Chapter 9
REED
The door slams shut behind us, and the rest of the world falls away.
I press my body against hers, my hands seeking her silky, warm skin. I kiss her deeply, my tongue teasing at hers, and she responds just as fiercely, wrapping her arms around me and holding me tightly.
“Maya,” I breathe against her mouth, and the way she shivers makes my cock ache with the need to bury myself in her pussy.
Her hips roll against mine, and the friction unleashes a groan from deep within my chest. I pin her against the wall, one hand sliding up to cradle the back of her head while the other grips her hip, holding her exactly where I want her.
My mouth drops to her neck, and I kiss and suck at her neck. She gasps, head falling back, giving me access to the hollow of her throat, the curve where neck meets shoulder. I nip at her soft skin, not hard enough to mark, but the way she whimpers and squirms against me lets me know she loves it.
“Reed—”
“I know.” I pull back just enough to work my hands under her shirt, palms stroking her soft stomach. Her muscles contract beneath my touch, and I slide higher, thumbs brushing the undersides of her breasts through thin lace. “I know what you need.”
I push the fabric up and over her head without breaking contact, my gaze dropping to take her in. Black lace against golden skin. The rapid rise and fall of her chest. Nipples already hard points straining under the delicate fabric.
The sight of her—open, flushed, waiting—hits me hard.
“You have no idea what you do to me,” I say, my voice rough with it.
She reaches for the clasp at her back, but I catch her wrists, pinning them gently above her head against the door. Her eyes darken, her breathing becoming more jagged.
“Not yet.” I lean in, mouth hovering over the swell of her breast. “I want to unwrap you myself.”
I release her wrists to trace my fingers down her arms, over her shoulders, following the lace straps with agonizing slowness. She trembles beneath the attention, breath coming faster as I finally reach around and unhook the clasp. The bra falls away, and I pull back to look at her.
Perfect. She’s absolutely perfect.
“Reed.” My name is a moan on her lips.
I answer by cupping her breasts in my hands, running my thumbs across her hard nipples until she arches into my palms with a desperate sound. Then my mouth is on her, licking and sucking her nipples until she’s writhing against my body, fingers tangled in my hair.
“Too many clothes,” she gasps, tugging at my shirt.
I step back just long enough to yank it over my head. Her hands are on me immediately, tracing the planes of my chest, the ridges of my abs, and then down into my pants. I let her push my jeans down, let her stroke me through my boxers until I’m gritting my teeth against the urge to take over.
“Bed,” I manage. “Now.”
I lift her, her legs locking around my waist without a word, and carry her across the room. Her mouth finds my neck, teeth scraping my pulse point, and I nearly trip over my own feet.
When I lay her down and follow, the mattress dipping beneath us, the urgency spikes—skin on skin, heat building fast, no space left between us.
I kiss her deeply, unrelentingly, my hands roaming with intent—down her sides, over her hips, hooking into the waistband of her pants. I pull them down along with her underwear in one smooth motion, leaving her completely bare beneath me.
For a moment, I just look. The curve of her waist. The flare of her hips. The way her thighs part in an invitation I will never say no to. The scent of her pussy is fucking intoxicating.
“You’re staring,” she whispers, but she’s grinning. I love that she doesn’t try to hide from me.
“I’m admiring.” I lower myself over her, pressing a kiss to her stomach, her hipbone, the inside of her thigh. “Every inch of you.”
She shivers as I exhale against her pussy, and when I finally slide my tongue through her hot wetness, she cries out and pushes against my tongue. I work her with my tongue, teasing her clit and making her moan even louder.
“Reed—I need—”
I slide two fingers inside her, curling them to find her G-spot, smiling when she arches her back off the bed. She’s slick and hot and so ready that I can’t wait any longer, even though I want to spend an eternity eating her out.
I kiss my way back up her body, settling my cock between her thighs. The head of my cock bumps against her entrance, and it takes all my control not to rut and come as fast as a teenager.
“Look at me,” I tell her.
Her eyes meet mine, her green eyes filled with need, and soft with something deeper. Trust. Love. Everything I never thought I’d have.
I push forward slowly, watching her face as I sink inside inch by inch. Her lips part on a moan, her body opening to take me, her hands gripping my forearms like I’m the only solid thing in the world. My eyelids flutter as her pussy clenches my cock, and I know I won’t last long.
“Reed.” She rocks her hips impatiently. “Fuck me.”
I pull back slowly, almost all the way out, then plunge balls deep in one smooth thrust. She gasps, hands flying to my shoulders, her body welcoming me deeply.
I set a hard, steady rhythm, every stroke rushing me closer to exploding inside her.
She urges me on, spreading her legs wider and lifting her hips in time with my thrusts.
The sounds coming from her are going to push me over the edge.
Fuck.
I want to make love to her for hours, but she’s so fucking perfect I have no self-control.
“Just like that,” she breathes, hips rising to meet me. “Don’t stop.”
I drive into her with purpose now, urgency taking over, the heat between us burning. She cries out, throwing her head back, her body tightening around my cock, driving me insane.
“Yes,” she gasps. “Reed—please—”
I love seeing her so wild and wanting, and that I’m the one giving this to her. I love that I’m the one she’s giving herself to.
“You feel so fucking good,” I groan against her mouth.
She answers by clenching around me, intentional, devastating. My pace falters for a moment before I regain control, driving into her harder, faster, determined to shatter her before I let myself break.
“That’s it,” I tell her, feeling the tension coiling in her body. “Let me feel you come.”
She does, her breath moaning my name as she comes on my cock. The intensity of her orgasm drags me right over the edge with her. I thrust deep one final time, bellowing as her walls clench my cock.
We collapse together, both breathing hard. I shift carefully, staying inside her a moment longer, not ready to break the connection. Her legs loosen around my waist but don’t fall away entirely, keeping me close.
When I finally ease out of her, she makes a soft sound of protest that does something complicated to my chest. I pull her into my arms, arranging us so her head fits beneath my chin, her leg draped over mine. I run my hand over her back, feeling the rise and fall of her breath.
The constant tension I’ve lived with of always being on alert, always thinking I would become my father, it all disappears now that I’m in Maya’s arms.
“Maya,” I say softly.
She hums, relaxed and warm against me, her fingers tracing idle patterns on my chest.
“I love you,” I tell her, pressing a kiss to her hair. “I’m going to love you every damn day for the rest of our lives.”
She tilts her head back to look at me, green eyes bright and open, no walls left. Her lips are swollen from my kisses, her skin still flushed, her hair a wild tangle against the pillow. She’s never been more beautiful.
“I love you,” she says, steady and sure.
The words land deep and permanent.
I cup her face, thumbs brushing her cheeks. “You’re it for me.”
She smiles, radiant, and settles back against my chest, her hand over my heart like she’s staking a claim.
For the first time in my life, I’m not waiting for something to go wrong.
I am my own man, and I’ve found the fucking love of my life.
Thank you so much for reading “Protected by the Hero”!