by Milly Taiden
“Well…”
It seemed she didn’t want to share, but he wasn’t stopping now. “I know you can’t sleep. So what else is there?”
Erica turned away from him and spoke while walking back to the door. “It’s not that I can’t sleep. It’s that I keep seeing the victims in their last moments over and over again in my dreams. It doesn’t make for restful sleep to keep seeing that.”
What the fuck? She wasn’t lying. Her words shocked him immobile. “You mean you don’t just see them that one time? You keep seeing the same thing over and over again?”
“Kind of. The initial contact, the first time I see while touching something is a crisp, clear view, almost movie-like, and it gives great detail, if that’s what the victim saw. But after that…” She bit her lip in thought before continuing. “…I guess we can call it first touch, the images become distorted, blurry, and blend together to form flashes of cries and pain. Almost like a compressed set of layers of the entire event. It can be tiresome to keep trying to make the view as clear as it had been in first touch, but all you have is indistinct and confusing images. It muddles in my mind and gives me migraines.”
He stared at her. Deep sorrow pierced his heart with every word out of her mouth. “How long do you see these visions for?”
“It usually takes days, sometimes weeks, for it to stop.” She creased her nose, still not looking at him. “So when I see more than one in a short period of time it…it’s exhausting. I feel their pain over and over, and it drains me. Trying to shut out the screams and the visions takes a lot out of me.”
Holy fuck. The woman was insane to keep her mouth shut all that time. He wondered if she was getting any time with the paranormal psychiatrist. Brock had made him go to therapy the time he’d tried to sink his claws into a predator who’d abducted a woman and kept her hidden from her family.
“You mean to tell me you’ve been dealing with this on your own and you didn’t think to share it with me? I could’ve helped.”
He was hurt that she suffered in silence. All the years they’d worked together and he had had no clue she had been going through that. It made him want to kick his own ass. If he hadn’t been so involved in trying to get into her pants, he would’ve noticed something sooner. Instead she’d always worked alongside Brock, and he, Ramirez, and Donovan had been the action team. It had never occurred to him that Erica was much more vulnerable than what she portrayed.
The image she showed the world of a tough, bitchy profiler was just that: an image. Underneath it all she was suffering, and it hurt him to know that. He’d decided the moment he met her that he’d allow her to come to him when she was ready. It was clear she was his in his mind, but he would never push her. He was done waiting.
She seemed confused by his anger. “How would you have helped?”
His heart broke for her when he realized she was genuinely confounded. She’d been dealing with this on her own for so long she didn’t think someone giving her a shoulder to lean on or emotional support would help her deal. She was his mate for crying out loud. It didn’t matter that she didn’t know it, he did. And he needed to let her see that he was there for her, always. He walked toward her in slow measured steps, and then he stopped when he was a foot away. Her eyes widened when he lifted a hand and curled it around her jaw. He caressed her cheek with his thumb. “I would have been there for you. I could have helped you deal with it. You didn’t have to do it alone.”
“But…I’ve always dealt with it alone,” she whispered, and his heart cracked some more.
“You don’t have to anymore.” He lowered his face and stopped inches from hers. “Never again.” He leaned in and brushed his lips over hers, their gazes locked in a tempestuous embrace. “I’m here for you, Erica. You can lean on me.”
He pulled her body flush to his in a slow move. And then he kissed her again. This time with enough passion to show her how much he wanted her. He hoped she could see that she meant more to him than any other woman ever had.
FIVE
Erica sighed into the kiss and allowed her lips to soften under Trent’s slow invasion. Sparks bubbled in her blood and fired her veins with each swipe of his tongue. He drew slow circles over her lips before moving into her mouth. Tingles coursed through her body, going straight to her pussy. Their tongues caressed each other in a sensual ritual that left her breathless and panting.
