CHAPTER THIRTEEN

TYSON

“You get her father out of your head.” Jude snakes his perceptive eyes at me. God willing this man knows me fucking well.

“Already forgotten. You good, Theo?” His eyes shift from his dad to me, where they lock down tight. Pisses me off he had to witness this. The kid has been through enough in his life, and to see this kind of behavior from a grown man, well, fuck. I don’t know what to think. Except the kid is damn lucky to have Jude.

“I’m good. Sure wish I could have right-hooked the piece of shit and knocked him on his ass.” His comeback has both me and Jude chuckling.

“Theo was bred to be yours.”

“I couldn’t agree with you more,” Jude states proudly.

“If there is a next time, he’s all yours, buddy.” I turn from Theo to Jude, lowering my voice, so Lynne doesn’t hear me.

“Richard’s hiding something else. On Monday, we start digging deeper. I’ll talk to Sarge. Fill him in on everything. Richard is pretending to care way too much for my liking; he came here to not only try and squash me but to see if she knows about those kids. There’s more to this than he’s letting on.”

I squeeze both their shoulders, jog into the house, swipe her keys and the bag she packed, and lock up. My heart swells when I round the corner to see the two of them still standing there talking.

Theo is listening to every word Jude is telling him. Respectfully. Prime example how showing your kid that they mean everything to you right there. Making sure they are nothing but okay. That what went down here was all kinds of wrong and Lynne deserved none of it.

Riddick and Dane must have taken right off to check on everyone else.

Richard had me enraged with anger. I could feel it hovering on the edge of ballistic. It all ended when Lynne showed up and told him off, only to start back up again when he called her a bitch. He can call me whatever the fuck he wants, but when you disrespect a woman and do it in front of others, that shit will never sit well with me. Especially when it comes to her.

I refrained from killing him. Knew it right down to the soles of my feet that she could handle herself. And she did. More than I ever thought possible. She didn’t allow him to roll her around in the dirt anymore. But I had enough. It took every bit of restraint I had not to coldcock him straight to the gates of hell. All I can say for now is, he’s a lucky bastard for Maggie showing up the way she did, or I may be sitting in a jail cell calling Thomas Holder for my needs of his services instead of Lynne’s.

My gait doubles its strides to my truck. Damn, I could stand here and watch her the rest of the night. She deserves all the good out of life, and I’ll be the bastard he called me to make sure she gets it. “You ready?” Her eyes are closed, head tilted back, exposing a neck that I want to lick, suck, and run my tongue over. Beauty. Every glamorous inch of her. Inside and out.

“I changed my mind.” For one brief second my heart drops. Chains rattle loud. Caging me in a battle of confusion.

Until the next words out of her mouth lift it right back where it belongs. “This is my house; he’s not going to drive me away from here. We can shop tomorrow if you want, but tonight I want to stay here.” Fuck me. Strong. Smart. And so damn beautiful. Gazing over at me as if she can see right through me. And I’d let her if I could. I have nothing to hide. Not from her.

“Get out of the truck,” I demand. Roughly. Her eyes pop. Electrical energy jolts between us and my dick jerks from the heat blazing off her. “Now.” No more fucking around. I really don’t care where we are as long as she’s with me. Hell, I had already told myself there was no way in hell I was leaving her by herself at night, so fuck buying me shit that eventually I may not need. It’s fast, impulsive, and way early in our relationship to be thinking this way, but I don’t give a shit about that, either.

She gets out of the truck; I grab her hand and pull her alongside me. Running up the steps to her porch and placing her in front of me.

The only thing I care about right now is seeing her come undone. I need her with her ass in my hands and her legs wrapped around my waist. Her mouth on mine and her taste on my tongue.

I reach around her to unlock her door. Her breath hitches and I swear to God I can hear her heart pounding in a rapid frenzy inside of her chest when I press my front up against her back. Lynne knows just as well as I do that the instant she pushes her way through this door, there’s no going back for us. The hurt we’ve both bled out remains outside of this home. It’s me and her together.

It doesn’t matter where we are, where we’ve been. It’s forever with her.

“I’m all in,” I express when she pauses in the kitchen, flicks on a light, and stops in her tracks, her back to me. And again, my heart sinks wondering what’s going through her head right now. I would never push her into doing something she isn’t ready for. She’s been pushed enough.

