Chapter 3
Three nights later . . .
Tanner pickedher up and carried her along the hallway.
“Careful,” she muttered in between kissing him.
“Don’t worry, darlin’. I won’t drop you.”
“Was more worried about you putting your back out,” she joked.
He shifted her so she was supported with one hand while he swatted her ass with the other.
“Hey! What was that for?” she asked as he reached the door to the hotel room. He grabbed his key card from his back pocket.
“Misbehavin’,” he told her as he swiped the card and opened the door.
“Hmm, maybe I’ll have to misbehave more often.”
“I’ll spank you any time you want, darlin’. You just have to ask. But if you earn yourself a punishment, you’re not gonna enjoy the consequences.” He threw her carefully on the bed as she gaped up at him.
Too much?
Was she going to tell him to get lost?
Fuck. He wasn’t scaring her, was he? She hadn’t told him any more details of what had happened to her yet. But he was conscious of the need to be careful around her.
The more time they spent together, the more relaxed she grew. But he didn’t want to take any chances.
They’d spent the last couple of nights together at the bar where she worked. Raid had been giving him shit about it. Today, he’d had enough and punched him in the nose. Now the bastard was walking around with a swollen nose and a scowl.
Thank fuck, the hotel had a free room tonight. The last thing he wanted to do was take her back to the horse trailer. Sure, it had a couple of beds, a small kitchen and a bathroom.
But it wasn’t the sort of place you wanted to take a woman back to. Plus, Raid was there. That bastard likely wouldn’t give them any privacy.
And Tanner didn’t share. Ever.
If a woman was with him . . . then she was his. Not that he yucked on anyone else’s yum. Plenty of people back home shared. Including two of his brothers.
Scarlett should be given a medal for putting up with Beau and Maddox.
Just as he was thinking of apologizing, Lilac rolled off the bed, grinning at him. “You’d have to catch me first.”
Excitement filled him.
Now, this he could get into.
“That so, pretty girl?” he drawled as he undid the buttons on his shirt. Her gaze was caught by his actions, and he saw the lust there. The need.
Tanner knew it was likely reflected in his own gaze.
“Yep.”
“Feeling brave?”
“Pfft. I got skills.” She folded her arms under her breasts.
“Oh, yeah?” he teased. “What are those?”
“You look like you don’t believe me. You don’t know . . . I might be a secret ninja.”
“Hmm, I’d like to see you in something black and tight.”
She blushed. “Tanner!”
“Do ninjas blush?” he asked.
“Maybe I’m an undercover police officer.”
“Yeah? You here to arrest me, baby?”
“Could be.”
“Did you bring your handcuffs?” He slid off his jeans. Her gaze flickered down again. Was there a hint of nervousness there?
You need to take this slower.
“Lilac? You okay?” he asked. “We don’t have to do this.”
“I know,” she whispered. “I really want this. I find it hard to be touched unless I know someone well. But I feel so at ease with you.”
“I’m glad, baby.”
“Now, handcuffs?” she asked.
“Seeing as you’re a cop, I’m guessing you’re here to arrest me. So, you’ll need some handcuffs. Bring them out.” He moved slowly toward her.
“You want me to use them on you?” she asked, taking him in.
By now, he was dressed in just his boxers.
Tanner knew women found him attractive. But he didn’t think he’d ever enjoyed a woman staring at him as much as he liked the way Lilac watched him. He wasn’t going to lie.
She licked her lips.
“No, baby. They won’t be used on me.” He grew closer and she let out a squeal, jumping onto the bed.
Concern filled him. He knew she was a bit of a klutz. “Careful, pretty girl. We don’t want you getting hurt.”
He drew off his boxers. Her mouth dropped open as she stared at his cock
“Lie on your back on the bed,” he commanded.
Lilac lay down on the bed. Then she stared around as if she couldn’t believe she’d just done that.
She scowled. “Hey! That’s cheating!”
Damn. She was just so cute. And totally put out. He lay down next to her on his side.
He chuckled. “I cheated?”
“Yes, you distracted me with your . . . um . . . with your . . .”
