Chapter 20
Anna felt the big hand on her stomach and sighed in absolute and total bliss. His hand covered her entire stomach, hip, everything from her breasts to her pubic bone. He was just so, so big. She glanced at the sleeping man beside her and felt a knowing smile creep across her bruised, swollen lips. Unbelievable.
She started to roll from the bed, and froze in pain. Soreness already radiated from her swollen vulva to her thigh muscles. She smiled again, through the ache. He was just so, so big. Enjoying the knowledge that she was sore from sex…with Richard Riddick….she scooted out from under his warm touch and felt his hand drag over her, flames licking her skin every place his fingers landed. Totally unbelievable.
Anna wrapped herself in a blanket from the floor, thinking it must’ve fallen there when they came into the bedroom. When Riddick had lowered her to the sheets and possessed her body in a way no man ever had. She belonged to him, body and soul now. And he cared for her. She was sure of it. The raw emotion in his eyes when he’d touched her, kissed her in that sensual, passionate way. The care he took with her body, even as he rammed into her and pulled her screaming to the edge of sanity and back. The way he’d begun to tell her he loved her…she knew he was about to say it, and she had stopped him. It terrified her. The things he’d done…she could never accept that. She could be with him, let him possess her. She wanted it. But to love her? To honestly be in love with her? That was just inconceivable.
Walking into the living room, she was satisfied to see Bo still resting peacefully. Checking the wound, her temperature, her pulse and her bandages, Anna quickly fulfilled her duty as a doctor, knowing she’d soon face Bo’s cold regard and wondering what would happen when Bo found out that she’d…that they’d…that she and Riddick had…
Anna’s head fell back as she remembered the strength, the power that emanated from every pore in his body. That man, that amazing, perfect man, had touched her. He had made love to her. He had groaned her name and looked into her eyes and filled her with awe, touching parts of her body that Anna had never even known of before.
She picked up their clothes from the kitchen floor, and hot, vivid flashes of their night together flashed through her brain like lightning in a summer storm. She moved quietly down the hall and stopped in the doorway of Riddick’s room. He lay, gloriously naked, atop the rumpled sheets, his arm now wrapped around a pillow, the skin on his buttocks proving that the sun was not responsible for the mouthwatering color of his toffee skin. Anna stared, her body starting to react despite the morning’s ache of overuse.
She retreated to her room, thoughts churning, and tried to focus. Plan. Use her brain, something she hadn’t done, much, since she had met him.
Richard. Riddick. Convict. Murderer. Lover. She felt tears fight to be free, and she gritted her teeth against them. She had to figure this out. A way for her body and mind to agree…..to be at peace.
She felt the hand on her shoulder and jumped, turning to find a naked Riddick standing behind her. Her eyes devoured his muscular frame, her cheeks heating at the memory of it pressed against her.
He urged her to stand with a tug on her shoulder, and she shakily got to her feet, her knees weak from the sight of him. Her hair was wild, spilling over her shoulders and tangled from his hands and sleep. He pushed it behind her ear on one side, his hand gentle.
Anna looked up into his eyes and felt emotion flow through her, warming her and terrifying her simultaneously. He watched her react, and she realized when she saw the light in his eyes flare to life that he felt it, too.
"Anna-"
She sighed at the sound of her name, his voice soothing her and exciting her…melting her.
"-I think we should…….talk."
Worry crossed her features and Riddick pushed her back toward the bed, picking up his pants from the floor as he did so. Donning them quickly, he sat beside her, pushing her thick hair back over her shoulders, feeling the silk brush his hands, curl around his fingers as if it had a life of its own.
She waited, meeting his eyes with a questioning stare.
He cleared his throat, trying to find the right words…he wasn’t used to talking to people this way…reassuring them…telling them his feelings and all that shit.
"Anna, I know you don’t want to stay here, and I know you want to go home…"
He stopped when she shook her head. Searching her eyes, he felt hope begin to flare in his gut.
"You don’t?"
She shook her head again.
"What do you want, Anna?"
Anna swallowed, and took the leap of her life.
"I want..to be with you…Riddick. Just…be with you."
His heart jumped, his stomach clenched, his lips curved into a smile and he felt like a fucking idiot. This woman was going to be trouble, plain and simple. And he couldn’t wait.
