Page 29 of Fearless
A half-hour later,I was scooping up the last of my delicious egg-yolk and salsa mixture with a tortilla. If Jandro hadn’t provided any, I would have licked my plate clean.
“Holy shit,” I leaned back in my chair. “I don’t think I’ve ever had huevos rancheros that good.” Placing a hand on his shoulder, I leaned over to kiss his cheek. “Thank you. Breakfast-dinner was delicious.”
“My pleasure,Mariposita.” His hand slid along my back, resting with gentle pressure just above my ass as he leaned in to kiss me properly.
He tasted spicy, citrusy, hot and cool all at once. The tequila, now like liquid fire in my veins, burned away my shyness about exploring him through touch. My palm skimmed over his large, broad shoulder, fingertips trailing over his neck and collarbone as he turned in his chair to face me.
Grabbing one of my chair legs, he pulled me closer to secure both arms around me. I braced two hands on his chest to combat the falling sensation in the pit of my stomach. He stayed there the whole time, broad and solid. His kisses were the perfect dessert—smooth, buttery, and warm. Even as he kissed deeper, his hold on me growing tighter, nothing was rushed or rough.
Jandro was incredibly responsive in his affection, gauging my reactions with movements of his hands and soft flicks of his tongue. He took the lead, but never swept me away. I began to see taking full control wasn’t his style—he gave just as much as he took. With every gentle pull back, he led me on a chase. And when I caught up, he matched me on every beat.
“This is the part where I either take you home, or you come upstairs with me.” His voice grew lower, gravelly and sexy. “Because I can’t keep my hands off you unless there are multiple walls and doors between us.”
We both panted slightly, out of breath like we really did chase each other around. My whole body was a vessel of pulsing, liquid heat and there was no question of what I wanted to do. He was a decadent dessert, too delicious to be good for me, but I didn’t care.
“What’s it gonna be, Mari?” Impatience roughened his voice and I liked it.
“Take me upstairs,” I breathed against his lips, eager for another taste.
He needed no further invitation. The moment our mouths clashed together, he released a deep, sensual moan. Large hand slid under my thighs to scoop me up and deposit me in his lap. I straddled his waist, my heartbeat spiking at the brush of a hard bulge against the inside of my thigh.
“Who knows if we’ll make it to the stairs,” he murmured, dragging that hot, luscious mouth over the pulse in my neck.
Just then I got hit with the memory of the first time he kissed me there—at the first Fight Night I witnessed where he split Stephan’s lip open. He asked me for a good luck kiss and pointed to his cheek. I did, just to make him leave me alone, and got his lips on my neck in return.
“What’re you giggling at?” he muttered, pulling my hair in a gentle tilt back so he could kiss my throat. “Am I tickling you?”
“I was just remembering the first time I saw you fight, and when you tricked me into kissing you.”
“That feels like so long ago,” he chuckled, grazing a kiss along my collarbone. “I was hoping to take you upstairsthatnight, after impressing you with my fighting skills. Before all that other shit went down.”
“Hah, sorry that getting the shit beat out of me and being carried to the medic’s office cockblocked you.”
“I’m not. I mean—fuck.” He leaned back, slapping a hand over his mouth. “That came out wrong.”
“Uh-huh.” I remained seated in his lap, but crossed my arms as I pulled away. “How was it supposed to come out?”
“Don’t be mad at me,Mariposita.Come here.” He wrestled one of my hands away from my cross-armed position and pressed a kiss to my palm. “I’m sorry you got hurt that night. Of course I’d never want that. What I meant was, I’m glad I didn’t sleep with you then. Because if I had, we probably wouldn’t be here right now.” He laced his fingers with mine. “Like this.”
Here it was. He pulled the curtain aside and gave me a glimpse at the real Jandro. But I wanted more than just a hint at what was underneath the charm and the swagger. I wanted him laid out bare for me.
“Why do you say that?”
“Because,” his eyes closed for a moment with a sigh, “I didn’t care about you then like I do now. I thought you were pretty and I wanted you on my dick. Nothing else mattered to me. I would’ve used you and discarded you. Buteverythingmatters now. When I don’t see you, I miss you. I want us to laugh together until we make Reaper’s head explode. I want toalwaysfeel like I did when you brought me lunch, and I want to keep showing you how much I appreciate that.” His voice lowered to a near-whisper. “I want to be one of the reasons that you feel happy.”
I was stunned. Speechless. I didn’t just get him laid bare. I got a confession, atonement, and declarations ofalways. That free falling sensation came over me again—a rushing, thrilling mix of emotions, but with absolutely no fear. It was almost jarring how Iwasn’tafraid of diving headfirst into my feelings for two completely different men.
I wrapped both arms around Jandro’s neck, bringing my lips down on his to kiss the tension away. He took a risk in showing his heart to me and I would treasure it.
Skimming my lips across his cheek to his ear, I whispered, “Try again for the stairs?”
He made a noise somewhere between a chuckle and a groan, then cupped my ass before lifting us effortlessly up from the chair.
Eleven
JANDRO
“Strong legs,” Mari remarked with a soft giggle as I took the stairs two at a time. Her body bounced against mine, wrapped around me with her arms and legs.
