Reluctant Protector (5 page)

Seth scrubbed his good hand down his face. “That’s some story.”

She sighed.  “It’s okay. You don’t have to believe me.” She shrugged. “Your wounds look like they’ll heal well. I’ll be out of your hair in no time and I can become one of those bizarre stories you tell your friends.”

He tapped the pen impatiently on the notepad. “Occam’s razor, Honey. From the outside this sounds like a tale spun by a mentally disturbed woman.”

Cassie tied off the stiches at his shoulder and inched back from him. “Every time I overuse my powers, I get drained. That's my Kryptonite, I guess.” She shrugged. “As it stands, today, I’m surprised I’m still functional. I didn’t have to push too many people, but the physical exertion and my attempts to push you have depleted me.” She touched her shoulder. “That’s why I wanted to make sure the chip was disabled before we settled. Destroying it bought us some time.”

“And what makes you think I won't sell you out the moment you're asleep. For all I know, you're a crazy person who watches way too many X-Men movies.”

She wondered the same thing. “Because I saved your life. Because you're a reporter and you know there's a story here. Because you're not a complete asshole, even though you may think you are.”

He snapped his jaw shut and tapped his temple. “Do us both a favor and stay out of here, okay?”

Cassie cleaned up the bloody gauze and screwed on the cap of the whiskey. “Don’t worry. Not only would I not breach someone’s privacy like that, but you’re too thick-skulled for me to read. Forget mind pushing you altogether. I don’t need that kind of migraine.” She shook her head. “Pardon my attempt to psychoanalyze. Seems easier in the movies.”

He barked out a laugh. “You’re telling me I'm an unreadable son-of-a-bitch. You and my ex-girlfriends would agree.”

“Not unreadable exactly, but every time I've tried, the resistance causes me a good deal of pain. I’m not anxious to repeat the experience. Your mind is strong. And the stronger the mind, the harder it is on me. Those soldiers in the woods were easier. Although, the higher the rank, the more they exert free will.”

Seth let out a long breath. “I want to close my eyes and pretend none of this is real. But I saw you take down that guy tonight. I watched as he picked off his own guys. I stood there while you levitated my car off the edge of the road. For now, I’m clinging to my dream scenario, even though I'm in too much pain to make that believable.” He reached toward her and brushed a strand of hair from her face. “I have to tell you, as hallucinations go, you’re beautiful.”

Cassie wanted to hold onto the beautiful part of his statement, but she couldn’t. She had to concentrate on healing him. The sooner she started, the sooner they could both get some needed rest, and the sooner she could search out Jeremy and the others. “I’m going to try and heal you, but I'm not sure it'll work.”

Seth’s eyebrows shot up. “Wait, heal me? How many powers have you got?” He held up a hand. “Wait. Never mind. This is all kinds of complicated.”

She sighed. “It's been a while since I took inventory. Different powers showed up for a while then would disappear as they changed up the cocktail. The powers that stuck are the mind pushing and mind reading. Those are the strongest. I'm also mildly telekinetic and have some healing ability. The base skills are increased strength, agility, and keener senses. But that's about it.”

His brows smoothed out and he smiled, as if playing along with the crazy lady. “Are there others like you?”

“Peter’s definitely done this to others. Sometimes I can hear their screaming in my dreams.”

Seth stared at her. “Okay, let’s just say I believe you.  I have seen your serious Buffyesque fighting skills after all. What's your plan?”

“You mean besides putting more distance between me and those labs? Once I know you’re safe, I’m going after the others. But right now, I'm mostly thinking about sleep. We both need the rest. If you lie down I’ll do my best to heal you. If I can’t, then we'll need to take you to a hospital.”

He eyed her, his gaze level. “They will ask questions at a hospital.”

She eased off the bed to change into the T-shirt she commandeered from his duffle bag. “I won’t let you die because of me. Even if you are a pain in the ass.”

Chapter Six

Seth registered the scent of heaven as he woke. Citrus and something sweet. Maybe vanilla? Feminine. His searching hands met warm, silky-smooth skin and he wrapped his whole body around the satin softness. Her skin scorched him like the hottest kind of fantasy. But as he stroked her skin, he knew this was different.  More substantive.

