His tongue pressed hard against her center. His finger crooked inside her, hitting that spot again and again. The coil in her belly wound tighter, tighter, and suddenly—
She shattered.
The orgasm hit her like a wave breaking. Pleasure crashed through her, so intense it was almost painful, and she heard herself cry out, a raw, wordless sound that echoed off the stone walls. Her whole body clenched and released, clenched and released, and through it all Ralvar held her, worked her, drew every last tremor from her until she collapsed against the furs, wrung out and gasping.
She couldn't move. Couldn't think. Could only lie there, trembling in the aftermath, as Ralvar withdrew his finger gently and pressed a final kiss to her inner thigh.
Then he crawled up her body and pulled her into his arms.
"There," he murmured against her hair. "There."
The tears came without warning.
They spilled down her cheeks in hot streams, and she didn't understand why. Didn't understand why this gentle aftermath had broken something in her that the pleasure itself had only cracked. She buried her face against his chest and sobbed.
Ralvar held her through it. Stroked her back. Made soft, soothing sounds that she didn't recognize but understood anyway.
"I don't—" She gasped for air. "I don't know why I'm—"
"You don't need to know." His voice was gentle. "Sometimes the body releases what the mind cannot hold."
She clung to him. This massive, terrifying creature who could have taken anything he wanted, who could have ignored her tears or been annoyed by them or demanded something in return for what he'd given. Instead, he simply held her.
The tears slowed eventually. Drying to sniffles, then hiccoughs, then just the occasional shudder as her breathing evened out. She stayed pressed against his chest, unwilling to move, unwilling to lose his solid warmth.
"What about you?" she asked finally, her voice hoarse.
She felt his answering exhale. Could feel, too, the hard length of him still pressing against her hip. His body was clearly unsatisfied, but he made no move to address it.
"What about me?"
"You didn't—" She stumbled over the words. "Don't you want to—"
"I want many things." He stroked slowly down her back. "But not yet. Nottoday."
"Why?"
He pulled back slightly, just enough to look at her. His eyes were still hot with want, but the tenderness there made her chest ache.
"Because you have never done this before," he said quietly. "And I would not take more than you are ready to give."
Of course. Of course he would know. She hadn't said it out loud, but he would have felt her tightness and recognized the signs of inexperience.
"We will go slowly," he continued. "At your pace. When you want more, you will tell me. Until then—" His thumb traced her cheekbone, wiping away the last traces of tears. "This is enough. More than enough. Having you in my arms, making you shake apart for me... I could live on this for days."
She stared at him. At this impossible creature who defied everything she'd been taught, everything she'd believed.
"You're really not like the stories," she whispered.
His mouth curved slightly. Not quite a smile, but close. "Neither are you."
He pulled her closer, tucking her head beneath his chin, and she let herself melt into him.
Chapter 11
Ralvar watched her sleep.
The morning light had grown stronger, spilling through the gaps in the watchtower walls in pale shafts that caught the dust motes drifting through the air. She'd drifted off again after her tears had subsided, exhausted from the emotional release, and he'd let her rest against his chest while his mind turned over the problem that wouldn't stop gnawing at him.
