Blood Shall Run (An FBI Romance Thriller Book 15) Read online

  “Meredith, you need to tell someone. You need to tell your bosses. This isn’t going to end well. As a cop, you know that. You know what the odds are against living now that he’s found you.”

  She was well aware.

  This was her nightmare. Maybe a part of her wanted him just to end it. Maybe she wanted peace, and it was a small price to pay not to hurt anymore.

  It was sad that she was at that point, but she was.

  “I’m ashamed. I did this to myself. Something is wrong with me. I’m all alone, and I thought a cop would keep me safe. Instead, he’s become my worst nightmare. I’m scared, Boone. I’m so damn scared. I don’t know what to do.”

  He kissed her on the forehead.

  “I know what you need to do, cher.”

  “What?”

  “Let me help you. I want you to trust me. I’ll keep you safe. I promise.”

  She was so afraid, but what choice did she have? She was running from one cop right to another.

  “Do you promise you’ll never hurt me?” she whispered, tears filling her eyes.

  “I swear on my life I’d die before ever laying a hand on you in anger.”

  Merry stared into his eyes. They were crystal clear and filled with calm.

  She believed him.

  She had to.

  Her heart was telling her to open up one more time, and maybe she’d be okay.

  Going up on her toes, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Slowly, she brought her mouth to his. Her arm was touching his pulse, and it beat erratically, and she was pretty sure hers did too.

  This was either the best thing for her or it was going to be the biggest mistake.

  As his arms wrapped around her body, Boone cautiously held her as if she was glass. The kiss was sweet, gentle, but held heat.

  It was more than he ever thought it could be. It was like a miracle to a dying man. That one meeting of lips blossomed life in him.

  What had been dormant was now alive.

  It lit at his toes and raced through his blood.

  She tasted like heaven.

  When she pulled away, he blinked trying to focus on the lavender eyes. The tears were gone.

  “Meredith.”

  “I trust you. Let’s see where this goes.”

  She’d just given him one hell of a gift—her trust, and Boone knew how hard that was for her.

  Chapter Ten

  His brain nearly melted.

  The kiss and her words fueled such need in him. Boone never really believed he’d have a snowball’s chance in hell with her. She was so damaged, and he was pretty sure she’d run.

  Only he’d been wrong.

  Meredith Peyton was tough.

  He respected that in a woman.

  Boone loved it in her.

  After everything, she still had enough courage to try again with another cop. She wasn’t gun shy, and he was fortunate. As they stood in his room, her mouth devouring his, he wanted to take her to bed more than anything in the world.

  Only now he was scared.

  “Meredith,” he muttered. “Wait.”

  She stopped. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…”

  He placed his fingers on her mouth. “Listen to me before you start to freak out.”

  She nodded.

  “Are you sure you want to do this. I’m only human, and if we keep making out, both of us topless, I’m going to want to go further. I need you, but I don’t want to force you. I’d never take your choice away.”

  That he was even stopping to ask her proved the kind of man he was. Boone Savage was a really good guy—one she thought would be incredibly gentle with her.

  Here was the proof.

  “I have to believe that there are good men out there, Boone. I don’t have the luxury of calling my dad and asking him for his advice. I have to go with my gut on this one.”

  “And what does it say?” he asked, on baited breath. He prayed his patience had paid off. He swore he’d weep if she ran out of that room.

  Who was he kidding?

  He’d crawl until he found her again.

  It took her a second to make up her mind. Then, she moved with no hesitation. Merry pushed him backward, and they tumbled onto the bed.

  “It’s saying that you feel right.”

  He took that as his sign.

  His mouth sought hers, and the passion exploded around them. Her hands found his hair, and they held on through the storm.

  Tongues teased.

  Lips caressed.

  Boone had never felt anything so perfect in his life. As she rested on his body, Meredith fit perfectly. It was as if two halves were reunited. When he rolled, he prayed she wouldn’t panic.

  To be sure, he stared down into her eyes.

  “Meredith,” he whispered, leaving kisses across her shoulders, the bruises on her chest, and her battered ribs. “Thank you.”

  She enjoyed the way he touched her.

  It was gentle, but there was heat. Boone was holding back, she could feel it.

  “Stop.”

  He instantly froze.

  Her heart melted. “Boone,” she said, as he moved back up her body. She could feel his erection against her hip.

  “Did I hurt you?”

  “I want to feel. Please don’t treat me like a victim. See me. Don’t see what he did to me. I need to heal. I need to know that I’m not broken. Be with me, not the victim.”

  His heart skipped. “I just don’t want you to regret us.”

  “I never would. You’re the first person I’ve told this to. If I didn’t think you could keep me safe, I wouldn’t be here.”

  “Tell me how to make you feel good.”

  “I want to feel the storm. You’re holding back.”

  He was.

  “I want you to be you. I want to see the Voodoo loving freak do his best.”

  He stared at her, and then he began laughing when she kissed him fast on the mouth.

  “Make me forget.”

  That was all he needed.

