Chapter Six
DALLAS
Morning light breaks through the small gap in the curtains, drawing me from sleep. Vanilla teases my senses before I'm fully awake.
Sometime during the night, I must have slipped beneath the covers, because I'm warm and relaxed. I haven't slept that good in years. A decade maybe.
Loud bass thumps from a car outside, waking me further.
I crack my eyes open and find waves of honey-blonde hair around me.
Gemma.
Her soft body is curled against me, head tucked beneath my chin, and one delicate arm stretched across my chest.
I freeze.
I've never woken with a woman in my bed. Never even slept beside one.
I’ve never let anyone this close.
Last night, when she asked me to lie down with her, I only meant to stay until she fell asleep. Nothing more.
But sometime during the night, she shifted closer. Trusting me in her sleep when she has every reason not to.
Jesus. I scrub my hand down my face, careful not to disturb her.
The weight of her body is the sweetest feeling.
The way her breasts press against my chest and her legs tangle with mine.
Her warm breath fans across my skin, making me achingly aware of every place our bodies connect.
The silky fabric of her little pajamas, the satiny skin on her lower back where the top rode up and my hand is splayed.
The feel of her thigh against my rapidly filling cock.
Waking with her in my arms feels... right. Too damn good.
Not because she’s a woman in my bed. Because it’s Gemma who’s wrapped around me.
I know I should move from the bed. Shut these feelings down and give her space. Just because she's comfortable with me doesn't mean she wants more. Not when she knows what I am. But I don’t. I can’t.
She sighs in her sleep and snuggles closer.
I lay still and hold her. This may be my only chance.
For the first time since I was eleven, I let myself feel. Tenderness and respect for her. Warmth and possessiveness. Something stronger that I don't have a name for. It's a tightness in my chest when I think about someone hurting her or the possibility of walking away from her forever.
I've never been anyone’s protector. Not until her.
Never had a desire to be. With Gemma tucked beside me, sleeping so peacefully, I realize that there’s nothing I want more. Not retirement. Not more money.
Just this woman.
Could there ever be a future where she accepted me? A man who has spent his life in shadows. One who hasn’t had a lot of run ins with emotions.
I wrap my other arm around Gemma and hold her close.
Roark won’t touch her.
I’ll die before I let that happen.
I thought the contract on Arthur Townsend was my last job before retirement. I was wrong. It's dismantling the company from the top so Gemma can be free.
Roark won't stop a contract unless the client revokes it. It'll be damn hard to change his mind when it's open season on me.
I have to take the war to his door and watch the company burn.
Gemma stretches and her eyes flutter open. She tilts her head up but doesn't shift away.
"You stayed."
"I didn't want to wake you." I wanted to keep her in my arms as long as I could.
"Thank you, Dallas," she whispers. Then she stretches up and presses a soft kiss to the corner of my mouth.
I tilt my head, and suddenly our lips are a breath apart. I ache to close that distance, but I don't. She's vulnerable, and I'd never take advantage of that. Not with Gemma.
"Are you hungry?" I ask.
Her gray eyes darken and her gaze drops to my mouth. She licks her lips. "I am."
Shit, I have to put distance between us right now. If I don’t, she’ll be under me in five seconds, and I won’t be able to stop myself.
I try to shut down my emotions the way I've done since I was a kid. It's usually as easy as making the decision. Only this time, it doesn't work.
My dick is hard as concrete, pressed against her thigh, and need burns in my veins. I want to claim her. I want to love her.
And that scares the fuck out of me.
I slide out from under her and cross the room, scrubbing my hands down my face.
"Dallas?"
“Give me a minute, Gemma,” I say, dragging in a slow breath. “I don’t trust myself that close to you right now.”
My heart is trying to break out of my chest, and my breath is choppy. It's a full minute before I can think straight.
I need to feed her. Restock supplies. Make a plan.
I need to stash her somewhere Roark will never find her. A place where even if things go wrong…
Fury and fear mix in an ugly cocktail in my gut. Goddamnit. No! Nothing is going to harm her.
The battered dresser looks like it hasn't been touched since the last time I was here. I shove it aside to expose the fake vent I installed. The metal plate pops off and reveals a biometric safe. I grab cash and a new phone, then close it and set everything back.
Gemma is sitting up against the headboard with the sheet tucked tight over her body. She tugs her lower lip between her teeth, watching me.
"I'll get us some breakfast." I holster one gun at my back and set the other on the end table, within reach. "Don't open that door for anyone but me."
She huddles deeper into the blankets and nods.
Crossing to the window, I check the parking lot. Same car as last night and no other people lingering. At the door, I glance back.
Gemma grips the sheets in her fists, looking small and afraid. "Be careful, Dallas," she whispers.
I realize then that she's afraid for me, not herself. I don't know what to do with that. The only people who've ever worried about me are my parents, and possibly my brothers. I've limited my interaction with them, so this feels foreign.
Unsettled, I slip out the door and lock it behind me.
The cafe attached to the motel is busy this morning, but an extra hundred to the waitress insures my order moves to the front of the line.
I'm there and back in less than twenty minutes.
All is quiet at the motel. I knock lightly on the door. "Gemma, I'm coming in."
When I enter, she's not in bed. My heart kicks up to see the gun where I left it.
The toilet flushes and she opens the bathroom door. As soon as she sees me, her shoulders drop and a small smile forms.
