He paused, his bloody shirt balled in his hands. “I’m getting dressed for dinner at the White House, Cereza. What the hell does it look like I’m doing? I need to shower. Almost being blown up will do that to you.”
I forced my stare away from his defined abs and narrow hips. “Right. Well, I’ll leave you to it.” Blowing a rough breath out, I took two steps toward the room I’d been sleeping in, when a strong hand wrapped around my upper arm.
“Eden, wait. You know I couldn’t let my men see that side of us.”
Pride overrode the electricity from his touch. “What? No friendly pat-down this time? Maybe you’d prefer a fist-bump, instead?” Smirking, I held out my fist in front of his bare chest, poised and ready. When he just stared at me, I pursed my lips, and raised it higher. “You just going to leave me hanging, bro?”
Lowering his eyes to glare at my clenched fingers, he mumbled a few low curses in Spanish before engulfing my much smaller fist with his own and jerking me into his broad chest. In a similar motion as when he opened the door, his arm snaked around my lower back, but this time, instead of a light pat, his large palm spread across my ass, gripping it tightly before lifting upward and hauling me flush against him.
“You know what I’d prefer, Cereza?” he growled, his voice laced with a tinge of threat.
“A shower?” Our lips, a whisper apart, grazed with each word we spoke.
Fire burned in his eyes. “For starters.”
I opened my mouth to tell him to go fucking take one when he pinned our entwined fists to the side of my head and plunged his tongue past my lips. Startled, his incessant demands overpowered me as our mouths fought for dominance.
Gasping for air from his onslaught, my free arm wound itself in his disheveled hair, tugging at the out-of-place strands as I pressed my body closer against him. Simultaneous groans poured into each other as the hand clutching my ass gave an insistent shove inward, my stomach pressing hard against an impatient erection begging to be released.
Pants became moans as Val slid his lips across my jaw and down my throat. I arched my back, physically unable to get any closer, but trying regardless.
What the hell was happening to me? Five minutes ago, he treated me like the lights flickered after last call, and he’d seen exactly what he had been about to take home and changed his mind. Now, he kissed me like he wanted to crawl inside me and hibernate for the winter.
Releasing my fist, his hand trailed by my lips then grazed the buttons at the top of my shirt, popping them one by one.
“I thought…” Swallowing hard, I groaned as he sucked the top of my breast into the heat of his mouth. “I thought…ah, fuck, I don’t remember what I thought.” Leaning my head back, I gripped his hair hard, unable to contain the lusty whimper when his tongue trailed across the length of my chest.
“Eden…” His hands skimmed up my ribcage with fierce intent. I’d barely taken a breath when he fisted each side of my shirt below the collar and jerked outward, buttons flying in opposite directions as he raked his eyes down my bare chest.
Okay, so I didn’t wear a bra. Maybe I had plans.
His eyes darkened right before lowering his mouth and latching it around a nipple. Chanting his name over and over, I all but threw myself in a full backbend, giving him access to whatever he wanted and more. Without warning, his hands slid under my ass again, lifting me around his waist until I wrapped my legs around his back and then claimed my mouth once more.
Without breaking the frantic kiss, he carried me back to the shower I’d left just hours earlier. Reaching inside with one arm, he turned on the water and set me on the counter. Within seconds, he had what was left of his shredded pants and my borrowed boxers on the floor. The moment I laid eyes on him, standing proud and naked in front of me, my heart sped up and blood swooshed a pounding pace through my ears.
He was beautiful—all man, all hard, artfully decorated from head to toe in inked symbols and designs. Strong, muscular thighs and a toned hardened chest met in the middle at washboard abs that lead directly to the most impressive cock I’d ever seen.
And I’d seen a lot of cock.
The first time Val and I were together, it was angry. Somehow, we were punishing each other—a combination of resentment about our mutual situations and resentment over the fact that we even wanted each other in the first place. The whole thing had been so frantic and rushed, I never took notice of anything other than the fact that it felt like nothing I’d ever experienced.
Plus, he’d had me cuffed, and I couldn’t touch him. So, that was the first thing I did.
He watched me through half-lidded eyes as I took him in my hands, stroking from the base to tip with slow, purposeful movements. “What the hell are you doing to me, Eden?” he rasped, twining both hands in my hair.
“Meaning?” I asked, still pumping him.
“I’m a goddamn Carrera, and you’re…ah, Christ…” He bit his lip and pulled the strands still wound around his fingers. “You’re bringing me to my knees.”
Val’s eyelids closed, and a surge of power rushed through me, inciting an insatiable desire to literally bring him to his knees—by dropping to mine.
Sliding off the counter, I hit the bathroom tile, and his eyes popped open in shock. “Not yet,” I warned. “But give me a few minutes and I’ll do my best.”
Focusing on my end game, I braced a hand on each ass cheek and took him in deep. His hand held forcefully to my hair as he threw his head back and groaned.
“Don’t stop…Jesus…”
I’d never been one to enjoy a blow job, per se. It just wasn’t my thing. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t a bitch in bed. I wasn’t about to say ‘thanks for the lick and tickle,’ and not return the favor. That was just rude.
But the power trip I had over this man fucked with my head.
Val’s hands wound so tight around my hair, my eyes watered. His breath hitched, and with a growl, he rambled incoherent Spanish, finally breaking into broken English as he shook.
“Dios mío…fuck, yes!”
If I didn’t have a handful of ass, I’d fist pump the air.
“Quiero hacerte el amor lentamente, Cereza.” Pulling me up by my shoulders, he wrapped one arm under my ass and cradled the other around my head, lifting me into the steamy shower.
For half an hour, we soaped, washed, caressed, kissed, and touched each other. The one thing we didn’t do was speak. In any other situation, I may’ve felt awkward and used by the silence. But as he stared hard into my eyes, allowing me to wash his injuries, clean them, and inspect his bruises, I knew words weren’t needed. Something shifted in that shower as we built a level of trust and crossed an invisible line.
Tracing the cuts marring his skin, I trailed my fingers across his back, once again taking note of the massive canvas that told a very personal story I wasn’t privy to. I knew if he wanted me to know, he’d tell me himself, but curiosity tore at me. Deciding not to ruin the peaceful moment between us, I continued my inspection and nestled in front of him, his body ready for me.
Wrapping my legs around Val’s waist, my mouth rounded for a silent scream as he plunged inside, thrusting as he cradled my face. The water from overhead poured into it, spilling from the corners the moment we both tumbled over the edge.