by Rhea Regale
He didn’t stop, not as she peaked, or as she slowly came down from heaven. He continued to probe her, stretch her inner muscles. Her breaths came in heavy gasps and her muscles were useless as she melted into Carter’s arms.
At last, he withdrew from her sopping pussy, drawing a wet path up her belly, between her breasts, and paused to the right of her face. She looked over as Carter leaned forward and licked her juice from his fingers.
“I can drink from your body all day and all night,” he said softly. His hand left her breast and came up beneath her chin, tilting her head up and back. “I’m going to kiss your sweet pussy tonight.”
He took her mouth with his, kissing her slowly, filling her with the taste of her own cream mixed with the taste of Carter.
Summer untangled her hands and twisted around in his arms, coming to straddle his thighs. He held her waist as she deepened their kiss, delving her fingers into his hair. Slowly, his hands traveled along her back, bringing her closer to him, seating her down on the prominent bulge in his jeans. He wrapped her ponytail around his hand and gave her hair a gentle tug, forcing her mouth away from his and exposing her neck to his hungry kisses. He didn’t miss an inch, swirling his tongue in the hollow of her neck, scraping his teeth along her flesh, leaving wet trails of kisses everywhere else.
“Summer, take your hair down for me,” Carter said, releasing her ponytail. She complied, working the band from her hair and shaking her head. Fat curls fell over her shoulder. Carter reached up and combed his fingers down one lock. “Like fine silk.”
Summer grasped the bottom of his sweater. “I think it’s time for this to come off.”
“Anything you want, I will gladly provide.” Carter lifted his arms up and she tugged the sweater over his head. She pressed her breasts against the heat of his skin, reveling in the feel of his bare chest crushed to hers. The friction of his skin against her nipples licked her nerves straight to her core. Carter graced her collarbone with a line of kisses.
“You,” she whispered, bowing her head over his, nuzzling her cheek against his soft hair. She flattened her palms and slid her hands down his back, remembering the pale lines of war scars that marred his muscled body. “I want you.”
“You have me. You’ve always had me.”
“Jeans.” Summer rounded his narrow waist and fumbled with the button. “Off.”
Carter encased her, lowering her gently onto her back and pulling the warm sleeping bag over them. He zipped up the open side and disappeared inside the bag, kissing his way down her belly. She closed her eyes and spread her legs as he moved lower and lower. She could feel him working his jeans off and ravishing her with slow, sensual kisses, down, down. The bag shifted and tugged, Carter’s large frame forming a bulge.
His hands scooped around her ass and rolled her hips up, her knees hooked on his shoulders. His lips gave small, playful pinches to her labia. Summer jerked, each tease like a lightning bolt shooting chaotically around her body.
“Oh yes, love,” Summer murmured. Carter’s tongue licked through her seam, laving her with slow, unrushed delight. When he plunged that sinful tongue into her pussy, she whimpered. “Ah, Carter.”
He coiled the pleasure in her womb, the prelude of a perfect storm ready to unleash its euphoric damage. Her legs trembled against his shoulders. She reached down and cupped the sides of his head, holding desperately to him. He lifted his mouth from her entrance.
When his lips clamped down on her clit, she cried out his name. Her world shook, her mind shattered, and she rode the powerful, undulating waves of wicked hot pleasure. He suckled and suckled, keeping her strung so tight, thrashing against the bag, swallowing air when she could.
“Carter, oh God, Carter.” She pulled on his head, tearing him away from her throbbing pussy. His lips skated along her skin, pausing to taunt her nipples with playful nips.
His head popped out of the bag. Raw emotions stirred in his eyes. She traced his brows, her palms against his jaw.
“Carter, love,” Summer said quietly. His cock nudged her pussy, slipping along her wet center. “No more waitin’.”
“No more waiting, angel.”
Carter slid into her in one gentle thrust, filling her completely. He smoothed her hair from her eyes and feathered kisses along her forehead, rocking in long steady strokes that reawakened the sensations of pleasure all along her pussy. Summer curled a leg around his waist, enjoying the way he moved to fill her. His muscles flexed beneath her touch, his hovering strength encompassing her in warm security.
