Wilde Edge (9 page)

“You mean you guys haven’t let Nick
tattoo you? He’s your brother, and he’s incredibly talented. I love the tattoo
he did for me. I can’t believe you don’t
all
have one.”

The others were looking sheepish
now, while Nick was laughing his damned head off, but Tag could only focus on
one thing. His angel was inked…

“Hold up. You have ink? Nicky
tattooed you? When?
Where?”
Tag wanted nothing more
than to throw his brothers out, lock the door after them, and peel off every
piece of her clothing until he found this tattoo.

“I got it after my dad died. Nick
designed for me.” Her lips turned up into a mischievous smile.
“As for where?
That’s for me to know, and you to find out.”

All the blood in his body surged to
his cock at the sight of that smile, and he felt himself falling into her deep
brown eyes.

“He’s got that look again,” Jared
groaned and stood, grabbing his jacket off a stack of boxes.

“And that’s our cue to leave,” Nick
agreed.

They said their goodbyes at the
door, with Chase pausing to give
Jolena
a kiss when
she leaned down to hug him.

“Paws off my
girl, mutt.
Go find your own.”

Ben was the last to leave, and he
paused to smile down at
Jolena
on his way out. “It
was great meeting you. I hope we see you down at Leo’s soon.”

“Maybe in few weeks.
You’re stuck with Mom until then.
Happy wedding planning.”
Tag waved his brother out, locking the door behind him. They were alone.

Finally.

“Would you like some help
unpacking?” Jo offered in that quiet tone he was starting to learn meant she
was nervous.

“No, it can wait. All I really want
right now is you.”

“You already have me.” She said it
so softly he could barely hear her, but it was enough to break the last shreds
of his control. He grabbed her hand and pulled her behind him as he picked his
way through the sea of boxes, not stopping until he found the couch.

He needed her. Needed to feel her
curvy little body in his arms and reclaim those sweet lips. He dropped sideways
onto the couch so that his back was against the armrest and his legs were
stretched out along the cushions. She hesitated for a moment, but he tugged at
her hand again and drew her down to join him. He positioned her so that they
were face to face, and her shorter leg straddled one of his thighs. Goddamn,
she looked
so
sexy as she knelt in front of him, her
skin flushed and her eyes already darkening with the first hints of desire.

Hanging onto his control while the
others had been around had been a struggle, but he’d managed it for the most
part. Now they were gone, and so was his patience. He wanted her with a
ferocity that bordered on madness. “Fuck, I missed you, angel.”

 
“I missed you too,” she confessed and then she
leaned in to kiss him. That was all it took for his world to go up in flames.
Her hands landed on his chest as he pulled her in closer, needing to feel her
body pressed to his. She parted her lips and he claimed her mouth, challenging
her to match his desires, daring her to dance with him.

Jolena
moaned softly, rocking her hips so that her pussy rubbed against his thigh. He
speared his fingers into her hair and tightened his grip until she moaned
again, the vibration buzzing against his lips. He slipped a hand beneath her
soft sweater she’d changed into while she was upstairs. It was too big for her
frame, swallowing up her curves and hiding her body. Fuck, he wanted to tear it
off of her and show her how beautiful he thought she was.

His fingers twitched at the idea,
but instead of tearing at her clothes he let his hand move over her skin,
stroking her flank and back until she was squirming against his leg and he
could hear her panting for breath.

“Now, where’s this tattoo of
yours?” he asked, his lips only the barest distance from hers.

“Not so fast. Second date you
promised to show me
your
tattoo,
remember?”

“This is a date?” he asked,
stroking his fingers up to brush across the side of one breast.

“There was dinner, and drinks, and
now we’re making out on the couch. Yep, I’d call this a date.” Her voice had
deepened with desire, and he loved the husky tone to her words almost as much
as he loved hearing the lighthearted way she was teasing him.

“I’ll show you mine if you show me
yours,” he countered.

Jo went still, her cheeks paling so
that her freckles seemed to darken. Her dark eyes stared into his, and then she
nodded.
“You first.”