  Pulling her up, they both knelt in the center of the bed. His hands found her hair, and he pulled her mouth to his.

  The kiss was scorching hot.

  Merry could barely think. This was exactly what she wanted. With Derek, it never felt like this. There was never that need, that feeling, or that want. It was always…

  Ehhhh.

  Merry actually began to believe that sex was meant to be like that. She started to believe that it was all there was in life for lovers.

  Now she saw how wrong she was.

  How the hell did Elizabeth Blackhawk do this with two Natives at once? Boone Savage was living up to his name.

  It made her giggle.

  He stopped leaving openmouthed kisses across her flushed flesh. “Something funny, cher?” he asked, lifting a brow.

  The French creole was out in his voice, and it turned her on. “I was thinking about your last name. It didn’t register before, but I found it amusing.”

  He started laughing. “Yeah, I get that a lot.”

  “It made me wonder.”

  “About?”

  “Can you live up to it?”

  The grin said it all. If she wanted a savage Native, that he could deliver. Staring into her eyes, there was so much need there. It made him crazy.

  Before he could make his move, Merry pulled his mouth to hers and kissed him for all she was worth. Her tongue drove, her teeth scraped, and when she pulled away, she had Boone’s lip trapped between her teeth.

  He moaned.

  Then he cursed in French.

  “Savage should be your last name.”

  There were more giggles.

  Only he wasn’t kidding. He wanted her to have his last name.

  Damn!

  The smoke was right.

  He was falling hard for her.

  If Merry got his meaning, she didn’t react to it. Instead, she pushed him back to the bed to begin leaving a trail of kisses across his tor
so.

  It was heaven.

  He never wanted it to stop.

  Merry heard the moan escape his lips, and she wanted so much more. Honestly, she was curious. She wanted to explore his body, and with her mouth, she could leave delicious little bites across his flesh.

  “Merry,” he muttered, watching her slide down his torso. First it was mouth, tongue, and then fingers.

  His brain was melting inside his skull or he was having an aneurism from the concussion.

  Either way, he didn’t want to stop.

  When she stroked him through his pajama bottoms, he shook. She felt so good. It was like she was learning every inch of him.

  Boone didn’t mind.

  She could do this all night long.

  Then she pulled him free from his pants. His eyes popped open, just as she took him in her mouth.

  Shit!

  He wasn’t expecting that so quickly, but he wasn’t going to stop her. Not until he was on the edge. The way her tongue was sliding up and down his erection, he wanted to beg.

  Hell!

  He wanted to marry her right there.

  “Meredith, cher, you’re killing me. Can you cut an extremely horny man a break?”

  She didn’t stop.

  He had his answer. Instead of asking again, his hands found her hair, and he slowed her down.

  They found the perfect tempo.

  He was happy.

  Merry was happy.

  Truthfully, she never wanted to do this before with her ex. It seemed so intimate. Now she never wanted to stop. The lust was making her crazy, and she was pretty sure that she’d do anything this man asked.

  She was falling.

  She was safe.

  She was already crazy about him.

  As she added her hand, he began begging—not to stop, but to give him more.

  Merry took that as her sign that she was doing everything right. She wanted to give this man what he’d already given her. She was at peace.

  Working him harder, she didn’t even flinch when his second hand found her hair. Once more, he slowed her down, his hips began doing most of the work. As she scraped her teeth across his erection, he began shaking.

  “Cher, I’m not going to make it. I’m going to…”

  He didn’t get to finish.

  She pushed harder.

  Boone exploded, his body breaking apart because of her wicked mouth. Meredith stole his breath with just her tongue and lips.

  As the colors stopped bursting behind his eyes, probably from the concussion, he slowly floated to the surface.

  She was sitting across his hips, smiling.

  “If I thought you’d marry me, I’d ask right now.”

  She laughed. “I’m glad I made you happy.”

  He touched her cheek. “You make me very happy, and any man who gets to own your heart is incredibly lucky.”

  He left out the part where he wanted it to be him.

  Merry’s eyes filled with tears at his words. She didn’t think a man like this existed. He didn’t seem possible.

  Boone was like that unicorn.

  You wanted it to exist, but it never would happen.

  “Cher, what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing,” she whispered, wiping at her eyes. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

  He rolled, placing her beneath him. As he stared down into the liquid-y lavender pools, he left kisses across her face. “Don’t every apologize to me for feeling.”

  “You’re a unicorn.”

  He stared at her. “I must have hit my head. I’m a unicorn? Is that a good or bad thing?”

  “It’s both.”

  He wasn’t going to ask.

  Instead, he was going to show her what he felt for her. “It looks like it’s your turn.”

  He slowly began moving down her body. When his hands found the clasp at her back, the bra popped open.

  Merry gasped.

  Boone could have stopped, but he didn’t. He wanted her to get accustomed to him touching her. If he had his way, he’d be the last man who ever did. She’d stolen his heart the second he saw her. Now, she’d wiggled further into it.

  It was crazy to fall so fast.

