The Hero's Redemption

But if that was what he’d intended, he wouldn’t have screwed up so badly the first time he kissed her. He could have had her then—she’d pretty much offered herself. Which meant she had to believe him.

Just…savor every minute.

She kissed and nibbled the hard edge of his clean-shaved jaw until she reached his ear. She liked his ears, had studied them entirely too often. Now she nipped his earlobe, then sucked gently.

He jerked, his hands tightening on her waist and thigh. His teeth closed on the side of her neck. When she went still, he applied enough suction for her to imagine his mouth on her breast.

With a tiny whimper, she reached for his T-shirt. Cole cooperated, his gaze never leaving her face as she tugged the soft fabric up. When she didn’t move fast enough, he took over and yanked it off, tossing it aside. Her breath caught at the sight of his chest. Powerful muscles slid smoothly beneath the skin. Soft brown hair formed a mat punctuated by a thin line that disappeared beneath the waistband of his cargo pants.

She had to explore. Erin would have thought him unaffected if she didn’t feel the shiver and flex of those muscles beneath her fingertips. His stomach was as hard as she’d imagined, and it would have been impossible not to notice the hard bar of his erection pressing against her hip.

She must have shivered, too, because he suddenly said, “My turn,” and wrenched open her ragged chambray shirt. A few buttons might have gone flying, but Erin didn’t care, not with this man looking at her as if he’d never seen anything so beautiful. He slid a fingertip just inside the top of her bra, leaving goose bumps behind. She could see that her nipples had hardened, poking at the thin cotton fabric of her practical athletic bra. Cole didn’t seem to notice it wasn’t exactly sexy.

“I have to see you,” he said suddenly, his voice guttural. When he yanked the bra upward, she raised her arms to help. Moving so fast she was stunned, he had her bent backward over his arm and was studying her with an intent, hungry look, color slashing across his cheekbones. She gripped the back of his neck, her fingers digging in, as his mouth closed over her nipple.

When her hips began to rock, he lifted his head and looked at her, his eyes almost black. “You’re sure?”

Nothing could have made her say no. Not now. She ached for him. Her lips formed the word yes. Even soundless, it was enough.

He surged to his feet, lifting her in his arms.

“Wait! I can walk.”

She saw his teeth and wasn’t sure if it was a grin or something else. “You don’t weigh anything.”

That wasn’t true, but despite eating better these days—since Cole had come into her life—she hadn’t come close to regaining the weight she’d lost after the accident. No man had ever carried her to bed before and, feminist or no, she found the experience exhilarating.

She wrapped both arms around his neck.

He laughed this time. “Afraid I’ll drop you?”

“The thought crossed my mind.”

Another laugh, and he started up the stairs. One arm looped under her thighs, the other supporting her back.

“I should have wrapped my legs around your waist.”

His gaze flicked to her face. “If you had, I wouldn’t have made it.”

Mouth suddenly dry, Erin felt a cramp deep in her abdomen. He could have set her down on one of the steps and stripped off her jeans. She wouldn’t have minded. She wouldn’t mind if he did it now.

She rubbed her cheek against the bulge of his bicep. A rumbling sound came from his chest, but he kept moving.

In her room, he let her fall onto the bed and sank down on top of her, catching some of his weight on his elbows and a knee planted between hers. His kiss was desperate this time, his tongue thrusting into her mouth, even as his hand roved. The sensation of her breasts rubbing against his chest set Erin to moving restlessly as she kissed him back with equal urgency.

He rolled them so that she lay atop him and he could grab her butt, adjusting her hips until the fit was just right. He’d have been inside her if they hadn’t both been wearing pants, and suddenly Erin was desperate to get rid of everything separating them. Except…she couldn’t stop moving rhythmically against that hard ridge, which felt even better with his hips bucking to meet hers.