17
C aleb wasn’t sure if he wanted to kick Kacey’s ass or thank him for not being his typical jerkish self to Rose. It was a close call, but by the time he helped her to her feet, he was leaning more toward thanking him. He’d have to come back over later and ask Kacey if he’d allow her to help in the kitchen. Maybe if she had something to do, she’d want to stay…
He knew it was purely selfish that he wanted her here for longer than the few days she’d promised. But he didn’t care. Nobody had ever had this effect on him before. Sue him for wanting to explore it. “Did you have enough to eat?”
“If I ate another bite, I’ll explode.”
He’d much prefer to have her exploding for another reason.
Jeez, you are as bad as a stud dog panting after a bitch in heat. Dial it down, boy.
Yet, as they walked back to the house, he found himself catching her hand and interlinking their fingers. “Look.” He pointed out a shooting star. “Make a wish.”
“What?”
“I wish, I wish upon a star…” He repeated the rhyme he’d heard since he was a child. “When you see a shooting star, you make a wish.”
“Is it like birthday candles, and you don’t tell anyone, because if you do, it doesn’t come true?”
“Now you’ve got it.” He brought her to the pasture fence and wrapped his arms around her from behind. “There must be a meteor shower, as there are loads of them.”
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered. “You’d never see these in the city. There’s too many lights.”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t blame you.”
“Blame me for what?”
“For wanting to live out here,” she replied. “There’s something about this place. It speaks to your soul. It wants you… no, it invites you to stay.”
“You can stay.”
“For two more days,” she reminded him. “That’s what we agreed on.”
“Can we renegotiate for longer? I don’t mind if you don’t mind.”
“Don’t tempt me. It’s not safe.”
He spun her in his arms. “Did you not notice all that weaponry in the dining room? Your Janek?—”
“He’s not my Janek—he never really was—he just made me believe he was.”
“Then he was a fool,” he told her solemnly. “He’s realized his mistake, and now he won’t stop coming. Janek knows he fucked up.”
“You sound like you almost agree with what he’s doing to me.”
“Hell no.” He reared back. “I would never hurt a woman. And I definitely wouldn’t hurt you. I was only saying I understand that he doesn’t want to let you go. I’ve known you for a couple of days, and I know I’d like to keep you longer.”
“Keep me? I don’t belong to you. I don’t belong to anyone but myself.”
He’d done it again. Stuffed his shoe into his freaking mouth and screwed up the words which came out around them. She was hot, raging mad, with her hands propped on her hips, glaring at him. She looked like an enraged goddess about to go to war. “Sorry, sorry.” He held his hands up in front of him. “That came out wrong. I don’t want to own you…” Word thinking on his feet was not his best skill. “I want to be owned by you, not the other way around.”
“You can’t own people.”
“You can own their heart.”
“You’ve lost your mind.”
“Hah, I lost that long ago.” He lifted one shoulder. “It’s why I work for Nemesis. All of us who work here have lost our damn minds; it’s why we do what we do.”
“You cannot own people,” she repeated as if she was stuck on that point.
“So, what do you call what happens when you give your heart to someone? That’s kinda the same thing.”
“Doing a stupid. That’s what I called it: giving your heart to someone is doing a freaking stupid.”
“I want to know why you think that.” He reached for her again, trying to keep his voice smooth and inviting, but he didn’t think he succeeded as if he could hear the rasp; she certainly could, too.
She blinked at him but came easily back into his arms when he tugged lightly on her hand. Maybe he was as drunk as a skunk or dreaming. He had to be, because feelings like this didn’t happen to him, standing here on the front porch with the Crazies a smudge in the distance as they watched one of nature’s masterpieces glitter against the night sky. To him, it was almost surreal. How many times had he watched the falling stars from the sky in a distant land, far from the comfort of this place? Probably too many times to count. He was sure he’d been awed by their splendor each and every time, but he was sure they paled in comparison to watching a meteor shower with Rose. “Tell me who you are, Rose. I want to get to you know and for you to get to know me.”
A tinge of wariness sounded in her voice. “I don’t understand why you want to know everything about me.”
“Saying it out loud will probably make me sound like an idiot.”
“Tell me anyway.”
He chuckled, trying to shake off nerves that he hadn’t expected. “Being here with you is, I don’t know, something I never expected. It feels like this is where I’m supposed to be, right here, right now.” He leaned in closer to her as he tried to put what was inside him into words. “With you.”
