Read THE OFF WORLD COLLECTION (Short, Steamy Science Fiction Romances) (Off-World Series) Online

Authors: Rebecca York

THE OFF WORLD COLLECTION (Short, Steamy Science Fiction Romances) (Off-World Series) (16 page)

When she stood, he did too.

“Do you want to leave me?” he asked in a gritty voice.

Her answer was immediate. “Of course not.”

“Then don’t.”

“You want me?” she asked, hardly daring to hope that she hadn’t cocked up everything between them.

He crossed to her and pulled her into his arms. For a moment she couldn’t unbend. Then she let her body mold itself to his and brought her arms up to cling to him.

“
Beka, I thought I’d had a rough life, being dumped on this homestead with my father and with almost nothing. It was a luxury vacation compared to what you went through.”

“You’re not disgusted by what I told you?” she managed to ask.

“Of course not. It made me understand a lot.”

“I was afraid you’d be sickened by my story.”

“No. Never that.” He swallowed hard. “Well, yeah, sickened by all the things that were done to you.”

She squeezed her eyes closed and struggled not to start crying, but she finally lost the battle.

He scooped her up and carried her to the sofa where he sat down with her in his lap. She clung to him, her shoulders shaking. He stroked his hands over her back and into her hair, murmuring soft words that she couldn’t quite catch, but they soothed. Finally she brought herself under control.

When he pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and handed it to her, she blew her nose.

“You kept him talking so he wouldn’t set off explosives at the mine entrance and kill me, didn’t you?” he asked in a thick voice.

“Yes. And you heard the whole conversation?”

“Yes.”

She gulped. “I couldn’t let him kill you. I had to save you.”

“And I knew I had to save you from him.”

“Thank the universe that they paired me with you. I’ll never keep anything from you again.”

“And I’ll never go all sullen on you and not explain what’s eating at me.”

She rested her head against his shoulder, loving the strength of his arms around her.

“You make me feel safer than I ever have in my life.”

“And you made me understand how much I’ve missed—not having anyone to share my life with. Only I was afraid to open myself to you.”

“I understand why.”

When she raised her head, he brought his mouth to hers for a long, passionate kiss.

oOo

As the kiss finally broke, Caleb squeezed his wife’s hand. “Come back to the bedroom.”

She answered with a little nod and stood.

When they returned to where he’d found her, he looked down at the piles of clothing he’d forgotten about. “Your stuff’s on the bed.”

“Oh, right.” She scooped everything up and dumped it on the floor. “I guess I can get to it later.”

He liked the way she’d done that, liked the look in her eyes when she turned back to him.

“I’ll help you—later.”

He raised his hands to the front of her shirt, undoing the fastening down the front, then reaching under the back, only fumbling a little with the hook of her bra. He swept the shirt off her shoulders and pulled the bra away, sending both of them to join the rest of the clothing on the floor.

She was naked to the waist, and the trusting look in her eyes made his heart squeeze. She was watching him as he reached out his hands, lifting her breasts, loving the soft weight of them in his hands and loving the way her nipples had hardened for him. He stroked his thumbs across them, listening to her indrawn breath.

He bent to suck one taut peak into his mouth, drawing on her as he fumbled for the fastener at the top of her pants, opened it and pushed the pants down, along with her panties.

When she swayed beside the bed, he murmured, “Lie down.

As she did, he got rid of his own clothes before coming down
beside her, propping himself on one arm so he could look down at her.

When she started to reach for him, he shook his head. “Let me love you.”

She went very still as he began to kiss her face, the column of her neck, her collarbones, then kissed his way down her body, pausing to suck on each breast and dip into her navel before sliding lower to press his cheek against her.

Raising his face, he saw her watching him. “Would it feel good if I kissed you there?”

“Very good.”

He moved between her legs, bending to part the edges of her furrow and look at that secret part of her, seeing her plump, slick flesh and knowing she was aroused for him. Bending, he stroked his tongue into that hidden channel, down to her vagina and up to her clit. The taste of her was intoxicating. So was her reaction as she moaned and raised her hips.

He let himself enjoy exploring her with his mouth, finding out what she seemed to like best. And when she came undone for him, he felt her orgasm against his tongue and lips. That intimacy almost overwhelmed him. He flopped to his back, finding her hand and clasping his fingers with hers.

She’d lain on the bed, letting him do anything he liked to her. Now she asked, “How do you want to finish this? Do you want me to do that for you?”

“Do you want to?”

“Yes.”

