Page 59 of Property of Anchor

He pulled a burger from the bag and handed it to me.“You need higher standards, doll.”

We ate in silence for a bit, the sounds of the action movie playing on the TV blending with the occasional crunch of a fry or a sip of soda.I didn’t know what movie it was.I didn’t care.Sitting next to him, eating greasy food and brushing shoulders every few bites, it felt easy.Like maybe there was a version of this where everything outside didn’t exist.Where there weren’t bodies washing up or danger lurking on the edges of the island.

When we were done, Anchor stood, gathered all the wrappers and trash, and tossed them in the bin before coming back to where I was curled up on the couch.I watched him turn off the TV and then walk straight toward me.

He held out a hand.“Come on.”

I blinked.“To bed?Already?You turning into Bernice?”

A low huff came from his chest.“You comparing me to an eighty-year-old woman?”

I smirked and placed my hand in his.“If the orthopedic slipper fits…”

His fingers closed around mine and, in one fluid motion, he pulled me to my feet.But instead of walking me to the bed, he wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed me like he hadn’t gotten enough of me yet.

I melted.

His mouth was warm and familiar now but still managed to knock every single thought from my brain.I threaded my fingers into his hair, pulling him closer, moaning into the kiss when his hands slid under the hem of his shirt I wore.

By the time we reached the bed, I didn’t care about the time, or the movie, or whether Bernice would hear anything from her cabin.All I cared about was him.

Us.

Here.

Now.

“I just want you close, doll,” he murmured, his voice low and rough.“Don’t care if we sleep or not.”

My knees went soft.This man had a way of making me feel treasured and wanted in the same breath.

He guided me backward until the backs of my legs hit the edge of the bed.I sat, and he sank to his knees in front of me, his fingers gliding up my thighs slowly, reverently.I sucked in a breath as he pushed the shirt higher and placed a kiss on the inside of my knee.

“You like wearing my clothes?”he murmured against my skin.

“I wasn’t planning to,” I whispered, and my voice caught as his mouth worked higher, soft and teasing.“But now I’m never taking them off.”

His dark eyes lifted to mine.“We’ll see about that.”

His hands gripped the hem of the shirt and tugged.I raised my arms, and he pulled it over my head and dropped it on the floor.I was bare beneath it, just the way he liked me.

“Fucking hell, Pearl,” he growled as his eyes drank me in.“You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

My body flushed at his words.My hands moved under his shirt, and my fingers traced the ridges of his abs and up to his chest.He let me pull it off him, and the moment it hit the floor, I leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his lips.

Anchor groaned, and his hands threaded into my hair.

“Get up here,” I whispered.

He didn’t need to be told twice.He climbed onto the bed, and I crawled back, lying down as he moved over me and braced himself on his elbows.Our lips met in a slow, needy kiss.His tongue swept into my mouth, tasting and taking as his body settled over mine, hot and heavy and perfect.

“I want to go slow,” he murmured against my lips.“Wanna feel every inch of you.”

My whole body shivered.

He kissed down my neck, across my collarbone, and down the slope of my breast.His mouth closed around one nipple while his hand teased the other.I arched into him, and my legs parted to invite him closer.

“Anchor…” I breathed as my hands fisted in the sheets.

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