33. Grace
33
Grace
T he sun disappeared, taking its warmth with it as I sat on the patio, alone, with a blanket wrapped around me. The stars shone like twinkling LEDs in the clear sky, the new moon a shadow in contrast.
Waves lapped against the beach as the guards moved along the sandy barrier. Rosa's bungalow remained dark. Her lights turned out hours ago as I sat on the L-shaped sofa, my thoughts running amuck.
Where was he?
Why bring us here for a 'vacation' only to disappear moments later?
I drew the cover closer to my chin, the slight breeze leaving a chill racing across my flesh.
"Sitting in your thoughts can be dangerous for your health."
I jerked with a squeak and glared in his direction.
Elias walked along the pool, his steps calculated and steady.
"Who says I'm thinking?"
Blood splatter smeared his collar and waist, ruining the white shirt. Speckles dotted his face.
How many shirts was that now?
"You don't get to be in my position without developing the ability to read body language."
I raised a brow. "Oh really?" I spun my legs off the couch as he stood before me. "What am I thinking now?"
He dropped to his knees before me, his warm hands caressing my thighs as they moved and settled on my hips. I dug my teeth into my bottom lip.
"You're thinking…" He leaned in, his lips touching the sensitive flesh below my right ear. "About how much you want me."
His thumb skirted below my shirt, the pad rubbing against my hip bone .
"I think that's what's on your mind." I grinned as he pulled back, a growl vibrating through his chest.
"Is that so?"
His hands dug into my hips as he pulled me closer to the edge of the couch, my center pressed against him.
"Yes." I gasped, my hands finding his shoulders, the blanket falling to the cushion behind me. "I couldn't possibly be thinking about your lips on my body or the feel of your kisses on my breasts."
Our gazes clashed, his heady with need. My teeth dug deeper into my lip as the silence grew into a deafening cacophony of breaths and thumping hearts.
"No." His hands grabbed the bottom of my shirt and pulled it over my head. "Couldn't possibly." With a twitch of his wrist, he tossed my shirt over his head to land on the edge of the hot tub, my fingers twisting the two buttons before he stopped me.
He tugged the center of his shirt, and buttons flew, his bare chest on display.
"Definitely not." My lips crashed with his as I wrapped my arms around his neck, his hands pulling me up with him as he stood, my legs fastened around his hips.
Our tongues twirled around, saying the things we couldn't, my core rubbing against his as he stepped down the wooden steps to the beach.
"Wait."
I dug into my pocket, my lips deserting him, and tugged the rosary from its confines. "I don't want to lose this." Placing the beaded necklace on the white retaining wall, I wrapped my remaining arm around his shoulders and peppered kisses along his neck.
"One day, you'll tell me what that means to you."
"Maybe." I kissed his cheek. "Probably." My lips touched his ear. "Most definitely." The tip of my tongue pulled his earlobe into my mouth as I nibbled. A slight sigh escaped him.
Water splashed up to my butt as he crashed into the ocean, the water warm yet lending a chill across my exposed flesh. I shrieked. "It's cold."
"You won't notice when I'm deep inside you."
My legs tightened around his waist as he walked us deeper into the calm waters, the slight waves lapping at my back. Water settled between us, the salty wash swirling around my exposed breasts.
"Take them off." His lips ran down my cheek, his teeth nibbling at my neck as I fiddled with the button on my shorts .
I unwound my legs, my feet sinking into the soft sand below, and slipped off my shorts and underwear while he made quick work of his.
"What about sharks? Won't they smell the blood on you?"
"Let them." His hands wrapped around me, not letting a second go by as he settled between my legs, his cock sinking deep inside of me.
Gasps escaped us, and my head pitched to the sky as I gyrated against him, his arms wrapped tight around me.
"Do you want to know whose blood it is?"
My lips pressed against his in a frantic need, consuming my system from the moment his hands touched me. "Do I want to?"
He thrust in deep, and I gasped, my clit grinding against him. Electrical currents rushed past my crossed ankles and straight to my toes as he thrust again and again, every fiber of my being on fire in the warm water.
"I think you do."
My hands dove into his hair as a tight coil in my belly unfurled with a long, sensual groan, my orgasm running through my veins and tightening my thighs against him.
"Yes. God, yes."
I whimpered as he continued his relentless punishment inside of me, his thrusts deep, his arms wrapped tight around my waist as if I'd disintegrate within his grasp.
He pulled free from my body, his hand disappearing between us as he groaned. Warmth spread across my flesh as I rubbed against him. Goosebumps followed in its wake.
His heavy breaths hit my ear as he leaned into me. "This is Carter's blood."
I stilled, my spine rigid.
Carter?
He killed him?
For me?
"Carter? Why? What did he do to you?"
My teeth chattered as the heat wicked from my body, a knot forming in my belly, my lungs vacant of air.
