Thinking to save time, she asked, "Would it help if I took a cab home?"
"Hell, no. It'd help if we hurried things along, though."
"Yeah?" Smiling, she brought her hand down past his ribs, those solid abs she'd just been admiring, across his hip...and then to his erection.
Justice went still, but only for a moment. "Now we're talkin'." With a groan, he turned to his back, inviting her to touch all she wanted.
"Talking first is just what I had in mind." Keeping her fingers firmly curled around him, she sat up to ensure she didn't miss anything. Now able to look him over as much as she wanted, she whispered, "You are such a stud."
When he said nothing, she glanced at his face. Smoldering heat burned in his dark eyes, giving her a taste of sexual power.
"You've got my full attention, babe."
Yes, she did. Though he didn't touch her, a man couldn't be more attuned to a woman. Not just now, but from the day she'd first met him.
Before she got carried away, she needed to explain something. "Yesterday, when I was stupidly crying-"
"Nothing stupid about it." More softly, he added, "I'm sorry I hurt you."
"You didn't. It was my own insecurity that did it. I know that. I promise I don't usually weep like a baby. In fact, I rarely cry." Crying had always felt so self-indulgent.
When his erection flexed in her hand, she decided to finish her talk in haste. After all, he was being incredibly patient with her.
So how did she explain? Since Justice was always so plainspoken, she decided to follow his lead. "The scar on my leg doesn't bother me as much because it's not in such an...intimate place. No one sees it either. I mean, I can easily wear longer shorts and it's hidden."
"You don't need to hide."
She loved that he thought that. "But these-" She shrugged her shoulder forward to indicate the uglier scar. "That's such a female part of me. A sexual part."
"I guess. But you're more than a stacked body, honey. A lot more. Any asshole who doesn't see that isn't worth your time."
Humor curled her mouth. "I thought we weren't going to talk about Marcus."
"No, we're not." Smug, he pointed out, "But you knew exactly who I meant."
"I want to thank you."
"For letting you hold my junk and not complaining that you're only holding it?"
Justice was so damned funny, even at the most awkward of times, that she had to laugh. "For that, too, yes. But I meant for reinforcing that the scars aren't what define me."
"Not even close."
"I don't want to be shy anymore."
"You still were? Because damn, honey, you've got a grip on my dick and-"
She halted his jokes by gently squeezing him.
"Go ahead," he rasped, his hands knotting in the sheet. "Be shy or bold or whatever. Long as you keep touching me."
"I plan to." The feel of him, smooth velvet over rigid steel, amazed her. Curious about every inch of him, she briefly cupped his testicles, now drawn tight, then trailed her fingertips up his length before clasping him again. He was thick enough that her fingers didn't quite meet her thumb, but while entering her, she felt only indescribable pleasure.
Fascinated by the drop of fluid beading the tip, she brushed her thumb over it.
As if pained, he briefly closed his eyes, locked his jaw and his body tensed.
"You liked that."
His eyes slowly opened. "Yeah."
"I'm not entirely sure where this is going-and no, I don't mean this," she said, giving his erection a slow pump.
The harsh groan interrupted whatever quip he'd planned to make.
"I mean you and me, in a bed. You said you wanted to date. I'm not so naive that I don't understand dating as a euphemism for sex." Lying to him and herself, she said, "I want you to know, if sex is all you want, I can be content with that."
"Goody for you, but I sure as hell can't."
She quickly continued past his denial, needing to get it all said. "I've been starving for this." She got more comfortable, straddling his thick thighs and coasting a hand down his big, gorgeous body. "So many nights I thought about being with a man, kissing and touching and doing all the things most women do." With a soft laugh, she admitted, "I never envisioned a man like you." With his size, his muscles and his body hair, he was pure male perfection. She'd been too realistic to ever hope for anyone like him. "But I have you now and I want to take advantage of every second we have together."
