No Rules (22 page)

Cool air caressing her bare flesh made her shiver as he pulled her pants off. Running his hands up over her legs left a trail of heat to combat the chill. He always seemed to know exactly what she needed, and deliver it unflinchingly. How could he be so altruistic?

“I'm really not,” he murmured, his gaze fixed at the juncture of her legs. “In fact, right now I'm feeling very selfish.”

With a start she realized she'd asked the question aloud. The way he skimmed his hands over the backs of her thighs made her sigh. He inhaled deeply, as though filling his lungs with her woman's scent, and a masculine growl escaped.

From the possessive way he gripped her ass, Alison knew what he was thinking. He was a man with his face inches away from a woman's bared sex. He might be coming off of a week of illness but that only meant he'd be more driven for sex.

But she didn't want to be his warm woman's body, damn it. She wanted him to want her, not sex. “Just take it out quickly, please. It's cold in here.”

Nuzzling her mound he rasped, “I could warm you up.”

“No.” Squeezing her eyes shut, she shook her head. “Let's just get this over with.”

“As you wish.” Blunt fingers probed the entrance to her body, deftly separating her folds. He tried to insert a finger but barely got the tip inside. “You have to relax, lovely.”

“I'm trying,” she said through gritted teeth.

He withdrew and looked up at her. “Alison, look at me.”

Sinking her teeth into her lower lip, she shook her head. She was such a wreck; she wanted him so badly, but at the same time she didn't want him to want her back if he only wanted a quick nail and bail.

“If you don't look at me, I'm going to bury my face in your cunt and lick you within an inch of your life.”

Her eyes flew open.

“Better. Now, what's going through your mind? I've never seen you so tense.”

All of her anxiety bubbled up. “I'm scared to death we'll die in here. Or that Gwella will exile us and we'll be the appetizers, or that the helcats will break through and kill everyone, or that the only reason you're doing this is because you're still stuck with me and I'd give you some space if I had any to give—”

“The hell with it,” he growled and gripped her ass, pulling her toward his face.

“D
el,” Alison gasped as he traced the seam of her body with his tongue.

He loved the way she said his name, his first name, especially on a breathy exhale as she shivered with need. Talking to her was getting him nowhere. They both wanted this, needed a physical release. Why she fought him on it was a mystery.

Her hands threaded through his hair as he licked her deeper, more insistently. She could talk all she wanted, but his course was set. He'd make her come until she started making sense.

“Stop, don't do this.” Even as she spoke, her hips bucked forward, urging him on.

What was with the token protests? He wanted her wanton and wild, the way he knew she could be, full of sexual confidence and totally without inhibitions. This game playing wasn't like her. Pulling back a bit he stared at her flushed face. “Really?”

Her eyes were bright, her cheeks pink, her lips parted in desire. She didn't pull away and he took advantage of her inner turmoil like the shameless bastard he was.

Using his thumbs to part her labia, he thrashed her clit with his tongue. Her back arched, her hands fisting in his hair. He eased off, but only slightly, elongating his strokes to cover more wet feminine flesh. Damn, but she tasted good, sweet with a heady woman's musk that made his head spin. He wanted to spread her out and feast on her pussy like a starving man given a last meal. Every puffy pink bit of flesh a delicacy to be savored.

Wetness spilled from her tight channel, a fresh gush of lube to ease his way.

“Please,” she whimpered when he stroked into her body with his index finger. He didn't know what she was asking for, but he was on a mission. She made no sounds of pain, only desperate pleasure. Later they would address her numerous worries, after he made her come.

Her channel softened, elongated as her arousal increased, but was still a tight fit. Removing his hands, he cupped the fleshy globes of her ass cheeks, holding her in the perfect position. Stabbing his tongue deep into her well, he tasted the exotic flavors of her body at its source, no perfumes or chemicals, just pure Alison. His dick throbbed, demanding its own taste but he ignored it.

Nails bit into his scalp, a sweet stab of pain that told him she was getting close. Zigzagging a path over her vulva, he moved upward, toward that greedy little bundle of nerves that beckoned him even closer. Tracing one hand down her crease, he moved his fingers back to her feminine opening, but didn't enter. He wanted to let the anticipation build just a little longer.

Her body trembled in his hold, poised on the edge. He licked all around her clitoral hood, careful not to make contact. The bud seemed to swell, as though reaching for him, yearning for contact.

“Please,” she begged again as he massaged the swollen tissues, teasing her body shamelessly.

