Most Wanted - A Fantasy Romance Novel (The Shadow Blade Series) (8 page)

Before she could
answer him he was back between her legs, using his thumb to trace circles on
her clit while his fingers parted her slit and then slid inside her. She arched
her back at the feeling as he eased his way gradually inside her. He stroked
and pressed all her secret spots and then started to move in and out of her
with increasing speed. Ariel grabbed hold of a pillow as wave after wave of
ecstasy started to build.

She wanted him
inside her. Oh God, it was all she could do not to grab for him, not to beg him
to fuck her. She bit her tongue and tried to move her hips away from his expert
fingers, but he won’t have it. He held her tight, sliding his fingers into her
faster and faster. She tipped her head back and heard herself moan in total
abandon but just as she was about to fall over the edge into the sweetest,
darkest oblivion she’d ever known he stopped. The bastard just stopped, leaving
her panting and almost crying out in frustration. She wanted to hit him, to
scream in anger, but she was too spent to move, still floating on a wave of
pleasure. Dimly she was aware she hadn’t even come yet.

Jax waited a few
seconds then brushed her clit once more. She bucked and cried out.

‘Say it,’ he
smiled.

‘What?’ Ariel
growled, feeling her clitoris swelling, reaching for his fingers.

‘Say you want
me.’

Ariel glared at
him but he just smiled and passed his thumb over her clit one more time. She
drew in an agonizingly sharp breath as a wave of pleasure darted through her.

Taking her hips
in his hands, Jax raised her up, kneeling between her legs. His cock was hard
and glistening. The sight of it almost pushed her over the edge. When he
touched it against her clit Ariel gasped, rolling her head into the pillow.
Tears pricked the back of her eyes. How did he get so much power over her? She
wasn’t going to beg. He had to be kidding. She had never begged a man to sleep
with her. It had always been the other way around.

‘Tell me you
want me to fuck you.’

Ariel glowered
at him some more but she could feel her resistance faltering. He pushed the end
of his swollen cock against her opening. She arched to meet him, the swollen
lips of her sex parting as she stretched her legs as wide as they would go to
accept him.

An unholy hunger
took hold of her. She wanted Jax Sayer more than she’d ever wanted any man.
Even Saul. Her heart pounded in her chest. She felt like she was about to come
at any second but she wanted him inside her before she did. She needed him
inside her before she did.

‘Fuck me!’ she
yelled, unable to fight it any longer.

Jax pressed the
head of his cock between her lips, teasing her. He circled his hips and Ariel jerked
and moaned in ecstasy and wretched anticipation.

Jax pushed the
tip of his cock inside her. She was so wet and he was so hard, aching so much
to plunge inside her tight sweet shaft, that it was taking every ounce of will
power he had to hold back, to take his time. He needed to hear her tell him to
fuck her. He needed her permission, to know that she wanted him as much as he
wanted her. She had no idea what a turn on it was to see her naked, writhing
beneath him, her breasts tilted up, her nipples hard buds. His cock swelled at
her opening, come rising up his shaft.

Ariel’s eyes
were half-closed and dark with desire. She was trembling. He’d brought her to
the very edge. Her muscles were quivering. Her legs were parted wide, giving
him an unrivalled view of her gushing pink slit and the rosebud of her clit,
which seemed to swell in anticipation of his touch. It was impossible to tear
his eyes off her opening to admire the rest of her perfect body. He couldn’t
believe he had her in his bed, that he was going to take her, that she was
offering herself to him so completely. He was shaking so badly from desire that
it was taking an act of enormous will power to stop himself from plunging
inside her and savoring her depths.

He slid his
hands around her soft ass. God, he wanted her. He circled his hips, feeling her
wetness coating the top of his cock just like her mouth had done earlier. At
the memory of her taking him whole into her mouth, he felt another spurt, his
cock swelling to bursting point. But he wanted to come inside her, the desire to
fuck her and make her come was the only thought in her head.

 
‘Say please,’ he said, his fingers
caressing her ass.

Oh God, oh no.
She was not going to say please. She had already told him to fuck her. But his
fingers stroked the edges of her slit, teasing her, tantalizing her, and his
cock was right there, pressing just slightly into her opening, stretching her
and the ache inside her was so intense she couldn’t think of anything but him pushing
into her and making the ache go away. He pulled out a fraction of an inch and
the sense of loss was so great, the disappointment so cutting, that she lost
all sense of who she was, all control over her words, every coherent thought
vanishing from her mind. She just knew one thing. She needed him. She needed
him inside her. ‘Please,’ she cried.

