31
When Nik’s lips met mine, my thoughts were consumed by him.
His mouth.
His skin.
His touch.
His presence was everywhere. He kissed me as if he was starving, devouring every inch of my skin with his mouth. My hands ran across his back and dipped under his t-shirt, exploring the hard planes of muscle there.
He pushed me back onto the bed, gasping as our mouths found each other’s again. My auburn hair swirled behind me on the black silk sheets. They felt cool against my burning, flushed skin.
“I love you, Diana,” Nik spoke into my mouth, “I love you.”
His mouth moved to my neck as he tasted everything in his path.
“I love you, too.” My voice was breathy, my hands buried in his hair.
Nik pulled back, meeting my gaze. “Tell me if you want me to stop.”
I gripped his shirt and pulled him back down to me, my voice gruff in his ear. “Don’t ever stop.”
Nik needed no further encouragement, his mouth finding mine once again as I pulled at his T-shirt. We broke apart for only a moment, long enough for me to slip the white fabric over his head and toss it to the floor.
A soft gasp escaped me as I saw the scars left behind from the battle marring his tanned skin. I ran a finger along the mark where the arrow had pierced him, reaching up to kiss the spot that could easily have taken his life if it had been an inch to the left. My hands traveled down his torso, goosebumps raising on his skin at my feather light touch.
He watched me, eyes blazing.
My fingers found the linear scar on his lower abdomen, the one that had come inches from taking his life. He had stopped breathing, and the thought of almost having lost him had tears swimming in my eyes once more.
“Diana, I’m fine. I’m fine. You saved me.” His voice cracked as his hand gripped mine, placing a kiss in the center of my palm.
He pinned that hand to the bed while my other explored him, my fingers running over his taut muscles. I explored the hard planes of his chest, moving my fingers down to the rippled muscles of his abdomen before reaching his belt.
My fingers stilled as I glanced up at him, a playful smile on my lips.
“Impatient,” he whispered.
His hand released mine, and I sat up halfway beneath him as he peeled my jacket and t-shirt off, tossing them to the floor. I laid back against the bed and his mouth found mine, his fingers exploring my skin.
His hand traveled from my neck down to my collarbone. It traced along my shoulder, over my breast and down to my navel. He parted my legs with his and slid his thigh between them, grinding against my core.
I let out a soft gasp and the corner of his mouth lifted into a smile.
“I want all of you, Diana.”
“You have all of me,” I told him. “Always.”
His fingers found the buttons of my jeans and I helped him pull them off, tossing them out of the way, too. I reached for the buckle of his belt, and this time he let me. He watched as I pushed the jeans off him, holding his gaze. He kicked them off before bending over me again.
“Black?” he asked, raising an eyebrow as he ran a finger under my bra strap.
A blush rushed to my cheeks as he played with the material.
“Intoxicating,” he whispered in my ear, placing a kiss against each flushed cheek.
His hips ground into mine, and I could feel the hard length of him between us. My hands moved to his back to pull him closer. The feel of his skin against mine set me on fire, and magic sparked to my fingertips of its own volition.
Nik’s eyes turned molten as he felt the heat from my fingertips, the faint sparks stinging his skin.
“Naughty little witch,” he crooned, his hand moving up my thigh, higher and higher. My core was liquid heat, his touch sending me into a frenzy.
He held my gaze as he dipped a finger under the rim of my underwear, exploring me for the first time. I let out a soft gasp as he immediately found the most sensitive place, his thumb working the bundle of nerves.
“Nik,” I breathed as I ground against him, my voice raspy.
“Do you like that, firecracker?”
“Yes,” I hissed, spreading my legs wider for him.
“That’s my good little witch.” His voice was soft in my ear as he kissed my jaw, his mouth moving to my neck.
He slipped a finger inside of me and I moved against him, wanting more. I was slick with desire, and Nik’s mouth curved into a smile that I could feel against my skin at the effect he had on me.
“You have no idea how many times I have thought about this,” he breathed against my skin.
