Alex moaned and rocked against him as he ran wet kisses over her neck. Each kiss seemed to be placed with intention and consideration, as if he knew exactly where to press his tongue and teeth to make her shiver with pleasure. He was so damn competent.
The only thing that kept her from feeling completely inadequate was the occasional tremor that ran through his body and left a growl rumbling in his throat. He was hanging on to his control, but just barely. Could she push him over the edge? Did she want to? His methodical teasing was so wonderfully powerful.
Inhaling a ragged breath, he lifted off her and jerked his chin at her torso. “Take off the dress. I don’t trust myself to do it.”
An electric bolt built in her nipples and shot down to her clit at his rasped command. She fumbled in her haste to get the dress off. When it was halfway over her head, he yanked the underwear off her bottom so forcefully she wouldn’t be surprised if they’d ripped.
She’d just slipped the damp fabric off her shoulders when his mouth came down hot and heavy on her sex and his firm tongue lapped in time with his deep groan. Alex couldn’t catch a breath between her surprised gasps of pleasure. Her hips twitched in time with the firm passes of his tongue as he drank her in. He pulled her against his mouth so tightly, his finger dug into the tops of her thighs as if he couldn’t get enough of her taste. She’d have bruises there, but a wanton part of her craved them. She’d be able to look at them for days to come and remember him naked and devastating under the bright Sauven skies.
Eyes rolling back, she sagged, melting into a puddle on the floor, and gave in to the overwhelming sensation of Auzed between her thighs.
With every lick, he stoked the blaze burning within her. He growled against her and clutched at her hips, seemingly unhappy about something. In a move that rent the breath from her lungs, he expertly flipped their bodies so she was perched on her knees above him, her thighs on his shoulders while he lay flat on his back. A moment of insecurity at the vulnerable position gave her pause.
She’d never received oral sex in this position. Was he really sure he wanted this? She had her answer when he impatiently wrapped his forearms around her hips, hands plastered to her low belly, and buried his tongue inside her. A moan tore from her throat, and she had to drop onto her hands, unable to hold herself upright any longer. She rocked her core against his tongue, and he growled his approval while suckling her clit.
Removing one hand, he buried two fingers inside her, making her lurch forward. Her body trembled all over, and her vision blurred around the edges. Her orgasm, steadily building before, now thrummed just under the surface.
Blinding ecstasy sparked over her skin when he purred, the vibration shooting straight to her core. As her orgasm rolled through her, white hot and violent, she tried to keep herself lifted. Her forearms shook with the effort.
Auzed dragged his hands over her ass in a firm caress as she continued to shudder against his mouth. Finally, when the world came back into focus, her body finally melted. She angled forward so she wouldn’t collapse on him and sprawled onto her stomach instead. Lids heavy and breaths coming out stuttered.
Behind her, Auzed flipped back to his knees and slid large, rough hands down her back, applying pressure as the heels of his palms dipped into the curve of her spine. He leaned over her limp form, his thick erection settling against her ass, and pressed a kiss to her ear. “I’ll have you now, Alejandra,” he rumbled, sending shivers down to her toes and a blast of liquid heat to her sex again. Her core clenched as if shouting its agreement for her, since she was a bit too slow on the uptake at the moment.
Beyond words, she nodded and tried to rise to her knees. With a firm hand on her shoulder and a thumb at her nape, he kept her in place. As if she hadn’t just experienced the best orgasm of her life, her body revved to life once again.
***
Auzed positioned his knees on either side of her thighs and took a moment to drink in the sight before him. His throbbing cock, flushed and swollen from watching her take her pleasure, settled in the glorious cleft of her ass. Her taste still lingered in his mouth; her cries echoed in his ears. But her scent—her sweet, warm arousal wafting off her every time he touched her—did more to muddle his senses then the many yubskanis he’d gulped down.
She tried to watch him over her shoulder, her lids heavy and her pupils dilated with lust. When she arched her back, attempting to move again, he pressed her down to the ground of the lounger with one firm hand clasping her hip and one on her shoulder. If she kept doing that, he wouldn’t last long at all. He needed to be in control of this.
