Out of the Ashes (Marked as His Book 1)

by Rossi, Monica

  “Ma didn’t find us until I was around thirteen, and the others were a little younger. All of us were runaways, who were staying together, just trying to keep a roof over our heads and food in our stomachs. She took us in and did the best she could, but we still never had a lot. If it hadn’t been for her none of us would have even finished high school, much less Dex being able to go to college, because the life we were living… let’s just say that education wasn’t our first or even last priority.”

  He took a sip of the wine the waiter had brought them and looked reflective, “I guess I could have worked harder, gotten a scholarship or something, pulled myself up by my bootstraps as they say,” he gave her a rueful grin, “but by the time we’d figured out how to survive as a family, it was already too late for me to catch up. I just barely graduated high school.”

  Dax wasn’t meeting her eyes, it was her turn to reach out and cover his hand. She didn’t care about his grades in high school, “Why did you run away from home?” She asked before she realized it was out of her mouth, “I’m sorry, you don’t have to answer anything you don’t want to.”

  “No, it’s ok,” he smiled up at her, “I was in foster care. My parents, my real parents, were tweakers, druggies, so the court took away their rights. I got moved around a lot, even as a little kid but especially as I got older. Some homes were ok, some were awful, but none of them were mine.” He shrugged, “I just didn’t feel tied to any one place so if I didn’t particularly feel like staying, I didn’t. Then I found Joker, and I wanted to get him out of the situation he was in, so I just never went back. And that’s the way we became the Brady Bunch.” He smiled, trying to the lighten the mood with a joke.

  Thousands of questions crowded Fern’s mind. How had he supported them, what situation was Joker in, didn’t anyone ever look for him, how is it possible that everyone that met him didn’t instantly fall in love with him? But she kept her mouth closed, he’d tell her more when he felt like it. She’d always felt like something was missing from her childhood. Like maybe if she’d only been loved a little more and given a little less it would have made all the difference. Maybe then she wouldn’t have fallen into the arms of a sociopath. But hearing about how he’d lived made her grateful for the emotionally cold environment she’d had. At least she’d been safe, at least she hadn’t had to worry about her next meal.

  “What about you? Is your past deep and dark like mine?”

  Fern froze, she should have known this was going to happen, and been prepared for it, but the question about her past totally took her by surprise.

  “N – no,” she stuttered, “Of course not. Everything was pretty normal. You know.”

  He nodded, “It’s ok, we don’t have to talk about your past if you don’t want to.”

  Fern grimaced, was she that obvious, “It’s not that I don’t want to, I just… can’t”

  “That’s fine too. Here comes the waiter, have you figured out what you want?”

  The truth was she hadn’t even looked at the menu. The waiter had come just in the nick of time.

  The rest of the meal went wonderfully. They laughed over the small portions of artfully arranged food with strategic splashes of sauce, and though it was only pretending to be a fancy restaurant, it was certainly delicious. And every time Dax flashed that smile at her it seemed to hit her like a dart sending waves in two different places, one going up to her heart and one moving much lower. They ended up staying until the restaurant was about to close, talking about everything under the sun, both drinking in the sound of the other’s voice as if they’d never heard anything as sweet before.

  They walked out of the restaurant with his arm around her, hand on her hip, and she felt like she was floating on air. He had made her feel like she was the center of his world in just a few short hours.

  “I’ve had a wonderful time Dax,” she said, her voice dreamy as they strolled down the lonely side street.

  “Ready to end it so soon,” he asked.

  “No, no, not if you got plans to do something else,” she let the words linger unintentionally. She really hadn’t meant that to sound quite as suggestive as it did.

  Dax stopped where he was, pulling her close to him, “I have a few ideas,” his large warm hand trailed up to her neck where he pulled her to him, his mouth descending on to hers.

  It wasn’t her first kiss. It wasn’t even her first kiss with him. But she felt like she was drowning, in the moment, in the sensation, in him. His mouth softly caressed hers as they stood in full view of anyone who walked or drove by. She didn’t care, she was fully immersed in the sensations. It felt like so much more than a kiss, it felt like their souls were touching. When he finally pulled back they were both breathless, eyes heavy lidded with desire.

  “My place is that way,” she said, her eyes not leaving his.

  “Mine is closer,” he said, his face dipping in again for another kiss.

  ***

  The door slammed behind them and they started losing clothes before it was even completely closed. They’d practically run all the way to his apartment, laughing the whole way, and stopping every so often for another kiss or inappropriate touch.

  As soon as she tugged her shirt free she was on him again. She couldn’t help herself, he was intoxicating, with those lips that felt like silk across her own, with that olive skin and dark shaggy hair that fell in just the right way to make Fern want to grab it by the fistful. Not to mention his body.

  He’d tugged his own shirt off, giving her full view of that taunt chest and large muscled and tattoo covered arms. She couldn’t hold herself back, she reached out, hands playing over the planes of his stomach and chest.

  Pants and skirt were flung across the room without care in between wild kisses and caresses. But when he pushed her up against the wall, pinning her between him and the hard surface, everything slowed down.

