by Shara Azod
“Delilah, do you really want to be free of me?”
As hard as it was to look at him, it was twice as hard to look away. She found that she couldn’t, nor could she force the lie that she wanted to be far away from him past her lips. It would tear her to shreds to give him up forever, despite what she knew to be the natural order of life.
“No.” The whisper was wrenched from her very soul. “And that’s what I’m afraid of.”
“Then marry me.” It was so softly spoken, so earnestly said; there was no denying the silent plea in his eyes. “I could ask you to just stay with me if that would make you happier or feel better. But you would always assume what I feel for you is purely sexual. You would constantly expect me to walk away.” It was Edward who broke eye contact, looking away to stare off into the night. “I want to give you everything—the protection of my name, tools to forge your own destiny, but most of all I want to give you all of me. The one thing I can’t do is give you up, not when I know you want me too. This thing between us is too real for me, too potent. I’m not able to walk away, and I don’t give a shit what anyone has to say about it.” The stark need in his gaze stole her breath when he turned back to her. “I don’t even want to try. You make me—human.”
The confession was the most she’d ever heard him speak. She had a feeling it was probably the most he’d ever said by way of anything personal to anyone outside a lecture hall. It had cost him, too. Tension made his body tight, his fists clutching the steering wheel. Without thought she reached out to place her hand over his, leaning toward him as if drawn to him by an irresistible force. Kissing the side of his face seemed like such a natural thing to do.
Edward seemed shocked at first, before turning his head to capture her lips with his own. Within a heartbeat he’d taken full control. His hand winding in her hair forced her head back to allow him fuller access. Delilah welcomed it, surrendering to his unspoken demand for submission. Her body was half sprawled over the middle console in an attempt to get closer. Confusion melted into need, the tangling of tongues fueling the growing hunger for full skin-to-skin contact.
“Yes, I’ll marry you, Edward,” she whispered against his lips. It was insanity, but she couldn’t deny him any more than she could deny herself.
With a growl he lifted her out of the passenger seat and placed her on his lap while reclining his seat in a single motion.
“Good, because I don’t ever want to live without you, baby.” Chapter Ten
Letting Delilah climb back into the passenger seat was pure hell. Edward’s hands gripped the wheel in an effort not to pull her back to him. The loss of her touch left him cold despite the humidity of the muggy summer night. There was no way he had the patience to drive out to the estate tonight; besides, she didn’t like it there. Instead he opted to go to the home he kept in the Garden District. The fifteen minutes it took to get there was too long. By the time he made it into the garage, he couldn’t stand not touching her anymore. He carried her inside, allowing her to tuck her head against his shoulder. Edward understood without being told she wouldn’t want to face any of the sparse staff he kept here.
He’d hope they wouldn’t run into anyone; not that he could be bothered to explain his actions. Delilah would be uncomfortable. That was all that mattered.
Eventually she would grow used to it; this was now her home. Unfortunately his housekeeper, Mrs. Kelley, was at the base of the stairs as he entered, Delilah in his arms.
The older woman stared in open-jawed shock as he strode past her with the briefest acknowledgements of her existence. He was a man on a mission; he couldn’t think very clearly, much less make any kind of suitable introductions.
“We don’t wish to be disturbed,” he threw over his shoulder, proceeding at a steady clip toward the master bedroom.
The disapproving frown was caught and noted before she carefully schooled all expression from her face. Wise move, but a bit too late. He would have to have a talk with her in the morning.
“Will you require breakfast? Perhaps a separate room prepared for…later?” Edward wasn’t in the habit of quarrelling with staff or explaining his actions to them, and he wasn’t about to start now. The one thing he would never tolerate was disrespect to the woman he had every intention of marrying, however subtle that disrespect may be. Stopping, he turned slowly to look down at Mrs. Kelley, his displeasure clear on his face while Delilah buried her face against his chest.
“You may leave now.” Pointed and direct, the statement didn’t give the woman any opportunity to press. Her face colored as she scurried off, hopefully to reconsider her actions.
“Eddie—” Delilah’s voice was muffled, but he could hear the complaint about to happen.
“Shhh, baby, we’ll worry about it tomorrow.” Insolence toward her would never, ever be tolerated in their home. The past few days had been something of a whirlwind, and she needed time to adjust. Just not tonight.
All the issues that would inevitably come could wait. Despite his seemingly glib attitude toward Delilah’s reasons against marriage, he was aware of the challenges ahead. This was real life, and he was nothing if not the consummate realist. Marriage wouldn’t be simplistic, but it was worth it. He didn’t need to date for a while, live together for a while longer to know Delilah was the woman for him. She was his future, his salvation. He’d known at first touch. Delilah was a precious gift he had no intention of letting slip through his hands.
