Chapter 21
Violet
How could I tell my son the dog he adored so much might not belong to him? The blows kept coming. Accepting the assignment had been a huge mistake.
I’d already thought about conceding failure. Between the fire with the Jeep, the incident with the puppy, and even the argument with Steel, I was running out of energy to fight with life the way I’d faced my entire adulthood. Who was I kidding? Since I was a little girl.
I settled against the side of the hot tub, hoping I could find some relaxation.
Even if my protector had fallen into silence, I could tell by the tightness of his jaw he remained bothered by something. Whether the reason for the argument or the interference with his space, I wasn’t certain and being so uncomfortable around him was unnerving.
Stars.
I couldn’t remember ever seeing them twinkling so beautifully.
“Have you ever noticed that there’s a stunning sheet of black velvet painting the sky, the perfect palette punctured by millions of tiny diamonds shimmering with promises of eternity?”
When Steel remained in the cloak of silence he’d been in since we’d slipped into the tub, I moved just enough from my way too comfy position to look at him.
“Maybe instead like secrets waiting to be discovered.” My words didn’t faze him the way I’d hoped. “What’s wrong, Steel? Have you changed your mind about us being here? I can leave.” Yes, I was testing the waters and my sanity with every action taken, every word out of my mouth.
The seductive slant was totally unlike me. The blowout from earlier was a clear, reliable indication this was just a blip in time. Why was I testing our strained relationship?
He remained with his head resting against the side, nearly violent bubbles hiding his gorgeous body as well as mine. Even in June, the air was brisk, which created a picture-perfect night.
“Now you’re ignoring me?” I moved a little closer, shocked how relaxed I’d become in only a few minutes.
“Or you just don’t like stars in the sky?
” His attempt at ignoring me was just another reminder that underneath the brooding persona was a very passionate man.
In all aspects of his life. “Okay then. I think I’ve had enough. ”
I moved closer to the edge, leaning over so I could grab the robe he’d given me to wear.
The little voice inside my head reminded me that men like Steel didn’t like to lose.
Plus, they required control over everything and everyone.
So when I was surprised at his grabbing hand, fingers wrapped around my elbow and yanking me back, I rolled my eyes.
There was no sense in trying to push away even if I wanted to. He was drunk on lust, easy to tell by the look in his eyes. When he continued his acts of silence after forcing me to straddle him, who was I to break the mood or the obvious intensity of his hunger?
With the stars twinkling overhead and the colorful ones buried in the bubbling depths of the water doing the same, his desire was highlighted. There was no doubt what he wanted and it had little to do with us being just friends.
He cupped the back of my head, pulling me closer while the full length and girth of his huge cock was pressed between my legs.
My core was already on fire, the deep, intense throb more than I’d felt before when we’d shared an intimate moment.
His extreme emotions were the reason, the fact he’d allowed me into one of the most painful moments of his life.
And in my case, opening up to him had been as if doing so with a friend I’d had for years.
He brought our faces closer, his soft lips taunting me by being only centimeters away.
We were both breathing rapidly and while the sound was drowned out by the rapid bubbles, our chests were heaving in time together.
I rolled my hands up his chest to his shoulders, licking drops of water off my lips. Very slowly he shook his head, his fingers tangling in my hair, the hold more possessive than before.
There was no chance I was going anywhere. “I’m going to fuck you, brat. And there’s nothing you can do to stop me.” His husky voice echoed in my ears with a whispered promise of all the things I craved.
“Why would I want to?”
His chuckle was even darker, dipping to a deep baritone I almost didn’t recognize. But there was no mistaking the way he held me or his determination that I surrender. When he finally pressed his lips against mine, holding our mouths in place, I instantly tensed.
There were questions racing through my mind, ugly snippets that this wasn’t the right thing to do, but the thoughts were pointless. He held our lips together while his dick throbbed, keeping my pussy tingling and on fire.
He slipped his other hand around my back, tugging me even closer. When he pushed his tongue inside my mouth, a moan escaped my throat, which he caught. Yet the sound also echoed in my ears. With my eyes closed, the moment seemed like sweet magic that I prayed would never end.
