SIX
Ash
Later that morning, my favorite pair of camo cargo pants hanging loose off my hips, I took the stairs two at a time, intent on looking for my girl and getting some food in her belly. I had a mind to take her out for lunch, maybe swing by her place and pick up some more of her things. It wasn’t like I actually expected her not to go home the next thirty days; she could go back once or twice to get what she needed. But the rest, I had here. I could take care of her better than anyone else, I was damn sure of that.
A grin crooked my lips when I thought of the scrap we’d had this morning about the no-bra rule. I’d been damn serious about that too. I couldn’t wait to see her little nipples poking against the soft cotton of her T-shirt. And if she wanted to fight me on other rules, well, hell. I looked forward to that as well.
Something about watching her get all stubborn and sassy made my cock pound. I wanted to shut her mouth with my lips and fuck her until the only thing on her mind was me.
“Peaches!” I called down the long hallway. “Where you at?”
“In here!” she trilled in that soft little singsong. I’d told her to go explore the house. What’s mine was hers; the sooner she got that, the better off we’d be.
I turned the corner into my office, surprised to find the light flipped on and the box of paperwork stacked next to my safe spread out on the floor, my girl on her knees at the center of it.
What happened next was at warp speed. I wasn’t even sure what I said before I was hauling her to her feet, jaw clenching with thinly veiled anger as I barked, “That’s… You… You shouldn't be looking at that shit.”
Her eyes grew as wide as fucking dinner plates before her lip quivered and a stack of letters fluttered out of her hands.
Though they were old and worn and yellowed with time, I kicked them back in the pile, not giving a shit what damage they sustained.
I’d held on to those letters for years, living and breathing next to them, nearly dying for them.
But now all that mattered was her.
“I’m sorry,” she uttered softly.
“What did you see?”
Her eyes shimmered, holding mine unwaveringly. “Nothing.”
I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat and letting my muscles relax. I had to believe her. If she had seen anything, she would have said something by now.
Hell, I never should have let her wander the house.
“You’ve got free rein of everything. Except what’s in that box.” I pushed a hand through my hair, flopping into the chair that sat against the wall.
Her eyes flashed across the room, teeth cutting into the pink flesh of her bottom lip. Christ, she looked so beautiful it broke my heart. And I’d nearly blown everything by letting her see too soon.
“I was thinking, maybe I should go home…” She stepped closer, her hand brushing across mine.
“Like hell, you will.” I shot to my feet, hands cupping her face and bringing her to me in a kiss. “Not letting you walk out that door, Peaches. What’s it gonna take to convince you?”
My hand worked down her arm, sliding the soft robe she wore off her shoulders and into a pool at our feet. She stood naked, nipples puckered in the cool air, the soft tips of her wavy hair curling around the full tits.
“You don’t trust me,” I said the words at her ear, teeth catching on her earlobe.
She didn’t respond, but her breathing kicked up.
An ache bloomed in my chest as I thought about all the things I’d do to protect this woman. I’d die for her.
“Sit,” I ordered, pushing her down gently into the chair. I pulled the canvas belt off my pants, winding the restraint between the wooden rails of the chair and around her wrists. “Ready for a little game?”
I tightened the bindings, making sure she couldn’t wiggle out but not too tight that they bit into her skin. “You’ve gotta trust me.”
My eyes nailed hers, a volcano of emotion erupting unspoken between us. My heart throbbed with every breath of hers; my palms ached to cover her naked body, show her how much I loved her, cherished her, would lay my life on the line for her.
Pulling the wide belt of her robe from its loops, I wound it gently around her head, creating a blindfold for her pretty eyes.
“If you’re gonna live with me here, you’ve got to trust me. And I know me yellin’ at you just now didn’t help, but, Peaches…” I paused, watching her chest rise and fall with even breaths. “I love you.” Her nipples tightened, a wave of energy visible as she shuddered. “Have since the start.”
I didn’t give her a chance to reply before my hands slid down the dip of her waist, over the lush curve of her hips, across the tops of her creamy thighs. Moving slowly, I gave her body time to adjust to my movements, giving her the chance to anticipate, even if I was trying like hell to take her by surprise.
I trailed my lips across hers, plunging my tongue deep into her mouth and tasting her in slow, soft flicks. Sealing the seam with the tip of my tongue, I tasted along the hollow of her throat. Her heartbeat thrummed against her skin, my cock throbbing as I thought about sinking inside her, fucking her until ten o'clock next Sunday, and then starting it all over again.
It was hell containing myself with her.
“You devastate me, Peaches,” I gruffed, hands pressing the heavy flesh of her tits together and licking at her nipples. I landed a light smack across the rosy flesh, enjoying the way her tits jiggled, a delicate pink blush growing where my fingers had hit. I sucked the tender flesh against my lips, soothing away any sting that might be left, before working my hands down her stomach, around to the sweet cheeks of her ass, and dipping my tongue between her soaked pussy lips.
Her hips arched off the chair, a small pool of arousal already gleaming against the polished wood. I wanted to lap it all up; every drop of her was mine for the taking.
“Trust me, Tinsley.” I held her hips still, thumbs pressing into the soft flesh of her thighs as I slid my tongue up the hot seam of her lower lips again. She writhed and jerked against my mouth, but I held still this time, determined to force her to feel me. Open herself to me.
“Trust me, Tinsley,” I ordered again, my mind focused on one singular mission. To get Tinsley off.
Soft mewls escaped her lips as she twisted her arms. I grinned when her lips curled into a snarl. “I just want to touch you.”
“This isn’t about me,” I whispered against her cunt. “This is about you,” I hummed, pushing a thumb into the wet cavern of her pussy, pressing against the quivering muscles and sucking the hot little bud of her clit between my teeth.
“Giving up control can be a good thing,” I husked, sliding my tongue up the flesh and swirling her soaked juices across my face. “Sometimes, it can even be pleasurable.”
Her thighs began a slow quiver then, muscles tightened around my shoulders as her breaths slipped out in ragged pants. I sucked harder, pushing her past her limit, thrusting my thumb deeper and angling it against that precious bundle of nerves that I knew would have her exploding all over my hand.
“I’ll die being the man you deserve, Peaches,” I breathed, sucking her clit into my mouth, drawing on the skin until soft moans burned past her lips and her whole body grew rigid and tense. Her hot, sweet juice soaked my face, coating my lips, making my hands slippery as I spread the arousal across my chest. I’d wear this fucking orgasm like a badge.
“Jesus, Peaches, that was the sexiest thing.” I pulled the blindfold from her eyes. Her dark orbs fluttered open, capturing mine, a soft smile turning up one corner of her lips. I ducked, landing a slow kiss on her lips as I finished untying my belt from her wrists. “Whaddya say?”
“Mmm…” she hummed. “Thank you.”
My heart battered around in my rib cage, thinking I’d walked in and nearly had my cover blown. And now here she was, thanking me. “Let’s go out for lunch. Go get dressed, no bras allowed.”
I smirked when she shot me a glare. “I still have a thing or two to say about that rule.”
“Oh, I bet you do.”
I spanked her ass when she bent to swipe the robe off the floor and into her arms.
One aged letter fell out from the folds of the plush fabric, landing on the floor at her feet, addressed to the family of Lt. T. Abernathy.
The last letter my father had written before his death, one he’d never gotten the chance to send.