by J. M. Davies
Ella was muddled and confused. Sparks fired in her belly and the last thing she wanted right now was a shower. She wanted him. For a second, she lay back on the mattress, wondering what exactly they were doing. Did he really want her? He said he would help her, and maybe he thought that was what this was, but nothing more. He didn’t really want her, otherwise why would he just up and leave her in here alone? If he really was her mate, then why was he fighting her need to have sex? Any other man would surely leap at the chance. Was he nervous? Hell, she was on fire and was sure that whatever happened between them, she would enjoy it because just the touch of his hand was like electricity, and she was about to explode. Her fingers touched and smoothed the dusty rose petals. Was she really all right simply having sex with no strings? What would that truly entail?
As her mind sorted through the myriad emotions, it occurred to her that maybe he was giving her some space to get herself ready. Hell, she was more than ready. Even if she was inexperienced as Ella, she had vivid memories of her other lives and her body instinctively knew what she wanted and what she wanted to do to Marcus. Even so, she walked into the bathroom, thinking a shower might ease her need.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Ella stood naked under the powerful jets of steaming water; her hands rested against the white tiles, while she relished the feel of the stinging heat against her skin. Steam swirled around the floor-to-ceiling glass enclosure. A sudden draft sucked the steam away and a clicking noise made her snap her head around in the direction of the door. She was no longer alone. Quivers of awareness trembled from the center of her core up her belly and spread outward. Her heart hammered against her ribs as she covered her nakedness with her arms shielding her body.
Standing there, studying her outside the sliding steamy glass, was a completely naked and intense-looking Marcus, who looked like the devil himself.
He stared at her confidently and proud, like some ancient Roman statue: still, silent, and broody. He slid the door open, not taking his gaze off her.
She clutched her arms and dug her nails in the skin. Marcus was the most beautiful man she had ever set eyes on, and he stared at her with undeniable desire. Licking her lips, she stared into his dark, almost charcoal eyes for some kind of sign that there was more than simply passion. Was this just sex? Did it matter? A burning need to reach out and touch the ripples of muscle in his taut body consumed her. He didn’t have an inch of fat to spare anywhere. She held her breath as Marcus stepped in and stood directly behind her quivering body.
Looking over her shoulder, her gaze ran over his broad shoulders, down his tight, sinewy arms, his wide chest, and sculptured abdomen toward a fine spatter of dark hair shaped like a T that led to narrow hips and long, powerful legs. Ella swallowed as she raised her gaze back up toward his hips and groaned as she stared at his pronounced arousal. Shocked and yet fully turned on, she turned her head away to face the water, letting it wash over her. Butterflies erupted and desire thrummed throughout her trembling body.
“Don’t hide yourself from me, Ella. You have the body of an angel and I’m going to kiss every soft curve and crevice of you.”
Water sprayed across her face and she jumped when firm hands braced her shoulders and kneaded her tense muscles. Ella didn’t turn around; she simply let her head fall back against his chest. Marcus smoothed his warm and hard body up against hers and his cock nudged against the cheeks of her bottom. Kisses descended alongside her neck and she pressed her back against his chest, moaning as wave after wave of pleasure erupted inside her body.
“That’s it. Relax. Let it out—let the sensations fill you and let go of your body, Ella.” Marcus’s deep, husky voice was laced with a command that resonated deep within her as he nibbled and sucked on her neck. Ella was sure she would burst into flames and drop to the ground. She dissolved into his hands and gave in to his expert touch as he stroked and built her fire. Her pulse raced and her heart thudded out of control. Instinctively and unable to ask, she trailed her hand down over her flat belly, savoring the feel of it over her sensitive skin until she cupped her sex. Tentatively, she inserted one finger into her hot and wet core.
