by Amy Daws
Tonight, I wouldn’t watch her eyes widen and squint shut as my length stretched and consumed her.
Tonight, I wouldn’t pound into her to evoke screams as I brought her to climax.
No, no, no. Tonight wasn’t about our pleasure.
Tonight, I would just cherish her. I would cherish her, and worship her, and sleep soundly with her beautiful chestnut hair splayed over my pillow. Her naked, smooth skin against my chest. Her soft, heavy breaths sighing in my ears as she dreamed of pirouettes and pas de deuxs.
The wonder of knowing that she was here to stay.
This ballet dancer. This beautiful, inspiring ballet dancer was mine. And I fucking loved her.
CHAPTER 47 ~ Adeline
His kiss was so angelically light, I might have imagined it. Yet, when I opened my eyes, Leo smiled the kindest, most adoring grin any man could give. After a night spent wrapped in each other’s arms, I never felt so safe, so protected—so utterly loved—in my entire life.
He loved me.
This intelligent, caring sexy guy was absolutely love-sick. It was as obvious in his gaze as it was in his touch. Leaning on his elbow, he brushed a few strands of hair out of my face. Breakable: he caressed me like I would shatter if he pushed too hard.
“Good morning.” His voice was a little rough and scratchy from just waking up.
The sound of his voice was one of those little things that I instantly fell in love with. I closed my eyes and savored the sound of the sweet whisper that slipped from his lips. It wasn’t a big thing; hearing your lover whisper your name as the sun peeked over the horizon. It was small things, like a whisper of adoration. That ever seemingly unimportant whisper meant the world.
Forget all the secrets and lies. This was who Leonardo Richards truly was: a man worth every bit of trouble.
He traced his finger along my lips. “Why are you smiling?”
My grin deepened. “It’s a secret.”
“Another secret?”
I giggled and opened my eyes. I swore he could read my risqué intentions.
“I’m naked,” I whispered like it was the darkest confession I’d ever uttered.
“You don’t say?” He peeked under the sheet. Our legs were tangled up. His hips were pressed up against my side—and fuck-me-stupid all of him was very, very much awake.
The thought of taking him in all at once…watching his body move against me as I lost control of myself…staring into his eyes as he tore screams from my throat… Oh, heaven help me, I wanted that. Bad. I shivered and a moan betrayed my cool reserve. My physical reaction was his undoing. Forgetting about the sheet, he pressed himself hard against my side and cupped my face.
“You whimper like you want me to do something about it,” he whispered, glancing at my lips.
“Do something about it.”
Dangerous thoughts clouded over his carnal gaze upon my command. I lost my breath just like I had the first time I laid eyes on him. He stole it and was quite unapologetic about it. My body tightened. He dropped his hand down my stomach, lightly tickling me with his fingertips.
“Lower.” My demand came out as a whisper.
“Are you really ready?” His voice strained. He slid his leg up higher between my thighs. Losing control, he uttered, “I don’t want to force—”
I shut him up with a hard look—a I want you fucking bad look. Keeping my gaze locked with his, I guided his hand further downward. The intensity of his stare was no less rewarding than his touch. Parting my legs, I dipped our hands down just low enough so that he could feel how ready I was for him. My eyes fluttered shut as his fingers slipped between me.
“Deeper,” I begged.
He slid one finger inside me so far that his thumb slipped over my stomach, just below my belly button. As he explored every inch I had to offer, I cried out. I tightened my legs around his wrist, holding his handhold until I could take in a breath.
“Open your eyes,” he demanded.
I could barely comply. I grabbed his hand, keeping it still so I could think straight, but he didn’t behave. While he kept his hand still against mine, his finger rolled around me, provoking me to cry out again. I grabbed at his back, dragging my nails across his skin. The scratches encouraged him to press harder against me.
“Fuck, how are you so wet so quickly? I’ve barely done anything.”
“You’ve done plenty, Richards.”
