From The Flames (Innocent Series Book 3)

by Kendall Duke

  “Yes,” she said, twining her fingers in my hair. “That’s why it’s you. It has to be you.”

  And that was that.

  ~~~

  Darcy

  I let Mike position himself below and tried to prepare myself mentally for what was about to happen. He was huge—he was a truly huge man anyway, his biceps like boa constrictors and smooth muscles covering every inch of his frame. No wonder it hadn’t bothered him a bit to run down a flight of stairs with a full grown woman in his arms—he probably barely noticed. But he was huge down there. Mike was so big I was afraid.

  But I was also excited.

  I’d never felt anything like this before. Never. My whole body crackled like I was on fire beneath my skin, the embers constantly igniting along the path of his touch. I felt dizzy, helpless beneath his hands, as if I’d lost control of my body—and I liked it. But now, I was perched on the precipice and looking down. The base of his cock was barely visible as I hung in the air above it, suspended over the velvet tip. Mike slowly rolled his hips, and I felt it move back and forth over my pussy, getting wetter with each pass, making me tremble with desire. Finally, I started to slowly sink, feeling him reach below and press it against my eager hole… And then, suddenly, he was inside.

  Not all the way. God, no. Just an inch, maybe two—but it seemed like he was breaking me in half. It was so intense, the pressure almost too much to bear. And then I felt his hands sliding over my ass as I hissed out a breath, teasing me as they glided over my ribs and slipped under my breasts. I heard myself moan as Mike began sucking my nipples, gently forcing first one breast and then the other into his mouth, his teeth grazing me as I begged for his touch. I felt my legs spreading as I began to surrender to the ecstasy, the opening below—even the pain began to feel good in a strange way, as if there was only one person who could take me like this, who was made to break me in just the right way. And he did. Mike sucked my nipples and then my throat, guiding me down, slowly, letting me fill up with him, so, so slowly, until I was nestled against his base. Oh my God, did it hurt. But in a good way... So good. In a way that could never be explained, only experienced.

  “How is it, sugar?” Mike nipped my earlobe, then pulled back so he could look at my face. His eyes shone; they were as green as a cat’s. “You like it?”

  “Yes,” I said, and he slowly rolled his hips, stretching me as I moaned. “No,” I gasped, then felt him kneading the flesh of my ass as he pumped into me from below. “Yes!”

  “When you’re ready, I’m going to fuck you,” he growled, licking my chest as he thrust into me one more time. “I’m going to make you beg for my cum. But for now, let’s focus on you.” I felt him lean away from me again, and then one of his hands was in position on my spinal column, keeping me from falling back. His other hand… It was down below, at the place where our bodies met. I started to look but was rocked upright by the jolt of electricity that shot through me when the broad pad of his thumb settled on my clit. “That’s right,” he whispered. “That’s it, sugar. Let go.” So I did—I didn’t recognize the sound that came from my lips, the wail of pure exhilarated ecstasy that reverberated through me as he thrummed the base of my body with his finger while I was full of him, so full, and then toppling into an abyss of pleasure—the rapture was so sharp and so sudden that I almost arched all the way back, bent at the waist and pinned by him from below. I felt the roar of the flames that had been growing in my body and surrendered to them, screaming as the orgasm rushed through me while I rode him.

  The fire ebbed after what felt like eternity. “That’s right, little girl,” he whispered to me as I crumpled against his chest, utterly spent. He was still inside of me, stretching me as far as I could go; he hadn’t joined me on my journey. I felt slick with sweat, and tired, as if I’d traveled far, and in a sense I had. He kissed my forehead and looked down at my face while I slowly recovered my senses.

  As I gazed up at that perfect face I thought, this must be what falling in love feels like.

  And then I sat bolt upright, feeling him, still stiff, still waiting, inside of me. His lovely eyes watched me closely, clearly wondering what I was thinking.

  I was falling in love with him. That’s what I was thinking.

  ~~~

  Mike

  Damn.

