20. Chapter 20
Chapter 20
Zoric saw the cloth falling away from Angela in strips and he had the vague feeling he should apologize to her for it.
Eventually.
Certainly neither of them seemed interested in apologies or words as they explored each other’s flesh. Buttons popped as she pushed his shirt off so she could feel his scales with her lips and fingertips. Strong arms around his shoulders pulled her up so she could bite his neck the way she had in the dream and he nearly lost it right there.
The slow, deliberate pace they'd enjoyed on the plane had given way to a frantic need to be closer that he couldn't regret. Desire sang along their Bond and Zoric embraced it. Whatever reservations Angela had felt had burned away in the heat between them.
"I want to taste you," he growled against her ear.
"So taste me," she said, her voice breathy with desire. "I need you."
His tongue licked over her neck and collarbone, picking up the taste of sweat and hormones that he'd missed in the dream. The delicate texture of her skin called to him and he took a slower lick, savoring every flavor and nuance.
Her hands roamed over his back and chest, pulling him against her until it was a struggle to move without her scraping his chin over her delicate skin.
So he did.
The scales on his skin scraped gently at the flesh of her plump breasts and he opened his mouth to gently nip and the mounded flesh when he closed his hands around them. She squealed with delight tinged with a breathless anticipation of pain. The tiny hint of pain shocked her but he could only feel her pleasure across their Bond.
His tongue flicked out and around her nipple before he pulled it between his lips. He couldn't properly suck on them but she didn't seem to mind the pressure and stretch when pulled just slightly until they popped out of his mouth.
More , she demanded across their Bond, then pulled his head back down to her breasts.
Zoric chuckled as he complied, more than willing to accommodate all her demands and desires. He laid her down on the bed, finding it more by feel than sight, and let his hands roam over her body while he indulged his senses in her.
The taste of her skin was intoxicating, every lick and pull of her nipples released more of her scent until he was nearly drowning in it. The sounds she made as he drove her pleasure higher pushed his own until they were caught in a mounting spiral of desire and need.
Eventually, he pulled away from her nipples and worked his way further down, lapping at the skin of her belly, savoring every inch as he worked his way lower to the moist center of her desire.
Her legs trembled and he could feel her anticipation through their Bond. He needed to taste her there almost as much as she wanted him to. Slow, deliberate licks across the top of her mound had her thrusting her hips up until his tongue slipped between her folds.
Pleasure exploded across his tongue as she moaned, then flooded through his body as she shared what every stroke did to her. He discovered the bundle of nerves that set her legs twitching, where it was connected to other nerves that exploded with a gentle pressure from his hand, effectively keeping her pinned in place for his enjoyment.
She'd screamed herself hoarse before he could drag himself away. When he did, she was truly a feast for his senses. Her skin was flushed all over, breath ragged, lips plump and rosy from their earlier kiss, hair disheveled from writhing across the bed, and limbs spread and open for him.
His kilt was still on and he remembered how she'd shivered when the leather from his traditional attire had scraped against her skin in her dream. He covered her with his body, the wool from his kilt rubbing against her soft inner thighs, and she shivered.
With a tender lick along her neck, Zoric let her feel the weight of him between her thighs. Her desire for him sang across their Bond, and he shared how much he needed what was going to happen next.
"We have unfinished business," he breathed against her ear, and she shivered.
"Yes, we do," she answered, and kissed along his cheek and chin. Everywhere she could reach felt the press of her lips and he sank into the soft feelings that accompanied the actions. As heated and passionate as they had been so far, he hadn't expected tenderness from her, not just then.
"Are you ready for me?" he asked. The question was rhetorical because he knew just how prepared she was for him. But he wanted to hear her say it, wanted to hear how much she wanted him inside her.
"Yes," she answered. "I think I might die if you don't take me soon."
"Oh," he said with a chuckle. "We can't have that, can we?"
She shook her head, her eyes sparkling with heat and humor.
With a lift of his hips, Zoric pushed the kilt out of the way and positioned himself at her entrance. She was so soft and warm, he couldn't help but let his head slip in, then he pushed a little more.
Whatever Angela had thought he felt like in her dream, she still wasn't expecting the stretch as he pushed into her. Her breath hitched and her eyes rolled back as he invaded her to her very core. He bottomed out just as the last of him was welcomed into her heat and he felt the satisfaction of knowing they were made for each other.
