She kissed him back sweetly and his desire surged. Her hand moved between them and he tensed in anticipation. When her fingers reached his cock, he groaned against her mouth and he pushed hard, wanting more of her touch. She wrapped her hand around him, moving up and down, slowly and then faster. Adam closed his eyes and lowered his head to her shoulder. He licked her neck and she gasped.
“Adam?”
He lifted his head, his eyes glazed.
“Will you make love to me now?”
“Oh, God. I don’t know, Katie… I’m still not sure.”
“I am.”
She opened the condom and he took it from her and rolled it on, his fingers shaking. He looked down at her leg.
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You won’t.” She smiled at him. “You don’t know how.”
Adam raised himself up on his forearms, pinning her left leg down to the bed with his huge thigh. He lifted her injured leg and gently wrapped it around his waist and she arched against his body. His left arm was extended up over her head, his other hand guiding his cock inside of her.
He entered her cautiously, retreated. Then again, a bit farther. And again. She moaned.
“Oh, Adam… more. Please.”
Her right leg curled around him tighter, pulling him closer. Encouraged, Adam slid in deeper, making rocking movements now. Her pussy pulled at him, as strong as hands. With a groan of surrender, he pushed all the way inside her, filling her and stretching her to bursting. He dropped his head and his face was hidden in her shoulder, his weight pushing down on her chest.
Suddenly, something changed. She tensed up but this was different from earlier, when she had gone rigid just before orgasm. Adam pulled back and looked in to her beautiful eyes. He froze. She just wasn’t there anymore. Her eyes had a distant, vacant look and he felt genuine fear move through his body.
“Katie? You OK?”
She didn’t answer. Her eyes closed now and she started shaking.
“Hey, baby? You with me?”
Katie heard him from a distance. His voice sounded like he was talking to her from the bottom of a deep well.
Adam took her face in his hands. “Katie? Say my name. Say you know who I am.”
She shook her head, starting to breathe too fast.
“Say my name, baby.”
With a great effort, she tried to focus. She whispered, “Adam.”
“Again.”
“Adam.”
“That’s right. I’m here with you. That’s me inside you. It’s me.”
She nodded.
“Open your eyes. Look at me.”
Katie opened her eyes and saw Adam’s pale face. She blinked.
“I’m going to pull out now…”
“No,” she said. “No, wait.”
“I can’t, Katie. I can’t scare you like this. You’re not ready, sweetheart.”
It damn near killed him to do it, but he pulled out of her hot, sweet body. Her eyes filled with tears and she broke in to sobs.
“I’m sorry, Adam. I’m so sorry…” She shut her eyes, tried to turn away from him.
“No. Hey, no.” He rolled off her and on to his back, pulling her with him. “Stay with me, OK? Don’t go away again.”
“Oh, God. Why won’t he just get out of my head? Why won’t he leave me alone? All I want is for it to stop…”
“You have to let it take time, Katie. You can’t rush this, just because you want to.”
She cried, her head buried in his chest and he held her, cursing himself for doing this to her. He should have waited, he should have insisted. Rage at his own selfishness rose in his chest.
You asshole. You fucking dickhead asshole. You can’t rush this, just because you want to.
Katie wept, berating herself the whole time. She couldn’t believe how stupid she felt. She was the one who initiated the whole fucking thing, she bought the condoms, she pushed when Adam hesitated. And then she stopped almost as soon as Adam was inside her.
He is going to hate you for this, and you can’t even blame him.
“I’m sorry, Adam.” She raised her head, tears still streaming. “Are you angry at me?”
She was shocked when his eyes met hers. Is he – crying? She reached up and her fingers came away wet.
“Adam?”
He blinked hard as his eyes welled up. He felt like an idiot, but he couldn’t help it: he was just so overcome by shame and self-loathing. And here she was worried about him being angry at her; here she was apologizing to him.
“Katie, do not apologize even one more time. You hear me? This is not your fault. None of it.”
“Well, it’s not yours, either,” she said.
He was silent.
“It’s not, Adam.” She sat up. “It’s his. Just his and all his. He did this to me.”
He nodded reluctantly. “Yeah. Yeah, I know. But –”
“No ‘but’. I wanted this as much as you did. I thought I was ready. I – I liked it, up to a point.”
He took a deep breath. “OK. Come here.”
She lay down again and he held her. She listened to his heartbeat slow down and he felt her relax against him again. He stroked her hair.
“Do you know what happened to make you panic?” he asked softly. “What changed?”
“I think so.”
“Tell me.”
“It was – it was you being on top of me, I think.”
“That scares you? Someone being on top of you?”
“Not usually. But – you’re so big. Heavy. I couldn’t really move, and I couldn’t see your face all of a sudden, and I started to have trouble breathing when your chest pushed down on me. I just – I felt so small and overwhelmed.” She was quiet for a second. “Like a child.”
He swore under his breath. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. Never again.”
“I’d be OK in a different position,” she said. “I just need to be more in control. And I need to see that it’s you.”
He shook his head. “Not for a while, OK? We take a few steps back.”
“Really?” She looked at him. “You still want to – to be with me? Even after all of this?”
