Soul Scars (Dog Haven Sanctuary Romance) (19 page)

“You’ve stopped breathing, imp.”

Her chest rose slowly.

Fucking amazing. Even the way she took a breath kept him hard. He shouldn’t be doing this, he really knew that. Every smattering of sense that still existed in his head screamed no. But what, he should leave the sofa and go back to his carving when the world’s most awesome nipple was trying to pierce its way out of her shirt?

“You’re not wearing a bra.” His voice cracked.

“Not really required uniform with tits this size. They’re not exactly flying about making trouble.”

“I wouldn’t say that, they’re causing me all kinds of trouble.” His concentration broke and she took that moment to seize hold of his finger. He studied the clasp of her small hand, then met her eyes. She had that look that crossed between triumph and challenge. “Let go,” he warned.

“I want you to ‘let go’, Vince.” She squeezed and released his finger.

The way she challenged him made him want to do so many things to her. Did he want to let go? With all his heart he wanted that but he couldn’t hurt her, wouldn’t hurt her. His finger remained at that junction on her chest. If he moved it a little he would feel the beat of her heart. A slight diversion and he’d be messing with her left breast.
Awesome
. He wanted to watch every reaction on her face as he ran his finger along and over the small curve of her breast to circle her nipple.
Oh, yeah, big gasp, barely hidden jerk of her hips. Somebody loves having her tits played with.
“Like that, much?”

“I’d like it more if you kissed me while you did that.”

His own hips twitched against her. He hadn’t intended to do that. It wasn’t one of those
feel what I’ve got for you
moves because it was an involuntary,
haven’t had any kind of release for way too long
move. It was as innocent as a move like that could be. He hadn’t stopped thinking of a wet, noisy, tongue-fuck sort of kiss since it came to mind that day. In fact, too much had come to mind that day and never left. And every time he’d looked at her mouth since that moment… Jesus, his entire body jumped, ready for action. He lowered his head right down to her lips. “Christ, Lulah, if I start this I may never be able to stop.”

“Perfect,” she whispered back. She lifted her mouth to meet his and
fucking delicious
, he was right there with it. He met her lips, trying, really trying to be gentle, but he wasn’t any good at sipping water when dehydrated, either. Her tongue found his in this crossing-swords sort of challenge and now that he had a free hand, he cupped it behind her head and brought her hard against him. This wasn’t going to end until he was finished. She pushed her breast against his other hand and he pulled away a little, keeping the play on her nipple teasing, a little too light, a little frustrating. Lulah moaned into his mouth and, hell, his jeans needed adjusting before his dick snapped.

He kept playing with her nipple, rubbing it, circling it. He pulled away from the kiss and heard her little gasp for air.

She ran her tongue across her lips. “Tasty,” she said.

“Stay still,” he ordered, slipping his hand under her breast and drawing her nipple up to his mouth. He latched onto it through the thin cotton and Lulah’s hand reached to his head, holding his mouth to her.

“Are you hungry?” she whispered, then giggled.

Bossy and demanding. He could fix that. He lifted his head and came back to her, nuzzling her temple. “To be honest, I’m starving.” He had made her t-shirt wet so that it clung to her nipple. It must feel cold. It would feel colder if he blew on it. He placed the palm of his hand over her breast again, smiling as she rose to meet it. But instead of curving his fingers to grip her, as she might have expected, he simply grazed the nipple back and forwards with the flat of his palm. He listened to her exhale with a huff and a hiss. “Like that, huh?” he spoke against her temple.

In answer she reached for the hem of his shirt, trying to draw it up but he easily blocked her hand. “Uh-uh, don’t touch.”

“Don’t touch?”

He shook his head. “Clothes stay on.”

“Is there something you want to hide, UHT Guy?” She shifted her thigh against him. “Nope, you’ll never hide that in a pair of jeans.”

He withheld a groan. To stay in control took every ounce of strict discipline he could muster.

“I want to touch you.”

“Lulah, let’s slow down. I’m trying to keep my shit together here…trying to be a good guy.”

“Stripping me of my clothes and ravishing me, that would make you the bad guy, right?”

“You know it would.”

“Do you think you and me are a bad idea?”

He dropped his forehead to her shoulder, tucking his head in under her neck, right at a point where she smelled so sweet, so uniquely Lulah. How on earth did he answer that question? Bad idea? Good idea? No idea. He lifted his head again, searching her face, trying for that connection they reached sometimes. The one that made him feel whole.

“Uh-oh, I’m sensing the detonation of a Vince-bomb.”

“What the…?”

“Say it, go on, say what’s on your mind right now.”

“You’re fantastic, do you know that?”

“That’s not what’s on your mind. You can’t lie to me, Vincent!”

“This nipple of yours is on my mind…a lot.” She started to wriggle if he backed off the touch, and if he pressed a bit harder she made this tiny noise, almost a little grunt. He slid his mouth along her jaw, to speak up against her cheek. “How’s that going for you?”

“It’s driving me nuts. If you keep doing that, I’m going to…”

“Explode?”

“Uh-huh.”

“And that’s a better Vince-bomb than the one you were thinking about, yeah?”

“Much better.”

“Good.” He claimed her mouth again, diving in, tasting her. He circled her tongue with his with the same intensity he worked her nipple. Her short hair was in reach behind her neck and he slid his hand and grabbed hold of it, keeping her head restrained as he pulled away from the kiss. Now she started to pass back some control.