Summer pressed her hand to his shoulder, rolling him onto his back. She climbed over him and regained her rhythm. Carter pressed up, holding her hips, guiding her with each roll. He dipped his head and sucked her nipple between his lips. She wrapped her arms around his head, holding tight, feeding him more of her flesh. The tingling pleasure that shot down from her nipple pooled in her swollen pussy. He nibbled and licked, leading her closer and closer to a new edge, a different mountain of bliss.
“Ah, Carter.”
“Yes, honey?” he asked, moving to her other nipple.
“I’m so close.”
“Good.”
“But you…”
Carter’s teasing nip snagged her breath in her throat. He looked up, her nipple secure between his lips, and she had her answer before she came up with the question.
This was her night, and Carter was selflessly at her command.
Summer lost herself to Carter, indulging in the way her body reacted to having him again. He sucked her nipple until the pressure in the depth of her womb stretched and pulsed and suddenly, like a thick-walled balloon, popped. She threw her head back and moaned, that full swell of absolute delight overcoming her senses.
“Carter. Come. Come with me,” she gasped.
“Yes, sweetheart,” came his gruff reply. He twisted, tucking her beneath him, and plunged into her. His arm cradled her shoulders. Another pinned her leg around his waist. She leaned up and caught his bottom lip, pulling him down and taking him in a kiss fueled by hunger and love.
“Damn, Summer,” he rasped, sliding his cock to the hilt, sitting himself so deep inside her. “God, angel.”
She felt the spasms flow across his back and down his arms as he gave into his orgasm. His cock swelled, pulsed. He fell to his elbows, his face pressing to the crook of her neck, the sharp slaps of his warm breath spreading across her chest. She held him to her, loving his solid form, the way he quivered and trembled from what they created together.
Carter turned his face up and kissed her. “Still cold?”
“Not at all,” Summer said, her voice thick with the remnants of sexual energy. “In fact, I think it’s a bit warm in the bag.”
Carter laughed in his delectable deep, rumbling way, settling on his side. He propped his head on his hand and drew a single finger along Summer’s jawline.
“For the moment. How do you feel?”
Summer rolled onto her side and mirrored the way he held his head. “I feel like everythin’ that’s been broken inside me is finally fixed. I feel complete and satisfied and…happy.”
Carter took her hand and wove his fingers between hers. His thumb caressed her ring finger at the knuckle.
“How ‘bout you?” Summer asked.
“Whole. I’m back where I’ve always belonged.” Carter kissed her knuckles. “In Ryder with Braden.” He pulled her close to him. She rested her head on his arm. “But most of all, with you.”
* * * *
Summer gasped, snapping out of sleep as a dull pain ebbed through her chest. She tried to push onto her elbows.
“You’re dead, motherfucker,” Carter growled. He grabbed her throat and punched her back into the sleeping bag, shattering any remaining slumber. She grappled for his hand, working his fingers from her skin, barely able to wheeze a breath past his clamped hands. Carter stared down at her, unseeing.
Oh God, he’s still asleep.
“Carter,” she choked, kic
king down the sleeping bag that tangled around her. She winced as the pressure increased around her throat, his elbow digging painfully into her chest. “Carter, wake up!”
Staving off the panic that threatened to consume her, she drew up her leg and kicked him back with all her strength. Carter dropped onto his bag, sieving breath through his clenched teeth. Summer coughed, rubbing her throat, and pushed upright. A dull pain throbbed up her neck, knocking into her skull. Her vision blurred from the sudden release of blood into her head as she tried to focus on Carter. Every muscle in his body tensed, the tendons and veins in his neck becoming taut. His eyes closed, and he began to thrash.
The bite of tears welled in her eyes. She grabbed his shoulders and gave him a sharp shake. “Carter! Carter, it’s Summer. Love, wake up!” Stifling a thick sob, she shook him again. “Please.”
Carter jerked. His back bowed off the bag, then he settled down. Tremors left her weak, her hands trembling. She brushed his waves from his forehead and gently cupped the side of his face as his breathing returned to normal.
