Elsie’s heart thundered, as if it forced beat after beat. “I don’t want you to stop.”
His forehead rested against hers, his breath warm on her mouth.
His hands moved, slowly, reverently, down her arms, down her waist, stopping at her hips as though each inch of her was sacred. Elsie gasped when he drew her against him, the solid heat of his body sending sparks of need through her.
“Halvard…” She whispered his name like a plea.
He kissed her again, slower this time, deliberate, savoring her. One of his hands slid up her spine, his fingers splaying between her shoulder blades. Elsie’s knees weakened, and he caught her easily, holding her up without breaking the kiss. Her hands trembled as she traced along the collar of his loosened tunic. She tugged slightly, and he groaned into her mouth, his breath catching.
Ever so slowly, she began to pull his tunic off, and Halvard let her. Soon, he stood shirtless before her, the expanse of his chest irresistible as she traced her fingers over the swell of his muscles, nails catching over the hair there. Elsie let her hand drift lower and lower, reaching the waistband of his trews, and Halvard cursed softly under his breath, a gentle laugh scaring him.
“Fer a Sassenach, ye’re a bold lass,” he teased, and Elsie had half a mind to leave him like that, to tease him. But her desire won, and she hooked her finger around the waistband instead,tugging him even closer. Another laugh escaped him then, rushing out of him along with his breath.
“This Sassenach has spent too much time in the Highlands, it seems,” Elsie teased right back. “Perhaps it’s time for me to return home and forget your savage ways.”
Ever so slowly, she pulled back from Halvard, but she didn’t get too far. Before long, his arms were around her waist, pulling her back close, flush against him. Elsie giggled, and when Halvard grabbed her and spun her so that they were facing the bed, she shrieked in surprise.
Soon, Elsie found herself draped over the covers, Halvard hovering over her. His eyes roamed over her body—the curve of her neck, the rapid rise and fall of her chest, the dip of her waist. Then, his mouth found her jaw and he scattered kisses anywhere he could reach, leaving goosebumps in his wake as his hands worked on her clothes. He all but tore them off her body, removing her dress piece by piece until Elsie was fully nude before him, her hands moving up to cover herself as best she could.
But Halvard was quick to grab her hands, his fingers circling her wrists gently, and pull them down.
“Ye dinnae have tae hide yerself from me,” he said. “Lord, Elsie… ye’re the bonniest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Elsie’s breath caught in her throat as she looked at Halvard. He was staring at her, his eyes wide as he took in her nude form, looking as though he wanted to devour her whole.
And then, he dipped his head, his lips wrapping around her nipple, sucking the sensitive bud in his mouth.
Pleasure exploded inside her, coursing through her entire body. Elsie gasped, her hands moving up to tangle in Halvard’s blond hair, tugging gently at the strands in a way that had him groaning around her breast. His hips bucked, and for a moment, Elsie felt the hard press of his manhood against her, his length throbbing as he pressed into her, the contrast between his mostly clothed form and her nude one driving her mad.
Then, his hand trailed over the swell of her breast, stopping there for a moment to circle her nipple, then moved lower, down her stomach, over her mound, and finally, between her thighs, were his fingers pressed against a sensitive spot that made her freeze.
Never before had she felt such a sensation, such an all-consuming, sudden pleasure. Halvard paused too, though, much to her chagrin, a small frown forming over his face.
“Dae ye want me tae stop?”
“No,” Elsie said, vehemently shaking her head as she arched against him, trying to get him to touch her again. “No, never stop.”
Halvard didn’t deny her. His fingers began to circle that spot, the touch feather-light, teasing, and Elsie couldn’t help but try and press into it, her hips moving on their own accord. But Halvard was quick to place his other hand on her hip, stilling her, leaving her completely in his mercy.
“Stay still,” he growled, leaning in closer to steal a kiss. “Ye take what I give ye.”
A thrill coursed through Elsie then, heat spreading down her spine as Halvard kept her still with one hand and pleasured her with the other. Before she knew it, he was kissing his way down her body, his lips leaving a hot trail behind, before he finally settled between her legs, his hands pushing her thighs apart so she was on display for him.
For a moment, he only looked at her, taking in the shape of her under the thatch of curls. Then, before Elsie could ask what he was doing, he dove in and pressed the flat of his tongue over her folds, tasting her.
And Elsie was gone.
The pleasure that assaulted her was relentless, the kind from which she couldn’t hide. The wet, hot press of Halvard’s tongue over her heated skin had her trembling with need, her core pulsing, her walls clenching hard. It was unlike anything Elsie had experienced before, and nothing like what she had expected. She had thought such matters were straightforward and quick, a coupling with the sole goal of procreation, as from what she had heard, that was her duty—to bear children for her husbandand, as a side-effect, please him. But this was now proving false, as Halvard was the one pleasing her, and with more enthusiasm than she thought anyone could show.
On the other, she expected him to be a savage, to take her with unrestrained need until he was satisfied. But that, too, didn’t happen.
Halvard was nothing if not gentle, dragging his tongue over her again and again, circling that spot that drove her mad with lust. He was focused entirely on her—on her pleasure, on the way her body reacted to him, pressing closer or pulling back.
Warmth pooled low in Elsie’s belly as Halvard flicked his tongue over her, the alternating pressure in his licks pushing her closer and closer to the edge. Elsie watched him as he reached down, shoving a hand through his trews to grab himself, working himself with furious abandon as he licked into her, his tongue striving to reach deeper, past the ring of muscle at her opening.
The sight tore her breath from her. He looked as desperate as she felt, his eyes flicking up to look, meeting her gaze. At the sight of her, he groaned against her and doubled his efforts, both for her and himself, touching himself as if pleasuring her was enough to drive him wild.
And perhaps it was. Elsie could understand it as she, too, wanted to bring him pleasure, the sight of him like that stoking the flames of her desire.
