Running Fire (17 page)

As his teeth tugged gently on the nipple, she writhed in his arms, the feelings so intense that she bucked her hips demandingly against his. All Leah could do was sob as he waged the same sweet assault upon her other nipple. She was barely aware that he had disrobed her completely until she felt his hard erection against her belly as she twisted herself upward against him. It didn't scare her. Her memory had been dissolved by the molten heat that leaped and churned throughout her entire body.

She trusted Kell. And that was all her mind needed to know. It released her from the terror of the past. It allowed her to focus solely on Kell.

Leah made an exasperated moaning sound as his mouth left her breast. She almost cried out louder, wanting him to return to suckle them, the exquisite sensations leaving her trembling in the wake of his skilled mouth. Instead, she felt his hand move beneath her arched back, pulling her upward, his mouth trailing fire down the center of her damp, quivering body. Leah gripped his thickly muscled shoulders, fingers pressed deep into his flesh, opening and closing them as if in spasm as each kiss lavished her torso, her abdomen.

And then her world started flying apart as she felt his mouth kissing her soft curls, his hands easing her thighs apart. It was such a slow-moving, burning path he created as he followed the crease of her left thigh, then kissed and licked his way down to her aching entrance.

Kell laid her down, moved between her thighs and cupped her hips, lifting her slightly, and as his mouth touched her outer entrance, Leah gasped, a low, tearing moan caught in her throat. Her entire body bowed upward at the scorching pleasure his mouth, his tongue, was giving her.

The impact of his mouth caressing her, giving her such intense, violent pleasure, ripped away her mind and Leah could only respond with her heart as he welcomed her in a way she'd never before experienced.

She began to sob, gripping Kell's shoulders, wanting the pressure, the building ache, to release once more. His tongue moved inside her and she groaned as her entire lower body violently convulsed and contracted. Dazed, she felt a flood of thick, fluid, intense, rippling sensations flowed through her.

She sobbed with relief as the pressure discharged from within her. The trail of singeing blaze moved outward in radiating circles, overwhelming her senses, pleasuring her, rocking her to the edge of some unknown, beautiful, floating universe. And yet, as her body orgasmed, she could feel another building pressure right behind it. But he waited, soothing her with his hands across her belly, her outer thighs, giving her time to absorb all the satiation throbbing through her.

Kell kissed her gently, as if she were sacred to him, and Leah was lost within his arms as he worshipped her.

She was coming out of that cloud of intensity when he slid his hands across her hips, kneeling between her thighs, his tongue moving deeply into her once again. The sensation was exquisite and she welcomed his return, hunger coursing through her once more. As he lavished that swelling knot just inside her entrance once again, she gave a hoarse cry. Within moments, her body gifted her once more, sending her into a faraway place of scalding, flames and undulating ecstasy that completely embraced her.

Kell eased away from Leah, filled with her sexual scent and the taste of her. He kissed her curly mound and then he teased one of her nipples, feeling her buck against him, wanting him all over again.

He smiled to himself, luxuriating in her innocent reactions. Once Leah put that troubled mind of hers on the shelf, she became his fierce, passionate woman in his arms. There was no holding back with her, and now Kell wanted to give her what she'd been wanting all along, but hadn't discovered until now.

He placed his knees between her thighs, gently parting her, pressing himself against her wet entrance. She was so ready, her body flooding with nectar, the sweetness flowing out of her. He slid his hand beneath her lower back, her breasts against his chest as he lay against her. She was breathing in sobs, her hands against his hips, pulling him, wanting him inside her. Kell knew what she wanted even if she didn't understand what she was doing. The last thing he wanted was to traumatize her. She was wet, slick and warm, and he pressed just inside of her gate and waited for her reaction.

Leah suddenly froze, and he was glad he'd waited, leaning his damp brow against her brow, feeling her breathing change, feeling her hands suddenly still against his back. He moved just slightly, enough to engage that pearl-like bundle of nerves at her entrance. She suddenly quivered and Kell released a held breath of air. It was all right...all right, and he stroked her slowly, teasing that pearl, feeling her loosen and relax once more in his arms.

Damn, she was so tight. He was afraid to move deeper, feeling her body trying to accommodate him, convulsing, tightening and releasing. And yet, her sweet hips rocked against his, silently asking for more of him to enter her. It was such a risk. Kell felt as though he was going to explode any moment, not used to being gripped like a tight glove. Leah moaned, her head thrashing from side to side, her eyes closed, her mouth open in a silent cry, wanting him.

