by Reina Torres
“No.” She heard the rough scratch of his voice. Felt his hands grab hers and hold tight. “You don’t get to put it all on your shoulders, Blake.”
She opened her mouth to speak but the words fell away when she saw the raw intensity in his eyes.
“Men like Seth Coleman are predators,” he told her with his gaze fixed on hers, “you say he didn’t hurt you, but hurt isn’t just a bruise you can see or a broken bone. The words he gave you are more insidious. They’re under your skin.”
Blake looked down and saw him gently rubbing her hands with his own. The movement was gentle and tender. How had he known how cold she was, when she hadn’t even noticed it?
“He slipped his thoughts into your head like a virus. Every word. Every thought. He wanted to poison you with them. And over time he had you believing that what he said was the truth.”
Blake heard the conviction in his voice and saw it in his eyes, but she heard other things too. Again, the doubts started to drown out Adam’s words.
It was so hard to believe the good. So hard to believe in herself.
“How do I get you to believe that what I say is true?”
“If I knew,” she gasped in a breath when her lungs felt like they’d turned to stone, “Don’t you think I would have fixed it myself?”
His smile threatened to gut her… cut her to the quick.
Adam held one hand in his solid grasp and brought it up so that her palm touched his cheek. “I hear that fight in your voice, baby, and I know we’ll beat him yet.”
She looked at him as if he was crazy and yet she wondered the same about herself because she was beginning to feel like he did.
“If you’ve got that kind of fire in you, we’ll burn out all the damage he did. You just have to let me help.”
Blake lifted her other hand to set it on his face, holding him still so she could look into his eyes.
“How? How are you going to help me, Adam? What magic wand do you have in your workshop, because I’ve been to therapists. And let me tell you something…” she knew she was lashing out but she felt like she was suddenly drowning and the panic was real. “I know I’m messed up. I know I’m better than this. I know so many things, but then something happens and I’m right back, in over my head and floundering.
“They say that drowning people will pull you under if you try to help them. So, you better run while you can, Adam. Save yourself so you can be here for Annalise and Ada. I don’t deserve-”
“You don’t deserve any of this, Blake.” He covered her hands with his and held them steady as he turned to place a kiss on one palm and then the other. “I know it’s not going to be like flipping a switch. The things that stick with us like this are either the most beautiful things in the world or the things that tear us down.”
The energy in the room shifted and suddenly she felt bare under his watchful gaze.
She worked the bottom of his t-shirt from his jeans and slipped her hands under the edge to touch her palms against his skin. Blake saw the look in his eyes change from a deep, watchful concern to a half-hooded, heated look.
An ache, a terrible, crushing ache, eased from around her heart.
“Which one is it for you, Adam?”
She caressed him, a feather-light touch of her fingertips against the hot flush of his skin down to the waistband of his pants and then up and over the ridges of his abs.
“Will my kind of crazy be something beautiful in your life or is it going to break-”
His kiss stole her breath.
His arms wrapped around her and pulled her close, trapping her hands under his shirt.
A second kiss and then a third, brushed against her lips in one direction and then another. Smiling, she leaned into his search and felt his teeth trail along her lower lip.
It was exciting to feel his fervor. The gentle scrape of his teeth, the soothing balm of his tongue, was as foreign as it was addictive. Every brush of her body against his felt like the stroke of a match and soon she was burning to do more than kiss.
It was nearly impossible to speak against his lips, but she found a way to sigh his name. “Adam.”
He groaned and curled his body against her, drawing the hard length of his erection along the top of her thigh and against her belly. “Please,” he whispered the word along her cheek, “tell me.”
Tell him? Lord have mercy, she would tell him whatever he wanted if it meant that he’d keep touching her.
Blake curled her fingers in the tiny space available to her and she felt his muscles contract under the scratch of her nails.
They moved. How? She had no idea.
But one moment she was trapped in his arms and the next she had her back against something hard and his thigh between her legs.
“Oh…”
“Did I hurt you?”
He started to pull his leg away but she hooked her foot around his ankle.
“No,” she groaned the word as she leaned into him, enjoying the feel of his hard muscles pressed right against her aching center. “It feels good.”
His teeth scraped against the lower curve of her ear and her head tipped back on a sigh.
“So good.”
Her hands struggled to grasp his t-shirt, determined to pull it off his body.
“Adam.”
He ignored her plea and slid his hands from her lower back and over the swell of her backside.
Then his fingertips bit into the base of each cheek and pulled her tighter against his body, his teeth worried her ear lobe, sending shivers all over her body.
She ached and he made her tingle. She arched against him and he molded his body to hers.
Adam lifted her a couple of inches and she leaned back, bracing her hands on the counter as he pressed his body between her legs.
As soon as he was close enough, he rocked into her and electricity arced between them, forcing her breath from her lips on a keening gasp of sound.
Another sliding rasp of denim against denim and her eyes fluttered closed.
“Do you feel that, Blake?”
His voice was darker than normal, deeper. Almost a growl.
