Page 73 of Healing Conviction
Those hands she was so obsessed with stroked her bare torso, sparking goose bumps. Getting back to the task at hand, she wiped the washcloth down his face, smiling back when his lips stretched wide.
He sat up and brushed the towel’s warmth down her spine, dripping tiny hot droplets into the back of her jeans. She held on to his strong biceps as he rolled his cock underneath her.
The entire moment, she fought the need to look in his eyes, instead following her own movements over his cheeks, his neck, and underneath his ears. She avoided his lips, knowing that there was no way she’d be able to keep from pressing hers to his if she focused on them. Then she’d be a goner.
When the light showed his face was clean, she danced her fingers down his torso, feeling the hard muscles underneath her fingertips. She dipped her hands underneath the hem of his shirt to scratch down his abs. He tugged at the back of his collar with one hand, still holding her waist with the other. She sucked in a breath when his muscular torso was finally revealed in the dim light. Her eyes immediately gravitated to the bullet wounds on his chest and side.
She lightly grazed the glossy, raised scar near his heart with her fingertips. Her own heart clenched as she choked out her worst fear.
“What if… what if you hadn’t made it?”
“That would’ve never happened.” Drake gathered her hands in his and kissed them before lifting her chin. His ocean eyes swam with emotion. “I fought for you that night, and every night after that. If you haven’t learned by now, Pix, I never give up.”
His pointed look said so much more than the simple phrase and her heart thundered in her chest. She searched her mind for what to say back but was surprised when she realized he didn’t seem to expect a reply. Instead, he scooted them so their sides were closer to the fire and the water canteen.
The heat dried her skin where the washcloth had left damp trails, while the other half of her shivered. She let him resoak her washcloth before returning it to caress the divots and valleys of his muscles. His ouroboros tattoo circled and wound up his left forearm and she traced it with the cloth, dripping water down the scaled path.
Apopmade her gasp and clutch her breasts with her free hand as her bra came loose. A wicked grin stretched across his face as he pulled her hand away, letting the soft fabric fall between their chests before he set her bra aside.
With her breasts free, her already aroused peaks perked up, and the brisk air immediately cooled the metal in her nipple rings. His eyes were hungry on her as he moved the cloth over her breasts.
“I really fucking love these.” He ran his thumbs over the small metal bars and teased them with his fingers. Each tip felt like it was connected directly to her clit. The bundle of nerves fluttered in response, begging for the same attention.
Under the slow ministrations, the towel began to lose its heat. One side of her burned while the other shivered.
“The towel is getting colder on my skin.”
“I know…” He didn’t look up as he molded her breasts in his palms. “I’ll warm it up again, but right now I can do this instead.”
His biceps tensed underneath her hands as he lifted her higher up on his torso and bent to her nipples. She couldn’t take her eyes off his warm tongue as it swirled around a peak, teasing the metal bar, heightening her pleasure with every twirl. His ocean eyes captured hers as he widened his mouth around her breast, flicking his tongue along the piercing at the same time. She used his blond hair like reins to pull him closer as he sucked and massaged.
“Oh my…goddesses. Drake, that feels so good.”
One hand completely spanned her lower back, arching her farther into his mouth while he twisted the other barbell gently with his fingers. When he’d laved one nipple until it was almost too sensitive to bear, he switched to the other, making her feverish with need. She clawed his back, aching to find relief. His towel might’ve been drying and forgotten, but her panties were absolutely soaked.
When he popped her nipple from his mouth, she took the opportunity to push him back, rinsing his chest with her lukewarm towel. She ground her clit against the hard-as-steel bulge in his jeans while he caressed her naked skin. His cock jumped underneath her, as if it was already trying to bring her the relief that she desperately needed. Unable to wait any longer, her pussy throbbing with need, she pulled at his jeans, unbuttoning him as he did the same for her.
It was suddenly a race to see who could undress the other first, but when he unzipped her, he jerked up and laid her out on the blanket in one swift move. With her switched position, the cooled side of her skin began to heat immediately while the other side gained goose bumps with the switch in temperature.
“Hurry, Drake, I need you.”
He sat back on his heels and pulled her jeans off. When she lay bare in front of him, desire flashed in his eyes. He poured the heated water onto his cloth and wiped it down her body again, lighting up parts of her she had no idea could get sensitive. The firelight’s shadows flickered over his skin as he worked, showing off his muscles. His Adonis belt teased her as it disappeared behind his unbuttoned low-slung jeans, where his cock threatened to push free from his strained boxers.
Warm water ran down the apex of her thighs, no doubt joining the moisture that was already pooled in her thong.
“Why an owl?” His fingers traced over the large owl on her left thigh, its feathers were a mix of black, silver, and violet accents with one violet eye gazing out. Before she could answer, he was already chuckling. “Hedwig, from Harry Potter?”
She smiled at him, loving that he knew that reference, but she shook her head and swallowed around the emotions clogging her throat again. “Owls see everything, even through the darkness. Even though no one else can see them.”
He held her gaze while he bent low and kissed the top of her upper thigh above the owl’s head. His beard brushed her skin as he spoke, making her tremble. “Owls mate for life… I’ve always been a little jealous of the animals that do that.”
Tears pricked at her eyes and she averted her gaze to the canopy above them. “I’ve always been a little jealous of the humans who do that too.”
“Say the word, baby, and you’ll never have to be jealous again.”
CHAPTERTWENTY-NINE
She choked on the emotion behind his promise, not sure how to respond. Instead of addressing the emotions warring inside her, she allowed herself to physically feel everything else. The way he cared for every single inch of her body was easier to concentrate on than thinking about the way he’d take care of her heart.