I reached out, and he stepped into my arms, caging me against the sink. His head ducked down, and I struggled to talk as I felt his lips on my neck. “What about the coffin thing? That might be kind of hot.”
James reared back to look at me. “I don’t sleep in a damn coffin. I sleep in a bed, with very expensive silk sheets that I’d gladly push your face into while you scream my name.”
I tried not to let on exactly how much that got my heart racing. “I’m going to hold you to that.”
“Not if I hold you down first,” he growled.
I didn’t come up with a witty retort before his lips were on mine. I let out a surprised noise, my hands fisting his jacket and pulling him closer. He pinned me to the countertop with his hips, grinding against me while his lips moved; first along my cheek, then my jaw, and finally, my neck. I tipped my head back to give him more access, willing my legs to keep me standing as he latched on. He marked me, his mouth pulling more and more blood to the spot. I arched into him, opening my mouth to beg for more when I felt a different sensation, something I’d never felt before. Like two sharp, tiny blades scraping my skin.
“Fuck, are those…” He didn’t need to answer me. I knew what they were.
Fangs.
“I can put them away if they freak you out.” He licked his lips. As his tongue retreated into his mouth, I saw the tips of his fangs protruding over his bottom lip. “It might take a moment, but I can make them go away.”
I shook my head. “Don’t.” Before he could protest, my mouth was on his again. His fangs pinched my bottom lip.
Despite melting into each other, he wasn’t close enough for me. I twisted my fingers into that silver chain and pulled hard. James grunted, hips canting forward into mine.
I let out a throaty chuckle. “You like being jerked around, don’t you?” I emphasized the words with another sharp tug on his chain.
His response was breathless. “I like that you take what you want.” He cupped my ass in his hands. Then he growled, tearing his hands away from me. They went to the clasp on the chain.
I planted a hand on his chest to make him pause. “This isn’t going to be a ‘Girl with the Green Ribbon’ situation, right? Your head isn’t about to fall off?”
“No, smartass,” James said with a smile as he removed the chain from his neck. He gathered it up and put it in his pocket.
Then it hit me: the chain was silver. “I thought silver burned vampires.”
“High purity will. I can still move quickly, and adjust my temperature, but this chain contains the right amount of silver to make sure I don’t get out of control. It helps keep my powers in check when my control slips. Like when I’m around you.”
A smile crept onto my face. “What can you do now that it’s off?”
He lifted me off the ground and onto the counter so fast that my head spun. “Whoa!”
James pressed a delicate kiss to the base of my throat, hands gripping my hips so hard I worried they’d bruise. “Put that smart mouth of yours to use and tell me what you want.”
Chapter 18
I let my head fall,exposing more of my neck. “Take me. Right here, right now.”
He laughed, his chest rumbling against my belly. “What’s the matter, love?” he teased. His hand ducked between my legs, giving my cock a firm—yet not firm enough—squeeze. His thumb grazed over my tip, where I was already soaking through the cotton. “Can’t make it to the bedroom?”
“Fuck, no,” I admitted. My eyes fluttered shut. Grateful to be sitting, I wrapped my arm around him to keep us plastered together as he worked me through the fabric. My hips thrust into his hand, desperate for more friction. I tried to speak, but words were useless with the way his fingers teased my shaft. Even through the layer of fabric, I was close to losing it.
James stepped back, pulling me off the counter and holding me until I was steady. I unzipped his jacket, pushing it off his shoulders. His hands curled around the hem of his shirt, and it followed the jacket.
I stopped him when he moved to remove his belt. “That’s mine.”
He held his hands up in surrender and I went for his buckle. With less finesse than I would’ve liked thanks to my eager hands, I managed to work it loose, popping the button and lowering his zipper. I spread the fabric apart, earning a moan from James as I finally took that beautiful bulge of his in hand. He gripped onto my waist, stepping in close.
I pressed my mouth against his. My free hand pushed his jeans farther down his legs. I don’t know why I bothered; at the first sign of struggle, James whipped them off faster than I could’ve imagined.
We stood before each other, only two thin layers of fabric separating us. I was forced to move my hand as he pinned me against the counter with his hips, our hard lengths grinding together. I moaned into his mouth, then tilted my head to push my tongue into his mouth, the sound coming from me becoming more guttural when his fangs grazed against my tongue.
I broke the kiss, turning around and pushing back into him as I braced myself on the granite countertop. “This okay?” I asked.
“Perfection,” he whispered, rolling his hips over mine.
