Skin Tight (Skin Deep #4) Read online

  “Oh my God! Oh, fuck…” I screamed out, my hands fisting in his hair and pulling his face tighter into my sex, thrusting my hips up and fucking his face wildly as he continued to spear his tongue into me. I could feel my release rushing up, an epic wave of sensation towering over my body, poised and ready to crash over me, drown me, completely take me under.

  Ian slid his tongue up through my folds and unerringly found my clit, sucking it between his lips and nipping it gently but firmly, and the wave broke. I came on a keening cry, my hands clenching so tightly in Ian’s hair that I knew I had to be hurting him, but I couldn’t stop. He kept up the exquisite torture, wringing desperate cries from my lips until I was a quivering mess, begging him to stop, even though my hands told a different story, still holding him close as I ground my hips up into his mouth, and even then, he didn’t stop he’d lapped up every last drop of my release.

  I collapsed back onto the carpet, breasts heaving with every ragged breath I sucked in, attempting to regulate my body once more, but it was hard to do with the aftershocks coursing through me, almost like I was short circuiting.

  I forced my eyes open, glancing down the length of my body to see Ian’s face, eyes dark and heavy-lidded with desire, staring back at me, his mouth still hovering over my folds. I could see my wetness glistening on his face, and just the sight of it made my stomach drop as want curled through me once more.

  He licked his lips, the corner of his mouth tipping up in a wicked smile. “Mmm…sweet and creamy…you do taste good everywhere.”

  I gasped. “Ian,” I moaned, heat suffusing my skin. It didn’t matter that I’d just come hard all over his face, he just had to look at her and she was ready.

  “Ready to go to bed?” he asked me, his voice deep and low.

  I nodded vigorously and his smile grew. He leaned down and lifted me in his arms, shifting until I was straddling his lap where he knelt. He lightly tapped my ass as he kissed my lips softly, pulling away before I could take it deeper.

  “Shut the lights off, baby, while I put away this stuff,” he said, gesturing to my movie snacks.

  “Yeah, you definitely want to put that whipped cream back in the fridge. We don’t want that going bad…” I winked and stood, watching as he gathered everything up and turned for the kitchen.

  I shut the lights off, with the exception of the kitchen and hall so Ian would have some light, and practically ran for the bedroom, sprawling out in the center of the bed on top of the covers, but then quickly jumping up and dashing to the bathroom to clean the residual stickiness of the whipped cream from my body, before diving back onto the bed.

  Ian followed soon after. I watched his shadow moving into the room in the darkness, heard the rustle of him shedding his clothes, the softness of his footsteps as he stalked the bed. A shiver of anticipation worked its way up my spine.

  I felt his weight depress the bed beside me and then he was over me, sliding his body against mine until we were chest to chest, his hips settling snugly into the cradle of my outspread thighs. I groaned as he dragged the thick, heated length of his cock against my slit.

  “You’re so wet for me,” he whispered in the darkness.

  “Always,” I moaned, arching into his thrust as the head of him stroked directly over my clit.

  “I’m gonna fuck you, baby, and while I’m doing it, you’re gonna play with yourself,” he rasped, his voice soft, but no less demanding.

  A small mew of assent was about all the response I could drum up at the moment as he moved his hands behind my knees and pressed upwards, drawing my legs up and out as he slid inside my channel.

  He gave a couple shallow thrusts before he filled me completely, his hands still holding my legs wide, then growled, “Now, Leah. Reach down here and rub that pretty little clit for me.”

  I complied, sliding my fingers down my stomach and over my mound, sighing in pleasure as I brushed over my clit. I circled the nubbin gently, then moved my hand lower, feeling the heat and wetness where our bodies were joined, felt the silky, hot length of Ian’s cock sliding between my fingers as he filled me over and over again.

  He groaned at the feel of my fingers touching the base of him while he was buried inside my sheath, the walls of my sex clasping him tightly, drawing him further inside me, but I didn’t linger. His thrusts became heavier, harder, eliciting the thick, meaty sound of skin slapping skin as he pounded into me.