“Yeah, of course I do. But I mean, what’s the big rush, right?” He ran his fingers over her back. “A lot of intense stuff has happened in a very short time between us, I know. But I’m not going anywhere. Are you going somewhere?”
“Um. No.”
“Exactly. So, we go back to Denver and we date. Go for dinner and watch movies on the sofa and have Sunday morning coffee at my place. We let your leg heal up properly. And when it does, you can climb on top of me like you did last night.” His eyes glittered. “You can do all the work, and I’ll just lie there and watch.”
She laughed. “OK, deal.”
He kissed her. “Deal.”
Chapter Nine
Three weeks later
Mia opened a second bottle of wine and went back in to her bright, open living room. All the girls held their glasses up to be refilled and she made the rounds.
“So,” she said, sitting back down in her favourite armchair. “What do we drink to this time?”
“I know!” Reena said. “To Katie wearing pink!”
They all looked over at Katie and she blushed. “Shut up.”
“To Katie wearing pink,” Maggie agreed. “You look great, by the way. Who’d have ever thought it?”
“You do,” Mia said. “You know that, right?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I do, actually.” Katie raised her glass. “So – to me wearing pink.”
They all drank and grinned at her.
“When did you buy a pink shirt, anyway?” Maggie said.
“I didn’t. Adam did.”
“Did he?” Mia said.
“Yeah. He said it brought out my – my rosebud lips and the color on my perfect cheekbones.” She blushed some more and took a sip of wine.
They all studied her, wanting to ask more about Adam but a bit worri
ed to push too much. Katie was happy, though, that much was clear and according to Nick, Adam was too.
“He’s a nice guy,” Reena said. “You – you aren’t scared of being with, right?”
“No.” Katie shook her head. “He’s amazing. Patient and gentle. I feel good with him.”
“No more panic attacks? No more nightmares?” Mia asked softly.
“No.”
They nodded.
Katie glanced at her watch and stood up. “Actually, guys, I have to get going. I have to be up early tomorrow.”
“Why?” Maggie said. “It’s a holiday Friday. Nothing’s open.”
Katie put on her coat and belted the waist. “I have to meet Adam at the gym tomorrow. It’s closed, so it’s a good time to take some new photos.” She put on her hat. “I want to work with the early morning sunlight.”
“Ha!” Reena exclaimed. “So you are going to take pictures in better light! It’s like you’re saying he was right for all those months.”
Katie paused. “Yeah, he was right that they were too dark. But he wasn’t right about the light.”
“It wasn’t the light that was the problem?” Mia asked, perplexed.
Katie opened the door. “Nope.” She winked. “It wasn’t the light at all. Goodnight.”
They all looked at each other.
“Any idea what she was talking about?” Maggie said.
Reena and Mia shrugged.
“No,” Mia said. “Not a clue.”
**
The next morning at just before eight o’clock, Adam pulled up to The Rock Fighting Club. Katie was already there, he saw, and he hurried to unlock the door.
“Hey,” he said. “You’re early.”
“Yeah.” She smiled up at him, her eyes glowing. “So are you.”
He opened the door and ushered her in to the warmth. Once they were inside, he turned and kissed her.
“Good morning,” he said against her mouth.
“Good morning.”
They stared at each other, loving the heat they saw there. For the previous three weeks, they had spent almost every night together, sometimes at Adam’s place, sometimes at Katie’s. They had done pretty much everything it was possible to do… except full-on sex. They took their time, exploring each other’s bodies, finding out what they liked. They also discovered what made Katie tense or nervous: Adam had become an expert on what to avoid for fear of triggering her, and he knew the warning signs of an approaching panic attack. As time passed, though, she relaxed more and panicked less. She hadn’t had an attack or nightmare in almost two weeks.
“OK,” Adam said. “Where do you want me?”
She blinked. He grinned at her.
“For the pictures,” he clarified.
“Oh, right.” She pulled herself together. “Over here.”
She led him past the reception desk and in to the open training area, past the normally-bustling boxing ring and sparring mats, past the equipment and weights. She stopped at the window and peeled off her coat. He got undressed and stood there in just his loose red pants, his amazing chest bare. She licked her lips and tried to focus.
“What do I do?” he asked.
“Just move,” she said and raised the camera. “I’ll direct you in a few minutes.”
“OK.”
She snapped again and again, looking at him through the lens, admiring his strength and fluidity of movement. After about ten minutes, she stopped.
“OK,” she said. “Now over here.”
They went over to the pull-up bar near the exposed brick wall and she pointed at it. “Turn your back to me and pull yourself up and down a few times. Slowly, OK?”
“Sure.” He reached up with his massive arms and lifted himself. He chinned the bar, lowered his frame down. Up again, down again. And again.
She felt her body heating up as she took the pictures, watching his muscles slide under his smooth skin. A sheen of sweat made him glow and glisten and she longed to run her tongue over him. His tattoos rippled and his ass was perfect in those pants. He made it look so easy; it was obvious that his upper body strength was more than enough to lift his two-hundred-thirty-pound frame with no effort at all.
“That’s good,” she said. Her voice was constricted.
He heard it and he dropped down on to his bare feet and turned around. “You OK?”
