by Jenika Snow
He helped her out of the chair and pulled her in for a hug. All he did was hold her, rub her back, and tell her he was sorry but that things would be okay.
Maya wanted to believe that, and being in Marius’s arms had her feeling like everything could start to be good, be better.
13
Marius held Maya, let her sink into him, and kept telling her everything would be okay. He didn’t know how to make her feel better. She’d lost everything and was here alone, trying to make this new life work.
He could feel her pain as if it were his own, and he knew her opening herself up like that, telling him about her family, had to have been hard.
She pulled back and looked up at him, and he pushed away her dark hair and cupped her cheeks. Staring into her eyes, he saw the raw agony.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispered again.
She looked down at his mouth, and his whole body tightened. And when she rose on her toes, and he knew she was about to kiss him, everything stopped inside him. When she was a hairsbreadth away from his mouth, her warm, sweet wine-smelling breath brushing along his, he took a step back.
“I don’t want to take advantage of you when you’re upset and had half a bottle of wine.” He smoothed his fingers over her cheeks, feeling the warmth, the smoothness of her flesh. He was being honest and trying really fucking hard not to give in to his desires.
“You don’t want me?” she asked softly.
“Maya,” he said her name on a groan and closed his eyes. “I’ve never wanted anyone as much as I want you.” He opened his eyes again, hoping she saw the truth. “I want you so bad it’s hard to walk comfortably most of the time.” He saw her cheeks turn red as she blushed, and he smoothed his thumbs along the swells, loving how sweetly she was looking up at him. “But I’m not a bastard and won’t take advantage of you, and that’s what I’d be doing if I gave in right now.”
She didn’t say anything, but then she turned from him, clearly embarrassed. For a second, she kept her back to him, staring at the kitchen table. “I’m sorry.” She left the dining room.
“Maya, please wait.” But she didn’t. He let her run away, because she needed that space, needed to have that time. He would talk to her about this tomorrow, make her see he wanted her, but he wanted her when she wasn’t hurting and when she wasn’t half drunk.
“Fuck,” he said under his breath. He left the kitchen and headed upstairs, needing to take a bath, to wash off the day, what happened, and just relax. He also needed to jerk off, because as it was now, he was so aroused for Maya he could have come in his jeans.
He grabbed one of the candles in the holder and climbed the stairs. He felt like an asshole, like he pushed her away, which he had, but it still felt wrong. He didn’t know if she really understood why, even though he explained it.
He didn’t want to be that man who took what was thrown at him, who was going to be a motherfucker and be with a woman who was seeking comfort because she was in pain. He didn’t want to be that way with Maya, especially not for their first time.
Marius looked toward Maya’s bedroom, could see through the crack in the door that she was undressing, and he felt the ache in his balls intensify. He’d been hard since he walked into the house and saw her in that dress, since they looked at each other and he had listened to her sweet voice.
The light from the candles she had in the room gave him a clear view as she slowly slipped off her dress. Since coming here, he’d become this insatiable asshole when it came to her, watching her like he was afraid she’d vanish.
The way she was standing and the position of the door didn’t allow him to see anything but a swatch of her smooth, golden skin, but it was enough to have his mouth drying and his throat tightening. And then she looked over her shoulder, looked him right in the eyes, and he swore the air left him.
He turned away for her, giving her the privacy she deserved.
Damn, he needed to jerk off to make this discomfort subside. All Marius could think about was the sound of Maya’s voice and the way she looked in the candlelight. She was gorgeous, and he wanted her more with each passing day.
He wanted to keep her close, protect her from any threats, but he also wanted her to be his. It was this sensation he had in his gut, one that said maybe he had been put here for a reason, that maybe he found himself at her home because it was where he was supposed to be.
Either way, he didn’t want to leave, and he didn’t want to turn his back on her.
He shut the bathroom door and leaned against it for a second. Walking over to the sink, he set the candle on it and looked at his reflection in the mirror. His hair was a shaggy mess around his head, and he lifted his hand and ran his fingers through it.
He opened the mirrored cabinet and saw a pair of scissors. For the next few minutes, he cut away at the strands, making sure it was decent-looking. Running his hand over it to get out the last few strays, he braced his hands on the sink again. His cock throbbed, the need to be with Maya overriding all his better judgment.
The water in the tub wasn’t warm, but it was room temperature, since he’d brought it in from the well hours ago. It was better than nothing, and he needed to get clean. Besides, the cooler water might help tame his consuming lust.
He got undressed and stepped into the tub. Although he thought the water would help dim his arousal, what he wanted with Maya couldn’t be dimmed.
He made quick work of washing himself, his hard cock aching, his balls drawn up tight to his body. Reaching down and palming himself, he rested his head on the wall beside him and closed his eyes.
He didn’t want to make any noise, didn’t want to seem like a deviant if she overheard. But he needed to do this, needed release so he could think clearly.
He started stroking himself up and down, moving his palm over his cock until his breathing became shallow and the ecstasy washed over him. All he could think about was Maya in that dress, her big breasts pressed against the material, the little flowers printed on it making her seem innocent.
