Page 33 of Fractured Trust

Summer’s heart was flinging itself against her ribs, and she struggled to breathe. “No,” she said. “No. I don’t believe it.”

Hurt and anger bloomed across Noah’s face, and he gave a humorless laugh. “Yeah, you’ve got a bad habit of believing in everyone else but me.”

But his bitter words barely registered as Summer dropped his hand and backed away, clutching her stomach, and shaking her head. “I don’t believe it. He wouldn’t do that to me. He wouldn’t.”

Noah stepped forward and grabbed her by the shoulders. “Just fucking trust me for once. Why is it so hard for you to believe that I’m telling you the truth?”

Summer was trembling so much she was surprised her teeth weren’t rattling together. She looked up at his tortured blue eyes, and her own welled with more tears. “Because that means I spent the last eleven years married to a stranger. If I believe you, it means the last decade of my life has been a lie. It means”—a sob tore from her throat—“it means I h-hurt you for no reason.”

She pulled away from him, and when Noah took a step toward her again, she held her hand up to stop him. Her emotions were too raw right at that moment to handle his touch. If he so much as brushed his fingers across her skin, she thought she might fall apart.

They stared at each other, pain and anger and regret swirling in the air between them.

Noah shook his head. “I need to go, Summer. I need… I just need to think.” He took a step forward but then stopped, dragging his hand down his face. “But this isn’t over. We need to talk about this. We need to talk about Deacon.”

She nodded, feeling like her world was tilting on its axis. She thought maybe she should stop him. Should say something—dosomething—to try to ease the hurt that pulsed between them. But she needed space as well. It was all too much—too overwhelming. So, she just watched him as he strode to the door, hesitated with his hand on the handle, then opened it and stepped out, letting it swing shut behind him.

Summer closed her eyes, a shudder rippling through her. Her head was a mess. She couldn’t even begin to process her emotions right now. She walked shakily to the door and was reaching for the latch when a hard bang rattled the hinges. When she looked through the peephole, all she could see were wide shoulders, a muscular chest. She took a shaky breath, then turned the handle and swung the door open. “Noah, what are—” It was all she got out because he took one step forward, buried his hands in her hair, and slammed his mouth down on hers.

She didn’t know whether it was instinct or muscle memory that parted her lips. She didn’t know if it was shock or desire that made her whimper as he took control. And she didn’t know how she’d ever gone a day without the taste of him on her tongue.

Chapter 14

The taste of Summer slammed through Noah’s senses, familiar, intoxicating, the way it always had been. The wayshealways had been.

The kiss wasn’t sweet, or gentle. There was anger in it, frustration, want and regret. Every emotion that had assaulted him tonight. He’d tried to walk away, to give them both time to make sense of what they’d found out, but his heart had pounded in his chest, out of rhythm, every discordant beat making his skin itch with need. He’d turned back, desperate for her touch, his mouth on hers—the way he always had been.

And even as his pulse continued to hammer in his throat, the emotions that cascaded through him were soothed by the silk of her hair between his fingers, the softness of her lips, the press of her breasts against his chest.

He groaned, raising his hands to her cheeks and tilting her head back, so he could deepen the kiss. Her hands were fisted in his shirt, her body arching up against him. If he didn’t get her back in her apartment soon, he was going to rip that flimsy little dress off her, reach down to unbutton his jeans, pull his cock out, and shove aside her panties, so he could push up into her. So he could reclaim everything that had once been his, right there in the hallway.

When she moaned and tugged on his shirt to pull him closer, he maneuvered her backward into her apartment. Not taking his mouth from hers, he kicked the door closed behind him and navigated them across the room to her couch.

“Noah,” she gasped. Her voice was breathy, the sound of her arousal so familiar it made his heart rate spike, even as his cock jerked with need for her. He wanted inside her, was fucking desperate to have her under him again. But he couldn’t. As much as he wanted to, this wasn’t the right time. They were both too hurt—too emotionally bruised.

He couldn’t fuck her tonight. The revelation of what Deacon had done infuriated him beyond measure, but how much worse for her. If he did what he wanted, she’d be all in. He could tell by the way she licked at his mouth, the way her nails dug into his side, the way she rubbed herself against him. But he knew her too well. Knew that while she needed the distraction right now, needed to not think just for a little while, after it was over, the memory of what she’d found out would come rushing back, and she’d pull away, retreat into herself, question what they’d done.

But he wasn’t going to leave without giving them both something they needed. He wasn’t going home without at least having a taste of her.

He picked her up and lay her down on the couch, settling himself over her. His fingers moved to the neckline of her dress, hooking into it, and pulling it down to expose her lace-covered breasts. He groaned at the sight of her nipples, tight and straining against the sheer material. After tugging both cups down as well, he lowered his lips and sucked a hardened peak into his mouth, using his tongue and teeth on first one, then the other, until she was gasping and arching up into him.

She’d always had sensitive breasts, and nothing had changed. As he continued lavishing attention on them, her hips started to grind up against his, and if he didn’t get what he wanted from her soon, he might just end up coming in his pants like a teenager. With one hand, he reached down and grabbed the hem of her dress, yanking it up.

He released her nipple with a pop, then sat back, so he could tug her panties down and off, cursing under his breath when her body was revealed to his hungry gaze for the first time in eleven years. Fuck, she was gorgeous. Just as gorgeous as he remembered. More so. The caveman in him wanted to fucking beat his chest, grunt outmine, and simply take what he needed from her. But that was going to have to wait. He had no doubt he was going to be inside her again soon. He just needed to control himself for a bit longer.

Summer was staring up at him, wide-eyed. “Noah,” she whimpered. “I need you. I need—”

“I know what you need, Sunshine.”

He ran his hands up her slender thighs until he reached her core, his thumbs brushing over her satin skin as he parted her. She was already slippery with arousal, and he wasn’t prepared to wait any longer to get a taste. With a possessive growl, he lowered his head and took one long swipe with his tongue, from her opening to her clit. Their groans echoed out at the same time.

Noah slid his tongue over her again and again, unable to get enough of the taste of her. Then he slipped a finger deep inside. Fuck, she was tight and needy, her internal muscles clenching at the intrusion. After a few thrusts, he eased another finger in while he continued to stroke her with his tongue. Summer’s hands clenched in his hair and her hips bucked up against his mouth.

Still driving his fingers in and out of her, he looked up, to see her eyes on him, her lips parted as she panted, the prettiest fucking flush he’d ever seen spreading over her cheekbones.

“You’re going to come for me now, Summer,” he said, his voice rough. “And when you do, I’m going to lick up every single drop. And I’m not going to stop, I’m going to keep fucking you with my fingers, and licking your sweet little clit until you come again. I think it’s only fair since I haven’t had a taste of you in so fucking long.”

She inhaled sharply and her inner walls fluttered around his fingers as he pressed them deep. She was close. He dropped his head back down and drew her clit between his lips, licking and sucking it over and over again until Summer cried out, her hips stuttering up against his mouth as she clamped down around him.

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