Page 262 of Primal Bonds

What felt like a boa constrictor wrapped around her chest. Her throat worked. “I know you won’t.”

His eyes held hers. “I want you to promise something. That if I ever do anything to scare you, you’ll tell me. Or just smack me upside the head and tell me to stop.”

She worried her lower lip. “Oh, Fane.”

He smoothed a thumb over her cheek. “Promise me, Jani.”

She gave a jerky nod. “Okay. Yes. I promise.”

“Good.” Releasing her hand, he lay back on the mattress, his erection mostly deflated, and patted the sheet next to him. “Come here. Cuddle with me.”

She knelt next to him. His cheeks and chin were shadowed with stubble. He folded one arm beneath his head, his bicep bulging, a tuft of dark hair in his armpit.

Desire twanged through her. Only a hint—but she welcomed it, focused on that warm tingle instead of her fear.

She ran a hand down the washboard ridges of his abdomen, just to see if she could. It felt good, the touch grounding her.

She did it again.

The cat purred. Mine.

“You could be a model,” she told him. “If you’re looking for a job.”

He let out a startled laugh. “I don’t think so.”

“Oh, you could be. But you know something? Never mind. I want you all to myself.”

His cock twitched and lengthened, and this time, it just fed the warm tingles.

His smile was slow and intimate. “I know you’re the only woman I want. The only woman I’ll ever want.”

“Good. Because if that red-haired fae lady starts rubbing up against you again, I just might have to take her down.”

“Just so you remember it goes both ways.”

“Of course. We’re mates. And I don’t get off on making men jealous.” She toyed with the wiry nest of hairs encircling his cock. “You’re dark here. Like your beard.”

He sipped a breath, and she knew he wanted her to stroke him. But she didn’t. It was more fun to tease. Instead, she circled her index finger around the base as he watched, heavy-lidded.

“You like to play, do you?”

She tilted her head, considering that. “Maybe I do. When it’s you.”

“Have at me, then,” he said in the tone of a man sacrificing himself.

She couldn’t help smiling—and the boa constrictor released its grip on her chest. “All right. But you can’t move.”

Placing her hands on either side of his hips, she leaned forward to lick him. Slow, languorous licks. He stilled, his free hand clenching, but he kept it on the bed.

“Mm.” She pressed a kiss to his hard stalk. “I like how you taste.”

She drew her tongue up and down him, swirling it around the cap. Tonguing the sensitive underside.

He groaned. “Jani?”

She hummed against his flushed skin. “Yeah?”

“You’re killing me here.”

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