Page 13 of Protected By the Surly Carpenter

There’s something unbelievably intimate about kissing him so deeply while running my palms up and down his hard, thick shaft. After a while, his breathing becomes erratic. Was mine like that when I was close to coming? I don’t remember. I was completely overwhelmed.

Every muscle ripples and tightens against me as Clark begins to quiver. Suddenly I feel compelled to do more than just stroke him. Pushing away, I move down between his legs as he rolls onhis back. Gripping his thick cock, I lick the tip, then suck the few inches that fit into my mouth while working the rest over with my hands.

His hand tangles in the back of my hair. “Fuck, yeah. Look at me, baby. Watch me while I come in your mouth.”

“Mmm-hmm,” I murmur, licking and sucking his warm skin as I stare into his eyes. Finding a rhythm he seems to like, I watch his changing expression over the next several minutes. He’s holding back. He wants to make this last, I can feel it.

I moan from pure desire, then he jerks forward with a choked growl and I feel my mouth flooding with his heat. I swallow several times, his half-lidded eyes staying locked on mine as he clutches me, still slowly pumping in and out of my mouth.

Then he collapses against the bed, staring at the ceiling. Pulling the blankets up, I nestle into the crook of his arm.

“You didn’t have to do that,” he grunts.

“But it was sexy as hell,” I giggle.

“Yeah. It was.”

I legit love that he seems a bit…rattled. As if he genuinely wasn’t expecting that, and now he doesn’t know what to think.

This gorgeous man is definitely a “still waters run deep” kind of guy. I can tell he’s always thinking about several things at once. Maybe he’s spent an awful lot of time alone.

Maybe –oh! – he was waiting for the right woman to come along? It’s way too soon to think like that, but I’m already secretly hoping that I’m that right woman. The one who belongs with him.

As I drift into sleep snuggled sweetly in Clark’s thick arms, it feels like I’ve fallen under a spell. I didn’t really have any plans or high hopes for my life. Just a quiet little dream that I’d find somewhere safe to live, where I could have a real home and pursue my career.

This man is downright surly to men who corner women, but unbelievably sweet with me. He’s balanced.

After the off-kilter life I’ve had the past few years, I think that finding him is the most amazing luck I’ve ever had.

I just hope that – unlike everything else good in my life – it actually lasts for a while.

7

CLARK

I’ve never really cooked for anyone before. As I make coffee, slice whole wheat bread from The Bakery on Main, and scramble some eggs, I realize Elena has already changed me for the better.

To start, I’ve been smiling more than I ever have in my life.

I’ve never been a people person. Sure, I have friends, but with Elena, there’s a real connection. She’s brought me back into the real world from…wherever the hell I’ve been floating for the past decade.

Last night was the most incredible experience I’ve ever shared. It was honestly difficult for me not to suggest we go farther. But that wouldn’t have been right. Elena barely knows me. She’s in a new place. It’s a strange time in her life, and I need to be extremely careful.

Even though…I can barely admit it, even to myself…being the older, experienced man next to her sweet innocence triggers both my protective instincts and an untapped passion I didn’t know I possessed.

“Good morning.”

My head snaps up with an automatic grin to greet the smiling girl in the kitchen doorway. She’s a vision, wearing one of my t-shirts and an old pair of plaid boxers Mom gave me for Christmas years ago. Some women look better the more they glam up with makeup and fancy hairstyles. Elena’s dewy, freshly washed face and messily wavy hair makes her look like some sort of nature goddess who tiptoes through wildflower meadows.

“Coffee?”

“Thanks.” I pour her a mug, then plate up breakfast. “This looks amazing, thank you.” She takes a bite of toast, then her eyes roll back. “Oh my god, even the bread is better in this town.”

I sit beside her with my own plate. “Small-town life isn’t for everyone. But most of us here think it’s the best way to live.”

She nods, then her eyes snap wide. “Oh! I’m not working today, but I have to go into town. I left in such a hurry I didn’t pay my bill at the Inn.”

“I took care of that.”

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