Page 45 of The Irresistible Rogue (Playful Brides #4)

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

Rafe’s eyes closed again. A muscle ticked in his jaw. But as soon as he opened his eyes, Daphne knew she’d won. His eyes were bright and shining and he stepped back and gently pushed her to arm’s length while his gaze devoured her body. “God, you’re beautiful,” he groaned.

She put a hand on one bare hip. “Does that mean yes?”

His hand rubbed across one of her shoulders. “I told you. I can’t resist you.” Rafe reached out, grabbed her fiercely, and pulled her into his arms. Then his mouth descended slowly, so slowly that Daphne wanted to cry. He was torturing her now. How quickly things changed. He kissed her, his mouth tangled with hers. Daphne strained on tiptoes to reach him, her arms threaded around his broad, muscled shoulders.

He lifted her then, under her knees, and gently laid her on the bed. She shuddered, the cool air finding all of the sensitive spots on her naked body. She thought she’d be embarrassed with Rafe looking at her so intensely without the benefit of the fuzzy head she’d had last time. She thought she’d be shy. But his blue gaze scanned every bit of her nakedness and all she felt was powerful, more powerful than she’d ever felt in her life. She sensed his leashed desire, knew he was holding himself back. But she didn’t want him to. She wanted him to unleash himself completely… on her. She shuddered. She would just have to help him lose control.

He stood next to the bed, his eyes still raking over her. He unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it roughly over his head. His breeches and stockings quickly followed and were discarded in the corner. Daphne had a chance to look at him. His body was magnificent, so muscled and strong and perfect. The muscles in his abdomen stood out in sharp relief. A smattering of light hair covered his chest. His shoulders were so squared and strong. She ached to touch them again. He was a dream. A male dream. Her gaze dipped to his member. She’d only seen his but she was certain most such appendages weren’t nearly as large as Rafe’s. She hadn’t had the chance to study it the night the Russians had interrupted them, but now she looked her fill. It was enormous. It jutted proudly from his thighs, strong and thick. She shuddered at the thought of it entering her. She remembered the unholy ache between her thighs the last time they’d been about to make love. She stared at his nakedness in fascination. Cass and Lucy had been kind enough to answer her questions, giving her an idea of what happened between men and women in bed. Of course, reality might be much different than the theories in her head, but all she could think about was how desperately she wanted to find out. Now.

“You have a bad bruise,” he whispered, tracing the spot on her cheek where Billy had slapped her.

“It doesn’t hurt anymore,” she promised, turning her cheek away from Rafe’s line of vision.

He clenched his jaw so tightly it popped. “I would rip that blighter limb from limb if—”

She pushed up on her knees and touched a finger to his lips. “Shh. It’s over. Tonight is about us.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down on top of her.

He kissed her fiercely and wet warmth pooled between Daphne’s thighs. She wanted him so much.

He lifted up on one hand and looked down at her, tracing the edge of her jaw with one finger. “Daphne, I hate to ask this, but I don’t want you to have any regrets.”

She searched his handsome face. “What is it, Rafe?”

“Nothing happened with that blond at the inn, but I want you to know—”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him back down to her. “I don’t care about the blond. Lucy made me realize that it made no sense that you were coming to look for me if you had a woman in your bed.”

“I swear I never saw her before you and I walked in. I think she—”

“I don’t care, Rafe. I truly don’t. That’s in the past.”

“But I swear I—”

“Shh. This time we won’t be interrupted.” She covered his mouth with hers and kissed him again with all the pent-up longing she felt for him.

Rafe groaned against her mouth. “I want you, Daphne.”

“I want you, too.”

“You’re right. No one will interrupt us tonight. There’s no need to rush.” Rafe moved to his side and Daphne traced her fingertips along his muscled chest. She admired his wide shoulders and narrow hips. She moved her hand along his hip and dipped it behind him to rub along his backside. His eyes widened a little.

“I dreamed about touching you there for an age,” she admitted.

Rafe kissed her again. “By all means, touch all you like.”

She let her hand move up to his lower back and gasped when she felt the puckered skin. She leaned up and over and looked at the scars crisscrossing his back. Tears filled her eyes. “I’m so sorry, Rafe. I’m sorry they did that to you.”

He pulled her hand away and kissed it. “It’s nothing, Daphne. Your brother paid a far greater price.”

“It’s not nothing,” she insisted, pushing up to her knees. She kissed the tops of his shoulders and ran her mouth down his back. She ran her fingertips along the scars. “You were so brave and strong to withstand this.”

Rafe’s breath caught in his throat against the lump that had unexpectedly formed there. He’d never felt such emotion from another person before. Never felt such caring. Certainly not when bedding a woman. But this was different. This was Daphne. He turned over, gathered her into his arms, and rolled atop her. His cock was nestled between the heat of her legs but he didn’t want to scare her. He stayed there, unmoving, sucking at her bottom lip and nuzzling her neck until he felt the tightness leave her shoulders and the rest of her body.