She raised up, and leaned over him, running her tongue around the head of his cock, then capturing the bead of moisture at the very tip.

He fought to lie still as she stroked her tongue down his length, then up again, before taking him into her mouth, sucking on him, making him ache with the need for release.

“You’re going to make me come in your mouth,” he gasped.

“Uh huh,” she answered without moving away. She kept up what she was doing, and he exploded inside her, his body convulsing.

She climbed off the bed and disappeared into the bathroom, and he heard water running in the sink. Then she was back.

When he gave her a questioning look, she said, “Are you angry that I didn’t swallow it?”

The edge in her voice cut into him like a knife. “Come here,” he said, holding out his arms. She came down beside him, and he held her close.

“Did he make you do that?”

She dragged in a breath and let it out. “Yes. And he did stuff to me that I hated.”

“I’ll never make you do anything you don’t enjoy—or do anything you don’t want.”

“You mean like muck out the chicken house?”

“Did you hate that?”

“Not really. It was honest work, and I could tell how pleased the chickens were to have it all nice and clean.”

He raised up and turned so he could look at her. “The reason I was so upset yesterday and this morning was that I was afraid I was falling in love with you. And at the same time, I was feeling like that would give you too much of an advantage over me. I mean, because I couldn’t trust you.”

“Oh, Caleb. I’m so, so sorry.” She reached for him, and they clung together. “I was afraid, too. I knew you were a man I could love, but I thought that if I told you everything, you’d . . .” She gulped. “That you’d send me away.”

“
Beka, I understand why. But now we each know how to be honest with the other.”

She settled down beside him, and he turned to kiss her cheek.

“I could have the implant taken out,” she murmured.

“Let’s not, if you don’t mind. I’d like to have you to myself for a while.”

“I’d like that, too.” She cleared her throat. “You know I’m still worried about the mine.”

“I made it a lot safer than it was when my dad worked it.”

“I hope so.”

“And I’ll be careful. I want to have a long, happy life with you.”

“Fates, yes.”

“I didn’t know how lonely I was before you came here.”

“I was lonely too, in a different way. I never trusted anyone besides myself. And now I know everything’s different because of you.”

He hugged her to him, rejoicing at how much better the rest of his life was going to be with this warm and giving woman by his side.

The End

Afterword

Thank you for purchasing
Conquest, Hero’s Welcome,
and
Nightfall
. I hope you enjoyed reading them as much as I loved writing them.

If you enjoyed my books, do me a huge favor. Go back to
www.amazon.com
, and please leave an honest review. Authors live and die by their reviews. The few extra seconds it takes are really appreciated. Thank you!

About the Author

A USA Today Best-Selling Author, Rebecca York is a 2011 recipient of the Romance Writers of America Centennial Award. Her career has focused on romantic suspense, often with paranormal elements.

Her 16 Berkley books and novellas include her nine-book werewolf “Moon” series.
KILLING MOON
was a launch book for the Berkley Sensation imprint. She has written over 50 books for Harlequin Intrigue, many in her popular 43 Light Street series. Her recent releases include
BAD NIGHTS
for Sourcebooks and
DESPERATE MAGIC
for Carina Press. Rebecca has written for Harlequin, Berkley, Sourcebooks, Dell, Tor, Carina Press, and Pageant Books.

Her many awards include two Rita finalist books. She has two Career Achievement awards from Romantic Times: for Series Romantic Suspense and for Series Romantic Mystery. And her Peregrine Connection series won a Lifetime Achievement Award for Romantic Suspense Series.

Many of her novels have been nominated for or won RT Reviewers Choice awards. In addition, she has won a Prism Award, several New Jersey Romance Writers Golden Leaf awards and
numerous other chapter awards.

If you liked the stories in THE OFF WORLD series, you might also like

Rebecca York’s DECORAH SECURITY series:

#
1
On Edge
- Paranormal romantic-suspense novella

#
2
Dark Moon
- Paranormal romantic-suspense novel

#3
Chained
- Paranormal romantic-suspense novella

#4
Ambushed
- Paranormal romantic-suspense short story

#5
Dark Powers
- Paranormal romantic-suspense novel

#6
Hot and Dangerous
- Paranormal romantic-suspense short story

#7
At Risk
-Paranormal romantic-suspense novel

#8
Christmas Captive
- Paranormal
romantic-suspense novella

**
The Decorah Security Collection
is an anthology containing
Chained
,
Dark Powers, Hot and Dangerous,
and
Ambushed
.

Check Out
Dark Moon
, the
first
sexy paranormal full-length
novel
in the