Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 88580 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 443(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88580 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 443(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
“Who was it?” he asks.
“I don’t know. I can’t remember his face. A lot of what happened next is a total blur. He must’ve stemmed some of the bleeding and called an ambulance, because the next thing I know, I woke up in a hospital. That’s all I can remember.”
Except it’s not. I remember one other thing, one more detail that I never share with anyone, because it’s only for me.
I remember what he said.
Hold my hand. Hold it tighter. I swear I won’t let you go. Just keep holding tight.
Then the pressure of his hand gripping mine. I remember squeezing back as hard as I could.
And he kept saying it. I swear I won’t let you go, just keep holding tight.
That’s it, that’s everything. The rest remains a blur.
Only his voice and his words.
The stranger, my guardian angel.
“That’s terrible,” Adler says. “I’m sorry it happened.”
“Without the guy that found me, I’d be dead.” I reach out on an impulse. Adler seems surprised when I take his hand, but he doesn’t resist as I pull it toward my inner thigh. His fingers press against the scar there. “If he hadn’t been around to slow the bleeding, I would’ve died from this wound here.”
“You’re lucky,” he says. “I’m glad someone was there to save you.”
I move his fingers to another scar. “This is where the bone protruded.” I let him touch it slowly, shivering with the sensation. “This is where a piece of glass got stuck.” Another scar. “And here’s where the surgeon went in to repair the damage.” And another scar.
I release his hand, but he doesn’t move it. Instead, he slides it up my leg, his fingers still barely brushing against my skin, moving it toward my inner thigh.
I try not to whimper, and it takes all my willpower, but my breathing doubles as my body’s flooded with excitement. I’m not sure what he wants or what’s going to happen, but I know it feels good to be touched like this.
Touched for the first time, just like that stupid song.
“They don’t bother me,” he says, whispering into the dark, closer than I realized. “The scars. They’re almost beautiful.”
“No, they’re not. I hate when people pretend like they are. I don’t mind them anymore, but they’re not beautiful.”
He keeps moving his hand up my leg, fingers sliding along my skin until he reaches my shorts, and he doesn’t stop. He’s so close to my pussy, I swear he must feel how wet I am already.
“You misunderstand,” he says, voice soothing and low. “They aren’t conventionally beautiful. You won’t see them in a magazine. But those scars make you who you are, they define you, and I find that gorgeous.”
“What are you doing?” I ask, barely able to catch my breath.
His hand moves up, over my pussy, sending a tremble of pleasure into my core, up to my belly, up to the hem of my crop top.
Then he pulls me against him.
My ass pressed against his cock.
And I feel it—
Hard as hell, pressed into my ass.
Holy shit, he wasn’t joking. This man is enormous, and he’s straining right now.
He’s as aroused as I am.
And the fact of his arousal only heightens my desire.
“You’re too uncomfortable,” he whispers, lips near my neck. “Far too awkward. We need to fix that.”
Chapter 16
Casey
This is a very bad mistake.
Except my body’s ringing with desire for him and I’m not sure I can make myself stop.
“You think… grabbing me in bed… is going to help make me more comfortable?”
“I think it’ll show you that you this can feel good. I think you’ll realize that you want my hands on your body.”
“No, I absolutely don’t.” I squeeze my eyes shut, because I’m lying again.
I’m so into this I could scream.
Except I’m also terrified.
I’ve never done something like this before—never had sex, barely kissed anyone. I have no experience, and I don’t know if I can handle a man like Adler.
He’ll rip me into pieces.
Worse than that, he won’t want me anymore when he realizes that I have no clue what I’m doing.
Which means I can’t let this go too far. I need time to get used to him—to figure out if I even want to sleep with him.
His hand keeps moving up, under my crop top, over my breast. I can’t help myself as a whimper escapes my lips.
He groans and I swear his cock gets harder. “Your nipples are so hard right now,” he says, rolling his fingers over them, teasing me. “God, what perfect little breasts. They fit right into my hand.”
“Adler,” I say, squirming against him, my ass rubbing along his cock. “What happened to getting used to each other?”
“This is how we’ll do it.” His lips find my neck, kissing softly. “I’ll explore you. Each night, a little bit more. Tonight, I’ll start with your nipples.”