His head swam and he tried to focus.
"Is Bo all right?"
She nodded, her eyes traveling over his shoulders and chest, darkening to dark tourquoise pools of need. Surely she couldn’t want…he licked his bottom lip…she had to be sore. She was so tight he’d felt each muscle contract around his staff when he entered her. She had to be sore.
But there were ways around that.
She raised her eyes to his again and frowned, redirecting his thoughts.
Anna bit her lip. She had to know.
"Riddick…the women you raped, the people you killed…"
His jaw tightened in the dimly lit room and she saw the shadows play along the planes of his beautiful face. She loved him completely, she had since she first touched him. The fire that sparked between their skin when it met was unique, unquenchable. It didn’t just happen to everyone.
"Anna, listen to me. Did I rape you?"
She shook her head. He didn’t. She begged him for it.
"Did I hurt you?"
She shook her head again, remembering the only times she’d been hurt since he’d kidnapped her were when she disobeyed him.
He held her chin with two fingers, their eyes locked.
"Anna, I have never, ever raped anyone. Never. I’ve killed, yes…I have killed. I couldn’t help that, Anna. I don’t do it for sport. It’s necessary, honey."
She felt her chest tighten and fought tears. She had to be strong. She whispered to him, trying not to cry.
"Why?"
He sighed, and lowered his lips to hers. Softly, so softly, he pressed his mouth to hers, his lips covering hers coaxingly. She melted into him, clutching the blanket to her, her throat tight with unshed tears.
He looked at her, as if wondering if she was ready to hear what he was about to say.
She tried to look composed.
"Anna, honey…I killed someone, someone important. I did it because he tried to take Bo. She was just a little girl, Anna. And he tried to take her. I couldn’t let that happen. She wasn’t even old enough to…"
Anna held her breath, waiting for Riddick to finish, shocked at the regret and irritation in his rumbling voice.
"…she was crying and screaming for me to help her. I didn’t mean to kill him, Anna. I didn’t….but…I hit him over and over and…by the time I was finished, the knife was covered in blood and he was…"
Anna lifted her hand to his wrist, his fingers still holding her chin, and she gripped his arm as he continued.
"I didn’t know who he was. They never even gave me a chance to explain. They just threw me in jail and then acted surprised when I had to fight to stay alive, when I killed the guy they put me in with..after he nearly killed me."
Anna felt the tears sliding down her cheeks and he absently wiped at them with his thumb. Her face was a mirror for his hurt, shocked expression. He continued, and her heart broke for him.
"I did what I had to do, Anna. To stay alive. That’s it. I’ve killed twelve people."
Anna gasped.
He looked away, his expression pained.
"I know…I know it’s a lot, Anna. But..10 of them were in jail, and they were trying to kill me. And one of them was a merc. And he fucking deserved it."
Anna swallowed, her hand now on Riddick’s shoulder, reassuring and understanding replacing shock and fear as he watched her. Number twelve, Anna knew, was her fault. Riddick had killed twelve people. She had killed one, and caused the death of several others in just a week.
Riddick once again met her eyes with his own.
"But I never raped anyone, Anna. Never, honey. And I didn’t kill children and torture their parents, or wait for women outside their homes and torture them for days…I know that’s what they say..but it’s not true."
Her tears flowing freely now, Anna leaned into his chest and sighed in rapture when she felt his arms close around her. She believed him. She saw the truth in his eyes, his pained expressions, his hopeful glances. She felt his voice vibrate against her cheek and listened as he explained further.
"You can’t go back, Anna. You can’t. They’ll kill you now if they find you. Mercs, guards…they know I took you. They think you’re dead, that’s the only reason they’re not looking for you."
She pushed her cheek into his hard chest and let the tears come. It would be the last time, she promised herself. From now on, she would be stronger. If she could be strong…if she could be really, really strong…then she could be with Riddick. She could stay with him.
He sighed, pulling her closer and resting his chin on the top of her head. His chest hurt. It was her, he knew. She made him feel…really feel. It was scary as hell. And he wanted more.
She raised her head to look at him, and his gut clenched at the sight of her tears. Fuck…he hated seeing her cry. It clawed at him, made him feel helpless. He didn’t like it. But he wasn’t helpless. He could make her smile..scream..he ran two fingers down her cheek. He wasn’t helpless.
