faith
I knew what it was.
A visual, physical reminder to have faith in life. In the beat of a heart.
After all, life was measured in heartbeats. We just never realized it until we thought ours might stop.
It was also a tribute to his nephew, the one he loved above all others. For within the outline of the heart was another name in script.
rocco
“Derek,” I whispered, still tracing the beautiful lines.
“You like?” he said, his voice slightly muffled because of the rushing spray.
“Love,” I replied. It was stunning and beautiful… It was everything he made me feel and more.
Both my palms smoothed out over his back, I stretched up onto my tiptoes and pressed my lips to the design. Water rushed across my lips, and I lapped at it, getting my first taste of his skin.
He was my new favorite flavor.
Not coffee. Him.
There was no way in hell I was going back to just washing him. My lips were not done. I kissed down his back and across the side of his hip. I loved the sound of his ragged breathing, and it spurred me on, making me a little bolder. I crouched lower and literally brushed my lips across his taut and nicely shaped ass.
As I kissed on, my hand snaked around and finally, blissfully, wrapped around the base of his cock.
His body tensed, and a low moan filled the shower stall.
I pushed against the side of his hip so he would turn, and he obliged. I knelt before him, water raining over me while his penetrating, molten stare pierced me.
Without a word, I jerked his rod out and away, held his eyes, and licked up.
My tongue dragged upward and, just like I wanted, twirled around the head.
He moaned my name.
My attention melted down. I was consumed only with this one part of him. I sucked deep, taking him as far as I could and holding him there while he pulsed with desire, rubbing against the back of my throat.
When I pulled back, I let my teeth glide over him before sucking deep again.
His back hit the wall, and his thighs parted, giving me greater access. After only a few minutes of working him with my mouth, I bent to gently suck his balls into my mouth. I laved the sensitive flesh with my tongue, taking care to lick and stroke him until I felt his muscles quiver.
I still wasn’t satisfied. I wanted more.
While my mouth still caressed his sack, I used my hand to pump him. I went slow and fast, alternating speeds before pulling back to plunge down over his entire length and suck hard.
“Holy fuck, Rose.” He grabbed at me, trying to pull me back.
My lips dragged over him, releasing with an audible sound.
“I wasn’t done,” I protested when he lifted me to my feet.
“If you don’t stop, I’m gonna shoot all over the shower.” He growled and pinned me against the tile. It was cold against my back, but I barely noticed.
After he snagged the loofah off the floor and added more body wash, he pushed it against my already enflamed skin.
I melded against the tiles, boneless, as he washed and caressed every last inch of me. When his hands delved between my legs and found how ready I really was, he grinned.
His fingers were still between my thighs, and I moved absentmindedly, my body demanding more.
One finger flicked over my swollen clit. I sucked in a breath, and he did it again.
I spread my legs, going as far as to prop one foot on the small bench inside the shower (the injured leg).
“That’s it, sweetheart,” he crooned and dropped to his knees in front of me.
The sight of his wide, strong body kneeling between my pale, spread thighs was so erotic my vision momentarily dimmed.
“What’s your flavor, fairy?” he murmured, parting my folds with his fingers before placing his hot, wet mouth at my center.
I gasped and nearly buckled to the floor.
He chuckled, which made me gasp again because the action vibrated my clit and pleasure shot through me.
One steady hand came up and held me flat against the wall while his tongue and lips devoured my center.
His tongue was wide, slightly rough, and knew all the right places to go. His lips were skilled and gentle when they pulled my swollen bud between them and sucked until I started begging for him to make me come.
“But, fairy,” he said, drawing back, “the fun is just beginning.”
“Please, Derek,” I whimpered.
He stroked my center again, and my eyes closed.
Again, my folds parted. I caught my breath. His tongue plunged deep, actually entering my body.
I cried out as an orgasm ripped through my body. I trembled and shook like an earthquake, but he was unrelenting. He fucked me with his tongue and fingers until I was literally sliding down the wall toward the floor.
“I’m not done with you yet,” he vowed, lifting me and sweetly helping me finish my shower.
That meant he washed the rest of me, including my hair, while I tried to compose myself.
When we were both clean, I was slightly tipsy from the orgasm but still hungry for more.
After we haphazardly dried with the towels I’d left lying in the hall, he forced me to sit long enough so he could strip off the large plastic-like bandage over my stiches.
It hurt and cleared up some of the overwhelming lust in my head.
He was gentle and easy, making sure it was dry, and then applied a new one.
“You doing okay, sweetheart?” he asked, worry pulling at his lips when he straightened. I saw him glance at my raw-looking fingers and hands. Before he could demand I allow him to bandage those up as well, I said, “Oh yes,” and filled my hands with his throbbing cock.
He moaned.
“Someone needs to be put out of their misery,” I murmured, jacking him lightly.
His hands slid beneath my arms, and my butt left my seat. Automatically, my legs wound around his waist. I only winced a little when my wound bumped against him.
“Easy now,” he murmured, taking my lips with his.
