Page 76 of Royal Icing

They looked at each other, and time stretched and slowed like they were passing through some kind of personal wormhole. Every heartbeat was audible, and every part of her body screamed at her.

Now.

She wound her arms around his neck and pressed her mouth to his. He pulled her tightly against his chest and fisted a hand in her hair, kissing her deeply.

It stole the breath from her. All she could feel was Leo and heat. The slide of his damp skin along her nipples, the soft bite on her bottom lip that tore a moan from her throat. Even this was too far apart.

She shifted, and he pulled back.

“Are you sure this is okay?” His eyes searched hers.

“Yes,” she said, then dove back in.

Christmas music still played in the background. Her body physically ached for his, delighting in the feel of strength and power and being held.

It had been so long since someone held her.

He reached around and grabbed her ass, lifting her until she wrapped her legs around his waist. The friction of his silk boxers against her underwear was too much. His erection was rock-hard and pressing into her belly button.

He carried her across the room and muscled a door open. She caught a glimpse of a regal-looking bed frame before he tossed her back onto a pile of pillows.

He took a second to look at her, and she automatically moved to cover herself.

“Don’t,” he commanded. “I want to see you.”

Her hands fell helplessly to her sides, and he took in every bit of her frame before he came back to her mouth, kissing her tenderly.

His mouth was soft, his tongue warm and gentle as they explored each other.

She was probably sweating all over his comforter. Maybe she even smelled. But for once, she didn’t care.

His hand glided down her torso and stopped at her underwear. He teased her through the cotton, stroking with strong and capable fingers.

Impatient, she slid her underwear off and flung it to lands unknown. She opened her legs wide, silently begging him to take her, to fill her.

He dipped his head to her nipples, and he sucked on them and blew. A shiver ripped through her. Her body went rigid under his touch, and she clawed at his back. It was a good thing she had to keep her nails short for the bakery.

She groped for the waistband of his boxers, but his hand wrapped around hers.

“I’m not done.”

His head ducked between her legs, and he kissed her thighs tenderly, like she was a Michelin-star meal he was savoring every bit of.

A finger slipped gently inside her, and her back arched. Her teeth clamped down on the inside of her cheek, sending a jolt of pain that blended confusingly with the pleasure rippling through her. She hadn’t been touched for a year, maybe longer. But her body responded like it had been primed and ready since the first moment she laid eyes on Leo.

His tongue joined the fray, every breath and stroke so precisely placed it was like he had taken a PhD-level course. In seconds, she was trembling, rigid with the sensations rising in her. She was completely at his mercy, powerless against his deft fingers and clever tongue.

“Breathe, Emma,” he said between her legs, and she exhaled in a whoosh.

Almost in response, an orgasm ripped through her so fiercely that her vision dimmed a little at the edges. She gripped his fingers tightly enough that they might snap right off. That would be a challenge to explain to the royal physician.

Dylan had never been one for oral sex. He had been a clumsy lover even at the best time, fumbling around in her pants for maybe ten seconds before rubbing his erection on her.

But this. This wasn’t something she even knew was possible. Intimacy was so rarely on her radar, thanks to the crippling fatigue from her schedule of working and caretaking, an endless waltz that left her incapable of almost anything else.

But here, in Leo’s bed, she could be someone else.

His face was half in shadow when he came back, hovering over her with a contented smile.