10. DARIA
Chapter ten
G od, the way he looked at me… His eyes were dark, heated, full of unrestrained desire. It was like nothing I’d ever seen—like nothing I’d ever let myself have. And for once, I didn’t care about the mission, the war, or the endless lies that had shaped my life. Right now, I wanted this. I wanted him.
My breath came in short bursts, my chest rising and falling rapidly as I stayed locked around his hips. Beneath me, his muscles flexed with each stroke of his legs as he guided us steadily closer to the shore. And pressing right where I ached most was his hard cock. I should have distanced myself. But I was tired of always being cautious, tired of pretending I didn’t want something good that was right in front of me. I wanted to be swept away by this intoxicating impulse, to be taken by this man in every way.
Without hesitation, I seized his head, twining my fingers in his wet hair. Cupping his face, I tugged him closer until our lips collided. They were warm and soft, parting slightly at the touch of mine, sending shivers down my spine despite the hot summer day. I opened my lips and kissed him fiercely, my tongue darting out to tangle with his. He responded instantly with a low growl, shifting to hold my ass in one hand while he used the other to stay afloat.
Sex in a war zone—maybe it wasn’t the smartest move, but in the grand scheme of things, what was one reckless decision? We were both running on fumes and adrenaline and needed a break from reality. There was nothing wrong with a little pleasure between two consenting adults. Maybe that was weak justification, but who cared? We weren’t guaranteed tomorrow or even five minutes from now. We weren’t making promises. We were just blowing off steam like two strangers after a night at the club. Nothing more.
The water clinging to my skin trailed down my back and face in lazy streams. Every inch of me was on fire. I pressed my hips more firmly against him, and an electric current coursed through my body, settling low in my belly as liquid heat pooled between my legs. His grunt told me he felt it too, but I didn’t care. There was no room for shame here, not when I was desperate for this connection, for his touch, for the simple pleasure of being wanted.
While I kissed him with everything I had, he continued moving us through the water with ease. Soon his feet found solid ground on the pebbled riverbed, allowing him to use his hands more freely. One of them gripped my ass possessively, while the other traced patterns along my back.
Unable to help myself, I moaned softly into the kiss. My teeth found his lower lip, catching it in a playful bite that made him suck in a breath. I pulled back just enough to meet his gaze, my lips swollen and tingling. The hunger I saw in his eyes mirrored the storm building inside me.
In this fleeting moment, I wasn’t a weapon or a spy. I wasn’t running from anything. I was just a woman, here with him, craving his touch in a way I was hesitant to admit, even to myself.
Braxton’s hands roamed with a deliberate slowness, reverently, as if he wanted to memorize every curve and plane of my body. My breathing quickened when he tilted his head and traced the contours of my jaw with his lips before trailing kisses along the sensitive skin behind my ear. No man had ever found that spot so quickly. He lingered there, alternating between gentle kisses and light nibbles, somehow knowing exactly how to touch me to drive me insane. His breath was warm against my neck as he kissed his way down my throat, each press of his lips a promise of what was to come.
The current lapped at my skin while his fingers skimmed across my back, and his mouth continued its journey down my body, amping up my need. When he reached my collarbones, I arched toward him without thinking, silently pleading for more.
His hand cupped my breast, and my breath hitched as his fingers moved in slow, tantalizing patterns. He brushed a thumb over my nipple, teasing it into a hardened peak before his fingers began squeezing, rolling, and pulling in a perfect rhythm. Each touch sent sparks shooting through me, making me buck against his hips.
Braxton’s lips found my other breast, igniting a path of fire across my skin until they closed around my nipple. His tongue moved in sync with the rhythm of his fingers, driving me to my breaking point. I could taste the desire on his lips.
The sensations were exquisite—his tongue swirling and flicking while he sucked gently, then harder. I felt weightless in his arms, caught between the pleasure of what he was doing and the overwhelming need for more.
His mouth returned to mine with an urgency that matched the pounding of my heart. As we kissed, his hand moved lower still, tracing the curve of my ass before sliding around to caress my hip bone. My anticipation built with every inch he moved until his fingers found their destination.
When Braxton’s hand slipped between my legs, I gasped against his mouth. His fingers expertly found the tight bundle of nerves that had been throbbing for attention since this began. The difference between the cool water surrounding us and the molten heat of my pussy was almost too much to bear.
