Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 58564 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 293(@200wpm)___ 234(@250wpm)___ 195(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58564 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 293(@200wpm)___ 234(@250wpm)___ 195(@300wpm)
And yet he had.
And now there was no forgetting it.
"You really were an arse back then," she told him tremulously. "And I wish, if only for my sake, you had stayed that way." She saw his gaze narrow demandingly at her, a silent command to explain herself plainly, and a smile wobbled its way to her lips. She instinctively knew that was just the start, a stolen glimpse of the days she would share with him—-
Me, Tarzan, you, Jane.
But instead of filling Pippi with trepidation, the thought of having this domineering man command every second of her life simply made a sensual shiver run down her spine.
"You don't get it, do you?"
The faint hint of laughter in her voice made Acheron feel like giving her bum a good, hard slap. "Just spell it out, dammit—-"
"I'm saying I understand you want me...but you're not in love with me."
All hopes he had of having Pippilotta Jones in his life expired in an instant. "Pippi..." He raked a hand through his hair. What she was saying was the truth, but goddammit, hearing her say it worried him like hell. "I know I'm not exactly the most trustworthy man on the planet—-"
"And I'm okay with that."
"But before you make any rash decisions—-" He broke off when Pippi's last words finally hit him.
"What was that again?"
"If you had stayed an arse..." Pippi's voice shook a little at the effort it took her to overcome her reticence and speak from the heart. "I would always have managed to keep my distance. But then you changed..." The smile that curved over her lips was the most beautiful thing Acheron had ever seen. "If you promise it will be just me—-"
"You have my word."
He had spoken the words so swiftly Pippi couldn't help feeling just the tiniest bit...giddy, and the realization filled her with both terror and awe at the same time. Am I doing the right thing here, God?
Her gaze returned to Acheron, taking in the proud, beautiful lines of his face, and she felt even more overwhelmed.
Acheron saw hesitation flicker in her eyes, and he said fiercely, "I'm not lying." He slowly reached for her, a part of him already expecting her to refuse his touch...but she didn't, and his chest tightened as she let him pull her towards him. "You're the only one for me, Pippilotta Jones."
Their bodies touched, the contact making him suck in his breath, and Pippi gasped. But it was the naked truth in his eyes that made her whole being melt -—
"Say you believe me, mikrí mou."
Her eyes stung at the enormity of what he was asking, but deep down inside her, she already knew that what he was asking for had already been his the moment he showed up dressed like a cop at her doorstep.
"I do." Her smile was tremulous, but her soft, firm voice rang with sincerity. "I trust you, Acheron."
The sound of his name on her lips was more potent than any aphrodisiac, and a shudder ran over Acheron's powerful frame. "Goddammit, Pippi." Sexual tension underlined the muttered words, and he couldn't stop himself from tightening his hold on her waist. "Do you know what you're doing to me?"
"Probably the same thing you're doing to me," she admitted with a smile that was half shy, half impish, and one hundred percent designed to drive him crazy with lust.
Ah, fuck it.
Eleven
PIPPI WATCHED WIDE-eyed as Acheron slowly placed a finger over his lips. Don't speak.
She barely managed a nod when his fingers drove through the locks of her hair, pulling her head back just as his mouth lowered down to hers.
Omigodomigodomigodomigod!
She felt him pulling her lower lip between his teeth, and her eyes closed as he began to suck. Everything he did felt so good. Everything! There was something about his touch that made her knees go instantly weak but empowered her at the same time. In his arms, she was free from all fears and inhibitions, and when she felt him lift her up, she didn't even hesitate to lock her legs around his waist. His belt buckle scraped against the soft crotch of her slacks, and the friction had her inner folds slowly getting creamy with moisture. She unthinkingly pressed closer, her legs tightening, and Acheron growled against her mouth.
"Stop that," he warned her in a low, rough voice. The way she was grinding against his crotch as he carried her to the opposite end of the room was fast decimating his control.
"I d-don't think I can."
A soft, tremulous admission, accentuated by the continuous rubbing of her crotch against his hardness, destroyed all of his good intentions. Fuck taking things slow. Ignoring her gasp as he abruptly lowered her to her feet, he pushed her against the wall and drove his tongue deeper into her mouth.
She whimpered, but the sound was of longing rather than fear. Her mind shut down, leaving her to respond as her wanton body wanted, which was to submit fully to his touch. She felt his tongue trace the outline of her lips, and she exulted in the moist pleasure of it. She felt his fingers move down her back, and the shivery trail his touch left had Pippi feeling so lightheaded that by the time she realized why he had placed her hands behind her back, it was already too late.