His hands moved under her top, tracing the curve of her waist and crawling up her sides. Urgency for him, the only man she’d been wanting for years, made her pull at his T-shirt. Her hands gripped the cotton material and lifted. He must’ve gotten the hint, because his hands left her body and he stripped off the shirt. And good lord was she happy to see him without the offensive cloth. She knew he was hot, like really fucking hot, but seeing all those muscles up close and personal made her want to purr.
She licked her lips while trailing each bulging bicep with her fingers. Her gaze darted up to meet his heated one.
“Your turn,” he said in that deep, sexy voice that made her want to beg him to talk dirty to her. The wicked grin on his mouth was pure sin. She grabbed the sides of her tank top and pulled it over her head. His look? Priceless. His eyes zeroed in on her breasts. She was no little woman, and when she arched her back his nostrils flared. Her body was full of curves, and she had no problem with it.
Their lips met again in another scorching kiss. A kiss that deepened the strange connection they seemed to have. All this time she’d felt the pull to him. She knew there was something strong between them. Her mind and heart told her she was delusional if she thought she could deny the deep connection to Trent, but her rebellious side refused to acknowledge it. Sex. Si. This was only sex, because she didn’t do relationships. Pushing the strange thoughts out of her mind, she wallowed in the feelings he aroused in her body.
He gripped her waist, and their bodies were once again flush. This time the long, hard, length of his erection pressed into her belly. It made her pussy quiver in need. His corded muscles rubbed her already-hypersensitive skin, and she dug her nails into his biceps. He trailed kisses to her jaw, and she trembled. Oh, but it got better. He moved to her collarbone and stopped at the valley of her breasts.
She lolled her head back and shut her eyes. Spiky hair met her fingertips when she moved one hand up to grip the short locks. He removed her bra. In an instant his lips were on her nipple, sucking her tight little bud over and over again. Her lungs constricted with each lick and suck. She moaned and bit her lip. It was hell to keep from begging. Sharp desperation made her shove her chest into his face. He’d bitten one of her nipples, and the sensation had been divine. She wanted him to do it again.
“Oh Dios…” Her breath hitched when she looked down. The hottest man she’d seen in her entire life licked, sucked, and caressed her body. He made her feel like she was the sexiest woman in the world. He looked up, and she almost came on the spot. He nibbled on her breast, and she groaned when he stopped and unlatched from her swollen nipple.
“I want you.” His voice was so rough she could barely make out the words. He gripped the waistband of her pants, but he didn’t unzip and open them. Instead, he watched her with expectation.
“I want you too.” She panted. “Now.”
Just in case he’d decided to stop, she moved her hands to the waist of her pants, unsnapped, and unzipped them. Then she watched him pull them and her panties down her legs. The sudden indrawn breath he took made her smile.
“You’re so fucking hot.”
He glanced up, licking his lips. Her pussy throbbed at that moment. Any thought not related to Trent licking her heat shut down in her mind.
“I swear I could look at you forever,” he whispered. His gaze roved over her naked body.
He stood, kissed her again, and lifted her into his arms. She wound her arms around his neck and wrapped her legs around his waist. His hands went straight to her ass cheeks and ground her to his cock. She whimpered and released his
lips. Passion licked at her skin. She moved her mouth to his jaw. Biting down on the scruffy flesh turned her on like nothing ever had. She wondered if she had a vampire complex, because licking, sucking, and biting him made her aroused beyond the point of rational thought. She dug her nails into his naked arms. He moved with her in his grip, and soon she found herself on her back on the mattress. It was hard to breathe. She watched him strip off his pants with unwavering interest.
His body—and what a body it was—was defined with muscles and bronzed skin, made her lick and bite her lip in expectation. She mentally caressed down his big frame his long, thick cock. A shiver ran up her spine, and she gripped the sheets under her hands.
“Like what you see?” He smiled wickedly.
“Si, I do. But do you know what to do with that?”
It was time for him to put up or shut up. And she really wanted him to put up.
“Baby…I don’t have protection.”
“It’s ok, I’m on the pill, and I’m clean.”