He dreamed of long raven hair and icy green eyes that bored into his soul. In her eyes, there was no duplicity, no treachery. Only strength and caring. The urge to hold on tight was fierce.

She nuzzled him as he trailed kisses along her forehead to her jaw. He cupped her cheek and turned her face to him. Her lips had that permanent bee-stung look women paid thousands for. He wanted to taste them the moment he bumped into her at Gentech.

He stroked her hip in gentle, unhurried motions.  She had the softest skin. Smooth to the touch, but she had hard muscles beneath—the epitome of a contradiction. He snuck his hand under her T-shirt and she rocked her hips against him. With his thumb he teased a circular pattern around her belly button. She clung to his shoulders—drawing him closer.

He could spend hours touching her, savoring every inch of satin skin, but her breathy moans urged him on. When his hand grazed the underside of her breast, the rest of the blood in his brain migrated south, making his cock like iron steel. He throbbed. She was bliss in his arms.

He closed his palm over her full breast and she ground against him, riding his thigh, working her moist core against him. With every tilt of her hips, more of her slick juices dampened the fabric of her cotton panties.

He teased the tip of her full breast to a hardened peak. Dipping his head, he kissed her. He didn't dare to think she would taste like he imagined. But then her lips parted on a sigh and her tongue peeked out to meet his. The answering roar of his boiling blood made him forget to go slow. His head swam with the heady scent of citrus and vanilla, the way her body bowed against his as she rocked with him. How her nipples tightened at his touch and her breasts swelled in his palm. How she tasted like the sweetest honey dew of the summer season.

Cassie moaned and his whole body jerked. The way she said his name sounded like chocolate lava pouring over ice-cream. She rocked her body against his—lift, retreat, lift, retreat—made his brain fog. All he thought about was the droplet of fluid easing from his erect cock. He craved more. Needed more. His hips jerked of their own volition, desperate to get closer, be inside her and possess her. He needed to be buried so deep inside her neither of them would know where he ended and she began.

Reluctantly, he released the perfect full globe of her breast and smoothed his palm back down to the edge of her panties, where the elastic met her inner thighs. He wanted to spend years exploring her body. He dotted kisses down her stomach, until his lips joined his questing fingers.

He kissed along her panty line then paused as if asking for permission. When she shifted her legs to allow him access, he assumed her acquiescence. Seth slipped his hand past the elastic, loving the way she parted her thighs for him. Her hips rose again, bringing her damp panties and slick core closer to his fingers. Sliding his fingers under the fabric, he found her welling center overheating and ready for him.

He slid his fingers in to the hilt, exploring her slick channel first with one, then two. He varied the pace, smiling as she gripped the sheets and moaned. He imagined his questing finger was his cock, throbbing and aching as it slid inside her velvet home. With each catch of her breath, he traced lazy circles around her clit with his thumb. As gently as he could, he parted her tender flesh, preparing her to take him. Her body yielded as if she were made for him.

Trailing kisses up her smooth belly, Seth’s sought out her nipple. Through the thin cotton fabric of her T-shirt, he suckled and drew her in deep with his tongue and lips. With the barest hint of teeth, he grazed the turgid tip.

Her whole body went rigid, and Seth murmured to her, “Just let the orgasm happen. Don't fight it.” Her inner walls quaked and he increased his tempo. Faster, faster, faster. With his fingers buried deep, he angled them to find the hidden bundle of nerves inside her. As he stroked, the quivering in her core increased, until she clenched, grasping his fingers in an attempt to keep him a part of her.

“Seth!”

He froze. His body buzzed with desperation and need as his heart thudded against his ribs. He was frantic to hold onto the dream. Hold onto Cassie. But something told him to open his eyes. He peeled his lids open and blinked several times to get his bearings. The only illumination in the darkened room was the dim light of the moon from the window.

