Johnny (Connelly Cousins #2) (7 page)

Careful not to wake her, he slowly opened one eye, and tilted his head. Flowing waves of dark red silk covered his chest, his neck, and at least one arm. Ah, yes. His little hellcat. The one who made him burn in searing flames and soothed his soul while he soared through space with intense pleasure. He’d half expected to wake up alone, tangled in the sheets, having to admit it had been one hell of an erotic wet dream.

But it wasn’t. She was real, and she’d given him one hell of a night. It was exactly what he’d needed. All of that angst he’d been feeling was gone, leaving him feeling a lot like his old self.

Only better.

Awake for barely minute and his dick was already hard and throbbing. She’d proven to be a generous, passionate partner, as eager to give pleasure as she was to receive it. His breath caught when he felt her hand stroking him in her sleep, as if his cock was a favorite pet. The thought made his lips quirk.
Good boy. Up boy. Beg.
Oh yeah, she had the power to make him heel, no doubt about it.

As if she could sense his awareness, she moaned softly, shifting against him. She might just as well have screamed “Fuck me” into his ear for the effect that little sound had on his body. His muscles tightened while the familiar ache settled into his balls. Remembering how much he’d come the night before, he wondered how that was even possible.

He was no refined gentleman by any means, but something about this woman made him want to go total caveman. She sighed again, her hand flexing around his dick, and it was an effort not to flip her over and pound into her again and again until she was exploding with his seed. The urge was primal in its intensity,
scary
primal. Johnny felt the growl building in his chest well before he heard it.

What the fuck?

He waited for the niggling sense of unease to surface, for the desire to pat her on the ass and send her on her way, but it didn’t come. He liked having her here, in his bed, with her soft, fragrant body pressed up against him. It made no sense. None of it. Not his actions, not these powerful urges, and definitely not the sense of peace that came with having her draped across his chest, blowing little puffs of hot air against his neck while his big hand cupped her perfect ass.

“Good morning.” The low, sexy purr vibrated through his body as she looked up at him, drawing his thoughts to a complete and grinding halt.

It hadn’t been a trick of the moonlight. Her eyes really were silver. Maybe a smoky gray most of the time, but they glowed and shimmered like polished white gold when she fixed them his way.

“Good morning.” His voice sounded like he’d chain-smoked three packs, it was so rough and husky. Then again, he had been rather vocal, issuing commands and roaring out a few releases.

Her hand continued to stroke him lazily, and it was an effort not to bury himself deep within her right then and there. “I think you’ve made a friend.”

Her face lit up in a thousand-watt smile and his balls tightened painfully.

“Mmmmm,” she purred. “I could use a friend.”

“Really?” he teased, turning to look down at her. “Because he’s not doing anything right now. He could, you know, come over and keep you company, if you’d like.” The last part of his words were muffled as he placed searing kisses beneath her jaw, under her ear.

“I’d like that, very much.”

Johnny let his hand trail caresses over her body, dipping between her legs. She arched her back, thrusting her generous breasts against him, coating his hand in slick, fragrant heat. He longed to explore every inch of her delectable body, but he felt a screaming need to be inside her that would not be denied. He needed to feel that tight wetness around him more than he needed his next breath.

Get a condom
, his brain urged.

Don’t want to
, his cock replied.

Thankfully, his brain won this round, though he’d never been as sorely tempted as he was with this woman. 

With a slight roll he placed himself on top of her, supporting his weight on his elbows. She held his eyes captive with her own as his cock sought out the sanctuary she offered him. He slid in slowly, gloriously, reveling in the way she gripped him.

The expression on her face was one of pure ecstasy. That was good. Very good.

He moved within her slowly, almost leisurely, savoring each stroke as if it would be his last. Last night had been hot and heavy, but he wanted something slower this morning. Besides, he thought smugly, she was probably sore after the loving he’d given her. He’d promised to rock her world, and Johnny prided himself on being a man of his word.

She moaned softly, her eyes half-closed, her lips parted slightly. Nothing should feel this good. He vaguely remembered thinking the same thing last night.

