Free Club Prive Book V by M. S. Parker

between the cool, clean sheets. He curled his body around mine and I nestled back against his chest. His arms went around my waist and I put my hands over his, careful not to jostle his wound. His lips pressed against the hollow under my ear and that was the last thing I knew for several hours.

Chapter 11
    W hen I woke up, two things struck me almost immediately. The first was that the clock said we’d been asleep for more than three hours. The second was that Gavin was still wrapped around me and was enjoying it. His flesh was slowly hardening against my ass.
    I smiled and rolled in his arms so we were almost face-to-face. I still had to tilt my head for our eyes to meet, but it was close enough for him to bend his head and brush his lips across mine. His hands splayed across my bare back.
    “Good... afternoon?” he said with a smile. “I trust you slept well.”
    “I did.” My own smile faded a bit. “How are you feeling?”
    “Better,” he said. “I broke my arm when I was eight trying to show off on my bike. Not even close to as bad as that.” His expression sobered. “What about you?”
    “My hand’s aching,” I admitted. “I didn’t realize Howard’s head was that hard, and it probably wasn’t a good idea to do that with the same hand I’d dislocated my thumb on.”
    “And... otherwise?”
    I gave Gavin a puzzled look. I wasn’t sure what he was asking.
    He lifted one hand and gently ran his fingers down the side of my face, then over my arm. “It’s not bothering you, me touching you like this?”
    Now I was really confused. “I don’t understand.”
    “I know that when someone goes through what you went through with Howard, they don’t want to be touched.”
    “He didn’t rape me, Gavin,” I said.
    “But he put his hands on you.”
    I could hear the anger in Gavin’s voice and a realization hit me. “Is this why we didn’t have sex before?”
    “I wanted so badly to make love to you,” he said. His voice was so earnest that it made my heart skip a beat. “But I didn’t think you’d want me that way, not after what had happened. I was even worried about how much I could touch you in the shower.”
    That explained why he’d seemed almost hesitant while washing me earlier. I closed the short gap between us even though it meant bending my neck at an almost painful angle to still be able to look at him. I heard his breathing hitch and felt him swell even more.
    “Howard did touch me,” I said. “And even though I showered, I can still feel his hands. I need you to chase away those memories.” I slid my arms around his waist and felt the muscles in his back tense. “Please.”
    He rolled us over so that he was above me, the majority of his weight balanced on his forearms, his body resting on mine from our bellies down. He leaned down and I could see his arms flexing with the effort of keeping himself in position as he kissed me.
    It was slow and sweet, his lips moving with mine, slowly parting, and then the tip of his tongue tracing my bottom lip before darting inside. My tongue moved out to caress his and he made a sound in the back of his throat. His teeth scraped over my bottom lip and it was my turn to moan.
    I tilted my head back as his mouth moved from mine down to my jaw. His lips burned a trail down my throat, gentle kisses that were at odds with what I was expecting. I remembered how he’d marked me before, sucking skin into his mouth until the blood rose to the surface. There was none of that this time.
    Gavin shifted so that he was on his side, allowing him better access to my body. He ran his hand across my stomach and then up to my breasts. He covered one with his hand and I ran my hand up his arm, skirting the bandages. I loved the feel of his skin against mine.
    “I promise you, Carrie,” he said softly. “No one will ever touch you without your permission again.”
    I arched my back, pushing my breast against his palm. “You have permission. Please touch