Page 8 of Ash
ChapterSix
Lainey
“Be gentle with him kitten.” Leo swept passed me the moment I stepped out of the circle of lights. I frowned, the beers King had asked me to bring to him and Ash forgotten in my hands. I hesitated , because what the hell was I meant to do now? Take both bottles to Ash, or follow Leo back to the little party?
It was like I was in no man’s land. Not knowing which way to turn.
“One of those beers for me?” Ash’s voice was low and close. Much closer than I expected it to be. The tips of his fingers brushed against the back of my hand and I jumped. A squeal falling from my lips as I toppled to the side. His big warm hands came to steady me straight away. Curling around my hips and staying there as he righted me.
Damn him. What was it about him that made me so clumsy? And tongue-tied. “Thanks, I…”
Suddenly I was super aware that we were alone in the dark and that his hands were still possessively around my hips. It wasn’t even that we were touching apart from his hands. He hadn’t made a move to do anything but hold me steady and yet it felt like I could feel his skin on mine.
“It was lucky you were here… I have beer.” I was rambling but I couldn’t seem to stop myself. Ash made me nervous. His intense eyes made me feel other things as well which in turn made me nervous because a man that looked like him should not be eye fucking a girl like me as often as he did.
“One for me yeah?” His fingers kneaded my fleshy hips and for a second I let my eyes fall closed. He touched them like he couldn’t get enough of them. Like they were a thing to be worshipped ad not ridiculed.
“Both for you now, yeah.”
“You won’t have one?”
I eyed him in the darkness. His face seemed so far above mine, but it was like his eyes were shining from within. “I probably shouldn’t. Not if I want to keep my wits about me.”
“Do you need to keep them about you?” Even in the darkness, I knew he was raising his eyebrows at me.
“This much uniformed manliness about, you bet.” I tried to lighten the mood. And failed. He squeezed hard. Using my wide hips to pull me closer to him.
“Sometimes it’s good to let go and have fun… as long as that funs with me.”
My eyes widened at the breathy note in his voice. This wasn’t him eye fucking me when he thought I wasn’t looking. It wasn’t him teasing me with him not kissing me until I begged him to. This was a gorgeous man with his hands on my body in the dark telling me outright that he would take me to bed in an instant.
And God I was tempted.
“You wouldn’t respect me in the morning soldier.” I took a long pull of the beer. Because damn if I didn’t need the drink now.
He plucked it from my hand, bringing it to his lips. But his eyes never left mine as he drank deeply.
“I was drinking that.”
He didn’t stop his long swallow. Just continued to look at me. I shifted uncomfortably and something deep inside of me clenched. How long had it been since a man had looked at me with so much heat? I did ok with guys, I always had. I was a confident woman, but I wasn’t sure anyone, male or female had looked at me like Ash was.
“We are sharing.” He offered the bottle back to me. “I’ve got to help you keep your wits about you right?” It might have been my imagination, but he suddenly sounded sad. “So, you don’t do anything silly.”
“Although, if I was going to do something silly.” With the bottle to my lips, I surveyed the gathering in front of us. “It would definitely be here.”
I meant it as a joke because the soldier that made our little mountain their playground was some of the best-looking guys I’d ever seen. More like models than soldiers.
“No.” A low growl punctuated the darkness. Whirling me around Ash crushed me to his body. And there was nothing soft and gentle about the way he manhandled my body so thoroughly. He did it so effortlessly that I didn’t even have time to squeal let alone put up a thought. The bottles of beer fell forgotten to the floor the moment he used his rough fingers to tilt my chin up. “It won’t be here, with them.” The growly note was still in his voice, making it deeper and gravelly. It did strange things to my body. “Never with them…” His lips hovered over mine. My eyes closed expectantly but no kiss came. Instead, the pad of his thumb brushed against my bottom lip. Back and forth. And it was just as erotic as if he had kissed me. my mouth fell open in a sigh.
I reached for him because enough was enough. This crazy tension between us had to be tamed one way or another and my hands came back empty. Ash stepped away His arms falling loosely to his side. “Go back to the party Lainey and remember what I said.”
I stared at him blankly.
“Never them.”
