When I was finally able to open my heavy lids, I lifted my eyes to Holden. I was expecting to see the same need, desire, and want I was feeling reflected back at me. Instead, his jaw was clenched, and his mouth was flat and serious.
“What’s wrong?”
He rested his forehead against mine, his breath fanning over me. He cupped my face with the hand that had just been between my legs and traced my lips with his thumb. “There are a lot of things I want to do to you right now, but I can’t.”
“Yes, you can. You can do anything you want to me.” I could hear the eagerness in my tone. With anyone else, I might be embarrassed about my shameless enthusiasm and willingness. But not with Holden. He made me feel bold in ways I’d never felt before.
He exhaled through his nose and I could feel the tension rolling off of him in waves. “No, I can’t. I can’t pick you up. I can’t hold you up against this wall. I can’t carry you up to my bed… I can’t.”
“Oh…” Shit. I’d completely forgotten about his accident. How could I have forgotten that?
I remembered that after my dancer friend’s husband had a back injury, she’d said the only way they could have sex was with him sitting down and her straddling him and doing the heavy lifting, so to speak. I knew that not all back pain was created equal, but I figured I might as well give it a try.
“Well, then let’s focus on what I can do.”
A low groan rumbled from his chest as I took his hand and led him to the couch and backed him up to it. When his legs hit the edge, I pulled his sweats down. I’d known that he was going commando, but that didn’t stop me from sucking in a startled breath when his erection sprung up. I continued sliding his sweatpants down his legs.
As he stepped out of them, I reached behind him and put a pillow against the back of the couch to give him lower lumbar support. Then I pressed my hands on his bare chest and gave him a playful shove. It wasn’t with enough force that it would have budged him if he didn’t want to move, the last thing I wanted to do was hurt him, but he played along and sat down.
My pulse raced wildly, and my sex clenched, still tingling from my climax, as Holden stared up at me. He sat there, gloriously naked and I could honestly just stare at him all night and never get tired of looking. But from the predatory look in his eyes, I thought he might have other ideas. As I stood in front of him, goosebumps broke out on my bare skin. It was raw, powerful, and focused solely on me.
I’d witnessed the same level of intensity in his stare when I’d watched him compete in rodeos, but I’d never had it directed at me. It was a heady sensation and I could easily see myself getting addicted to it. I’d never experimented with drugs, but I couldn’t imagine anything feeling better or more euphoric than the way I felt at that moment.
With confidence I’d never felt before, I pulled my shirt up and off my head. Since I wasn’t wearing a bra, my breasts bounced slightly as I lowered my arms.
Holden sat silently, watching me undress. The only evidence that he was affected was the tension in his jaw, the rise and fall of his chiseled chest in labored breaths, and the twitch in his manhood as it swelled even larger before my eyes.
“God, you’re beautiful,” he spoke with awe.
Even though his compliment had technically been about my appearance, it felt personal to me. A rush of sexual power raced through me at the knowledge that I was turning him on. My core tingled with anticipation as I lowered down to my knees between his legs. I placed my hands on his powerful thighs and when I looked up at him I felt powerful and desired.
He was still watching me with that fire in his eyes. Not breaking our stare, I slid my hands up his inner thighs. He sucked in air through clenched teeth when I reached his straining erection jutting up from his body.
Keeping one hand on his thigh, I moved the other to the base of his shaft. He pulsed against my palm as my