Marked By Desire - The Complete Series, page 59
Except that Joey’s head snapped in her direction, and his gaze captured hers. Her heart pounded in her chest and she knew he was coming to her, for her. Nodding her head before she could even think it through, Sera began to back up. She held his gaze though and indicated with a single finger for him to follow her.
He did so quickly and without dropping her gaze, pushing past patrons or anyone who got in his way. Nothing was stopping him from getting to her.
He reached her right as her back hit the door she had been aiming for.
“Sera,” he said, a mix of emotions laced through his tone, all of them intense.
Their bodies collided just as she got the door open and they stumbled inside. It was only that Sera knew the stairs were there that they avoided completely tumbling down them in their hurry. They managed to make it down the steps quickly, Sera’s hands going to his face as his found her hips. As they reached the bottom step, she shook her head, her body filled with so much emotion that she felt overwhelmed.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” she breathed against his lips, her hands on either side of his face, holding him close to her. “I can’t believe you found me.”
She backed up, pulling him with her, so that they were fully inside the room. It was storage for most of the alcohol, the stuff they went through fast and would need more of tonight. It was down a flight of stairs, in the cellar, where they were able to keep everything cooler, as opposed to the often squelching heat of the Louisiana day above.
His hands gripped her hips tightly, desperately, as though afraid the moment he let her go she might be gone. “I’m so sorry,” he murmured as she pulled him into the room with her. “I took so long to find you.”
“You’re here now,” she said, her eyes looking over his face, memorizing the features. “You came for me.”
Their lips were a hairsbreadth away as he answered, “Damn straight, I did. I won’t lose the only woman I’ve ever loved.”
With that, he closed the distance between their lips, their mouths crashing together in a needy kiss that had been too long coming. His hands moved around to the small of her back, pulling her tighter against him so that their bodies were flush. Her breasts pressed into his chest as she parted her lips to deepen the kiss.
His tongue moved into her mouth, searching out hers and brushing against it. Her hands moved from his face around to the back of his neck before sliding up through his shaggy, brown hair. She forgot all of the reasons she had for being positive this wouldn’t work. She forgot about Marcel and the Decourdreaus and breaking into the bar. All she could focus on was his lips against hers, his tongue in her mouth, and his hands sliding over her body, pulling her against him.
This was where she wanted to be. In his arms.
They continued to back up until Sera’s back found a support beam in the room. Joey’s hands went to her rear and got a good hold. He held her against the beam, using it as leverage to hoist her body up. Automatically, her legs wrapped around his middle as she clung to his body.
Joey broke the kiss to trail his lips along her soft skin, kissing along her neck and collarbone. He murmured sweet nothings against her skin and it didn’t matter that she couldn’t make out what they were. She understood the tone he used, the sentiment behind them.
He used his hands to lift her up more so that he had easier access to her cleavage. His mouth found the tops of her breasts, kissing along them before reaching the valley of her breasts. Sera clung to him, arching her back as best she could to give his mouth a better vantage.
Joey made a frustrated sound when he reached the neckline of her shirt. “Damn it,” he said crossly. “Why are we still dressed?”
She let out a laugh at that—not because it was a ridiculous thing to say, but because she’d been thinking the same thing herself. Patience and going slow was for when they had time and knew that they would get to do this a dozen more times, a hundred. That they’d wake up the next morning to find the other person lying next to them and if they wanted, they could do it again right then and there.
But they didn’t have those options. Sera didn’t know when they’d get to see each other again after this, or even if they ever would. She knew that if the Decourdreaus found out about him—especially if they found out he was a federal agent—well, he didn’t have much of a chance. Whether the boys wanted to or not, one of them would kill him.
And she couldn’t let that happen. She had to protect Joey. She knew that as much as she was loving being here with him, touching him again, that things probably would have been easier if he had never found her to begin with.
But he did, and with his body pressed against hers, his mouth licking and kissing her bare skin, she couldn’t make herself wish that he hadn’t.
“We should probably remedy that little problem,” she told him, looking into his brown eyes.
Joey didn’t need to be told twice. He let her down just enough so that she was standing on her own two feet, but kept his lower body tight against her. With his hips pressing against hers, she could feel how much he wanted her, needed her.
His hands went to the hem of her tank top, jerking it upwards to reveal the smooth skin of her stomach. She lifted her arms obligingly, letting him pull her top off the rest of the way. His eyes raked over her body, humming with approval as his hands tossed the tank aside and went around her back to feel for her bra strap.
He found it easily, unclipping it so that it fell loose about her shoulders. He stripped that off, too. “I always remember how beautiful you are, but every time I see you again, I feel like I’ve forgotten and get to see it for the first time again.”
She smiled at him, her face blushing with his sweet words. She took his hands in hers and moved them along her skin, starting from the hips to her stomach, up along her ribcage until his hands found her breasts.
He took the hint, squeezing them and rolling them along his palms until the nipples hardened beneath his touch. Sera sucked in a deep breath, biting her lip as she moaned just a little.
