Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11

LUNA

T he wall sex was the culmination of every one of my fantasies. It was like Axel knew my deepest darkest desires and was determined to fulfill every one of them in one night.

He'd easily lifted me and placed me wherever he wanted. It made me feel small and feminine.

Now he was moving over me in sensual, slow thrusts, his gaze hot on the spot where we were joined. I felt cherished, which was not how I ever imagined a one-night stand would feel.

Surely, we couldn't be more than this. This wasn't the start of a long-term relationship. This was a coming together over an irresistible attraction, and I was going to enjoy every second of it.

I wanted to be able to look back on this forever. Axel was ruining me for every other man, and he didn't even know it. He was just being himself. Who knew there were guys like him out there?

This whole time, I should have been looking for a mountain man with a gruff exterior and soft insides.

He glanced up at me. “Can you come again?”

I hadn't thought it was possible, but he was hitting a spot inside me that had me gasping for air. “I think so.”

“Good.” He moved with more intention, using more pressure on my clit. My breasts bounced with each thrust. I'd never felt more sensual, and it was the look in his eyes. The one that said I was gorgeous and he couldn't believe he was here with me.

I bit my lip hard when the orgasm crashed through me. It was so much more intense than the first one. He moved so that his forearms were on the bed on either side of my head, his body pressed against mine. The entire position was intimate.

“You feel so good. I don't want to stop.” His voice was rough.

I licked my lips. “Me either.”

He was so big and hard inside me, yet he moved easily. I was wetter than I'd ever been with anyone else. He made me hot, and it was a combination of everything we'd shared over the last few days and how he handled me.

I didn't want this night to end. I didn't want to feel any guilt or shame because this was easily the best thing I'd ever experienced. Axel put my pleasure before his and took care of me in a way I hadn't been before.

I could easily get addicted to this, to him.

He kissed me, drawing out our pleasure until I didn't feel anything except him surrounding me. I could live here in this space forever.

“I'll never get enough of you,” Axel murmured right before his body shook with his release. I welcomed the weight of his body, heavy on mine. He kissed me once before finally rolling to the side and taking me with him.

He removed the condom, tying it off, then flung it into the corner. “I'll get that later. I don't want to let you go.”

I sighed as his arms tightened against me. My cheek was pressed against his chest, my fingers playing aimlessly with the short hair. His thick leg moved between mine.

I wasn't sure where he ended and I began, and I was in no hurry to find out.

“Stay the night.” His voice was gruff.

“Okay.” It was an easy decision to make.

He kissed my temple, and I never felt more treasured. “I'll take care of you.”

He already had, against the wall and in his bed. He was ruining me for all other men. But holding me while we fell asleep was the worst because I felt vulnerable with him. As if every minute spent with him took another piece of my heart. Pieces I didn't have to give.

This couldn't go anywhere, so this free fall I felt was reckless. My family would say I was being my typical impulsive self, but nothing about this felt usual.

Wherever his hands landed, his fingers stroked the skin he touched. It was comforting, and I easily fell asleep. I felt safe and warm. Like nothing could get to me if only I stayed here in his arms forever.

At some point, he rolled us so that he was spooning me, his large hand splayed over my bare stomach. With a sigh, I fell back to a contented, dreamless sleep.

In the middle of the night, we reached for each other, and he hauled me over his lap, his wide hips straining my thighs. He helped me slide over him, wetting him, then lifted me so that I could sink down on him. He felt so much bigger in this position. With him piercing my insides, it was difficult to draw a deep breath.

One hand steadied me on my hip, and the other tweaked my nipples.

It didn't feel quite real. I wondered if I was dreaming. If so, I hoped I could have visions like this every night, especially when I was back in my apartment in Florida.

I bit my lip as I rose and fell over him, driving us both higher. I knew he preferred a faster, harder pace, but it was fun to slow things down and savor them.

He jackknifed up with a hand behind my back and sucked my nipple into his mouth. The extra stimulation was all I needed to go over the edge. I whimpered as the orgasm rushed through me. He gently rolled us so that I was on my back and he was on top.

