Her eyes glittered the way he’d come to love.
Whereas time had slowed when he approached, the moment his skin met hers, everything else faded and time became nonexistent. The only thing that mattered in that moment was Acadia in his arms. Though the last time he’d held her, when they’d been in the hot tub, Kaj had refrained. He was past that point now, unable to hold back anymore.
Kaj pulled her into him, banding one arm around her waist, cupping the back of her head with the other, and bringing her mouth closer. He hovered there, his lips barely grazing hers. He was waiting for her to make the first move, needed her to eliminate that last breath between them. When she did, when Acadia’s soft lips pressed to his, her breasts crushing to his chest, Kaj’s world splintered into fragments of light, the adrenaline flooding his veins.
All the time they’d wasted up to now coalesced into a single breath as he pinned her to the glass wall, crushing his lips to hers. Acadia’s tongue fought with his as he tried to inhale her, needing to feel her deep under his skin.
Kaj slid his hands over her soft, smooth curves until he was cupping her ass. Keeping her trapped between his body and the glass, he lifted her off her feet. When her arms circled his neck, her mouth melding perfectly with his, Kaj shifted his hips so that his sex was pressed intimately to hers. Heaven Almighty, this was right where he wanted to be, her in his arms, warm and wet. If he could’ve frozen this moment in time, he would’ve done so.
“I need to be inside you,” he rasped.
Acadia whimpered, a sound he knew to be approval of his understated request.
He lowered her onto him, pushing forward until his cock was buried as deep as her willing body would allow. He held her then, just like that, their bodies intimately joined in more ways than one. And he retracted his earlier statement.Thiswas the moment he would freeze in time. It was both heaven and hell, the need building to impossible proportions.
No words were spoken, yet there was a wealth of conversation transpiring. So many things unsaid, so much emotion. It had been in a shower long ago when he’d first realized what she meant to him. A completely innocent encounter that had gotten out of hand. That had been the pivotal point for them, everything that followed building to this moment.
As much as he wanted to take her like that, slick-footed beneath the water, he feared the beast within would lose traction, so he decided to relocate. With her impaled on him, soap and water slicking her skin, Kaj took her into the bedroom, gently eased her down to the mattress, not caring that he’d left the water running or that they were both soaking wet. He took care of the water, shutting it off with his mind, then willed the fireplace to come to life, providing warmth though he knew it wouldn’t be necessary. The passion their bodies would generate would be enough to heat the entire mansion.
His heart took over, his need to dominate her overwhelming. It would be so easy for him to claim her once and for all. Once he did, their lives would forever be altered, and he wondered if she understood what that meant. It would forever tie him to her. His devotion would be unwavering. Nothing could come between him and his need for her. The only way she could be rid of him would be to send him far, far away or take his life. Otherwise, he would belong solely to her, his days dedicated to protecting and loving her.
He pulled back, staring down into her eyes, wanting Acadia to see his intention.
“Not yet, Kaj,” she whispered, her beautiful eyes bouncing over his face. “For now, let’s just have this.”
It wasn’t easy, but he managed to ignore the sharp pinch in his chest. He’d been holding off for her, and he would continue to do so for as long as she needed. Didn’t mean he wasn’t ready.
He growled low in his throat as his hips shifted back then pitched forward, driving him deep inside her. He held her gaze for as long as he could, then tucked his head against her shoulder, the bed rocking with his momentum. His breath locked in his throat as sheer ecstasy consumed him, her body clutching him tightly. He slipped into her mind as he worked them both toward release, needing the connection, to feel what she was feeling.
It was then he noticed the tension she was attempting to hide, the fear of what would become of her once their mating was complete, but she was willing because she wanted him as much as he wanted her.
And it was her fear that helped him understand. He refrained from unleashing on her, held that part of himself back. It was inevitable, he knew. He would claim her as his, but not until she knew he would move both Heaven and Earth for her.
“Kaj?”
He shook his head.
“I’m sorry…”
“Don’t,” he whispered against her ear. “Do not apologize,balisra.”
Kaj sensed her retreat. Not physically, because they were still joined. He was still moving inside her. Emotionally, Acadia shielded herself from him.
He lifted his head again, stared down at her. He found her hands, twined their fingers, and pinned her to the bed beneath him.
“Do not do that,” he rumbled, holding her stare. “Do not retreat from me.”
His hips began moving in earnest, driving forward, filling her as their gazes held. With their palms clasped, Kaj opened himself to her, giving her full access to all that he was, letting her see into his mind, something that was now otherwise shielded to all.
Acadia inhaled sharply, her back bowing as his power flowed through their joined hands, her body absorbing the energy. He drove her to her first climax shortly thereafter, then rode the wave with her. As he stared down at the most beautiful female to have ever lived, Kaj gave himself over to her.
“Kaj!”
“Come for me again,balisra.” He pounded into her, the bed rocking into the wall, the pictures rattling.
And when he came, he threw his head back and roared, the sound bouncing off the rafters, rattling the chandelier overhead.
As she lay in Kaj’s arms, Acadiamulled over what she’d seen in his mind while they’d been joined so intimately. She wasn’t sure whether he realized she’d been able to read his thoughts in that moment, but she had.
