Page 46 of Talon
“Thank you, Kerry,” Talon said before turning back to Madison.“See, women will cry or scream or whatever else you do to vent excessive emotion, whether it’s anger, frustration, annoyance, whatever.Men don’t do that.”
She thought she saw where he was going with this, but she wanted to see him do it.“Then what do men do?”she asked.
“Men tend to be more physical about it.Some chop wood, some pace, some build things or fix things, some like to hit things.”Talon looked happy with the way he’d explained it.
“So you like to hit things, and apparently people too.”She lifted her brows at him.As if she’d expected better.She understood what he’d been explaining, and it made sense to her.Even knowing he was one of those who liked to hit things, or people, she wasn’t afraid he’d hit her.She knew better, but there was no way she wasn’t taking a chance to get to him, just a little bit.Especially with everyone else digging at him, it would let him, and the others know she was comfortable here.She felt like she fit in with this mismatched group that had come together to form a family.
Maybe they weren’t a traditional family, but what did that matter?
“I-I would never hurt someone who didn’t have it coming, I hope you know that.”Talon’s face turned red as he stuttered out the denial.
“And what did Malice do to ‘have it coming’?”She glanced at Malice, then down the length of the table, and saw that maybe half of them had caught on to what she was doing.The others looked as horrified as Talon, as if they really believed that he’d said that Malice had it coming.When she brought her gaze back to his face, and saw how flustered he was, how he couldn’t even find words to tell her what he’d really meant, she almost lost her composure.
“And that boys, is why you always go for the girl that’s smarter than you are.”
Lurch’s words behind her let her know that either the foreman had figured out what she was up to, or someone had clued him in.She didn’t really care which.But whenever he knew, his comment had perfect timing.She watched Talon’s face as the realization dawned on him that she’d been riling him up.That she’d understood what he’d been trying to say all along.
The nonplussed expression that took over his face for the span of several seconds cracked her up.She lost all semblance of control and found herself holding her sides as she laughed at the astonished look on his face every time she hazarded a glance at him.
After a bit, her laughter faded, and she held her side and gasped for breath.An arm hooked around her shoulders.Madison shook her head not wanting to look at him again, for fear it would trigger another round of giggles.
After several deep breaths, she was fairly sure she’d gotten past the worst of it and finally looked up at Talon’s face to find him watching her, his eyes glinting with amusement.
“Think you’re funny do you?”he asked with one lifted brow.
It was all Madison could do not to crack up again as she nodded.Trying to keep from losing what was left of her composure, she rolled her lips inward and bit them.
Talon cupped her cheek in one hand and used the pressure of his thumb on her chin to pop her lip free from her teeth.
“The only teeth I want on your lips are mind, Mads.I like that you fit in with this crowd.We’re a little rough, and more than a bit crude sometimes, but you won’t find a group that loves as hard or protects as fiercely as we do.”His words were barely more than a whisper in her ear.
It filled her with warmth all the same.And she found herself smiling up at him, all thoughts of anyone but the two of them in the room fled from her head as she leaned in and let her body go pliant against his while she stretched up for a kiss.Talon didn’t hesitate.He covered her lips in a kiss so hot and full of need and desire that later, Madison would have sworn that it had fried her synapses as she lost all track of her hands as his began to roam her body in return.
“As entertaining as the two of you are, can you either take it to your room or cool it for a bit?The rest of us would like to eat.And this ain’t that kind of dinner and a show,” Ghost’s deadpan tone took a moment to register what he’d said, then another for her to remember what they’d been doing and that everyone could see them.
Madison pulled away from Talon, her face heated and she stared down at her hands folded in her lap.How had she forgotten that there were at least a dozen other people in this room?
“Don’t worry about it,” said the only woman at the table that Madison didn’t recognize.She sat next to Ghost, which meant she was likely Robyn.
Madison glanced up to find the woman watching her, a soft smile on her face.
Madison glanced at Ghost, who had made the comment, and her face heated again.
“Don’t mind him,” Kerry said.“He’s just cranky he’s not getting it as much as he would like.”
“I never said that!”Ghost stared at the woman beside him with wide eyes.“I said that I hate to see you sick.”
“That’s not all you said.”She folded her arms across her chest and twisted in her seat, so she gave him her back.Despite her body language, Robyn sent Madison a look that made Madison think she was teasing the big man.
Beside her, Ghost sighed and rolled his eyes as if he was used to this but couldn’t believe she was making him do this in front of everyone.
“I said it makes me feel guilty because even sick I want you,” Ghost said.
“That’s not what you said,” she insisted.
“You’re going to make me do this in front of everyone, aren’t you?”Ghost watched Robyn’s back, for what, Madison wasn’t sure.He sighed again.“Fine.What I said was that even sick you make me hard and that it makes me want to take care of you so I can bend you over the back of the couch and fuck you until you scream my name and beg me to stop.Are you happy now?”
Robyn nodded, dropped her arms, and twisted back around to sit right again.
