Fool For Her Read online

  The image, spanning the width of her back, faded into focus just below her hips. The wispy branches that grew halfway up her back were wild. In some ways, the black ink reminded me of physical scars. Many of the limbs were bare—as if they’d endured a harsh winter. But a few of the branches were adorned with the promise of new life, the ends budding with the tiniest bit of hope. Above the branches, at her spine and stretching all the way to her right shoulder blade, were tiny birds in flight.

  I thought her breakable. The first day I laid eyes on her, I labeled her as delicate—but I had no idea.

  “Jude?” she whispered. Turning her head slightly, she peeked at me from over her shoulder.

  From the look in her eyes, I could tell my hesitation filled her with doubt. There were no words to adequately express the extent to which she shouldn’t have felt even a hint of uncertainty or shame. I saw her scars, and they were exquisite.

  They only made me want her more.

  I shook my head slightly and gripped a fistful of my shirt before I began to tug it from beneath the clutches of my belt. We stared at one another as I unbuttoned the fabric. Somehow I knew, the moment I touched her, I wouldn’t be able to stop. When I crossed the room, closing the distance between us, I needed to be as bare as she was. Moreover, I didn’t want her to feel alone.

  As soon as my shirt hit the floor, I made quick work of my boots. When my belt was unfastened, I dropped my pants and my boxer briefs in one fell swoop. Upon returning to full height, I looked at Teddy and saw her staring at me. Her bottom lip was pulled between her teeth, and her blush seemed to start all the way down at the base of her neck.

  I made my way to the center of the room, where she sat astride the cushioned bench. As I straddled the seat behind her, the tip of my erection skimmed her back as I descended. I could hear her sharp inhalation, and it sparked a chain reaction in my body. It was like every nerve ending had been awakened. My fingers tingled as I gently began to slide my hands around her waist. With my palms flattened against her stomach, I pressed my chest to her back and brought my lips to the sensitive spot behind her ear.

  Teddy gasped when I pressed a wet kiss to her skin, and I wondered how long I’d be able to play with her before I couldn’t stand the wait any longer. Remembering precisely who she was—not just the woman I longed for, but a woman who’d never been worshipped—I knew I owed it to us both to try to take my time. She was the epitome of strength, resilience, and grace wrapped in the most delicate package, and she was mine for the taking.

  Kissing my way down her neck and along her shoulder, I glided my hands over her hips and the tops of her thighs. When I felt my way toward the inside of her legs, headed for her center, her breathing grew ragged and my shaft got harder. The helpless whimper Teddy sang when I cupped her sex made me ache, and I didn’t hesitate before I slipped a single finger inside of her. I whispered a curse into her ear when I found her already soaking wet for me.

  I stroked her twice before I added another finger. She squirmed in my grasp and pressed back against me. Feeling greedy, I reached up with my left hand to palm her right breast. She shuddered before she reached up and blindly buried her fingers in my hair. At her touch, a little more of my self-restraint broke away. I fingered her faster, longing to bury myself inside of her core until I was balls deep, but certain the foreplay would serve me well.

  Anxious to be done with it, as I pumped in and out of her, I grazed my thumb over her clit. She cried out almost instantly, trembling in my arms as she arched her back and pressed out her chest. It took every ounce of will power I had not to push her down flat against the ottoman and fuck her from behind. Pulling in a deep breath through my nostrils, I let her go and stood to my feet.

  Teddy looked up at me just as I bent down and circled my arm around her waist at her back. Instinctively, she held onto my shoulders, leaving no need for words as I hoisted her off the cushioned bench and against my chest. Her legs found their way about my hips, and I cupped a hand around one of her butt cheeks as I held her against me.

  “Fuck,” I muttered, staring into her eyes.

  With her clinging to me, I could have easily had my way with her against the nearest wall. Instead, I carried her out of the closet and to my bed. The closer we got to our destination, the more aware I became of her trembling body.

  “You’re still shaking,” I observed. I stopped but didn’t lay her down.

