Page 144 of Bones
“Thank you. That’s very generous,” I said, hoping he understood how much of a gift he’d just given us.
His smile softened, the expression at odds with his stature. “My pleasure, miss. You folks need anything else?”
When we said no, he pointed to the stairs on the other side of the room and wished us a good night. We climbed up the squeaky stairs and made our way down the hall to the door with a large number three painted on it. Trey unlocked the door and we stepped into the prettiest room I’d ever seen. Old faded floral wallpaper covered the walls and a thick green rug lay over the wood floors. In the corner stood a metal radiator, then a large bed with four wooden posts sticking up in the air, and a small dresser. Trey locked the door behind us, and I kicked off my boots before moving through the room to peer into the small adjoining room to find a bathroom, complete with a working toilet and a large clawfoot tub. I turned and looked at Trey in astonishment.
“This is incredible.”
He grinned. “I’m glad you like it. I wish we could stay longer, but it’s just a little too close to the hold for comfort.”
I grinned back, warmth sparking through me. “We’ll just have to make the most of it then.”
His eyebrows raised, his eyes sharpening on me as they darkened with desire. “You sure you don’t want to get some sleep? Or a bath?” he asked carefully.
Gods, this man. I loved him. I loved him so much that it made my heart ache with the beauty of it.
“I just want you.”
The emotion that flooded his face made my eyes burn. He crossed the short distance between us in just a few quick strides, and then he kissed me so fiercely it made me realize how much he’d been holding himself back before. I ran my fingers through his hair again, exploring what made him groan against my mouth or made his breath hitch. He broke away from my mouth to trail burning kisses down my neck, his tongue dipping into my collarbone as he worked my jacket off my shoulders at the same time. As soon as my jacket hit the floor, I did the same to his, taking the opportunity to splay my hands across his broad chest. My head tipped back, knocking against the wall as he continued to torment my neck. Already my breath came in short pants and my skin buzzed in anticipation.
His hands gripped the hem of my shirt, and he pulled back just enough to catch my eyes, silently checking. I raised my hands, holding his gaze and hoping he could see the desperate want that roared through me. He gave me a truly sinful smirk and slowly pulled my shirt up and off, letting it drop to the floor. He went still, eyes drifting across my chest, and while I still felt flickers of insecurity about the awful brand on my chest, they were easier to ignore when he gazed at me with so much blatant hunger.
I slid my hands under his shirt, my fingers searching until I felt the small raised scar on his stomach. That desperate moment when I’d pressed my hands against the bloody wound seemed like another lifetime ago.
“That’s my favorite scar,” he said, his voice low in a way that did something pleasant to my insides.
I rucked his shirt up, but he was too tall for me to pull it off. He grinned and pulled it the rest of the way off, and I let my eyes drift across his naked chest, admiring the lean muscle. His breathing quickened as my hands trailed up, tracing the same path my eyes had taken, across his chest and shoulders and then down his arm until my fingers brushed the faint scar in the shape of my teeth marks from where I’d bitten him.
“Not this one?” I purred, a sly grin crossing my face.
His answering grin was downright dangerous. He caught my hand and brought it up to his mouth, kissing down to the middle of my forearm. “I could give you a matching one if you want.” He sank his teeth into my forearm just hard enough that I let out a little gasp. Then he swirled his tongue over the mark, warm and soothing, his eyes still locked on mine.
Gods, I felt drunk, intoxicated by him. “I can think of better places for you to put your mouth.”
He made a strangled noise, surprise mixing with the blazing heat of his eyes, and then he kissed me again. His hips shoved into mine, pushing me back into the wall. He wasn’t holding any of it back now, pouring all of his emotion and need into how he touched me and kissed me.
Let go,I reminded myself.Let him in.
“I lied to you earlier,” I breathed, and he pulled back to look at me, wariness in his eyes. “My favorite color is the color of your eyes.”
His eyebrows raised, but that sunshine smile chased away the concern. “Brown?”
“Yes,” I gasped as his fingers brushed over my nipples. “I’ve never wanted to get lost in someone’s eyes before I met you.”
“I can understand the feeling,” he said hoarsely, watching my face, “because I’ve never seen eyes as beautiful as yours.”
“Green like glass bottles,” I teased, arching toward him.
“You saw right through that, didn’t you?” His smile turned sheepish.
“You’re not very good at hiding how you feel,” I murmured with a smile, reaching up to brush his wavy hair out of his eyes. “You live everything you believe out loud.”
He grinned, then dipped his head and caught one of my nipples in his mouth making me gasp, and the next few minutes were lost to the sensations of his tongue and teeth and hands on my breasts. He slowed as he moved upward, pressing his lips to the brand on my chest like he had last night. I leaned my head back against the wall, tears burning in my throat at how reverently he kissed the part of my body I thought no one would ever look at with anything but disgust.
His hands trailed down to the waistband of my jeans, lazily undoing the buttons and sliding my pants and undergarments off my hips torturously slow. As soon as they hit the floor, however, he hauled me up into his arms. I sucked in a breath at the sudden movement, wrapping my legs around his waist as he made his way toward the bed. He laid me down and then took a step back, staring at me, every bare inch just like he'd promised.
“Beautiful,” he said in that low, rough voice.
I smiled wide, and those blooms in my chest felt like a whole damn garden.
