CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
I hadn’t been cleared by the doctor yet to work in the field, but I was going stir-crazy. So, true to her words, Mia thoroughly interviewed me, and I became the new proud member of Bryants & Walker Protection.
I was under strict instructions to deal only with the part of the investigation I could do from home or at the company, no wild assignments or anything strenuous yet. That I left for the bedroom. As careful as she was, Mia and I managed to get creative as I recovered .
Having the freedom to work my magic on my computer knowing she was right beside me was everything I didn’t know I wanted for my life. I went from being a loner to being a part of a pack. A pack led by my Fire and created with friends.
I stirred under the covers, trying to identify what had woken me up. It wasn’t that hard to figure out when a weight moved over the bed, something wet poked my arm, and a tennis ball was dropped on my stomach.
“Careful, Hugo. Daddy’s still recovering.”
I’d never have imagined being called a dog’s Daddy would bring me so much joy. I looked down to find my loyal furry companion lying in the middle of the bed, smiling at me, and wagging his lazy tail.
Since I came home from the hospital, he hadn't left my side. Neither did Mia.
I petted Hugo’s head, who rested his face over my stomach, next to the new special ball I got for him.
Mia walked into the bedroom with two cups, filling the room with a hot chocolatey smell.
I shifted to a sitting position as she placed one of the cups on the bedside table to my left. “Thank you.” I sipped and watched her go around the bed to place her cup on her side so she could curl up with me. “You didn’t need to do that.”
Mia got comfortable, scooching closer so I could drape my arm over her shoulder and hold her to my chest. “I know. But I wanted to.” She looked up at me and offered me her lips. “Good morning, Phoenix.”
“Good morning, Fire.” I leaned down and took her lips in a leisurely kiss. There was no rush, no fear of that ever coming to an end, no wariness from hidden secrets. I slipped my tongue inside her mouth, intensifying the kiss, and leaned even closer to her when she started to play with my hair. After we broke the kiss, I pecked her lips one more time just for good measure.
We remained embraced in each other, no words necessary in that domesticated scenery. I’d finally found my place, my purpose in life. Right beside her.
Just one thing could make it all even better.
“You were wearing black pants, boots, and a black tight blouse,” I started quietly.
“What?”
“The first time I saw you. I remember thinking you had no business being in a shitty place like that. It was a fancy restaurant and all, but one of the dirtiest places I’ve ever been to. And I was so mad at you. There you were, all pretty and innocent-looking, dealing with some of the worst scums of the Earth. I wanted to rip you out of that hellhole, lock you somewhere safe, and teach you the importance of being careful.”
She scoffed and kissed my chest. “Always a boy scout. But if you think about it, you did rip me out of the hellhole, lock me somewhere safe, and teach me the importance of being careful. I now know I should be wary of tattooed auburn-haired, glasses-wearing, boy scout geeks who carry handcuffs.”
I threw my head back in laughter, remembering the day I arrested the little trouble by my side. It seemed like so long ago. “I guess I started falling for you that day. It only got worse—or better, depending on how you see it—after we started working together. That day when you crashed my raiding on the cartel to save my life? And then challenged me, pointing my gun at your chest? That day was so confusing! I hadn’t realized yet that loving you is like having a migraine and an erection at the same time.”
“Aww.” She kissed my neck and cuddled closer. “That’s so sweet.”
I chuckled, noticing she was being sincere. “But I think I only acknowledged my feelings for you when you stayed with me in the hospital after Pop had a heart attack. It was the first time I realized we weren’t rivals, enemies, or whatever. You were my partner. During that nightmare of a day, you were the only person I wanted to have by my side. And there you were.”
She traced my new tattoo with her fingers. A Phoenix surrounded by flames and spitfires on my chest. “Who would’ve thought that falling in love with your enemy would be the smartest thing you’ve ever done?”
I nodded. “It was the smartest thing I’ve done. Until today.”
She gazed up at me in confusion. I pressed a lingering kiss on her forehead and picked up the tennis ball Hugo had dropped on me. The little box he’d dropped on me. He lifted his head, smiling again as if he understood the importance of that moment. I opened the ball at the seam in the middle to showcase the flame-styled ring with a ruby on top.
Mia gasped and lifted from my chest. “Your grandmother’s ring.”
“It’ll be yours from now on if you want it.” I shifted on the bed to face her. “I want everything. I want to get mad at you because you’re being too reckless. I want to fight by your side because there’s no one else I trust more than you. I want to raise Hugo together and the next dogs that will come. I want to have babies with you. I want to go to a gay trivia with you or just curl up on the couch. I want to take down satellites for you. I want it all. Because you’re the one Fire that warms my existence.” I gulped. “So, what do you say? Do you want to be my Spitfire for life?”
I watched her expectantly. She gave me the sweetest, yet most mischievous smile she’d ever graced me with. “You’re the only one I want to have cookies and milk with. The only one who leaves the front porch lights on without my having to ask or explain why. You’re the only one who can calm my fire enough so that I don’t get burned but without ever trying to turn it off. It doesn’t matter if I’m going crazy over an assignment or just chilling with my family. You’re my constant. The one who grounds me and eases the chaos that surrounds me. When everything is falling apart, yours is the hand I want to hold.” She touched my cheek. “You’re my faith.”
I shifted my face to kiss her palm. “I love you.”