Her hand found the hem of her own t-shirt this time, and he pinned her arm when he noticed her trying to pull the shirt off.

“Vince, I need more.”

“No.” He shook his head. “Clothes stay on.” Her eyes widened to baby-animal size, imploring. She tried to lift her head and he tightened his grip in her hair. Once she’d tested the hold she relaxed and everything changed, slower, deeper, with a more patient attitude.

“Your nipple’s like a bullet tip. Tell me how it feels?”

“Freakin’ intense.”

“Intense like what?”

“Intense like a tits-ahoy super-intense thing.”

Vince laughed and caught her nipple between his finger and thumb and squeezed. It wasn’t a pinch—that would suggest a release after the pressure. Instead he kept up a steady compression, always tightening. “Is this helping with the intensity?”

“Worse.”

“Oh,” he cocked his head, “shall I stop?”

“No, don’t stop.”

He lowered his mouth and covered her nipple, sucked, gradually closing his teeth around it so he could tease the tip with rapid flicks of his tongue. When he looked back at Lulah her eyes were closed. “Are you going to sleep there, Lulah?”

“No, I think I’m dying of some kind of ecstasy here.”

Jesus, what a response.
He pulled himself up hard against her, his mouth back by her ear, fingers back on her nipple. “But we’re just starting; there’s so much more of you I’ve yet to touch.”

“Vince, I’ve never felt like this before, but if you keep troubling my nipple like that, I’m going to come. I’m warning you, okay?”

She’s kidding
. “You’re kidding me. Are you kidding?”

“Not kidding, hot guy. Whatever you do to my nipple, it feels as though you’re doing the same thing directly to my clit.”

“You’re hot, yourself,” he said as he moved half across her and pushed his leg between her parted thighs. The way she gripped his leg made him smile. “There you go, something to work on.”

“Strip time now, please!”

He took hold of her chin, turning her face towards him. “Open your eyes and look at me.” The pleading stare she gave him was fantastic. “Clothes are staying on, okay? Let yourself go with this and we’ll see if you really can come with a bit of nipple play, huh?”

“I really want to feel you in me,” she said, her voice raspy from her rapid breathing.

“Sorry, imp, this is all you’re getting tonight. I need you to have some patience with me. Work with it.”

“What about you?”

“I’m fine, don’t you worry about me.”
Such a lie, this is agony.

She shifted her hip so that it rested against his cock. “You said you’d never lie to me.”

“Oh, hell, don’t do that.” He tried to pull away but she moved with him. “I’m not going to be okay if you keep that up.” He cupped the top of her head with one hand, holding it still, and lowered his mouth to her throat. He could happily live right in this moment, forever. His other hand went back to her nipple, pinching and teasing. Her hips jerked, her thighs grabbing hard on his leg. His mouth kissed, his teeth grazing their way up to her ear. He covered her ear with his mouth, breathing into it, teasing with his tongue, groaning encouragement when she started to rock hard against him. “That’s it, girl, let go.” Less than a minute later, she did, crying out to him, twisting her head from his grip so that she could kiss him, murmuring his name, her gratitude, slowly coming back down.

He held her close, staying with her until her breathing eased and she pulled away a little. “Amazing. God, what a hussy I am. Like a crazy old bitch in heat.”

“I could become very fond of that crazy bitch in heat. I wonder if she’d make a good service dog.”

She did it again, right there, a small quirk of her lips, formalized with a firming of her jaw; she locked into his gaze, saw all of him, even the parts he only
hoped
were there. “Oh, Lulah, I don’t deserve to touch you.” He hadn’t intended to speak the words, the admonishment only for him. He didn’t want his words to sow any doubt in her mind because even he had a future, some promise, didn’t he?

“Silly,” she whispered, stroking her knuckles across his forehead.

He pushed himself up and swung his leg across to straddle her. She winced as he moved. “Your leg, I’m so sorry. Is it okay?”

She answered with her fingers running down his spine, making him shiver. “Touch, Vince. Remember? It doesn’t have to be this difficult.”

But it is. “I’m so tired, you know? When I lie down with you, I’m lost in the pleasure of
you.
But I’m scared that if I let myself relax I might fall asleep.”

“That’s fine.”

“No, it’s not. Sleep is…it can be so terrible.”

Chapter 16

T
HE GRIP OF Vince’s hands around her neck stirred Lulah. Add to that, his body pinning her to the sofa, and it took seconds for her to awaken fully and realize that unless she could break through to him, she was in deep shit. Waking him seemed the best idea because the angry guy, trembling and dripping sweat on her, was so far removed from reality he was dangerous. Her adrenaline rocketed up the scale but she knew there would never be enough time for it to give her the physical strength to match Vince’s. His fingers squeezed and he started to yell.

That probably saved them. Calliope and Joker rushed from their beds, hurling themselves onto the sofa. Although they added to the melee, it was enough to bring Vince back from whatever nightmare he was reliving. In seconds he stood alongside her, panting, staring, crudely backlit by the lamp still blazing on his workbench.

“Jesus, Lulah, God no…tell me you’re all right?” His words were spilling out between jerky inhalations as he walked in a small circle, holding his head. Calliope kept bumping his knee but he appeared oblivious to the dog.

Lulah rose slowly to a seated position. She waited as her heart steadied, one hand on Joker for comfort, the other up at her neck as if checking for damage. She kept watch on Vince and finally he stopped pacing and faced her.

“Please tell me you’re okay? Please? Lulah, I’ll never forgive myself if I’ve hurt you.”