With his hands occupied, Sera’s went to his belt. She undid it deftly, whipping the belt out of his pant loops and letting it fall to the floor. Then her hands returned to his jeans, unbuttoning them and sliding down the zipper.
Joey leaned forward, kissing along Sera’s neck as he kneaded her breasts in his hands. When she undid his jeans, he groaned against her skin.
“Sera, I need you,” he said.
Pulling away from her momentarily, he lifted his shirt up over his head, tossing it to join hers somewhere on the floor. Her eyes scanned over his muscled chest, his body fit from the training required for his job. Reaching out her hand, she grazed her fingers along those muscles.
They half-crashed, half-stumbled to the floor, managing to at least find the semi-soft landing that was made up of burlap sacks. It was better than nothing, and in all honesty, neither Joey nor Sera seemed to mind. Sera’s senses were too full of Joey to be concerned with things like how hard or cold the floor was. He was above her, ready for her, and that was enough.
She was more focused on how hard he was, and how hot his body felt against hers. As she’d already managed to undo his pants, Joey was easily able to shuck his jeans off. His underwear followed quickly after, leaving him bare.
His arousal was large and very much hard with desire for her. Sera’s hand moved down his muscled chest, causing his body to tighten beneath her touch. She followed the line of his body until she found his erection. When her hand wrapped around him, he let out a groan of pleasure—and relief. He’d been waiting for this, too.
“God, Sera,” he managed to get out. His eyes had closed as she gave him a quick stroke, familiarizing herself with him all over again. “I’ve missed you so much.”
He caught her lower lip between her teeth as he spoke. She understood exactly what he meant, what he was feeling. Their chemistry had been fiery and all but instantaneous. Even when they fought their bodies craved physical contact. It was inevitable for them to collide together once more.
But that wasn’t just what it was about. There was more here than sex, no matter how Sera had tried to wiggle her way out of it. It was more to Sera and she knew Joey well enough to know he felt that way, too.
They missed the sex so much, felt so much pleasure in it, because of how they felt about each other.
The intensity was undeniable.
Sera had missed Joey since the moment she realized she was going to have to say goodbye to him.
Joey held himself above her, using his arms to brace himself so that his body didn’t crush hers. He was half lying between her legs and for the first time, she was grateful that Jimmy had insisted on the short skirt as part of her uniform. She was desperate to have Joey inside her as quickly as humanly possible, her body throbbing and aching with a deep-seated need for him.
As though sensing her thoughts and reading her urgency, Joey’s eyes snapped open and he looked at her, desire burning in his gaze. “I need you,” he said to her, his voice low and gruff.
Yes, the statement was simple and straightforward, but the heat and intensity with which he said it made those words powerful. They sent a rush through Sera’s body—she wanted him. Now.
She didn’t pull her hand away from him as he moved so that he supported himself on just one arm. The other moved between her legs, tracing along her thigh as it moved deliberately up her skirt to find her moist core.
He continued upward until he found what he was looking for—the waistband of her panties. His fingers hooked beneath the elastic, making Sera gasp at the feel of him so close to her most intimate parts. He proceeded to slide her panties down then, pulling them over her thighs, past her knees, until she was able to kick them off.
“Sera, please,” he asked as he slid the hem of her skirt up until it was bunched up around her waist, leaving her naked core exposed to him.
She answered him by squeezing her hand around his member and guiding it between her legs towards her center. When she’d positioned the head at her entrance, she released him and let her hands move up his body once more. Her hands slipped around his shoulders and she arched her back so she could push her hips up towards him, a silent urging for him to gently push inside of her.
They’d been together so many times now and she’d been on the pill the moment she knew she might fall into bed with him—which was earlier on than she’d ever admit to him—that she didn’t worry that neither of them had a condom.
Joey understood what she wanted with her movements, and began to push inside of her. He went slow, giving her body time to adjust to his size and intrusion. Carefully, he moved deeper and deeper into her, making her utter both moans and whimpering sounds of pleasure. Finally, after what seemed like a torturous, pleasure-filled forever to Sera, Joey pushed himself forward and was fully inside of her.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
He felt amazing inside her. It had been too long since they’d had the opportunity to come together and Sera couldn’t deny how much she missed the feeling of him buried within her. She felt, in that moment, that a part of her that had been missing was finally returned.
She looked up at him, found his warm eyes and strong features, and remembered all over again how he’d made her heart pound the first time she’d seen him. Her hand reached up to cup his cheek. His skin felt warm against hers—in fact, his whole body felt like an inferno trying to swallow her up in flames. Intoxicating and all-consuming.
After a torturously long moment, Joey finally began to move. Sera let out a soft moan as he pulled back from her, slipping almost completely out of her body. It would have felt like a terrible loss to her if she hadn’t felt him press back inside a moment later. He moved faster this time, making her gasp.
“Joey,” she got out as he began to pull away again.
He responded to her by leaning down to kiss her full lips. The kiss was tender, lingering, and continued as he began to thrust back inside her. He swallowed her gasp this time as he sheathed his length fully inside of her once more.
