Page 24 of Stone Cold Bad (Stone Brothers #1)

TWENTY

JADE

T here were still a few kitchen utensils and pieces of furniture that had been left behind in the cottage after Noddy’s family had taken what they wanted.

Colt had put his mattress and bedding into the truck along with an ice chest to keep food in.

There was no refrigerator, but we’d make do.

I’d spent some time sweeping the worn wooden floors, and Colt put in the two windows that had been next on his project list.

The bedroom still had an old nightstand and a pretty glass lamp with a frilly lampshade. Just from looking at Noddy’s things and knowing how she had looked after the brothers in her own quiet way made me think I would have really liked her.

Colt came in with some driftwood and a smile.

I could tell he was liking the idea of staying in his own place.

“The electricity is on because I need it for my drills and tools, but the gas is off. So, no heat. But even without it, I think I can get a nice fire going in the hearth with this seasoned driftwood. Once the marine layer settles in at night, it gets pretty cold out here.” He piled the wood next to the fireplace.

Then he walked over and pulled me into his arms. “And, of course, there’s always my infamous body heat that you’re so good at stealing. ”

I wrapped my arms around him. “I do love your body heat and your body . . . for that matter. If I didn’t have a madman hunting me down, staying holed up here with you would be close to the best thing that’d ever happened to me.”

“Close to?” he asked.

“Well, the best thing that ever happened was me deciding to hide on your boat. A little decision that brought me straight into these arms.”

He pressed his palm against the side of my face and kissed me. “I’d say my luck began when you decided to use me as your human shield in that hallway.” He lowered his arms. “That reminds me.” He walked out to the kitchen and returned with a bag. “I bought this stuff on the way home today.”

I pulled out a phone.

“That’s for your safety. I put all of our numbers in it, and Amy’s, of course. Otherwise, I’d be hearing about it big time.”

I turned it on. “Thank you. It actually makes me feel part of the human world again. Of course, I’m still trying to decide if that’s a good or bad thing.”

“I’m still on the fence about that myself. But lately, I’ve been landing on the side of good.” He brushed a strand of brown hair off my face. It was strange seeing dark hair around my shoulders and face.

I reached in the bag. My fingers landed on silky fabric. I pulled it out. It was an extremely scant blue silk babydoll nightgown. “Hmm.”

“Uh, yeah, that’s got nothing to do with safety. That’s for me,” he said.

I held up the sheer confection of lace and silk and laughed. “You weren’t embarrassed buying this thing?”

I peered up at him. His confident expression assured me he hadn’t been.

“Right,” I said. “I’m sure you’ve never been embarrassed in your life.”

He dropped his gaze. “Not true. As a kid, on days like Halloween when everyone else was wearing their Superhero costumes and I had to go to school in the same ripped up jeans I’d been wearing all week, I was plenty embarrassed.”

I curled my hand around his neck and kissed him. “I’m glad that time is over for you.” I glanced toward the big picture window that had a great view of the ocean. Dusk was closing in fast. “The fog is rolling in. I think you should start the fire while I see how the gift fits.”

“I’m looking very forward to seeing that myself.”

I walked into the bedroom and changed. Without a mirror, it was hard to know how I looked, but the lingerie fit perfectly.

I supposed after the marathon of sex, where we’d explored every inch of each other’s bodies, he had a pretty good idea of my size.

The silky fabric was nearly transparent.

Thin, blue ribbons held the lightweight nightie on my shoulders.

The two panels parted like lace curtains just below the bra line, and the matching panties were no more than a triangle of sheer blue lace held on by a thin waistband.

Heat swirled through me as I thought about Colt looking at me in the sheer lingerie.

Even though he’d seen me completely naked, somehow I felt even more exposed in the nearly transparent nightie.

Colt was leaning into the hearth poking at the lit kindling with a long stick. He’d carried in the mattress and blankets and placed them in front of the small, stone hearth. He had his laptop on the floor playing music, and there were some potato chips and beer next to it.

“Looks like a very sexy picnic,” I said.

