Ashayla swallowed thickly. She lifted her eyes after a long moment and found him watching her intently. Heaven help her, she could barely breathe from the power the sight of him stirred in her.
Panicked, she tore her gaze away. Her voice was little more than a croak as she swiftly gave him her back. “Do you always parade around naked like that?”
“When I’m fresh out of the shower, yes. Do you always blush like a virgin when you see a naked man?”
There was humor in his voice. And, curse the Incubus, enough masculine pride for ten men—none of it misplaced.
“I’m not a virgin,” she replied, feeling oddly indignant that he would suggest she behaved like one. “It’s just that I’ve never seen…never been with…”
“Never been with an Incubus?” He grunted, sounding surprised. Sounding pleased. “Don’t worry, I’ll do my best to make it memorable for you. Especially now that I know the reputation of my entire species is at stake.”
Even though the thought of Sorin doing his carnal best with her sent anticipation spiraling through her, Ashayla barked out a caustic laugh. She swung back around to face him. “Are you this confident in everything you do?”
“Yes.” His topaz eyes gleamed under his arched brows. He dropped the towel and stalked toward her.
Oh, God.
Ashayla held her breath as he came up close, his nudity impossible to ignore when she could feel the heat of his bare skin radiating through the barrier of her clothing. Without warning, he reached around and freed her hair from its ponytail at her nape. Then he gently took her face in his hands and kissed her. His mouth brushed over hers, soft but firm, commanding.
She wanted to resist. She wanted to be strong, but his tenderness undid her. She gave in on a moan, telling herself she could have this moment of pleasure without forfeiting the bigger prize.
She would be strong later. Right now, she was melting…and utterly lost to the taste of his kiss.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and parted her lips for his questing tongue. His erection was massive against her abdomen, as hard and unyielding as granite, but hot and enticing. Calling to everything female inside her.
She could hear his heartbeat galloping, feel it throbbing against her breasts as her own heart banged against her ribs in a similar tempo. He swore something ancient and profane, his voice rough with desire, his warm breath skating across her chin and cheeks with every searing exhalation.
Fire licked through her veins as he continued his erotic assault on her senses, need pooling deep within her core. He was right; she wanted him. She desired him with a wild yearning she could scarcely reconcile.
Wager to lose or not, in that moment, if he’d taken things any further, she would have been powerless to refuse him.
The depth of her arousal swamped her, so much that she hardly noticed he’d paused until she heard his low, rumbling growl. His voice vibrated against her parted lips, sending a shiver of electricity into her veins. “It’s time, Asha.”
When she drew back, feeling a sudden spike of uncertainty—of dread for what she might surrender to him—Sorin’s blazing topaz eyes darkened with merciless intent.
“We made a deal,” he murmured thickly. “And I want you in my bed now.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
He was so racked with desire for her, it was all Sorin could do not to tear off Ashayla’s clothes right where she stood.
She might not have resisted. The way she kissed him just now left little doubt that all of her protests and denials were nothing more than words. Flimsy words she hadn’t so much as attempted to voice when she’d wrapped her arms around him on that erotic little mewl of rising need.
Sorin was Incubus, but even had he been born a mortal man, the sweet scent of her arousal would not have escaped his notice. She wanted him. She was wet for him, after just one fevered kiss. He knew it, and the awareness of that fact turned his stiff cock to granite. His blood was surging through his veins, drumming with the demands of his demon nature.
Take her. Give her the pleasure she craves.
Claim the price she agreed to pay.
But the terms they’d struck earlier tonight left no room for interpretation. Sorin said he would only have her if she willed it. No tricks, no games. No coercion of any kind.
He’d promised to have her begging for him to be inside her, and as much as he wanted to break that pledge right now, he wouldn’t. He wasn’t accustomed to refusing his demonic nature, but this female had pushed him to do many things outside his norm tonight.
On a low, rolling growl, he reined in his hunger for her.