He’d lick and stroke and master her body until not even the idea of another male sparked interest. Then she’d have to come back to him. Maybe he could convince her to refuse to participate in the marriage ceremony. She could go on seeing him in Tremanta, and he could have whatever bit of her he could get. It was beyond selfish, but he no longer cared.
No one mattered to him more than Alex, and at long last he agreed with the avaricious roars of his Traxian half. He ran his shaky fingers along the beautiful dip of her spine, and raw ferocity spread through him. She felt like she was his, though she wasn’t.
He seemed to matter to her, though. Really matter. Her eyes lit when he entered a room. Her breath caught when he kissed her. She actively worked to make him smile. And he found himself doing the same. What more connection could there be between mates? He couldn’t even imagine.
Unable to reach anything else, she wriggled underneath him and slipped her hand over the one pressed tight against her shoulder, making his chest tighten.
With his other hand, he gripped his length and positioned it between her soft, rounded thighs, locked together under his spread knees. Alex clasped his hand on her shoulder more tightly as he slid between her legs and prodded her entrance. He stilled, letting her feel just the tip of him. She released a frustrated sound and tilted her hips, trying to get closer.
Auzed grinned and remained poised in place. He needed her to be desperate for him. As desperate as he was for her. Slowly he angled over her and pressed an open-mouthed kiss between her shoulder blades, then pushed forward, sinking into the wet heat of her sex.
A low, prolonged moan from deep in her chest rode on her exhale and caressed his senses. With her legs tightly clamped together as they were, the sensation of his broad head inching into her was almost too much. Letting loose a ragged groan, he lifted to his haunches and clutched the swell of her hips, ensuring he buried himself fully.
Alex’s delicate fingers were balled into fists on either side of her head, and small moans escaped her lips with each breath. Angling forward again, he planted his palms on her shoulders. Sprawled over her like this, his pelvis tight against her ass, their size disparity was obvious. Lifting to her forearms, she curled up toward him, arching her back, and peered up at his face hovering above. He gazed into her amber-flecked brown eyes and gripped her chin with his right hand. Gently he guided her up to his mouth and kissed her upside down, sucking and nibbling her bottom lip from their new position. She whimpered and rocked her hips as if needing him to move but trying to wait for his lead.
Her chin still held in his fingers, their mouths still locked together, he slid out a few inches, then surged back into her. The feel of her silky core gripping him, flooding with liquid, snapped a piece of his control. He thrust into her again, a little more forcefully this time. The shaky moan she released into his mouth told him she liked the strength behind his movements.
That was just it, though, wasn’t it? She liked him for the good and bad. Liked the spikes of emotion and his rough hands on her body. He didn’t have to shroud himself in layers of etiquette and convention when he was around her.
Suddenly, they weren’t close enough. He needed to feel every quiver of her body as he fucked her.
Releasing her chin, he lowered onto his elbow and wrapped his forearm around her shoulders. She sank her head back against his chest and clutched his forearm, scratching his overheated skin with her nails as his hips pumped faster. He matched each of her cries with growls of his own.
They were both slick with sweat; his chest glided over her exquisite curves as he thrust, keeping his rhythm steady and forceful. It wasn’t difficult to slide his fingers under her slippery pelvis. He rubbed the pleasure center at her entrance with quick swipes of his fingers. The choked cry she made and the feel of her teeth biting down on his forearm made the slight pain on his wrist buried beneath their bodies worth it.
“Yes, Auzzy. Right there. Please.”
Goddess, that name. Her name for him. For as long as he lived, she would be the only one to call him that. He buried his face in her hair, tightening his forearm around her shoulders until her chest lifted slightly. His body was stiff and livid, aching for release, but he kept it at bay somehow. Alejandra was so close.
Her heels between his legs lifted and pressed into his ass just as her body began to tremble. Breaths shaky and stilted, every muscle in her body clenched. He couldn’t decide whether he wanted to fall with her or watch as his beautiful female came apart for him, writhing and crying out.
The choice was made for him when her inner walls clenched, her palm rose to wrap around his neck, and her orgasm pulled his own from him. They exploded together, shouting their noises of pleasure into the empty sky. His, a booming bellow as he pulsed into the depths of her clenching sex. And hers a strangled cry followed by a breathy sob as her hips undulated against his fingers.
