I was right about the mattress, though. The moment I settled onto my side, my back facing Price’s front, I let out a deep groan of contentment.
If anything could compare to the hugs Mom used to give, this would be it.
Muscles I hadn’t thought about in years relaxed into the memory foam. The sheets were blessedly cool, whereas Price’s intruding frame was blazing hot.
Slowly, as if he was afraid of me bolting, he wrapped an arm around my middle. He tightened his hold when I didn’t move, securing me to him.
When his breath hit my neck, I fought the urge to jolt away. Pricemust’ve felt me tense, whispering next to my ear, “Shh, it’s okay. Get used to me being here. There’s no rush. Pretend we have all the time in the world.”
My heart hammered in my chest, adrenaline surging through me and preparing my legs to run.
“Breathe with me, Pretty Boy.”
I felt him inhale deeply, felt him blow it out against my nape. I found his wrist, holding it like a lifeline as I fought the demons in my head.
“That’s it,” he encouraged.
Feeling the rumble of his chest each time he spoke both soothed me and riled me up. He was so close, holding me tight in a way that I knew I didn’t deserve.
Deep in the recesses of my brain, there was a taunting voice calling out to me. This was far from the punishment I needed to receive. I wasn’t worth it. My body was tainted.
Rotten.
Decaying.
My sins were spreading, and only the roughest hands could stop them. Only bruises could cover them up before they took me over, pulling me down into the depths of Hell, where I’d surely drown in lava.
“Do you feel me, Crew? Can you hear my breathing? Do you understand how it makes me feel having you in my arms?” Price’s voice broke through the dark cavern I was heading towards.
His heat was burning me alive, and I couldn’t get enough of it. The wrist I was holding onto moved up and down, caressing my stomach. It made my shirt move with him, the blankets rustling against bare skin.
Taking a slow, deep breath in, I shifted. I allowed myself to relax in Price’s safe hold, melding my body to his. When I’d tried to get comfortable, my ass had pressed against him. We were both wearing jeans, a thick protection against the outside world, but I could feel it.
I could feel him. The outside world and the memories of the past withered away, leaving nothing but the heavy breaths against my neck, the warm, strong tattooed arms around my body, and the undeniable erection Price was sporting.
Knowing I’d caused that reaction without doing a damn thing butlaying there had me smiling internally. A smirk spread across my lips as I erased the last bit of worry from my mind.
This, I could deal with. The lust of a man was something I was an expert in. I carefully pressed against him, biting down on my lower lip at the memory of his dick against mine. It had been freeing and electrifying in ways I’d never understood before.
His palm wrapped around my hip, holding me in place. It was gentle. I could feel his fingers fight against the knee-jerk reaction of digging further into my skin. “You with me now, Pretty Boy?” His whispered breath tickling against my neck sent chills down my spine.
“I’m here.” I ground myself against him harder, reveling in the warmth flowing through my body, my cock thickening in my underwear.
Those sinful lips of his explored the side of my neck, kissing a route only he knew the way of. I arched into him, letting his hands roam underneath my shirt as they mapped my body. Price was touching me like he was learning me. I was precious in that moment. A treasure to be found and revered for years to come.
I was precious in his hands. When he maneuvered me to my back, I let my head roll along the piles of colorful pillows that lined his headboard and justlet go.
My shirt came off first, his lips and tongue dancing together, partners in fragility and grace. I was amazed by the choreography they followed, the way my pulse leaped with each surprising, gentle nip of his teeth.
I heard his name being called as he pulled me under a spell, releasing me from the confines of the demons that shadowed me, that caged me. Just as my cock sprang free, slapping against my lower abdomen, I realized the chant was coming from me.
“Price, Price, please,” I moaned, a ghost of his tongue licking up my shaft. My hands begged him forward, clutching for his warmth against my skin.
Our lips met between my eager need to shed him of his shirt. I watched him from below, the way his eyes cataloged my face and committed it to his memory. He didn’t know I was doing the same, taking in the way his left eye had more wrinkles than the right.
Nor did he realize I was mesmerized by the symmetry of his cupid’sbow, a single drop of sweat beading there. His heat festered with my cold, mixing to create a biome of its own.
Hot and cold.
