Live Me Read online

  I could never deny him of anything and after the day he’d given me, it wouldn’t be right to let my insecurities ruin the moment. I slipped my hand back into his and allowed him to lead me onto the dance floor.

  The deejay nodded in acknowledgment, and Blake answered with a wink. God, I loved when he did that.

  The familiar tune of a piano began, and Blake smiled a sexy, knowing smile. He dragged his hands along my hips, spinning me to rest in front of him, and then settled his hands on the soft curve of my lower back, holding me tight to him. He curved his body, coating mine, brushing his nose along my jaw before nestling his face in my neck. I melted into him as John Legend’s, All of Me filled the expanse of the rooftop.

  “Listen to the words, Angel. I can’t sing, but it’s everything I’m feeling right now.”

  I didn’t have to listen. I knew every word by heart.

  Blake hummed into my ear, every now and then singing the words that were most important to him. He told me how confused I made him as he tried to figure out my mysterious mind. Asking for the one thing I never thought I could give—all of me. This explained the extent of his love for me, and it took away all of my insecurities. That was why he ignored my admission. He was answering in his own Blake way. Telling me he even loved the rough edges, the bad parts.

  I buried my fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck and covered his mouth with mine, emotion seeping from every pore.

  Blake pulled back and brushed away a stray hair the wind had blown across my forehead, placing it behind my shoulder as he sang, “You’re my end and my beginning . . .”

  And then the part came that hit home.

  He cupped my face, acknowledging what had happened in my life, assuring me he’d be there for every mood, and my heart burst at the seams, no longer in denial of what this was. All I’d ever yearned for was to be understood and not have to hide anymore. But I didn’t think it’d ever be possible. And yet here I was, dancing with the man who had stolen my heart somehow and begged me to let him love me.

  There was no question. No pretense of anything but what I felt in this moment. “You’ve had me for a while, longer than I even knew, but now I’m telling you . . . I’m yours, Blake. All of me. Even here.” I lifted his hand to my chest, knowing that was the piece of me he’d been waiting for.

  A huge smile split his face as he tightened his arms around my waistline, and spun so my legs swung out to circle us. “I love you so much, baby.”

  “I love you, too. All of you.” It felt so good to finally say it.

  Blake stopped turning then. Sentiment washed over his features as his mouth lowered to claim mine. Licking along my lips, he spoke into my mouth, “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

  “I’ve been waiting for you to say that,” I replied, breathless.

  He laughed at my impatience and set me on my feet, giving a swift wave to the deejay before leading me back to the elevator. I blushed, remembering our first escapade in here, but then a familiar warmth spread throughout my limbs knowing that was just the beginning. Blake rubbed circles over my palm with his thumb the whole way down. His face gave away nothing as to what else awaited me, but anticipation hung heavy in the air and in my belly. I was wound so tight, I didn’t think I could wait the next few feet to be near him.

  Guiding me from the elevator, he slipped a key card into our room and stood back, extending his hand. “Ladies first.”

  When the door split at its seam, soft music seeped through and streaks of candlelight danced across the walls as I entered the corridor lined in different colored rose petals. A king-sized bed sat proudly in the center of the room, and hundreds more petals were scattered across it. My heart swelled in adoration as I stood there, taking in all of Blake’s efforts.

  I felt his presence come within inches of me, and then his hands were on my shoulders and he was kissing the top of my head. “This makes seventy-seven. One for every day I’ve adored you. They all have different meanings. The yellow is for the friendship we share, the pink my gratitude and admiration of you. Orange is my desire . . . there may be a few extra of those.”

  He winked at me, picking up a light purple petal and placing it in my palm, and a tear rolled from my chin, coating it. “Those symbolize love at first sight and the white, that’s a symbol of truth and loyalty. It means I am worthy of you and that’s probably most important of all. But the red,” he picked up the one single rose that lay across the top, “that’s for my enduring passion. True love is stronger than thorns. I won’t let anything come between us. Ever.” He feathered the soft bud down my arm. “You like?”