He angled my leg higher so that he could drive into me. I barely restrained the grunt that threatened with each measured thrust. He was amazing in bed. What did I do to deserve this?

Sweat beaded on my forehead as he quickly sent me over the cliff again. As my body clamped down on him, he let go, thrusting deep and dropping his forehead to mine. “Fucking spectacular.”

Tingles erupted over my skin like goose bumps. No one had ever said sex with me was spectacular. In fact, when I caught Rex cheating, I had to assume the opposite. Now, I knew it was Axel who brought this sex kitten out of me.

He had skills, and I was going to enjoy every one of them. He discreetly disposed of the condom, then gathered me to him.

I fell right to sleep, content in his arms.

T he sun was bright when I woke, but the bed next to me was rumpled and cold. Axel was gone. I didn't smell anything cooking in the kitchen. Had he gone for a run, hoping I'd leave in his absence? Was last night not as good as I remembered, or did he not want a relationship?

We hadn't discussed what last night was. There hadn't been any time beyond giving each other pleasure. It was like baser instincts had taken over, and details like the next day, the future, didn't come into play.

I had no idea what to do in this situation. I'd never had a one-night stand, and I wasn't sure what was expected of me. I decided to get dressed before figuring out how to handle this. If he didn't want me here, I didn't want to be caught naked in his sheets when he got back.

As much as I didn't want shame or regret to play a part, they were dancing around my consciousness. I brushed my teeth and hair with my fingers, then prepared to hunt for my clothes. But when I got to the door of the bedroom, they were folded neatly in a chair.

Would a man who wanted to forget last night do that? I didn't have a lot of experience, but I thought it was the actions of a man who cared for a woman. But was he running scared on some level? Uncomfortable with everything he was feeling?

He was already hiding out here from his family. So it was a possibility.

I got dressed quickly, my hands shaking from indecision. Should I stay, or should I go?

I didn't want to get a disgusted look when he found me in his cabin. I couldn't get Rex's reaction out of my head when I'd caught him with Alexis. He was almost gleeful when he said our sex life was bland. As if I'd forced him into the arms of another woman.

Goose bumps chased down my arms, and my hair stood on end. Steps sounded on the porch, and I jumped. The door opened, and I spun around with my heart racing. “I was just leaving.”

His brow furrowed. He carried his shirt in his hand, his chest was deliciously bare and beaded with sweat. “Why?”

I blinked, confused. “I woke up alone.”

“I went for a run. Got a late start.” Then he winked at me, and I relaxed my shoulders.

I licked my lips. “We didn't talk last night about?—”

“That's a sign of a good night.” He stopped in front of me, his sweat making me sway toward him instead of away.

He leaned down and kissed me.

I wanted to wake up like this every morning.

He pulled back, his lips curved into a smile. It was a look I didn't see on him often, but I wanted to. “I'm making breakfast.”

He moved toward the stove, grabbed a pan, and placed it on the burner. Then he took the carton of eggs out of the fridge.

“Will you stay?”

“Okay.” I took in the kitchen, my lips tingling from that kiss, my brain warring with my body.

He threw a smile over his shoulder, and I sank into the nearest chair.

He cracked the eggs over the pan, then said gruffly, “I was hoping to come home to a naked woman in my bed.”

“I wasn't sure if that's what you wanted or if you left so that I'd get out of here before you got back.”

Axel looked at me, then crossed the room to squat in front of me, his hands hot through the material of my leggings. “I want you here.”

I nodded. “Okay.”

His expression was serious. “Never doubt that.”

“I won't.” His words, everything about him, were getting to me. He was unexpected. He made me hope for more than he could offer, a relationship, a life with him. We were too new and coming off situations that had scarred us. We needed to heal. Neither of us were in a place where we could offer anything to the other. But I wanted to.

I wanted to lose myself in him and forget about everything else.

He grinned and patted my knee. “Good.”

I wanted to snag his wrist and drag him back to me for a kiss but I didn't want the eggs to burn. I was starving. “You're too good to me.”

He chuckled. “There's no way that's true. If it is, you haven't been treated like you deserve to be treated.”

“How could you know that?”

