Chapter 11 #2
"Beautiful," he murmurs, and the reverence in his voice makes my breath catch. "Every inch of you."
He kisses the inside of my thigh, then higher, breath ghosting over where I'm wet and aching for him. When his mouth finally finds me, tongue sliding through slick folds, I cry out and my hips lift off the bed.
"Easy." His hands grip my thighs, holding me steady as he works me with lips and tongue. "I want to taste every bit of you."
And he does. Licking and sucking, tongue circling my clit with maddening precision before dipping lower to explore.
Each stroke sends pleasure spiraling through me, building heat low in my belly that threatens to consume me whole.
His stubble rasps against sensitive skin, rough and perfect, adding another layer of sensation that makes my toes curl.
When his fingers slide inside me I'm already wet, so ready for him that I take two easily.
He strokes slowly, curling to hit that spot that makes stars burst behind my eyes while his tongue continues its assault on my clit.
The dual sensations are almost too much, pleasure building so fast I can barely breathe.
"That's it," he murmurs against my hip, lips vibrating against overheated skin. "Let go for me. I want to feel you come on my tongue."
The words combined with one more perfect stroke push me over the edge.
I come with his name torn from my throat, pleasure crashing through me in waves that leave me shaking and gasping.
My inner walls clench around his fingers, pulsing with each aftershock, and he works me through it with gentle touches that extend the pleasure until I'm boneless and panting beneath him.
He kisses his way back up my body, lips trailing across my stomach, between my breasts, along my throat. When he reaches my mouth I can taste myself on his tongue, salt and sex and something uniquely us.
"Holy hell," I manage when I can form words again.
He grins, looking entirely too pleased with himself. "We're not done yet."
"We better not be." I reach for him, fingers working his belt, his zipper, shoving jeans and boxer briefs down until he's finally as naked as I am. "Your turn."
He's beautiful. All lean muscle and tan skin, scars mapping a history he'll share later, arousal evident in the hard length pressing against my thigh. I wrap my hand around him, stroking slowly, watching his eyes go dark.
"Fallon." My name comes out strangled. "If you keep doing that, this'll be over before it starts."
"Can't have that." I guide him to me, legs opening in invitation. "I want all of you."
He pauses, eyes searching mine. "We should talk about protection. I'm clean, tested regularly for the teams. But I need to know—"
"IUD," I say, understanding what he's asking. "And I'm clean too. Bruce was the last person I was with and that was years ago."
"Okay." He kisses me softly. "Then I've got everything I need right here."
He settles between my thighs, the blunt head of him pressing against me.
"You're sure?" he asks one more time, giving me every chance to back out.
"I'm sure." I pull him down for a kiss. "I want this. I want you."
He enters me slowly, the broad head of him pressing in with delicious pressure. The stretch is intense, almost too much after so long without this, and I gasp against his mouth. He pauses immediately, giving me time to adjust, kissing me softly until my body relaxes around him.
"Breathe," he murmurs against my lips. "We've got all the time in the world."
I do, drawing air deep into my lungs, and feel my muscles ease.
He sinks deeper, inch by careful inch, watching my face for any sign of discomfort.
The fullness is overwhelming, the intimacy of him inside me stealing coherent thought.
When he's finally fully seated, hips flush against mine, we're both breathing hard, foreheads pressed together.
"Okay?" His voice is strained with the effort of staying still, muscles trembling with control.
"Better than okay." I rock my hips experimentally, adjusting to the delicious stretch, and watch his eyes nearly roll back. "Move, Holden. Please. I need you to move."
He withdraws almost completely before sliding back in, slow and deliberate, making sure I feel every inch.
The drag and pull sends sparks racing up my spine, pleasure building with each careful thrust. His hands frame my face, holding my gaze while he establishes a rhythm that's slow and deep and perfect, making sure I see exactly who's doing this to me.
"I've got you," he murmurs, thumb brushing my cheek with devastating tenderness. "You're safe. You're mine. I've got you."
The words undo me as much as his body does.
Mine. Got you. Everything I've needed to hear, delivered in the steady rhythm of him moving inside me.
Each thrust hits deeper, stroking places that make me whimper and arch beneath him.
Sweat slicks our skin where we're pressed together, his chest sliding against my breasts with delicious friction.
My hands map the hard muscles of his back, feeling them flex and release with each powerful movement. His shoulders are broad and solid under my palms, giving me something to hold onto as pleasure builds higher. When I dig my nails into his skin, he groans and picks up the pace.
"Harder," I beg, wrapping my legs around his hips to pull him deeper. "I won't break. I promise I won't break."
He growls low in his throat and complies, hips snapping faster, driving into me with a force that makes the bed frame creak.
Each thrust punches the air from my lungs, sends pleasure crashing through me in waves.
One hand slides between us, callused fingers finding my clit, circling with perfect pressure while he maintains that punishing rhythm.
The dual sensations push me higher, coiling tension in my core until I'm trembling on the edge.
His mouth finds my neck, teeth scraping sensitive skin, and I cry out as pleasure spirals tighter.
Every nerve ending fires at once, overwhelmed by the feeling of him inside me, his fingers on my clit, his breath hot against my throat.
"Come for me," he commands against my ear, voice rough with need. "Let me feel you."
The order combined with one more perfect thrust shatters me.
I come apart around him, pleasure so intense it borders on pain, inner walls clenching rhythmically around his length.
My back arches, head thrown back as I cry out his name, wave after wave of sensation crashing through me until I can't tell where I end and he begins.
He follows seconds later with a guttural groan, hips driving deep and holding there as he pulses inside me.
I feel him come, hot and claiming, marking me in the most primal way.
His face buries against my neck, breath ragged against my skin, and we cling to each other as aftershocks ripple through both our bodies.
We collapse together, sweaty and breathless and completely wrecked. Holden rolls to his side, pulling me with him so we're tangled together, his heartbeat thundering against my palm.
"That was..." I trail off, no words adequate.
"Yeah." He kisses my temple, arm tightening around me. "It was."
The storm still rages outside, rain hammering the roof, wind rattling windows.
But wrapped in Holden's arms with his heart beating against my ear, I feel protected in ways I haven't in years.
Not because he's a SEAL trained to defend me.
Because he's Holden, who gives me choices and checks in and makes sure I know I'm valued.
"I haven't felt this way in years," I confess softly. "Not really. Even before Bruce, I was always on guard. Always protecting myself. But with you... I don't have to be."
"You're safe with me." His voice is low, certain. "Always. However long you'll have me."
I burrow closer, breathing him in. Sweat and salt and Holden. "What if I want to keep you?"
"Then I'm yours." Simple. Direct. No games or conditions. "For as long as you want me."
Sleep pulls at me, exhaustion from days of stress and fear finally catching up. Tomorrow we'll deal with investigations and threats and whatever comes next. Tomorrow we'll face reality again.
Because Holden Lange doesn't take—he gives. And tomorrow, when the storm clears, I'll tell him I'm falling in love with him. But tonight, wrapped in his arms with his heartbeat steady under my ear, I let myself just feel this. Trust this. Believe that when he says I'm safe, he means it.
For the first time in longer than I can remember, I'm not afraid of what comes next.