Page 73 of Fire Fight

The pad of his thumb strokes against my collarbone and I gasp as confused signals race around my body.

He shifts his hand, lightly gripping my chin to tilt my face, forcing me to meet his gaze. The intensity makes me feel like I’m drowning, and I shut my eyes before I can sink too far.

“I like you this way,” he murmurs, fingers sliding inside the top of my shirt dress, easing apart the top button, knuckle rubbing the tender patch of skin it reveals.

A tingling sensation erupts where he touches, spreading across my breasts until they’re aching for a firmer caress. I try to pretend my nipples are simply reacting to the cooler air as the night releases the warmer temperature of the long summer’s day. A pretence that does little to fool me and has no hope of convincing Drake, not if his pleased smile is any indication.

His circular movements spread until my chest craves more. I drop my head, letting my hair fall to cover my face as my cheeks pinken with shame.

Drake is taunting, teasing,dangerous… his light touch on my skin sends me reeling until I’m desperate for more.

He’s mad but there’s a screw loose in my head that finds his intensity irresistible. Even as I berate myself for the reaction, my thighs clench tighter against his legs, my chest arching towards his touch.

Drake rubs his thumb across my right nipple, chuckling low in his throat as it tightens further, sensitivity increasing until it feels like there’s a direct line down to my core, stimulating a craving for more.

His head drops next to mine, coarse stubble brushing my soft cheek as he undoes the next button, then the last, flattening his palm against my sternum, just beneath the underwire of my bra. My lungs strain for air, like his touch leeched away their supply of oxygen, leaving me breathless.

“So eager,” he murmurs, chuckling again when I lunge to the side, twisting away. The vibrations of his laugh carry through my body, pulsing lightly where my legs rest against his thighs, skin tingling.

He pinches my nipple through the material of my bra, soothing away the jolt of pain with his palm, the sensation overloading my senses.

“Do you like it when I’m nice to you, Cadence?” He brushes his lips against my cheek, featherlight, soft, punctuating the question, then his teeth clamp on my earlobe. “Or does your body respond more when I’m cruel?”

Any response is driven from my head as his enormous hands cup my ribcage, every thudding heartbeat vibrating into his thick fingers as they splay across my back. The heat of his breath hits against my neck as he lets them rest there, not moving, while the slow-burning fire his touch ignites spreads across my skin, sinking into my flesh, then deeper, penetrating the marrow of my bones.

It’s almost a relief when he moves again, undoing the clasp of my bra, the material sagging forward until he lifts it over my head, brushing away the strands of hair it dislodges on its journey.

“That’s better,” he says with a satisfied whisper. He moves on his seat, the throbbing bulge in his jeans pressing against my defenceless inner thighs as he does, making my hips tilt, seeking a firmer touch.

I rock forward until my shoulders protest, my bound wrists caught at an awkward angle.

What are you doing? He’s already tortured you once. He hates you.

Except it doesn’t feel like hate as Drake repositions me on his lap, his head angled for a better look at his fading handiwork.

The rough pad of his forefinger traces the words, then explores further, circling my areola. His hands move with slow precision, palming my breasts at first, then holding them, his breathing turning as shallow as mine.

“You’re so beautiful,” he says, then groans as his fingers pluck at my nipple, pinching the tender peak until my hips buck, a jolt of pleasurable pain shooting straight through my core.

I tilt my head back, staring at the sky above us, the push and pull of attraction leaving me giddy.

His mouth fastens over my nipple, tongue pressing flat against it at first, then licking and sucking, turning greedy, the sounds as his mouth works on me sending another jolt of arousal through my centre.

My fingers pulse, the tape wrapping them tight enough for the blood to pool. It matches the slow throb between my legs as his teeth graze the softening bud of my nipple, then close over it, tugging just a little, exerting enough control there’s only a faint hint of pain.

His tongue and teeth and lips make the same thorough exploration of my left breast, arm now curled around my back, pressing me closer. The soft tickle of his hair against my collarbone makes me squirm. He licks along the path of his writing, the words disappearing now, indecipherable if we didn’t already know what they said.

Then his fingers plunge into my hair and he drags my mouth to his, the softness of his lips turned to a crushing force as he increases the pressure, turning so demanding it feels like he wants to devour me whole.

His tongue teases along the seam of my lips, licking until they part to give him entry. I flinch in anticipation of his tongue, expecting the same wet mess as Hudson, an unwanted intrusion. But Drake plays with me, tongue darting in tiny explorative licks, then disappearing, drawing mine into the game. Our kiss deepens in small increments, his mouth capturing the small cries that erupt from my throat.

This is the kiss I dreamed of from the boy I gazed at during long lazy lessons for years, wanting him and hoping he wanted me. Too shy to approach, but not shy in my fantasies.

My chest clutches in a painful spasm.

It’s everything I wanted, but Drake isn’t the person I thought he was. The disconnect is painful.

Especially when I pull back to see his eyes glittering like black ice. This time, when he shifts position, he thrusts his stiff cock against me, rubbing against my panties until my trepidation turns into a shiver.

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