“What happened here?” she asked.
“Stood near an explosion. My back had been shredded to ribbons, but the flying shrapnel didn’t hit anything vital. I’m lucky to be walking.”
To his surprise, she closed in, putting her arms around him. Caleb breathed in and out, relaxing into her embrace. Her bare breasts felt heavy against his chest. Right here, enclosed in her warmth, it felt like heaven. She pressed a kiss to the spot between his shoulder blades, the motion jolting his cock wide awake.
“I see the body of a warrior, a protector.”
He turned, and she relaxed her grip so they faced each other again. Caleb let her touch his pectorals again, one flat nipple. Liliana railed her fingers down his ribs, his abs, her hand hovering on the waistband of his jogging pants. God, denied of her touch so long, he hungered for more.
“I’ve lost more teammates than I can count, good men who returned back home in coffins,” he said harshly. “The mission when my back had been shredded, I lost my entire team, didn't save a single one.”
“I’m sorry, but I’m glad you made it alive,” she whispered, tears gathering at the corner of her eyes.
She didn’t know how much those words meant to him.
“Some days, it feels like I’m the unlucky one, because I keep reliving the same nightmare.” Caleb never confessed those horrible words, not even to his therapist, but he’d never hide anything from Liliana.
“You’re only human, and so am I. We’re wired to make mistakes.” She flashed him a small smile.
It struck him that Liliana had seen all of him and didn’t even flinch. Hell, she didn’t even call him a bad person for harboring such vile thoughts.
“Will you finally tell me what you meant earlier, or do I have to force it out of you?” he asked, placing one proprietary hand over her waist and edging her towards the bed.
“No one forces me to do anything,” she said, letting out a squeak when he gave her a gentle nudge. Liliana ended up on the bed, gazing up at him, looking like sheer temptation, with her top gone and only her jeans and underwear in the way of his conquest.
“Then tell me to stop.” He hooked his fingers into the belt loops of her jeans.
Caleb had seen her in a few old news articles online. He thought he didn’t have a chance in hell with the sleek, polished woman smiling back at him, so Caleb had been relieved that when she came to him, she dressed casually and let all that glorious hair down.
“Don’t stop, please.”
“Please, I like that word, especially from your lips,” he said, beginning to tug her jeans now.
When he fingered her pussy, he brushed against some kind of lace, and seeing the tiny triangle that barely covered her cunt made him painfully aware of his dick, rising against his jogging pants. The shy, beautiful girl he knew ten years ago, had turned into his gorgeous and confident woman.
Liliana kicked her pants aside and must have noticed his look, because she asked with a slight color to his cheeks, “Like what you see?”
****
In response, Caleb took off his pants. Liliana raised her head, sucking in a breath at the sight of his gorgeous cock. She’d almost forgotten how big he was. Oh, Liliana had dreamed of him on her loneliest nights, when she was alone in her bed in that big house and all the staff had gone home.
She’d thought of their first time, had fantasized about Caleb burying his prick so deep inside her she forgot to breathe. Finally, it was happening.
“Scoot up,” he said in that rough, firm voice that expected obedience. Liliana always liked it when he took control. She did as he asked, aware her nipples had pebbled and her panties were soaked by now.
Caleb crawled into bed, muscles rippling under the light, reminding her of one of the big cats on Animal Planet. He reached for the hem of her panties, easily shredding it and tossing the fabric away. God, but that was so hot.
Her heart started on a rapid beat, and she waited for his next instructions.
“Show yourself to me, Liliana. I want to see that pink little pussy that belongs to me.”
She shuddered at those words, spreading her thighs and slipping one hand between her legs to part her slick folds for him. He grabbed her hands, positioning them to her ankles. Understanding what he wanted, she gripped her ankles, feeling incredibly exposed, but she had nothing to hide, not from Caleb.
Caleb’s stubble felt rough against her thighs, but she liked the contrast. He lowered his face into her cunt and gave her slit one long lick. She moaned, liking as he closed his hands on her inner thighs and began tonguing her, tracing her outer labia, before pushing it deeper into her hole.
