Chapter 45 #2
It took him a second, but eventually, he nodded.
He dipped the washcloth into the sudsy water, shut off the faucet so the tub didn’t overflow, and proceeded to gently wash my face, my neck, my collarbone.
My shoulders. Anywhere that had a drop of crimson was scrubbed completely clean.
The whole time, he kept his eyes mostly fixed on mine, only letting them drift down when he absolutely needed to see what he was doing.
Every stroke of the cloth wound something tighter in my chest, a sweet ache that spread like honey through my limbs, and when I was completely clean of all my makeup, blood, and the grime of the evening, Axel didn’t stop washing my skin.
Instead, he dipped the washcloth beneath the sudsy water and drew it to the hollow of my throat. He moved lower, slowly, until it grazed delicately over my left breast.
My nipples pebbled.
His eyes locked with mine as he dropped the cloth and traced the bud between his fingers.
Every cell in my body stood at attention, begging for their turn to be touched by him. He cupped my breast firmly, causing me to suck in a sharp breath, and then he knelt next to the tub so he could kiss me.
With his mouth on mine, he massaged my breasts, one at a time, like he wanted to memorize how they felt, every curve of them. He played with my nipples gently, but soon, our kiss deepened, and I threaded my wet fingers through his hair.
His hand began its descent from my breast, each inch a deliberate torture. Rough fingertips traced the curve of my ribs, explored the dip of my waist, and then his palm flattened against my abs, my muscles fluttering beneath his touch.
Lower.
My breath caught.
Lower still.
The anticipation coiled tight in my belly. Without conscious thought, my legs parted. An invitation. A plea. My sex throbbed with a need so acute, it bordered on pain while every nerve ending seemed to pulse in time with my racing heart.
His fingers hovered just above where I ached for him. Close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from his skin. Not close enough. Never close enough.
Then …
His fingers slid over me with exquisite care, and my entire body trembled. The world narrowed to that single point of connection. To the way he touched me like I was precious. Like he had all the time in the world to learn every secret my body wanted to tell.
His mouth found my jaw. Teeth grazing. Lips soothing. He traced a path to my collarbone, tasting the water droplets that clung there. All the while, his fingers circled that bundle of nerves with maddening precision. Slow. Steady. Inevitable.
Something began to build inside me. Too fast. Too intense. Embarrassingly quickly, but I was past embarrassment. Past everything except the feel of Axel’s hands and mouth and the promise of what was to come.
“I want to taste you,” he said against my skin. Oh my God. “But you’d be cold out here.”
I licked my lower lip. “I’ll survive.”
I could feel his lips curve into a smile. And then, much quicker than I was expecting, Axel lifted my body out of the tub, placing me on the tub’s edge with a splash of water crashing against the floor’s tile.
I thought he was going to grab a towel, dry me off, maybe carry me to his bed. But instead, he stood up, kicked off his shoes, stepped into the tub between my legs, and sank to his knees.
Fully clothed, a fresh wave of water splashing outside the tub’s rim.
Holy crap. This is so hot.
Kissing my leg, he drew my right ankle up onto the side of the tub, followed by my left, until I was sitting there, spread open like an offering, my back pressed against the cool wall as he stared at my sex.
Unbuttoning his shirt, he drew my nipple into his mouth, circling the bud with his tongue while that throb between my legs intensified.
When he stripped his shirt off, it made me want him even more.
Axel Pierce was gorgeous. Covered in tattoos, his muscles flexed as he ran his hands over my abs, kissing a trail down them before pressing my thighs further apart.
With one last look that could have given me an orgasm with just his eyes, Axel lowered his mouth to me. The moment stretched between us, steam curling around our bodies, creating a sanctuary where only we existed.
The first touch of his tongue sent lightning through my veins.
I jerked. Gasped. My fingers found the cool porcelain edge of the tub, gripping hard as he circled that perfect bundle of nerves.
Over and over. My hips bucked of their own accord, my back arching as I threaded trembling fingers through his wet hair.
Dark strands slipped between my knuckles.
Water droplets traced paths down his neck, disappearing into the hollow of his throat.
I had never seen anything like this. My wet body with suds lingering on my toes, perched on the tub’s edge.
Axel Pierce on his knees before me, shirtless, his soaked pants clinging to powerful thighs.
He touched me like I was something sacred.
Something worth worshipping. The memory surfaced, unbidden: “You deserve to feel worshipped, cherished, absolutely wrecked in the best possible way.”
His groan vibrated against my skin.
“You taste so good, Sunshine.” His voice was rough velvet as he pulled back to look at me. One finger traced along my folds with maddening slowness. “Just like I knew you would.”
He flattened his tongue. Pressed hard. The sound that escaped me was primal.
Good Lord. He wasn’t kidding. Axel Pierce knew my body better than I knew it myself.
He moved against my folds with the same intensity he’d shown when he’d slept on my floor, protective and unwavering.
“Go to sleep, Sunshine. I’ll be right here.
” But now that protective intensity had transformed into something darker. Hungrier.
He teased. Brought me to the edge. Those knowing eyes locked with mine before he retreated.
When I moaned in agony, his lips curved into that familiar smirk.
The same one he’d worn when he’d growled against my ear, “You’re telling me if I dip my fingers in your panties right now, they won’t come back glistening? ”
“Trust me, Sunshine.” His breath was hot against my sensitive flesh. “It’s going to be so much better if I make you wait for it.”