“What else have you thought about?” I asked, my breathing rapid as he worked his fingers against me. Inside me.
He slipped another finger inside of me, and my hips bucked against him. I threw my head back, my eyes squeezing shut. I had never felt pleasure like this before.
“Eyes on me, firecracker, and I’ll show you.”
His reply was ragged as he lifted me, sliding the underwear off me. He sat back, taking his time pulling them down my legs. He planted a gentle kiss on my ankle before tossing the fabric to the floor.
His hand reached around my back to unhook my bra with one hand, and he tossed that to the floor as well.
I was left bare before him, and for a moment, a wave of self-consciousness rolled over me. I had never been entirely naked in front of anyone before. My eyes met his, and every trace of doubt was erased as I drank in his expression.
His mouth was parted as if on a sigh. He ran his tongue over his lips hungrily. His eyes were eager as they explored my body, traveling up to meet my gaze.
“So fucking beautiful,” he breathed.
I reached for the band of his underwear to slide them off, but he shook his head. “Not yet.”
His hands moved to my thighs where he gripped them, sliding me down on the bed closer to him. My legs were spread before him, and my breath caught in my throat as he planted a kiss on the inside of my knee, moving towards my center.
His eyes were on mine as he placed a final kiss on my thigh before kissing between my thighs. The feel of his tongue sent a shock through me, and I buried my hands in his hair. A soft moan escaped my lips as his tongue dipped inside of me, worked against me. He sucked on the most sensitive part of me, and I almost came undone, so close to the edge I was about to go rushing over.
“That feels so good,” I cried, my head thrown back.
He chuckled against me, the sound sending a vibration through my core. He slid a finger inside of me and continued to work me with his tongue, the feeling sending a rush of heat across my skin.
I was so close to the edge, about to go soaring over. Nik’s touch undid me, and I writhed beneath him.
“Nik I—” but my words were cut off as I went tumbling over the edge, my hands fisted in the sheets as I cried out, my head thrown back.
Wave after wave of pleasure pulled me under, and I bit my lip as his movements slowed. Nik lifted his head, licking his lips with a wicked smile. He licked each of his fingers, his eyes smoldering as they held mine.
“My turn,” I replied, sitting up and pushing him back against the bed.
His smile deepened as I straddled him, the center of me grinding into him. I kissed his neck, biting him gently as I moved down to his shoulder. My hardened nipples grazed against his chest as I ran my fingers along his abdomen, planting soft kisses in a trail towards his navel, my lips lingering on the scar that almost took his life.
My fingers hooked under the lip of his underwear, and I slid them off. He sprang free, and my mouth parted in surprise. He was bigger than I expected. I licked my hand before grabbing the length of him, my eyes on his.
At the first touch, his hips bucked against me, and he let out a soft moan, his head propped on his bent arm as he watched me. I slid my hand from base to tip, smearing the bead of liquid there with a grin.
“Wicked little witch,” he hissed, his eyes darkening.
My hand slid back and forth over him as I lowered my mouth to his skin, planting a trail of kisses across his stomach. My eyes were on his as my mouth found him, my tongue flicking over the tip of him, tasting him.
“Diana,” he growled, his hand in my hair.
“Do you like that?” I asked, my eyes blazing with desire.
“There is nothing I could love more,” he replied, his voice raspy as he watched me.
“Nothing?” my smile was sinful as I closed my mouth around him, taking more of him.
I used my hand to work him simultaneously, and Nik ran a hand through his hair before he fisted it in the sheets, his eyes never leaving mine.
I savored the salty taste of him and closed my eyes as I moved my mouth over him, taking as much of him as I could. Nik’s hand moved from the sheets to my hair, where he held firmly but gently as he guided my head over him.
I lifted my head, my eyes on his as I licked my lips, just as he had.
“You are going to undo me,” he growled as he grabbed me and flipped me over to lie on my back.
“I like the taste of you,” I whispered, digging my fingernails into his back as he pressed against me.