She ran her hands over his chest, traced the V from his shoulders to his waist, allowing them extra time over his ass. Oh, how he loved the feel of her hands on his ass.

He knew she was close when her eyes began to lose focus and her fingers dug into him, pulling him deeper against her. He thrust harder, faster until she shattered around him. The powerful way she squeezed him made his own release imminent, and he followed right after.

* * *

“Y
ou okay, baby?” he murmured quietly, brushing the hair away from her face. His touch was gentle, far gentler than his lovemaking.

“Perfect,” she purred.

A softly spoken word, but said from her soul. His promise to rock her world hadn’t been just a hollow boast. He’d rocked it, rolled it, and flipped it over a few times.

Lowering his head, he gave her a long, slow kiss, sweeping his tongue against hers.

“Shower with me.” The words were a breathy moan; she felt more than heard them as he pulled his delicious warmth away from her.

Oh, sweet heavens, he
was
a god
, she thought as she stared at him, all hard and naked as he stood beside the bed. Rakish waves of burnished gold, copper and bronze framed his perfect face, his white teeth visible in the sexiest smile she had ever seen. Her eyes traced down his massive chest, to his lean waist, to his... 
oh my Lord
. Even half-staff, his shaft was huge.

That
was what had been in her?  It looked even bigger this morning. No wonder she’d felt the earth move. She pulled herself to a sitting position to get a better look at the rest of him.

“Please?” he asked, holding out his hand. The glorious sight of him and the thought of running soapy hands over every inch of his body left her temporarily incapable of speech. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. His grin grow even wider. Oh yeah, the sexy devil knew exactly what he was doing to her.

He leaned over the bed, placing his lips close to her ear. “Pretty please?” He was so close, so close she could feel his searing heat, but he selfishly kept himself from actually touching her.

“Can’t,” she finally managed to get out, licking her lips without realizing it, wishing with every fiber of her being that she could.

“Why not?” he breathed, his hands supporting his weight beside her. “Suddenly shy, hellcat?” She shivered when he brushed back her hair and placed his lips on her shoulder.

“No.” The heat of his lips scorched a path from her shoulder right to a spot behind her belly button. “I really can’t. I can’t walk, so standing in the shower is out of the question.”

His brow furrowed and he pulled back to look in her eyes. She saw him struggling as he tried to make sense of her words, trying to determine if it was an attempt at lame humor. Inside, that cozy, post-coital afterglow quickly began to chill. Stacey began preparing herself, steeling herself against his reaction when the truth finally dawned.

Yeah, dude. You just banged a handicapped chick.

Her therapist told her she needed to stop judging people so quickly. That people needed time to adjust and process. Stacey didn’t agree. That moment of truth when they saw her – really saw her – was the most honest reaction of all, before they started spouting platitudes and well-meant but totally bullshit words.

To his credit, he was better at shielding his thoughts than most. Stacey inhaled and cleared her throat. “As a matter of fact, I could use your help. My wheelchair is by the hot tub.”

Without saying a word, Johnny straightened and walked out of the bedroom. He hadn’t bothered getting dressed, and Stacey was treated to a delicious view of his gorgeous ass. The instant rush of lusty desire was immediately overshadowed by sadness, a realization that the spell had been broken.

Stacey shifted her weight until her legs hung over the side of the bed, her useless feet dangling a foot above the floor while she waited. A chill swept over her body; feeling suddenly exposed, she tugged the blanket around her shoulders like a shawl and pulled it tight.

Minutes ticked by, far longer than they should have been. Outside, birds chirped and a jet flew over, somewhere far above. But inside, the cabin was quiet, too quiet.

Johnny appeared in the doorway, pushing her wheelchair. Time no longer moved slowly; it stopped completely. Stacy tried to breathe and couldn’t; for one long, agonizing moment, she felt nothing at all. It was similar to the feeling she’d experienced when she’d gone cliff-diving. Specifically, those moments when she’d leapt off the edge and her mind and body tried to catch up with the notion of freefall. She searched his face for something, anything, that might give her hope, but his features were unreadable, his body as still as carved golden marble.

