Page 266 of Duty and Desire

She gently caressed his damaged chest and down his ribs, looking for broken bones. Okay. Copping a feel, too. He’d spoken the truth. She was experiencing a lot of emotions, most of them erotic, and not one of them was fear. “I’m not afraid of you,” she admitted, leaning up and kissing the greenish-yellow bruises beneath his jaw line. It was like they were already healing somehow. “But I don’t want to take advantage of you.”

He swayed and caught himself with one battered hand against the glass. “Feel free. Just take some of the pain away.”

She levered up and slid her mouth against his. “I can do that.” She’d have to be careful of his injuries. “Are you sure you have no broken bones?”

“Not anymore,” he slurred.

“I meant from tonight.” She licked along his collarbone before dropping back to her flat feet.

“Nope.” The light from the ceiling high above reflected oddly in his eyes, giving the black a greenish tint. He dropped his head, his mouth hard against hers. “God, you taste good. So good, Abs.” Then he delved deeper, keeping his balance with a handon the wall. The other hand speared through her hair and tugged her head back.

He kissed her, his body flush against hers, making her forget reality for a moment. Dark and demanding sensations, ones she’d never felt before, slid through her, softening her muscles and making her ache. All rationality disappeared.

Her body took over, beyond her mind, in a way that had never happened. She tried to hold on to thought, but it disappeared, caught up in an impossible onslaught of passion. Fear grasped her, of the unknown, and she made a sound against his mouth. One of warning. He softened the kiss, his hands sliding down her wet front, those bruised fingers tweaking her nipples. Then he smoothed the small bite, showing her the drugging pleasure to be found from a simple touch.

Steam swirled around them, cocooning them in an intimate dance. There was only Noah Siosal and right here and right now. Her body and his and a craving so sharp it hurt. “Now, Noah,” she murmured, reaching for him and running her hand along his hard length.

He settled his stance as if trying to keep his balance. “I, um, should tell you something.”

“Later. I’m on the pill.” She paused, marveling at his size. “Unless...is there something I should be worried about? Do we need a condom?”

He frowned and his eyes seemed to take a moment to focus. “No. I can’t get diseases. Am totally clean.”

“Me, too.” Though a condom was a good idea. “Do you have condoms?”

“No. Don’t need them,” he rumbled. “Can’t wear them.” He kissed her again. “We don’t have to.”

Her body was on fire, and even the small hint of steam against her sensitized skin was killing her. She was on the pill, and oddly enough, she trusted him. If her life was aboutto explode, she wanted another moment with him to keep her warm in the future. “I want to.”

“Okay.” He fell back and sat on the wide wooden bench, bringing her with him.

She straddled him, lifting up. There was no way.

His grin took her fear away. “We’ll go slow.” His face didn’t look as purple with the steam swirling around. He positioned himself at her entrance and slowly helped her take him in.

She gasped, and her abs rolled. He was too big. But she was wet and ready and needy. It was exhilarating to be on top of a man this, well,male. Nothing was going to stop her this time. It took forever, and he let her set the pace. Several times she paused to let her body accept him. He brushed a thumb against her clit, once and again, every time she needed a moment. The feeling shot electricity through her, and she pushed down more, still scanning his body for injuries. Finally, her butt rested against his thighs. She dropped her head to his chest, feeling too full. Way too full. “You’re too big.” Yet she wanted him to move.

“You’re perfect.” He grabbed her butt and gently lifted her, pulling her back down as he plunged up.

Ecstasy rippled through her. Her head dropped back. “More. Faster.” Using her knees, she lifted up and then back down, guided by his strong hands on her hips. He held her with a fierce grip. Even if she wanted to get free, she couldn’t, and that thought sent more hunger through her.

She lifted her head, wanting to see him. A raw, possessive expression covered the angled planes of his face, along with a hunger he did nothing to hide. He lifted her and rammed back in. “More,” she whispered.

As if her words unleashed a part of him he’d held back, he snapped, hammering into her, lifting her up and yanking her down, the friction unbelievable. Pleasure swamped her with a strength that forced her to close her eyes. The first orgasmslammed into her out of nowhere, hitting her dead center and making her cry out his name as she rippled around his cock.

He didn’t so much as pause.

She rode the waves, settled, and then started climbing again. Her fingers clawed his chest, and she forgot all about his bruises. He drove harder inside her, hitting that spot that only he had ever found. Sparks flashed in front of her eyes, and she closed them, whimpering from the devastating need.

Close. She was so close to the next pinnacle. She climbed higher and broke with a sharp gasp, her internal walls gripping him with a fierceness that was edged with a hint of pain.

His hand twisted in her hair and pulled her head to the side. Pain slashed into her neck at the same time agony rippled along her right hip and buttock. Then the pain abated.

She came down with a wild shudder, her eyes opening. She turned her head. “Noah?”

He was still fully imbedded in her. “Abby,” he murmured, blinking rapidly.

Then he passed out, his body going limp against the tiles.