Page 7 of Savage Temptation (Savage Reign #2)

EMILIA

W e fly down the road and leave the lights of New Orleans behind within minutes.

Moonlight reflects off wet asphalt from an earlier rain.

Humidity clings to the air despite it being so late in the year.

Sweet wafts of magnolia, decaying foliage, and hints of wood smoke from someone’s fire lingers here and there as we make our way deeper into the night.

For the first time in five years, it’s just me and him.

Jagger and Emilia.

Two names meant to be linked forever. At least that is how I used to think.

It’s easy to focus on the menial details of the past and my surroundings when all my heart wants me to pay attention to are other important facts.

For example, like how the powerful vibrations from the bike work into every muscle in my body.

It’s both relaxing and causing other reactions I didn’t expect.

I tighten my arms around Jagger’s middle and pull in closer until the insides of my thighs are firmly pressed against his body.

Like this, the friction of his jeans and the subtle movements of the bike combine to stimulate me in ways I should not entertain.

I can feel his muscles ripple beneath my palms as he revs the motor, sending us roaring down the road. This morning I woke up dead inside with little to live for. Fifteen minutes in the presence of Jagger and I no longer have an unhealthy urge to find the nearest alligator infested waters.

A little morbid, but I’m just being honest. I know he can send me on my way tomorrow after he hears about the trouble I’m bringing. And yet, the protective hand he rests over mine feels like an unspoken promise.

The insanity of how tonight has turned out plays through my mind.

So much so, I’m not paying much attention to where we are going until the streetlights become far and few between.

There is a faint haze of fog lingering over the asphalt.

Our headlight slices through the haze. In the distance, flickers of neon signs from roadside bars cut through the night.

The throaty hum of the bike throttles down when Jagger slows and points us down a single-lane road. I mentally scramble to recall how far out Haven is from the city. We are not there yet if memory serves.

Good, because I’m not ready to face anyone else just yet.

The sudden crackle of gravel under the tires replaces the roar of the motor and wind in my ears.

Moving deeper down the road, it doesn’t take long at all before Spanish moss blurs the line between asphalt and the dirt road.

Distant croaks of frogs and crickets welcome us when Jagger kills the engine.

He pulls my legs up and wraps them around his middle.

I sit like this just soaking in each other’s energy for several minutes.

Gentle shivers work over my exposed skin when he turns a fraction and pulls me around to straddle his lap.

“Come here, baby. Let me get you warm.”

Gunmetal gray meets shocked green. “We need to talk, Jagger.” My voice shakes and I’m more than a little breathless.

But I can’t put this off any longer. Oliver will find me.

It’s only a matter of time. His connection in this city runs far and deep.

That goes for Chicago and New York City.

His wealth and greed has made a lot of people money.

He picks up the phone and people jump to his will.

His hands roam over my skin.

“Jagger,” I say more firmly but again he’s not having it

“Shh, baby. I know, but give us right now before the chaos takes over.”

It’s way too easy to get distracted by the feel of his body heat moving over my chilled skin.

And the way his large hands feel caressing my arms before moving to settle over my exposed thighs has my mind wanting him to do more.

Like he did back at the Voodoo Lounge. The heat we could generate would do wonders against the night air.

In contrast, the feathers do nothing to hide much from the imagination or provide warmth when they are fully intact. Right now, they look like I dipped myself in a pool and promptly stuck my finger in a wall socket.

I pull back and move to get off his lap and the bike so I can think about more than just how good he feels.

“Mm, no. You’re staying right here, baby,” he sounds off, making me wish I could see his full face and read his thoughts better. But there’s too little moonlight and far too many shadows for that to happen.

“You’re right.” he continues. “We need to talk, but first I need something else. And I think you do too.”

Jagger laces his fingers together at the base of my neck and pulls me in until our breath mingles and the tips of my nipples press against his chest. I’m effectively locked in place.

He growls with a hunger I instantly recall when I reach inside his biker cut and go for the hem of his shirt.

My palms run over warm, smooth skin. He kept in shape and honed every inch of his back and abs into chiseled muscle.