He knelt on the floor, between her thighs, and took her face in both his big hands. She was beautiful, so beautiful. He kissed her, letting his kiss speak for him, letting her feel his passion for her.
It scared the shit out of him, but he did it anyway. And his heart leapt in response when she snaked her arms around his shoulders and kissed him back.
This was all he wanted. All he needed. Anna.
Chapter 21
She relaxed into his embrace, leaning over him from her seat on the bed. Their lips clung, softly, and Anna marveled again at his sensuality. He was so slow, so sweet. But then he would flip her over or pick her up and she would gasp at his speed, his power, the shock of it thrilling her inexplicably.
His hands came up to the blanket, softly pushing it off her shoulders and she released her grip on the front of it to touch the back of his neck. He raised up, pushing her back onto the bed, their lips melded together in a kiss that told her he cared for her. His tongue swept into her mouth over and over, tangling with hers, teasing it to respond.
Anna moaned into his mouth, ecstasy and surrender mingling in a soft sound that escaped her and seeped into him as their lips clung.
He pulled away, slightly, and looked deeply into her eyes. Not only did she turn him inside out every time he looked at her, he was becoming seriously addicted to her soft moans. He could spend the rest of his life listening to her sweet voice…the rest of his life with her. Making her happy.
His hand glided over her stomach, stopping when his fingers met soft, springy curls. He tested her, running one long finger slowly down over her already swollen lips. She inhaled sharply, the pain registering even as her hips bucked up to meet his finger.
She was sore. Riddick smiled. He was dying to taste her, anyway. And she would love it. He’d make sure of that. The smell of her arousal was another addiction that was getting out of control.
God, she smelled so sweet. He kissed her again, grinding his mouth against hers and smiling when she boldly thrust her tongue into his mouth.
Not so shy now, he thought.
Releasing her lips, he slid down over her, feeling her skin brush his, the hard little tips of her breasts causing him to harden instantly. His mouth traced a slow, torturous trail over her stomach, pausing to explore her navel, his tongue causing a soft groan to escape when he dipped it inside. Her stomach quivered, and her thighs tightened.
"Riddick…." She warned him with a tone meant to speed his actions.
He continued his slow progress, tasting her sweet skin and inhaling her scent. It was strong already, and growing stronger. It reached down and grabbed him by the balls, too. He reacted to her so strongly, so amazingly. Her hips bucked again and her hand came to rest on his stubbled head. She pushed his head down, and he smiled.
She was so damn responsive. He wanted to wring every last gasp from her lips and control every single shiver of her body. Make her forget all her inhibitions and beg him for release. He wanted, more than anything, to make her his.
His nose touched her, bumping against her clit and Anna moaned, long and loud. Desire crept through her thighs, up through her stomach and flowed hotly down into her mound, and she raised her hips off the bed in a silent plea.
His breath hit her swollen lips, and she inhaled, holding her breath. He didn’t move, waiting. She pushed, trying to make him move forward with her hands, but he just waited, watching her every reaction.
Her legs dangled off the edge of the bed, and he knelt on the floor, his face to her cleft. She let her breath out in a shaky sigh, and he instantly licked her entire opening, his tongue flat and wet. And he smiled when she held her breath again.
She was his. He controlled her now. Because she let him, not because he forced her. She wielded as much power as he, allowing him to lead her. It was a heady exchange.
Hearing her breathe out once more, he again tasted her sweet essence, making his tongue as wide as possible, flicking the tip against her hard nub as he finished the soft, wet path from her entrance to her clit. She moaned louder and he lifted both her legs with a hand under each knee, placing them on his spread thighs.
Anna felt her entire body quake, pushing with her feet on his legs until she felt his mouth against her, her hips straining up off the bed.
He rode her down, pushing her body back against the bed and swirled his tongue over her lips, softly licking each side with a tender, easy motion. She bit her lip, raising her head off the bed to meet his eyes.
He dipped his head, and she felt the tip of his tongue hesitate at her flexing opening. She stayed still, her thighs shaking with need, and gripped the sheets with both hands, her fingers grasping for support.
