It had been a long wait for the crew to find him. The hotel was sprawling with long hallways. Trying to keep his mind off his precarious situation, his thoughts had circled back to Janie over and over again. By the time he was carried out, the relief he felt at seeing her had been immense. A sense of elation mingled with relief rose inside when he recalled her telling him she loved him. He might not remember much after that, but those words were crystal clear in his mind and heart. The water stopped running, and he pushed himself up, propping the pillows up behind him. He leaned back with a sigh just as Janie stepped out of the bathroom.
She wore a fluffy green robe. Her damp hair hung about her shoulders, and her skin was flushed from her shower. One look at her, no matter his battered state, and a jolt of lust shot through him. She froze where she was, her eyes locking with his. A long week without her and seeing her felt so damn good, he wanted to grab her and yank her into his arms. He held a hand out, beckoning her to his side. As she walked to the bed, the air between them hummed, alive with the current of their connection.
She sat down on the edge of the bed, lacing her fingers into his. “How do you feel?”
“Fine. Don’t remember a damn thing after I got to the hospital, except the doctor saying I wouldn’t need surgery. What happened after that?”
Her eyes skated over him, sending little jolts through him. All he wanted was her. Now. Damn his condition. “Well, they gave you a sedative before they set your leg. They cleaned you up and turned you over to me. I guess you don’t remember me, Stella and my mom hauling you inside, huh?”
He chuckled and shook his head. Her eyes were worried and kept scanning him. “You sure you feel okay?”
“I’m a little sore. I’m sure it won’t be good for me to laugh too hard, or put any weight on my right leg, but all in all, I feel fine. Stop looking at me like that.” He didn’t like seeing her worried, although a part of him soaked it up.
Her eyes narrowed. “You were trapped in a fire and had a beam fall on you! I get to be worried.”
His heart skipped a beat, and he squeezed her hand. “Okay, be worried, but I feel fine. I’ll be sore and my ribs will annoy the hell outta me, but once I’m off the crutches, I’ll be back to normal.”
Her eyes held his, her gaze softening. She squeezed his hand in return. “I know. Last night was…hard. I was so scared and so worried, and it felt like forever.”
He released her hand and reached up to brush a damp lock of hair away from her face. “I know. Let’s not dwell on it. Like I said, I’m a little banged up, but otherwise good.”
He couldn’t resist trailing his fingertip along the soft, flushed skin of her neck. He followed the edge of her robe, tracing her collarbone and into the valley between her breasts. He didn’t much care for anything other than to touch as much of her as he could right now. When he slipped his hand under the edge of her robe to trace her nipple, her breath drew in sharply.
“Stop it! You are in no shape for this…” Her words trailed off on a gasp when he lightly pinched her nipple.
He saw the dark passion flickering in her gaze even as she shook her head and started to move away. He didn’t give her a chance to pull away. He reached for her and pulled her into his lap. He might not have the finesse to do it smoothly at the moment, but she was in his lap. A bundle of soft curves, her skin dewy from the shower and so tempting, he ignored her protests and dipped his head to start a trail of wet kisses into the valley between her breasts. When she shifted in his lap, her robe got caught on her knee and a breast popped out. He glanced up through his lashes before swirling his tongue around her nipple and biting down softly. At her sharp cry, he smiled against her skin before leaning back.
He could feel the wet heat of her against his rock-hard cock. The thin cotton of his briefs was the slightest deterrent. She’d ended up straddling him, which he didn’t think she’d intended when he yanked her into his lap, but it worked for him. She was completely bare under her robe, and damn was he pleased about that. Oblivious to the dull pain in his leg and ignoring the twinges in his ribs, he pushed her robe off her shoulders and cupped her breasts, dragging his thumbs back and forth over her taut nipples.
“Travis…” his name came out on a husky sigh. “We can’t do this.” She started to wiggle away, which only served to create friction between them.
