Page 33 of Defender

Heat coursed through her instantly.

He pulled her hard against his body in a way that could leave no doubt whatsoever that he wanted her.His mouth was hot, wet, open against hers, gentleness nowhere to be found.

Good.She didn’t want gentle.Didn’t want to be treated as if she was fragile, breakable.Gripping his waist, she pulled him closer, her tongue dueling with his.

He kissed her like he planned to never stop, kissed her in a way she never dreamed shy, handyman Ashton was capable of.

But this Ashton—therealAshton—was capable.His breath gusted hot along her jaw as he shifted slightly, grabbed her waist and hoisted her up onto the counter.His hands moved to her hips as he slid her forward until they rested against each other, her hips cradling his.

Summer moaned as his lips moved down to her neck, sharp little nips by his teeth immediately soothed by his tongue.One of his hands moved up, fisting a handful of her hair to keep her in place.

All Summer could do was hang on.She felt her hips thrust against his of their own accord.She wanted him.Wanted this man.Right now.

“Ashton.”She groaned his name out as his lips moved back up to hers.Could feel his movements becoming as frantic as she felt.

“Don’t ever doubt I want you,” he said against her lips.“I’ve wanted you every hour of every day since the moment you showed me this garbage disposal.”He hooked a thumb toward the sink right next to them.

He slid his hands under her buttocks and pulled her all the way off the counter.She hooked her legs around his waist as he carried her to the bedroom and proceeded to show her exactly how much he wanted her.

* * *

SUMMERROLLEDOVERin her sleep, scooting closer against him.Ashton smiled.If the woman got any closer, she’d be sleeping on top of him.

Which would suit him just fine.

He rubbed a hand up and down her back.By whatever means he’d managed to dodge a bullet in this situation, he’d thank his lucky star and whatever other mixed metaphor.He slid his hand down to Summer’s naked hip and pulled her closer.

Pity was the absolute last emotion he felt for her.It had nothing to do with why he’d come around here.And yes, he’d been willing to settle for less, to be a sort of silent guardian.He’d wanted to help out wherever he could—not just with handyman stuff, but any part of Summer’s life where she’d needed help.

He still hadn’t told her about Tyler’s death.That he’d been there.That he’d had a shot.

He doubted very seriously she’d be lying here so trustingly with him if she knew.He brought a hand up to his face and rubbed his eyes.He never should’ve let things get so far without telling her the entire truth.

And he’d wanted to, had planned to ease into it.Trying just to break one piece of bad news at a time.But then she’d looked so distraught at the thought that he’d only been hanging around her because he felt sorry for her.

Proving that wasn’t true had taken priority over everything else.He’d honestly just meant to kiss her.To pull her up against him and prove there was no way he didn’t want her.

Because he had.He’d wanted her from the first moment he met her.Hadn’t been interested in another woman since the first time they’d spoken.

He’d known of Summer for a long time, since the day her husband was killed.Joe—feeling even more guilty than Ashton had about Tyler’s death—had started a friendship with her.Ashton had sort of watched that from afar.

But then when that psycho had taken Summer and Chloe, and Ashton had carried them out of that burning warehouse...something had changed for him.It was like once he’d had actual contact with Summer, he couldn’t force himself to stay away any longer.So when Joe had asked him to deal with her maintenance problem, Ashton had been happy to.

He’d never spent one minute with her because he’d felt obligated.It had always been because he wanted to be with her.In whatever capacity she would allow.The team had teased him for months about the friend zone.But the friend zone hadn’t bothered him.At least he’d gotten to see Summer and Chloe regularly.

He’d hoped it would turn into more over time.But even his hopes for a romantic future with her could never have lived up to this.He’d never dreamed he’d be holding her sleeping body next to his after the hours of mind-blowing lovemaking they’d just discovered together.

First in her bed, then in her shower.

Hell, he’d almost taken her right on the kitchen counter where they’d started, when he’d realized at what perfect height that had placed her.But he hadn’t wanted that to be where they first made love, so he’d hustled her to the bed with very little finesse.

Summer hadn’t been overly concerned about finesse either, ripping both of their clothes off as soon as he’d had her in the bedroom.She’d had a few moments of insecurity—it had been a long time for her.She’d had a baby since she’d last been in any sort of physical relationship with a man.But proving how breathtakingly beautiful she was to him had been no hardship.Showing how perfectly they fit together had been an easy task.

And he’d be damn sure to take advantage of that kitchen counter in the near future.Maybe right after breakfast in the morning.And again in a couple of days.

The future.He never thought he’d even be thinking about a future that included Summer.But what had happened between them tonight?He knew this physical relationship wasn’t something either of them took lightly.

Before it went any further, he needed to make sure she understood all of the connections between them.That she knew he’d been there the day Tyler died.About the shot he didn’t take.She wouldn’t forgive him if he didn’t tell her, not after what he’d already kept from her.

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