“Are you sure that’s what you want?” He frowned. “We can wait. I wasn’t expecting this to happen now between us. I had hoped, but I hadn’t expected. I’ve never been with any woman without protection.” He cleared his throat and a soft blush colored his cheekbones. “I want you to know that I’m also clean. I don’t get human diseases, but I still get tested. One can never be too careful.”
She grinned. He was truly concerned for her choice to go without a condom. “I’ve never been with anyone without one either. I’m ok with this. Now, show me what you’ve got.”
He grabbed her ankles and pulled her body down to the edge of the bed. She could only stare while he got down on his knees and placed her legs over his shoulders. Air froze in her lungs. He wrapped his arms around her thighs and lowered his face to her pussy. At the first swipe of his tongue on her clit, she bucked.
“Oh my god,” she moaned and refused to follow her body’s command to shut her eyes.
He lifted his head from her throbbing core and smiled. “No, sweetheart. It’s Trent, but you can call me god if you want.”
Before she got a chance to give him a sarcastic reply, his tongue dipped into her entrance, and she was lost to the bliss he was imparting on her pussy. He licked around her waxed lips and proceeded to fuck her with his tongue. She panted and ground her hips down, closer to his face.
“Please…”
She whimpered when he did a slow trail around her clit with his tongue. He flicked it twice, and then she felt his fingers rub up and down her pussy, wetting them with her dripping heat. Feeling his calloused fingers over her sensitive flesh turned into a new point of pleasure. After a moment he dipped wet fingers into her. She groaned and tightened her hold on the sheets. Her hips rocked on his face involuntarily.
He sucked on her clit while his fingers curled and thrust in and out of her. It took very little for her to go over the edge. Her heart pounded in her ears, each beat a fierce, wild gallop. Tension unraveled inside her, pushing her headfirst into an all-consuming orgasm. She screamed when a wave of pleasure rushed through her.
Panting like she couldn’t get enough air in her lungs, she blinked the haze of happiness away and looked down to see one sexy Trent jerking his cock; beads of liquid seeped from his slit and slid down the sides. She scooted up on the bed and kept her legs wide open for him. Some kind of non-verbal communication happened. Her insides melted at the blazing look he gave her.
“Fuck me.” That had not been what she’d planned on saying, but it worked just as well.
“Baby, what I’m going to do to you is way more than fucking.” He grinned and crawled on the bed, stopping once he’d kneeled between her thighs. He trailed a finger around her pussy, dipped it into her wetness, pulled it out, raised it to his lips, and licked. Blood fizzed and popped in her veins. The man certainly knew how to add kindling to her fire.
While she watched, he gripped his cock, rubbed the tip on her pussy lips, and coated his shaft with her moisture. He slid into her in a deliberate, drawn-out move. She groaned at the slow torture. She contracted around his thick length with every inch he went deeper inside her. He was big, and he stretched her in a way that made her feel every nerve ending in her pussy sigh in bliss. Once he was fully embedded in her, he lowered, his arms bracketing each side of her and caging her in. Without waiting for his command, she lifted her legs and wrapped them around his waist, locking them in place behind his muscular ass.
Emotions she wasn’t familiar with filled her when he gave her a soft look. He lowered his head, and their lips meshed in a wet tangle of tongues. While he kissed her senseless, he pulled out of her and slammed back in with so much force she was glad she was holding on to his arms. Again he withdrew and thrust into her hard. And she loved it. A fine sheen of perspiration coated their skins and allowed him a smooth glide over her body. In and out he went. She pulled her lips away from his and moaned. Her nails dug into his shoulders while she hung on to him for dear life. The sound of skin slapping, grunting, and moaning filled the room with an erotic melody that increased her pleasure. The musky scent of sex overpowered and incited her body’s arousal.
“Yes, more,” she pleaded. The coiling tension inside her was near its breaking point, and she needed him to fuck her harder.
He quickened his thrusts until she could no longer speak and all her focus was to topple into orgasm. Trent stopped, and she growled.