She laughed, a rich, melodic sound that made his heart skip a beat. “I never figured you as poetic.”
He took a deep breath, tramping down on the twinge of pain. He was sure she hadn’t meant to hurt him with her words. He was a warfighter, a soldier to the core. He looked like one, acted like one, and probably smelled like one most of the time, too. It wasn’t a surprise for her to peg him as strong or tough. But was it so wrong of him to want her to see past the warrior’s mask he wore like a second skin? “Sometimes, what you didn’t see on the surface was what matters most.”
She leaned back against the porch railing, giving him a thoughtful look. “Do you think I don’t see the kind heart under all the gruffness, Caleb?”
His eyes flashed with surprise. “Do you?” he asked quietly, glancing down at her. “Because I’m not sure you do.”
Rose narrowed her eyes. “If not for kindness, then why do all of this?” She waved her hand toward the landscape. “Why bring me here? Why help me?”
“Because it was the right thing to do.” From how her shoulders tensed, he figured she could tell he was leaving something out.
“Uh-huh, and is that the only reason?”
“No.” He leaned in slightly, his gaze intense. “I don’t do this, but with you, I find I can’t help myself.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Do what? You are talking in riddles. I do not understand what you are trying to tell me. Please explain?”
“Bring women home, and especially not here to the ranch.” He didn’t want to make her run from him, but she’d find out at some point anyway, “Don’t get me wrong, I love women, all sizes, all shapes. But while the guys think that means I spend time in their beds…” He snorted. “I don’t. I just love spending time with them. Dinner, talking, movies. Kissing, sometimes more, but not often. They call me Casanova, but I’m really kinda—not.”
She peered up at him as if he was a puzzle she needed to resolve. “And you say I’m different. I’m not sure if I understand what that means.”
He nodded. He was making a mess of explaining how much he was drawn to her. Anyone who may have been in his past no longer existed for him. “I’m screwing up explaining it. But right now, I’m not sure it matters. What does, is I’m happy you’re here,” he paused and waited for her to lift her gaze to his, “with me.”
She took a deep breath and studied him for so long he shifted his feet, about to walk away. “I’m happy to be here with you too…”
By the way she trailed off on her words, he had a feeling she wasn’t quite finished. It took more effort than it should have for him to stay silent and allow her to continue.
“I should be figuring out what my next steps are,” she whispered softly. “I should be running and trying to hide from him.”
He leaned on the porch railing next to her, his expression thoughtful. “Is that what you want to do?” It might kill him, but if she didn’t feel safe here, then he’d find her somewhere she did feel safe.
She shook her head. “No, and I don’t understand why,” she admitted. “I shouldn’t trust anyone…”
Holding his breath, waiting for her to give him a sign, any sign, was becoming dangerous. If he kept it up, his face would be purple like one of those cartoon characters on TV.
“I shouldn’t trust you, but I do.”
He reached for her, brushing the backs of his fingers down her face. “Thank you for trusting me.” Her eyes watched him curiously and with a touch of anticipation. His heart hammered against his ribs, and his balls tightened in eagerness.
She reached up and pressed her lips against his. There was a second where he didn’t move, then he let loose a groan that rumbled his chest.
A sigh escaped her when his hand cupped the back of her head. She tilted it to the side as the kiss deepened. He struggled with the need to push for more and held himself in check. He could feel the fear underneath her desire, and he didn’t blame her for it. But if they were going to do this, then he wanted it to mean more than just scratching an itch.
Caleb ended the kiss and straightened. Confusion filled her gaze. He smiled and wrapped her into a hug. There was a millisecond where she stiffened, and he thought she’d pull away, then a sigh huffed against his throat, and she relaxed, hugging him back.
He rested his chin on the top of her head and closed his eyes, blocking out the world to focus and enjoy the peace this moment brought. He understood now why Dalton sought out Lina. It made sense why Logan smiled for Eedana or why Wolf Steel’s eyes lit up the second his woman walked into the room. There was peace to be found in the arms of someone who settled the beasts of regret caused by decades of fighting for justice and right. Sometimes, the warfighter in a man’s soul craved the softness of his woman’s trust to remind him why, after all these years, he stayed in the fight.
