Chapter 6 #2
He kisses his way down my body, replacing his fingers with his mouth, and I nearly come off the bed.
He holds my hips steady with strong hands, devouring me like a man starved.
The sight of his dark head between my thighs, the feel of his tongue working magic, the soft groans he makes against me, all combine to send me hurtling toward the edge embarrassingly quickly.
"Jared," I warn, fingers tangling in his hair. "I'm going to..."
"Let go." He looks up at me, eyes dark with desire. "I want to taste you when you come."
His words push me over, pleasure exploding through me in waves as he continues his relentless attention. When I finally come down, trembling and gasping, he kisses his way back up my body, looking entirely too pleased with himself.
"Smug is a good look on you," I manage, still breathless.
"You're a good look on me." He kisses me deeply, letting me taste myself on his tongue. "The best."
I wrap my legs around his hips, feeling his hardness pressing against me. "I want you inside me," I tell him, enjoying the way his eyes darken at my words. "Now."
He reaches into the bedside drawer, retrieving a condom. I take it from him, rolling it onto his impressive length with deliberate slowness, enjoying the way his breathing hitches when I stroke him.
"Jen," he groans, the word half warning, half plea.
"Yes?" I ask innocently, continuing my teasing strokes.
In answer, he captures both my hands in one of his, pinning them gently above my head. "You're playing with fire."
"Maybe I like getting burned." I arch against him, feeling him slide against my wetness. "Especially by you."
Something flashes in his eyes, possessive and primal. "Mine," he growls, positioning himself at my entrance. "Say it."
The demand sends a thrill through me. "Yours," I agree, eyes locked on his. "And you're mine."
"Completely." He pushes in slowly, filling me inch by incredible inch. "All yours, Jen."
The stretch and fullness are exquisite, nearly overwhelming. When he's fully seated, we both freeze, adjusting to the sensation. His forehead presses against mine, our breathing synchronized, bodies connected as intimately as possible.
"You feel amazing," he murmurs, voice strained with the effort of holding still. "So tight. So perfect."
"Fuck me, Jared," I urge, rolling my hips. "Hard and deep."
He withdraws slowly, then drives back in with a control that makes me whimper. Each thrust is deliberate, calculated to hit exactly where I need him most. My nails dig into his shoulders as the pleasure builds again, faster and more intense than before.
"That's it," he encourages, pace increasing. "Take what you need. You look so beautiful like this, coming apart under me."
The combination of his words, his touch, and the delicious friction drives me higher. I wrap my legs tighter around him, changing the angle so he hits that perfect spot with every thrust.
"Jared," I gasp. "Right there. Don't stop. Please don't stop."
"Never." His voice is ragged, his rhythm faltering as his own control slips. "Come for me again, Jen. I want to feel you come around my cock."
The crude language from his usually controlled mouth pushes me over the edge. I shatter, crying out his name as pleasure crashes through me. He follows moments later, his release triggering aftershocks of my own.
We collapse together, breathing hard, limbs entangled. Jared rolls to the side to avoid crushing me, but keeps me close, his arms wrapped securely around my body. For several minutes, we just breathe together, coming down from the high, neither of us speaking.
Finally, I find my voice. "Well damn. Why didn't we do that sooner?"
His laugh rumbles under my ear. "Maintaining appropriate boundaries as my friend’s sister?"
"Overrated." I press a kiss to his chest, right over his heart. "Very overrated."
He tilts my chin up, his expression suddenly serious. "No regrets?"
"None." I meet his eyes steadily. "You?"
"Just one." At my questioning look, he smiles. "That we wasted a week not doing this."
I laugh, relaxing against him. "We have time to make up for it."
"We do." His arms tighten around me possessively. "Starting now."
He rolls me beneath him again, his recovery time impressive. "Round two already, Mountain Man?"
"Just getting started," he promises, his hand sliding between us to find me still sensitive and ready. "I plan to learn every inch of you tonight."
And he does, taking his time with thorough exploration that leaves me trembling and begging.
We make love again, slower this time, face to face with my legs wrapped around his waist and his hands holding mine beside my head.
The eye contact, the whispered words of possession and need, make it even more intense than the first time.
Later, as we catch our breath, bodies slick with sweat and thoroughly satisfied, Jared pulls me against his chest, tucking me perfectly under his chin.
"Stay," he whispers into my hair. "Not just tonight. Stay with me."
"For how long?" I need to know what this means.
"For as long as you'll have me." His voice is rough with emotion. "I'm falling for you, Jen. Hard and fast and completely. Have been since you barreled into my life and forced me to feel again."
"I'm falling for you too," I admit, tracing patterns on his chest. "Even though it terrifies me."
"Then we'll be terrified together."
He kisses me again, and we're lost in each other once more, learning and claiming and connecting in the most intimate ways possible. Each touch, each kiss, each whispered confession brings us closer, turning what started as pretense into something beautifully, frighteningly real.
Later, much later, we lay breathless and sated, limbs tangled together in the sheets. His fingers trace lazy circles on my hip as I rest my head on his shoulder, feeling more content than I have in years.
"You've ruined me," he murmurs against my hair. "No man should be allowed to discover his fake wife is also the best sex he's ever had. It's dangerous information."
I laugh, pressing a kiss to his chest. "If it helps, you've pretty thoroughly ruined me too. I don't think I'll be able to walk normally tomorrow."
"Good." There's masculine pride in his voice. "I like the thought of you feeling me tomorrow. Remembering this. Remembering you're mine."
"Possessive much?" I tease, though the words send a thrill through me.
"Very." His hand slides to cup my backside. "Especially about you."
I rise up on one elbow, studying his face in the soft glow from the Christmas lights visible through the half open bedroom door. His expression is open, vulnerable in a way I've rarely seen. The walls he's maintained for so long completely dismantled, at least for now.
"What are we doing, Jared?" I ask softly.
"Falling." He says it simply, like it's the most obvious thing in the world. "Accidentally but completely."
The words make my heart skip.
"You catching feelings for your wife there Jared?" I tease.
"Getting there." His eyes hold mine, sincere and certain. "Faster than I expected. More intensely than I thought possible. But yes, that's where I'm heading with you, Jen. If you'll come with me."
I trace the scar on his cheek, this visible reminder of all he's survived. "I think I'm right there with you," I admit. "Which should terrify me more than it does."
His smile transforms his face, joy replacing the perpetual seriousness I first associated with him. "Then we're both headed in the same direction."
"Seems like it." I settle back against his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat beneath my ear. "Though I warn you, the journey might get bumpy. I'm not always easy to love."
"Neither am I." His arm tightens around me. "But I think we're up for the challenge."
As I drift toward sleep, warm and secure in Jared's arms, I realize that what started as a business arrangement has become the most authentic connection I've ever experienced.
And despite all the reasons to be cautious, all the warnings my practical mind tries to raise, my heart has already decided.
I'm falling for the Mountain Man. And I wouldn't change a thing about how we got here.