Page 57 of Falling for a Grumpy Hero

Quiet laughter burst out of me and I gave his shoulder a playful smack. “Was that an actual joke, Ford Callahan? I didn’t think you knew how to make those.”

“I used to know.” He shrugged, his eyes crinkled at the corners but the expression in them still oddly solemn. “Every now and then, I remember.”

“I like it.” I pushed up on my tiptoes and pressed my palms to either side of his neck. “I like every version of you. Just as long as you don’t push me away when it gets hard.”

“When it gets hard, not if?” he murmured, inhaling a deep breath that made his chest rise against mine. “I guess that’s probably accurate.”

“I already knew that.” I smiled and gave him a peck on either side of his mouth, but in response, he sealed his lips over mine and gave me a gentle shove. It wasn’t hard enough to make me tumble onto the bed, but I sat down and dropped my hands to the hem of my shirt, crossing them over my hips before I lifted it off.

My skin bore marks that told a story of my very own, and while my scars weren’t as gruesome or as obvious as his, he would eventually see them. I just hoped it wasn’t tonight.

All I wanted tonight was him. All of him. No more talking of sadness or long-time pain. No more waiting or wondering if trauma had stolen everything that we could’ve had.

In the ambient light of the sparsely furnished bedroom, I saw his nostrils flare as he took me in, his gaze raking all over my chest and stomach. I wasn’t used to putting myself on display like this, but he’d put himself on display for me.

Maybe not by getting naked. Yet. But in all the other ways. Ways that had bared his soul and deepest hurts. That had taken way more courage than just shucking off clothes.

I reached behind my back next, my pulse hammering under my jaw, and I unhooked my bra. Ford hadn’t said a word, but he was riveted by my every move and it was unexpectedly empowering. Bold might not have been my middle name, but I slid the bra off and I pulled my arms free of the straps, then lifted the garment and dropped it to the floor.

My nipples pebbled under the cool air combined with his heated gaze, but I didn’t try to hide them. I wasn’t about to hide anything from him. Not even the scars. If he saw them and he asked, then we were both about to get buckets of ice dumped over us, but for now, I was just going to keep going.

We were back in our own little world, completely caught up in the heat of the moment and finally getting to stop dancing around each other. His breath caught as his gaze raked over me and I grinned, cocking an eyebrow as I inclined my chin.

“Your turn,” I muttered, not intending on letting him think too much right now. I already knew what the scars on his leg looked like. I’d seen the faint scars on his hands and forearms, and I didn’t want this to end just because he didn’t want me seeing any others he probably had. “Dealer’s choice between shirt and pants.”

Ford brought his gaze to mine, a cocky smirk appearing on his lips as his hands moved to his belt. He undid it slowly, flicking open the button of his slacks and watching me watch him.

Although I was pretty sure he didn’t mean for it to be, every move he made was erotic, like a muted strip tease. The night was quiet, the hum of the city outside barely reaching the room. I was too scared I’d break the spell we were both under if I spoke again, so I kept my lips zipped.

I’d been dying to see what he was packing, and who was I to stop him if he wanted to show me that first? His strong fingers reached for his zipper. The sound of him lowering it was loud in the silence that was only punctuated by our ragged breathing.

Or maybe it was just mine that was ragged. My chest was rising and falling fast. I hadn’t even caught my breath since that kiss and I didn’t want to. Who needs air anyway?

Ford’s eyes seemed silver-gray in this light when I glanced back up at him, noticing that he hadn’t looked away. He seemed completely confident and unconcerned about scars or showing his body at all.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

That smirk was still on his lips when he lifted his pants over his erection, pausing to kick off his shoes. They landed with soft thuds, but I didn’t bother to check how far he’d kicked them. Because it turned out that he hadn’t just been lifting his pants. He’d also been lifting his underwear.

He dropped it all in one go, stepping out of the pool of fabric without hesitating once. On the other hand, he’d had no reason to hesitate. In my periphery, I could make out networks of faint lines where his skin was shinier than in other places. Those were the scars, but who would be studying them when they could be looking at his dick instead?

Not me, that’s for sure.

I stared openly, my mouth drying up as I drank in his long, solid shaft standing proudly erect, only the tiniest bit of a curve to the very end. The tip was bare and shimmery in the dark, a bead of wetness gathered there.

I couldn’t help sucking in a sharp breath when I noticed it. My body had been raring to go before, but seeing the evidence of how much he wanted me with my own two eyes made my blood sing in my veins.

“See?” he muttered. “I told you that you had no idea.”

Accepting the challenge, I lay back on his bed and quickly undid my jeans, rolling them off to my ankles before I remembered that I was wearing shoes. I refused to be embarrassed about it though, toeing off the sandals and hearing them land with quiet slaps on the floor.

When I sat up again, I looked him right in the eyes and stood up on my knees. God, I must look like such a hussy right now.

Ford’s quiet but audible intake of breath made it worth it, though. Besides, he’d been so confident and self-assured, and I wanted to try it on for size. It really worked for me in so many ways I hadn’t known it would.

When our gazes met, it was like the final bit of restraint snapped. He surged forward and wrapped those strong, warm arms around me again. Rolling onto his back, he brought me with him, his lips finding mine and devouring me like he’d been starved for millennia.

His hands were all over me, his rough palms sliding across every inch of my skin that was within his reach. My nerve endings were suddenly supercharged, every brush of his fingers against any part of me making me want him more.