Page 28 of Strike
“So you’re on first name basis.” He scowled, and my mouth fell open in shock. He actually gave me a dirty look for talking to the firefighter.
“So?” I pouted.
Mark grunted and reached for his beer. “He’s well adjusted. He’d be a good choice.”
“Ugh,” I declared. “You’re so frustrating.”
“I know.”
Who the hell knew if his bravado was all for show or if it was who he really was. The mystery just deepened the more I got to know the guy. Any answer he gave just led to more questions. It was becoming more infuriating than frustrating. I would slap him, but it looked like someone else had already beaten me to it.
“So you fight illegally,” I began, rattling off the things I did know. “You put yourself down constantly, you push people away with your smartassery, you look like a fucking underwear model, and you save random women from burning buildings. Are you a run-of-the-mill douche? Or are you just the by-product of a shitty hand of cards?”
His expression twisted, and he looked as if he was in a great deal of pain. Was he that torn up? Over what? The night of the fire, I’d looked into his eyes and seen a sadness that almost frightened me. A deep pain I knew nothing about.
“You have to let go of it sometime,” I murmured, suddenly aware of how close we’d become. “Eventually, it’ll eat you all up, and what then?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. Justice?”
“Justice? For what?”
“I walked over people to get to the top, but I crashed and burned before I even got there. I was ruthless and didn’t care who I hurt.”
“Maybe it’s not about getting what you think you deserve,” I countered. “Maybe it’s about making up for it.”
“How?” His hand came to rest on my knee, and I squirmed.
“By being a better person. By being nice. By being selfless. By being conscious of…”
“I’m alone for a reason, Callie,” he said, his brow creasing. “No friends, no family, no attachments. Everyone’s happy that way.”
“Sounds like you’re trying to justify taking the easy way out,” I said with a scowl. “Easier is rarely better, you know.”
His gaze dropped to my lips before flickering back to my eyes. “It hurts less.”
“You’re wrong.”
I sensed him pulling back before he even twitched, but I wasn’t ready to let him go just yet. In a moment of lust-fueled insanity, I tilted my head to the side, leaned forward, and pressed my lips against his.
He was warm and soft, which was a stark comparison to his behavior, and when I began to pull back, he caught me before I could let him go.
The arm he’d laid across the back of the bench circled my back, and the hand he’d placed on my knee began to travel upward, sending warmth between my legs. I nestled into him, my palms resting against his hard chest, and this time, he kissed me.
His lips parted, and the tip of his tongue teased my skin before demanding entrance. I was pretty much fucked by that point, and the last of my willpower faded as I opened to him. I was his. Completely.
My head tilted to the side as he took control. His mouth melded with mine and his tongue danced, tasting the excitement he’d awoken in me. He knew what he was doing, and it was a little frightening how talented he was. I didn’t want to be a number, but right now, my head swam with nothing but dirty thoughts.
I kissed him back, and any nervousness I had before I’d walked in here was completely gone. Damn, he could kiss me all night, and I’d still beg for more.
Finally, he broke away but didn’t venture far. His arms caged me against his chest, his lips brushed over my cheek, and when he’d caught his breath, he rested his forehead against mine.
My palm rasped against the stubble on his jaw, my fingers delighting at the sensation, and finally, I buried my hands into his overgrown hair. It was the closest I’d felt to any man, and all we’d shared was a kiss.A kiss that had knocked my socks off.
“Callie…” His lips moved over mine, his breath hot.
“The fact you don’t want to hurt me tells me you want to change. Whatever happened before…”
“Don’t.” His grasp tightened.