  “I . . . love.” I brushed a tear from my cheek.

  Blake reached around to my chin and angled it toward him, taking my mouth in his as he wrapped his arms around my middle. I reached back, weaving my fingers into his hair.

  He placed his forehead to my temple. “None of my plans could ever surpass the gift you’ve given me tonight.”

  “Blake, I’m going to remember today for the rest of my life. There’s nothing more you could’ve done to make it any more special.”

  His dimple lightly skimmed his cheek. “Well, I wouldn’t be too sure about that. The night’s not over. I’m not done with you just yet.”

  My heart skipped a beat at the insinuation in his words. “Well then, by all means, show me.”

  I turned, placing my hands over the hard curves of his chest, and licked a line up his neck before nipping at his strong jaw. I gave him a nod so he knew he didn’t have to be careful with me like he always was. Tonight I wanted it all. I was here. Mind, body, and spirit, and I didn’t want to be treated like a fragile piece of glass.

  Blake cupped my face in his hands and gently massaged my mouth with his. Feathering around to my back, he slowly lowered my zipper until it rested right above my backside. Slipping between the silky fabric and my skin, he rubbed his thumb over the dip of my spine, the tips of his fingers brushing the top of my ass and sending a chill rocketing through me. I molded into his touch, pushing my breasts against him, anxious to feel his skin on mine.

  “I so enjoyed you in this dress, but I think it’s time we lost it.”

  “Yes,” I breathed.

  Blake slipped the straps off my shoulders, ghosting his hands down my arms until the material pooled at my feet. I kicked my shoes off at the same time and was left standing there in only a black lace bra and matching thong.

  “Nice choice.” Blake mingled his fingers with the hair at my nape, dipping my head back. With his other hand, he dragged his pointer finger along my chin, down my neck, along my collarbone, barely touching me as he traced one long line down to the edge of my panties, eliciting a soft moan from me. He made his way back up, between my breasts, to circle my heart. “Mine.”

  “Yours,” I acknowledged.

  Lowering to his knees, he cupped my hips and held his lips against the wild beats between my breasts. I buried my fingers into his hair, fastening him to me. He kissed me there over and over, and my heartbeat slowed, relaxing to a soothing rhythm. Sliding his hands up my ribs, they came to rest on my breasts, kneading my nipples through the lacy material. He groaned, pulling it aside, and moved to clasp one perky bud between his lips. My head fell back as I pushed myself further into his mouth, my breathing picking up pace. In one swift motion, Blake was on his feet, sliding his hands under my arms and lifting my small frame off the floor, leaving my legs to drape down the front of his body.

  Holding me at his eye level, he said, “You’ll let me know if any of this is not okay with you.” It wasn’t a question.

  I nodded, wrapping my legs around him, and his lips found mine once again as he lowered us onto the mattress.

  He left me then, backing away to stand at the foot of the bed, and I felt cold and exposed in his absence. Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around my chest, covering myself.

  Blake took in my discomfort. “I’m coming back, Angel.” And then he took his top button between his fingers and
slowly released each of them until he hit the last one at his waistline. He stood there for a moment in his suit pants, his shirt open and draped around him.

  My arms fell to the sides, coming up behind me so I could prop myself for a better view. Absolutely perfect. Just as I’d remembered. It never failed to blow my mind how flawless he was. How deep each cut in his abs were, the perfectly smooth coloring of his skin.

  He smirked then, enjoying how I ogled him. “I’m going to take you a number of different ways before the sun comes up. But we’ll start out slow. When you leave here tomorrow morning, you’ll have no doubt who you belong to.”

  My insides bunched in anticipation. I licked my lips knowing there’d be no turning back. Knowing I didn’t want to. After living my life at the mercy of someone else’s demands and control, I never imagined I’d feel this way, but I was so turned on by the possessiveness of his words. I wanted him to claim me. To do with me what he wished. To take away the need to think and calculate and plan. I wanted to give myself over to him. And it both shocked and confused me.

