Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 74766 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 374(@200wpm)___ 299(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74766 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 374(@200wpm)___ 299(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
“I need you!” Her words were weak and needy, nothing at all like his woman.
“Where are you?” He almost yelled at her but reined it in.
His knees gave out when he saw her lights coming towards him down the drive, and he had to lean against the side of the house for support. Every awful thought imaginable went through his head in the few minutes it took for her to reach him, and he swore he was going to expire by the time he was able to move again.
The SUV had barely come to a stop before Celia found the door being pulled open and herself being dragged out and into his arms. “Oh fuck! Fuck-fuck-fuck…” Riley moaned the word over and over again in her hair as his arms wrapped around her like bands of steel. His heart was beating way too fast against her chest, and that’s when she realized that she’d scared him.
She started to raise her head to speak, to assure him that it was her heart that needed healing and not some outer wound, but she never got the words out. Riley, without thinking, dragged her around the side of the house away from any prying eyes and into the dark recesses hidden from view.
Celia started to question what he was doing but soon found her mouth otherwise occupied when he took her lips in a searing kiss that knocked the wind out of her. The only sound she heard was her zipper being lowered, and then she felt the cool night breeze against her skin as he wrestled her pants down and off, leaving them to hang off one ankle while he tackled his jeans.
Riley didn’t know what came over him. One minute he was scared shitless that something had happened to his woman, and the next, he just needed to get inside her. As soon as his zipper was released, he lifted her against the smooth two-hundred-year-old stone siding of the house and impaled her on his cock.
He was barely in time to catch her screams in his mouth as he started to fuck, pounding out his fear and relief in her. Celia held on for dear life, reveling in the feeling of being alive. This is just what she needed, exactly this, to chase the memories away.
CHAPTER 20
“What happened?” With the fear of her being physically hurt out of the way, those were the first words out of Riley’s mouth. She was still pinned to the wall impaled on his cock, their hearts were still knocking against the wall of their chests, and the words came out wispy and out of breath. They were alive; she was alive. Celia found the whole thing hilarious for some reason and started cracking up as she kissed him all over his face.
“Put me down, Riley, before someone sees us.” Though they were around the other side of the house, away from the view of others, there was no guarantee that one of the hands wouldn’t come traipsing across the land for some reason or another.
“No, wait, let my dick catch up to my mind; he’s still a little shook.”
“I’m sorry I scared you; I didn’t mean to.” He didn’t answer, just held her a little bit closer until his cock softened enough to ease it out of her. They both got themselves together, pulling their clothes back in place before heading inside. “I need a shower; I’ve been out in the field all day. You should join me since I’ve dirtied you up.”
Celia could hear the strain in his voice though he tried to hide it behind a smile, and a feeling of warmth so overwhelming touched her to the point that she found herself wrapping her arms around him there in the foyer. Riley was a little bit worried about what was going on with his tough girl. It’s not like her to be clingy, so though he was assured of her physical safety, he didn’t let his guard down; something was up with her.
He held his peace in the shower as he washed her body and his. Didn’t bring it up when he helped her get dressed before pulling on a pair of jeans and a tee-shirt himself before they both headed down to the kitchen to have dinner. It was only once they were sitting across from each other in the little breakfast room alcove and had started digging into their meals that he broached the subject.
“Rough day? I didn’t expect you to go back out today, not after burning the midnight oil last night.”
Celia forked some pasta into her mouth before answering him. She was suddenly ravenous, only now realizing that she hadn’t eaten in a while. “I found out some stuff about the Ryan Swamp case.” She gave him a quick rundown, and he listened without interruption.