  I moved my free hand up to pluck at my nipples while my other fingers went to work on my clit, rubbing and circling feverishly, adding to the sensations already building beautifully inside me. I was writhing in heat, hovering on the precipice of blinding bliss. Ian was grunting with every thrust, moving faster as he approached his own release, until, on a guttural cry he urged, “Come! Now!”

  I did. I hurtled over the edge, a breathless cry breaking from my lips as the heat of his seed filled me. He held tight, his cock pulsing inside me as my sex milked him, wringing every last drop of his release from him.

  We stayed locked together until our breathing even out, and only then did he slowly slip out of me, moving to collapse at my side, pulling me into his arms and kissing me sweetly.

  “I love you,” he whispered against my lips. “I think you’re gonna be the death of me, but damn, I fucking love you.”

  “I fucking love you, too,” I whispered back, settling against him when our lips parted, my head pillowed on his shoulder, my thigh draped over his.

  I let sleep take me under with a smile on my face and Ian softly snoring in my ear.

  I don’t know how long I’d been asleep when I woke up on a low moan, the finger between my thighs manipulating my clit in a halting, yet effective rhythm. The finger pressed harder, circling and circling, pushing me closer and closer to coming. Without warning, it slid inside to press against the wall of my pelvis almost painfully.

  A small yelp broke from my lips and I moved restlessly, trying to alleviate the discomfort. “Ian…”

  The finger pressed back inside me, twisting and scraping unnaturally, and it hurt. I cried out and squeezed my thighs together tightly, reaching down to shove away Ian’s arm.

  Ian shifted beside me and let out a moan, but I couldn’t feel him up against me, other than the feel of his hand between my thighs, but since I pushed it away, that was even gone. I gasped as he moaned again, longer and louder this time.

  I sat up and squinted into the darkness, a feeling that something just wasn’t right prickling up my spine.

  “Ian?” I said tentatively.

  “God, Leah…” Ian gasped, and the bed shifted once more. Then, “Leah?”

  I reached over and clicked on the bedside lamp, dread curling sickeningly in my stomach as I stared at the tableau stretched out before me…a real life nightmare. Victoria was crouched over Ian, her lips stretched into a maniacal grin, even as they were wrapped around Ian’s dick, feverishly working him. I watched, detached, as she slid her hand back from where it had been lying near my thigh, feeling even sicker as she brought her fingers to her nose and sniffed, her eyes glistening with unholy glee.

  I watched Ian stiffen, blinking in the light now flooding the room, his face twisting into an expression like nothing I’d ever seen as the situation hit him, but before he could do anything, I felt myself move.

  It all happened in the blink of an eye.

  A scream of rage poured from me as I lunged at Victoria, my hand fisting in her hair and ripping her off of Ian as I tackled her, sending both of us flying off of the bed to land in a heap on the floor.

  Victoria shrieked and scrambled to get away from me, her hand reaching up to scratch at my face, but I slapped it away and jerked her head back viciously once more with the hand that was still gripping her hair.

  My pulse was pounding, the sound of it echoing in my ears, almost drowning out everything else as my arm drew back. It was almost as if I was watching myself, the red haze that had settled over my vision dissipating, dissolving to black as I lost contr
ol and let my fist fly…again, and again, and again.

  I was vaguely aware of Ian speaking, of Victoria screaming, and of someone growling and shrieking wildly. What I wasn’t aware of was the fact that it was me growling and shrieking…or that I was doing it while I pummeled Victoria until she was a bloody mess mewling on the carpet of my bedroom floor.

  I wasn’t aware, nor did I care, that I was naked astride a crazy woman who’d broken into my house again, this time while we were sleeping. Who’d violated my body, who’d violated Ian…

  Time froze…and then slipped away as hands roughly pulled me off of Victoria.

  There were voices shouting, lights were flashing, and chaos was reigning.

  And all I could do was stare silently down at my hands; one was bloody and bruised…the other held a hank of black strands I’d ripped from Victoria’s head.

  My vision blurred as tears filled my eyes. I sat, blinking them away, as the last thing Ian had said reverberated in my head.

