Daisy's heart felt ready to beat out of her chest it pounded so fast. She had no idea what he was about to do, but stopping him was the furthest thing from her mind as he stared between her legs.
A small voice in the back of her head told her they shouldn’t be doing this, but the devil on her shoulder kept her tongue firmly in place. His hungry gaze was devouring her body, eating up every inch of her flesh, and she’d never felt so beautiful as she did when he looked at her.
He lowered his head further, and the ache between her legs throbbed. It was short-lived. In the next instant, he was there, his thumbs spreading her open before he licked up the length of her. She gasped and clamped a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming. Her eyes rolled back as he licked and kissed between her legs. She’d touched herself more than once, but it had never felt like this. The heat of his tongue, the wet slide of it against her flesh, had her rolling her hips. When he sucked her clit into his mouth, her legs shook. She dug her free hand into his hair to hold him in place as she ground herself against his mouth, her hips rolling in circles, chasing the friction.
It was wanton and wrong and felt so sinfully good; she didn’t care about anything other than what he was doing to her. She’d had a vague inclination of what went on behind closed doors between a man and a woman, but she’d never imagined this. The intimate kisses he was placing between her legs were stealing her breath, and she never wanted him to stop.
He palmed her breasts as he licked her, his eyes lifting to meet her own. Seeing him there, between her legs like that, looking at her, she wondered if one could die of pleasure. It was amazing, this feeling. Her body was on fire, her toes curled in the rug under her feet, and the sensations Clay was causing in her body were so intense, she never wanted it to end.
His tongue circled her entrance a moment before he lowered his hand. He never took his eyes off of her as he touched her, his finger mimicking what his tongue had just done, and when he inserted his finger into her, she forgot to breathe. The sensation made her gasp as he pulled it out, then back in again. All the while, he sucked on her clit, his tongue flicking the small bundle of nerves back and forth. He inserted another finger, stretching her. The slight pinch of pain it caused was chased away in an instant. He loved her with his mouth and fingers, and at the first signs of her impending climax, she clamped both hands over her mouth, her breath coming in harsh pants.
Clay sucked on her clit hard, his fingers inside her curling, and her world exploded as fire shot through her limbs. She trembled as waves of pleasure rippled through her body, her hips moving against his mouth as she rode his hand. Her entire body was convulsing as he continued his assault on her, and she hoped she wasn’t screaming. When the pleasure became too much, she tried to push his head away, but all he did was release her clit and kiss her sensitive flesh.
She felt his fingers pull away from her, but the soft touches remained, his lips peppering small kisses to the inside of her thighs until her heart stopped racing. The moment he lifted his head, she felt the loss of him like a living thing. He stared at her for a long moment, his eyes roaming every inch of her body before he lifted them to her face. His lips were wet with moisture from where he’d had his head buried between her legs, and she should have been embarrassed by it, but some wanton part of her loved seeing it.
He licked his lips before turning to grab one of the blankets on the end of the sofa. He opened it, covering her body before standing. Her eyes were so heavy now. She blinked slowly as he unbuttoned his shirt, pulling it off when he reached the last one. Fading bruises marred his skin from where the bandits had kicked him, bruises of mottled blue and yellow covering his entire left side.
Their eyes met when he reached for the button on his pants. She couldn’t look away as he continued to undress, and the moment his hardened length sprang free, she stared at it unabashedly.
Her body was cooling now, her breaths more regular. He turned when he was completely naked and stepped into the tub. He was facing her, watching her as he soaped up his body, and she smiled before closing her eyes.
She didn’t know what he was about to do to her when he finished his bath, but the promise in his eyes had her anticipating the moment he came to her. What had started as a bold move to let him see her turned into something so much more, and she could hardly wait to see where all this led.
Chapter 11
He scrubbed himself clean, and when he stepped out of the tub, he could tell by the slack look on Daisy’s face that she was asleep. As much as Clay would like to have her, he didn’t think doing more than what he’d already done was wise. He shouldn’t have even done that, truth be told, but he still had the taste of her on his tongue, and a small part of him wasn’t sorry at all. The way she’d clutched his head to her and ground herself against his mouth, he didn’t think she was either.
