Page 79 of Greed

My hands stilled as I locked eyes with Minetta. Her words echoed around in my head—they were the truth. I couldn’t have put who I am any more plainly than she just had, but the words cut like a knife. Seconds turned into minutes, and all I could do was stare at her beautiful face. I couldn’t imagine her with another. Just the thought made my blood sing as hot as Hellfire itself.

“And yet you are willing to sleep with me knowing what I’m like?”

She broke the stare, her eyes looking up at the ceiling, a ghost of emotion traveling over her face.

“I haven’t known much happiness since my father passed away, Riker, but what I’ve learned the last couple of days is that when I’m with you…you make me smile. You make me believe that one day there could be more for me.”

Her eyes found mine again, brimming with emotion that stopped my racing heart in its tracks.

“I don’t think about what I’m not or what I’ve lost, only how you make me feel when I’m around you. That may not make sense to you, but it’s important to me. So, if this only lasts a week or a month or just tonight, I will take it.” She gave me a small smile that spoke more of a deep sadness than happiness. “Don’t worry, Riker. I’m going into this with my eyes wide open, and I don’t expect anything from you.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat that was like jagged glass. The cracks that had already formed in my soul broke open wider, chunks of it flaking away, leaving a blinding brightness underneath that choked me with long-forgotten emotion.

“I won’t hurt you, Minetta. I will never hurt you.” Dangerous words to be spoken, yet I meant every one. The barren truth of it was as shocking as what I almost said next. Three words I never thought I’d say again.

Minetta wasn’t sure what she said, but Riker’s face had become emotionless and frozen in place. She wiggled on the cool surface, not sure if she should get up and leave or stay where she was.

“Did I say something wrong,” she asked.

Riker blinked, his eyes focusing on her once more. “No, you didn’t say anything wrong.”

He lowered his head, his lips touching hers gently, yet there was no denying the power behind the act. She sucked in her breath and wrapped her arms around his neck, unable to get close enough. Riker’s arms snaked under her body and raised her back up, lifting her into his arms.

He never broke the kiss as he walked across the room and laid her down on the oversized bed. The heat pressing into her body from his own was a physical force. Riker’s hands resumed their journey of her body but were much more controlled this time. The passion was still licking through her, but he didn’t rush as he touched her like he had been. She gasped and arched into his hold as he tweaked her nipple, his thumb and finger expertly rolling it around. The sensation sent a stab of pure pleasure to her core.

Minetta was light-headed by the time Riker broke the kiss and stood beside the bed—he looked menacing with the fading light at his back, casting shadows on his face. She trembled under the intense stare, and her body wiggled with uncertainty while craving more of his touch.

“You’re so beautiful,” Riker said. He slipped the shirt off, and it was the first time she was able to get a good look at the man beneath the suit. Like Michael’s chest, Riker’s was covered with paper-thin lines with similar runes but different from the ones she’d seen glowing on the archangel. He was not a huge hulking man, but he was muscled in all the right places. He reminded her of a swimmer or maybe a lacrosse player, with wide-cut shoulders that tapered into a well-defined V. His abs were no slouch either, she was easily able to count eight distinct dips, and she licked her lips, wanting to taste every one. “I like that look on your face. You seem to enjoy what you’re staring at.”

Riker smiled, making her blush. She could feel the heat going straight to her cheeks, and she was unable to hold his amber stare. “Do not look away, Minetta. I want you to stare. I will be the only man you look at from now on. Do you understand?”

Her eyebrow lifted in defiance of his command. “Only if I am the only woman you look at from now on.”

“Fair is fair. I agree to your terms.”

The khakis he’d been wearing pooled around his feet, and she swallowed hard as she laid eyes on the erection that was standing tall against his stomach. He hadn’t taken his boxers off, but it didn’t matter as the head of his shaft poked above the top as if trying to escape. The head was wet, with droplets of clear fluid on the end, and she followed that stream until it hit the waistband of his boxers and disappeared.

Minetta sat up, drawn to the sight of him, her tongue tingling, a pull in her gut wanting to taste him and drink him down. She’d never been into oral sex with James. In fact, she couldn’t remember a single time she’d craved to touch anyone like this.

“Ah, ah, ah.” He waggled a finger back and forth at her like she was a child being scolded. “Lay down, my little bird.”

She was tempted to see what he would do if she reached out and grabbed what she wanted instead, but that seemed like a game for another time. Was she really considering his words to be true? That there would be more than this moment between them? Minetta had no idea, and it really didn’t matter right now.

Obviously, not moving fast enough for his liking, he reached out and grabbed her legs, giving her a hard tug and forcing her to flop backward. A small scream left her lips as he pulled her to the end of the bed and placed his hands down on either side of her.

“When I ask you to do something, you do it. Do you understand?” She swallowed hard, but instead of fear, a powerful burst of desire wracked her body. She could feel the moisture running down the inside of her legs and closed them, embarrassed by her flagrant arousal. Riker shook his head at her as he stood straight and lowered the black boxers to the floor. She wanted to answer, but when she opened her mouth, nothing came out. All the air had ceased to move properly in her chest.

The erection she’d only been able to see the tip of, made her eyes bug out as he revealed the whole length and girth. It became extremely clear why women lined up to be used by him. It had been a mutual using, she’d assumed he was simply an overly horny individual, but it was crystal clear now that they’d been using him too.

Riker gripped her knees as he lowered himself, pulling her legs apart. “Don’t hide from me. I want to see all of you, taste every inch of your body, bury myself deep inside you, and make sure you keep your promise to never look at another.”

“You were serious?”

“Very much.” His hands were just as commanding as his voice, and he pushed on the inside of her knees, her weak resistance giving way to his insistence. “I love these. From now on, when we are together, I want you in heels.” Riker kissed the top of her foot, and surprisingly a bolt of pleasure traveled up her leg. She’d never expected such a simple act would cause this kind of a reaction. Then again, it probably had more to do with who it was than what he was doing.

His tongue swirled around the ankle of her left leg before he switched and repeated this action to her right. The licking and tongue work continued up the inside of both legs, his hot tongue mixed with the cool air creating a tantalizing sensation. Her core was aching, the muscles gripping and releasing as her body begged for more. She craved to feel an orgasm the likes of which she’d only known in her dreams.

Gripping her ass, sheer material and all, he jerked her closer to the edge of the bed. Her ass was almost hanging over the side, and she grabbed fistfuls of the sheets. Before she could say a word, his tongue licked up the inside of her thigh, lapping up the wetness she’d been trying to hide.