Wicked Fortune (Wicked Nights #5)

Chapter 20

TWENTY

Matthew tried to hold back. Tried to stay still and revel in the pure, raw joy of being deep inside her. The feel of her. The scent of her. He was rock hard—harder than he could ever remember being, and right then, his entire world was Aria.

He needed claim her. To go full-on caveman and make her his. To bury himself even deeper inside her. To lay her out, bend her knees up and watch ecstasy play out on her face as he fucked her hard.

But not yet.

Right now, he just wanted to revel in the fact that she wanted him, too.

He loomed over her, his hands on either side of her as he let his eyes drift over her perfection, as he moved slowly inside her. As he listened to her soft, erotic moans of pleasure. Of her whispers as she begged for more.

He tilted his head, his eyes grazing over her nipples, tight and dark. A contrast to the way the rest of her skin glowed, as if she was lit from within.

“Please,” she murmured, her eyes fluttering open. “Matthew, please.”

But he only shook his head, his cock still inside her, but unmoving in a delicious torment he knew was driving them both wild.

“You’re beautiful,” he whispered. “Beautiful and sexy and I think I might die if you walked away right now.”

Her eyes fluttered open, and the delight he saw there humbled him. “Matthew.” His name was only a whisper, but it said everything he wanted to hear. A promise. A plea.

And who was he to say no?

He lowered himself, letting her take more of his weight as he moved in slow, steady strokes designed to drive her—and him—right to the brink.

“Pleas—” she began, but he cut her off with a kiss, gentle at first, but when she cupped his head and pulled him closer, he lost all will to hold back and tease. Now he wanted to ravage. To consume. To make her his.

The kiss was hard and hot, their tongues moving in time with the thrust of his cock and her hips moving in time with him. It was the most sensual of dances, and it was magical.

He’d wanted this—wanted her—for so long, and now here she was. No longer a fantasy wrapped in a memory. She was real, she was naked.

And she was his.

For now, at least .

The unwelcome thought crashed through him, and he almost pulled away.

She was his for now, yes. But when she learned the truth … when she understood who he really was. What he’d done.

A shock of cold dread pierced his heart, and he drew back slightly.

“Don’t stop,” she murmured, her eyes fluttering open, her expression one of pure, sensual need.

“Never,” he said, willing it to be true. Telling himself he had nothing to fear. There was no reason for her to know the truth.

She was his now … and his she would remain.

She lay on her stomach, propped up on her elbows as he sat up, his back against the upholstered headboard. She was naked, her feet crossed in the air, her hair mussed and wild around her face, her lips red and swollen. She looked well-fucked and beautiful, and very much at home.

Her hands were flat on the mattress in front of her, fingers spread, and he was tracing his own finger along the outline of her right hand.

“You’re not thinking loud enough,” he said, making her laugh.

“Impossible.” She grinned up at him. “Everyone says I’m the loudest thinker they know.”

“Already keeping secrets from me?” He said the words as a joke, but immediately wanted to kick himself. Even if she was keeping secrets, he was hardly one to talk.

“Not a secret. On the contrary. I was just thinking about what I told you before.” Her voice was teasing, and the way she bit her lower lip when she finished speaking was almost enough to have him rolling her over and taking her hard once again.

As tempting as that was—and as hard as the thought made him—he said only, “Told me what?”

She pushed herself up onto her knees, then moved to straddle him. He’d pulled the sheet up to his waist, but even so, the pressure of her body against his cock was enough to breathe new life into him. “Careful. Or we may never get out of this bed.”

“Maybe that’s my plan.”

He chuckled. “Maybe I like the way you think.” He brushed his fingers over her breasts—not to get anything started, but just because she was so damn beautiful. And, yes, because he wanted to claim her. “But right now,” he continued, “I want to hear the secret.”

“It’s not really a secret. More of a fantasy.”

“Oh, is it?” He settled back, making a show of getting more comfortable. “Do tell.”

She traced her fingertip along his chest, and he was certain her motives were the same as his—she was marking him as her territory. And he had no problem with that at all.

“You know how I said I liked older men?”

“I have a vague recollection. And for the record, I’m not yet in need of a walker.”

