Page 23 of The Hallows Queen

“What’s yours?” he asks, sliding forward an inch.

“Penelope,” I say without a breath, desperate for him to repeat my name so I can hear how it sounds on the deep rasp of his voice.

The side of his mouth curls up.

“Penelope.” My eyes drop closed.

Nodding, I bite onto my top lip. “Say it again.”

“Penelope,” he growls this time, making my breath hitch.

My chest is heaving, my breath coming out in shallow pants that make me feel like I might float away at any moment, like my lungs are too small and too large all at once. I hear him shift closer to me, but I keep my eyes closed.

“Penelope,”he says again, right into the space in front of my ear, so close that I feel his breath against my skin. The manly and earthy scent of him mixed with smoke and alcohol alights my senses, and I can feel the heat from his body reaching out to grab mine.

“Mmmmhmmm…” I hum against my teeth, agreeing with the way my name sounds coming from his mouth, like honey dripping from his lips and tongue, like he’s savoring it while he says it.

“Penelope,” he says once more as his hands slide up my arms. My skin burns and pebbles with goosebumps as pleasure shoots through me from my arms straight down to my core.

“Yeah,” I moan, my heartbeat pounding between my legs so hard that I cross them.

His hands are rough against the skin of my arms as he slowly moves them up to my shoulders then back down again. I want to cry out, to drop my head back and moan loud enough that it shatters the room around us.

“That feels so good,” I whisper, finding his gaze. “Your hands feel so.Fucking.Good.”

He slides them around my wrists, over my fingers and up my legs to my stomach. The feeling isn’t as satisfying over the fabric of my dress, so I grab the hem and lift it over my hips, letting him stroke his hands over my bare skin. My clit flutters between my legs, making my eyes close again as my head drops against my shoulder and I sigh in pleasure.

“How does that feel?” he asks, tracing a line down my sternum to my belly button.

“Like I want to come.” The words slip from my lips before I have a chance to think them over.

Moving both of his hands around my rib cage, he squeezes, almost hard enough that I can’t draw a breath. I cry out, dropping my arms behind me to hold myself up. When he loosens his hold, he slips both hands under the bunched-up fabric of my dress and cradles my tits. I moan, pulling my knees up and spreading my legs without thinking.

“How about that?”

I lick my lips and bite down on my tongue over a moan, my entire body buzzing as my chest shakes. “So good.So fucking good.You’re making me wet.”

“Show me.” He squeezes my tits, running his thumbs over the hard peaks of my nipples as he moves onto his knees before me. “Reach between your legs, pull your panties down, and show me.”

Every line is blurred, moving in fast forward as my world is rocked by the pleasure of his hands on me. With my eyes still closed, I put my trust into one arm to hold me up, then reach between my legs. My panties are soaked through, and I stroke my fingers over the wet lace a few times. Moaning, I rip at my panties in a panic, desperate to set my naked flesh free, and pull them down my legs, kicking them to the side.

Hayden pinches my nipples hard, making me groan as I put my weight back on both arms, and my pelvis lifts in response.

“Spread those legs, Penelope,” he rasps, rolling my nipples between his fingers. “Let me see how pretty that pussy is.”

“Oh,God,” I moan, spreading my legs wide. Opening my eyes, I look at him in time to see him look between my legs. His tongue rolls over his teeth and he flicks his eyes back to mine as he yanks his hands from my chest. His pupils are so dilated that his irises are nonexistent, making his eyes a black pit of sin and desire.

“If you don’t want to do this,” he breathes, jaw twitching with restraint as he locks eyes with me. “Now is the time to say it.”

I bite my bottom lip until it’s painful, then bend and spread my legs farther. “Please. Touch me.”

Not wasting a second, he puts his hands on the inside of my thighs, pushing my legs apart until I feel a pinch in my hamstrings. Sliding one tattooed finger through my center, he groans. “Dripping fucking wet.”

I moan, watching him as he does it again, ghosting over my clit and down to my entrance before he puts his finger to his lips and sucks on it. “All this for me, Penelope?”

My heart is pounding in my chest so hard I feel like I’m twitching, threatening to combust and explode like a bomb. My voice hurts coming up my throat, but I manage to breathe words back at him.

“All for you, Hayden.”

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