Lethal Protector

by Kaylea Cross

  “Yes.” He still didn’t feel like he deserved it, but he was going to do everything in his power to hold onto her.

  Tate’s shoulders eased and a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. “That’s good.” He chuckled, a grin breaking across his face. “Hell, that’s awesome.”

  “I’d never hurt her. Not on purpose.” It was the accidental possibility that worried him. He’d fucked up every single relationship he’d ever been in, but he’d never felt this way about anyone. He couldn’t afford to fuck this up.

  Tate’s smile faded, his expression growing serious. He put a hand on Braxton’s shoulder again. Squeezed gently, his gaze steady. “I know. Now let me go see if they’ve released her so we can get you both back to Rifle Creek.”

  Hell yes.

  As soon as Tate had gone, Braxton blew out a deep breath and ran a hand over his face, feeling drained. Tate had taken that way better than he’d expected, and it felt like a giant weight had been taken off his shoulders.

  Tala definitely deserved more than he could give her, but that was twice Braxton had almost lost her, and no matter if there was still a risk of losing her later on, he wasn’t holding back with her anymore.

  He lowered himself into a chair to wait, bouncing one foot up and down to burn off a mixture of nerves and anticipation. Tonight was going to change everything between them.

  There was no way he could keep from crossing the final line with her now. Not after everything they’d been through together. She’d been so fucking brave out there, so strong in the face of everything thrown at them. She awed and humbled him and he couldn’t wait to worship every last inch of her when they got back to Rifle Creek.

  He shot to his feet when she appeared around the corner with Tate a few minutes later, his arm around her shoulders. She had her regular prosthetic on but she was limping noticeably, still sore and probably raw from the prolonged friction it had undergone during their ordeal. She must have refused the wheelchair the hospital staff had offered.

  The instant she saw him, her steps faltered, and a big smile broke over her face. So full of love that his heart flipped in his chest.

  Braxton smiled back, his feet already carrying him to her. Tate withdrew his arm from her shoulders and stepped aside, the nonverbal equivalent of giving them his blessing.

  “How you feeling?” he asked her, stopping in front of her to cradle the side of her neck in his hand, his thumb sweeping across her cheek. Her color was way better, her cheeks a soft pink and her eyes were bright.

  Longing and heat filled her gaze, instantly making his pulse pound. “I’m good. How are you?”

  “Just a few bumps and bruises.” He reached for her, drawing her tight against his chest and locked his arms around her, burying his face in her silky hair. He could still smell the faint scent of her shampoo. “Ready to get out of here?”

  “Yes.”

  He kept her tight against his side as they walked out to Tate’s truck, and the initial awkwardness of showing his affection in front of Tala’s brother faded quickly. Tate opened the front passenger door for her but she shook her head. “I’ll ride in the back with Brax.”

  His chest hitched at knowing she wanted to be close to him. He boosted her into the backseat, then climbed in beside her and immediately drew her into his arms. She cuddled into him with a contented sigh that eased something deep inside him, her cheek nestled right over his heart.

  Tate handed him a blanket and he tucked it around her, awed by the strength and determination in such a fragile body, and humbled at finally being able to hold her openly like this.

  Tate got them right to the road back to Rifle Creek. Braxton leaned his back against the door, angling them so that Tala could recline a bit, and stroked his fingers through her rich brown hair.

  He knew the moment she dropped off to sleep, her lips parting slightly, her breathing deep and even. He glanced up to meet Tate’s gaze in the rearview mirror, and caught the faint smile on his buddy’s face before he focused back on the road.

  Braxton kissed the top of Tala’s head and leaned his against the doorframe with a sigh, allowing his eyes to close. Tala was safe, warm, and curled up in his arms. That was all he needed right now.

  He came awake sometime later when the truck slowed. Opening his eyes, he saw they were already in Rifle Creek. His back and ribs ached like a bitch and his muscles were stiff from staying in one position for so long, but Tala was still sound asleep, a dead weight against his chest, and he didn’t want to disturb her.

