Off Limits: A Stepbrother MMA Romance (34 page)

Everyone left and we
were finally alone. I stepped closer to her. I could see her
trembling, smell her unique, feminine scent, light and lavender.
Leaning down, I brought my head to hers, my face down to her soft
hair. She stood much shorter than me, but fit perfectly, a puzzle
piece. We didn’t touch, just stood close as I breathed her in.

“You were right,” I
murmured.

“I was?” Her voice
sounded shaky, breathy.

“Under a year.” I’d
guessed it would take longer for our parents to split up, maybe a
year and a half or two. But she’d been right on the money, under 12
months. I didn’t say what was on my mind, what I bet was on both of
our minds. Nothing stood in our way anymore. That taboo, the label
that kept us apart, that ripped her with guilt, was gone.

“It ended fast.”
She laughed, light and slightly nervous I could tell. That close, I
couldn’t stop myself, I brought a hand to the small of her back.
She shivered at my touch, but didn’t pull away. She felt so right
in my arms. With her where she belonged, it felt like I took my first
real, deep breath of the last four months. Surely she must feel it,
too, what we had between us?

“Good to see you.”
My voice sounded gruff. She felt so good pressed against me, so soft
and warm and fucking sexy as hell. My hand touched her bare skin in
that backless dress. No bra, just how I liked.

“Good to see you
too,” she whispered.

“Glad you came,” I
whispered into her hair, my lips coming down to her forehead, gentle,
like she’d melt away if I went too fast, too hot.

“I heard you ran into
Mike,” she said.

“And his friend,” I
confirmed. She pulled away a bit, not out from my arms but enough so
she could look up at me with one eyebrow arched. “I’m an idiot,”
I agreed, pulling her back against me. No contest. Jealousy had made
me blind. I wasn’t the first man to fall prey to it. I wouldn’t
be the last.

She nodded, her head
against my shoulder, under my chin.

“I’m sorry, Jewel.”
Nuzzling down, I found her ear, my hand up at her neck, thumb
stroking her soft skin at the hollow. “I need you to know,” I
whispered to her. “There’s been no one since you. No one.”

She shook in my arms
and I felt her tears against my skin, hot. I kissed her cheek,
kissing them away. No need to cry, now. If I had anything to do with
it, she’d never have a reason to cry again.

“Time to go.” Coach
poked his head into the door.

“Fuck,” I breathed
into Jewel.

“Time for that
later,” Coach insisted.

“Don’t get hurt.”
She looked up at me, eyes shimmering. She brought her hand to my
cheek, traced my lower lip with her fingers.

“Last time I saw you,
you wouldn’t have minded seeing me get knocked around.”

She smiled. “Now I
would.”

I looked down at her
intently and told her, “I’m winning this for you.”

Jewel

He’d stopped touching
me several minutes ago, but I could still feel him, his heat, the
pressure of his hand on my bare back, his lips on my forehead. Some
guy led me down a hallway and out to my seat. It was massive, the
arena, the lights, the music pumping and throbbing through the air.
But I barely registered it. The thrill of having seen him eclipsed it
all.

I’d remembered it
being intense together, but to see him again, to feel his body
against mine left me breathless. It was just like it had been before,
everything else melting away, leaving only him burning my senses.

Out in the crowd
watching, a few rows from the cage, my heart was in my throat. If I’d
thought he had fans before, now the arena practically shook with
screams. Women seemed ready to tear their clothes off for him.

Somehow I didn’t feel
threatened. In even that brief moment with him, I’d felt so
certain. As if the past four months had fallen away, leaving us right
back where we’d left off.

His opponent in the
cage looked intimidating, like he’d just gotten out of prison. By
fighting his way out. He smiled before he put in his mouth guard and
showed an entire mouthful of gold teeth.

Tuck took some hard
kicks to the side. Every time he got hit, I flinched and felt it
myself. But he looked strong, solid.

After round one, he
looked out at me. He nodded his head. I knew what that meant. He
wanted me to watch him take this guy out. It didn’t take long after
that, he knocked the guy flat with a sharp uppercut. Mr. Prison went
down like a huge tree in the forest. Some guy near me even yelled
“Timber!”

