Page 42 of Blood Revealed

“Don’t,” he says. And oh, yeah—he’s pissed.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

“Dammit, Han. Go to sleep.”

“I can’t. My brain won’t shut off,” I admit.

“Funny, it didn’t turn on before.” Uh, ouch. That’s a dick thing to say.

“Right. Okay. Got it.” Then I roll over, facing away from him.

He sits up and rolls me back. “You don’t got shit,” he spits.

“Kindly take your hand off me, please.” It’s an order, not a request. He immediately pulls back his hand and I hear the grinding of him gritting his teeth.

“Why the fuck did you leave?” he asks. “You promised me you’d stay put.”

I figured we’d have to get into this. I just thought he’d give me a little more recuperation time first. “They took Elise,” I answer with what he already damn well knows.

“And we were on it. You—” He cuts himself off, running his hands over his very red face and I can tell he’s got a tentative hold on his temper.

“They thought she was me. Of anybody, I knew what they were going to do with her. Those men don’t care if she’s got a husband or a son. She’s young and hot and would fetch a great price for some foreign asshole who thinks because he’s got a billion dollars that gives him the right to do whatever the fuck he wants.”

“That could’ve been you. It fuckingwasyou. Don’t you get it?”

“I get it, don’t you?”

“What if I couldn’t get to you in time? What if he smuggled you to Mexico before I found you? Used you however he felt like using you with whatever asshole he felt like sharing you with? Used you until there was nothing left of you?”

“But—”

“No. Fuck that. What would I do without you, Han? How do you expect me to go on? There’s no going on without you, woman.”

When I see the wetness shimmer in his eyes, it undoes me. My Raif, Blood, he doesn’t show this emotion to anyone but me and I can’t take the separation any longer, launching myself at him. He catches me, wrapping his arms around my back as I press my lips to his. The tears roll heavily down my face.

“I’m sorry, babe. I’m sorry. But I had to.” I pepper his face with more kisses, anywhere my lips touch.

He gives in, returning the kisses. Though clearly, he’s still angry with me. “No,” he says through more presses to my cheek, chin, and lips. “You did wrong. I had it. I was on her trail. You put yourself and those other women in danger.”

Even if his words come harsh, his lips are soft and I’ll take the harsh words for now. He was scared, I get it. His hand moves up my back to unclasp my bra. He slides the first strap down. “I need you,” he grinds out.

“Take what you need, Raif,” I answer. He peels the second strap down, letting the fabric fall away completely, exposing my breasts to him.

He gently lays me back, moving on top of me. Between kisses, I take hold of his cheeks, looking him in the eyes. “I hope you can understand that I had to. I had to go after her,” I say. He presses his forehead to my chest and heaves a heavy breath.

Then his mouth moves to take my nipple. He’s done this a thousand times in the seven years we’ve been together, but we weren’tactuallytogether and this time feels different. Bigger. Weightier.

I run my now-snagged-from-putting-a-hole-in-that-screen fingernails down his back until reaching his waist, then I bury my hands under his shirt, skin to skin. I slowly move them back up his body until I’m able to pull the fabric up over his head. My heart beats heavy in my chest, but this time, it’s not from fear.

His kisses turn slow, each one drawn out to a painful point because each one fills me with an even deeper love for this man and a need screaming to be quenched. I widen my legs to show him my intentions, but he takes his time mapping out my body with his mouth. These touches are torturous. I feel lightheaded. My skin is on fire. I think I could come from just his kisses.

I’m out of my head, moving my body under him, pressing up for more contact. My chest heaves with every hard-fought breath. The more he teases me, the more I feel like I might actually die.

The heat of his chuckle hits the sensitive skin right at the elastic of my panties. He uses his tongue to draw out a response and I moan low and throaty, clenching my thighs around his back.

But he refuses to stop, refuses to let me catch my breath, moving his mouth and tongue down the silky fabric of my panties, sucking and kissing when he reaches the center. Through my panties. My eyes shoot open and I sit up. My mouth opens, but I can’t make a sound. It—he’s… Raif’s done this before, but at the same time, he’s never done this before.

I’m in sensation overload as he uses a hand to gently push me back down then removes my panties, slowly peeling them down my legs. From there, it’s a slow, sensual assault of his tongue, mouth, and lips. I grip his head, pressing him harder against the ultra-sensitized skin.

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