Chapter Five

Rick smoothed back the strands of strawberry-blonde hair from her face and watched her sleep. The physical and emotional release pushed her right into slumber, and he enjoyed the soft expression on her face when her mind shut off and there were no more barriers.

In a few short hours, Tara Denton had wrecked his world.

He'd never been with a woman who gave him such an honest, open surrender. Sure, he liked to play, and enjoyed dom/sub fun in the bedroom with willing partners. But he'd never felt so connected to another woman through physical intimacy. Not since Rebecca.

Her name skittered across his memory but without the usual sharp pang. Her deceit cost him big time. He'd stopped trusting and believing his partners, even in the bedroom, and that was a dangerous combination. Trust was implicit in a good relationship, and he used to pride himself on his ability to sniff out a liar a mile away. He lost his confidence in his own abilities, just like Tara lost her trust. A wry grin crossed his lips. They made quite a pair.

His gaze took in the scars that marked her body. Rage simmered, but he clobbered it back, knowing the emotion useless. Amazing how she imagined her body to be ugly. Tara awed him with her strength. She endured, fought back, and survived. Each wound was a testament to her soul, and he appreciated every damn one, like a soldier overseas battling in a war.

Her eyes flew open.

Rick watched her thoughts flicker across her face, then realize where she was. And with who. He enjoyed the slight flush to her cheeks and the easy way she blushed, which was a total contradiction from her open response in the bedroom. The way she begged his name and screamed as she came made him rigid all over again.

“Hungry?” he asked.

Tara sat up, propped on the pillows, and peered at the plates of food on the bed. “Starved? Are we having a picnic?”

He smeared some creamy goat cheese on a cracker and fed it to her. She moaned at the taste, and right then, he was rock hard and ready to rock and roll. “Just building up your energy for the rest of the night.”

The flicker in her liquid blue eyes confirmed she was aroused at the idea of more play. He grinned and handed her a chilled glass of Pinot Grigio. “So, Tara Denton, why don't you tell me about yourself?”

She gave a hearty laugh. The pleasant sound caressed his ears with delight. “You probably read everything in the report I gave to FANTA C. There's not much else to tell.”

The dry facts of her brief bio barely scratched the surface. At least, with Tara. “Oh, I don't know. The report didn't tell me how much you liked me to suck on your clit before thrusting my fingers inside you. It didn't tell me your eyes are a thousand shades of blue and reveal every emotion, or that your breasts spill so perfectly in my hands.”

She blushed. “OK, you win. What do you want to know?”

Evidently, she guarded her secrets well. “What do you do for work?”

Her muscles relaxed and she nibbled on some salted almonds. “I work for the local battered women's shelter part-time. They don't have the funds to pay very well, so I supplemented with a bookkeeping job at Mercier & Associates. I’m also working on my degree in accounting.”

The pride in her voice warmed his heart. “I bet you're very good with numbers,” he said slowly. “Numbers you can control. If you work hard enough, everything fits into place, with no surprises.”

Her eyes widened. Bingo. His little accountant needed a place in her life where she felt empowered. Rick bet she'd squeeze out every dime of profit for Mercier.

“You're right. I never thought about it like that,” she murmured. “After I fled, the shelter gave me career counseling. I was always really good in math and numbers.” Her voice drifted off as if she fought the memory of her past, then she shook her head. Rick wrestled with his instinct to push. God, he wanted to know every thought and every hurdle she'd gone through.

“Did you graduate high school?” he asked gently.

Tara smiled. “Oh, yes, with honors. I loved school. I just never got to college because Tim wouldn't let me.”

A dark cloud passed over him. “Tim? The one who hurt you?”

She seemed to struggle with her decision to share. Emotions shifted across her face, replaced with determination. Tara raised her gaze to his and looked him straight in the eye. “I don't like to talk about Tim much, but I'd like to tell you the story. If you want to hear it.”

Rick gently caressed her soft hand, then squeezed. “Yes, baby. I do want to hear it.”

She took a deep breath. “I met Tim senior year in high school. At first, he was the perfect boyfriend. Sweet, protective, caring. He took care of me. My father had taken off when I was young, and my mom wasn't really around.” She crinkled her nose in distaste. “She had a series of boyfriends I liked to avoid, and I had no rules. No curfew, no need to show up at school. But I wanted to go to college, have a career, and be independent. I thought that's what Tim wanted too.”

Rick waited patiently as she paused. “Things began to change. Tim got controlling. Angry. Hated my friends, and refused to let me talk to other boys. He said he needed me to concentrate on him. His father beat him, so Tim moved out and wanted me to live with him. I agreed, thinking I could go to the local community college and we'd support one another.”

