Rescue My Heart Read online

  one corner of his mouth and then the other. And then full on. If it was possible to take Adam unaware, she did it in that moment. She felt it in every line of his body, and knew she’d done the right thing, making the first move. He’d always been the aggressor. Well, she was done with that. She was her own woman now, and she went after what she wanted.

  And what she wanted was to make Adam feel even a fraction of how good she felt when she was with him. He deserved that. She nipped at his lower lip. Not hard, just enough to make him hiss in a breath and have his arms tightening on her as he kissed her.

  Deep.

  Wet.

  Hot.

  He kissed her as if nothing else in the world mattered but her, pulling the very breath from her lungs, sending shock waves to her very center, so strong that she had to hold on to him for dear life. He kissed his way up her jawline and licked the shell of her ear, and she lost track of her bones. Her balance shifted, and with a low laugh, she lurched against the door and fell into him. He easily caught her up, taking all her weight.

  He wouldn’t let her fall. He’d never let her fall. Instead, he turned them and pressed her into the door now. She shifted enough to rub up against the front of his body, which was heaven. She couldn’t help herself, and she peppered his jaw with kisses, everywhere she could reach.

  Growling out her name, his big palm cupped her breast, his thumb brushing over her nipple, which instantly tightened in response, begging for more contact. Bending low, he kissed her through her sports bra before gently using his teeth to worry the turgid tip. With a gasp, she wriggled her hips, desperate for more contact. Feeling how hard he was, she moaned a little. Maybe a lot. She couldn’t control herself.

  Adam tugged her bra down, freeing her breasts to the cool air and his hot breath, dragging an “oh please” from her, a desperate, hungry plea.

  He sucked her into his mouth, pressing her between his wet tongue and the hot roof of his mouth, and gave her a rush a millimeter short of an orgasm. Needing more, her hands slid south past his rock-hard abs and exposed hip bones, all of which were perfectly cut. She dipped into the loose waistband of his jeans but couldn’t access enough of his goodies. And damn, he had amazing goodies, so she worked at getting the button free.

  He caught her face in his big hands, pressing her into the door so that she couldn’t move. “Holly. Jesus.” His voice was tight, barely controlled.

  “I’m trying to be a bad influence,” she said, breathless. “Is it working?”

  “Yeah. It’s working.”

  Giddy, she kissed him again, soft and sweet this time, snuggling into him. “I like taking point,” she whispered, and his rough laugh caused goose bumps to ripple along her skin. “I’m not doing it wrong, am I?”

  He smiled against her. “Hell, if you do it any more right, we’re going to finish this right here.”

  “That’s my plan,” she said.

  Adam’s gaze met her. “That’s not my plan.”

  She leaned into him, laced her hands around his neck, and stared up at him. “Well, I don’t like your plan. Besides, you’re…uptight. I have the solution for that.”

  He didn’t say anything to this but his gaze dipped to her breasts, bared now, one of which was still wet from his mouth.

  “It’s a really good solution,” she said enticingly, and gave him her best smile. “Admit it, I’m irresistible. And kinda cute.”

  “The fuck you are. Puppies are cute. You’re hot as hell. Hot enough to inspire acts of complete stupidity on my part.”

  She smiled and he groaned, dropping his forehead to her shoulder. “Tell me what you want from me, Holly.”

  “I would, but I’m more of a show-not-tell sort of girl.” She slid her hands over his shoulders, down his sculpted chest, past his delicious abs. The muscles jumped beneath her fingers. He’d lost a few pounds this past week, but he was still ripped as hell. “Stop fighting it, Adam.”

  The button on his jeans undone, she helped the zipper along and then slid her hands down the back and cupped his perfect butt in her hands, pulling him flush to her.

  They both sucked in air at the sensation of skin to skin. Raining openmouthed kisses over his chest, she stopped to lick each of his nipples, registering his low growl just as he fisted a hand in her hair. “When you touch me,” she murmured against him, “I feel it all the way to my soul.” She tipped back her head. “Tell me you don’t feel it, too.”

  His eyes darkened and she knew she’d hit a nerve. She pressed her lips to his heart and it kicked hard. She felt her own heart flip-flop in response as she looked up at him through her lashes. “Or maybe you’d rather keep ignoring it.”

  Ignoring exactly nothing, his mouth covered hers as he pushed her back up against the door. She rubbed up against him, knowing she’d lied. She was here for more than this, and she’d have to live with that. Later. “I want you,” she whispered. “So much.”

  “And I want you. That’s never been the problem.”

  She went still, then stared up at him. “So what is?”

  He met her gaze, his own unreadable. At his silence, she pushed away from him. He caught her before she could open the door, pulling her back against his chest. She closed her eyes, trying to fight back tears, the frustration of giving to a man who didn’t give back.

  He tightened his grip on her, and she felt more than heard the words as he breathed them against the shell of her ear. “Damn you.”

  “You need to let me go.”

  “You make me crazy,” he said.

  “Clearly.” She shook her head. “I threw myself at you and you turned me down. That sounds crazy to me, too.”

  Still behind her, he had one hand low on her belly, the other across the front of her thighs. She could feel him, still hard against her.

  “I’m not one to fall in love,” he said so softly she almost missed it. Again she fought to free herself but he held her still. “I’ve been in lust plenty of times,” he admitted against her ear. “But I haven’t done love. Not once. Not since you.”

  Oh, God if that didn’t just about kill her, and she fought him again, but for an entirely different reason now. He’d never admitted he’d loved her back then. She’d guessed, but she’d never known for sure. She wanted to turn and face him, wanted to get closer, but it was useless. He had her in his grip. “Adam—”

  “You scare the hell out of me, you know that?” he asked. “I could fall for you again, you know. Right into your sweet baby blues and never come back up for air.”

  She went still.

  “Yeah,” he murmured, running his jaw along hers. “But it wouldn’t be good for either of us. Last chance, Holly. Stop this. Stop me.”

  Instead, she wriggled free, turned around, and nuzzled his neck until he bent his head, seeking her lips. He hoisted her up, and she wrapped her legs around him as he turned to his bed.

  Milo hopped off just as Adam turned and fell backward to the mattress, bringing Holly down with him. He didn’t ask again if she was sure, or if she wanted to change her mind. That was one of the things she loved about him. He assumed she could walk and chew gum at the same time. He never second-guessed her, and he didn’t try to change her.

  He accepted.

  Feeling choked up again at the thought, she snuggled up against his broad chest. He took one of her hands and slid it down his stomach and into his jeans.

  Decision made.

  She never got tired of touching him, but it was Adam who was impatient now. He was one of those men who looked as good out of his clothes as in them, proven when he sat up to kick off his jeans, his abs crunching, folding in on themselves without an ounce of fat, the lucky bastard.

  Except she knew it wasn’t luck. It was hard work.

  With his every movement, the testosterone practically leaked out his pores, making her tingle in her hot spots, and he’d barely touched her. They rolled on the bed, jockeying for position, teasing, stroking…Adam’s lusciously colored skin always felt