“Better?” Shelby asked.
“No.” He braced his hands on the counter, staring at the gleaming lights on the faux marble.
“Where’d you go back there?” She stroked his shoulder, her touch gentle.
“Nowhere.”
“I asked about your brothers, and things went downhill from there. Where’d you go?” Her voice was soft, so unlike her usual manner.
He turned, leaning a hip against the sink, and stared down at her.
“Why do you care?” he asked. He was in, she didn’t have to work an angle with him anymore. There was no need to twist him up in knots to keep him on the hook.
“I guess I don’t have to.” She took a step back, hands up. Her eyes went dark, shuttered once more. “Never mind. I’ll take the drive to Rusty. You should be ready for your brothers to show up at some point and take you to meet Ogdyn.”
Damn it.
He shouldn’t have said that.
Kade reached for her, grasping her hand. She tensed, but came forward willingly. Or maybe he tugged her. He wasn’t sure anymore. But he didn’t have to be a dick. At least not to her.
“We were talking about Little Pete before—the guy who got shot—and then you said something about Sasha and…I don’t know. I just…”
“It’s okay.” She flattened her hand against his chest. “Heist adrenaline and memories. I…should have kept focused on the job. Sorry I sniped at you. I’m not used to being clipboard girl. I could have handled this morning better, too. You going to be okay?”
“You did more than hold a clipboard today.” He squeezed her hand.
She turned her palm in his, lacing their fingers together.
“I stuck a thumb drive into a port and pulled it out.”
“You stuck it in like a pro.”
“Are you making twelve-year-old sex jokes right now?”
“Maybe.” He laughed, ridiculous as it sounded.
There was too much buzzing in his head. He wanted to kiss her. Sprint a mile. Scream. Something. Instead, he was standing in his kitchen, staring at a pretty girl who’d pretty much told him no a dozen times. And still, she’d kissed him in the basement of that building. Because she thought he’d crack?
He’d decked plenty of guys to get them to snap out of it in combat situations.
Was that her way of getting his head screwed on straight?
“What’s happening?” he asked.
“You’re adrenaline drunk.” Shelby flattened her other hand against his chest, pushing him up against the counter, her other hand still in his.
“Is this why my brothers can’t give up scamming people?”
“I don’t know them well enough to say that. What do you think?” She slid her hand up his chest with just enough pressure to keep his mind focused on the connection.
“There were a couple times when Sasha stole Dad’s car. Him and Anton would steal from a house or a gas station, they’d come back and we’d drive down the highway. They’d stick their heads out of the windows and howl. I thought they were crazy.”
“I might have done something like that a time or two.” Shelby chucked, a low, sultry sound that stroked his senses. Her hand stroked down his chest and back up again. “That’s one of the hard parts about walking away. The thrill of pulling something off, not getting caught. It’s addicting to feel like you have that much power.”
He heard her words, but he was far too interested in the path of her hand, how close her body was to his.
She’d conned him.
Lied to him.
And he’d jumped off the deep end and helped her steal God only knew what.
Ever since he’d walked up to that crunched car and laid eyes on her, he’d been cutting corners. First, he should have kept it professional and he hadn’t. Now, he should have crossed his Ts and dotted his Is before doing anything else. But he hadn’t. Why?
Shelby leaned against him, her breasts straining against the neckline of her tank top, her gaze on his mouth.
He wanted her.
Lust made a guy do stupid things.
11.
“Is this a good idea?” Kade asked.
“Maybe?” She was so close he could feel the whisper of her breath, taste the mint she’d eaten in the car.
“Shelby?” He had every intention of telling her to leave, right up until Shelby nipped his lower lip. She licked the hurt. He dug his hand into her hair, sending the knit cap to the floor. She went up on tiptoes, shaking her hand free of his, only to fist the front of his shirt. He cupped her ass with his now free hand.
There was more than a zing or a sizzle. It was like his whole body was crackling with energy. Was this what she meant? Adrenaline drunk?
He slid his tongue along her lips and she opened for him, no hesitance about it at all.
She tasted of mint with a hint of coffee.
Her knee slid between his, aligning their bodies for a better fit.
Whatever reservations she’d had last night were gone. Or were they? Fuck if he knew. His head was so screwed up. Nothing felt right unless it was her touch, her kiss.
She pressed her hips against him, grinding on his thigh.
Damn.
He needed closer.
Kade walked her backward—carried her more like—until he had Shelby’s back up against the fridge. Magnets and random take-out menus scattered, hitting the floor. She hooked her thigh around his, her hips undulating against him.
It was as if he could feel every fiber of his clothing. All the individual muscles in his thigh and calf. Each tooth of the zipper pressed against his hardening cock.
The silky feeling of her hair in his hand.
The puff of her breath.
The sharp feel of her teeth, just before she moaned.
There was such a thing as too aware.
God, he wanted to be in her, be wrapped up in her. The very air seemed to crackle the closer they got. If he didn’t…if he didn’t do something, he was going to rip apart at the seams.
A small, quiet voice whispered, That’s crazy.
And it was right.
