Page 47 of The Devil's Torment

Matthew never had a clue when I faked it, but I’m learning fast that Nicholas isn’t Matthew.

“Victoria.” His hands land on my shoulders, but he doesn’t force me to look at him. He leaves them there, a comforting weight. “Let me tell you something about men. Real men, not that useless prat you dated in college.” He drops one hand to my waist, freeing my shoulder for his chin. “Spending hours exploring a woman’s body is a fucking privilege. I could tongue your pussy for an hour straight and never get bored. Your body needs a little more attention, that’s all. Attention I am more than happy to give you. I told you this last night. Hear me.Believeme.”

“Why are you being nice to me?” My voice cracks, and I hate it. I hate the expression of weakness in front of a man I’ve always made sure to show my strong side to. Since he put that ring on my finger, I’m not sure who I am anymore, and I don’t like it. I don’t like her.

“You’d rather I was hard on you?”

I roll my lips. “That’s not what I mean.”

“Then, what do you mean?”

“I don’t know.” A sour laugh pushes its way past my throat. “You hit the jackpot with me, huh?”

“You want the truth?”

Do I? I’m not sure, but I nod anyway.

“Then, turn and look at me, and I’ll give you the truth.”

I shift my weight, but when I avoid his gaze, he clips me under the chin until our eyes meet.

“The truth is I’m sort of relieved.”

I frown. “Relieved I can’t orgasm?”

“Youcanorgasm,” he growls. “I’m relieved that you have a vulnerable side. I’ve always thought you’re as tough as granite.”

Granted, I thought I was, too. I play with my wedding ring, twisting it around my finger. Maybe it’s laced with magic and that’s why Nicholas has managed to breach my resilient outer shell.

“I don’t like being weak.”

“Vulnerability isn’t weakness. It’s human.”

“Are you saying you’re not human? Because I’ve never seen you vulnerable.”

A soft chuckle echoes in his throat. He clips me under the chin. “Lie down. Close your eyes.”

I do as he asks. The mattress shifts beneath me, and soft music fills the room. I crack open an eye as automatic blinds drop from the ceiling, blocking out the brilliant sunshine and bathing the room in a muted glow.

“Close them,” he orders. Firm hands part my thighs and warm breath feathers over my vulva. “Don’t think. Feel.”

The first touch of his tongue on my clit sends a shot of lust right into my veins. I had been so close before that it doesn’t take long for me to reach that same point again. And the same thing happens. I see the peak, can almost touch it, my fingertips straining to pull myself up and over the top, to race down the other side of the hill to the glistening ocean below. But I stay where I am, the finish line agonizingly close yet out of reach.

A rumble vibrates through Nicholas’s chest, and I feel it all the way down to my toes. “Stop thinking.” He slides two fingers inside me, curling them toward my front wall, and uses his thumb to keep pressure on my clit. He kisses me, his tongue endlessly stroking mine, his lips both firm and soft. I bury my fingers in his hair, urging him to kiss me faster, harder. I’m close enough to taste it.

“Come, Half-pint. Not for me, but for yourself.”

His words are the key to the door. It flings wide open, and I fall. I fall, and it’s sublime. An almost out-of-body experience. I’m still coming when Nicholas pushes himself inside me. My eyes fly open, a gasp spilling out of me. That stings.

“Breathe.” He kisses my forehead, my eyelids, my nose, my lips. “Breathe for me. You’re fucking tight. I’m going to need to push harder to get all the way in.”

“You’re not in?” Jesus Christ, I’m already full of him. Any more, and he’ll butt up against my cervix.

“No.” He half grimaces, half smiles. “’Bout half way.”

I blink furiously. “Oh.”

“We’ll make it fit, Half-pint. Take a deep breath in for me. Good. Now, let it out.”

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