Chapter 37
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
MERCER
My arm throbbed, an unfortunate side effect when you get grazed by a bullet, I guess. But a little blood never deterred me, and the moment the shock of the situation wore off, I couldn't help but think about how fucking lucky I was. If Ace hadn't acted so quickly, I knew that Rocco's aim would have been right on, straight to my heart. But the slight jolt of Ace grabbing onto his head tilted his arm at the very last second, changing the trajectory of the bullet.
I looked over at my friend as he pulled into our driveway. "It's fine; it's just a little graze."
Still, I couldn't get the look of fear that crossed his face out of my mind. For a moment, before he hopped over the couch and was checking every inch of my body, he had worried for me. Hell, I think even now, knowing I'm safe, he still had fear.
"It was too fucking close for my liking," he grumbled.
I wouldn't admit it, but it was too fucking close for my liking, too. I didn't want to repeat that anytime soon. "We're home now. Things went well. Every single plan went off without a hitch and soon, if he isn't already, Accardo will lose his shit. He'll know just who the fuck he has been messing with the whole time."
Ace’s phone buzzed, and he looked down at the message. "Adam will be home soon."
"Good. See. It's all perfect." I pushed open the car door so he couldn't see the anxiety that was in my eyes, which stated just how far from perfect our plan almost went. How close to death I came. My limbs stretched as I climbed out of the car, and then I bent down, peering inside where he still sat. "Are you coming in?"
"Think I'll wait for Adam." He reached over, snagging some gum from the center console, before shoving a piece in his mouth. "Make sure everyone gets in okay."
"They are fine," I promised, even knowing we all had a risk tonight. Some more than others.
"Still."
What he really meant was he needed time alone, time to process, time to unwind, and I could respect that. I tapped the roof of the car a few times. "Come in when you're ready."
"Yeah." He looked off to the expanse of our yard, off to the corner where the rose garden was, dismissing me.
Another tap on the roof and I pushed off, taking the steps to the house two at a time. I nodded to the guards as I passed before I entered our home and was enveloped in the calm comfort of the place. I inhaled as I closed the door, smelling a deliciously sweet scent that could only mean one thing. Following the smell, I found Bellamy in the kitchen, talking to Drew as she ate a spoonful of cookie dough.
"I don't think that's safe," I barked, and she jumped, spinning around with a spoon in her mouth.
"Mercer." She dropped the spoon on the counter, holding her palm to her chest. "You scared me."
"I doubt that cookie dough is safe to eat raw," I reminded her.
"But baby likes cookie dough." She gave me puppy eyes. "Don't you want to give the baby what the baby wants?"
I laughed. "That shit will work on Ace, not me. You know her safety is my priority."
"It will—" she gasped, her eyes suddenly going wide. "You're bleeding."
I glanced at my arm; the sleeve torn open from a bullet and blood coating the skin. "It was a graze."
Her hands were on me in an instant, the cookie dough forgotten as she moved to inspect every inch of my skin, searching for more damage than what was visible, except her stomach prevented the closeness she wanted, forcing her to keep a small distance between us. Fuck, she was so damn cute when she cared.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and looked at my friend who spent his evening protecting what was most important to us. "Drew, leave us, please."
His eyes sparkled knowingly, humor coating his words. "Yes, sir."
I flipped him off, and he laughed, but he followed orders, exiting the kitchen, taking the other guards in the vicinity with him. Good. I didn't need witnesses right now. I only needed my girl.
"Jesus. What the hell happened, Merc?" She bit her lower lip as she examined the damaged skin.
"Just a little confrontation." I reached up, freeing her lower lip from her teeth before leaning in to kiss her. When I pulled away, I reassured her, "Ace took care of it."
She rolled her eyes. "Doesn't help that you came home injured."
"This is hardly an injury. Plus," I grinned, "I know what could make this feel better."
"A good cleaning, some ointment, and a Tylenol?" she deadpanned.
"Hmm. Maybe." I leaned down, burying my nose in the crook of her neck and inhaling. "But I was thinking this sweet body around my cock would be just what the doctor ordered."
"I'm serious. You should get that cleaned out. What if it gets infected?" She tried to push me away, but I was stronger than she was.
"I'm serious too." I bit down on her shoulder, and she gasped. "There's nothing like a good woman to ease away the adrenaline rush."
"Is this a ploy to get up my skirt?" she asked.
I let my hand fall to her thigh, pushing away her skirt and dragging my fingers up her bare thigh. "Do I need a ploy?"
My hand found the junction of her thighs and I cupped her pussy, tearing a whimper from her throat. "No."
