Page 92 of Craig

Her fingers drifted through his dense hair, still moist from the shower. His fingers trailed over her ribcage, skimmed her breasts, giving her sharp jolts of aching desire.

He drew her panties down, kissing the insides of her thighs. Her breath backed up inside her chest, making it difficult for her to breathe.

No one had ever taken such careful time with her. No one had ever loved her this way.

It overwhelmed and it terrified, but she embraced the wonder of it. The wonder of him.

He made her feel so much, too much. Emotions crowded inside her, bursting to get out.

He used his mouth, his very clever tongue, his fingers to destroy her. Annihilate her completely.

By the time he covered her body with his, she was weeping, her fingers clutching, groping, and clinging to him.

She opened up for him, like a flower after a burst of rain and sunshine. She enveloped him, took him in.

He went in deeper, overwhelmed by her scent, the texture of her lips, the taste of her still in his mouth, on his tongue. He shared it with her as he moved inside her.

The feeling, the sensation, was incredible. It made him shudder, made him want more of her.

He wanted everything. She had finally told him she loved him, finally agreed to legally be his, and for that, he was so grateful, so damned humbled, that he had no idea what the hell to do with himself.

She would belong to him for the rest of his life. He would belong to her.

He gave her everything. He took everything she was offering and gave her more.

He swamped her, muddled her brain, and made her weak and vulnerable. But for the first time in her life, it did not bother her.

She embraced the emotions, embraced him, and went willingly over the cliff.

She burrowed into him while she slept. He considered it tremendous progress from where they first started.

He didn’t have to force the issue anymore. She came to him willingly now, and that was something.

But he had something to do.

He was going to use his considerable resources to track down that lowlife who called himself her father. He was going to put the fear of God in him.

She belonged to him, and no one, absolutely no one, touched her and got away with it.

He was going to find the man and make sure he went away for good. If he wanted money…

He considered that for a minute or two. Would he give him money?

Hell yes! He would make him sign a goddamned piece of paper, making it illegal for him to have any contact with her again.

Yes, he would take that step, because seeing that look on her face again, the vulnerability, the stark, naked pain, was never going to happen again.

*****

Craig didn’t consider the fact that he was lying to her. He just hadn’t told her his plan, but lying by omission was still lying and he wasn’t comfortable with it.

They had crossed a threshold last night. She had agreed to be his wife for real and had declared her love for him.

He wanted transparency between them.

But the fact that she hadn’t mentioned what happened at her place again meant that she was still hurting. And she didn’t want him to act.

So, he was acting. He had to do something to protect her.