After the fight got
called, Tuck’s fist up in victory, his handlers led me back into
the same room as before. The adrenaline flowed through me, I couldn’t
keep still, my hands twisting the program, my breathing coming fast.
Finally, his coach and a couple of other guys walked Tuck into the
room. He had a gash over his eyebrow that needed tending. Blood ran
down the side of his face. They sat him down and someone was on him,
fast, cleaning the cut, giving him a couple of stitches.

He never took his eyes
off of me. He didn’t flinch, not for a second, even when I did when
the doctor pierced his skin with a needle. He watched me, hot, heavy,
shirtless, and I couldn’t take my eyes off of him, either.

We weren’t left
alone. Everyone wanted a piece of him, the victor. People crowded
into the room, congratulating him, hyping him up. I knew he was
grounded and had a good sense of himself and I was grateful. I could
see how people could get caught up in all of this. But I knew Tuck
wouldn’t lose himself, let himself get taken in by big sales
pitches. He’d listen, pick and choose his opportunities, play his
cards right. Because he wasn’t just a great fighter, he was smart,
too.

Finally, after he
showered, after he got interviewed, after another rep from another
sponsor chatted him up, we were in the elevator together. With a
bunch of other people, still, but he held my hand and we pressed
together, close. I could feel him breathe against me, scenting me as
if he couldn’t get enough. I shivered in anticipation.

Up in his hotel suite,
another mob waited for him. The after-party. I’d never seen a hotel
suite like this, it had to be several thousand square feet with a
crazy Vegas view. One wall had a gigantic fish tank. The bar looked
stocked with any and every liquor you could imagine. He held my hand
and led me through it, stopping to acknowledge people, accept a pat
on the back, congratulations, a hug. He shrugged off shots and
blocked girls with their breasts hanging out of their tops. Holding
my hand, he steered me through it all until we got to a closed door.

Looking at me, intent,
heated, he opened the door to his bedroom. Pulling me in after him,
he closed the door behind us and locked it. Finally, we were alone.

We tore into each other
like wild animals. I tried to remember he’d just gone through a
brutal fight, but I couldn’t hold back, not when I’d been aching
for him for months.

“You must hurt all
over,” I panted, trying to make myself not fist my hand in his hair
and grind up against him.

He cupped his hand
around my ass, crushing me closer. “Nothing like how I’ve been
hurting for you.”

His tongue in my mouth,
hot, needy, I returned his force, his intensity, clinging to him.

“You look amazing in
this dress. But it’s got to go.” He had it off in a few seconds,
torn and pooled at my feet. I hadn’t worn a bra. I wanted his hands
on me as fast as he could get them there. Finally, he cupped my
breasts, his mouth down sucking, licking, kissing my nipples.

“Never letting you
go,” he growled into me. We tumbled down onto the bed, tangled
together, arms and legs wrapped around each other. He pulled back to
strip his clothes off, never taking his eyes off me. It never ceased
to take my breath away, seeing him naked, his tattoos, his narrow
hips, his huge cock standing hard and long and thick. He looked even
more fiercely corded with muscle than when I’d seen him last. I
craved every inch of him.

“I need you inside
me,” I begged, clasping his biceps, wrapping my fingers around him.
He pinned down my hands over my head and climbed on top. With one
long, strong thrust he entered me. I was wet and ready and screamed
as he thrust right into my core. He groaned with satisfaction and
sank in deep.

“Jewel,” he hissed.
“I can’t go slow.”

“Don’t go slow!”
Desperate for him, for more, I started moving against him, tilting my
hips up, taking him in as he started pounding me. “Fuck me!”

He took me at my word,
working me hard, the headboard banging in rhythm against the wall.
“You’re mine,” he told me, looking straight into my eyes.
“Mine,” he claimed me, thrusting in deep.

“Yes.” I was close
to orgasm, the shuddering climax rising up inside of me.

“Always.” He fucked
me hard. “Always.”

He came in me, pumping
deep inside and I took all of it in, coming all over his cock.
Panting, sweaty, we lay together in the bed, limbs tangled, breaths
mingled.