He grabbed the drying cloth he’d picked up for her and wiped himself dry, noticing two stacks of clothing on the end of the sofa. Liam’s, he assumed. Two pairs of pants, shirts, and clean wool socks. He slipped the socks and trousers on, leaving the shirt where it lay, and saw the wet clothes hanging from a drying line he had just now noticed. A washtub was in the sink, Daisy’s blue dress visible from where he stood. It was laundry day, apparently. Grabbing his dirty denim jeans and shirt, he carried them to the kitchen and dunked them into the washtub.
His mind wandered as he washed their clothes, his thoughts always circling back to Daisy. It took nothing more than a glance at her to tell him she was still asleep. He’d need to move her. Her head was at an odd angle. She’d have a crick in her neck come morning if he didn’t.
An hour later, he had all the clothes washed, the water run out of them, and hung them up to dry. Daisy looked so innocent lying there in that chair. He hated waking her. It took nothing more than a few soft kisses to her mouth for her eyes to open. She smiled when she saw him.
“Sit up, and we can get something on you.” She did as he said, and his gaze fell to her naked breasts when the sheet covering her slipped to her waist. It took every ounce of willpower he possessed not to reach out and touch them. He helped her put one of Liam’s shirts on. It swallowed her whole, the material coming to her knees when she stood to let it fall past her hips.
The small glimpse of her naked lower half made thoughts he shouldn’t be having fill his head again, and the way she was looking at him said she was thinking the same thing. He guided her to the sofa to lie down, covering her with a blanket before straightening. She was asleep so fast he wasn’t even sure she was aware he’d helped dress her.
The tub was sitting where he’d been putting his blanket pallet. He spent the next ten minutes scooping water out of it, then lifted it to carry it back outside.
As he went to make his bed, he saw that the rug by the fireplace was wet. His blankets would be soaked through if he lay them there and tried to sleep on them. He blew out a breath before looking at Daisy, then smiled before grabbing his blankets.
Heat surrounded her. Daisy blinked her eyes open and found herself snuggled under her blankets with Clay.
The night before came back in a flash. She smiled and buried her head against his chest. His naked chest, she realized now. She stilled. Were they both naked? No, she remembered putting on Liam’s shirt the night before with Clay’s help. He’d had on pants then. He wouldn’t have stripped off his clothes to sleep, would he?
Moving her leg gave her the answer. She could feel the material of his pants. Her relief eased some of the awkwardness she felt. Memories of the night before assaulted her mind, and her cheeks heated with the thought. What they had done…
She grinned and buried her face against his chest again. Standing from her bath to let him see her had turned out to be more than him getting a glimpse. The moment he’d kissed her, pulling her flush against his body, she’d lost her mind, especially when he guided her to the chair, and he sat back to look at her.
Her skin had burned under his gaze and the look in his eyes…she’d felt desired. Beautiful. She knew he thought so too as he looked at her. And what he’d done to her. Her stomach clenched. It had been—euphoric.
Violet’s voice filled her head, her sister telling her Clay was in love with her, playing on repeat. She’d never truly believed Violet, but some secret place in her heart had always hoped he did. After last night, she believed it. The way Clay looked at her alone said he cared.
She glanced at his handsome face and sighed. He was so perfect. And beautiful. And…hers? The thought made her giddy. As much as she’d like to lie there all morning staring at him, her bladder had other ideas. She slipped from the sofa, trying not to disturb him, and found her boots and cloak. The trip to the outhouse was chilly, and she rushed back into the house, blowing on her hands to warm them.
Clay was still asleep. Hanging her cloak and removing her boots, she slipped on the wool socks she’d borrowed from Liam and got started on breakfast. She startled some time later when muscular arms wrapped around her waist, and bit back a goofy grin when Clay kissed the side of her neck. He turned her to him, his hand lifting to run the back of his fingers over her cheek. He was giving her that look again, the one that made her think he loved her, and when he leaned down to kiss her, his lips soft against her own, she thought maybe he really did.
The kiss grew heated in mere moments, her toes curling in her too-big socks. He backed her up against the table, lifting her to sit on top of it, and she spread her legs so he could step between them before wrapping them around his hips, holding him to her as her body burned. She wanted him. Wanted the pleasure he’d given her the night before and was so far out of her mind, she rolled her hips, wanting him to take her right there on the kitchen table.