My confession came out airy. As he slipped another finger inside, I rocked with the twirl of them. I was ready. Oh holy hell, I was so ready for him, all of him.
Removing his hand, he rolled over on top of me, pressing his hips flush with mine. The sensation of him grinding against me, so close to slipping in but refusing me, teasing me with the possibilities that his finger couldn’t do…it was too much. I arched my back. His hand was there in anticipation. He knew me—all of me.
“Breathe, Adeline.”
I let out a breath I hadn’t known I was holding. His hand found mine, lacing our fingers together. He pushed himself up against me, teasing me with possibility, but he wouldn’t give me all of him.
From the look in his eye, I knew he was going to tease me to the end of my sanity. So I pushed his chest, sitting up with him, only to roll him onto his back. The sheets fell to the wayside when I straddled him, but not taking what I wanted oh, so desperately. I loved that my strength matched his when it came to our passion. I loved that he fell down on his back because that was where I wanted him. I loved that he was entranced, watching me work through my tension. And I loved to grind up against him…to refuse access to him…to place my hand on his broad shoulders as I pressed my opening right up to him. Oh, sweet heaven I even loved the way he grabbed my hips, holding me tightly against him as I rocked though each throbbing rouse.
“You’re close, aren’t you?” His words came out rough.
“Maybe.” Pressing against him electrified me.
“Let me in, Adeline.”
“No.” I arched my back, ravishing in the wake of sensations that followed from the slight position change.
“You’re a tease.” His grip fastened around my waist, pulling me down hard. “A sexy as fuck tease.”
Even though I refused to let him inside me, he made me earn each rock, each blissful push over his shaft. I had to force my way over him, time and again. Clutching his hips with my knees, I fell forward. Rocking hard, I coated him with my wetness. Thrusting up against him, again and again and again, wave after wave after wave, until I finally screamed out his name in satisfaction.
I trembled as he tucked my wild hair behind my ear. “God damn it, you know how to put on a fucking spectacular show.”
I let out an airy laugh and then looked down at our hips. He was very much not satisfied.
Good.
I quickly climbed off of him and leaped from the bed. He caught me in mid-air, pulling my back to his front.
“What am I? A fuck-cicle?”
I smiled and kissed him on the nose. “Yes.”
“You expect me not to do anything after that stunt you pulled?” He laughed.
“It’ll be worth it.”
“What would be worth letting you go right now, Adeline? You’re naked”—he tossed me back onto the bed and leaned over me—“in my bed. You’re hot as fuck and ready for me. All of me.”
“Wrong!” I teased, grabbed the sheet and raced out of the bedroom.
I got down the hall and stepped inside the bathroom before I turned around to watch him. He stepped out of his doorway in a pair of low slung shorts and struggled to slip a T-shirt on. His slow dress might have had something to do with the fact that I dropped the sheet.
He froze. “Fuck.”
Voices from the first floor traveled up the stairs. The idea that we might get caught flirting Rated-R style excited me.
“Someone is going to see you,” Leo walked toward me.
“Let them.”
A bedroom door closed on the second floor. Squealing, I sl
ammed the door shut. I thought we were alone upstairs. I was dead wrong. The excitement of getting caught became a fast reality that I didn’t truly want. I leaned up against the door and let out a startled laugh when I realized I wasn’t alone in the bathroom.
Claude—Chase’s turtle was chilling in the sink.
I heard footsteps outside the door. So I grabbed the turtle, opened the door and handed him off to—
“Mornin,’” Chase said with a yawn that got cut off short when he realized I was hiding behind the door.
I shoved the turtle in his hands and slammed the door shut. Once safely alone, I called out. “Good morning, Chase.”
“Hey man, how’d the MTR go?” Leo’s voice echoed just outside the bathroom door.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” Chase grumbled.
While they divulged in the tragedy of last night’s loss, I took the opportunity to freshen up. When I was finished, I twisted the sheet and peeked through the door’s crack. Leo was waiting for me, holding his hand above his head on the door. Seeing him stretched out before me…damn. Just damn.