At the intimate invasion, she jerked her body and tingles coiled inside. She pressed her head deeper into his chest, closing her mouth as the need to scream rose. Her legs bucked and Marcus grabbed her around the waist to prevent her from sliding to the ground. He moved his hand over her right breast to cup the plump, soft mound and pinched her rosy nipple, which resulted in her throaty moan. She couldn’t help it any longer; she was at his mercy. As Ella leaned on him for support and pushed against his rigid cock, he moved his hand lower over her belly button and down, cupping her sex and stroking lazy circles as he moved closer and closer to her silky folds. Ella was going to explode if he didn’t touch her; she pushed her own finger in again but couldn’t find the release she desperately needed.
“Marcus, I cannot take it any longer. I need you.”
Marcus kissed Ella’s cheek and the side of her mouth; his hand clasped Ella’s as she tried to reach her orgasm. “You only had to say.” He thrust his finger deep inside her wet heat and Ella’s inside clenched together as the gathering sparks erupted. When he inserted a second finger, the rising euphoria exploded and she screamed. All she could feel was the waves of bliss and her body rocked with the throes of ecstasy. She couldn’t feel her mouth as she gasped and held his hand deep inside her, quivering as he moved it back and forth.
“Marcus.” She lifted her other hand and stroked his face in a lazy, totally slumberous way, her body still suffering the after quakes. She felt extremely guilty as he had pleasured and totally satisfied her, but she hadn’t relieved his obvious arousal, which nudged her. “I want you,” she breathed.
“And I want you, like I’ve never wanted anyone else before, Ella. But it doesn’t change anything. Tell me you understand. Tell me.” Marcus spoke so forcefully he sounded angry.
She moved away slightly, but her body was in control and any last-minute indecision was lost as a gigantic wave of need overwhelmed her. Ella swiveled around to kiss his lips and slid her body against him, leaving him in no doubt as to what she wanted from him.
“It’s just sex,” she whispered against his mouth.
As the words left Ella’s mouth, Marcus hoisted her up, and she wrapped her long, slim legs around his waist as he shut off the shower and nipped her neck with his teeth.
“When I take you, Ella, I want to savor the feel of you wrapped around me and that requires a bed.” He carried her in his arms as he pushed the glass door open and navigated his way into the other room. He stood next to the impressive king-sized bed and kissed her lips gently; he lowered her wet body onto the mattress. He stood back and gazed at her slim, firm body as she writhed against the sheets, her eyes full of desire, her body hot and ready for him. He could not deny the rising need to possess her any longer. She was his and waiting for him. He knelt on the bed and crawled toward her, grasping her ankles and pulling them apart to reveal her plump, silky folds coated in her essence.
“Ella, you’re so beautiful like this, spread out, waiting for me. I’m going to devour your body until I know it like my own but I’m not sure how long I can wait.”
Leaning forward, he smoothed his hands up across the soft inside of her thighs and lowered his head to lick the wetness that escaped her pulsating heat and groaned as his hands clenched on her legs. Desire hit him straight in the chest and all rational thought evaporated as his need for her overtook him. When he flicked his tongue over her quivering entrance, she bucked wildly and he adjusted his hand to hold her hips and keep her in place. His tongue invaded her entrance, pushing and probing right between her folds as he lapped up her creamy moisture.
Her hands gripped his head, pulling on his hair as she pushed her core closer to him. “Yes, oh God, yes, but I need more. I need you.” Her voice strained as her belly lifted off the mattress. She tried to clamp her thighs closed, but Marcus pushed her legs wide
r and grunted as he pulled his body upward, kissing her abdomen and licking her skin as he tasted her. He stretched his hand over to the side table, pulled open the drawer and lifted out a foil packet. Take her. Take her. She’s yours—make her yours.
He sat back and watched her as she glared at him, speechless but waiting for him; her gaze fixed on his hands as he ripped the wrapper open and placed the condom on his penis. She sat up and while staring at him, rolled the sheath down his hard, erect sex. Any argument disappeared. He pushed her back against the bed and he nipped her nipples, making her squeal with delight. God, she was delectable and pushing him over the edge as her aroma invaded his nostrils.
