Justice Read online

  “I’ll lock up and get the lights. I’ll hurry.”

  She grinned. “I’ll turn down the bed.”

  He fled before he could reconsider his decision. He secured her house, turned off everything and briskly strode back to her bedroom.

  Jessie watched him go and her smile faded the second he left her sight. Justice was stubborn, paranoid and incredibly cute. His reasons for calling it quits before anything could develop between them were valid ones but she wasn’t one to shy away from a challenge. They had a good time together, she’d missed him and he had invaded her thoughts ever since they’d talked.

  She climbed off the bed, dragged down the bedding and hopped back onto the tall mattress. He hadn’t told her what side he wanted so she lay down in the middle, her ears straining to hear his approach but she shouldn’t have bothered. Justice moved with stealth as he sauntered back into the room. A grin threatened to surface again. Did he have any idea how sexy he looked when he walked with that graceful, fluid motion, stark naked? She doubted it. She enjoyed the view of muscles and bare skin before blackness enveloped the room with the flick of the light switch under his finger.

  The bed dipped as his weight settled to her right. She turned, blindly reaching for him and her fingertips encountered hot skin. There was no hesitation as she scooted closer, threw one leg over his and pressed herself along his length. He rested flat on his back while she lay on her side. Her head adjusted until his chest pillowed her cheek, his heartbeat a steady throb in her ear. She smiled in the darkness.

  “I want to hold you in a different way. Would you mind?”

  It was cute how gruffly he spoke. “Sure. How do you like to sleep?”

  “Roll over. I want to curl against your back.”

  She hated to release him but did as he’d asked. His arm slid under her head to cushion it, the other arm wrapped around her waist and he dragged her flush against his body until they were firmly spooned.

  “I like this,” she admitted.

  “Are you cold? Should I cover us with the sheet?”

  “It’s a nice night and you put off a lot of heat. I’m comfortable. Are you?”

  “Very.” He breathed on her neck and nuzzled her bare shoulder. “I enjoy this.”

  “Me too. That’s why I vote we do this again in the near future.”

  His arm around her waist tensed. “It’s best for both of us if we don’t, Jessie. I don’t trust myself with you. You make me go a little crazy from wanting you. I would scare you if I let go of my inhibitions completely and acted on how you make me feel.”

  She frowned, wishing he would give up his iron control. “I don’t want to fight with you but you’re being way too protective. Nothing you’ve said so far is making me leery unless there’s something else you’re not saying.”

  “When I come inside you, I want to shout out. It was so hard to fight the urge this time.”

  “People make sounds when they have sex.” She grinned. “I make lots of them if you’ll remember. I happen to like the ones you make.”

  Jessie suddenly turned in his arms to twist onto her back and hooked her legs over his curved thighs. Her palm found and caressed the side of his face before running her fingernails through his hair to massage his scalp. A soft purr filled the room.

  “Yeah. I like the sounds you make. That’s sexy to me. You have to see me sometimes since I’m working and living at Homeland, right? I’m warning you now that I’m not going to let this go, Justice. It would be another story if I didn’t believe that you were really attracted to me and that this could possibly go somewhere. That’s not the case though. You’re spooked and it’s because you care, isn’t it?”

  His body tensed and the purr deepened into a slight growl.

  “Yeah. That’s what I thought.

  “Jessie,” he rasped, “I’m sorry but this is the last night we can spend together. I have a long list of reasons in my head besides the ones I’ve mentioned.”

  She bit her lip and sighed. “You’re just upset right now. You’ll change your mind, and when you do, you know where I am.”

  “You would face danger being associated with me. We can’t do this again.”

  She wiggled her ass against his thighs, could feel his cock respond by hardening, growing thicker. She smiled into the darkness. His mouth might say one thing but his body and hers were right in tune.

  “Okay,” she said to placate him. He was a big ole worrier but she’d deal with that later. Her immediate goal was to make love to him. Maybe after a few dozen times he’d get over his me-big-strong-Species-you-fragile-human-woman bullshit. She managed not to laugh at that analysis. “We’ll talk later.”

  Her other hand opened on his belly. She wished he was flat on his back and she could touch more of his body. She traced his bellybutton, dipped her fingers lower and used her nails to lightly scratch him. Justice growled.

  She turned to her side, ground her ass against him and pressed her back to his chest until no space remained between them. She loved the heat he put off. With his body wrapped around hers and his arm firmly around her waist it had never felt more right to be in someone’s arms.

  She inhaled the wonderful scent that was Justice and listened to him purr. I’m falling in love, she admitted. Hard and fast. The memory of skydiving flashed in her mind. The fear of stepping out of the plane had been overwhelming but she’d wanted to fly. She’d taken the plunge then spread her arms and dived headfirst without hesitation. Justice beat that experience any day and she wanted to take the plunge again. A broken heart had to be a better risk to take than a chute not opening, and far less dangerous.

  The twitch of the hard length of his cock that was trapped between them pulled her away from her thoughts. The decision wasn’t difficult to make—it was that simple. She ran her hand down to his hip, slid it back and cupped his firm ass. He purred before softly cursing.

  “Damn it, female. Stop doing that.”

  She wiggled, suggestively rolled her hips and gripped his wrist. He didn’t resist when she lifted it and laid it over her breast. Her hand slid up, covered the back of his and squeezed, forcing his fingers to close around the mound. Jessie ground her ass against his now-straining cock, turned her head to expose her neck to his mouth and licked her lips to wet them. Her body didn’t need any foreplay. She was primed to go and ached to have him inside her again. The memory of his tongue doing wonderful things to her clit and the way he’d felt fucking her was enough to take her there already.

  “Take me again,” she whispered. “I need you, Justice. Don’t deny me this.”

  His hand massaged her breast without her help this time. “Damn it, Jessie.” His lips brushed her exposed throat and his hips moved, rocking slowly against hers.

  “Yes,” she moaned.

  “Hold still. We’ll go slow.”

  Jessie spread her thighs and refused to obey his order or to take it slow. He was too careful, thought too damn much, and she wanted him to let go. She wanted the real Justice, the man who growled and snarled, who wanted to get loud during sex. She released the back of his hand, reached between her legs and wrapped her fingers around his rigid shaft.

  “Jessie,” he growled.

  “Fuck me, baby. Hard, fast. Give it to me.”

  She used her leg hooked over his thigh to tilt her hips, guided the crown of his cock to rub along the seam of her pussy, rolled her hips as she found the right spot and used the leverage she had to join them. The feel of being stretched, taken by him, spiked her desire.

  Teeth suddenly gripped the top of her shoulder when Justice bit down on her skin hard enough to send a jolt straight to her groin. He didn’t break the skin but it was a fine line between pleasure and pain. Jessie moaned louder but the sharp points jerked away as he released her with his fangs.

  “Hold still,” he snarled.

  “No.” She used her free hand to grab the arm pillowing her head to gain traction and bucked her hips frantically, forcing him to move in