Rafe watched her face as she gently peeled back the ruined breeches and tossed them aside. A light blush tinged her cheeks, and her mouth rounded into a surprised O. He shivered from the heat of her stare. It was all he could do to remain still while she examined him for the first time. He was aching to feel her hands on him. He would have sold his soul to be able to roll her beneath him at that moment.
Eleta was both fascinated and terrified. She had never seen such a magnificent erection, and she began to doubt that it would fit inside her without significant discomfort if not outright pain. Nor had she ever had the opportunity to actually touch a live man’s cock. She realized that seeing pictures and watching while others fornicated had not totally prepared her for this moment. Still, knowing that Rafe was fully aroused and completely under her power left her feeling slightly light headed with exhilaration. She unconsciously licked her lips, and was surprised to hear Rafe give a pained groan.
She met his eyes once more and realized he had been watching her face the whole time. The fact that he cared about her reaction pleased her immensely. Knowing he wanted her gave her a huge boost of confidence. Her lips turned upward into a most beguiling smile. Just knowing that he wanted her wasn’t enough though. She wanted him to burn for her. It was time to fan the flames of his desire even higher.
“It’s not fair for you to be the only one who is naked,” she murmured huskily. She reached for the belt holding her robe in place but did not untie it. “Shall I get rid of this?”
She arched her brow in question once more. This time, Rafe realized she would not disrobe unless he asked her to. She wanted his consent. Once he gave it, he could no longer claim he wasn’t a willing participant. He swallowed hard and then nodded. Eleta rewarded him with a glowing smile.
Rafe watched in fascination as, ever so slowly, Eleta parted the front of her robe. Her hands seemed to move at a snail’s pace, torturing him as they took eons to nudge the clinging silk over her ivory shoulders and down over the upper swells of her sumptuous breasts. He had seen her naked already, but he was surprisingly frantic to see her once again. Inch by inch, she revealed the lustrous orbs. Rafe’s mouth began to water. Just when he thought the robe would finally reveal her treasures, she paused. He held his breath, praying for the flimsy silk to lose its tenuous hold over her nipples. Instead, the fabric hung suspended over those majestic peaks, clinging to the very tips of her breasts as if held there by magic. At long last, with the gentlest of tugs, it finally gave way, and Rafe sighed with relief as she let the robe slip all the way off her arms. The wispy garment fluttered unnoticed to the floor as Rafe devoured her with his eyes.
He was completely enthralled. He simply couldn’t get enough of the sight of her. She was so different from all who had come before. The feelings she inspired were unlike any he had experienced. He had known lust, desire, passion…but he had never felt devotion, tenderness, vulnerability. He struggled to breathe as he devoured her with his eyes.
His reaction was everything that Eleta had hoped for. She gave a husky chuckle and caught her bottom lip in her small white teeth. It was her turn to sit perfectly still while his eyes roamed over her breasts, waist, hips and thatch of hair with obvious lust. Her skin flushed and her breasts swelled beneath his fiery gaze. Her nipples ached for his touch and she could feel her pulse racing, but she let the moments stretch out to enhance his pleasure. She had never felt such feminine power. It was intoxicating! Slick moisture began to drip down her inner thighs.
When his eyes finally met hers once more, they smoldered. Eleta made the flames erupt when she enfolded his throbbing cock in her small hand for the first time. She stroked his massive length, tracing the throbbing veins and running her thumb over the head. She marveled that something as firm as oak could be wrapped in skin softer than silk. Tiny drops of fluid leaked from the dimpled hole on the end and she caught them on her finger. She brought her finger to her lips and snared his gaze as she sucked the entire digit into her mouth. They both groaned, and she closed her eyes to savor his musky essence on her tongue.
“Eleta please! I’m losing my mind,” he moaned softly.
Eleta set out to complete her conquest. Summoning all her knowledge, she crawled over him and straddled his waist. Her eyes dropped shut as she leaned down and kissed him. Rafe was helpless beneath the onslaught. As her tongue mated with his, he luxuriated in the feel of her draped atop him. Every inch of her heated velvety skin branded him. Her nipples were flaming hard nubs that rubbed tauntingly against his chest. Her scorching thighs straddled his waist, and her moist fiery sheath burned his belly. The scalding globes of her bottom rested on his painfully throbbing erection. Rafe felt as if the room were on fire and she were the source of the flames.