“Me too. If we are going to be doing this, all of this, I don’t want you to treat me as if I’m breakable, Tyson. I want every part of you.” She turns to face me. The lightest of green pools trail up my body. By the time they reach my face, they are dark. Forest green. Sinful. Wicked. My feet move across the polished hardwood floor. Her bag lands at my feet with a thud. And fuck all if I can’t wait to dirty her up. Bury myself in her sweetness and die a happy Goddamn man.

“You aren’t breakable, Lynne. You’re irreplaceable.” I lift her up by the waist, her long legs wrapping around me, and my mouth hovers over hers.

“You can’t say things like that to me and not expect me to melt.”

Fuck. I’d like to crack her across her ass and tell her she better get used to hearing me say whatever I want to her. But I don’t. She’ll get used to it. “Is your bedroom upstairs?” I march down the hall, my hands squeezing her ass until she gasps.

“Yes,” she answers.

“Shit. I can’t wait to have you.”

It’s fucking dark in here, and yet I manage to climb two steps at a time without tumbling over, shoving her pants down, and taking her on these stairs. I reach the top, twist us to the right where a soft glow comes from the end of the hall. I tug her hair back, exposing her neck. It’s been taunting me all night.

My tongue darts out to taste.

My mouth takes hold and sucks.

“Goddamn, Lynne.” Her moans have me all kinds of screwed up. Whimpers. Sighs. And the heat coming off her breaks me out in a cold, damp sweat.

I’m nervous as hell when I cross the threshold to her room. It all fades away the second I toss her on the bed, her wild mane of hair a mess from the wind. Her eyes are wild and full of passion for me.

“I don’t care what anyone says; you were born to be mine the same way I was for you. Christ, you are the most stunning woman I have ever seen.” I need her in the same capacity that I need air. To be able to breathe.

She doesn’t utter a word. I swallow when she perches up on her elbows, tucks her feet into the bed, and sits straight up. Her pulse quivers in her neck. Tongue darts out of that sexy little mouth. Then my woman’s stunning face vanishes for a fraction when she reaches down and pulls her sweatshirt over her head. My dick cries out in agonizing pain when I take in her generous breasts covered by a teal lace bra. Her rose-colored nipples are prominently hard. “Motherfucker. You are far from breakable. You’re a powerful woman who’s bringing me to my knees.” I would drop now if she asked me to.

I can’t take not touching her anymore. Caring for Lynne consumes me. It shreds away every bad day I’ve had for thirteen years. I tug my shirt over my head, bend one knee and then the other until I’m straddling her legs. My hand shakes as I reach out and run a finger across her collarbone. She shivers; bumps form on her silky skin.

“I don’t have it in me to be gentle tonight. Don’t have condoms either. I need to fuck you. Bare.” It’s the only way I know how to tell her there isn’t anything coming between us again. We aren’t kids anymore. I’ve always been safe. I’ve never wanted inside of a woman without protection. I do her. It will kill me if she says no. But I care too much about her to not understand. I’ll wait.

“I want that more than anything,” she whispers. I briefly close my eyes. Thanking God for this caring woman who trusts me. That’s all I want to hear.

Reaching around her, I unhook her bra, slide it off her arms, and fill my eyes with her. Her breasts are begging for me as badly as I’m begging for them.

“Lie back,” I instruct. She does what she’s told. Her chest heaving as her nipples harden more with every breath. I unsnap her jeans, yank them down her legs, her matching panties follow, and a vision I never expected to see again in my life lies before me.

A thin-trimmed patch of hair between her legs, a scar that beckons my tongue rests right above. Perfect. Mine. A treasure.

“I don’t know where to start on this canvas of perfection. Here?” I ask, running my finger from her bellybutton to the dent between her tits. My fingers drawing circles across every inch of her upper body, her nipples, down her sides and back again.

“You have no idea how it feels when you touch me.” Oh, I certainly do. She’s the one who has no idea.

“I know how I feel and I need more than touching,” I reply, quirk a brow, dip my head, and take one of her nipples in my mouth. I lose control. Sucking. Biting. Discovering. I grab her other breast, rolling her nipple between my fingers, palming it in my hand while my mouth explores more of her. I trail soft kisses down her stomach. Take hold of both her breasts and squeeze. Her sounds ring out and into my ears.

I want to taste her so fucking bad that I nearly blow.

My tongue paths its way across her scar. Her stomach indents from her harsh intake of breath. I want her to know that even though there’s pain behind it, it’s part of her. A part as beautiful as her untainted soul.

“Fuck. You smell good. I’m going to drive you crazy. Fuck you until you beg me to finish. I’ll never be finished, not for the rest of my life.” She shudders, and my heart breaks free from the last chain that’s held me hostage. That rusted bitch crashes and turns to copper-colored ash.