He pushed his tongue into her slowly, and smiled into her apex when he heard her shocked intake of breath. Withdrawing, he laved her with another full-length lick before entering her with his tongue again. She tasted sweet, hot and uniquely female. Her silky wetness was honey on his tongue as he pushed it into her over and over.
Her hips moved, finding his rhythm and he added a fast circle with the tip of his tongue over her clit each time he withdrew. Inside her, tasting her, and then pulling out, running the tip of his tongue in a hard, fast circle over her throbbing button and then back into her, plunging faster and faster as he felt her flex.
"Fuck Anna, honey, you’re so sweet. So sweet…"
Her head thrashed from side to side, and he held her hips steady with a hand on her lower stomach, applying slight pressure with his palm to her pubic bone. She responded by choking out a sob, need and excitement building as he continued to push his tongue into her throbbing wetness.
He felt her tense, and quickly centered on her clit, sucking it into his mouth hard and fast. Her hips strained against his hand, and he pushed his palm down to press against the top of her mound. She moaned, soft and continuous sounds of her pleasure filling his ears and he sucked rhythmically, feeling her react. Loving her response.
When he felt her reach the edge, he eased the pressure of his hand and slipped it around to part her lips, opening her to his fingers. She gasped, and his mouth never stopped its pulling motion as he sucked her nerve-filled tip into his mouth.
She started to shake, her body pushing toward it’s release, and he pushed a finger inside, letting her body clamp around it as she screamed his name, exploding into a thousand pieces as her climax hit her. He stayed with her, finger pumping and lips pulling at her, drawing it out, making it last for her.
At last, spent, she lowered her hips back to the bed and he pulled his finger out, letting her clit slip from his lips and pressing a soft kiss to her quivering tummy.
Her legs fell from his powerful thighs as he raised himself up, pulling her to his side and lying on the bed with one massive arm around her and the other stretched out to his side. She curled to him, still tensing and relaxing deep inside.
She laid her cheek against his chest and he rolled his head back in victory when he noticed the satisfied smile that stayed on her lips, long after she drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 22
She was alone, in bed, naked. Anna sat up, the covers falling off, wondering how she got under them in the first place.
Riddick.
My God, he had done things to her that she never even imagined were possible. She heard voices drifting down the hallway and recognized Bo’s weakened but recovering tones.
Dressing quickly, she followed the noises to the living room, seeing Bo actually sitting up.
"Bo! You should be lying down!"
Two pairs of eyes focused on her, topped with small frowns, and Anna smiled at their similar actions. They might not be blood, but she had been blind not to see their similarities.
Riddick moved from his space on the floor by Bo’s knees and Anna took his place, clucking over the wound dressing and checking Bo’s temperature.
The woman had an amazing constitution, healing quickly and ignoring the pain, trying to sit up for as long as possible. Entering the kitchen, Anna inventoried the vast refrigerator, settling on sandwiches and salad. She was starving, her appetite fully restored now, and she was sure Bo and Riddick were, too.
She carried the salad into the living room, making Bo comfortable enough to eat in a reclined position. She smiled when she noticed Riddick carrying in sandwiches and water.
Not so tough now, she thought.
He caught her gaze and narrowed his eyes threateningly, which didn’t scare her one bit. Things had certainly changed. She knew now, and probably always had known, that he would never hurt her.
So she returned his glowering look with a smile, seductive and meant for him alone, and drew in her breath when he returned it, full lips curling into a predatory, knowing smirk. Her body tensed and she broke their eye contact.
Riddick chuckled inwardly. Little Miss Anna did not know who she was dealing with. She wasn’t near ready to spar with him. Not when he controlled her, body and soul.
A voice whispered in the back of his mind, reminding him of the traitorous emotions that surfaced whenever she was near. He pushed it aside, focusing on Bo and devouring the food in front of him.
The smirk returned. This was nothing compared to the meal he’d had last night. A growl rose up in his throat, his mouth watering instinctively at the remembered sweetness he’d tasted between Anna’s trembling thighs.
Two pairs of female eyes slid to him and he pretended total interest in his sandwich. He struggled for control, pushing the memories down and trying to focus on their immediate future.