A smile tugged at her mouth. “The truth is, I’ve had this fantasy for pretty much my entire life. Ever since I started getting interested in sex, anyway.”

Her cheeks bloomed pink, which delighted him. Because his Aria was not a woman who blushed easily.

“And?”

“Honestly, it’s not much of a story. Just that every time I have a sex dream, the guy is always older. Even if I’m awake and fantasizing, he might start out around thirty, but by the time he’s undressing me, he has at least a decade on me. Usually two.”

“That’s it?”

She scowled at him. “I told you. It’s not much of a story.”

“But that’s not the whole story, is it?”

She rolled her eyes. “Okay, fine. The rest of it’s a little silly. A different dream, though they overlap sometimes. And in the dream, I’m always out in the world and something happens. Godzilla attacks. Or gangs are chasing me. Monsters, you know. All different kinds of monsters. And then this older guy swoops in and saves me. Sometimes he does fancy kickboxing stuff. Sometimes he magically transports me away. But he always wins. He always protects me.” She shrugged. “He sweeps me off my feet.”

She bit her lower lip, then looked up at him, the blush back in her cheeks. “Sometimes it’s you, Matthew. You’ve been in my dreams since the first time we met. I guess that makes you my dream man.”

He wanted to pull her close. To claim her once and for all.

But he didn’t.

He couldn’t.

“Oh, hell,” she said, leaning back. “I’ve totally scared you away.”

“No.” His heart felt about to burst. “Hell, no.”

He could see the relief flow through her.

“Another reason to like older men,” she said. “You don’t play games.”

“Sweetheart, I play all kinds of games. Don’t ever make the mistake of looking at me and thinking that I have it all figured out.”

She studied his face, those clever eyes narrowing. “Why?”

He frowned. “Why what?”

“Why are you screwing with me?” She made finger quotes as she said, “You play games? You don’t have it figured out?” She indicated her body with a wave. I’m sitting here naked, desperate to have you inside me again, and you’re saying words designed to push me away.”

“No,” he lied, even as he realized that was exactly what he was doing.

“Do you want me to go?” He heard the catch in her voice, and the sound both humbled him and tormented him.

He stayed silent.

“Dammit, Matthew.” She slid toward the edge of the bed. He reached out and snatched her arm just above the elbow.

She froze, her eyes meeting his. “Let go of me.”

He did, releasing his hold as he said, very simply, “Stay.”

For a moment, she only looked at him, and he could read nothing on her face. “Why should I?”

“You shouldn’t,” he said. “If you were smart, you’d go.” He reached for her hand, relieved when she didn’t yank it back. “I want you, Aria. Make no mistake. I think you may be the most amazing woman I’ve ever met, much less touched. You’re already under my skin. Here,” he said, pressing his hand to his heart. “And here,” he continued, touching his head.

“I want you, and I’m used to getting what I want. But, sweetheart, I’m not a good man. I’ve done things I regret. Lots of things. Bad things. If you were smart, you’d walk away right now.”

Her expression was flat, unreadable as she said, “Maybe I’m not that smart. I mean, hell, I can’t even keep a job for more than a few months.”

“I’m serious. You know what the press says. That I’m ruthless. That I’ll do whatever it takes. That my business is all I care about.”

She met his eyes, and it felt like she was looking straight down into the dark depths of his soul.

“Is that true? Is it all that you care about?”

He looked away. He wanted to say yes. Wanted to push her away once and for all. Wanted to finally do the right thing and get her out of the circle of his life.

Instead, he looked back at her, awed by her beauty and humbled by her desire. “No,” he said. “That’s not all.”

For a moment, their eyes held. Then she nodded slowly. “Thank you for the warning, but I think I’ll stay. Just promise you won’t lie to me. I—I don’t trust easily. I’m not sure I trust at all. Except maybe Bree.”

He hesitated, then nodded. “I promise,” he said, hoping the word wouldn’t be a lie by tomorrow. Knowing it already was just because of the secrets he was keeping.

The sunshine of her smile erased all his doubts. “In that case,” she said as she moved to straddle him, “I’m staying.” She grinned. “So tell me, old man. Have you got enough in you for one more round?”

He felt his cock go hard as a wave of pure joy crashed through him. “Yeah,” he said. “I think I can totter my way through just fine.”