by Elisa Adams
Chapter 12
“I am not calling him.” Amara glared at the paper Ellie had left, now tacked to the bulletin board next to the fridge. “You shouldn’t have bothered to give me his number, because there’s no way in hell I’m picking up that phone.”
She stirred the pasta on the stove, the whole time casting glances to the phone. No. She was not even going to think about picking it up. If he wanted to see her, he was going to have to make the first move.
Carrying the pan to the sink, she drained her dinner into the colander in the sink. The phone rang and she dropped the empty pan on the counter and ran for it, picking up the receiver on the second ring. “Marco?”
“Good evening, ma’am. This is Jeff calling from the—“
She slammed the phone back into its cradle. She didn’t need to be bothered by telemarketers tonight. Grumbling, she turned her attention back to her meal.
“Stupid jerk. Would it really be that difficult to pick up the damned telephone and call me?” She took out her frustrations with Marco on the garlic and basil. By the time she was done, she’d turned them into mush.
Cursing, she added them to the sauté pan she’d heated the oil in. The second the seasonings hit the olive oil, she was hit with a wave of nausea so strong she had to lean against the counter. What was wrong with her? The smell of food cooking had never bothered her before.
Was she pregnant?
No. That wasn’t possible. Those shots were very reliable, and she wasn’t late. There had to be something else going on. But what was it, and how could she fix it so she could enjoy a decent meal?
After the sauce was ready, she mixed it with the pasta and brought a bowl of it to the table. She was going to eat the stuff, damnit, if she had to choke down every last bite. She’d been a little dizzy lately, and it was probably from not eating for so long. Once she had a couple of good meals in her, she’d be fine.
Ten minutes later she’d only been able to force down one bite, and that had been more than enough. This used to be her favorite recipe. Now she couldn’t deal with the pungent flavor. Just the smell of it made her gag. How was she supposed to force down the entire bowl when it made her want to throw up?
“I’m glad to see you’re eating.” Marco’s voice came out of nowhere. He hadn’t been there a moment before.
She screamed and dropped her fork, sauce splattering all over the table and her clothes. Her eyes narrowed when she realized who had spoken. Jumping up and turning to face him, she put her hands on her hips. “How dare you sneak in here like everything is all right? I haven’t seen you for days. What gives you the right to just show up without calling or anything? Haven’t you every heard of etiquette? The polite way to visit someone is not to sneak up on them while they’re eating without bothering to pick up the phone and call first!”
He said nothing. He just stood in the kitchen door, his big shoulder propped against the doorframe. His expression was serious. A little too serious. It made her nervous. She bit her lower lip and waited.
“I couldn’t stay away.” His confession froze her, the tantrum gone. “I tried, Amara, honest to God I did. But I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”
“You could have called.” She was beginning to sound like a broken record. Tears welled in her eyes and she swiped at them, not willing to admit that a man could get the new and improved Amara Daniels worked up.
“I’ve already done enough damage. I didn’t want to hurt you any more.”
“You hurt me by staying away.”
“Don’t you think I know that?” A look of genuine pain crossed his face. “It practically killed me to stay away, but there was nothing I could do.”
She smiled weakly. “Do you want some dinner?”
He shook his head.
“You really don’t eat, huh?”
“Not that. My needs are different.”
Didn’t she know it. “Yeah, I’m beginning to think the same thing myself.”
“You still haven’t been eating well?”
She shook her head. “No. I haven’t been hungry. It’s probably all the stress.”
The silence that stretched between them was more than uncomfortable, but she didn’t know what else to say to him. Marco finally broke the uneasy quiet. “I guess I did put you through a lot of unnecessary stress.”
She shrugged. “It’s no big deal. I survived.” She tried to smile to show him she was fine, but it was becoming harder and harder by the second. At this rate, she’d be bawling at his feet in no time.
He shook his head. “I almost didn’t.”
She couldn’t stop the tears now. They streaked down her face, probably taking most of her mascara with them. If they didn’t resolve this quickly, she was going to end up looking like a raccoon.
He didn’t move, but she could swear she felt him closer. The heat of his body moved over her, enveloping her like he was just a few inches away. She closed her eyes and greedily absorbed his heat. He’d deprived her of it for so long it hurt.
Wait a second, hadn’t it only been a couple of days?
It felt like an eternity. It no longer mattered that she should hate him for not calling, not to mention scaring her with his sudden appearance. She could torture him later. Now she just wanted him to hold her. “What are you doing standing all the way over there?”
He dismissed her question with a shake of his head. “I didn’t want to hurt you, Amara. I swear, I never meant to.”
“The only thing that hurt me was when you deserted me.”
He crossed the room in three steps and she was in his arms. Just like that she melted into him. He kissed her, deeply and desperately, and she knew she wasn’t the only one who’d been feeling deprived. She moaned into his mouth and clung to him, afraid he’d walk away again. The man was like an addiction—one she’d never be able to break. Only when she was with him did she feel whole.
When did she turn into such a sap?
He broke the kiss, but didn’t let her go. His arms were wrapped so tightly around her she had trouble breathing. “Hey, could you loosen up a bit before I pass out?”
