Fractured (Deep In Your Veins, #5)(72)
(Butch)
I wasn’t kidding. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think she had the preternatural ability to addict people to the taste and feel of her. But I knew it was just Imani; it was just the affect she had on me. I’d been addicted since the very first night, and I’d craved her from that night onwards. If she had any idea how obsessed I was with her, she’d probably freak.
Slipping one finger inside her, I groaned against her nipple. “Nice and slick for me.” I drew the taut bud into my roof, sucking and biting as I f*cked her with my finger.
“Inside me,” she breathed.
Withdrawing my finger, I cupped her ass, tilted her hips just right, and thrust hard. Fuck. Her tight muscles squeezed and contracted around my dick, and a groan slid through my teeth. She was almost too hot. “So f*cking good, baby.”
Humming in agreement, she licked my throat.
I rolled onto my back. “Take what you need, Imani.” She didn’t hesitate; she slammed herself up and down on my cock, nails digging into my chest. I met each of her downward thrusts with a punch of my hips, slamming deep in her body. Watching her take my cock inside her, watching her pretty breasts bounce and her eyes glaze over…it was f*cking amazing. She was f*cking amazing. No one else would ever compare to her.
Knifing up, I wrapped her hair around my fist and yanked her face to mine so I could look right into her eyes when she came. “Fuck me, Imani.” She started riding me again, moaning against my mouth. I slid my free hand between us and found her clit, pressing down with my thumb. Her pace became faster, frantic, and her muscles began to flutter around me. “That’s it; f*ck me harder, make us both come.”
Moaning louder, she frantically impaled herself until finally her body clamped down on my cock. I rolled her onto her back and pounded into her as she came hard, biting into my shoulder…and then I f*cking exploded.
As she lay beneath me, shaking with aftershocks, I said, “Promise me now while my cock and my come is inside you that if we do ever Bind, you won’t sever our bond.” It worried me that she had that ‘out.’ I could be a total * at times. I was pushy and dominant and messed the f*ck up. Being with me couldn’t be easy. “Promise me that whatever happens, we ride it out. When I f*ck up, you tell me how to fix it and I will. No walking out on me.”
Her head tilted. “I’m such a freaking idiot.”
That wasn’t the response I’d been expecting.
“I should have guessed this would play on your mind. Everyone else walked out on you, including your birth mother. Life has taught you that whenever things get rough, people disappear…and it’s made you believe that you weren’t enough for them to stay. Which is, of course, a load of bullshit. They left because they were fickle, had no staying power, and were such *s that they would allow you to believe you weren’t good enough.”
I swallowed. “Imani—”
She lightly pressed her hands to my face. “Unless what we have withers away and dies, which I don’t see happening, I’m here for good. I promise.”
Releasing a breath I didn’t realise I’d been holding, I gave a crisp nod.
“You believe me?”
“I know you wouldn’t say something you don’t mean. And I know that if you did, it would be easy to tell, since you can’t lie for—”
“I can so lie.”
“No, baby, you can’t,” I chuckled. “And I love that about you.” I always knew where I stood with her. There was never any need for guessing games.
“You love me?” The question was quiet, almost shy.
“I thought you’d have figured that out by now.”
She play-punched my shoulder. “No girl ever assumes a guy loves her. She has to hear those words to believe it.”
I held her gaze, never wanting her to doubt what I said next. “I love you, Imani. Didn’t think I’d ever say those words to anyone. Didn’t think I had it in me. Not sure I’ll be good at expressing it, but there it is. I want us to Bind someday, when you’re ready. Why do you look so surprised by that? I told you in the beginning that I want everything that you are.”
“I know. I suppose I just didn’t expect that you’d offer the same in return.” She smiled. “I’ll take this moment to note that you’re a lot better at sharing and being open with me now.” She lifted her head and kissed me. “And I’m glad you love me, because I love you. You’ll struggle to believe that, I know. And even when you do believe it, you’ll have dumb moments where you panic that because I’m mad at you, I don’t feel that way anymore.” She shook her head. “I’ve said it before, and I’ll keep saying it until you believe it: I’m here for good.”
“I know you are, because you don’t have the option of leaving me.”
She burst out laughing. “See, you make me happy.”
At first, I’d found that hard to believe. But now I saw it clearly. Saw that I’d somehow lived up to my promise. I was now the one who made her smile and laugh. I swore to myself that I’d keep on doing it.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
(Butch)
The island where the battle would take place wasn’t much different from The Hollow; there was the white sandy beach, the thick, vine-covered trees, the waterfalls, the light sea breeze, and the sounds of tropical birds and other exotic wildlife.