Page 59 of Vicious Devotion

I told her that I want us to share a bed while this marriage exists, and I meant it. But I also know that if she resists, I’ll give in. I could never force her to do anything that she doesn’t want.

I just have to hope that she wants that, too.

18

BELLA

Iwake up the next morning sore in a pleasant sort of way, realizing that I’ve gotten to sleep in past my usual alarm. The bed is soft and warm, inviting, and I burrow my head deeper into the pillow, wondering how long I can stay here.

The second thing I realize is that Gabriel has slept in, too. And he’s still in bed with me.

He curled up behind me, at some point in the night. His arm is slung over my waist, his hard, muscular body pressed against my back. He came to bed naked, too—I can feel every inch of his smooth, bare skin…and his hard cock, nestled against my spine.

I resist the urge to squirm against him. Only once. That was what I told him. Just like I told him that after he took my virginity, our relationship would go back to being platonic. Professional, even. We’ve crossed that line so many times now that it’s miles behind us. I can’t already cross the line that I just set down before our wedding.

Even if the feeling of him hot and hard behind me makes me want to roll over and wrap my legs around him, so he can slide into me and make me come like that all over again.

I never knew it was possible to come as many times as he made me last night. I think I counted four—but I could have been wrong. It was hard to keep anything straight when my entire body was nothing but a puddle of blissful sensation, when he seemed determined to wring every last drop of it out of me that he could.

The thought makes me shiver, and that’s enough to wake Gabriel.

He stirs behind me, his hips arching a little as he sleepily presses his erection into me. The feeling of it makes me gasp, my body involuntarily arching back against him, and in a flash, I’m suddenly on my back with him leaning over me.

The covers are draped over his waist, all of his bare, muscular upper half-revealed. I can see all the way down to where his heavy erection is now laying against my belly, throbbing eagerly. It takes every last bit of my self-control not to wind my legs around his hips, tilt mine up, and pull him into me.

I want him again. And from the sleepily desirous look on his face, I think he can see that written plainly on mine.

“Good morning,” he says softly, his voice still a sleepy rasp, and I shift beneath him. I can’t help it—and I also can’t help but notice the way his muscles flex at that movement, his hand tightening on the pillow next to my head. I can tell he’s fighting the urge to slip into me, too, to slowly fuck us both awake, and the thought only heightens my growing desire, as I try to remember why I insisted that we couldn’t have sex past our wedding night.

The stated reason was so that we don’t end up with a child, when this marriage is only meant to be a sham, until Igor’s threat is neutralized. But for me, it was a test. To see if Gabriel would still respect my boundaries the way he always has, even after we were married.

It’s a test he’s passed with flying colors. And right now, I’m struggling to remember why I can’t just leave it there, and enjoy the gorgeous man that I’m now married to.

He dips his head, kissing me softly. There’s no demand in it. It’s not forceful—it’s gentle, a good-morning kiss that wouldn’t be out of place in front of an audience…except for the part where he’s naked and hard against me.

His hips shift, slightly. His mouth lingers on mine. I feel my body tighten, feel the warm dampness of my own arousal between my thighs, and I’m so close to giving in. I want to feel what I did last night. One more time. We haven’t gotten out of bed yet, so it’s still technically our wedding night. The new day hasn’t started?—

I’m still trying to rationalize it away when Gabriel pulls back, sliding away from me as he tucks the covers down between us.

“I’m sorry,” he says, and I realize as I break out of my daze that I never even responded to his good morning. He probably thought I was frozen under him, worried that he’d push more on me than I wanted, because I’m his wife now. I can see from the worried look on his face that he thinks he’s upset me.

“No,” I manage. “It’s okay.” I push myself up to a sitting position, my cheeks heating slightly from the awkwardness, as I hold the covers up to my breasts and try to ignore the aching throb between my thighs. “Did you—” I clear my throat. “Did you sleep alright?”

Gabriel nods. “Like a rock. What about you?” He looks at me questioningly. “If you had nightmares, they didn’t wake me.”

I didn’t. I don’t think I even dreamed; I was sleeping so hard. “No—I was fine,” I manage, my blush deepening a little at the thought of why that is. At the reminder that Gabriel made me come so many times, fucked me so thoroughly that not even my nightmares could break through the deep sleep I ended up in.

“Good.” Gabriel presses his lips together briefly. “And you’re still fine with sharing a bedroom? I think—” He hesitates briefly. “It will keep from confusing the kids, if they happened to realize you’re sleeping in a separate room,” he says finally. “And I feel better having you close. For your safety.”

For some reason, hearing those last three words tacked onto the statement makes my heart drop. For your safety. Practicality, like everything else in our marriage. But then again—that’s all this was meant to be. An arrangement, to keep me safe. A necessity, so that Gabriel can leverage the defenses he needs against Igor.

I need to remember that, when I feel myself wanting more.

When I find myself, like I am right now, wanting him to spill me back into bed and stay here with me for the rest of the day, losing himself in me the way he did last night.

“I should take a shower.” A part of me hopes that Gabriel will suggest he join me, but instead, he just nods.

“I’ll wait for you to finish.”

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