Page 80 of Saved By the Boss

Her voice cracks on the last word, and the raw terror in her tone cuts through me like a knife. I clench my fists, anger boiling up inside me, hot and uncontrollable. It’s the same kind of bullshit my brother believed in, the same kind of thing I was trying to move our business away from.

He thought that if we kept people living in fear, they’d do whatever we wanted. He loved to threaten people, to remind them that he was in charge and there was nothing they could do to stop him. His ego went unchecked, which landed him in prison. And even that couldn’t teach him the error of his ways.

“You don’t deserve this, Jade,” I murmur into her hair. “No one does, but least of all you. You are good and kind and so loving. Let me help you. Let me protect you.”

She looks up at me, her eyes wide and full of uncertainty. “Declan, I can’t ask you to get involved in this. We barely know each other. You shouldn’t have to deal with my problems.”

I put my finger under her chin, gently turning her face up so she has no choice but to look at me. “Maybe we haven’t spent a lot of time together, but in the last month since we were snowed in, I haven’t gone more than an hour without thinking about you. You’re not someone I just met, Jade. You’re important to me. And I’ll be damned if I let anyone hurt you.”

Her lip trembles, and for a moment, I think she’s going to argue. But instead, she leans forward, curling into my arms. I hold her tightly, feeling the way her body shakes against mine.

“You don’t have to be scared anymore,” I murmur into her hair. “I’ve got you. And I’m not going anywhere.”

The words seem to break something in her, and she lets out a quiet sob. Her hands clutch at my shirt, like she’s afraid I might disappear.

“I didn’t think I’d ever feel safe again,” she whispers, her voice muffled against my chest.

I press a kiss to the top of her head, my own heart pounding as I hold her. “You’re safe now, Jade. I promise.”

21

Jade

Tears blur my vision as I look up at him, his green eyes searching mine, his expression raw and open in a way that makes my heart ache. I don’t know when I started crying, but I can feel the wetness on my cheeks, warm against the cool air of the cabin.

“You have no idea how you make me feel,” I whisper, my voice trembling but steady enough to carry the weight of what I’m saying. “I do feel safe with you, but it’s so much more. I haven’t stopped thinking about you either.”

His hand cups my face so gently it makes my chest tighten, like he’s afraid I’ll shatter if he presses too hard. To be fair, it’s entirely possible I will. His thumb brushes away a tear, his touch leaving a trail of warmth against my skin. For a moment, we just stay like this, the silence between us charged but not uncomfortable. Our silence speaks louder than words, filling the space with everything we’re too scared to say out loud.

Then, slowly, he leans in. His lips brush against mine, soft and tentative, as if he’s giving me one last chance to pull away.But I don’t. I press into him, closing the distance, and the kiss deepens, turns desperate and full of everything we’ve been holding back. His tongue finds mine, the two dancing against each other in a battle for dominance. I’m still sitting on his lap, and I can feel his desire literally grow underneath me, but he doesn’t push me.

His arms wrap around me, pulling me closer, and I feel like I’m melting into him, like the rest of the world doesn’t exist beyond this moment. It’s just us. His lips, his hands, the heat of his body against mine. My hands slide up to his shoulders, my fingers threading through the short hair at the nape of his neck, and I let myself get lost in him.

The kiss turns more urgent, his hands moving down my back, pulling me flush against him. Every nerve in my body feels like it’s on fire, and I can’t think straight. All I know is that I want him. Here. Now.

“I need to feel you inside me,” I say, breathless. Without a word, he gets up, clearing our plates and drinks off the table and moving them over to the kitchen island. He stalks back over to me and grabs my hips, lifting me up so I’m sitting on the edge of the table. He stands over me, his large body dwarfing mine, his hard-on tenting underneath his jeans. I quickly undo his belt and pants, pulling them down with a desperate urgency to touch him, to taste him. I look up at him with innocent eyes as I carefully stroke his dick. He lets out a long moan, his hands slamming down on the table beside me to support his weight.

“You’re going to be the death of me,” he jokes, as I sink down to the floor and pull him as far into my mouth as he’ll go, covering the rest of him with my hands, not letting a single inch of him go untouched.

“Fuck,” he groans, his hand moving to tangle in my hair. “You’re so fucking good at that.”

I’m nearly choking on him now, lost in the excitement of bringing him pleasure, but he grabs my hair firmly, pulling me away.

“As good at that feels, I need to be inside of you,” he breathes. “It’s been too fucking long.”

I nod, slipping off my clothes and moving back onto the table, my legs spread wide for him. I’m desperate for him, aching for him, and he doesn’t keep me waiting.

He thrusts inside of me easily, my pussy already so wet for him. He pulls at my legs until they’re resting against his broad shoulders. He moves deep inside of me, slowly at first, torturously. I open my eyes to look at him and he’s smiling, a big shit-eating grin that tells me he knows how good this feels.

But I don’t want slow right now, and I tell him so. I reach one hand down between my legs, touching my clit. I move my other hand to grab and pull at his lovely locks, egging him on to go wild on me. I cry out, writhing and squirming as he picks up his pace, slamming into me with each thrust. He grabs my hand, holding it against my leg, as if to tell me that he’s got it covered. I lay back against the cold, hard table and let him show me exactly how proficient he is, screaming out with each new thrust.

Our bodies rock together, quickly slickening from sweat as the cabin seems to heat up around us. I hold onto his hand with one hand while the other wraps in my own hair, just to find some purchase, to keep me grounded. Whenever I open my eyes to look at him, he’s staring at me with unbridled lust, nearly salivating.

I readjust, moving my legs so they’re wrapped around his waist, pinning him against me, pulling him deeper. I pull him down so he’s covering me, his chest moving against mine as he continues his deep exploration inside of me. I’m so wound up and so emotional, it doesn’t take much longer for him to completely undo me. The moment his hand moves between us to massage my clit, my body begins shaking with the force of my orgasm. He can’t hold on much longer, but he doesn’t stop his movements until I see stars behind my eyes.

“Holy shit,” I breathe after a moment, my eyes slowly starting to readjust to the room around me. “That was, by far, our best round.” I laugh, propping myself up on my elbows to meet his lips.

He pulls me off of the table toward the fire, pulling me down onto the fuzzy rug and covering my body with kisses. We lay on the floor by the fire later, the heat of the flames wrapping around us as we catch our breath. I’m tucked against his side, my head resting on his chest, and his fingers trace lazy patterns along my arm. I feel weightless, like all the burdens I’ve been carrying have been stripped away, if only for a little while.

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