But he wished she was. He wanted her to be his and his alone.
“Caleb?”
“Hi,” he whispered softly.
“Kiss me again.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
He didn’t need a second invitation and dipped down to claim her lips, pausing to search her eyes before he made contact. “If I do this, I might not want to stop.”
“If you stop, I may punch you in the balls.”
He barked a laugh at her directness. “It might be better that we go inside because when you bring me to my knees, I don’t want any witnesses.”
He took advantage of the few moments it took them from the porch to get to his place to remind himself that rushing wasn’t something he wanted. She deserved better than a fast, dirty tumble against a wall, and he craved spending the entire night exploring, tasting, and loving her.
Her gaze heated his skin as she gradually looked him up and down. He locked the door behind them.
He slowly turned and reached for her. Her hands stroked up his shoulders as he pulled her toward him. Then she jumped, her legs wrapped around his waist and her arms around his neck. Their gazes clashed. His stomach quivered with excitement when he saw the desire she didn’t try to hide.
He held her easily as he made his way to his room. He stopped in the middle of the room and set her down, groaning as she slid down his body to stand in front of him. He didn’t want to release her. He loved having her in his arms, and he wanted to keep her there. Reluctantly, he let go and stripped off his T-shirt.
Her lips parted as she skimmed her gaze from his chest to his stomach. Her fingers followed her gaze as if she was counting each and every one of his abs.
His eyes locked on her fingers as she stripped off her shoes and pants, making his breath catch and his balls ache. When she straightened, he bit back a groan at the absolute perfection that stood before him. Her desire blazed in her eyes—and he loved it.
In the next heartbeat, he snatched her to him, his mouth plundering hers. He kissed her hungrily, greedily, deeply, ravenously, as if she were the first meal after a month of starvation.
She moaned, her hands clutching him as she pressed closer. It wasn’t until he felt the back of his knuckles brush something behind her that he realized he’d moved them against the wall.
Her kisses stole his sanity.
They gave him clarity.
They offered him something—everything he’d ever desired, and as if he had been fumbling in the dark or with compromised vision for most of his life, somewhere deep inside him, everything became crystal clear. The more they kissed, the more he understood she was ruining him for anyone else—and he was here for it.
He tugged on her hair, exposing her neck. She gasped in pleasure as he kissed down the column of her throat to lick her pulse point. Every taste, every sigh, every moan was more erotic and sensual than the last, ramping up the desire swirling between them.
Her fingers slid into his hair as he trailed kisses to her breasts. She moaned when his teeth grazed over one nipple and then the other before going back to the first. His lips wrapped around the peak and sucked before his tongue lapped and teased it.
Rose gasped in pleasure as he devoured, savored, ravished. All the while, her hands stroked over his skin, learning every inch of him and leaving a trail of desire in their wake. “Caleb,” she whispered when he moved to her other breast and began to flick his tongue over the nipple. It wasn’t long before she was rocking her hips against him.
Caleb loved the thought of being so thoroughly wanted and needed by her. He was helpless to resist giving her what she craved because she was better than any fantasy he’d ever had—or ever would have. He watched her from under desire-filled, hooded eyelids and whispered, “You’re beautiful.”
His lips trailed down her stomach and lower; she moaned as he lifted one of her legs and placed it on his shoulder, exposing her sex. He’d meant to dive in with his fingers or tongue or both, but he paused to savor the moment. He peered up at her. The hunger and need in her gaze made his heart skip a beat and his cock jerk. “Tell me you’re sure,” he demanded.
She nodded.
“Words, Rosey-Posey, I’m going to need words.” His voice scratchy and hoarse. “Tell me you need this as much as I do.”
“I’m sure. Please, Caleb. I need you.”
Still holding her gaze, he stroked one finger over her sex. Her head dropped back, breaking the connection as he lowered his mouth to her clit to lick and suck over her sensitive bundle of nerves until her knee buckled as he brought her to the pinnacle of pleasure, only to stop right before she climaxed. “So hot. The taste of you makes me want to take you right here, right now.”
“Do it,” she urged. “Take me right here. Now.” She scraped her nails over his shoulders. “Stop making me wait.”
“Bossy.” He slid one thick finger inside her, thrusting slowly and going deep before using short movements that barely entered her. “And I love it.”
“Caleb.”