He didn’t break the kiss. His thumb began working my clit in slow circles while his fingers teased at my entrance. Each stroke sent pleasure radiating through me. Barely able to contain myself, I moaned into his mouth.
Braxton swallowed all my moans as if he didn’t want to give them to the world. His expert touch was relentless—every movement bringing me higher until I thought I might shatter.
I wasn’t shy about what I wanted. I wasn’t holding back. My legs wrapped around him tighter, and I anchored myself against him as I shifted my hips, desperate to feel his heat. I wanted him—every hard inch of him—inside me.
With a soft gasp, I broke the kiss, leaning in to whisper, “I want you, Boy Scout…all of you.”
Reaching between us, I wrapped my fingers around his hard cock, smiling at the velvety smoothness of it against my palm. I stroked the impressive length languidly, relishing the way his breath hitched with each caress. My other hand found the nape of his neck, my fingers tangling in his damp hair as I pulled him closer. God, I wanted him more than I’d ever wanted anything in my life.
His hands explored me with a reverence that made my heart ache, moving over the curve of my ass, the dip of my lower back, the expanse of my shoulders. He wasn’t rushing, but there was no denying the intensity between us. His fingers moved with tormenting precision, as if he knew exactly how to unravel me.
He leaned back, parting his lips and locking his eyes onto mine.
“I want you inside me,” I pleaded, my words laced with a raw need that surprised even me. “Fuck me hard.”
I raised myself up, positioning the tip of his cock at my entrance. Patiently, I hovered there. The anticipation was electric, every nerve ending in my body alive. I leaned back slightly so we could both watch as I slowly lowered myself onto him.
The sensation of Braxton’s cock stretching my walls was divine. I moaned softly as he filled me to the hilt and his hands settled on my hips.
His reaction was immediate; his eyes closed briefly as he let out a low groan of pleasure. “Christ, you’re unreal. You’re fire in my hands,” he growled. “You feel like heaven.”
His hands gripped my hips tighter as I began to move, finding a slow, steady rhythm. Soon, out of desperate desire, my strong legs started propelling me up and down his length faster. I rode him hard, each thrust eliciting a moan of pleasure from deep within my throat. When I glanced up, his eyes were dark with pure hunger.
“God, Daria, you feel incredible,” he praised in a voice ragged with need. “Your pussy is so tight, so perfect around my dick.”
His words fueled my need, spurring me on as I rocked against him, chasing the release that I knew was just within reach. He dug his fingers into my flesh while lifting and slamming me down onto him over and over, the water splashing all around us.
“Fuck yes! Yes!” I gasped out, shifting my hips so that his pelvic bone rubbed against my clit with each thrust.
I threw my head back, my screams of pleasure echoing across the surface of the water while Braxton’s cock drove into me again and again. The tension inside me coiled tighter with each stroke, my entire body humming as I rode the edge of control. I gripped his shoulders hard, holding on as the world around us shattered into a million brilliant shards of light.
“Braxton…” I gasped, clinging to him. The pleasure peaked and crashed over me like a tidal wave. My body arched against his, and the world dissolved around us as I came undone in his arms.
With a final, desperate thrust, Braxton buried himself deep inside me, his own release triggered by the tightening of my walls around him. He pulsed within me, the warmth of his cum filling me as we both tumbled over together. My walls continued to convulse around him. The sensation of his pelvic bone grinding against my clit had pushed me into a spiral of ecstasy that left me boneless and panting.
For a moment, we remained locked together, our foreheads pressed against each other as we struggled to catch our breath, the river swirling gently around us. The world had narrowed to this one perfect moment—our hearts pounding in unison, our breaths mingling in the space between us.
I was unable to speak, to think, to do anything but hang on tight. Braxton wrapped his arms around me, holding me close as we both floated back down to earth, our bodies still connected.
The aftermath of our shared climax left me in a euphoric daze. But slowly, the world came back into focus. I couldn’t help it—I started laughing, the sound bubbling up from deep within me, releasing all the tension I’d been carrying for so long.