Parts of me scream for me to slam on the brakes, but other parts of me say it’s too late to do anything tonight. I might as well enjoy the addictive feel of my onetime lover. Tomorrow I could be gone from this world. But right now I’m alive.

Our lips meet and the world fades to just the taste of his tongue against mine.

My lashes fall and I release all the fear of the night and the worry.

My heart rate hasn’t gotten the memo, but I can't expect it to calm down when Jagger's hands move from the back of my neck to pop the hooks on my sequin bra slash top. The yellow piece falls into our combined laps, revealing my full breasts to the night’s cool touch.

Claiming heat rolls off him. With every stroke of his tongue over mine, tendrils of belonging take root.

I stop focusing on what I need to say for a moment and soak in the way our energies meld.

It feels like our bodies are quietly remembering each other.

If I believed in magic, I might even say our souls are remembering too.

“Lean back. I need more than just your sweet lips, baby. I need to taste more of you and convince myself that you’re really here in my arms, on my bike and back in my life.”

His touch is rough and possessive. And his kiss…my God. The way his lips worship my mouth is nothing short of heavenly.

And gloriously delicious.

My body shudders and this time it’s not from the cool air.

The only word missing and my heart craves to hear is forever . He doesn’t say it, but I feel it to my core with how intently he breaks away and stares down at me.

“I thought I would never see you again. It tore at my soul. I went hunting for you everywhere. Your father was no help. I couldn’t find your sister. It was like you never existed.”

I reach for him and pull his mouth back to mine for a long, lingering kiss. When we pull apart I whisper his name with all the love that is in my heart for the man who was my first, my everything and my last love in this lifetime.

“Let me explain,” I offer. The hand on my chest gently pushing me back says he’s not listening.

“We can talk about everything soon enough. First, I need you. You come first. Always, baby. You come first. We come first. I thought you knew that.”

Ouch.

I earned that. But I can't focus on the pain I hear in his words. Not when his warm lips anchor around a hard tip and I arch into his arms and eager mouth uncontrollably. My hands slip into the long lengths of his dark hair and I hold him to me.

Long husky moans mingle with the distant croaks and crickets, creating a bayou symphony.

He roams to the other eager nipple, kissing a hot path from one to the other. My legs tighten around him. My hips grind. His teeth bite.

It all feels surreal.

He bites down on the tender flesh a little harder, forcing me to gasp and sit up. Moonlight breaks through the canopy of Spanish moss draped over large oak branches to catch on the dark smoky gray of his eyes.

“Jagger, I’m so sorry. I never meant to hurt you.” The unbearable weight of regret nearly suffocates me. I can either give into it and let it crush me, or I can show the man I love that I never stopped. I can only pray he understands.

I pull my hands from his back to wrap my palms around his face.

Before I know what another minute without my lips on his feels like, I crush my mouth to his.

His arms turn possessive. He kisses me right back, only harder.

Hungrier. I hug him to me tightly and reach for the button of his jeans.

The hiss of the zipper mingles with our heavy breathing.

He snarls, a dangerous sound that means there is no going back after this. If I let him own me again, that’s it.

And it’s exactly what I want. And from the feel of his hard length and his unyielding touch, so does he.

Our tongues tangle together, our hands frantically roam over one another. Our bodies grind like we want to make up for all the lost time in one night. My breaths come hard and fast. He takes each one of them into him, like he wants to draw my very essence into his body.

He breaks our kiss and leans back. Flickers of moonlight play over his muscular form.

If we were not in the middle of nowhere on a bike, I would kill to see all of his glorious body naked.

All the dark ink I remember draped over his arms and chest. Just the idea has my core heating and hot liquid spilling to wet the bottoms of my costume.

He angles himself in such a way that when he pulls out his thick cock and makes me absolutely soak the slip of cloth between my legs.

“Jagger, I need you.” This desire to have him fully inside me takes over, and it’s all I can focus on.

“Come here, baby. Give yourself to me. Give me what is mine.”

He settles me over the top of him. He reaches between us and runs a finger under the elastic edge of my garment.

“I can’t wait to hear what got you into this number, but I’m more interested in getting you out of it.”