Page 34 of Centurion

“Running facial rec on the people caught on the camera system today. There was a bug in my program, and it was hit-and-miss on the people it worked on. I don’t want anyone to slip through the cracks.” His fingers continued to fly across the screen.

“Hmm.” She stood up and took another sip of her drink. “How long will that take?”

“I’m almost done.” He continued to work. She took another sip. “Do you have anything else to do after that?”

“Nothing much. Brando sent me a couple of files to analyze. Mr. Asshat hasn’t sent any taskings.”

She finished her drink and moved from behind him to beside him. “How much longer?” she asked as she slid as close to his laptop as she could.

She knew the second Con saw her silk nightgown. His head snapped to the left, and his hands froze. She watched as his eyes traveled up and up. “Fuck, have I died and gone to heaven?”

She shook her head. “No, you’ve gone on your third date.” He stood up and stared down at her.

“Beautiful.” He slipped his arms around her and dropped his lips to hers. She somehow managed to put her empty glass on the desk before Con started backing her across the floor. She didn’t know where he was leading them and didn’t care. Her back bumped into the wall, then the bookcase. The doorjamb was next. Finally, Con pulled his lips away from hers and swept her into his arms. The trip to his room was quick, and he landed in the middle of the bed with her. She laughed as he stripped out of his T-shirt, but the laughter stopped when he laid on top of her. Her hands traveled the expanse of his back as he stared down at her.

“Before I lose my mind, do I need a condom?”

She shook her head. “I’ve got that covered.”

Braced on his forearms, his biceps and chest muscles bulged over her. His gaze locked with hers. “I don’t know where to start with you.”

She reached up and placed a finger on his lips. “Start with these … here.” She tapped her own lips.

He leaned down and spoke a fraction of an inch from kissing her. “I want you so bad. I want to devour you, but I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Don’t hold back.”

He crashed his lips against hers. The intensity of the physical contact exploded. Con was a wild man. His hands and mouth branded his claim onto her skin. Her hunger grew with each touch. Her body reacted, lighting up with a brilliance that threatened to consume her. He stripped her of the silk and then lifted away from her long enough to undress.

His body was perfect. Muscled, defined, and his cock stood out in front of him, hard and ready for her. He kneeled down on the bed. “I’m going to make you mine.”

“Do it,” she panted. The dark look of need and want on his expression had to be reflected in hers. He laid on top of her, and she spread her legs for him. He bracketed her head with his arms as he stared down at her. Con sank deep within her.

She moaned at the sensation of being unconditionally seized by him. Flames of need ravaged her and consumed more with each thrust of his possession. Her fingers clawed his shoulders, and she arched up to join every thrust. Pleasure and pain blended and combined. He forced breathless puffs of air and soft gasps from her. Sounds she was incapable of stopping. His bruising and predatory kisses, coupled with the power of his hips, magnified the raw animal lust that connected them.

Con’s domination broke through all the pretense and the carefully constructed walls she’d built to keep people from knowing her,the real her. She knew in her very DNA he was aman she could love. Perhaps that was why she’d made sure not to reach out to him when he was looking for her.

Hewaswhat she’d been searching for, hoping to find—a man who needed her with that type of desperation. Each stroke moved her closer to accepting what she’d long denied. She was vulnerable, and Con, with all his laughter and silliness, was more than man enough to become her shield, so she could finally let down her defenses. Letting go of those lingering fears, she couldn’t deny the need deep inside her. The craving for the fire he’d branded her body and heart with was unquenchable.

Her body tightened to a searing and frantic ache. She gripped his biceps and begged him for something … What it was, she wasn’t sure, but she panted the plea over and over. Please …

That ache splintered, and a pulsing thrum undulated through her core. The sensation forced a gasp as she erupted into a million shattered pieces. She felt him finish and took most of his weight as he dropped to his elbows.

She held him tight because, at that moment, she was vulnerable and completely surrendered to the attraction she felt for the man. She surrendered the need to be anything other than what she was. Happy.

Con moved off her, and after fighting the fall of her hair for a pillow, he pulled her closer and spooned her. The warmth of his big body filled her, and she tucked back closer to him. He kissed her hair and whispered, “You are utterly amazing.”

She looked back at him. “I think it’s the other way around.” She turned to face him, pushing on with this honest and open situation she’d promised herself to follow. “I’ve never done that before.”

Con blinked and shot up. He rubbed his face. “Fuck. I’m so sorry. Jesus, I’m such an ass.”

Ronnie sat up, her hair falling over her shoulders, and she pushed it out of her face. “What are you talking about?”

“If I’d known you were a virgin, I would have …” He threw his hands up in the air. “I don’t know, but I wouldn’t have been that rough.”

“I’m not a virgin.” Had he lost his mind?

He stopped and narrowed his eyes at her. “You said you’d never done that before.” He waved to the twisted bedding.

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