Afterlight - Elle Jasper [79]
In a move so fast I didn’t know it’d happened until it had, Eli grabbed my bag and threw it on the cobbles, then shoved me hard against Inksomnia’s back door. He pushed in and crowded me, and I had nowhere to go. I felt his presence all around me, and as the rain fell against my face, it dripped from his hair, too, and onto my face, my chest; I could do little more than stare at him incredulously. “Get off of me,” I said angrily, my voice cracking, deep as I struggled not to lose it.
Eli shook his head and studied my face. “No,” he said, his voice softer, not as angered as before. His hands moved to my hips and yanked me against him. He drew his face even closer. “You have no idea how much restraint I’ve used to keep my hands off of you,” he said, his hands slipping under my leather vest and along my bare rib cage. I shivered beneath his touch. “I’ve wanted you from the second I saw you through your storefront, and every dirty desire and thought you’ve had became mine.” He leaned heavier against me, his gaze dangerous, fierce. “I nearly lost my mind the night you thought of me and touched yourself,” he whispered against my ear. “I almost took you then,” he said, his gaze fixed on mine. “I’ve wanted you every second since. I can’t control myself anymore.” His hands skimmed my rain-slicked lower back, grasped my ass, and pulled me against his hardness; his gaze grew dark, and he lowered his mouth to my ear and whispered erotically, “It’s been a pleasure being your fucking babysitter, Riley Poe. But now I want more.”
Never had any form of the word fuck sounded so sensual, but falling in a whisper from Eli’s sexy mouth, in the context he’d used, his voice heavy with need and with his breath brushing my wet neck? A total turn-on, and my skin flushed with heat despite the rain. I wanted his hands all over me; I wanted out of the leather. I wanted him inside me, and whatever consequence came along with it. As long as it was Eli, I didn’t care. Danger and fear of what could happen was easily forgotten as sensations took control. My mind was of myriad sexual pleasures I couldn’t help but think of, and Eli cued in on every one of them by invading my thoughts. I invited him, welcomed him, and let him take control.
Perfect, sexy, curved lips hovered close to mine, and his eyes watched my reaction as he grasped the zipper of my leather vest and slowly lowered it, exposing my abdomen and the hot pink swimsuit top that pushed my breasts up; I know he heard my breath catch at his touch—I could see it in his eyes. My leather pants were low-riders and sat a good two inches below my navel, and with one hand Eli explored the rain-slicked skin and muscles of my stomach; then the other pulled me free of the vest. I leaned into him, reached up and threaded my fingers through his wet hair and grasped the back of his neck, and for a split second, we stood motionless, staring. He could kill me in under two seconds, my blood a fiery temptation, and I didn’t even care. As long as he kept his hands on me, fear escaped me. He ran his palm up my side and over my breast, and stilled it over my heart. It pounded wildly against his hand. I had no idea what ran through his mind, and I wasn’t too sure I wanted to know. But desperation and awe filled mine; I couldn’t remember ever needing someone so badly—my insides actually ached with want, desire, and I wasn’t even sure why. But it had to be now. And it had to be Eli.
With the rain falling against my face, Eli lowered his head and pressed his mouth to mine; it felt like a match had been struck, and I gasped at the contact. A current soared between us, palpable and hot, and Eli shoved me hard against the wall as he kissed me, both hands leaving my body to push into my hair and hold my head in place. His tongue against mine made me struggle for breath, struggle for more,