Page 77 of The Prince from a Cruel Summer
“I’d be jealous of any woman you’d be free to marry,” I deadpan, the statement crawling out of some dark, bottomless trench inside my heart.
His throat bobs. “Yeah?”
“Yes.”
The rest of my defenses shatter as I slip my arms around his neck and lean forward, caressing his hairline with my free hand. “I dreamed about you—when I was in the new world. I couldn’t quite make up my mind to be good and stay away from you.”
“Never settle for good, Songbird. You deservemore.” He dives in for a kiss, and the brush of our tongues is the most erotic thing I’ve ever felt. I spread my legs to make space for him and discard the wine to the side, his grip on my waist making my belly clench and my nipples harden.
“I dreamed about you, too. Every night. It nearly consumed me.” Aidan drags his thumb over my pointy ear. His fingertips linger on the angle of my jaw, and in this small, careful touch, I get a glimpse of the extent of his greediness. “I want to learn every detail there is to know about you. Touch every inch of your skin. Own every bit of your soul. I want to play with your body until it craves me and me alone.”
I quake under the decadence of his desire, his words spreading through my body like bottled sin, my rational mind checking off completely. The chorus ofonly one nightslips away, banished to some dusty dungeon at the back of my mind.
“Tell me about your heart, Songbird. What does it sing for? Do you want me to worship you, or do you prefer to be ravished? Should I make you beg for your release, or spoil you with more pleasure than you can stand?”
“All of it,” I gasp. “Make meburn.”
He smiles like my answer is even more perfect than I knew.
Fire and ice. Ice and fire.
Kissing, gripping,clawingeach other closer. I unbutton and tug the vest off his broad shoulders, then his shirt. Running a hand down the grooves of his smooth, naked back, my heart cries out in bliss.Finally.
“I will drive you mad with pleasure until you agree to be mine.” He combs my hair to the side and pecks the tender skin of my neck as he undoes the hook-and-eye closures at the back of my dress, one by one, until he manages to slip it over my head.
“So cocky.”
“Is that doubt I hear?” He shifts on top of me. “I’ll keep count, then. Past ten, you’ll have to yield, right?”
Ten?
The weight of him steals a heavy groan from my lips. “Concentrate on one, alright?” I quip.
His answering gaze is so filthy and dissolute that I almost believe him, his pride clearly rising to the challenge.
Our bodies are like long-lost puzzle pieces, moving in tandem. I scrape his ass under the hem of his trousers, and he reaches behind me to unclasp my satin bra.
My breasts bounce free, and I shiver, moving to cover myself, but Aidan discards the ivory piece of fabric to the side, his nostrils flaring, his hooded eyes dipping to the heavy, sensitive flesh.
I shudder all over, feeling more beautiful than Eros herself as he traces the swell of my breast with his thumb. The pad of it is as hot as melted wax, and I hum when he drags it over the chilled, pebbled peak. My back arches, the contrast between his fire and my wintry skin almost painful, but not quite. I need more.
“If I’m too much, too rough, tooardent…” he says with humor. “Just tell me,” he whispers against my skin.
“Duly noted.” I reach for the top of his trousers, but he shakes his head.
“Not yet.”
I bite my bottom lip and stroke him over the fabric, my insides hot and slick as I take in the shape of him.
A dark glint burns in his gaze, but he pins my hands above my head. “I said not yet.”
Two bare vines grow out of the ground and shackle my arms in place, their rough bark scraping the underside of my wrists. I tuck my tongue behind my front teeth and offer my lover a provocative smile. “You’re bossy, too. I kind of like it.”
He chuckles at that, the sound soft and enchanting, as he mirrors my own words back to me. “Duly noted.”
I stretch out my neck to lick the freckles under his jaw, absolutely entranced by the sight of him hovering above me as he slides a hand down my stomach, under the lace, and over my sensitive spot.
“Blessed Flame. You’re already soaked. Keep your legs spread for me. Let me see all of you.”