The magnitude of it all finally descended, making his hands shake as he set her down on her feet inside his bedroom—their bedroom. Dressed in short cropped sweatpants and a tank top, she was light years more attractive than the other women she’d formerly worked with at the strip club in full regalia. With her hair pulled back in a ponytail, her face free of makeup she looked like an intoxicating mixture of fresh innocence and tempting worldliness. Watching her breath quicken, her nipples stretching the fabric of her top as they pebbled into hard rocks was quite a sight. But it was her eyes, deep, soulful amber that stared up at him with equal parts trust and desire and something more he didn’t dare put a name to—it was too much to resist.
“Undress for me.”
Temptation to reach out and do it himself was almost overwhelming, but he dared not touch her just yet. Taking a step back as if to place her out of reach, he waited, praying for the strength not to rush it. Delilah didn’t rely on her profession—former profession—to disrobe. From his vantage point it seemed as if she was a little nervous, but excited. God, he prayed she was half as excited as he was. His body hummed with anxious anticipation as tantalizing areas of dark skin came into full view. His mouth watering, his hands clenched and unclenched at his sides to keep from reaching out.
“Will you be undressing too?”
A fresh wave of pure, red-hot need washed over Edward at the sound of her velvety voice, slightly deepened with the need he saw on her face
“No.”
He couldn’t. It would be over in minutes if he dared removed a single stitch.
Although the first time they came together tonight would hardly be the last, he wanted the moment to last. He had every intention of making love to her until the sky turned pink with the coming dawn, and that would begin with very slow, deliberate passion.
Thankfully she didn’t press the issue, just stood trembling after the last article of clothing fell to the floor. Still he didn’t touch, just circled around her, loving the way she reacted even though he hadn’t done a thing yet.
How was it possible men came and went from her life, night after night, looking but never seeing the precious, rare diamond right in front of them—fools and idiots, surely.
“Diamond? Maybe I should change my stage name then.” Her soft teasing reply gave him a jolt. He hadn’t meant to say it out loud.
Words sharper than he would’ve liked snapped in a response that was immediate, without any thought. “You’re never going back.” He would die first. Possessiveness took up every corner o
f his person. As if to reinforce the claim, he took her mouth in a harsh, branding kiss. His clothing was a godsend. When Delilah’s lush form melted against his larger, harder frame, Edward lost any tether he had on his civilized self. He knew his lips were demanding, his tongue twining with hers in an ultimate quest to overpower, dominate, and demand more. Small hands grasped at his shirt, tugging just enough to let him know what she wanted but not enough to be insistent.
Damn it, he wanted her insistence. Winding her ponytail around his hand, he forced her head back, separating their lips as he stared down at her. Her mewl of protest made him smile just a bit. Yes, hunger for me. He needed her hunger, craved it.
Disconnecting their bodies in any way seemed blasphemous, but he needed control more.
“If you want something, baby girl, you’re going to have to ask for it.” His throbbing cock pushing adamantly against the crotch of his pants mocked his words. The bed was so close; it would be so easy to just pluck her off her feet and fall onto the mattress, taking what they both wanted. Yet something inside him wouldn’t let him do it, not until he had her complete surrender. Watching the way those doe eyes dilated with yearnings every bit as intense was making his knees weak.
God, he needed to be inside her, he needed to mark her in the most intimate way a man could. But she had to want it. Need it, crave it every bit as much. Temporary acquiescence wasn’t enough. He needed to be a real part of her, because Lord knows the woman lived inside his bloodstream, possessed parts of him he didn’t know existed.
“We could just cuddle if you prefer.” Fuck, it killed him to let her go, to take a step back. The Mr. Hyde in him slammed against the cages in his mind, demanding he take what was his, but he wasn’t going to do it. This was her choice, she had to make it.
“No! No, please.” A deep russet flush burned across her cheeks as she cast a look down toward her feet. Small white teeth worried her bottom lip.
Edward understood it took a lot for her to admit her feelings. After a lifetime of learning to hide what she felt, here he was demanding the unvarnished truth. There could be no hiding, not now. Not ever if he had his way, and he would.
“Don’t ever hide what you want.” Pressing a finger under her chin, he forced her head up so she couldn’t escape his direct gaze. “I’m yours, Delilah. I swear it. All that I am, all I’ll ever be is yours for the taking. You just have to ask, baby.” Soft, supple curves pushed back against him, shivering under hands that just wouldn’t stay still, not with her so close. Heated flesh grew hotter still. Her desire pounded at his masculinity, commanding him to take care of the need he felt all too keenly. He understood it, but he also knew she needed more than just physical release.
More than anything else, Edward wanted to provide Delilah with the security to own her femininity, her sensuality; he wanted her set free to be herself in every way.
“Tell me, sugar.” God, he needed this woman so damn bad, his stomach cramped from it. “Whatever you want, whatever you need, I’ll give it to you or die trying.”
It may be pouring it on a bit thick, but that was sincerely the way he felt. This woman broke him down without lifting a finger. She’d moved the unmovable, brought life to the dead. All she had to do was look at him, and all the things he’d ever used to hide behind and keep others away were gone. It was as if he was the naked one standing there, bare in a way he hadn’t ever been before.
