7. Annika
ANNIKA
M y heart hammers a frantic rhythm against my ribs as I pace the length of the loft.
The floorboards are cool beneath my bare feet, but the anxiety thrumming through me makes my skin feel hot.
It’s just a phone call. It’s a setup. It’s necessary.
I repeat the mantras in my head, but they don't quiet the frantic energy.
We are about to execute a plan that could expose an entire criminal organization, a group of people who have already tried to kill Kai and me.
I glance at the tactical gear laid out on the counter. It looks severe, professional, and terrifyingly real. I wish I could trade this adrenaline for the simple worry of whether the floral delivery truck will make it through rush hour traffic.
Kai appears from the back, dressed in a black tee and tactical pants. He moves with a quiet competence that only heightens my own sense of turmoil. He doesn't say anything, just watches me for a long moment, his gaze soft but piercing.
He closes the distance between us, catching my hands in his, forcing me to slow down. "Hey," he says, his voice a deep, grounding sound. "Stop."
"I can't," I whisper, half-heartedly trying to pull away from him. "I feel like if I stop, I'll explode."
He smiles, a rare, genuine curve of his lips that dissolves some of my fear.
"You are incredible, Annika. Look how far you've come.
Two weeks ago, you were just trying to keep your flower shop afloat.
Now you're helping me take down a global syndicate. You’re stronger than you give yourself credit for. "
I try to shake my head, but he holds my chin firm.
"No. Listen to me. You are resilient. You are brave. You are mine. And you are going to walk into this meeting with Rya like the bad-ass queen you are."
His words, warm and absolute, are like a stabilizing weight. I lean into his touch. "I believe you. I'm just..."
"Nervous," he finishes for me. His eyes darken, a possessive fire lighting up their depths. "I know a way to work out those nerves."
Before I can respond, he sweeps me up, his mouth crashing down on mine. The kiss is deep, grounding, and urgent. He carries me, possibly to our blanket nest, or maybe the nearest wall. All I care about is the feeling of his hands on my skin, chasing away the anxiety.
He sets me on my feet and pulls my shirt over my head in one swift motion. Kai kisses me again, slowly at first, then with increasing heat, until my knees are shaking with need and pleasure. He’s silently telling me to let go of the fear and embrace the powerful connection between us.
Kai walks us backward until my back is pressed up against the wall.
He slides his tongue against mine, his hands roaming over my curves and clawing at my clothes.
Kai pulls me away from the wall and somehow shuffles us towards our makeshift bed in front of the fireplace while stripping both of us down.
Kai takes a step closer to me, erasing the distance between us. He runs his hands up and down my naked body, caressing my hips, breasts, and even my throat and lips. His strong, capable hands leave a throbbing, warm blaze in their wake.
His hand wraps around the back of my neck, pulling me into him for a punishing kiss. I’m his. He owns every part of me. That’s what he’s telling me with each stroke of his tongue, each anguished groan that travels through his body and into mine. I feel his kiss everywhere, and I need more.
“Please,” I whimper, not even caring that I sound desperate. I am. He’s right there with me.
“I’ve got you, little flower. I’ve got you,” he murmurs, gripping my hips and guiding me backward before gently laying me out on the bed.
Kai stands in front of me, looking down at my body.
I’ve always been a curvy girl - something my mother never failed to point out.
But Kai loves every inch of my body. Good.
I plan to indulge him in whatever he wants.
I spread my legs, moaning when he growls and clenches his fist. “Please,” I whisper again, my hands trailing up my torso to cup my breasts. My skin is so sensitive, every light touch seems to go straight to my clit, making it throb in anticipation.
Kai tears his eyes away from where they were locked on my pussy, and he grunts again when he sees me playing with my nipples.
“Fuck, Annika. You’re so damn sexy.” He’s on me in the next instant, covering my body with open-mouthed kisses, sucking on my skin and leaving little love bites up my torso and on my breasts.
I jerk and twist beneath him, gasping for air and whimpering with each lingering touch and kiss. When he finally reaches my mouth, Kai slants his lips over mine and leads us in a slow, drugging kiss.
My legs automatically spread wider so he can settle between them. I feel his long, thick cock glide against my pussy, collecting my juices and driving me crazy. He’s so close to where I need him I nearly cry in frustration.
Kai sits back slightly and gathers my wrists up in one of his massive hands. He raises my hands over my hand and pins them to the mattress before nuzzling into the side of my neck.
“Fuckin’ love seeing you stretched out for me,” he says into my skin, his voice low, gravelly, and desperate.
Kai drags his lips down my neck and across my collarbone, then he nips at the tops of my breasts, grinning wickedly when I jump and gasp.
“Gonna fuck this sweet little pussy now, Annika. Gonna make you come so hard you forget about everything except this moment with me.”
I nod and tilt my hips, nudging the swollen head of his cock against my entrance. Kai growls and reaches down between us to guide himself inside in one smooth stroke. Fire spreads through my veins, and heat pulses out from my core, overwhelming my body.
I wiggle my hips, making sparks sizzle and burn across my skin. Kai groans, leaning over me, one hand still holding my wrists above my head while the other trails up my side. He squeezes my breast, pinching my hardened, sensitive nipple before sucking it into his mouth.
