Page 56 of Arrogant Bastard

His other hand drifts down my back. And encounters my top. He chuckles. “We never got around to taking this off.”

“Hmm.”

“Let’s take care of that now.”

A thought attempts to shove its way through my sex-hazed brain. But it never makes it. Killian pushes me back against the pillows and drags the top up my body. I weakly fight free of it just as he hisses.

“Fuck!” I keep my eyes closed for one more vain second. Because I have to open them, look down, and see what he’s looking at.

The puckered, angry-looking skin is just below my navel. Only an inch and a half across but it’s deep, and even though it’s completely healed, I experience a lingering pain whenever I touch it. The doctor described it as phantom pain. I call it the guilty reminder of the consequences of reaching for the forbidden.

I exhale shakily when Killian’s fingers caress it reverently. His face has lost its healthy, vibrant color, and his jaw is set in concrete. He shakes his head a couple of times, visibly battling his fury. “God, baby, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s…I…”

Words I can never utter stay locked in my heart as he lowers his head and grants me an anointment I don’t deserve. “We’ll find the bastard. I promise. We’ll find him, and I’ll put him down.”

The vow is deep and solemn. He touches the scar one more time with his hands and then with his mouth.

Then he worships his way up my body.

And I fight back tears for the second time tonight.

Chapter Sixteen

Faith

I wake up from a sleep fractured by sublime dreams and ominous nightmares to find Killian sprawled on top of me, elbows on either side of my shoulders and his hands cupping my breasts. I gladly abandon my anxiety to bask in the sight of the gorgeous, sexily disheveled man availing himself of my body.

“Having fun?”

Gorgeous blue eyes lift to mine, and their sparkle is the most beautiful thing I’ve seen in a while. He grins at me, and I change my mind. That smile is definitely the most beautiful thing.

“I tried to but I couldn’t resist. You looked so exquisite lying there all supple and mouthwatering.”

Of all the things to wake up to, this is far from the worst-case scenario. It’s been a long time since I’ve been worshipped like this. And I’m weak enough to want to bask in it for a little while. Before the danger and the crap and the secrets force us into an unavoidable reality. “How hard did you try?” I ask, tongue firmly in cheek.

His lascivious grin is second hottest only to the lazy swirling of his tongue over my nipples. He continues his ministrations for another minute before he climbs up my body to fuse his mouth to mine. We kiss for a couple of minutes before he pulls away.

“Good morning,” he drawls.

“Hi,” I reply.

Then he rocks his hips and hot steel rod against my thigh. “Get the picture now?”

My breathing truncates. “Which part of my body is that for?”

The hands still fondling my breasts pinch my nipples in a rolling action that’s mind-blowing. “Your choice. I’m putty in your hands.”

I laugh. “I had no idea putty came in titanium.”

His mouth returns to my breasts. The absorption on his face is a triple threat to my heart. “I’m still yours to do with as you please,” he mumbles without lifting his head.

Predictably, my racing heart trips over itself. I look around his bedroom, vaguely taking note of everything I missed last night. His MIT sweatshirt is draped over a recliner. An elaborate puzzle sphere I have no hope of ever solving sits on his nightstand next to the tray containing the collection of watches he never travels without.

And, of course, he has a laptop close at hand. Killian hasn’t stopped being the right amount of messy, nerdy, and sophisticated. More and more, I’m getting the picture that he hasn’t changed much at all.

But I have. So much. I went seeking retribution in Julia’s name. And ended up damaged beyond repair, with blood on my hands. It wasn’t easy walking away the first time. It won’t be easy this time either.

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