Sweet Charity

by N. J. Walters

  Anger threatened to bubble up but he swallowed it back. Charity was safe and alive and that was all that mattered. Could have beens. Might have beens. None of that mattered now.

  When she was settled back against the side of the tub, he dropped the wet cloth and picked up the bar of soap, rubbing it through his hands until they were covered in white bubbles.

  This time he went straight for her breasts, cupping them, sliding his hands over the firm mounds. Charity moaned, a sound like music to his ears.

  “Adrian.” His name was a breathy groan as he tweaked her elongated nipples between his thumbs and forefingers. The soap made his fingers slippery, keeping the pressure light.

  She licked her bottom lip before capturing it between her teeth. The steam had turned her hair into a riot of curls, which bounced around her shoulders. Her brown eyes were liquid with pleasure. Her cheeks were rosy and the smattering of freckles on her nose absolutely adorable. The scar on her left cheek was a stark reminder that she hadn’t had an easy life. But she was a survivor, like him. She was smart and intelligent and brave and his.

  Adrian couldn’t wait any longer. He wanted to feel her tight pussy wrap around his fingers and squeeze tight. His cock protested, but he ignored it. She wasn’t up to that yet. But when she was…

  Putting that thought aside, he concentrated solely on Charity. He trailed his hands down her torso and over her hips. She spread her thighs without prompting. Growling his approval, he parted her wet folds, teasing the nub of nerves at the top.

  Charity’s hips pushed upward as he caught her swollen clit between two of his fingers and tugged gently. Her fingers gripped the sides of the tub so tight, her knuckles turned white.

  She was too tired and bruised for prolonged play of any kind, but Adrian wanted to bring her to orgasm. Easing his other hand between her thighs, he inserted two fingers into her tight channel and pushed. Her pussy rippled around him. His cock pulsed hard and his balls ached with pressure.

  Beneath the scent of the soap, he could smell the healing salve Mercy had used on Charity. It was a stark reminder that he’d almost lost her. But they were both very much alive. She’d been aroused when he’d picked her up to put her in the tub. There was no disguising that particular perfume. Hot and spicy and juicy, it had tempted him. He wanted to eat her hot cunt until she came. He licked his lips in anticipation. Next time, he promised himself.

  He worked his fingers back to the opening of her channel and then surged forward. At the same time, he plucked at her clit and leaned forward, blowing on her distended, wet nipples.

  Charity came hard. Her torso bowed out of the water and then went splashing back down. Water rushed over the edge of the tub, soaking his pants, as her pussy contracted around his fingers. He touched and petted her, prolonging her pleasure as long as possible.

  Easing his fingers out of her moist core, he smiled in spite of the pain he was in. She lolled in the water like some mythical water nymph. Her eyes were closed, her breathing deep.

  He pulled the plug and the water started to drain. That roused her from her semi-sleep state. She blinked at him. “You didn’t,” she motioned to his erection.

  “No, I didn’t.” He reached into the tub and lifted her out. He released her legs, steadying her until she could stand on her own. Then he picked up the towel and swiftly dried her, being careful of her bruises. She shivered and goose bumps covered her arms.

  He tossed aside the towel, picked her up and carried her into the bedroom. Adrian didn’t want to put her back in bed without changing the sheets. He deposited her into one of the chairs and grabbed a blanket from the bed, tucking it around her.

  He’d brought clean sheets with him, along with some hot soup, which was now probably lukewarm at best. Carrying the tray over to her, he set it on her lap. “Eat what you can.”

  She looked bemused, but content and picked up the spoon. Satisfied she would eat, he quickly stripped the bed and remade it. Fresh sheets and a real bed were luxuries he hadn’t sampled in years, but Charity was used to this. Sleeping on a hard pallet with him had been a step down for her.

  He clenched his jaw as he tucked the sheet around the mattress. It didn’t matter now. The city was open to everyone and she’d have her soft bed every night for the rest of his life if he had anything to say about the matter. And he would.

