Caden stepped from the shower and dried off. She could tell she was in Tony’s room. The décor was masculine and rustic. The furnishings were substantial and sturdy, with beautiful lines and bed linens in burgundy and hunter green. Nothing fussy, though. It suited the log cabin and reflected the personality of the man who lived there. He was as secluded as the land the cabin sat on and as strong in nature as the woods that surrounded it.
There was something intriguing about Tony Ramirez. He had opened up to her online, but in person he kept his emotions securely walled off. She wondered if he had chosen to get to know her online for that reason. Maybe he had been more comfortable keeping her at a distance, even as he established his own brand of intimacy with her. She wanted to believe this wasn’t all a set up—that he hadn’t been using her just to get to Santiago.
She peeked toward the door to confirm she was still alone before reaching down for her backpack. She pulled out a T-shirt and a pair of panties. Damn it. No jeans. The ones she had been wearing were filthy so this would have to do for now.
Her natural curiosity got the better of her and she decided to take a look around. She was torn between knowing it wasn’t right to snoop and yet wanting to know more about this man. An oversized chest of drawers next to the four-poster bed drew her attention when she saw her sunflower china teacup sitting on top of it. She picked up the cup, examining it and running a fingertip over the floral design, then quickly setting it back down like it was hot. It suddenly didn’t seem right to connect with the conflicting emotions that thoughts of Santiago stirred in her. How could she feel compassion for a man who killed for the sheer pleasure it brought him? And yet, she did. The sooner she stopped trying to figure out Santiago’s fucked up state of mind, the better off she’d be. But she would always wonder why he let her live. Perhaps it was the closest thing to love a man given to such brutality could ever possess.
“Looks like my mother and Aunt Rox are at it again. Should’ve known.” There was a mixture of accusation and smug certainty in Tony’s voice. He knew his mother and her perpetual need to get involved in cartel business. He should have known her curiosity would get the best of her. He of all people knew that when his mother got together with Roxanne, there was no stopping them—they were double trouble, and then some.
She jumped at the sound of his voice before turning slowly to face him. She was glad she hadn’t been rifling through his drawers or closet when he came in. How fucking embarrassing would that be? He’d been so light on his feet she hadn’t even heard him until he spoke to her. “Well, I did meet them, if that’s what you mean.”
He held up the jeans he’d washed and prowled over to her, never taking his eyes from her face, almost as if he was concerned she’d bolt. Hmm, skittish yet strong. He was a man who made mental notes about people when it came to their psyche; after all, it was part of his job.
He was standing so close to her now that she could feel his breath on her skin. There was something about him that was so intense it made her uncomfortable, yet it titillated her—like he was waking up a part of her she didn’t know existed. His finger trailed from her neck down her collarbone, leaving a tingling line of fire along her skin.
“My mother’s convinced I’m falling for you,” he murmured pensively. “If I know her, and I do, she’s trying to protect you from the wrath of my father.”
“So, are you? Falling for me?”
“Interesting question, but no.” Her face fell for an instant and he couldn’t suppress a small smile. “No, I crossed that line months ago. I fell for you the instant I saw you onstage. I guess all those late night, online chats put me under your spell.” He stepped closer and stroked her cheek with the back of his hand. “You see, I'm not in the habit of opening up to women. But you… You made it so damn easy, Caden. In every way that matters, I think you know me better than anyone.”
“I do?” she asked breathlessly.
“Yeah, you do.”
Something about the way he said her name made her feel safe, secure, wanted. So, she didn’t resist him when he pulled her body into his and wrapped his arms around her. The kiss was as natural as if she’d been in his arms in times past. Like two long-lost lovers finally reuniting after a lifetime apart.
A groan rumbled from deep in his chest and warmth radiated through him, like his soul was being beckoned from the shadows and into her light. He didn’t attempt resisting the pull he felt toward this woman he’d rescued. His fingers threaded through her long, blonde hair, pulling her head back so she was forced to look into his eyes.
“He isn’t the only one who needs to be saved, you know. I brought so many fucking demons back from the Middle East that I don’t know if my mind or my heart will ever be right again. If I were a better man, I’d let you go. But I can’t. Can you save me, Caden?”
His fingers slid down her abdomen before dipping into her panties to caress her slick folds. She grabbed his wrist, stopping them both before things went too far. Yes, she’d known him for months but being in his presence and experiencing his masculine power firsthand felt like too much, too soon. “And what if I need to be saved, Tony?”