  His eyes captured hers as he entered her slowly, each inch of him opening her wider and wider until she felt like she was ready to burst. She captured her lower lip between her teeth, trying to hold in the sounds that wanted to break free from inside her, and only managing to mute them a little.

  One hand came up to wrap around her shoulder, pushing her down, harder onto him as he worked inside her. The other hand cupped her ass, fingers digging into her flesh as he tried to restrain himself. His breathing came in jagged huffs, and hers matched his, the labor of the breaths owning to how hard it was to hold themselves back.

  Slowly, with pent up lust simmering beneath the surface, they moved together, the pressure building between them until Fern didn’t know if she could hold herself together much longer.

  And just when it seemed like it she was going to scream if he didn’t let her find release, she felt the tell-tale tensing of his body, followed by the throbbing pulse as he came, his mouth beside her ear letting out a groan that sent shivers through her. Her body responded in kind, her muscles clamping around him as her world splintered apart with him.

  Fern struggled to catch her breath, looking through a passion clouded daze at the man who had just blown her mind.

  “I could get used to that,” she said in huffs as he carried her across the room and let her go sprawling, limp limbed on the couch.

  “Mmmm,” he responded, falling down beside her and letting his arms flop over his head.

  She rolled over towards him and ran a hand through his thoroughly mussed hair. Amazingly, she felt the tendrils of lust begin to worm their way through her belly yet again and marveled that she could be so ravenous for this man.

  He opened his eyes and saw the look of pure need on her face and smiled, “Keep looking at me like that darling and we’ll both die of exhaustion before you have time to get used to anything.”

  Fern locked her door behind her and headed out of the apartment building, stopping briefly to kiss Katy again before she headed out. She knew she must seem like a clingy mom, but she was feeling the need for as much Katy time as she could ge
t after that first week of working without a break. Even with the days she’d had off and lots of time to play with her little girl, she still felt like she was missing out. It must be the long years of being a stay at home mom which had spoiled her to living the life of a working woman. Not to say she hadn’t worked during those years, but at least she’d had her baby there with her all the time. Leaving her girl was harder than she’d anticipated. But there were perks…

  She smiled as she opened the door, thinking about what those perks were. The air had a chill to it when she walked outside, it wasn’t quite winter but even the South was beginning to feel the nip of cooler weather. She inhaled deeply, trying to get that brisk scent of fall, and started coughing. She looked at the ground and sure enough there was another pile of cigarettes by the door. Someone in the building must have let a smoker come stay with them or was dating a smoker because for the past week or so every day she’d gone outside and the stench of cigarettes lingered in the air.

  Oh well, let the smoker’s smoke, it didn’t matter much to her. Not when her mind was completely occupied with how happy she was. Who would have thought the attention of one man could have made her so mind numbingly blissful. She caught herself smiling when she did her chores, when she was supposed to be watching a movie, and obviously when she was walking to work.

  Fern wasn’t sure she’d ever felt like this. Even with Timothy, when she’d thought she’d been in love, she’d never felt like this.

  Her stomach flipped when she thought of him kissing her, it flipped when he actually kissed her, it flipped when he said her name, or even when he smiled at her. Something about him just pulled at something deep inside her.

  She wasn’t going to say it was love. Not this soon, she shook her head, maybe never. She might never be able to commit that fully to someone again. But it was something, something real that she could feel flowing through every part of her being. It made her want to skip and sing and jump his bones as soon as she saw him.

  She laughed out loud at the thought and didn’t care if the people walking by her on the street thought she was crazy. She’d have to wait until they closed the shop, but jumping his bones was definitely a thing she could do.

  Her pace quickened as she hurried to work.

  ***

  “So, when are you going to let me start on that Phoenix tattoo?” he stroked her back as she lay naked across the red leather chair in his studio.

  “Hmmmm?” she mumbled sleepily as his hands played over her back. She’d heard him but hadn’t really thought too much more about getting the tattoo done, what with starting a new job, and a new relationship. It was a lot of changes to take in all at once. She still wanted his artwork spreading its wings gracefully across her back, but she knew how much they charged now, and she knew she couldn’t afford it, even with the new job.

  And the new job paid much better than she’d expected. She hadn’t discussed her pay with him before she started and then she’d hesitated to bring it up because, well, beggars can’t be choosers. But after her first week there he’d handed her an envelope with much more cash than she’d been anticipating in it. She’d tried to protest but he’d insisted that it was a fair wage and he wasn’t going to short change her.

  The money had been a godsend, it meant she could put a little back into her emergency slash moving fund and still have enough to keep her little family above water. Coffee and chocolate were finally back on the menu and she could breathe a little easier when an unexpected expense came up, all without the stress of knowing she was eating away at the only thing that was going to provide her an escape plan.

  But the money hadn’t been the only thing that had been a relief since she’d started working there. She hadn’t known how badly she’d needed to be touched without being afraid. Without wondering if the next caress was going to actually turn into a slap across the face or a blow to the ribs. Being able to relax and actually enjoy the experience of being touched was something she hadn’t felt in a long, long time.