  Before I could think too deeply, his fingers dug into the clasp of his belt. I swallowed long and hard as his pants fell effortlessly to the floor, leaving him standing there in an opened collared shirt and boxer briefs with an obvious steel line erected down the center. Then the shirt fell away and his socks were plucked off and tossed to the pile and all that was left was the strip of material covering what I wanted to see most. Blake hooked his thumbs into the elastic, toying with it and I bit my lip. Eyes on mine, he inched them down, one inch, then two, until they met the carpet as well.

  There he stood, proudly before me. Every part of him standing proudly before me. I scrambled to my knees, anxious to get to him.

  He held up a finger. “Ah, ah, ah. Not so fast.” He smirked. “Lie back.”

  I reluctantly did as he asked, pushing my head back into the pillow and sending a wave of petals floating on a puff of air. He prowled up my body on all fours, dipping to nip and suck at me along the way, skimming velvety petals along my skin. I watched him over the panting landscape of my torso as he took his time, trailing kisses along every inch of me—down my neck, my arms, my legs, even my feet. I felt claimed, consumed.

  Blake suckled the calf cupped in his hands when he looked up at me with hungry, eager eyes. He came to rest between my thighs, leaning onto one forearm as he brushed a curl from my forehead. “I need to be inside you. I want to make love to you, Angel. But it needs to be just you and me in this room. No pasts. No pain. Only pleasure. So you’re going to stare into my eyes the whole time. You’re going to see every bit of what I do to you.” He trailed a finger along my lips. “Of what you do to me.” Looking me square in the eyes, he commanded, “Understood?”

  I merely nodded in response, the weight of his finger on my lips too much of a distraction. It was hard to believe only a few months ago I’d freaked out and told him never to do that again. But things were different now. I was different now.

  I sucked it into my mouth and groaned, loving the taste of just that small piece of him. The sweet, saltiness of his skin.

  With a grunt, Blake covered my lips with his, his tongue mingling with his finger inside my mouth, and then he broke the kiss, his breathing heavy.

  “Touch me. Everywhere.” Leaning up, I closed the small distance between our faces and swiped my tongue across his lips. “Please.”

  Wildness filled his eyes as if I’d given him a green light and unleashed something deep within him. Something he’d been holding back all this time, surely for my benefit. But right now, nothing would benefit me more than becoming one with him.

  Blake flicked his fingers to the clasp between my breasts, and they spilled out for him. He dipped his head, sucking one hard tip into his mouth, and dragged his teeth along it. My body bucked at the sensation of it and then he moved, paying equal attention to the other. His mouth never left me as he kissed a line down my belly and across my navel, his hands slipping into the lace at my hips and pulling it down my legs. Sitting back on his heels, he crumpled them and discarded them onto the floor.

  I realized how much preparing he’d actually done when he reached over to the nightstand, extracting a foil packet from its drawer. I covered his hand with my own. “Don’t. I want to feel you.”

  He looked at me, a huge question in his eyes.

  “I’m on birth control and have never, um . . . been unprotected. It’s safe.”

  “You sure?”

  “Positive. I don’t want anything between us.”

  Blake tossed the packet aside. “You don’t have to ask me twice. I’ve never been unprotected either, and the thought of feeling you bare . . .” He shuddered.

  I wanted him so badly my body ached, every cell sensitized and waiting.

  Straddling me at the knees, Blake stared at me. “You look amazing right now, naked and waiting. Your cheeks all flushed, breasts full.” He placed a hand over my chest feeling the frenzied rhythm. “So gorgeous. I want to remember this moment forever. I wish I could take a picture.”

  I skidded my bare foot up his chest. “How about if I just look like this for you over and over and over—and over.”

  Something in him turned primal. He grabbed my calf and bit down. “Stop me if it’s too much, but I can’t hold back anymore.” Blake dropped my ankle to his shoulder and leaned forward, letting his swollen erection lay on my belly.

