Chapter 3 #2
For once, I just felt…seen. And the fact that Ford had managed to strip me down to where I was most vulnerable, and so easily, terrified me almost more than it soothed me.
Ford let me go and hit the button on the remote, turning the vibrator back on and accelerating the speed.
I welcomed the distraction from my unsettling thoughts, and this time, he didn’t stop when the intensity sent me soaring over the precipice.
The pleasure shattered me, the climax ripping through me with brutal force.
I sobbed his name through wave after wave as the release tore me apart, until I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think, could only feel.
It was the most glorious, most devastating and all-consuming orgasm of my life.
Ford watched me the entire time, savoring every second of my surrender. Through it all, his voice kept me anchored, his eyes dark and hungry. “That’s it. Let it go. Don’t hold back…God, you’re so fucking beautiful like this.”
Even as I came down from the adrenaline rush of my orgasm, it wasn’t enough and I knew what I still wanted.
What I needed. This time I didn’t hesitate to voice my desires.
“Ford…fuck me, please,” I begged shamelessly.
“I need you inside me.” For once, there was no bravado in my tone. Just the truth.
His groan was guttural and primal as he removed the vibrator and tossed it onto the steel tray nearby.
He released only my ankles from the straps, then lowered the end of the table so that I was in the perfect position to fuck.
He shucked his swim trunks, freeing himself and taking his hard, thick cock in his fist. He rolled a condom on, then lined himself up between my bent knees.
I whimpered at the blunt pressure of him pushing just inside of me, my sensitive pussy stretching to accommodate his girth.
His hands latched onto my hips and he shoved deep in one smooth, brutal stroke that stole the air from my lungs as he filled me, claiming me completely.
My eyes rolled back as he fucked me hard against the exam table, each thrust driving me deeper into the truth I’d never dared to acknowledge before—that maybe I wanted someone who could take me like this, who could see past every wall and refused to let me hide from what I truly needed…
a man strong and confident enough to handle someone like me.
It was just sex, I told myself as the table creaked under us as he pounded into me. My cries echoed against the walls and Ford’s voice was a constant growl in my ear. “Good girl. Take every inch. You begged for this. You’ll come on my cock and know exactly who fucking owns you.”
In any other setting I would have bristled at those words, at any man owning me.
But here and now, that low, possessive tone had me unraveling and I did exactly what he’d demanded of me.
Another blissful orgasm rocked my world and I constricted around his cock.
Jaw clenched, Ford held my gaze as he rammed deep and groaned, following me right over the edge.
His big body shuddered as he emptied into the condom, then collapsed against my chest, his breathing ragged.
Every inch of me trembled. I let my head roll back, my body spent and my heart hammering with something I didn’t dare name. I’d just submitted to Ford Perish, and as much as I’d enjoyed what happened between us, it couldn’t happen again.
Ford pulled out of me once he regained his equilibrium.
He disposed of the condom and returned to me, releasing the straps around my wrists and my mid-section until my arms fell limply to my sides.
I was too exhausted to move, too wrung out to care, until Ford’s strong arms slid beneath me and lifted me from the table like I weighed nothing.
I should have fought him. Should have demanded that he put me down, should have snapped something snarky to save face and to rid myself of those too soft feelings settling in my chest. But instead, my head dropped against his shoulder, my body instinctively curling closer to the heat of him.
My muscles trembled with exhaustion and the aftershocks of pleasure still pulsing through me.
He carried me across the room and lowered me onto a leather couch tucked against the wall and covered me with a light blanket.
I expected him to step back to watch me from a safe distance, smug in what he’d done, but he didn’t.
Instead, he put his swim trunks back on then retrieved a bottle of water from a small fridge next to the sofa.
Then, he crouched in front of me, gently brushing disheveled strands of my hair away from my face.
“Here, drink this,” he said, uncapping the bottle and handing it to me.