He paused to say, “Tell me about your plans.”
“I know I haven’t made the right decisions,” she began. “Especially agreeing to be engaged to Roger.”
“How should I punish you for that?” he asked, but she saw the glint of mischief in his eyes.
Those words made her body tense and her skin feel fever hot, making her further aroused.
Caleb thrust two fingers inside her again. She groaned, squirming, and then he nipped at her clit. She nearly came then, but held it back, but she would sure have a hell of a time finishing this conversation. With Caleb holding her most intimate parts captive, forming logical thoughts seemed impossible.
“I made a stupid decision,” she admitted. “But once I get him and our parents to agree to break off the engagement, I’m free.”
Caleb flicked his tongue over her swollen bud, his predatory gaze never leaving hers. “You were never free, Liliana.”
She smiled at that, gasped, twirling fingers into the thick silk of his hair as he began eating her out again. Caleb pumped his fingers in and out of her, drawing circles on her clit, but just when she came so close to the edge, he pulled away. Liliana let out a frustrated groan, her disappointment momentary as he lifted her legs over his broad shoulders and guided his dick into her entrance.
He swore.
“What’s wrong?”
“I don’t have a condom.”
“I haven't been with anyone in years. I’m clean,” she told him. Liliana didn’t want a thin piece of plastic between them either.
“Me, too.” Caleb leaned in, took her mouth, the kiss all roughness and bite. He said, “Good, because I want to fuck you bareback, to see my cum dripping down your leg after I’ve claimed both your holes. You’re mine, Liliana, and I’m not giving you back.”
Chapter Four
“God, Caleb,” Liliana whispered. The image of him filling both her pussy and asshole with his cum made her grip his biceps, her pussy clenching. She was so wet that he probably wouldn’t have a problem sliding inside her.
She’d forgotten how crass he could be in bed and how much she loved it. No filter. Ten years ago, he’d promised he’d never lie to her, and she kept that close to her heart, because everyone around her lied for a living, especially her parents.
Caleb gripped her hips, hold bruising, but she didn’t mind. She wanted to exit this room wearing all his marks of possession. Liliana had given her heart to him a long time ago, so it was time he reclaimed her body as well.
“Ready?” At her nod, Caleb pushed in.
She moaned as he thrust in, slow and steady, as if he didn’t want to hurt her. Finally, he buried himself to the hilt. It felt like he stretched her completely. Liliana could feel her pussy muscles clenching hard on his dick. He groaned, burying his face into her hair, the hard expense of his chest rubbing against her aching nipples.
“Fuck, baby. You’re as tight and perfect as I imagined,” he murmured. Then he began to move.
This, she thought, closing her eyes, was so much better than her fantasies. Finally, Caleb and she connected on the most intimate level possible. With their bodies joined like this, it almost felt like she could taste his soul.
Liliana found herself meeting him for every thrust. She sank her nails into his back muscles, leaving half-crescent marks, but he didn’t seem to mind. He w
ent faster, deeper with each turn, seemingly breaching her most intimate places. She gasped as he made sure the ridge of his cock bumped against her clit repeatedly.
Caleb shifted the angle of his hips, his next push hitting her G-spot. She whimpered as he focused on that sensitive place, over and over. Liliana arched her back, groaning when he positioned his teeth on her right nipple, leaving his bite there as well. The pressure building inside her threatened to burst.
“I’m close,” she admitted.
“Come all over my cock, beautiful girl.” With one last stroke, he shoved her over the edge of oblivion. The room fell away from her line of sight, as she climaxed and he sent her mind soaring twenty-thousand feet in the air.
****
Later, Caleb tucked her back against his chest, resting his dick between her ass cheeks. She murmured a sigh of contentment when he wrapped his arms tightly around her waist, placing one proprietary thigh over her hip. Liliana nestled against him, warm, soft, and perfect, his talisman against all the memories in his mind he had a hard time burying.