We kissed soft and slow as he walked toward the bedroom with me in his arms. My center was still saturated, even more so now that I’d reached a climax.
Boldly, I rubbed against him, letting some of my passion skim over his skin.
His nostrils flared when he felt the moisture. His hips worked, and his swollen head met with that part of me.
I ripped my mouth away, pressed my face into his neck, and rocked against his head. The way it slid along my slit and teased my clit made me pant.
The urge to climax came over me once more, and I sucked the flesh of his neck into my mouth. Derek’s palm settled over the back of my neck and squeezed lightly.
“Rose,” he rasped. I loved the guttural way he called my name.
“Do it, Derek,” I urged, rocking more firmly against him.
He hesitated; I felt it in his body. He was trying to wait until we were on the bed. He wanted to take his time with me.
I was beyond that.
I knew wild need.
I took matters into my own hands, or rather, my own entrance.
It only took a simple shift to sheath myself around him. Both of us called out. His steps faltered.
Somehow he’d made it into my room, but his feet stopped working.
Both of us pulled back to stare into each other’s eyes. Inside me, his cock jerked, caressing my inner wall.
I rocked my hips. Breath hissed between his lips while fingertips bit into my hips.
“You’re so hot and tight.” His voice cracked as he shoved deeper.
“Fill me up,” I urged and bore down.
His half shout, half groan filled the space. My back hit the bedroom wall, and his chest pinned me there.
I let my head fall back. His lips fastened to my throat as he thrust into me over and over again.
I slid up and down the wall with every plunge. He was powerful and unafraid to
show me that power… because he knew I trusted him.
Derek pulled out and rushed back in. He went so incredibly deep I cried out and rocked against him. My fingers clutched at his back as I moved against him, engulfed in the way he felt rubbing against my insides.
“Move, baby,” he urged as I rode him.
The next thing I knew, familiar blankets were against my back and all my weight was supported by my bed.
Derek rose over me, pulling himself out and making me reach to pull him back.
He smiled down, tenderness overtaking the fierce possession in his expression.
“You are so beautiful, fairy. This is just the beginning for us. Only the beginning.”
I nodded because words failed me.
My eyes dropped to his dick, glistening from my juices and white liquid weeping from its tip.
He saw me looking and grinned. Both his palms flattened on my thighs and pushed wide.
His body filled my line of sight. All I could see was him over me, coming into me… his lips claiming mine.
Inch by inch, he gave back his cock. My body clenched around him tightly, and he moaned.
“I can’t hold it anymore, baby.” His voice was strained.
I locked my leg (the one without the stitches) around his ass and pulled him deep.
A strangled sound erupted from his throat, and I felt him jerk. Instead of holding still while he emptied inside my body, he began to move, banging into me in a way that made my eyes roll back in my head.
I felt his seed fill me. His swollen cock brushed against my clit.
I splintered apart, falling over the edge and into bliss.
When I finally came back to reality, he was still on top of me, his back slick with water from the shower and maybe even sweat. I clutched at him, pressing our bodies so tightly together it was a wonder I could breathe.
My face was buried against his neck, and one of his arms was thrown back and wrapped around my ass and top of my thigh.
Derek pulled back and looked down at me. My hands fell down at my sides.
“It’s true what they say,” he quipped.
“What?” I was still trying to comprehend the explosion that just went off between us.
He chuckled. It made the muscles in my stomach tighten.
He was gorgeous. I rubbed my hand along his scruff, enjoying the way it felt against my fingertips.
“Red on the head, wild in bed.”
I felt myself blush. Now that reality was coming back, I was a little shocked at my own behavior. I’d never gone at someone the way I’d gone at him.
The way I wanted to again.
He probably thought I was a ho.
I tried to duck back into his shoulder, but he wouldn’t allow it.
“Aww,” he crooned, rolling away and pulling me onto his chest. “Don’t go shy on me now.”
I pressed my face into his chest.
He laughed.
“I’m not normally so…” I peeked up at him, and he lifted a brow. “Forward.” I finished.
His head fell back with laughter. “Is that your way of warning me next time won’t be as earth shattering? ‘Cause I call bullshit.”
“Next time?” I questioned.
“Mm-hmm.” He pulled me against him again to caress my bare back with the tips of his fingers. “I’m not letting you go now.”
“You may feel different tomorrow,” I told him. “Or once the shock of everything that’s happened fades.”
He made a rude sound. “I could say the same to you.”
“What about your sister, Derek?” The words intruded on our moment before I could take them back. Even though he was my ultimate distraction, even if this wasn’t just some kind of release of pent-up tension from almost dying… there were some things that threatened to pull us apart.
With a heavy sigh, he started to move.
He was gentle with me, though, holding me up as he sat up and leaned against my padded headboard.
(PS: I’d made that headboard. I was quite the DIY-er.)
Once he was settled, his legs parted, and he helped me between them. I longed to sit cross-legged and tuck my legs beneath me, but bullet wounds weren’t conducive to sitting that way. In fact, my leg was already screaming at me from all the movement and the sex.
