“Enough, Lena.” He gently took her hand and kissed each of her fingers before pressing it against his chest and covering it with his. Warmth seeped into her cold fingers. “The past cannot be changed.”
“No, it can’t but—”
“But my seed has marked your womb. My scent is a part of you. And…” He lowered his head and exhaled a warm breath of air over her scarred shoulder. Her inner muscles quivered. “My claim is seared into your skin.”
She hadn’t even thought about the significance of having unprotected sex with a shifter. Neither Rick nor Vader had ever questioned her insistence on using condoms.
Good. My seed will be the first and last you’ll ever take, love.
Jesus, he’d made it clear with that one statement what taking him into her body meant. She’d just been too damn horny to realize it.
She pulled her hand free. “And if I want to take another lover, you’ll fight me, won’t you?”
He snarled and she scrambled away from him.
Guess that was her answer. It just gave her another reason to regret fucking him.
A sharp pain stabbed her chest. She pressed a balled fist to the aching spot.
“Dammit, Lena, don’t be afraid of me. I hate seeing fear in your eyes.”
She released a shaky breath, forced herself to calm down. Another controlled inhale and release and the scent of the forest filled her lungs. The stinging sensation centered in her torso eased. She focused on him. “I’m not. You startled me.”
A muscle ticced in his jaw. “Don’t lie to me. I smell your anxiety.”
“Of course, I’m anxious. I’m worried about Gwen and Molly.”
He reached out before she could step away. With her wrist grasped in his hand, he dragged her close until he held her flush against his body. The hard length of his erection pressed into her belly and the delicious warmth of his skin heated her cheek.
The unexplainable contentment returned, the same feeling she’d woken with the first time in his arms. The rightness didn’t make sense. She’d turned off her emotions where men were concerned after Rick had left her high and dry with a church full of well-wishers.
She’d tried letting Vader into her heart but he too had ruined the emotion she’d let surface. Both experiences had taught her one thing—men weren’t worth the trouble. She’d made peace with her decision to remain single. So what was it about Devin that made her consider throwing out those long-held beliefs? It certainly wasn’t his wonderful opinions concerning women.
He pressed his palm over her lower back, right at the dip above her butt. She swallowed the sigh that wanted to escape, but couldn’t stop the relaxed sound when he nuzzled his chin against the top of her head.
“If you’re worried about your sisters, then why did you lie about where they are?”
No animosity or hint of accusation laced into the question. Only curiosity. She answered truthfully. “After your rant about owning me, I didn’t trust your claim that you valued your women.” She tipped her head back and glared at him. “I still don’t and I refuse to expose Molly to an environment that condones any form of slavery, even one where the excuse to control her is based on some twisted form of love.”
A growl rumbled his chest but the hands holding her close remained gentle, tender, even with the way he rubbed his thumb over the base of her spine.
“You trust Vader though.”
She pushed against his chest until he relaxed his grip enough to allow her to lean back and meet his yellow kitty eyes. God, I love his eyes. The thought came out of nowhere. No denying it. She did. Hell, she loved everything about his perfect body. It was just his attitude that made her see red.
She blew out a breath, focused on answering him, not thinking about how sexy he’d looked while their bodies were joined in passion. “To a point. I don’t think Vader would ever hurt me, if that’s what you’re asking.”
She regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth. Jealousy and hurt darkened his eyes, made his grip tighten on her hips. Not hurting, but the firmness betrayed his tension.
“Exactly how close are the two of you?”
She gave him a warning look. “Don’t even go there and if you start giving me that ‘I own you crap’ you might as well turn around and head out that door because I don’t want any part of it.”
He clenched his jaw. “Fine, but I’m possessive of you. I understand that’s not a behavior you’re accustomed to. It’s not something I can just turn off.”
“And you need to understand I’m not a shifter and won’t act like one of your females.”