Tara swallowed. “I don't know when I realized he changed. Tim flew into rages over things I did. I started getting nervous all the time, trying to do everything right. The first time he hit me, I was so shocked, but he cried and swore he'd kill himself if I left.”

Rick nodded with encouragement. He noticed she slipped into telling mode, her voice monotone. “I stayed. He began to beat me more often. My mother didn't want me anymore since she was shacked up with her new boyfriend. I had no money, and he controlled everything in my life. I kept missing classes from the bruises, so I dropped out of college.”

“How long did you stay with him?”

“Three years. Two months. Five days.”

“How did you get away, sweetheart?”

She shuddered. “I collected change. Loose dollar bills when I knew he'd been drinking. I stashed the money in one of the tile ceilings until I had enough. He always told me he'd kill me, then himself if I ever left. And I believed him. I had to be careful whom I involved myself with because I didn't want anyone else to get hurt.

“During the day, Tim worked at an auto shop. He kept a close eye on me and I wasn't allowed to leave the house when he worked his shift. But that day I did.”

Tara closed her eyes. Rick wondered what horrors she watched behind her closed lids, and his gut wrenched. “I cut off all my hair. Put on a knit cap and Tim's clothes. Had a cab take me to the bus station. Then I bought a ticket to the next town. Then the next. And then the next.”

His eyes widened. “You just kept traveling?”

She nodded.”I travelled for two days straight to throw him off. Then I walked into the first church I saw and begged to be sent to the nearest women's shelter. This was back in California. I had a different name then, but I'm not that person any longer. Tara Denton would never stay with a man who raised his hand. She's successful and making her own way. And she'll never be caught again.”

Her last words shot at him like cannon fire. Rick realized in that moment Tara had no plans to extend their relationship past tonight. This was no more than a healing ritual to free her body from her painful past. A strange panic coursed through him at the idea of letting her walk away. But her intentions had always been clear. Only his had changed.

Suddenly, Rick wanted much more than a one-night stand with Tara Denton.

“Do you live in Vegas now?” he asked carefully, stroking her silky golden red hair.

“Yes. I knew I'd have a new start here. Get lost. Find my own way.” A glimmer of a smile ghosted her lips. “I like the idea of a tarnished city being my home. I can paint myself up with makeup, glitter, and clothes, but underneath, in the light of day, I always felt lacking. Tim used that to keep me a prisoner.”

“But not anymore.” Pride and admiration pulsed through his voice.

“Not ever again. Now I can give back. I stopped being afraid he'd find me. Therapy helped. But I still wonder....”

“Wonder what?”

She looked embarrassed, almost shy. “How a man like you could want me.”

Her admission rocked him. “A man like me?”

“Yeah. Beautiful. Rick, there must have been a dozen women staring at you in the bar and wondering why you were taking me home.”

Anger sizzled so hot he wanted to beat his chest like a caveman and howl at the moon in frustration. He never thought twice about how women viewed him, and just felt damn lucky when a female wanted him back. But evidently, Tara saw things differently. Her sense of feminine confidence had taken such a pounding; she didn't see what he did.

Words wouldn't help. Rarely did.

But actions would.

Rick studied her and wondered how hard he'd be able to push without causing her any painful memories. As a natural dominant lover, he decided to trust his gut, and watch her carefully. Lust speared right to his cock as he envisioned the scene laid out in his mind.

“Tara, did you like watching us in the mirror?”

The change of topic surprised her. She flushed, but he gave her credit. She didn't lie. “Yes.”

He forced her chin up when she tried to bow her head. “Don't ever be afraid to say what you want or what turns you on. I loved how you snuck glances at the mirror and watched your body respond to mine. Do you know what my first thought was when I saw you sitting at the table?” She shook her head in obvious misery. “I couldn't wait to fuck you.”

“Really?”

He smiled. “Really. I wanted to rip off that bra and suck on your nipples. I couldn't wait to see the look in your eyes when you came. And when you got up, all I could think of was getting my hands on your ass. In fact, I think that part of your anatomy has been sorely ignored tonight. Let's change that now.”

Panic flared in those misty blue depths. “No.”

He arched a brow. “Why not?”

“I have more scars on my back,” she said softly.

“Then I'd say they need my loving attention.” He plucked the wine glass from her fingers and put it on the bedside table, along with the plates of snacks. “Lie on your stomach, baby.”

“No, Rick.”

He gazed back at her with implacable demand. “Do you want to please me tonight, Tara?” She nodded. “Then I'm asking you to trust me.”

Rick wouldn't have blamed her for refusing. Instead, after a few moments, she slowly turned around and lay down on the bed. Her hands cushioned her head. Her breath came out in ragged gasps as she fought the sheer vulnerability of being naked with her secrets exposed to his gaze. A deep joy and satisfaction clenched his gut as he gazed at the woman before him. Tara's pleasure came from pleasing her mate, no matter how scared she was. Rick swore she'd never regret giving him this chance to show her how precious she was. Her gift to him was priceless.