He raised a brow. “You've told me enough about your ex and your family. They took you for granted. They don't see how special you are.”

I never would have guessed he was a man with so much depth. He hid because he felt everything—too much. He was protecting himself whether he knew it or not. He was more open with me, but would he draw back at some point and shut me out? Would he decide he wasn't deserving of me?

“Stop thinking so hard over there. Just feel for once in your life.”

I drew my upper lip into my mouth. “I want to.”

He waved a hand at me, and I went to him. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders, bringing me into his side. “I like having you in my kitchen. I like feeding you.”

I smiled up at him, my heart beating a staccato rhythm. “I like it too.”

We were quiet for a bit. Then I asked, “Did you get any work done yesterday? I saw the linoleum outside.”

He pointed the spatula on the floor. “Unfortunately, there're several layers. It's going to take me longer than I thought.”

I was deliriously happy about the project. The only problem was that I had an end date. A plane ticket to Florida for the holidays. My parents had paid for it, hoping it would bring me home. I couldn't not spend the holidays with my family. It's what I'd always done, and it was expected of me. “We missed our hot chocolate date last night.”

He tapped my nose. “We'll do it tonight.”

Hope ran rampant in my chest that we'd have the next few weeks, and it would be enough to carry us into the future and whatever it would bring.

I curled my fingers into the band of his shorts, desire shooting through me, the hunger a distant need.

His arm tightened around me. “I like how you think.”

He turned off the burner, then lifted me onto the small island. “I have so many plans for you.”

My body ignited, my skin heating with awareness. He lifted my shirt over my head, then tugged my leggings down and off. “I want you to be naked in my kitchen all the time.”

I laughed as he laid me back. “That could get messy.”

“Promise?” he asked as he spread my legs and feasted on me.

I couldn't believe he had this kind of energy after waking up last night, then running this morning. He was insatiable for me, and that was an incredible feeling. I'd never been this into sex, where I craved it all the time.

I had a feeling we wouldn't be getting much work done today. He must have paid close attention to what I liked last night because he quickly drew an orgasm out of me. Then he hauled me up and into his arms, lowering me over his cock. I didn't even know this position was possible. He was so strong.

I licked his nipple, the only part of his body I had access to.

He growled as he walked me toward the closest wall and pressed me against it. He held my legs wide as he drove into me. I'd never felt so desired.

His gaze locked on the spot where his dick stretched my pussy. I bit my lip to hold back the second orgasm that threatened.

He shifted his grip to press a finger against my clit, and I let go, bucking against him as he rode through my orgasm and emptied into me.

When he slowly lowered me to the ground, I felt his come dripping out of me.

“I forgot protection.”

I felt shaky and a little lightheaded. After finding that Rex had been cheating on me, I was worried about disease and vowed never to go without a condom again, and here I was being reckless with the very next guy I was intimate with. “I'm clean and on birth control.”

His forehead creased. “I'm clean too. But I'm sorry that I was so careless.”

“There were two of us.” We weren't thinking. I grabbed my shirt, pulling it over my head while he tugged on his briefs. In nothing else, he checked the eggs, turning on the burner again.

I went to the bathroom to clean up, and when I returned, the eggs were on the table, and coffee was steaming in mugs. “I could get used to this.”

I immediately stiffened because there was no chance we had a future. We might live close now, but my home was in Florida. My job, my family, everything. I couldn't just move to Maryland because I had a connection with a man.

He'd let me in slightly, but I sensed there was more that I didn't know. Like why he was so keen on hiding out in this cabin. What he was struggling with.

“Me too,” Axel said as he shoveled the scrambled eggs into his mouth. “I'm going to pull up more linoleum today. How about you?”

“I have my usual work for my dad. Then I'll come over to help.”

His expression lightened. “We'll have to light your porch tonight.”

It sounded nice. I'd forget about everything else and just enjoy this time together. I wanted a break from everything, and I hadn't anticipated meeting someone. But I could expand my vacation plans to include Axel.

Maybe this was something we both needed. Then we'd go our separate ways. This was a fling. My heart didn't have to get involved.

Unfortunately, I think it already was.