All he could remember was the pain of her criticisms. The sheer agony of being nothing more than her boy-toy, there only to please her while he wasn't allowed to have any feelings or opinions of his own. Only she could show her pain and displeasure while he was permitted nothing. Not even his dignity.
What they had was sex. Basic and primitive. There was no emotion involved really, unless it was anger.
Like all the others before her, she hated the fact that she craved him and she sought to punish him for the fact that she slept with him. They merely used each other. If there had ever been any real tender feelings, they'd been shredded centuries ago. Nothing was left now except tattered remains of a yesterday neither could recapture.
"Can't you remember?" Tory asked.
"Not really," he answered truthfully.
Tory's heart tugged at the way he said those words. She touched his whiskered chin and turned his head until he was looking at her. "I'm going to make love to you, Ash. Tonight, I will rock your world."
Ash pressed her hand to his lips and nibbled her fingertips as fear and trepidation filled him. This night would cost him dearly.
No one should pay for love with blood and bone.
Yet he knew no other way. He'd always paid for every caress and every kindness. Nothing was ever freely given. The only question that ever mattered was, was it worth it?
Would Tory be worth the cost?
He hoped so. He returned the sunglasses to his face. "I'll be back."
Tory watched as he left and her heart was heavy for him. What were the secrets that tortured him so? Why did he look so afraid of touching her?
Finishing up her food, she went downstairs to watch him again. Pam and Kim were standing in the front, smiling. She came up behind them and goosed them on the bottom.
Pam goosed her back. "He's amazing, isn't he?"
"Yes, he is." Tory waved as Ash looked at her.
His answer was a sincere yet shy smile that warmed her heart and made her hot all over. The man was so choice . . .
She stayed there for several songs to watch and listen to Ash. When they started their final song, she went back upstairs so that she could get ready.
Ash frowned as he watched Tory leave the stage. Is she all right? he mouthed to Pam.
Pam nodded reassuringly.
Relieved, he couldn't wait until the song was done. The instant it was, he slung his Fender over his back, unplugged it, and jumped off the stage.
"You guys have fun," Pam said to him while Kim giggled. "We'll see you two later. Tell Tory to call me tomorrow."
"Will do." Ash cut through the crowd as he made his way back upstairs.
Justina and Katherine also took their leave with a promise to return in the morning.
Ash closed the outside door and locked it before he opened the one with a scanner. The moment he saw Tory, he froze. Dressed in a sheer black teddy that showed every curve of her body, she was dazzling. She'd brushed her hands through her hair, making it look rumpled.
Making her look delectable.
"Let me go shave real quick."
She frowned at him. "Shave?"
He ran the back of his fingers down his jaw, feeling how rough it was. "I don't want to give you whisker burn."
Tory was touched by his thoughtfulness. Until he tried to walk into the bathroom with the guitar on his back. He cursed as it caught sideways in the doorway. His face mottled with color from his embarrassment. "Guess I should take this off." He shrugged it over his head before he leaned it against the wall.
She covered her smile with her hand as she struggled not to laugh. He could be so adorable at times.
While he was in the bathroom, she thumbed through the quick notes she'd made in Tabitha's book. When he turned the water off, she put the book in the nightstand and tried to pose seductively on the bed.
Ash paused the towel against his chin as he caught sight of Tory on the bed with her legs tucked under her. She was trying to look seductive, but with her glasses on, it was a strange combination of the serious Tory and vixen.
And it made his cock hard. Tossing the towel aside, he dropped his coat in the doorway, then pulled his shirt off over his head.
Tory was stunned by that body and the muscles that rippled with every move. He knelt on the bed and crawled toward her on all fours like some lumbering, hungry predator.
He paused over her as his long black hair fell forward to frame his face. Their bodies weren't touching, but his swirling silver eyes seared her with heat. The muscles of his arms bulged from supporting his weight as he met her gaze. It was open, honest and at the same time she saw the fear in the back of those eyes and wondered what caused it.
The scent of leather and masculine skin made her instantly wet. He dipped his head down to hers and she shivered as only his lips made contact with hers. Then ever so slowly as he deepened that kiss to one of extreme potency, he lowered himself down on top of her until his weight pressed against her.
Tory sighed at the incredible sensation of his body on hers, of his lean hips resting between her legs. Her heart pounded at the bulge in his pants pressing against the center of her body. There was just so much of him. She reveled in the way he surrounded her with warmth and strength.
She ran her hands over his perfect back, feeling his muscles contract and tense as his mouth plundered hers. Wrapping her body around his, she rolled him over until he was pinned under her.
Ash didn't move as she pulled back to kiss her way down his chest toward his navel. The sight of her so hungry for him made him ache not just from lust but from some inner part of him that wanted, just once, to have someone really love him. She cupped him through his pants, making him growl in pleasure. Looking up, she smiled at him as she nipped his stomach. Her playfulness was so charming and sweet. So very precious.
He cupped her face in his hands and returned her smile as he sought to burn this memory into his heart so that he'd always have it close.
She moved to take his boots off. He held himself perfectly still as she unzipped his left one and removed it. She tossed his boot to the floor.
She pulled the other boot off and tossed it over her shoulder before she moved toward his pants. Ash sucked his breath in and held it as she reached for his zipper. The sight of her head poised over his fly . . . It was almost enough to make him come.
She pushed her glasses back up on her nose. Smiling at him, she unbuttoned his pants. Ash waited, his heart pounding as she slowly slid the zipper down to expose him.
Tory bit her lip in satisfaction as she freed him from his pants. The man was completely commando and he was huge. Not that she was surprised. Her earlier encounters with that bulge had given her some idea of its size, but this . . .
She pulled his pants off and took a minute to just soak in the beauty of his naked body. Tabitha was right, she could be rich if she took pictures of him and posted them online. He was flawless. Absolutely flawless. From his wide shoulders to the narrow hips all the way down those long, muscled legs that were dappled with black hairs.
And she wanted to please every bit of him.