Page 92 of Shackled to the World
Realizing that he needed the closeness between them as much as she did, Annora leaned in to him and bit his shoulder.
Something inside him broke. He lifted her, then slammed into her hard and fast. The pleasure-pain was addicting. Neither of them lasted more than a minute as he pounded relentlessly into her. Her orgasm blasted through her first, taking all the worry and pain away until there was only the two of them. As she tightened around him, he flexed his hips in a way that robbed her of breath, sending her shooting even higher.
He gave a tortured groan, and she felt him pulse inside her as he found his own release.
She felt boneless, both of them panting as they struggled not to collapse and drown.
The sex was rough and beautiful, just like him.
He reached up, smoothing her hair away from her face, searching her eyes, his expression pensive. She smiled up at him lazily, using her fingertips to trace his lips. “Wow.”
Only then did his serious expression melt away.
His shoulders relaxed, his half smile a little smug as he turned and began to wash her clean. Once done, he then gave himself a perfunctory swipe. As he stood under the spray, she moved closer to him, slipping her arms around him from behind, setting her hands over the taut muscles of his stomach and pressing her face between his shoulder blades.
Xander stilled, bowing his head, then rested his hand over hers, holding her close. Peace settled over them. Though she knew it wouldn’t last, she savored the feeling.
Much too soon, he turned the water off, then swept her off her feet before setting her down gently on a fluffy rug. Walking naked to the open closet, he selected the biggest, fluffiest towel and wrapped her up in it, covering her from shoulders to ankles.
She smiled, suspecting it was one of Mason’s.
Xander patted her down, making sure every inch of her was dry before he was satisfied, then grabbed his own towel, wrapping it around his waist, leaving it hanging deliciously low. When he grabbed her hand and began dragging her back to his room, she stumbled after him, completely distracted by the view and water droplets trailing down his back.
Shaking her head to clear it, she reached behind her, quickly snagging another towel and began to pat her hair dry, anything to get her mind out of the gutter.
He left her standing in the middle of his room as he went to his dresser and rummaged through the top drawer. He returned with one of his shirts. Without asking permission, he tugged her towel off, letting it drop to the floor, and pulled his shirt over her head.
He stood back, his head tipped to the side as he studied her, then grunted and nodded, seemingly pleased to see her wearing his shirt. Once satisfied, he cuddled her into his arms, leaning down to sniff at her neck and hair with a rumble of pleasure, seeming content to have her covered in his scent.
When he pulled away, he went back to his dresser and dropped his towel. She made a strangled sound to see he was fully erect again. He glanced at her over his shoulder, brow raised, then shrugged when he saw the direction of her gaze and lazily pulled on a pair of sweatpants, completely ignoring his erection.
“Ready?” He came to a stop next to her, hesitantly holding his hand out, not quite looking at her.
As if he expected her to pull away and pretend what they shared never happened.
Pursing her lips at the idiot girls in his past, she slipped her hand into his, enjoying the slide of his callused fingers against her palms, and tightened her grip until he looked up at her. “Any time.”
His expression brightened, his teal eyes sparkled at the promise, and he tugged her out the door. As they headed toward the stairs, she stopped at the bottom, her chest constricting at the thought of seeing Logan again.
“Annora? May I speak to you?”
She whirled to see Edgar waiting at the bottom of the stairs, partially hidden in the shadows of the kitchen. Grateful for the reprieve, she nodded. “Fine.”
She lifted Xander’s hand and kissed the back of it. “I’ll be right back.”
He leaned closer and kissed her forehead, then disappeared up the stairs. Blowing out a breath, she headed toward the kitchen with a heavy heart, bracing herself for the pain of having Edgar leave her for another woman.
Edgar was pacing back and forth, his head down, looking completely lost, and it hurt her to see him so defeated.
“Do you love her?”
Edgar jerked as if she’d shot him. As she waited for him to answer, it was like all the oxygen had been sucked out of the room.
Chapter Twenty-three
Edgar whirled and scowled at her. “Of course not.”
Her relief was instantaneous, the churning in her stomach settled, while the world around her finally came into focus again, and she glared at him. “Then why did you go to her?”