Kell felt brutalized by the wait. He could feel the tortured ache in his body, the heat and juices of her body flowing in eager welcome around him, relentlessly teasing him. He wanted to surge into her, take her hard, take her fast, but that couldn't be done.
Not tonight.

Easing farther into Leah, he finally got her body to slowly accommodate and accept all of him. And as he began to thrust into her with a slow rhythm, he felt her hips return that rhythm. As he increased the thrusts, her fingers sank deeply into his back. Yeah, she was going to come again, and he had to control himself for her sake. Her powerful contractions as the orgasm released nearly did Kell in; her hot, scalding flow around him made him lock his teeth, groaning, trying to stop himself from coming.

But it was impossible, and as Leah cried out his name, he took her with a swift, deep rhythm. In moments, Kell tensed, growled and gripped her against him, burying his face against her neck and shoulder, feeling his release tunnel out of him like a scorching fire. He shook violently, holding her hard to him, feeling her chaotic breath and soft sobs against his ear. She clung to him as if she were going to fly free and disappear. But she wasn't.

Kell held her, eased his grip around her, allowed her to lie down, her dark ginger hair a frame around her deeply flushed face. Her eyes drowsily opened, awe and satisfaction gleaming in their depths. Kell couldn't speak, still caught up in his own release, still inside her, feeling her body massaging him, still keeping him hard despite the release.

He struggled to elevate himself with his elbows on either side of her head, taking most of his weight off her except where they were joined. He could feel the sweat and wetness shared between them. And he couldn't help but thrust his hips slowly forward, twisting and drowning in the welcoming heat of her once again.

Watching Leah's luminous eyes widen, those pupils huge and black, he absorbed the pleasure and satiation shining in them. It made him feel strong and good as a man to be able to give his woman this kind of unadulterated, seamless pleasure. But Leah deserved so much more.

He eased his hand beneath the small of her sweaty back and angled her hips up just enough as he thrust slowly into her once more. Her lips parted, a soft mewl that sounded like music to him escaping her throat as she tipped back her head, her eyes closing as she absorbed each of his slow, measured strokes.

“That's it, Sugar,” he crooned, “just enjoy the ride...”

He twisted his hips to tease her inwardly. Her hands wrapped around his biceps, her sweet sounds filling him. More than anything, Kell wanted to show her a man could pleasure her, not hurt her as he filled her.

He continued to move, reaching that other group of nerves high and deep within her, a second trigger point, to coax her to orgasm once more. And as limp as she was, as exhausted as she had been, Kell brought her back, saw that spark of surprise return to her eyes as he continued to stroke deeply and tease her.

“That's it, take what you want,” he urged her in a guttural voice.

Her hands slipped around his hips, pulling him hard against her, arching, whimpering.

Kell smiled inwardly, letting Leah get used to controlling her own pleasure with him. And very soon, he felt a swift, tight contraction around him, felt her body convulse and then that boiling release of her fluids swiftly surrounding him. And this time, he knew exactly how to prolong that deeper orgasm for her. He sent her right over the edge of the universe into a hot, floating cloud of burning pleasure. He watched her fly apart beneath him, the powerful arch of her back, the surprised, husky cry tearing out of her slender throat, the pink flush flooding her skin during the prolonged, powerful orgasm.

Leah collapsed against him, spent, breathing raggedly. He eased out of her, knowing for sure she was going to be very achy come tomorrow morning. Kell wasn't exactly small to begin with, and he knew it spelled soreness that Leah would have to endure.

He gathered her up against him, bringing her head to rest against his neck and jaw. Moving his hand down across her hip, he pulled her fully against him, his long leg tangling among hers, holding her close.

Reaching up, Kell snagged a blanket with his fingers, pulling it across them. The cave wasn't cold, but he didn't want her to get chilled. She was warm, damp and pleasantly limp in his arms. Moving his fingers through her hair, he kissed her smooth brow, content.

Leah didn't know when she'd fallen asleep, but as she drowsily awoke, she felt alone. Kell was no longer beside her. Barely turning her head she saw him walking toward her, a towel and washcloth in his hands. Following him with her eyes, he came and knelt at her side. He removed the blanket and gently opened her thighs.

“You're going to be sore tomorrow,” he warned her quietly, moving the warm wash cloth and gently wiping the insides of her thighs and her entrance. He then placed the warm, moist towel across her abdomen and between her thighs. “The heat will help, Sugar.” He smiled a little and caressed her cheek. “You feeling okay?”