Caleb never wanted to let her go. Ever since they were teenagers, he’d always known she was made for him. He buried his face into her hair, still scenting her shampoo. The image of her, naked, gorgeous, her dark hair spilling across the sheets, would be forever branded in his mind.
He had one taste of her and was instantly hooked.
She rested her hand over his, and he silently willed she wouldn’t say the words he dreaded. I need to go back home, to avoid arousing suspicions. I can’t stay. When morning arrives, someone might catch me leaving the hotel.
Meeting Liliana came with complications, he knew that. Caleb didn’t give a damn if his reputation was ruined. It was her he was worried about. By lingering here any longer, he’d be putting her at risk, at the mercy of the press if they caught word she was having an affair, even though her sorry excuse of a fiancé had done all the hurting in their relationship. Hell, Roger didn’t know how to handle a woman like Liliana, much less deserve her.
If she hadn’t told him about her plans for leaving that asshole, Caleb admitted he might have gone so far as to take her captive with zero intentions of returning her.
“That was better than anything I’ve imagined,” she said. “I had this fantasy built up in my head, you see, of when we’d see each other again.”
Caleb gently pushed aside all that glorious hair to kiss the nape of her neck. On second thought, he left an imprint of his teeth there, too. Possession had taken hold of him the moment she entered his room, and it wouldn’t leave. It lived inside his skin now, and if he could, he’d tied her up and take her with him.
He reached for her nipple, gave it a squeeze. She didn’t squirm. The little minx rubbed her tempting body against his, waking his dick. She moaned when he found her pussy and rubbed at her slick folds.
Caleb had to ask the question. “What time do you need to be back?”
Liliana stilled, then turned. Caleb relaxed his hold, and they faced each other. Her cheeks and neck turned slightly pink, the sight thickening his cock.
“I hope to stay until morning, if that’s okay,” she said, sounding like the shy girl he knew.
Over the years, Liliana might have become this confident, sleek woman who seemed to know what she wanted, but the awkward and insecure girl he’d fallen for was also still there. Caleb liked that knowledge, because at least he no longer felt like she was out of his league.
Once Liliana was no longer engaged to Roger, she’d be free to become his.
“Fuck, baby. That’s more than okay,” he said. “Touch your tits. I want to be inside you again.”
“God, yes,” she murmured, doing as he asked. His blood surged through him at the sight of her fondling and pinching her tits.
Liliana’s widened her eyes when he reached for his dick and started to stroke, up and down. Damn, but it was hot, him watching her get herself off and she doing the same thing. She moved one hand between her legs, making him groan. Her face grew redder, but she didn’t stop. They both panted, and he hungrily eyed the swell of her tits and her hand moving back and forth across her cunt.
Mine. The word roared inside of him like a living thing.
Caleb hadn’t realized he said it out loud, until a small smile formed on her lips. She liked it when he became all territorial.
His shaft went from half to full length. Caleb needed to slide his prick inside her hot, tight, little pussy soon. “Turn for me, baby.”
She obeyed as he slid closer to her, tugging her close, his hands on her hips. Caleb lifted up her leg, then thrust inside her, going all the way, until he was balls deep. She groaned, moving against him, meeting him for every push.
Caleb left feathery kisses on the side of her neck, starting to piston faster in and out of her. He reached for her heavy breasts, cupped them, stroked them. Caleb made sure for every stroke, he brushed against her hypersensitive clit. She cried out, the sound music to his ears. Caleb must have hit her G-spot. He went for it, again and again, until she let out a scream, and came all over his dick.
He hammered in and out of her a few more times, before shooting his load. Caleb lowered her leg, nuzzling her. He wanted to fall asleep like this, with her enclosed in his embrace, his cum still inside her.
Roger was a fucking damn fool. Even though she didn’t tell him much, he heard the hidden pain in her voice when she spoke about her miserable engagement. If Liliana asked, he’d put a bullet in that bastard’s skull. It wouldn’t be hard, and he knew how to cover his tracks.
