Page 42 of Montana Memory
“That’s not?—”
She took a step back, putting distance between us, and I hated that more than anything. “It’s fine,” she said, voice clipped. “You don’t have to explain. I should’ve known better.”
Fury and regret roared through me. This wasn’t what I wanted. This wasn’t what I meant. But she was taking my restraint as rejection, and hell, that couldn’t be further from the truth.
I closed the space between us in one move, gripping her face in my hands, tilting her chin up so she had no choice but tolook at me. Her skin was warm beneath my palms, her pulse hammering just as hard as mine.
“You don’t get it,” I ground out. “I want you so bad I can barely breathe, but I can’t risk hurting you.”
Her breath hitched. “You won’t.”
She said it like it was the simplest thing in the world. Like she believed it with everything in her.
She didn’t know. She couldn’t.
“I don’t trust myself,” I admitted, my voice raw. “My head isn’t always right, Jada. I have—” I cut myself off, jaw clenching hard enough to ache. How the hell was I supposed to explain what my PTSD did to me? She knew a little, but not much. The nightmares. The blackouts. The times when control slipped through my fingers and I didn’t even realize it until it was too late.
Things had been good the past week, but they might not stay that way.
Her hands slid up my chest, slow and deliberate, like she knew I was on the verge of pulling away again and wasn’t going to let me.
“Hunter.” My name on her lips was softer this time, no anger, no defenses. Just trust. “I trust you. I want you.”
That trust wrecked me. The want did too.
She leaned in, her body pressing against mine, and something inside me snapped in the best way possible.
With a rough growl, I closed my arms around her, hauled her against me like I could imprint her on my skin and keep her there. Our mouths crashed together, nothing soft, nothing hesitant this time. Just heat and need and the kind of desperation that didn’t leave room for second-guessing.
She thought I didn’t want her? I was about to show her with no words at all.
One second, I was holding myself back, trying to be the better man, the one who did the right thing. The next, I had her pinned against the wall, my body pressing into hers, my hands framing her face as I kissed her like she was the only thing keeping me alive.
Because maybe she was.
Jada gasped into my mouth, but she didn’t hesitate. She didn’t pull away. No, she met me right there in the fire, her fingers tangling in my hair, her body molding against mine, soft where I was hard, warm where I burned.
I groaned, deep in my chest, sliding my hands down her body, learning the shape of her, needing to know every inch. This wasn’t slow, wasn’t careful. It was desperate, consuming, the kind of kiss that demanded surrender.
And she gave it to me.
Her nails scraped against my scalp, sending a sharp thrill down my spine. Her hips tilted toward mine, like she couldn’t get close enough, and that was it. I was done.
“You’re sure?” I stepped back, chest heaving. I needed to give her one last chance to change her mind.
“Please, Hunter. Yes.” Determined eyes locked on mine as she fisted my shirt, pushing it up my chest. I reached down, pulling the fabric from her hand and ripping it over my head in one quick motion. She reached out and ran her hands along my torso, and I loved the bite of her nails as she grazed my skin.
I reached for the hem of her shirt and quickly drew it over her head, tossing it to the side. Creamy flesh peeking over dainty blue lace filled my vision, and I was lost.
Cupping her breasts in my palms, I ran my thumbs across her nipples before leaning forward and sucking one into my mouth with the lace. I flicked my tongue back and forth over the hard peak, causing a shudder to run through her.
Her head fell back against the wall. “Oh my God. More.”
With all the little noises she was making, I wasn’t going to last long. I was harder than I could ever remember. I reached for her again and finished removing her clothes, and then I shed the rest of mine.
I lifted her effortlessly, hands gripping her thighs as she wrapped around me. I clenched my jaw, feeling her wet heat against my cock. Her breath hitched as she ground against me, trying to ease the building pressure. I tightened my grip and walked us toward the bedroom like a man possessed.
I only stopped to grab protection, thankful that was included in the Resting Warriorstockedcabin. I’d take this condom over a full pantry of food.
