Page 28 of Tempted
“Thanks. I’ll be right back.” I hide them inmy room and return to see him leaning against the wall, head back,eyes closed. “Are you okay?”
He turns to me with a weary sigh and pushesoff the wall. His eyes wander over my face as he cups my cheek withone hand and slides the other through my hair.
“I am now.”
His lips brush mine tenderly and a moanemanates from the back of my throat. I curl my fingers around hiswrists and move up onto my toes, trying to get closer. I breathehim in, his scent of leather, cologne, andhim, going to myhead. His tongue flicks out, licking at my bottom lip, and I openfor him. He slides in with a groan and I catch his tongue betweenmy lips, sucking gently. His hands move to my hips and I curl myarms around his neck, playing with the hair at his nape. Growling,he picks me up, wrapping my legs around his hips. The kiss changes.It becomes harder, more aggressive. It’s not a passionate frenzylike before, more like a punishment or a release of pent-up anger.My lips begin to throb from the force of it, and I can’t breathe. Ifist my hand in his hair and pull back to catch my breath.
“Gage!”
He forces me against the wall and buries hisface in my neck.
“I’m sorry.”
“No, it was just...a little intense.”Intense enough that it’s clear something’s bothering him.Iknew it the moment he walked through the door. “What happenedtoday?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re off. What did you do today?”
He moves to the living room, sitting on thecouch with me astride him. He looks at me carefully as if decidingif he should talk to me or not. I wish he would. I can never tellwhat’s going on in his head. I need him to trust me, too, to knowI’m here for him when he needs me.
“You can tell me anything, too, youknow.”
“I can’t, doll. Not this.”
I cradle his face in my hands and stare intohis beautiful, blue eyes, now dull with the weight of his troubles.I need to see the brilliance returned. “I trust you with my life,Gage. You can trust me.”
He closes his eyes, sinking his fingers intomy hips. I place my forehead on his, pleading, “I’m here for you.Trust me. You cantrustme.”
“Idotrust you, Raven. My world isn’tpretty. I need to shield you from all the bad shit I do.”
“And I love that about you...that you want toprotect me. But I hate seeing you like this. I wanna help.”
“You can’t.”
“How do you know? Sometimes, just talking canhelp. You don’t have to give me specifics.”
“You sure you want to go down this road?There’s no turning back, Raven.”
I nod and settle into his lap, clasping myhands at the back of his neck. He takes a deep breath.
“Those guys from the other night. I found outwho they were and why they were after me. We found the rest of thecrew and took ‘em out today.”
“You mean…?”
He looks directly into my eyes, hisexpression stoic. “Yes, Raven. I killed them.”
***Gage***
She watches me intently, her head tilted tothe side. I’m anxious to see just how she’ll absorb that piece ofinformation. Her face is betraying nothing, though, so I have noidea what’s going through her mind.
“So…there’s no one else to come after younow?”
“Yeah. Well, no one from that crew.”
She nods, chewing on her bottom lip. I watchher as she mulls it over in her mind, not looking at me.
“Okay,” she finally says.