Marcus prowled over her body like a hunter stalking its prey, with slowness and yet fixed determination to capture his prize. As he squeezed and cupped her left breast, he raised his head and devoured her lips, mixing their juices and pushing his tongue until she opened her mouth and allowed him full entry. Ella was in a wild frenzy as he darted his tongue in and out, mimicking what he planned to do to the rest of her body. As his cock nudged her entrance, she pulled against his shoulders to drive herself into him and his body stilled as a quiver of excitement rippled through her.
“Marcus—Marcus, please,” she begged.
Marcus lifted his head away from her, pushing on his hands as he stared at her glazed sapphire eyes, flushed cheeks, and swollen lips all from his lovemaking and possession. He wanted to make this good for Ella. She pushed her lower body upward, touching his dick and sliding it into her wet entrance. She gasped and he stared as her pupils dilated so much the blue almost dissolved. He nudged his sex, teasing her, and used his knees to push her legs wider as he tried in vain to take it slow the first time, but lost control as she grabbed his bottom and pushed upward. Sensing her desire, he let go and thrust all the way inside. There was a moment of resistance, a whimper from Ella, but he lost any patience or restraint and bucked, pushing through her tightness until her hot insides clamped around him.
Ella cried out and he covered her mouth with his own, demanding ownership. As her body adjusted to his size, she discovered and matched his frenzied rhythm, clawing his back with her nails. He slowed his movements and withdrew slightly before he plundered deep back inside, savoring the delicious feeling of her. Ella’s body undulated beneath his and he rocked back and forth inside her until she screamed. He saw stars and he kissed her breasts roughly, nipping the tips and sucking them.
“Marcus.”
Ripples of her orgasm echoed through him and he grunted with satisfaction, kissing her breast and sucking her nipple as he thrust his sex deep inside her as far as he could. Her muscles tightened around him and sent him off into his own ecstasy. He collapsed onto her moist, hot body. Mine. Their bodies joined and fused with moisture. He lay spent and exhausted for a while, unable or willing to move, but fearing he was crushing her, he lifted his body off a drowsy Ella. Kissing her neck and shoulder, he moved her on her side and pulled her against his body and tucked her into his chest. He draped his arm possessively over her abdomen and smoothed her satiny skin with his fingers. His breathing slowed as his hand trailed over her breast; the need to join with her again rose.
Ella lay on her side, her breathing low and slow. A contented sigh escaped her lips.
Discovering she was a virgin was a shock; he had not expected that. It should have made him stop immediately, but he couldn’t. Would she hate him? Had he hurt her? She had whimpered for a fleeting moment but after that, her moans and screams were not due to pain. He kissed her cheek and a smile stretched across her face. It thrilled him more than he was willing to admit; she was his and would always be his—wasn’t that what she said? A fierce need to possess her again swamped him. He had no right to such thoughts after he had told her he was not capable of being that man, but it seemed his heart and body were not willing to listen to his mind. Was he simply fooling himself? His hand stroked the sensitive and already damp area between her thighs and she whimpered. This was bad and yet, how could it be when it felt so absolutely right?
“Marcus, don’t stop. You’ve started an itch and I feel the same need you do. I need you, again.” She sighed, turning, and climbed on top of him to watch him through glazed eyes. Her hand skimmed the fine, dark hair on his abdomen and down toward his solid and very erect sex.
“Ella, we need a condom…”
She lifted her hand so that her fingers covered his mouth to stop him from speaking.
“Sh, we don’t need to. I get an injection for birth control, so the risks of getting pregnant are slim to none and a child has never been on my to-do list.” She moved her hand down and massaged his manhood. He groaned and dug his head back into the pillow as he let the pleasure consume him. Ella positioned herself just above his hard sex and plunged down, gasping at the friction and tightness that invaded her. She moaned and rocked back and forth, sitting astride him and clenching her tight insides.
But within seconds, he grabbed her wrists to stop her and rolled her over, keeping their bodies fused until he sat astride her, in control. Marcus liked her taking the first move, but if she carried on, he wouldn’t last long and he wanted to make this time last longer for both of them. He kissed away the frown on her lips.
“It would’ve been over in seconds, baby, the way you were behaving.”
