“I’m sorry you’ve had to deal with this all on your own,” Rock said.
“It’s okay,” she said, lifting pieces of savaged hair, looking for the first cut. His hair was soft and shiny, and she felt bad for what she was about to do to it. “Don’t hold me responsible for how you look after this.”
“If I look like Quasimodo, you’ll have to be the one to talk to my agent.” His voice got quieter. “I’ve never had my hair short. It’s going to show my scar.”
She made a few quick cuts. “Knowing you, you’ll just look even handsomer.”
“So you think I’m handsome?”
She snorted and lopped off a long lock. “Shut up and keep your head forward.”
But he sat up a little straighter, and she felt a small blush creep up the back of her neck and into her cheeks.
“So tell me what happened between you and Connor, and I’ll reassure you that you’re nothing like your dad.”
He tensed, but then she felt him relax and lean back against the couch and her legs. His shoulders were so wide, his face so handsome. She felt her whole body want to melt in his presence. After taking a deep breath, he began to talk about his evening, and she relaxed into the calm sound of his voice.
She couldn’t help but think what a comfortable life this would be, staying in this house together, taking care of each other. But she’d seen the nightmares in his eyes, the blind fear as he’d collapsed at her back door.
His father had left long ago, but it was clear that, to Rock, he’d always be here in Bear Canyon.
When Rock finished his story, she had just about finished his hair cut. With a final snip, she set down the scissors and turned him to face her so she could study her work.
Her jaw dropped. She was too shocked to even hide it. Rock hiding behind his hair had always been rakish and handsome. Rock fully revealed was something that would haunt every wet dream for the rest of her life.
His perfect, smooth forehead, arched brows, slim nose, straight jaw, high cheekbones all fully revealed in the moonlight. She put up a hand to run it gently along the scar along his cheek that only gave a dangerous edge to a face that otherwise would have been almost too pretty, the eyes a little too vulnerable, the lips a little too full.
But then he leaned in closer, studying her, and she felt animal heat rise between them. Pretty or not, Rock was all man, all hard, muscled man, and right now, he seemed very much aware of her as a woman.
His hair stood up in short little spikes that made him look that much more masculine, and he raised a hand over hers to remove it from his scar.
Then he leaned in farther, and she didn’t have the sense to pull back before his lips fell on hers, silken and warm and silent.
She let out a breath as she parted her lips and pressed against him, inviting him in. His tongue swept inside, tasting of smoke and heat and something spicy. His hand curled around her back, and she became aware he was naked except for a blanket, and her father was asleep in the next room, and she was kissing a man she could never be with.
A man she’d dreamed of kissing her entire life. Since the first time she’d taken care of his wounds. Since the first time he’d proposed as a dorky teen.
She wound a hand around his neck and squeezed, digging her nails in as he deepened the kiss, pulling her off the couch and fully into his arms.
He rolled her onto the carpet beneath him, looking at her with that striking new face as he pushed her hands up beside her head, entwined her fingers with his, and then took her mouth in a kiss again.
This time he was possessive, heated, and she could feel the entire length of his strong body as his tongue stroked inside her. She writhed, feeling tension build at the apex of her legs. She needed release. She didn’t know how or why, but she needed it.
She pressed against his hands, wishing to be free so she could run her fingers over his magnificent shoulders, hard back, hard abs, memorize every part of him with her touch. Her hero. Her once best friend.
His tongue dove deep, building the heady sensation inside her. She’d pictured kissing Rock a thousand times, and somehow it was just as she had imagined and a thousand times better all at once. His hardness against her curves felt so right.
The fact that he was naked and they were on the floor, and she’d just cleaned his wounds and cut his hair, and he was currently trying to hook her up with other men… None of it mattered as long as they were here together and he kept his tongue in her mouth.
Kept his body on hers where it belonged.
She squirmed up against him, pressing her hips to his, feeling a huge girth there, and the woman in her hungered to have it inside her. She writhed harder, struggling against his hands as he kept her easily pinned, now languidly exploring her mouth, her teeth, her tongue.
He bit lightly on her lip and pulled and then let it go and kissed her neck, down to the top of her cleavage. She was wearing a zip-up fleece jacket, and he pulled the zipper down with his teeth, his stubbled chin grazing her soft flesh.
His eyes were devilish as he looked up at her, before pressing a kiss just above her low-cut tee on the top of her right breast. She squirmed, wanting a more direct touch. He released one hand, but before she could reach for his body, he pinned both of hers in one of his and reached down to softly graze her breast through her bra. She arched, wanting his touch on her nipple. His mouth on her nipple.
She wanted to be naked to him, under the stars, taking him inside her. There were a hundred things she wanted. During this rare moment when he was willing to give, what would she be able to take from him?
He pushed off her jacket, and she wriggled out of it. Then he reached for the bottom of her tee, pulling it up and over her head until it reached her hands. Then he twisted her hands up in the material and planted one hand over it, leaving her totally at his mercy, topless except for her bra.
She squirmed, wondering how she’d ended up on the floor at his mercy, in just her bra, and then realized he’d stopped, his eyes widening as he looked down at her.
