Page 35 of Bear
And even though I definitely shouldn’t, I allow my eyes to slam shut for a moment, letting the feel of her beneath me sink into my skin. Into my bones. Into every blasted fucking part of my body. Fuck, the way she smells like tropical fruit and fucking heaven. I want to bury my face in her neck and inhale her like she’s a drug, and I need my next hit more than I need air.
Lennon’s breaths come shallow and quick, and when I open my eyes, her desire-filled gaze pins me in much the way my body pins hers. I can’t fucking move. Don’t want to.
And then, out of nowhere, she shifts, and her pussy brushes my dick. My gaze snaps to her eyes, a swirling sea of deep-blue emotion. I can’t tell what she’s thinking, but fuck. I wanna say she’s turned-on. She moves again, the softest of moans escaping her.No. This is wrong.But fire sizzles through my veins, and I can’t help myself. Out of my mind and letting my dick do all my thinking, I thrust against her. “Fuuuck,” I breathe out.
Her eyes are wild, and I imagine mine are, too. We don’t say another fucking word, but we begin to move, grinding together like our lives depend on it. I give in to my earlier desire, nudging my nose from her collarbone up her neck. Inhaling deeply, I groan aloud.
I rock against her, and when I come up for air, I see it written all over her face. She’s quickly coming un-fucking-done. Her body chases mine, stroke for stroke, seeking friction.
Thrusting roughly against her, I give her what she needs, then lower my head to her breast, sucking her nipple into my mouth through the thin material of her tank top. Her back arches. She’s so fucking beautiful.
“Stella. Fuck, you’re killing me,” I grit out, unable to contain my thoughts anymore.
She blinks and squeezes my hands. Both of our bodies come to an agonizing halt. “Whydoyou call me Stella?” Panted breaths fall from between her lips as she stares up at me in question.
She can’t ever fucking know the answer to that.Fuck.Anger at my own actions surges through me, but I can’t resist taking things one step further. I close my mouth over the wet patch I’d made and bite her breast at the same time I thrust hard against her clit. A gasped moan spills from her lips as she looks at me through dazed eyes.
I push myself off her, climb from the bed, and point to the door. “Get out. I can’t fucking do this. Not with you.”
Anddefinitelynot to-fucking-day.
EIGHTEEN
BEAR
I standin the middle of the hallway, my eyes trained on the ceiling, though I don’t know why. I’m not Superman. I don’t have X-ray vision, and what I am is goddamn tired. I shake my head, chewing on my lip for a moment.
After Lennon asked if she could be the one to try to speak to Duke, I hadn’t exactly wanted to head upstairs to the attic for two distinct reasons. One, with the state Duke had been in, I wasn’t sure if I’d have to come to Lennon’s rescue or not, if he’d be angry that she wanted to be the one to check on him. Because damn. Mason and Duke? I hadn’t seen that coming. Maybe I should have. Hell, I don’t know.
And two, I figured Mason would need some time to cool down or flip out on his own or whatever the fuck he decided he needed to do to deal with his shit. I doubt I read things wrong. With a few choice words, Duke rejected whatever went on between the two of them. Harsh. And I think Mason is really hurting.
I can’t quite tell what Duke’s feeling. Embarrassment? Anxiety over secrets being spilled? Who knows with him, he keeps everything so tight to his chest.
So, with Lennon entering the lion’s den to try to soothe Duke and Mason up in the attic doing god knows what, I took the world’s fastest shower, then kept an ear out. Leaving my door open, I’d laid on the bed with a book I’d been meaning to get back into. At first, it had been relatively quiet. But then, not only could I hear some muffled sounds from above, like Mason was shoving things across the floor and throwing shit, but also some sharp-toned voices sounded from next door. Which direction do I move first? Who needs me more? This is like one of those comics where the superhero has to decide whether to save his girl or the train of people heading for certain disaster. Like I said, I’m not fucking Superman. I’m not fast enough to be in two places at once, so I don’t know how to manage the clusterfuck developing around me.
Duke’s door whips open behind me, and I spin on my heel, my heart slamming into my stomach. Lennon emerges, but doesn’t see me standing here, that much is obvious from the way she slumps against the closed door, hands over her face. At six foot six, I’m damn hard to miss, which tells me she’s way too preoccupied by whatever transpired in that room. After taking a few deep breaths, she drops her hands, shaking her head. As soon as she does, she practically leaps into the air with a terrified shriek.
I grimace, holding my hands palm out in front of me. “Sorry,” I grunt, “I was trying not to scare you, but you didn’t see me when you came outta there.” My gaze travels to the door behind her. “What the fuck happened?”
Lennon huffs out an unamused laugh, her eyes a dull version of the sparkling blue they usually are. “Just my stepbrother being his usual charming self.” She presses her lips together, but she can’t hide the hurt seeping from her pores. Not from me. She glances down the hallway to be certain we’re alone before murmuring in a low voice, “I’m fine. I really don’t think he is, though. I don’t know how to help him, or if I’m even able to. In fact, I might be the last person who can.” A visible tremor moves through her body, and she comes toward me, stopping to tip her chin up so she can look into my eyes. “What kind of shit dayisthis?”
The worst, honestly. And it seems like one crappy event after another is piling up on us. Eventually, the mountain of bullshit will crumble, burying us in the landslide.
I don’t say a word but draw her into my arms right as a loud bang sounds overhead. Blowing out a breath, I press my lips into her hair, mumbling, “I haven’t been up there yet. I was trying to respect his privacy, but he’s starting to worry me.”
Her gaze moves between Duke’s door and the one to the attic, behind which Mason hides. “You really think…?”
“Yeah.” I rest my head on top of hers. “The more I think about it, yes, I do. I should have seen it before. The tension between them has been thick for a long time.”
A huge thud sounds from above, followed by another. And another. Both pairs of our eyes dart to the ceiling. Lennon visibly jerks when something crashes to the floor. “I should go up there,” she whispers. Her fingers dig into my abs where she’s holding onto me.
I rear back, setting her apart from me, and grasp her chin with my fingers, bending a bit so that we’re on a more even eye level. My brows pull together as I stare into her worried eyes. “No. No you fucking shouldn’t.”
“But—”
“Are you out of your fucking mind?” I growl, cutting her off. She flinches, and my eyes crash shut. I exhale hard as I open them again, reconnecting our gazes. “I’m sorry, but I think that’s a terrible idea after the last two times you’ve been in his space. I don’t want to risk another damn catastrophe smacking us upside the head today.” When she purses her lips, and I can see she’s getting ready to argue, I bite out, “I’m sorry, Lennon, but look at what we’ve already had to work through tonight. Duke’s upset. You were sleepwalking. The entire brotherhood’s yapping their fucking mouths.” I swallow hard. “Duke and Mason. And it’s only”—I withdraw my phone and glance at the time—“five in the fucking morning. Who knows what else will be thrown our way today. But you could sleep three hours if you go to bed now. You should.”
Her chest rises with her inhale, and her eyes flutter shut as she breathes out, “But… what about you?”