He had to let go of her to get his
shirt off, and when she sat back to give him more room he felt the loss of her
warmth immediately. His hands found the edge of his shirt, but then he
remembered that when she saw the tattoo, she’d also see his scars.

Fuck
it. She’s going to see them eventually.
Might as well be now.

He took off his shirt and dropped
it behind him, not caring where it landed. All he cared about was what he saw
in
Jolena’s
eyes in the next few seconds.

“Oh god, that’s gorgeous,” she
murmured and reached out, her hand
pausing
only a
hair’s breadth from his chest. “May I?”

There was nothing but admiration in
her expression, and Tag let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding.
“Angel, just so we’re clear. There will never be a time you have to ask
permission to touch me.”

She brushed her fingertips over his
tattoo, tracing the still-healing lines with a feather light touch. When she
passed over one of his scars she paused and leaned in to take a closer look. “I
can barely see the scars, you know. Do they bother you?”

“They don’t hurt, but I don’t like
looking at them.” It was the only the second time he’d told anyone that. The
only other person who knew was Nick.

“I understand,” she whispered in
that smoke and whiskey voice of hers. Goddamn, he liked her voice. She could be
talking about the weather or the price of ice in Antarctica, and he’d still
want to listen to her.
Jolena’s
breath fanned across
his chest as she dipped her head and brushed her lips across the circular scar
hidden beneath the tattoo.

“Angel, you don’t have to—”

“I want to. I don’t care that
you’re not perfect, Tag. Honestly, I’m kind of relieved.” She blushed so hard
he could feel the heat of it against his skin.

“Well in that case…” He leaned back
and tucked his hands behind his head, flexing his
pecs
slightly as he did so. “You just go ahead and enjoy yourself. I certainly
intend to when I finally get to see your ink.”

* *
* *

Jo had plenty of time to fantasize
about Tag in the days since she’d last seen him, but her dreams couldn’t begin
to compare to the real thing. He was muscular without being bulky, and the
tattoo somehow enhanced his body instead of distracting from it. At first, she
hadn’t even been able to see the scars that bothered him, but when she did it
made her stomach twist into a knot. It wasn’t revulsion, but fear that hit her
as she stared at the legacy of his injuries. If the shot had been only a few
inches over, she would never have had the chance to know this incredible man.

She brushed another kiss to his
scars and then lifted her head, wanting to get a better look at the tattoo.
Nick had done an incredible job. It was clearly a phoenix, wings outstretched
as it took flight. She loved following the thick, black lines with her
fingertips, and judging by the heat simmering in Tag’s eyes as he watched her,
he was enjoying her touch.

The five-pointed star was such a
small detail she nearly missed it, tucked beneath the talons of one claw. She
bent closer, trying to read the script inside the star, but the skin was
healing and it was impossible to make the words out. “What’s this?”

“My badge number,” Tag
answered,
his voice rough with emotion.

Jo understood immediately. “Saying
goodbye to your old life? Is that why you had this done?”

Tag nodded. “Something
like
that. I was having trouble letting it go so I thought
this might help remind me.”

“Does it work?”

“It does. But not nearly as well as
something else I’ve discovered in the last few days.” He cupped a hand to her
cheek, drawing her head in close to his once more. The fire in his eyes blazed
now, and his lips were quirked up into a wicked grin. “Care to guess what that
might be?”

Jo’s pulse raced and her pussy
clenched as he shifted beneath her, deliberately rubbing his thigh against her
already throbbing clit. “A new place to live?” she asked, hoping that wasn’t
the right answer. She wanted him to say she was the reason, but what if she
wasn’t?

“Well, that helped too, but that
isn’t what I meant. It’s
you
, angel.
You’re the reason I’ve been smiling all week.”

Words failed her. She wanted to say
thank you. To tell him he was the reason she’d been smiling all week too, but
she couldn’t make her mouth work. It was the sweetest thing anyone, friend or
lover, had ever said to her. It gave her the courage she needed to let down her
guard and trust.

