Page 43 of Hers to Rule

“I have the utmost faith in that,” he whispered in her ear. “I also trust that you’ll tell me all the filthy details later.”

She leaned against him, letting her hand trail over his shoulder. “In as much excruciating detail as you want.”

He claimed her mouth in a searing kiss that promised as much pleasure as she could possibly stand later that evening.

Chapter 14

Mari packed a handful of things from her personal altar, some jewelry her mother had given her for her fourteenth birthday, and one picture of her with her parents from when she was five. The photo was one of the few times she could remember all of them being happy. Looking at it now, she realized the impression that they had been content even then was probably colored by nostalgia. Her father had never been an easy man to love, even before he turned hard in the later years. He’d always been greedy for every scrap of attention in every room he occupied. Her mother had always been an enigma to Mari, a woman of quiet thought and rare smiles.

Rio watched her quietly from the doorway, giving her as much space as she needed to contemplate the detritus of her life.

“I think that’s it,” she said after one more look around.

“You sure?” Rio asked. “There’s no need to rush.”

She glanced toward the framed print her father had insisted hold a place of prominence on her walls and in her life. The same symbol that he had hung around her neck the night of her sixteenth birthday, the links of a chain that was somehow twisted into the shape of a flower that could have been an abstract rose. “I don’t need any of it.” Mari shut the box she’d been putting her things into.

Rio watched her for a moment before replying, “Giselle can pack it all up and put it in a closet. That way, if you want anything later, you can always find it.” He strolled into the room. “You want me to take that?”

“Leave it for now.” She smiled and beckoned him closer. “Cisco has homework for us.”

“Does he?” Rio prowled closer, a predator circling his prey. “What’s the assignment?”

“Get on the bed.”

Rio eyed the fluffy white expanse of her bed. “I’ll get it dirty.”

“That’s kind of the plan.” She waited while he considered her command, holding her breath as the anticipation built.

Rio’s lips curled, and then he crossed the room. He toed off his sneakers before arranging himself on the bed propped up slightly against the pillows. “What now?”

“Hands up to hold the headboard. Don’t let go.”

He exhaled abruptly, his expression sharpening. She knew exactly how much he liked this game. Holding her gaze, he raised his arms and curled his fingers around the wooden railing.

Mari took him in with a slow glance, letting her eyes linger on all her favorite parts of him. The edge of his jaw. The hollow of his throat. The angle of his ribs. The swiftly growing swell of his cock. “He told me to ride you until I was sated.” She smiled when he jerked slightly. “You know how long that can take.”

She let him stew on that while she walked toward him, admiring the muscles of his thighs as he battled with the urge to move. He writhed when she reached out to touch his chest over his close-fitting T-shirt. His lips parted when she drew her hand down along his centerline to the band of his pants. He raised his hips to try and encourage her.

“You’re eager.” She traced a finger along the edge of his cock through his joggers.

“I always am for you,” he purred and flexed his hips to press into her hand. Desire rose up from him like a heady perfume, teasing her magic.

She curled her fingers to run her nails along his cock through the thin fabric. “Be a good boy and stay very still.”

He groaned at the more aggressive touch. “I’ll be so good, mi reina.”

He’d never called her anything but princesa and Mari a few times. She met his eyes. “When did I become your queen rather than your princess?”

He shrugged as much as he could with his hands over his head. “A princess is someone who needs saving. A queen is someone who rules.”

A thrill moved through her as she gripped his hard length. “Do you want me to rule you, Rio?”

He smiled seductively. “You already do.”

Mari reached into his pants to touch him skin-to-skin. His hips raised an inch before he caught them and fought to remain still. As much as she admired his control in this vulnerable moment, she also wanted desperately to break it to see what was beneath. She tugged him several times roughly, just the way he liked it.

He moaned, arching his head back, his desperation to stay still despite his growing desire written in every muscle of his long, lean body. She pulled down her panties with one hand and kicked them off, never letting up on the quick rhythm of her strokes.

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