Where the Streets Have No Name(35)

Dread slithered over her flesh, icy and slick. Her heart fell into her stomach, heavy like lead. He looked dispassionate, removed. He looked at her like she didn’t matter. He’d closed himself off from her.

The heavy feeling weighed her down but his eyes didn’t leave her face. He didn’t want her, didn’t feel the same, and she had nowhere to hide from him.

Amelia bit the inside of her lip so hard she tasted blood. Her neck was so stiff it ached. Tears pricked at her eyes. How could she have made such a monumental mistake?

“Love? What’s wrong?” Daniel sat on the bed. He reached for her.

Scooting to the other end of the bed, Amelia put distance between them. She didn’t need his pity. Didn’t want his pity.

Quick as she could, Amelia made a beeline for the bathroom and shut the door behind her. She looked to the shower. Yes, a shower might help. A little. Not really. She could pretend though; Amelia had gotten quite good at pretending.

Turning the taps on, she waited until the temperature was perfect, then turned it warmer and stepped into the tub. Hot water streamed from above, soaking her hair, but even water couldn’t wash away the burning shame clutching at her heart.

She brought a soap-covered hand to her chest and held it there just as she heard the door click open. Had she forgotten to lock it?

“Amelia, did I do something wrong?”

She stood stock-still, water pouring down on her, holding her breath. The swish of the shower curtain alerted her to his presence but she didn’t dare turn around and face him. She wasn’t sure she could handle the look in his eyes again.

Daniel stepped into the shower and took her in his arms, crushing her back to his chest. “I have,” he whispered, kissing her neck. “I’ve done something wrong. Tell me what it is so I can fix it.”

When she didn’t immediately respond, he said, “I don’t regret what happened, if that’s what you’re thinking. Not even a little. I might not deserve you, love, and I won’t pretend you’re not so far out of my galaxy we’re not even in the same universe, but that doesn’t stop me from wanting you. Caring for you.”

His words were the opposite of those she’d expect if he pitied her. She turned her head and met his gaze – this time a storm of uncertainty. He searched her eyes, then her face, until he landed at her lips.

The press of his erection against her backside warned her of his intentions. “If you don’t want me, Amelia, you’d best tell me now, because in no less than five seconds you’re going to be against those tiles and I’ll be buried deep inside you.”

The words shocked her system and forced her into a state of need she didn’t think possible.

“Five…”

He was giving her a chance to back out.

“Four…”

His hand slid down the slippery slopes of her body until he reached her folds.

“Th-three…”

He didn’t pity her!

“Two…”

His fingers swirled around her clit and one slipped inside her. Daniel’s breath was hot on the back of her neck. His teeth scraped over her shoulder where it met her neck.

“One…”

Daniel spun her in his strong arms, wedged a knee between her thighs, and plundered her mouth with his tongue. Possessive swipes mimicked the rocking of his thigh between her legs. The roughness coupled with his thumb swirling over her clit sent her over the edge. Shamelessly she bucked and writhed, doused in the flames of an orgasm unlike the others. This one came on and crashed into her like a freight train. Primal.

His leg vanished but Daniel curled her legs around his waist, the head of his cock prodding at her entrance. His eyes sought hers. “You want this, Amelia, right? Tell me you want this.”

“I want you, Daniel,” she cried, arching into him.





Amelia’s blunt honesty shredded the last of his control. With her thighs around his hips, he guided his erection to the entrance to her folds and drove inside. Right here, right now, she was everything he needed. Everything he never knew he wanted. Hell, she was everything he didn’t deserve. But he had her in his arms and he was damned well going to live for this moment.

Desire blinded him, gave him tunnel vision. He saw and felt and heard only Amelia. The wide blue-black of her eyes staring up at him. Her snug channel milking him with the tremors of her impending orgasm. Keening cries and panted breaths. And her hands clutched his shoulders, nails marring his skin.

Daniel steeled himself and thrust into her. The hold around his hips tightened. Her breath stuttered. Damn he needed to hold on a little longer. His release threatened to unravel. Daniel slid a hand between their bodies to play in her curls, searching for…ah, there it was. He pushed and swirled and pinched, driving into her harder and faster. She gasped, rocking her hips, taking what she needed from him.