Protected by Shadows (27 page)

She brushed away her brain’s comment and focused on the page in her lap. She sketched until the sun peeped up over the horizon. Once her items had been returned to their spots, she changed into her running gear.

Valentino stood by the front door in a pair of shorts that did not help her control her desire for him. He waited for her, she knew that. She wished she had it in her to be upset with him—her runs were
her
time—however, she was sure she’d approve of the company.

“How far do you run?” she asked, stretching.

“As far as you are.”

“Ahh, you’re just that good then?”

She walked by him and her belly erupted with flutters when he bent near and whispered, “You know I am.”

Oh, hell yeah, she did.

She stowed her key and stepped out on the porch as he drew shut the locked door behind him. This time of day was one of her favorites. When everything was fresh and new. Crisp.

“Let’s go.” She went down the steps and found her rhythm. Valentino beside her easily kept pace.

They both were covered in sweat as they walked back up to the porch. She had her hands on her hips as she breathed. Once finished digging for her key, she unlocked the door and entered. He was right on her heels.

“Coming to the room to get what you need?” he teased her.

Knowing he knew that she’d lied about what she was doing there, she nodded. He might know it, but she wouldn’t change her story. “Sure.”

As she walked to the room, she tried to think what she could grab. Anything off the desk really would suffice. She grabbed a small stack of papers from the top left drawer. “Thanks.” She waved them in the air and headed for the door.

The one he stood blocking. Not to mention he appeared immobile.

“Yes?”

“That wasn’t anything near the bed.” He grew more serious with each passing second.

“It’s what I needed.”

“Know what I need?” His voice was a deep rasp that stroked every synapse in her body.

“What?” Goodness, her question was barely comprehensible.

“You.”

Her immediate refusal was on the tip of her tongue, but it didn’t fall. The raw honesty in his word wound deep. She stepped closer to him, holding his gaze. When they were toe to toe, she dropped the sheaves and reached up to curve her arms around his neck.

“You’re like a drug, Val. I can’t say no to you.”

His hands curled around her waist and he pressed their pelvises together. “Do you want to?”

Being in his arms again was so heady, she was having a hard time following the conversation thread. “Want what?”

“To say no.”

The little voice that normally spoke up to keep her safe cried yes. In the back of her mind, she knew and acknowledged for her own sake she should say the word and back away from him. Every time she gave into him, her own feelings grew deeper and she knew it would be even harder to let him go after this thing—whatever it was—between them ended. But the look in his eyes and everything else within her had “No,” falling from her lips.

He sank a hand in the hair at the back of her head. One finger removed the band holding her ponytail. His other hand, splayed across the small of her back, drew her closer still.

He didn’t just hold her—he
held
her. He buried his nose in the side of her neck as he didn’t move for a moment or two. She wound her arms up beneath his and dug her fingers into the flesh of his shoulders. It didn’t matter in the slightest they were both sweaty from the run. She stayed there, her face settled against the hard planes of his torso.

When he kissed the side of her neck, she shivered. One, then another and another. Slowly he moved back from her and reached for the hem of her shirt. Lexy went to help him, but he shook his head.

“Let me.”

Suddenly nervous, she did. This wasn’t how they did things. It typically was fast, hard fucking. He’d never looked at her like this. He pulled her shirt off and dropped it to the floor. Head tilted to the side, he stared at her as she stood there in shorts and her bra. He trailed one finger between her breasts and down to her belly piercing.

She didn’t speak as he took the bra off—thankfully it was the one that fastened up the front. Her nipples were tight and her breasts were heavy with want. His touch was light as he cupped them and swiped his thumbs over the drawn tips. Her gasp came out as more of a shuddered breath and she trembled beneath his touch. Her heart pounded and she was aware of how fast it was going. He didn’t linger, instead he sank to his knees before her.

He hooked his thumbs into her waistband and tugged. She bit her lower lip as he lifted first one leg than the other to remove her red running shorts. He took the same care with each shoe and sock. Soon, she wore only her pink and green plaid bikini panties.

He leaned close and kissed above her belly. Then he moved lower, his tongue flicking out, teasing her skin. She gripped one shoulder as he dipped it into her belly button before taking the dangle in his mouth and tugging lightly. Her jewelry was a revolver along with a skull bullet and when he pulled, it sent pulses through to her clit.

“You are so fucking sexy,” he uttered, releasing the piercing and kissing the skin above her panty line. She didn’t think he required a response.

She placed a hand on the back of his head and threaded her fingers into the silken strands. It was hard for her to let him do this—she wanted to tip his head back and brush the worry from his face by any means she could.

His lips moved and she knew he was saying something but she couldn’t make it out. He trailed lower until his mouth settled on her panties and he nuzzled her. Her trembles grew and her legs began to shake.

Keeping his face there, he drew down on the waistband. The material moved between her skin and his lips, tantalizing her. When he hit bare skin, she gasped. More of those intoxicating kisses before he dragged his tongue along the lips of her pussy. He removed her feet free of her panties.

She tightened her hand on his shoulder and she opened her legs a bit more for him. Up and down his tongue slid over her skin, shooting sparks through her. Lids fluttering, she tried not to fall over.

He cupped her ass and lapped up and down, dragging his tongue slowly. Taking his time. Moisture vanished from her mouth and she struggled to find some more. He rose to his feet and gazed at her with such intensity it nearly had her coming.

Without a word, he hefted her and placed her on the bed then covered her with his body until he lay partially on her. Holding her gaze, he lifted her knee and allowed his fingers to smooth along her skin.