He caught her gaze, held it as his lips closed over her tender nub, sucking it into his mouth. She bucked and he saw it there, the rapture sweeping across her features as his fingers drove deeply into her. Vaginal muscles milked them and she cried out as wave after wave of release crashed over her until she sagged against him, totally spent.

He let go of her clit, but his fingers kept going until they bumped into the device nestled against her womb. Pinning it between two fingers, he pulled it slowly from her quaking channel, now lax from her powerful orgasm.

Setting it aside, he held her steady while pulling her pants back up. It was one thing to pleasure her against her will to help her, another entirely to force himself on her if she didn't want him.

She blinked at him, lines forming between her drawn eyebrows when he moved away from her. His balls ached with the need for release. Wiping sweat off his forehead, he caught a whiff of her scent. Her sweet lube still coated his taste buds. His cock was rock-hard and ready to explode. Gritting his molars, he fought the urge to phase split and take care of himself.

Soft hands caressed his face. “Are you all right?”

Fenton couldn't answer without snapping at her. He closed his eyes so he didn't have to look at her, but it didn't help with her sweet feminine aroma surrounding him, driving him to the edge of his control.

That proved impossible when her hand gripped his cock through the fabric of his pants. “Let me ease you.”

He wanted to jerk away, but found himself thrusting into her hold. “No.”

A smile curved her lips. “And how far did that get me?”

“It was the only way—” he protested, not wanting her to think he was ignoring her wishes.

Her free hand settled over his lips. “Helping me made you like this. Let me return the favor.”

“It's not a—” The protest broke off on a ragged groan when she freed his throbbing shaft from his pants and lowered her face until her soft breaths fell on his sensitive crown.

“Tell me what you want,” she whispered. “You look ready to explode.”

His hands fisted in her hair. “No teasing. Take me deep.”

No sooner had the words left his mouth than hers engulfed his shaft in a warm, wet stroke. A hoarse noise escaped and he thrust up, unable to control his baser urges when they were so close to the surface. It took all his energy not to phase split and hold her in place so he could fuck her face.

Her cheeks hollowed as she sucked him deep into her wet heat, her eyes closed as she concentrated on the task. More sweat popped out over his skin. He was burning up, ready to blow, fighting the urge.

“It's okay,” she whispered, her soft exhale tickling his wet shaft. “Do what you need to, I can take it.” She took it in again until the head of his shaft hit the back of her throat.

Her permission broke the yoke of his control. With a bellow he snapped his hips back and thrust forward, losing himself in the wet cavern of her mouth. Again and again, completely untamed, wild in his drive for release. She took it all, relaxing her throat when he surged deep, sucking him on the withdrawal. Her eyes shone with satisfaction and trust as she watched him use her mercilessly.

He came with a guttural roar, spilling down her throat, emptying himself until all that was left were the aftershocks, every cell in his body twitching and shuddering.

She slid him from between her lips, refastened his pants. He wanted to thank her but speaking was too much effort. Still, he slid down until he lay flat on his back, uncaring that the floor was cold and hard beneath him when he had a warm Alison draped over him.

His eyelids felt heavy but lifted when she tried to move. “Stay here.”

“You need sleep. You're still recovering.”

He'd sleep better knowing he cushioned her, warmed her, and kept her safely nestled against him. Too many words to string together. “Stay here,” he muttered again.

With a heavy sigh she did, relaxing into him, covering him like a living blanket.

He smiled and the words popped out. “Love you.”

Oblivion claimed him.

 

Love you.
Alison had been drifting off when Del sighed those words and then passed out with no consideration of the devastation his half-conscious declaration had wrought. Damn him, she wanted to knee him in the groin and make him explain himself.

Did he mean that? She wanted to believe him so desperately it shocked her. Yes, she cared for him, knew he cared for her. Judging by his determination to help her regardless of his own discomfort, she assumed he still did. But love was another star system altogether. Something more permanent, more life-changing than simple caring. There was commitment and acceptance implied with such an avowal and she craved both from him. When had that happened?

She rolled her eyes at herself. The assassin was still tracking her, starving mutant beasts were bearing down on them looking for their next meal, Ari was in the hands of pissed-off feminists with a grudge against them, and here she was worried whether Del meant it when he said he loved her.

I am
such
a girl.

She shivered, and though he was dead to the world, he tightened his embrace. His strength took her breath away, yet it was his gentleness that had captured her heart. Even here in the middle of an icy hellhole with their futures uncertain, he treated her like a queen. Or an empress.