Okay? Just okay?

Leah felt as if she'd splintered into a million throbbing, exploding pieces of intense pleasure that were still surging through her lower body like banked coals on a fire. Her mouth was dry and she was thirsty. Licking her lower lip, Leah rasped, “I feel so good I don't even have words to describe it, Kell.” She reached out, catching his hand, bringing it to her lips, kissing the back of it. “Thank you...I just never realized how good this could be...”

Kell felt joy thread through him. “It's the best, darlin'. Nothing else even begins to compare to it.”

Throwing her arm across her eyes, Leah groaned, “Tell me about it.” She managed a little laugh, never having felt as good as she did right now.

Lifting her arm away, she saw the happiness burning in Kell's dark gray eyes. That male smile was there, too. Pride. Confidence. Love? Was that what she saw in his eyes for her? Leah thought it was too soon to know, but whatever it was, it made her feel cherished. And so well loved.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

L
EAH
LINGERED
IN
a heated world of pleasure even after she woke up much later. She was in Kell's arms, her body fitting against the harder planes of his. Where she was soft and giving, he was angular and unforgiving. In her groggy mind, still captured in the web of pleasurable, ongoing sensations, she luxuriated in his strength and the sense of being cherished. Her arm was curved across his narrow waist, her cheek resting on the soft hair across his chest. Just the slow, deep beat of his heart against her ear lulled her into a delicious space of happiness she'd never realized could exist between a man and a woman.

Leah didn't want to move. She wanted to fiercely remember this night, this moment in Kell's arms. Her life felt altered forever by his loving her. She didn't skirt the word or the sensation opening in her heart, flowing through her, healing the fracture in her soul that Hayden had created.

The more she awakened, the more Leah realized how much she'd allowed herself to be used by her ex-husband. The question of why was glaring. Why had she allowed herself to be manipulated first by her father and later by Hayden? Leah lay with her eyes closed, soaking up Kell's warmth against her flesh, his moist breath slow and shallow against her hair.

In those sweet moments, Leah became aware of the waterfall's music echoing throughout the cave, feeling in another way her life had been rerouted by Kell's entrance into it. She'd only been half-alive, she realized, until he'd opened his arms and asked her to come to him.

Where was all of this going? Leah felt as if she were teetering on the brink of a massive change in her life. There was no way she couldn't draw stark comparisons between Kell and Hayden. New anger toward Hayden began to uncurl from deep within her.

Hayden had taken everything away from her, never sharing, never even thinking of giving back to her in terms of emotional pleasure, intimacy or nurturing. Leah's heart shrank in grief over what she'd allowed him to do to her.

If only she'd had more experience, more worldly awareness of sex, of relationships, she would have known. And by knowing, she would have instantly realized Hayden was sick and abusive. She would have left him as soon as she realized her mistake. He'd initially hidden the ugly, abusive side of himself. She hadn't had the astuteness to realize that he was wearing a disguise. An uneven sigh broke from her lips as Leah felt the anguish and shame of her own ignorance flow through her.

Kell's fingers grazed her cheek, his touch removing her anger and disappointment with herself. Leah stretched languidly against him, leaning up, kissing his bearded jaw. Absorbing his tenderness as he caressed her shoulder and back, her skin tightening wherever his exploring fingers skimmed her skin, Leah didn't want this to ever end.

She moved against his hips, feeling his erection against her, absorbing the moment, his power coupled with his gentleness. Leah felt well loved, cared for and treasured.

“Is this how it is?” she whispered, her voice husky with sleep.

Kell propped himself up on one elbow, easing Leah onto her back so he could study her. “Always,” he murmured, removing strands of her hair from her cheek and brow. Her eyes were wide with wonder, a rich green, pupils large and black. His gaze dropped to her mouth, her lips slightly parted. Sliding his hand across her jaw, Kell leaned down, barely grazing them, feeling their softness, feeling her lush response. He wanted to make love to her again, but knew it would have to wait.

Tasting her, placing small, lingering kisses on each corner of her mouth, he eased away to hold her drowsy gaze, his heart lost to her in every possible way.

“I don't want this to end,” she admitted softly, reaching up, sliding her hand against his jaw, watching his eyes grow intent, feeling him desiring her once more. It was a delicious, empowering feeling, so new and satisfying to Leah.