Barely.
Sorin took her hand and led her out to his bed. Only now did he feel a slight resistance in her. Where her fingers rested against his large palm, they tensed. The sudden lurch of her pulse made him pause beside the king-sized four-poster and turn to face her. “We had a deal, Asha. You, in my bed. For the night.”
She drew in a shallow breath and her eyes traveled down the length of his nude body, lingering the most on his jutting cock. “You said you wouldn’t—”
“And I won’t,” he finished for her. “Not unless—and until—you tell me that’s what you want. Me, inside you. I won’t lie and tell you it’s not what I want.” He chuckled ruefully, indicating his aroused state. “I guess that’s more than a little obvious.”
“No, there’s nothing little about it,” she murmured, and to his astonishment a glint of wry humor sparked in her indigo eyes.
He smiled, much too pleased by her appraisal. “Get undressed, Asha.”
“Undressed?” She said the word as if he’d just asked her to shave off her eyebrows. “That was never mentioned as part of this arrangement.”
Sorin shrugged. “I don’t go to bed with clothing on. Tonight, neither will you.” He tilted his head at her. “I can help you, if you wish.”
“No.” She gave a shake of her head, her loose platinum hair sifting around her shoulders. “No, I’ll do it myself, thanks. I think I’ll be better off keeping you at arm’s length.”
“It’ll be difficult to do that when you’re lying up against me all night. “ He smirked and took a seat on the mattress. “Or beneath me.”
Her cheeks flushed a delectable shade of pink. “We’ll see about that.”
“Yes, we will.” He nodded toward her with his chin. “Now, take them off, Asha.”
“Are you going to sit there and watch me?”
He grinned. “Yes, I am.”
For a moment, she didn’t move. Just stared at him in quiet contemplation. He wondered if she would refuse his command. In truth, she could have. This wasn’t part of their deal, disrobing in front of his greedy gaze.
But instead of crying foul or hiding in the other room to protect her modesty, Asha bent over to unzip one of her tall, black leather boots, holding his level stare with one of her own. Courageous. Defiant.
Sexy as hell.
With a soft rasp of the zipper’s tiny metal teeth, she took off one spiked boot, then the other.
Sorin admired the way her breasts swayed and swelled with her movements, the deep vee of creamy skin and cleavage making him yearn to put his mouth on her. His hands too.
Would her nipples be cherry red like her lips, or pale peach like the blush that still rode on the apples of her cheeks? He couldn’t wait to find out.
His cock leapt in agreement as she straightened and began to unfasten her long-sleeved black top. One by one, the tiny buttons holding it together in the front fell away. Beneath it, she wore a black satin-and-lace bra that made his teeth ache with the urge to lunge off the bed and chew through its delicate clasp so he could taste her without delay.
No force, he reminded himself sternly. No taking what she hadn’t given him, so he clamped down on his desire and searched for patience.
It wasn’t easy.
No, in fact, it was the hardest damned thing in the world to refrain from pouncing on her like the libidinous Incubus he was.
Ashayla glanced at him as the last button popped free, baring her chest and torso to his fevered gaze. Her waist was an hourglass, trim but curvy, flawlessly pale and smooth.
Sorin’s mouth watered. His cock throbbed, standing at full attention as he waited for her to continue. She unzipped her form-hugging black pants, pushing them over the generous flare of her hips. More black satin and lace tempted him here as well, in the form of skimpy bikini panties that that barely covered her sex.
Lust slammed into him as he watched her step out of her pants and stand before him with just those two scraps of fabric concealing her from his hungered eyes. He met her gaze, unable to hide his appreciation for her form.
“You’re stunning, Asha.” His voice scraped out of him like gravel. “But don’t stop there. Please, keep going.”
She exhaled a shaky breath, but kept her attention locked on him as she reached between her breasts and popped the clasp on her bra. The satin parted, then fell away completely as she slowly shrugged the straps off her shoulders and down her arms. She let the bra drop to the floor with the rest of her clothing, then lowered her hands to her sides.
