Page 115 of First Chance

“Hayes said he’d been hanging around the motel they dropped him at. Apparently, he got a hold of a truck and decided test his luck instead of getting the fuck out of town.”

“Did you…?” I can’t voice the word that comes to mind, not because he isn’t capable of eliminating someone, but because I don’t want to imagine the repercussions if he did.

“I hurt him real bad. That’s all.”

“Is this type of thing how you got your scars?”

“Yeah.”

I touch the big one along his cheek, looking at him thoughtfully until he elaborates.

“I got jumped my first week in prison by an Aryan Brotherhood tweaker. They wanted to initiate me into their gang of racist scumbags, but I sent him to the infirmary.”

“How long were you there?” I trace the length of the scar,all four inches of it if I had to guess.

“They sewed me up and sent me back to gen pop within a day. I cut my hair off after that because I had a feeling it wouldn’t be my last fight. I didn’t let it grow again until I got out.”

“How many more fights?”

“Plenty. They saw my size as a threat. Someone always had something to prove.” He thumbs the one on his chin. “This is from Hayes.”

My jaw drops. “What the hell?”

Lochlan chuckles. “At the time, he thought I deserved it. He found out he was sharing a cell with a predator. I would have done the same thing, so I didn’t hold a grudge.”

“Didn’t he feel bad once he found out you were innocent?”

“He’s paid his penance many times over, don’t worry.” He reaches up, pinching my chin in his fingertips softly, and looks at me. If he wanted a kiss, he would lean in, but he doesn’t; he’s just looking at me tenderly.

“Time for the bandage,” I breathe the words out, blinking rapidly to clear the fog in my brain. It feels like someone turned on the hot water, filling the room with steam.

I carefully secure both sides of the butterfly strip before I’m brave enough to look him in the eyes, but when I do, I see the source of heat making it hard to breathe.

His thumb caresses my cheek, falling to my mouth and paying special attention to my bottom lip. “I’m sorry I ran out on you earlier.”

“It’s okay, it was important.”

“You’re important.”

The breath catches in my throat, but I’m already struggling to get air in and out of my lungs. His dark eyes are intense,studying me closely.

The blanket fell from my shoulders to the floor the moment we arrived in the bathroom, and I let my flimsy robe join it, tugging on the belt to let gravity take over.

The silk slips down my arms, pooling on the floor at his feet.

His chest heaves, and I watch his throat as he swallows thickly. There’s only a moment of insecurity in my head, exposing myself this blatantly in front of him, but it’s not because I’m afraid he won’t like what he sees; it’s because I feel so unprepared andinexperienced.

His rough hands travel up my spine, bringing my chest close and nuzzling his face between my breasts as if heneeds them to survive. My fingers find the back of his head, gripping his hair and holding on for my own sanity as he explores me further, gently dragging his lips across my soft skin.

When his lips reach my tightened peak, a soft gasp escapes my throat, and his fingers dig into my spine, holding me tight.

Another first.

He doesn’t rush, memorizing the first nipple with his lips before doing the same with the second. It isn’t until I’m molten lava on the inside that he tastes me, flicking his tongue across where I’m most sensitive and sucking me into his mouth.

He worships me with his tongue, and my hips replicate it, grinding languidly against his lap.

When he sucks my other nipple into his mouth I can’t control myself. My hands are clutching and grabbing at him, rubbing down his chest until they find his belt.

---