And just like
that, he thrust inside her with one hard, fast stroke. Ariel almost exploded
out of her skin, letting out a cry of surprise and total surrender. Jax pulled
out and she let out a whimper. No!

He entered her
again, gently this time, and then stopped, letting himself swell into her,
stretching her, pushing all the way until he couldn’t go any further. Oh God!
Light splintered at the edge of her vision. Her arms wrapped around Jax’s
neck.
 
She pulled him down on top of
her, wanting to feel his weight crushing her, pressing her into the bed. ‘Fuck
me,’ she whispered into Jax’s ear. ‘Please.’

Her breath in
his ear, her pleas, her moans, pushed Jax to the edge. He gathered her in his
arms and drove into her with increasing frenzy, feeling her tighten and clench
around his shaft. He wanted to bury himself in her completely and was surprised
and amazed that she was able to take the full length of him. It was like she’d
been made for him. She opened herself to him completely, enveloping every inch
of his shaft. He felt his testicles tightening as his seed gathered, ready to burst
inside of her. Oh God! He could stay like this forever, buried in her
warmth.
 
Stroking his thumb across
her clitoris she let out a guttural cry. The pressure grew unbearable, come
climbed up his shaft. He had to force himself to pull out so he wouldn’t orgasm
before she did. Ariel lifted her hips, moaning, her eyes closed, and when she
opened them she seemed only half-conscious. She was on the edge too. When her
eyes met his, he drove into her once more.

He gathered her
in his arms and pounded into her again and again, faster and faster, sweat
gathering across his chest. Ariel’s body enveloped him, squeezed him.
 
She threw back her head and with two
more strokes she was tumbling over the edge into blissful oblivion with a cry
so loud it startled her and made her throat raw. With two more strokes she felt
Jax empty himself into her in a hot burst.

Another wave of
ecstasy picked her up and carried her over a second edge at the feel of his
cock throbbing, the come spurting inside her. Her muscles contracted around his
shaft, and she felt him shaking as he collapsed down on top of her, his weight
crushing but oh so bearable. Her legs were spasming, little electric shocks
dancing all the way from her clitoris to her toes. She lay there, with Jax’s
hot breath against her neck, his hands tangled in her hair, the weight of his
chest pressing her down into his bed and only after several minutes did she
feel her heart rate start to slow.

Shit. As Jax lay
there on top of her unmoving, and gradually she felt herself returning to her
body, Ariel squeezed her eyes shut and grimaced. She couldn’t believe he had
made her beg. She couldn’t believe she
had
begged. Heat washed over her. Oh God. Embarrassment came in thick, fast waves.
Furious, she maneuvered her hands beneath Jax’s chest and heaved him off her.
He slid out of her still throbbing pussy, and the ache returned instantly, the
desire to have him inside her giving her a sense of what addicts must feel when
they need a fix. Ignoring the throbbing feeling and Jax’s hands, which tried to
pull her back onto the bed, Ariel stood up.

Delicious
aftershocks raced through her body. She could still feel him inside her pussy.
And trickling down her leg. Damn. She should have thought about protection. She
couldn’t catch human diseases but she could get pregnant. She wasn’t on the
pill. Another thing to be mad at him about. But then again she had been begging
him. Urgh, she was livid with herself.

She grabbed for
her jeans from the floor, noting the ripped scrap of lace lying on the rug.
Damn. Jax had by now rolled onto his side and she was aware he was watching her
dress. She cut a glance in his direction. He was staring at her through heavy
lids, a line of confusion creasing between his eyes. A fine coating of sweat
was making his skin glisten. She stopped her gaze from falling to his cock.
Instead she turned away and started pulling on her jeans. She’d just have to go
commando. But where were her T-shirt and bra?

‘Leaving so
soon?’ Jax asked.

‘Things to do,’
she answered, keeping her back to him. Her cheeks were flaming and she didn’t
want him to see. Also, she was afraid if she turned back around the sight of
him would make her want to crawl back into bed and nestle up against him.

‘I thought we
could go another round,’ he said.

She whipped
around then to face him, a sarcastic comment on her lips about doubting he
could get it up again so soon but she saw that his cock was already stirring. Holy
shit. The sight of it drew an answering ache from deep within her.

‘If you beg
again, I might let you go on top next time,’ Jax added with a grin.

Instantly
Ariel’s eyes narrowed to slits and she pulled on her boots. ‘There isn’t going
to be a next time,’ she snapped, snatching a shirt from the back of a chair.
She threw it on, glaring at him defiantly as she did up the buttons. Much to
her annoyance this only seemed to spur him on and his shaft stiffened even
more. It was hard not to stare.

