Izzie cried out—actually it might have been more of a scream—at the shock of pain. Even with the warning, the biting sharpness had been unexpected.
But good gracious, she felt as if she’d been split in two.
The quick glance she’d stolen of his manhood before he started to press inside her had alerted her to the problem. But she thought he would realize that he was too large to fit. He’d almost convinced her that it might work—right up to the last moment. Now she just wanted him off—and out—of her.
She started to push against that powerful chest that she partially blamed for her predicament. If he wasn’t so incredible to look at, she wouldn’t have been so aroused in the first place.
He swore and grabbed her wrists, pushing them back on either side of her head. She struggled for about a second before realizing she would have more chance of bending steel. Stretched out under him like this, she felt protected and vulnerable at the same time. But despite the pain he’d just given her, she knew he wouldn’t hurt her.
“I’m sorry, love. Just give it a moment.”
Love.It was the second time he’d called her that.Mo ghrá—my love. Did he even realize it?
Her heart squeezed with longing that stole her breath. She told herself not to put too much store in it, but coupled with the infinite tenderness of his lovemaking (up until that painful part), she wanted to think this meant something to him, too.
To her it meant everything.
She looked at the handsome face poised inches over hers and stared deep into his eyes, searching for answers.
She must have found them because she realized it didn’t hurt so much anymore. Suddenly, she was conscious of something else, of the fact that they were joined together. That he was inside her—filling her. Maybe filling her a little too much, but other than the sense of overwhelming fullness, he wasn’t hurting her anymore. The pinching was gone. It felt wonderful… significant… powerful.
Slowly, the tension started to ease from her muscles. It eased even more when he took her silence for an invitation to kiss her. Or maybe it was to stop her from more protests. Whatever the reason, it worked, and her body relaxed even more.
It more than relaxed. She started to feel the now unmistakable twinges of arousal. Was it only two weeks ago that she’d really been kissed for the first time, and now she had a wanton’s understanding of her body? Good grief, what had he done to her?
Maybe she didn’t know everything. When he finally started to move, slowly sliding himself in and out of her, she was at a loss. Was she supposed to do something? God knew what he was doing to her felt incredible, but what about him? If the tortured look of barely repressed ecstasy on his face was any indication, perhaps she was doing enough. She had the sense that he was struggling to hold on.
“Tell me what to do,” she said softly.
“Nothing,” he gritted out from between clenched teeth. “Don’t move. If you move, I’m not going to last.”
As she rather liked what he was doing, Izzie didn’t move. She just held on.
He’d released her wrists and her hands instinctively went to his shoulders to brace herself against the jarring as his pace intensified, and the slow slides gave way to deeper and faster thrusts. She only wished that she had something to brace her heart. But their eyes held and with every stroke, her heart lifted higher and higher. She couldn’t rein it in.
The tenderness of his lovemaking had shattered every last barrier of self-protection. Izzie loved him with her whole heart and told herself that she could not be alone. How could he not be feeling the same thing? He was. He had to be.
With nothing holding her back now, she gave herself over to the sensations. She let them carry her away to a place that he had shown her. To the place where sensation reached its highest peak and her body shattered.
She felt the frantic restlessness, the quickening of her pulse, and the steady building toward something that seemed tantalizingly out of reach. But this time it wasn’t just her body experiencing the ecstasy, it was also her heart. For as the final rush of pleasure surged through her body, she looked into his eyes and found something that gave her hope: surprise. This was new to him. Itwasdifferent.
She wasn’t alone, and the knowledge only intensified the feelings she was experiencing. She hadn’t thought she could feel anything more powerful than the first time—she was wrong. It was so much more when sharing it with the man she loved. Seeing his face transform, feeling the rush of warmth inside her, knowing that he was experiencing the same pleasure as her… that wasn’t just touching heaven, it was heaven.
It took a long time to come back down to earth. Finally, he collapsed on top of her. The fierce pounding of his heart against hers only added to the feeling of closeness—of being one.
Randolph was so motionless, were it not for his heavy breathing, she might have thought that she’d killed him.
Was everything all right?
Apparently, it was. He muttered a blasphemy and rolled off her. In doing so, he pulled himself from her body and broke the connection between them. She felt the loss and wanted to hold on, but it was already gone.
The sudden cold shock didn’t last long. He pulled her against his body, nestling her against the warmth of his chest. Despite the undoubtedly tawdry display of half pulled off clothes and tangled limbs, it felt like heaven again.
Pressing her cheek against his chest, Izzie listened as the pounding of his heart slowed and felt an almost trancelike happiness.
He broke the silence with a heavy sigh of contentment, echoing her thoughts. “I could stay like this forever.”
Butwould he? Izzie had to know. She had to find out whether her instincts had been right. Whether he had felt the same things as she.
