38. THIRTY-EIGHT
THIRTY-EIGHT
Mina
Darius’s self-control shatters the second the command leaves my mouth. His lips crash against mine with a hunger that makes me dizzy. I trace his jaw with my nose and kiss my way down his throat. He smells so fucking good all the time, like cedar and sunshine.
I run the tip of my tongue along the pulse point in his neck and feel his answering groan deep in my belly. He turns his head, recapturing my mouth as he grabs my ass and hauls me closer.
He grinds his thick length against my center, and it’s my turn to moan. “Bed. Now,” I manage to get out.
He chuckles, locking my legs around his torso before he lifts us both. Eager fingers pry the wet chemise from my body. He throws it on the floor between the bath and bed as if it personally offends him.
I trace the hard lines of his abs, following a long scar down until my fingers hit his pants. I slip the tip of one finger into the waistband and pull. “These. Are in the way,” I say between kisses.
He sets me down and steps back, pinning me in place with a hungry look as he peels the soaked cotton down his corded thighs.
He’s perfection. Sculptors would pay a queen’s ransom to capture even a fraction of him in stone. His arousal, free from the fabric, makes my core clench. He always felt large, but this? Seeing it unrestrained is different.
I can’t decide what I want more at the moment: to taste him or to ride him.
His gaze explores my body until it catches on my breasts. He stalks closer, carefully tracing the curve of my waist with his callused fingertips. The whisper of a touch leaves fire in its wake.
I have never felt so desired or so hungry for another person, and now that I’m done pretending I don’t care, my need for him takes over.
I kiss him, rising on my toes to reach around his neck and pull him closer. Darius nips at my bottom lip before his tongue finds mine. My nipples graze his chest, sending waves of heat lower. He palms my ass and growls.
“You don’t know how many times I’ve thought about punishing this perfect ass. Every time you ran off without a guard. Every time you broke protocol.”
He slaps my cheek lightly, but I can picture the sharp sting as if he used his full force. I press back against his rough palm. “Is that supposed to discourage my behavior?” I whisper.
His eyes grow impossibly darker, eating up the forest brown I love so much. There’s a wicked promise in his gaze.
I think I’ll be breaking protocol a lot more often.
Darius gently grabs my chin and kisses my smirk away. My pulse stutters when he traces the curve of my hip, slowly dipping between my thighs. My knees go weak as he teases the area around my clit.
“Already so wet for me?” A small laugh escapes his kiss, so I reach one hand between us and grip him in retaliation.
Darius’s surprised grunt quickly morphs into a moan, and it’s my turn to tease him.
My fingertips barely touch as I stroke the length of his silky skin.
My mouth waters, but before I can drop to my knees and finally get a taste, he rips my hand away.
My protest dies as he picks me up and throws me back on the soft bed. He crawls over me, keeping his body from mine but hovering close enough to drive me mad.
I try to pull him closer, but he pins my arms above my head. Stormy eyes trace my breasts and stomach until they land on my thighs.
“Open,” he commands, nudging my knees apart with his. The raw desire in his gaze unleashes a thousand butterflies in my stomach. I instinctively clench my thighs back together.
Darius leans back, resting his chin on the top of my raised knee. “Still with me, Mina?”
I nod, words lost in the pounding of my heart. He peppers kisses over the top of my knee, moving up the outside of my thigh, then over my stomach, ending at my mouth. His adoration eats away some of my nerves.
“Still with me?” I ask.
I feel the raw hunger in his laugh all the way in my toes. “Always.”
The admission hangs between us, and his eyes soften before a wolfish grin takes over. He resumes his kisses, but they are rougher this time. Hungrier.
He palms my breasts, running a callused thumb over the stiff peaks until I’m writhing beneath him. His lips trail down the side of my neck, nipping and teasing.
I moan as his hot tongue circles my sensitive nipples. He sucks lightly at first, then with more force as his hands trace my thighs. Everywhere he touches is on fire. A sweet burn that consumes me from the inside out.
Darius kisses a path from my stomach to my right thigh. He glances up through thick lashes, waiting for permission. There’s safety in his heated gaze that makes me want to give him control.
I nod, letting him pull my knees apart.
“Good girl,” he teases. His focus falls to the apex of my thighs and all his humor dies.
His tongue darts out for a taste and I gasp, my hips bucking forward. He licks perfect little circles around my clit, his moan vibrating against the sensitive flesh. It feels so fucking good.
If this man ever stops touching me, I might die.