Jax laughed under
his breath and anger scored through her veins. Suddenly though he was on his
feet, striding towards her. Ariel moved quickly to the door and marched out
onto the landing. She practically sprinted down the stairs, heading for the
front door, pausing only to snatch up her jacket from the sofa where she’d left
it.

By the time she
reached the front door Jax was standing in front of it, blocking her exit. He’d
put on some boxers thank God so at least she didn’t have to be distracted by
his nakedness. She ignored him completely and tried to open the door, but he
had some complicated lock system and she couldn’t figure it out. Finally she
gave up. ‘Open the door,’ she demanded, glaring at the wall.

Jax drew in a
long breath then finally, without saying a word, he leaned past her to unlock
the door. She got a hit of his scent mingled with the pungent smell of sex and
her stomach flipped over. The solid heat of him was so inviting she almost
wondered what she was doing running away.
Almost.
Jax’s arm stayed on the door handle, blocking Ariel against the wall. He waited
until she looked up at him. He was staring at her with an expression she
couldn’t read. It seemed like he was laughing at her. There was a flare of
challenge in his eyes, but also what looked weirdly like tenderness combined
with a deeper-seated disappointment.

Damn him, she
thought, he might think he’d won the battle, but he hadn’t won the war. She
yanked open the door and walked out without even a backwards glance in Jax
Sayer’s direction.

Ariel stepped
out the shower, grabbed a towel from the overflowing laundry bin, and stood in
front of the mirror scowling at her own reflection. It had been three days
since she’d left Jax Sayer’s house but not even a dozen hot showers in that
time could banish the feel of his hands running over her body. It was as if he
had scored the memory of himself onto her skin like a tattoo. She couldn’t
erase the memory of his lips or his tongue either. But most annoyingly she
couldn’t erase the feeling of him inside her. She ached for him with a
constant, throbbing ache, a longing that wouldn’t go away, and the knowledge of
that, combined with the fact he had made her beg for him, made her hate him all
the more.

On top of all
that she was pissed that he hadn’t bothered to call. She realized that was
ironic. But the fact was she had helped him. The deal had been that he was
supposed to help her back. OK, so they hadn’t dealt with those Suckers exactly,
but she had got him out of there alive. He owed her for that. And time was
running out. Her debt was due. She was expecting a visit any day now. She was
going to head to Jimmy’s tonight and find out if there were any new bounties
and was praying that there were. Briefly her mind flew to the Suckers under the
pier. She’d thought of them a few times but hadn’t wanted to dwell for too
long, she had enough on her plate after all. She figured she’d ask around at
Jimmy’s though later, see what people knew.

She’d heard some
gossip, not much, but word on the street was that there were way more Suckers
than normal in town, and that they were way more badass. It was like the
cockroach had become king of the jungle overnight. Ariel sighed though and
scowled sternly at her reflection. Really, Suckers were the least of her
problems. As was Jax Sayer. She needed to get some perspective. Ever since he’d
walked into her life things had become a lot more complicated.

Just as she was
towel drying her hair there was a loud knock on the door. Instantly she crossed
to the nightstand and grabbed her knife. Another knock rattled the doorframe.
Shit. If it was Rasa’s people come to collect she was in trouble. She had
thought she had another day to repay her debt.

Damn it. She
walked to the door, still deciding what to do. Ignoring the knocking and
pretending she wasn’t home seemed like the best bet. But the last time she’d
done that they’d kicked in her front door and her bedroom door and trashed the
place. She’d only just managed to escape out the bathroom window. She didn’t
usually run from problems but confronting two Chameleon demons who were hell
bent on extracting the loan plus interest hadn’t seemed like the wisest
decision. Anyway, that visit had just been a warning visit. The next one would
be the one where they got physical.

Ariel edged
behind the door wondering whether she should try the bathroom window route
again but just then she felt a tightening sensation in her gut. Her pulse
quickened and the yawning ache inside her grew, a gnawing that wouldn’t let up.
She closed her eyes and grimaced. It was Jax. Even before she heard his voice
through the door she sensed him. Her heart flew into her mouth and started
thumping loudly. Damn it. What was he doing at her place? How did he even know
where she lived?

‘Ariel?’ he
called through the door. His voice was deeper, huskier than she remembered,
layered with concern. But even the sound of it was enough to raise the hairs on
the back of her neck and make her stomach flip over and tie itself into knots.
She wasn’t the kind of girl who was given to attacks of the butterflies but she
was definitely feeling them now. ‘I know you’re in there,’ he said. ‘I can hear
you.’

