Page 23 of Veiled Flames (Destiny of Dragons #1)

Sixteen

Saxon

M y rod pounds with the fury of a hundred stags stampeding across an open field.

My linen chemise continues to brush over the sensitive skin on my cock’s head, and it’s almost too much to tolerate. But I don’t dare remove the garment. Not yet.

If I reveal my manhood too soon, she might grow fearful and change her mind. It’s beyond clear she has absolutely no knowledge or experience of what happens between a man and a woman. And as desperate as I am to rut inside this girl, I would never force her.

“Is it time?” She raises one of her hands to her chest. “Are you going to drill me now?”

“Is that what you want?” I’m alarmed by the hoarseness of my voice. It makes me sound like a villain.

“I…” She casts her eyes down.

I am a villain.

For so many reasons, I am a villain. If I do this, I’ll ruin her future.

Eventually, she’ll return to her father, hopefully after the King of Khotor has taken another wife, or better yet crossed to the Great Beyond.

And when she does return home, her father will seek to make her a suitable match.

A match that will be rejected should I burst her flower tonight.

Before I touch her again, she must understand what’s at stake.

“Please sit,” I say.

She drops to the cot as if her legs melted.

I draw my hands in front of me, hoping to mask my obvious protrusion. “Before you give your consent to this, you must understand the consequences.”

She nods, stiffly. Fear is tainting her beautiful features, making me want to downplay what I plan to tell her. I’d avoid it altogether, but my honor won’t allow it.

“Copulation—” I pause. “Do you know what that word means?”

She shakes her head.

“Copulation is one word for the act when a man stabs his cock in a woman’s cleft.”

She winces at the word stab, and I instantly think of better words. It’s too late now.

“Amongst the nobility—" I use the same tone I use to instruct rider candidates “—copulation, also called sex, or more crudely drilling or fucking, is an act typically performed exclusively between wedded couples.”

“Oh.” Her eyes widen, and even more worry sullies her expression. “Yes. You said that the other night.”

“Well, it’s not always exclusive .” I clear my throat. “Noblemen often take lovers outside their marriage beds, as do some noble women .” I shake my head. I want to keep this simple, to get to the point. “But noble maidens , such as yourself, never take lovers before they are married.”

She swallows hard. “Does that mean…” Her pale eyebrows draw together as confusion fills her eyes. Along with what I read as disappointment. “Do we need to…” Clasping her hands on her lap, she looks down. “I’m not certain I want to marry you.”

“Of course.” I restrain my impulse to chuckle. She thinks I was asking for her hand. “What I meant is, if we do this, if we have sex, it will destroy your chance of making a good marriage—ever.”

She looks up, relief flooding her eyes and her posture. “Is that all?”

“This is not a small thing, ma chérie. Your future?—”

“I don’t want a husband.” Her chin rises.

“But your father will want?—”

“I especially don’t want any husband my father selects.”

I nod, my admiration for her growing yet again.

Beyond her bravery, I’ve never met a maiden so strong, so independent of thought.

From that first moment in the forest, I’ve held her in the highest esteem, even when I assumed she worked in the stables and had stolen that horse.

Her simple beauty—her pink hair, her bright eyes, her trim body, and the way her nose crinkles when she’s thinking—those attributes were all an immediate siren call to my cock.

“If doing this spoils Father’s chance to use me as his pawn,” she continues. “If it ruins his opportunities to strike alliances with me as his offered prize, that’s an incentive not a deterrent. Destroying my chance of marriage adds to the reasons I’ll welcome your rod inside me.”

She shifts on the cot, and her obvious arousal drifts across the few spans between us, washing over me like a sensual caress.

My warning had the opposite effect to my intent, and it takes all of my strength not to pounce upon her this instant, to roughly stab into her softness and ride her hard until she screams—whether from pleasure or pain.

But I would never take her like that, and there is more to explain.

“Also…” I suck on my cheeks for moisture. “What you are offering me now; it’s something a maiden can only offer once.”

“Oh.” Disappointment paints her expression. She finally understands what I’ve been trying to explain. It’s finally sunk in that her future husband will reject her on their marriage bed.

Her back straightens. “Nevertheless,” she says, “I want this experience—even if it’s just once.” She licks her lips. “In fact, I want it very much.” She shifts toward me. “And I want it to be with you.” She looks up into my eyes with so much heat and desire, I can barely remain standing.

My cock hears her words even louder than my ears do, and it throbs, shifting against my chemise.

I should also ensure she understands a babe is possible. But I have an ample supply of courtesan’s tea on hand to prevent my seed from taking root. And, if I’m honest, I fear another warning might put an end to this.

I can’t risk that. I’ve never wanted a woman so desperately.

Since our first meeting, Rosomon has bewitched me.

I haven’t been able to get her out of my thoughts or my dreams. Because of her, I stayed away from the caravan since the night I kissed her, hoping my yearnings would soften. Instead, they’ve intensified.

Given her constant residence in my mind, I’ve already talked myself through my personal reasons to avoid this encounter—primarily our age difference combined with my role as dragon master.

But, even if I hadn’t found a way to talk myself through those ethical obstacles, I can no longer resist her.

While I fight my urge to dive over her, she stands and turns, bending forward over the cot and lifting her ass to expose the soft folds of her sex.

My rod lurches, and a growl escapes from inside me.

She looks over her shoulder. “Am I in the correct position?”

I fight to keep my hands and cock away from her. I don’t want her first time to be a rough stab from behind.

“It’s one position,” I say hoarsely.

Her eyes open with wonder. “There is more than one position?”

“There are many ways for a man to lie with a woman.” Stepping forward, I slide my hand over her beautiful ass.

Her pelvis contracts, her back arching and flexing under my touch, her muscles trembling. She’s still afraid, but she wants this. The moisture is so heavy between her legs it’s visible, and the scent of her fills the air.

“Let’s do it the best way,” she says softly. “Let’s do it your favorite way. Teach me what to do. I’m a quick learner.” She drops her gaze back to the cot and her muscles tense as if she’s bracing.

My breath draws in with a hard shudder, but I resolve to show some restraint, to make her first time a good experience. One she’ll never forget, for I’m certain I won’t.