Page 49 of Burn Protocol

“Nah-ah,” I chuckle and pull away slightly.

Elena scowls and tries to pull me back in, but I grab her hands and chuckle softly. Before she can think of flipping me and taking control, I kiss her. She moans but doesn’t protest, and I smile against her lips, releasing her hands as I trail my lips down her neck to her chest. Elena runs her hands over my back and lets out such soft gasps that I have to raise my eyes just to make sure they come from her lips.

When I reach her hipbones, my hands still for a moment, as I look at where the EMTs taped her injury. I place a soft kiss right above it, and then trail my mouth around it, down to the inside of her thigh.

Elena’s whimpers vibrate through my whole body, and there is nothing I want to do more than love her and make her come against my tongue. When I brush my finger gently against her thigh, she opens up beautifully for me, and for a moment I am stunned. This is actually happening. She actually wants you too.

I can’t find it in myself to tease her, the way she did me. My mouth trails my kisses higher and I hear her breath hitch right as I run my tongue over her. Her taste is like an aphrodisiac, and I find myself instantly wanting more. It’s unexpectedly light with a little hint of salt. I loop my arms under her legs and hold her in place, my hands resting on her outer thighs. My fingers dig into her skin as I lick her again.

Elena wants to buck her hips into me, but I hold her in her place. I dip my tongue slightly inside her, and the raw curse that follows makes my heart skip a beat. My eyes fly up, looking at her face. Her eyes close in pleasure. So fucking gorgeous. There is nothing that can hold me back now, not after seeing her so completely open to me.

I press my lips harder against her and flatten my tongue before I flick it and circle her clit. It is so hard under my tongue, dying for my attention and more pressure. I speed up my movement and feel Elena’s hands digging into my scalp.

“Please, Maya…” she gasps. “Please don’t stop.”

I smile against her when I feel how close she is. Elena’s legs are trembling now, quietly twitching as her arousal pulses through her. She is dripping now, and I lick up every single drop. No, I won’t stop. This is just the beginning.

When my name falls from her lips again, it is more like a prayer. A silent plea that I answer by flicking my tongue again. Elena’s body tenses, and when I repeat the motion she jerks so hard, I have to work to keep my tongue on her. The waves crash over her and she sobs as she comes inside my mouth. Her body shatters in silence, as Elena holds her breath and grips my hair while her lips part quietly. I keep my tongue on her as she rides out the waves until she becomes still. When I press my lips softly against her clit one last time, she is so sensitive that she shudders. I can’t help but grin as I move up to pull her into my arms.

“So fucking beautiful,” I whisper into her ear, before kissing the edge of her mouth and nestling into her side again. So fucking beautiful indeed.

My heart is thudding against my chest. It’s slower now, but still strong. Maya lies with her nose pressed against my collarbone and it is everything. I try to cradle her as gently as I can. Are you falling for her, Gonzales? She looks gorgeous in the soft light and all I want to do is kiss her. No, I am not falling for her. I am already on my knees.

“You are smiling,” she hums, not even opening her eyes.

But she is right. Of course she is. My smile widens and I nod. Not because she can see it, but I know she will feel it. And in this moment that matters more. I grab her hand and softly place it over my heart. She smiles too, now.

“I am happy,” I whisper.

The confession is more to myself than it is to her. As soon as I say the words, I am hit with a pang of guilt. How can I feel like this, when Marta isn’t coming home tonight? When there are kids who can’t kiss their father goodbye because he’s burned beyond recognition? How can this day of tragedy feel like the best day of my life?

Maya’s eyes flutter open, sensing the change within me. She studies my face for a moment, before touching my jaw so featherlight it almost breaks my heart. My eyes brim with tears. I swallow hard to push them down. Not now, Gonzales.

“El,” her voice sounds small, laced with worry. “What’s wrong?”

I shake my head, not trusting my voice. But she pushes herself up on her elbow now, her eyes still searching.

“Elena, please… talk to me?”

Her voice almost breaks at the end, and that is what undoes me. Because how can I deny her anything after all that we shared? Not just today, but everything before that too. She might not be a firefighter, but I know she understands. She has seen what the job demands of me, of my crew. Almost everything.

“We… we lost someone today.”

My voice rasps and my throat closes up.

“Her name was Marta. She was a mother, a nurse.”

I glance up at Maya. She doesn’t speak. Instead, she looks at me, calmly, waiting for me to continue. Her fingers softly stroking my arm.

“I promised her daughter I would get her out. I couldn’t. I was… When I… the explosion… There was nowhere for her to go.”

Suddenly the tears fall from my eyes, dripping on my cheeks and the sheets below. My breathing speeds up until my chest aches and my body shudders. She doesn’t pull away, she doesn’t tell me it will be okay. No. Maya pulls me into her, against her chest, and lets me cry. I grab at the sheets around us, clutching them tightly, as I bury my face under her collarbone. My sobs fill the silence that stretches between us.

“Maya,” I hiccup, “how can I feel this happy, when something so horrible happened?”

I gasp for air as my crying intensifies. My throat feels like it’s being strangled with iron hands, my lungs burn as if I ran half a marathon, and my shoulders are so tense I think I may never roll them back again. I try to suck in air through my clenched teeth while pressing my forehead harder against Maya. As if the feeling alone might ground me.

“I’m sorry,” I choke out as I cling to her now. “God, I’m so fucking sorry.”