“Oh, hell,” she moans. Her ass starts squirming, her legs opening in invitation, and I inhale. Her pretty pussy inches from my face. Control goes out the Goddamn window. Thank fuck she doesn’t want gentle, because that’s one step behind control.

My cock hurts like hell. My spine burns like a bitch. But all I care about is pleasing her, making her come all over my mouth. Tasting what’s mine. Pushing it into another atmosphere and guiding it home.

Her breath hitches when I slide off the edge of the bed and my hand dives to the button of my jeans.

“I need these off, because the instant you come in my mouth is all it’s going to take for me to sink inside of you.” I tug them off, not once taking my darkened gaze from hers. Lynne watches me with hooded eyes. They shift down my chest, across my tattoos, and go wide when she sees my cock spring free. I toe them off, grip my dick, and stroke.

“Tyson.” My name is a prayer answered from her sweet, sweet lips.

“Right here, Lynne. Spread those legs as far as you can.” She does and good Lord Almighty, it’s the most perfect thing I’ve seen in my life.

“Jesus,” I spit out. Her pussy is glistening wet; my mouth dries up. It’s parched, pleading to be energized by the beauty before me.

I lean in and swipe my tongue up the middle of her seam. I have never tasted anything so beneficial to me in my life. Sweet. Satisfying. Sexy.

It has been too long without her. Longer than any man should have to wait to give and take what belongs to him.

“Fuck, baby,” I mumble against her warm, wet core. I need more. I skate a finger down the soft row of hair, sinking it right in next to my tongue. I eat her like a dessert. I finger her like a man gone wild, and I watch her through the barely open lids of my eyes as she grips the sheets, her ass lifting in the air, and she comes all over my mouth. It’s all I can take.

I rake my gaze over her body. Leave her sweetness on my chin. Every inch of her is sheer perfection. From the way her toes dig into the bed to the way she trembles when I climb on top her and, finally, fucking finally have her under me.

“Hold on to the rails, Lynne,” I order, sliding my hands up her sides, palming her breasts one more time, and taking her mouth. Her tongue laps her taste right off me. Teeth start tugging on my bottom lip.

“I missed you,” I declare, pressing my chest into hers. A part of me wants to tell her I love her. It’s the only part of the conversation she had with her father that sunk to my bones. It belongs here with her and me. A love like ours. Love that lasts. I can’t. Not yet. Nonetheless, her telling him has inflated my heart, and I’m leaving it there.

“I missed you, too.” Christ, this woman is everything to me.

I grab my cock, close my eyes, and feel her as I begin to climb inside. All of her. Mine. Belongs only to me.

“Tyson,” she moans, her body arching upward. Her hands are turning knuckle-white as her arms shake not to let go of the steel frame to her bed.

“I know,” I say. Sinking so deep inside of her that I still.

I have never felt anything so good in my life. So right, so perfect that I don’t want to move out of fear this won’t be real. It is real. It’s her. Lynne. The woman who has taken my soul with her everywhere.

“I need you to fuck me, please.” Breakable, my Goddamn ass. Satiable. Fuckable. Unforgettable.

“Like this?” I wrap my finger around her ankle and place it on my shoulder. If it’s possible, my dick goes deeper. Lynne sucks in a lungful of air, and I fuck her then. My hips are pulling out and thrusting back in. Taking and giving until I can’t see straight.

Over and over until sweat forms between her breasts, my hard driving rattling her bed.

I squeeze her nipple, pull it into my mouth, and bite. I feel the gasp she cries out all the way to her pussy, where she clenches around my dick when she starts her spiraling release. Those powerful noises are consuming my mind, and I come with a growl tearing from my spine straight out of the gates of heaven. Our eyes lock. They stay that way for the longest time. Seconds. Minutes. It could be forever for all I care, because I just fucked the only woman I have ever loved.

“Can I touch you now?” She smiles up at me. Drops those dainty little hands and grabs my ass.

“You want more?” I tease.

“You mean more to me than you will ever know,” I say then lower my head down to rest on her forehead. I can’t move. Not going to either. My cock is half hard still nestled inside of her. Right where it should be.

“I’ve always wanted you.” And there it is. All I’ve ever craved to hear. Whether it has her pulling me around by my dick or not. I really don’t fucking care. One taste of her has awakened what lay paralyzed for years. It’s pushing through the sludge. Extending its hand for me to reach out and grab it. Love. A never-ending, soul-stealing kind of love.