She let herself cry, her body shaking, her tears wetting his chest. “I was so scared,” she hiccupped.
“I know. It was scary.” His big hand rubbed down her back and up, providing comfort. “You’re safe now.”
But did he deal with this kind of thing all the time? The idea terrified her. At some point a bullet would hit him. Was this why he’d left her? Because he knew there was a bullet with his name on it out there somewhere? “You need to find a different line of work, Denver,” she muttered, sniffing and lifting her head.
His blue gaze lasered through the darkness. “I can’t argue with that one, darlin’. I’m hoping to change, but I have two missions to complete first.”
One was the baby. The other one dealt with Dr. Madison, whoever she was. “Then what?”
He paused, his mouth close to her forehead. “I don’t know. The plan only goes that far.”
It was like a fist to the chest. He didn’t think he’d survive the second mission. She hiccupped again. “We never really had a chance, did we?”
He studied her, his dark gaze a sharp caress. Regret twisted his lip.
There wasn’t an answer to give, and she knew it. But she needed him to say something. Anything. “Denver?”
He lowered his head and brushed her mouth with his. Desire ripped through her, shocking in its intensity after the night she’d had. She breathed out but didn’t move back.
A sound rumbled up from his chest that seemed male and tortured. Leaning in even more, he took her mouth.
Hard.
CHAPTER
10
Noni hadn’t backed away. He’d wanted to ease her fears, to calm her down, so he’d just touched his lips to hers. And she hadn’t backed away. She hadn’t moved, holding her breath, just like she had a year ago. The glimmer in her eyes was the same now as it had been then, intrigued and wary. It took him right back in time to the one moment he’d been truly happy.
If he hadn’t been exhausted, if he hadn’t been furious at the attack, he would’ve listened to the inner voice that told him to roll over and go to sleep.
But need and awareness bombarded him, and he reacted to the soft touch of her skin. To her scent, even now tempting him beneath the coconut smell of the borrowed shampoo. God, he’d missed her. He’d used a bottle of booze to mask his pain, and it had only dulled it. Living without her, believing he’d never see her again, had been like a physical ache that would never leave.
Yet here she was. Right here and right now.
So he swooped in and kissed her like he’d wanted to for the past day. Hard and fast and demanding. He took, and then he took more. She stiffened and then the tautness deserted her as she softened against him, submitting to his mouth.
It had been that way before. The quiet sound of submission as she let him take, as she started kissing him back, demand on her tongue. Pure sweetness in her taste. The world burned hotter, and desperation tried to claw through him.
But he controlled himself, thinking only of her. He gentled his kiss, giving pleasure. He remembered what she liked, what made her moan. This had to be about her.
He licked along her lips and kissed down her neck, rolling her onto her back. He could take her out of her head and give her some peace, release the tension all but choking them. But this was for her pleasure. She was in shock, she was scared, and he couldn’t take advantage of that. He could give her relief, though, which would give him some.
Being with her again was better than he’d dreamed. He didn’t deserve another chance; he knew that. But touching her felt right. For the first time since he’d left her, he felt whole again.
His hands pushed up the camisole, and he palmed her breasts.
She arched against him, crying out.
He gently squeezed. Touching her again filled something inside him he hadn’t realized had been stone-cold empty. “Noni, you remember me, and you remember this.” He lightly tweaked her pretty nipples.
She pushed harder into him and threw her head back on the pillow, pure bliss in her sigh. Yeah, she liked a little bite with her pleasure. He loved that about her. And it worked well, because he couldn’t let her tear out her stitches.
“You don’t get to move, baby. Move, and I stop.” He settled on top of her, forcing her thighs apart. Then he rolled her nipples, and she caught her breath. Good. He had her attention. “Tell me you understand.”
“I understand,” she breathed, her body relaxing against the bed. “The stitches are fine, Denver.”
How well she knew him. He pushed the material up to her neck, baring her. “This isn’t about the stitches.” Then he took one nipple into his mouth. She tasted so damn good. Sweet and salty with a hint of coconut. Better than his fantasies for the past few months. He sucked hard, and she writhed against him.
