Chapter 29
TWENTY-NINE
LEO
“Leo…” Her voice was uncertain now, a hint of vulnerability creeping in. Her arms moved to cover herself.
He caught her wrists gently, pinning them to the mattress beside her head. “Don’t hide from me.”
“I’m not—”
“You are.” He lowered his head to press a kiss to her collarbone.
He proved it with his mouth.
Leo kissed his way down her body with methodical thoroughness.
The hollow of her throat, where her pulse raced against his lips. The curve of her shoulder. The swell of her breasts above the edge of her bra, soft skin that made the predator inside him rumble with want.
He unclasped the bra with steady fingers, drawing it away, and Junie’s breath caught. Her nipples were already peaked, flushed pink and perfect. He cupped one breast in his palm, testing the weight of it, watching her face as his thumb brushed across the sensitive tip.
Her back arched. “Oh—”
“Good?”
“Don’t stop.”
He didn’t. He lowered his mouth to her breast and sucked her nipple between his lips, rolling it with his tongue while his hand worked the other. Junie’s fingers tangled in his hair, pulling him closer, her hips moving restlessly against him.
“Leo, please—”
He switched to the other breast, giving it the same attention.
She made sounds—soft moans and gasped pleas that went straight to his cock.
He was painfully hard, straining against his slacks, but he ignored his own need.
This was about her. About learning every response, every sound, every place that made her fall apart.
He kissed down her stomach, pausing to explore the dip of her navel, the jut of her hipbones. Her jeans were an obstacle he eliminated with quick efficiency, sliding them down her legs and tossing them aside.
She lay beneath him in nothing but black cotton underwear, her skin flushed, her hair fanned across the pillow in wild tangles. The scent of her arousal was strong, intoxicating, making the beast inside him pace with impatience.
“You’re still dressed,” she pointed out, her voice breathless. “That’s not fair.”
“I’ll catch up.” He hooked his fingers in the waistband of her underwear. “Lift your hips.”
She complied, and he drew the fabric down her legs, revealing her completely. For a moment, Leo looked. The thatch of auburn curls between her thighs. The slick evidence of her want. The way her legs fell open for him, trusting and eager.
“You’re staring again.”
“Savoring.” He pressed a kiss to the inside of her knee. Then higher, to the soft skin of her inner thigh. “Tell me if you want me to stop.”
“I will literally hex you if you stop right now.”
He laughed against her skin and continued his path upward.
The first touch of his tongue made her cry out.
Leo groaned at her taste—salt and sweet and purely Junie. He licked a broad stroke through her folds, learning the shape of her, and felt her thighs tremble on either side of his head.
“Oh god, Leo—”
He explored her with thorough patience. Long, slow licks that had her squirming against the sheets. Quick flicks against her clit that made her gasp. He learned what made her moan and what made her whimper, logging every response with the same attention to detail he brought to everything important.
When he found her entrance with his tongue and pressed inside, she nearly came off the bed. He held her hips down with one arm, keeping her still while he worked her with his tongue, tasting her arousal, feeling her body clench around him.
“Please, please, please—”
He moved his mouth to her clit, circling it slowly, teasing. Building her higher without letting her fall. She growled desperate sounds, her fingers tangled in his hair, tugging hard enough to sting in the best way.
He slid one finger inside her, groaning at the tight heat that gripped him. She was so wet, so ready, and the creature inside him roared at him to take, to claim, to bury himself in her and never let go.
“More.” She gasped. “Leo, I need—”
He added a second finger, curling them to find the spot that made her whole body clench. There. Right there. He stroked it in rhythm with his tongue, building her higher, listening to her breathing go ragged and desperate.
“Leo, I’m going to…I can’t—”
He didn’t let up. His fingers worked inside her, his tongue relentless on her clit, and he felt the moment she broke. Her inner walls clamped around his fingers, her thighs clenched around his head, and she cried out his name as the orgasm crashed through her.
He worked her through it, gentling his touch as the waves subsided, pressing soft kisses to her inner thighs as she came down. Only when her body stopped trembling did he lift his head, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
She was sprawled boneless against the sheets, breathing hard, eyes glazed with pleasure.
“That was…” She seemed to struggle for words, her voice wrecked. “I can’t feel my legs.”
“Good.” He crawled up her body, dropping kisses along the way—her hip, her stomach, the valley between her breasts. “That was the goal.”
“Your turn.” Her hands found his shirt, still mostly buttoned. “Off. Now. I want to touch you.”
She undressed him with the same focused intensity he’d shown her.
His shirt went first, her fingers making quick work of the buttons before pushing the fabric off his shoulders.
Her hands dropped to his belt, and his breath caught. She worked the buckle open, then the button of his slacks, then the zipper. When her fingers brushed against his erection through the thin cotton of his boxers, his hips jerked involuntarily.
“Sensitive.” She observed with a wicked smile.
“It’s been a while since anyone—” He broke off as she stroked him through the fabric. “Junie.”
“Hmm?”
“If you keep doing that, this will be over embarrassingly fast.”
“Can’t have that.” But she gave him one more stroke before hooking her fingers in his waistband. “Lift.”
He helped her remove the last barriers between them, kicking off his slacks and boxers until he was as bare as she was. Her eyes traveled down his body with obvious appreciation, lingering on his cock where it stood hard and eager against his stomach.
“Oh,” she said softly. “That’s…”
“Is there a problem?”
“No problem.” Her tongue darted out to wet her lips. “A distinct lack of problems. Very much not a problem.”
“You’re rambling.”
“I ramble when I’m impressed.” She reached out, wrapping her fingers around his length, and his vision went white at the edges. “Very, very impressed.”
Leo groaned. Her grip was perfect—firm enough to be felt, gentle enough to tease. She stroked him slowly, experimentally, learning what made him gasp and twitch.
“Junie.” His voice was a growl. “I need to be inside you. Now.”
“Then what are you waiting for?”
He positioned himself at her entrance and paused.
One breath. Two. The head of his cock pressed against her slick heat, and it took every ounce of his remaining control not to thrust forward and bury himself to the hilt. She was so wet, so ready, the evidence of her arousal coating him as he held himself at her entrance.
“Leo.” Her legs wrapped around his hips, trying to pull him closer. “Please. I need you.”
“Look at me.”
Her eyes met his. Green and dark and wanting.
“I’ve got you.” His voice came out rough with restraint. “Whatever happens. I’ve got you.”
He pushed forward.
The first inch made them both groan. She was tight—impossibly, perfectly tight—her body stretching to accommodate him as he pressed deeper. He went slowly, giving her time to adjust, watching her face for any sign of discomfort.
But there was no discomfort in her expression. Only pleasure—her mouth falling open, her eyes going half-lidded, her nails digging into his shoulders as he filled her. He sank deeper, inch by inch, feeling her body welcome him.
When he was fully seated inside her, they both went still.
“Oh.” Junie’s voice was barely a whisper. “That’s… you feel…”
“I know.” He pressed his forehead to hers, breathing hard, his whole body trembling with the effort of staying still. “I know.”
The sensation was overwhelming. Not the physical alone—the tight, wet heat of her wrapped around him, gripping him, the way her body fit against his like they’d been made for each other—but a feeling deeper than that.
Completion. Every choice he’d made, every path he’d walked, had led him here. To this woman. To this moment.
The beast inside him was silent for once. Not pressing, not demanding. Present. Reverent. As awed as Leo was by this.
“Move.” Junie breathed, her hips shifting beneath him.
He moved.