No matter how badly she fucked up, or how irrationally she behaved, he didn't hold it against her, even when she thought he should.

It was like he'd been given an instruction manual capable of navigating her specific breed of crazy. And the way he touched her, aroused her, drove her out of her mind with lust, almost as if he'd been tailor-made for her. Her sex clenched when she remembered exactly how well he fit inside her, how they moved together. Alison had experienced plenty of sex before but sharing her body with Del was so much more than the colliding of body parts like a wreck in space. It was . . . celestial.

But that didn't mean it would last beyond the moment.

Exhaustion crept over her, blunting the sharp edge of her worry until she dozed lightly on top of his broad chest.

The scraping of the cell door woke her even before the voice said, “How precious.”

“Drop off the tray and be gone.” Alison didn't budge.

“Not this time. The empress wishes to speak with you.”

Heart thundering in her ears, she slowly sat up. This was it.

“Del.” Alison shook him. “Wake up. Gwella wants to see us.”

Crystalline-blue eyes opened and fixed on her. Though he barely moved, she felt his arms tighten in a reassuring squeeze. “Then we shouldn't keep the empress waiting.”

He sat up, helped her to her feet before standing himself. The patroller eyeballed them both with obvious distaste before turning on her heel and marching them through the dark basement. Another patroller stood at attention, waiting to bring up the rear.

Del gripped her hand in his. She knew he saw better in the dark, and he guided her safely forward. She had a difficult time swallowing, her throat was so dry. Her heart beat so fast, and she felt a little dizzy, probably from lack of food.

She expected to be led to some kind of throne room or maybe the table in the dining area where she'd done paperwork what seemed like a lifetime ago. Instead the patroller led them to a bathroom, a real one with chemical foam showerheads.

“You have two minutes to clean your hides and dress in fresh clothing.” She nodded to a storage container with beige and gray fabric sealed within.

“And if we're not ready?” Alison couldn't help but prod.

“I'll whip you both and drag you naked before her.” The glimmer in her eyes told Alison she'd enjoy it.

The second the door closed, she and Fenton raced to strip. Having more practice getting naked, she won and smacked the button on the wall. The cleansing foam rained down on them.

He spit, and she giggled as she moved to him, eager to help him clean up. To get her hands on his magnificent body. After spending a few hours trying to keep up with his workout routine, she knew exactly how those muscles could move. And how much work he'd done to hone them so precisely.

“If I didn't know better, I'd think you were enjoying yourself.”

Skimming her hands over his body, she arched when he did the same to hers. “It'll go faster if we wash each other.”

“You think so?” he rumbled, his touch traveling over her back, down to her ass. He liked it exactly as it was, despite the jiggles, the larger size. Proof-positive grew hard against her belly while he cupped her overly padded backside.

“Maybe not, but it's definitely more fun.” Perhaps it was the finality that was only moments away, but Alison felt almost giddy as he explored her body. The tingling foam evaporated, leaving her feeling clean for the first time in a week.

“I never considered fun”—he rested his forehead against hers even as his hands kept up their busy work, half-cleaning, half-playing—“until I met you.”

“It seems so frivolous. We have no idea what's going to happen after we leave here.”

“No sense worrying about that.” His hands moved to her front, cupped her breasts, weighing them, then moved to her shoulders. “You are so lovely.”

“I never felt this way before, not until you looked at me the way you do.” She slathered his chest and down over his eight-pack of hard muscles.

“One minute!” The patroller banged on the door, shattering the sweet moment.

“What way is that?” He ignored the patroller and scrubbed her hair thoroughly, while her hands went lower. His erection pressed into her fleshy midsection, leaving a drop of precum on her skin. If they were anywhere else, she'd work him into a state until he took her hard and fast. But they didn't have the time. Instead she cleaned his ridged flesh, the sac hanging heavily beneath, then skimmed down his legs.

To her this little ritual wasn't about getting clean, much as she wanted that. She wanted to say good-bye. With that thought in mind, she worked her way up the backs of his legs over the firm globes of his ass and down the crease in between. “Like I mean something.”

Using what was left of the foam, she worked her finger into his opening at the same time she swallowed his cock whole. He wasn't expecting it, didn't tense up, and she wiggled the digit until she found the hard bump of his prostate, pressing hard, pushing him toward release with an insistent massage even as she gulped down the ridged staff, milking him with her throat muscles.

With a strangled yell he came, shooting down her throat just as the bitch patroller shouted, “Thirty seconds!”