Page 20 of Griffin (Stone Brothers #5)
I laughed. "Well then, as long as you're taking precautions.
" I took hold of his arm. It was sort of an involuntary move.
I'd never been forward or flirty, or maybe I had been but Tate put an end to that.
Just like my dancing. I couldn't help myself with Griffin.
I just wanted to be close to him, to touch him and now that I had my arm around his, I realized I wanted his hands all over me again.
The adrenaline from my moment of terror was gone.
Now I had a different kind of energy surging through me.
I unlocked the door. A slight whiff of Tate's aftershave wafted up from the sofa as I led Griffin to the kitchen.
This time, the scent, didn't make me nauseous, just angry.
I'd let so much of my life pass by as I waited, cowering in the dark corners.
For a while, I was all right with cowering.
It meant not getting hurt, mentally or physically.
It meant not exposing myself to society, a place where I felt far more disappointments than successes.
But my new job and the new person it'd brought into my life had made me realize I was missing a lot.
I reached the coffeemaker and opened the lid to add grounds.
I gasped as Griffin wrapped his arms around my waist and pressed his mouth to my neck.
Tate had made the same move just a few days earlier, and it had caused me to cut my finger.
When Tate touched me, I froze instantly.
For him, I was exactly what he liked to call me, a frigid bitch.
But Griffin's touch sent instant heat through my whole body.
I melted back against his chest as his mouth continued to run a trail of kisses down my neck.
"Shit, ballerina, you feel so right in my arms. Where the hell have you been?"
"Trapped," I said breathlessly.
"Well, I'm here to set you free." Coffee grounds spilled across the white counter as Griffin spun me around to face him.
I wrapped my arms around him as his mouth slammed over mine.
Last night, we made love. It was awkward and shy and unbelievably hot, but this was more. This was pure fucking passion.
Griffin had my shorts and panties around my ankles before I knew he'd unbuttoned them.
He grabbed my waist and lifted me up. I kicked my feet and shed my shorts and panties.
He turned me back toward the counter. I braced my hands against it.
The spilled coffee grounds pricked my palms as I gripped the counter to keep from collapsing.
My knees were like jelly as Griffin used his hands to spread my legs.
He knelt down behind me and nibbled my naked ass gently with his teeth.
His big hands smoothed up and down my naked thighs as his mouth moved down toward the apex between my thighs.
My legs wobbled, and I sucked in a sharp breath as the light stubble on his jaw grazed my skin.
His hand reached around to the front, and his fingers deftly massaged my clit.
He used his free hand to move my ass out farther.
My top half was practically laying on the counter.
I jutted my naked ass out more. I couldn't remember ever wanting to be fucked so badly.
His tongue stroked me as his fingers played my pussy like a master musician played his instrument.
I was so close to the edge, I cried out.
"Please, Griffin. I don't want to come without you inside of me.
" My plea floated around the kitchen and mingled with his low groans.
Seconds later, I heard his jeans hit the kitchen floor.
The heat of his body surrounded me as he leaned over me. He teased my neck with a bite. "God, I fucking love these stars," he whispered, then he pushed his cock into me. My cry of pleasure echoed off the kitchen wall as he filled me with his massive erection.
He held my body in his hands as he slammed into me again and again.
I gripped the counter so hard, I half expected to leave fingerprints.
It took only seconds and my entire body was splitting with a mind-blowing orgasm.
Griffin had to hold me up, keep me on my feet.
The room spun around me as he thrust into me a few more times.
His grip tightened, and his body stiffened as he came.
He leaned down over me, his warmth comforting me in the cool kitchen, and his scent making every inch of me stir again.
Our breathing slowed. Griffin straightened and gently turned me to face him.
I pushed a black strand of hair off his forehead as I peered up at him, my heart beating with an intensity I'd never felt before.
"Not sure I'll ever look at this kitchen or, for that matter, my coffeepot, the same again," I said. My voice was still hoarse, and my limbs trembled from the erotic experience.
Griffin had this one lopsided smile that would melt an iceberg. "Well, shall we do the same for the bedroom? We could stop in on that living room sofa first, so every time you sit on it, you can think of me."
I shook my head. "I rarely sit there because—" I shook it again. "One of the cushions has his ass imprinted on it."
Griffin nodded. "Definitely no couch then. Or we could put an imprint of our own and then let him try and figure out just what the fuck it is."
His last words swept the wind out of me. He hadn't meant to, of course, and I could see instant regret on his face.
Griffin reached for my hand. "Shit, shit, I'm sorry, Shay. You know—fuck—" He raked his fingers through his hair in frustration. "I'm an idiot."
"No, it's all right. It's just I had a lightning quick panic attack when I came around the corner thinking about what would happen if Tate suddenly came home. Not that he'll be home," I added quickly.
"No, that's not it. I've never had to live like you have, in a house where you have to worry about everything you say or do.
" His dark lashes dropped. "My dad grew up with a monster.
He and his brothers were always on edge, always expecting the next violent outburst." Griffin leaned against the back of the couch.
I sensed talking about this had hit him harder than he expected.
He lifted his face. "He's got strap marks on his back.
They all have them. Battle scars are what they call them because growing up was a battle.
And while she doesn't talk about it much, my mom went through something like you're going through.
She ended up with a fucking creep who turned her life into a living hell.
That's all I know about it, but she ran from him and landed literally in my dad's arms." Some of the anguish had disappeared from his expression, and some shine came back to his eyes.
"They are fucking crazy about each other to the point where Jules and I have to walk out because it makes our teeth hurt listening to them sweet talk each other. "
"God, that must be so fucking nice. To have someone to love and someone to adore and have them return the love and adoration. Doesn't seem like too much to ask for."
Griffin reached for my hand and pulled me into his arms. "Not too much at all, ballerina."
We kissed all the way to the bedroom and stopped only to congratulate ourselves for keeping our lips locked the whole way down the hallway.
Griffin lifted me into his arms and the kiss marathon continued as he carried me over to the bed.
He lowered me down on the mattress. None of Tate's things were visible.
I made sure to hide all of him when he was out of town.
Seeing his shirt or a pair of shoes would throw my whole half-life into disarray.
I'd become skilled at disappearing the man from existence just as he had done to me.
Only, now, I was on my way back. Every damn inch of me was waking up, and it was all because of the incredible hunk who had knelt next to me on the mattress.
Griffin stared down at my half naked body and decided it was time to shed the top and bra. He did the same and then he pulled me naked into his arms. His finger traced the stars that he'd grown so fond of, and he gazed at me in a way that brought tears to my eyes.
"What's this?" he asked.
"Just nice to be looked at, in the way you're looking at me. As if you see me. As if you know me. As if you understand me."
"Right this minute, I'm looking at a beautiful woman who needs to be treated like a goddess, and I plan to do exactly that, baby.
You deserve nothing less." His mouth pressed against mine.
I pressed my body against his, and felt that same urgency, the one that made me want to break into a million pieces with wanting him.
And once again, he made sure that didn't happen.