Page 19 of The Reluctant Mate (Shifters of the Three Rivers #5)

Chapter nineteen

Sofia

H is gaze was locked onto me. It was full of longing. Raw and unfiltered and terrifying in its honesty.

My breath caught, stuck somewhere between my lungs and the tight knot in my chest. He didn’t look away. Didn’t break the connection. And for the life of me, I couldn’t either.

I watched, unable to look away, as his hand came up slowly, the movement careful, hesitant even, as though he wasn’t sure how I’d react. Hell, I didn’t know how I would react, either. He brushed a strand of hair behind my ear, his knuckles grazing my skin in a way that sent a shiver racing through my entire body.

Then he leaned in, his breath ghosting over my lips. My heart was pounding so hard it must have been the only thing he could hear. He paused, something in his expression almost asking for permission. I stayed still, too terrified to move in case he didn’t kiss me. But then he closed the gap between us, and his hot lips crashed into mine.

It wasn’t soft. It wasn’t hesitant. It was ferocious—years of tension, frustration, and something deeper colliding in an explosion of sensation. He kissed me like a man who had been drowning and I was his first breath of air, his lips hot and urgent against mine.

Every nerve in my body lit up, the anger and hurt I’d been holding onto morphing into something else entirely, something molten, something dangerous. I wanted this. It felt right, like a piece of me that I’d been missing finally clicked into its proper place.

Derek’s hands moved from my face, one sliding down to cup the back of my neck, anchoring me to him, while the other pressed firmly against my lower back, pulling me closer until there was no space left between us. My hands slid around his neck, desperate for something to hold on to as he kissed me deeper, harder.

He tilted his head, and I gasped as his teeth grazed my lower lip just enough to send a new jolt of need through me. My stomach flipped, a white-hot heat pooling low as his touch became more insistent, more consuming.

“Derek,” I whispered against his lips, though it came out more like a plea.

He groaned, the sound vibrating against my skin as he broke the kiss, instead trailing his lips down the side of my jaw. Goosebumps erupted across my skin when he found that sensitive spot just below my ear.

“Say it again,” he muttered, his voice rough.

“Derek,” I breathed, arching into him as his lips continued their exploration down my neck.

His hands slipped down my back, over my ass, and then he effortlessly picked me up. I wrapped my legs around him, and my eyes widened as I felt the hard length of him against me.

Everything was heat—his body pressed against mine, the fire crackling in the hearth, the storm of emotions rolling through me.

He carried me back to the sofa, then lay us down, him on top, my legs still wrapped around his waist. His cock rubbed against my core, and I almost purred in pleasure.

It felt so freaking good.

He arched his hips back, then slowly drove them forward, the building pressure on my clit delicious. His eyes were fixed on my face, watching my reaction.

“You like that.”

I bit my bottom lip and nodded.

He grinned and did it again.

My panties felt soaked, and I squirmed underneath him, wanting more.

In answer, Derek tilted me back, resting me against the arm of the sofa as he hovered over me, his dark eyes locked onto mine. There was a flicker of something softer, something reverent, in his look, and suddenly, I didn’t care about all the reasons I should stop this. Everything about Derek—his touch, his scent, the feel of him against me—overrode any semblance of rational thought. Whatever this was between us, I wasn’t ready for it to end. Not yet.

He lifted my arms above my head, slowly peeling off my vest, then my panties, until I was naked. He looked down at me, his eyes roaming everywhere, like he was drinking me in, storing it all in his memory.

“Fucking gorgeous, you know that?”

“I—”

“Fucking gorgeous,” he repeated, his eyes coming to mine.

I didn’t say anything, didn’t know what to say.

“Tell me to stop, Sofia,” he murmured, his voice full of something raw, something dangerous. “Tell me to stop, and I will. But if you don’t…”

He left the sentence unfinished, letting the promise of whatever came next hang between us.

“Don’t… don’t stop,” I whispered.

He let out a breath. “Thank fuck for that.” His lips hovered an inch from mine, his eyes open, watching me. I lifted up, wanting to feel his mouth on mine, but he pulled back.

“Derek!” I warned.

“I want to taste you.”

“So kiss me!”

“Not that taste of you.”

Oh!

He grinned at the look on my face.

“Any objections?”

Any objections? Was he crazy? I shook my head, feeling a little breathless.

His grin widened, and he slid down my body, trailing kisses as he went. He settled between my legs, and I saw his nostrils flair. He smiled up at me, and the look on his face was one of such contentment, of someone exactly where they had always wanted to be.

Holy fucking Goddess, it was hot.

Then he dipped his head, and his tongue flicked my clit, once, twice, three times. Each one leaving me gasping, panting for more.

“Derek!”

He chuckled, then his lips encircled my clit and gently sucked.

Oh. My. Goddess.

I was going to come apart.

The heat of his lips on me was driving me wild; I never wanted him to stop. I needed him, needed more. His tongue twirled around my clit, then slid lower, again and again, licking, sucking, consuming me.