Groaning, Kell nodded and said, “Me, either, Sugar.” He lifted his hand and looked at his watch. “It's 0400. I'm going to have to get up and get out to the cave opening and call in by sat phone to see what's going on around this area.”

Leah grimaced and nodded. “You're right. I was being selfish.”

Kell kissed her cheek and then her mouth. “I want you to be selfish about us. It's never going to be easy with our military demands and responsibilities.” He saw a somber look come to her expression. In some ways, she was like a young woman who had just awakened to the beauty and amazement of her own body, of understanding the pleasures to be gained and enjoyed with the right man at her side. Kell hated to bring it up because he knew her father had imprisoned her in a world of responsibility and loyalty only to him, leaving no time for what Leah wanted for herself.

“I wish,” Leah whispered, “I could stop time. Just to stay here for another day... Is that being selfish, Kell?” To want to be with him? To savor his touch, his mouth, his body once more? Leah saw his eyes change and grow softer. A sad smile that came to his mouth tore at her newly opened heart.

“Someday. But not now, Leah. My only priority is getting you safely back to Bravo.”

She nodded and moved her length against him, watching his eyes grow narrowed. Feral. The sense of power she felt she had over him was a new and wonderful discovery filled with so much possibility. “Then,” Leah whispered, trailing her fingers across his shoulder, “I'm going to remember Thanksgiving, being with you, meeting your family.”

“That's the plan,” Kell agreed, a slow smile coming to his mouth. “It's something to dream about, Leah. Something to hold close to your heart when things go bad, or when we can't see one another as much as we might want at Bravo.” Kell grazed her smooth brow, her skin soft and velvety beneath his thumb.

He almost said,
I love you.
The words damn near tore out of his mouth. But it was too soon. So much had happened in such a short, intense period of time, and Kell wanted Leah to absorb the important feelings he'd coaxed to life within her. And if he was accurately reading her luminous gaze, Leah was falling in love with him, too. What they shared was serious. His heart soared with giddy hope.

There were many months between now and getting home for Thanksgiving. He worried about Leah. Worried that Major Grant would do something to hurt her. She still didn't know that he was trying to blame her for that helo crash. There were way too many unknowns, and Kell wasn't going to discuss his concerns with Leah.

Right now, all he wanted was that soft, fulfilled look in her eyes, the curve of her luscious mouth softly tipped upward, feeling her fingers trail deliciously across his shoulder, exploring and appreciating him.

Leah sighed and nodded. “We need to get up and get going,” she agreed. What she really wanted was more of Kell and to learn how to please him, too. He would have to teach her because she was completely ignorant. Time wasn't on their side.

Kell heard the disappointment and the yearning in her husky tone. He spread his hand across her belly. “How are you feeling?”

“Happy. Satisfied.”

He moved his hand across her belly. “Sore?”

“A little. Nothing to worry about.”

Nodding, Kell leaned over, placing a slow, wet, lingering kiss over her belly.

Her breath caught, and Leah closed her eyes, feeling the heat build instantly between her thighs, remembering his mouth, his lips and tongue, and how it had sent her into such intense pleasure last night.

As he moved his lips up the center of her body, she gripped his shoulders, needy and wanting him all over again. Her breasts tightened instantly, her nipples hardening in anticipation of his touch, his mouth. A moan slipped from between her lips as his mouth settled over the first peak, suckling her, sending her body into crazed, hungry heat. It was so easy to push her hips against his, feel his hardness, his hunger for her. The dampness collected into warm, thick fluids at her entrance and Leah wanted him so badly, wanted that pressure gnawing at her to be released. And as he suckled her other nipple, she quivered violently, a hunger flowing powerfully through her as she felt his hand drifting across her belly.

She was wet and needy. Leah wanted to cheat the time just once. Kell must have sensed it, must have wanted the same thing for her, because she felt his fingers move down her cleft and skim the slickness near her gateway, and he growled her name, pleased. That rumbling sound moved through her and she sobbed against his mouth as he took her lips. He encircled her rim, opening her thighs, asking her to trust him. And she did. Her heart hammered, her channel achy and in need of relief once more. Kell slowly entered her with his skilled fingers.

Memories of Hayden flashed across her melting mind, and then the pleasure being wreaked from within her erased it. This was not painful. It was hot, desirable and incredibly satisfying instead.