“Do you feel what you do to me?”
Oh heavens, she felt it, but-
“Don’t doubt that it’s you, baby.”
His hands guided her legs around him before he leaned in, bringing his erection flush against her heat.
“Everything about you makes me hungry for more.”
She tightened her legs around him and he pressed tighter against her body. His hard muscle against her softness. Adam rose higher above her as she reveled in the feeling of being drawn under him, falling… but not back against the counter.
Falling deeper into the dream that this… these moments with Adam… could be real.
Chapter 10
Adam woke to a dream. As the morning sun fell across the bed, adding a golden cast to the sheets, the light brought out the reddish tones in Blake’s hair.
And in that moment, with a deep sense of satisfaction welling up inside of him, Adam lifted his hand from her hip to fan his fingers through her curls.
The thick locks of her hair felt like silk against his skin, covering and revealing them again as he brushed his fingers through her hair again and again.
“So beautiful…”
Blake drew in a deep breath and stretched.
The feel of her sweet backside made his already half-erect dick hard as nails.
When she started to move away, he reached out his hand and set it on her hip, holding her still.
“Oh,” her voice was soft and had a light lilt to it, “is that-?”
“Yeah.” His hand flexed and it took every ounce of his control not to pull her closer. “If it… makes you uncomfortable…” his voice was rough in his throat.
“It was just a surprise.” She set her hand over his, fitting her fingers between his own.
Leaning closer he pressed a kiss to her shoulder. “So was last night.”
&nb
sp; Even though he couldn’t see her face, he swore he could feel her smile as her fingers curled around his. “I’m not used to feeling like that.”
He hated to ask, hated it, but he needed to know. “Like… what?”
She shifted a little, moving against him and snuggling closer. “Desired. Needy,” she shook her head, “that probably sounds stupid.”
“No.” He pressed closer to her and felt his cock twitch, pressed tightly between their bodies. “I needed you too. I wanted to be close to you. Against you.” His breathing was heavier, hotter as he placed an open-mouthed kiss against her neck. “And when you’re ready,” he promised, “in you.”
Her hand tightened around his, drawing his hand over her hip and against her belly. “I want that too,” she hesitated slightly, “I really do, I just… I’m uncomfortable.”
“With me?” He stilled, not moving away, but not pressing either. He wasn’t going to be ‘that’ guy.
She shook her head and the ends of some of her curls brushed against his cheek. “With myself. With lights. With you seeing me.” Blake swallowed hard. He could see the muscles of her throat working. “I want all of the feelings from last night... and more, but I don’t want to see regret on your face.”
He moved back and pulled his arm up under his body so he could look down at her. “Hey.” It took her a moment to look up at him, but when she did, he saw the reality of her words in her eyes. Hesitation. Fear. And somewhere under it all, hope. And he wanted to feed that hope until the rest of it went away. “Baby, you have nothing to hide from me.” Lifting their joined hands, he kissed her knuckles and then settled his cheek on the back of her hand. “If you let me get close enough to you to see you, to touch you, there’s nothing you need to hide from me.”
“Right,” she looked up at him with a look that would have made him laugh if she wasn’t serious, “but you’re perfect.”
Her words hit him square in the heart.
“Don’t say that, Blake. It’s not true.”
Turning on her back, she touched her free hand to his chest. “Looks like it from where I am.”
Gently releasing the hand that he held, he sat up and gently traced his hands over her face, down her arms, and over her hips and thighs. “Looks like you’re perfect from where I am, Blake.” He smoothed his thumb at the edge of her sleep shorts and licked his lips when she let out a breath.
“And when you’re ready to let me in,” his eyes traveled up her beautiful body to look directly into hers, “I’ll show you just how much.”
Her eyes, those amazing eyes, watched him, taking in his expression and the way he sat beside her. He wondered if she could see the truth in his eyes, and if she did, would she believe it.
“You’ve been lied to. You’ve been hurt. But I need you to know that when you’re with me, you get me. I’m just Adam. What I say, I mean. And when I tell you that kissing you last night. Letting me hold you. Caress you and feel your body against mine. I’ve never been so hard or hungry for a woman in my life. When I say I need you, but I won’t take anything from you unless it’s freely given, I mean it.
“I’m here and yours for the taking, Blake. You just have to say when.”
“Everything is crazy right now.” She sat up and he didn’t try to pull her back when she turned and set her feet on the ground. “You may think all of this is real,” she stood and put a good two or three feet between them, “but it’s the situation. You’re taking care of me. Keeping me safe. Of course, you’re going to feel something for me.”
He narrowed his eyes at her. “Is that what it is, Blake? Is that what you feel for me? You just like being protected?”
Adam hated the look that passed over her features, but he had to say the words. He had to show her that her ‘logic’ was not anything of the kind.
“When you grabbed the back of my neck and pressed your breast into my hand… was that just because you wanted someone to touch you? Or was it me that you wanted?
“Because I want it to be me.”
She looked stricken and he moved to the edge of the bed and got down on the floor. He was within a foot of her, but he gave her room to move around him if she wanted to.
