Page 131 of This Monster of Mine

She stared at the scars running down her breasts and hips, the raised lines misshapen, ugly. Her throat closed. She couldn’t look at him.

“I—”

“Fuck.” Red stained Kadra’s high cheekbones as he stared down at her. “Fuck, I knew you’d be beautiful.”

Her eyes smarted and she blinked furiously to keep the tears at bay as he leaned over her to press a tender kiss to her mouth, her collarbone, her chest. He lavished attention on her breasts, his lips tracing the lines of her scars, as he slipped a hand between her legs, breath going choppy.

Her back bowed as his fingers plunged deep. She’d done this before on her own, but it was nothing,nothing, like this. He was as all-consuming as she’d hoped and feared, drawing out her pleasure until she begged him for mercy.

“Look at me,” he demanded as she neared her peak. “Eyes on me. I want to watch you.”

His fingers worked faster, deeper, and she flew apart, the orgasm rushing through her with brutal intensity, lighting up every nerve in her body. He pressed kisses against her forehead, her nose, her upturned lips, breath coming in harsh bursts.

“Like lightning,” he whispered.

And he was the storm itself. Her muscles were limp, but she wanted more. She reached between them to grip his length, stroking it from root to tip. He uttered a rough moan of pleasure, watching the motion as though it held his salvation. Her thumb brushed over the wet head, and she heard his teeth grind seconds before he captured her arms and pinned them aboveher head. But instead of entering her, he stilled, pupils blown so wide, she couldn’t see anything of his irises.

“Sarai,” he whispered hoarsely. “I’ve wanted you for so long.” Sweat trailed down his neck, but he waited, silently asking her one last time if she was sure.

She arched herself against him, notching his cock to her entrance. “Please.” She pressed against him again just as he pushed inside her.

Kadra captured her hiss of pain, whispering an apology against her lips, waiting for her to get used to the feel of him, before moving gently, tenderly, letting her find her rhythm, watching her as if he’d die if he didn’t. Electricity sizzled down her spine, centering between them, growing with every hard thrust, every snap of his hips. She gasped his name, and lust suffused his face.

“What do you need?”

“You,” she whimpered as he moved deep. “More.”

“Shit,” he shuddered, before giving up on reining himself in. “Fuck, Sarai.”

He began to take her in earnest and she cried out, her wetness seeping down her thighs. Her body moving of its own will, she ground against him, meeting him viciously with lips, tongue, and teeth as he caressed her with soft, filthy words of praise, his voice driving her closer to the brink.

“That’s it,” he growled against her mouth. “Gods, you’re so fucking beautiful.”

He drank in her pleas and cries, taking her with frenzied intensity, every inch the demanding lover she’d known he would be.

Her body tightened in impending ecstasy, and their eyes locked just as she erupted. Pure bliss slammed into her, through her, around her, only his name on her lips. He groaned. His hips shifted, thrust deep, and a harsh growl left Kadra’s throat. He clutched her to him, body shuddering against her as they fell against the mattress, utterly spent.

“I belong to you,” he whispered against her hair. “I will always belong to you.”

And she felt the truth of it without any magic.

CHAPTER THIRTY

Sarai woke to hands in her hair and a stubbled jaw nuzzling a path down her neck. Her cheeks heated as Kadra gave her a wicked smile.

Gods. How did one usually handle this sort of thing?

“Good morning,” she tried, and his smile widened.

His eyes were soft as he kissed her, the hard planes of his face relaxed. For a man who exuded murder most hours of the day, he was luminous.

Pulling her on top of him, he searched her face. “Regrets?”

She swatted him with a pillow. “Of course not.”

“Good girl.”

She flushed at the reminder of the last time he’d said that. Sunset streamed through the window, dappling their bodies as she drew up on her elbows to survey his room.

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