Kell's breath was hot and moist against her cheek as he deepened their kiss, his tongue moving strongly against hers. A shattering explosion occurred deep within her body as she felt him trigger her orgasm, that sweet, hot contraction around his fingers, her juices flooding through her. Leah tore her mouth from his, arching against him, head tipped back, a hoarse cry tearing out of her. Her body shimmered and radiated with the singeing fire engulfing her.

Kell continued to move within her, showing her how a man could pleasure her in another, new way. She felt him suckle her other nipple and then fell into melting pieces within his arms as he pressed her tightly against his body. The earthquake of another orgasm shook her, sent rivulets of burning fire radiating in every direction within her. Leah could only sob, feeling his mouth against her nipple, suckling strongly, milking her body, triggering every intense sensation she had never known existed until this moment.

Kell slowly eased his fingers from within her, watching the flush spread silently across her body, her eyes dazed-looking, her lips wet and pouty from his kiss. He moved his hand across her curved thigh, up her flank, feeling each of her ribs, the dampness of her flesh beneath his fingertips. She was trembling and he smiled, absorbing the ecstasy still moving through her awed expression.

Leaning over Leah as he laid her on the blankets, he rasped, “I've got to get moving and make that sat call. Stay here, just rest. I'll be back soon...”

Leah swore she couldn't move, her body saturated with such potent, swirling sensations. She could only breathe unevenly and continue to be consumed by the heat boiling through her lower body. She closed her eyes after Kell left. Her mind fused with her heart. He'd given her one last gift, showing her that a man's touch didn't have to be hurtful or assaultive. Leah threw her arm across her eyes, absorbing it all, feeling intense love for Kell. But did she know what love really was? No. She had no guidepost to tell her so she allowed the bright, sparkling feelings to swell in her heart and called it nothing right now except happiness.

Leah lay there remembering what she'd thought was love for Hayden. Oh, he'd romanced her, brought her gifts, made her feel good about herself because he always complimented her beauty, the color of her hair, and said how much he was looking forward to loving her once they were married. He'd kissed her often before marriage. And he'd respected her chastity.

Yeah, she'd fallen for his lies. How stupid, how young and innocent she'd been. Hayden, she realized now, had stalked and manipulated her. In the end, Leah realized he'd done it to get close to her father, not to her. She was a means to an end.

Dragging her arm off her eyes, Leah slowly sat up, alone in the cave. The waterfall beckoned her. The water would be freezing cold because it was snow melt, but right now, it was an opportunity to get clean before they rode out into the harsh environment of the mountains. She could smell Kell's scent on her, not wanting to wash it away. It was a perfume to her, making her lower body glow in a new and wonderful way. It made Leah acutely aware of him. And she wanted him all over again. Was it possible to store up years of orgasms? Leah shook her head and smiled a little. She didn't know.
Again.
She could fly a helicopter, meet bullets being hurled at her bird and crew, head-on, and not flinch, but she didn't even know her own body. Or a man's body.

* * *

“A
RE
YOU
READY
?”
Kell asked Leah. There was the gray light of dawn, enough to see by while riding down the trail toward their next destination.

She made final arrangements to her hajji costume. “Yes.”

Kell walked over and cupped his hands so she could put her boot into the stirrups. “Up you go,” he said, lifting her so she could throw her leg over the horse. He saw she was focused. That was a good thing. Wishing they weren't on the run, that they could spend quality time with one another, Kell knew it wasn't going to happen. He patted her lower leg. “Just follow me.”

He didn't like Leah bringing up the rear for fear of Taliban riding up behind them on these narrow goat trails. He had a map left by Sergeant Khat Shinwari. She'd made detailed drawings of all the paths in this area of the Hindu Kush. With the drone overhead, Kell felt somewhat better about their situation, but not much.

Mounting his horse, the packhorse rope tied to the back of his saddle, he pulled the mic close to his mouth. “How do you read?”

“Loud and clear,” Leah said, gathering up the reins on her horse's neck.

“Let's mosey on down this mountain, then.”

She smiled a little, absorbing his soft Kentucky drawl. He sat straight and confident on his horse, moving the animal out at a fast walk. After they rode through the brush opening that hid the cave, they were once more out on a narrow goat trail.

Leah looked up at the scree slope rising sharply above them. She saw snow at the top of the mountain. Down below them, a five-hundred-foot drop-off into a rock-strewn wadi. It wasn't pleasant to think about her horse stumbling or falling into it. They'd be killed on impact. There was nothing forgiving about these mighty mountains. How many times had she flown in and around them, never fully realizing their stark beauty or the danger on the ground?