A small groan left him, but he snapped his mouth shut before it became too loud, knowing she was just down the hallway.
She was a few feet from him.
That had his desire rising harder, faster. And then he heard the creak of a floorboard just outside the door, and his heart beat faster with the thought she was out there listening, picturing what he was doing.
Thinking there was a small chance she might be getting pleasure from the sounds of him jerking off was enough of an aphrodisiac that if he were a weaker man, he would have gotten off right then.
14
This was wrong, yet here Maya was, not moving, trying to hear what was happening on the other side of the door like her life depended on it. She couldn’t even blame her arousal and what she was doing right now on the wine she had at dinner, on the fact that she was acting vulnerable, as Marius said.
Because although she was feeling warm and lightheaded, was hurting because she spoke of her parents, she knew what she was doing.
She stared at the door, heard the water splash slightly before feet on the wood flooring could be heard coming closer to her. Her breathing became even shorter, more labored. Her pussy was wet, her nipples hard under her oversized T-shirt, and all she could think about was Marius on the other side of that door with nothing on, the water sliding over his hard body.
She’d stayed in her room, having gone there after Marius pushed her away. But she knew he was trying to be the good guy right now. What he didn’t understand was that she needed this, wanted to be with him, not because she was sad, but because she wanted to be close.
This arousal she had for Marius was like a flame inside her, growing brighter, hotter with each passing day. She swore she could hear him breathing on the other side, and although she planned on staying right there, telling him how she felt, she turned around and went back in her room.
Closing her eyes and standing in the center of the floor, all she could think about
was wanting Marius, feeling like she was meant to be here with him, experiencing this with him.
She breathed out and wrapped her arms around her waist, but just as she was about to head to bed, to put all this behind her and face tomorrow with fresh eyes, there was a knock on her bedroom door.
Turning, she watched as it opened. Marius stood there in nothing but a towel draped around his narrow hips. He was toned, not bulky, but lean, defined.
“What are you doing?” she whispered.
“I wanted to make sure you’re okay.”
She swallowed, her throat dry, tight. “I’m fine.”
But she wasn’t. Having him so close, seeing his body glistening in the candlelight, the fresh moisture clinging to his form, had her so heated she couldn’t even breathe.
“Good, because I don’t want you to think I was disregarding you.” He took a step closer. The door started slowly closing on its own once he wasn’t holding it anymore, and her heart beat faster as they became locked in her room, so to speak.
“I’m okay.” Her words came out tight, and she knew he could tell she was still so aroused. But then again, when she lowered her gaze to his chest, and lower still, she could see he was sporting a massive erection behind his towel.
“Good,” he said again and moved closer.
“But I want you to know I didn’t try to kiss you because I was too drunk, or because talking about my parents made me desperate for human contact.” Maya found herself moving back a step. “I tried to kiss you, because I wanted to.”
He seemed frozen for a moment and then moved a step closer. “That’s what I feared, why I pushed you away.”
She shook her head. “I know you thought that, and that’s why I wanted to clear it up.” She swallowed again. Why was her throat so dry all of a sudden?
He moved closer still, and that’s when she scented the soap coming from him. The baths nowadays were cold, unless she had the time to heat the water up and wanted it to be “luxurious.” Anymore, she just washed and got out, not caring that she was shivering by the time it was said and done. Hell, she didn’t even care if it was cold outside and she went for a swim, especially when the weather wasn’t frigid yet.
“I want you, Maya. I want to be the ‘good guy’ for you, but I don’t know if I can be.”
She licked her lips. “You are a good guy.” She moved back another step until the wall stopped her. She was breathing hard now, her pussy wet, her nipples hard. He was close enough now that she felt his warm breath moving along her hair.
“Do you feel the same for me?” he asked in a soft voice.
“Yes,” she whispered.
And then he had his mouth on hers and kissed her hard and with possession. It was exactly what she envisioned a kiss from Marius would feel like.
15
Marius was so hard. His cock throbbed behind the towel, and all he wanted to do was rip her fucking clothes away and bottom out inside her. A groan left him at the image that thought conjured up. The only thing that mattered right now was this woman, this sweet, soft woman who was opening her mouth and stroking her tongue against his. He knew she’d seen the erection he sported, knew it turned her on. He’d seen her reaction, the way her breathing changed, her nipples hardened, and her mouth parted.
Marius reached out and took her nape in his hand, pulling her forward. Maya gasped when her chest slammed into his. She braced her hands on his pecs and curled her nails into his flesh. He hissed out from how good it felt.
His cock jerked from the softness of her, from the scent of lemons that came from her, and at the way she broke the kiss and looked up at him with wide, vibrant eyes. Lowering his head toward hers again, he claimed her mouth, licked and sucked at her tongue when she opened for him, and groaned against her lips.
“I need you.”
“I need you too,” she moaned.
He didn’t break their kiss as he reached between their bodies with one hand and all but tore her oversized shirt from her. He was a madman, a beast, and all he wanted was their naked bodies pressed together.