“I’m shaking,” she whispered.

“I am too a little,” he said with the hint of a laugh.

She slapped lightly at his shoulder. “You are not.”

“Feel this.” He took her hand and placed it on his chest over his heart. The pounding there made Daphne’s eyes widen.

“I’m excited,” she whispered, “and a little frightened.”

“Don’t be frightened, my love. Don’t ever be frightened with me.” He slowly moved down to her breast and covered it with his mouth.

Daphne arched her back. “Oh, Rafe, yes.”

His other hand came up to play with the nipple of her opposite breast and she arched even more, her back coming off the bed. “I never knew anything could feel this way,” she whispered, pushing her fingers through his hair and holding his mouth to her breast.

He tried to move his mouth lower, but Daphne stopped him. “What is it, love?”

“I want to do it this time,” she whispered, peeking up at him from beneath her impossibly long lashes.

At first, his brow furrowed, but then his eyes rounded when she began to shimmy down the front of him. “Daphne, how do you—” But his words were completely lost as soon as Daphne’s small, pink, torturous mouth closed around his cock.

“Jesus Christ,” he whispered fiercely through clenched teeth.

Her mouth moved up, then down, again and again, and Rafe clenched his fists into the bedsheets. He had no idea how or where she’d learned this since they’d last been together but at the moment he sure as hell didn’t care.

As if she’d read his mind she momentarily pulled her mouth away from his tender flesh and said, “Lucy allowed me to borrow a pamphlet she’d read called Secrets of a Wedding Night . I learned quite a lot.”

Rafe groaned. “It sounds like a wonderful pamphlet.” He placed his hands under her arms and pulled her sharply up to kiss him. “But I can’t take any more of that. Not now.”

“Later then?” she asked with an impish smile on her face.

“Much later,” he breathed into her fragrant hair.

He kissed down her neck and collarbone to her breasts again and plucked at her nipples with his thumb and forefinger, enjoying the gasp of delight it elicited from her.

She lowered her hand and closed it around him. “Two can play at that game,” she said.

“I see,” he murmured. “But I meant what I said. I can’t take it. Not tonight. Not our first time.” He pulled her hand up to his mouth and kissed it. He laid it near her head on the pillow, then he moved his hand back down and stroked between her legs. Daphne parted her thighs and one of his fingers slid deep within her. She moaned.

“Daphne,” he whispered in her ear. “I can’t wait. I must have you. Now.”

“Yes,” she breathed.

That was the only word Rafe needed to hear. He rolled over atop the gorgeous woman beneath him and braced his forearms on either side of her head. He kissed the tip of her delectable nose. “It will hurt but only for a moment.”

Daphne nodded. She was certain Rafe knew exactly what he was doing. Perhaps that was the benefit to loving a rogue. But she couldn’t be angry with him. She was so glad it was him. So glad it was him and not Lord Fitzwell or some bore. She nearly cried.

Rafe nudged her knees apart and Daphne held her breath. Rafe’s thick hotness pushed at her most intimate space and it felt so good she nearly cried out.

He pushed into her, just a bit, then a bit farther. Her tight passageway expanded for him. “Yes,” she breathed again against his neck.

Rafe pulled back once more and then pushed all the way inside of her. Daphne cried out and clutched at his shoulders. The pain was quickly replaced by the wonderful fullness of him. He rocked against her and Daphne wrapped her arms more tightly around his neck, fiercely kissing his heated shoulder.

Sweat beaded on his forehead and Rafe pressed his mouth to hers, hard. He pulled out and pushed again, again. His groans filled the room. They filled Daphne’s heart.

He reached down between the two of them and touched Daphne’s most sensitive spot. He circled her there again and again. She became mindless, completely swept away into a sea of pure lust. No longer certain where she began and Rafe ended.

Spasms of pure pleasure overtook her, just before Rafe pumped into her one last time and groaned her name as he found his own release.

Moments later, Rafe rolled over and took her with him in his arms. Daphne wrapped an arm over his chest. She was breathing heavily. “That was… the only word that comes to mind is ‘indescribable.’”

His shout of laughter cracked off the wooden beams on the ceiling. “Indescribably good, I hope.”

“Absolutely,” she said, rising up on one elbow to plop a kiss on his forehead. “Definitely indescribably good.”

“That’s good enough for me.”

“I love you, Rafe,” she whispered against his shoulder.

“Daphne, I—” He clamped his mouth shut and Daphne’s heart tugged. She bit her lip against the sting of tears that touched the backs of her eyes.

“Get some sleep,” he murmured into her hair.