  Bed done, he turned back to Charity. The tray was still in her lap, the soup bowl half empty. Charity herself was sound asleep, her mouth parted slightly on a soft snore. Now that the flush of sexual desire had faded, she was pale with dark shadows beneath her eyes.

  Removing the tray, he laid it on the floor. He lifted Charity into his arms. She snuffled and snuggled close to him. He carried her to the freshly made bed and laid her on the mattress, tugging the covers around her.

  Stretching out on top of the blankets, Adrian pulled her into his arms. Exhaustion washed over him. He’d only slept in short snatches the past few days and it was catching up to him. He yawned and his jaw let out a loud crack. Closing his eyes, he listened to the sound of Charity’s breath, felt it against his neck.

  A sense of contentment, of rightness, filled him. This was how it was supposed to be. All he had to do now was convince Charity of that.

  Chapter Nine

  Charity decided she’d had enough of being an invalid. There was clean clothing in the closet and tomorrow morning she was getting out of bed and going about her business, whatever that might be. She had no idea what she was going to do, but there had to be something. Maybe Nadine could use her help in the kitchen.

  Her bruises had mostly faded, she could get around easily and her arm was well on its way to being completely healed. She’d started exercising her arm and was pleased that she could move it with little or no pain. The graze itself hadn’t been too bad, but it had been worsened by the bruising around it where the General had thrown her against the wall.

  She’d been resting, taking hot baths and eating regularly the past few days. That had gone a long way to making her feel like her old self again. She’d stood at the window for long stretches of time each day, watching the city. There was activity everywhere as the new government took hold.

  Mercy gave her the news every time she visited. For now, the Resistance would rule, but plans were already underway for a new democratic structure for the government and an election of officials in about six months time. The inner city was changing, for the better.

  Even Silence had stopped by once to visit. That was a bit more awkward, but Charity liked the quiet woman. Silence told a somewhat grimmer tale than Mercy. There were squabbles between citizens of the city and those from outside. As well, there were still pockets of fighting from a few remaining groups of security police that wouldn’t surrender, but even that was being quickly contained and dealt with.

  Sighing, Charity leaned back on her pillows and stared at the window. It was dark outside, but the night sky was clear, allowing her to catch a glimpse of the moon and several stars. She felt restless. Unsatisfied. She was alive, which was something to celebrate, but she had a hollowness in the pit of her stomach that never seemed to go away.

  It had been two days since her sensual encounter with Adrian in the bathroom. Her body clenched and heated at the memory of him bathing her, his slick hands roaming over her curves and hollows. Her breathing got shallower and her heartbeat increased. The man certainly knew what to do with a woman’s body.

  She waved her hand in front of her face, creating a slight breeze that did nothing to cool her heated flesh. What an incredible experience. Her breasts still tingled. Her pussy ached. Since he’d tucked her into bed that night, he’d treated her with the utmost care.

  He hadn’t spent much time with her, not that she expected him to considering how busy he had to be. Somehow, he’d managed to carve out enough time to share a few meals with her. And every night, he’d crawl into bed beside her, pull her into his arms and sleep with her cheek resting next to his heart. But not once
in all that time had he ever reached out for her in a sexual way. Nor had they talked about anything that had happened. It was if he was waiting for something. What, she wasn’t quite sure.

  Quite frankly, she was tired of it. Either she was with him or she wasn’t. Right now, she felt like an obligation, a penance more than anything else. It was time to end this one way or another.

  As if her thoughts summoned him, the door opened. She turned her head and watched him prowl into the room. She was becoming a very good judge of his moods and tonight he seemed pensive, more tightly wound than usual.

  “Is everything okay?” She shifted, sitting up in bed and shoving her hair away from her face.

  Adrian shut the door and locked it. The click had an ominous edge to it. He appeared like a large, dark shadow as he walked across the room. Pulling a lethal-looking gun from the small of his back, he set it carefully on the bedside table.