The scent of long-forgotten nicotine and an intoxicating citrus vanilla filled the air. But mostly, the scent of sex wrapped around them like a summer breeze.
Sex?
On that realization, his cock jerked painfully against a smooth, bare thigh.

“What the—”

Cassie’s brows were furrowed and her lips were parted in what looked like the throws of orgasm. And he was wrapped around her like a spider monkey, the fingers of his right hand buried deep inside her.
Oh holy shit
. “Cassie, I—”

When she opened her eyes to meet his, they were bright and pleading and they pierced his soul. “Seth, please. Don't stop”

***

Cassie’s whole body trembled. Lingering waves of ecstasy rolled through her, but she knew there was more to experience. She wanted more.

Seth’s face flushed red and he tried to pull away. The length of him brushed against her thigh and she bit back a groan. Cassie ground her hips against him in an effort to keep him with her. He couldn't leave her like this. She needed to know what he felt like on top of her. His fingers only hinted at the ecstasy she could feel. She knew it. She wanted to be filled by him.

Even if this was nothing but a fantasy in the middle of a nightmare, for an hour she needed to forget about who she was and what her brother had made her.

He might have been dreaming, but Seth wanted her. He’d called her name as he kissed her, touched her, whispered words that stoked the fire between them.

“Cassie. I—I—I’m so sorry.” His voice, thick and gravely, strained.

“Please, Seth. For a night let me pretend I'm normal, not some freak.”

His gaze fell on hers as he withdrew his fingers from her soft flesh. “You're not a freak. None of this is your fault.” He sat back and groaned as he rearranged his penis. Seth’s eyes never left hers. They narrowed as he sucked in a breath. He wanted her. But he wouldn’t take her. He was the epitome of a good man, which was why she trusted him in the first place.

 She held the sheet up, covering her breasts. “If you don't think I'm a freak, then why won't you make love to me?” She put up a hand to ward off his protest. “There's no risk of pregnancy. Peter, he uhm—” She slid her gaze to the paisley comforter before speaking again. “He fixed that. And with the self-healing, I’m impervious to disease.” She didn't add that she'd never done this before, so she couldn’t offer anything other than her enthusiasm.

His eyes roamed her body and her skin prickled everywhere they touched. “Believe me, I want to. I'm sorry about how it started. I thought I was having the most incredible dream of my life, then I…” Instead of looking in her eyes, he fixated on the beige lamp shade over her shoulder. “I didn’t realize until you started to come in my hands.”

If she wanted this to happen, she would have to make it happen. She could seduce him. Even though her heart galloped in her chest, even though she could barely breathe. She craved him so much she ached.

She sat up on the bed and dragged the T-shirt over her head. Seth mumbled a complaint and Cassie smiled. He liked how she looked. She already saw how aroused he was. The scent of sex filled the air. She leaned over him, trying not to think about her inexperience.

The instant their lips made contact, she sighed with relief that he didn't draw back. What she wasn't prepared for was the speed of his response. With a growl, he flattened her on her back underneath him.

When his lips met hers again, his kisses held no patience. No gentleness to coax out her response. He took, plundered, tasted. He demanded her tongue mate with his. In a series of shifts and wiggles, he drew down her cotton panties and shucked his boxers. When he settled between her thighs again, he looked her in the eyes. “Cassie, are you sure?”

“Yes,” she answered softly. Her hips rose to meet his and he growled. He tucked a hand under her ass and shoved her hips forward to align with his. Kissing her, he let his hands roam freely, running them through her hair, over her face, back to her breast. When he lowered his mouth to one of the stiff peaks, a slow sexy smile spread across his face. “You are amazing. Complete perfection.”

Heat suffused her body, making her skin tingle. Seth was a man who knew his way around a woman. He teased first one nipple, licking it, suckling it, while his fingers played with the tip of the other. Every tug sent a stab of desire to her core.

Unable to get enough of him, Cassie raised her hips to get closer to him, rubbing against him like a cat. Each time her folds came in contact with the rigid length of him, he cursed. As he slid his cock right to the center of her body, he paused at the entrance, dragging in deep breaths.