Total pages in book: 146
Estimated words: 142214 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 711(@200wpm)___ 569(@250wpm)___ 474(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 142214 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 711(@200wpm)___ 569(@250wpm)___ 474(@300wpm)
“You know why.”
Her gaze lowered to his bare chest and held, taking in every ridge of muscle and each old scar. She trembled, but he didn’t think it stemmed from fear. She knew he’d never hurt her. But he wasn’t sure she was safe with him anymore.
Taking a baby step forward, her chest brushed his through that negligible strip of clothing she tried to pass off as a shirt.
He took in every subtle tell. The hitch of her breath quickening. The slight parting of her lips. The way her body trembled harder than it had a moment ago.
“Do I scare you?”
“No,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “I’m only afraid you’ll push me away.”
A realistic fear to have. And strange how he feared this time he might not possess the strength. “You don’t want that?”
“No, Grey, I don’t want that. I’ve had that, and it hurts.”
He never wanted to hurt her, but somehow always managed to. “You shouldn’t look at me like that, Wren.”
“Why?”
“You know why.”
She chewed her lower lip, something she only did when nervous. Her lashes lowered, hiding her gaze.
“You could have called on the phone.”
A slight nod. “I wanted to see you.”
“Why?”
She didn’t answer immediately. Her breathing turned labored as she kept her head bowed, pulse fluttering at her throat. “I don’t know.”
“Yes, you do.”
Another beat. “I wanted…to see you.”
“Then why aren’t you looking at me?”
“I don’t know.”
Maybe it was easier not to look at each other. Easier to be honest about what they both seemed to be fighting.
“Turn around.”
With a shaky breath, she slowly pivoted to face the wall, no questions asked.
“Good girl.”
He glided his palms over her shoulders and down her arms. Goosebumps rose under his touch. Lifting her hands, he pressed them into the plaster, angling her body forward. Stepping closer, he closed the distance, showing her exactly how hard he was.
“Is this what you want?” His hand flicked under the hem of her shirt, teasing her bare skin that felt like silk under his calloused fingers.
“I...” She nodded, her voice barely a whisper. “I came because of the paychecks.”
“Enough about the fucking checks, Wren.”
She wore those high-cut, loose yoga pants again, and his hand slipped easily past the waistline into her panties. He delved right between her folds, finding her soaked and ready.
Her breath caught when his finger narrowly slid deeper, teasing without fully penetrating. Fuck his promises. He tapped her ankle with the side of his bare foot.
“Show me you want this. Don’t make me question it.”
Her steps widened and her head lowered in surrender.
If she kept putting herself in these situations, he’d show her exactly why it was dangerous. “Is this what you need?” His finger glided deeper, but he kept his touch light, almost reverent. “You want to feel something, Wren? You want me to get you off?”
“Yes,” she breathed, and the soft confession nearly dropped him to his knees.
He barely moved. “I can do that for you.”
The tight way her pussy clenched around his finger reminded him of her innocence. He both loved and hated the reminder. In one aspect, it showed just how precious she was. No other man had ever been inside of her. In a way, he felt like that made her…His.
But it also made her fragile. Breakable. He’d kill anyone who hurt her. What if he ended up being the worst of them? Maybe the best thing he could do involved protecting her from himself.
Her breath hitched, and he stilled. “Still okay?”
“Mm-hm.”
“Good.” He teased his finger deeper, gently brushing his palm over her swollen clit.
The thought of anyone else touching her so intimately made him insane. Part of him wanted to claim her innocence—here and now—so no one else could, but that wasn’t a good enough reason.
“Does that feel good, baby?”
Every jagged breath spoke of her tense desire. “Y-yes.” Her sudden shyness further confirmed her inexperience. Thirty-fucking years old and still a virgin? How did that even seem possible?
Maybe he bore the blame.
Maybe he wasn’t even sorry.
God, he was a prick.
He at least owed her this much. “I’m going to make you come harder than you’ve ever come before.” He rocked his hips forward, showing her what she did to him. The nearly imperceptible motion nudged her into a slow swaying rhythm.
“Who else touched you here, Wren?” He wanted names, so he could hunt each one down and murder them.
Her voice became a sliver of its usual strength. “Only me.”
Fuck.
Picturing her alone at night, sliding her fingers into her panties... His dick pulsed.
Did she rub her tight little clit until she came or did she finger herself to release?
“Like this?” He withdrew his finger and glided it through her slit without penetrating, her swollen clit dragging slowly against his slick fingers.
“Sometimes.”
“Or do you do it like this?” He rolled his fingers in tight circles over her clit and she gasped.