A body he wanted to run his hands and mouth all over. She was petite but surprisingly curvy. His entire body tensed as he imagined grasping her hips as she rode his cock.

Unable to stop himself, he stepped forward and skimmed his hands along her sides, flexing his fingers on her soft skin. She paused for all of a second before turning to face him. Her green eyes were wide and nervous, but the spark of desire in her expression nearly floored him. Forcing himself to keep his gaze on her face he took a step forward, his erection pressing firmly against her belly.

Heat flashed in those green depths. When she slid her hands up his chest and tentatively rested her fingers on his shoulders, he stilled and took a small step back.

“Before we take this any further I want you to see what you’re getting.” His voice was raspy and uneven. The primal part of his brain told him to just take what she was offering, but he couldn’t do that to her. He wanted her walking into this with eyes wide open. She was so damn honest about everything, he needed to do this.

With all his muscles tensing, he turned around. Even though he couldn’t see her, he closed his eyes, fighting his natural instinct to cover himself.

Gentle hands slid along his shoulders, then down his back in an almost reverent stroke. He didn’t have feeling in the scarred areas, but there were a few patches along his back that had been spared. When he felt Belle’s soft lips press feather light kisses down some of the scar-free areas on his spine, he shuddered. Even though he couldn’t feel all of her kisses, he knew she was kissing the entirety of his back. Something deep inside him, something primal he didn’t even know existed, flared to life and he realized that Belle was the one for him. He should have been terrified, but a rightness settled in his gut at the knowledge.

Not only was she not bothered by his scars, but she was obviously trying to make him as comfortable as possible.

Needing to touch her, he turned, taking in her entire body this time. Her breasts were full, round and bigger than he’d realized even though he’d seen her in a bathing suit. Her nipples were a dark brown, contrasting perfectly against her olive skin. He ached to hold, stroke and kiss all over her until she was writhing against his mouth and hands.

But he wanted to see all of her first.

The scar on her chest he’d only gotten a peek at before was almost twelve inches long. Over dinner one night she’d explained that she’d needed to have heart valve replacement surgery more than once when she was younger. The medical community had come a long way since then, but less invasive methods hadn’t been available when she’d been ten and needed open heart surgery. Even the thought of her going through something like that shook him to his core. She might appear fragile, but she was clearly a survivor and he loved that about her. After everything she’d been through the past week, she was a rock. That was damn sexy.

His fingers flexed on her hips as he continued his perusal. The soft thatch of dark hair between her legs was perfectly trimmed. His hips rolled against hers as his cock jerked at the sight. Yeah, his body was ahead of his brain. He wanted inside her so bad he practically shook with the need.

Even though his body was shouting at him to take her hard and fast, he slowly bent to kiss her. He’d planned to take things gradually. To ease her into this. Give her all the foreplay she deserved. To stroke her to orgasm at least once before he entered her.

But once their lips touched, Belle’s kisses were frantic and needy. She grabbed his shoulders and lifted herself up, wrapping her legs around him. Damn, he loved how bold she was. When she wanted something she just went for it.

Pressing her against the wall, he covered her mouth, pushing, teasing with his tongue and taking everything she’d give him. Her tongue danced against his with bold, demanding strokes. Each time he met her caresses, she arched her back, pressing her full breasts against him.

The feel of her hard nipples rubbing against his chest was almost enough to short circuit his brain. Cupping one in his callous-roughened hand, he inwardly smiled when she shuddered and tightened her thighs around him.

It wouldn’t take much to shift their bodies so he could push deep into her, but he held off. Somehow he tore his mouth from hers and bent until he sucked one of her nipples into his mouth. Using his teeth, he gently tugged.

Belle gasped and moaned, letting out such hot sounds he barely restrained himself from just taking her. First she needed to climax. Hell, he needed her to. Giving her pleasure felt like the most important thing at the moment.

As he flicked over her nipple, alternating between using his teeth and tongue, he cupped her mound. Instead of teasing, he slid two fingers inside her in one swift stroke. Her inner walls clenched and she lifted up off of the wall, clinging to him.

He smiled against her breast as she clutched his shoulders and back, using his body instead of the wall for support.

“Yes, yes,” she moaned.

As he began moving his fingers in and out of her she grinded against his hand with complete abandon. He placed his thumb right over her clit, rubbing it with an intense pressure he hoped would bring her to a hard climax. With each stroke her slick sheath tightened around him and all he could imagine was sliding into her wetness. Except…he needed a condom.

