Deadly Silence (Blood Brothers #1)(29)

“They’re already changed.” He clasped his hands loosely between his knees. “Come here, Zara.”

That voice. Deep and dark, with a commanding, sexual edge. Her body reacted instantly, her nipples hardening as she became wet. “Don’t tell me what to do,” she whispered, fighting need along with her temper.

“You like me telling you what to do.”

“Only in bed,” she burst out.

He smiled, the expression gentle and dangerous all at once. “Then get in bed.”

She shook her head just a little. If she got in that bed, she’d forget all about her anger, her independence, her safety. Oh, he’d keep her physically safe, but she’d known from the first kiss that he’d shatter her heart if she let him. “Not until we reach an agreement.” She clutched the towel like it was a lifeline.

“If you make me come and get you, I’ll make you beg tonight.”

A full-body shiver took her, and it had nothing to do with fear. Oh, she’d begged him before, and the result had been multiple orgasms that still filled her dreams. Her breath quickened. A flush worked under her skin, sensitizing her breasts. “You have to listen to me.”

“I plan to listen to a whole lot from you.” He stood, so tall and broad he took her breath away. “After we take the edge off.”

The sense that he’d stopped playing focused her attention solely on him. But it wasn’t that simple, now, was it? His taking the edge off would make her mellow, even pliant. She’d start dreaming about forever, and she knew better. It was all right to have a weakness if one acknowledged and fought it. Falling for him could be her weakness. So she lifted her chin and met his gaze directly. “We’re friends with benefits.”

“Is that a fact?” He stepped closer, leaving only a couple of feet between them.

“Yes.” Her voice stayed strong and sure, thank God. After dating for a month, they’d both had checkups, and she’d gone on the pill. For him. Okay, for her, too. “Accept the parameters, Ryker. You have no choice.”

He flashed his teeth. “So you just want to get f*cked?”

The coarse language in that throaty tone nearly sent her over the edge. Her thighs trembled—with the need to run toward him or away, she wasn’t quite sure. “That’s what we have,” she whispered.

He reached her then, tucking one finger in the towel. His head lowered, his mouth next to her ear, brushing heat against her skin. “Tell me, then.”

Her mouth went dry, and her abdomen rippled. “Wh-what?”

He tilted his head until his gaze could capture hers. “Tell me again. What we are. What you want.”

“You know,” she whispered back, her gaze dropping to his full mouth. Oh, the pleasure he could bring with those lips.

“Just f*cking.” His fingers traced up her neck and around her nape, sensations tingling through her.

She tried to swallow. “Yes.”

His fingers tangled in her wet hair. “Ask me, then.”

“Wh-what?” she breathed.

He twisted his wrist, securing her and tugging her head back. The finger tucked in her towel tugged, and the material loosened. He leaned closer, his gaze on hers, his mouth right over her lips. “Ask me to f*ck you.”

The erotic pain cascaded along her scalp. Her mind fuzzed and shut down as hunger shot through her. Even so, caution whispered deep inside her. Something wild was being unleashed in Ryker…something she’d sensed but never seen. “Ryker—”

His hold tightened, stealing her breath. His eyes darkened. “Ask. Me.”

Desire spiked to lust inside her, forcing her nerves to riot. God, she wanted him. But pride wouldn’t let her just ask. Not yet, anyway. She reached out to cup the rock-hard erection beneath his jeans. “Maybe you should ask me,” she murmured, using pressure and tapping her fingers along his length.

His nostrils flared.

Quicker than she would’ve thought possible, he grabbed her wrist and snagged the other one in a strong grip as the towel fluttered to the floor. With his hold on her hair and the other hand on her wrists, she couldn’t move.

The reality of that flushed need through her so quickly her knees wobbled.

His hand secured hers against her abdomen. His thigh slipping between her thighs to press against her pulsing core. The hand fisted in her hair drew her back more, elongating her neck and putting her in an even more helpless position.

Delicious heat sparked through her. She bit her lip, but a moan still escaped.

His mouth still hovered above hers. “Ask me.” Each word was punctuated with a flexing of his thigh muscle against her clit. Mini explosions rocked her lower body.

She panted and her eyelids closed.

A sharp nip to her lips had her gasping and opening her eyes. Ryker kept her gaze and soothed the small wound with his tongue. “Now, Zara,” he growled.

Her lips smarted and yet needed more. He wanted the words? Fine. “Fuck me, Ryker.” She lifted up onto her toes and took his mouth, pushing hard against him.





Chapter





10




When her lips touched his, the beast inside Ryker—the one he secretly believed made him different from normal people—roared to the surface. For his entire life, what he’d wanted had been held out of his view, out of his grip.