  She touched her forehead to mine and whispered, “Sorry. I’m sorry—I can’t stop.”

  “Hey,” I grunted, pulling away enough to stare into her eyes. “Look at me.” She obeyed, which only made me want to kiss her. Rather than restrain myself, I took what I wanted.

  I pried her lips open with my tongue, and she held me tighter as she plunged hers into my mouth. I kissed her long and hard—until I reached a level of desperation I’d never experienced before. Tightening my grip with my right arm, I slid the hand on her backside down, until my fingers grazed her drenched entrance. Her legs squeezed my middle, and I tore my mouth away from hers before I reached for my nightstand drawer. With a condom in hand, I laid Teddy across my bed and encouraged her to let me go.

  I was sheathed with the rubber in no time, and then I was settled between her legs. Reaching down to line my length up with her entrance, I stopped only when I caught sight of the tears in her eyes.

  “Teddy?”

  “I’m sorry. I’m just—I’m just nervous. Sorry.”

  “I won’t hurt you,” I assured her, searching her face for trust.

  “I know—I know you won’t.”

  I let go of myself and allowed my erection to simply rest between her folds. Propping myself up on my forearms above her, I coated the underside of the condom as I rocked back and forth across her entrance. She heaved for breath, and I lowered my mouth to hers.

  “You’ll never know pleasure like the kind I intend to give you, sweetheart. I will satisfy you in ways you never knew you could be. Relax, Theodora.”

  With trembling hands, she felt her way up my chest. Then, as she whispered my name, she opened her legs wider. That was all the invitation I needed.

  I was barely inside of her before I felt her resistance. Hoping to calm her down, I sealed my mouth with hers and pushed in a little more. She whimpered, her fingers digging into my shoulders, the only hint I was given that I had my work cut out for me. As much as I wanted to sink into her warmth completely, I paused and kissed her. With my lips, I reminded her of the promise I’d made. When I felt her kiss me back with her own growing desperation, I reached down and massaged her clit as I sank into her fully. This time, when her voice slipped into my mouth, it was on a moan.

  I broke our kiss, in need of my own breath. Her sex wrapped around mine was so tight, I thought I might come any second if I wasn’t careful. I clenched my jaw closed and curled my fingers into fists as I slowly pulled out of her. When only my tip was submerged, I stared down at her and eased my way back in. She sighed and slid her hands around the back of my neck as she held me close. Only, rather than her touch, it was the look in her eyes that did me in. It was everything I saw in those hazel-brown irises that told me I was completely fucked.

  One time was never going to be enough.

  A dozen times wouldn’t be enough.

  She was far more than an exceptionally welcome beauty in my bed.

  Whatever doubt I harbored, whatever irrational idea that one night could shatter what existed between us—it was gone in an instant. In its place was the undeniable truth that she was mine.

  She chose me, but I also chose her. I realized how right and yet how wrong I had been. What she gave me was something I would never get from anyone else. Manifested in our connection was the reason I couldn’t stand the idea of her walking away from me. Yet, my insistence that I could promise her nothing was foolishness. The heavy weight in my chest, the longing that seemed to spread through my veins and give purpose to my movements, it gave more meaning to the act of sex than I’d ever ex
perienced in my life.

  I can promise her this.

  I will give her this for as long as she wants it.

  A simple roll of my hips elicited a gasp, and she hitched her knees up, her ankles catching around the back of my thighs. I repeated the act, grazing her swollen clit with my pelvis, and she let out a sound I’d never heard from her before. It was unsure and excited; it was a glimpse of the spark which caught inside of her—a spark I wanted to turn into a flame. I was so hard, I knew my release would be explosive. As she shook beneath me, I felt sure I could get us both there together.

  My thumb found her clit as I pumped in and out of her faster. “You’re going to come, sweetheart,” I insisted.