“Carter?” she asked forcefully, patting the side of his face a couple times. “Carter, wake up.”
His eyelids fluttered and slowly pulled open. Summer held her breath, her heart beating wildly in her chest and making her dizzy. Carter reached up and rubbed his eyes, then narrowed them on Summer. A split second later, he was sitting upright, his hands on her shoulders, fully awake.
“Honey, what is it? Is something outside?” Carter asked quietly. Summer shook her head, her mouth too dry to form words. The frigid air finally broke through her adrenaline-induced heat, bringing a slew of chills across every inch of exposed skin. Carter’s fingers smoothed down her hair, the concern firing his expression. “Summer.”
“You had a nightmare,” she said thickly, closing her eyes. She fought to stop her body from shaking and her tears from falling.
“Oh.” Carter reached down to the messed up sleeping bag cover and pulled in over her. “Did I scare you?”
“A little,” she confessed, falling into his beckoning embrace. He lowered them beneath the warm bag, tucking her tightly against him.
“I didn’t…hurt you, did I?”
She couldn’t ignore the apprehension in his question. Knowing Carter as well as she believed, if she told him the truth, he would turn in on himself and lock her out in fear of bringing more harm.
No nightmare, no threat, could frighten her enough to leave him, not when he needed her to support him. “No, love. You didn’t.”
Carter slid his fingers between hers, folding their hands together. He laid a soft kiss on her shoulder. A small sliver of tension crept between them. Summer had an inkling of a feeling that perhaps he knew she had lied to him, but after a long silence, he said nothing regarding it.
“I love you, Summer. Everything about you, I love.”
“I love you, too, Carter, and I will always love you.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Carter rubbed the prickly hairs that shadowed his jaw and turned away from the image staring back at him. Broken. Something inside him was still broken, and he needed to get it fixed. He couldn’t recall much of his nightmare, but Summer had lied to him about hurting her. She would never admit to it, a maneuver to protect him. There had been more to the fear that poured off her in dense ripples.
When the sun came up, he saw the faint marks on either side of her throat. Still, she had graced him with a million love-filled kisses, and made love to him before they packed up and returned to her apartment.
Those haunting marks were silently ignored, but his conscience wouldn’t let him forget he put them on her soft flesh.
Now, he waited for Braden to finish getting ready for their day at the ranch. Summer had left, giving him time to ponder what he could do to fix the brokenness inside him. The last thing he would do was put Summer in any danger, especially the danger that he had so little control over. If that meant he must leave Ryder, then he would do it.
Don’t forget you promised me something, Carter.
Braden’s hand came to rest on Carter’s shoulder, slashing through Henry’s haunting words. “I was certain you’d come back from your night a new man. Instead, it seems Summer might’ve given you little for your time.”
“Bray, she lied to me,” Carter said on a streamlined breath as he turned and leaned his ass against the dresser top. He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. Braden’s smile dropped. “I had another attack last night. I know I hurt her, but she wouldn’t tell me. I can’t be falling asleep with the very real notion that I might kill her while I’m tossing in a nightmare.”
“Are those ‘mares that bad?” Braden asked.
“The ones I remember are fucking nasty. I don’t really remember the one I had last night.”
Braden angled his body to Carter and leaned a hand against the dresser. “Summer ain’t gonna tell you shit if she fears you’ll take off again. I wouldn’t either. But if you know that we are here to get through this together, then she’ll tell you what happened. What were they doin’ for the attacks while you were recoverin’?”
“Mandatory counseling.”
“And you stopped counselin’ since returnin’ home.”
“Yeah.”
“Why don’t we look into a good doc around here? Maybe some meds might help.”
Carter scowled. “I’m not about drugs.”
“Not drugs, baby. Medication, and it’s not a permanent thing. Just a little help until we can learn how to control the nightmares. You wouldn’t have to worry about fallin’ asleep with Summer and fearin’ you’re gonna hurt her.” Braden grabbed his chin and held his eyes when Carter tried to look away. The man pressed a chaste kiss to his lips and strummed his bottom lip with his thumb. “I saw you thinkin’ about what to do, and I know leavin’ crept into your mind. You don’t run, Carter. You’ve always faced your issues. This time is no different, and you’ve got all the support a man could ask for.”