  She was too easy to love. That was the problem. I looked down at the sweat covering her shivering body and wondered how the hell this had happened—how I’d managed to find her, my mate, my match, in a world this big when I sure as hell wasn’t looking for her. It must be that—wait a minute.

  Did I just actually think the word love?

  Really and truly?

  I kissed her open mouth, her eyes glassy and now the color of quartz. Yes. I had.

  I loved this girl.

  It didn’t have to make sense; I just wasn’t a good liar, and that was the truth. There it was, plain as day.

  “Let’s go rinse off,” I said, pushing her hair back so I could kiss her forehead again.

  “But you—”

  “Relax, sugar,” I said, and lifted her up. She didn’t protest too much, not even when we passed the remains of that nightgown. “Let me show you around my palace.” My cock was so hard it hurt to pull it out of her body, but when I picked her up it fell out, bobbing beneath her, damp and full of longing. It could wait though; I’d been waiting a long time for her, without knowing it, and I wasn’t going to fuck this up. She had her arms around my neck and when I exited her I felt her clench, as if something was missing. Maybe she felt it too, this indescribable need.

  Darcy let me carry her all the way down the hall to the master bedroom, and when I got to the bathroom I settled her on the edge of the tub and ran the water, letting her feet dangle inside. I grabbed a washcloth and gently scrubbed her skin, sliding her into the basin once it was deep enough. She moaned with satisfaction of a different sort as her aching muscles relaxed, and I washed her all over—her back, her front, the swollen entrance between those vanilla thighs. She let me comb out that ridiculously gorgeous hair, the chestnut streaked with gold now that it was clean, and sighed with contentment, gazing up at me as I did. “This is the nicest salon I’ve ever been to,” she murmured, giving me a sly grin.

  “I’ll just go grab the scissors,” I quipped, but she pulled me back to the edge with a laugh.

  My cock was banging against the side of the tub the whole time, but it was worth it.

  When she was clean, I picked her up and rubbed her down with the fluffiest towel I had before carrying her back to my bed. It was huge—it had to be, because I slept there—and she sprawled out, luxuriating in complete comfort. I watched, transfixed, as her naked body moved this way and that, feeling the pillows, looking at the night-stand, sitting up and turning towards me. “Are you coming?”

  “Not yet,” I said, my voice catching in my throat. “But I will.” She seemed to understand and went very still until I pointed at the place directly in front of me. “Lay down here, Darcy.” She did as she was told.

  I’d positioned her so that her pussy would be on full display right at the edge of the bed when I picked up those slender ankles and balanced them on either side of my torso. Her back arched slightly as she squirmed, a little uncomfortable being seen from this angle; I was sure this was the first time anyone had ever done this, ever seen this, and it made my cock throb. Mine. This girl was mine—I would be the first man to do this, and if I played my cards right, I’d be the last.

  I knelt before the edge of the bed and slid my hands under her thighs, my fingers finding her nipples as I lapped at her center in one smooth motion. She responded instantly, bucking into my mouth, and I focused my attention on her pleasure. Darcy hadn’t been expecting more consideration; she was startled and overwhelmed by the sensations I gave her and then, I could feel her little pussy quiver, the swollen entrance preparing for another orgasm in spite of its raw state. I could teach her to love this. I gently settled on her clit, sucking it un
til it was red and ready, and then squeezed her nipples as she moaned. She was going to cum for me again, I knew it. I sucked harder, squeezed harder—I felt her squeezing me back, quickening—and then it came. Wave after wave of her orgasm thrummed through that beautiful body, lashing her with pleasure. When she was panting, her skin flushed pink, I stood up and pulled her back to the center of the bed, then slid inside.

