by Lexi Blake
But not yet. He could keep her for a while. He felt a stubborn resolve rise. What if he taught her? He’d never taken on an art student before, but he’d never met one with as much potential as his Jennifer. Surely he had something to teach her. His work went for hundreds of thousands of dollars. He’d been reviewed as an artist to collect and was doggedly pursued by gallery owners. He could teach her. For as long as he taught her, he could enjoy her. He could hold her close and pretend she really belonged to him.
He traced the line of her torso down to her wet and ready pussy. He found the jewel of her clit and rubbed gently.
Her eyes closed, and her body bowed back slightly, opening her to his touch.
“Come for me. I want to watch your face as you come.”
She murmured her assent as her breath caught.
Without letting up on the pressure he was exerting on her clit, he grabbed the vibrator he’d bought for her. He replaced his finger with the rabbit, pressing the outside to her clitoris.
Her eyes flew open as he flicked the vibe on.
“Oh.” A delicious moan came out of her mouth.
“Keep those eyes open.”
She opened her eyes. They were large and verdant green. She could never lie to him because everything about her was right there in her eyes. Now he could see her desire in those eyes. Her bow of a mouth came open as he rubbed the vibrator over and over her clit. Her hips pumped forward, pressing against the sensation.
He looked down at her pussy. It was swollen and pink, like a flower just on the edge of bloom. He hadn’t needed to use the lubricant he’d brought. By the time he’d clamped her nipples, she was soaked with her own sweet cream. He notched up the vibrator, the sound buzzing against her skin.
Her eyes flared. Her skin flushed a gorgeous pink. Her breath was ragged as she moved toward orgasm.
“Stefan. Oh, Stef.”
His name sounded like a breathy prayer. Her hands came up. She held on to his shoulders to balance herself as she cried out. She was so beautiful in that instant that he knew it would never be the same again. He would never want another woman. He might be able to view them as lovely on an aesthetic level, but Jennifer was everything to him.
Her body shook in quivering waves. It made the chain between her clamps shiver. He tossed the vibe away and pulled her close. His hands tightened on the soft flesh of her ass. She didn’t hesitate, merely wrapped her arms around his neck and gave herself to him. Her mouth opened on his, and he took advantage. He plunged his tongue into her silky heat. He kissed her over and over, as though he could memorize her taste. He loved the feel of her clamps teasing his chest.
He could have kissed her forever, but his cock was insistently pulsing, demanding attention. He forced himself away from her and climbed off the bed. He ripped at the fly of his jeans and had the offending garment off his body in a heartbeat. His cock bounced free.
“Hands and knees, love,” he commanded as he grabbed the tube of lubricant. She hadn’t needed it to take the vibrator, but her lovely asshole didn’t have her pussy’s cream. His whole body tingled at the thought of finally shoving his dick up her ass, forcing her to take him in a place she’d never had a man before.
He was shocked to find his hands were shaking slightly as he got onto the bed behind her. She was beautiful, the perfect picture of submission. Her golden-brown hair hanging down, she stared forward, looking at the mirror. He wondered if she saw what he saw. He saw his perfect mate, waiting for him.
Heart pounding, he couldn’t wait a moment longer. He slicked up his dick, fisting himself in quick passes before moving on to the more interesting part of the preparation. He parted her cheeks and dripped the lube in between them.
“It’s cold.”
“Sorry, love.” He’d warmed it, but then he’d spent a good deal of time getting her off. She was a dangerous distraction. “I’ll warm you up in a minute.”
He pressed a well-lubed finger into her. The rosette of her asshole clenched around his finger.
“Relax. Don’t try to keep me out. I won’t let that happen.” He pushed a second finger in. She groaned as he stretched her. The deep sound made him groan a little, too. “This is mine. Say it.”
“It’s yours, Stef.”
“Your body is mine.” The possessive words rolled off his tongue. They felt right, just like she felt right. She was his, every inch of her. “Your mouth, your breasts, your pussy, they’re all mine. What else is mine?”