She kissed him, showing him what
his words meant without uttering a sound. He hauled her in close, a low rumble
of approval rising from his throat as he kissed her back. Tongues danced in a
slow waltz as she let temptation draw her deeper into the moment.

He stroked a hand down her spine,
his every touch somehow possessive and comforting at the same time.
 
When he reached the bottom of her sweater he
let his fingers drift under it, caressing the bare skin at the base of her
spine in slow, leisurely circles. She had never realized how sensitive that
part of her body was, and she was so enraptured by the new sensations flowing
through her that Jo barely noticed the quick twist of his fingers as he undid
her bra with his other hand.

Without slowing his kisses he eased
the sweater higher, letting the cooler air of the room waft against her newly
naked back. A voice whispered in the back of her mind, reminding her that the
room was well-lit with no shadows to hide her flaws. When it whispered louder,
Jo stroked her fingers over the tattooed scars on Tag’s chest. He had shown her
his flaws, and so she would trust him to be kind when she bared herself to him.

“I want this fucking sweater off of
you,” he snarled as he broke their kiss and she had to laugh at the frustration
in his voice. Her pulse was pounding in her ears and she could hear the voice
of her self-doubt hissing in warning, but she didn’t care anymore. Jo sat up
and started tugging her top off, and soon she was blinded by the fabric as
another pair of hands joined hers, whisking it over her head.

She crossed her arms over her
breasts, covering them with her hands. She shrugged her shoulders, letting the
bra’s straps slide off, and then, finally, she looked at Tag. He was staring at
her, lips parted and his gaze hot enough to melt away the last of her doubts.

“Move your hands away. Let me see
you.” There was a hunger to his words that sent a shiver down her spine and
made her nipples harden beneath her fingers. Jo moved her hands away slowly,
never taking her eyes off of him.

“Fuck, you’re gorgeous, and this…”
he trailed off as he lifted a hand to brush over one taut nipple,
then
moved it higher to touch the tattoo she had over her
right breast.

“My dad always called me rosebud,”
she said, glancing down to her gray-scale tattoo of two roses, their stems
entwined. One of the roses was in full bloom, and the other had barely opened.
There was a hint of red to the petals of the smaller rose, the only color in
the entire piece.

“It’s beautiful.” Tag stroked his
fingers down the stems of the roses, admiring the artwork.
“Son
of a fucking bitch!”
He snarled a moment later, his gaze stormy as he
tapped a finger to the flowers.

“What’s wrong?” Jo didn’t
understand his sudden change in mood, but his outburst triggered old memories
and she reared backward, away from his touch.

“My brother did this?” he asked and
then his expression softened to concern as he looked up at her face. “Shit,
angel, I’m sorry. I’m not angry. I just…fuck. My brother’s seen your breasts.
Hell, he’s touched them. I’m not fucking thrilled about that.”

“It’s not on my breast! It’s over
my heart, you goof.” She put her hand over his and pressed his fingers against
her chest, letting him feel her heart beating.

“It’s at least a little bit on your
boob, and my brother put it there. I’m going to have to hurt him, just on
principle. It’s a brother thing. You wouldn’t understand. These are mine, now.
You
are mine now, and he doesn’t even
get to look at these again.
Ever.”

“It’s not like I was naked, you
know. I had a tank top on. Besides, Nick’s like one of my family, like a cousin
or something. Not that he’s ever been interested in me that way. Have you
seen
the women he dates? I don’t even
come close to making the grade.”

“
Jolena
.
What did I tell you about putting yourself
down?” he asked, scowling at her.

“What? That’s just the
tru
––”

He sat up straight, kissing her
with a savagery that shocked her. Possessive, brutal, and hotter than she could
have imagined, he dominated her completely. She tensed for a second, instinct
overcoming her trust that he would never hurt her. He never stopped kissing
her, but his hands gentled where they stroked her. His kiss softened, and she let
the last traces of old fears burn away in the fires of their passion.