Page 35 of Scorched King

Her head dropped. “Please don’t. You didn’t do this. It’s not your fault, and I would never blame you.”

“You should.” The pain of telling her to blame me lanced deep. Deep enough to leave a scar on my soul. Though honestly, what difference would another one make among all the others?

“No.” She straightened her shoulders. “I won’t do that. There is only one man to blame.”

That wasn’t exactly true, but I wasn’t quite ready to tell her that someone close to her might have had a hand in her injuries. I wanted to find out who and rip them from her life for good first.

“Then show me.”

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Sasha

I couldn’t move as his barely audible command ricocheted through my head. The guilt on his face so much more painful than I’d expected. It might have been easier if he was repulsed by me. Or didn’t care…

No, that wasn’t true. As confusing as the man could be, his continued indifference would kill me. But that look in his eyes right now would haunt me if I didn’t do something to fix it.

Without breaking eye contact, I released my death grip on the suitcase and reached for my pajama buttons to obey. Fear sizzled through my mind. The idea that I was about to expose myself to him in a way that could result in disaster made my chest ache.

My fingers moved achingly slow, undoing each button until nothing was left but to pull it off.

I took a breath, hoping it would calm me. It didn’t. My heart was beating so fast it scared me. I could do this, I reminded myself.

Closing my eyes, I turned around and braced myself for his reaction. Then I dropped my shirt to the floor. I wasn’t sure what I expected, but the resulting silence unnerved me. We both just stood there, not saying a word. My naked back now the elephant in the room.

Something always stood between us, getting in the way. My job, his job, my feelings, his past…. and now this.

My heart raced as I waited for him to say or do anything. Only when I heard the click of his boots against the wood floor did I manage a single shallow breath.

His footfalls ceased just behind me and I practically felt his gaze raking over my exposed back. A shiver worked over me as nothing but the sound of his breathing filled the space around me.

“You are still as beautiful as ever,” he said, his voice dark and husky as it worked over me. “Nothing could ever take that away from you.”

His praise made me want to melt into the floor as my knees weakened and I struggled to stay upright. If only he touched me, then maybe I would believe him. He had no idea how much I ached for that.

As if reading my mind, his fingers landed at the base of my neck, sending an arc of awareness burning down my spine. Slowly he worked them down, following the grooves left behind by the fire.

“I’d do anything—kill anyone to take the pain these caused away from you.”

I sucked in a breath, a whimper slipping from my lips at the same time. There were words I should have formed, but his touch made me breathless. And I never wanted it to stop.

I’d thought any touch there would not feel good, but I’d never been more wrong in my life. His touch. His words. They were exhilarating. Erotic. And I was desperate for them.

He moved his hand back and forth across my back, tracing every line, rubbing up against the waistband of my pants. All while I thought I would die if he stopped. The low ache already pulsing between my legs sharpened and I knew if he reached inside he would discover how wet I’d become—for him.

My nipples pebbled, and I couldn’t decide whether I was relieved or disappointed that they were hidden from him. I’d already pictured the roughness of his hands on my aching flesh, but the reality was so much better than the dream or the memory from so long ago.

I hadn’t forgotten, but?—

“Please,” I breathed before I could stop myself. I wasn’t even sure anymore of what I was asking for. But he was. He always knew and this time—he gave it to me.

When the soft touch of his lips and the slight scratch of his beard hit my back, I gasped. To hide my response would be impossible at this point. My panties were getting wetter by the second and the ache building behind my clit becoming almost unbearable.

I wanted to die and live at the same time. But was it too much to ask for him to… I couldn’t finish that thought. Not when the answer to the question could be the final crushing blow I feared. I was too fragile over this. The agony of realizing his touch,though heavenly, came from guilt rather than desire made everything so much worse.

And yet, I made no move to stop this. I couldn’t.

“Put your hands on the wall, baby.” The words were spoken so close to my skin, I almost didn’t hear them. And were followed by the touch of his tongue to my tender back. My knees were weak, buckling under the weight of both of our desire. He wrapped one arm around my waist and supported me until I did as instructed and placed both palms flat on the wall in front of me to steady myself.

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