  And a touch like Dax’s wasn’t something she’d ever experienced. She’d been greedy with him too and she hoped it hadn’t affected the way he thought of her, but she just wasn’t able to tell herself no when it came to him.

  Every night after work they’d found themselves like this, naked and panting in his studio, desperate to consume each other after a long day of need.

  The workdays with him had been sweet torture. With him being so close and yet being unable to rip his clothes off every time she saw him. Some days they barely made it until Joker walked out before their hands began roaming and their mouths found each other after what seemed a lifetime apart.

  “You heard me,” he said playfully smacking her naked backside with a laugh. “I’ve never seen a tattoo that fit its canvas more than that one fits you. I’ve been dying to get started on it ever since I got it down on paper.”

  Fern snapped out of the sweet reverie she’d been having about the previous work week, “Dax, I love it, I really do and I want to get it done, but can I be honest with you for a minute?” She rolled over on one elbow so she could look into his swirling hazel eyes.

  “Of course,” he replied, hand now caressing the flesh he’d just smacked. “You can always be honest with me, no matter what it’s about.”

  “I don’t have the money for a tattoo that size,” she said regretfully, “Hell, from this shop, I don’t have the money for a tattoo half that size.” And it was the truth. Now that she worked there, she knew these guys were artists and they commanded a higher fee than your run of the mill shop. And they were worth it.

  Booked for months in advance by people who came from hundreds of miles away, they could probably charge even more than they already did and they’d still be worth it.

  He didn’t immediately respond, just continued kneading her flesh and Fern was lulled into laying back down again. How could she stay tense with this man’s hands on her? Hot, excited, completely wet, yes. Tense, no.

  “How about we work out a deal,” he asked, his hands slipping down to the flesh of her inner thigh.

  “Oh, and what kind of deal are you talking about?” she asked playfully batting her eyes at him, thinking he was going to ask for some kind of sexual favor, which she’d be more than happy to oblige him with. More than happy.

  “How about modeling like we talked about before,” he said and the sudden panic jumped back into her throat so quickly she thought she might vomit. It must have been apparent on her face because he quickly added, “Just your back, we’d have your face shrouded in darkness with just your back illuminated. Like you were a canvas on display at an art studio.”

  The panic subsided somewhat. As promotional art went, that sounded like a superb idea. But the idea of it being her back was still a little off putting.

  “Your skin is so flawless, I couldn’t ask for a better canvas to work with, and if you’re the one doing it that means I don’t have to take the shirts off dozens, if not hundreds of other women looking for someone nearly as perfect as you.”

  Fern opened her mouth to tell him that she wasn’t the jealous type. Even as a teenager she’d believed that cheating had more to do with a man’s character than with anything she or any other woman did and she did still believe it, but the thought of those skilled hands lifting the shirt off of another woman the way he took hers off… Sometimes slow and gentle, sometimes all at once when the passion was too much… well, she didn’t like the idea of it very much.

  She realized her mouth was open, as if she were about to say something and she closed it. She wasn’t going to rush into this. She had to think about it, about the repercussions. Sure her face wouldn’t be showing, but her silhouette would. Her back would. Would those things be enough for Tim or any one of his friends to identify her with? Or would he not even pay attention? A billboard with a half-naked tattooed girl on it couldn’t relate to the person he thought she was, it couldn’t. No, that would be the last place he’d expect to see her. And if
he wasn’t looking for it he’d probably never notice it.

  Still, she wanted to mull it over. “Let me think about it.” She said, his hand had begun to tease her while she’d been thinking and it was all she could do to keep her thoughts coherent.

  “What is there to think about? It’s a great deal for both of us. You get the tattoo you wanted, which I must say, I worked hard on designing, and I get some promotional material for the shop.”

  His fingers dipped inside her and she groaned as he began moving in a rhythm that felt older than time.

  “Say yes,” he whispered, leaning in close to her so his breath brushed the back of her ear. Her mouth opened but nothing came out, only a panting breath.

  Then his hand began again, slipping his fingers out of her and up her slit, to the tender nub that was begging for attention. He circled it slowly, causing Fern to lose all ability to reason, a tremor of pleasure working through her limbs.

  “Say yes,” he whispered again, increasing the sped of his motion as the pressure built inside her.

  She wasn’t sure she could speak if she wanted to she was lost in the moment, in the sensations that were mounting inside her. She griped the leather seat and spread her legs, rocking against his hand, reaching for that moment when the entire world would explode.

  She heard him growl behind her and he moved his hands to her hips. Fern felt like crying out at the loss. She’d been so close… but the feeling was fleeting as he grabbed her hips and maneuvered her around roughly to a better angle, his large hard cock entering her almost at the same time.

  She cried out with the unexpected fullness, and pushed back against him, wanting all of him.

  He ran a hand up her back, grabbing her hair as he rammed into her again and again, stroking the internal combustion inside her higher and higher until finally she shattered under him, mouth open wide in an almost silent scream, hands white knuckled as she gripped the chair.