The Barrier Between (Collector Series # 2) (15 page)

It took us more than twenty minutes to get to our
room. It was only a five-minute walk from the bar, but between the
crowds and many moments spent stopping to fall into each other, it
took us a lot longer than normal.

Ryker pressed me into the door before we entered. He
kissed me tentatively. He didn’t say anything, but I understood.
The moment we opened the door and crossed the threshold, everything
was going to change. Things were already a bit different, but sex
altered the relationship refutably. Right now we could blame it on
liquor or try and pretend it never happened. I felt deep in my gut
sex with him would not be something I would be able to come back
from. Not unscathed.

I lived my life in compartments. Sometimes I’d been
the responsible girl, sometimes the wild reckless one. Always
playing a part. Tonight I was going to simply be me. And I wanted
to get in bed with him and never come back out.

My response to his kiss said everything. Without our
lips breaking contact, we stumbled inside, banging into everything
remotely in our way. The lights were off, but the TV blared in the
background, halting me.

Sprig.

Shit.

I searched the room for the little fuzzball and found
him passed out on top of the TV. Dried honey-coated mango chips
stuck to his fur. His mouth hung open as he snored.

I snorted, covering my mouth.

“No. Way.” Ryker stepped around me. He collected
Sprig gently in his hands and moved toward the bathroom.

“What are you doing?” I followed.

“He’s sleeping in here.” Ryker tugged a towel off the
bar and balled it underneath Sprig before placing him in the tub.
Sprig sighed sleepily and curled up in the cloth.

“Wait. In case he wakes up.” I held up my hand and
went back into the bedroom. Pam was lying on the bed. I snatched
the stuffed goat and took it back to Sprig, placing it next to
him.

We watched him for a moment before Ryker touched the
small of my back, leading me out of the room. He shut the door
behind us. “That was sweet,” I said over my shoulder.

“What, locking him in the bathroom?”

“Not tossing him out the window so you could get
laid.”

Ryker put his hands on his hips and stared at the
floor. Silence. I could feel the change in the room. His sudden
doubt choked me. “We should walk away.”

I whipped around. “Is it what you want?” I
whispered.

His jaw clenched. “What I want and what is smart are
two different things.”

I sank my teeth into my lip. “Yeah.”

“I’ll find somewhere else to sleep.” He kept his gaze
everywhere but on me.

“Probably wise.” I tried to keep my voice even, but
sadness, frustration, and chagrin colored it.

He nodded, staring out the window. The noise from the
celebration below came through the open windows, crashing against
the suddenly somber mood in the room.

My body was overly aware of his proximity, aching to
be touched again. My fingers longed to caress him. “Please go.”

His mouth clamped tighter as he rubbed at his
forehead, but his feet stayed glued against the wood floor. I could
no longer stand there with him this close. The bathroom was my only
escape from his presence.

As if our thoughts were on the same thing, we both
took a step. I went to the restroom, he for the room door, our
figures bumped, blocking the other of their path.

Instantly a lightheadedness swirled my brain. It was
like I could feel his hormones. They crawled over my skin, hinting
at what they wanted to do to me. We both froze, trapped in each
other’s space. Only inches apart, our lungs moved in and out
frantically.

Ryker lifted his hand, tucking a piece of my purple
hair behind my ear. His head dipped lower. His mouth so close it
was taunting me.

I never experienced instant desire like this. His
hand grazed my skin, and I was ready to jump him. No longer able to
hold myself back from him, I went up, crashing my lips into his.
Warm. Wanting. Whatever barrier we were trying to build up
dissolved, opening the floodgates. The desire for each other hit
another level.

He grabbed the bottom of my tank top and whipped it
over my head, inciting me to do the same to his shirt. My hands and
eyes took in his chest and ripped abs. The V-line poking out of the
top of his pants. His ass. It felt strange I could touch him.
Freely. I could finally explore his body without being embarrassed
by the thought.

He seemed to sense what I wanted because he stood
there, letting my fingers move across his stomach, touching the
dented line at his pants line, and over his chest. His lungs pumped
in and out faster the more confident I grew in my exploration. One
by one I undid the buttons of his pants, letting them fall to his
ankles. I walked around to his back, the tips of my fingers never
leaving his skin. I traveled over his wide shoulders and strong
back, finally stopping at his ass. For a long time it had goaded me
to run my hands over it. Gripping both sides of his boxer briefs, I
pulled them down. Ryker took in a deep gulp of air as his boxers
joined his pants around his ankles. My hand skated over his
buttocks, and muscles flexed under his skin. He had the finest ass
I had ever seen on a man. Perky, muscular, and taut. Impulse sent
me onto my knees, kissing his lower back and working down.

Ryker made a sound I never heard before, but it got
my blood boiling. I wanted to worship his entire physique. I moved
around to the front. I took a moment to appreciate the man’s form.
My hands slid up his legs as I slowly kissed his inner thigh.

His cock throbbed and twitched under my lips. Ryker
closed his eyes and grabbed the dresser. I felt sexy and powerful.
This was usually something I avoided with other men—it felt more
intimate than the actual act of sex. Now I wanted nothing more than
to taste every inch of Ryker.

Another moan came from him, and he grabbed me under
the arms and threw me back on the bed. “I’m sorry, but I’ve been
waiting too long for this.” He kicked off his boots, leaving his
clothes behind as he kissed me. His lips were hot and demanding.
“It’s my turn.”

He pulled my skirt over my hips. He dropped the first
layer on the floor and came back for my underwear. He tugged them
down, his eyes exploring me. He leaned over and unsnapped my bra,
dropping it with the other clothing. I was completely naked. He
spread me out. His hands skated over my skin, leaving trails of
quivers in their wake. He kneeled at the side of the bed, his lips
moving up my thighs, until his tongue found its way inside me.