I could feel his hard length against my thigh, and I reached between us to grab hold of it again. I moaned as he thrust his hips against me, sliding his length over my core and the wetness there.
“So wet for me,” he crooned, his forehead against mine.
I lined him up with my center and my wide eyes met his.
“Are you sure, Diana?” he asked, his voice gentle, his breath smelling of cinnamon as it fanned across my face.
I nodded, my other hand moving to cup his cheek. “I’m sure. I want all of you, Nikolai.”
His eyes gleamed as he looked down at me. “I love you, Diana.”
“I’m yours,” I replied, releasing my hand from his length as he slowly pushed into me.
There was a pressure, then a sharp pain, my thighs gripping against him, my nails on his back. He stayed like that without moving, filling me, waiting for me to adjust to the feel of him inside of me. I ran my hands through his hair as I held his gaze. A calmness settled over me, as if there was nothing more right in the world.
Nik and I together.
I nodded softly, and he began to move, the pain becoming a dull ache, then disappearing entirely as I became accustomed to the feel of him. His strokes were gentle at first, but as I began to moan against him and dig my nails into his back, he quickened his pace. His hands were planted on either side of me, his face buried in my shoulder as he tasted my skin.
I squeezed my thighs against him as his movements turned to pleasure, the feel of him inside of me sending a hot wave coursing through me. I buried my hands in his hair as he kissed my neck, my jaw, my ear, my cheek. His mouth found mine again, and he kissed me ravenously, biting at my lips as I cried out.
With each thrust, it felt as though he was deeper and deeper within me. I couldn’t tell where I ended, and he began. We were moving together as one. It felt as if I could read his mind and he could read mine, each of us anticipating what the other wanted. Needed.
His hand found mine, and he interlaced our fingers, pinning my hand to the bed beside us. His other hand buried in my hair as he claimed my mouth with his. My cries turned to whimpers as my pleasure crested, a wicked grin across Nik’s face as he devoured my moans with his own mouth.
His breath quickened as did his pace, hitting a place within me that had me seeing stars behind my eyes before I fell over the cliff, grasping him tighter against me. My nails left scratches along his back as I caught my breath, giving his bottom lip a soft bite.
“You are so Goddamn perfect,” he growled in my ear, his hand releasing mine against the bed.
His hand found my ample breast, and he swirled the nipple between his fingers before his mouth found it, sucking gently.
My back arched off the bed as he thrust into me. His other hand moved to cup my rear, pressing me against him tighter and tighter as he chased his own release.
His body contracted, spasming as he cried out, and my mouth devoured his cries this time, wanting every part of him.
All of him.
The good and the bad.
Nik was complicated, but I wouldn’t ask for anything different. He was stubborn and arrogant, protective, and gentle.
And he was mine.
He bent over me, kissing the scar on my shoulder where the lightning had struck me. His lips lingered on my skin, his eyes meeting mine with a soft smile. He fell to the side of me, curling against me, his head propped on his arm against the pillow.
“I can’t believe you’re mine,” he whispered against my cheek, his arm around my shoulders as I pressed my back into him.
“I’m yours,” I promised softly, turning to place a light kiss on the tip of his nose.
Something was different in his eyes, as if they sparked with hope for the first time. Nobody had ever accepted all of Nik. There was always some piece out of place, something that felt as if it didn’t belong. His upbringing was complicated, he was always told he was never good enough.
But he was good enough for me.
More than good enough.
I curled into him, his legs sliding between mine as we tangled together in the sheets. A feeling of true, unadulterated peace settled over me, and I wanted to grasp it and hold on to it as long as I possibly could.
I wasn’t sure how much time had passed, or how many rounds we had gone by the time the sun ascended in the sky, draping the room in the soft glow of dawn.
A beam of sunlight crossed the room and fell across Nik’s face, illuminating his blond hair in its orange glow. His lashes were closed, softly fanning against his cheek, a soft smile across his lips.
Even in sleep, he appeared so peaceful.
I sighed deeply, wrapping myself into him before I finally let sleep take me.