Oh no he didn’t. Not when she was wet and ready. He didn’t get to suddenly get his brain back now.
“I’m sorry.” He started to get off of her. “I don’t know how we—”
“No,” she said, struggling out of the shirt and tossing it to the side. She grabbed him around the waist as he started to stand. “Don’t leave me now. Not like this. Leave me a hundred more times. Like you always do in our lives. But not tonight. Not now.”
He froze, and the silence in the room nearly killed her. All she could hear was her own desire rushing in her heart.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he said.
“You won’t.”
“I’m going to use protection,” he said.
“Of course,” she said, only slightly bitterly. “We can’t be mated.”
He nodded. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
“I can’t want anything else,” she said, angry and horny and frustrated all at the same time. How could he stand there, so gorgeous in front of her, looking so calm? Didn’t he know it was wrong to dangle top-grade steak in front of a hungry bear?
As tears bit her eyes at his hesitation, he gathered her into his arms. “No,” he said. “Don’t be upset. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry,” she said. “Just give me what I want. And then just get the hell out of here, if that’s what you want.”
He buried his head in her neck. “I don’t know what I want anymore.” He kissed her gently, and a shock shuddered through her. “But of course I’ve always wanted you.”
“And I’ve wanted you,” she said. “So before you consign me to a boring life with a man I’m not attracted to, why don’t you give us both what we’ve been wanting?”
He was quiet, his lips resting on her shoulder, a permanent light kiss.
“But if you won’t give it to me, I really should stop waiting. I guess I should go ask someone on your list. Who do you think? Francis?” she asked flatly. �
�Francis could probably get the job done.”
Rock let out a growl. “Like hell he could. I can do better.”
“Yeah, but if you’re not available…”
Rock cursed harshly and stayed still a moment longer. Then he stood and swept her up in his arms, heading for the stairs that led to her bedroom. “Why did I have to fall for such a difficult woman?”
Her arms wrapped around his neck as he jostled her, taking the steps two at a time. “You’re the one who’s a difficult man.”
“Good match,” he said, literally tossing her onto her bed, nearly knocking the breath out of her. Before she could sit up, he was pressing her back, his legs on either side of her, pinning her once again. “If only you’d be willing to leave Bear Canyon.”
“Or you’d be willing to stay.”
They stared at each other, caught in an impasse, breathing heavily.
And then his lips crushed down on hers, and all thoughts except for how good he felt left her head.
5
The feel of Ros’s lips on his own, the feel of her body beneath him, writhing in pleasure as he kissed her, almost dispelled any thoughts of jealousy or doubt about their future together. Almost.
The harsh truth of what they were, what this was, still pricked the back of Rock’s mind as his tongue delved into Ros’s mouth once again, more feverishly and heated than before, swiping and claiming and pleasuring.
Ros moaned against his lips, and he reached behind to undo the clasp of her bra and pulled it off, revealing breasts that were too perfect to describe, soft and full and eminently kissable. And Rock heard no complaints as he turned his attention to them, first massaging and squeezing, then putting his mouth to good use on her nipples.
Rock didn’t want to think about the fact that he had pictured this before. Ever since he was mature enough to want someone, he had wanted Ros. But the reality of her intended future here in Bear Canyon just didn’t mix with the reality that his future had to be, needed to be, far away from this town and its broken memories.
But even with all that swirling around in the distant reaches of his mind, each kiss, each touch brought him back to reality. As if anchoring him here, Ros at the center of everything. And as he flicked open the button of her jeans and reached between her legs, teasing her soft folds and running his finger along her clit delicately, her body’s response gave him a million reasons why he wished this could be forever.
As he flicked a little more intently along her small nub, Ros grasped him, holding his shoulders as he worked into a quick rhythm, listening to the unsaid desires of her body to set the pace. And as he did, she moved against his finger, gasps catching at the back of her throat as she got closer and closer.
With satisfaction, Rock watched as she let out a ragged moan, then came against him, biting down on her knuckle as she tried to stifle and quiet the intense pleasure tearing through her with its release, only managing to be half successful in the process.
Unwilling to let her hold back her own pleasure, he pressed once more, and she arched against the bed and cried out more loudly this time, pulling him close to her as she rode out the remnants of her orgasm.
Damn, this was going fast. And he couldn’t stop it. Wouldn’t stop it so long as Ros was still in it with him.
And as if timed with his thoughts, Ros tugged at the blanket loosely wrapped around his waist, letting it fall next to them on the bed as she looked up at him, cheeks flushed, chest heaving with long breaths.
“That’s enough. I want the rest of it,” Ros said through the haze of her recent release.
Rock got up as she quickly pulled off her remaining clothes, and he couldn’t help but watch her. She was just so damn hot. But as he turned to reach for his jeans, he realized they were nowhere to be found.
Shit. His pants were back on the trail, probably torn into a million pieces after shifting. How could he have forgotten about that?
“Um…” Rock said, turning back to Ros, “Do you happen to have protection in that nightstand there?” he asked. Then he realized the implications there, and his expression darkened.
“Do I look like I keep spare condoms around?” Ros said incredulously, propping herself up on her arms to look at him. Her cheeks were flushed, her body still glowing.