Rick took in the brutal marks that scattered her back and ass. “What are these, sweetheart?” He pointed to the perfect circle burns marring her upper back.

“Cigarettes.”

“And these?” His fingers lightly traced the line of her spine and settled on the permanent welts on her buttocks.

“A whip. Sometimes a belt.”

He winced at the thought of the blood and pain she endured under the bastard's hands, but made his assessment as quickly and clinically as possible. It surprised him that her marks made him want her more, to replace the horror with memories of pleasure.

“He was a bastard, Tara. But no one will ever hurt you again. Close your eyes and relax. Enjoy my touch.”

He moved his hands to her shoulders and began a slow massage. The clenched muscles under his fingers refused to yield, but after a few minutes, her body loosened. Her breath evened out, and he knew immediately when she relaxed and let go. He spent a long time working her shoulders and upper back, enjoying the firm, white flesh, and couldn't help slipping to the side to caress the heavy globes of her breasts. She uttered a low moan and arched upward to give him access. He slid his hands underneath and gently plucked at her nipples, circling his thumbs around the rigid peaks. With a final pinch, he returned to his main task.

He worked the indents along her spine and watched goose bumps pepper her flesh. When her body was completely under his control, he concentrated on the swell of her buttocks. He massaged the lush curves and kneed her legs apart, squeezing her inner thighs as he continued without pause.

Her musky scent greeted his nostrils. Rick grinned at the swollen pink flesh, her juices gleaming in the light. Damn, she was a responsive little thing. His cock grew to full length and pulsed with demand.

“You're already wet for me, baby. Since you can't see yourself, I'll tell you what I see. A beautiful pink pussy, just begging for my fingers or my tongue. Your clit is hard but not enough. We can do better than that.”

She wiggled on the bed and Rick laughed low at her reaction to the verbal play.”But I really wish you could see this gorgeous ass of yours. All flushed and trembling. Arched high in the air, ready for my cock. But we have a long way to go.”

He separated her firm ass and blew his hot breath on the sensitive rosette between her cheeks. Tara bucked, but he held her down with a gentle firmness that told her she had nowhere to run. He lowered his mouth and ran his tongue down the line of her ass, nibbling on the high curves as her arousal and the scent of strawberries mixed in the air. He opened her up wide and slid his fingers across her slit. She soaked his fingers, and he murmured in satisfaction.

Rick settled his mouth over the plump curve of her right cheek. Then sunk his teeth into the quivering flesh as he plunged two fingers into her channel.

She bucked and screamed. The orgasm took her hard and by surprise, and he rubbed her clit back and forth, forcing her climax to extend for long, long moments. His erection turned almost painful, and he quickly sheathed himself with a condom, rose up, and plunged his cock inside her wet, tight channel.

Rick massaged her ass, pinching gently, and then moved up to play with her breasts. She trembled, not able to see where his fingers would touch her next, and satisfaction ripped through him. He plunged in and out with a steady pace, deliberately rubbing her clit as it hardened and swelled again, poised for another orgasm.

“This is what you do to me, Tara,” he said forcefully. “You're beautiful inside and out, scars and all. My cock loves your juicy pussy, all tight and welcoming.”

“Please, Rick!”

He laughed as she arched her ass toward him, silently begging. “Not yet. You're not getting off again until I'm positive you believe me.”

She sobbed as he pulled out of her clinging pussy and flipped her over with one quick movement. He pushed up her knees and spread her legs wide. “Look up,” he commanded. Her dazed gaze rose to the mirror, the reflection of their naked, joined bodies in vivid detail. Her inner muscles immediately clenched, and Rick confirmed watching them aroused her.

He plumped her breasts and lowered his mouth to suck her nipples, tweaking the tips until they stood out, ruby red, and glistening. “This is all for me,” he said, pointing to the mirror at her swollen peaks. Then he rose up and plunged deep inside of her.

Tara cried out. Her gaze helplessly glued to the mirror, she watched him pleasure her, varying short and hard thrusts until he found her g-spot. With a wicked grin, he pulled completely out and teased her clit with his finger, rubbing the bud in tight circles, repeatedly.

“I can't take anymore, please, Rick, oh, please.”

“Your body is beautiful, Tara. Do you believe me now?”

“Yes!”

“Say it.”

“My body is beautiful!”

He plunged directly to her g-spot.

“Ahhhhhh!” She screamed and came hard as her body convulsed around him. He kept up the pace and wrung every last ounce of liquid from her body, then let himself go.

His climax shattered him. The release started from his toes and shuddered out of his body, grabbing every inch and pumping it with heat. Her name broke from his lips, and then he tucked her tight into his chest and held her close.