Her long auburn lashes fluttered. “I swear I’ll tell you.” Cassie placed her hands on his chest and explored the definition of his muscles.
Reaching behind him, he pulled his T-shirt free, sucking in a breath as she caressed his exposed flesh, his skin heating beneath her touch. When her hand ran over his bandage, Cassie’s eyes widened. “Ian?”
“A little piece of shrapnel. I’m just fine, sweetheart.”
“Oh, Ian, I’m so sorry.” Tiny fingers moved over every plane as she discovered his other battle scars. Her lips pressed against a round, faded circle under his left shoulder and along a jagged, white line below the fresh bandage.
Rolling to his knees, Ian caressed her mouth with his, his fingers a flutter across the tops of her chest. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he kissed the crest of her full, pink-tipped breasts and her hands came up to cover herself. Nipping her bottom lip, his voice was thick. “No, don’t ever hide from me.” He lifted her hand, kissing each fingertip. “You are beautiful.” The red surgical scars and bite scars she was trying to cover didn’t matter to him. Bashful, she lowered her other hand.
Sapphire eyes gleaming, Ian smiled with approval. “Cassie, these scars don’t define who you are. They are part of your journey to be who you are. And you are the woman I love.” He kissed each bite and scar.
“My sweet Cassie, tonight is about you. Just keep looking at me. You’re blessing me with a precious gift.” His fingers trailed down her chest, palming a round breast in each of his hands. His fingernails brushed against her nipples, coaxing them to hard peaks, allowing his lips to wrap around one of those swelling buds, nudging it with the tip of his tongue. “You’re gorgeous.”
She gasped, “I’ve never done this before.”
Ian looked at her through his thick lashes. “We can learn about what you like or don’t like together. We can slow down or stop whenever you want. Your choice. No judgments. No pressure.”
Cassie’s eyes were speckled with glints of gold. “I’m afraid I’ll let you down.”
Ian pulled her up into his arms. “You could never let me down.” He nuzzled the silky skin behind her ear. “Tell me what you want. We can just kiss and hold each other.” He tugged her earlobe between his lips, following it with a soothing lick.
“Don’t stop. I…I want to learn.” Her eyes closed with a soft mew.
Ian pressed her back against the pillows, watching for every cue. Her pleasure meant everything to him. Cassie’s eyes reflected her desire, her body reacting to every kiss and touch. His eyes turned a warm turquoise with his increased arousal. Taking his time, he kissed back up her silky throat to nibble her sweet lips. Soft sounds and small hitches of breath fell from her mouth.
Letting his hand slide leisurely across her belly, one finger circled her navel, making Cassie giggle. Ian looked at her happy face, and his heart filled. A waft of her feminine scent increased the fire within him. His touch morphed from a tickle to need, and as his exploring fingers moved lower, her body stiffened. He flattened his heated palm on her belly. “Talk to me, sweetheart?”
She placed her hand on top of his. “I’m afraid I won’t be able to.”
“We can stop anytime.” Brushing another kiss against her lips, he crooked a finger under her chin to make sure she was looking at him.
“I don’t want to stop.”
“Do you trust me?” Patient, he let her choose. Soon, she slid her hand up his arm. The look on her face broke him—love and trust.
A bolt of desire traveled between them when Ian’s hand slid down and cupped her lace-covered mound. His hand rested against her, his thumb rubbing a figure eight. Her eyes grew glassy with need, and the heat and moisture of her arousal bloomed beneath his touch. Slipping his hand beneath the lace, her soft curls wrapped around his fingers.
He locked his eyes with hers as one finger ran along her damp, intimate folds. At his touch, Cassie parted her thighs farther. “That’s it, sweetheart. Just feel. Let me take care of you.” His voice was warm and seductive.
Hooking his thumbs in the lace, he slid her panties down, placing a kiss to her thighs, knees, and ankles. He moved back up her body, kissing the soft flesh of both inner thighs, avoiding her bandages.
* * *
The sensation scared and excited her at once. His fingers pressing against her hardening bundle of nerves made butterflies take flight in her gut. The hot intensity she felt was too much. “Ian,” she cried out. He stopped. “No, don’t stop.”
“Keep looking at me.” Ian nipped her bottom lip to hold her attention while he eased one finger into her damp opening.
When Cassie lifted her hips to take more of his finger inside her, Ian’s eyes crinkled with his soft smile. Her cheeks flushed, her eyes growing heavy. As he pressed deeper into her core and added a second finger, Cassie felt a gush of her fluid cover his hand. Circling harder on her nub with his thumb, his other fingers curled inside and thrust to the rhythm of her desire, in and out of her tight sheath. Cassie met each finger thrust with an unconscious tilt of her hips, her breaths becoming little clouds of air.
In between kisses, he nuzzled her cheek. “Let go, Cassie. You’re right there. Come for me, sweetheart.” One more gentle touch of his thumb, and her breath caught, her body shuddering.
“Ian!” Cassie cried out in a choked sob, her hands gripping his forearms. The sensation of floating filled her soul.
Ian slowed his touches, withdrawing his fingers and lifting her back into his arms. She felt his lips rest on the hammering pulse at the base of her throat. Her heartrate and breathing slowed. Her smile was dreamy as she pulled his head down to press a kiss to his lips. She inhaled, “Thank you.”
“For what, my sweet?”
“For you. Um, that. I’ve never felt this way before.” Cassie blushed.
