Page 71 of Pride
“Then, I suppose there’s only one thing to say.” He paused, drawing out the moment dramatically before finally whispering, “Hello.”
“Hi,” she returned, her own smile gathering force.
“The Real Alice, I’m going to kiss you now.”
“Okay.”
He eased her back against the pillows and covered her body with his. He was like a warm blanket made of flesh, and his kiss was like whiskey that warmed her raw soul. It coaxed her desire back to life, and it made everything so much more. When he tried to pull away, she bit his lip, holding him to her. His growl was wholly inhuman, and it sent a rush of hot, wet heat between her legs.
“Alice, you’re exhausted. You need to rest.”
“Not yet.” She arched into him.
He smooshed his face against her and rubbed where their cheeks connected. Then Parker pushed off the bed, eyes aglow with unholy fire. “You’re not ready for this, Alice. Not yet.”
She pushed up on her elbows. “I’m pretty sure I am.”
His lips curled to reveal sharp fangs, and he hid his face in a way she could only assume was from shame.
“You need rest,” he insisted. “And water. I’ll get some.”
He was out the bedroom door before she could protest. She stared at the empty doorway for too long, wondering what the hell had just happened. Not ready for this? How cocky could he—oh. He wasn’t talking about his junk. His eyes. That snarl. That animalistic behavior.Oooh.
He didn’t want her seeing him lose control. He didn’t want her to see that part of him, especially when he was so used to containing everything in a nice, neat, rope-tied package. That turned her on even more.
“You know,” she shouted at the door. “I showed you the real me. At some point you’re going to have to do the same.”
The sound of the fridge door closing filtered back to her, then his footsteps, then him. Magnificent. His brows met in the middle as he stood in the doorway, cracking the lid on a bottle of water.
“I know,” he said, sitting on the bed and handing her the drink. He gently stroked her hair as she sipped. “Get some rest, Alice. We head out in a few hours.”
26
Over the roarof a plane engine, Parker shouted instructions at Alice on how jumping from this altitude differed from BASE jumping off a high-rise. The hold was open and ready for their launch. Cold air whipped at their faces, lashed their hair, and gusted against their goggles. His one hundred plus jumps made him far more knowledgeable in this area than whatever she had. He had to make sure she was prepared.
“Now, you may not know this,” he roared against the wind. “But there is a reserve parachute located here.” He pointed to the ripcord in her backpack. Alice smirked up at him, probably because she already knew, but quietly allowed him to complete his second safety check of her set up. The nap she took earlier today had returned a healthy glow to her face. He was glad he’d stopped things from getting too heated. She’d needed the rest. What came next would be intense, and with her unreliable leg, he was concerned she might land wrong. He had suggested tandem jumping, but she’d only given him the same casual smirk she gave him now. Infuriating. Impossible. Sexy.
The Syndicate base they would infiltrate was deep in Cartel territory. He tugged on the straps secured to her shoulders, just to make sure they weren’t loose. He tried not to think about the rope he’d tied on her earlier and how next time he would like to see that rope against her bare skin, no clothes in the way. Maybe a purple color this time.Hiscolor. Maybe he would tie her within a star formation, criss-crossing all over her skin.
The pilot shouted from the cockpit that they were within range of their destination and Parker shook his head to clear his thoughts, but his urges had been nigh on impossible to ignore since he’d walked away from Alice in his bed. The Beast knew she was willing, and it wanted to unleash. Desire ran rampant in his veins and was a constant, painful companion. If he couldn’t fuck her senseless, then jumping out of a plane was the next best thing. Only one of those would expose his fear.
He met Alice’s sparkling eyes.
“When I say go,” he shouted. “I want you to jump.” She’d been pensive the entire plane ride and now raised an indignant brow. Maybe she was afraid. “If you want to hold hands, I can guide you to the drop zone.”
But she didn’t hold hands. She put on her goggles and kissed the air in his direction before falling backward out of the plane. Amber hair caught the golden sunset as it streamed past her face. The damned woman winked at him. He gripped the support bar and looked down to find she’d already twisted and righted her trajectory like a pro—her black clad body a lethal dart tunneling through the air.
Speechless.
And goddamned aroused. Again.
Fuck. He adjusted himself in his pants.Get your head in the game, Parker.Of course she knew how to sky dive. She knew how to do everything. Except the Shibari. That was a first, and he’d given it to her. The Beast’s lust stirred.Fuck!
He jumped out.
Exhilaration. Adrenaline. Bliss.
He was flying. Free. Just like he and Daisy had dreamed about. One day he would do this with her, and they would fly together. For now he focused on the Columbian land mass drawing closer by the second, and his mate rotating in the air below to blow him another cheeky kiss before using hand signals to directhimto the drop zone. As if he didn’t know.
