by Delia Castel
“Habilis is supposed be run by humans. Things are more equal down there, I’ve heard. That’s why I came here to Austellus. I was going to use the gold from Lord Arctos’ safe to pay for my passage—”
“But you used it to bribe the bounty man.”
The tightness in her chest loosened, and a relieved breath escaped her lungs. “That’s right. Ella used all her money to pay for my entry tax, and then her stepmother struck her for not getting home on time. So, I want to ask her to come along.”
He scratched the side of his face. “Then I will buy you two tickets to Habilis and give you enough gold for two young ladies to settle themselves in a new country.”
Warmth spread through her chest, melting away the last of her tension. Tears sprang to her eyes, and she fell into his arms. “Thank you!”
“We’ll have to wait a while. We don’t know how long Uncle will take to inspect the wine cellar. Let’s make sure he has left the premises before we set off.”
Marigold’s gaze swept over his sculpted chest, and down his tight abdominal muscles. Beneath his belly button, a trail of amber hairs led into thin linen breeches, which did nothing to hide his long, thick, slumbering penis. Her tongue darted out of her lips, and she ran her hand down the smooth skin of his chest. “I know a way to pass some time.”
The organ awakened, lengthened and rose. “Are you sure, because I didn’t make the offer to gain your favor. I would never take advant—”
She silenced him with a kiss.
Berrin wrapped his arms around her waist, and a deep growl reverberated through his chest. Marigold’s nipples stiffened against the silk fabric of her chemise. She closed her eyes, basking in the warmth and safety of his strong embrace. He was everything she wanted in a male, and the feel of him around her sent a hot tingling to her slick and ready core. If this was going to be the last time she would ever see him, she wanted a memory she would cherish forever.
He cupped her cheek and slipped his tongue into her mouth. It was a gentle, demanding slide, which sent a wave of pleasure down Marigold’s spine. She slid her own tongue against his soft, wet organ while writhing against the harder one encased in those thin, linen breeches. Marigold moaned, letting him devour her with a hunger that made her core pulse with want. His other hand slid around her buttocks and pulled her further into his body and against his pulsing arousal.
Squeezing her thighs together, she broke the kiss. “I want you inside me, now.”
“B-but I can’t go to Habilis with you.” His hand slid back to her waist, and he pressed a soft kiss on her temple. “It’s no place for a dragon.”
“I know…” It was a bizarre thing to say, considering she hadn’t invited him. She waited for him to elaborate.
Berrin drew back. The golden flecks in his aquamarine eyes glimmered as they caught the sunlight. They reminded Marigold of the pools of dragon’s gold she’d learned about in fables of the island of Chrysos. His brows drew together. “Wait… You still want to do this, knowing that I can’t offer you marriage?”
With a smile, she kissed his neck. “Absolutely.”
“Mari, I couldn’t possibly—”
“All right.” She stepped out of reach and stared at the burgundy rug.
Strong hands held her by the waist. “I’m not saying no!” he blurted. With jerky movements, he pushed his dark blond strands out of his eyes. “But I wouldn’t want to take your virtue and send you off to Habilis with a bag of gold.”
The words were like a bucket of water in the face. She flinched back. “What?”
Berrin’s mouth fell open. “No!” he squeaked. “That’s not what I meant!”
Marigold’s arms folded across her chest, and her shoulders rose to her ears. After the incident at the brothel, she’d become a bit sensitive to that kind of talk. The only gentlemen she’d ever known had been bear shifters like Lord Arctos, who routinely paid for and discarded human women. “Explain, then.”
“We were taught in the Academy never to take advantage of a lady. And you’re in peril, you see.” His gaze darted from her to his wringing hands and back to her again. “If a gentleman is in a position to help a lady, he should do so, and not ask for anything in return.”
The tension in her body uncoiled, and she placed her hand on his cheek. “But I wanted you from the moment we met.”
“Are you sure?” His eyes shone.
“I was going to ask you the same thing. It is your first time, isn’t it? Maybe you were planning on waiting for another dragon.”
