Page 240 of Fury

“There she is.” His eyes were fierce. “I’m clean. Haven’t gone bare in—”

“Me either.”

“Do we need to—”

“Shh.” My hips dipped against him, and I slid his cock inside me.

My heart stopped, my breath jammed in my chest at his groan, at him tight inside me once again, at the thick fullness of us. The world swung in another direction, and we clung to each other through the burning curve. For one delicious heavy moment, wishes and dreams collided with sorrow, ensnaring it, silencing its wail.

His forehead met mine. “Serena.” He pulled apart the buttons on the top of my dress.

Ting, ting, ting.

I shivered as his lips landed on my chest. He filled his hands with my breasts, kissing them, his tongue flicking over my piercings as I moved over him, taking him in, taking him in deeper, mining that sweet, rich glory that lay buried between us.

His hands went to my ass, his hips meeting mine, urging me to move faster, driving inside me.

Taking my lower lip between his teeth, he whispered hoarsely, “Cut it loose, baby. Cut it loose.”

67

“You’re sure about the border?”

“I’m sure about the border.” Her voice had a snap to it.

“Easy, baby.”

Lenore stayed focused on wiping down the blue tiles against the inner wall of her porch. “You asked me three times already.”

“Just want to be sure.”

“I’m sure.” She bent closer to the line of tiles I’d help her set up and cement along the porch. Yeah, she was sure about a lot of things. She had an instinct about color and line, about the arc of a thing, the feeling of it, its sound. Her way of thinking must be like music. Mine was more numbers and graphs. I wasn’t sure if it was a man/woman thing, or just a difference between me and Lenore. But it was a difference, and I liked it. I had to take my time with it.

Her cell phone came to life with a clip of a song with a driving guitar riff. She glanced at it and brought it to her ear.

“Hey, Mimi.”

Her store.

“No, no, you let her decide herself. I know the coral isn’t her best color, but that’s what she wants. If you push too hard, she’s going to have a spaz and cancel the order. She’ll come around, she always does. Okay. Thanks for checking with me. I’ll call you later.” She put the phone back at her side.

I was surrounded by the Empire of Lenore, the many kingdoms. My girl had blossomed into a fine woman of distinct tastes and choice. All these years she hadn’t hidden in the back seat. She’d gotten behind the wheel of her own car and steered through the dark, the fog, over broken bridges, steep climbs, twisty turns. And I was proud of her.

She sat back on her haunches, dropping the small microfiber cloth in her hand. “That looks good.”

I slid back on her porch bench and took a final swallow of my iced coffee. “It does. You’re right. Once we finish it up that strip of blue will liven up this view.”

“It’s soothing and stimulating all at once.” She was pleased.

I let out a laugh.

She turned, her ponytail flicking over her shoulder. “What?”

“I could think of things to do that are way more soothing and stimulating than looking at tile.”

She twisted her lips and joined me on the bench. “Head always in the gutter?”

“In your gutter, baby.” I slid a hand high around her thigh, over her buttery soft leggings in the crazy green and yellow pattern, and squeezed, flicking my thumb at her core. “In you.”

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