Chapter 7

No matter how much I kick and protest, he refuses to put me down, and then he dumps me onto the bed like a load of clean laundry. He's out of his mind if he thinks this is a good seduction technique.

Jaxon smiles down at me as I scramble to get back on my feet. "Enough fighting. I'm tired of it."

The look in his eyes tells me he thinks we're going to sleep together in a few minutes. Terrific. He's officially lost his mind. That I know for sure now.

I'm being held hostage by an insane madman.

As he gently eases me back onto the bed, I say, "If you think for a second I'm going to sleep with you after you kidnapped me, you're crazy. Let me up so I can leave this place."

He ignores me and starts unbuttoning his white dress shirt. "Why do you insist on fighting this? You love me. I love you. Why can't you enjoy this time together without any distractions?"

My mouth drops open as shock at the way he looks at this situation fills me. "Do you hear yourself when you say things like that?"

My question goes unanswered as he tosses his shirt onto a chair in the corner of the room. God, he looks even better than I remembered. No! I can't let myself get sidetracked by his tattoos, muscular chest and arms, and washboard abs.

Closing my eyes, I try to stay strong, but this man has always had an effect on me. I need to think of something completely unsexual. That pimento loaf my mother loves. That show on Discovery with the doctor who always seems to be popping people's zits. Elon Musk. Guys who comb their hair over to hide their balding heads.

"I like that you're not fighting this anymore. We're making progress," he says in a low voice I know all too well.

That's how he sounds when he's hard as a rock and ready. God, now all I can think of is how good it feels when he makes love to me.

Zits. Musk. Comb overs. Pimento loaf.

Damnit, it's not working. Even thinking about those gross things isn't turning me off.

The first touch of his hands on my leg to slip off my yoga pants makes my body come alive. I must be insane. That's the problem. He's not the crazy one. It's me. It must be because only someone who's out of their mind would be aroused right now.

I open my eyes to see Jaxon crawling up between my legs. He's naked and his cock is rock hard.

And he looks incredible. Like always.

"You know, I love you in these yoga pants," he says as he runs his hands up over my thighs.

"They're new. You've never seen me in them before," I say, desperately trying my hardest not to be seduced by this man.

I shouldn't be. He kidnapped me. That was after he broke up with me and tore my heart out. And he didn't call even once for an entire year.

All of these things should make me hate him.

Jaxon dips his head to press a soft kiss just above my right knee. Looking up at me, he grins. "I didn't mean these exact pants. I just like you in yoga pants in general. They make your ass look incredible."

"You know, I wanted to hate you for a long time."

He plants another kiss an inch higher on my leg. "But you couldn't."

So cocky. It would serve him right if I did hate him.

If only I could.

"What makes you think I don't?" I ask as he begins to pepper my inner thigh with soft kisses that drive me wild. "Men aren't the only ones who can sleep with someone they don't care about, you know."

As much as I wish any of that was true for me, I can't lie. There's always been something about Jaxon that I can't deny makes me want him.

He lifts his head and grins like he knows all of this. "Tia, you never got serious with anyone in the entire year we were apart. You couldn't because you still love me, which works because I never stopped loving you."

I want to be as cocky as he is, but it's not my nature. I like being honest with people I care about, and he's no exception.

Then I realize what he said about my never getting serious with any of those guys I dated this past year and sit bolt upright. "Did you watch me while we were broken up?"

Sliding up my body, he doesn't answer my question. Instead, he tilts his hips and glides his hard cock between my legs, exciting me more than I want to admit.

When he leans down to kiss me, he whispers against my lips, "I couldn't stop myself. I needed to know you were okay."

He cups my face in his strong hands as I look up into his eyes and admit the truth. "I wasn't okay, Jaxon. You have no idea how lost I was all that time."

Sadness fills his eyes, but he wills it away with a smile. "No more being lost. I found you, and you're mine forever this time."

"Promise?"

"I promise, Tia."

His lips brush against mine before he kisses me long and deep, sending need coursing through my body. I dreamed of this moment for so long and doubted it would ever happen, and now we're here together in this strange place that reminds me of the house where we first surrendered to what we felt all that time ago. I forgave him for what happened there, and I can't help but forgive him for the year apart and even for kidnapping me.

That's what you do when you're in love with someone.

I feel his hips lift off me, and then a second later, he eases into my needy pussy, filling me completely like he was always meant for me and only me. Like every time we're together, the feeling is sublime. He slowly pumps into me, taking his time even though I see in his expression he's eager for much more.

Running my finger along the dark stubble on his jaw, I study his gorgeous face. He truly is stunning with those deep brown eyes that seem to hold all the secrets I've always wanted to learn and chiseled masculine features that hint at his ruthlessness.

"Don't hold back."

He stares down at me with such piercing intensity that I almost want to look away. "It's been a long year without you. I'm not sure I can be gentle if I loosen the reins on all my demons."

"I want you to, Jaxon. No holding back. I want this reunion to be as honest as we always promised we'd be with one another."