Their desires soared until they were both desperate. Breaking off from the kiss, Eleta sat up and snagged his gaze. He could see twinges of confusion in her beautiful sherry colored eyes.
“I want you inside me, but I’m frightened,” she admitted in a shaky whisper. “Will it be painful?”
Seeing her so uncertain when she had previously been so bold made Rafe’s heart melt. He felt a poignant wave of tenderness suffuse his chest. She had played the part of seductress so convincingly that he had completely forgotten that this was all new to her. He swallowed against the lump in his throat, and his voice was still thick with emotion when he answered her.
“There will be pain, my sweet. But it will be brief, and it will be followed only by pleasure. It will be pleasure like nothing you’ve ever known. I promise.”
He gave her a smile of encouragement and was gratified to see her lips curve upward in answer. She nodded her acceptance of his statement, took a deep breath and lifted onto her knees, balancing above his shaft. When her small hand closed around him, he shuddered. She moistened the broad tip of his shaft in her molten heat and then hesitated. It was all he could do to keep from thrusting upward into her softness.
“Take it slowly,” he instructed. He gasped and gritted his teeth as just the head of his cock slid into her slick channel. “Sweet merciful heaven,” he ground out. He closed his eyes to savour the sensation.“You are as wet as November and hotter than the flames of hell!”
Eleta surprised him with a throaty chuckle. “I take that to mean I should continue,” she teased with an impish grin.
Rafe opened his eyes and glared at her. “I would say so, unless it is your intention to kill me.”
His words were meant in jest, but they struck her straight in the heart. Her grin instantly vanished. Since the moment she had picked up the scissors, Eleta had forgotten all about her mission. She had been so caught up in enjoying their lovemaking that the harsh reminder came as a cruel shock.
Rafe noticed her abrupt change of mood, but he didn’t know what had caused it. He watched the flow of emotions across her beautiful features. Once again, he wondered what secrets she was holding, but at the moment, there were more pressing matters. He rocked his hips very gently, nudging slightly deeper inside her and calling her attention back to the task at hand.
Eleta gasped and met his pointed stare. “Ah, yes,” she breathed. “Sorry.”
She tugged at her bottom lip with her teeth as she sank further down. Rafe saw her wince, and she hesitated, once again uncertain. She took a breath and let it out on a sigh as she sank lower with a little wiggle of adjustment. He wished his hands were free so he could guide her. Instead, he helped her with his soothing voice as she sank down yet another notch. Not even half of him was inside her, and he knew the hardest part was yet to come.
“That’s it,” he encouraged. He craned his neck and watched as another inch pressed inside her. Her pink outer lips were stretched to accommodate him, and he trembled with need. He fought a desperate battle to restrain his urge to plunge up into her forcefully. He had to let her take her time. He didn’t want to cause more pain than absolutely necessary, but the slow pace of his penetration was torturous. His voice was a gravelly croak. “Keep going, lo
ve,” he coaxed. Another inch disappeared. She was clenched so tightly around him, he could barely breathe. “Just a little more,” he managed to groan. She sank down another inch, and he could feel the barrier of her maidenhead. His brow was coated in sweat when he met her worried gaze.
Rafe could read every emotion in Eleta’s intriguing sherry colored eyes. Fear, pain, hesitation, determination, and uncertainty all mingled there in the glowing depths. In the end, the two emotions that decided the issue were passion and courage, and they spurred her onward. She took a deep breath, lifted slightly and then plunged downward over his shaft, shredding the thin barrier of her maidenhead in one fell stroke. She didn’t stop until he was buried to the hilt inside her, and the tip of his broad staff butted against her womb. She gave a gasping sob of pain. He gave a heartfelt groan of relief. Their gazes locked and several moments passed with both of them remaining perfectly still except for their tortured breathing.