“Peach,” he mused thickly, admiring the perfection of her breasts. His cock was on the verge of exploding and he hadn’t even touched her yet. He hadn’t tasted her body yet, or her release. “The panties too, Asha.”
As she peeled the lacy black fabric off, Sorin had to fist his hands in the sheets on either side of him to keep from reaching down to stroke away some of the painful tension from his cock.
Holy hell. What kind of idiot had he been to vow he wouldn’t push her into making love with him? That he would hold himself back until she was begging for him?
All of his boasts incinerated to ash as he drank in the sight of her nudity.
This female owned a piece of him whether she knew it or not. Her letters over those many months had made him curious about her, but it was the woman who strode into his casino tonight who’d captivated him the way no other had before.
She’d challenged him, confounded him. Defied him and denied him.
And now, if she didn’t let him touch her, taste her—fuck her—in the next few moments, he would be the one reduced to begging.
On a groan, he swung his legs up onto the mattress, sweeping aside the sheet and coverlet to make room for her beside him. He held out his other hand to her. “Come to bed, Asha.”
He didn’t know whether to feel relief or regret when she stepped forward and placed her fingers in his open palm.
~
It should feel strange, standing naked in front of Sorin with nowhere to hide. Nowhere to escape his searing, seductive stare.
It should feel dangerous, seeing this powerful Incubus Master waiting for her on the bed. Immense. Fully aroused. Every hard inch of his tempting body sculpted of inhuman strength and dark, carnal intent.
It should feel wrong, taking his outstretched hand, walking toward him willingly, eagerly. So swamped with desire, her heart was running at a gallop, threatening to burst.
It did feel strange.
God help her, it did feel dangerous too.
But when she looked at Sorin, when she held his hooded, hungry eyes and let him guide her onto the bed with him, nothing about it felt wrong.
And that was the thing that terrified her most.
He’d been right—she did want him. Right now, she couldn’t think of anything she wanted more.
No. Not true. Ashayla mentally shook herself out of the daze of her desire.
There was something she wanted more. Something she needed even more than the pleasure that waited for her in Sorin’s arms.
The pendant.
The peace and happiness it would bring Gran to know that it was finally returned to the family before she passed.
Which meant giving in to the desire Sorin ignited in her was not going to happen.
“So beautiful,” he murmured, cradling the side of her face in one broad palm while his other hand skimmed down the front of her, coaxing her to lie down beside him. His gaze was tender on her, but his grin was pure Incubus. “I’ve held a lot of priceless things, but never anything as lovely as you, Asha.”
His remark hit her like a splash of cold water. A much-needed one.
“No.” The word wrenched out of her on a moan as she bolted upright. It would be so easy to surrender to him, but she couldn’t. She would not fail tonight, no matter how difficult he made it to deny her own feelings. “No, this isn’t happening.”
She scrambled out of his arms and into the center of the big mattress, pulling the edge of the sheet along with her and holding it up to her breast like a shield.
Sorin came up on one elbow, frowning. “What’s the matter? Where are you going?”
“This is the matter,” she said, gesturing to the space between them. “I agreed to spend the night in your bed, Sorin. I even agreed to do it without my clothes on, which, for the record, was a totally Incubus way to bend the rules even further in your favor.”
His grin held no remorse. “You could’ve refused at any point. Don’t pretend you didn’t know what you were getting into when you took me on tonight.”
Oh, she knew. What she hadn’t been prepared for was the way he managed to touch more than just her body or her desire.
She wanted him with a need she could hardly resist, but even worse than that, she realized she genuinely liked him. She wanted to know more about him, more about his family and his life. She wanted to know everything about him.
After just a few hours in his company, she was beginning to care for him deeply.
She couldn’t wait for morning so she could walk out of Ebarron’s treasure room with her prize, yet there was a part of her that knew she was going to remember this night for the rest of her life.