“I told you that you’d get caught,” he said.
“Chase didn’t see anything.”
He walked past me and flicked on the switch. I turned them back off. The light pointed out each and every flaw like a vindictive frenemy. “Mirrors and I don’t get along in the morning.”
“You and I don’t get along in the morning.” He dropped a kiss on my cheek. Flicking on the light, he moved behind me and pulled me against him. “I don’t know the specific horrors you relive when you see your reflection in the mirror, but I’m sure that your sister wouldn’t want you to keep punishing yourself for how her life turned out.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure. Zoey changed a lot after she married Drew.”
“You stood up for her. It’s time that you do the same for yourself.” He hugged me, clutching the back of my head in his hand. He never tore his potent gaze off of me while staring into the mirror. “I wish you could see yourself the way I do.”
“And how do you see me?”
“You move through life with angelic grace. It’s not to say you don’t stumble. Yet you manage to pick yourself up and keep moving forward. And somewhere along the way, you become stronger than you were before you fell. You’re stronger because the people you love need you to be. You’re resilient. You’re forgiving. You’re compassionate. I’m in awe in your presence, Adeline.”
I reached back and dragged my finger over the stubble on his chin. “I love you too, Leo.”
He smiled a lopsided smile. “So if you can’t look at the mirror and see the amazing woman I’m staring at, then you’ll have to make due looking at me.”
And before I knew it, he propped me on the sink so I faced him instead of my reflection. He opened the second drawer and dug out his toothbrush and paste. I held out my pointer finger for him so he could squirt some out on it. We faced each other, brushing our teeth. White foam dripped around his mouth. Dork.
Upon cleansing, I slid off of the counter, turned around, spit into the sink, and gargled the minty taste out. I wiped my face and then glanced at the mirror. Ugh! If I was going to prance around in public, I needed a shower. I pulled back the curtain and was mortified. There was only one bar of soap and there was a black hair on it.
“Please tell me you’re hiding body wash somewhere?” I asked, staring at the hair. “Or shampoo.”
“Normally, I just steal Chase’s.” He bent over and grabbed a handful of bottles from under the sink. He handed them to me like he didn’t know what any of them meant.
I laughed and pulled out two. “He won’t be upset?”
He grinned. “Not with you.”
I turned on the shower. When it wasn’t cold, I slipped in and pulled back the curtain. Tilting my head back, I closed my eyes and let out a heavy sigh as the warmth caressed my skin. I ran my fingers through my hair, saturating it with the water.
When I opened my eyes, I caught my breath. Leo was standing in the tub, with his hands by his sides, watching the water drizzle over my skin. Yet, he wouldn’t meet my gaze, like I had mesmerized him. I should be the one in awe, not him. Splattered with water, drops drizzled down the muscular lines of his body. Every groove was hard and chiseled. Fuck! I wanted to lick the water off of his neck, his sculpted shoulders, his tight arms, or hell, I’d settle with dragging my hands down his chest. And then there was the way his stubble covered his hard jaw line, his messy hair, the darkness in his gaze. Water droplets clung to his abs and dripped down his core, leading right to his….
“You do this to me, Adeline.”
I let out a pent-up breath when he sauntered closer. Yet, he didn’t completely close the gap between us. Standing inches from him and not touching him was painful.
“Do what?” I asked.
He didn’t so much touch me. But there was no question of how badly he needed to hold me when I caught sight of his animalistic stare.
“Hypnotize me with your beauty. You’re a fucking angel with a devilish grin.”
Ever so gently, he brushed the back of his hand up the side of my stomach. Compared to the warmth of the water, his cool hand sent shivers throughout my body. The water flushed over his skin as he brought his hand up under my breast. He cupped the side of my body, tangling his fingers with the tips of my hair. He rolled his thumb over my nipple. I let out a gasp. It was then that his gaze met mine. It was as if he’d forgotten that I was actually here, watching him admire me.
