Long Road Home(38)

She twisted restlessly and then arched her body up, but he quieted her with a hand to her hip.

“We’ve got all night, baby. No hurry. Just us enjoying each other. Let me love you like you deserve to be loved.”

She sighed and relaxed, willing to let him take over.

“That’s it,” he murmured.

He lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her. Long, hot, breathless kisses that left her panting. He ravaged her mouth and then moved down her jaw to her neck, marking her, claiming her. Telling her without words that she was his.

He moved down to kiss her br**sts and when he slid from her body, she felt the loss and reached to pull him back, but again he put out a gentle hand to stop her.

“Relax. I’ve waited a long time to be able to see you this way. I’m going to take my time.”

She sighed again and stared down as his dark head lowered to her ni**les. He sucked and toyed with each one in turn and then caressed the small mounds, holding them for his eager lips.

He hadn’t lied. He licked and nibbled until she was nearly crazy with desire. And when he finally lifted his head away, she thought he’d finally push back inside her again, but he moved further down her body until he was positioned between her thighs, his shoulders holding her open for him.

Tiny little shivers quaked over her skin when his mouth touched her most intimate flesh. She closed her eyes, helpless against the onslaught of such pleasure. Her fingers curled into tight balls at her sides. Her knees shook. Her legs quivered and went limp as he coaxed her higher and higher.

He kissed and sucked gently. The long swipes of his tongue made her crazy with wanting. She arched, her muscles tightening as her release built. She was so close. So very close. One more… Just one more touch…

His mouth left her and he crawled back up her body, his eyes blazing with a fierceness that made her tremble. He slid back into her in one long thrust. Their hips met and he held himself deep. Then he began to move, his pace more urgent than before. His face was tight with strain—strain she felt in every part of her body.

She wrapped herself around him, molding her body to his, holding on like she’d never let go. His mouth pressed against her ear and his ragged breaths spilled down her neck. Then she closed her eyes and let out a small cry as the world shattered and blurred around her.

He was close behind her. The moment she peaked, he let out a groan of his own and buried his face in her neck. His hips pumped against hers and then he went rigid over her, his muscles bulging underneath her fingertips.

Even as they melted into the covers beneath them, he kept himself deep inside her.

Gradually her body relaxed, the series of quakes lulling, leaving her drained, but still she held on to Manny.

His hand stroked soothingly over her hair. He murmured in her ear. Words of love and approval that she soaked in like someone starving for water.

He rolled to his side, still holding her in his arms.

She burrowed deeper into his embrace, her face nestled in the crook of his neck. For tonight she wouldn’t worry about tomorrow or what she must do. Tonight she lay in the arms of a man who loved her, and whom she loved with everything she possessed.

Chapter Seventeen

Dawn crept through the windows, bathing the living room in pale light. Manuel rubbed his eyes then raised his arm to glance at his watch.

Jules lay next to him, curled trustingly against his chest. Unable to help it, he put his arm back over her and pulled her even closer. She stirred but snuggled further into his embrace and stayed asleep.

A rush of satisfaction more powerful than he’d ever experienced surged through his veins. He bent his head to nuzzle her hair, inhaling her sweet scent. He rubbed his lips over her softness, kissing her gently enough not to awaken her.

He couldn’t remember ever being this happy, not in the last three years, for sure. As soon as the thought hit him, he grimaced. There was nothing to be happy about in their present circumstances.

They couldn’t simply ride off into the sunset and live happily ever after. No hope of a picket fence and a normal existence. She was a terrorist, and he was in the CIA’s premiere counter-terrorism unit. If his superiors found out about Jules, his ass was cooked and so was hers.

It was enough to make him want to take Jules and run as far as they could, away from the CIA, away from the NFR. But he wasn’t a coward, and there were too many unanswered questions. With Tony’s help, he hoped to get some answers.

He slipped his other arm from beneath Jules and gently eased away from her. He held his breath as she stirred once more, and let it out in relief when she didn’t wake.

He needed coffee, and he needed to call Tony. He pulled on his jeans, leaving his shirt on the floor. A quick check of his pocket found the cell phone still there. A second later, the phone rang.

Manuel looked down to see it was Sanderson. Anxiety churned in his gut. Would it be another ultimatum? He briefly considered letting it ring, but if the CIA was coming after him and Jules, he at least needed to know about it.

“Boss man,” Manuel said into the phone. He tried to sound unaffected, but he wasn’t sure he pulled it off.

He heard a long-suffering sigh. “Manuel, what the hell have you gotten yourself into?”

Fuck. He remained silent, waiting for Sanderson to continue.

“I’d love to know why your fingerprints came across my computer courtesy of the Houston P.D.”