Without a word then, he turned away. She followed the graceful motion of his body with unwilling fascination-his broad shoulders that tapered to narrow hips and taut buttocks, his powerful thighs and sinewed calves that evidenced he was a sportsman. And when he settled himself on the bed and leaned back against the pillows, she was far too aware of his massive erection.
“Come here, Raven.” He touched the mattress beside him.
Almost helplessly, she moved to join him, climbing up to kneel beside him. When she gave him a questioning glance, though, he remained impassive.
He expected her to take the lead, she remembered; she was responsible for arousing him, not the reverse. Yet the chance to retain control actually relieved Raven, since it would give him less power over her.
“What should I do?” she murmured.
“Whatever you wish. You’ll know soon enough what I think of it.”
She glanced down at him, wary of his enormous, pulsing size. Tentatively, she leaned forward and pressed her hands against his chest, feeling smooth, hot flesh over corded muscles, dusted with silken hair. His expression never changed, but when her exploring hands traveled over the hard ridges of muscle and lower to his flat, hard belly, she felt tension quiver through him.
Bolder now, she moved her hand even lower to his blatant erection, letting the surging, silky flesh brush her knuckles. His rampant member jerked involuntarily, making her breath catch. Raven bit her lip. She could imagine having that engorged length inside her, like in her fantasies.
Treacherous excitement spread through her body at the thought and made her breasts ache.
Gathering her control, she trailed her hand lower, letting her fingers curl around him. When his breath drew harshly between his teeth, she looked up, caught by the hypnotizing heat of his eyes.
His hot vitality seemed to thrum through her. The very firelight seemed to caress his male features…the skin pulled taut over high cheekbones, the stark line of his scar. She felt the strangest urge to touch that old wound, along with an inexplicable anger at whoever had hurt him.
Determinedly quelling her sympathetic urges, she tried to remember what she had learned from the journal about arousing a man. Holding her breath, she bent down to taste him with her tongue. A shudder ran through him, sending a sense of power into Raven. It was a heady feeling, knowing she could evoke such a response from him.
But then he deliberately took control from her. He reached out to cup her breasts, the heat from his palms searing her skin. Her nipples changed in a rush, answering the caress of his hands.
When she would have pulled back, his fingers tightened on the stiff crests, sending shocking waves of sensation rippling through her. Her resolve weakening, she shut her eyes and let him have his way.
His touch was magical as he continued to stroke and squeeze her throbbing breasts, arousing her with controlled expertise, obviously skilled in the art of prolonging pleasure. Then drawing her forward, he bit her nipple with his teeth, hurting her and yet not hurting her.
With a moan, Raven arched against his mouth, offering herself to him. As if he knew what she needed, he sucked her nipple, his tongue lightly flicking the turgid peak. Then without breaking contact, he reached down and slipped his hand between her thighs to touch the swollen dampness there. She was slick with her own desire, Raven realized as his touch dredged a whimper from deep in her throat.
She almost came off the bed when slowly he slid two fingers inside her, penetrating her heated tightness. Her thighs closed reflexively around his hand, and she squirmed restlessly, remembering how he had done precisely this last night. But this time she was totally aware of the man who was giving her such pleasure.
In a slow, tantalizing rhythm, his deft fingers withdrew and penetrated again. Breathless, she clutched at his shoulders, incapable of defense against the explosive sensation centering in the shimmering core of her body. His thumb found the dewy bud of her sex then, stroking, teasing, while his fingers continued gently thrusting, urging her closer and closer toward the edge of an orgasmic precipice.
The sensual pressure built relentlessly until her hips writhed, until she thought she could bear no more.
“Now, vixen,” he commanded, his dark eyes glittering in the firelight.
She needed no further encouragement. Almost blind with need, she straddled his hips, instinctively trying to avoid putting pressure on his wound.
His palms shaped the backs of her thighs, lifting her up, positioning her where he wanted her, the searing tip of his shaft poised at the very heart of her.
Fierce, urgent longing gathered in the pit of her belly. She held her breath as he gripped his hard shaft and very gently eased its silken head
into her quivering flesh, growing rigid when he lowered her slowly onto him, guiding her.
She gasped at the alien feel of him, at his fullness stretching her, and gave a soft cry at the moment of sharp pain. Instantly he stilled, waiting for her to become accustomed to the penetration of his rigid flesh.
“Steady,” he murmured, moving one hand to gently stroke the base of her spine while his lips pressed light, soothing kisses over her face. “Try to relax.”
She was panting softly, but he held her still, letting her accept his invasion. And in a short while the pain began to fade.
“Better?” he asked softly, as if reading her expression.
She nodded, staring into eyes that seemed to scorch her with searing heat. Those burning eyes were so much like her pirate’s, and yet her imaginary lover had never made her feel this particular way…stunned, breathless, overwhelmed by sensation…as if she might erupt in flames at any moment.
Reaching down between their bodies, he cupped her soft triangle of curls and resumed his delicate tormenting, caressing that wonderful point of pleasure with his circling thumb.