“Oh wow,” I managed to say between breaths, running my fingers lazily over his damp shoulders. “You…you wrecked me— in the best way possible. You were devastating. I think I forgot how to breathe somewhere in the middle of that… I needed that more than you can imagine.” My voice came out husky, laced with an honesty I hadn’t allowed myself in a long time.
Braxton chuckled softly, the rumble of his chest reaching my most sensitive places. “Wow. A compliment? From you? Am I dreaming, or did the Ice Queen just melt a little?”
I playfully slapped his shoulder but couldn’t stop grinning. “Don’t push your luck,” I teased, stamping a quick kiss on his lips, not wanting this moment to end.
He reached up to cup my cheek, tracing the edge of it with a gentleness that made my heart stutter. “You’re beautiful, Daria, and so much more,” he whispered. His thumb drew a slow line along my lip, leaving me momentarily stunned. “I mean it. You’re an extraordinary woman. I’ve never met anyone like you. You’re strong, confident, and powerful. You literally fought me and held your own. Standing up to those Russian guards to protect me, risking your life to save mine…that took a kind of courage most people can’t even imagine. You blew your cover and put yourself in life-threatening danger for me, a complete stranger. You’re a true hero—not just to me but to all the Ukrainians you’ve helped save by covertly working against the Kremlin.”
His words shook me. Praise from a man? This was uncharted territory, as alien to me as a peaceful life. I blinked, trying to mask the sudden sting of emotion rising in my throat. I wasn’t used to this…to gentleness, to appreciation. For as long as I could remember, I’d fought, bled, and risked my life for causes I didn’t believe in, always being seen as a weapon, a tool. Never as a woman worthy of admiration. Praise was a language I had never learned to speak or understand. I’d built my identity on being strong and untouchable, yet here he was, dismantling that armor with his sincerity.
“No one’s ever said that to me,” I admitted quietly.
He leaned closer. “Well, they should have. You deserve to hear it. I see you, Daria. There’s more to you than the front you put on for the world. There’s a kindness in you.”
I forced a laugh, trying to deflect. “You don’t have to butter me up. I already think you’re halfway decent,” I said, attempting to pull away.
But Braxton wasn’t letting me dodge this. His hands framed my face, making me look him in the eyes. “No, Daria. I want you to hear it. Believe it. You are special.”
My throat tightened. The intensity of his gaze left me vulnerable in a way I wasn’t sure how to handle. No one had ever seen me like this or spoken such words to me before. He leaned in and kissed me softly. It was a kiss filled with tenderness that touched something deep inside me. I melted into it, savoring this moment.
Then, in a heartbeat, our peace shattered.
The distant thumping of helicopter blades, growing louder by the second, caught my attention. My instincts kicked in, giving me a shot of adrenaline. “Oh shit,” I hissed, breaking away from him.
Braxton reacted instantly, slipping out of me and diving beneath the water. I followed without thinking, and we moved toward the bank, where the trees offered some cover. As the helicopter drew closer, we surfaced just enough to breathe, keeping low in the water.
Once we had reached a semi-sheltered area, I glanced at him. He must have seen the panic in my face because he leaned in close to my ear and said, “It’s okay. We’ve got this.”
His calm presence helped steady my nerves.
The helicopter circled the farmhouse, the thunderous chopping of the blades deafening as it passed overhead, scanning the area. We remained hidden, barely daring to breathe, until it finally veered off, the noise of the blades fading into the distance.
The moment it was gone completely, I pushed off the bottom, swimming toward where we had entered the river. And just like that, it was back to business. I was back in survival mode. “Move. We need to move now!” I barked. “Get your ass to the shore. We’re grabbing our stuff and getting out of here.”
Braxton nodded without question, and we swam quickly to the small inlet where we’d left our clothes. I cursed under my breath as I spotted them and all our gear still lying out in plain sight. Stupid, Daria. Careless . I should’ve known better. If the Russians had spotted our things, they’d be sending ground troops soon.
“Hurry,” I snapped, trudging out of the water and shaking off the excess droplets. In a rush, I grabbed my clothes, boots, knife, and tactical belt. “They had to have seen our stuff. They’ll be back. We’ve got maybe minutes,” I huffed out angrily as I headed toward the back porch, the fear of getting caught propelling me into action.
Braxton quickly gathered his clothes and followed me into the house. We had to move fast. There was no time to waste. Not if we wanted to stay alive.