He grinned against her stomach at the warning in her voice. Every sigh and moan sent the desire between them higher and higher until he was shaking with need. Once more, he brought her right to the edge of release, only to pause, petting and stroking, calming her body as he whispered words even he couldn’t make out.
His only thought was Rose. Her touch, her taste, bringing pleasure to her body. He loved that she trembled when he lowered her foot. He steadied her as he got to his feet. He ground his teeth, refusing to rush these magical moments between them. Prolonging it was killing him, but he craved the payoff almost as much as he craved her cries of desire.
He took a moment to kiss her deep, wet, and slow before he picked her up, raising her until her head was above his. He turned his face into the hand that cupped his cheek to press a kiss to the palm and lowered her so she could wrap her legs around his waist. Her lips parted when he felt the head of his cock press against the opening of her pussy.
Caleb squeezed his eyes shut as he filled her inch by inch. Her body stretched around him; he reveled in the heat of her enclosing him in her core. Once he was balls deep, he breathed harshly against her ear. “Rose,” he whispered.
“My name has never sounded so sexy.”
Did she not realize she was the sexy one?
Time stood still in their bubble of desire as he slowly withdrew and thrust forward, filling her again and again. Harder, deeper, until both were helpless to do anything but hold onto each other as they found a rhythm as old as time itself.
Using the wall at her back as leverage, he shifted her in his grasp, widening her hips, giving himself more room. His senses filled with everything that was Rose. Her cries, her smell, her desire. He wanted to give her everything and fulfill every need, every craving. His entire existence centered on her, and even though he knew his time with her could be cut short at any second, he couldn’t prevent long-locked emotions from spilling over the flood barriers in his heart, which kept them contained safely away from pain.
The connection between them should be terrifying. It wasn’t. It should have reminded him to keep his dick in his pants. It hadn’t. It did urge caution. He silenced and ignored it. He didn’t want to stop what was developing between them—even if it brought pain in the future. The only thing he was certain of was that this felt right; she felt perfect for him.
“Ca—Caleb.”
“I’m here.”
“M—more, please.”
He didn’t try to resist her plea. He locked his gaze on hers. He could get lost in the depths of desire, but his need to ensure her pleasure kept him grounded. He gave and took. Slid and thrust. Kissed and nipped, and she matched him move for move until he knew she claimed him—body, heart, and soul—as hers. He was defenseless against the knowledge that flooded him and the satisfaction it offered.
She clenched around his cock in a viselike grip, her fingers tightening on his hair, and her lips parted; a scream was locked in her throat as her orgasm wrapped him in wonder. Caleb was caught off guard by its force as he gave her all she begged for. Pushing, stroking, filling—the only thing that mattered was fulfilling her needs and her desires.
Defenseless against the onslaught of such emotions any longer, he barely made it to where she was coming down from her orgasm when he growled, thrust balls deep, and held still, fighting for composure.
Not yet.
Soon.
Shit.
So close.
He adjusted his grip on her body, gathering her safely into his arms, and walked to the bed. He carefully lowered her onto the sheets and followed her down. Her legs widened around him, cradling him. Caleb leaned over her, his hands on either side of her head. “Okay?”
“Mmmh.”
He smirked at the satisfied sound that whispered from her lips. He flexed his hips slowly, pulling his cock from her body, and slid back in again with as much strength as he could muster. Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she whined a low, keening sound.
If that sound was a drug, I’d be addicted for sure.
She arched her back every time he filled her deeply. His breathing became faster and more ragged as his cock pounded her relentlessly. Desire gave way to pure, unadulterated pleasure as he buried himself deep inside her one last time. His arms shook, and their gazes locked together as his cock pulsed and he filled her with all he had to give.
He lowered himself to his elbows and kissed her, this one soft, gentle, and reverent, before gathering her in his arms and rolling onto his back.
She was gazing at him with a soft smile when he opened his eyes. “Wow,” she whispered.
Caleb ran his hand up and down her back, smiled, and gave her a quick kiss. “I didn’t know it could be like this.”
Her eyes drifted sleepily closed. “Hmm?”
Mind-blowing.
Epic.
“Hot.”
“Yes. Yes, it was.”
He reached for the covers and somehow untangled them. By the time he’d covered them, she slept on his chest. He leaned over for the remote to flick off the lights, then wrapped himself around her and followed her into sleep.