As satisfied as she'd been by his tongue, hunger woke in her as soon as she was filled, and Zoric was happy to give her everything he could. He opened his side of their Bond completely and let her feel everything he felt as he started to move inside her.
Her first orgasm crashed over them, pulling a surprised gasp from Angela's throat, and Zoric grinned with satisfaction. A few moments later, the second one crashed through her and across their Bond, drawing a pained sound from his throat.
They had just gotten started and he wanted to make it last. If she kept pushing him closer to the edge, it would be over far too quickly. So, as loathe as he was to do so, he muted her reactions across their Bond, determined to only use them as a guide for what she wanted.
It didn't work as well as he wanted it to because he was still lost in his own pleasure, surrounded by the softest part of her, and flooded with all her emotions.
Desire and need were at the front, as they were for him, but an unexpected tenderness lay beneath it all, and another emotion he hesitated to give a name to, in case naming it caused it to disappear into the ether.
They were racing for the finish, both of them determined to take the other over with them, when a sudden memory of what had happened last time flashed through him. Fear made him stutter, breaking the rhythm that was driving over them, and pulling them both back from the precipice.
"What's wrong?" Angela gasped, though he could tell she knew.
"Nothing," he lied. But it wasn't really a lie, was it? There wasn't anything actually wrong. He just couldn't bring them both over that edge.
"Why did you stop?" she asked.
"Are you okay?" he asked instead of answering. He felt her searching along their Bond for the answer and he shut it down. Somehow, Angela knowing that he was scared was worst than not finishing.
"I'm fine," she told him, her hand stroking down his cheek. "Just worried about you."
She knew. He didn't know how she knew but she did.
"I'm fine," he said, and he knew it was a lie.
Angela stared at him for a long moment, her legs tightening around him when she shifted just slightly. They both moaned with the feel of her moving around him and he thought he might be able to get there after all.
"I think we should call Ae-cha," she told him.
It was like a bucket of cold water had been splashed down his back. Why would she want to call the lizardwoman in there? Was he not enough? Had all the pleasure he'd given her been ruined by the last few minutes?
"If you want to, certainly," he said. "Though I don't think you're her type."
He wasn't sure where that had come from but the hurtful words had spilled from him like poison. Angela's mouth set in a firm line and she pushed against his chest. When he slipped out of her this time, it felt like he'd failed.
She stood and grabbed his shirt, wrapping it around herself when she saw how many of the buttons were missing.
"Ae-cha!" she called, moving to open the door.
Zoric grabbed her and pulled her away from the door. She didn't fight him and he loved the way she melted against him. "I' fine, we don't need to call her," he insisted.
"Did something happen?" Ae-cha called from outside the door. "It smells like everything is fine."
"It was," Angela said. "But then it wasn't. Please come in."
How she could invite someone else into their room while he was still naked and holding her, Zoric couldn't understand. But Ae-cha didn't wait for a second invitation.
She gave them a cursory look before moving the clothes that had landed on the bench at the foot of the bed and sitting down.
"What happened? Are you okay, Angela?"
"I'm fine," Angela said. "But Zoric isn't."
"I'm fine," Zoric argued.
"Things were going great until we got to the part where we were interrupted last time. Then something went wrong and we stopped. It might just be nerves-"
Zoric growled. He was not nervous about consummating his relationship with Angela. He was willing, eager even.
"It might be," Ae-cha agreed. Both of the women ignored his growl. "But with everything else that's been going on, it's better to be certain."
"I am certain," Zoric started.
Ae-cha nodded. "I'm sure you are. Now, relax, you might feel a slight pinch."
He was hit by the full force of Ae-cha's mind. It was disorienting at first, then it was increasingly uncomfortable, like he'd been invaded against his will. Which he had, though he could tell she was attempting to be gentle.
Then he felt it. The slimy, oily wriggle of something that didn't belong in his brain. It was familiar and he realized why he hadn't been able to catch the invasive thought earlier. When he'd thought it had disappeared, it had actually jumped to the last place he would have thought to look for it.
Ae-cha was not gentle about removing it and he felt like part of his brain was being pulled out of his skull.
"Nasty and sloppy," she said with disgust. "And it probably left some damage behind."
"Can you tell who did it?" Angela asked.
"They didn't sign their name," Ae-cha said. "But it was the same person as last time. I think I have an idea."
"Are we safe to try again?"
Zoric knew what Angela was really asking. Were there any more of the evil, intrusive snake-like thoughts.
After a long moment, Ae-cha shook her head. "Hydrate first. And let me get out of the house before you do."