Chapter Six #2
He walked to the back door with the boys following him. “Because it’s my favorite, too.” The door shut behind him.
I looked down at the pizza and smiled. Of course, we would like the same pizza. Just another thing that made sense between Saint and me.
I wolfed down the first slice of pizza, and I could feel the life coming back in me. I hadn’t eaten anything since the sandwich he had dropped off around lunch.
Five minutes later, Salt and Pepper bounded back into the house with Saint trailing in after them. “I swear Pepper is on crack,” he chuckled. “And then Salt is this Zen dude just sniffing the air.”
I wiped my mouth and smiled. “That is the perfect description of them.”
Pepper skidded to a stop at my feet, and Salt waited for Saint to sit down before he assumed the begging position.
“Pizza good?” he asked.
“The best.”
I polished off half of the pizza and sat back with a moan. “I didn’t realize how hungry I was. Dez’s Pizza revitalized me.”
Saint chuckled and tossed a piece of crust to Salt and then a piece to Pepper.
“I’m beginning to understand why the boys like you. You feed them pizza bones and French fries.”
“Does that mean you like me too, since I fed you the same thing?”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, I guess so.” But there were other things I liked about Saint, other than that he fed me. He just made me feel… peace. And I couldn’t ignore the physical attraction to him.
God, just sitting there next to him turned me on.
“What are you thinking about, doll?” he asked.
I shook my head. “Uh, just…” I felt my cheeks heat.
He flipped the lid on the pizza box, and the boys knew the begging was over. Salt settled on the recliner, and Pepper hopped on the end of the couch to claim his half.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked again.
I blinked twice. “You.” I said it without even thinking. I didn’t know why I kept running from what I was feeling for Saint.
“Me, huh?” he chuckled. He turned to face me and trailed his fingers down my cheek.
I nodded and leaned into his touch. “Yeah,” I whispered.
“Wanna know what I’m thinking about?” he asked, his voice gravelly.
“Me?” I guessed and hoped.
“If the rest of your body tastes as good as your lips.”
My breath caught, and my heart clenched.
“Is it okay if I find out?”
I nodded dumbly.
His hand cupped my cheek, and he shifted closer to me until his arm wrapped around me, and he pulled me close.
The air shifted.
“Saint,” I whispered.
“Belle,” he replied, voice rough.
I didn’t remember deciding to kiss him.
I just knew suddenly his mouth was on mine, warm and firm and unhurried, like he wasn’t afraid of breaking me.
The kiss deepened, slow at first, then hungry. His hands slid into my hair, steadying me, anchoring me.
I melted.
Months of stress, fear, and exhaustion poured out of me in that kiss. I pressed closer, needing the solid reassurance of him.
He lifted me onto his lap, and my legs straddled his waist. Heat pooled low in my belly as I felt the warmth of his body seep into mine.
“This okay?” he murmured.
“Yes,” I breathed.
He kissed me again, deeper this time, hands exploring, learning. My body responded eagerly and desperately.
When his mouth trailed to my neck, I gasped, and my fingers dug into his shoulders.
God, I needed this.
Needed him.
His hands slid under my sweater, warm against my skin, and I arched into the touch without thinking.
The dogs shifted nearby, and we both laughed softly, breathless.
“Bedroom,” he said hoarsely.
I nodded.
He carried me there, and when he laid me down, he followed, covering me with his body.
For a moment, we stayed like that—fully clothed, breath mingling, and the heat building between us. His weight pressed into me just enough to make my pulse kick up, and his mouth hovered close to mine like he was giving me time to change my mind.
I didn’t.
My hands slid up his chest, my fingers curled into his shirt, and I tugged him down until our mouths met. The kiss turned hungry fast, with no hesitation left in it now. I felt the shift immediately—the way his body responded and the way his hips pressed closer before he caught himself.
Saint broke the kiss just long enough to hook his fingers under the hem of my sweater.
“Okay?” he murmured.
I lifted my arms in answer.
The sweater came off slowly, deliberately, and was tossed aside without a thought. His gaze followed every inch of skin revealed, dark and intent, like he was memorizing me. When his hands skimmed down my sides, I shivered.
“You’re beautiful,” he said quietly, like it wasn’t a line, just a fact.
I reached for him then, pushing his cut off his shoulders, and my fingers fumbled slightly as I worked at his shirt. He helped me without taking over, lifting his arms and letting me do it my way until the fabric was gone and my palms met warm skin.
That’s when the heat really settled in.
Skin to skin. No barriers left between us except the ones we hadn’t bothered with yet.
He kissed me again, deeper this time, as his hands explored slowly, like he was in no rush to get anywhere. When he shifted his weight and my legs instinctively wrapped around him, he groaned softly and slid his hands to my hips, holding me there like he was grounding himself.
The rest of our clothes came off in pieces. Unhurried with hands everywhere, mouths wandering, and laughter breaking through once when my pants got snagged and had to be tugged loose. It didn’t feel awkward. It felt real.
By the time we finally came back together, bare skin pressed to bare skin, I was already breathless and my body aching in the best way.
Saint hovered over me for a second, eyes locked on mine, giving me space even now.
“You still with me?” he asked.
I smiled and pulled him down. “I never left.”
The kiss that followed was slower, deeper, and the kind that promised he planned to take his time with me and meant every second of it.
And when he finally settled between my legs, fitting himself to me like he’d been waiting for this, I knew there was no rushing what came next.
We had nowhere else to be.
And for once, I didn’t want to be anywhere else either.
Saint moved slowly, deliberately, like every inch he closed mattered. His weight anchored me, his hands slid along my thighs, my hips, and held me steady while he leaned down to kiss me again. The kind of kiss that said he wasn’t going anywhere once he started.
I wrapped my legs around him without thinking, pulling him closer, and felt the heat between us build until it was impossible to ignore. He groaned softly against my mouth, a sound that went straight through me, and shifted, pressing closer until my breath broke.
“Easy,” he murmured, more for himself than for me.
I shook my head. “Don’t be.”
That was all it took.
He moved with me, slow at first, letting the sensation stretch and deepen. Letting me feel every change, every breath, and every controlled roll of his body. It wasn’t frantic. It was consuming. Like he wanted me aware of him every second.
My hands slid over his back, and he responded immediately. His pace shifted, and pressure built until my body started to tremble beneath him. He noticed everything. The hitch in my breath. The way my hips moved without asking. The soft sound I couldn’t hold back.
“Belle,” he said, low and rough, like my name belonged in his mouth.
The sound of it undid me.
I clung to him as the sensation crested, heat flooding through me in a slow, overwhelming wave. He stayed with me through it, with his forehead dropping to mine as my body tightened and then finally let go.
Only then did he let himself follow. A groan ripped from his lips, and then his body went still for a moment before thrusting back into me.
For a long second, neither of us moved.
Then he shifted just enough to pull me into his side, one arm wrapped securely around me, my head tucked beneath his chin like it belonged there.
I listened to his breathing slow. To his heartbeat steady beneath my ear.
“That,” I said softly, still catching my breath, “was worth all the gingerbread houses in the world.”
He huffed a quiet laugh and pressed a kiss to my hair. “God damn, Belle.”
“What?” I smiled.
“You’re something else, doll. You’re something else.”
I pressed a kiss to his lips. “I hope that’s a good thing.”
A smirk spread across his lips. “Oh, it sure the hell is.”