“I’m good to go, Hunter. I promise.” She bit her bottom lip. “Can I try something else?”
Yes!“Only what you want. You’re in control.” If she knew how badly I wanted her right now it’d scare her.Control. Slow down.
Shaky fingers reached for the buttons on my shirt. “I’ve always wanted to see more of your tattoos.” She undid the first button.
“There are quite a few,” I said, setting her present on the table beside the couch. “Some aren’t so great.”
She undid the next button. “Do they all have stories?”
“Most of them.” I propped my arm on the back of the couch and ran my free hand up her thigh as she undid the third button. “Some I got just because they were cool.”
“Why tattoos?” There went the fourth button, and I had to shift to make room in my pants to sit comfortably. She was so sexy in that dress, and how her tongue jetted out as she worked a button down was nearly the death of me.
“At first, it started out as rebellion against my dad. But then they became symbols of strength, reminders of how I was going to be different, stronger than him.”
The fifth button went, and she’d made her way to where the shirt was tucked into my pants. I couldn’t let her go further or she’d really be in for a surprise. Pretty sure she wasn’t quite ready for that, I stayed her hand and pulled out the rest of my shirt.
She undid that last two buttons and pushed the fabric back, exposing more of my chest. Wonder filled her face as she scanned the expanse of my exposed skin.
“They’re beautiful.” Her forefinger trailed the biggest one that covered most of my chest. “Why an eagle?”
“Symbolizes victory, and that’s all I’ve wanted when it comes to my dad. For me and for my mom.” I brushed my knuckles down the side of her face. “And now for you, too. Victory over this prison of yours.”
“It’s working,” she whispered, her voice husky. “I’ve never felt so free in my life. Even before…”
“I’ll never hurt you. Never,” I said, vowing it to herandmyself. “Never.”
“I know.” She leaned forward and pressed a kiss between my pecs, where the eagle’s head was. She moved the shirt back some more to see my shoulder. “Tiger?” she said, then kissed it.
“Means willpower, personal strength and courage.” And I’d fought for that since my asshole dad—no, I would not let him in this moment.
Lina was finally opening up to me, letting me into her safe, controlled…lonely world. No way would I let my father in this moment. This was mine. Mine and Lina’s. I might be physically strong, but I’d been weak all these years, hiding from life like she’d been hiding from the world.
“Smooth.” Her breath was warm against my skin as she dusted kisses along the start of the tiger’s head on my neck. It coiled around my shoulder and eventually bled into a skull with black roses, which rightfully represented love and death.
There’d been plenty of both in my twenty-four years of life.
She made her way to my chest again, and it took everything in me to remain still. I wanted to dive into her, make her feel so good she’d be screaming out my name as I made love to her.
Instead, I bit my cheek working to calm my body down.
“Your heart is pounding.” She kissed me right where I knew it was hammering away.
“You do that to me.”
Desire dominated her wide, wonder-filled eyes. “I do?”
“I want nothing more than to make love to you, Lina. All night.” A wave of fear hardened her face and flared her nostrils. “But don’t worry, I can wait. I just wanted you to know what you do to me, how much I want you right now.”
She gripped my pecs and eased forward. Her fear completely gone. And that turned me on even more.
“Is it possible to love someone you’ve only known for a few months?” She asked, her lips brushing mine as she spoke. “Because I do, Hunter. I love you. So much.”
“It’s possible.” I kissed her lips. I loved her so much it scared me.
I sat up and pulled her as flush against me as I could, considering we were sitting on the couch, and took the kiss deeper. She shoved my shirt down, and I shook the fabric free of my body without ever disconnecting from her mouth.
I needed more.