Page 70 of Heart of the Deep

Dracchus reared back, breaking the kiss. Lips swollen and tingling, Larkin dropped her arms to either side of her head and stared up at him. He looked upon her with ravenous eyes. His chest heaved with ragged breaths as he moved his hands to the front of her jumpsuit.

He grasped the fabric and wrenched it apart, tearing the zipper open like it was made of paper. Cool air caressed her bared breasts, and Dracchus growled in approval. He wasted no time in removing the garment from her completely, shredding the fabric with his claws and peeling it off her arms and legs, tentacles sliding down to remove her shoes.

The chill was fleeting; as Dracchus leaned down again, his heat flowed into her, flaring when he closed his mouth over her nipple. Larkin arched, pleasure shooting straight to her core. Her sex throbbed. She cupped his head with her hands as he sucked and teased her breasts.

His tentacles slid higher, over her thighs, and slipped between their bodies to brush along her sex. Larkin inhaled sharply.

Dracchus groaned. “I will taste you on my tongue, female, before I am maddened by your scent.”

He moved down her body, trailing kisses along the way. When he reached the scars on her pelvis, Larkin suddenly went cold, instinctively covering them with her hands.

“Don’t,” she rasped.

He caught both her wrists in one hand and drew her arms away, looking up to meet her gaze. “They are part of you, and so they are beautiful.”

He dipped his head and kissed them. “My brave—”

His lips moved lower. “—strong—”

Larkin shivered as his chin brushed over the hair between her legs.

“—mate.”

His mouth pressed against her sex, and his tongue ran over it from bottom to top; she nearly leapt out of her skin when it flicked her clit. Pleasure shot through her, and she released a throaty groan, letting her head fall back onto the bed. When he released her wrists, she dropped her arms to take handfuls of the bedding.

Dracchus’s appreciative growl vibrated through her core. He twisted, moved his shoulders behind her thighs, and wrapped his arms around her legs, grasping her knees as he greedily lapped at her sex.

She writhed in his hold, but he didn’t relent. Her moans turned into gasps, which became pleasured cries. She held nothing back.

Soon, his hands moved up, leaving his tentacles to hold her legs parted. He covered her breasts with his palms, stroking and squeezing them as he made love to her with his mouth and tongue.

Larkin shut her eyes and bit her lip as the sensation built within her. Her feet arched, toes digging into his back as her hips undulated beneath his mouth, mimicking the act of sex; she was desperate to reach that pivotal moment.

Then he latched onto her clit and sucked.

Stars burst behind her eyelids, and she screamed. Liquid heat flooded Larkin, and suddenly, Dracchus’s hands were under her, grabbing her backside and lifting her off the bed and against his face as he drank from her like he’d just crossed a desert without water. Every stroke of his tongue sent her higher and higher, and when she finally crested the peak of her euphoria, he brought her back down slowly, gently, his presence offering her a solid place to land.

She lay there staring at the ceiling, limp and panting, a light sheen of perspiration coating her skin and dampening her hair. Dracchus gave her a final lick before he kissed the top of her sex and raised his head. He drew himself over her once again, licking her essence from his lips. It was such a naughty thing, but it sent a jolt of desire right back through her.

No one had ever done that to her before. She’d never realized how intense it could be, howgoodit could feel. Despite coming, she craved more, craved itnow.

“I will drink from you often.” He brushed the backs of his fingers over her open sex and brought them to his mouth to lick clean. “As often as you make this scent for me.”

Larkin licked her lips, staring at his mouth — a mouth full of sharp teeth that had been nothing but gentle as he brought her to climax. “That might be too often, even for you.”

Especially after this. It’ll be all I think about.

Dracchus grinned. “I accept your challenge, female.”

He turned onto his back and pulled her into his arms. He inhaled deeply, then released a satisfied hum. When he did nothing more than hold her, Larkin frowned in confusion.

“What…about you?” she asked awkwardly. Men usually did nothing without reciprocation, and considering what Dracchus had just done, she’d expected him to demand something in return.

“I must rest so my wounds will heal. Tonight was for you.” He smoothed his palm down her arm, and his tentacles shifted, drawing the blanket over her before twining with her legs. “You gave more than you realize in return already.”

“I did?” she asked, slowly slipping her arm around his chest. When she’d woken alone this morning — having gone to bed alone the night before — she’d found herself longing for his presence. She liked him beside her, holding her.

Making her feel safe.

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