My back bows off the bed, and he takes the opportunity to slip his hand between my back and the blankets, pushing my chest up so he can feast on me. Kai grinds his cock into me, filling me up before pulling back and slamming into me roughly.
My breasts jiggle with every thrust as he sets a relentless pace. I wrap my legs around him and dig my heels into his sculpted ass, crying out when he hits that spot inside me that pushes me right up to the edge.
My muscles tense as my pussy tightens around his thickness. He lifts his head from my chest and studies my face, no doubt sensing how close I am. My thighs shake and a shiver runs up my spine, seizing my lungs and forcing out a scream as I come around his cock.
Rivulets of pleasure course through my body, making every nerve ending spark to life.
Kai fucks me through it, never letting up.
He still has my wrists secured in his grasp, despite all my writhing around and trying to twist away from the intense pressure and sharp ecstasy he’s creating deep inside of me.
I swear I’m about to come again, but suddenly Kai isn’t on top of me anymore. I hardly have time to register his absence before his large hands grasp my hips firmly. Kai flips me over effortlessly, then pulls my hips back so I’m on all fours.
“Fuck yes,” he grunts, gripping my ass cheeks and spreading them wide.
Kai thrusts into me, growling when he bottoms out. I let out a broken cry as I unravel for him, my orgasm ricocheting through my body but never leaving me completely. I’m so fucking sensitive, so raw as he pounds into me.
“I-I-I ca-ca-n’t…” I stutter out, unable to take a full breath.
“You can,” he grunts savagely. “Feel this with me. Fuck, feel it, Annika.”
I whimper and nod my head, staying right here with him in the moment, struggling to hold myself up on shaky arms while my pussy knots around him over and over.
Incoherent words and strangled, almost tormented sounds fall from my lips as Kai tears me apart, fucks me so good, so hard, so damn rough.
He’s branding me with each savage stroke, claiming all of me, body and soul.
Kai slides his hand around to my front, spreading his fingers out over my stomach and pulling me even closer to him as he ruts into me. His hand creates even more pressure.
My fingers curl into the blankets, fisting them as I try desperately to hold myself up.
When he brushes the tips of his fingers over my clit, my knees wobble and my arms give out completely.
I faceplant into the pillow, my ass still in the air, Kai still pounding away.
He pinches my clit and I sob out yet another orgasm.
My pleasure spikes as white hot bliss fills my veins.
When it fades away, I’m completely limp.
Boneless. Held up only by Kai’s punishing grip on my hips.
“Gonna come inside you, love. Gonna make you a mother,” he growls as he holds himself deep inside me. His words make my pussy contract one last time, and that’s his breaking point.
Kai lets out a feral roar as his cum fills me up. He pulls back and then enters me again as more of his release shoots out of him. There’s so much, I feel it dripping down my thighs, the tickling sensation making me moan and involuntarily tremble in his arms.
The last of his orgasm drains from him, and then Kai collapses on top of me. He’s sweaty and panting for air as he rests his forehead between my shoulderblades. I feel his hot breath on my skin, the weight of his body on top of mine, and our sweat mingling as we both soak in this moment of bliss.
The tension is completely gone, replaced by a warm, fuzzy feeling of utter contentment. We stay wrapped up in each other, simply breathing each other in, skin to skin.
*BEEP-BEEP-BEEP.*
The alarm on Kai’s phone cuts through the quiet air.
"Time to clean up," he murmurs, his voice thick with desire, but his tone already shifting to mission-ready.
He helps me up and then pulls me gently toward the bathroom.
"Let's make this quick, but not too quick," he teases, kissing the curve of my neck.
"I'd complain, but I know what you mean," I whisper back, leaning into the warmth of his chest.
We step into the shower, the hot spray immediately relaxing my muscles.
Kai turns me around, trapping me between the cool tile wall and his searing heat.
He takes the bar of soap and slowly works up a lather on my shoulders, tracing the muscles he knows are tense from the past three days.
Or has it been four? Time bleeds together when you’re trapped inside with a sexy beast. Ten out of ten, I highly recommend.
"You're a rock, Annika," Kai says, his voice low against my ear. "You stood up to me, you laid out your truth, and you bounced back from last night like a champion. Don’t ever doubt how strong you are."
I turn my head, water streaming down my face.
"It’s easy to be strong when I have you beside me.
" I lift a hand, running my soapy palm over his jaw, feeling the slight roughness of his afternoon stubble. "Don’t forget that this,” I start, pushing my fingers through his wet hair, "is what’s real.
Not the lists, not the Syndicate, just us. "
He closes his eyes for a beat, a raw, exposed look on his face I rarely get to see. "Never," he promises, pulling me into a fierce, waterlogged hug. He runs the washcloth down my arm, then my stomach, ending at my thigh. His eyes darken, a mischievous glint back in place.
"Unless you want another round of relieving tension , we should probably hurry." I smack his chest playfully. "Eyes on the mission, soldier."
He laughs, a deep, rich sound. "Yes, ma’am."
When we step out, dressed in our clothes and tactical vests, I feel ready. Fear is still there, but it's small and manageable, a tiny thing shadowed by the towering strength of the man beside me. We will face the mission together, along with anything else life throws our way.