The Mercenary Next Door (Rogues and Rescuers #2) - Lucy Leroux Page 0,21

rigid before he buried himself to the hilt once, twice, and three times before he let gasped out, ‘Fuck,’ and collapsed on top of her.

Still trembling, Laila wrapped her arms around Mason’s chest, her legs jerkily rubbing over his muscled calves and thighs.

Belatedly, she realized he was talking to her.

“Hmm?” she asked drowsily.

Mason rolled over, taking her with him. She ended up plastered across his chest and arm. “I asked if you were okay, sugar?”

His usually mild accent was thicker than molasses.

Loving the Southern drawl more than words could say, she moved her head to kiss whatever she could reach without having to move her useless limbs—in this case, his shoulder. His cock was soft and sated now, but still substantial enough to fill her. It moved deeper inside her, a teasing echo of the night’s activities.

“I’m good,” she murmured. But all too soon, her neurons began to fire again. “I should get off you. I must be heavy.”

“You’re about as heavy as a feather, sugar. Stay just a minute longer,” he drawled, pressing a hand right above her ass.

It felt as if he’d reached into her chest and squeezed her heart. Glowing, she rested her cheek on his chest, drifting off with a smile.

Chapter Nine

Laila had positioned her bed where the early morning light would hit her face. She was a heavy sleeper, and she worked long hours, both in the store and at her classes. Burning the candle at both ends, she always needed a little help getting up, and the sun was the one thing that never failed to rouse her.

Mason, however, didn’t even stir when the rays hit his face. But Laila didn’t mind. It gave her a perfect chance to study him in repose.

His face was lit up, the fine down next to his ear sparkling like pure gold. It almost hurt to look at him. He was too beautiful to be real—like an archangel, complete with scars earned in battle.

There was a long gash down his side, a scar she hadn’t noticed the first time she saw him shirtless. Below that, there was a round puckered mark on his abdomen. It was bigger than a cigarette burn would have been, although it could have been from a cigar. But she didn’t think that was likely, given his occupation. Laila suspected it was a healed gunshot wound.

There were other marks scattered over his body, including an inch-long burn scar below his wrist. Sympathy welled up in her, but she resisted the impulse to reach out and stroke the marks with her finger.

Despite the events of the previous night, Laila had a hard time believing Masson was lying there next to her—well, crammed-in. Her full-sized mattress had always been more than enough for her short ass, but Mason hadn’t been kidding about being too tall for most beds.

His head wasn’t hanging over the end because he was lying at an angle, his knees bent with his feet pressed against the wall.

Damn, even his toes are perfect. As was the rest of him.

Mason was gloriously naked—although her sheets hid the best parts. He couldn’t have displayed that gorgeous body more effectively if she’d posed him herself.

And she couldn’t have asked for a more sensual, special night for her first time.

Laila was a practical modern woman. She hadn’t been waiting for true love, and she also didn’t ascribe to archaic gender norms. Virginity wasn’t a true medical condition, or so she’d learned in her women’s studies class. Given her determined efforts at self-pleasure—her vibrator was top of the line—she wasn’t even sure she’d met the technical definition of a virgin before last night. Her stepmother would have said she wasn’t one. That last would have been pronounced with a scowl, but Laila tried not to think about that part.

Regardless, these details hadn’t mattered before. She’d simply been too shy around men to act on her desires. Also, after seeing how they behaved on Fraternity Row, she was cautious around the boys on campus. She’d seen first-hand how a perfectly behaved study partner could turn into a raging ass with a little alcohol in him.

However, last night had been a revelation. Her first sexual encounter had been quickly followed by her second, when she’d drifted awake to sparks of pleasure to find Mason stroking her ass, dipping his fingers between her legs to brush over the lips of her sex and clit.

She didn’t know if Mason had realized the true extent of her inexperience, but she suspected he’d been