Page 65 of Rebound

“I hear you, but I assure you that I have thought about it, Amber. I will give you time and space if that’s what you need, but I don’t. You are the one I choose. And I know it will take practice, that it won’t be as simple as choosing you every single time, but I will do the work. If it helps, we could, I don’t know, maybe look at getting some counseling?” His voice, so confident throughout most of his speech, falters with that last sentence, and I laugh, surprised.

“I’m almost tempted to say yes just to see you on a therapist’s couch. I see from the state of your knuckles that you’ve been indulging in your normal therapy and punching things?”

He shrugs and nods. “What can I say? I like punching things.”

“I know you do. Ha, you and counseling… You know it would only work if the whole family came along, right? Your dad, Mason, Maddox, Drake, Nathan… Maybe even Luke. All the James boys together.”

He grins and rubs his hand over his beard. “Yeah. We’re gonna need a bigger couch.” The joke is weak, but it breaks some of the tension. “I love you in this Ramones shirt, by the way. Why did you tell me you’d thrown it away?”

There’s no point in lying about it now. “I thought keeping it made me look weak. I didn’t want you to think I’d gone soft, so I hid it and only wore it when you were away. It made me feel safe… even when you didn’t.”

He swallows, and I know that must have hurt. But it wasn’t said out of spite, and I’m so tired of hiding. “Right. And you wore it last night, after I let you down. I promise you, I’ll do everything in my power to never let you down again.”

“You can’t promise me that, Elijah. Just like I can’t promise you I’ll never be a cold bitch again or that I’ll never shut you out again. We’ve both played our part in where we are now. Breaking our marriage was a team sport.”

He murmurs something that might be agreement, and I realize I’ve started to run my fingers through his chest hair. My leg has slipped over his thighs as we talked, and his breath is coming a little heavier. I can feel his heart booming inside his rib cage. My hand slides down his chest and glides across his taut abs. He sucks in air as I reach lower.

“Jesus, baby, I’m sorry,” he mutters. “That’s fucking embarrassing.”

His cock is solid under his boxers, straining and twitching beneath my feather-light touch. “Why embarrassing?” I ask, a slow flutter thrumming in my core.

“Because of the way I behaved yesterday—because of what you went through with Freddie. I stayed to look after you, but now I have a raging hard-on. I’m pretty damn sure that’s the last thing you need.”

It should be, I know. I should be running from the room or kicking him out of bed. But, well, I’m not. In fact, my hand has drifted inside his boxers. I stroke his shaft, exploring its rock-hard length. My fingers caress his heavy balls, and he moans. “Amber, sweetheart, please stop.”

“Why?” I rock gently against his side, my pussy rubbing against him in a way that makes my whole body pulse.

“Because if you don’t stop, I’m going to end up fucking you, and I don’t think that would be right.”

“Really?” I whisper, rubbing the head of his cock and finding a drop of pre-cum to massage away. “This doesn’t feel right to you?”

“Of course it fucking does.” He sounds anguished as he places his hand over mine as though to move it away from him. “But?—”

“But now I’m too damaged to fuck, is that it, Elijah?” I sit up and look him in the eyes. “Let me tell you something—Freddie Kemp is not going to win. Freddie Kemp is a disgusting pervert, and he is not going to stop me from enjoying sex. I don’t want the last cock I touch to be his. I want… I wantyou, Elijah.”

Under the covers, I tug off my panties and pull down his boxers, then climb on top of him. I’m already wet, my pussy slipping along his shaft as I writhe, desperate to be filled. “This might not make sense, Elijah, but I need this. No matter what happens between us long-term, I need this from you now. I need you to help me chase his memory away. Can you do that for me?”

I work my hips slowly, coating him in my arousal. He pulls the shirt off me and throws it to the floor, staring at my pussy all the time. “Yeah, I can do that for you. Fuck, look at you… so wet already. Ride me, Amber. Slide yourself onto me. I’m all yours.”

I’m more than ready for him, and I sigh as I hit the right angle and impale myself on his impressive length. I hold my breath, lowering myself onto him completely, feeling deliciously stretched and full. He keeps his big hands on my waist, and his eyes are intense as I move. He normally likes to be more in charge than this, and I can see him battling his own instincts, but he gives me control.

The pressure builds quickly, my clit throbbing with every thrust of my hips. He doesn’t even need to touch me there; the friction between us is already setting me on fire. He glides his hands up my body, palms my breasts, and pinches my nipples in exactly the way I like. “God, you’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I can feel you squeezing me, baby. Fuck, that’s so good.”

I love the way he looks under me, his huge, muscular physique splayed on my bed, his eyes hazy with lust. I put my hands on his shoulders and increase my pace. He leans up and sucks a nipple into his mouth, and it’s enough to push me over the edge.

“Elijah!” I cry out, my nails digging into his flesh as I come. Ripples of pure bliss wash over me, my hips jerking.

He growls and, in one slick move, roughly positions me underneath him, keeping his cock inside me the whole time. I gasp in surprise, and he pauses. “Is this okay?” he asks softly as I wrap my trembling legs around his ass.

“Yes, it’s okay. Fuck me, Elijah. Fuck me hard.”

He puts his hands on either side of my head and looks me in the eye. “Ready?” he asks, grinning wickedly.

He doesn’t give me a chance to answer—he takes my breath away as he begins to rail into me. I grab his shoulders, holding on for dear life as he nails me to the mattress. Speed, power, and a massive cock—the lethal combination soon has me screaming his name and coming yet again.

Our sweat-slickened bodies slide together. “I. Fucking. Love. You,” he grunts as he thrusts. Then he stills, finding his release, looking magnificent and wild. After he collapses beside me, he immediately scoops me into his arms. He knows I’m a flight risk and doesn’t seem to want to let me go.

I settle on his chest, letting myself enjoy the moment. “You seem tired,” I tease. “I think you need to work on your cardio.” He slaps me firmly on the ass, which is what I was hoping for. I like the pleasant sting it spreads over my skin.

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