If he hurt her feelings, he’d never forgive himself, but he had to know. He had to see where her own feelings were.
Blake lifted her hands and gently wiped away the tears that spilled onto her cheeks.
“Baby,” he ached for her, “I’m sorry I hurt you-”
“Me?” She shook her head. “I hurt you!” Blake blinked and wiped at her left cheek with the back of her hand. “I didn’t think about how it would make you feel.”
“Don’t, please.” He didn’t want her to feel like that. “I wasn’t talking about myself, Blake. I want you to understand that you’re the one I see when I look at you, and I like it. A lot. You’re the one I want to touch. The one who I want to undress and kiss, and yes, I want to be inside of you and over you and any way you let me, but make sure you understand that it’s you that I want.”
“And… and I want you too, Adam, I’m just- I’m just… I don’t know.”
She was struggling to find the words and he wasn’t going to let her get stuck in that feeling.
“Then we won’t worry about it now, okay?” Adam held out his hand and she took it, her hand trembling slightly. “I’ve got some work to do downstairs in the shop and you can take the morning to do whatever you like.”
He saw her eyebrows lift just a hint. “Downstairs… as in the custom bikes?”
Nodding, he gave her a smile. “I didn’t tell you about those, did I?”
She shrugged. “Annalise is very proud of her brother. She told me.”
“Okay,” he grinned and enjoyed the smile on her face. “Would you be interested in coming down and seeing the shop? You can come back upstairs if you get bored-”
“Oh, you don’t have to worry about that,” her eyes were bright, “I love bikes. You might have to kick me out of there for distracting you.”
A silent laugh lifted his shoulders. “Kick you out? That will never happen.” He shook his head. “You want to change clothes before we go down?”
Blake looked down. She was wearing another one of his shirts and a pair of his athletic shorts, filling out both well enough to make his mouth water.
“Yeah,” she sighed, “just give me a minute.” With that she turned to reach into his closet where she and Annalise had hung the clothes that they’d picked up at the store.
Adam liked seeing her clothes next to his in the closet and the colors that she held in her hand as she disappeared into the bathroom made everything about him sit up and take notice.
He was in deep with Blake, and he loved every minute.
Masterson Mechanics Custom Motorcycles
The sign on the far wall didn’t do the room or the man justice.
There were three motorcycles that were on wooden platforms that showed off the amazing work on all of them. Sure, the paintwork was top-notch, but it was the little elements that made each bike unique that caught her eye.
Blake knew she was probably being rude by staring at the machines in that corner, but she couldn’t help herself. Some folks love the crotch rockets, but she loved the older vintage ear-splitting muscle bikes. She’d been on one or two but to be honest what she loved about the bikes were the lines that made them so recognizable and so damn beautiful.
She darted a look over her shoulder. “Can I get a closer look at the Indian?”
Adam’s smile was a proud one, but it was his eyes that showed his surprise. “Sure, go ahead.”
Stepping carefully between the Bonneville Triumph and the Harley Davidson WL, she reached out to touch the motorcycle that had always been her favorite since she saw a picture of one in an engineering magazine. “It’s a Chief!” She stopped her hand from touching it by millimeters. “It’s so gorgeous.”
She let out her breath in a shuddering exhale that made her cheeks flush with heat.
> “Go ahead.”
She turned her head to look at Adam and saw a strange look in his eyes. “I’m sorry, what-”
“Touch it.” He lifted his chin toward the bike. “I trust you.”
Her heart ached in her chest.
The bike was pristine and hauntingly beautiful. The perfection of its paintjob, and the shine on every single metal part was like rays of sun through storm clouds. There was nothing, not a single vehicle in the whole wide world that could compare with this machine. “I don’t know,” she hesitated, “I wouldn’t want to damage it. Or knock it over by accident.”
When she looked back at him, she saw the indulgent smile on his lips.
“You are a singular woman, Blake Lennox. Where have you been all of my life?”
Her cheeks were blazing with heat, but she basked in his praise. “I like bikes,” she was almost whispering, “but this is an Indian Chief…”
She smoothed her hand over the leather seat and heard a soft groan from Adam.
“The fenders alone are a work of beauty,” she drew in a breath and felt the heat from her cheeks work their way down to her throat and down below her collarbones, “all those curves. She is one beautiful bike.”
“You’re both beautiful.” Adam’s tone was lower, deeper than normal.
But it was also closer.
When she looked, he stood at the base of the platforms, his hands shoved deep into his pockets. Even with his hands stretching out the front of his jeans, she could easily see the fullness of his erection behind his zipper.
“And someday,” his eyes were full of promise, “I’m going to strip you down and bend you over that bike.”
There were no words for her feelings in that moment, but her body had no problem expressing itself. Her breasts were heavier, already aching for more of his attentions, her nipples tightening under her bra, and heaven help her, she was wet. It wasn’t like she could help it. The idea of this bike and Adam. Adam. Just the thought of him touching her. His bare skin against hers.