“I love you, too. And I’d love to become Mrs. Phoenix.”
Chuckling, I pulled the ring from the cushion and slipped it on her finger. I pulled her face for a sealing kiss as Hugo jumped and barked, wiggling between me and Mia to give us kisses.
I scratched behind his ears as Mia kissed his snout. “Time to play in the living room, Hugo-boy. Daddy and I need to…talk.”
As soon as he left the bedroom, she closed—and locked—the door and raced to bed. When she landed beside me, I pulled her for a scorching kiss. She straddled my lap and circled her arms around my shoulders, running her fingers through my hair.
As I devoured her lips, I roamed my hands up her legs and under her sleeping short shorts. Squeezing her ass, I pulled her closer, until her warm core was pressed against my shaft. Between our moans, she rubbed herself against me as I touched the bare skin of her back and stomach. I slid my hands up until I found her breasts, feeling their weight on my hands .
I marveled at her mewls when I pulled her nipples and craved to feel more of her, so I fisted the hem of her strappy blouse and pulled it over her head. Hugging her tighter against my chest, I shifted our positions and placed her on her back on the mattress so I could hover over her and pulled my shirt from the back of my neck.
She traced the scar on my left side, a reminder of the surgery I had to undergo, while I touched the scars left by the bullets that nearly took her life long before we met. They were evidence of life's unpredictability and unfairness. And of how lucky we were to be given the opportunity to love each other.
I leaned down to suck one of her nipples into my mouth, loving how she arched her back beneath me. Mia fisted my hair, pulling me against her chest, and I had to press my cock against her leg to alleviate the torment she was creating.
Understanding the assignment, she reached under me with her small hands to pull down my shorts and grabbed my cock. Applying just the right amount of pressure she knew I liked, Mia rubbed the tip, spreading the precum over it and pulling my piercing lightly, making me groan on her chest.
She started stroking me, up and down, while squirming under me, and soon that proved not to be enough. I pulled her shorts and underpants down in one motion and pried her legs open.
Devouring her lips again, I ran my fingers up the inside of her thighs until I reached her pussy. Hot and wet. I stroked from her entrance to her clit, applying pressure and circling until she buckled under me.
“Stop being a tease. I want more.”
I chuckled around her nipple. “Always so impatient.”
She was lucky I wasn’t in a torturous mood. I nibbled her nipple and inserted two fingers into her pussy. As I moved them in and out of her, curling the tips deep inside her, and scissoring my fingers, I pressed my thumb over her clit.
Letting go of her nipple with a pop, I dropped kisses up her chest and her neck until I found her lips again. As our tongues danced together, I slipped a third finger inside her and intensified my motion, never leaving her clit unattended.
Her moans increased, her hold on my hair tightened, and her legs started to shake. She just needed a little push. So, I broke the kiss and bit her bottom lip, just a little harder than a nibble. She groaned loudly as the pleasure assaulted her and stroked my cock even tighter.
Once her shaking subsided, I slipped my fingers out of her and licked them. “I’ll never get tired of your taste. I promise to eat you properly later. But I need to be inside of you now.”
She pulled my shaft to her entrance and slid the tip up and down her pussy. “Then take what’s yours.”
I positioned myself at her entrance and thrust inside in one swift motion, making us both gasp. It didn’t matter how many times we made love, slipping inside her was always an intense experience. One I couldn’t treat lightly.
I pressed my forehead against hers as she adjusted to my intrusion and we got a hold of our emotions. One of her hands clawed my back while the other was firm into my hair. We stared into each other’s eyes and soaked in all that intimacy. I was gazing at my partner. My future. My salvation. We were looking love in the eye in a silent promise to never let go.
With our eyes still locked on each other, I began to move inside her. She circled her legs around my waist and threw her hips up meeting each of my thrusts. Our breathing became ragged and my movements turned erratic as I pounded inside her looking for the release and peace only she managed to provide. I devoured her mouth again, swallowing her moans.
I felt her walls tighten around my cock and decided to give her a final push. Balancing on my knees, I roamed my right hand down her ribs and stomach until I found her clit, pinching it and marveling at the sight of her losing control.
I slid my free hand up her breasts until her neck and tightened my fingers around it, choking her. I pistoned my hips inside her and applied just the right pressure with my fingers on her neck and clit.
Until she broke beneath me, moaning my name.
Her hot pussy squeezed me like a vise, and there was no way I could keep up any longer. After a couple more pumps, I thrust deep inside her and let out a loud groan, chanting her name as I spilled all I had.
I eased the pressure around her neck and dropped on top of her, leaving my shaft in her core for a while longer. I tucked my head into the crook of her neck as she played with my sweaty hair.
We regained our breaths, and I scattered kisses on her cheeks, her neck, her chest, her lips. I couldn’t stop touching and kissing her.
She leaned her head to the side to deepen the kiss. “That was…wow. Well done, fiancé.”
I leaned on my elbow to rest my face in one hand and caressed her cheek with the other. “It’s just the beginning.”
“I wonder if Hugo might need therapy after all the things he might’ve heard.”
I burst out laughing. “He’s a tough kid, he can handle it.”
Mia looked at me and smirked. “Can I make a request?”
“Of course.”
“Wear your glasses next time.”
I chuckled against her lips. “Anything for you.”