Mav’s breath caught. She heard it, that little catch.
‘Are you sure?’ he asked, always so sweet, so concerned.
‘It’s what Ineed,’ she whispered in reply.
Mav made a rumbling sound in the back of his throat that shot straight to her womb. He moved, making space to roll her onto her back. His blue eyes, hot with his own need, searched hers. ‘How do you need to be touched?’
‘It doesn’t matter how you touch me, only that it’s you.’
Mav smiled his full, dimple-popping smile. But it was Nina who felt lighter, as if the happiness that sparked in his eyes kindled a fire within her. She would protect this man and his family even though it would break her heart.
‘Have I told you that I love this dress?’ he asked, his voice low as he toyed with the strap of her sundress. ‘It’s so sexy. And—’ he slid, first one, and then the other, strap down her shoulder, shimmied the dress’s bodice down to her hips ‘—easy to remove.’
Nina fished her arms out of the straps and raised them to him, wanting to touch his golden skin. She started on his buttons, slowly at first and then quicker as the desperate greed in his eyes fuelled her own.
The moment the last button gave, she raked her nails lightly over his chest, chasing the quiver in his muscles.
He had barely touched her, but it didn’t matter. She was ready – wet – just from the anticipation of what he would bring her.
‘Tell me what you want,’ he reiterated.
Nina took one of his big hands in hers and lowered it between her legs. She needed to remember that, despite what had happened to her, she had found someone whose touch to her most vulnerable self did not take, but gave.
‘Here?’ Mav asked, and when she nodded, he slid two fingers through her. He closed his eyes when he felt how wet she was, said, ‘You make me wild, Nina. Touching you makes me want to take you ruthlessly, even while knowing what you’ve been through makes me want to be gentle and go slow.’ His eyes opened, burning into her,throughher. ‘You tear me up inside.’
Nina swallowed. He had loved her fast and slow – butruthlessly? It was a testament to her trust in him that the thought turned her on instead of scaring her. ‘Take me ruthlessly,’ she said.
Mav’s eyes snapped to her face again. They darkened with intensity even as he said, ‘I never want to scare you.’
‘I’ll tell you if it’s too much.’
There was one moment of perfect stillness.
And then Maverick flipped her over. Nina’s brain took a moment to process the new position on her stomach. But before she could move, he gripped her hips with both hands and dragged her backwards and up so that she was on her knees and elbows, her ass in the air.
Her heart thumped. But not with fear; with adrenaline, surprise, and anticipation.
When he unbuckled his belt and lowered his zipper, he did it slowly. The sound of his metal buckle sent a shiver through her, even as his zipper being lowered unravelled her.
She didn’t turn and look back at him because she liked not knowing what he was going to do. And that surprised her. For someone who had never let her body take over, this ability to simply allow herself tofeelwas new and overwhelming and right. And it was because of him. Only him. Because she trusted, absolutely, that he would never do anything to hurt her.
Mav lifted the skirt of her dress and let it fall over her shoulders, exposing her thong-covered ass to his gaze. She thought he might pull her underwear to the side or take them off entirely, so Nina gasped in shock when he gripped the flimsy lace in both hands and tore it as if it were a piece of paper.
He tossed the scrap of fabric onto the floor, leaving her completely bare.
She fought a wave of self-consciousness, but it disappeared the moment Mav gripped her hips in his hands and said, ‘Look at you. All ready for me. So fucking perfect.’
Oh. My. God.Nina had not known the power words had in the bedroom until that moment. But only those few from Mav were enough to have her body tightening mercilessly. Her upper thighs were soaked. Her core ached to be filled. ‘Mav,’ she begged.
‘You wanted me to be ruthless,’ he reminded her, and instead of entering her from behind as she’d been expecting, he slid his hard length between her legs, stopping when the head of his penis nudged her entrance.
Nina’s breath rushed out of her as he began to thrust, teasing her, his hands at her hips easily controlling her body’s every movement. It didn’t matter that he wasn’t inside of her. Every nudge against her pushed her higher, the pointed absence of him somehow more erotic in that moment.
Nina felt that familiar wave gathering. She pressed her hips backwards, asking for more, but Mav just chuckled and kept torturing her, his hands reclaiming control of her restless hips easily.
Her core pulsed.
Each breath came in time with it.