"Didn't think so." My lips sucked against her skin, drawing the luscious taste of vanilla into my mouth as I pushed aside her panties, toying with the short little curls between her thighs. I let my tongue glide over her throat, before I demanded, "Turn around, baby. Put your hands on the counter and hold on."
I spun her, releasing her cunt long enough to grab her hands and link our fingers so I could place her palms on the marble countertop of the kitchen island. Then I let go, gripped her skirt, and pulled it up to her hips, bunching it against her back so I could tear off her panties. With her panties gone, I smacked her perfect little ass before grasping it. "Can I confess something?"
Her voice was strained when she answered, "Always."
"When you first came here, I thought you were hot. But what pregnancy has done to your body, stretched and molded it, made these hips wide and this ass look even more delicious… I doubt I would have been able to keep my hands off you if Adam didn't give me permission. You had the power to ruin a lifelong friendship." I leaned in to whisper in her ear, "So fucking powerful this body is."
Then I pulled her hips back, released my cock from my jeans, and yanked her body toward me as I sunk into the warmth of her pussy. I wasn't gentle, but she didn't seem to mind as she groaned out my name, her body clenching around my cock so hard my vision blurred.
My hand traveled up her back, running along her spine before tangling in her hair and pulling her head back, forcing her to arch her back. My breath was hot on her skin as I spoke against her ear. "You were waiting for me tonight, weren't you, doll? Your cunt is dripping wet; you're fucking soaking."
"Yes," she whispered, and I pulled out, before roughly pushing back in. "Fuck, yes."
I knew her body like my own, knew what made her eyes roll back from pleasure and what made this girl scream. Her screaming was my only goal, the only thing in life that made me feel accomplished. I pumped into her body, squeezing her tits and talking dirty words and phrases into her ear, forcing her to surrender to our lust.
So fucking beautiful.
You like my cock inside you, don't you?
Say my fucking name.
It makes you so hot when I take you from behind, doesn't it?
Fuck, you're so damn tight, so fucking perfect.
Her fingers flexed against the marble, scraping against the stone, trying to find something to hold on to, trying to ease the pleasure that was building inside of her. But it was too late. The only thing that would ever satisfy her now was a release, and I wanted to take every moment of it, every ounce of her cum as it dripped down our thighs, and claim it as my own.
I wanted to own her.
I did fucking own her.
A fact she reminded me of as she begged me, whimpering my name, as she pleaded for God. There was no room for God here. Not in this space where all that existed was my skin sliding against hers and her silky heat wrapped around my cock.
I pulled her body up, pinning her hips against the counter as her back plastered against my chest. Our clothes were sticky, clinging to our bodies as our sweat soaked the material, and the texture only added to the appeal. Only reminded me of just how sensitive every nerve in my body was when my attention was focused on her. My body buzzed, the need to release becoming overwhelming. I wasn't sure what brought on this moment, what inside of me had made me snap to the point that I couldn't even get her to bed, but I couldn't control myself. I didn't want to.
Maybe I was broken. Maybe staring down the barrel of a gun and pretending like I didn't care about my life's outcome really did fuck with my head. Was it too soon to admit I was scared? Was it a weakness to confess my fears of the life I'd not yet lived? Could I tell her that in that moment, when I wondered if I'd die, all I could think about was her?
My arm wrapped around her stomach, clinging to the child I was so thankful I'd get to meet. My other arm snaked upward, my forearm resting between her breasts as my fingers latched onto her throat. Her head tilted back, her back curved, and with her ass pushing toward me, I couldn't help but pick up the pace.
I was rough. She fucking loved it. And when I couldn't control the lust any longer, when my spine tingled and my thighs tightened, my hand around her throat squeezed as my teeth sank into her shoulder, biting into the tender flesh. Her pussy clamped down on my cock hard as she took a gasp of air before her eyes rolled back and pleasure consumed her. Three more pumps and I was coming, spilling inside her cunt as every word of praise known to man fell from my lips.
It wasn't until her body was limp and my chest stopped heaving that I sank to the floor in the kitchen and pulled her into my lap. Her arms wrapped around my neck as she snuggled against me. God, she was so fucking beautiful. I couldn't say it enough. I couldn't stop thinking about it. And for the briefest of moments today, I thought maybe I would lose her right along with my life.
I fucking can't.
Never again would I be so careless.
I closed my eyes and inhaled. "Belle, baby?"
"Hmm?" Her hum vibrated against my shoulder.
"I think you burned your cookies."
She cursed and jumped up as I smacked that ass I loved so much, and twenty minutes later, I had my girl soaking in the bathtub, her luscious body between my thighs as we ate fresh-baked cookies, and I pretended like the worst of this night never fucking happened.