“Darius.” I hate how breathy I sound, but the fact I can remember my own name right now is a feat.
“You taste even better than I dreamed.”
He alternates between open-mouthed kisses and precise licks, devouring me until I can’t help but ride his face. I wind my fingers through his silky locks and hold on as he slides one finger inside me, then another.
He slowly curls them in and out, matching the pace to each languid pass of his tongue. He starts to work me faster, pressing his long fingers into that sweet spot that makes me see stars.
“Darius,” I gasp.
“I’ve got you.” He sucks on my clit and the pressure building in my core detonates. My toes curl into the sheets as I pulse around his fingers. Waves of pleasure race through me, stronger than anything I ever achieved on my own.
He licks me leisurely, curling his fingers while I ride out my orgasm.
I tug on his hair, urging him toward me. I sit up, meeting him halfway with a kiss that grows deeper by the second. He slides his cock against my wet folds and I nearly come again. I need him to fuck me properly.
Darius rolls us over until I’m straddling his thighs. I slide forward, grinding against his length, but he grabs my hips to stop me.
“Mina. If you’re satisfied, you don’t have to reciprocate.”
His cock jumps beneath me, and despite his desperate need for release, I know he would end things here if I wished it.
That truth only makes me want him more.
I lean down and kiss him, savoring his kindness. Darius is commanding but giving. Stubborn, yet entirely unselfish. My chest constricts with a sweet sensation.
My usually witty remark dies on my lips as I rock against his length.
“Need you still.”
My admission coaxes a satisfied growl from my husband. He reaches up and grazes my nipple with his teeth, and I suck in a shocked breath. Fuck, that feels good. He grins up at me, soothing his bite with his tongue.
He watches me with equal parts hunger and pride as I line him up with my opening. I slide down slowly, the sweet stretch of his cock almost too intense. I adjust with each inch and let out a blissful sigh when he’s fully seated.
I plant a quick kiss on his lips before I rise up and slam back down with a roll of my hips. Darius lets out a strangled noise. His fingers dig into my thighs, holding me in place.
“Fuck. Hang on.”
His eyes squeeze closed in a pained moment of concentration. He won’t allow me to move at all while he takes a few deep breaths. When he opens his eyes, I flash him a wicked grin.
I flex my inner muscles, pulsing around him over and over, milking him until his patience snaps.
“Mina,” he growls. “Mina.”
My name on his lips, breathless and rough like a curse and a blessing in one, is enough to drive me wild. He runs his palm along my hips, then the flat of my stomach, and higher until it rests at my throat.
His thumb traces my lips with reverence while his other hand continues to lock me in place against him.
“I should have known you’d fuck like you fight,” he says.
The last time I straddled him like this, my blade was against his throat. “What? You don’t like it when I’m on top?”
His eyes darken as he smirks. “If you recall, I liked it that day too.”
I nip at his thumb, laughing at the memory. The sound vibrates between us and I clench around his length, desperate to move. Darius slowly releases his grip on my hip, and I drag both of his hands to my breasts in a silent command.
I slide forward, riding him in earnest. His hips snap up to meet mine, hitting the sweet spot deep within as he tweaks my nipples. Our pace is frantic, desperate, making up for lost time.
I fall against his chest, my orgasm crashing through me like a lightning storm, stealing my breath with each strike. Darius’s hips snap up a few more times before he follows me over the edge.
I’m lightheaded and exhausted in the best way. I smile as Darius plants little kisses on my shoulder and neck. I turn and bring our lips together. The kiss is sweet and chaste in comparison, but no less passionate.
Our erratic pulses keep time as he smiles at me. A real smile. Unsheltered and unlike any he’s shared before.
He is breathtaking.
Forget the sword. Darius could’ve built his empire on that look alone.
I run my fingers through his hair, relishing the fact that his silky locks are finally unkempt, but no less perfect. Somehow the ruggedness only makes him more handsome.
He rolls us onto our sides and pulls me closer. Neither of us is in much of a hurry to move, this moment too wonderful to spoil with reality outside these walls. I snuggle into his chest and relax to the rhythm of his steady heartbeat.
I can’t believe I ever thought this was a bad idea. Darius’s presence in every aspect of my life is a natural fit, our broken pieces aligning to form something whole again.
The future holds so many uncertainties, but for now, we deserve to enjoy this. Even if it ends in heartbreak or an ocean between us. This doesn’t change our plans, but as I press my lips to his heart, I say a silent prayer that maybe this will change what happens after.