His eyes softened. “I would be honored if you were my first.”
“Then why all the fuss?”
“Wouldn’t it be untoward to do so without offering you some form of commitment or security in return?”
She stepped forward to where he stood against the desk and cupped his crotch. “I’ll be getting something I want. Don’t worry.”
“Mari!” his words were a scandalized gasp.
Before he could utter another protest about propriety or other such nonsense, she gave his hardening member a gentle squeeze. His chest rose and fell like the bellows of an accordion. The sunlight streaming through the shutters made his skin shine like polished brass and his hair like a shower of gold. With his flushed cheeks, parted rosebud lips, and wide, aquamarine eyes, he looked like a work of art. The length in her hand strained against its linen casing, pulsing for her attention.
“Mari,” his voice was hoarse. “Are you sure you want to—”
“It’s you I want… Even if it’s only once.”
“But—”
“I lost my so-called virtue years ago, if that’s what you’re worried about,” she said. “Making love with someone I find irresistible will hardly turn me into a fallen woman.”
His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down, and he turned his head.
Pinching her lips together, Marigold let out a long, slow breath to ease her frustration and pulled her hand away from his erection. “We can kiss and fondle each other over our clothing, if that’s all you want.”
“No. I want it, too.” He captured her lips in a kiss.
Joy burst through her chest, reigniting the flames of her arousal. As Berrin’s kisses trailed across her cheek, to her jaw, down her neck and to her collarbone, Marigold parted her lips, letting out a shaky moan. For someone with limited experience, Berrin certainly knew how to use his mouth.
He unfastened each button with deliberate slowness, kissing her exposed skin until the garment fell from her shoulders. His gaze lingered on her breasts. “You’re so beautiful.”
“Mmmmm…” Marigold’s eyes fluttered closed.
Berrin kissed his way down the swell of her breast, stopping at her nipple, which he kissed and lathed and suckled. He massaged the other with deft strokes that made arousal surge between her legs. Marigold threw her head back, panting. She wanted that hard length in her right now.
She reached down to the placket of his thin, linen breeches and yanked at the fabric, somehow managing to unfasten them without ripping off the buttons. Her hand wrapped around his hot, throbbing erection.
He groaned. “Ah… Mari. If you continue touching me like that, I’ll be spent!”
“I’d better ride you now, then.”
“What in the name of Vulcan do you mean?”
“You’ll see.” She placed her palms on his chest and guided him past the desk to the purple, velvet sofa. Pressing her hands down on his shoulders, she bade him to sit and marveled at his sculpted muscles. From within a thatch of amber hair, Berrin’s beautiful length stood to attention. A drop of precum glistened on it bulbous, pink tip, and she licked her lips.
He stretched his arms forward and pulled her down. Instead of sitting on his lap, she straddled his thighs. The tip of his penis brushed against the wet seam of her sex, making her shudder.
Berrin sucked in a breath through his teeth. “What are you do—”
Before he could start another conversation, she reached down, gripped him by the base, and
lowered herself onto its thick, bulbous head. The pleasant stretch made her cry out.
“Mari!” His hands flew up to her waist. “Don’t hurt yourself.”
Resting her hands on his shoulders, she wriggled her hips, sliding further down his length. She hummed with appreciation as she seated herself around his hot, pulsing organ. Her muscles made a happy flutter around his hardness. The sensations were more pleasant than she had anticipated. He was bigger, harder, and much more filling than Unwin, and hotter, too.
When she had fully seated herself, she leaned forward, pressing their chests together. The movement created a wonderful friction of his pubic hair against her clit. A jolt of sensation shot through her body. “Aaaah!”
“Are you all right?” he asked.
She grinned. “Never better.”
They stilled for a while, staring into each other’s eyes. Marigold adjusted to his size, squeezing and pulsing the muscles of her pelvis. Berrin’s chest rose and fell with quick, shallow breaths. His hands rested on her thighs, fingers splayed, touch feather-light. “S-should I be doing something now?”
She shook her head. “I just want to look at you.”
His cheeks flushed crimson. “I like looking at you, too.”