He laughed once and loosened his grip a little. “How’s that?”
“Better. I’ve missed you so much.”
“It’s only been a few days.”
A few days when she’d lived in her own personal hell, not sure where she belonged anymore. “Tell me you haven’t felt the same.”
“This is too strong. I can’t control it.” He closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, she saw worry and raw desire in his gaze. “God, Amara. I’ve tried. I’ve tried to stay away from you, but I can’t make myself do it.”
She ran her nails along the line of his jaw, eliciting a shiver from him. “Why bother trying?”
Chapter 13
“I know there’s a reason why I should walk away, but I can’t remember what it is.” He pushed her shirt up and ran his hands over her bare waist before he pulled the shirt over her head and tossed it aside. “Maybe you should refresh my memory.”
And give him a reason to walk back out of her life again? He had to be kidding. “Instead of concentrating on the reasons you should leave, why don’t we concentrate on the reasons why you should stay?”
He cupped her breasts in his palms and bent down to suckle her nipples through her bra. The combination of his hot mouth and the scratchy lace made her knees buckle. His tongue moved over the puckered nipples, soaking the fabric.
“And what would those reasons be?”
Thinking of anything at all was becoming a challenge. “That there’s something good going on here, and it would be stupid to waste it just because we met in such an unorthodox manner?”
He looked up at her and shook his head. “I guess I got lucky with you. Any other woman would have run screaming to the police the second I set her free. Why is it that you didn’t?”
“Because I know you didn’t mean me any harm, at least not after the first day or so. And I think you wou
ld have let me go if I’d protested enough.”
He blew out a breath. “You’re right. As much as I’ve tried to convince myself otherwise, I never intended to hurt you.”
“Does that mean you actually care about me?”
“Don’t push it, Amara.” He shook his head, but his eyes told her all she needed to know.
His fingers skimmed up her back, unclasping her bra and sliding it off her shoulders. She shivered when his mouth met her bare breasts. He flicked his tongue across the sensitized flesh, using his lips to pull and pluck her until her panties were drenched.
She tunneled her hands in his hair and held him close while he suckled first one nipple, and then the other. She cried out when his fangs gently nipped her breasts. “I don’t think I can stand up much longer.”
He didn’t answer. He nudged her legs apart and slid his knee between them, his thigh brushing against her aching clit. Suddenly she became all too aware that they were both overdressed for the occasion. She tugged on his shirt, but couldn’t get her shaking fingers to work right. “Will you get out of these clothes?”
“Soon.” He ran his tongue along her neck as he unbuttoned her jeans. “Very soon.”
He pushed her jeans down her hips and she stepped out of them. Then his leg was back between hers, his thigh moving back and forth along her clit only separated by the thin lace of her panties. She rocked against him shamelessly, needing release.
He wouldn’t let her have it. Just when she thought one more second and she’d come, he moved his leg and stepped away from her. Her legs were weak and wobbly and she almost fell. He brought his hands to her hips and held her up while he knelt down in front of her.
“What are you doing?” If he had in mind what she thought he did, there was no way her legs were going to hold her.
“Trust me.”
“I do trust you. It’s me that I’m worried about. I can barely stand as it is.”
He nuzzled his nose against her mound through her panties. When he traced her labial lips through the lace with the tip of his tongue she almost died. He slipped a finger into the elastic leg band and followed the same path his tongue had before he ripped the panties from her body.
She gasped as the cool air hit her skin. Goosebumps broke out on her flesh, but they didn’t last for long. He spread her lips with his thumbs and stroked her clit with the rough pad of his tongue. Forget chilled—she was burning up.
She arched her back and leaned into the counter behind her. He delved his tongue into her cunt, thrusting in and out a few times before he returned his attention to her clit. He took the bundle of nerves into his mouth and sucked hard. That was all it took for her to come, screaming and bucking against him. Every muscle in her body clenched and she couldn’t take any more.
He didn’t stop, though. He continued to suck and lick her, stroking his tongue inside her until she came two more times. By the time he stood up and pulled her into his arms, she wouldn’t have been able to stand on her own if she’d wanted to.
Amazingly, the feeling of Marco’s rock-solid cock pressing against her through his jeans ignited another wave of hot desire. She fumbled to unzip his pants, needing him inside her.
She finally freed his straining cock and wrapped her hand around the length of him. She stroked him a few times before she ran her fingers over the head.
Marco groaned, long and low, and thrust against her hand. “That feels so good.”
“That’s the point.”
“You’ve got to stop.”
She stilled her hand. “Why stop if it feels good?”
“Where’s your bedroom?”
“Upstairs, first door on the right.”
She smiled to herself when Marco picked her up and carried her all the way there. No man had ever bothered to do that for her before. The fact that she really wasn’t a lightweight made it even more romantic.
He laid her down on the bed and stripped off his clothes before he joined her. He tried to roll her onto her back, but she wasn’t going to let him take charge just yet. She smiled to herself, thinking she owed him a little for the days he hadn’t bothered to acknowledge the fact that she was alive.