I drank obediently, the blissfully cool water quenching my throat, and my thirst, while Ford stroked my hair and rubbed his big, warm hands along my arms. I found myself leaning into his touch, gravitating toward the warmth of his body in a way that I hadn’t expected.
My heart hammered in my chest, but not because of excitement or arousal.
For someone who prided herself on her independence, I didn’t like how much I craved Ford’s comfort and how close I wanted to be to him right now.
I didn’t like how good he was at this part of things—holding me, soothing me, taking care of me.
Unaware of my sudden inner turmoil, Ford smiled at me, still crouched in front of me. “You did good, Trouble.”
That stupid nickname should’ve irritated me. Should have made me roll my eyes at him or issue a retort. But instead, warmth flared in my chest, stealing my breath in a different way. And his gaze…it wasn’t mocking or cruel. It was soft. Proud. Protective.
And that…terrified me, because I’d never given this much of myself during a sexual encounter. Ford hadn’t just taken my body, he’d gotten under my skin and he’d dismantled quite a few of those walls I thought I’d built too high for any man to climb.
I swallowed hard, retreating back from his touch. “Don’t…don’t look at me like that.” My voice cracked, betraying too much of what I was feeling and I hated that weakness of mine.
Ford tilted his head, his eyes searching mine. “Like what?”
“Like I’m yours,” I snapped, harsher than I’d intended, but I needed the sting of my words to put that distance between us again.
Silence stretched between us, thick and charged. He didn’t argue. Didn’t push. He just studied me with that same calm intensity, like he could see every fear I was trying to bury.
I stood on unsteady legs, pulling away, needing space before I crumbled completely. “I need to go.”
Ford straightened to his full height, concern flickering in his eyes. “Are you sure you’re ready?”
I tightened the blanket around my shoulder and narrowed my gaze at him. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I mean that wasn’t a lot of aftercare,” he said, hands braced on his hips. “Are you sure that you’re good to go after that intense scene we just had?”
I knew about aftercare, as a concept. Just in general, from research or things I’d heard, But this was all new to me and I didn’t want any more intimacy between Ford and I than I’d already allowed.
“I’m not really the cuddles afterwards kind of girl,” I said, folding the blanket and placing it on the couch.
“Thank you for the water.” I paused, doing my best to look unaffected and detached when I was anything but.
“And for the sex. The sex was really great. I had fun.”
“Thanks.” Ford’s tone was a bit dry, as if he’d never doubted for a second that he’d given me a few absolutely mind-blowing orgasms. “Well, you might want to grab something to eat downstairs before you leave. They have charcuterie platters in the lounge, or you can even order food from the bar.”
His mood was steady on the surface, but I could hear the edge beneath, like he wanted to offer something more, wasn’t sure if he should, and was trying to keep it casual instead.
I found my panties and slipped back into them. “Thanks, but I know how to take care of myself.”
“Never said you couldn’t.” Ford’s face was mostly unreadable, and yet I couldn’t help but detect a bit of confusion in his gaze.
Good, let him be confused. That was better than him seeing the truth. Better than him seeing how badly I wanted to stay. How much it scared me that he’d touched something deeper than anyone ever had.
I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror on the wall.
God, I was a wreck. My hair was a disheveled mess, my makeup smudged.
I looked exactly like what I was…a woman who’d been completely undone.
And I didn’t want Ford seeing me like that.
Not because I was embarrassed, but because if he looked too closely he’d see it all.
The cracks in my facade. The longing I didn’t know how to bury fast enough.
Feeling as though I was suffocating and needing air, I headed toward the door with more determination than grace. “See you around,” I said, doing my best to sound like my normal cool and collected self.
“Violet—” he started, but I didn’t let him finish.
“Just so we’re clear, tonight was a one and done,” I said, cutting him off to let him know exactly where I stood. Never to happen again.
Then, I walked out, because if I stayed one second longer I feared I might not want to ever leave. And I couldn’t let Ford Perish become the kind of man I swore I’d never need.