Page 25

Chapter Eleven

Either she was certifiably, insane and this would turn out to be an epic mistake, or she was finally finding her footing.

It only took one look at how Foster’s mouth curved into a stunning smile beneath her finger for Mackenzie to acknowledge he was the reason she’d stay sane. Why civilian life would be far more rewarding than she’d counted on.

That maybe she’d finally be able to move beyond Josh’s death and make peace with his ghost.

Foster tsked, his hand sliding back to cup her head as he leaned in. “Are you sure you want this? Because you seem a thousand miles away.”

She laughed, then jumped into his arms, laughing harder when he caught her as she wrapped her legs around his waist. “Just thinking…”

“That this is either one hell of an epic beginning or a disaster in the making?”

“Pretty much.”

“And?”

She cinched her arms around his neck as she leaned in, nipping at his bottom lip before teasing him with a soft kiss. “I say we let this dark horse run.”

He closed his eyes, exhaling a raspy breath before smiling as he brushed his mouth over hers. “Hell yeah. Which means, you’d better hold on. This is gonna be one hell of a ride.”

He kissed her. Not soft and gentle. This was desperate.

Hungry. The kind of kiss that started wars.

She ate at his mouth, moaning when he cupped her ass and started walking, somehow getting them up the stairs without tripping.

Foster bumped them down the hallway, pausing every few feet to press her against the wall and reclaim her mouth.

His bedroom door bounced open as he carried her through, pausing just long enough to kick it shut behind them before continuing to the bed. He barely slowed as he placed one knee on the mattress then followed her down, landing them mostly in the middle.

Mac stared up at him, loving the way his hair teased his eyes and how he seemed to be focused on drawing air in then forcing it out. As if she’d pushed him past some internal limit, and he was fighting not to simply strip her down and thrust inside.

She lifted her hand and palmed his jaw. “Foster.”

He groaned, resting his forehead on hers. “The way you say my name. It’s a nice change from Beckett.”

“Then, you’re gonna love the way I scream it.”

His muscles tensed, his breath escaping in a harsh rasp. “Mackenzie…”

But she was already yanking on the hem of his tee — dragging it up his back and over his head. He tucked his chin enough she managed to pull the fabric off and toss it to one side before he dipped down — took her mouth with his.

His kisses were heaven. Or maybe hell. Some fiery combination of both? Or maybe it was lust wrapped in a promise. A glimpse of the future without losing the intensity of the moment.

Need burned across her skin. She lifted her head when he skimmed one hand up her side and across her shoulders, taking her borrowed shirt with him. A flutter of white cotton momentarily obscured her view, then he was back. Mouth pinched tight. Nostrils flaring.

He eased away until he was able to give her a long, slow sweep before those kissable lips curved into a brilliant smile, that same hand tracing a line across her collar bone. “Damn.”

One fingertip danced lower, circling her breast before inching across her ribs. He frowned at the bandage taped along her side, huffing out a rough breath.

Mac shook her head, palming his jaw until he looked at her. “I’m fine.”

“I saw the cut before they covered it up, and it’s massive.”

“Foster, it’s really nothing.”

“What you did tonight.” His left eye twitched before he leaned in close.

“I know you’re a seasoned pro. That you’ve likely saved more lives than my team put together.

But you risked everything for Chase. And I’ll never forget how you were willing to die to get my best friend out of that Bronco.

So, no, sweetheart. This isn’t nothing.”

He brushed his mouth over hers, giving her a hint of a kiss. “It’s who you are. And I’m having a hard time seeing any reason why falling for you would be an epic mistake.”

Her breath hitched, the hand palming his jaw trembling as she stared into his eyes, the truth of his statement gleaming back at her. Heating her skin until she swore wisps of smoke were curling off her.

Mac urged him closer, holding his gaze as she brushed her thumb across his cheek. “Then, stop worrying if my ribs are sore or whatever else your mind’s conjuring up, and make this one hell of a beginning.”

Foster inhaled, then he was moving. Crushing his mouth to hers as he pressed her into the mattress.

Pinning her to the bed until she thought her lungs would explode.

Foster didn’t seem to care if either of them could breathe, barely giving her a second to gasp in some air before he was back. This kiss deeper. Far more desperate.

