Chapter 35 #2
I obey, my movements becoming deliberate, sensual, as I unbutton the starched white dress shirt one slow movement at a time.
I can feel his gaze like a physical touch, burning into my skin.
I peel off the rest of my clothes until I'm standing before him in nothing but my skin, the cool air of the tent raising goose bumps on my flesh.
I feel exposed, vulnerable, and more alive than I have in days.
The air still shimmers around Ridge, but no longer from his fury. Instead, the tension between us builds with all the potent, crackling force of lightning.
"On your knees," he commands, his voice low and authoritative.
I sink to the ground, and the rough canvas of the tent floor scrapes against my knees. I look up at him, my breath catching in my throat. He's still fully dressed in his combat gear, a powerful, imposing figure towering over me. The contrast between us is stark, intoxicating.
"Hands behind your back," he orders.
I clasp my hands behind my back and arch my spine slightly, offering myself to him. I can feel the slick heat building between my thighs, my body responding to his dominance, to the promise of punishment and pleasure.
He circles me slowly, like a predator surveying its territory. He stops behind me, and I feel his presence more than see it.
"Do you know how scared I was?" he asks, his voice dangerously soft. "When I saw that bus. When I saw you. I thought… Fuck, Brylee. I’ve never been so terrified in my life.”
"I'm sorry," I whisper, the words feeling inadequate.
"Sorry isn't good enough," he says, his hand coming down on my ass in a sharp, stinging slap.
I gasp, the unexpected pain sending a jolt of pleasure straight to my core. He does it again, harder this time, and I moan, my head falling forward.
"You drove into a war zone," he says, his voice a low growl. He spanks me again, and the sound echoes in the quiet tent. "You lied to us. You put yourself in danger."
Each word is punctuated by another slap, his hand connecting with my flesh in a rhythm that's both painful and deeply erotic. The heat spreads across my skin, the sting of each blow melting into a throbbing ache that makes me wetter with every strike.
"I'm sorry," I say again, though this time the words are choked with pleasure.
"You will be," he promises, his hand stilling on my now-flushed skin. He kneels behind me, his body pressing against my back. "You're going to take your punishment like a good girl. And you're going to thank me for it."
"Yes, Alpha," I breathe, my body trembling with anticipation.
He pushes me forward with a hand to my lower back so that I bend until I'm on my hands and knees, my ass in the air.
I hear the sound of his zipper, the rustle of clothing, and then I feel the hard, hot length of him pressing against my entrance.
Circling. Using my slick to lubricate himself.
Each drag provokes a wild response from my body until desperation suffuses my mind.
"Please," I beg, my voice hoarse with need. "Please, Ridge."
He enters me in one hard, deep thrust, and I cry out, my body stretching to accommodate him. He's bigger than I thought he would be, thicker, and the sudden, overwhelming fullness sends a shockwave of pleasure through me.
He doesn't give me time to adjust, setting a punishing rhythm from the start, his hips slamming against my sore ass with each thrust, his knot pummeling me, tempting me until my back arches.
"Is this what you wanted?" he growls, his hands gripping my hips, holding me in place as he fucks me with a brutal intensity. "Is this the punishment you were begging for?"
"Yes." I gasp, my fingers digging into the canvas floor. "Harder. Please, harder."
He obliges, his movements becoming even more forceful, more demanding.
The tent is filled with the sounds of our bodies colliding, with my cries of pleasure and his guttural groans.
He's fucking me like he's trying to claim every part of me, to mark me as his own, to remind both of us that I belong to him, body and soul.
I can feel the tension building inside me, a tight coil of pleasure winding tighter and tighter with each thrust. He reaches around, and his fingers find my clit, rubbing tight, hard circles that push me closer to the edge.
My thoughts scatter like leaves in the wind.
There’s nothing but the sound of our jagged breathing and the heat of our bodies.
His scent, so feral with claiming, washes over me and makes a new round of slick gush down my thighs.
It lands on his fingers as he pinches my clit and then tugs with a rough intensity that shoots up my spine and makes me gasp.
"Come for me, Brylee," he commands, his voice rough with his own impending release. "Come for your alpha."
His words are my undoing. The coil inside me snaps, and I come with a scream, my body convulsing around him as wave after wave of pleasure crashes over me.
He follows me over the edge a moment later, slamming his knot deep inside, spreading me open and triggering a second, minor earthquake, an aftershock of an orgasm that ripples through me as he finds his own release—a hot, deep pulse inside me.
We collapse onto the floor of the tent, our bodies slick with sweat, our breathing ragged. For a long moment, we just lie there, tangled together, the aftermath of our frantic coupling settling around us.
My mind is cloudy but content as his knot locks us together and leaves me stretched in a way that’s both vulnerable and incredibly satisfying.
I’ve finally been fully claimed by the leader of Alpha Team X, and just thinking about the way his hand smacked my ass has me biting my lower lip all over again.
When we can finally separate, Ridge rolls onto his side and pulls me into his arms, his body still trembling slightly. He presses a soft kiss to my forehead, a stark contrast to the rough, demanding passion from moments before.
"Don't ever do that to me again," he whispers, his voice thick with emotion. "I can't lose you."
"I won't," I promise, burying my face in his chest. "I'm sorry, Ridge. I'm so sorry."
"I know," he says, his arms tightening around me. "But we're going to have to talk about this. Really talk. And you're not leaving my sight again. Do you understand?"
I nod, my heart swelling with a love so intense it almost hurts. "Yes, Alpha."
"Good," he says, his lips finding mine in a slow, tender kiss. "Now, let's get you cleaned up. The others will be waiting."