Page 48 of Raise Me Up

She whimpers on a nod.

“Perfect girl.” I push another finger inside of her and hold it there until she grips my forearm and tries to make my hand move. “Uh uh. I’m not done playing with you.”

She gasps as I curl both fingers slightly, running them along her inner wall as my thumb traces circles over her clit.

As I straighten back up, she leans forward to swallow my cock again. I hadn’t planned on finishing this way, but who am I to deny anything this woman wants?

Anything except commitment.

I let her suck me for a little while longer. When I finally pull my cock free from her swollen, spit-soaked lips, she looks up at me in a haze, waiting for my next instructions.

I’m donetakingtonight. That’s not what she needs. That’s not why I came here.

Carefully, I reposition her in the middle of the bed. Bracing my weight over her, I kiss her tenderly, thumbs brushing over her damp cheeks. I keep it to just hands and lips for as long as she can withstand it.

“Do you need me to tell you again how much I want you?” she asks, those big brown eyes weaponized against me.

I kiss her over and over again. Her lips. Her cheeks. Her neck. “So fucking precious. If I had a heart, you would be holding it in your hands.”

A little wrinkle forms between her brows. I kiss it away, not wanting to give her space to argue with me. I let Beau get inside my head, and look where that got me. Calling up my best friend’s sister, determined to make love to her.

“Condom?” I ask.

“Birth control.”

I drop my head to her collarbone on a long exhale. “I get tested frequently. Haven’t been with anyone but you and Beau since I’ve been home. Stas, if you want this—”

Her hands touch my sides. “I do. I trust you.”

With slow movements, I push into her tight body until I’m fully settled. We begin to move in synchrony, matching gentle thrusts. I can’t bring myself to break away from kissing her. I swallow up her little moans and gasps, hungry for more, as my hands explore her body.

Of all the shit I’ve experimented with when it comes to sex, this right here was always my hard limit. It’s an entirely new experience. I should have known it would be good with her.

Muscles tighten around me, and she lets out a breathy moan as she comes. I cling to her as I come undone right after.

We stay like that for some time, molded together, covered in a sheen of sweat and panting. I’ve never let anyone hold me like this. Barely let anyone touch me.

The cool kiss of a tear against my cheek has me lifting my head to look at her. “Stas.”

“Who are you and what have you done with Liam?” she asks in a broken tone.

That damaged organ in my chest swells, putting terrifying pressure on my lungs. “I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m doing.” I nuzzle my head against her neck. “You can’t trust me not to hurt you.”

She brushes fingers along the back of my neck. “Hurt happens. Whether we choose to inflict it or not.”

I squeeze her tighter as I let some of my worries slip past my armor. “I used to swing back. Did I ever tell you that?”

Her fingers pause on my skin. “Liam…”

“I’m wired for violence, Stasi.”

She's silent for a beat. “Your dad did horrible things to you.”

I’m not having any of her excuses. That’s not my goal.

“I hurt a kid, too. In elementary school. Remember Gavin? Gave him a concussion and a scar.”

“He bullied you relentlessly. I saw him wrap his hands around your throat and try to choke you.”