Edwina caught herself before she muttered something rude.She didn’t offer excuses, but this entire evening was surreal.Marriage.Blackmail.Maneuvered by this man.The anger she’d tamped down rose to blast her again, and her feline released a silent snarl.Her gaze snapped to his.
“Ah,” he said.“There she is.”
Before she questioned him, he pressed his lips to hers.The kiss was forceful and compelling.He used expertise to seduce her, and it worked.She kissed him back, pressing against his broad chest and soaking in pleasure.
He moved down her body, touching her everywhere.Stroking her breasts, her belly, her hips.He settled between her legs and dragged his tongue along the crease of her thigh.A soft mewl escaped her, a sound of honest enjoyment because the shifter had skills.At least her first time would be memorable instead of the furtive fumbling of someone her age.
Mikhail lifted her with his hands beneath her bottom.Before the startled shock left her, his mouth was on her warm flesh, his tongue dragging the length of her cleft.Oh!Edwina shuddered and tensed as she anxiously awaited more.Thankfully, he didn’t disappoint and teased her nub until her entire world converged on that needy spot.He caressed and licked, the rough rasp of his tongue igniting flames in her lower belly.
“Mikhail,” she cried out.
He lifted his head, leaving her flesh throbbing, the cool air a painful balm against her aching sex.
“I like my name on your lips,” he whispered.
He’d stopped to tell her that.Why?Why now?“Please don’t stop.Action.Talk later.”
There was a surprised beat of silence before he chuckled.“Interesting.”
Once again, his response astonished her, but she remained silent.She reached for his head and forcibly guided it in the direction she wanted.Laughter shook his big body, but he didn’t dally.He dragged his tongue over her flesh, and the prickling of her waiting orgasm sparked to life.
The bubble of pleasure grew and pushed for release.Under his direction, it increased to the point of pain until she shivered with raw need, with desperation.Shuddering, she arched her lower body higher.Her limbs quivered, but she thought she might die if he stopped.She didn’t care about the others on the plane.She clenched his head with her thighs, probably half choking him but finding herself unable to worry.The spicy tang of arousal—her arousal—perfumed the air.That might bother her later, but not now.
Mikhail shifted his body and stroked her with fingers and mouth.He pushed one digit inside her and another until the savage throb became too much.The next flicker of his tongue had her crying out and starbursts lighting the backs of her eyes.She rode the emotional storm until the flickering pleasure faded, and she came back to herself.Her eyes opened, and she met Mikhail’s blue gaze.
“Thank you,” she said, admitting without words the power he held over her.If he’d wanted, he could’ve just taken her.She was vulnerable here, and no one would’ve stopped him.
He understood this, too.She saw it in his face, but he didn’t gloat.Instead, he took her into his arms.He kissed her yet again, seeming to delight in this contact.Her arms crept around his shoulders, clutching him tightly while their lips tangoed.His legs twined with hers, and he clasped her firmly.It made her feel special.Treasured even when this was business.
The tenderness in his kisses had her heart beating even faster.Using his muscular thigh, he parted her legs.
“Are you ready?”
Her pulse rate went wild.Was she?Edwina had no idea but dipped her head in a nod.
“Are you on birth control?”
“Yes.”
His eyes blazed, but he said, “Good.”
Right.This marriage would finish at the end of one year.
He broke her chain of thoughts when he penetrated her.He slid inside her easily until he didn’t.But before she protested, he drew back, and the sensation of him gliding inside her repeated.She relaxed a fraction, and this time, he pushed deeper.He didn’t hurry or snap and snarl at her for wrongdoings, so she relaxed a tad more.
“Good girl,” he murmured before sliding his tongue down her neck.His teeth scraped across the spot where leopard mates marked each other, and her entire body turned liquid.
Oh!She’d heard whispers from among the feline population, but the area had never felt sensitive to her.She’d decided, and Suzie had agreed, this marking spot was an urban myth.Yes, the mates had exchanged bites—evident by the raised scars—but turning into an X-rated area that would inflame if caressed hadn’t seemed likely.Now, she understood, making her wonder if tigers would respond similarly.
No time like the present to conduct a scientific trial.She’d kiss and nuzzle Mikhail and learn how he reacted to her attentions.Before she put her thoughts into action, he slid from her and pushed home again, scraping against a place deep inside that lit her nerve endings.Clutching his shoulders, she gripped him and breathlessly waited.
Mikhail repeated the retreat and invasion, and the wondrous sensations intensified until she was awash with a coiled bliss that pulled tighter and tighter.She gasped, pushing up into his next stroke.She dug her nails into his muscular shoulders and rasped her tongue across the base of his neck, thrilling when he shuddered, and the smoothness of his strokes faltered.Next, she used her teeth, savoring the salt on his skin and his spicy freshness even as she strove toward pleasure.
He slammed into her, and the coil released, making her cry out.Edwina acted without thought, biting down until she tasted blood.Instinct drove her to lick at the wound she’d created, the entire situation taking on a dreamlike quality.He grunted at her bite but didn’t stop stroking into her.He stilled, embedded inside her, his heart thudding loudly.
Edwina’s entire body turned boneless, relaxed in the maelstrom of satisfaction.Total bliss.She had never undergone a magical release like this—all-encompassing—even experimenting by herself.
Mikhail held her close for an instant longer, and her eyelids drooped, contentment filling her and close to sleep.She was vaguely aware of him pulling away and gave a muffled protest.
