Inferno - Chelle Bliss by Chelle Bliss

When his thumb presses into the bottom of my foot and he starts to knead my sore muscles, I moan softly and let my eyes flutter closed completely.

Fuck. This is so damn good. I don’t remember if anyone’s rubbed my feet unless I paid them to do it. No one’s ever offered to do it for me to relieve my stress, but it’s definitely something I could get used to having more often.

“Thanks for today,” I whisper, trying to hide the pleasure in my voice. “I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.”

“It’s a messed-up situation.”

“Yeah,” I breathe.

His upper arms are almost the size of my thighs, and I feel every ounce of their power as he rubs my feet.

“I’m going to stay here for a few days.”

My eyes snap open and land on him. “What?”

He nods slowly but keeps his gaze on what he’s doing. “Jeff’s going to get released and be more pissed off. I think it’s best if I camp out on your couch until we see if he’s going to try to make contact.”

“But the restraining order.”

He moves his fingers to my heels, and my eyes roll back in my head. He’s playing dirty. “I have a feeling a guy like Jeff doesn’t give two shits about a piece of paper.”

“I have a bat if he tries anything.”

Stone’s body tightens underneath my legs, which are resting on his massive thighs. “Opal, what the hell are you going to do with a bat?”

“Hit him,” I state plainly because, duh, what else would I do with a bat?

Stone turns the weight of his gaze toward me without a hint of a smile. “And when he takes it from you?”

I shrug a shoulder, not having the energy for much else. “He won’t.”

“You want to test this theory of yours?”

“No.”

“You’re better off with pepper gel than a bat.”

I wrinkle my nose. “I don’t think so.”

Stone’s eyes roll back ever so slightly. “Women,” he sighs. “You’re very hardheaded.”

“I’m not, but maybe your other women are.” Internally, I cringe immediately after saying those words. His other women. Does that infer that I’m one of his women?

“I don’t have other women, just you. And there isn’t a woman in my life who isn’t hardheaded, and I’m surrounded by them.”

“The bat will work,” I say, not wanting to talk about the women in his life. I know he’s not being truthful. A man doesn’t look like Stone and not have a group lusting after him at every turn.

He stops rubbing my feet. “Do you have a bat?”

I tick my chin toward my front door, where one is resting in the corner.

“It’s wood.”

“Well, yeah.” I push myself up and pull my feet back, turning my body into a seated position. “Of course. Only the best.”

Stone grunts. “The worst type for what you’re trying to do.”

“You ever been hit by one?”

He shakes his head. “You ever swung one?”

I nod. “When I was younger, I played softball.”

“You think you can swing that fast enough to inflict pain on someone before they can stop you?”

I glance at the bat and then back at him, confident in my ability. “Yep.”

He’s instantly on his feet, moving toward my front door. “Let’s test it, then.” He reaches down and grabs the bat, making the handle look minuscule in his big hand. “Come on.”

Shit. This is the last thing I wanted to do tonight. I was really enjoying the foot rub, but I had to open my big mouth. And Stone, being the man he is, has to prove a point. One which he’ll ultimately lose. “Fine,” I say, propelling myself off the couch and toward the door. “I have no problem making you eat your words, big man.”

He smirks. “Want to make it interesting?”

I stalk up to him, hands on my hips, ready to show him how right I am. “What do you have in mind?”

He rubs his chin with his fingers, taking a few seconds to think of all the options. “If I’m right and you can’t hit me, I get to kiss you.”

My eyes flash, not because I don’t want to kiss him, but because I’m surprised he wants to kiss me. “Lame,” I mutter. “You could’ve asked for something bigger.”

Stone steps into my space, filling the air with his scent and the heat from his body.

It takes everything in me not to reach out, grab his big, bulky arms, and plant my lips on his mouth. I wanted to throw myself around him after what happened with Jeff. I’d never felt more protected in my entire life than in that moment.

Stone raises an eyebrow. “You want to go bigger?”

My knees weaken, but I somehow remain standing. I want to scream yes because I’ve had a dry spell bigger than the Sahara. “A kiss works.”

Stone’s lips turn up. “You’re a big talker, little girl.”

“And what do I get if I’m right?”

He leans his head down closer until I can feel the warmth from his breath. “What do you want?” he asks, pinning me with his green eyes and making me go stupid for a second.

I want everything.

I want skin on skin. I want lips on lips. I want him…all of him. I want to know what it’s like to be loved by a man like Stone. I want to know what he sounds like when he has an orgasm. Is he a moaner or is he silent?