She continued to frown and he lay over her, whispering in her ear, “You didn’t do anything bad—quite the opposite.” Ella squeezed her internal muscles and he kissed her lovely neck, sucking on the soft skin until it left a purplish mark that he licked with his tongue. Marcus raised his head, dug his hands on the mattress and thrust deep inside Ella, who grabbed his hips and pushed her body up to meet his forceful pushes. Lightness invaded him, like he’d never experienced ever; he laughed at their lovemaking because for the first time in his life, he felt whole. Gazing down at Ella, who smiled in a sleepy way, his rising orgasm rocketed and coiled around him, lifting him far away. Feeling the waves of her orgasm consume her, he stared deep into her eyes. Bliss, absolute bliss—and then he exploded, hurtling him into space.
A little while later, still joined, he reached for the only bedding he could find—a thin cotton sheet—and covered them. She snuggled against him; her arm stretched across his chest and his arm held her tight to his side. This wasn’t him. He wasn’t into cuddling and holding after sex. After sex, he made it clear he liked his space and usually asked the women to leave—only a few pretended to be annoyed; most merely complied—but his arm tightened possessively around Ella.
The afternoon slid into evening, and they continued taking it in turns to please and explore each other’s body so that Ella knew every part of Marcus’s body—all the scars and bullet wounds that had been patched up over the years, his tattoos, of which he had three. They laughed and talked whilst sipping on Champagne and dining on chocolate covered strawberries before falling asleep. As her eyes opened some time later, a fresh yearning for him started again. Would it ever stop?
As she reached her hand over where his body should be, Ella realized she was alone. Her body jerked and then fell back against the soft mattress. She smiled, remembering all the lovemaking they had shared. Her body trembled and ached in places she never imagined would get sore, but it was a delightful feeling. Her stomach fluttered as her fingers once again probed her delicate velvet folds, already moist with desire, and she closed her eyes. Yesterday, she could not think of anything except her need for Marcus; today, that sensation was easier to bear and her mind floated to the reason she was in Wales at all. She had to go to Tregowen House and see whether anyone there still knew something of the old ways. It was a long shot but at the same time, her instincts were calling her there.
A sudden dip in the mattress announced that Marcus was back. Ella opened her eyes, feasting on Marcus, who prowled over her and stared at her, fresh from the shower with his dark hair glistening blue-black from the water and totally naked. He covered his hand over hers and plunged deep inside her hot, m
oist core in a rhythmic routine she found hypnotic. But he stopped too soon and removed his hand, trailing it up toward her belly. He shook his head; beads of water fell between the soft peaks of her breasts and he lowered his head to lick the water. He left a blazing trail of heat as he continued his way down to her belly button, which he tongued. He pulled her hips up to meet his, pressing his arousal at her wet entrance and plunging inside.
“I know you must be sore, Ella, but watching you please yourself is too much to ignore. And God help me, but I have a craving only you can satisfy. See what a monster you have created.” With that, he thrust deeper into her depths; she lifted her bottom off the bed to meet his thrust and moaned as her orgasm reached its crescendo and took her over the edge. As the waves of her orgasm pulsed around him, he slowed his rhythm, loving the tightness and heat of Ella around him. He was amazed how well they fit together and how quickly she had learned what pleased her, and how to return the pleasure and then some. Never in his life had he ever been with such a generous woman. A passion rose inside himself and he thrust again and again.
“Deeper, deeper,” she pleaded and he did as instructed until they climaxed together and he collapsed in a heap on top of her. It would never be enough.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Marcus raised his head an inch off the pillow, opened his weary eyes and rubbed his face with both hands. He raised his arms high above his head, stretching like the cat that ate the canary. He cricked his neck from side to side and moved his legs. He was in excellent shape, having been in the SEALs, but having been in bed for nearly twenty-four hours, cramps plagued him. Their lovemaking had not been interrupted by anything; hell, they hadn’t even stopped to eat anything beyond the strawberries. When was the last time that he had utterly forgotten about his problems? The answer was simple. Never!