Worth the Fall (The McKinney Brothers, #1)(59)

“I can’t breathe when you look at me like that.”

“Like what?” He traced her cheek with his thumb. “Like I love you? Because I do. More than I ever thought possible.”

Everything in her dropped. The ground disappeared from beneath her and she was falling through open sky toward something dark and unknown. She opened her mouth but nothing came out.

“Don’t say anything,” he whispered against her lips. “You don’t have to say anything.” He feathered kisses along her cheek, down her neck.

Matt’s arms around me. Not falling.

The sensation of him hard between her legs, his mouth on her neck, combined with the words of love murmured in her ear made her dizzy. And so hot she was shaking with need.

The incredible strength in his hands as they moved over her back added another layer—from her neck to her bottom, up her sides, into her hair.

She gasped when he fisted her hair and pulled, arching her back. One hand came up to cup her breast and he dropped kisses all around, licking and teasing. A wild sound of pleasure escaped when he ruthlessly sucked her hard against the roof of his mouth.

“I could make you come like this.”

Yes. He could. The thought sent her spiraling.

She surged against his erection and then she was. Coming. He wasn’t even inside her and her body flushed with hot waves. In a languid free fall, she floated. The sensation continuing until every ounce of energy drained out of her.

She dropped her lips to his shoulder, laved his salty skin with her tongue, the absolute only part of her able to move.

When she recovered enough to raise her head, he adjusted her until he was at her entrance. With his big hands engulfing her hips, she pressed down, taking him in slowly and eliciting a tortured groan from Matt. She rocked onto his hard length, pushing him farther, inch by inch.

Seated as deeply as he could go, their bodies as close as they could get, Matt stopped. He caught her face in his hands, an almost desperate look in his eyes.

“Abby, look at me,” he commanded. “I love you.” He followed the words with his mouth, a gentle brush of his lips over hers. “Know it.” He placed hot, open-mouthed kisses along her shoulder. “Believe it,” he whispered, circling the shell of her ear with his tongue.

With one hand cradling the back of her head, controlling the kiss, and his other on her bottom, he rocked against her in the most exquisite rhythm. Just enough pressure, exactly where she needed. He was inside her, surrounding her, his body and words combined were too much. She squeezed her eyelids closed against the force of emotions, but she couldn’t shut him out. He wouldn’t let her.

Love overwhelmed her. The emotional tide took over and tears ran down her face. He drove into her and brought them over the edge together.

—

RPGs tore through the trees, exploding vines into rings of fire. He fumbled with the comm again. “This is Mountain One calling for immediate extract. Over.”

—

Green foliage surrounded them; the jungle canopy above pressed them into the black dirt below. The stench of burning flesh, and screams. In seconds the jungle had turned into a fiery hell. The sound of rifle fire was nearly constant.

—

Three guys were pinned, taking heavy fire.

Matt called for extract one more time, then crawled to the edge of the clearing for a clear shot.

He looked at T a few yards away, gave him the signal to cover while he bought the guys some time. T pointed fingers at his own eyes, then at Matt, acknowledging he understood. Matt was inches from the clearing.

Teddy passed him, giving him a little shove on the shoulder as he ran hell-bent into the fray. What the—? Crazy motherf*cker. Matt raised his rifle to lay down fire, and then…all hell broke loose. He glanced to his right just in time to see a bullet rip through Teddy’s chest.

Matt half crawled, half ran to where his friend’s body lay sprawled. Blood thundered through his brain, pulsing and pounding, making it hard to hear his own voice. “Teddy’s down.” The words reverberated in his head like close-range shots.

“You stupid son of a bitch! I told you to cover me! Wilson is down. Requesting immediate evac.”

“Matt…” Blood bubbled, frothy, from T’s mouth.

“I’m gonna get you out. Don’t talk.” He held the compression against T’s wound with his left hand, fired off a couple of shots with his right. Damn it. “Where the hell is the chopper?”

Teddy gripped his arm. “Don’t…”

“Relax.” Matt comm clicked. He had to get T to the chopper and out of this godforsaken jungle.

“This is Command One. Air support incoming. Ninety seconds. Do you copy?”

“This is Mountain One. I copy. Ninety seconds. Over.” Matt raised the rest of the team and dragged T by his vest as each member checked in. They needed to haul ass.

The other guys would fall back to the west. He pulled T to the south through a tangle of rotten vegetation.

“You are not gonna die. Do you hear me?”

Teddy struggled for a breath and squeezed Matt’s arm. “It hurts.” More blood dribbled down his chin.

“I’m here, T. Just stay alive.”

“Don’t…quit.”

“I won’t. I won’t f*cking quit.” The grip T had on his arm loosened. The low sound of the gunship vibrated through his chest. “Just hold on. T?” He was losing him. T was slipping away right in front of his eyes, like the warm blood seeping through his fingers. “Don’t die on me, man! T? Teddy? Please.”