  I watched, breathless, as he teased me, dragging his cock back slowly, leaving a trail of pre-cum in its wake. He positioned himself at my entrance and I braced myself, fisting the comforter at my sides. He took himself in his hand and rubbed it over my sex, spreading my juices from my opening to my clit and back down again. “Already wet for me, baby. I love it. I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  Hearing him affirm it one more time before we took the last step was just what I needed. He pushed in slowly, testing my limits, and I relaxed even more, knowing he’d get in easier if I did.

  I sucked in a ragged breath, tilting my hips, and he was able to slide in the rest of the way so his pelvis rested against my wet folds.

  I felt full.

  Complete.

  My missing piece.

  Blake trembled, using all of his willpower to remain still and be sure I was okay. I cupped the side of his face and nodded, and he dropped forward, surrounding me with his body and my leg fell into the crease of his elbow. He pulled back, only to push in more forcefully, and I dug my nails into his back, pushing my chest up to meet his, a hiss escaping my lips.

  “Keep going,” I whispered in his ear.

  That little bit of encouragement was all he needed, and he began tapping into me at a quick, fluid rhythm. “God, you feel so good. So bare. I can feel every bit of you. Fucking amazing.”

  My own breathing picked up, the sound of flesh meeting flesh turning me on.

  He slowed his pace, reaching deep inside me, pulling back, and then pushing deep within my core again. I moaned his name in total ecstasy. Each thrust made me feel more whole, our bodies slick with sweat sliding off one another.

  Blake growled in my ear, “You’re mine, Angel.” Pushing deeper with each word, he repeated, “Mine. Say it.”

  “I’m yours,” the words barely audible from my breathless mouth.

  “Fucking scream it.”

  “I’m yours!”

  “Yes!” He slowed his pace, dipping his tongue into my mouth. “I love you, Angel. More than I’ve ever loved anything.”

  “I love you, too,” I breathed. “Come for me. I want to feel you inside my body.”

  With that, Blake lost all control. He dropped my leg, and I wrapped them around his waist, knowing what he liked. I used them to hoist myself up, allowing him to penetrate me as deep as possible. My body held tight to his erection as tension built until neither of us could hold on to it any longer. We came together, my channel clenching, milking his hot arousal deep within me. Somehow we never lost eye contact the w
hole time until he fell, burying his face in my hair and kissing a soft line up my neck.

  We laid in silence for a few moments, trying to gain a hold of our breathing. Blake wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close, tucking me deep into his side, kissing the top of my head. I needed him that close, unable to see my face as a tear leaked out of the corner of my eye and rolled into my hairline.

  Blake pulled back, looking at me. “Angel? You okay? Did I hurt you?”

  “No, you were perfect. Everything about this day was perfect. I’m just happy. I never thought I’d be happy again, and I never thought something that was always so disgusting to me could feel so good and so beautiful.”

  “That’s all it’ll ever be, baby. I knew we would be that good together. In my gut. I just knew. Now you know, too.” He tapped me on the nose, the way he liked to do.

  Complete contentment washed over me as the long day made itself known and my eyelids weighted down. Blake traced small circles on my shoulder blade with his thumb as I sank deeper into him. I blinked rapidly to stay awake, nervous my night terrors might find me, but eventually I succumbed and sleep took hold.

  I felt something. Eyes? A presence? Where was I? My eyes burst open and I sucked back a breath.

  Blake’s hand shot out, soothing down my arm. “Calm down, Angel. It’s just me.”

  “Blake?”

  I sat upright, holding the sheet protectively to my chest. I looked around the room as memories of last night came flooding back, and I finally relaxed back into the bed. Blake propped his head in his hand, the sheet draped low on his hip, showcasing his bare chest, and I bit down on my lip, soaking up the beauty of him.

  I looked around, noting how dark it still was. “Did you sleep?”

  “Nope. I couldn’t.” Blake looked down, worrying his lip.

  “Why not? You feel okay?” I asked, immediately concerned he was having second thoughts.

  “Yeah, I’m fine.” He patted my hip. “I just . . . I was nervous is all. I didn’t want to wake up and find you gone. That you had regrets or something and ran out on me.” He shrugged, his gaze skirting away.