Adrenaline-fueled lust was a dangerous, self-destructive thing.
He’d seen it in the army. He’d seen it with other paramedics. And he routinely saw it with the couples at the firehouse who thought they were oh-so-sneaky about boning in the pantry.
This had to stop. Now.
“Shelby.” He lifted his head.
She kissed a trail down his neck.
“Stop. Shelby, you have to stop.” He grasped her by the shoulders.
“Is that your conscience talking?” She planted one last kiss at the V above the buttons keeping his blue shirt shut and then peered up at him.
“This—you don’t want to do this.” Hell, she’d told him to fuck off last night.
“I seriously doubt you know what I want.” She purred the words and grinned.
“Shelby…last night…” His stomach tightened.
“Kade?” She kissed his neck, her hands curling over his shoulders.
“Y-yeah?” If he didn’t shove her out the front door soon… Yeah, he needed to kick her out, before they did something she’d hate him for.
“Don’t tell me what to do. And forget about last night.” She grasped the front of his shirt and yanked, sending buttons pinging off the cabinets, the counters and the floor.
“I can’t let you do this.” Whatever this was. He was starting to have problems focusing. He grasped her by the shoulders.
“Kade?” She walked two fingers down his chest. “Stop being the good guy and kiss me. Now.”
Fuck it.
He wasn’t a saint. He could only say no so many times.
Shelby surged up on her tiptoes, their mouths meeting in an almost-savage kiss. He cupped her ass with both hands, bringing her up closer.
Her hand delved into his underwear and wrapped around his cock. At some point, she’d gotten his belt undone and jeans open without him realizing it. He’d
been so focused on her kiss, nothing else had mattered. He wasn’t going to complain. She squeezed and he groaned, all the blood in his body going straight to that one organ. His vision hazed and he gripped the counter to his right to keep from losing his balance.
God damn.
By the time his eyes focused, the whole tableau had shifted.
“W-what are you doing?” he asked.
“What do you think?” Shelby grinned up at him from her knees, his cock still in her hand.
He opened her mouth to tell her it was unnecessary. Before he could find the words, Shelby leaned forward. She licked the swollen vein on the underside of his cock and all his well-intended words dried up.
There was nothing shy or tentative about Shelby’s touch. She wrapped her hand around the base of his cock, the other hand braced on his thigh and swirled her tongue around the crown.
She tipped his erection down and her lips slid farther, her tongue stroking his skin.
“Oh—fuck.” He drew the word out and leaned against the fridge.
Kade reached for her, brushing his fingertips over her face, pushing her hair back. He fisted a handful, but only so he could see her face. She was the one in control here, and she seemed intent on driving him batshit crazy.
Shelby sucked in her cheeks, her tongue cupping his girth as she pulled back until her lips held only the tip of him. She might have stopped. She could have. Instead, she leaned forward until he hit the back of her mouth.
He’d never seen anything more erotic than Shelby on her knees, the corners of her mouth turned up as though she were smiling around his cock. It was something that would be burned into his memory forever.
Her nails raked down his thigh. He hissed, more surprised than anything, and pulled on her hair, pushing deeper into her mouth.
“Shit, sorry.” He loosened his grip.
She dug her nails in harder.
Was that what she wanted?
He pumped his hips forward and she hummed.
Damn it, she was going to break him like this.
Kade gathered a handful of her hair and as her lips constricted around the mushroom cap, he thrust—not hard—and she leaned into it. He felt the back of her throat, the caress of her tongue. She shifted and he moved in tandem, pulling out until she was kissing the very tip of him, and pushing forward. Her mouth relaxed around him, and this time he went deeper still. She sucked in her cheeks, and his vision hazed.
“Fuck—Shelby. Fucking hell.”
She was the one in control. He was under her spell.
She rocked back, and forward again. He tightened his grip on her hair. Her teeth scraped over his flesh.
He sucked in a breath, but she didn’t bite, not really.
His body seemed to tingle, and his hips moved of their own accord. She shifted with him, fucking his cock with her mouth, each pass of her lips robbing him of anything resembling control.
She was going to make him come like this.
Kade opened his mouth to say something—what? Warn her? Like she didn’t have a clue what she was doing?
If she wanted his cock, he’d give it to her.
He gripped her hair in both hands, not so much guiding her, as holding her. The tighter grip, the faster she pumped him. The little sounds —panting noises—rose in pitch, as if she were the one getting satisfaction out of this. Because that was Shelby. She gave so others could get.
Kade locked his knees and pulled a little too hard on Shelby’s hair.
Words were beyond him.
He was close.
Her hand wrapped around the base of his cock, guiding him, keeping him seated deep in her mouth.
His hips jerked and he groaned. She felt so damn good. On and on, she stroked with her hands and tongue, wringing every last drop out of him.
When he finally opened his eyes, Shelby was still kneeling between his legs, his cock in her hand and his seed staining the front of her shirt.
“Better?” She looked far too pleased with herself.
“No.” Kade reached down, hooking his arms under hers and hauled her to her feet. Her lips were glossy, swollen. He pushed his shirt off her shoulders and onto the floor before he fisted her hair, forcing her chin up. He kissed her, tasting the salt of his skin on her lips.