Anna moved fluidly around the room, cleaning up after their meal, and Riddick didn’t help this time. She didn’t mind. It really wasn’t so bad, taking care of people this way. It was pretty much the same as healing them. She blinked. What a difference a few days had made in her life.
She felt his eyes on her, like flames licking across her skin. Every movement she made felt like slow motion, weighed down by his gaze.
It was intoxicating, and Anna let her eyes flutter closed momentarily from the feeling of being watched by Riddick. His eyes on her body were like a physical stroke. It made her feel comfortable with her body, sexy in her own skin. She reveled in it.
When she finished, she sat, joining in the conversation as Riddick began to explain the particulars of their next move.
He spoke softly, his eyes drifting to Anna constantly, roving over her slowly, pausing on her throat, her chest and her stomach. She tried to concentrate. Every sound he made seemed to find it’s way directly to the base of her spine.
"We’ll leave here in exactly one week. I’ve got a meeting today, and we’ll have a ship by Tuesday. Then we’ll decide where we want to go. We’ll find someplace, a safe place, and you can rest there." He looked at Bo, who was tiring fast.
She nodded and looked at Anna.
"She’s coming then?"
Riddick sighed.
"Yes."
Bo rolled her eyes.
"Great."
Anna stayed quiet. Gritting her teeth she ignored the sarcasm in Bo’s voice and spoke to Riddick, the huskiness of her voice raising two sets of brows in unison as Bo and Riddick swung their eyes to her.
"You have a meeting? Here?"
"No, in town."
She frowned.
"You’re leaving us here?"
His expression grew soft as he spoke, and it melted Anna’s worries away.
"Keep the door locked. Don’t open it for anyone but me. You’ll be fine, honey."
Bo gasped at his endearment. She pinned Anna with hard eyes and dislike graced her tone as she spoke.
"Honey? Jesus, Richard. She’s never gonna make it anywhere we can go. Fuck. She’s never gonna make it to the ship. She’s soft, Richard. What the fuck are you thinking?"
Anna swallowed hard, thinking she was wrong. She had changed. She had. Hadn’t she? She was tougher. Stronger. She was able to make it. She was ready to go through anything, anything to be with Riddick.
But she waited. Silent, hoping Riddick would speak. He had to see how different she was. Didn’t he?
But Riddick didn’t speak. He stood, silently berating Bo with a narrowed glance and moved to Anna, pulling her up and into his strong, solid embrace. She molded against him instinctively, her body curving to his naturally. He looked at her, the seriousness of the situation hardening his eyes and tightening his jaw.
"I’ll be back in two hours, tops. Handle it here, Anna. Can you do that?"
She glanced at Bo who was staring at them in barely disguised awe, and then nodded at Riddick.
"Yes."
He smiled, softly pulling on the strings that he’d attached to her heart the moment they met.
"Good girl."
She parted her lips, her breath becoming shaky, and he released her just in time to save her the embarrassment of falling onto his chest and begging him not to go.
He opened the small closet door directly inside the entryway to the apartment, pulling out a huge gun and showing Anna the trigger and the proper way to hold it. Bo laughed and Anna tried hard to hold it steady against her shoulder.
Riddick nodded at her and she felt like she’d received a blue ribbon. Respect and kindness were evident on his face. Both were for her. She laid the gun on an end table and met his gaze. He held her eyes with his own for what seemed like an eternity.
And then he walked out the door, locking it and closing it without a backward glance. Anna sighed, and turned back to see Bo watching her with tired, but very wide eyes.
"I’ve never seen him that way…" she murmured.
"What way?" Anna snapped.
Bo frowned as if the very word wouldn’t even come to her, at least not in association with her brother.
"I don’t know….sweet."
Anna bit her lip, held her breath and took this information in with astonishment. Bo didn’t let her dwell for long, though, pulling her out of her reverie by letting a harsh laugh escape.
"You won’t last a month, Stretch."
Anna shook her head and walked toward the hallway. She certainly wasn’t going to stand there and let Bo berate her further. She’d take a shower and wait for Riddick to return.
Her steps halted when she heard a sharp rap on the door. Riddick had a key. Her eyes flew to Bo and her entire body shook in terror when she saw Bo’s fear-glazed eyes glued to the door.
Whoever that was, it was not Riddick.
Anna’s throat closed in fear. They were trapped.