Out of Darkness Read online

  She ground her back teeth.

  “I can tell you want to lay into me, so I’m giving you permission right here, right now. Tell me what you’re thinkin’. It’s good to see some fire back in your eyes. Fight me on this, I’m begging you.”

  She felt a spark of how she used to be. The bulldog who didn’t let go of the story. “First of all, I didn’t know what truck or car was yours. You never told me. I didn’t know where your keys were. Again, you never told me. Besides they’re yours, not mine.”

  “What’s mine is yours. I thought we’d covered that.”

  “No, we haven’t. You may think I know what we’re doing here, but I really have no damn clue. Like you told me the other day, I’m not a mind reader. You’ve got to tell me things.”

  Tyler didn’t like his words thrown back in his face. “Don’t turn this around on me.”

  “I’m not. I’m just explaining to you that I felt like I had no choice. You did not provide me with the tools I needed to get my job done. I made the best decision that I knew in order to get that job done.”

  “What job?” he was confused now.

  “I’m trying to figure out who the fuck raped me. You failed to mention I had mail at the shop. Why did you do that?”

  He didn’t like being questioned, especially by her and especially when she reverted to reporter mode. Frustrated he ran a hand through his hair. “Because you weren’t ready for it.”

  “How dare you tell me what I’m ready for!”

  “Go ahead baby, get pissed. The fact of the matter is, before today you’ve never really been angry. Not really. You’re fuming right now. You’ve been walking around in a cloud. You’re actually showing some emotion here, and if you have to get mad at me to do it, then do it.”

  That even pissed her off. “You don’t get to make decisions for me, Tyler Blackfoot.”

  “Someone has to,” the arrogant smile that spread across his face did exactly what he wanted it to. It pushed her past all the emotions she’d been holding inside. It broke through the careful wall she had erected around herself that only allowed the sadness to come through.

  With a growl, she launched herself at Tyler, fists flying as she tore into him.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  He sat there on the bed, taking the blows that she directed towards his body. She was pissed and they hurt, but he would take whatever she could dish out.

  “Stop making decisions for me, I am my own person and I can make my own decisions,” she cried out, pushing him back on the bed where he landed with a thump.

  “Then start making them,” he goaded her.

  She realized he was right. She hadn’t made any kind of decision really without talking it over with someone since her attack. Doc Jones, him, Denise. Someone always had to be a sounding board before she made her decision or plan of attack. It stopped tonight, it stopped right now.

  “What are you doing?” he asked as he caught the glint of defiance in her eyes.

  “Making my own decision,” she thrust the words out at him.

  He watched as she kicked off her shoes and then reached down to the button of her jeans. Within moments she’d unbuttoned them and stripped herself of the heavy material, along with her underwear. The long sleeve shirt she wore was next, along with her bra.

  “You know you don’t have to do this,” he told her, knowing that this would be completely her decision.

  “I know, and this is what I want. We aren’t discussing it. I want you to make love to me, and that’s what you’re going to do.”

  He raised an eyebrow, a bemused smile transforming his features. “Anything in particular you don’t want?” he asked her softly as she came into his arms.

  His large hand grasped her around her hip, moving back to palm her ass. Her face went into the crook of his neck, placing light kisses there. She moved so that her mouth was even with his ear. She didn’t want to say this too loud, afraid it would ruin the moment.

  “Not from behind, that’s what he did,” she whispered.

  “Like always, you tell me if you don’t like something that we do. Unless you say something, I’m goin’ to assume you’re good with it. That’s your decision.”

  She appreciated that. Climbing onto the bed with her knee, she straddled his thigh. To stabilize herself, she brought her hands up to tangle in his hair. He moaned when she pulled slightly on the length there. Keeping his cool here would be the death of him.

  “Kiss me,” she all but begged him.

  His other hand cupped her neck, allowing him to bring her mouth down to his. With small, nipping kisses, he coaxed her mouth open to allow his tongue inside. She tasted of sweetness and something a little spicy, almost like she was just a little bit dangerous tonight.

  When he sucked on her tongue, she could feel it straight down to the center of her body. It caused her to flex her fingers against his strong shoulders, allowing her to bring her other leg up so that she straddled him completely.

  Afraid she would fall, he brought his hands around to cup her ass, holding her strongly against his body. Pulling his mouth from hers, he ran his lips down her throat, causing her to lean back just slightly. His hands went to her back to brace her, and he buried his face in her chest. Her breasts were full and sat high on her chest, especially at this angle. Her nipple hardened in anticipation as she felt his mouth inching ever closer. She moaned loudly and flexed her fingers as his mouth closed over the hardness there. Her thighs tightened when he applied suction and worried the hard tip between his teeth.

  “Don’t stop,” she breathed heavily.

  Without her noticing it, her hips had begun to rock against the hardness at his lap. Shaking, she leveled herself up with the strength of her thighs and pressed his back against the bed, following him down. His lips never left her breast, and without having to hold her, his other hand moved to the other breast, using his long fingers to tease that nipple into hardness.