  He shifted slightly to brace them when Tate made a turn and she woke anyway, blinking groggily. “Where are we?” she murmured.

  “Almost home.” He couldn’t wait to be alone with her.

  She sat up and looked at her brother, rubbing the back of her neck. “I’m gonna stay with Brax tonight. Maybe for the next few days.”

  The announcement surprised and pleased Braxton, and Tate met her gaze in the rearview mirror for a moment before focusing back on the road. “Okay. Want me to stop at our place first, and grab you a bag of stuff?”

  “No. I’ll borrow whatever I need from Avery, and maybe Rylee can bring me a bag tomorrow.” She settled back against the seat, reaching for his hand, and Braxton twined their fingers together. His blood was already heating, anticipating the moment when he finally got her alone in his suite.

  They arrived at Avery and Mason’s place a few minutes later, and everything happened in a blur. After filling Avery and Mason in on everything they’d missed, Avery whisked Tala into the upstairs part of the house to get whatever she needed. Meanwhile, Braxton went downstairs and took a long, hot shower, letting the heat of the water ease some of the tension and soreness out of his battered muscles.

  Pulling on some flannel pajama pants and a T-shirt, he walked into the bedroom, only to stop dead when he saw Tala already curled up in his bed, facing him under the covers, her prosthetic leg propped against the wall next to the headboard.

  She was fast asleep, her hair spilling across the pillow. And someone must have run over to Tate’s to get her things, because Sergeant Stumpy was sitting on his pillow.

  Braxton’s heart turned over at the sight of her asleep in his bed like she belonged there. He put the bear on the bedside table and slid carefully in beside Tala. Easing an arm around her back, his body hardened at the feel of her, blood rushing to his cock. She smelled like soap, shampoo and toothpaste, clean and delicious.

  He ached to wake her with kisses, bring her into that dreamy state of arousal that let her float while he slowly explored every inch of her satiny skin. Find every spot that made her sigh and gasp, then slowly enjoy those tempting nipples he’d been dreaming about before kissing his way down between her thighs and savoring her until she came on his tongue.

  Her eyelashes fluttered and she blinked at him, focusing briefly on his face before giving him a sleepy smile. “Hi,” she murmured, eyes half-closed.

  “Hi.” He drew her closer, tucking her head against his chest, the rightness of it settling deep inside him.

  Damn, she felt incredible, like she’d been made for him. And even better, she loved him. His cock pulsed, aching to be buried inside her, but that could wait. They had a few more days left together before he had to leave. She was completely exhausted and they both needed sleep.

  “Love you,” she mumbled.

  He squeezed his eyes shut, unable to believe how lucky he was. “Love you too,” he whispered, and held her close, praying she was willing to make things work and stick with him while he was away.

  Because living without her wouldn’t be living at all.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Tala drifted slowly toward consciousness, surrounded by warmth. Gradually, she became aware of a low-grade pain in her right leg, and then more, expanding out to various other places across her body.

  The mountain. The blizzard and the shooter.

  A chill shot through her. She opened her eyes to find her cheek resting on the hard pl
ane of a muscular chest.

  Braxton. He was here beside her. They were safe. Alone.

  She relaxed, banishing the frightening memories because they didn’t belong here. Now it was just her and Braxton. She intended to enjoy him to the fullest while she still had him.

  Heat spread through her, pooling low in her belly. She eased a hand up the soft T-shirt covering his broad back, mindful of his bruises, wishing he was naked too.

  He tensed slightly as he awoke, then a deep, satisfied rumble sounded in his chest as he drew her closer. “Hey.”

  “Hey,” she murmured, snuggling closer. Her whole body tingled with anticipation, a hot throb blooming between her thighs. He felt even better than she’d imagined, warm and solid and…hard all over, the unmistakable ridge of his erection cradled against her belly. “What time is it?”

  “Little after seven.”

  So they’d only slept a little over an hour. She should be exhausted still, but instead she was wide awake, arousal pumping through her like warm honey. Everything that had happened up ‘til now had led them to this moment. To here and now, the two of them alone in this bed, and she couldn’t wait a moment longer to have him.

