I laugh at his smug tone—the tone that says he’s not going to fail. “Yes, something like that.”
As soon as the last word has fallen, his mouth is on mine. It’s a hungry kiss, but it’s also tender. His lips move with mine in a soulful dance. Giving as much as they take. Tasting. Worshiping.
His arm goes around me. Mine go around his neck. “Did you mean it when you said the part about making love?” I ask. It’s only been a few days since he caressed me, stoked the fire in my veins.
But it feels like a lifetime ago.
“Absolutely.”
“Can we skip the movie and popcorn for a bit so you can live up to your promise?”
He lightly presses his lips to mine. “That’s definitely a possibility.”
I thread my fingers with his and lead him to my bedroom.
Light from the setting sun glows softly in my room, peering through the narrow gap in the gauzy white fabric that covers the window.
Jayden kisses the length of my jaw, each touch of his lips burning a path along my skin.
I unfasten the top button of his jeans, brushing my pinkie finger against his hardening length. He sucks in a soft breath.
The last time we had sex, it was rough and urgent. A compilation of an adrenaline rush after Jayden and Blake took down the two men who had kidnapped Landon and me, along with the adrenaline coursing through me from the argument Jayden and I had.
This time it’s not adrenaline that drives us. It’s something deeper.
This time the hunger we feel is like nothing I’ve experienced before. And because of that, we’re not in a rush to rip off each other’s clothes.
This time it’s about discovering and exploring. It’s about giving the other person pleasure and taking the time to get there.
Jayden moves to unfasten his sling.
“Aren’t you supposed to keep wearing that?” I ask, already knowing the answer, whether he tells it to me or not.
“I’ll put it back on afterward. But I want to make love to you, Isabelle, and I can’t do that with the sling on. Not the way I want to.”
“You promise you’ll put it on again?”
“I promise.” He tosses it to the side.
He then places his hand on my hip. The other shifts to cover my breast. The heat of his palm soaks through the fabric of my T-shirt, and a small whimper escapes me.
His thumb skims over my nipple, applying just enough pressure to tease. His gaze isn’t on his hand and what it’s doing to me. His heated eyes are locked on mine, watching my reaction—pushing me closer to the edge on the intensity alone.
My lips part slightly; my heart beats loud in my chest. Jayden’s pulse flutters wildly in his neck, the speed matching that of my own.
He continues teasing me, in no rush to take things further. Patience seeps away, and I lean into his palm. His fingers move, and he pinches my nipple, sending a shot of need and liquid heat between my legs. I moan.
“Christ, Isabelle, I want to taste you so bad. I want to see you naked.” With that simple request, he has me out of my clothes in record time, aided by my eager hands.
A minute later, I’m not the only naked one. I make sure of that. My fingers trace along the ridges of his stomach, his shirt now on the floor.
He nods at the bed, indicating for me to get on it. I make myself comfortable in the middle and grin as he crawls over to me like a panther stalking his prey.
Every part of him is a study of perfection. His long, lean muscles, his light-brown skin glowing in the setting sun, the ridges and valleys of his sculptured chest and abs, his sinewed arms and legs.
The only flaws are the battle scars obtained while in the military and while working for Liam. But they just add to his perfection—symbols of what he stands for.
Protecting his country and the freedoms we hold dear.