He gripped the back of her head again and held tight.

“Val—”

He kissed her quiet. When their lips parted, he muttered in Italian, his voice darkly seductive. The words were faint as he moved down her body, making love to each breast.

She got it—he didn’t want her to talk. Closing her eyes, she enjoyed his touch. His fingers tightened in her hair and she looked at him. He gave a shake of his head as his fingers trailed through the lips of her pussy before sinking inside her.

Oh shit!
She bit her lip to keep her moan contained. He added another finger and a moan slid free. The air thickened with tension. Every time she went to shut her eyes, he tugged on her hair until she watched him again.

He brought her to multiple orgasms with his fingers and as she came down from one high, he stripped off his shorts. Val crawled back over her and rubbed the head of his cock along her dripping pussy.

She wanted to grab him and shove him in deep. Feel him everywhere inside her. Flex her muscles around him and hold him there. He nipped her breast and put the large head of his shaft against her.

He didn’t fill her with a dominating push in which she had his entire length in her instantly. No. This was inch by inch torture. Ever so slowly he entered her. He watched her the entire time, his expression intensity magnified. This was more than being marked or branded. More than being possessed by a man. All across the board, it was
more.

Never had she felt like this with him. He didn’t speak in English and she couldn’t understand his words the few times he spoke. His hazel gaze swirled with heat and untapped passion.

In and out, he stroked her. He slid his other hand around her back and held her close, pressing his face against her skin. All the while, he never stopped the long, slow, toe-curling thrusts.

Every inch of her was hypersensitive and she wanted to come. Hard. But he never altered his speed and it kept her dangling over the edge but not releasing her. His weight on her didn’t allow for her to move and set a pace she wanted. He pulled back and put them nose to nose, his eyes boring into hers he continued with what she was beginning to see as torture.

“Val!”

He silenced her with another kiss. It was the opposite of his driving hips. Here, he dominated and demanded. Teeth clanked against one another and his tongue drove deep, nearly angry. His hold on her hair tightened and he nipped her lips before pulling away and staring in her eyes again.

She wasn’t sure how long he continued, time lost all meaning for her. Lexy’s entire world fell around to the two of them—nothing else. There was no thinking of the outside world. It was purely about Valentino and her.

He finally increased his pace and allowed her the relief she so craved. Moments after she reached hers, he came deep inside her, filling her with his seed. Then he fell upon her and, still buried in her, turned them and gathered her close, his grip gentling slightly.

Closing her eyes, Lexy allowed herself to revel in the moment and soon she drifted to sleep.

* * * *

When she woke, she found she was in her own bed. Pushing up, she rubbed her eyes. Had it all been a dream?

The marks on her skin she saw when she stood nude before her mirror told her it hadn’t been a dream.
Why did he put me back in my own bed?

She showered and made her way up through the house. There was no sign of him and she found herself experiencing a moment of panic. She calmed quickly, realizing he probably had something to do. So she went to the kitchen and fixed herself something to eat.

Chapter Sixteen

He opened the door to the small studio and entered on soundless feet. Behind him, the door he’d just walked through clicked silently. A brief flash of annoyance crossed his expression as the stale air—an unpleasant mixture of beer, old food and sex—settled around him. He moved his unimpressed gaze around.

One window had a shade partially drawn to keep out part of the Virginia sun. The other two allowed in no light whatsoever. To his left, the kitchen sat full of dirty dishes and fast food containers. The entire situation left much to be desired.

The rest of the studio he could see from his position was relatively clean. A small table with a single chair pushed beneath and a phone on top. That was spotless. Were he a man who felt pride, he might have.

He wasn’t, however, and he walked farther in, still searching for the man he’d come all this way to see. The bed was set back in the small nook created from the kitchen’s setup. No windows near.

Trevor Mansfield put his hands in his pockets and rocked back on his heels. “This is what you do on your time off?” He was less than amused by the porn on the computer screen.

John nearly folded in on himself. His hand flew away from his cock, which also shrank. He tried to cover himself with a pillow.

“Sir, I didn’t…had I known you were coming…”

“I never give warning. Finish. And John? Make it fast.”

John’s nondescript blue eyes grew wide. “F…finish?”

“I interrupted. Finish, or are you ashamed?”

The young man swallowed but didn’t lower his gaze. “Embarrassed.”

“In that case, tell me what happened with her brother?”

He walked closer and discovered a five-by-seven glossy picture of Lexy in a short jean skirt and a multi-hued spaghetti strap tank. It hit him that the man had porn on, but he wasn’t really paying attention to it. He approved. The man had declared Lexy to be his wife. And while Trevor believed a man could do whatever, it was the loyalty John showed Lexy that Trevor approved of.

“He died.”

Trevor arched a brow. “I know that. I was under the impression our inside connection was keeping him in a medically induced coma. So we could use him as leverage.”

“He was already dead when she reported in to work the following day. Died overnight.”

Trevor knew his presence intimidated most people, but John seemed to have gotten over his initial fear and shock. “And you called me…”

“I didn’t call—” John snapped his mouth shut as he realized his egregious mistake.

“Exactly. You didn’t and now I’m here.”

“I’m so sorry, sir. I know I broke—”

“Enough. Had I wanted to hear your endless prattle of apologies, I would have accomplished it over the phone. Surely you don’t think I would come all this way to do that? It surely wasn’t to watch your inept masturbation.”

Heat rushed into his cheeks. “What did you come for?”