He caught both her wrists and carefully dragged her down to rest atop him, then folded his long arms around her. "You can get back to torturing me in a minute. There's something I want to say to you first, though, and I can't think clearly with you doing that."
She smiled. "Okay."
Beneath her cheek, his chest billowed on a long, slow breath. "First, hell yeah, I wanted to have sex with you. Still do. And I know I will tomorrow and the day after."
He didn't offer forever, and after knowing him such a short time, that made sense-to her head. Her heart, however, wanted to grab for it all.
Her head reminded her heart that she had to be reasonable.
Pressuring him wouldn't gain her anything, and who knew if they'd even suit for the long haul. Scarred or not, she deserved happiness. For right now, that meant Justice.
She turned her face to kiss his throat. "Okay."
"You know what I noticed about you right off? Your eyes. So big and soft and dark. Those eyes got to me from the start. Then your honesty. The way you react to everything." His fingers tunneled into her hair, close to her scalp. "And this baby-fine hair, all sleek and sexy."
Her hair? She levered up to see his eyes. "Seriously?" Her hair was...plain. She could grow it longer, could wear it more stylish, but she'd spent so much of her life trying to avoid notice as a woman...
"Okay, so maybe I noticed your ass, too." Justice kissed her forehead. "But your hair got my attention, too. So did your skin." His lips brushed her ear. "And the things you say and do." He moved to her throat, and she felt the hot brush of his tongue. "The way you smile." Growling softly, he added, "How good you smell, so good I could just eat you up."
He had eaten her up, and her entire body flushed anew with the memory.
When his hands coasted down her body and he began to rock her against his erection, she knew she had to regain control.
She pushed free of his hold to sit on his abs. "So," she began, only to gasp when he cupped her breasts. Talk about making it hard to think.
"You want to know what we're doing? We're dating. Exclusively."
Since he waited-while toying with her nipples-she quickly nodded agreement.
"Good."
"We're dating," she repeated, "and taking it one day at a time."
"Sure." He didn't sound enthusiastic about that part, but she took heart that he didn't deny her either.
"I won't pressure you," she promised. "And you won't hold back if there's anything you want to say to me."
"Know what, Fallon?"
"What?"
"You talk too much." He reached for her.
Laughing, she swatted his hands away. "One more thing."
His long groan was too amusing.
"You know how you wanted me to tell you what I like?"
That sharpened his interest. "Yeah? Got specifics for me?"
She shook her head. "The same goes for you." Leaning forward, she kissed his sexy mouth and whispered, "Let me know if I do anything wrong."
He inhaled sharply, especially when she kissed a damp path down his now-tensed body. His fingers tunneled into her hair, and when she reached his groin, he groaned in an agony of suspense.
Fallon loved his taut anticipation, the way he kept himself so still, almost as if he feared deterring her somehow.
"You like this?" she asked, and held him in her hand.
"Yeah." Strained, he added, "Tighter."
She squeezed, and got rewarded with his low growl.
"And this?" She feathered kisses all along his length.
"Yup."
Above her fingers where she held him, she slowly licked, up and over the tip of him. "And how about-"
He gasped for breath. "Hell, yeah."
Filling her head with the musky scent of him, Fallon drew him into her mouth, sucking as she took him deeper.
She'd expected a reaction, but got even more than she'd counted on. Justice held her head, his breaths laboring, his muscles shifting. After only a few minutes, he roughly drew her up and under him, taking her mouth hard. She felt him fumbling on the nightstand, then he rolled to his back, donned protection, and a second later, joined their bodies in one hard, smooth thrust.
As he began rocking into her, he growled against her lips, "Hope you're into a quickie, 'cuz I won't last."
She was into him, and given the sharp pleasure already coiling tight, it wouldn't be a problem. Putting her legs around him, hugging him close, she breathed, "Ah, God, don't wait," as the climax hit her.
Holding her hips, he moved harder, faster-and ground out his own release.
When he finished, he sank against her, kissed her brow and whispered, "Damn, Fallon, you make me wild."