She was acutely aware of every solid inch of him filling her, stretching her, completing her. The look of wonder etched on her features was priceless, and Rafe knew he would never forget how she looked in that moment. His heart swelled with unexpected tenderness.
Eleta felt her body begin to ease around him, and when the pain had faded to a dull ache, she moved. Her movements were tentative at first, but they quickly became more confident. It didn’t take long before the urgency began to build, and she moaned low in her throat. She braced her small hands on his chest and began to ride him with deep, undulating strokes. She threw her head back in abandon, and her hair cascaded down her back and across his hips and thighs. Nothing had ever felt so wonderful! As her passion escalated further, so did the force of her thrusts. She pounded her hips onto his, conscious of an ever increasing ache in her loins. The hunger mounted until she could hardly breathe, and her strokes became frenzied. Nothing else mattered except trying to fill the void inside. She kept striving to reach the pinnacle, gripping his waist for balance as she rode ever higher.
Rafe could do nothing but lay beneath her and watch the transformation as she turned from maiden into woman before his eyes. She was glorious to behold. Her glowing skin was flushed with desire. Her long, thick hair shimmered in the sunlight and tickled his hips and thighs. Her breasts bounced violently with every thrust. He groaned at the sight of her glistening pink lips stretching to accommodate his broad staff. He was slick and shiny from her dew, and he watched as she took him deep inside her again and again and again. He savored the sight for as long as he could, trying not to drown beneath the relentless waves of pleasure she forced upon him. The fiery heat of her clasping him inside her body threatened to overwhelm him. Her inner muscles clutched at him greedily, and he gritted his teeth hoping desperately that she would find the summit soon. He couldn’t hold out much longer.
Eleta finally reached the peak and flung herself over, screaming with satisfaction as her fiery sheath clamped down around his shaft. Rafe was only a heartbeat behind her, and he roared with delight as he unleashed his seed. He had never felt such profound relief, and he shuddered violently beneath her. Eleta’s eyes flew open and she watched Rafe’s face as sweet release swept through him. His eyes were closed, and his features gradually relaxed from a pained grimace to peaceful contentment. She could feel hot waves of his seed showering the inner walls of her sheath, and her rhythmic contractions coaxed every precious drop of it into her womb. With every throbbing burst, she knew the prophecy was being fulfilled.
She blinked rapidly, and her throat ached with unshed tears. She wasn’t supposed to love this man. He was her enemy. She was merely doing her duty. In a week, she would kill him. Her country and her people were depending on her. She was the chosen one. She had no choice. She swallowed hard as the litany of everything she had been taught repeated in her head, knowing that all of that made no difference in the least.
She wasn’t supposed to love this man, but she did. With a forlorn sigh, she collapsed onto his chest. His heart was still pounding in his chest, and she pressed her cheek over the soothing sound. She lay there for long minutes, listening as his breathing gradually slowed and he fell deeply asleep. Careful not to wake him, she sat up once more. He was still inside her, and she was reluctant to lose that connection. Slowly, she eased him out of her body. Her eyes lovingly traced his features, so peaceful in repose. Her smile was wistful. She reached for the scissors and quietly snipped the velvet bands that held his wrists and ankles. His relaxation was so complete that he never roused. She cuddled once more onto his broad chest and sighed.
Eleta knew what she had to do. It didn’t matter how she felt about Rafe. She had to carry out the prophecy. Too many people were depending on her. The only thing she could do for him was to make the last few days of his life as pleasurable as possible. She would do everything in her power to please him. She would lavish him with enough love to last a lifetime. At least then, she might find some small semblance of peace in pleasant memories. With that plan fixed firmly in her mind, she sighed and quickly fell asleep.
*****
Rafe woke sometime in the afternoon to the sound of soft snores. He opened his eyes and realized the muffled sounds were coming from Eleta, and he grinned. She was lying on top of him sound asleep. Her limbs were draped over him in complete relaxation. She was dead to the world, and his grin broadened.