His thumb traced her jaw from ear to chin before rubbing along her bottom lip. “I know, and it confuses me. I’ve never interacted with human females more than was necessary to get them in my bed. I don’t know how to handle you.”
He continued to caress her mouth, a slow seductive swipe that made her legs weaken. If he kept touching her, she’d forget why climbing into bed with him again was a bad idea. She nipped at his finger. He groaned. Hunger flashed in his eyes. It spiked hers but she latched on to her annoyance.
“I am not something you need to handle. You’re the one insisting you want to stay close to me, not the other way around. If you don’t like how I act, you can walk away.”
Instead of being irritated with her little speech, lust hazed his eyes. She’d noticed his reaction before. He got aroused when she yelled at him. How was her protective method supposed to work when it had the opposite reaction than she expected?
He bent her backward with a firm tug on her hair and followed her down as he leaned over her prone body. He licked her cheek before rubbing against it.
“I like, Lena. I like.”
The seductive whisper against her ear sped her pulse. She gripped his biceps and the sensation of hard muscles under her fingers ignited her passion. She might not appreciate his claim over her but she wanted him. And he knew it. He flicked his tongue over the hickey he’d left on her throat. She moaned.
“Yeah, like that sound too,” he murmured before his mouth latched over the spot.
He nipped at the sensitive flesh then sucked. She arched into his hold. Hickeys weren’t something many twenty-six-year-old women boasted but she’d always loved them. There was something so primal about wearing the evidence of a man’s passion.
He released her neck and nibbled his way to her ear.
“Devin, you shouldn’t do that.”
A flick of his tongue to her skin and she whimpered. He captured her tender lobe between his teeth and tugged. A shudder ran through her body. More arousal flowed to coat her lower lips. The sensation of wetness grew uncomfortable with her drenched thong pressed against her cleft.
“Why?”
His whispered question sounded more intimate than it should have. She panted while she tried to tamp down her lust. “Because I bruise easily. I’ll be wearing that hickey for a long time, and hickeys are so…”
“Sexy.” He brushed the tender skin with his lips. A shiver ran down her spine. “I like seeing my mark on you. Males will know you’re taken when they see it.”
“Isn’t that what the bite on my shoulder means?”
He backed them up until the bed pressed against her legs. “Uh-huh but humans won’t know the significance of it. The hickey is something they’ll understand.”
“What they’ll think is that I’m easy. The only women my age who walk around with hickeys on their necks are sluts,” she explained, remembering his confession that he hadn’t spent much time around humans.
He gave her one of those confused frowns that stoked the flames of arousal being near him lit. It also tugged at her heart and hinted at the man behind the possessive tirade he’d displayed in the other room. It tempted her to uncover the hidden facets of Devin’s personality.
“But you liked it.”
“Yes.” She laughed, the breathless sound a giveaway of her wavering emotions. “But I don’t like to have them visible.”
His fingertips feathered the edges of the bruise. “Will you let me mark you in other places?”
She shuddered as she imagined how good it’d feel to have him suck on the more sensitive parts of her body. She shook her head to clear it of those lusty thoughts. For once they were talking, not fighting or trying to race toward an orgasm. She didn’t want to waste her chance to gain some insight on the man who seemed so determined to hold her close.
“I don’t understand why you want to be with me. Is it some kind of game for you?”
He tilted his head slightly to the side and studied her with half-lidded eyes. “This isn’t a game. I meant what I said. We are not over. We won’t ever be.”
She turned her head and his fingertip trailed over her cheek. “We are not a couple.”
“But we could be. I…I’d like to get to know you. You know, see where this goes.”
With gentle hands, he urged her to kneel on the bed then climbed up with her so they were facing each other, his hands on her hips, hers on his shoulders. Slowly, he bent his head to hers. The cautious approach made her breath come in fast pants.
“Will you give me another chance, angel?”
She held her breath and studied him. He watched her patiently with a look of hunger and reverence on his face. Another chance. God, she wanted to be loved. Taking a leap, she nodded.