He began to create a rhythm with their bodies and his movements. She could tell that he had tried to go slowly at first, to savor the moment, but it was impossible. Their bodies were united finally and it was all heat between them. This wasn’t the time or place for slow, sweet love-making. This was about passion. Raw, consuming passion—and both their bodies knew it.
His thrusts steadily increased in speed as Sera’s hands went to wrap around his shoulders. His muscles rippled beneath her touch, making her all the more lustful for him. He thrust into her again, burying himself into her core completely once more. As he did so, her nails dug into his back as she clutched and clung to his body.
God, she needed him.
They continued, their pace ever increasing with each of Joey’s hard thrusts. He groaned as he moved repeatedly in and out of her. She continued to clutch at him, trying to keep his hard body as close to hers as possible. His skin was hot and sweaty beneath her fingertips as he worked hard to bring them both closer to ecstasy.
His groans became more strained, his muscles tightened and his rhythm became erratic. She knew he was close. Arching her back, she thrust her hips upwards, urging him towards release even as she felt her own building.
“Joey, baby,” she whispered. “That’s it, honey. Let go.”
As though her words were the secret passcode that opened the floodgates, he came, pleasure filling his entire body and hers.
He collapsed on top of her then, just managing to catch himself before letting his full weight crush her. He breathed heavily, resting his head against her soft breasts.
Sera stroked back his damp, sweaty hair, murmuring soft, sweet words to him as they both reveled in their long overdue lovemaking together.
14
After a long moment, both Sera and Joey eventually had to pull their bodies apart. In silence, they dressed. Sera pulled her skirt down and searched around until she found her panties. As she slipped them on, she couldn’t force herself to look back at him. As soon as she did that, they’d have to speak and Sera would have to tell him to go.
And she just wasn’t ready for that just yet.
So instead, she searched around for her bra and her shirt. She found them on the floor near the bottom of the stairs. Slowly and quietly, taking her time, she slipped them on, too. When she was fully dressed, she finally realized that she had to talk to him.
No matter how much she wanted to just freeze this entire moment and keep it forever locked in her heart, she knew it wasn’t an option.
Reality was way too busy closing in for any of that. As if to emphasize her feelings, she heard a loud crash come from upstairs and she sighed. She’d have to clean that up. And worse, it meant that someone—like Jimmy, for instance—was probably going to come looking for her any moment.
Taking a deep breath, she finally turned to look at Joey. Her breath caught when she saw him again. He was standing there, staring at Sera, shirtless and still a little shiny with sweat. He looked amazing to her, like a dream she’d had a while ago now and only just found the moment to remember.
“Joey,” she murmured, trying to find the right thing to say that wouldn’t somehow ruin the moment. If such words existed, they escaped her.
“I was starting to worry I wouldn’t ever find you.” he admitted in a soft, vulnerable voice. “You really scared me, Sera.”
She bit her lower lip, worrying at it a little. Finally, she simply said, “I know.” She wanted to just explain everything and then forget all of this—but there was another crash above her and she cursed under her breath. She was running out of time and she worried that she wouldn’t be able to get Joey out of here without giving him an answer. Something that she didn’t have the time—and couldn’t afford the danger—to do.
“I have to get back to work before Jimmy starts wondering where the hell I am,” she said, both regretful and worried. She would do anything to stay here with him, even just a little longer, but that just wasn’t an option.
It seemed like staying with Joey was never an option.
Shaking his head, Joey came to stand in front of her. “What? No, what are you talking about? I just found you.” He gestured to the floor where they had just made love and his discarded shirt. “I was worried sick, Sera, and—”
“I know, I know,” she said quickly, reaching out to put her palms flat against his chest. At the last minute, she reconsidered though, unwilling to risk the flash fire skin-to-skin contact would likely bring up in them all over again. There was no time. “And I wish I could explain everything to you and that we could spend more…time together, but I can’t right now.”
Her eyes darted up towards the stairs and the door again.
She needed to get back. Soon.
“Sera, I need answers so I can help you,” Joey told her, his voice conveying how serious he really was about this.
Biting her lip again, she finally nodded. There was no getting around this with him, so might as well concede now rather than argue until they were both in big trouble. “All right, but not now. Meet me later—after the bar closes.” Her eyes darted to his lips, down his chest, and it took everything she had to not start up with him all over again.
“Wait five minutes after I leave before you follow me out,” she told him quickly, and probably unnecessarily, then darted away before he could argue. Or touch her and pull her into another intense moment of heat.
Sera rushed up the stairs as quickly as humanly possible, and popped out of the door, back into the bar. The rowdy noise of The Keep assaulted her senses and it took a moment to adjust. When she did, she spotted Jimmy across the bar looking frustrated, his rat-like face scrunched up in disdain and possibly even loathing.
There was a bunch of glass scattered on the floor—a broken bottle or something—and she was sure he was just pissed off because he hadn’t been able to immediately find her to clean it up for him. Always waiting on someone else to clean up his messes, that was Jimmy.