Damn it. He had
sensitive hearing, even for a Blade. She put her knife down and ran a hand
through her tangled, wet hair. Tightening the knot in her towel she drew a
breath and yanked open the door, greeting Jax with the coldest, most
indifferent expression she could muster. At the sight of him however, her
stomach started somersaulting, her mouth went dry and she was pretty sure her
indifferent expression faltered. He was leaning casually against the doorjamb
wearing a dark gray hooded sweater, the same jeans he’d worn the other night, and
a black T-shirt.

Ariel kept her
body firmly wedged in the doorway, barring his entry.

‘Hey,’ Jax said,
his gaze falling to her bare legs before flitting to her face. He wasn’t
smiling and she noted with surprise that he looked nervous.

‘What are you
doing here?’ Ariel asked, rapidly trying to calculate her options. She couldn’t
let him inside. Her place was almost a big a dive as
The Spithound
. If she had known he was just going to show up
unannounced like this she would have cleaned up. Maybe. Or at least tried to.
It wasn’t that she was lazy, she’d just had no time, and also the place had
been trashed so entirely by Rasa’s henchmen she didn’t even know where to
start. It had seemed easier to just ignore it. The odds were that if she tidied
up they’d only come back and trash it again.

‘Figured we
should talk,’ Jax answered with a shrug.

Talk? About what?

‘And maybe we
could go out hunting again,’ he added with a suggestive smile.

Ariel gave him a
look.

‘You can choose
the target this time,’ he said, giving her an easy smile that transported her
instantly back to his bedroom, to the expression on his face when he had stood
over her, teasing her, demanding that she beg him.

‘How did you
find out where I live?’ she demanded, trying to push the memory away. She
guarded her privacy tightly and she hated being surprised.

Jax smiled,
looking a little embarrassed. ‘I followed you back here the other night,’ he
said with an
 
apologetic shrug.

Ariel stared at
him dumbfounded. ‘What?’ She had called a taxi from his place after slamming
the door on him. She’d had no idea he was following her. ‘Are you stalking me?’
she asked.

Jax looked
affronted. He shook his head. ‘No. I just wanted to make sure you were safe.’
Color infused his cheeks. She’d never seen him blush before. She could get used
to it.

‘I can look
after myself,’ Ariel answered gruffly, though truthfully she was processing his
words and confusion was starting to muddle her synapses. Why would he follow
her? She wasn’t used to anyone giving a damn about her safety and she sure as
hell wasn’t comfortable with it. The last time someone had tried to watch her
back they’d ended up dead. She didn’t want to be responsible for anyone else
dying because they’d been stupid enough to try looking out for her. She could
look out for herself. But Jax was a Blade, Ariel reminded herself. And Saul had
just been human. It was entirely different.

‘I know you can
look after yourself,’ Jax said after a beat. ‘It doesn’t stop me wanting to
make sure you got home alright.’ He paused again, weighing her expression. ‘You
know, you didn’t need to leave.’

Ariel scowled at
the ground, her cheeks flaming, first with embarrassment and then with anger. She
wasn’t sure where this conversation was going. But if he thought he could show
up here for a booty call he had another think coming. She wasn’t ever going to
sleep with him again.

 
‘Fine,’ she huffed. ‘We’ll go out
hunting. Give me five minutes to get ready.’ She moved to slam the door in his
face. His foot however was in the way and the door glanced off it. ‘You not
going to invite me in?’ he asked, looking amused.

‘Nope,’ Ariel
told him, pushing with all her weight on the door and hoping he’d take the hint.

He frowned at
her but she could see he was amused by the smile he was trying to bite back.
‘What? You’re going to make me wait out here? Among the meth dealers and rats?’

‘I’m sure you
can handle it,’ she told him drily. But his hand was on the door and he was leaning
his weight against it.

‘Come on, let me
in,’ he argued, still smiling, daring her.

Urgh. ‘Fine,’
she said, letting the door go. She spun on her heel and headed to the bedroom
leaving him standing in the doorway. She didn’t want to see his face as he took
in the warzone that was her apartment.

There was no
door between the living room and the bedroom. It was still lying on its hinges
against the wall, but it seemed a little late to be shy around him, so Ariel
tossed the towel to the floor and pulled open her overflowing closet, praying
she had something clean to wear. She grabbed a pair of black, skin-tight pants
and her last clean sweater.

