Painonce again dragged Natalie from sleep. Today’s pain was eased by turning over and relieving the pressure on her spine. Except now, she was face-to-face with Sam Sullivan, still sleeping since his breathing was steady and even. His eyes lids hid the brown eyes she liked so much, his hair was tussled and sticking out from his head, fanned out on his pillow. The sheet had slipped down, and his arm was lying on top of the blankets. At some point, he had removed the T-shirt she was sure he had been wearing when he had gotten into bed. It was maybe too hot in the room overnight. He looked at peace.
Dawn’s first rays seeped into the window at the foot of the bed, and it made him more visible with every passing minute. She should get up and leave him alone to sleep as long as possible, but the warmth of the bed and the nearness of Sam kept her where she was.
She flipped the blankets off because the heat in the room was too much, then she tucked her arm under her pillow, so she could prop her head up a little before placing the other hand on his chest to feel that he was breathing. Oddly, she noticed that her hand was darker than his tanned chest. For a moment, she wondered about the rest of her genes. Where did they come from?
Her eyes drew back to his face, and she saw that his brown eyes were open and looking at her. Neither moved as they looked at each other, but she could feel his heart beating faster. Just like hers was.
His hand that was on top of the blanket moved, and she felt it gently touch the scar on her chest, the big one. It ran from about two inches from her throat down through her breast to below her rib cage. The doctor had said that it would always look like it did right now.
His finger started at the top and slid slowly down the scar until it hit the top of her tank top, then he pushed the fabric down, pulling her shirt with it. She had been watching his eyes that were watching his finger as they darkened with desire. Soon his head leaned down, and she felt his lips on the top of her scar, then they too followed the path south.
When the shirt wouldn’t go down anymore, she felt his tongue on the scar, leaving a trail of moisture as it came back to the top. Natalie shivered at the sensation. No man had used her scars to turn her on, but Sam did. Once at the top, he nuzzled into her neck and kissed her where her pulse beat, causing a moan to escape her throat.
Sliding kisses down her arm to the scar he had kissed just a few days before, he rained kisses on the spot again. All Natalie could do was watch him and pray he didn’t stop touching her. When his eyes sought out hers, the desire she saw made her gasp. As their gazes held, she gave a slight nod of approval. Yes, she wanted this, and it melted her heart that he asked.
His lips returned once again to the scar on her arm for one more light kiss, then he shifted slightly and took her pert nipple into his hot mouth. The sensation of his suckling through the thin fabric made her moan again, and her hand went into his dark hair to hold his mouth to her breast, just in case he tried to pull away.
Rolling onto her back, she pulled him with her, but he took advantage of the move to suckle the other breast. Freeing her hands out of his hair, she pulled at the hem of her tank top—she needed his lips on more of her skin. Her bare skin. When her shirt had come off, she was rewarded with a pleased sigh. His lips immediately repeated what he had done with her breast, but this time with no barrier.
She ran her hands over the muscles on his bare shoulders, loving the feel of his smooth skin. The sun was casting just enough glow in the room that she could see him as his lips left her breasts and continued down the scar between them.
By the time he made it to the bottom of the large scar, she was panting, and her body was buzzing with need. His mouth skittered across her stomach to a six-inch puckered scar. He trailed his fingers over the rough edges, then ran kisses over the ugly wound.
Looking up at her until their eyes met and held, he whispered, “Your body is gorgeous, Natalie. Every scar reminds me how lucky I am to be here with you. How close this came to not happening. How much I nearly missed. That life is fragile, and I can’t take anything for granted. That I need to cherish you every opportunity I can get.” Then he went back to her body and kissed his way back up, but this time his lips ended on hers. The kiss he gave her was soft and delicate, just like the kisses he had planted all over her body.
That was when she took control of the situation and ran her hands up his body and into his hair, pulling his head to hers in a hungry kiss. His need was as demanding as hers when she slid her tongue into his hot and waiting mouth. She swallowed his groan of delight and let her hands run the length of his body, down his strong shoulders to his abs that didn’t end until she hit the waistband of those sexy shorts.
Without missing a beat, she slid her fingers beneath his shorts and cupped his firm bare ass in her hands, loving that it made him groan in her mouth as she ground her core into his straining erection.
His hand skimmed slowly down her body as they kissed. He cupped her breasts, making her arch her back in encouragement. That was all he needed as his thumbs brushed over her peeked nipples, causing the ache in her core to intensify.
All she could do was moan in his mouth as the fingers left her breasts and slid down her stomach, slipping into her panties. Just where she wanted him, her hands fell from his body as he shifted.
Cupping her core, she whimpered, causing his lips to leave hers. Gently kissing down her neck, his finger slipped into her. Her eyes gently closed, and the sensations shooting through her body as his fingers started to move caused her breath to catch. His lips had once again found her breasts, and his tongue movements were perfectly matching what his thumb was doing to her clit. Her orgasm was building slowly until he slipped a finger into her core. Instantly, she was rocking and moaning to the rhythm his hand had set. When he slid a second finger inside her, her entire world broke apart, and she was lost in the amazing feelings of her body pulsing around his hand.
Panting and unable to move, she watched him kiss her scars again while she got her heart and body back under control. The light kisses didn’t seem like anything, but they made her body hum with excitement. As her energy returned, she ran her hands over his perfect body once more, loving the feel of him. His back, his chest, his great abs, and finally into the shorts, but this time she stroked his straining cock, making him groan. He was larger than she had expected, but that only sent a shiver of excitement through her. Her core was still pulsing from her past orgasm, and she was already getting excited for the next one.
Sam’s lips hovered over hers, but there was disappointment in his eyes. “We can’t have sex. I don’t have any condoms.”
“I’m on the pill.” Closing the space between them, she kissed him, pushing off his shorts and underwear until she was able to see his naked body. He made her mouth water. He was gorgeous.
She raised her hips to help him remove the last remaining clothing she wore, the shorts and panties that hadn’t seemed to be in his way earlier. As she watched his eyes sweep over her body, she had the sudden urge to cover herself, but his words stopped her. “God, you’re beautiful. Just as beautiful as I always thought you would be.”
Shifting over her, he nuzzled her neck and settled between her thighs. Lifting his head, he questioned, “Does this hurt your back?”
All she could do was shake her head and kiss him—her back was the last thing she was feeling right now. She loved that he remembered her pain when all she could think about was having him inside her. Shifting her hips, she pressed her bare core against his cock and ground against him.
Groaning, he shifted his hips, and in one smooth motion, he slid into her.
Moaning at the sensation, she let her head fall back onto the pillow. All she could feel was him filling her. Then he began to move, slow and steady, like she was too delicate to push too hard. The steady in and out of his cock was amazing, but she needed more, faster.
The strain of his face told her how hard it was for him to control himself, that he was taking care of her. No matter what he was feeling or wanting.
Wrapping her legs around him, she pushed herself up and kissed his cheek. “Harder, Sam. I won’t break.”
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he said, not changing the rhythm he had set.
“Nothing you will do will hurt me,” she promised, smiling.