  He made her feel out of control as she rocked her core against him. The feelings he evoked within her made her want to throw every inhibition she ever had out the window.

  “Tyler,” she breathed loudly as he bit down harder on her nipple.

  “I don’t know about you,” he said as he let go of the hardness with a loud pop. “But I think we just need to get your first one out of the way.”

  She wasn’t exactly sure what he meant until she opened her eyes and saw his index finger go to his mouth. Once there, he licked the tip and then brought that finger to the center of her body.

  “Damn baby,” he cursed loudly, feeling the wetness there.

  With practiced fingers, he ran them between the folds of her body, concentrating on the nub that begged for attention. His other hand continued to toy with her nipple, amazed at how hard it continued to get.

  She ran her hands up his chest, frustrated that she couldn’t feel his bare skin. That frustration wasn’t enough to make him stop what he was doing.

  Her hips slammed against his hand as his finger picked up speed on her clit. “What will it take to get you there?” he ground out between his teeth.

  “Faster, not harder. Just stay consistent,” she panted, canting her hips to go along with his ministrations.

  “Do you need my fingers in you?” he asked, obviously not shy when it came to what his lover needed.

  “No,” she shook her head, it falling back as her mouth opened. “Just whatever you do, don’t stop, don’t ever stop.”

  Her hair tickled the small of her back as she threw it back, letting herself go in the throes of the passion he evoked within her.

  “Give it to me,” he instructed her, feeling her thighs begin to tighten.

  Her whole body tensed, and she pitched forward as her release broke through. She landed in his arms, her body still shaking as she came down from her high.

  “You are entirely too good at that,” she smiled lazily, relaxed now.

  He laughed. “I didn’t realize there was such a thing as to
o good.”

  “You’re right,” she conceded. “There’s not, not at that anyway.”

  He thought that maybe they were done, but she surprised him when she got up from the bed and walked over to the bag they had bought at the sex store not so long ago. She reached inside and pulled something out.

  “What have you got?” he asked, adjusting the hardness that tented his jeans.

  “What we need to ease the ache that I still have inside of my body.”

  He looked as she held up the circle of a condom. Obviously, he was wrong and this wasn’t over yet. She stood, her hands on her hips, her breasts jutting out just so.

  “I’m gonna need you to take off the rest of your clothes, Mr. Blackfoot. You need to be naked for what I have in mind.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  She walked over to where he sat on the bed, his mouth hanging open in awe. Maybe he hadn’t expected her to be so forward, but she enjoyed the fact that he seemed to be speechless. Running her hands over his cut, she slipped it off his shoulders and set it with care on the chair that sat near the bed.

  As she turned around, she saw his hands go to the hem of the thermal shirt he wore.

  “Uh uh,” she shook her finger at him. “I get to do this.”

  “Then by all means, don’t let me take anything away from you,” he told her, dropping his hands and then using them to lean back with. “Do whatever you want.”

  Putting her own hands at the hem of his shirt, she ran them up underneath, feeling the warmth and smoothness of the skin there. As she ran them up, she caught the material of the shirt and took it off as she ran her hands up to his shoulders. Appreciation colored her cheeks.

  “I never see you work out, but you really do have the body of a God,” she complimented.

  His laugh was a little shaky. The only thing that told her how close he was to losing his control. “I usually work out at night while you’re asleep.”

  She opened her mouth slightly and then drew her eyebrows together, fixing him with a look that was pure vixen. She gazed at him under her eyelashes. “Invite me sometime.”

  “Ye…yeah….sure,” he stammered.

  The fact that he stammered gave her a secret thrill. She had never been one to strike a man speechless, to inspire great amounts of passion, and this turned her on more than anything. Kneeling down in front of him, she went to work on the laces of his motorcycle boots. When he’d helped her get those off, she went to work on the button of his jeans. He lay completely flat on his back because the vision of her kneeling in front of his hard cock caused too many emotions to fly through his mind.

  Empowered, she used her finger and thumb to pull the zipper down, making sure to cup her hand around the hardness that she just couldn’t ignore. He hissed and ground his head even deeper back into the mattress.

  “You are tryin’ to fuckin’ kill me,” he accused her, his accent thicker than normal.

  A laugh bubbled deep in her throat. “Only like you try to kill me. Turnabout is fair play,” she pointed out.

  After what felt like a million years, she had his jeans and underwear off, leaving him exposed. He felt a little shy because of how exposed his emotions were with her, but knew that she felt just as exposed with him. He jackknifed, his abs tightening as she ran her hand down the length of his cock. Her touch was sure and constant, not hesitant at all. That told him more than anything that she really was ready for this. She did know her own mind and didn’t need him to make decisions for her.

  “You can’t play around with me, the way I do with you. Not this first time,” he ground out between his teeth. “I can’t hold it together,” he admitted.

  That admission was hot. Knowing just how strong he was and how tight he kept hold of himself told her just how close he was to blowing his top. Opening the condom she’d brought, she pushed it down onto the length of him.

  Bringing her knee up on the bed, she straddled his waist. “This is how I want to do this the first time,” she told him, her mind completely made up.