She's still wearing those tiny pajamas, and it's hard to drag my gaze off her. She's so fucking beautiful, even sleep rumpled and scared.
She spots the travel cups and hurries forward. "Is that coffee?"
I set them down with the bags of food. "I didn't know what you wanted."
Her eyebrows shoot up as I start removing boxes. "So, you got one of everything?"
I feel my cheeks heat. "Wanted you to have choices."
Gemma laughs, and the sound goes all the way to my empty soul, touching a place I thought no one could reach.
Then she goes up on her toes and kisses me.
Her lips are feather light as they skim across mine and her hands land on my chest. "Thank you, Dallas," she says against my mouth. "For rescuing me when you could have run."
I slowly put my hands on her hips, anchoring her to me. "Not when you’re in danger, Gemma."
She leans back and searches my face. "I've never met anyone like you."
"That's probably a good thing."
She huffs a laugh. "Maybe, but I'm glad you wanted ice cream."
Though I don't say it, I am too.
Gemma settles back on her feet, her gaze never leaving mine. I see the questions in her eyes and the way they darken.
She goes up on her toes a second time, tugging my head down, and kisses me.
My body locks tight even as her lips move over mine.
She stills when I don't respond, then slowly pulls back, and looks away. "Sorry. I don't know what came over me."
No. I can't allow her to think I didn't want her kiss. She surprised me.
I've never been chosen before.
The few lovers I've had I pursued only long enough to satisfy both our needs. They didn't look me in the eye. They didn't kiss me.
Only Gemma does.
I cup the back of her head, spearing my fingers into her silky locks and tip her head up, then cover her mouth with mine. I show her without words what that means to me. What she means to me even after only a day.
Gemma leans closer and wraps her arms around my neck.
I open her lips with mine and sweep my tongue inside, tasting her. Memorizing her mouth. I stroke her tongue, lick her lips, and drink her sweetness down.
She moans softly.
Pulling her body flush with mine, I kiss her harder, deeper.
Gemma breaks the kiss and cups my cheek. "I'm not afraid when I'm with you, Dallas."
I press my forehead to hers, drawing a steady breath tinged with vanilla. "You terrify me."
"Why?"
My throat goes tight. "You make me feels things I didn't think I could."
Her smoky eyes soften. She takes my hand off her hip and covers her breast with it. "Then feel more."
Her nipple hardens beneath my palm. The temptation to touch her is nearly overpowering. I hold back enough to murmur, "You've been through hell, Gemma."
"Touch me, Dallas. Make me feel safe." She leans up and kisses me again.
I can't help but sink into her touch, her taste.
I gently cup her breast through the camisole, rubbing the silky fabric over her nipple, then slide my hand beneath.
Jesus, she feels so good. So soft. She overflows my hand.
Perfect in every way. I work my thumb over her hard nipple, feeling it pebble.
She gasps into my mouth.
The tight control I’ve held my entire life snaps at the small sound.
I lift her into my arms and carry her to the bed, laying her down on the end. Kneeling between her thighs, I strip the top off her body, revealing her breasts to my hungry gaze.
"You have no idea what you’re doing to me." I wrap my lips around one nipple and palm her other breast.
Gemma squirms beneath me letting out a breathy sigh.
I switch to the other breast, licking and sucking her until the peak is red, then switching back.
Her hips buck, pressing against mine. Seeking relief. Needing my touch.
I kiss her lips, then trail my mouth down between her breasts, working my way lower until I reach the waist of those tiny damn shorts.
"Look at me, Gemma."
Her eyelids lift on eyes glazed with pleasure.
"You want me to taste you."
Her hips move. "Yes."
"Say it." I need to know she's with me. That she wants this from me.
"I want you to lick me, Dallas. Please."
Goddamn that sounds sexy coming from her mouth.
I slowly draw the shorts down her hips and off her body. To my delight, she's not wearing any panties. Her mound is trim and wet with desire.
Pushing her thighs wide, I wedge my shoulders between them and lay her back on the bed, breathing deep. Her scent is heady, like vanilla and the honey that is all Gemma. "You're going to come for me, Gemma. I need to feel you let go."
She squirms beneath my gaze. "Please. Touch me."
My heart trips a beat.
She’s choosing me.
She’s mine.
I won’t waste that gift.
Lowering my head, I part her sweet folds. She's dripping for me. Fuck, that’s hot. I slowly swipe my tongue through her folds from bottom to top, taking in the taste that is all Gemma.
She grips my hair and pulls me tighter, crying out. "Oh god. Your beard feels amazing down there."
I chuckle against her skin, then lick her again. She's so responsive. Every kiss, every lick takes her higher. I suck her pussy lips, then her clit, reading her body to find what she likes. She tastes like heaven.
When I push a finger deep into her core, she clenches around the digit.
“That’s right, beautiful,” I murmur. Take what I give you.
” I pump my finger in and out, then wrap my lips around her bud and suck until she comes all over my mouth.
My beard. I've never tasted anything sweeter. I could live between her thighs.
“Dallas,” she whispers.
I lick every drop, bringing her down slow.
She collapses back on the bed, chest heaving. Sated.
I press a kiss to each thigh, then crawl over her and kiss her again. "You okay, honey?"
Gemma nods, curling into my chest. "Stay with me,” she whispers. “Just… stay.”
I pull her against my chest and wrap both arms around her. “I’m not going anywhere.”