No. His eyes flew open, narrowed. With a growl, he pushed her back against the bed. Pulling at her panties, he tugged them slowly down her legs and tossed them to the carpeted sand. He stroked her calves, her knees, then moved back upward, to her thighs. Gently, he pushed her legs apart.
He felt her tremble at being so exposed. She tried to close her knees.
“What are you doing?” she breathed.
“Surrender to me,” he whispered. And he lowered his head.
First, he kissed her inner thighs. Then he moved higher. Holding her against the mattress, he stretched her legs wide. For a moment, he just allowed her to feel the warmth and sensation of his breath. Then, very slowly, he moved his kisses to the core of her pleasure. She abruptly stopped struggling.
He took a long, delicious taste. “Like honey,” he murmured.
She gave a soft gasp beneath him. He licked her again, swirling his tongue lightly against her, then widening his tongue fully. He pushed a single thick fingertip an inch into her tight, wet core.
She cried out, writhing beneath him as she gripped the sheets. Licking her, sucking her hard nub, he thrust a second finger inside her gently, and she moved her hips unthinkingly, twisting in an agony of need. He lapped her with his tongue, swirling against her taut center, as he felt her tense up. Her back arched off the bed, higher, higher still, until she exploded with a scream of joy.
And just in time. His whole body was sweaty and aching from holding himself back. As she exploded in her pleasure, he could no longer wait. In a swift mindless movement, he drew back and positioned himself between her legs. Lowering his head, he kissed her mouth, and then thrust himself roughly inside her, sheathing himself deep, deep, deep.
CHAPTER EIGHT
JOSIE GASPED AGAINST his lips as he thrust inside her, and she felt an unexpected fleeting pain.
Still deep inside her, he did not move, allowing her to gently stretch to accommodate him. His mouth was motionless against hers in a suspended kiss as she grew accustomed to the now dulling pain. She barely heard the wind outside, or felt the soft mattress beneath her and the weight of him over her. She was overwhelmed by the huge feel of him inside her.
Then, keeping his body still, he flicked his tongue against hers, tantalizing her with a hot, seductive kiss as she grew accustomed to the thick feel of him, like silk and steel inside her. The pain receded, like a wave drawing back beneath her feet. He pressed his naked body over hers, cupping her face with one hand to kiss her more deeply, and her hand trailed down his shoulder to his back as pleasure began to build anew inside her.
She’d never known the pain would be so great—and yet so suddenly gone. She’d never known pleasure could be so intense, so explosive—and could just as suddenly begin again. Sex was a more intense experience than she’d ever imagined. It left her breathless and weak.
So did he.
Josie’s heart raced, pounding frantically in her throat, as she looked up at his handsome, sensual face. She’d been bold and daring enough to tell him the truth, and this was her reward. This.
Their hot, naked bodies twisted and moved together, sweaty, hard, sliding. She ran her hands down his chest, feeling his hard muscles and taut hollows. His body felt as amazing as it looked. Pulling him down against her, she kissed his shoulder, tasting and nibbling the salt of his skin.
With a shudder, Kasimir pushed her back against the bed, kissing down her throat. She gasped, tilting her head.
He finally began to move inside her, riding her. He filled her in a way she’d never imagined, deeper with each thrust. Her hands scratched slowly down his back, finally clutching his hard backside. She felt new tension inside her, coiled to spring. She felt the tautness of his muscles, heard the hoarse pant of his breath, and knew he was fighting to keep his body under control.
And she was causing that. She was the one driving him wild with desire. Her. Plain, frumpy Josie.
But she wasn’t that Josie anymore. He’d changed her. Or she’d changed herself. But either way, she’d become the woman she’d always known she was born to be. Brave. Reckless. Even a little wicked...
His eyes closed. His sensual lips parted in a silent gasp as he pushed inside her, filling her to the hilt, stretching her to the breaking point. He was trying not to hurt her, she realized. He was still holding himself back.
Reaching her arms around his shoulders, she dug her fingernails into his flesh and whispered, “Don’t be afraid.”
