Page 148 of Daddy By Design

“Sometimes.”

I paused. “Now?”

“Only when you stop.”

Gently, I caressed the shiny skin to the top of his boxer briefs. I inched down his legs and rolled them down to see all of him. The slash above the coarse hair at the top of his shaft and the wicked slash along the muscle of his thigh made my eyes prickle with heat.

His body was rough and muscled, tough and beautiful.

He’d gone through so much to heal—but he’d done it on his own. I couldn’t imagine the pain he’d been in.

“Hellcat.” His voice was sandpaper. “I’m okay now. Ugly as sin, but okay.”

“Don’t say that.” I inched up him and gripped his sides with my knees. “I was just thinking how strong you had to be to heal from all these rips and tears. Even when your body was this broken, you came back from it.”

His lashes starred at the tears he was holding back.

I cupped his face. “Not ugly. Strong and so fucking beautiful. Would you say I was ugly if I have a scar from our baby?”

“What? No.”

“If I have to have a C-section and they cut me open.”

“Don’t say that. You could never be like me.”

“And if I was? If I had an accident, you wouldn’t think I was ugly, would you?”

“Of course not.” He frowned and unwound his arms to grip my hips.

“Then stop with saying you’re ugly. You’re strong. Nothing about you is ugly to me—except maybe your mouth some days.”

He lifted his hands to cup my face as he laughed. “I don’t deserve you, Dahlia.”

My heart rolled. Dammit, why did it have to be this man that caught my attention? And my stupid heart.

I leaned into him and covered his mouth. He sucked in a breath and as usual, he took over. This time, there was nothing between us. He tugged the shirt up over my head and his mouth raced over my neck and shoulders, then coasted down to my breasts.

I arched and hissed out a breath.

“Do they hurt?” He cupped me carefully, brushing his thumbs over my nipples.

“Sensitive.”

He dipped his head and lightly curled his tongue around one tip. “Easy like this?”

I slipped my fingers into his hair. “Like that.”He covered the nipple and sucked until my knees clenched along his hips. “So good.”

He did the same to the other then he cupped them together and drew his beard across the top. “Waking up to find you in my bed, curled in my sheets, wearing one of my shirts. Nothing could be better.”

“You sure?” I moved against his very happy cock. “Seems like there’s one more thing that might cap that.”

His hand lowered to my ass. “Well, that’s just the way to wake up, this is the way to start the day.” His eyes met mine. “Every day, all day.”

My mouth dried. “You expect a lot from the morning. What happens if I’m not a morning person?”

“I’m not either, but it’s looking better and better from where I’m sitting.” He nipped my chin and trailed his mouth down my neck to my shoulder. “Now if you’d just get rid of these...” He snapped the waistband of my panties and I yelped. “They’re cock blocking me—literally.”

I rose onto my knees. I wasn’t used to this lighter Nolan. Was it just a trick until he got me where he wanted me and then he’d go back to?—