Page 137 of Pink Ink

If he does anything—and I meananything—that gives me pause, I’m out.

Looking back at him, I whisper, “No more secrets.”

“None,” he promises.

“No more lies.”

“Never.”

Taking a deep breath, I croak, “Please don’t break my heart again.”

“I’d rather die.”

“Okay,” I rasp. “I’ll stay for now. But I can’t… I can’t blindly believe you again. This is temporary until I decide it’s permanent—until I can trust that you really mean what you say and that I’m not just some pastime to you.”

He nods. Grabbing the back of my neck, he pulls me down and meets my lips halfway. “I swear you won’t regret it.”

When he presses his lips to mine, I let him because I want this as badly as he does. I don’t want to be alone anymore, and if kissing him is the only chance I’ll get to feel like everything is all right, I’ll take it.

Our lips move against each other, absorbing every ounce of desperation through the space where our bodies meet. I melt into him, silently urging him for more. To consume me so completely that I can forget my own name, and the pain that’s lasted a lifetime. He grasps my legs, kneading my flesh through my clothes like it might keep him tethered to reality. But he doesn’t get the hint.

My fingers wrap around his wrist to bring his hand up my skirt.

He pulls away, flicking his eyes between mine. “Are you sure?”

“Please.” I push my hips forward to meet his hand.

A divot forms between his brows. I’m too raw to handle any rejection right now.

“Maddox.” My voice wavers. “Make me feel good.”

His frown dissolves. “Always,” he promises.

He captures me in a kiss that steals my breath, and we move together like we were born to do it. I lift my hips so he can ease my woolen stockings down my legs. My skirt quickly follows suit. His lips don’t leave mine until he pulls my sweater and blouse over my head.

I thread my fingers into his hair and deepen his kiss to savor the taste of him. No one has ever made me feel as good or as free as he has. It hurts to admit how much I missed him these past weeks. Even the act of simply talking to him makes the world seem a little less dull. But lately everything has turned back into various shades of gray. It’s no way to live.

Maddox grasps my thighs to pull me to the edge of the couch. I shake my head when he begins to lower himself to the apex of my thighs. “No,” I gasp, holding his head in place. “I just—” I choke. “I need to feel you.”

He curses under his breath. In one swift move, I’m cradled in his arms, being carried over to the bed. Our gazes meet, and the intensity of his eyes threatens to bring tears to mine. They’re filled with a hundred different oaths that would kill me if he broke.

The bed creaks as he slowly lowers me. The duvet engulfs me in its cool embrace. Holding my stare, he draws slow circles over my clit that leave me silently groaning and chasing his fingers. A bolt of pleasure flashes up my spine when he dips them into me, curling to make me see stars. His name falls from my lips, and I watch, mesmerized, when he shudders at the sound of the two syllables.

Moisture coats the inside of my thighs as he drives his fingers into me until I’m a moaning mess. Goose bumps cascade over my flesh from the visceral pleasure. My back arches off the bed, and I claw at his arms to keep him going.

Maddox barely leaves enough room between us for me to undress him, and like the other times we’ve done this dance, he leaves his top on. Questions form at the tip of my tongue, but I leave it in favor of keeping this moment free from more heartache. I wrap my legs around his waist, urging him to move faster.

“Reyna,” he mumbles, attempting to loosen my legs from around him to keep working me with his fingers.

I shake my head, canting my hip to get closer to his cock. “I need you,” I whisper.

With a strained grunt, he draws out of me and lowers himself onto an elbow beside me to cradle my head with one hand and wrap his arm around my waist with the other.

He pushes his cock up between my folds, and I let out a frustrated groan that he chuckles softly at, peppering kisses along my collarbone and up my neck as he continues teasing me.

A gasp rips out of me when he meets my lips and drives into me at the same time. My core clenches around him. It makes his muscles quiver beneath my touch. I curl my legs around him and raise my hip to take him deeper as his fingers find my middle to rub my sensitive flesh.

Maddox fucks me slowly. The kind of gentle that doesn’t leave marks in the walls or shake the bed. Not once do his lips stop moving to press delicate kisses over my tender flesh. My heart feels full to the brim, and I’m worried it’ll overflow and end in tears.