When she pulled
on her underwear she heard Jax inhale softly and whipped around. Jax had moved
and was standing in the doorway to the bedroom watching her. ‘Nice place,’ he
said, not taking his eyes off her. That damn half smile was pulling at his
lips, and Ariel fought the urge to wipe it off.

She faced him as
she pulled on her bra, daring him to take his eyes off her face. He didn’t of
course. He held her gaze, his eyes flashing with amusement. She was irritated
he hadn’t fallen for the bait. She remembered clearly how into her he’d been,
how full of desire. But tonight it was as if he wanted to show her he could
resist her charms. She reached for her sweater huffily, her skin tingling as
though his hands were stroking up her sides. But damned if she was going to let
him touch her again.

She turned away
to pull on her jeans, giving him a view of her ass and feeling a shot of
satisfaction as she heard him clear his throat and smother what sounded like a
groan. She smiled to herself. Maybe Jax Sayer didn’t have the upper hand after
all. Maybe she could regain it and along with it, her dignity.

Once she was
done with the striptease Ariel walked past him into a small living room come
kitchen come dining room. There were clothes strewn on the sofa, old flyers and
take-out boxes scattered over the broken coffee table, and several empty beer
bottles rolling around the floor.

‘You need to get
a cleaner,’ Jax muttered as she cleared some clothes off the sofa making room
for him to sit.

‘Yeah, if I
could afford it,’ she snapped, snatching the bra he had dug out from between
the cushions and was handing to her. He glanced around. The place was a mess,
not exactly what he had imagined, though he hadn’t expected a palace. When he’d
followed her back the other night he’d seen she didn’t live in the most
salubrious of areas but still, it saddened him to see her living in such a
sketch neighborhood, made him feel anxious about her safety. Stupid he knew. It
was none of his business. And she could look after herself, she’d proved that.
He pitied the poor fool who ever tried to mug Ariel McQueen.

He glanced
around again and noticed the door to the bedroom was propped against the wall,
the edges splintered. It looked like it had been kicked in. He scanned the room
again and began to notice that other things were broken too. The window was
smashed, the coffee table had a deep crack in it as though someone had smashed
it in. It looked like someone had given the place a thorough going over.
Immediately his stomach tensed and he felt his blood start to boil. Who? An
angry boyfriend?

He could tell
she was embarrassed about the state of the place from the way she wouldn’t
 
meet his eye and by the fact she was
trying frantically to cover up the worst of it, scooping up broken bits of
china and beer bottles and dumping them in the sink. For a moment, as he
watched her, he wondered about the wisdom of just showing up on her doorstep.

He couldn’t have
timed it any better either, what with her having just stepped out the shower.
Even though he’d acted casual, he’d had to resist a very real urge to push open
the door, rip off her towel and have her right there against the wall.

He didn’t know
what it was about Ariel, but being around her made every rational thought
desert him, tested every ounce of will power he possessed. Even now, with her
dressed, he couldn’t stop picturing her naked. The strip show she’d just put on
for him hadn’t helped matters. Even sitting down he could feel his erection
hadn’t gone anywhere. Had she been taunting him? She hadn’t exactly seemed
overjoyed to see him. But what had he expected? She’d stormed out his place the
other night in a temper. He hadn’t really understood why, had known just enough
to let her be for a few days. Whatever her story was she was prickly,
untrusting. She liked to be the one in control - that much was obvious. He
smiled to himself remembering how she’d surrendered to him though and how much
she had seemed to enjoy it.

The memory of
her shattering around his cock, her muscles squeezing him, milking him for
every last drop, flashed with precision timing into his mind as it had been
doing regularly for the last three days. He hadn’t been able to think about
anything else since he last saw her but her naked body, her beautiful smile,
her warm shaft… just thinking about it now, picturing it was making him harder.
He frowned at himself and took a deep breath. Now was not the time.

To distract
himself he leaned forwards and picked up one of the tatty bounty flyers from
the table. ‘Looks like you could earn a good living from these,’ he said,
reading it. Then his eyes grew wide. ‘Ten thousand a hit?’

‘Yeah,’ Ariel
mumbled, snatching it from his hand. ‘I can earn good money. I
do
earn good money.’

Jax scanned the
apartment again, trying not to look skeptical.

‘I just happen
to owe someone every cent I earn,’ she answered tersely, seeing his expression.

That got his
attention. ‘How much?’ he asked. She owed someone? Who? That explained the
trashed apartment then. Not an angry boyfriend. An angry bailiff, or
moneylender. The thought of someone threatening her made a cold rage seep into
his bones..