Page 82

The sheepskin rug under his feet was certainly soft enough to act as a makeshift bed, he mused, running his foot over the fluffy fibers. It would cushion her, protect her skin from carpet burns.

As flames began to flicker around the wood, he straightened. “Take a minute, Tamsyn. I need to get a few things. Make sure this is the right time for you—there’s no rush. Tonight, tomorrow, a month from now… I’ll still be here.”

He felt her eyes following him as he crossed over to the bed to grab a couple of pillows. Opening the drawer in the bedside table, he grabbed a few condoms from his private stash of Trojan Magnum XLs and the bottle of Sliquid Silver silicone lube he preferred.

When he turned around, Tamsyn waited for him on the rug, her body flickering in the light of the flames. She was stiff and uneasy, her thighs pressed together, her arms by her sides; she resembled a virginal sacrifice on some satanic cult’s altar, waiting for a demon to rise and consume her.

He kept his eyes on her as he walked over, dropping to one knee by her side. The condoms and lube he set out of her sight before gently lifting her head with one hand and sliding the pillows under her with the other. “Are you my good girl, darlin’?”

Her mouth opened, but she’d lost her voice again. She nodded instead.

“Yeah, you are. I’m gonna tease you, Tamsyn. Gonna wind you up tight and set you off like a rocket, over and over, until you’re flying high. Need you loose and limp and pliant.” Merrick palmed her breast, fondling the warm flesh, tweaking her nipple so it grew tighter, redder. “When it’s time, remember to breathe. Relax and let me in. You can cry, you can scream, you can come. Do whatever feels natural to you, yeah?”

She swallowed audibly.

Unfastening his jeans, he shoved them down to his thighs before sitting and removing them. In an easy move, he stretched out alongside her, resting his hand on her quivering stomach. Rubbing slow circles over the tight muscles, he propped his head on his fist to watch her face. “Did Fordham get to touch this perfect pussy, little owl?”

She blinked in surprise, a flush rising from her breasts to her cheeks.

“Don’t be embarrassed. Was he gentle?”

A tiny nod, a deeper flush.

“Good, I don’t need to break his fingers. Did you like him touching you?”

Tamsyn frowned, her lips twisting. Resting her hand on his forearm, she squeezed.

“Yeah, I know he wasn’t me. It’s not a bad thing to get used to being touched, darlin’. Some women, some submissives, find it exciting to be with another man while their Dom watches or even joins in.” He laughed when her eyes widened. “That’s a conversation for another day, I think. Did he put his fingers inside you?”

She shook her head adamantly.

“Were you wet?”

“N-No,” she whispered hoarsely.

God, her voice was sweet. When her stomach relaxed, he trailed his fingers back up to her breast, manipulating the other nipple into a hard, crimson peak. A quick tug, a firm roll of that bud between his fingertips, tilted her hips. “You’ll be wet for me, I promise. So wet, all that delicious cream is gonna let my fingers slide inside you. Gonna let me hear that voice some more, aren’t you, darlin’?”

“Merk.”

His grin flashed. “I’m gonna enjoy hearing you screamMerkto the rafters.”

Tamsyn froze, evidently thinking she’d done something wrong, then her bottom lip poked out in a pout. A second later, her face lit up as she giggled.

That’s what he was aiming for—eradicating her nerves and finding the fun.

Experimentally, he ran his hand down her side, across slender ribs warmed by the fire. A quick wiggle of his fingers along her skin told him she was extremely ticklish, sending her into a fit of crazy wriggling and twisting. Her laugh was deeper than he expected, huskier, as though the issues with her voice affected that as well.

While she tried to evade his ruthless attack, Merrick dipped his head, fastening his lips around the nearest nipple and sucking as his fingers continued to drive her insane.

“S-S-S-S—” Tamsyn hissed breathlessly between peals of laughter. “S-Stop!”

He nipped the bud between his teeth. “But I’m having so much fun, little owl.”

Her casted arm lifted helplessly for a truce, but he was feeling mischievous. “Tell me what you need, Tamsyn, and maybe I’ll think about it.”

She just laughed harder, squirming manically.

Merrick rolled on top of her, groaning under his breath when her body immediately rubbed and bucked against him. All it would take was a slight adjustment of his hips for his cock to align with her entrance, a hard thrust to seat him partly inside her.