Inara
A sigh shuddersout of me, and my body welcomes his. There’s pain but a sense of rightness. He’s braced over me, holding himself up so his full weight doesn’t crush me into the bed. The muscles of his arms and chest are a masterpiece, an artist’s study rendered lovingly in the low light.
Tucked under him, I feel small and protected. I’m where I belong.
The last little bit of tension in my muscles melts out of me, and he slides another millimeter. He’s fully sheathed inside me.
“There it is.” He lets his pelvis rest against mine, letting me feel him. “You did it.” He kisses the tears tracking down my cheeks. “You feel so good.”
“Rex,” I call like he’ll come to my rescue. His eyes glitter as he stares at me. Damn him for forcing me to face him while he fucks me. It’s easier when I can hide.
I can forget that I’ve wanted this.
He knows that about me. He’s gloating. He’s gotten what he wanted. After tonight, I’ll be another trophy, another victim of a bored rich man’s plans.
I should’ve fought harder, longer—kept my distance. Instead, I’ve danced straight into the lion’s mouth.
Yet all I feel is relief. He’s conquered me, and I can let go. This must be how prey feels when the jaws close around its neck. The moment of peace before death.
“You’re going to come for me this way.”
I jerk my head. I’m too full, too focused on the sting of him stretching me to be able to orgasm.
“Oh yes.” He presses into me, gliding in and out in a movement so slight I could be imagining it. It’s strange to feel someone inside me trying to be a part of me.
Rex rolls his hips, and his cock hits a new spot deep inside me. Lighting flashes down my limbs and spine, followed by a rapidly spreading warmth. Pleasure coils deep inside me, ready to burst and carry me over.
“Yes, that’s it.” He’s triumphant, knowing he can command my body this way. I squeeze down on his cock, and his eyelids flutter. “Fuck,” he mutters, dropping his head so his silky hair tickles my face.
I do it again, milking his organ with my inner muscles. He groans, and I know he’s in my thrall as much as I’m in his.
I curl my fingers, trying to hold onto the moment. “I want to touch you,” I whisper.
He pauses and reaches up to unhook the cuffs. “You can’t escape,” he reminds me. He’s serious and intent. I place my fingers on his beautiful lips and smile. He knows how his control sets me free.
I run my hands over his chest and trace the thickened weals of his scars. “Where did you get these?” There’s a particularly brutal one at his left shoulder, a slash in front of the joint. I try to imagine what sort of wound would leave such a large mark.
“Hunting.”
My fingers still. “You mean killing.” The scar under my hands is a few inches from his heart. Some of his prey fought back.
“You know what I am, little bird.” He takes my hand and kisses it before clamping his hand over the leather cuff and pressing my wrist to the bed. “You’re the only one who knows.”
It’s on the tip of my tongue.Why me?I want to know this more than anything.
But I don’t ask. I’m afraid.
Instead, I rock my hips to meet his. He gasps and pins my other hand. Dark fire blazes in his eyes. “You’re ready for me.” And he begins to thrust. His cock rubs the top of my entrance, and goosebumps break out over my body.
In my mind’s eye, I see our auras rising up together. His darkness and a blazing chaos of red and orange. Light meets the shadow and consumes it like a phoenix burning bright.
“Inara,” Rex calls, and I surge upward, claiming his mouth with mine as the fire licks along the bed.
The sweat beads on my face, and I’m shouting, hoarse, as the heat blasts my skin from my bones. The phoenix is rising, leaving the world behind and crumbling to ash.
And we are one.
27