“Everything, Stef.” She didn’t hesitate. Her green eyes were clear as she looked at him in the mirror. The chain dangled under her breasts. “I am yours.”
He lined his cock up to her asshole. “You’re mine.”
He pressed in, every inch an outrageous pleasure. She was tight around his cock, fighting to keep him out, but he gently pushed forward. He would win this little war. He would have her because she belonged to him. She would surrender everything to him. He gripped her hips and drove in with ruthless precision.
“Oh, Stef, oh. It burns. You’re bigger than the plug.”
In the mirror, her face was tight with obvious discomfort. He smoothed his hands over her back. “Poor baby. Is my nasty cock splitting your little asshole?”
“Yes.” Her eyes flashed fire, and she hissed through clenched teeth.
She didn’t look so submissive now. The thought made him chuckle. This was how it should be. He should earn her submission. He should bind her to him by taking care of her needs and wrapping her in love and pleasure. “Give it a minute. Let your body adjust, love. You were made for me. You can take me.”
She lowered her head and leaned forward, flattening her back to push against him. It was just the traction he needed. With a low groan, he pushed his way in past her resistant muscles into the hot, tight clasp of her ass.
He held himself there, reveling in the feel of being balls-deep inside her.
“Are you going to get this over with?”
His hands tightened in warning on her hips. “Don’t push me, love. I’m enjoying this, and in a moment, you will, too.”
“I doubt that.”
He pulled back a bit, with exquisite care. He watched as her muscles relaxed. He knew from having it described to him that this was the good part.
“Oh.” Jen’s breath came out in short, sharp pants.
“Tell me how it feels.” He wanted to hear it from her lips. He inched out again.
“It’s so…I don’t know, but it’s amazing. Do it again.” Her hands clenched, clutching the comforter in her fingers. She pushed her ass toward him as though trying to tempt him to stay inside.
“Your wish, love.” He thrust into her, a savage need taking over.
Her head fell forward, and she began to rock back against him as he thrust in and out. Stef alternated between watching the mirror and staring at the gorgeous sight of her ass taking his cock over and over again.
He drove forward, pulling her back so she took his full length. He watched her in the mirror. Their eyes connected as their bodies pounded together.
“I love you.” She mouthed the words to him.
He loved her, too. So much. She was the other half of his soul, certainly the better part of him. She might never know how much he loved her, how much he was willing to sacrifice for her. She deserved more than he could give her. Even as he made love to her, he saw himself completely dominating her. He wanted to be the center of her universe. He wanted her main goal in life to be pleasing him. If she stayed, he would get her pregnant as soon as possible. He wouldn’t be able to help himself. She wouldn’t leave Bliss, wouldn’t see the world, wouldn’t become the woman she could be. She would be his wife, his submissive, his precious possession. How could he do that to her?
He slid his hand down to her clit. At least he could give her this. He slipped a finger onto her clit and started rubbing in perfect circles, the movement timed to his fucking. His finger and his dick worked in perfect precision. He couldn’t keep her, but he could
have a few weeks of joy. He could hold her and love her while she was here. He could please her and care for her so much that one day she might come back to him.
Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes. Jen’s mouth opened, and she came on a low wail. He met her stare in the mirror, trying to memorize the experience. His balls squeezed up, lighting a fire in his body as he fucked her. It would be so lonely without her, but he wouldn’t cheat on her. That’s what it would be. She was his soul’s mate, and the least he could give her was his fidelity.
The orgasm flashed through his body, flaring every nerve in his system. He grasped her hips, pulling her onto his cock one last time, as though trying to fuse them together in a way that could never be broken.
He came, semen leaving his body in smooth jets of silky pleasure. He pushed again and again, giving her everything he had.
Finally empty, he fell forward, his cock slipping from the sweet comfort of her ass. He pulled her close, turning her so her chest met his, the clamps a reminder that, for a while, she was truly his. Her hands came up, smoothing back his hair.