  He was on the phone. To who, I don’t know.

  But all he said…no, yelled, was, “Leah’s being arrested!”

  Chapter 20

  I heard whispering as I laid on the couch, curled into a ball, staring off into space as I tried to get a little bit of sleep.

  I’d managed to doze off for a little bit, but couldn’t stay asleep because the phones were ringing off the hook and people were in and out to check on us. Sleeping on the couch in practically the middle of the day isn’t very conducive to peaceful rest, but that’s how it was going to be until I decided if I was going to burn my bed or not.

  I knew what the whisperers were saying—I could hear them, even though they tried to keep their words from reaching my ears.

  ‘She’s never been like that before, that I know of. I can only imagine she just snapped.’

  ‘I know…she was the captain of the cheerleading squad, perky as all get out, and everyone loved her in school. She’d never lift a finger to anyone!’

  ‘Personally, I’m glad she did. I’d have probably killed the bitch…but damn, Leah tried…’

  I couldn’t discern who was saying what because they were whispering, but I was definitely not going to be getting any sleep with them all sitting around talking about me. I huffed and got up, stomping into the kitchen to stand in front of them, tapping my foot and glaring.

  “I can hear you,” I said, unnecessarily.

  A couple of them had the decency to look ashamed, but most of them just grinned unabashedly.

  “We thought you were sleeping,” my sister, Emma said.

  “Clearly, I’m not,” I replied, being a total smart ass. It’s kind of required in my family.

  I glanced around to see where Ian was, finding him leaning against the counter. Emma was sitting at the table with Chloe, Brandon, and Calland, and Allie was perched on my countertop by the stove.

  “Why aren’t any of you at work?” I asked, sounding surly.

  “Damn, being arrested made you mean,” Allie quipped, jokingly.

  Chloe’s eyes got huge as she gave Allie an ‘I-can’t-believe-you-just-said-that’ look and rushed to say, “Because we’re all off today and wanted to check on you rather than braving the craziness of Black Friday. Are you okay?” Chloe asked, her voice sincere.

  I walked to Ian and wrapped my arms around his waist, nodding to Chloe in reply. “Yeah, I’m good. Just…I mean, did that really happen last night?”

  I felt Ian sigh, his arms tightening around me reflexively. “I wish it didn’t. Goddamn, I wish it didn’t.”

  I shook my head, not even wanting to think about it, but the memory, still fresh, swam to the forefront.

  Ian had grabbed the phone last night as soon as I lunged at Victoria. He’d called the cops, so that’s who had pulled me off of her, but when they’d walked in, everything had been so crazy that I’d ended up handcuffed and in the back of the cruiser. The cop wouldn’t listen to Ian at first, so Ian had called my brother-in-law, Noah, who’s a detective.

  Noah had rushed over and helped to calm the situation down enough that I was let out and the cuffs were taken off, and instead, Victoria had been loaded up in the ambulance to go treat her injuries, but she was being charged with burglary and sexual battery.

  When we’d gone to bed in such a hurry, neither one of us had set the alarm. The door was locked, but that didn’t matter. She’d broken out the window in the spare bedroom like she did before and crawled into bed with us.

  It made chills crawl over my skin when I thought about that bitch skulking through my house, and the fact that we didn’t hear a thing.

  We’d found out that she was drunk, and it only fueled her delusions. Now she was laid up the hospital under lockdown with a dislocated jaw, broken nose, and two black eyes. Not to mention a nice little bald spot where I’d ripped out her hair.

  And me? I was the proud new owner of a restraining order and a prescription for nerve pills. I hated the fact that she’d be back on the street in no time, out on bond, and probably out for blood and a piece of paper wouldn’t stop her.

  Ian had called Victoria’s parents to let them know where they could find their daughter. They weren’t happy, and when they kept denying that she would do something like that, Ian put the cop on the phone with them. Needless to say, they believed then.

  I burrowed a little closer into Ian for just a brief moment before I moved away from him, heading for my Keurig. I had a feeling that I’d be putting a serious dent in my coffee supply before the day was out.

