Warrior (First to Fight #1)(56)

“I’m so sorry you had to go through that, Ben.” Her hand tightens around mine.

“Don’t be. It’s what I signed up for. It was my job.”

“I’m so glad you made it home safely, though.”

“Sometimes I’m not so sure,” I murmur.

She sits up and leans on an elbow. “What does that mean?”

“Nothing.”

“No, tell me.”

“Look, there’s no way you can really understand what I’ve been through. To work with these men, train with them for months and then watch your men die while you live… It doesn’t feel like honor. I don’t feel like a special snowflake. When I think about the fact that they died and I lived, I don’t feel lucky. I feel like I should have gone down with them.”

She’s silent for a moment before clearing her throat. “This may make me sound like a horrible person, but I’m glad you made it. If you hadn’t, Cole would never have had the opportunity to meet you. To get to know the good man that I know you are.”

“I told you this wasn’t good date conversation.” I laugh hollowly.

Livvie presses a kiss to my jaw. “This is the best date I’ve ever been on because it’s with you.”

“I’m sorry, what’d you say?”

She looks up at me and says, “I said this is the best date—”

“I’m just kidding. A little deaf humor to lighten the mood.”

Her elbow makes sweet love with my rib. “That’s so not funny.”

“Sorry, sorry. Too soon.” She settles back down by my side and I search for a topic that doesn’t relate to me. “Have you had any luck with your bio parents?”

“Actually, Sof says she stumbled onto something. She’s supposed to email it to me at some point. After all that’s happened though, I almost don’t care. I’m just happy to have my two guys happy and healthy. Right now, that’s all that matters to me.”

She shivers against me. “Why don’t we head inside for a bit,” I suggest.

“Thanks for this. It was nice.”

I ball up the blankets and pull her to me. “The night’s not over yet,” I whisper against her lips.

Then she shivers for a completely different reason.




It almost feels like we’re teenagers again, sneaking away from the group of our combined families to neck underneath the lights of the Ferris wheel. I wasn’t worthy of her first kiss, and I’m sure as hell not good enough to have her look at me the way she does, but like the greedy * that I am, I take it.

I lay her down on the bed, a sexy sprawl straight from every dirty fantasy I’ve had about her over the years. Her chest heaves with shuddering breaths as I dip underneath the material of her dress. I find her wet for me, drenched, and I worry for a second that I’m going to end it before we even get started, so I pause to kiss her. Which doesn’t do anything other than fan the fire.

We break apart and I bury myself in her neck. Her hips rock under me and she takes my hand in hers to lead back down to the place between her thighs. My fingers stroke her deep, her walls clenching around me. I love how turned on she gets, how loud she can get, just for me.

“I wanna hear you this time,” I tell her, nipping her ear lobe for emphasis. “There’s no one around here but you and me. I wanna hear you every time you come for me.”

“Ben, I can’t…”

“Yes, you can.” God, and there she goes. Her muscles tighten—both inside and out—and her skin blushes everywhere. She wraps her arms and legs around me, using them to slide herself up and down my fingers as the convulsions reach a climax.

As she goes slack around me, I quickly roll on a condom. When I get her pregnant the next time, it won’t be left to chance. She looks up at me, the corners of her lips pulled into a pleased smile, and the thought of her full with my child strikes a hell of an attractive image.

I fit my body between her thighs and guide myself to her entrance, sliding inside on one smooth thrust, causing both of us to moan. Her nipples draw up tight, flushed pink and brown even in the shadowed room. I can’t resist the impulse to take one into my mouth, teasing it with the flat of my tongue. She clenches around me and I release her to breathe deeply.

“It gets better every time,” I choke out.

Her hands lift to my cheeks and she kisses me. “It’s always good when it’s with you,” she tells me, her lips moving against mine.

“Fuuuuck,” I murmur against her, caught in the slow, wet glide. I pull back to give myself some breathing room, regain some portion of my sanity, but her hands catch at my hips and she arches hers up to meet me.

“Keep going. You feel so good.” Her voice catches as I sink back in, tipping my hips in search of the spot that makes her go crazy. “So good,” she whispers.

“We’ve got all night, baby. I promise I’ll make you feel a whole lot better.”

She giggles through another moan. “Oh, God, I don’t think that’s possible.”

I take that as a challenge. My vision flashes white as I set a steady rhythm, thrusting up to meet her hips and gliding out slowly. Her hands clutch at my back, her nails digging into my skin.

I want to draw it out, make it last, but I can’t kid myself. I’ve been gone for her for a long time. To combat the pending orgasm I can feel drawing my balls up tight, I slip a finger between us to bring her to the edge. Her legs weaken, falling open in response, her body melting beneath mine.