“I do.” Carter nodded once. Braden was right. If Summer was frightened of him, she wouldn’t have showed him the love she had this morning. Braden’s love didn’t lessen as he made his suggestions. In fact, pride swelled in the man, giving Carter more strength than ever before.
All of that melted into pure anger as they left the apartment ten minutes later and stepped into the driveway. Carter’s fingers fisted by his sides as he looked over Colt’s truck. All four tires rested on their rims, the rubber flat on the ground. Shattered eggs stained the hood and the windows. Carter’s jaw locked, his teeth clenched and his vision shaking. Braden stormed over to the truck and ripped a white piece of paper from under the wiper.
“What does it say?” Carter asked, his words potent and dangerous. He closed in on the damage, dragging a single finger through the cold, hard egg white. This would be a bitch to clean up after he had all the tires replaced.
“‘Give me what’s mine or I’ll spread your secret all over this town. Ryder won’t have you.’” Braden turned the paper over, his brows pinched. “‘Tell your lawyer to back off and settle as to the agreement he has.’”
Braden looked up at Carter. Red crept into the corners of his vision and he took a brief moment to focus on taking deeps breaths and calm the powerful fury thrashing inside him.
“This fucking prick has another thing coming if he thinks I’m not going to hunt him down.” Carter pulled his cell from his pocket and dialed Rylan. His cousin answered on the second ring. “Gotta problem over here at Summer’s place.”
“What’s up?” Rylan asked.
“Someone’s trying to run me out of town. Slashed up Colt’s tires and egged the truck.”
“Are you fuckin’ kiddin’ me?” Rylan smacked something, the dull thud echoing through the phone. “Who the hell eggs a truck anymore?” Carter pressed his lips together, hard, barely keeping his ire under control. “Do you have any idea who it might be?”
“Not a clue, but whoever it is came here and did
damage in forty-five minutes, after Summer left for work. They knew I was here, knew I had Colt’s truck, and have a very deep hatred for me.”
“Anythin’ left this time?”
Carter held out his hand for the letter. Braden handed it over and got on his phone.
“Similar to the letters on the bricks. I didn’t tell you. Yesterday I went to see Ted and he said someone was trying to claim half of my assets. He’s digging around the courthouse trying to find out who it might be.”
“This just gets better and better.” Rylan shuffled around. Carter turned away from the truck and licked his lips, his fingers fisting the letter into a crumpled ball. His muscles were so damn tense he could feel the beginning of a headache throbbing up his neck and into his head. “I’ll be over in ten.”
Carter ended the call and shoved the phone in his pocket. Braden was ending his call when he turned around. His expression was set in a hard mask, his eyes flashing anger that stoked the dangerous storm inside Carter.
“Brent’s headin’ over. He can change out these tires with a temp set. He’s gotta make a trip into the city to get some parts for your truck and’ll pick up a brand new set this afternoon,” Braden said. Carter nodded. “Rylan headin’ by?”
“He’ll be here shortly.” Carter walked to the end of the driveway, his hands in his pockets, and scoured the sidewalk, the street, the grounds surrounding them. He searched for any sign of his enemy, any strange shift in shadows, any hint to who and where this bastard was. He lifted his attention to his property, the two-story house perched far back from the street behind a cascade of naked trees. Ranch hands and family had already arrived to work on his house.
Carter’s brow cinched. “Bray, when we get that girl up on new wheels, I’m going to head up to my place. I need to check something out.”
“I can come. The horses have been well tended to and there ain’t much to do today,” Braden said, coming up alongside him. His hand came to rest on Carter’s shoulder, his touch slowly soothing the fury coiling around his gut. Carter looked at him, loving his handsome face, the emotion that swelled in his eyes, and the no-nonsense expression that came over him. “What’s gotchya thinkin’?”