He turned around. His chest swelled with a long, deep breath.

I held out my arms and turned around once. “What do you think?”

“Damn.” It was just the one word, but it was the way he’d said it that sent a tremor of excitement through me.

He stood up and made the room look exceptionally small.

His size and the way he looked at me as he walked toward me made me extremely aware of just how vulnerable I was.

“I’m defenseless when you’re near, Colt.

I can’t think. I can’t breathe. I can’t even remember my life before I met you.

I don’t know if I’ve ever felt anything before this.

I was just going through the motions of life to survive. ”

His big hands took hold of my arms, and he lifted me so that only my toes touched the floor.

He dipped his head down and kissed me. “Seeing you stand here in the middle of this house looking like a fucking angel makes me want to pinch myself. If it turns out I’m sleeping and imagining this, then I’m going to be so fucking pissed. ”

“I’m real and this is real.”

“It’s so fucking real, baby, my head is spinning.” He leaned down and kissed my breasts through the papery thin fabric of the lingerie. His hand reached beneath the two open panels, and his palm smoothed over my skin, making my knees weaken. I grasped his arms to stay upright.

“I want to melt into a puddle every time you touch me,” I said between breaths.

He dropped down to his knees in front of me and kissed my bare belly.

His mouth trailed down to the small triangle of blue silk covering my pussy.

He kissed me through the material. He ran his finger along the thin strand of fabric that ran up between my ass cheeks.

A deep, shuddering sound thundered in his chest as his fingers reached the hot cream that already surged from my pussy.

“God, baby, I’m so hard it hurts. You’re always so hot and ready and willing. Sometimes, I think I’m just going to fucking explode when you’re near me.”

He led me over to the mattress, and I stretched out on the blanket.

The fire was just starting to crackle and pop with life as the salt dried wood glowed with heat.

Its comforting warmth flowed over my scantily clad body, but it was nothing compared to the heat coming from Colt’s body as he knelt down next to me.

He reached back and pulled off his shirt.

“When you pull off your shirt, I swear my heart takes a couple extra beats.”

“Yeah?” He smiled. “I like that.”

I reached for the button on his pants, but he took hold of my wrist. Then he grabbed my other wrist and with his big hand he pinned my arms against the pillow above my head.

He traced the lacy trim of the babydoll with a callused fingertip.

“You’re so fucking beautiful. Every curve, every inch of your creamy skin, everything about you makes my cock hard.

” He held my hands securely as his free hand trailed down my stomach to the risqué panties.

He watched my face as his fingers slid beneath the tissue thin fabric and into the slick folds of my pussy.

The tattoos on his massive arm twitched and moved as he stroked me deep inside, as always, finding the spot that nearly took me right off the cliff of an orgasm.

But he was skilled. When he sensed I was close, he backed off to keep me aroused.

I groaned and pushed my pussy against his hand wanting to take in more. “God, it’s sweet fucking torture, Colt, how close you take me every time.” I tried to free my hands. I wanted to touch him. I wanted to take his hard cock in my hand and press it down between my legs.

He smiled wickedly at my struggle but tightened his grip on my wrists. “Watching you squirm like this in that hot little nightie is making me fucking nuts.”

He plunged another finger into me and lowered his mouth to mine. “Darlin’, do you trust me?” His green eyes sparkled with mischief. I trembled as he spoke.

“Yes?” It came out as a question.

Colt laughed. He leaned forward and took my bottom lip between his teeth.

He bit it lightly, and I tensed at first. I’d only ever felt safe in his arms. I knew he would never hurt me.

So far, every time he’d touched me had been pure, unimaginable pleasure.

Sensations so intense that he’d managed to get a firm hold on my heart.

He’d become the center of my life so fast, I hadn’t even had time to realize it until right this second.

“Yes, I trust you.”

He released me and pulled his hand from between my legs. I sighed in disappointment. He stared down at me as he lifted the end of his bed sheet. He ripped off a strip of fabric. With one tug of his strong hands, another strip came off.

I got up on my elbows. “What the heck are you doing?”