  I drank two cups of coffee after I hoisted myself up on the counter beside where Ian was leaning as we all talked about what had happened, but then my stomach growled loudly, causing everyone to stare at me.

  “Was that you?” Emma asked.

  I shrugged. “I’m hungry.”

  With the declaration, Ian told me to go get dressed so we could go get some food, and everyone else took their leave, finally, leaving us alone for what seemed like the first time in forever. I ran back to the bedroom and threw on a pair of jeans with my hoodie and shoved my feet into my tennis shoes and we were out the door and on our way to IHOP.

  When we were seated and had ordered, I glanced up to see Ian watching me, concern etched into his handsome features.

  “Ian,” I said, softly. “It’s okay, baby. I’m fine. Are you okay, though?”

  He nodded sharply. “Yeah, I’m good, but I just can’t believe…” he cut off on a bark of disbelieving laughter. “You think you know someone. She’s been around practically my whole life. A nuisance, but…she’s so fucking unbalanced and I had no clue.”

  I reached across the table and took his hand in mine. “Ian, you can’t beat yourself up about this. She’ll get what’s coming to her.”

  He sighed, but the conversation waned as the waitress came with our food, turning to more mundane items.

  “Are you excited about the wedding?” Ian asked, cutting another bite of his pancakes.

  “Ours or Chloe and Brandon’s?” I smiled and winked at him.

  “Ours, silly girl.”

  “Yeah, I am. I’ve seriously been thinking about eloping, though. Do you think my parents would kill us?” I joked.

  Ian’s eyes widened. “Elope? What, like Vegas or something?”

  I shrugged one shoulder as I forked a whip-cream covered bite of blueberry pancake to my mouth. I chewed thoughtfully, then swallowed before answering. “Sure. Or Niagara Falls, or Gatlinburg. I just don’t want to be married by Elvis.”

  Ian let out a heavy breath. “So, are we really discussing this, like you really want to run away and get married?”

  I giggled and gave a half-hearted shake of my head. “Nah. We probably shouldn’t. Chloe would kill me if my parents didn’t. I think she’s more excited about it than we are,” I said on a laugh, but I couldn’t help the wistful tone of my words.

  “You said we shouldn’t. You didn’t say we couldn’t. Leah, let’s do it. Let’s go get married!”

>   I blinked at him in surprise. “Seriously? You’re being serious right now. Really?”

  He nodded, then threw down his napkin and got to his feet. He moved to my side before he dropped to one knee and took my hand in his, staring up into my eyes beseechingly. “Leah, will you run away and marry me?”

  I grinned, my eyes filling up with tears. “You’re so goofy,” I said, my voice clogged with emotion. “But yes, you crazy man, I will run away with you and marry you!”

  I leaned down and kissed him briefly, but only because pure pandemonium reigned around us as people broke into cheering and applause. I glanced around, my cheeks flushing as I found that we were the center of attention for the whole restaurant.

  Ian took it in stride, standing up and pulling me up into his arms as he grinned widely at all the well-wishers.

  I finally got him to sit back down and we finished breakfast, all the while nailing down the details of when we were going. I pulled out my phone and did some checking, but before we left the IHOP, we had a plan: by Christmas, I would be a married woman.

  ***

  The next week flew by in a flurry of last minute preparations for Chloe and Brandon’s wedding the following weekend. We had the bachelorette party to look forward to just a day away, on Saturday night, and then it was the seven day countdown until The Big Day. Chloe was bouncing off the walls with excitement, even more so than usual, but who could blame her?

  I had scheduled to have the Friday before the wedding off so that I could help Chloe out, much to the dismay of my students, but honestly, I think they were more upset that Gerry would be coming home with me on Thursday since I’d be gone on Friday and it was the weekend. I felt bad about it, because the kids absolutely love Gerry, but no way in hell would I leave him at the mercy of a room full of rambunctious kids and a substitute teacher that may not catch someone trying to smuggle him home in their underwear. (Thankfully that hadn’t happened anymore since the last time.)