Page 164 of I Dream of Dragons

“Fuck,” I whisper. “You’re perfect.”

Her cheeks are flushed but the smile she sends my way is uncertain and it distracts me for a moment. “I’m not perfect, Jai. I’m?—”

“The sexiest woman in the entire Nine Worlds.”

“But—”

“The prettiest girl ever.” I meet her eyes. “You are, Rae. You were made for me, believe me. If not…” I glance down at my weeping dick. “Trust the cock.”

“The cock.” Now she’s laughing softly and it’s the most amazing sound. Except if she moans my name, that might top it, but until then… “Trust the cock?”

“That’s right,” I tease her, to hear her laugh again. “The cock never lies. The Big Fellow, remember? It wants you. Has wanted you since you came back. I’ve been hard since you came back, Rae.”

Not a lie, by the way.

“Poor baby,” she says with a giggle.

“It was hard.” I give a sigh. “So hard.”

She doesn’t laugh this time. She reaches for me, and I’m alarmed to find new tears in her eyes. “Jai.”

A wave of protectiveness and tenderness sweeps through me. I haul her into my arms, not caring about this little game anymore. “What’s wrong? What did I say?”

“Nothing. I don’t want to talk. I don’t want to think. I want you to touch me.”

“Then command me, my lady,” I breathe. “Your every wish is mine, too.”

“Touch me.” She clings to me. Shaking. “Mars… It’s really you, really you… I just can’t believe you’re here.”

“Same,” I whisper, kissing the top of her head. “I was convinced the woman I loved was dead, that it couldn’t be you, yet here you are. Beautiful. Strong. So fucking sexy.”

She sighs, her hands sliding up my back. “But I died?—”

“You’re here. We’re both here. I don’t care how.”

She lifts her head, her gray eyes bright, and I kiss her. I kiss her like I’ve never kissed or been kissed before, like I’ve just discovered her and like this is our first and last night in this world.

She’s still wearing her undergarments but her nipples are hard, poking me through the fine linen. Her moan vibrates against my lips, and I tense all over as my cock twitches, hardening more. My balls ache, unbearably heavy. I fucking have to be inside her.

Deep inside my mind, I think I hear Phaethon’s murmur. Approving. Not mocking, but appraising and interested.

The thought that he’s watching, no, feeling this through me is unsettling, but I’m more unsettled by his quiet. This new peace inside my head, his presence nothing more than an itch.

More than an itch: a companion.

If I manage to change his mind…

She shifts, crawling onto my lap, settling on top of my hard-on, and all thoughts flee, Phaethon’s presence fading away as my blood catches on fire. My mind is full of need, full of images of her naked and spread underneath me, bent in front of me, or riding me…

Oh fuck, yes. Hell, yeah.Riding. So many options.

I break the kiss to reach down, between her thighs. I drag my fingers through her wetness, my cock jumping at the sensation, the knowledge that I’m touching her.

“Jai,” she gasps, “what are you doing?”

“Tasting you once was a mistake. Now I’m craving your taste. So I’m going to put my mouth on your pussy, eat you out. Make you come so hard you will scream. I want you to ride my face.”

“What? But your back?—”