Caleb had nightmares not only because he failed to save other men he considered his brothers, but because during those years on the battlefield, he’d become such an effective killer. A monster. After each kill, he’d grow numb and empty. Tell him who to shoot, and he’d point his rifle. It was only after he returned to civilian life that guilt caught up with him.
“Caleb, what’s wrong? You’ve suddenly gone quiet,” Liliana said, resting the palm of her hand over his chest. Her touch reminded him he still had a heart, under all the layers of skin and bone. His soul might have been scarred, just like his body, beyond salvation, but his heart had always belonged to her.
“I’ll tell you another time,” he said, voice harsh.
Not yet, he didn’t want to scare her right off the bat. Dead people I’ve killed and couldn’t save haunt me in my sleep, sometimes in my waking moments. Liliana probably guessed he didn’t come back whole, but she didn’t know the full extent of his PTSD. For now, Caleb refused to ruin the moment with all the luggage he came with.
“Let me hold you,” he said at her silence.
She didn’t turn away from him or push, merely let him wrap his arms around her.
“I’m here for you, Caleb,” she told him. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Chapter Five
“Ms. Hurley, you’re up early,” said a voice behind her, making her jump.
Liliana froze, like a thief caught stealing something that didn't belong to her, except that was a ridiculous thought. This house might never be home, but this was still her kitchen. She’d woken up extra early, to avoid bumping into any of the household staff.
The kitchen clock above Maria’s head showed her it was only five-thirty. Maria looked over her picnic basket and the numerous Tupperware scattered over the counter to her, dressed unusually in a pair of faded jeans and plain white shirt.
“Maria, good morning,” she managed to say. Liliana hadn't forgotten that three days ago, Maria had asked her what she was still doing staying with Roger. At first, she thought Maria, like the other staff, had been a spy for her mother, but perhaps not.
“I came to inform you that your fiancé wouldn’t be joining you for breakfast. He and his—lady companion, came back late last night,” Maria said with a straight face. Then, “Would you need help packing that up?”
Relieved, but still not entirely sure where Maria’s true loyalties lay, Liliana shook her head. “I’ll finish up her
e.”
“Then I’ll make sure you won’t be disturbed,” Maria said, walking to the kitchen entrance, then paused. “You’ve been different lately.”
“Different how?”
Maria looked contemplative. “Happy, almost.”
“Thank you,” she said. “For being discreet.”
Maria left, and she finished packing lunch. Grabbing her picnic basket, she exited the house via the kitchen door. Liliana dodged any household staff she spotted and left through the back gate, walking two blocks past her neighborhood to flag a cabin. It didn’t hurt to be extra safe, but she was kind of tired of all this sneaking around.
“Winchester Park, please,” she told the cabbie, who didn’t give her a second glance.
Liliana could have waited a little longer, for Roger’s parents to call off the engagement. She hadn’t told her parents about her decision, wanting to do it face-to-face, but they kept making excuses to reschedule and that they were busy. The last thing she wanted was to bring unnecessary attention to Caleb and her, but she sensed Caleb needed her more than ever. After their first night together, they’d met for a second time in a row. Sex with Caleb had been intense, mind-blowing, but it was the after she couldn’t erase from her mind, how he held her so tightly, as if he didn’t want to let her go.
Her Caleb had demons, probably suffered from PTSD. She didn’t need to be a genius to figure that out. Caleb had no one, she remembered, no family to lean on, so she’d be his family. Liliana would be anything for him, hoping she could give him what he needed. Help him take those few critical steps forward and walk beside him the rest of the way, because when Liliana thought of her future, she saw Caleb. Them.
“Ma’am? We’re here,” the cabbie said.
She paid him the fare and got out, instantly spotting Caleb by the park entrance. Even hidden in the shadow of a large elm tree, she could make out the rough outline of his body, the way his gray gaze sharpened when he turned his head to look at her. Every nerve in her body lit up.
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