mouth sought hers again. She lost herself in him, all her senses drowning in Trace. He tasted of sweet bourbon and spicy salsa and he smelt of grease, musky sweat and Acqua di gio. His sharp intakes of breath and low moans filled her ears and she ran her fingers over his body as if trying to memorize every inch of his skin. The world became nothing but the pair of them.
He worked himself in and out of her slowly stoking that fire until she was writhing underneath him. The sweet burn that had begun as small spark was now a roaring fire warming her from the inside. His fingertips fluttered over clit and it was enough to tip the balance in her favour. She exploded shattering into a million pieces as she called out his name. He followed shortly thereafter and her name on his lips sounded like a hallelujah.
When all the pieces of Nikki finally found their way back into her body she felt like something had shifted inside her. She felt as though she were a new person somehow. Like that weak little box where she’d hidden her darkness was suddenly reinforced with thick steel and locked up tighter than Fort Knox. Maybe she could do this? Maybe she could get her life back?
Chapter 4
Nikki woke the next morning wrapped in Trace’s arms. She wasn’t covered in the sweat of fear and she didn’t have the echoes of a nightmare rolling around her brain. She searched inside herself expecting to find the hum of the monster buried deep inside her. Nothing. Maybe the key to taming the monster had been to erase Cole. Trace’s gentle touch had certainly gone a long way towards erasing the flesh memory of Cole’s hands on her skin. Even as she had that thought she wondered how long the peace would last.
Nikki shifted slightly and glanced down at herself. She was still wearing her blouse and she thanked god for that small miracle. She really need to speak to Van, the club’s tattoo artist, about getting the marks covered. If she had any hope of keeping the monster at bay she needed to remove its master’s marks from her body. She pulled her blouse closer around her and wriggled out of Trace’s hold.
“Where you goin’ Baby girl?” Trace’s voice was hoarse from sleep.
“I was thinking of taking a shower,” she replied as she grabbed some clothes from her draws.
“I like where your train of thought is going,” he said as he shifted around.
“Shit. Is that the time? We slept half the day away,” Trace exclaimed, “might have to pass on the shower because if I climb in with you we won’t be getting out for hours.”
Nikki chucked her clothes on the bench then turned to look at Trace. He had that cheeky smile going as his eyes wandered lazily up her body. Nikki couldn’t help but tease him. She posed provocatively in the doorway, her shirt hanging open to reveal one of her breasts and her sex.
“That’s a shame ‘cause I was kind of hoping you could help me with this particularly dirty spot,” she teased.
“What dirty spot?” he asked.
“It’s right down here,” she replied sliding her fingers down her body and brushing them against her lower lips.
Trace’s eyes were totally fixated on her fingers.
“But you’re right it’s not such a good idea.”
The second the words were out of her mouth Trace jumped out of bed.
“I’ve changed my mind.”
He leapt across the room but Nikki was already closing the door and had it locked before he reached it.
“Tease,” he called through the door.
“Love you too Trace,” Nikki replied.
“Love you back Baby girl,” came his soft words.
Trace.
When Nikki exited the bathroom a bit later she found Trace sitting on her bed. His face held all sorts of questions. This had been the conversation she didn’t want to have. It was the reason why she had hesitated last night. Now she was on the other side of her choice and the conversation was looking totally different.
Trace opened his mouth to speak but Nikki cut him off.
“I wish we could go back to before all this shit happened but we can’t,” she watched as Trace’s head dropped, “If we are going to do this thing then we need to leave the past in the past and start from scratch, no expectations.”
Trace’s head came back up, his eyes hopeful.
“I can’t tell you things will be the same as they were but I can tell you I’m done with the running. I’m ready.”
Trace moved across the room picking up something from her dresser. He turned back to her with that hundred watt smile plastered across his face.
“Welcome back Baby girl. We’ve been waiting for you.”
He held her cut out to her, an invitation back to into her life and she gladly accepted it from him. She pulled it around herself like another layer of armour and she knew she was ready to venture back among the chaos of her world.
“Now we really need to get you back out there and up to speed with all the shit that’s going on around here.”
Trace threw his arm around her shoulders and escorted her out into the main room.
As they entered the space Nikki’s gaze fell on Tex. He was sitting in the corner booth looking a little worse for wear. Their eyes met briefly before he quickly turned his head toward the window.
“Go let a brother off the hook hey?” Trace suggested nudging her in Tex’s direction.
Let him off the hook? For some reason Nikki felt like she was the one who needed letting off the hook. Trace headed to the bar as some of the brothers gave him shit about coming out of the room with Nikki. She simply flipped the bird at them in response and headed over to Tex.
Tex stared out the window at noth
ing. He was hung over but more than that he was hurting. He was hurting because someone had hurt the woman he loved and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it. And now he was the one causing her hurt and he hated himself for it. She didn’t need the bullshit he was putting her through. He’d caught her eye for a moment and he’d seen the confidence and calm returned to her. She was carrying herself tall and facing outward for the first time instead of being hunched inward. He wanted that look to stay there.
He felt Nikki’s presence but didn’t acknowledge her as she sat next to him.
“Hey,” she greeted him softly.
Time to grovel.
“I’m sorry,” the words he’d been thinking tumbled out of her mouth.
“What for?” he asked in surprise.
“For driving you insane, for dodging you, for hiding shit from you, for everything.”
This was not what he was expecting at all.
“You don’t need to apologise Ace. If anyone owes an apology it’s me. The things I said and the way I’ve been acting,” he paused trying to gather his thoughts, “I just can’t stand sitting around doing nothing. I need him to pay for what he did, to pay for hurting you.”
Nikki’s hand came up stopping him in his tracks.
“I can’t rehash that shit Tex. It’s in the past and that is where I want it to stay,” the determination in her voice came through loud and clear, “You need to let it go, for my sake.”
Among the Chaos: Book 2 of the Soldiers of Chaos MC Series Page 3