It was totally worth it, though.
As if he knew, Derek grabbed two of the many pillows nearby and stacked them up before carefully propping up my wounded leg.
“I’ll get you some pain reliever after we talk.” He promised.
“How are you?” I asked, thinking he was so concerned for me, but who was concerned for him? He might not have a bullet wound, but he was still a little worse for wear.
I lifted his hand, the one with the bandaged wrist, and brought it to my lips. He watched me with tender eyes as I pressed light kisses to his knuckles and at the base of his wrist.
“You’re worried if you press charges against Laura, I’ll hate you.” He spoke quietly.
Slowly, I lowered his hand, but before pulling away, he tangled our fingers together. I stared down at where we were connected and took a moment to feel the thoroughly satisfied hum in my limbs.
“Won’t you?”
He didn’t answer right away; he didn’t give me an automatic denial. It made his answer more honest, because this wasn’t cut and try.
In fact, this entire situation existed in the gray.
“I couldn’t never hate you.” He paused, searching for the words he wanted. “I would understand if you tell the police tonight. I won’t blame you for it. Hell, I may be tempted to turn her in myself.”
“But she’s your sister.” I finished.
He nodded miserably. “Not only that, but she’s Rocco’s mom. That kid has been through one loss after another. His entire life has seemed like an uphill battle. His father left him, my sister almost fell apart, but she didn’t. She held it together for him. She’s raised him on her own for ten years. He’s an amazing kid. She’s a good mom.”
His voice implored me to believe. I nodded wholeheartedly. “I believe you.”
“My father died a couple years ago. Rocco lost someone else close to him. We all did,” he said quietly.
I sucked in a breath. “I’m sorry, Derek.”
“Me, too. My dad was an amazing man.”
I had no doubt it wasn’t true. Derek was probably just like his father.
“Anyway…” He went on. “Between the losses, the challenges, and his failing kidneys… now this. What the fuck was she thinking?” He said the last part to himself, trying to reason it out.
“She was thinking she wanted to protect her son,” I said.
“At the cost of your life.” His voice grew hard. “I don’t know if I can forgive her for that.”
I brushed a hand over his jaw. “You don’t have to work through it all right now.”
“Aren’t you angry?” he wondered, caressing my inner thigh with the back of his free hand. “Aren’t you so pissed she did this to you?”
“Yes,” I said. “But honestly, I’m just so relieved I’m alive that’s kind of eclipsing everything else.”
“Eventually, that feeling is going to fade.” His voice was flat.
“I can understand you not wanting to turn her in. I don’t think less of you for it. You’re protecting your nephew. Your family.”
“What kind of man would let someone get away with something like that?” He swore and grabbed up my face. “What kind of man would I be if I let her hurt you that way and not do anything to pay her back?”
His eyes were desperate. They implored me, begged me for an answer.
“A man who knows great compassion,” I whispered.
He kissed me deeply until there was no beginning to him and no end to me. We kissed so fully it was as if for one long moment, we were one.
When at last we parted, I yawned.
A small smile pulled at his lips. “Sleep. You need some.”
“Stay
?” I asked.
“Always.”
After I told him where the pain reliever was, I worked to pull back the blankets and adjust the pillows. Even though I’d slept last night, I was still exhausted. I thought about pulling on a T-shirt, but in the end, I slipped between the covers completely naked.
I wanted to feel my skin against Derek’s.
When he came back, I swallowed down the pills and settled against his side. His chest made the perfect pillow, the sound of his heart a lullaby.
As I drifted off to sleep, my mind wandered. To Derek’s sister. To what she’d done. Was the reason I hadn’t told the police because I was afraid he would hate me? Or was it really because I felt like putting her in jail wouldn’t change a thing?
But it would.
Putting Laura in jail might not give me any sense of justice, but it would alter everyone’s life.
Especially an innocent little boy’s.
24
Derek
I slept like the dead.
Between everything and the mind-blowing, body-draining orgasm Rose literally milked out of my body, it was a wonder I didn’t sleep for a week.
Some things were just too enticing to not be awake for.
One of them was Rose.
The other?
Pizza.
When the scent of buttery, deep dish pizza loaded with cheese, sauce, and pepperoni hit my nose, sleep no longer became important. The bed bounced under some movement, and I cracked open my eyes.
Rose was there, trying to climb onto the bed without hurting her leg and carrying a pizza box that was literally half her size.
I took the box and held it up while she slipped back under the covers right beside me.
“Woman, why are you wearing clothes?” I asked, taking in the T-shirt covering her fine-ass body.
“Should I have answered the door naked?”
I grunted and flipped up the lid on the pie and groaned when the steamy, cheesy goodness made me salivate. “I forgive you,” I said as I shoved a slice into my face.
“Have you eaten at all?” she asked, watching me.
“Uh, yeah, I grabbed something out of the vending machines at work earlier.” I glanced around. “What time is it?”
“After five,” she replied, selecting a slice and taking a more reasonable-sized bite.
Taxi (Take It Off #11) Page 19