Sour Cherry(21)

“I’m sorry this happened to you,” he whispered and snaked an arm around my middle.

The apology warmed me from the inside out, but small embers of our fight waited in the back of my mind. He’d picked me out of that bar for a reason, but in turn, I’d stolen his bike and left him in the middle of the desert. I wanted to believe that made us even. He sounded sincere and I didn’t even have the strength to tell him “shut up” meant no talking. I let myself sink deeper into his hold and closed my eyes again. Heat penetrated the clothing separating our skin and added to the growing feeling of safety. If anything were to happen during the night, I felt confident Cooper would do what he could to protect me.

“So are you going to do it?” I asked, my voice straining with emotion. How could I trust another person again? The brothers I’d sworn to protect wanted me dead and the one man I’d truly been myself around turned out to be a CIA agent, Public Enemy #1. Nothing in the world made sense anymore.

His breath teased the back of my neck as he spoke, sending tiny shivers down my spine. “No.”

Surprise made the butterflies in my stomach start attacking the lining in a crazed frenzy. I didn’t know what to say, didn’t even know what to think, but maybe words didn’t have to explain how grateful I was. Slowly turning onto my opposite side, I slid the handcuff across the main railing on my bed and faced Cooper.

The nightstand light cast shadows across his jawline, making it more pronounced. I traced the curve of his face with my fingertips, his five o’clock shadow bristly under my touch. I kept my gaze steady with his as I used the pad of my thumb to do the same with his lower lip. The skin beneath was soft, kissable, and suddenly, I couldn’t hold myself back. I pressed my lips against his, tilting my head to the side slightly to avoid damaging my nose even further. My free hand wrapped around his neck in order to bring him closer and Cooper responded. Slowly, at first, but then more aggressively.

He rolled me onto my back and settled his weight on me, keeping our lips in constant connection. His knees spread my legs and I longed to touch him fully. Breaking our kiss, I glanced up at my bound wrist and tugged on the handcuff for effect.

“Do you mind?” I asked, a smile pulling at one corner of my mouth. “This isn’t exactly my kind of fun.”

Cooper’s brown eyes glowed with delight. He placed a not-too-chaste kiss on my lips and pulled away. “But it is my kind of fun.”

My insides tingled with the possibilities of that statement. “Really?”

“You don’t believe me?” He nuzzled into my neck, kissing along the tendon connecting my neck and shoulder. A strong bite on the same tendon nearly sent me over the edge. I arched into him with pleasure and clutched his ass with my free hand for something to grip. Cooper held all the power, pulling a moan from my throat. “I have another set of cuffs in my bag. Want me to get ʼem?” His lips brushed my earlobe and I sucked in a sharp breath.

“Don’t you dare leave me cuffed to this bed by myself,” I bit out.

Cooper pulled away, straddling me atop my thighs. His weight didn’t bother me so much as his retreat did. Almost as if he was afraid to move too quickly, he slipped both hands beneath my thin tank top, pooling the material just under my breasts. His breathing deepened. “God, you’re beautiful.”

In the dim light, I noted the awestruck expression on his features.

With aggravating slowness, Cooper’s fingertips traced the tattooed designs along my sides and under my naval. They had no special meaning, just something pretty to look at, but his touch made them come to life. He invigorated every nerve in my body and for the second time in the last week, I felt alive as I touched him. “I forgot how soft your skin is,” he said.

I strained against the handcuff, aching to feel him with just as much enthusiasm. My free hand rested on his thigh as he straddled me, but my grip increased in pressure as he lifted my tank top completely over my breasts, freeing them.

Cooper lowered his mouth to one mound and sent warmth straight between my legs. Kneading the other with his free hand, he flicked a tongue over my sensitive nipple then blew it into a point. “And how good you taste.”

Frustration bubbled to my lips and I groaned. While I enjoyed the sensuous foreplay, my nether regions wanted more. I wanted him to rock my world again, to make everything better if only for a night.

“Just a little longer,” he soothed. Cooper planted kisses around my navel, working his way lower.

“Don’t stop.” I closed my eyes, focusing on the feel of him rather than the visual. He pulled off my shorts in one lithe move. My free hand raked through his hair, clutching a patch as he parted my thighs. Cool air caressed my bared skin and Cooper added to it with his own breathing. The warm and cold mixture caused my body to tense automatically, but his fingertips rubbed the soft flesh located between my folds, and I relaxed further into the bed.