  “Adrian?” He was starting to worry her. She reached out and touched his arm. His skin was warm, almost hot to the touch.

  “How are you feeling?”

  She frowned at the strained tone of his voice. “I’m fine. In fact, I’m getting out of this bed tomorrow and going to find something to do to make myself useful.”

  Instead of lightening his mood, as she’d hoped, he seemed to grow even stiller. Tension pervaded the room, growing by the second.

  “Can’t wait to leave, can you?”

  There was an edge to his words that troubled her and she replied carefully. “I’m tired of being laid up. It’s time to get life back to some semblance of normalcy.”

  “How is your injury?” Concern laced his question and she hurried to allay any worry he might be harboring.

  “Mercy said I’m in great shape. The loss of blood and the beating were worse than the graze by the bullet.” She hurried on, not wanting to dwell in the past. “The rest and food has worked wonders.” She flexed her arm for him. “See, barely a twinge.”

  Adrian stared down at her. She could practically see his eyes glowing in the dim light. Reaching out, he clicked on the bedside lamp. It illuminated the bed, keeping the rest of the room cloaked in shadows.

  His jaw was covered with a light stubble, making him look harder and older. He had to be tired. He’d been going almost nonstop for days with only short naps here and there to refresh him. Even though he slept with her, he usually arrived late at night and was gone long before dawn. His face showed no sign of fatigue. He looked determined. Formidable. A lock of blond hair fell against his forehead. Instead of softening his features, they somehow made him look even tougher.

  “We need to talk.”

  Her stomach dropped and she glanced down at the blankets. She’d wanted to talk since that night he’d bathed her, but now that the time was here, she didn’t want to hear him say he’d believed she’d betrayed him. Sighing, she shook her head. It was time to deal with everything and get on with her life.

  Now that she was well, his obligation to her was done. It was time to return to her own tiny apartment, if it was indeed still hers and hadn’t been commandeered by a member of the Resistance. Adrian had a lot of work facing him and he didn’t need the daughter of his enemy by his side as he tried to unite two formerly warring factions.

  “I see.” There wasn’t much left to say. She blinked hard as tears welled in her eyes. She wouldn’t cry. Wouldn’t be weak. She’d changed a lot in the past week or so. She’d learned just how wonderful sex could be between a woman and the right man. She’d faced down her fears and been part of something important, an event that would be talked about for years to come. She’d survived being blown up, beaten and shot. She was alive and that was a lot to be thankful for.

  She might be losing the man she’d come to love and respect, but it wasn’t his fault that he didn’t love her back. There hadn’t really been enough time for that to happen. Not that she truly thought it would. Adrian was exceptional in all ways. He was handsome, off-the-charts intelligent, strong, lethal and a brilliant leader. Why would he want an ordinary woman like her with a checkered past for anything beyond a few nights of hot sex?

  Gathering the tattered remains of her pride, she raised her head and forced a smile. “I’ll be leaving in the morning. You don’t need to worry about me overstaying my welcome.”

  Adrian moved so fast, he was nothing but a blur. One moment he was standing by the bed. The next, he was sitting on the side of the bed leaning over her, his arms and upper body caging her against the mattress.

  “You don’t leave me.” The words were gritted out from beneath clenched teeth. “You’re mine.” He swooped down and captured her mouth with his, plunging his tongue past her lips. It wasn’t a kiss. It was a claiming. Charity was helpless to do anything accept the rough embrace. He tasted of coffee, hot male and sexual promise.

  He tore his lips from hers and took a deep breath. “What the hell were you thinking?”

  Charity’s head was spinning from the torrid kiss. She couldn’t follow his train of conversation at all. “What?”

  The muscles in his forearms tightened and his shoulders tensed. “You put yourself in danger. Walking over to the General and blithely tossing not one, but two explosive devices into the control station.” Adrian glared down at her, his lips turned down in a severe frown. “You could have been killed.”