"Because he touched what was mine." His lips trailed down my chest and sucked in a nipple between his teeth, nibbling the sensitive flesh.
My heart fluttered, and I drew tighter into him."I wasn't yours then." My head tipped back as the pleasure rolled through me.
"You've always been mine. We just didn 't know it yet."
Fuck .
Butterflies erupted in my belly, my heart leaping in their wake as he pulled us from the ocean and back to the retaining wall, where I grabbed the rosary.
He killed Carter for me?
How did our relationship converge from him trying to kill me for information, to him killing for me?
What did I do to deserve that?
He marched us through the villa and up the stairs, his footsteps stumbling as I distracted his path with kisses. My back hit the king-sized bed upstairs, his weight pressing down on me as he followed, his cock hardening between us. Our bodies melded together, the saltwater seeping into the comforter.
My skin rubbed against his, the salt gripping us like sandpaper. "Let's take a bath."
"Hmm." His lips trailed down my body, licking the water beadlets across my chest, his tongue flicking my peaked nipple. "Perhaps a shower."
He grabbed my hand and hauled me into the bathroom, plopping my ass on the granite counter with a tall oval mirror behind me.
I suffered a glance over my shoulder and cowered away.
Elias jerked me away from the counter, my feet hitting the wet floor, my body sliding against his as he spun me around. His hand slipped over my jaw, clenching my mouth. His fingers dimpled my cheeks as he forced me to look into the mirror.
"Look at her." His arm snaked around my waist, his naked, tanned skin in sharp contrast to mine. "Look." He gave me a gentle shake until I complied. "Tell me what you see."
I glanced away, diverting my gaze to the side of the mirror, unable to bear the sight of the scarred woman. "Weak and used."
"Wrong." He jerked my attention back, our eyes locking in the mirror as his fingers held my chin, his lips skimming my ear. "You're the strongest woman I know." His kisses trailed down my shoulder, his hand sliding away from my cheeks.
He wrapped his hand around my neck, his fingertips pressing into my erratic pulse. A shiver wracked my body, sending goosebumps trailing the left side of my body.
I wasn't the strongest woman.
He's lost his mind.
Nothing I'd done showed strength. Nothing I'd gone through proved what he said was true.
He 's lying.
Elias bent lower, his lips pressing against the raised flesh, his gaze fluttering up, catching mine between each new kiss. "So beautiful."
My eyes glistened. "You're just saying that."
He paused his downward momentum and stood straight, his shoulders squaring, his hand tightening around my throat. "Compliment yourself."
I raised a brow. "What?"
He pointed to me through the mirror. "I want you to compliment the woman you see."
Scoffing, I shrugged my shoulders with a shake of my head. "I can't do that."
"No?"
His hard erection pressed against me as he pushed me closer to the countertop, my hands bracing against it. My chest tightened as a single tear fell down my cheek. "I don't see someone worth complimenting."
"Take another look."
The reality settled deep in my bones and seared my soul, my darkest fears bubbling up to the surface like black tar pulling down its unsuspecting victims.
"Because I see a strong and determined woman." He lined himself up at my center and pressed in, issuing a long sigh with every deliciously thick inch. His lips pressed against my scars as he shoved himself home.
I gasped, my eyes pinching shut, my head hanging down as I relished the stretch. "My answer remains the same."
" Hmm ." A grumble erupted between us as he moved, hard and fast, his hand clasping my breast. I covered his hand with mine, basking in the heat of his touch. "Tell me she's beautiful."
I shook my head. "No."
He thrust in deep.
" Ahh ." My teeth clamped down my cheek.
"Listen to me, Grace."
Molten heat spread throughout my belly, my body squeezing him as electrical jolts raced across my flesh. "I'm going to—"
"Not until you see yourself as I do." He stilled.
"Don't stop." I whimpered, pushing against him. "I'm so close." I slipped my hand between my legs.
He grabbed me, halting my fingers before they could delve between my folds, and twisted it behind my back. "Look at her again."
"Fine." I jerked against him with a sigh. "She's beautiful."
"Like you mean it, mi amor ."
My chest ached as the tears burned my lids, the pain in my chest rivaling the ache between my legs. "I…I do mean it."
"I don't believe you."
He pushed in deep and slow, drawing out the agony. A tear dribbled down my cheek and dropped onto the counter below.
His hand cupped my cheek and pulled my gaze to meet his. "Wars have been fought for women like you, Grace." Lips touched my wet cheek, his tongue swiping at the salty tear. "One day you will see your worth, then you'll know what I see in you."
With a hard thrust, he found the end of me, pulling a gasp from my tightened lips, his words riding on the coattails of the eruption in my belly, my blood boiling over as I collapsed onto the cool counter, my breaths leaving fog across its surface.
"So much for that shower."