What was he going to do? He couldn’t disappoint her now.
“Shit,” Rock said, scratching the back of his head furiously. “Should I run to the drugstore?”
“Now there’s a real turn-on. Stopping in to say hi to the guy you’re trying to hook me up with right before we have sex.”
Hook up? Had he ever been crazy enough to let himself think someone else could be good enough for her?
Ros plopped back down onto the mattress, sighing in frustration. “This is so you. You build me up, make me crazy, and then you drop the ball.”
“Like hell I’ll drop this ball. I’m giving you the night of your life,” Rock retorted, crawling onto the bed and coming over her, then planting his hands down, caging her in. “You know what else I’m good at? Improvising.”
“But you said—”
“I don’t need to be inside you to make you scream my name.”
Her eyes flickered with desire and confusion as he slowly slid down her body, her anger with him gradually melting with the heat of his touch.
Before she could come up with any more comebacks or raise any more questions, Rock spread her legs in one quick motion and came down over her center, immediately licking her clit with the tip of his tongue in a devilishly teasing swipe. Ros jolted slightly, her entire body tensing from the shock and pleasure of it.
“Damn, how does that feel so good?” Ros said, her words half protest, half compliment. Frankly, Rock didn’t care so long as he heard the words “feel” and “good” in the same sentence.
Or the sound of her moaning. That counted as basically the same thing in his book.
“Because it’s me,” Rock murmured as he blew warm air over her, stimulating her wet skin and making her shudder. After that, Ros had no more words as he went to work, steadying her hips with his hands as he made love to her with his mouth.
At first, he started simple, using the end of his tongue as he had his finger earlier, only more slowly and intensely this time, letting her feel every centimeter of pressure and warmth as slick friction overcame her. Then he changed it up, working small, languorous circles around her clit, making her tense with anticipation at the nearness, the closeness of the indirect sensation.
And when he finally licked up along her center, she came. Only now she didn’t bottle up her pleasure or try to contain it like before, but instead let herself ride out the entirety of her release at its fullest, screaming with abandon as she came.
Her scent permeated the air now, unsubtle and unapologetically her, feminine and floral and strong.
Beneath her stubborn strength and her rock-solid reserve, there was a sweet, vulnerable, beautiful side as well.
And there was nothing Rock wouldn’t do to protect it.
Without hesitation, he resumed where he’d left off as soon as she finished, increasing the intensity and speed at which he stroked her. And as he did, he brought a finger to her entrance and went inside, her wetness as erotic as it was tantalizing.
Once fully inside, he hooked his finger, rubbing gently in time with his tongue on the surface of her clit, and her whole body went rigid for a second and then began to writhe.
“Rock. Oh, Rock,” Ros moaned out, her hands clawing at the sheets at her sides. The sound of her voice, her words echoing in his ears made him so hard he could go from just listening to it.
He pulled out of her slick heat and then thrust in with two fingers, stretching and filling her, watching her moan in approval as his tongue teased the very apex of her clit, wanting to draw every last little bit of pleasure out of her. Wanting to draw out her release as far as possible and then make her come harder than she could have ever imagined.
Ros’s attempts to h
old back were futile as Rock intensified his attack on her senses, overwhelming her more with every little touch, lick, kiss, and breath. Finally, she came in the most magnificent of ways, calling out his name once more to the ceiling and digging her fingers into his shoulders.
He just held his mouth over her as she released, kissing and licking to intensify the orgasm and see her all the way through to its incredible end.
And for many long seconds, she came, Rock reveling in it and committing every precious moment to memory. Finally, she lay back on the bed, exhausted and apparently sated, sighing with contentment.
“That was…” Ros said, trailing off.
“Amazing? Mind-blowing? You’re welcome,” Rock said, his voice shaky despite his cocky words. He was shaken by her, stirred deep inside by what she’d given him by trusting him like that.
He sat up, kneeling between her legs and just studying her beautiful body.
She reached over on her bedside table for a bottle of lotion. It was an odd time to moisturize, but…
His thoughts trailed off as her hands, soft and wet, wrapped around his cock. He choked out a groan as Ros just looked at him, one eyebrow raised.
“Half finished was the word I was looking for,” she said smugly as she pushed herself up off the bed with considerable effort and kneeled in front of him, her form still so tiny next to his, so feminine.
Rock tried to think of a snappy retort, but his brain was clouded by the feel of her hands. “What?”
“Half of what I was looking forward to was going to be seeing you lose it, you know,” she said, her voice husky but resolute. Her eyes were sparkling with that same confidence he’d always loved seeing in her.
But he was caught off guard at not being the one in control. “I… uh…” His jaw snapped shut as her hand slid down along his length.
“Rock at a loss for words? I’m shocked,” Ros said, the corner of her mouth quirking up into a smile as she started to move along him, caressing, holding.
He was going to lose more than his words if this kept up. Mustering all his self-control, he focused on her, beautiful and kneeling in front of him. He reached up and held her breasts, squeezing, and she moaned, grabbing down on him harder, only pushing him more quickly past his own limitations.
Craved by the Bear (Trapped in Bear Canyon Book 2) Page 4