He arched into her and grinned when her lips parted and a low moan escaped. “Sure we can. All we have to do is…” He paused to drag his hand down over her abdomen and sift through her curls to her slick folds. She was hot, wet and ready no matter what she said. “This,” he said as he slid one finger and then another into her channel.
Her eyes fell closed and her hips rolled into his touch. He tangled his free hand in her hair and pulled her down for a kiss. She didn’t resist, her lips coming against his swiftly. He poured himself into their kiss—licks, strokes, nips and kisses. He couldn’t get enough. All the while, he plunged his fingers into her channel again and again and again. She abruptly tore her lips away. Her body nearly vibrated around him. “If we’re doing this, I want to feel you inside of me,” she said, her words breathy.
He wasn’t about to argue. She pointed a finger at him. “Don’t you move. Let me do the work,” she ordered.
Fine by him. She shimmied her hips back, and he regretfully let his fingers slide out of her. She curled her hand over his cock, giving it a rough stroke over his briefs. He was so ready, he almost came right then and there. He latched onto his control and held on as she carefully dragged his briefs down, just far enough for his cock to spring free. He had to fight to hold still. The truth was, even if he wanted to move much, he really couldn’t. Not with his leg and ribs. With her straddling him, he could manage all of this, but anything else and he’d end up on the floor.
She dipped her head and dragged her tongue along each side of his cock before taking him fully into her mouth. Holy hell. Her mouth worked him like magic until he was so close to the edge, he cried her name hoarsely. She lifted her head and rose up over him. He suddenly recalled he had no idea where his clothes were and had no clue if there was a condom anywhere in the vicinity. He closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. “Wait.”
Opening his eyes, he found hers on him, dark with passion and need. It took all of his discipline to speak. “I don’t even know if I have a condom here,” he choked out.
“It’s okay. I started the pill a while ago. I didn’t want to have to worry, so…” She flushed and lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “If it’s okay…”
“Oh, it’s more than okay,” he said with alacrity.
She reached between them and guided him to her entrance. She held still for a long moment, teasing him with her wet heat, before she sank down deeply, seating herself against him and bringing him fully inside of her. His eyes fell closed and he groaned, nearly drunk at how good it was to feel her without any barriers between them.
Travis stroked a palm up her spine, bringing her closer to him as she started to slowly rock her hips against his. Already verging on a climax, Janie bit her lip and tried to corral the wild pleasure tearing through her. It felt so good—so, so good—to have his hot length filling and stretching her. She hadn’t realized how desperate she was to be this close to him until he touched her. It was as if she’d been parched of thirst and a drop of water fell. Now, she couldn’t get enough and soaked in every subtle touch—where their skin slid together as they rocked, the heat of his hand on her back, his lips trailing kisses along her neck, and him rocking deeper and deeper into her with each moment.
“Janie.”
She opened her eyes and collided with the blur of his blue gaze. He reached between them and barely dragged his thumb across her clit, right where they were joined. That was it. Pleasure burst through her with such force, tremors wracked her. His cry joined hers as his body tightened. She felt his release inside. His hand slid down her back and his head fell forward, resting between her breasts. She resisted the urge to collapse against him, mindful that she might’ve lost her mind and allowed this with him injured, but she wasn’t going to make matters worse.
She stroked a hand through his hair, a wave of emotion rolling through her. She was so relieved he was safe, so relieved to know he just needed some time to heal, and so relieved to be this close to him again—right where she belonged. He lifted his head. “I love you,” he said, his voice gruff.
Tears were hot against the back of her eyes. She swallowed against the tightness in her throat and dipped her head to catch his lips in a kiss. “Love you too,” she murmured against his lips.
A while later, after Janie made sure Travis got in and out of the shower safely and helped him down the stairs, they found Stella waiting in the kitchen.
“You made coffee!” Janie said, throwing a grin Stella’s way.
Stella grinned. “Yup. I knew you’d run down here and make it right away, so I figured I’d have it ready. I also have batter ready for pancakes.”
Travis had stopped by the foot of the stairs, his hand on the railing. “Well, damn. All I had to do was break my leg to get you to make breakfast.”