  I was on my knees between her spread thighs; I had a perfect view of the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen, trapped in the throes of an orgasm she couldn’t control as I prepared to fuck her into oblivion. My cock pushed through her swollen folds, so damp and so tight, and I wrapped my arms around her waist to angle her for deeper entry. She was ready now. “Mike—” Darcy reared up on her elbows, gazing at me as I slid into her, and when I felt myself sink to the hilt she moaned and bucked, her head thrown back again. I pulled her hips off of the bed, her ass bouncing on my thighs as I began rhythmically fucking her. “Oh my God, Mike—” She couldn’t form words, and soon enough, neither could I. I’d never seen anything like this. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t stop. It was like I was in a trance. Nothing existed but her body, the tight heat squeezing me from below, the damp hole I had to fill, over and over, the beautiful woman who moaned my name over and over as she came, the ripples of her orgasm reaching into me, bringing my own out until finally, finally, I felt myself flare like a volcano and burst inside of her, so deep, so deep I knew she must be mine. She must be.

  I laid down next to her on the bed. Darcy kissed me, her eyes so glassy she looked a little drunk. “Are you alright?” I couldn’t stop kissing her, and my hands crept all over that endless vanilla flesh as if I were searching for something… And I guess in a way I was. “Did that feel…”

  “I don’t have the words,” she whispered, and then pulled my face up to hers. “I don’t understand what that was—don’t make a joke,” she said softly, reading my expression correctly; “that wasn’t just sex, was it? It can’t be like that all the time.”

  “In my experience, it’s never been like that before.” I told you I’m not a good liar. I pulled her tightly against my chest. “Say you’ll stay, Darcy. Please. Say you’ll be with me. No jokes.”

  Darcy wrapped her hands in my hair and rolled around to face me head-on, our bodies pressed against one another, heart to heart. “No jokes.”

  “None. I can’t… I want to be with you. I can’t explain it—the thoughts I’ve had tonight, the shit going through my head…” I suddenly sat up and stared down at her, then wiped my hand over my mouth. This wasn’t how I wanted the conversation to go, but I felt like I had to say something—being honest isn’t always fun. “I didn’t ask if you’re on the pill.”

  “I’m not,” she said calmly. “I didn’t ask if you had any condoms.”

  “No jokes?” She nodded seriously, and I ran my hands through my hair, feeling nervous. How to put it? The truth was… I wanted to get Darcy pregnant. I wanted to fill her with my baby, to make our union physically present in the world. To complete the bond that I felt with her, this all-encompassing, crazy-making circle. How the hell do you say that to someone? “I… I had a passing thought, earlier. That I… That maybe you and I were meant to be—that maybe, if you believe in that sort of thing, we’re supposed to be together…” I stared down at her, excited. Afraid. In love.

  “I’ll stay,” she whispered, and pulled me into a kiss that took my breath.

  I waited until she was asleep beside me, then wrapped her tight in my arms. I leaned in and kissed the hollow of skin just below her ear; she smelled like fire and vanilla. This beautiful girl, this perfect, made-for-me match. I would wait forever, if that’s what it took, to tell her everything that went through my mind tonight—but I didn’t think I’d have to wait that long. Not now. This was it; we were already together, and I would never let her go. My heart, my future. “Thank you,” I whispered, and when I slept I dreamed of her, dreamed of what was to come, and what real love would feel like.

  The End

  Epilogue

  Darcy

  “Sugar, what time is everybody coming over again?” Mike leaned on the counter, watching me as he sometimes did, his arms loose and tucked into his pockets. He was so tall that he had to cock his head a little bit to one side, as if the ceiling was a tad too close for comfort. He had a look on his face I recognized but didn’t understand, a nervous set to those full lips I loved so much, that gave me hours of both pleasure and laughter.

  Did he already know…? No, it couldn’t be that. “Not for another hour.” I put another plate on the table and straightened the settings, fighting the urge to touch my stomach. It happened all the time now, as if the instinct to protect what was growing there was getting stronger and stronger. Just like our baby.

  But I hadn’t told him yet.

  I’d only been to the doctor yesterday, and today our families were meeting for the first time. It was one of the happiest occasions of my life, in one way—Mike’s father and I got along very well, and he’d been coming by more and more often, sometimes just dropping off a movie he liked for us to check out or a lasagna here or there; it turned out that his sisters weren’t the only cooks in the family. It made Mike very happy. And today his father, his sisters and their families, and my whole family were going to meet for the first time. It was just a little party, but we were excited, for lots of reasons—Alice had been clean for a while, and she was coming to celebrate with me, her fellow witness, and Tony was bringing Silla and the baby. We’d never hosted before as a couple. I just wished the party was to commemorate a different event, I guess. I sighed, then felt his warm hands wrap around my shoulders, pulling my back against his broad chest as he drew me near and kissed my neck.