“Please.” The word broke from my lips.
“Good girl.” He licked around my sex while his hands gripped my thighs, anchoring me. Possessive. Like when he’d tangled his fingers in my hair. Like when he’d promised violence to anyone who dared hurt me. “When you shatter, it’ll be my name on your tongue. You understand?”
I bit my lip. Nodded desperately. “Yes.”
His mouth returned to the apex of my thighs with renewed focus.
Swirling. Sucking. Building a climax that gathered like a storm in my core.
His tongue moved with the same certainty he’d shown that day in the snow, when everything between us had shifted.
“I’ve never looked at snow the same way since. ”
And suddenly, I understood. This wasn’t just physical. This was Axel seeing me. Really seeing me. The way he’d noticed undercooked meat made me nauseous when no one else paid attention. The way he’d known I deserved passion that would leave marks on my soul.
I wasn’t holding back anymore. Wasn’t self-conscious about being spread before him. Wasn’t wondering if my body was perfect. I had completely surrendered to the riptide of Axel, letting the current of desire pull me under. Into his ocean. Into him.
The climax built. Crested. When it crashed over me, I was brazen enough to hold his head in place. My fingers twisted in his hair. Our eyes locked as I screamed his name. No shame. No hesitation. Just pure, devastating release.
He watched my mouth part. Watched the moans escape. His tongue never stopped its rhythm as I quivered and trembled against him. Wave after wave of pleasure rolled through me until I thought I might come apart entirely.
This was what he’d promised. To make me forget my own name. To worship me until I saw stars.
And, God help me, he delivered.
“I love you,” I said as he licked the last remnants of my orgasm into submission.
“Mmm …” He kissed my inner thigh. “I love you too, Sunshine.”
He stood up, water dripping from his pants, his erection pressing against the zipper so hard, I wondered if the metal would burst open. I leaned forward and grabbed his belt, pulling the leather from the buckle.
When a very unwanted sound interrupted us—the penthouse’s version of a doorbell: a chime.
The one that alerted us that someone was on their way up, about to spill out into the penthouse. Not just anyone could come up; they had to check in with the front lobby, of course, which meant this was someone scheduled or preapproved.
Axel went completely still. His eyes widened as he looked toward the hallway, then slowly, painfully, back at me.
“No.” He shook his head. “No, no, no …”
Right. Ryker had graciously organized the detective to come here rather than us having to wait who knew how long at the ER for him to show.
“The police,” I realized.
He dropped his forehead against mine, looking like a man who’d just been informed his birthday had been canceled. Forever.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” I let go of his belt.
Axel made a sound like a dying animal. “I’m deactivating that fucking elevator. And surrounding my place with a moat.”
Looking like it literally tortured him, he stepped out of the tub and wrapped a fluffy towel around me with the careful, mournful movements of a man whose dreams had just been destroyed. He dried himself off quickly.
“Fucking hell.” Axel stormed into the hallway, muttering, “Protect and serve … more like interrupt and ruin …”
With the towel securely fastened around my body, my plan was to dart into the bedroom and get dressed so I could give the police my statement. But right as Axel said, “The hell are you two doing here?” I froze.
Turned.
And saw that it wasn’t the police who had interrupted us. It was Ryker and Faith.
Whose gaze had been busy taking in Axel’s soaking wet pants (and probably his massive erection) before snapping to me, wearing nothing but a towel, caught sneaking toward his bedroom.
Faith smirked. “Well, looks like you’re feeling better.”
“What are you doing here?” Axel repeated angrily.
“The police are downstairs,” Ryker said matter-of-factly. “Remember how I arranged to have you give your statements here?”
“I thought they were showing up later,” Axel said.
“It is later.”
“Did you get”—Faith’s eyes glided over Axel’s godlike form—“distracted? Time run away from you?”
Axel shoved his hands down in front of his crotch.
Which only made Faith’s smirk widen as she offered me a wink. “I can see what the appeal is. Congrats, girl.”
“Faith!” I protested.
She shrugged. “If you have to be fake engaged to him, at least you’re getting the real perks too. Big ones. Good for you.”
Axel looked up at the heavens like he willed them to swallow him whole.
“Want us to reschedule?” Faith waggled her eyebrows. “I mean, we could always tell the police you were … indisposed.”
My cheeks incinerated. The idea of them all leaving, knowing we’d be having sex? I think not.
“No,” I said quickly.
“We can’t reschedule,” Ryker chastised, ever the responsible one.
Okay, Axel could have made an effort to look less disappointed.
“What are you two doing together?” I wondered aloud.
Because looking closer, was it just me, or was Faith’s hair a little mussed?
“Bumped into him downstairs,” Faith explained. “I was coming here to check on you.” She smirked. “Looks like you’re feeling great though.”
After a few seconds, Axel pinched the bridge of his nose, told them to sit in the living room, that he was going to change, and when he approached me, he leaned down and whispered, “Biggest case of blue balls I’ve ever had, Sunshine.”
I chuckled. “At least now I know Faith approves of your … assets.”
“Jesus Christ,” he muttered, but I caught the hint of a smile as he disappeared into his bedroom.
Faith called after us, “Take your time getting dressed! We’ll just be out here … not thinking about what we just interrupted!”
“I’m never living this down,” Axel groaned from the bedroom.
“Neither am I,” I called back, but honestly, I was too blissed out to care.