Page 32 of Rebel Protector
He had. He never gave anyone the benefit of the doubt, least of all scum-of-the-earth gun-runners like Markov and Ramirez. Occupational hazard, maybe, but it kept him alive.
“I’ll help you.” He lowered his voice. “I’ll get you out. But right now, you need to promise me you’ll keep your head down until I’m back.”
Her voice was a whisper. “I promise.”
He gazed into her deep brown eyes, and his heart twisted. She was so vulnerable, so scared, even though she was trying to be brave. He wanted nothing more than to protect her, to keep her safe from the vipers circling. He reached out, and she slipped into his arms like it was the most natural thing in the world.
“Hold me,” she whispered.
CHAPTER 12
Becca wasn’t usually the needy type, but tonight was different. Tonight, she craved the solidity of another human, someone strong enough to hold the chaos at bay, even if just for a moment. Between Chrissy’s death and Dom’s warning, she was unraveling.
What if Dom was right?
What if they figured out Chrissy had confided in her—or worse, that she suspected Ramirez had been behind his own wife’s murder?
Dom closed the gap between them. His strong arms wrapped around her, crushing her against his chest. She buried her face in his neck, drawing in the warmth of him, the smell of him. His aftershave reminded her of the sea—and of safety. She tried to stifle the trembling sigh that escaped, but there was no use.
“It’s alright,” he murmured against her hair, his hand moving gently through it. “I’ve got you. I’m not going anywhere.”
Her grip on him tightened. It didn’t matter that Dom was dangerous, that he’d been wrapped up in blood and violence long before she met him. Right now, he was her only anchor.
She looked up at him and his gaze scorched hers for a moment before his lips claimed hers, hard and insistent. Shekissed him back, hoping to drive out the fear still gnawing at her insides.
Dom wasn’t about gentle comfort. His intensity nearly knocked the air from her lungs, and when he kissed her again, it was with a fierce hunger. A reminder that he, too, was on the brink of losing control.
Becca gasped as he gripped her ass and lifted her up like she weighed nothing more than a child and settled her against him. Instinctively, she wrapped her legs around his waist.
Goddamn, he was huge. There was no denying that. She could feel his length, hard and aroused, pressing into her and the tension inside snapped. With a strangled sob, she clawed at him, desperate for more. Tonight, she didn’t want to feel like the woman hiding in the shadows, scared of the secrets she’d learned. She wanted to feel alive.
He held her tighter, his kiss growing more urgent, more chaotic. Her heart pounded, drowning out the doubts, the questions, the fear. There was nothing else but the two of them in that moment. The world outside could wait.
Dom’s mouth moved against hers, rough and unrelenting, and Becca responded with a desperation she’d never experienced before. She was done holding back, done feeling afraid. All the emotions she’d been burying for days surged forward, a wild need to feel something real, something that grounded her in the here and now.
Her hands fisted in his shirt, yanking him closer as if she could pull him inside her through sheer force of will. His heat, his strength—she wanted all of it, needed all of it.
His body was like a furnace, pressing into hers, sending sparks down her spine, igniting something deep in her core. Her breath hitched as his hands moved to her hips, gripping her hard, holding her tight against him like he couldn’t bear the space between them.
She gasped into his mouth, and heard him groan in response, the sound vibrating through her. Her skin was on fire, every nerve alive with need. She rolled her hips against him, feeling that hardness between her legs, and it was like a jolt of electricity straight to her core. Her body tightened, instinct taking over as she ground harder against him. The friction was maddening, almost enough to drive her over the edge right then.
“Dom…” she gasped, breaking the kiss to catch her breath.
Even the air felt charged, thick with the tension crackling between them. His hands slid under her dress, rough fingers brushing against her thighs, making her shudder. She was losing control, and she didn’t care. She wanted him to take it from her, to be the one thing that made sense in a world that was spinning out of control.
He growled her name, his mouth trailing down her neck, teeth grazing her skin just enough to make her gasp. Her nails dug into his back, her body arching into him, desperate for more. For him.
His lips found the tender bruise on her collarbone, and the mix of pain and pleasure made her whimper. It wasn’t enough. She needed him closer, deeper.
Her hands tangled in his hair, yanking his head back up to hers, claiming his mouth again with a hunger that matched his.
“Becca,” he growled against her lips, but she didn’t let him finish. Her fingers slid down his chest, fumbling with the buttons of his shirt. She needed to feel him, his skin, his strength. Her hands shook as she ripped the last few buttons free, finally pushing the shirt off his shoulders.
The moment his bare chest pressed against hers, she let out a ragged moan. The feel of his skin against hers was like gasoline thrown on the fire raging inside her. She clung to him, her legs tightening around his waist, her hips rolling against him in frantic, needy movements.
Dom’s breath was coming fast and shallow, his control slipping with every second, and it drove her wild.
She could feel it, the way he was fighting to hold back, but she didn’t want him to. Not tonight. She wanted him raw, wanted him to let go as much as she needed to.