His hands slide up to my throat, and with his right thumb, he traces the outline of my lips. "I love you, Tia. I'm sorry I wasn't honest a year ago. I'm going to spend the rest of my life making it up to you, starting now."

When he kisses me, I feel the power of his emotions and hope he feels mine. I cling to his body as he speeds up his thrusts and plunges into me. Quickly, it's like he's everywhere around me and inside me, consuming every last doubt I had about him.

About us.

He's the same man he's always been. Hard. Dangerous. Passionate. All the things I loved about him before remain, and if possible, have become even more intense.

My fingernails rake across his shoulders as my body takes everything he gives. He grunts with each time he fills me with his cock, an animalistic sound that thrills me. I've never loved anyone like I love Jaxon. I know all the bad he's done, yet I can't help but adore him.

His fingers tighten against my throat, but I don't fear he'll hurt me. I fear nothing when I'm with him.

Lifting myself off the bed, I kiss him, sliding my tongue over his to tease him because I know it never fails to get him even hotter. It has the effect I knew it would, and he begins to pound into me, his cock slamming into my body with wild abandon. Desire races through me with every hard thrust into my body, and all I can do is cry out for more.

"Don't stop!" I beg and pull my knees up to feel him as deeply as possible.

He slides his hand over to behind my ear and pulls hard on my hair. I love when he does that. It never fails to make me go wild.

I wrap my legs tightly around his waist to give him the hint I want to get on top. Like before, he understands and flips over onto his back. He looks up at me and smiles like a happy man.

"Feeling like you want to be in control?" he asks.

Rolling my hips, I lift off him for a moment before sinking back down and taking every inch he has. "Not exactly. You did that thing with my hair, and you know what that does to me."

He sets his hands on my waist and squeezes. "I knew it would get you even hotter. That's why I did it."

I press my palms against his chest and lean down to kiss him. "Some things never change."

Jaxon stuffs his hands into my hair and tugs hard, eliciting a moan from me as I ride him. "They better not because I love a woman who likes it on top. Let me see you ride that cock, baby."

He pushes me down hard onto him so nothing separates us. Running his fingertips over my abdomen, he smiles, so I look down to see the outline of his cock inside me.

"Now that's hot."

I try to lift myself up, but he keeps me still. "I think I need to be able to move to make everyone happy here," I say, craving the orgasm he's denying me.

"Well, I like how this feels."

As much as I want to see him happy, I enjoy the feel of riding Jaxon's long, thick cock, so I roll my eyes. "What if I enjoy the usual way?"

With a shrug, he releases his hold on my hips and slides his hands up my body to cup my breasts. "Whatever you want, baby. I'll take you whichever way makes you happy."

I close my eyes and settle into the rhythm of our fucking. Beneath me, Jaxon groans and pinches my nipples.

"God, you feel so fucking good. I don't think I'm going to last for long, though. A year with just my hand has left me horny as all fucking hell."

Looking down at him, I don't analyze the truthfulness of his statement and take him at his word. I don't want to know if he was with anyone else. What happened in those months we weren't together doesn't mean anything now.

All that matters is he's back and I've forgiven him.

My orgasm begins to unwind deep inside me, so I ride him faster now, slamming my body down onto his cock in a desperate search for release. Jaxon sits up and wraps his arms around me, holding me close as I inch toward that delicious moment when I come.

"That's it, baby. Give me everything you have, and I'll give you all I am," he says low and deep in my ear.

I scratch my nails across the back of his neck, and he responds by pulling my hair. It's pain and pleasure mixed into one glorious feeling that sends an exquisite feeling straight to my pussy.

It won't be long until I come, so I hold on tightly to him, my hands grasping his muscular shoulders. We stare into each other's eyes, and the connection that's always been there between us makes me feel like I'm home.

His cock twitches inside me, and before I can orgasm, he comes hard with a loud groan. My body takes every ounce he has and then a second later, I come. My thighs shake uncontrollably, and although this feels incredible, I can't stop the tears that begin to flow down my cheeks.

I bury my face in the warmth of his neck, loving the smell of his skin. It's masculine with a hint of musky cologne like always.

The two of us fall still, and Jaxon softly runs his hand over my back. "Did I hurt you?"

Lifting my head, I smile and wipe the tears away. "No. I don't know why I'm crying. That felt incredible."

He smiles, and it lights up his dark eyes. "Good. I was worried I was a little too rough there. I know you used to love it that way, but…"

His sentence trails off to silence. I don't want him to be unsure of how I feel, so I kiss him and whisper against his lips, "I do love it that way, but only with you. I missed you, Jaxon."

I smile as he cradles my face and presses his forehead to mine. "I missed you too. I'll never leave again. I promise."

With a sigh of pure happiness, I rest my head on his shoulder. The past is gone. I can forgive him for everything, and our future together is all I've ever wanted.

"I love you, Tia."

I never thought I'd hear him say those beautiful words again, and now that I have, I don't think I could be happier.