“Then I’m your man, your knight in tainted, twisted, gnarled armor. They say deep calls out to deep—maybe damaged calls out to damaged.” His brow furrowed as he struggled to find the right words. “I won’t lie; I’m all kinds of fucked up right now, Caden. I haven’t even talked to my family about the shit I saw overseas. Even before we met in person, I opened up to you more than I ever have to anybody.”
Something about the blind trust that this imposing man placed in her and the way he was opening up to her, made her want to wrap herself around him and heal him. This time it was her arms pulling him close, her fingers tangling in his hair as she pulled his head down to hers.
Tony’s cock was hard as bone as his hips surged forward and his lips claimed hers. His fingers dug into her ass when he picked her up and carried her to the bed, wasting no time covering her body with his, linking his fingers with hers as he slid her hands over her head. “You better be sure this is what you want, Caden, because you’ve got me at the point of no return. There will be no escaping me if you give yourself to me.”
No other words needed to be said. They had waited for this moment for what seemed like forever. The hours of online confessions had forged a strong emotional connection between them. This wasn’t a one night stand or an instant, purely physical lust. This was the coming together of two people who were connecting in the only way that remained unexplored between them. Each kiss, each touch, only solidified the feelings they already had for each other.
Tony’s parted lips trailed down her neck until he reached the sweet spot where her neck met her shoulder. Her body was responding to his touch in ways she had shut down to other men. She had closed her body and her emotions off because of the emotional distance necessary for her stage work and in response to emotional wounds inflicted by other men during other, darker times in her life. Tony understood that about her, he already knew her that well. But he was determined to break through her walls and claim for himself the emotions she had kept hidden in the shadows, and bring them out into the light.
“I want you exposed to me. You’ve closed yourself off for so many years, Caden, and I want those parts of you nobody else has ever known.” He locked his thumbs beneath the sides of her panties, pulling them down at a torturously slow pace. He settled between her legs, his shoulders spreading her wide for him even as his lips trailed over her flat stomach, setting off a firestorm of need with every nerve they touched. He reveled in his first close-up look at her pussy, memorizing every dip and curve as he stroked a finger along her sweet lower lips, smiling when she gasped in response to his touch.
“I’ve got to taste you. I’ve craved this pussy from the first time I laid eyes on you. I would go to sleep at night wondering how you’d taste, how you would feel under my tongue.” The tip of his tongue grazed her flesh, spreading her pussy lips so he could savor her essence. He knew as soon as he slipped a finger inside her that she hadn’t been with anyone recently, and it pleased him. She hadn’t been treated well in the past, but those days were over, and from the way her walls clenched around his finger, she knew it. He pumped his finger in and out as his tongue slid around and over her swollen clit, teasing the tender pearl out from under its hood. Sealing his lips over her mound, he sucked her clit into his mouth and worked his tongue over it like a man possessed. As her hips began undulating beneath his mouth, he moved with her, tracking her movements and following her rhythm as she chased her release.
He needed to feel her let go after all the years she’d held back. He wanted to be the one to do that for her, he wanted that part of her she had denied all the men who fantasized about her when she was on stage. She was purer than her job would lead people to believe and now all that purity was his to dirty up. All her unfulfilled desires and sensual cravings were centered beneath his mouth as he licked and nibbled and sucked. He held on tight when her body suddenly bucked wildly beneath him.
Her climax hit her so hard she felt like she was coming right out of her skin, only to find herself floating on a euphoric high she had never experienced with any other man. She caught her breath and stretched like a lazy cat, her heavy-lidded gaze taking him in as he pulled his clothes off and positioned himself on top of her. She opened her legs, wordlessly inviting him to take her and make her his own.
Plunging inside her was like coming home. Her pussy wrapped his cock in an almost unbearably delicious heat, warming all the frozen places in his heart. He swiveled his hips, pushing into her so deep that she felt he was turning her inside out. Her heat rippled up and down his cock. She was climaxing again. His thrusts became more urgent as he pounded into her and, at long last, claimed what belonged to him. Shudders coursed through his body as the orgasm ripped through him. He was a man undone.
He rolled over on his side, settling her curves against his hard body. “Damn, I will never be the same after that.” He wanted this moment to last, wanted all the danger and drama from his tour of duty and his new life in the cartel, to just go away. But he was a realist. He knew that wasn’t going to happen, so he decided he’d keep things simple and never let her out of his sight.
From now on, she would be under his protection. He’d see to all her needs and if that meant killing to keep her safe, he would do it without hesitation. This battle he was fighting -- to claim Caden and free her from the emotional manipulation of a madman -- was as real as the worst firefight he’d been in overseas.
It was simple: she needed a hero and he needed her.