Talia’s heart hurt. Although she’d lost her mother a long time ago, being forced to throw away her last tangible link was unexpected. And painful. She hadn’t let herself feel much of anything since running from the lab, but now she wasn’t just sad, she was also angry.
She turned to Shane as he put the car in park in the lot of a hotel an hour away from the one they’d originally planned on staying in.
She hadn’t spoken to him since he’d told her to ditch her necklace because she’d needed time to think. “I don’t blame you,” she said. “I’m upset at the circumstances that forced me to have to throw away something that meant a lot to me.”
She’d lost her mom and she had plenty of good memories of her mother to warm her heart, but she’d always felt that the locket connected her to her mom. She was going to have to make do with what she remembered and hold those memories close.
Shane faced her, his expression somber. “I know. And I’m sorry.”
She believed him. She sensed he understood how difficult that act had been for her. She didn’t think he’d made the demand to throw it away lightly. And despite what had just happened, and the time that had passed since leaving the restaurant, she didn’t want to lose the momentum of desire that had played out between them earlier.
She didn’t break eye contact, wanting to convey the fact that she wasn’t holding on to her sadness or anger, at least not for tonight. Not with him. And the longer their gazes held, the more that warm, heated feeling began to return.
Earlier she’d cracked Shane’s protective exterior and reached the hot-blooded man beneath. The academic types she usually dated didn’t go all caveman, dragging her out of a restaurant, planning to head to the nearest motel for sex. And though it hadn’t worked out that way, she had to admit, she’d liked the feeling of knowing he wanted her as badly as she desired him.
He wouldn’t push her now. Knowing Shane, he’d assume she needed time, and she would have to make the first move.
She reached out and touched his cheek, rubbing her palm against his scruff. “I still want you.”
He let out a low grumble, grasped her wrist, and placed a kiss against her hand. “Let’s get a room,” he said in a gruff voice.
“Yes, let’s.” Her heart beat hard in her chest. Harder than when she’d realized she was alone and on the run and for a much more exciting reason.
He approached the front desk of the run-down motel, where a sleepy-eyed clerk glanced up at them with disinterest. “Yeah?”
“One room, king-size bed,” Shane said, pulling out cash to cover the cost up front.
The guy behind the desk passed the key over the counter. “One-fifteen around back.”
Shane kept a firm grip on her hand, and despite the awareness thrumming between them, she sensed his heightened attention to their surroundings as they parked the car behind the motel and walked to their room.
“Looks quiet,” he said, putting the key in the door and ushering them inside. “But I’m not taking any chances this time.”
She toed off her shoes while he immediately locked the door and braced a chair against the knob.
“Good.” She didn’t want any interruptions. What she wanted was Shane’s intense focus on her.
She slid her tongue along her lips and strode over to where he stood, watching her. His eyes glittered with darkened desire and intent.
“You’re sure?” he asked her.
She inclined her head. “Need me to grab your ass again? You know I’m big on providing scientific proof.”
“Very cute,” he said with a grin, relaxing now that they were locked in the room.
She wasn’t sure where her bravery was coming from, but knowing he desired her allowed her to feel freer than she had before. The fact that they were on the run meant her adrenaline levels had been spiked for days. And the thought of sweaty, hot sex to take the edge off sounded like a glorious idea. Getting a second chance with Shane sounded even better.
He met her by the side of the bed. Standing close, he looked into her eyes, then removed her glasses, placing them on the nightstand. There was something inherently sexy in that move, and her heart beat so hard in her chest she thought she could hear the sound. She figured he could hear it.
He reached for the hem of her shirt and pulled it over her head, revealing a plain beige bra. She hadn’t bought anything frilly at Target, but he obviously didn’t care what her underwear looked like, because his eyes glittered with heated passion.
He unhooked the back clasp and slid the garment down her arms, dropping it to the floor. His gaze settled on her bare breasts and tightened nipples.
“Fucking perfect,” he said, eyes darkening at the sight.
Her cheeks flushed under his scrutiny. She’d never been the recipient of such a slow, deliberate seduction. He took his time, not just stripping her out of her clothing but looking his fill. Letting her know he was pleased with what he saw. He deliberately stroked his knuckles over her nipples, and she trembled, the buds beading into hardened peaks, and her panties grew soaked, her body swaying toward his.
He knelt then, pulling her leggings and underwear down together, waiting as she stepped out of her clothing. “God, you smell good,” he said in a gruff voice. “You want me.”
“I do.” She shook with need, beyond the ability to be embarrassed at his frank words, as she stood bare in front of him.
Rising, he cupped her face in his hand and kissed her slowly, gently, his tongue swirling around inside her mouth, parrying with hers. She needed his hard, hot body pressing into her, skin to skin, and she lifted his shirt, intending to make that happen, but he broke the kiss, stripping quickly. As eager to get himself naked as she was.
She had no time to appreciate his tanned, muscular chest because he undid his jeans and stripped, kicking them aside. Her gaze fell to his thick erection jutting out from between his thighs, a light coating of pre-cum on the head.
He wrapped a hand around his length and groaned, gliding it back and forth in a forceful pump. She had the sudden desire to touch him. To drop to her knees and taste. To revel in finally being naked with this man.
“On the bed,” he said, striding over to his small duffel and returning with a foil packet in his hand.
She wasn’t about to argue and pulled down the spread so she could climb onto the clean sheets. He sheathed himself and joined her, the mattress dipping under his weight.
“I waited a long time for this,” he said, his words causing an unexpected rush of joy to spread through her.
“Me, too.”
“One problem,” he murmured, stroking her cheek. “You’re the kind of woman who deserves slow and sweet. But given the circumstances, we need to move quickly so I can be aware and alert. Slow is going to have to wait for next time,” he said, easing his body over hers.
He was already talking about next time.
She was primed for now. “You don’t hear me complaining.”
His thighs covered hers, his cock nestled into her sex, and her entire body came alive.
She reached for him, but he was in control, grabbing her hands in his and raising them above her head. Then, cock in his free hand, he slid the head through her damp folds, setting alight every nerve ending she had. Her stomach rippled with need, her core clenching with the desire to be filled.
“Hang on,” he said, notching himself at her opening and easing inside.
She groaned at the invasion, his thickness parting her, taking her over. She raised her hips, pulling him in farther, feeling every inch fill her up.
“Fuck. You feel so good.” He shook and she marveled at the fact that she could affect this big man on such a primal level.
Pulling her hands free, she grasped his shoulders so she could hold on. With every thrust of his hips, waves of pleasure pummeled at her, and she scored her nails down his back, barely recognizing the noise in the room as coming from her.
He glided in and out, her inner walls softening, accepting him so deep with each pass. He was hard, fast, and the way their bodies meshed was sheer bliss.
He kissed her then, his mouth and tongue matching the motion of their hips, and she was lost. Sensation took over. She clenched her sex, clamping his cock deep inside her.
“Perfection,” he muttered, sliding a hand between them, his finger pressing on exactly the right spot. Glorious contractions began, her orgasm starting immediately from the combination of the angle he hit inside her and the delicious rotation of his finger against her clit.
“Oh, Shane.” She trembled as her climax hit and she fell apart, losing all sense of time and place as she came apart in his arms. He followed immediately after, taking his pleasure in her body, thrusting in and out until he collapsed on top of her, his breath hard and hot in her ear.