Her core pulsed around the hot length, demanding more friction. She raised her hips until his tip almost slipped out of her entrance and lowered herself, one again encasing him to the hilt.
His eyes rolled to the back of his head. “Oh, Mari!” he moaned. “This is even better than your hand.”
“You feel so good!” She rolled her hips, adjusting the angle of her movements. In all her time with Unwin, she had never known that lovemaking could be so… satisfying. She dug her nails into the flesh of his shoulders, giving herself purchase as she undulated up and down, back and forth against that beautiful, thick member.
Berrin slumped back on the sofa, his face frozen in shock. His hair, which was still loose from the night before, fanned out on both sides. His chest expanded and contracted in tight breaths. It was obvious he was trying not to spend himself. Marigold spared him no mercy, moving up and down, extracting all the pleasure she could from his body. His gaze roved down to her breasts, which bounced with every movement, but he snatched it away, squeezing his eyes shut, as though the sight would break his control.
Leaning forward, she writhed against him, grinding her nub against his pelvic bone. Each movement sent tiny shockwaves out through her pelvis. The sensations built and built, until every nerve ending in her body tingled on the verge of explosion. Then, one small flick of her hips detonated a series of exquisite blasts, each throwing showers of pleasure across her body. Surge after surge of contractions rocked her core, culminating in the most intense climax she’d had in her life.
Berrin’s hard length pulsed inside her, and a low rumble started in his throat. He gripped her hips and jerked into her, meeting her spasms with deep, hard thrusts.
“Ah!” Marigold bit down hard on her bottom lip. She hadn’t thought it possible, but the sparks of pleasure were building up again. Not as strongly as before, so, she slid one hand down from his shoulder and reached down to her throbbing nub. Just a few strokes, and she would climax again.
Berrin groaned and wrapped his arms around her middle, keeping her in place while he continued thrusting into her. “Kiss me!”
Marigold crashed her lips onto his. Berrin rumbled and thrust his tongue into her mouth. With every movement, his chest brushed against her nipples, triggering jolts of pleasure. A whimper escaped her throat. It was like being ravished at all ends.
Berrin’s hands slid down and cupped her buttocks. His fingers dug into her flesh, holding her tighter as his thrusts quickened. He was close, it seemed. She clenched around his hardness and rubbed her nub faster.
He broke away from her mouth, his eyes dilated so wide, they appeared black. “I’m going to—”
“Let go. I’m close, too.”
She continued circling her swollen bundle of nerves, focusing on the sensations. With each movement, her pleasure mounted, fueled by Berrin’s thrusts, and his fingers squeezing her behind. He lapped at her neck, panting hard and thrusting harder.
Berrin growled. It was a deep sound, which penetrated her to the marrow. An intense wave shattered her body into a series of powerful shudders. Marigold clamped her lips together, not wanting to make a sound in case the Governor was still in the house. Berrin stiffened, and warm seed spurted deep within her core, in time with the contractions that seemed to have no end.
She slumped on his shoulders, breathing hard. “That was unbelievable.”
“Mari?” he said in a small voice.
“Hmmm?” She wriggled off his softening organ.
His strong arms closed around her. “I don’t think I can let you go.”
Chapter 11
Berrin slumped back on the sofa, his eyes wide. Had he really blurted out such a selfish desire? With Uncle Hertz prowling around, asking awkward questions, he couldn’t afford to fall prey to his own desires. And neither could Marigold. She stared back at him, looking as though he’d suggested she stand in front of a furious dragon.
Sighing, he lowered his gaze. Suggesting that she shouldn’t leave would expose her to Uncle Hertz and subsequently, the gallows. “I-I didn’t mean to say that. It just slipped out.”
Marigold grabbed his hand and brought it to her lips. “It’s all right. If things were different, I would stay, but—”
“I know.” He pressed a kiss on her temple and wrapped his arms around her slender body. Inhaling her sweet pine and cinnamon scent, he sighed. Now he understood why Polaris had suggested keeping a lady for a year until he could join the King’s Regiment. Marigold was magnificent, and her curves, her face, and her sweet, tight, womanhood was the embodiment of ecstasy.
