Page 27 of The Raven
Why wouldn’t this torture go away?
“Fuck,” Mason whispered. “Okay, let me try this.”
He shifted and removed his arms from around me, my body instantly bereft of his touch as he hurriedly unbuttoned his shirt and removed it, revealing his muscular chest and defined abs.
Warmthradiated from his body, circling me like a comforting hug, andpushingtheshadowsaway a few inches. The vice-like grip painfully squeezing my body loosened when hewrappedhis arms around me and pulled me against him.
Skin against skin, his heat seeped into me. And yet, it still wasn’t enough to drive the agony away. I lifted my hand and pressed it against his chest, his racing heart beating against my palm.
Our eyes met, my anguished-filledonesboring into his concernedones, andwith every exhale, his breath caressed my face. Unable to stop myself, mygazedroppedto his lips, and instinctively, I knew that if I were to press my lips against his, it would help to make thepainleave my body.
Notgivingmyself a second to think better of it, I leaned forward, my lips delicatelytouchinghis as tinglesspreadthrough me, dousing the fire raging in my veins.
Mason’sentirebody stilled, but as I was about topullaway, his handmoved to the back of my head, holding me in place as his lipsgrewfirmer againstmine. Ourmouthsopened at the same time, a groan leaving him as histongueswiped against my bottomlipbefore meetingmineand gently twirling.
As our kiss deepened, the vibrations coursing through me intensified, gradually forcing the darkness away. Needing more, I repositioned so I was straddling him, my legs on either side of his.
When I felt his hardness settle against my core, instead of the fear I felt when Buck’s erection had ground against me, something different happened. An intense feeling ofwantswept through me, driving the pain even further away from my bones.
“Raven,” Mason moaned, gripping my hips.
“More,” I breathed against his lips, grinding my core against him.
He found the hem of my top and lifted it over my head, his gaze dropping to my bra-clad breasts. “How the fuck is this even possible?” he muttered, almost to himself.
Not having an answer to give him, Ilacedmy fingers in his hair andtuggedhis head back, demanding his lips onmineagain. This time, when ourtonguesclashed, there was a sense of urgency. It was as if we were both scared that the powerful connection growing between us with everykiss, everytouch, would be severed at any moment.
“Mase.”The abbreviation of his name fell from my lips,feelingso damn right.
He pulled his head away. “You called me Mase?” he said, his voice husky as his brows furrowed in confusion.
“You…you don’t want me to?”
A small smileliftedhis lips as he rested his forehead againstmine.“I didn’tthink I’d ever hear you say it again.”
Before I could ask what hemeant, his lips were onmineagain, claimingthem, andpushingthe lingeringshadowsaway. Both of my hands cupped the sides of his head as ourkisscontinued. This time, when histonguebrushed againstmine, somewhere in the deepest recesses of my mind, amemoryflashedto life.
Two young teenagers, a girl with long dark hair, and a boy with brown hair,lying next to each other in a field, holding hands, and surrounded by vibrant purpleflowers.“Promiseyou’ll come back for me,Mase?”the girl said, her eyes brimming withtears.
The boy turned on his side andstrokeda strand of hair off the side of herface.“Ipromise,Blackbird.”
The memory elicited something inside of me, the nickname ‘Blackbird’ soundingeverso familiar. Emotions that had been locked away bubbled to the surface while images of a time before lingered out of reach. As our tongues continued to explore each other’s mouths, realization hit that Mason wasn’t just the cop who’d tried to save me.
He’d been something more.
So much more.
Questions flooded my head, but now was not the time to ask them. I didn’twant to break thebondflowing between us. In fact, the more we kissed, the more our handsrakedover eachother’sbodies, the more I wanted, no,needed, to keep thebondalive. Although thepainhad dulled because ofMason’stouch, it still smoulderedunderneath my skin, flaring every so often when one of theVipers’facesappeared in my head.
Ineededtoremovethem from my body; that was the only way I could ridmyself of the remaininghurt. Each one of them had taken something from me, not just my life, but my consent.
My free will.
In a way, that was worse than them taking my life.
A formidable determination zapped through me like lightning. I wanted totake back what they stole from me.
Breaking our kiss, I held Mason’s eyes. “More, Mase,” I whispered, gripping his shoulders and grinding my hips against his cock, letting him know what I needed.