  I saw it on her face a split second before my dick felt it. Her jaw fell open and her eyes grew wide, brimming with tears as her center fluttered around me. She cried out, the sound both faint and desperate—like she was being strangled by her own ecstasy. My orgasm came on fast and hard. I couldn’t stop myself from bucking my hips uncontrollably. A deep, guttural groan crawled up my throat as my spine tingled. I slammed into her once, then once more as she milked me dry—my seed filling the condom. Shaken, I rested on top of her and relished the feel of her damp, naked skin pressed to mine.

  We laid for a moment, neither of us moving, both of us trying to catch our breath. It was Teddy who shifted first. Hesitantly, she wrapped herself around me and hooked one of her legs around my hip—her calf resting across my ass.

  “Judah? Was that—was that okay?” she asked, her voice even softer than a whisper.

  I frowned and propped myself on my elbows, enough for me to be able to look into her eyes. “I should be asking you that.”

  Her cheeks colored, and her eyes shone as she gave me a shy nod. “It was perfect,” she hiccupped. Her blush deepened as she reiterated, “For me—it—it was perfect.”

  I stared down at her for a second. The way she described it was more precise than I thought possible. I couldn’t explain why; furthermore, I didn’t want to. What I wanted was to do it again.

  “Sweetheart?” I murmured, grazing my nose alongside hers. “That was fucking incredible. Get ready for an encore.”

  She giggled as a single tear slipped from the corner of her eye, and I wondered whose world I was living in. I didn’t want to let her go. I wanted that sound and her smile. I wanted her body and her orgasms. I wanted the present like never before. The truth spread through my chest like wildfire—as if her spark had caught within me.

  I kissed her then. Shoving aside whatever errant thoughts fogged my brain with smoke, I reached down and removed the condom. Carelessly discarding it, I began to explore her body with my mouth, beckoning the inferno within my woman.

  Chapter Five

  Theodora woke to the sensation of Judah’s wet kisses trailing across her back. At first, she thought she was dreaming—then she felt his teeth as they gently grazed a bit of her skin. Her stomach tingled as her body curled in response to his intimate touch. Never before had she been greeted in such an amorous manner first thing in the morning. The few times she found herself between his sheets after dawn, she was always alone. This was an entirely new sensation.

  She blushed at the mere thought of new sensations.

  With her eyes still closed, she thought back on their previous night. She recalled as many details as she could gather as the remnants of sleep began to dissipate. The more awake she became, the more alive she felt. Her memory was now filled with a new collection of sensations—all of which were brought about by Judah until the wee hours of the morning. Whatever she thought he was capable of, however she pictured their first time, it paled in comparison to reality. The first time, the second time, and definitely the third time.

  Yet, more than anything, each time he touched her—each time he sank himself inside of her—she was overwhelmed by how much she loved him. Theodora was convinced it was the most breathtaking and beautiful kind of love she would ever be able to experience with her five senses. It was like a gift—an offering from God Himself. After everything she’d been through, Judah was God’s promise that beauty could always be found rising from the ashes.

  The first night Theodora became acquainted with Judah’s lips, it was her tattoos he’d touched and tasted. The feel of him memorizing the finer details of her biggest scar, it warmed her heart and drenched her insides. When she felt Judah slip his hand around her hip and down her front toward her sex, she could no longer feign sleep. The instant the tip of one of his fingers made contact with her clit, she wanted more.

  With her bottom lip pinched between her teeth, she peeked over her shoulder and then eased onto her back. She barely had a chance to settle before he had a finger inside of her, his mouth pressed to hers. She made an uncontrollable sound—something between a moan and a hum—and reached her hands up to take hold of either side of Judah’s face.

  “How are you feeling?” he muttered, his lips still touching hers.

  Bashfully, she replied, “That feels good.”

  Judah inserted a second finger, then curled both digits as he grazed the heel of his palm across her now swollen bundle of nerves. Theodora breathed a sigh as she jerked her hips, and he kissed her once more.

  “I want to fuck you.”

  In spite of the hours in bed they enjoyed the previous night, his blunt declaration brought another blush to Theodora’s skin. Still, she replied, “Okay.”