Marigold’s soft, slender fingers trailed down his chest. The sensations made his stomach muscles clench in anticipation, and blood rushed to his member. All traces of guilt evaporated, replaced by the ache of arousal. He raised his head, watching her hand make its slow descent to his hardening length.
Giggling, she tossed her curls. They caught the light, shining with a luster finer than dragon’s gold. “Ready again?”
“With a beauty like you to rouse my passions, there is only one response.”
“Did they teach you romantic speech at that Academy?” She pressed a kiss on his jaw and clutched his member.
He drew in a sharp breath. “I’m just saying how I feel.”
Marigold’s fingers curled around his erection and squeezed. Berrin gasped, his heart racing in anticipation of another onslaught of pleasure. He cupped and kneaded her beautiful, firm breasts, eliciting an appreciative hum. He couldn’t believe that fortune had smiled on him, only to snatch her away to Habilis. After two devastating calamities, he had hoped that Marigold’s presence would be the balm that would heal his wounded soul.
She stroked up and down his erection, staring at it with an expression of intense concentration. Her tongue darted out, moistening those full, pink lips, and for an insane moment, he wondered what it would feel like on his member.
Berrin’s nostrils flared, and he squashed down a rebuke. He hadn’t said the words out loud, so he had no need to feel guilty. “You’re the most wonderful and beautiful person I’ve ever met.”
She smiled. “I can tell that your words are heartfelt. We have a little bit more time to—”
A heavy knock on the door interrupted her words, and she snatched her hand away from his penis. The loss of sensation felt like being thrown naked into a cold blizzard.
He squeezed his eyes shut, throwing his forearm over his eyes. “What could be so urgent?” The wood of the sofa groaned as she climbed off him, and her footsteps padded across the room. He glanced up to find her already in a pair of his breeches. “What are you doing?”
She pulled a shirt over her shoulders. “It might be your uncle!”
Another loud knock shook the door. Berr
in jumped off the sofa and pulled on a long shirt. He leaned his back against the door, buttoning his shirt and waiting for Marigold to scramble under the bed before opening it a crack and peering out.
Polaris and Matheson stood in the hallway, their faces grim. Berrin furrowed his brow. “What’s wro—”
Matheson shoved open the door, hitting Berrin’s shoulder. The impact pushed him so hard, he staggered back. Berrin glared down at his brother and growled.
“Do not antagonize each other,” Polaris snapped. “We must unite in times of peril.”
Matheson’s lips tightened. “I apologize, brother.”
Berrin let his growl recede to the back of his throat but balled his fists. If Matheson even looked at Marigold with disdain, he would be ready. “Has Uncle left?”
“Just now.” Matheson made a show of sucking in a loud breath through his flared nostrils. “It’s reassuring to know that you and Goldilocks were unaffected by the threat he posed to our family.”
Berrin glanced at Polaris, who winked. A tingling heat swept up the back of his neck and spread across his face. They knew. Coughing, he rubbed at the back of his neck. It was likely that his brothers would think he had deflowered a damsel in distress in exchange for protecting her from the gallows. They would never understand that she had consented to a one-time liaison. And if he said as much, he would damage poor Marigold’s reputation.
In a situation such as this, the best option was to neither confirm nor deny their suppositions. He glared at Matheson and spat, “Don’t be ridiculous!”
Marigold’s head popped out through a gap in the bed skirt. Her green eyes were wide, and her face as pale as milk.
“It’s all right.” Berrin helped her out from under the bed and gave her what he hoped would be a reassuring smile. “You’re safe.”
Polaris advanced on Marigold. “Who are you?”
Her eyes widened, and her lips parted. “I already told you everything.”
Berrin reared back. “What’s this about? We’ve already established her innocence.”
“I wish to ascertain whether Uncle Hertz has a fascination with you or whether he’s using your presence here as a ruse to gain access to the mansion. Fugitives from Boreas often pass through Austellus, and I’ve never once heard of him coming down to investigate.”