“I want your hands all over my skin.” It started as whisper, gradually gaining steel and real presence behind the words as she went on. “I want to feel your kiss branding my body. I want nothing at all between us.” Edward’s heart stuttered as she looked up at him, nothing but honesty in her gaze. A moan escaped his best efforts to hold it back as he witnessed the tiny pink tongue dart out for a quick sweep of her lips.
“I want you to take me, Edward. Make me yours.”
Nothing could’ve stopped his arms from crushing her to him. This time the kiss wasn’t so much a conquest but a combination of pent-up passions finally released and a merging of two individual souls. No longer trying to hold back, he lifted her without breaking their connection. It wasn’t until she was on the bed that he allowed his mouth to travel, tasting her everywhere he could while wrestling to relieve himself of his own clothing.
Unlike all the other times they’d come together, this time was different. Less frantic, less desperate, there was a combining on a level that had been just out of reach before. She yielded, this time completely without reservation as he explored her hills and valleys. He needed to kiss, caress, touch every inch…leaving nothing out.
“Eddie, please take it all off. I want to feel you against me.” He smiled against the softness of her skin, not bothered in the least by the nickname that he’d always detested. Coming from her lips, it wounded like Heaven.
He’d paused in undressing, not able to stop loving her with his hands and mouth long enough to get the clothes off.
“Not yet.” Just a little longer.
He was harder than granite as he slid down her body. Her thighs opened immediately, allowing him full access. There was no subtlety as he dove in, thrusting his tongue deep inside her channel, probing, tasting, devouring. The way her hips rose and fell riding his face was only an incentive to probe deeper, drive her higher. Sharp tugs on his hair were encouragement to taste more, lap harder.
“Oh God, Eddie, please! Yes, yes, please don’t stop!” No way was he going to. Using his thumb and forefinger, he rolled her clit while making love to her tight pussy until she shook around him, the sweet, tangy evidence of her release coating his tongue. A promising beginning, but they were a long way from the main event.
Without missing a beat, he switched the positions of his mouth and fingers. His lips closed around the pearl of her clit while he slid two digits deep inside her sheath.
Lord, she was so tight around only two of his fingers. Edward tried to shut his mind’s eyes against the memories of the way she fit around his cock. So fucking perfect, so fucking good. It was as if she’d been born to be his; a sure sign they were meant for one another—not that he hadn’t been convinced of that already. There was simply no getting enough of her, the way she moved, and the way she tasted. Her pleading cries, bucking hips, clutching hands had him damn near crying to cover her. Sheer determination led him to stay exactly where he was until he drove her over the edge twice more.
Edward ripped the rest of his clothes off without a care. He was shaking badly by the time he drove his cock to the hilt, inside her welcoming warmth in one stroke.
There was no stopping; he moved like a man possessed, which was exactly what he was. Like coming home after being away too long, her pussy opened for him, welcoming him inside and embracing him so tightly he was sure he was going to lose his mind. They moved together, grinding, grasping, never breaking the union of souls.
Edward swallowed all of Delilah’s cries of pleasure, drinking them into himself. He couldn’t let her go, couldn’t stop pouring all that he was into her. Here was that one thing that made life worth living. The most intimate bonding that had escaped him before now.
And she thought he would let her go. That would never happen. He’d found his home, and he was never letting go.
Chapter Eleven
This kind of passion would be the death of her. Edward filled her so completely, the broadness of his shaft stretching her, his length pushing deep into her womb. She wept for him, feeling so complete it was a wonder she’d ever lived without this. Her pussy ached, so wet with every stroke to ease his way. Over and over, he powered inside her, battering down all the protective walls she erected and reinforced with bitterness of a past that no longer mattered. The fantastic friction created between their sexes drove her insane while opening up new meaning to life. Arching into him, she lifted her hips to every downward thrust; it didn’t get them nearly close enough. She’d been an idiot to think she could ever walk away from this.
“You’re so fucking perfect,” Edwa
rd rasped in her ear, his hands cupping her ass to assist her frenzied bucking. “I’ll never get enough.” Oh God, she prayed it was true. There was simply no will to leave him. She couldn’t speak; in reply she raked her nails down his back, her teeth sinking into his shoulder. He hissed above her, thrusting harder, groaning his approval that she marked him as surely as he was marking her. The heat threatened to engulf the bed in flames, but neither let up. It was too good, too real.
“Come for me, Delilah. Let me feel you.”
On command her body tightened. She detonated deep inside her core, sending aftershocks throughout every nerve ending. It was impossible to think, hard to breathe as she gave it all up to him, allowing him complete access to her very being. And she knew Edward wasn’t done with her, not yet, as he was so fond of saying. As soon as the tremors quieted just a little, he slowly slid out of her.