She was hot and sweet and surrendered herself to him, because she wanted this, no, needed it as much as he did. When she put her hands on his chest and pushed him away, taking a step back was really damn hard, but she had control, had the power, even if he was the dominant one.
Marius looked his fill of her now nude body. She hadn’t been wearing a bra or panties, and the sight of her in the candlelight had his cock jerking. Christ, her body was a work of goddamned art.
“I want this, Marius. I really want this.”
He swallowed hard and moved his hand down to rub his palm over his erection. The damn thing was liable to explode if he didn’t add a little bit of pressure to the bastard. He planned on jerking off in the bath, but he held off when he thought he heard her outside. Looking at her breasts, those big, glorious weights with the pink tips, had him wrapping his hand around his cock.
She gripped her breasts and held the huge mounds in her hands.
A low growl left him, and her eyes widened.
“I’m liable to come right now if you keep touching yourself.”
“Don’t do that,” she whispered. “It would be over before it started.”
He groaned again and heard the soft noise that came from her. Maya pulled the towel away as if she were frantic. And then they both stood with nothing on, their body heat moving between each other. Marius took a step back and looked his fill of her body once more. Possessive need slammed into him that this woman was giving herself to him, only to him. He was about to claim her in a way he’d never done with another female, in a way he probably never would again.
He moved closer to her again, and her breathing changed. Her breasts rose and fell because of the action, her nipples seeming to tighten further. Maya’s breasts were a handful, the peaks a light-pink color. Marius’s mouth watered.
Damn, he was hard.
He lowered his gaze to her pussy, one with a thatch of short, dark hair covering it. But before he could move toward her again, she was lowering herself to her knees in front of him. Marius was stunned at first, frozen in place. He parted his lips and breathed in deeply when she took his cock in her hand and stared at it.
“Maya…” He breathed her name out, not sure what to say. This certainly wasn’t what he was expecting. His voice was strained, his arousal growing.
“Is this too much, me being too forward?” she asked softly, her voice a mixture of heat and arousal. She lifted her gaze to his face and licked her lips.
“Maya, you don’t have to be on your knees in front of me.” His voice shook a little. She didn’t have to do this, but hell, she was going to. Maya was going to suck his cock, which had pre-cum spilling out the tip of him.
“I want to do this. I’m hungry for you.”
Cupping the side of her face, he smoothed his fingers over her parted lips. Neither said anything else. Maya leaned forward, her warm breath brushing along his cock. A strangled noise left him when she parted her lips farther and took the head into the hot, wet confines of her mouth. Marius reached out and wrapped his hand around her hair, closed his eyes, and let his head fall back as pleasure coursed through him. She took as much as she could, hollowed out her cheeks, and relaxed her throat.
“Fuck, baby,” he groaned out. “I might come from this alone, and I don’t want it to end.”
She made a humming noise around him, and he moaned. The head of his erection nudged the back of her throat, but she didn’t give up when she slightly gagged. Over and over, she brought him to the brink of getting off, but it was when she reached down, took his balls in one hand, and gave them a squeeze that Marius felt the tendrils of a climax start at his spine.
No, he couldn’t let this end right now, not even when filling her mouth with his seed would be hot as fuck.
Taking hold of her shoulders and moving back until his cock slipped free of her mouth, he helped her to stand. The sound of his dick coming free from t
he tight suction of her lips was erotic as hell. Her lips were swollen and red, glossy from his pre-cum and her saliva. A surge of possession, of need to own this woman, slammed into him.
Marius grabbed her nape and pulled her forward until their lips crashed together. He took her mouth in a brutal kiss at the same time he used his body to press her against the wall again. He moved the hand that was on her neck down her back and curled his fingers into her ass. The feel of her fleshy mounds had Marius groaning against her lips.
He panted and squeezed her ass cheek again. He had his other hand wrapped loosely against her throat, keeping her stable as he fucked her mouth. He knew he needed to back off or he’d come from this alone. Marius wanted to be in her tight, wet pussy when they both got off.
“I want you now, Marius,” she said against his lips.
He slid his hand between the cheeks of her ass, moved his fingers through her slit, and felt his cock jerk at the fact that she was soaked for him. He teased her pussy hole while still kissing her then shoved that digit inside her. She rose on her toes and gasped.
Marius pulled back and stared into her face. Her eyes were closed and her breathing fast. “You ready, baby?”
She opened her eyes and nodded.
Using his hand that had been cupping her throat, he slid it down her body and grabbed the back of her knee. Bringing the limb up to his waist, he curled it around his body. She kept it there, her hot pussy right against his cock.
Holding her gaze with his, he reached between their bodies, took hold of his dick, and stroked the fucker a few times. Marius placed the tip on her cleft and started rubbing it along her pussy, spreading her lips open wider with the crown. Fuck, he wanted to just thrust inside her. He didn’t know why he was tormenting them.
“I need you inside me, Marius.”
He grunted at those words, at the feel of how scorching hot she was along his length.