Free Stealing His Heart by Diane Alberts Page B

grabbed the back of his neck. This was a huge step for her—a leap into the unknown. She’d never felt more alive, despite the nerves such a leap of faith inspired.
    When he grabbed hold of her wrists and hiked them high above her head, just as he’d done at the carnival, she let out a sharp breath. Her entire body tightened in anticipation of what he would do to her. What he would make her feel.
    For the first time ever, she didn’t fight to be free.
    She wanted him to take control.
    He transferred both of her wrists to one hand and reached into the nightstand beside the bed. When he pulled out a pair of metal handcuffs, she stiffened. “Uh…what are you doing?”
    He slid the cuff over her wrist and tugged it to the headboard. She forced herself to hold still as he closed the cuffs over her, effectively securing her. Her heart leaped into her throat, choking her, but at the same time her stomach tightened with desire. “This is strictly for kinky purposes, right? Not to kill me, Dexter-style?”
    “I have no interest in killing you in any style.” He hauled his shirt over his head, his muscles flexing and taunting her. “Just in making you come.”
    Her fingers twitched with the need to touch him, but the cuffs held her firmly in place. “Holy shit, you have tattoos.”
    His hands froze on his belt. “I do.”
    They swirled all over his chest and shoulders, but didn’t go any lower. No wonder why she hadn’t seen them when he’d been in a shirt. The colors all popped beautifully, intermixed with dark black outlines and tribal tattoos. She’d always had a thing for guys with ink, and Jake was no exception. If anything…
    He was the perfect example.
    On top of all that inked hotness, his tan, lean abs were carved to perfection, and the light sprinkling of hair on his chest begged to be stroked. Too bad she couldn’t touch. When he undid the button of his pants, her heart stopped and yet impossibly sped at the same time.
    She licked her lips. “I thought you lived on the right side of the tracks now. Why lock a good girl up to have sex with her?”
    He took his leather belt off and tossed it back and forth. “You make a living by lying and stealing. Tell me, Tara. How does that make you a good girl?”

Chapter Seven
    Jake gritted his teeth and watched Tara on his bed, waiting for him to give her pleasure. Fuck, she was hot. She wasn’t really trying, yet somehow she’d found a way to rope him in. Made him want to have her. No, need to have her. Ever since she’d come apart in his arms earlier, he’d been a tightly wound ball of desire. Thank fucking God she’d decided she wanted to play on his terms.
    If she hadn’t agreed, he might have exploded.
    He shouldn’t be touching her. Shouldn’t be doing this. But he couldn’t seem to stop. Not anymore. Not ever again. She’d be his .
    Handcuffing her to the bed had been a test. Instead of testing her, though, all he could think about was ripping her clothes off and burying his cock deep inside of her. He’d bet his salary she was a screamer, and he planned on making her scream a lot.
    After she begged for it, of course. That was a must.
    “I’m not a bad person, Jake. I need you to believe that.” She swallowed. “I steal things, yes, but for good people. I give people their long-lost items back. Can’t you see that? Don’t you believe me?”
    He caressed her cheek, skimmed over her chin, and then across her collarbone. “I don’t think you’re a bad person at all. You’re one of the best people I know.”
    Which was why she was too good for him.
    She shivered. “You do?”
    “Yes. I do.”
    Inching closer, he traced the neckline of her tank top. If he concentrated, he would bet he’d see the top of her nipple. If she truly belonged to him, she wouldn’t be dressed so skimpily. Wouldn’t hang it out there for every other man in the world to see.
    “But—”
    “Shhh.” He closed his palm over her breast, squeezing gently and weighing