He whispered my name, cupping my face with his other hand. He traced his thumb over my bottom lip. Gently, he lifted my chin, but he didn’t reward me with his kiss.
He teased me with it.
He pressed his forehead down on mine. The water now splashed over us both, drowning out the world around us. In that moment it was only us. In that moment, all my worries, my fears, my insecurities melted away. Everything washed away as he stood by my side.
“I love you, Leo.”
Only then did he give me a taste of what I craved. I wrapped my arms around him as he pressed himself against me. Time dripped away like the water over our skin as I fell into the rhythm of our kiss. My lips were raw when I finally managed to pull away.
He grabbed the shower rod for support as I dangled my fingers down his shaft. His eyes flared as I knelt down. Watching him, I dragged my tongue up the length of him. His hand found my hair, but he never took his eyes off of me as I wrapped my lips around him. He filled me, swelling more and more as I rolled my tongue around him. He slammed his fist against the tile, on the verge of release.
It was then that I stopped. Mortification was written on his face as I stopped touching him completely. I grinned. Oh God, I loved it when he was deranged. I stood slowly, letting the realization seep in that I was not going to make this easy for him.
“Wash me,” I demanded.
“Are you fucking kidding me right now, Adeline?”
“No.”
Groaning in defiance, he slammed his body against mine and grabbed my hair at the nap of my neck, pulling back just hard enough to tingle. His lips collided with mine. I wrapped my arms around him, raking my nails across his back.
He responded in tow by ramming my back against the cold tile wall. My nipples hardened instantly, rubbing over his chest. He grabbed my ass, dug his fingertips in, and pulled me up against him. Wrapping my legs around his waist, a moan ripped from my throat.
“Fuck me!” I cried, tilting my hips as he traced my opening.
His dark gaze turned lethal. “I intend to.”
He drove himself into me, stretching me to take in the space he demanded. I screamed out his name, writhing in his embrace. But he didn’t move, he didn’t pull back, he just pressed in deeper, stealing every inch he could.
“You tease me this morning, and then you think I’m going to go easy on you?” he whispered iniquitously in my ear. “I love you, I’d do anything to protect you, keep you safe, but sometimes loving
you is fucking painful.”
“Not all love is sweet.” My eyes were heavy with lust. I could barely see straight. I could barely squeeze my legs around him. I could barely speak, but I managed two more words. “Fuck. Me.”
Thrusting his hips, he pushed in further. I spasmed around him. My back arched uncontrollably. His hand was immediately there, like it was already second nature. He forced my back against him so that I could feel just how much I affected him. He sucked on my neck, and I tried to remember how to breathe. And just when I relaxed enough to gasp, he pulled out.
Completely.
It left me dizzy. Yet the demand was there. He had given me a taste of him, all of him and then dismissed me? He rubbed his dick around me, dripping with my excitement. I rocked my hips up, encouraging him to take what he wanted.
He stared at me like he was going to lose his mind. His breathing was sharp as he brought himself enough sanity enough to speak. He rocked himself between me but not in me… not in me! Oh fucking hell!
“Take me. Please!”
He answered my pleas with his hips. He slammed them hard against me, holding me up so that he could take my hand in his. He raised our hands above my head. His fingers intertwined with mine, pressing against the cool tile.
I shuddered as he guided my other hand down to his dick. “How bad do you want me?”
I couldn’t speak. My voice betrayed me. My inability to talk must have satisfied him, for he finally plunged into me, pushing himself through my fingers and into my wet center.
I screamed out, encouraging him to slam himself up against me over and over until I lost my voice. When I could no longer make a noise, his pace quickened. He controlled my body. Every wave of orgasm I felt he felt. I tightened around him, making it harder and harder for him to go as deep as he wanted. The power of his body was mind-blowing. The way he stared down at me as my eyes fluttered shut made me so God damn tight! He demanded our gaze to meet as he brought me over and over, until he’d had enough.
His handhold tightened around mine. He lowered them and pressed my hand against his chest so that I could feel his heart racing as he shouted out my name in climax.
