By Allah, he wanted her. Wanted her more than he’d wanted any other woman in his life. More than he’d wanted anything at all for a long time and, as if in slow motion, he reached out and took hold of her hand and tugged her up onto her knees.
She rose to him, all sleepy and pliant, and his mouth swooped down to capture hers in a sweet, lingering kiss. He felt her hands flutter close to his jaw and snag on the stubble of his beard growth. He’d need a shave if he was going to stop himself from marring her pale skin but more than that he needed her and for the first time ever he didn’t feel concerned by that driving need.
Something had been slowly changing within him since he’d found her again. He didn’t know what it was but it was almost as if a piece of his life had slotted into place. Impossible really, given how out of synch his life was right now but still...the feeling persisted.
Not wanting to disturb Nadeena, he broke their kiss and tugged her towards him. When she clung to his shoulders he swept her into his arms and strode out of the bedroom.
‘Nadir?’ She wriggled and he let her slide down the length of his body until she found her feet. But he didn’t immediately let her go.
‘I want to make love to you, Imogen. I want to take you to my bed and show you how well this can work between us. How good it can be again.’
The words were raw, his voice almost hoarse with need. Her eyes widened and even in the low-lit hallway he could see colour rising high on her lovely cheekbones.
She swallowed and pushed the tumble of her hair back from her face and he just wanted to bury his hands in it. He just wanted to kiss her. So he did.
* * *
As soon as his mouth touched hers, Imogen felt her body catch fire and soften against him and all thoughts of the past and the future dissolved. How was it possible to feel so much for one person? To want so much from one person? And then she couldn’t think any more. Just feel—her heart ruling her actions.
Moaning, she gripped his hair in her hands, letting her body melt against his. This was what she had craved for so long. This aching pleasure only he could give her. And like this they were equals with no past and no future. Just the present.
Pressing closer, she felt Nadir fall against the wall, his laugh husky as his hungry mouth worked its way down her throat. Imogen arched and rose onto tiptoe, her lower body aching to join with his.
Driven by a deep yearning, she clawed at the yards of fabric that made up his robe and felt him turn them both and press her against the wall, his hands pushing up the hem of her T-shirt and hastily dragging her panties down her legs and then finally, blissfully she felt him cup her and she almost dissolved as he parted her slick flesh and delved between her legs, his fingers and thumb gliding over her and into her and stroking her in all the right places.
‘Nadir, you—’
‘Imogen, habibi, you drive me—’
She shifted and he grunted, wedging his knee between her thighs to hold her upright while he parted his robes singlehandedly.
Imogen tried to bring her hands down to help him but he effortlessly held her high against the wall, his upper body powerfully hard beneath her fingertips and then he brought her down over the top of him and she heard a loud keening sound as his smooth, thick hardness opened her up and penetrated deep inside her body.
He swore. Maybe she did too and for a minute they were both completely still, suspended between two worlds, both adjusting to the exquisite sensation of being joined together.
Then he tangled one hand in her hair and tugged until her dazed eyes met his. The skin on his face was pulled tight, his eyes glittering with a hunger that sent shivers racing down her spine. Those eyes said that this time together would not be gentle or slow. That it would be fierce and urgent and uncontrolled. That she would feel him plunge into her with every fibre of her being and her body pulsed in anticipation.
‘Is this okay?’ His question was a panting growl and tinged with desperation as if he was having trouble holding himself back. ‘I mean you had a baby not long ago and—’
Imogen wound her legs around his waist and hugged him tight. Now that she had given herself over to this it was all she could do not to let the fire inside burn her up. ‘It’s fine. Please, Nadir—’
He crashed his mouth down over hers again, his tongue thrusting deep as he gave her what she craved and moved powerfully inside her. In no time at all Imogen felt her orgasm building and writhed against him, forcing him to press one hand against the wall to hold them both upright and then she was there, on the pinnacle of that exquisite release she had only ever experienced in his arms, their mouths fused together as if their lives depended on it. Imogen opened her eyes at that moment to find him watching her and the connection was so elemental it hurtled her over the edge into a place filled with bright lights and dizzying heights. And then it was all too much and she threw her head back and let her release rush through her on long exquisite pulses. Seconds later Nadir’s grip on her hips tightened to the point of pain and his thrusts grew brutal just before he threw his own head back and bellowed her name into the still night air.