Kian dropped his arm from my shoulder and stepped in front of me, shielding me from the guys. I didn’t know how it was possible but he looked even taller and more massive standing up to those guys. “Do we need to take this outside?” Kian asked. His voice was so calm it scared me.

  I started to pray that Austin wouldn’t open his mouth and say something stupid because I knew Kian was capable of doing serious damage, maybe even killing him. I could see it in his eyes. He would do anything to protect me.

  Austin threw up his hands. “It’s cool, Man. We were just leaving.”

  “Good,” Kian replied. His jaw was set so tight I could see the muscles in his neck bulging.

  As Austin turned to leave, he gave another glance in my direction and smirked. It was just enough to set Kian off. Right before he went for Austin, I grabbed Kian’s arm and stood between him and Austin.

  My eyes blazed into Austin’s and I could feel a rage boiling up inside me that I had never felt before. “He’s not worth it. He’ll never be worth anything.”

  The air between us was now thick with tension. I felt like one wrong move on anyone’s part and we would all erupt.

  Austin looked like he wanted to respond but he swallowed his words. He shook his head instead. “Come on.” He waved his hand at his two friends. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Once the three guys exited the restaurant, I breathed a small sigh of relief. My stomach was in knots and there was no way I was even going to be able to eat.

  “Are you still hungry?” Kian asked. His features had completely softened, the anger completely drained away. When his eyes met mine, they held only love.

  I shook my head.

  “Me, neither. Let’s get out of here.”

  ***

  “Where are we going?” I asked as we drove on the main highway out of town.

  “I want us to be alone for a little while. I need to hold you in my arms. I want you to feel safe again.”

  He was right. Seeing Austin again brought up a lot of issues that I tried desperately to forget—how easily I was manipulated, taken advantage of and how badly I was hurt. But being with Kian reminded me how much I had already healed, mostly as a result of his unwavering love for me.

  “We just need to make one stop before we get there.”

  Kian stopped at a gas station convenience store. The gas station and its adjoining store were the only retail establishments we’d passed for miles.

  When we entered the store, I noticed it sold quite a few more items than the typical convenience store, probably because it was the only store in the area. It was kind of like what people in the old days used to call a general store.

  Kian filled his arms with crackers, cheese, cookies, pretzels, chips, a few energy bars, mixed nuts and some bottled water.

  “Is this some kind of junk food picnic?” I asked.

  He laughed. “I guess you could say that.”

  He paid for the items and then we got back on the road.

  I was surprised when Kian pulled off the highway onto an old country road that led into a dense forest of pines. The street was well worn and the pavement was missing in a number of places. I had to admit, it made me a little nervous. What could possibly be back here?

  “I’m officially intrigued,” I said. “It doesn’t look like anyone comes back here at all.”

  “Which is exactly why we are. You need some quiet and I need to be with you and only you.”

  After several miles we came to a clearing with five rustic cabins and a larger bungalow. We were lucky that the sun was shining and it had been unseasonably warm. When the sun went down, however, I had a feeling the cabins would be freezing cold.

  “Are those cabins heated?” I wondered as we hopped out of the car.

  Kian laughed. “If they aren’t, I am. I can keep you warm.”

  I looked around as I took in a deep breath of the pines we were surrounded by. “How do you know about this place?”

  “Runt told me about it. Three girls brought him out here once.” He shook his head. “Not a story you need to hear. Anyway, the place always stuck in my mind.”

  As we walked over to the bungalow, an old man emerged to greet us. He was short and bony but he looked even smaller because he was hunched over. His face was weatherworn and wrinkled, probably from years of hard work in the sun.

  “Need a cabin?” he asked. When he smiled, I noticed he had lost all but a few of his teeth.

  “Just for the night,” Kian offered.

  “Thirty dollars. I only take cash. I just stocked cabin three with some fresh fire wood. You’ll probably need it when the sun goes down.”

  Kian removed money from his front pocket and handed the old man three tens.

  “Don’t expect anyone else will be here, with it being the holidays and off season. We got most of our guests in the warmer months. But if you need anything, just knock on my door. I usually fall asleep by eight but if you really pound, you might be able to wake me.” The man gave a hearty laugh. “You kids enjoy yourselves.”

  As the old man turned and lumbered back into his bungalow, Kian and I looked at each other.

  “I guess that means it’s not locked?” I asked. “He didn’t give us a key.”

  Kian shrugged. “One way to find out.”

  I grabbed our bag of gas station munchies out of the rental car and locked it although I’m not sure why. I think the old man was right when he said we’d be alone out here.

  The cabin was definitely rustic. I wasn’t surprised he didn’t keep it locked, there was really nothing worth stealing. The furnishings—an old bed, couch, rocking chair and a few tables—were dilapidated and dusty.

  “I’d better phone my mom and dad and tell them not to worry. Should I tell them we won’t be back until morning? I don’t have a change of clothing or a toothbrush or anything.”

  “Tell them I’ll have you back by morning. You can go for one night without brushing your teeth.”

  I phoned mom and dad and left a message then I quickly turned off my phone so we wouldn’t be disturbed. I was sure they’d want a long explanation about why we weren’t coming back for the evening and I wasn’t in the mood to give them one. They could wait until we got back.

