The Life That Mattered (Life Duet 1)

I closed my eyes and shook my head. “Yes. It was a hair ruffling. And it’s your hair not mine. But I wanted to claw her eyes out for touching you. Then she retold the story last night. And it is funny, but it wasn’t funny coming from her. It wasn’t funny to me that she took every opportunity to touch you. Granted, I don’t really know her. My anger was at myself for feeling that way, for feeling like you’d see something great in her during one of my not-so-finer moments. Confidence is sexy. God knows it drew me to you because you are the epitome of confident. But last night, I was the least confident person in the bar, which made me feel like the least desirable person. And that really sucked.”

Ronin rubbed the back of his neck, gaze glued to the coffee table between us, his brow a little wrinkled. “I had an accident when I was twelve. An electrical shock.” He held up his hand to show me the scar I’d asked about several weeks after we met. At the time, he shrugged and said, “Just a boy being a boy.”

He continued, “It caused some speech issues for a while. Kids made fun of me. It was a blow to my confidence. I felt like my friends were embarrassed of me. For months I was the least confident person in every room. So … I get it.”

Ronin glanced up at me while sitting up straight. “Maybe you learn to ski. Maybe you don’t. I have no fucks to give about it because for the first time in a long time, I can’t wait to take off my gear and find you at the end of every day. Before you, I was the first to work. The first one making tracks after a fresh round of snow. Now … I show up on time for work. Not too early, but not late. Just on time because it’s impossible to leave you in the morning. I want one more kiss. One more minute just to look at you. One more smile. One more whisper of my name ‘Roe …’ from your beautiful lips. Roe … no one has ever called me that. And when you say it, I feel like the goddamn king of the world. I want this, and I’ve never wanted anything more than seeking the next adventure. But you … you make me want to stay.”

Slipping …

Falling …

I grinned, easing out of the recliner. “King of the world, huh? Does that make me your queen?” Lifting a leg, I straddled his lap, forcing him to lean back.

His hands slid up my legs beneath my robe. A smile played along his lips when they reached my hips, and he discovered I wasn’t wearing anything under my robe.

Slipping …

Falling …

“Yes …” He removed one of his hands and pulled the sash. My robe fell open. Ronin had a way of looking at me that felt predatory. The tiny hairs along my skin stood at attention. They knew he was going to do what he wanted to me with little regard for anything—a burning house, a crushing avalanche, Armageddon. “You are most certainly my queen.”

My breath caught when he sucked in my nipple, teasing it with his teeth. Teasing it hard with his teeth.

“Roe …” I breathed, closing my eyes, tangling my fingers in his thick hair.

He cupped my other breast, dragging his mouth across my chest, etching my skin with a day’s worth of stubble. “Say it again.”

I tightened my hold on his hair, arching my back. “Roe …”

“Again …” He bit my other nipple, tugging it as his hands gripped my hips to work my pelvis over his erection.

My robe slipped off my shoulders as we ground against each other. His impatience pulled a growl from his chest. I loved loved loved how badly he needed me like that. The hand on my breast moved between us where he yanked down the front of his pants, no underwear. I wasn’t the only one dressed in minimum attire.

He teased me for a few seconds before pushing into me, tightening his grip on my hips to bring me down onto him.

“Ride me, Evie,” he whispered in my ear, biting my earlobe while his fingers dug into my flesh.

Ronin said things that would have made my mom gasp in horror had she known. My mom adored Ronin. She called him the “ultimate gentleman” because she saw him hold my hand, hold open doors, and stand when a woman walked into the room. He called her Mrs. Taylor, in spite of her insisting he call her Madeline, which made her blush.

But … her face would have turned crimson for different reasons had she known the things he said to me during sex—the things he did to me during sex. His relentless tongue, commanding hands, and large cock had explored my body. Every. Single. Inch.