“What the hell are you doing?” She was going to kill him.
The bastard just grinned and got on his knees. Still deep inside her, he lifted her off the bed and draped her legs to either side of him. He sat back on his heels and chuckled.
“Relax, you’ll be calling me god again in about a minute. I’ll take it in English or Spanish, your choice.”
Erica curled her hands around his neck and dug her nails into the back of his head. His hands held her by the waist, and he lifted and then ground her over his cock. She whimpered at the new sensation of him filling her even deeper. Holding on tight, she rocked her hips on him and moaned with every wave of her body.
“Oh, my—” Her breath hitched.
“That’s it, love. Ride me.” He encouraged and pushed her to move faster over him.
Her movements quickened to an almost-uncoordinated pace. She felt his lips over her neck, licking, sucking, and driving her arousal through the roof. He slipped a hand between her legs and pressed on her clit, flicking it with his thumb. She arched her back, her entire body shook, and an electric shiver ran up her spine. The tension inside her snapped.
“Oh, God!” The ragged scream tore from her throat.
Trent continued to rock her over him, adding to the sensational feelings going through her. He sucked on her shoulder, licking circles around her neck bend. While her body trembled from inside after that amazing orgasm, he licked her, nibbling on her sweaty flesh. He continued to rock her; his fingers dug into her hips, gripping her skin. Seconds later he ground her down, hard. Her pussy fluttered around his cock, and he bit down on her shoulder, groaning. He hugged her tightly to him and shook.
They fell on their sides, both gulping for much-needed oxygen. He pulled her to him until she was lying half draped over him. His hand caressed the curve of her ass, and he kissed the top of her head. Erica didn’t know what to make of the flood of emotions going through her. She was so confused. Trent was a womanizer; she knew that. And yet here she was feeling things that weren’t going to lead anywhere. They had to work together, and she didn’t see how he could be trusted for anything more than casual dating.
She’d seen too much in her life to depend on a particular person. The school of hard knocks—aka first-hand experience—rivaled any Ivy League degree. There was no way in hell she’d give in to any kind of emotional pull. The last train wreck she called a relationship had ended when the accountant she’d been dating told her she needed to see a shrink. She screamed while she slept and refused to open up to him. Yeah, open up and get ridiculed like s
he had all her life? “You see dead people, Erica. You’re such a freak.” She’d broken it off with him, just like she did with every other ex who had attempted to get inside her head or her heart.
Lifting her face, she peered up at Trent with curiosity. He was giving her that soft look again, and it freaked her out. She tried to think of something to say to break the tension mounting in her shoulders.
“I never thought I’d see the day,” he said, his chest still rising and falling with each quick intake of air.
“Huh?” What in the world was he talking about?
“I can’t believe I was able to make you lose your tongue. This has got to be some kind of miracle. Maybe I should call in a priest in here to witness.”
She sat up and poked him in the chest. “I did not lose my tongue. And I don’t want anyone witnessing what we just did, but I’ll have you know I was just thinking of a way to rate your performance.”
“That good?” He winked and tugged her body up, sliding over his, until their faces were inches from each other.
“It was…” She gave a haughty sniff, hoping he’d take her next word as a challenge. A definite challenge to fuck her again with the same bone-melting perfection he’d used before. “Adequate.”
He observed her for what felt like an eternity. Arousal gathered inside her into a winding knot. She glanced down at the sexy scar on his lip and licked her lips.
“What did you say?” His low, rough tone sent moisture straight to her still-throbbing pussy.
“I—” She gulped. He caressed her back, moving his hands to run circles over the sides of her hips. The erection that had been lying dormant suddenly thickened to create a steel pole poking her under her mound. “I said it was adequate.”
One minute she was looking into Trent’s intense eyes, and the next she was on her stomach, ass up and face down in the covers. What the hell? She went to lift her head but stopped when he barked, “Don’t move.”
He trailed his hands slowly down her spine, over the curve of her ass, squeezing and groping her cheeks.