“With my dick? It’s all right, you can say it, pretty girl.”
She drew in a sharp breath. “I don’t usually do this.”
The note of vulnerability in her voice had him leaning up on one elbow to stare down at her. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
“I just don’t want you to think . . . I mean, I’ve known you less than a week . . . and now we’re . . . you’re naked in a bed with me. And I don’t want you to think badly of me.”
He scowled. “Why the hell would I think badly of you?”
“I don’t know if this is a good idea. What am I doing?” She tried to get up, but he wouldn’t let her. A flash of fear filled her face.
Fuck!
“Sorry, baby. But please just listen to me a moment.” He grasped hold of her chin and turned her face toward him. “I would never think badly of you. As long as you don’t think badly of me?”
“What? No! Of course not.”
“What we choose to do together is our business and no one else has a fucking say. I do not want you thinking badly about yourself either or you’ll get one of those not-fun spankings.”
“That’s not nice. I only want fun spankings.”
The tension in his stomach started to ease as she relaxed slightly.
“Then you’ll have to behave.”
“That sounds boring.” She grinned up at him.
He leaned in and brushed his lips over her cheek. Then he cupped the side of her face, kissing her. “You taste so damn good.”
“Tanner,” she groaned.
“We don’t have to do anything. We can just lay here and cuddle.”
“I . . . that sounds nice. But I don’t think I want to just cuddle. I want this. I want you. I just want a bit of happiness while I can grab it. That’s not a bad thing, right?”
“Baby, you’re worrying me now. What’s wrong?”
She gave him a sad smile. “Nothing you can help with.”
“Lilac,” he said in a low, warning voice. “If there’s something wrong, you need to tell me. Now.”
She ran a finger over his face. “I like how protective you are. But you can’t help me. Save that for someone who deserves your protection.”
“Oh, you’re really asking for a spanking now.”
“How about you kiss me instead?” She threaded her fingers through his hair and dragged his mouth down to hers.
Okay, she didn’t have to drag him. He wanted to kiss her. Fucking needed to taste her again. A groan erupted out of him.
Fuck.
She tasted like strawberries. And he wanted more.
Her small hand grasped his dick, and she ran her hand up and down the shaft.
“Fuck, baby. You have no idea how good that feels.”
“I want you,” she said, her breath coming in sharp pants. “Please.”
“There’s no rush.” He sat up, leaning against the headboard. Then he patted his thigh. “Come here.”
She eyed him suspiciously as she got up and straddled his lap.
“Good girl.” He kissed her again until she lost that suspicious look.
“God, you can kiss,” she muttered when he drew back. She tried to follow him. “Come back here.”
“Uh-uh. I need you to listen to me for a moment.”
“Less talking. More kissing.”
“While I am down with that plan, there’s something I want to make clear. If you need me to stop at any time you say so. Since I don’t know your triggers or limits and I know you’re still slightly scared over me touching you, I want you to know that I will always stop if you need me to.”
“All right.”
“You can trust me.”
There was a flash of something in her face. It disappeared so quickly that he thought he might have missed it. She was probably thinking that it was all very well to tell someone that you could trust them . . . but you also had to show them.
“I won’t hurt you, baby.”
He placed his hand around the back of her neck. With his other hand, he cupped her full breast.
Fuck, yes.
He wanted to get his mouth around her tit. To suck her nipple into his mouth. To drive her as insane as she made him.
“So, no spankings?” she said hopefully.
“No promises. Good girl spankings are fun. Bad girl spankings . . . well, if you want to avoid them, then you know what you have to do.”
“Run?” she said with a grin.
“You can run. I’ll follow. And when I catch you, then you’ll be in a world of trouble.”
Her mouth parted slightly.
“Fuck, you are beautiful.”
A blush filled her cheeks, and she glanced down as though uncomfortable at his words.
He didn’t understand that.
Couldn’t she see how gorgeous she was? It was so fucking obvious to him . . . and every other man in that bar tonight. And all of the other nights.
But she was with him.