There was a part of her that already regretted everything that could never be between them.
“Come.” He reached out to her. His deep voice was coaxing, but there was unspoken command in his heated gaze. “You can’t sit there all night, Asha.”
“Maybe I will.” She forced a shrug. “Technically, I am still in bed.”
One tawny brow winged up. “Now who’s bending the rules?”
“It’s called compromise, Sorin. Ever hear of it?”
He grunted. “I lead. Others follow. That’s how I prefer it.”
“Arrogant man,” she chided with a roll of her eyes. “It’s good this arrangement is only for one night. Any longer and all you and I would do is lock horns.”
“Oh, I promise that’s not all we’d do.” He leaned back against the headboard, thighs loosely parted, all of his muscles and masculinity on full display.
Ashayla had to wrench her gaze away from him. All she wanted to do was lie down next to him again and feel his strong arms wrapped around her.
She wanted to feel that large, powerful body pressed against the length of her as he thrust inside her, filling the hot ache that hadn’t abated since their kiss.
No, it had only intensified the longer she was with him. Near enough to touch. Near enough to inhale his unearthly scent of spice and power and sin. All of which made her hungry to taste him.
As if he followed the line of her thinking, he made a deep, raw sound in the back of his throat. Ashayla licked her lips, and he was in motion even faster than she could register his movements.
He pulled her back down onto the bed beside him, at the same time smoothly rolling himself up onto his arms so he was covering her. Face to face. His warm, solid chest against her soft, sensitive breasts. His heavy hips pressing into the tops of her thighs. She felt his rigid cock too, the searing, powerful length of it nestled against her mound.
Ashayla panted beneath his weight, beneath the blazing intensity of his heavy-lidded gaze. Her pulse banged against her ribcage, not out of fear or resistance, but out of complete and consuming need.
Without warning, he bent down and took her mouth in a fierce, hot kiss. His tongue pushed past her
lips on a moan, sweeping inside to tangle with hers. Lust ignited inside her like a wildfire, singeing all of her nerve endings. While lower, all she knew was a wet, demanding ache to be filled by this man. This Incubus. This incredible male.
He released her mouth on a snarled curse, looming above her like the demon he was.
God, he was so handsome. So heartbreakingly, hellishly beautiful. And he was hers.
In that moment, with nothing but heated, naked skin between them, Sorin, the forbidding Master of Ebarron, belonged to her.
As she belonged to him.
“Say it,” he rasped. “I need to hear the words, Asha.”
She closed her eyes, tried to look away so he wouldn’t see how raw her need was, but he brought her gaze back to him with his fingers resting gently below her chin.
“You know our deal, Asha. Tell me you want this—that you want me inside you—or push me away now.”
“Sorin…” She could do neither. What little resistance she’d had was long since evaporated. But her determination to make it through the night without giving in to him, without losing their damnable wager, kept the truth from falling off her tongue.
She wanted this, yes.
She wanted him inside her so keenly it hurt.
But the price was too high. His price, the one he placed on their time together. She knew she was as much to blame for where they had ended up now. After all, she’d been the one to seek him out with the intent to take what he hadn’t been willing to give her.
Part of her wished he would use his Incubus allure to put her under his thrall. At least then she’d have someplace to hang her guilt when she returned to Gran empty-handed.
But Sorin was more honorable than that. If she’d doubted it at any time tonight, she saw him demonstrate that honor now, in the way he held her so tenderly, patiently, even while his entire body was hard and straining with lust.
“Say it,” he whispered fiercely, his lips brushing against hers as he spoke. His mouth trailed down her chin, then along the sensitive line of her jaw, sending electricity arcing into her veins. His breath skated against the shell of her ear. “Give me the words, Asha. Leave neither of us any room for doubt.”
Masters of Seduction Volume 2: Books 5-8: Paranormal Romance Box Set Page 6