Her heart skipped a beat at that, then began racing in her chest. “Trick—”
“Nay. Hear me out.” He tossed his head, clearing the hair from his eyes, and his arms tightened around her middle, arching her back, bringing her hips snug against him.
She could feel how much he wanted her.
“I’m done expecting you to beg,” he said low. “I still want to take you, but I can wait until you’re ready. In the meantime, there are other ways we can pleasure each other, without me entering your body.”
She flinched at the frank words, the mental picture. But relief flowed through her veins. And the idea he proposed was intriguing.
“What sorts of ways?”
“I’ll show you, lass.” His eyes darkened. “Like this.”
Her pulse skittered as he moved his hands to her shoulders, then eased her back until she tumbled onto the bed. He came down over her, settling his weight on his elbows. Against her melting softness, his body felt warm and hard as his lips descended to meet hers.
With calculated skill, he kissed her breathless. Senseless. Her world tilted when he rolled to his side and began tracing his fingertips along her heated skin.
“Like this,leannan,” he murmured huskily. “We can make each other happy like this.” And his mouth followed where his fingers had gone, over her breasts and down her arms and across her waist in a warm, damp dance.
She heard little moans, and they were hers. She reached for his shoulders, tracing her fingers in a way that mimicked his, trying to pull him up so she could touch more of his body.
He raised his head, his breath warm against her belly. “No, lass. Tonight just feel. Lie back and feel what I can do for you.” As he talked, his hands caressed their way up her sides. “Then tomorrow,” he said, “tomorrow, you’ll learn what to do for me.” He flicked his thumbs over her nipples, and a jolt of excitement streaked through her. “This can be good for us both.”
Rich as velvet, his voice was a sensuous promise, a heady invitation that made her emotions whirl. And while she was still reacting to that, he lifted her knees and moved between them.
He kissed and licked and bit the tender skin of her inner thighs, and her fists clenched, bunching the sheets in her hands. A little cry escaped her lips when his tongue traced the crease where her legs met her body. Then it plunged into that place that was hot and aching, and she let out a gasp of stunned pleasure.
Something was happening to her—something confusing and marvelous. As his tongue continued a rhythmic, sensual assault, every nerve in her body came alight with fiery sensations, sprinting throughout her until she thought she would scream unless something happened—
She exploded, convulsing in wave after wave of pleasure so intense it was almost beyond bearing.
It seemed a long while before she could think straight, before Trick made his way up her body to place one last, gentle kiss on her lips.
“Tomorrow . . .” she whispered.
“Tomorrow is another day,” he said. “And together we can make it a wonderful one.”
“Wonderful,” she breathed, meaning the glory of what had just happened.
“I know.” A smile of pure male pride curved his lips. “Now sleep,leannan.”
She inhaled deep of his distinctive scent, and another scent that was new to her, the seductive fragrance of spent passion. She sniffed again, smiling to herself, wanting nothing more than to lie awake and replay every moment, relive all the incredible new feelings.
But her earlier exhaustion overcame her, and wrapped in his arms, she drifted off.
Thirty-Two
IT WASpitch-black when Kendra awakened sometime in the night, the candle long since guttered out. In his sleep Trick was hugging her, his arms wrapped tightly. When she tried to wiggle free, they tightened more, holding her fast against his warm chest.
She felt smothered, trapped.
But she couldn’t fight him, couldn’t get away. She was too tired…she would try again later, after she got some more sleep…
Dawn was breaking when next she opened her eyes, feeling inexplicably lonely. Squinting in the faint gray light, she looked over to where Trick lay on his back, apart from her, snoring softly, his hands lax by his sides.
She scooted close, throwing an arm across his chest, but he snored on, still motionless. A stab of hurt, tiny but deep, took her by surprise. Tamping it down, she rolled to her back and stared at the beamed ceiling overhead, replaying last night in her mind.
Wonderful. Full of wonder. But something had been missing.
