And now she’s taking her time, so I can be a part of this because shewantsme to be.
She places both hands on my shoulders from behind, waiting for me to relax. When I do, she runs them down my pecs and abs—moving her hands apart when she hits the tops of my jeans, lightly scraping her nails up my sides over my ribs.
“Fuck,” I grit out.
“How does that feel?” she whispers in my ear, and I want to crush my lips against hers.
“It feels good,” I rasp. I forgot what a feminine hand felt like.
She rubs all over me above my waist, and all I can feel is her. No bad thoughts creeping up to take this from me.
I feel her soft lips press against mine, and it’s like a dam burst. I crush her mouth to mine like I’ve wanted since the last night I kissed her, the night she came out of the fucking water naked like a siren, drawing me to my death. I can’t bring myself to reach out and touch her, but her mouth moving against mine is all I need right now. I need it like I need air. I gently massage her tongue with mine, making her moan into my mouth. She places her hands on my shoulders, and I don’t feel the panic, the overwhelming urge to bolt.
The kiss goes on, and neither of us gets tired of it. I feel her straddle my legs, sitting her ass on my knees, not pressing too much touch onto me. She runs her hands around my neck, running her fingers through the short strands of hair at the base of my skull. I finally reach out and place my hand flush against the skin on her thigh, thankful she changed into shorts, reveling in the feel of her soft skin.
“You’re a dead motherfucker,” he says as he slashes my back again.
NO! I’m not there. Vanilla. Alessa. She’s kissing me. I’m okay.
I move my hand higher up her thigh. Her lips still fused with mine.
“You aren’t such a fucking badass without your buddies,” he laughs cruelly as he cuts my back.
Shit!
“I want you to give a message to daddy Poletti.”
Vanilla.
“That fine piece of ass he calls a daughter,” he groans in a vulgar way. “What I would have given to be there when they nabbed that girl.”
Alessa.
“You bleed pretty, bitch boy,” he laughs cruelly again, another one landing a solid punch to my gut.
Fuck!
“Tell Poletti this isn’t over.”
I can feel my mind start to take me back there. I keep repeating over and over in my head what she told me, but it’s getting harder. I can feel the panic clawing up my throat, cutting off my air supply.
Shit! Fuck!
“Peaches!” I say as I jerk my mouth away.
Her touch instantly disappears, and she rips the blindfold from my eyes. It takes me a minute to get my breathing under control, my heart pounding out of my chest. When my eyes finally focus on the present, she’s standing in front of me with a soft smile.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper, pissed at myself. I had herrightthere in my arms and fucked it up.
She smiles again. “You have nothing to be sorry for. This isn’t over.”
I stand up, knocking the chair to the floor. “Why do you want me?! I’m a fucking wreck, Baby girl.”
She shakes her head. “No. You went through some horrible shit. We all have.”
“But you guys fucking deal with it, not hide from it.”
Her face never changes, she never loses that softness in her eyes, and I want to kick my ass. “I kill people to deal with mine. Ryder fights anything that gets in his way. Holden hides in an office all day. Gage covers his up with humor.” She bends down and hands me my shirt. “We just hide it in different ways.”