  She slid a hand up to stroke his hair. Braxton made a deep sound low in his throat and cupped the back of her head, then his mouth was on hers. She moaned and parted her lips, fire streaking through her as their tongues touched. Her breasts ached, the nipples tight as she rubbed them against his covered chest.

  Frustrated at not being able to feel his skin against hers, she reached for the bottom of his shirt and impatiently dragged it up his body. He helped her, breaking the kiss just long enough for him to fling it over his head, then he was kissing her again, his hands cradling her face as he rolled them until she was on her back and he was settled between her legs.

  Tala gasped as his weight sank on top of her, his erection pressed to her throbbing core. She angled her hips to rub against him, a shudder rolling through her at the contact.

  Yes. More. So much more.

  Braxton stroked her tongue with his one last time, then nipped her lower lip and began nibbling his way across her jaw to the side of her throat. She tipped her head to the side and palmed the back of his head, gasping as his lips and tongue hit a sensitive spot that sent streamers of pleasure shooting across her skin. She felt like she was dissolving, every stroke of his lips and tongue melting her bones.

  He shifted one hand down to brush his fingers along her right collarbone, along her sternum and followed it down to the curve of her breast. She sucked in a breath when he cupped it in his big hand, glanced down in time to see the taut, absorbed look on his face as he stared at her naked flesh and swept his thumb across the rigid nipple.

  Her toes curled. She bit her lip, then whimpered as he lowered his head and captured the aching peak in his mouth. Heat engulfed her, roaring through her veins and settling in her swelling clit. She was already wet and aching for him. He sucked on her slowly, as if savoring a piece of candy, his tongue caressing with each decadent pull of his mouth.

  “Braxton,” she whispered, her heart threatening to pound out of her chest.

  He made a deep sound of enjoyment and kept sucking, shifting his hand to her other breast and playing with the nipple while he enjoyed her other one. Tala reached up to grip his shoulders, remembered at the last moment how battered he was, and gently coasted her palms down the length of his naked back, enjoying the feel of all that smooth, hot skin shifting over bunching muscle.

  She curled her fingers in the waistband of his pants and shoved them down, then sucked in a breath and grabbed his hips when his mouth switched to her other nipple. Pleasure shot through her, streaking down to the slick folds between her legs.

  His hands closed around her ribcage. He lifted his head, the molten heat in his gaze as he looked up at her stealing her breath. “Condom.”

  “On the bedside table,” she whispered in a rush. “I brought it down last night.”

  “God, I love you,” he breathed, and went right back to what he’d been doing.

  She smiled and let her head drop back into the pillow as he released her throbbing nipple to kiss his way down her stomach, one of his hands leading the way to the center of her body, his fingertips skimming over her heated flesh.

  She sank her teeth into her lower lip, her muscles tensing in anticipation as those talented fingers stroked and teased her hipbone, the inside of her thigh, following it down to her knee before easing back up and stopping several inches from where she was wet and needy.

  His tongue dragged over the tender skin beneath her navel. Her abs contracted, her rapid breathing filling the air as she waited for the touch she’d fantasized about for four endless years.

  Then his hand shifted. His fingertips grazed the edge of her soaked folds. She squeezed her eyes shut and moaned, tilting her hips, dying for more.

  “So pretty, baby,” he whispered as he sank to his knees on the floor at the end of the bed and pulled her hips toward the edge. His fingers kept teasing, gliding up and down, making her wetter, hotter. “I’m gonna lick you all up, until you come on my tongue.”

  She couldn’t answer, could only lock her fingers on his hair and wait, her whole body drawn taut in anticipation of that first touch of his lips and tongue on her aching clit. His fingers stroked lower, easing just inside her as his tongue flicked the swollen knot.

  Tala cried out, fisting his hair and opening wider for him. His mouth settled over her more firmly, but his tongue was oh-so soft as he caressed her clit. She shuddered.