“God, I love you so much, Stef.”
“I love you, too.” The words dropped from his lips before he could think to not say them. They fell between them like a loaded gun in his mind.
Jen merely smiled and brushed his lips lightly with hers. “I know, babe. I know.”
He wrapped his arms around her and tossed a leg over hers so that he surrounded her body with his. He knew he probably seemed like a spoiled child attempting to utterly brand a toy as his, but he couldn’t help it. He wanted to sleep like this, jealously guarding her against everything that might come their way.
“You’ll have to forgive him, you know.” She nestled her head into the crook of his shoulder.
He didn’t pretend to misunderstand. She was talking about his father. “I don’t see why.”
She was quiet for a moment, and he couldn’t help but think she was disappointed in him. It made him restless even as his blood pounded in languid afterglow.
“Why do you think he deserves forgiveness?” He wanted her opinion. He rarely asked for help in making a decision. He was very decisive, but she seemed so certain that he was wrong in this case.
Her face turned up, and the sleepy satisfaction in her eyes hit him straight in the gut. “Silly, I don’t think he deserves it. You do, babe. Forgive him, because you might not have the chance to later. Forgive him. Forgive your mother. Let it go so we can move on. I promise I’ll help you.”
She settled her head against his again. Stef held her and thought about whether or not she would ever forgive him.
Chapter Fifteen
Alexei sat up from the strangely comfortable cot as the door to the station house came open and a large man with black hair and scars on his face walked in, followed by the woman named Callie. The big man had been the one who’d swept her out of the station earlier. Alexei was confused. He’d thought the sheriff was her husband, but the other man had kissed her passionately and spoken to her, been concerned with her every comfort.
“Damn it, Zane.” The sheriff looked up from his mountain of paperwork and scowled as the couple entered. “I thought you were going to take care of her.”
“Yeah, well, Callie wanted to make sure the Russian prick got fed.” Zane was holding a bag in his hand.
His stomach growled as the heavenly scent hit him.
Callie slapped the big guy lightly on his chest. “Be nice.”
The man named Zane shook his head. “I’m with Nate. He pulled a gun on you.”
“He pulled a gun on Jen,” Callie corrected. “The dead guy pulled a gun on me, and then Alexei here saved us both.”
She smiled and winked at him. Alexei felt a deep gratitude toward her. It had been so long since he’d had a moment’s softness. This Callie woman had a kind heart. She practically glowed with forgiveness.
“I am filled with the apologies.” Alexei couldn’t say it enough.
“Yeah, well, be glad you’re not filled with lead, buddy.” Zane strode across the room and held the bag out. “If I’d been there, you would be as dead as your friend.”
“Zane Hollister!” Callie’s admonition rang through the quiet station house.
The sheriff was leaning back in his chair, obviously enjoying the show. “I told you he would have reacted exactly the way I did.”
Zane rounded on the pair. “No, I would have shot his ass.”
The sheriff’s eyes hooded, and he sat up, straightening his spine. “I’m actually glad I didn’t. He’s…different than I would have expected.”
Alexei listened in as the sheriff began to detail a bit of his own past to the other man. He’d spent several hours talking to the sheriff, a tape recorder between them. The sheriff had taken copious notes, and Alexei had been surprised to find that the man’s attitude shifted as he spoke.
He pulled the burger out of the bag. It was juicy and perfectly American. He bit into it and thought it might be the best bit of food he’d ever tasted. When had he stopped enjoying the simple pleasures of life?
“See,” Callie was saying, “he’s not unlike the two of you. If your brother had been horribly murdered, you would have sought revenge.”
“I don’t have a brother,” Zane shot back with a stubborn edge to his voice.
There was a moment of silence. It was filled with meaning as the two men stared at each other as though speaking silently. Alexei watched, fascinated, as Zane shook his head.
“Fine. But I don’t have to like him.” Zane turned on his boots and strode back to the cell, coming within feet of Alexei. “Thank you for saving our wife.”