As the seconds ticked by in interminable silence, the radiant warmth drained from her body while he put the pieces together. She fought against the tears that were suddenly welling in her eyes. It was too good to last, she had known that all along. Didn’t make it hurt any less, though.

Stacey mentally chastised herself for being so stupid. She should know better by now! Not for having the most incredible night of sex with a man she didn’t know (which admittedly was pretty stupid), but for allowing herself to think for even one second that it could be anything more than that. Because, damn her, she let herself get completely carried away by the foolish, fantastical notion of a perfect guy. If there ever was such a thing, she could have believed this man was hers. Never before had she felt such an instant connection with another person. Not just physically, either. When he’d looked into her eyes and he made love to her, she could have sworn he was seeing right down into her soul.

Humiliated, she felt the heat blooming in her face and hastily pulled the sheet tighter around her like a shield. She blamed Lina. All that talk about how things were between her and Kyle made Stacey actually believe the possibility of instant, true love between destined soulmates actually existed. The fact that she’d indulged in a beer or two after writing a fantastic, page-scorching novel yesterday obviously hadn’t helped with her tenuous grip on reality, either.

Unlike the soreness between her legs, which would remain for some time yet, her languorous post-coital bliss was completely gone. Stacey began locking herself away, piece by piece, back into her safe zone.

It’s all right
, she told herself firmly. She could handle this. She was a grown woman. A successful, independent, mature woman. One who had just had incredible sex and made the mistake of believing her own fiction.

She attempted a smile. “Hey, don’t worry about it.” She sounded too bright, too cheery. The words rang false, even in her own ears. “It’s not contagious or anything.”

* * *

“I
- ”  Johnny tried to speak and couldn’t. He was at a loss for words.

Admittedly, the wheelchair had taken him by surprise. She was so beautiful, so passionate, so perfect.  She managed to make him come with the force of a tsunami. And she definitely had feeling below the waist, along with the most amazing cock-grabbing sheath he’d ever felt.

It took a few moments for his mind to make the journey back from the land of Epic Sex and re-engage. By the time it did, Stacey had already shifted to the edge and lifted herself into her chair with the effortless ease of someone who had performed the maneuver a thousand times.

“No biggie.” She shot him a hard look, daring him to think otherwise. When he said nothing, she grabbed a few items from her suitcase and wheeled herself from the room.

Johnny watched her leave, then sunk onto the bed. Christ, what had he done?  

The bathroom door closed, and soon he heard the sound of water running into the combined shower/tub. Images assaulted his brain, images of her trying to lift herself in and out of the tub, falling on the slick tile, getting hurt. He grabbed a loose pair of sweats and knocked on the bathroom door.

“Go away.” she said. The words were thick, muffled. Just like Lina’s used to get when she was...

Oh God, she was crying
.

“Please, open the door.” Johnny rested his head against the smooth wood.

“Fuck off.” He flinched. The pain in her voice sliced through him, cutting him as easily as if she’d swung a scythe at him. He stayed by the door for the next hour until he heard the sound of the water draining from the tub. He knew in his heart that she didn’t need – or want – his help. But he couldn’t seem to help himself. The need to protect her, to watch over her, was there.

When it sounded as if she was about ready to emerge, he quietly left the room and made for the bathroom on the other side of the cabin.

He was going to fix this. Nights like last night didn’t happen often, and he’d be damned if he was going to let her get away from him that easily, not until he had some answers. In the meantime, he had some quick thinking to do.

W
hen Stacey guided her chair back into the bedroom, Johnny was gone. She wasn’t surprised, but she was a little disappointed. What had she expected, him to be there waiting for her? Why the hell would he? They’d had their night, and now that he knew the truth, an encore was most likely not in the cards.

Hating how much that thought hurt, Stacey pushed her way over toward the far wall, where her suitcase sat on a folding chair. How ironic was it that the guest room Lina had given her – the only one on the first floor – was
his
?