His eyes flew open. He looked down at her with a choked intake of breath.
Giving him a little smile, she ran her hand softly down his hard, muscular body. “Stop holding back.”
A growl came from the back of his throat, ending in a hiss. Pushing her back hard against the bed, he pushed more roughly inside her, riding her faster and deeper.
Now it was deepening pleasure. Their intertwined bodies tangled in desperate passion, clutching each other tightly as her hips lifted to meet each explosive thrust. Josie heard the hot wind howling outside and didn’t care if a sandstorm flung the tent up into the sky. She was already flying....
The new pleasure continued to soar, rising and surpassing the first. It was deeper and different and sharper than before. Clutching his shoulders, she hung on for dear life as the pleasure grew so big it was almost too much to bear. Finally, it exploded inside her. Sucking in her breath, she tossed back her head and screamed with joy, heedless of who might hear, as she fell, fell, fell, plummeting off the edge of reason.
In that same instant, she heard his low answering roar. He slammed inside her with one final deep thrust, gripping her tightly with a low hoarse shout.
His muscular, sweaty body was heavy as he collapsed on top of her. Rolling next to her on the bed, he clutched her to his heart. A smile traced Josie’s lips as she closed her eyes, pressing her cheek against his chest. She felt changed, reborn in his arms. She’d been born to be his wife....
It could have been minutes later, or hours, when Josie’s eyes flew open in the darkness. She realized she hadn’t just given her virginity to Kasimir tonight.
She’d given him her heart.
So this was how it was to fall in love. In all the books she’d read, all the movies she’d seen, she’d dreamed and wondered how it would be. What it would feel like, when she gave herself to a man completely.
It was like this. Overwhelming. Powerful. Sweet and full of longing. But also...
Terrifying.
Because loving him was an astoundingly simple thing to do. She’d been dazzled by him from the moment they’d met. Infatuated before they were wed. But now...she was in love. Truly and deeply in love for the first time.
Josie swallowed, slowly turning to look at the handsome face of the man sleeping beside her. One side of his face was turned toward the silver moonlight glowing softly through the white canvas. The other side of his face was in shadow, dark and harsh.
And that was Kasimir’s soul. This was the man she’d given herself to—body and heart. The man she loved had one side filled with light. This side encouraged, protected, demanded, respected. He was strong and calm in a crisis; he’d rushed to the side of the injured boy.
But Kasimir’s other half...was filled with darkness.
There are rumors about me, he’d said. That I am more than ruthless. That I am half-insane, driven mad by my hunger for revenge.
But loving him changed everything. She no longer wished to escape him. Or even to be his make-believe wife for a few weeks in a marriage of convenience.
Josie wanted to be his real wife. Always and forever. Complete with children and the white picket fence.
But Prince Kasimir Xendzov was not a white-picket-fence kind of man.
She turned her head, blinking back tears. Such a risk. Such a stupid risk. She loved the good in him—the man he’d once been, the man he could be again.
But the pain of past betrayals had warped his soul, turning him dark and ruthless. Giving him reason to keep the world at a distance. Her heart twisted in her chest.
Could she make him see that forgiving his brother wouldn’t be weakness, but strength—freeing him for a new life? Could she show him that the world could be so much more? She yearned to show him his life, his future, had just begun.
Just as hers had...
With a low sigh, she nestled closer to him in bed. His eyes remained closed, but his strong arms instinctively pulled her closer against the warmth of his body.
It felt so protective, so good. Closing her eyes, she pressed her cheek against his chest.
She would find a way. She yawned, safe and sleepy in his arms. Kasimir had changed her life.
For so long, Josie had been afraid. Since she was twelve, Bree had protected her like a mother hen, not letting her take risks, warning her about the evils of the world. Josie had listened. After all, Bree, older by six years, was the smart one. The strong one. Josie was the burden. The helpless, hapless one. The one who, just by being born, had caused her mother to die. What right did Josie have to ask for anything at all? What right to speak her mind, to make a fuss, to live her dreams?