Chapter 63: No Turning Back
The ride back stretched long and heavy. Lindsay leaned against the window, watching the city blur past. Damon sat across from her, his gaze steady, letting her have the space. Neither of them spoke for most of the drive.
Halfway back, Damon finally broke it. “Are you all right?”
She turned her head, meeting his eyes. There was a faint smile on her lips. “I’m fine. Better, actually. Thank you… for letting me do that.”
By the time the car rolled into the penthouse basement parking, the air between them had shifted. Lindsay didn’t rush to leave. She walked beside him into the elevator, her shoulders squared, carrying herself differently than she had just hours ago.
Inside the penthouse, she lingered near the kitchen instead of heading straight for her room. She opened the fridge, pulled out two bottles, and glanced back at him. “You should stay a while. Have a beer with me.”
Damon stepped closer, watching her set the bottles on the counter. “Just one?”
“Maybe two,” she said with a small grin.
He didn’t need more of an explanation. When he noticed the guards posted in the living room, he gave a quiet order for them to step outside and join the others.
Lindsay twisted the cap off her bottle and took a long sip. Damon leaned against the counter across from her, eyes fixed on her like she’d just become something entirely new.
“You don’t usually drink beer,” she said, setting her bottle down.
He smirked. “Not usually. But if you’re offering, I’ll make an exception.”
“Guess tonight calls for exceptions.” She lifted her bottle toward him in a small toast.
They clinked glasses, and Damon’s gaze lingered as they both drank. He liked the way she looked at him now—less guarded, less tentative. Something had suddenly changed after that warehouse, and instead of retreating, she was leaning in.
Soon, conversation flowed more easily between them than it had in weeks. Then he asked how she felt now, really felt, and she surprised him with her honesty. “I feel like I finally stopped running. Like I got to take something back.”
Then Damon stepped in closer, his beer abandoned on the counter. He brushed his knuckles down her arm, and when she didn’t pull away, he took it as all the permission he needed.
“You think I could’ve watched you do that and just walked away tonight?” His breath grazed her ear as he leaned in.
Lindsay froze, caught off guard by how quickly the air had turned. “Damon—”
He cut her off with a hard kiss, one that stole her words and dragged a gasp from her throat. His hand came to her waist, pulling her flush against him, and she let her bottle clatter onto the counter behind her.
When he pulled back, his eyes were darker. “There’s no way I’m letting you go to bed tonight without hearing you scream my name after what you just did back there.”
Her breath caught, heat rising in her chest. And Damon didn’t wait for her to answer. His mouth crashed back onto hers, harder this time, pushing her back against the counter. The kiss was deep and bruising.
Lindsay gripped at his shirt, trying to steady herself, but he only pressed closer, one hand sliding up her thigh as if to remind her there was no room for hesitation now.
She let out a muffled sound against his mouth, a half-protest that melted the second his thumb stroked along the inside of her leg. His lips trailed down her jaw to her neck, biting lightly, leaving marks that made her shiver.
“Damon—”
“You wanted me to stay,” he murmured against her skin, his voice rough. “So don’t think I’m leaving without taking what you just put in my head back there. You think you can shoot a man in the face and walk back here like nothing happened?”
She swallowed hard, breath stuttering as his hand slipped beneath her top, palm hot against her stomach. “That’s not why I—”
“Liar.” He grinned against her collarbone, tugging her shirt up and over her head before she could stop him.
Her bra followed quickly, his hands rough and greedy, squeezing her breasts as his mouth closed around one nipple, sucking until she gasped. His other hand gripped her hip, pulling her flush against the hard length straining under his slacks.
“You feel that?” He thrust lightly against her, making her feel just how ready he was. “That’s been killing me since the moment I met you, Lindsay.”
The words sent heat racing through her. He spun her toward the counter, bending her slightly so her chest pressed against the cool surface, his body flush against her back. His hand slid under her skirt, dragging her panties down her thighs.
Lindsay’s breath caught as the fabric pooled around her ankles. “You’re insane,” she whispered, her pulse racing.
“You’ll thank me,” he said simply, undoing his belt with one hand. The metallic click of it loosening made her knees weak.
When he pushed into her a moment later, there was no gentleness, no hesitation. Damon buried himself to the hilt, a groan ripping from his chest as she cried out at the sudden stretch. He gave her a second to adjust before pulling back and driving into her again, harder this time.
“Fuck—” she gasped, gripping the counter so tight.
“That’s it,” he growled, one hand tangled in her hair, yanking her head back so he could kiss her roughly from behind. “Say my name.”
“Damon—”
“Louder.” He slammed into her again, making her body jolt against the counter. “I want this whole place to know who’s inside you right now.”
Her voice broke into moans, his name spilling out of her lips as he took her harder, more aggressively than she’d ever imagined. He experimented with every shift of her body—dragging her upright against his chest, bending her low again, spinning her around so he could take her face-to-face with her legs wrapped around his waist.
By the time he carried her to the couch and laid her out beneath him, she was undone, trembling with every thrust. Damon pinned her wrists above her head, his mouth rough and wet against her breasts, his hips pounding into her with a punishing rhythm.
“There’s one thing you should know,” he rasped, sweat dripping from his temple onto her skin. “This isn’t a one-time thing. You gave yourself to me tonight, and I’m not letting that go.”
Lindsay’s nails dragged down his back, her body arching into his as the pressure inside her snapped. She cried out, his name tearing from her throat as her orgasm ripped through her. Damon followed with a deep groan, thrusting into her one last time before spilling inside her, gripping her like he could fuse them together.
They stayed tangled, breathing hard. Then Damon brushed her damp hair back, studying her face.
“Now you understand,” he said quietly, still inside her. “I don’t just protect what’s mine, Lindsay. I claim it.”