Page 40 of Protected By the Gargoyle
Miguel nodded. “Many of us suspected that. Vera was certain of it.”
Arto exhaled. Was his longing for Janie so obvious? He added, “There’s a problem. I haven’t told Janie.”
“Why not?”
Arto rolled one shoulder. “She just wanted to be friends until recently. And she’d gone through so much. If I told her my true feelings before now, that would make things awkward and jeopardize our relationship.”
Miguel fixed a keen gaze on him. “Did something change?”
Did it ever. Flashes of being with Janie in his room whirled through his mind. “Yes.” He met Miguel’s probing gaze.
He nodded, appearing to understand what had developed. “So now what?”
Arto clucked his tongue. “I think I have to tell her.” He blew out a rough breath. “No, I know I have to tell her… but…”
“But what?”
The fear wormed its way up Arto’s spine before he voiced it. “I don’t know how she’s going to react.” She could reject him and leave. “Maybe I should wait until this situation is resolved.”Ifthe situation ever resolved. And how long that would take was unpredictable.
“If there’s anything I’ve learned over all the years with Vera, it’s not to keep things from her. That can sometimes lead to worse problems.”
Arto scratched his nose as he mulled over that thought. Miguel was right. Keeping this secret from Janie could lead to more trouble. Hadn’t he already kept it from her long enough?
When he returnedto the compound, he found Janie in her temporary room. She rushed into his arms. He embraced her, inhaling the undeniable scent of his mate.
“I was so worried about you.” She pulled away just enough to stare up at him.
“Don’t be. I’m here now.”
As he stared at her, the hunger for his mate growing, her blue eyes darkened. One thunderous heartbeat rolled into the next. On the third, they came for each other with desperation.
He lifted her off the ground, and she wrapped her legs around him. He carried her to the bed. They tore each other’s clothes off with haste, no tentative touching this time. The passion was brutal and raw.
As soon as he’d removed every article of clothing separating them, he kissed all over her body. He licked each breast, fondling the gentle weight in his hands, and swirled his tongue around each hardened nipple. He could feast on her beautiful breasts all day.
But there was so much more of her that he wanted to taste and touch. He slid his hands down her sides, over her hips, and then between her legs.
“You’re already so wet,” he murmured.
She reached down and wrapped her fingers around his cock. “Because I’ve been thinking about you. And thinking about this.” She guided him to her center.
“You want me to fuck you?”
“Yes.” Her voice was a low rasp.
“Say it.” He yearned to hear those words from her sweet mouth again.
“Fuck me, Arto. Please.”
“Yes, my—” He almost called her his mate, but caught himself and said, “beauty.”
He quickly pulled away and sheathed his erection. Then he slowly buried himself into her hot, tight channel, allowing her time to adjust.
She clung to him. “Yes, just like this…”
They made love twice.The second time was gentler, slower. He took his time to explore her body, fascinated by her reaction to each kiss and touch. He longed to spend eternity discovering what she liked so he could please her over and over again.
With their limbs entwined, they caught their breaths and recovered.