The taste of him was incredible, citrus-tinged whiskey while his scent was equally intoxicating. Cedar and a hint of smoke laced with unbridled desire. Could there be a better combination? I didn’t think so.
Now his lips were crushed against mine, pushing me into the kind of pleasure a woman never wanted to end. Just from a kiss, a gesture that could mean anything. Including friendship alone. Not tonight. And not with this man. Friendship would never be enough.
The hunger continued to build, moving dangerously close to a sweet frenzy. I shifted back and forth on his lap, enjoying the sensations as the water sloshed over us. I grabbed a handful of his hair, using it to tether me. With our tumultuous night, maybe I was fearful if I let go, he’d disappear.
Or that the magic would fade, replaced by some reality neither of us wanted to face.
Our tongues collided, the whirlwind of going from yelling at each other to this more intense than I would have expected.
I was amazed how exciting the moment was.
Being outside in the open, the feel of the water bouncing off us with a whirlwind of vibrations dancing through me. Everything about this was perfect.
He rubbed his hand down my back, adding to the rush of heat pooling between my legs. I could barely breathe and for the best reason. Lightheaded, I continued to wiggle in his hold, shifting his cock against my pussy lips until my own desire had built to the point I was losing my mind with need.
As I bucked against him, he gripped my bottom with his fingers digging into my skin.
This man knew how to kiss, so sensual yet with utter dominance.
When he finally pulled our lips free, he wasn’t finished with enticing me just yet.
He yanked my head back, exposing my throat and dragging his tongue along my jaw and down the length of my neck.
There were so many things I wanted to say to him, concerns about where this was going, but that wasn’t going to happen. And why should it? As usual, I was overthinking things.
At that moment I decided to let go, to allow fate to intervene when necessary. With another moan, this time floating toward the sky, I fell into the freedom of letting go completely. With him in full control, I didn’t need to worry about anything.
At least not for tonight.
His grip on my bottom was more forceful, a single finger sliding up and down the crack of my ass in a teasing manner. He was driving me crazy, leaving me aching all over while taunting me with his lips.
He yanked my head even more until my back was arched.
His lips found my nipple, his tongue swirling around the already taut tip.
The speckles of floating images blotted out the stars in the sky, but somehow, they were even more beautiful.
Another sound was heard over my whimpers, his growl completely guttural.
As he sucked on my aching bud, I fell into a sweet lull, still shifting back and forth to try to drive him crazy.
A gasp left my lips as he bit down on my nipple.
He took his time to pull the tender tissue between his teeth, sucking while flicking his finger across the other one.
There was nothing as decadent as what he was doing.
The bubbles continued to float around us, the heat and steam creating strings of perspiration.
Yet there was a light breeze creating enough of a chill I shivered.
He wasn’t about to let me go, rolling his lips to my other breast and toying with my aching nipple for several seconds. I was so wet, my pussy throbbing to the point my muscles were constricting. Panting, as I tried to focus on the stars, I licked beads of sweat from my lips.
Being overheated around him was constant, the desire an electric friend. Thinking clearly would be pushed away for now, but I could still laugh, even if only because of my nerves.
With my fingers gripping his shoulders, I lolled my head to the side. I should have known the peace was short lived. I was pulled up from the water and placed on the edge of the tub before I realized what he’d done.
But he was just getting started.
As he made himself comfortable, I gasped in surprise, even trying to close my legs.
Another even darker chuckle was a clear indication my actions weren’t allowed.
He lifted and spread my legs with no hesitation, pressing my knees to the wooden deck surface.
Then he breathed across my wetness, immediate tingling sensations turning into sheer electric jolts within seconds.
“Oh, my sweet Lord,” I breathed while smashing my hands on the deck. He blew across my pussy again, obviously enjoying my reaction. When I tossed my head from side to side, only then did he dart his tongue around my clit several times. “That’s not fair. You can’t tease me.”
“I can do anything I want, brat.” His voice was unrecognizable. Husky. Dark.
Still filled with a warning of things to come.