Chapter 30 #3
His teeth nipped along her neck as his hand left her breast, her nipple pulsing from his playful teasing, and settled against her mid-section as if locking her against him.
Then his fingers made their way into the triangle of hair between her legs and brushed over the tender nub that sent shivers racing through her and her passion soaring.
“I love the feel of you,” he whispered, “your softness, your scent. You intoxicate me. I will never get enough of you.”
She gasped, his finger slipping inside her as she felt the strength of his manhood pressing against her.
“I can’t wait,” he murmured as if annoyed at himself and swiftly scooped her up into his arms and carried her to the bed. “We have the whole night, and I intend for us to spend most of it making love.”
Making love.
Not coupling, not mating, but making love. Could he truly mean that?
He lowered her down onto the bed but didn’t immediately join her. He stood looking down at her, his powerful frame outlined by the glow from the hearth, his gaze moving slowly over her.
Adira had learned quickly when Dravic desired her, perhaps it was because she felt it herself. But now she heard it in his voice, and it made such a difference.
“You are beautiful.”
Her breath caught.
Another word she was familiar with, but how?
The thought was lost to her when Dravic came down beside her, his hand settling against her face.
“Mine. You will always be mine.”
But will you always be mine?
The thought brought with it the ache that haunted her about a future with him. She hurried to push it away. She would not allow an uncertain future to steal a single moment she had with him.
Tonight was theirs.
Tomorrow belonged once again to the king.
Adira rested her hand against his chest, then let it wander slowly over him, down lower and lower.
“A brief touch that is all,” he said, resting his brow against hers.
She wanted more than a brief touch. She wanted to feel the strength of him in her hand, stroke him, and hear his low moans grow louder. She had always judged what pleased him by the tightening of his body or the way his hands moved over her. Now she could hear his pleasure.
She barely stroked his manhood when his hand stopped her and without a word being spoken, he slipped over. She spread her legs welcoming him and he slipped easily inside her.
They moved as one as if the rhythm was as old as time to them—slow, fast, wildly impatient. It didn’t matter. They remained in rhythm that built to a magnificent crescendo.
She never realized sound could bring such pleasure, her climax more intense hearing Dravic groan in satisfaction, and she smiled.
Later, when the urgency between them had gentled, Dravic held her close, his hand moving slowly over her back. Adira rested against him, listening to the heavy beat of his heart gradually slow.
She loved that sound. She loved his voice. She loved his strength and his stubbornness and even the commands he issued as though the entire world had been created to obey him.
She loved him.
The realization was nothing new. But hearing him had somehow made everything she felt for him more intense.
Dravic shifted and lifted her face to his.
There was something different in his expression. Something serious enough that Adira’s contentment faded.
Dravic needed to tell. Needed to make sure she understood. “I told you today that I would never let anyone take you from me.”
Adira’s heart began to beat harder.
“I meant it.”
She held his gaze.
Dravic had never been a man who needed many words. He commanded with a look, decided without hesitation and expected others to accept his decisions. But tonight he seemed to be searching for words.
“I have never needed a particular woman in my life. Any woman would do for the moment.”
Adira’s heart sank despite herself.
His hand tightened gently at her waist. “But I need you. I want you.”
She stared at him.
“I want you beside me when I wake. I want you there when the day ends. I want you arguing with me without saying a damned word and smiling when you know you’ve won.”
Her eyes began to sting with tears.
Dravic’s gaze grew more intense. “I don’t know when it happened. I only know there will be no going back from it.”
Adira felt as if her heartbeat stilled.
He drew her closer and pressed his hand to her chest, then tapped it. “I love you, Adira. Not just now, not this moment, but forever.”
The world seemed to disappear. Shock stole every thought from her, and she smiled and pressed her hand to his chest, then tapped it as a single tear fell from one eye.
Dravic smiled, a wide smile. “You understand and you love me as well.”
She nodded in response, pleased she could hear his declaration of love, but it was his smile that brought her such joy. Never had she seen him smile that broadly. Their love made him truly happy.
He brushed the single tear away. “Forever, my love. Our love will be forever.”
She threw her arms around him and held him with all the strength she possessed.
Tonight belonged to them… a man and a woman in love.
Tomorrow she would wake in the arms of the king.