  “Whatever you need.”

  She brought her hands up to his and pushed them back against the softness of the bed in order to stabilize herself. He gripped her fingers harder than he would have liked to keep himself under control. As she rose and sank down on his length, they both moaned.

  “You okay?” he asked her as she stilled for a moment, closing her eyes.

  She nodded. The feelings welling up inside her were numerous. She had known this would bring a lot of them to surface and possibly bring memories that she wasn’t ready for. It was a surprise when all she could think about was how good and right she felt with him inside her body.

  “I’m good,” she told him, a smile on her face.

  Tentatively, she began to rock against him, raising and lowering herself in a rhythm that only the two of them knew.

  “I’ll try not to embarrass myself,” he told her, only half joking.

  When they got their rhythm down, she let go of his hands, using his chest to brace herself. That allowed his hands freedom to roam, and she shivered as he ran them all over her body. Nothing went untouched by him, her legs, her thighs, her stomach, her back, her face, her breasts. They were all caressed softly as he let her take the lead.

  Sweat poured from his brow, and she knew that he was holding back for her. She knew that this pace wasn’t enough to get her there, but she just enjoyed it.

  “I’ve never been a more than one time kinda girl,” she told him as he closed his eyes.

  “With me, one time isn’t going to cut it,” he promised her.

  Just like before, he brought his finger to the core of her body and began rubbing consistently. Not letting up, even when the canting of her hips increased. Her fingers on his pecks flexed and her nails bit into his skin.

  “Fuck,” he growled, wanting to flip her over and follow the instincts of his body. But with her, this time, he knew he couldn’t. “Come for me,” he coaxed her.

  She really thought that she couldn’t. She never had before, especially not with penetration. She just wasn’t ‘one of those’ girls. The orgasm hit her out of left field, and she gasped loudly, digging her fingers into his skin.

  “Yeah,” he encouraged her. “That’s what I want.”

  When she let out a deep breath, trying to control the beating of her heart, he took it as his cue. Gripping his hands tightly around her hips, he held her in place as he pushed himself deeply into her core at a much faster pace than what she had set.

  She wished she could tell him the things that he told her, that she could talk him through it, like he had her. The fact of the matter was though, she had no experience with that.

  “Do you want me to come?” he asked her, looking into her eyes.

  His were wild, much like she imagined his ancestors were. “Yes,” she nodded. “I do.”

  His body tightened and he pushed his head back, slamming his eyes shut. “Meredith,” he breathed, and she felt the surge of his hardness inside of her. She felt the tension leave his body even when he continued to thrust inside her, almost like he couldn’t stop.

  When he finally did, he gave a soft sigh and opened his arms for her. In a completely comfortable silence, he lay her beside his body and stroked her back until they both fell asleep.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Meredith was running through a dark alley. The ground wet with a recent rain, the smell of garbage pungent in her nose. She didn’t know where she was going, she only felt an urgency that she had to get there quickly. Footsteps were coming up behind her, but she didn’t know if they were friend or foe. Turning her head to the side, she tried to see behind her, but all she saw was darkness. The feeling of panic began to overtake her. She could feel the person gaining on her, causing her to break into a full-on run. Her arms pumped at her sides, her hamstrings and calves screamed as she pushed herself to go even faster. She looked around everywhere in this never ending alley, trying to find a door to go into. Just as she
saw one up ahead, a hand clamped down on her shoulder and she screamed.

  “Mer? It’s me, you’re okay,” Tyler cooed to the woman in his arms.

  She had awakened him moments before while thrashing against the sheets, her arms and legs moving like she was running from someone. He saw her eyes widen as she tried to acclimate herself to her surroundings. Breath gushed from her mouth as she tried to slow her breathing to normal.

  “It’s been awhile since I had one of those,” she gasped, hand at her chest over her heart.

  “Was it the usual?” he asked, keeping a respectful distance in the bed, just in case this sent her on a downward spiral.

  “No,’ she shook her head. ‘This is nothing at all like any nightmare I’ve had before. This one almost made me feel like prey to a hunter. Someone was running after me in a dark alley, and I couldn’t see them, but I couldn’t get away either.”

  “Do you think it had to do with what we did here tonight?” he asked.

  She thought for a moment and then shook her head. “No, I don’t. I think it had to do with what I wanted to talk to you about earlier.”

  “Which was?”

  Getting out of the bed, she padded over to where she had put the manila envelopes. It was chilly in the room, so she grabbed the thermal shirt she had taken off of him and put it over her naked body. Walking back over to the bed, she hopped back in and began opening the packages, dumping the pictures all out.

  “See, these have pictures in them, and there was one that was sent to my house. It was in storage and I found it when we started going through all that stuff. There are a ton of pictures. Of me, of you, of the club, of Denise, the kids, everyone.”

  She spread them out between them on the bed and watched as his eyebrows drew together in what looked like anger.

  “The fuck? Whoever took the time to do this sure was around a lot. How did we not notice someone following us with a camera?”