Her heart rate jacked up, her pulse echoing inside her head as he finally paused, grinning down at her as if she’d exorcised some of his demons. Lifted a massive weight off his shoulders.

He nipped at her lip, then kissed his way down her neck and along her shoulder, licking and sucking until she wanted to scream.

She speared her fingers through his hair, tugging on the strands, but the brute didn’t move.

Just took his time, slowly making his way down her body until he was poised between her thighs.

Mac pushed onto her elbows, eyeing him as he teased her with a hint of penetration. “God, Foster. Do you know how long it’s been? One more touch and…”

She let her head fall back on the bed when he swiped his tongue along her flesh, moaning as if he couldn’t get enough of her taste. Was equally invested in her pleasure. Maybe more so because he made a second pass, humming this time.

That unraveled her. Had her fisting his hair as she pressed into his touch, all but grinding herself on him.

Foster laid one massive forearm across her hips, holding her captive as he devoured her, taking her to the brink only to ease off until the feeling ebbed before starting all over. Taking her right back to the edge of that abyss. Daring her to fall over.

Was she chanting his name? Begging? Or was that only inside her head?

Whatever it was, it seemed to set him off. Had Foster humming and licking as he added another finger, making her thighs shake when all that heat swirling inside her stalled.

She inhaled, poised on that edge. Waiting. Her chest squeezed tight. Dots eating away her vision.

Until he increased the pressure, nipping at her sensitive flesh, and she broke, riding out her release as she shattered into a thousand pieces.

Time stopped, or maybe it was only the two of them that seemed frozen. Nothing registering beyond his warm breath against her skin and her heart thundering in her chest.

Mac wasn’t sure if it was minutes, hours or days later when she finally opened her eyes, her muscles lax. Feeling as if she might sink through the bed if given the chance.

Foster slid over her, brushing some hair back from her sweat-dampened face as he smiled. “Now that was epic.”

She laughed, eating at his mouth when he put his lips on hers. Her lungs were burning again by the time he finally pulled back, all the muscles in his neck and arms straining.

Mac wrapped her legs around him, waiting for him to thrust inside when he groaned. She pried open one eyelid, frowning at the pained look on his face. “Foster?”

He grunted when she tilted her hips and all but pressed an inch of him inside her. “My wallet’s downstairs with my wet clothes, not that I think I even have any condoms in it. And there’s none up here, either.”

She blinked, still trying to process the words when he sighed.

“I can go down and check…”

The thought that he hadn’t been planning this messed with her head. Had her starting to believe that this really was the start of an epic beginning from a new perspective.

Mac palmed his cheek, loving as his stubble grazed her fingertips. “You weren’t expecting this?”

Foster’s eyes rounded, and he exhaled a rough breath. “Sweetheart, in a million years I never could have anticipated finding myself in this position. Here, with you. So no, I never saw this coming. Never thought I’d ever fall…”

His voice drifted off, but the unspoken words hung between them.

She nodded, any doubts or reservations that this wasn’t forever in the making faded away, leaving only red-hot need in its wake.

“I’ve been on birth control since I was seventeen, but I’ve never had sex without the guy wearing protection.

Never really trusted anyone enough to take the chance.

Or maybe I was just never that invested. ”

Foster tensed, every muscle flexing. “Understood?—”

She slid her hand forward, cutting him off with a finger across his lips, again. Just like downstairs. “So, I guess it’s a good thing this isn’t just sex. That I trust you with more than my life, and that I’ve never been this invested.”

Foster froze, looking at her as if he wasn’t sure if he’d heard her correctly.

She smiled, levering up to plant a scorching kiss on his mouth. “So, in case it’s not blatantly obvious, I’ll say it again. Shut up and make love to me.”

He blinked, staring at her for what felt like forever before he closed his eyes and rested his forehead on hers. And she knew, everything had changed.

He started slow. A tentative rock of his hips that eased just the tip inside her. More like a promise than him staking a claim. She inhaled, falling back on the bed as she slid her hand behind his head, pulling him down until his mouth was only a breath away.

Foster grinned, then he was kissing her.

Eating at her mouth as he thrust inside, stealing any breath she had left.

He bottomed out, taking her to the brink in a single stroke.

Whether it was his size, the unspoken words or all the ways he’d shown her he cared over the past few weeks, she wasn’t sure.

But she knew that this one night would alter her to the core.