She put her hand on his chest. “Lay down.”
“This is no time for games. I can’t hold out much longer.”
“Oh, I think you’ll be surprised.” She gave his shoulders a shove. “Lay down.”
He started to protest, but then changed his mind and reclined on the mattress. His gaze was wary—she intended to change that. He wasn’t used to women taking charge, at least not in the bedroom. She was going to change that, too. She was having too much fun to quit.
Plus, she wanted him to get used to letting her take charge. She could go for a little submission once in a while, but only if it was give and take in equal portions. Marco had already had his turn being in charge, and she was going to relish every second of her time.
She stretched his arms over his head and pressed his wrists to the pillows. “Keep them there.”
He shook his head. “No way. I want to touch you.”
“No touching. Not yet.”
“That’s not fair.” He started to lift his arms.
She raised an eyebrow. “Oh, and kidnapping me was a fair thing to do?”
He let his arms drop back to the pillows with a dramatic sigh. “You’ve got a point there. Just be gentle.”
Gentle? She had no intentions of that at all.
She ran her hands up his sides, scraping her nails along his skin with enough pressure to leave a red mark. He hissed out a breath and let his head roll back against the pillow. The struggle to do as she asked was plain in his eyes. It was killing him, but at least he was trying. She didn’t know how much longer he’d hold out before he took her control away and took the lead.
She leaned over him and trailed a line of kisses across his chest. She licked his nipples and dipped her tongue into his navel, wanting to taste every inch of his exposed flesh.
Especially his jutting cock.
She didn’t have much experience in pleasuring a man orally. It wasn’t something that had interested her before, so she’d avoided it on most occasions. But for him she was more than willing to make an exception. She wanted to taste him. Just the thought of holding his throbbing shaft between her lips made her mouth water and her cunt quiver.
She darted her tongue out to wet her suddenly dry lips and Marco groaned. Her eyes widened when she saw the mixture of pain and heat in his eyes.
“Suck me, Amara. I need to feel your mouth on my cock.”
She ran her tongue up his length experimentally. He was so soft, yet steely hard at the same time. She swirled her tongue over the plum-shaped head and he thrust his hips at her. Confidence bolstered, she licked the drop of pre-cum from the tiny opening. She closed her eyes and sighed indulgently. “You taste incredible.”
Marco’s resulting groan was harsh. She ducked her head to hide the laughter that bubbled up inside her.
Cupping his balls in one hand, she traced their skin lightly with the fingernails of her other. He hissed and started to lift his arms again, but she shook her head. “Stay where you are or I’m going to have to be forced to hurt you.”
“God, Amara. Just do it. I can’t take any more of this.”
She took him inside her mouth, stroking up and down. She was just getting into a good rhythm when he pulled her off.
She sputtered in protest. “Hey. I told you not to touch.”
“I had no choice. I was going to come.”
She wouldn’t have minded, but apparently he had other things in mind. He got behind her and pushed her belly onto the mattress, covering her body with his. He kissed her neck just before he bit down, his fangs sinking deep inside her flesh.
She screamed, nearly ready to come just from the pain and pleasure of it. It seemed that every time he did that, the pleasure got more intense. It didn’t last long enough this time. Almost as soon as he started, he pulled back.
She was about to protest when he pulled her hips up into the air, leaving her upper body on the bed. She felt more open, more exposed than she’d ever felt in her life, but she didn’t feel vulnerable. She felt safe with him, no matter what he did to her.
He dipped his fingers into her soaked cunt and ran them along her labial lips, spreading the moisture all over her. He pressed the tip of his cock against her, rubbing it across her clit. Every nerve in her body jumped.
“You teased me.” His tone was accusatory, but not menacing.
“I did.” She moaned softly as he continued to rub his cock along her folds. “And I think you enjoyed every second of it.”
He laughed. “Yeah, probably a little too much. Another few strokes of that amazing tongue of yours and I would have come all over your face.”
That thought sent a rush of pleasure through her body. “Next time, you will.”
He pushed his cock into her cunt, filling her completely in one stroke. He didn’t even pause. His strokes were hard and irregular, his balls smacking against her flesh. She fisted the sheets in her hands and held on tight, poised on the verge of another incredible orgasm.
Something inside her was different this time. She felt like she had that last time they’d been together, when she’d been so frenzied and wild. It was like something deep inside her was taking over, a part of her that she had no control over. Her entire body tingled—she felt aroused right down to the tips of her toes.
She was having trouble drawing a full breath. She needed…something, but she couldn’t figure out what it was. She was on fire, but she didn’t know what it would take to put the fire out. Marco’s fingers brushing her clit was all it took to topple her over the edge. She came with a moan, clenching her inner muscles tightly on his cock.
His erratic breathing turned into a drawn-out groan as he stilled and came, emptying himself inside her. When he pulled out and let her go, she collapsed on the bed, too sated and boneless to move. He reclined beside her, drawing small circles on her back with his fingertips.
It was a long time before she was even able to form a complete thought, let alone talk. When she finally spoke, she had to keep it simple. “That was so...”