I gasped as he nipped and kissed me. I was usually
not a vocal person. The sound coming out shocked me. It only
enticed him. His tongue and lips grew more intense. Loud wails of
pleasure tore from my throat. Then they grew high, clear, and more
pronounced.

“Oh my God, Ryker. I need you now.” My fist clutched
at his hair. “Please.”

He smirked and went deeper. I widened myself, letting
him go. He moved with me, building my orgasm until pleasure ripped
through me, shaking me to the core.

“Holy shit.” I blinked at the ceiling, my limbs limp.
“You expect me to be useful after this?”

He gave the sensitive area one last kiss before he
moved back out to my thighs, his lips skimmed them. He stood up. I
scuttled back to get higher on the bed. He crawled after me, his
body covering mine. His elbows went on either side of my head,
keeping some of his weight off me. His white eyes were bright in
the dark and glinted with smugness.

“Oh, someone is all puffed up. You’re going to be
insufferable now, aren’t you?”

“Really no different from before.” He grinned. “But I
do like knowing I can make you scream.”

“I’ve never done that before.”

“I’ll have to make sure it wasn’t only a one-time
thing.” He leaned down, his lips finding mine. The heat of his
mouth, the feel of him pressed against my stomach ignited the fire
raging inside. A light breeze came through the window. The sounds
of the celebration drifted up. I don’t know if it was me taking on
fae qualities, but I could feel the energy from the streets,
filling me with vigor. Was I feeding off them in some way?
Absorbing their energy? Right then I didn’t care as Ryker’s mouth
found my breast, stirring me alive again.

He hitched my leg around him and rolled me over on
top of him. We explored and tasted: kissing and nibbling, his skin
on mine, his hands touching me, fingers slipping up my spine, his
palms running over my breasts, lips on my stomach, my throat, my
hip, lower back.

Light from the fireworks burst through the windows,
highlighting his face in a ray of colors and reflecting in his
eyes. I stopped and stared down on him.

Wow
.

I held him at arm’s length, never appreciating how
absolutely striking he was until now. His chiseled face, the scruff
along his jaw, the scars marking his battles, his unbelievable
build, and his gorgeous white-blue eyes. His hair, plaited tightly
against his scalp, was another shield, keeping people at a
distance. I did not want to be kept away so I lifted my hands and
threaded my fingers through the braids, loosening them. His soft
hair fell around the pillow. Golden and beautiful. He was
magnificent, in a distant, don’t touch way. With his hair down he
appeared far more accessible.

Perspiration glided between my breasts. The humidity
swelled in the room. He sat up, his tongue followed the line of
liquid, catching it. My skin tingled and craving welled between my
legs. Our eyes locked again.

He flipped me on my back, my legs curling tight
around him. This went past desire or want. Our breaths were quick
as his fingers moved down between my legs, opening me. He barely
touched me, and my nails burrowed into his back.

“Now... please,” I begged, bucking against him.

He slid down my body then back up, slipping into me.
I gasped. There was slight pain as the Viking filled me. He rocked
forward, stealing another breath from me. Then again.
Holy
hell
. My body was reacting as though I had never experienced
real sex before. I felt myself tighten around him, and a deep moan
erupted from his throat. Pleasure so intense flickered through me
as he plunged deeper into me, our rhythm picking up pace. My legs
and nails dug into him. “More... harder.” I could not seem to get
close enough, to have enough of him. He thrust deeper, harder,
until my eyes leaked with water. I still wanted more.

Friction built, creating an even more desperate need
for each other. He tilted me toward him and drove in harder. A cry
escaped my lips as I felt my climax coming. My eyes could no longer
focus nor could I breathe. I heard him swear, and he pushed my bent
leg toward my shoulder. The movement tipped him in farther and with
one more deep thrust, everything exploded. Both of us cried out. He
drove in once more and ripples of pleasure rocked me. He released
inside me, quaking my body again. Every breath I took sent another
small orgasm through my limbs.

We laid together, breathing deeply. I had been right:
sex with him would not be something I could come back from
untouched.

We carried on for the rest of the night, only
pausing for a moment before our mouths would find each other again.
The energy from the all-night party swirled in the room, throbbing
to the point I could sense my body absorbing it. Energy was
addicting, even to humans, but this was different. It was
replenishing me. Feeding me. Taking on more fae qualities was no
longer the worst thing in the world to me. My fear was not
developing more fae traits; it was taking them away from Ryker.
Finally around dawn, exhausted and spent, we fell asleep.

When my lids eventually lifted, sunlight splayed
through our windows. The pulled-back curtains let in too much light
for my sensitive head. I grunted and dug my face into the pillow.
Damn whiskey.

It was already hot and sticky, which was not helping
me feel better. The sheet clung to my bare skin, and I smelled of
sex and sweat. Images of me tangled with Ryker came flooding into
my mind. Picking up my head, I peered over at him. He slept on his
back, the crook of his elbow covering his eyes. The sheet only lay
across his lower torso, but it did not disguise what was
underneath. Or how the material tented up. Instinctually I
responded to it, wanting to crawl on top of him, feel him inside me
again.

I sucked in a gulp of air and turned away. The
morning light and blistering headache brought an end to the dream
we indulged in last night. In the shelter of darkness we could hide
from our fear, prejudices, and guilt and act out our passions under
the influence of hormones and alcohol. But what if he felt
different today? What if he took one look at me and realized his
mistake? I was not Amara. Not the girl he really wanted, but I was
here and available... and willing. We had been through a lot and
relied on each other through some extreme situations. After a while
you could mix up those emotions, mistake them for more than what
they were.