“Yeah.”
He came closer and she gasped as her lower lips pulsed.
“Katie?”
“Adam…”
He saw her desire and his own flared right away. He reached for her and she fell in to his arms, pressing herself against that broad chest. He lowered his face to hers and kissed her, hard. She responded immediately, opening her mouth against his, inviting his tongue.
Their hands were everywhere, tugging at Katie’s clothes, pulling everything down and off. In less than a minute, they were both naked, straining against each other.
Adam lifted her high in to the air. “Hold on to the bar, baby.”
Startled, she reached up and grasped the metal, her back against the wall. He stepped right under her, wrapped her legs around his neck and shoulders. His hands gripped her rounded ass and pulled her pussy right up against his mouth. She gasped and arched her back.
Adam felt her incredible need. “I’m not going to make you wait, sweetheart.”
“Please,” she whispered. “Please.”
With a groan, he put his mouth on her clit and sucked, pulled, nipped at it. His tongue stroked her lips, up and down, lapping her juices greedily, loving the taste of her arousal. He buried his face between her thighs, wanting to stay between her slick, warm folds forever.
Katie held on to the bar for dear life, her whole body shaking helplessly as Adam plunged his tongue inside her again and again. He wasn’t slow or controlled at all, and she responded to his passion. In a matter of seconds, she felt every nerve in her body tingling and jumping and her pussy started pulsating against his lips.
Adam felt her orgasm begin and he pressed her bud between her lips in the way that she liked, gently mouthing kisses on it as it swelled and expanded. She cried out then, and he knew the wave was washing over her. He waited a heartbeat, then two, and when her thighs clenched around his head, he took her whole clit in to his mouth and sucked.
Katie screamed as her climax ripped through her. She clutched the bar over her head and just rode the force of the orgasm as it went on and on. His mouth was perfect and all she could feel was Adam under her, in her, on her. As the spasms slowed down and she gave a low moan, he moved his hands to her back, supporting her body as she sagged on to the wall, her strength gone.
“Easy, baby,” he said. “I’ve got you.”
Katie dropped her arms and legs and slid down in to his waiting arms. He lowered her gently to the floor then held her close, stroking her hair as she panted his name. Her legs trembled beneath her and he smiled.
“Maybe you need to lie down?” he said.
She nodded.
He pulled her down to the training mat and she stretched her whole body against his, loving his hardness against her soft curves. She took a deep breath.
“Adam, that was amazing…”
“Yeah?”
“Oh, yeah.” She raised her head. “I want more.”
He raised his eyebrows. “You want to go back up there? Because I have no problem with that whatsoever.”
“No.” She rolled over and reached for her purse. “I want more.”
Adam stared at the box of condoms in her hand. Her leg was absolutely fine and they had talked about taking the next step. He knew her body much better now and he knew what to avoid doing, but he hadn’t forgotten that blank, empty look in her eyes.
“Are you sure, Katie? Really sure?”
“Completely.”
“OK,” he said. “But you’re in control.”
He put on the condom and then laid down on his back, his hands at his side, palms flat on the floor. She looked d
own at him and she smiled.
“I can do whatever I want to you?” she said.
His breath caught. “Yep.”
“Huh.” She ran her hand over his chest, blazing a trail of fire down his body. She skimmed over his stomach and around his cock. “I can do that?”
“Uh-huh.”
She kissed him now, her lips and tongue following the path her hand had just taken. When she nipped his inner thigh gently, he gasped. His whole body tightened up and she grinned at him, her dark eyes sparkling.
Katie crawled on top of his massive frame and he forced himself to keep his hands on the mat. She straddled him, her hot pussy slick on his skin and she slowly moved down his body. He closed his eyes as she took him in her hand and started to run the tip of his cock against her sex.
“Can I do this?”
He nodded.
She inserted him just inside her entrance. “This?”
“Oh, God. Yes.”
Katie rose up on her knees and started to lower herself on him, one agonizing inch at a time. He couldn’t stop himself from touching her now, and his hands came up to clutch her thighs. She smiled down at him and paused.
“More?” she said.
“Yes.” His voice was guttural. “More. Baby, everything.”
She leaned forward, her hands braced on his chest, and in one quick movement, she slid down the length of his cock, taking him inside her fully. He cried out and his hips involuntarily bucked beneath her, driving deep inside her, lifting Katie’s body off the ground. She gave a small scream.
“Oh, God, Katie. I’m sorry.” He took a deep breath. “I didn’t mean to do that.”
“I liked it,” she said. “No, I loved it. Do it again.”
He began to move inside of her, working his way in and out, building a rhythm that they both liked. She rolled her hips, meeting his thrusts, her head thrown back and her breath coming faster. He watched her face as her pleasure rose, and he fought to hold back his orgasm until she came again.
With every stroke, he pushed deeper in to her, the heat and tightness making him want more. She gave a cry, then another, and he knew he had found that sweet place inside of her body, the one that made her tense up in the best way possible. Sure enough, her body clenched and released around him, her pussy walls rippling and flickering. He reached up and pulled her to his mouth for a kiss.
Fighting Strong Page 9
