Page 108

Five Months Later

Months ago, the idea of being on her hands and knees with a man kneeling behind her might have alarmed Zara. But by now, it had become routine.

She bent low, resting her head on the thin cushion of her bedroll, feeling the cold stone of the cave floor beneath. The spring air was still cold, and there were goosebumps on her skin despite the warm fire beside them.

The ends of Nero’s hair were gathered in her fist. She tightened her grip, using it as a leash to pull him forward. A strained groan sounded from deep in his throat, and he leaned forward obediently, his body curving over hers. He extended an arm beside her to hold himself up. His muscles trembled with overexertion—they’d already been at this for some time. She’d already come twice, on his tongue and his fingers.

She could feel his cock brushing against her. By his deep, shaky breaths, she knew he was painfully hard and desperate to enter her. She smiled to herself, decided to make him wait a little longer, and reached between her legs to pull his cock between her thighs, where it rubbed against the length of her sex. His breath hitched.

“Now?” he asked.

“Not yet.”

He gave a pained sigh, his fingers making indents in her hip. “Please, Zara.”

A shiver went through her. She loved hearing that word. She loved the raw desire and passion she heard in his voice when he said it, and she loved being begged for her permission. She loved being the one to decide what would happen next.

And even more than that, she loved that he loved it.

She shifted his hair to her other hand and pulled again, just to remind him that he was hers.

His hips rolled, the front of his thighs rubbing against the back of hers. His free hand flitted over her body as if it couldn’t decide what to touch next, then settled over her breast. She bit her lip as he brushed over her nipple. He was trying to get her to give in. It wasn’t going to work.

“Zara…” His lips roved over her back, and his cock pulsed against her. He moved frenetically, his hands and mouth grasping at her impatiently. He was so overcome with lust that he could hardly control his body. This was the way she liked him best. “Please.”

She bit back a grin. “Give me your fingers.” Immediately he shifted his hand between her legs and rubbed her mercilessly. She sucked in a breath. “Softer,” she said.

His hand slowed, his index and middle finger sliding over her as his cock lay poised against her entrance. If he’d been someone else, she might have thought he would lose patience, but she knew he would wait as long as she wanted.

Tension rolled through her in a carnal rhythm as his hand brought her closer to climax.

“Now,” she said.

He slid into her, driving through her soft, slick core in one long stroke until his hips connected with hers. She gasped, bracing herself against the bedroll as she adjusted to the thick length inside her body.

“Better?” she asked him.

“Yes.” He jerked his hips a little, making her gasp as the pressure inside her verged on pain. In retaliation, she yanked on his hair, and he made a guttural sound that was half annoyed and half pleased.

After he’d finally reached completion, he rolled off her to collapse face-down beside her. Zara peered over at him, amused. She brushed his hair away to look at his face, and he looked up at her tiredly. He looked precious when he was exhausted.

Without lifting his head, he felt around in the bag beside them until he found a vial of contraceptive brew, then held it out to her. She’d had to sheepishly ask Tahir if he knew an alchemical method for pregnancy prevention. Fortunately, according to Tahir, this was a common request, even if it wasn’t often spoken of in public, and the mixture wasn’t difficult to make.

She pulled their blanket up and over both of them. Nero had closed his eyes again.

“Perhaps I worked you too hard,” she said guiltily.

“Is that a challenge?”

She smiled. “No. We should leave soon.”

He made a sound of disagreement, putting his arms around her as if to keep her there.

“I do not want to miss Novikke and Aruna if they come today,” she added.

Nero sighed a little. He didn’t point out that if they had a letter for her, they would just leave it with Basira, so she didn’t need to be there to meet them. He knew how impatient she was to hear news from Kuda Varai. So he just nodded and didn’t argue as she got up.

They rode Changa into the snow-covered hills, and cold air hit Zara’s face. The temperature had dropped lower than she’d expected in the past few hours. Behind her, Nero pulled a blanket from one of the saddlebags and threw it over Zara’s front to protect her from the biting wind. She pulled her hood up and held his hands beneath the blanket. The saddle was quite comfortable, and with Nero supporting her back, Zara dozed on their way to the village.