He cupped her chin with his hand, raising her head. “Uh-uh, eyes on me, pretty girl. I don’t know how you can’t see it. But you’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen. When you spoke to me the other night . . . I couldn’t fucking believe my luck.”
“But you . . . you’re you.” She ran her hand through the air between them. “You look like this. Women must hit on you all the time.”
“You calling me easy now, darlin’?” he drawled.
“What? No!” Her eyes were wide with horror.
He couldn’t hold back his grin.
She slapped his chest. “You’re so mean.”
“Poor baby. How can I make it up to you?”
“Hmm.” She tapped her chin with her finger. “I’m thinking that you could let me go down on you.”
“That’s me making it up to you? Sounds like I’m the one who should be going down on you.”
She blushed, shaking her head. “I want to . . . please.”
“You can go down on me, pretty girl,” he told her, stilling her as she tried to slide off him. “But first, I want you naked.”
There were a few seconds where she hesitated. If she started spouting off crap about the way she looked, then he was actually going to spank her. Which was probably a quick way to end tonight’s fun.
But if there was one thing he’d learned from his brothers, it was that they didn’t let their women talk shit about themselves.
And he wouldn’t let Lilac do that either.
However, she surprised him by climbing off him to stand on the floor by the bed. Reaching over, she switched off the main light, leaving just the bedside lamp on.
He didn’t mind, though. Not if it made her feel more confident.
There would be plenty of time for him to properly take her in.
Then she took a deep breath and stripped down to her underwear.
“Fuck, yes,” he muttered as she revealed all those curves to his gaze.
She was pale, her skin smooth and creamy. Her tits were barely encased in a black lacy bra, and she wore matching black panties.
“Love the sexy lingerie, baby.” Had she put it on hoping he’d get to see it? Or was this what she always wore?
He wasn’t sure what he was hoping for most.
“Yeah?” she asked with a shy grin. “I like pretty things.”
“So do I,” he replied.
A giggle escaped her. “That was terrible.”
“Terribly good?” He wriggled his eyebrows. “I agree.”
She climbed onto the bed, crawling over to him. Her breasts were still encased in that damn bra though.
Just.
The bra looked like it was a few sizes too small. Not that he was complaining. Nope. He didn’t care if they popped out.
“Baby, take your bra off,” he commanded as she slid between his legs.
Ignoring him.
He frowned until she ran her tongue along his shaft.
Fuck. Him.
As a distraction that worked a bit too well. He groaned as she took the head of his dick into her mouth, sucking strongly.
Damn. She was good at that. She took more of him, swallowing.
“Baby! Christ.” She almost made him embarrass himself.
She licked her way back up his dick, running her tongue over the head.
His breathing grew faster as he placed his hand on the back of her head. “Take me deep again. That’s it. Good. That feels so fucking good. You don’t know what you’re doing to me.”
She was making his head spin. The room grew hazy.
“That’s it. More, baby. Good girl.”
Lilac slid up and down his shaft, driving him higher and higher. Her hand grasped the base of him, holding him still so she could lap at him like he was a fucking ice cream.
He saw the bliss on her face. “Do you like sucking my dick, pretty girl?”
She didn’t pause. It was almost like she was in a trance. Off somewhere else.
Yeah, he wasn’t having that.
Reaching out, he took hold of her chin, drawing her away from his dick.
A whimper escaped her, and she tried to move her face away from his hold.
“Look at me,” he commanded.
Her gaze shot up to his. Irritation filled her face. “Why did you stop me?”
“Just wanted to be sure you knew whose cock you had in your mouth.”
Red filled her cheeks. “If you didn’t like it . . .”
“Oh, I liked it, baby,” he murmured. “But you looked . . . distant. As though you weren’t here.”
“Shit,” she muttered. “I’m sorry.” A groan escaped her.
“Come here,” he murmured.
He longed to grab her, to tug her toward him. But she looked like she was seconds from losing it and the last thing he wanted was to freak her out.
She gave his dick a sad look. “I was enjoying myself, though.”
A surprised bark of laughter escaped him. “You can go back to sucking my dick soon. I just want to know that you know who you’re with. And that it’s my cock you want.”