“Good because I need to kiss you, baby. Need it so bad.”
He pressed his lips against hers. She opened to him and he slipped inside. The tenderness he showed her with the slow, gentle strokes drained the tension from her limbs. Over and over, he kissed her until she gave herself to him, submitting to his demands. She arched closer. Tightening his hold, he skimmed his hands over her back, up sides, then down to her bottom to mold her butt cheeks before repeating the exploration. His movements grew frantic, his caresses firmed and nails dented her tender flesh.
A tug slammed their bodies flush against each other. He swallowed her gasp and shoved a growl down her throat. Vibrations traveled from him to her. She moaned and clutched at his hair, his back, anything she could grab hold of. Never had a man worshipped her so completely but this raw melding of mouths was fast becoming necessary. It had only been hours since she’d been in his embrace. Felt longer. Too long.
She wrapped her arms around his neck. Her back met the mattress and she relished the weight of his body pinning hers down, the thick ridge of his erection pressed against her thigh. Now that she was where he wanted her—flat on her back—she expected him to attack her senses, seduce her with more frantic caresses so she was too crazed to resist him. He didn’t. He revered her with each gentle touch, the featherlight strokes of his fingertips along the length of her hickey-covered neck conveying his adoration.
In this moment, she felt special. Desired and wanted. She widened her legs, inviting him to take what he wanted from her. He settled in the space she made without breaking the drugging, sensual kiss and rolled his hips. His hard member pressed against her jeans-covered mound and rubbed her clit, exciting her more. She countered his dance until they were grinding against each other in a mimic of sex.
He brushed his knuckles against the edge of her breast on the slow, downward journey. She tensed but he continued the sweeping caress, running his long fingers down her belly to grip the hem of her shirt. She sucked in a breath, wants and fears making her heart race. She sensed his intent and hated how this moment always ruined sex. The insecurity she’d had since high school never left her. It started when her first boyfriend had dumped her for a well-endowed cheerleader and grew with each walking sex toy Vader paraded in front of her.
She hated the self-doubt but when all the men she cared about left her, she didn’t have enough self-esteem to battle her personal inner demons. It seemed easier to let them lie rather than poke at them.
Her regular lovers knew the drill when it came to her chest—look or not, but don’t touch. Devin wasn’t a regular lover and nothing about him fit into her rulebook.
She grabbed his hand. “Don’t. Leave my shirt on.”
He frowned. “Why? I’ve already seen you naked.”
She had no comeback. All she had was the truth. She gave it to him. “I don’t like them touched.”
Anger flashed in his eyes. He closed them before she could decide if he didn’t appreciate her refusal or if it was something else. Maybe something that would make her heart flip over.
“Is that why you stopped me last time?”
She nodded and he bent his head, capturing her lips once more. He kissed her slowly, over and over until her hand fell away from his wrist. Once free, he slipped his fingers under her shirt. She squirmed but with his hips holding her in place and his mouth plundering hers, she had no hope of stopping him.
He toyed with the edge of her bra a moment before the fabric jerked. She groaned, the sound muffled by his mouth over hers. He skimmed his fingertips over her sensitive flesh. She shivered as the tingles from the slight touch spread across her skin. With the edge of one roughened finger, he circled her nipple once, twice before flicking the hardened tip. She arched into him, the sensation shocking her. Ever so gently, he massaged her breast and manipulated the erect peak, rolling, tugging and squeezing the bud until she trembled.
Releasing her, he yanked at her tee, a silent demand for more. She hesitated but the heat in Devin’s eyes forced her to comply. She raised her arms for him. The shirt went sailing across the room. She automatically slid her hands over her breasts.
“Don’t hide them, baby.”
She shook her head.
He covered her hands so they were both cradling their slight weights. He tried to uncover them, she resisted. He arched a brow.
“They’re small,” she squeaked.
A frown on his face, he lifted her hands exposing her chest and countered, “They’re beautiful.”
