Serendipity by Joanna Wylde Read Free Book Online

realized that he was biting her shoulder, groaning into her flesh as his own orgasm ripped through him. She could feel the hot spurts of his seed hitting her, and she raised her hips to cradle him more closely. She wanted to pull him into her, take possession of him, and bind him to her…
    They stayed like that for several minutes, panting in the darkness. Slowly, he allowed his weight to shift off of her, and rolled to her side. She felt his fingers touching her shoulder lightly, then he spoke.
    "I bit you," he said, seemingly startled by his own actions. "I have no idea why I did that. I'm sorry, Sarai. I didn't mean to hurt you."
    "You didn't," she replied, realizing it was true. His bite had stung, still throbbed a bit, but somehow it had fit in with the moment. Almost as if he had been marking her as his.
    Her mind shied away from this strange thought—it was too much to think about right now.
    He would be gone in a few weeks, so she needed to take pleasure in the moment.
    "Well, I'm still sorry," he said, kissing the injured spot with soft warmth.
    "That's all right," she whispered, nuzzling into his shoulder. She was suddenly very tired. Time to go to sleep…Jax cuddled her against his body, then pulled the covers over them. In the darkness outside the sliding door, she could hear the insects and small night creatures chittering and scurrying about. She drifted off to sleep, content in her decision.
    Having a man around, however temporarily, was going to be all right.
    * * * * *
    She awoke early in the morning, hearing a muffled snoring next to her ear. For a moment she couldn't move, and panic filled her. Something was pinning her down, something heavy. She realized it was Jax, who had sprawled out on the bed, draping his arm and leg across her. She pushed at him with one arm, and he obediently rolled over on his back, still sleeping.
    She was free.
    She sat up a little, looking at him in the early-morning light. It was amazing to her that this man, so handsome and strong, seemed to want her, of all people. She leaned over him, examining his face closely. There was dark stubble along his jaw, and he was all sharp angles. There was no softness, even in his sleep, yet he had bought her daughter a doll at the spaceport, and a nightgown for her. He certainly seemed to have some softness inside of him.
    She tried to sit up a little more, and realized that her unbuttoned shift was pinning her down. She slipped it off her shoulders, then moved closer to him. She let one hand touch the line of his collarbone, then slowly traced it down his body. He was a soldier, she had always known that. But this was the first time she'd really taken the time to look at his body.
    There were several scars, small ones that were little more than white lines, and one large one on his side. She touched it in wonder, amazed that he had survived. It was as if someone had melted the skin there, superheating it and twisting it. Blaster fire? she wondered. She had never seen a wound like this, but it had to have been terrible.
    She trailed her hand a bit lower, pushing the blanket that covered him down with it.
    She touched the planes of his stomach, taut with muscle. There was no extra flesh on him, only hardness. He seemed so relaxed around her and the children that at times it was hard to imagine what his life must really be like. He said he wanted to stay with her, but he was a soldier. There was no way he'd be content living and working in a hostel on a backwater planet.
    A twinge of sadness came over her, and for the first time she allowed herself to consider how nice it would be to have a man like Jax around. Someone to hold her, to teach Able how to be a man. Someone to show Mali that not all men were like her father had been. Someone who would love them not hurt them.
    That couldn't happen, of course.
    She trailed her fingers along his stomach, watching the tiny black hairs trailing down from his navel stand up under her touch. That