He marvelled at the deep sense of satisfaction he felt. He felt lethargic, as if his limbs were heavy, and he was floating on the surface of a calm sea. He had never experienced this bone deep contentment. Lovemaking had always left him feeling pleased and physically relieved. However, he was usually anxious to depart from a woman’s bed as soon as possible once the act had been completed. He had never before fallen asleep in a woman’s arms, and he could only assume he had been exhausted after days of pent up lust and subsequent nights of very little sleep. Still, it came as something of a shock to realize that he still didn’t feel inclined to leave Eleta’s bed. He wanted nothing other than to stay here in her arms indefinitely. That should have scared him, but it didn’t.
He thought back to just a few days prior when he had been dreading the prospect of deflowering a virgin. He had to suppress a chuckle at the memory. Claiming Eleta’s maidenhead had been anything but a hardship. In fact, he was already looking forward to their next encounter. He squelched the thought, as he felt blood starting to pump into his loins. Still, the fact that he wasn’t angry at Eleta for tying him to the bed and having her wicked way with him, despite his stated objections, came as a bit of a surprise to him. He should have been furious! He should have been ready to turn her over his knee and give her a sound spanking for what she had done! Yet surprisingly, he couldn’t muster even a small amount of anger or outrage. Instead, he felt only relief, contentment, and a pleasantly relaxed sexual satiation.
He puzzled over how his feelings could have changed so much in just a few short days. He had been terrified of surrendering control to her, but once he had, he had found a greater sense of bliss than he had ever experienced before. Somehow, he had known that Eleta was different from all those who had come before. His body had instinctively known from the beginning that she was unique. That was the only way to explain the instant and overwhelming attraction he had felt for her. The truly surprising part was that his heart was not very far behind. In just a short time, Eleta had begun to unlock the secret chambers of his heart to let his emotions fly free.
Eleta stirred slightly in her sleep, and he hugged her close to soothe her. His eyes widened as he suddenly realized that he was no longer bound. She had freed him in more ways than one. He grinned again and kissed the top of her head. His heart swelled with the first twinges of love. He frowned slightly, wondering if that was indeed what he was feeling at the moment. His memory skipped over all their interactions, and especially the images of her as she made love to him. The feelings of pride, gratitude, joy and wonder were all easily identified. But there was something more. He had never felt such fierce protectivenes
s or such an overriding desire for someone else’s fulfillment. He had never put someone else’s needs above his own. Could that be love, he wondered?
Eleta squirmed restlessly once more, and he knew she must be getting cold. The fire had burned down to embers, and the room was distinctly chilly. Rafe rolled her gently onto her side and reached for the quilts. She began to rouse, but he tucked the covers around her and kissed her on the forehead. She snuggled deeper into the mattress and slipped back into sleep.
Rafe gently eased from the bed and walked as quietly as possible to the fireplace. He winced at the rattle of the chain, but Eleta didn’t react to the soft clinking noises. Rafe added several logs, and stoked the fire back to life. He stretched and stood for a few moments staring down into the flames. He marvelled at how quickly his feelings had changed. He had adamantly resisted his desires, but now that they had become lovers, he could barely remember any of the reasons for his resistance. Now, everything had changed.
He understood the profound changes that had been wrought by their lovemaking, but he wasn’t sure that Eleta did. For him, things could never go back to the way they had been. She seemed to think that Rafe would be her first lover, and then she would proceed to marry another man. That simply wasn’t going to happen. She had given her body to him, and he had accepted her offering. It was that simple, at least in his mind. Eleta also seemed to believe that Rafe could view her as just another conquest, someone he could make love to and then move on. He had warned her that she could never be just one more casual lover to him. She would have to change her thinking. He would ensure she did.
The question in his mind was how best to proceed. Rafe knew Eleta was harboring many secrets. He needed to know what those secrets were in order to navigate the tricky waters they now found themselves in. It was up to him to steer them onto a new course, a course that would ultimately result in him becoming her husband. He wouldn’t settle for any other outcome. He recognized and accepted that she was the woman he needed, the woman he had been searching for his entire life, and he wasn’t prepared to let her go. Ever. Their ultimate destiny was clear to him. How to convince Eleta of that and how to get them to the altar was not yet clear. The one thing that was clear though was that he would not rest until she made the ultimate commitment and became his wife.
The Fall of The Wolf (Historical Romance) Page 13