Yes, his confusion was back. Maybe his English was worse than he thought. “It was all I could to do. I could not to harm the women. They were innocent. Their lives are not worth revenge.”
“Well, I thank you for shooting your friend, anyway.”
He searched his brain for the proper American words. Americans always knew how to describe an asshole. “He was not good friend. He was, how you say, a bag of douches.”
The sheriff laughed outright, and Zane’s mouth tugged up. “At least he has the lingo down.”
The sheriff looked genuinely amused. “He’s hell to understand, man. You should have been here.”
“Don’t make fun of him,” Callie chided. She took her place next to Zane, her arm hooking around his waist. “Your English is very good, Alexei. It’s way better than Nate’s Russian. And you barely have an accent.”
Zane snorted, but he didn’t take it as an insult. He swallowed another heavenly bite of perfectly cooked burger. “I am thanking you for the hospitality. This is good booger. Best booger I ever to eat.”
Zane glanced down at Callie. “Yeah, no accent at all, babe. It’s like he came straight out of Iowa.”
The door to the station opened again, and a big, broad man with reddish-brown hair pounded in, brushing the snow off his coat and brandishing a file folder like a weapon. He walked straight to the sheriff’s desk and slapped it down. Caleb. Alexei wanted to shrink back. He’d spent an afternoon on the ice with this man. He was a bit gruff, but Alexei had admired how patient he’d been with the boys they had taught. He’d admired much about the man. He rather wished Caleb didn’t have to know what he’d done. Meeting Caleb had been the first time in years and years that he’d come close to making a friend.
The doctor didn’t look back at him. His eyes were firmly trained on the sheriff. “Here you go. Do you know what that is?”
The sheriff didn’t appear to take exception to the other man’s outraged tone. “I could give it a good guess, Doc, but I think you’re going to tell me.”
“That’s my autopsy report,” the doctor said, slapping his hand down on the file folder. “My second autopsy of the day. Second.”
The sheriff stifled a laugh. “And I appreciate your promptness. Want to fill me in on this one?”
“You want a cause of death? Single GSW to the brainpan,”
Caleb began. “Although this guy seriously should have died from Hep C long ago. He’s covered in tats. Laura was right. Those Russian guys love their tattoos.”
“He get most in prison,” Alexei said, getting up and moving to the bars.
The doctor turned and stared at him. “Are they meaningful?”
He didn’t like to think about what they meant. “Yes, they detail his crimes and how many he murders. It is how you know what man is willing to do. He would have added to them for killings he do here. He talks about it on way to Colorado.”
“This is a nice town, you know.” The doctor’s face was turning a bit red, and he reminded Alexei of an angry bull waiting for his chance to charge. “You assholes walk in here looking to do god knows what, and you wreck everything. This is a nice place where people give a shit about each other. I should not have to do autopsies. I should not have to write out the way people died of unnatural causes here.”
“I am sorry. I could not save other girl. She was dead because I was…” Alexei let his eyes drift down.
Caleb stopped in front of the cell. “She died while you were out with me and the Farley twins?” When Alexei didn’t answer he put a hand on the bars. “What would you have done if you had been there? Would she still be dead? Would you have helped kill her?”
His stomach churned at the thought. He’d been through the scenario in his head a million times. It had kept him up all night. He’d played it through, and he still wasn’t sure what he would have done.
“Caleb, stop.” Callie crossed her arms and faced the doctor.
Caleb didn’t look at her, obviously preferring to expend his intimidation on Alexei. Alexei forced himself to face the man he’d briefly thought of as a friend. The doctor wasn’t close to being done with him. “Why? Why should I stop? Why should I think he would have saved that girl? He almost certainly helped get rid of her body. Am I wrong?”
The burger he’d wolfed down now threatened to come back up. He could still feel the slight weight of her body in his arms. They had wrapped her in a tarp and taken her to an isolated part of the river. “I help him.”