“Shell? What the fuck happened to you?”
CHAPTER TEN
A FERAL ANIMAL. That’s what Copper resembled, staring at her scar like he’d never seen one before. Shell grabbed his hand and squeezed. Hopefully, her touch would prevent the pressure from building to an explosion.
“Copper, it’s nothing. Just a c-section scar.”
His face screwed up as though in pain. “What? Beth was born by C-section? I had no idea.”
She gave him a half smile. “No one here knows. Only my mother.”
He tensed, running his thick finger over the raised line where her daughter had been quickly pulled out to save her life.
“I’ll tell you the whole story another time.”
“Were you alone?” Concern bled through his voice.
“I had friends.”
This clearly bothered him. Really and truly upset him. That caring made warmth spread through her stomach. All she’d ever wanted her entire life was Copper. In her bed, in her mind, in her heart.
Him discovering that scar brought the harsh realities back into focus. It could never happen. She didn’t want to talk about this now. For now, she wanted to pretend she could keep him. Imagine what it would be like if this night extended for the rest of her life.
“Were you scared?” He was so focused on the four-year-old incision she wasn’t sure he’d even grasp the story if she told it.
“Please, can we talk about this later?”
He lifted his head and the depth of emotion shining back at her made her gasp. “Just answer that one question. I need to know.”
Nodding, she whispered, “I was terrified.”
His serious gaze bore into hers. She held her breath, afraid to shatter the connection they’d formed at that moment.
“You keep secrets,” he said.
Her heart squeezed with familiar pain and fear. Keeping information from Copper was one thing. Flat out lying was another. “Yes.”
He nodded. “I want them all. Someday. When you’re ready. For now, I’m just so fucking glad both my girls are here and well today.”
There wasn’t anything in the world that Copper could ever do or say to top that moment. It would be stamped into her mind forever sure as the Handlers logo was branded on his arm. And she’d take it with her when she left. Because she had to go. And soon.
“Kiss me, Copper,” she said, still whispering.
He did. Soft and slow, yet so deep she felt it in her soul. He slid his large body over hers, careful not to put too much weight on her. Dwarfed by him, surrounded by all his muscle, power, and authority, she felt safe and protected from anything the outside world could throw at her.
It was an illusion, of course, but for the time being, she’d exist in the delicious fantasy of being loved by Copper.
They kept the pace slow and languid. Hands coasted over skin, learning each other’s bodies and pleasure points. When Copper left her mouth and kissed his way across her jaw and down her neck, she shivered in response. Between her legs, she was so wet, she could feel the arousal trickling down her ass. “Copper,” she breathed. “I need to feel you now.”
“Right here, baby,” he said. “You’re so fucking small. I’ll try to be gentle.”
“You won’t hurt me, Copper. It’s not possible. I was made for you.” Later, when the afterglow wore off, and sense returned, she’d regret sharing such emotional intimacy. But for now, in the sheltered bubble they’d created for themselves, sharing her heart was natural.
“Fuck,” he said as he reached for his nightstand. Ten seconds of rummaging produced a condom.
Shell tried not to think about how many were in there. Or rather how many used to be in there before he used them up. Most especially, she tried not to wonder how many Honeys he’d had in this very bed.
“None,” he said.
“What?”
“It’s written all over your face. This is my space, away from club bullshit. No woman has been in here beside you. And I haven’t been with anyone since you moved back,” he said as he ripped the packet open then rolled the condom down that very impressive length.
What? Holy shit. What did that mean? Could he possibly feel the same way she did?
Bracing on one hand, he used the other to rub his dick through her slick folds. “That set your mind at ease?”
She nodded and gripped the sheets at her sides.
“This needy pussy ready for my cock?” he asked as he nudged the tip inside her.
Her back arched off the bed. “Yes. So ready. Please fuck me, Copper.”
“Fuck, that’s the sexiest thing I’ve ever heard.” He pushed in, inch by inch, swearing as more of him disappeared inside her. “You’re so fucking tight.”
He stretched her to just a step below the point of too much. Never before had she had such a sensation of fullness. From the inside out, he owned every cell in her being. She wanted to live like this, clasping him deep inside her, feeling him take her body to its limits.