  He knew it was absurd, but he’d seen her in the one ritual. He’d known she was the one, as did Marie Babineaux. It wasn’t his imagination. Boone was fully cemented in his religious beliefs. They gave him peace and strength.

  Just. Like. Merry.

  When his mouth found her nipple, he played with it using tongue and teeth.

  When she moaned in pleasure, he wanted to give her so much more. As he tormented and teased her to insanity, he knew exactly what it felt like. When she was touching him, it drove him wild.

  Now it was her turn.

  His fingers found the button on the top of her cargo pants, and it was quickly undone. She didn’t even acknowledge that he was heading there. He had the luxury of taking his time, since she’d taken off the edge.

  He was still horny, but now he could spend time worshipping her body.

  Already, he was coming back to life, and he was thinking about that wonderful slide home. He was thinking about burying himself in her body.

  He couldn’t wait to feel her surround him.

  It was going to be heaven.

  Sliding down her torso, he ignored the bruises—not because he wanted to forget them, but because he didn’t want her to be self-conscious about them.

  This was about them.

  This was about their moment.

  This was about their first time as lovers, and if he had anything to say about it, there would be more—a lifetime full of them.

  As he tugged her pants down, he was enamored by her panties. They weren’t lacy, or wild. They were very much indicative of a scientist—so much so—that they had protons and neutrons all over them.

  This woman was a surprise.

  She was funny beneath the serious scientist. He couldn’t wait to get to know her. As he tugged them down, she tensed.

  He understood it.

  She’d been violated by someone she trusted. Getting intimate, let alone with someone you’d just met, had to be a hard thing to ever do again. Instead of rushing through it, he was even more determined to take his time.

  After he tugged off her panties, he glanced up at her. “If you need me to stop, I will.”

  “I need you to never stop. I need this more than I need to breathe.”

  It was true.

  Merry needed to get back on the horse. She didn’t want to spend the rest of her life afraid of every man out there.

  Boone was setting her free. Her fear was ebbing away, and her heart was freeing itself from the threads that had held it prisoner for so long.

  He grinned wickedly. “Well, then let’s see if I can make you scream.”

  He dove in.

  With tongue, lips, and fingers, he found all the right spots. Her body was so familiar, or maybe it was because she felt like she fit. This was something he’d love the chance to do over and over again.

  Hell!

  He’d give up his badge to hold her in his heart for the rest of their lives.

  Boone wanted to be her protector.

  He wanted to be her lover.

  She shouted his name as she came against his lips. Her body shook, she tried to hold on, but he was fighting hard to push her over the edge.

  When she had that explosion, she thought it was over.

  She was wrong.

  Boone kept going, driving her back into the pleasure. When her hands knotted in his hair, he had never been happier. This fit.

  With a flick of his tongue, she fell again.

  This time, he couldn’t wait. He desperately wanted that glide into her body.

  When she opened her eyes, they glimmered with amusement.

  “That was funny? That was some of my best work,” he teased.

  “Yes, and you should be proud. If I could feel my hands, I’d clap.”

  “Well
, you haven’t seen anything yet.” He reached for his nightstand, only to realize…yeah, he hadn’t had a woman there in a while.

  Shit!

  There were no condoms.

  “Um. Yeah, I don’t have any condoms.”

  She started giggling.

  “Yeah, this isn’t funny. It’s more frustrating. I had a big finish planned.”

  Merry touched his cheek. “Then finish it.”

  He stared at her.

  Was she going to let him slide into her bare? “Are you sure?”

  “Will you ever hurt me?” she asked, the smile gone. This was very serious, and she needed the truth.

  He knew what she wanted to know most. Boone could see it in her eyes. “I will protect you with all I have,” he promised.

  “Then I trust you.”

  She wrapped her legs around his hips and pulled him down to her mouth. Together, they kissed their way into the pleasure. As he found her wet, tight and ready, he slid home.

  Jesus.

  Just Jesus.

  He wanted to weep in joy.

  When he pulled away from the kiss, he waited. “I want to watch the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met fall with me.”

  She blushed.

  He tumbled more as the sexy flush moved up her chest to her neck, and then to her cheeks.

  He grinned.

  Yeah, he was going to marry this girl. It might take years, but he was willing to do the time. If he could see her every night when he went to bed, he’d be a lucky Native.

  Boone began moving.

  It was slow.

  That was until her hips met him with each glide into her body. It was nirvana.

  Boone never wanted the ride to end. As Merry exploded around him, he held on to the edge, wanting to stay buried in her body for as long as he could.

  When her eyes flickered open, his heart stuttered in his chest.

  “Boone,” she whispered, running her fingers across his lips. When he left a kiss there, she wanted to weep.

  No, she wanted to ride.

  Rolling, she caught him off guard. The look of surprise made her laugh. “I like being on top. It’s liberating.”

  He was sure it had everything to do with her being hurt by that asshole. She didn’t want to be trapped, and he understood her fear.

  So, he went with it.

  When she took his larger hands in hers, pinning them above his head, he let her take all she needed from him. Her body rode him hard, and Boone knew he was doomed.