She nearly laughed at the ridiculousness of his words. The desire hazing his eyes stopped her. With her breath caught in her throat, she watched him lower his mouth to one tender breast. A flick of his tongue and she arched her back, offering herself to him. He laved the nipple with unhurried swipes of his flattened tongue until the tip stood erect. The sensitivity left her wriggling to escape his wicked mouth.
She grabbed a fistful of hair and tugged. “Stop that.”
Without lifting his head, he raised his gaze to hers so he stared at her through a few wayward strands of colorful hair. The long lashes surrounding those vibrant yellow orbs should’ve made him look feminine. They didn’t. The harsh cut to his cheekbones and the animalistic hunger reflected in his eyes depicted his true nature. Dear god, seeing it turned her on as quickly as it had the last time they were in bed together.
“No,” he said simply.
He latched his mouth over the slight swell and sucked hard, the sensation tugging on her clit. She gasped, her hand covering her mouth instead of her other breast to hold in the pleasured sounds. More licks from his talented tongue and the slow grind of his hips added to the stimulation. Whimpers fell from her mouth.
Since she’d always ignored her breasts, she’d never experienced this. Under Devin’s direction, her body hummed. He pushed her closer to the edge. For a moment, she thought she’d actually orgasm from his focused attentions, but he released her and quickly undid the buttons on her shorts. He made no move to take them off. Instead, he rubbed his cheek against her chest.
“They’re perfect.”
“They’re still small.” Her voice shook and the urge to scramble for her shirt was strong. She ignored the compulsion. With the proof of his approval pressed hard against her leg and the desire husking his voice, she couldn’t deny his sincerity.
She sifted through the strands of his hair, fisting a handful to direct his lips back to hers. His groan rolled through her and the wicked way he took her mouth left her breathless. He smoothed a hand down her side again to rest over the edge of her shorts and flexed his fingers, the gentle massage at odds with the untamed kiss.
After a moment, he slid them around to her lower back and under the waistband. Cupping her bottom, he molded the cheek, teased the seam of her backside then delved lower.
He dipped his fingertips into her cream, growling against her mouth, the sound so primal and rough, she trembled. He yanked his hand out. With a rough tug on her shorts, he jerked them down until the material hung around her knees, not bothering to pull them off completely. The barrier gone, he plunged his fingers deep inside her sheath.
He captured her mouth again while thrusting the two digits into her, the sounds of wetness proof of how much he affected her. The squishing noises embarrassed her but obviously excited Devin. Short fangs filled his mouth. The sharp edges cut her tongue as he tried to crawl inside. The bite of pain added to the physical stimulation of his prodding fingers. It flipped a switch inside her. She suddenly felt as desperate as the man directing her pleasure. She needed this. Him. She widened her legs as far as her shorts would allow and fucked his hand.
“Lena.” The rawness of his rough voice slithered down her spine and spilled more nectar to coat his digits. He plunged a third finger into her core. “Come for me.”
And she did. She gasped his name, the best she could do when her body seized tight. Waves of pleasure rolled through her from the mark on her shoulder down to her toes. Darkness followed and she fell, too sated to fight it.
Devin left his fingers inside his Lena’s tight sheath to enjoy the last ripples of her orgasm. With his face buried in her hair, her fragrance surrounded him, the evidence of her passion enhancing it. He swept his tongue along the recess of his mouth so as to enjoy her taste for as long as he could.
Shifting to the side, he reluctantly removed his hand and licked it, her cream a delicious combination of sweetness and musk. His cock jerked in his pants. Pre-cum leaked from the tip and glued the cloth of his shorts to it. He’d barely managed to hold his orgasm back when Lena came, the compulsion to join her nearly impossible to ignore. The only thing stopping him was his desire to see to his female’s needs first. Well, that and he wanted her spasming sheath to pull his seed free.
Beautiful Mistake: 2 (Royal Pride) Page 20