He relaxed against her, his breath coming hard and fast. With effort, he kept his weight from crushing her completely. She trailed kisses along his forearm, pausing every so often to gulp in a shaky breath. A purr of pleasure and contentment rumbled through him.
She jumped, releasing a harsh cry.
“What’s wrong?” Auzed immediately rose off her, hovering close enough to see where he’d hurt her. Pain lanced through his chest at the thought, and his hand shook as he tentatively brushed the hair from her face.
Her wide smile and light giggling made him boneless with relief, and he collapsed onto his back next to her, one hand across his chest. “You scared me!” he barked with a smile.
“I’m sorry.” She grinned and all but dragged herself to him, spreading her arms over his chest. “When you purred, I felt it inside me. I wasn’t expecting it, and I’m very sensitive down there at the moment.”
“Ah,” he breathed into the sky. “Good to know.” The weather was hot, yet now that their bodies weren’t pressed together, he felt the ghost of a chill. Threading his fingers through her hair, he pulled her scalp toward him and planted a long kiss on her temple, basking in the faint hint of his scent that lingered on her skin.
They lay there in silence, softly caressing every inch of each other they could reach. The sun was lower in the sky now, casting the world in a peachy-gold tone.
Her fingers strayed down his abdomen and then his thigh and paused on the portion of his marks that were blackened. “What happened here?” she whispered against his chest. Her gaze caught his, and he could make out the apprehension in their depths. She didn’t think he’d answer her. It was personal, and he’d been struggling to keep at least part of his being away from this creature. But it was no use. She wanted it all and, even more terrifying, he wanted to give it all.
He slipped his fingers over her hand, his thumb rubbing her palm underneath, and gently massaged. “You remember what happened to my mother and my brother?”
Alejandra gulped; her brows raised in surprise. “Yeah, the war, right?”
The corner of his mouth twitched. She was so adorable when she was trying to be subtle. He made a small sound of agreement. “Like I told you, my brother’s marks were scarred beyond repair and he became a different person. People stared at him and whispered about the way he looked, and I could see the way it hurt him, changed him. I tried everything I could think to help but nothing worked. One day I decided that if I couldn’t make him feel better, at least I could suffer with him. I snuck into our bathroom and tried to burn myself with a cetr torch so he wouldn’t feel so alone. I was only able to char a small portion of my marks in private before my father caught me.”
Alex’s hand froze on his thigh. Her gaze flashed from the blackened marks back to his face. “How old were you?”
He stroked her hair and thought, but the sympathy and compassion for him shining in her eyes made it difficult to recall anything. “Mm, twelve, I think.”
Her jaw slackened a bit, and she shook her head. “Your internal compass always points to hero, doesn’t it?” She covered the area with her palm and rested her chin on his chest again. “What did your brother say about it?”
“Nothing. I never told him. To this day, anyone who sees it just assumes it’s an injury I got from my days in the military. My father was the only one who knew…and now you.”
She swallowed again, and the flutter of her heart quickened where their chests met. Had her pulse sped because she was overwhelmed? Should he have kept the story to himself?
Inching up his body, she placed a soft, healing kiss on his mouth. Without much effort at all, considering their bodies were still slick, he tugged her on top of him and deepened the kiss, cradling her skull with his palm.
“Can we stay here forever?” She sighed and relaxed against him. “How long do we have this sex raft for anyway?”
Auzed chuckled, inhaling her scent and trying to ignore the press of her core to his abdomen. “As long as you want. At least until your dress is dry, though.”
She pulled her head up and searched around them until she found the garment. With a mischievous grin, she rose and collected her dress. He watched the sway of her hips and the jiggle of her small breasts as she sauntered to the edge of the pool. The softening sunlight bounced off her warm brown skin and glittered against the water of the pool. He was beholding a damn goddess; he was sure of it.
A dark freckle under her right breast caught his attention, and he chided himself for not giving her front half as much attention as the rest of her. Perhaps she’d let him pleasure her again before they returned to the nest, and he could remedy the error.
Her eyes locked on his when she reached the pool. She lifted the dress between her pinched index finger and thumb, then released it. The fabric fanned out over the water before darkening and sinking. “Oops.”