He picked her up and sat her on the counter between the stove and sink.
“Did I do something wrong?” She asked against his lips.
“No.”
He was being eaten up from the inside by an all-consuming need. For her. For more. He’d been able to back up and shut it off before, but not now.
“Kade?” She pushed at his shoulder, her frown speaking volumes even his dense brain could comprehend.
He slid his fingers along the narrow band of flesh between her shirt and jeans. She planted her hands on the counter, staring up at him.
“I want to make you scream.” It was a stupid, pointless desire, but he wanted to push her. To make her forget what she was giving, because it wasn’t just good for him.
“That sounds like a challenge.” She chuckled.
“What? You don’t think you will?” He didn’t hear a no.
Kade slid his hand up under her shirt, flattening his palm over her stomach. She lifted her chest.
“I’m not sure you’re that good.” She quirked a brow at him.
Oh, that was most certainly a challenge.
Shelby was dying on the inside.
Shut up! Stop talking.
The way Kade was staring at her, she could see the inferno burning in his gaze.
He was going to destroy her. When he was done, there’d be nothing but ash and debris.
Kade grasped the hem of her tank top and pulled it up. She briefly considered keeping her hands on the counter, making him work for it, but it was too warm. She needed less clothing.
Off went her tank top. He pulled one shoe and then the other off her feet, tossing them over the bar into the living room. His gaze barely left her face, as though he were studying her.
Did her face betray her?
Was her lust on display?
He studied the waistband of her jeans, as though it presented a problem.
It kind of did.
Her jeans were still on.
She gripped the edge of the counter, her body humming with sexual energy. Adrenaline.
She’d had a lot of post-heist highs, but this? With Kade?
It was something else entirely.
“Come here.” He grasped her hand and helped her to her feet.
What the hell was he doing?
She should be worried. A man like Kade was dangerous to her body, heart, and soul. Yet here she was, volunteering for this experiment.
She always did like the good ones.
He shoved his jeans down, stepping out of them as he led her into the living room.
Kade sat in an old, worn arm chair, the kind with lots of padding and a wooden frame. He grasped her by the front of her jeans, tabbed them open and stripped them down her hips.
“What are you doing?” She held onto his shoulder, her stomach fluttering, knees a bit weak.
“Winning.” He hooked his thumbs in her panties and pulled them down with her jeans.
Her head buzzed, her body hummed. This wasn’t normal. These things didn’t happen. And yet, here she was in nothing but her bra, standing in front of a man she’d just made orgasm.
“Sit.” He grasped her hips and turned her in the V of his legs.
“Oh, gee, I wonder what happens next.”
He wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her down into his lap. She wasn’t ready. Her arms went up, her feet went out and she sat back on his thighs, sprawling over Kade’s chest.
“There.” He pulled one of her knees aside until she straddled his lap.
She caught sight of herself—them—in a large mirror leaned up against the wall. Kade’s chin propped on her shoulder, her hair swept over to the other side. His tan was a few shades darker than her
own. His hands splayed over her stomach, one drifting down her hip.
“Is this your trick? Mirrors?” She shoved that jealous feeling deep down. It didn’t matter if he’d fucked a hundred girls in front of the mirror, so long as he forgot them when he was inside of her.
“I got it yesterday to hang over the windows, so my brothers couldn’t get in. They have this superstition about mirrors.” He stroked his fingers up over her breasts and mound, touching her everywhere.
“You’re tricky.”
“How do you like to be touched?” He turned his face, his lips kissing her skin as he spoke.
“It’s not fair if I tell you.” She shifted.
Just the reflection of his gaze felt as though it were stripping her bare. She swallowed, holding her breath.
His fingers slid along her folds. She could hear his teeth grinding together, yet his touch remained gentle, almost lazy. He curled his other hand between her breasts, holding her back to his chest.
One digit parted her labia, caressing the length of her slit. She shifted her hips, a mindless action she couldn’t control if she wanted to. Again and again, he stroked around and through her folds, never penetrating her. As if he had all the time in the world to toy with her body, keep her on the knife’s edge of yearning.
Every so often, he turned his head and kissed her neck or cheek, whatever was closest.
She sucked down a deep breath, her head spinning. Arousal and adrenaline were funny things, but it was just different with Kade. She’d neatly placed him in a box and now, damn him, he was something else entirely.
Underneath that good guy he was trying so hard to be, he was more than a little feral, rough around the edges. Not bad, exactly, but there was more to him than the decorated first responder and war veteran.
Shelby gasped and her vision blurred a bit when he thrust fingers into her.
“What was that?” he whispered against her cheek.
“N-nothing.”
“Just checking.”
He pulled his fingers out, caressing her sex, her labia, even circling her clit with his arousal-dampened fingers. She bit her lip, drunk on the sight of them, his hands on her, the way he toyed with her.
Too late she realized that maybe she’d walked into a trap. Had she revealed too much? Like what? She had a raging libido and sometimes a bad attitude?
Her Prince (Twisted Royals #2) Page 10