  Kian was putting wood and kindling in the fireplace. “Starting it so early? It’s not that cold yet.”

  He gave me one of his sexy grins. “It will be when we’re naked.”

  “Okay, then, carry on.”

  I had to admit the warmth of the fire did feel good against the chill I still seemed to be feeling from the events of the day. After Austin left town for college, I didn’t think much about seeing him again. And after going so long not seeing him, I guess I wasn’t emotionally prepared for the day it would inevitably happen. His parents still lived in town. Of course he would come home for the Christmas holiday. The town wasn’t that big. I was bound to run into him someday. Part of me was glad it was a day Kian was with me. Another part of me wished Kian would have never seen him. It probably made the ordeal even more real for Kian. He told me he had never seen the video. He had read some news reports about it but he’d known about it mainly from my retelling of the events.

  Kian stretched out on the lumpy bed and invited me to join him. The bed had just two flat pillows in flowered cases and was covered with a threadbare comforter.

  As soon as I made my way over to Kian, he pulled me close. “I’m sorry you had to see that asshole again.”

  “It’s not your fault. I guess he was home for Christmas.”

  “I wanted to kill him. I wanted to hurt him as badly as he hurt you. I wanted to make him suffer for hurting you.”

  “I know how you feel—”

  Kian shook his head. “No, you don’t. You have no idea how I feel. It’s my job to protect you. When that prick looked at you and smirked, I wanted to punch the smirk right off of his dirty face. I don’t want that asshole anywhere near you ever again. I don’t want him looking at you or talking to you.”

  I placed my hands on Kian’s face. His cheeks were hot with anger. I wanted him to calm down. “He’s not going to hurt me again. He can’t. I won’t let him. I know you feel the need to protect me. I want you to protect me. I feel safe when I’m with you and it’s one of the few places I feel completely safe. I don’t want you to stop being who you are. But I also don’t want you to be my avenger. There’s a difference between protection and revenge.”

  “It’s really hard to look at him standing there, looking at you with that smirk on his face, knowing what he did to you.”

  I could feel the tension in Kian’s body. He was getting angry just thinking about Austin. I placed a gentle kiss on his lips and some of the tension released from his body. I kissed him again and he expelled the breath he’d been holding.

  I flipped my leg over to the other side of him and straddled him.

  “What are you doing?” The glint in his eye told me he knew exactly what I was doing.

  “Taking your mind off things. Why did you start that fire early again?”

  He grinned. “So we wouldn’t get cold when we got naked.”

  “Exactly. We’re not naked yet.”

  Kian took in a breath as I slowly unbuttoned his shirt. It was another brand new dress shirt. I appreciated how much he splurged for our long weekend together. He wasn’t one to spend money on clothes so it meant a lot to me.

  As soon as the last button was undone, Kian removed the shirt and tossed it on to the other side of the bed. The floor was dusty, so I didn’t blame him for not throwing it down there.

  I removed my own top and tossed it with his shirt and I looked into Kian’s eyes. He was such a strong guy and so tough, really rough around the edges yet when he looked at me, and only when he looked at me, his eyes held so much tenderness.

  I slipped off my bra and it joined the growing pile of clothes. I reached out and placed my hands on his hard chest. He closed his eyes as I lightly caressed all of the muscles on his chest. His build was nearly perfect in every way and I showed my appreciation by placing feather-light kisses all over his wonderful upper body. When I felt him shiver, I knew I was doing something right.

  “I think it’s time for you to let me do something to make you feel good,” I said as I began to unbutton the fly of his dress jeans.

  His eyes opened and I knew he was going to protest but this time, I wasn’t going to let him. I pressed my mouth to his and teased his tongue with mine. “Let me give you this, Kian,” I whispered in his ear. “Please.”

  When I looked into his eyes, I could almost see the internal debate going on in his head. He was a guy and his male instincts were probably screaming, “Hell, yeah!” But I also knew there was another part of him that was programmed to please me even at his own expense. I took advantage of the internal debate and unzipped his pants.

  I quickly grabbed at the edges of his jeans and pulled his pants down as far as I could until he was required to lift so I could get them all the way down. He did lift but I could still see some hesitation on his face.

  The bulge rising from his boxer briefs showed me what his face didn’t. His body clearly longed for what I wanted to give him. I pulled his boxer briefs down and he lifted at the appropriate moment so that I could get them all the way off.

  His erection sprang to life and I licked my lips. For once, I wanted to give something to Kian. I wanted to make him feel as good as he always made me feel. This was one of the ways I knew I could do it.

  As I lowered my head toward his ample manhood, he grabbed my arms and stopped me. I gazed up at his through my lashes.

  “You don’t have to do this, you know.”

  I bit my bottom lip. “But I want to.”

  He released my arms and I continued on my quest until my lips met the head of his cock. He took in a sharp breath as I filled my mouth with as much of him as I could handle. I loved his salty taste and the way his body reacted to my lips and tongue as they worked up and down his shaft.

  “Oh, Princess,” Kian sighed. “That feels so good.”