“I love you, Jewel.”
He stroked my hair and pulled me tight to his chest.

My eyes burned with
tears of joy. “Tuck, I love you so much.”

“I’m never letting
you go, now. You know that, don’t you?”

“I’m not going
anywhere.” Sighing with deep, whole-body contentment, I pressed
against his heat. He was hard again. Already. “You kill me,” I
murmured.

“I think you mean
crush.” He kissed me full on the lips.

“Crush?” I asked
when I could.

“Because I’m the
Crusher. In and out of the cage, baby.” He flexed his bicep at me
and flashed me a cocky grin.

I swatted him. “You
are so cheesy. And arrogant.”

“I’m your arrogant
bastard, Red.”

Smiling, I entwined my fingers
through his hair and swept my palm down his broad, muscled back. “My
arrogant bastard.” Mine, all mine. We didn’t need any words for a
long time after that.

THE
END

Thank you so much for reading
Off
Limits
! I hoped you enjoyed reading it as much as I
enjoyed writing it!

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Keep reading for a
sneak peek at my book,
Unleashed:
Hot Alpha Romance
. It’s available now for preorder on
Amazon
released January 4th.

Declan

I never thought I’d
see her again. The one I couldn’t have, the one I’d never forget.
When I met her I had nothing, a lowly ranch hand working on her
daddy’s land. She was the golden girl up on the hill, sexy as hell
but beyond my reach. Now, like all my fantasies realized, she’s
come to me for help.

I’m a bastard,
ruthless in pursuit of my goals. My cold, hard drive has made me what
I am today, amassing wealth and power. A good guy would help her,
then send her on her way with a handshake and a smile. I’m not a
good guy. I’m going to make a bargain and hold her to it.

One week. I’ll bail
her out, pay off all her debts, but only after she gives herself to
me completely. Seven days and seven nights of no-holds-barred
submission to my dominance. I’m a demanding man with dark,
relentless appetites. She’s unleashed the beast in me and I won’t
stop until I possess all of her.

Kara

Six years ago he broke
my heart. Now, with nowhere else to turn, I’ve put myself at his
mercy. He’s the ultimate alpha male, commanding and controlling,
and I’ve agreed to let him use me as his plaything for a week. I’m
terrified of how he’ll take me, what he’ll make me do to serve
all of his needs.

I’ve got to keep this
week all business. It needs to stay a transaction, pure and simple,
no emotions in play. I’m scared as hell about the power he wields
over me.

Because I have a dirty secret. I’ve
never gotten over him. I’ll fight hard to keep up my defenses even
as he melts them down. But the truth is that the thought of serving
him has me panting, wet and practically begging for everything he has
planned.

NOTE:
Unleashed
is a four-volume story launching the
Beg
for It
series about the hot, alpha males in Declan's
family and the battles they wage with the strong, sexy women who make
them finally meet their match.

Prologue
Six
Years Back

Kara

That night it rained.
It had been so hot and so dry for so long I’d almost forgotten that
it could. We’d all been waiting, watching, hoping for a while now.
You didn’t live off the land in Montana without realizing you were
at the mercy of Mother Nature.

I felt at the mercy of
a lot of things lately. Waiting, watching, hoping. Not just for the
rain. For Declan Hunt.

My father hired him to
work on our ranch over the busy spring and summer. The first time I
saw him, I swear it was like the earth stopped spinning on its axis.
Strong jaw, broad shoulders, and a big old belt buckle on those slim
hips. He’d looked at me with dark, smoldering eyes, his cowboy hat
tipped down low, and I’d just about forgotten to breathe.

He barely noticed me,
though. I was just a high school kid, the daughter of the boss man.
But I hoped I could do something about that. I was 18 and had just
graduated. Not a kid anymore.

But so far he’d
hardly looked my way, even when I strutted around in short shorts and
tank tops. Hell, I’d even washed my truck in front of him,
deliberately lathering things up nice and slow, sloshing myself good
with soapy water in my Daisy Dukes and bikini top. Nothing. I’d
been trapped in a long, hot, dry spell.