  He touched his forehead to hers, and she watched as his gray eyes danced around her face. All the while, he brought her closer and closer to an orgasm.

  “I want you to have a safe word.”

  “Wait—what?” she breathed, hardly able to keep her thoughts straight.

  “I’m a generous lover, Theodora—but I’m not always a particularly gentle man. I intend to fuck you, but I don’t ever want you to feel threatened.”

  “I—I—I won’t. Oh, god,” she moaned, spreading her legs wider.

  “A safe word, sweetheart.”

  She shook her head and sealed her eyes closed tight. It was difficult for her to have a conversation with the man while he worked her up the way he did. She wondered how he managed to multitask so well. Wishing only to be on the receiving end of all he had to give, she blurted the first thing that came to mind.

  “Tyler. Tyler Durden.”

  Judah stopped his ministrations immediately. Her eyes flew open just as he lifted his face in order to stare down at hers. The slight frown that tugged at his brow was a clear indicator she had not offered him a reply he found acceptable.

  “You want your safe word to be the name of a fictional character?”

  “Judah!” She started and then she stopped. Her eyes flicked down at his hand, which was still, and then up at his face. Now distracted by disappointment, she was equally as flustered as she went on to say, “I don’t know how you expect me to think with you inside of me.”

  She could tell he attempted to fight a small smile before he replied, “And I’m not letting you call out another man’s name with me inside of you, either—fictional or not.”

  Judah started to move his fingers again, and her eyes rolled into the back of her head. Theodora no longer wished to discuss anything. He had worked her into such a frazzled state, she was certain she wouldn’t be able to think straight until he brought her to orgasm.

  “Danyl,” he muttered.

  “Wh—what?” she whimpered, looking up at him. “Who’s that?”

  “Me.” He brought his lips to hers and licked them before he went on to say, “When you want more, you call me Jude or Judah. When you want me to stop, you call me Danyl.”

  Without hesitating or second guessing herself, she slipped her fingers up his neck and into his hair. Pulling him even closer, she whispered, “Judah.”

  “I hear you, sweetheart.”

  He stopped touching her again. Only this time, he extracted his hand completely as he rolled away from her in search of a condom. As soon as he was covered, he maneuve
red himself between her legs. Except, rather than recline on top of her, he grabbed her legs from behind her knees and bent her in half—spreading her wide open. As he submerged his hardened length inside of her, she was very aware how he did so at an angle he hadn’t so much as attempted the night before.

  Without any preamble, he rode her fast and hard. With each thrust, her small breasts bounced, and his skin slapped against hers. Theodora reached out her hands in order to fist the sheets on either side of her. At first, it was simply to steady herself. Staring up at him, she saw someone different than the man who was so tender with her the previous night. His aggressiveness startled her, until the friction he created caused her burgeoning pleasure to blossom. Soon, with her arms spread wide, she gripped the sheet for leverage as she arched her back away from the bed. Surrendering to Judah’s unadulterated passion, she relaxed and let him own her completely.

  “Jude,” she sighed.

  He grunted in reply, picking up his pace until they were both panting. Each time he returned, he grazed her clit. It was subtle—but it was enough. Her orgasm struck her suddenly, sending wave after wave of euphoric pleasure through her entire body. She felt it as it reached the crown of her head and curled her toes.

  “Fuck,” groaned Judah, his rhythm suddenly uneven as his own pleasure overtook his body.

  He threw his head back, and Theodora stared at the muscles in his neck and chest as they tensed. This only added to her euphoria. She thought he was gorgeous when he came.

  Judah didn’t linger long above her. Rather, he slipped his softening length from the confines of her folds and carefully removed the condom. Without a word, he climbed out of bed to dispose of it. It took him longer to return than Theodora expected. When he rounded the partial wall behind his bed in a pair of fresh boxer briefs, she suddenly felt too naked.

  Leaning over her, Judah propped himself up with a fist on either side of her shoulders. He dropped down to kiss her lips, and then lifted himself once more. “Coffee?”