He was close, and she coaxed his climax to completion with measured long pulls of her mouth. And then, finally, his body went rigid. He wrapped her hair around his wrist, holding her face against his groin, as the aftershocks of his orgasm shot through him.
She licked and sucked, swallowing every last drop, until his cock slipped from her lips. She watched him struggle to regain the smoothness of his breath.
“Goddamn, I’ve never…” He released her hair, letting it fall against her back.
Yeah, she knew the rest of that line.
Lead singer, rock-star extraordinaire, used to bringing groupies in by the dozen, he’d probably been sucked off by more women than he could remember, and none could hold a candle to her skills. Those bimbos hadn’t been trained from the age of twelve or been forced to practice day and night to perfect their skills.
Her cheeks turned hot and not from the steam. As she was camouflaged by the water, Ash had no idea she was in the midst of breaking down. She might have overcome adversity and risen to a profession of respect, but she had not outgrown the ghosts of her past.
The fates had to be laughing now. She was married by mistake to a rock star who’d fucked scores, if not hundreds of groupies.Wasn’t it ironic that he’d married a true whore, and how would she explain that to the in-laws? A minister and his grade-school teacher wife?
Her cheeks blazed with shame.
“Skye?” Ash lowered to his knees and clasped her within his embrace.
She let her hair hang forward, desperate to hide her emotion. “Yes?”
“Why won’t you let me do that for you?”
“I told you why.”Hadn’t he been listening?
“You told me you were forced to…to do things, but I want to make new memories to replace the bad ones. Don’t you think we should at least try?”
Best to lay it right out here.He obviously didn’t understand.
“There was more to it than simple abuse.” So much more.
She took in a deep breath, but he cut her off.
He leaned his forehead against hers. “I love you.”
She melted into his embrace. His touch did that to her, encapsulated her in a shroud of protection where she could envision herself safe. But her mind remembered, even as her heart struggled to love.
Ash came from a family who believed in true love. He was a man running from fame and the cheap groupie hook-ups that came with it. As much as he rebelled against his stereotypical roots, he craved to return to them. A woman with her past didn’t fit into a minister’s family full of picket fences, picnics, and never-ending hugs.
“I don’t need to be saved,” she said.
He cupped her chin and forced her to look at him. “I’m not here to save you, but I will. I love you, and that’s something you can’t run away from.” His eyes pinched, as if trying to convey something he thought she wouldn’t understand.
And the irony was, he was probably right. She didn’t understand him at all.
“Then, what does it matter?” She pulled his hand away from her chin. “I like making you feel good. Why can’t that be enough?”
He rocked her under the flow of water streaming over their bodies.
“Someday, I’m going to show you why it isn’t enough.” He kissed the top of her head. “For now, I won’t push, but I need you to allow me to touch you.”
She cringed.How had they circled back around to that?“Ash…”
“We’ll start slow, like the massage. I’ll stop when you tell me to.”
So much hope was held in his voice; she didn’t want to crush him out of hand.
“You’re not going to give up, are you?”
He shook his head. “Never.”