  That was what I wanted to hear. There was no stopping me. I continued to work my magic, licking and sucking and handling Kian in the most sensual way I knew how.

  “That’s it,” Kian moaned. “Don’t stop.”

  I continued stroking Kian with my hand and mouth until he took in another sharp breath and shuddered. Then he let out a low groan as he erupted down my throat.

  When I released him, his eyes were still closed for a moment. When he finally opened them, he looked dreamy, satisfied. “That was amazing,” he said as he grabbed me and pulled me into his embrace.

  He kissed the top of my head then lazily played with my hair, massaging my scalp and running his fingers through my tresses. Then his fingers made their way to my shoulder where he made little circles which tickled me and sent little shivers through my body. Then his fingers danced down my arm, leaving a wake of little shivers behind.

  “You’ve still got your jeans on,” he noted as he began unbuttoning the top button. “You should be naked. I want us skin on skin.”

  I wriggled out of my jeans and underwear and tossed them with the rest of our clothes. I eyed him. “Better?”

  “Much. But it won’t be best until I’m inside you again.”

  Five

  Kian

  I’m not going to lie. I got my first blow job when I was fourteen and I’ve gotten quite a few since then. But nothing, and I mean nothing, compared to how my princess made me feel. Her mouth was like magic and being inside it was heaven. And as much as I wanted a repeat performance, I knew making her feel good was more important.

  I wanted her to forget the asshole. I wanted her to forget everything about him. All I wanted her to think about was being in my arms, my lips on hers, my hands on her body and me being inside of her. I wanted to be imprinted in her mind and heart and forever connected to her soul.

  I loved the way her skin felt as I ran my fingers ever so lightly up and down her arm. I loved that I could make her shiver with the slightest of touches. Her body was so responsive to mine—to my every touch—our connection was that strong and that deep.

  I wanted to hold her and never let her go but I knew the idea was ridiculous. We both had important things to do in the world but whenever I was with Taylor, nothing felt more important. Hell, even when I wasn’t with her, she consumed my thoughts.

  Taylor lifted her head and looked at me. All of the anxiety and dread that had marred those beautiful eyes earlier was now gone. When she looked at me, there was only confidence and love and trust. I never wanted to do anything that would change that.

  “Are you hungry?” she asked. “We’ve got a bag filled with gas station junk food.”

  I was starting to feel hungry for a real meal but it was going to have to wait. This would be our last chance to spend the night alone, wrapped in each other’s arms, for several months. “Let’s break out the cheese and crackers. We’ll need some calories for our next workout.”

  Taylor raised an eyebrow. “You’re ready already?”

  “Not quite. But I will be after we snack.”

  I gave her a quick kiss then got up to retrieve the cheese and crackers from the goody bag. We had fun feeding each other processed cheese food and whole wheat crackers. I didn’t want to tell Taylor that what we were eating was better than half the so-called meals I had growing up. Thank God for free school lunches or I may have starved to death.

  Once we had our fill and drank from the bottle waters, it was time to get back to business. Even though Taylor and I were both still naked, the fire, which was now roaring, was keeping us warm. I wanted to heat things up, though.

  “Come here,” I said as Taylor placed the half empty water bottle on the table.

  She turned to face me. The way the warm glow of the firelight hit her face, she looked like an angel. My angel. She was truly beautiful.

  “What?” she said shyly as if she just realized she was naked standing before me. I wanted to capture the image of her standing there, so lovely and radiant, like a snapshot in my mind.

  “I happen to be the luckiest asshole on the planet.”

  She laughed. “You may be lucky but you’re not an asshole. I feel lucky, too.” She crawled on to the bed and nestled in my arms.

  After a few minutes of holding Taylor in my arms, I said, “There’s something I’ve been waiting to give you.”

  She laughed. “I thought you already gave it to me.”

  “A present.”

  She leaned on her elbow. “Did you notice that I’m wearing the earrings you gave me? I never take them off.”

  I glanced at her diamond studs. “They look beautiful on you.”

  “I don’t need any more gifts. Just you being here in Arizona is enough of a present.”

  I got up from the bed and removed a small box from my pants pocket. I brought it back over to the bed and handed it to her.

  Her eyes went wide as she rubbed her fingers on the velvet exterior of the box.

  “Open it,” I said. I was excited to see her reaction to the gift.

  She carefully opened the box and stared at its contents for a long moment.

  “Do you like it?”

  She carefully touched the diamond covered heart pendant. “It looks very expensive.”

  It was expensive but she was worth it. “I had it engraved.”

  She flipped the pendant over and read the inscription. “For my princess. I’ll always love you. You and only you. Now and always. Kian.”

  When she looked up at me, her eyes were sparkling. “It’s beautiful. But you didn’t have to spend so much money on me. I know you’re saving for your sports bar.”

  “I wanted to get you something special. I want you to wear it every day and think of me whenever you look down at it.”

  “I’m always thinking about you, Kian.”

  “Do you want me to help you put it on?”

  She nodded. I carefully removed the necklace from the box and placed in around her neck.

  “How does it look?” she asked as she glanced down at it.

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18