Hawke (Carolina Cold Fury Hockey #5)(47)

I don’t look back at her but walk around the car and over to the door that leads to the mudroom just off the kitchen. I hear the car door open and close again, indicating she’s following me in. I unlock the door, step through, and then hold it open for Vale to come in. She walks up the two steps that lead into the mudroom, looking around with interest. The glow of the kitchen lights leads her that way. I close the door, turn, and just as she enters the kitchen almost apprehensively, I take two long strides and scoop her up in my arms.

Vale lets out a startled cry while her arms automatically go around my neck. I’m not stupid enough to think that means she’s comfortable with this exact situation. Her arms are looped for leverage but her body is stiff as a board.

“What are you doing?” she hisses as I hit the staircase and bound up them two at a time, her weight absolutely not slowing me down in the slightest.

“I lied again,” I tell her without an ounce of remorse. My bedroom door is open, the bedside lamp on so I need to do nothing but walk up to the bed and drop her on the mattress. While I still have boxes lined up against the wall that hold most of my winter clothing, I have at least put linens on the bed. “We’re going to talk.”

Vale immediately pushes up and crab walks to the edge of the bed, intent on scrambling off. “No we’re not,” she seethes. “I don’t appreciate being manhandled or forced to do anything, much less talk to a conceited gorilla like you.”

I merely bend, slip my hands under her armpits and give her a little lift off the mattress. I throw her back to the middle where she bounces once and before coming to a solid rest, I move my body over hers to pin her in place.

A snarl of outrage bubbles up in her throat, but before it can bust free, I kiss her. I kiss her to shut her up. I kiss her to keep her preoccupied. I kiss her because I’m dying to kiss her again, and it just seemed the right thing to do at the time.

While my intent was to talk first, then f*ck second, I’m getting that a change of order is warranted. This is made abundantly clear by the fact that the minute my lips touch Vale’s, her arms go around my neck and the snarl of outrage makes an appearance as a low hum of approval in her throat.

Fucking perfect. She may not want to talk, but Vale wants me.

Just as I want her still.

I lower my body onto hers, reach up, and pull her hands from my neck. Raising her arms, I pin her wrists to the mattress and kiss her deeply. She responds, all open mouth and soft lips. Her tongue dances…no, duels with mine. With her beneath my body, hands pinned helplessly, the only thing she has left to fight me with is her tongue, and it feels damned good, those attempts.

It doesn’t take long…never did…for our breathing to become heavy.

For Vale to start squirming underneath me.

For my dick to become achingly hard.

I briefly consider going for the talk first. I could straddle her, keep her wrists pinned, and force her to talk. But the lance of frustrated pain right through my balls tells me that’s a bad idea. I need to f*ck her. I think she needs it too. Besides, a good orgasm will loosen both of us up so we can finally clear the air between us.

In fact, I know a fantastic way to loosen Vale up. Pushing up, I release her wrists and straddle the tops of her thighs. She raises her head and looks at me with lust-blurred eyes. I use the few moments I know that she’ll be dizzy from our foreplay to move as quickly as I can. I undo her jeans, scramble backward, and pull the denim material with silky panties underneath right down her legs to her ankles. The flash of red and green from the roses on her inner left thigh offends me but I don’t pay it any attention. It’s not my end goal.

From the foot of the bed, I pull off the dainty black ballet flats she had on before stripping the jeans and underwear right from her body. I can see comprehension starting to dawn on her face, and to avert a flight response, I take her by the ankles. Yanking her legs apart, exposing that sweetest and most delectable part of Vale’s body, I take a moment to stare at my prize. The haze of red and green roses seems to throb in my peripheral vision, but I don’t let it distract me.

In fact, I slide my gaze up her body, the top half of Vale completely covered with a plain, navy blue T-shirt, and meet her eyes head on. Those verdant orbs spark with lust, anger, fear, and challenge.

“We’re talking after this,” I warn her, just in case she thinks I’ll get sidetracked from my ultimate goal.

She gives a grunt of denial and now all I see is challenge left on her face.

I give her a return evil grin and crawl onto the bed between those gorgeous legs. Flopping down, face hovering right over her *, I use my arms to drape her legs over my shoulders, that offensive tattoo laying inches from my right ear. I push that thought away, spread her apart, and run my tongue up her center.

“Hawke,” Vale cries out loudly as her hands fly to my head. Her fingers sink into my hair, grasp hard, and then hold me in place.

She’s all in. So am I.

I lower my mouth to her again and I go to town. I eat her out as if my life depended on it, intent on giving her a climax so dizzying she won’t think twice about me flipping her over and f*cking her from behind.

Fuck, she tastes good. She squirms underneath me, punching her hips up, demanding more. She makes mewling sounds, pulls so hard on my hair I’m pretty sure it’s close to ripping out, and calls my name softly…imploring me to finish her off.