My hips bucked, and I gasped as he slipped one finger inside of me.

“Oh!”

Derek paused and looked up at me. “Oh good or oh bad?”

“Oh good. Very, very good.”

“You want more?”

“Yes.”

“Yes?”

“Yes. More. Please, more!” I begged.

He slid another finger inside, stretching me as they moved in a slow, steady rhythm. The sensation was incredible, unlike anything I had ever felt before. I moaned, my hips bucking against his hand as he worked me closer to the edge.

His tongue continued to dance around my clit, teasing and tormenting me. I could feel my body tightening, the muscles in my stomach and thighs clenching as I fought to hold on to my control. But Derek was relentless, his fingers pressing deeper, his tongue flicking faster.

I gasped, my body trembling with anticipation. And then Derek Shaw, the fucking bastard, stopped.

I looked down at him, outraged. “What. The. Hell?”

“Not yet, Sofia. I say when you can come, and I want to savor every moment of this.”

His fingers lazily started moving again, slowly building up the pace until their rhythm synced with the beat of my heart. My body was on fire, every nerve ending alight with pleasure. I could feel the orgasm building inside me, a fierce, overwhelming force that threatened to consume me.

“Please,” I begged, my voice hoarse. “Please, Derek.”

He stopped again, his mouth releasing my clit, his fingers slowing their relentless strokes.

“You… Derek!”

“It’ll be worth it, I promise.”

He kept me riding on the edge, his fingers pumping in and out of me, his tongue licking and sucking at my clit. I was writhing beneath him, my body desperate for release. But he always slowed down or backed off whenever I was close. It was torture, sweet, delicious, infuriating torture.

“Derek, please,” I begged again, my voice strained. “I can’t take much more.”

He didn’t reply, his focus entirely on the task at hand. He hummed against me, encouragement and approval all in one. The vibration sent another ripple through me, and I felt myself spiraling higher, the coil inside me tightening with every flick of his tongue and firm grip of his hands. His fingers moved in a swift, decisive motion, striking my G-spot with perfect precision again and again as he took my clit in his mouth and sucked, his tongue swirling against it. It was too much; I couldn’t take anymore.

“Please, Derek, please, let me come!”

He released my clit. Then blew on it softly, the cool air brushing against me only sending me higher.

“Come for me, gorgeous,” he ordered, then took my clit in his mouth again.

I cried out, my body convulsing, my thighs trembling with the intensity of it as the orgasm finally broke through.

Wave after wave of pleasure washed over me. Derek didn’t stop, his fingers and tongue continuing to work their magic, drawing out every last shudder of pleasure.

Even then, he didn’t end it, his mouth and hands slowing but not leaving me as I came down from the high. By the time he finally moved back, pressing a soft kiss to the skin just above my hip, my whole body was trembling.

His dark eyes locked onto mine as he braced himself above me. My cheeks burned, my body still humming from what he’d just done, but there was something in his gaze that rooted me to the spot.

I reached for him, my hand sliding down the broad, hard expanse of his chest. He sucked in a quick breath, his muscles tensing beneath my touch.

“Sofia.” His voice was soft but firm as his hand wrapped gently around my wrist, stilling my movement.

“Let me,” I whispered, not caring how raw or desperate I sounded. “Let me touch you. I want to touch you. I need to touch you.”

He brought my hand to his lips instead, pressing a lingering kiss to my palm. The tenderness of the gesture sent a fresh wave of heat through my chest.

“Not yet,” he murmured, his eyes soft and full of something I couldn’t quite name. “I want to take things slow.”

Slow? Was he freaking serious? After what he’d just done, after dismantling me so entirely that I doubted I’d ever be the same?

“Okay,” I bargained. “No sex, but I still want to touch you.”

He rested his forehead against mine. “Not yet. When you touch me, I won’t be able to hold back. I need you to be sure, really sure, coz there’ll be no going back afterward, Sofia. You touch me, and all our past is left behind. We start anew.” He leaned down, his chest brushing against my breasts, and whispered, “You touch me, Sofia, and I won’t be able to stop, so I need to know you want it, really want it.”

I honestly did not know what to do with that information right now. Did I want him? Hell, yes. Did I trust him? Hell, no.

I pulled my hand back, my pulse still racing with frustration as much as anything else. “You’re impossible, you know that?”

His lips twitched into a small, knowing smile. “You have told me on a number of occasions.”

I groaned in frustration, tugged the blanket back over my tangled body. “I’m going for a shower.”

He smirked at me. “Good decision.”

He rolled off me, and I stood up on shaky legs.

“Need some help getting there?” His voice was teasing and fully satisfied.

Smug bastard.

I turned my head and stuck my tongue out at him.

The sound of his laughter followed me into the bathroom.

When the cold water hit my skin, I gasped, but not from discomfort. The chill was welcome, a sharpened blade cutting through the haze of heat Derek fucking Shaw had left in his wake.