Page 86 of Afraid to Hope

Natasha shimmied out of her shorts as she rode each thrust, trying to pick up the pace, aching for release that was so close, panting furiously.

“No, sweetheart.” He pulled his fingers from her and sucked on them, his eyes locked on hers. With his other hand he pulled off his athletic shorts.

A whimper escaped Natasha. Bane was masculine grace, magnificence, and the sight of him wanting her had her on edge. “Please, babe.”

Bane took her hand and led her to the bed, still sucking on his fingers, motioning with his eyes that he wanted her to lie down. He withdrew his fingers from his mouth and climbed onto the bed, hovering over her, panting. He stilled and his eyes glowed, pinning hers. Trust and love pulsed between them. Natasha stilled and their breaths merged into one just before their mouths crashed together, and Bane thrust deep into her, taking them both over the edge.

Natasha sat up and inhaled the morning air sharply between her teeth. Jesus. She felt as if an elephant had trampled her.

“Hold on,” Bane said, hopping out of bed naked and wide awake.

Natasha hurt everywhere despite falling asleep feeling like putty after two rounds of soul-shattering sex with Bane. She heard the shower go on before he came back out of the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. “Swallow,” he said, handing her water and white pills and watching her with concern.

“What are these?”

“Acetaminophen. You fell harder than you realized last night. Sorry my massage didn’t help much, sweetheart. Give it twenty minutes to kick in. Can you handle a hot shower if I help you in?”

She smiled. “Yes, thanks. I’m just a little stiff.”

He raised his eyebrows.

“Fine. Very stiff.”

“And?”

“Mighty sore,” she admitted as he helped her secure her hair up and step into the shower.

“I’ll be right back. Breakfast is on downstairs. Something baked?”

“Yes, please.”

“Tea or coffee?”

“Whatever. Thanks.”

“Nat…”

Her heart flipped and her breath caught. His face was full of concern. For her.

“Stay in until I can help you out, okay?”

Natasha studied the suds gathering around her feet with moist eyes, overcome with emotion, not trusting herself to look at him, and nodded.

She felt better after the shower and the acetaminophen kicked in.

Bane insisted on checking her over again and massaged some ointment into her back that he claimed was magic.

By the time they went downstairs to have a second breakfast, Natasha’s pain had dulled considerably and most of her stiffness had disappeared. She moved more freely, and that impacted her outlook.

“We’ll keep you moving so you don’t stiffen up, and you’ll need to take more acetaminophen through the day,” he said, trailing her up the steps to their room. They were staying another night before leaving for Ouarzazate in the morning after picking up a rental.

She unlocked their door and stepped in. “Yes, doctor.”

Bane chuckled and kissed her upon entering the room.

“So let’s get to work. I was mulling things over in the shower. What if the item is the codex we’re to find and repatriate? We already know this artifact is in Italy.” She hugged him before sitting on the bed. “Let’s see what else we can determine from Amastan’s and the warehouse logs.”

“That’s it. I’ve gone through all of them.” Bane closed the tablet and pushed back from the desk, leaning the chair on its hind legs. “How’re you doing?” He settled the chair on all four legs and reached for Natasha, pulling her into his lap and pushing her wild hair away from her delicate face, looking into eyes that captivated him. Right now they were a cloudy gray, and she smiled, trying to mask the pain showing in them. “You’re hurting again.”

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