  “It’s over,” he said softly, and I turned to look up at him, the exquisite green of his eyes focused on me. He’d read my mind, from across the room and facing the other way. We did that sometimes, as if we were psychically connected. “Let’s have a good time, huh?”

  “A trial is not normally a cause for celebration,” I said, but I tried to smile. “At least it’s over, right?”

  “It’s over forever. He’s gone, honey. You and Alice did a fantastic job—a hard job,” he admitted, remembering my testimony and the withering cross-examination, “but a necessary one. Think of all the people you probably saved. You’re a hero, sugar.”

  “Oh my gosh,” I said, my cheeks growing hot.

  “It’s true!” Mike ran a finger under my chin, drawing my gaze back to his. “Great reason for a party.”

  “Then we should have had about thirty for you,” I said, smiling up at him. It was true; Mike was a hero. He saved lives all the time.

  “Well…” That pensive expression returned to his handsome face and he paused, thinking something over. “Maybe that’s not the only reason to celebrate.”

  “Oh?” I knew he wasn’t talking about the baby. I frowned. “Mike?”

  He looked deeply into my eyes. I fell into that gaze, the one that had brought me the most joy in my life, the one that made me feel complete.

  And then he sank down to one knee.

  “Mike?” I heard the tremor in my voice. I couldn’t help it. Was he—

  “Darcy, will you marry me?” Mike pulled the ring out of his pocket, his thick fingers almost hiding the band, emphasizing the size of the stone. It was so beautiful—swirls of smoky quartz encircled the diamond in the center, like plumes of smoke surrounding a white hot flame. I gasped, tears rising in the back of my throat.

  “Of course I will,” I said, happy tears flowing freely down my face as I clutched his hands. He grinned up at me, then jumped to his feet and kissed me like his life depended on it. We hugged each other, me screaming like a banshee and Mike just grinning down at me, so happy we could barely breath. And then he went to bend me into a back-bend, a dance move I knew might not be a good idea in my current condition. I jumped back, my arms out.

  “Sugar?” He was puzzled.
Mike cocked his head again, that pensive expression on his face; he knew something was up. He always did. “You alright? You love a good whirl—”

  “I know,” I said, and then I let my hands rest on my stomach, let him see. “But I have something to tell you too.”

  His smile was brighter than a thousand fires.

  The End

  Be sure to check out the following preview of The Virgin and the Hero!

  Kendall Duke’s Innocent Series

  Follow the links and don’t forget to leave a review! I hope you enjoy reading these sweet little books as much as I enjoyed writing them.

  The Virgin and the Hero: A First Time Military Romance

  From the Flames: A First Time Steamy Romance

  The Rookie and the Virgin: A First Time Romance

  Heartbeats: A First Time Military Romance

  The Virgin and the Convict: An Alpha Bad Boy First Time Romance

  Her First Ride: A First Time Cowboy Romance

  The Surfer and the Virgin: An Alpha Bady Boy First Time Romance

  The Kissing Game: A Rock Star First Time Romance

  Other books by Kendall Duke:

  The Bodyguard Anthology: An Erotic Russian Alpha Romance Books 1-4

  From The Hero and the Virgin…

  Jordan

  I was starving.

  Cold. Way past hungry. And headed for exhaustion.

  Marcus at the diner remembered me from way back, and he always gave me an extra cup of coffee, even on days when I couldn’t afford more than my regular meal. The mill had me whipped but I was determined to get in some more over-time if it killed me; I was still $400 short of my brother’s hospital bill, and I’d be damned if one more shift was the difference between him getting the help he needed, and not. I could barely see but I pulled my pick-up into the diner’s parking lot and was grateful they stayed open twenty-four seven. I needed to eat something before I went home and fell into bed to work another 18 hour shift.