  Slow, tender circles, growing smaller and smaller until he found exactly the right spot that made her arch and whimper, her muscles trembling with every tiny flutter of his tongue. He kept going, his fingertips stroking just inside her body, curving upward to hit the spot that threatened to make her explode.

  “Brax,” she pleaded, her voice ragged and breathless. She’d gone so long without him, and only had a short time left before he was leaving again. “Let me touch you. I need to touch you. Want you inside me.”

  He delivered one last devastating caress with his tongue, then lifted his head and leaned down to suck a taut nipple into his mouth while he shoved his pants down his thighs. She tried to sit up, desperate to get her hands on him, but he held her down with a hand on her stomach and a warning growl and kept his mouth right where it was, allowing her only to touch him where she could reach.

  She stroked her palms over his broad, bunched shoulders, over the corded muscle on either side of his spine before coming back up and dipping around to map the front of him. The hard mounds of his pecs, and the flat, ridged abs beneath.

  She leaned to the side, her hungry gaze latching onto the rigid length of his cock standing proudly against his lower belly.

  Her hand closed around him, her core clenching at how thick and hard he was. Braxton froze, a groan ripping free. His eyes were squeezed shut, an expression of blissful agony on his face as she gripped him, then eased up and stroked down his length.

  He shuddered and pushed into her fist, his forehead pressed to her stomach. “Tal,” he groaned. His hand closed around hers, squeezing to stop her. Pulling in a deep breath, he raised his head, and their gazes locked.

  “Make me come,” she whispered, rocking her hips, feeling more sensual, powerful and beautiful than she ever had in her life. All because of him.

  He released her hand with a growl to grab the condom from the nightstand, shuddering again when she stroked him with one hand and dropped the other to her clit. His gaze zeroed in on her fingers as she circled the throbbing bud, the incredible arousal on his face making it even hotter.

  She moaned as pleasure swirled through her. Braxton tore open the condom and rolled it on, then tugged her even farther toward him so that her ass was almost off the bed. “Hand me a pillow,” he said in a deep, sexy voice.

  She flung a hand out to grab one and gave it to him. He lifted her hips and shoved it beneath her lower back, arching h
er spine, then leaned one hand on the bed beside her ribcage and positioned the head of his cock against her.

  Tala curled a hand around his hip and looked up at him, her heart knocking against her ribs when their gazes connected. She needed him. Needed to hold him inside her. His face was tense, his jaw taut, eyes blazing as he eased forward, lodging the thick head of his cock inside her.

  Her mouth opened, eyes slamming shut at the incredible sensation. Heat and fullness, a delicious stretching that filled her, easing the hungry ache initially, and then making it a whole lot worse. She grabbed his shoulder, a wave of emotion hitting her. “Brax…”

  A deep, hot kiss cut her off, a deep sound of pleasure coming from his chest. “Let me.”

  She nodded and stroked her clit faster, arching her hips to fight for more of him. Then her eyes sprang open when he pushed her hand away.

  “Let me,” he repeated, his voice deep and sexy. Holding her gaze, he slid a hand under her hips and eased his lower body forward, seating himself deep inside her.

  She made a soft, pleading sound and tightened her grip on his shoulder, wanting to rock and thrust. He stopped her, watching her as he shifted his weight until his pelvis was tight against hers and the base of his cock nestled against her swollen clit.

  “Eyes on me, Tal,” he rasped out, his jaw tight.

  She met his gaze, her heart threatening to explode, her body dying for the release he’d been building her to. But he didn’t thrust. Instead he…rubbed. Rocking his pelvis against her, stroking her with his cock while his body caressed her clit.

  Tala whimpered, her whole body trembling at the incredible pleasure streaking through her. All she could do was cling to him and angle her hips so that he hit exactly the right place. She was worried it wouldn’t work for her but he was so damn hard inside her, every single brush of their bodies hitting both her sweet spots.

  “Brax,” she sobbed, shaking as the sensation built and built and built. She loved him so much.