A Matter Of Justice (Grey Justice #4)(71)

Her arms tightened around his, pulling him closer. Tilting her head back, she looked up at him. “Can’t remember when I’ve slept better. In fact…” She turned in his arms and smiled up at him. “It was so delicious, maybe we can take a nap after breakfast.”

This was the Irelyn he wanted to see. Free of shadows, free of doubts. “Come to think of it, I am a bit tired from my workout.”

“Then you definitely need to get your rest.” She stood on her toes and kissed him full on the mouth.

Grey deepened the kiss, devouring her luscious mouth, taking her breath into his body. Last night had been only a small taste of how he wanted to enjoy Irelyn. From the moment he’d met her, she had bewitched him. From the moment they’d first kissed, he had been hers.

The stench of overcooked pancake filled the air.

“Breakfast is burning,” he muttered against her mouth.

“Um huh.” Breathless, she nibbled at his mouth. “That’s good. I—” With a gasp, she tried to pull out of his arms. “Breakfast is burning!”

Laughing, he reached behind her and turned off the flame. “Maybe we should take that nap now.”

“A nap would likely improve my pancake-making skills, don’t you think?”

“Let’s find out.” Scooping her up, he lifted her onto his shoulder and headed out the door. She was laughing so hard, she almost fell off twice before he made it into the bedroom. Throwing her onto the bed, he followed her down and began to strip her. By the time she was completely nude, the laughter had been replaced by sighs, moans, and groans. He loved every beautiful, sexy sound she made.

Starting at her feet, he kissed his way up her body. The bruises were fading, and the cuts on her leg and side were healing nicely. Amazing how someone so delicately feminine could be so damned strong. Women had fascinated him from a young age. They were all unique and so different from masculine, hairy, sweaty men. He loved their laughter, their shape, their softness…everything. But Irelyn? Oh, Irelyn was on another level altogether.

He wanted to savor every taste, remember every soft sigh. He wanted this to last forever. He wanted to hurry so he could start all over again. Soft, silky, fragrant deliciousness everywhere. Her inner thigh was so muscular, yet so soft. When his mouth touched her, she moaned, arching her back slightly. Knowing what she wanted, what she needed, knowing he needed it, too, he gently pushed her legs farther apart and put his mouth on her. Tasting the most feminine part of her, he reveled in her, lashing his tongue over her, inside her. Her body went rigid, and she screamed his name in a husky, sensual, sex-filled voice.

Though need pounded through him, he refused the urgency and continued up her body, stopping to lick and taste as he went. She had a small birthmark right under her left breast that was particularly sensitive. Knowing this, he tongued the area, relishing the little hissing sound she made. His mouth moved slightly, covering her breast, where he continued to taste, to suckle, to enjoy.

“Grey…please. I need you.”

Lifting his head, he stared down at her. Beautiful, complex, fascinating, stubborn, strong. He could think of a thousand adjectives to describe Irelyn Raine, and he still wouldn’t reach the epicenter of who she was. He had never known anyone like her, knew he never would.

“What’s wrong?” she whispered.

“Absolutely nothing. I was just thinking about how perfect you are.”

Myriad emotions flickered on her face as her eyes shimmered with tears. Her hand cupped his jaw, caressing him tenderly.

Dropping his head, he kissed her and then slid into her warmth. Gently, but with purpose, he withdrew and thrust again. When she wrapped her longs legs around his waist, showing him she wanted more, he was unable to slow his pace. He thrust again and again, setting them both on fire, and let it consume them as one.



They were in the middle of devouring what she considered the best pancakes she’d ever eaten when she gasped. “I can’t believe I haven’t told you about Somer.”

“Who’s Somer?”

“A little girl I found in Nice.” She glossed over the details of how she had found the child, concentrating instead on describing her sweet personality and the injuries she had sustained from the mother’s boyfriend. “She has an amazing spirit and is so sweet.”

“I’d love to meet her. What happens to her when she’s well?”

“A couple that Sister Nadeen is well acquainted with is going to adopt her.”

“If they hadn’t wanted her, would you have taken her yourself?”

Adopt a child? Her heart stuttered at the thought of being responsible for another living being—a child. For years, she had pushed aside that niggling need inside her. The longing to hold a child in her arms and know she was wholly and completely responsible for his or her well-being and care. It had once been a deep ache she had thought she had successfully squelched. She wasn’t exactly mother material, was she?

“Hey, I didn’t ask you to make you sad.”

She shook her head, smiling. “I guess I never thought about it. My lifestyle, especially the last couple of years, certainly wouldn’t be conducive to raising a child.”

“That was then, this is now. Would you have considered it?”

This was the closest he’d ever come to talking about children with her. The nature of their work didn’t exactly scream stable home environment for raising children. She had risked life and limb to save children. Had moved what seemed like insurmountable mountains to get them the care they needed, or a safe environment to live. Not once had she considered making one of them her own. And now? The idea of having a little one, or two, didn’t scare her as much as she thought it would.