Grant wanted to groan aloud as he realized they’d have to wait. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t bring her all the pleasure she deserved in the meantime.

Continuing with a steady rhythm of his fingers and thumb, he pulled his head back from her breast as an orgasm tore through her. Belle’s head fell back as she shouted his name. Her dark, wet hair fell around her face and chest in thick wet strips as she closed her eyes, completely lost in bliss.

As the orgasm ebbed, her lids fluttered open. She stared at him, blinking a few times until a soft smile played across her slightly swollen lips. “That was…wow,” she said, clenching around his fingers which were still buried inside her.

Slowly, he withdrew from her though he hated doing it. When she shifted her body up his, he realized what she was doing and stilled her with a firm grip on her waist.

Her pretty mouth pulled into a thin line. “Why are you stopping?” she whispered, a touch of hurt in her voice.

Sighing, he laid his forehead against hers. Water splashed them, ricocheting off the walls and floor. He swallowed once. “I don’t have any condoms.”

“Crap, I wasn’t even thinking,” she murmured. Belle was silent for a long moment after that, and her next words surprised the hell out of him. “I’m on the pill, but I haven’t been with anyone in five years. I’m clean and healthy.”

The words seemed to reverberate off the walls as he realized he could sink into her body with no barriers. It was hard to fathom that she hadn’t been with anyone in so long but he believed her. “I was tested almost a year ago and…I haven’t been with anyone since then either. But if you want to wait I understand. I don’t want—”

Belle wrenched her body up and slid over his cock so fast he almost climaxed from the shock of feeling that tightness encasing him. Damn she was snug. He pushed out a long breath and slid a hand through her dark hair, holding the back of her head and steadying her. Hell, steadying himself.

She cupped the scarred side of his face and watched him with a slight smile as she clenched around his cock. The feel of her inner walls tightening on his hard length was akin to electric shocks shuddering through his body. He felt the sensation slamming into all his nerve endings.

Her mouth parted slightly, but she didn’t make a move to kiss him. He didn’t make a move to either. Just continued moving his hips against hers, savoring her warmth, the sense of rightness he felt with her.

“Faster,” she whispered, the need in her voice taking him off guard.

With a soft growl he pulled back and slammed into her. The abrupt action had her crying out. He followed suit, burying his face against her neck as he lost himself inside her.

He lost all track of time and their surroundings as he continued pushing inside her until unparalleled pleasure slammed into him. He cried out against her neck as she clutched his shoulders, digging her nails in.

As he emptied himself inside her in hard strokes, he realized she was climaxing again too. Her cries intermingled with his until she sagged against him, her entire body limp. His own legs were barely holding them up.

Even though he wanted to hold her forever, he eased her down, placing her on her feet. Grabbing his washcloth he squeezed a little body wash onto it and gently swiped between her legs. As he did, she feathered kisses across his chest, making his heart swell with a foreign emotion he was scared to define even though he knew exactly what it was.

Chapter 8

Belle opened her eyes to find Grant watching her intently. Muted light seeped in from the curtain-covered window across from his bed, illuminating his massive, muscular form. Her entire body pulsed and tingled as she remembered last night in his shower—and then hours later in his bed he’d woken her again. She glanced up at the wall clock by the window. It was only five in the morning. She had hours until she needed to be at work. They could certainly do a lot in that time frame.

Stretched out next to her, the lower half of Grant’s body was covered by the tangled mess of his comforter, but she could see his arousal quite clearly. His erection pushed insistently against the covers as if it was trying to break free. She, on the other hand, was completely bare, having kicked the covers off sometime during the night. Normally she slept in pajamas but she could get used to the freeing sensation. The coolness from the running air conditioner brushed over her skin, but it did nothing to douse the heat burning through her at Grant’s hungry look. He reached out and laid a callused hand on her waist, gently stroking upward until he almost cupped her breast.

Heat bloomed between her legs and she instinctively clenched them together.

His eyes were almost a midnight blue in the shadowy room and she had no doubt he wanted her again. Which was good because she hadn’t gotten nearly enough of him last night.

Reaching out, she trailed her fingers down his chest until she dipped beneath the covers and grasped his hard length. She smiled, liking that he was already hard for her. His sucked in a breath and the fingers on her hip tightened possessively, making her smile even more.