  Countless emotions churned inside her, but the one that emerged was anger. “What do you care? You thought I was guilty of being in league with the General. Don’t deny it. I saw it in your face.” And it had devastated her as much as she’d expected it. Why should Adrian have trusted her? He really didn’t know her. Why wouldn’t he believe she was following her father’s orders?

  His scowl deepened. If she didn’t know him as well as she did, she’d have been scared to death of him. He was large and fierce as he loomed over her. “I only believed it for a split second.”

  Even though it was what she’d been expecting, hearing him admit it was a shot to her heart. She hadn’t realized she’d been secretly hoping he’d deny it and tell her he’d believed in her, not doubting her for even a second. That was a fairytale. This was real life. She shrugged, trying desperately to pretend that his last remark hadn’t struck a devastating blow.

  “Charity,” he began. He dragged one hand through his hair, leaving it disheveled. “Why? Why did you do it?”

  She met his gaze. “It was the right thing to do. My father needed to be stopped. What does it matter? It’s done and it worked out the way you wanted. That’s what counts.”

  The tension within him eased somewhat, but not as much as she’d hoped. “You could have been killed.” He spoke so low she could barely hear him.

  Her hands were damp and her heart was racing, but she tried to project a calm, competent image. Clasping her hands in her lap to keep from reaching out to him, she shrugged again. “It was for the greater good. And it didn’t seem to matter at the time.” She looked away, no longer able to meet his penetrating gaze.

  There was no way she’d tell him that after she’d seen the look on his face, she hadn’t cared what happened to her. Not that she wanted to die. Not really. But the cause of the Resistance, of bringing down the Gate and the General, were bigger than her. She’d been their only hope at that point and she’d done what she needed to do. She should really thank Adrian. If she hadn’t seen the look of betrayal on his face, she might not have found the courage to confront her father and do what she did.

  “It does matter. I made myself a promise.”

  She swiveled her head around until she could see Adrian. Something in the tone of his voice sent a shiver of fear racing down her spine.

  “I promised myself that, if we got out of that mess alive, I’d spank you for putting yourself at risk like that.” His harsh words were in direct contradiction to the gentle way he tucked an errant curl behind her ear.

  “You won’t hit me.” She had no idea why she was so sure of that, she just was. She trusted Adrian more than sh
e’d ever trusted another living soul.

  He released a huge pent-up breath. “No, I won’t.” He lifted one of her hands and brought it to his mouth, nibbling on her fingertips. “Knowing that, I made myself another promise.”

  It was getting harder for Charity to catch a breath. She was getting warmer with each passing second, her body responding to his nearness and the passionate promise in his eyes. “What was the promise?” she asked in a breathy voice.

  “That I’d strip you naked, tie you to the bed and fuck you until you couldn’t think straight. Then I’d get you to promise me you’d never risk yourself like that again.”

  Heat rippled through her, targeting her breasts and pussy. Her mouth was open and she was almost panting with desire. Adrian had to have some deep feelings for her. Why else would he care what happened to her?

  He reached into the bedside table and drew out four lengths of supple leather strapping. Holding them tight in one hand, he leaned so close she could feel the heat from his skin. “And, sweet Charity, I’m a man of my word.”

  Giving her time to protest, he attached two straps to the headboard. “Lie down.”

  Excitement raced through her veins even as the voice of reason cautioned her. She didn’t listen. She’d wanted him for days. Wanted to feel the closeness they’d shared the first time he’d taken her. Wanted to feel his strong arms wrapped around her as his cock pounded into her wet, willing pussy. She reclined on the bed and waited for his next command.

  Reaching out, he wrapped his fingers around her wrist, reminding her once again how much larger and stronger he was. He raised her arm and quickly bound her wrist to the wooden slat. “Lift your other arm,” he ordered. “But don’t hurt yourself.”

  Charity slid her injured arm over her head. There was only a slight twinge, which quickly abated as she found a good spot. Adrian quickly bound her wrist to the headboard.