Page 48 of Final Vendetta

“Y-yes,” I stammered, my mouth growing dry.

He curved toward me, nuzzling the crook of his neck. “What else, Imogene?”

It was a good thing he was holding me. Otherwise I wouldn’t be surprised if I melted into a puddle on the floor. It had been solong since I felt anything remotely close to this, and I didn’t want this moment to end.

“The way your beard scraped at my skin. Then how you’d bite me, marking me and letting everyone know I was yours.”

Without a single ounce of hesitation, he wrapped a hand around my hair, forcing my head to the side. Then he clamped his teeth on my neck, rough and unforgiving.

The ache was almost unbearable. Not because it hurt, although there was certainly a bit of pain. But because of how much I needed him, especially now that he was no longer pretending to be someone he wasn’t.

“Like that?” he panted, his breathing growing ragged.

As was mine.

“Yes,” I replied again, my core clenching with need.

“What else, Imogene?” he pressed once more, running his finger over the place he just marked me, his tenderness a striking contrast from the way he currently looked at me. “What else did you miss about Gideon Saint?”

I drew in a deep breath in an attempt to calm the nerves fluttering in my stomach. Then I leveled him with a determined stare, hoping to sound more confident than I felt.

“The way he fucked me. How he always gave me exactly what I needed. Even if I didn’t quite realize what that was.”

He trailed his fingers along my collarbone, his eyes softening as he tenderly caressed my skin. A part of me worried I overstepped.

It wasn’t that the sex had ever been bad between us, even as Samuel. But with Gideon, it was always so much more.

He was uninhibited. Unbridled. Unrestrained. It was why I craved it.

Outside of the bedroom, he was always so controlled. So disciplined. So…guarded.

But during those moments of intimacy when it was just us, he could let loose. He could stop allowing the weight of his past to burden him. He could be…free.

“I promise you, Imogene.” He lowered his lips to mine, the warmth of his breath so close to my mouth unhinging me. “From this moment forward, I will always give you exactly what you need.” He moved his hand to my throat, loosely wrapping his fingers around it. “Always,” he repeated as he tightened his grip, his mouth capturing mine in a kiss I felt everywhere.

His tongue slid against mine, resolute and determined. There was nothing hesitant or apprehensive about it. Not like the other night. Instead, the way he held me, the way he kissed me left absolutely no question in my mind exactly what this man wanted. Who he was.

He guided me out of the kitchen, his lips never leaving mine, his kiss consuming me. It had been too long since he kissed me like this. With so much passion. So much greed. Like he didn’t care if he broke me. In fact, Iwantedhim to break me. Wanted him to completely shatter me into millions of pieces.

“You know I love you more than anything, right?” he asked when we reached the bedroom.

I may have had my doubts about a lot of things in my life, but this man’s devotion to me was never one of them. Even when I didn’t know who he was, I knew he cared deeply for me.

“Of course.”

“Good.” He pressed his lips against mine in another kiss that left me desperate for more. “Because tonight, I’m going to do things to you that may make you think otherwise.”

A shiver rolled down my spine at what that may entail. Then he narrowed his stare on me.

But that wasn’t the right word for the way he looked at me. This was so much more than a stare. It was a reawakening. A resurrection. A rebirth.

“Strip.”

His command left no room to argue. And I had no intention of arguing. Not now that I had this part of him back.

With my eyes trained on his, I lifted my shirt over my head before reaching behind me to unclasp my bra. Then I linked my fingers into the waistband of my shorts and pushed them down my legs along with my panties, kicking them to the side.

As much as he wanted to play it calm and cool, I could see how much the sight of me affected him. It didn’t matter how many times he’d seen me naked. The hunger in his stare made me feel like it was our first time.

---